The Ming Dynasty: Starting with the border troops, it was overthrown and the Qing Dynasty was destro

Chapter 119 The city is broken
Inspired by the exemplary conduct of the local official Xie Xiangwen, the garrison troops and militia finally recovered from their rout.

Yes, where else can they run to?

Behind this city wall are their wives, children, and elderly parents.

If the city falls, do you really expect these bandits to show mercy?

They didn't want to die, and they certainly didn't want to end up like those pathetic creatures in the moat outside the city, not even leaving behind a complete corpse, becoming rotten mud to fill the river.

Rather than running away cowardly and ending up with your family destroyed, it's better to fight to the death!
"Defend our homeland!"

"Brothers! Let's fight the bandits together with our elderly parents!"

Thus, the defending troops and militia, who had begun to scatter, turned around and rejoined the battlefield.

The defenders picked up the long shields left behind by their comrades and, with all their might, rammed them into several bandits who had just climbed the city wall.

The bandits, unable to maintain their footing, screamed as they were forcefully pushed down, crashing heavily to the ground below the city walls, their bones broken and tendons snapped.

The militiamen once again shouldered the heavy rolling stones and logs, continuously throwing them down the city wall.

Some even tore off the wooden planks and purlins of the corner towers, their eyes red, and used all their strength to smash them down on the bandits swarming up the city below!
The city walls once again became a bloody meat grinder.

Zhang, the county magistrate, who had almost fled with the crowd, breathed a long sigh of relief upon seeing the scene before him.

He wiped the cold sweat from his forehead and sighed with lingering fear:

"In times of crisis, we still have to rely on our elderly parents!"

"If it were anyone else, they probably wouldn't have been able to stop this collapse by now."

He looked at Xie Xiangwen's upright figure with immense admiration.
"Alas, if all the civil and military officials of our Great Ming Dynasty were like this county magistrate, how could we have allowed these mere bandits to grow so powerful and cause today's disaster?"

Just as the county magistrate was secretly relieved, thinking that he had stabilized the situation, a bugle call sounded in the city.

The bugle call was not loud and was quickly drowned out by the shouts of battle and the roar of cannons from the city walls.

Almost everyone's attention was drawn to the tense battle in front of them, and no one noticed the brief bugle call.

What they didn't expect was that Jiang Han inside the city had already gathered his troops and was quietly approaching the city gate.

At the city gate, the garrison commander was leading his men in dismantling houses and removing tiles, working up a sweat.
"Quick! Quick! Bring the roof beam over here!"

"And bricks and stones, pile them all up and block the city gate!"

He kept directing the garrison and militia, trying to use these bricks, tiles, and beams to completely seal the city gate and prevent the enemy soldiers outside from breaking in.

Just then, the garrison commander suddenly noticed a group of armored soldiers rushing out from a street corner not far away, heading straight for the city gate.

The garrison commander looked closely and saw that the soldiers opposite him were all wearing identical cloth armor. He was overjoyed.
"Reinforcements?!"

"The reinforcements arrived so quickly."

Upon realizing this, the smile on his face instantly froze.

wrong!

Kelan County is more than 100 li away from Jingle County.

The messengers sent out to request help probably haven't even reached the gates of Jing Le yet!
Where did these people come from? Could they be a reserve force left behind by the county magistrate?
Before the garrison commander could figure it out, Li Laowai had already rushed in front of him.

Which department are you from?

The garrison commander instinctively opened his mouth as if to ask a question.

But the answer he received was a cold, sharp steel knife!

puff!

Li Laowai grinned maliciously and plunged a knife into his chest.

The commander stared wide-eyed at the steel blade in his chest in disbelief, then his body went limp and he collapsed to the ground.

Only then did the soldiers and laborers who were still moving bricks, stones, and beams realize what was happening.

"Enemy attack!"

In a panic, everyone dropped the bricks and stones they were holding and drew their knives, attempting to resist.

Unfortunately, it was too late. Hundreds of fierce and burly border soldiers surrounded them and easily wiped them out.

After clearing out the city gate's defenses, Jiang Han and Li Laowai split up into two groups, one on the left and one on the right, and attacked upwards along the stone steps of the city wall.

On the stone steps, a young archer was intently drawing his bow and nocking an arrow, firing at the enemy soldiers below the city, completely unaware of the footsteps behind him.

As Jiang Han approached, his heart tightened. Just as he was about to turn around, he saw a garlic-shaped mace coming fiercely at him.

click!
A dull cracking sound rang out, and the archer didn't even utter a sound before his head was smashed to pieces like a watermelon, with blood and brain matter spurting out.

The archer's body went limp and he tumbled forward, falling straight down the edge of the battlement and getting a bloody mess.

Several militiamen who were working together to move the logs were terrified by the sudden turn of events and the bloody scene.

The group let out a strange cry, dropped the logs they were holding, and turned to run away.

"There's an inside accomplice among the rebels!"

In the chaos, someone shouted something, and the garrison and militia turned their attention back to the stone steps behind them.

But Jiang Han and his men had already reached them and were about to storm the city walls.

Xie Xiangwen, who was overseeing the battle from the city wall, also noticed the commotion at the stone steps.

Seeing the situation was turning against him, he grabbed the Ming-character banner from the city wall and roared:
"quick!"

"Come with me! Block the stairwell!"

"We absolutely cannot let the enemy soldiers occupy the city walls!"

At his command, he took the lead, holding the Ming banner, and charged headlong towards the direction from which Jiang Han and the others were coming!

Seeing his elderly parents so fearless, the dozens of guards and militiamen closest to Xie Xiangwen also followed closely behind.

They surrounded Xie Xiangwen like stars around the moon.

Meanwhile, the other garrison troops in the distance, though unable to hear the orders, also surged forward upon seeing the Ming banner fluttering in the wind, forming a torrent that continuously assaulted Jiang Han's troops.

The space on the city wall was already narrow, making it impossible to form a battle formation. Although Jiang Han brought more than two hundred people, only a dozen or so actually engaged the enemy.

With nowhere left to retreat, the two sides were like meat grinders, locked in a bloody melee at the narrow stairwell.

Jiang Han swung the mace in his hand and casually smashed the chest of the guard in front of him, but as soon as the man fell, the people behind him immediately stepped forward and refused to give an inch.

Inspired silently by that banner, the garrison and militiamen displayed astonishing resilience!
People kept falling to the ground, and people kept coming up to take their place.

The blood stained the blue bricks beneath his feet, making them sticky and causing Jiang Han to lose his balance.

Looking at the dense crowd before him, he wished he had a thunderbolt in his hand.

Unfortunately, in their haste to leave, they left all of this stuff in the supply depot.

At this moment, Jiang Han finally understood why being the first to scale the walls was the foremost of the four military merits.

He was already struggling to move an inch from the city wall, facing the onslaught of the crowd, let alone the soldiers who had to climb ladders to scale the walls.

Those soldiers who made the first ascent not only had to dodge rolling stones and logs, as well as flying arrows and stray arrows, but also had to face the desperate counterattack of the defending troops after reaching the top of the wall.

Only true warriors can hold the city walls, providing a safe zone for the soldiers who will scale the walls later.

What made Jiang Han feel even more constrained was that he only had an ordinary cloth armor, which had limited defensive capabilities, so he dared not risk his life too much.

This also prevented Jiang Han from breaching the city walls and gaining a foothold for a long time.

Fortunately, he was not fighting alone.

With Xie Xiangwen and most of the garrison keeping an eye on him, Li Laowai on the right flank had a much easier time.

Li Laowai, leading another group of men, encountered almost no resistance and easily scaled the city wall.

He swept through the enemy lines like a whirlwind, scattering the defenders and militia on the right side of the city wall and successfully seizing control of that half of the wall. "Hahaha! Brothers! This part of the wall is ours!"

Li Laowai roared excitedly, kicking the stubborn defender in front of him off the city wall.
"Quickly! Leave some men to clear the ramparts and provide cover for the soldiers below."

"The rest of you, follow me and charge over there! Let's shove that old bastard's ass in!"

With Li Laowai successfully occupying the right side of the city wall and beginning to actively provide support, a safe foothold was finally established.

Wang Jiayin's soldiers continued to scale the city walls, and the scales of victory began to tip rapidly.

The defending troops and militiamen were forced into retreat by the menacing band of rebel soldiers.

Left with no other choice, they had to drop their weapons and kneel down in surrender.

Seeing that the situation was hopeless and the city was about to fall, Zhang, the county magistrate who had been by Xie Xiangwen's side, turned pale.

He quickly grabbed Xie Xiangwen in front of him and urgently advised:

"Your Excellency, run! We can't hold out any longer!"

Xie Xiangwen smiled bitterly and glanced at the surrounding city walls.

Everywhere you look, there are enemy soldiers, and everywhere you see the desperate faces of your own soldiers and militia.

"run?"

Xie Xiangwen pushed away Magistrate Zhang's hand, his voice not loud, but unusually firm.

"Where else can I run to?"

"I told you long ago, if the enemy soldiers want to break into the city, they'll have to step over my dead body first!"

The guards and militia protecting him had all been killed or wounded, and only a few were still fighting fiercely around him.

The bandits swarmed in like a tide, brandishing their swords and spears, pressing forward relentlessly.

Xie Xiangwen's hair and beard stood on end, and his official robes were stained with blood, yet he continued to wave the banner in his hand, attempting to organize another attack.

But in the end, it was just a desperate struggle.

No one else responded, and no one gathered around him; only the bandit soldiers pressed closer.

Looking at the scene before him, Magistrate Zhang knew there was no hope left.

He removed his official hat, knelt on the ground, and shouted in a hoarse voice:
"I surrender!"

"Please, my esteemed heroes, do not harm the magistrate's life!"

Xie Xiangwen was startled when he heard Magistrate Zhang's plea for surrender. He slowly turned his head and glanced at his subordinate who had followed him for many years.

A complex emotion flashed in his eyes—disappointment, understanding—which ultimately turned into a long, mournful sigh.

He slowly removed his official hat and took one last look at Kelan County.

Then, under everyone's watchful eyes, the white-haired old magistrate, holding the banner with the character "Ming" on it, leaped off the city wall, which was more than three zhang high.

"The county magistrate!!"

County Magistrate Zhang let out a mournful cry.

With Xie Xiangwen falling to his death from the wall, there was no more resistance on the city wall.

This strategically important town, guarding the vital passage to the Fenhe Plain, was officially declared lost.

This also means that Jingyue County behind them will be exposed to the enemy's attack.

After capturing the county town, Jiang Han and Wang Jiayin, the two biggest bandit leaders in the Northwest, had a brief meeting at the county government office.

Wang Jiayin strode into the county government office, stepped forward, and bowed to Jiang Han, saying:

"I've heard so much about you, Brother Shangshanhu!"

"You've taken down a fortified city like Kelan County, I truly admire you, brother!"

Upon hearing this, Jiang Han waved his hand:
"King Hengtian is joking."

"Without the help of the Heavenly King, I'm afraid I would have had a hard time succeeding."

"As the elder brother of our Shaanxi Northern Righteous Army, I have long admired King Hengtian!"

After a long exchange of pleasantries, Jiang Han finally turned the conversation to business.

"King Hengtian, now that Kelan County has fallen, the next step is to take Jingle directly."

"Speed ​​is of the essence in war. I think we should take Jingyue County as soon as possible, otherwise things might get complicated if we delay."

"If Xu Dingchen realizes what's happening and transfers troops from other places, then things will be hard to say."

After listening, Wang Jiayin nodded:

"it is good!"

"As Brother Shangshanhu said, I will leave 1,500 men to cover the rear and take over the city."

"Let's attack Jingle together with both of our forces!"

After he finished speaking, he added:
"Don't worry, brother. We'll split the weapons and provisions we get in half. I, Wang Jiayin, will never renege on my promise!"

Perhaps fearing Jiang Han's dissatisfaction, Wang Jiayin brought up the issue of spoils distribution.

But Jiang Han didn't care about this at all:

"How can a mere small town compare to prosperous places like Taiyuan Prefecture and Fenzhou Prefecture?"

"Rest assured, King Hengtian!"

In Wang Jiayin and Jiang Han's view, now that the toughest nut to crack, Kelan, had been cracked, the small Jingle County would be as easy as taking candy from a baby.

This is true.

Compared to Kelan, a town with a strategic location and high walls, Jingyue County is like a naive young girl who has never experienced the ways of the world.

It is located in the southern part of the Lüliang Mountains, in a relatively flat and open area.

Its geographical location is not strategically important, and its city walls are far less tall and sturdy than those of Kelan. At best, it is just an ordinary small county town.

Logically speaking, with such a crucial strategic point lost, Jingyue County downstream should have been in a state of panic and paranoia by now.

However, at this moment, inside the Jingyue County government office, Xu Dingchen, the deputy commissioner of the Shanxi Provincial Surveillance Commission, who was in charge of the area, still appeared calm and composed, as if he were sitting on a fishing platform.

He had already received news of the siege of Kelan County.

But Xu Dingchen didn't take it seriously at all.

In his view, Wang Jiayin was simply courting death.

The walls of Kelan County were high and thick; even if Wang Jiayin attacked for three to five days, he would never be able to break through them.

When You Shilu arrives with his pursuers, they can trap Wang Jiayin right under the city wall.

As for Ningwu Pass, he had even less to worry about, as it was guarded by Deng Yang, a fierce general he had personally appointed.

Xu Dingchen had previously seen the troops that Deng Yang had brought.

They were disciplined and orderly in their movements, unlike ordinary guards.

They are even comparable to the border soldiers of Datong Town!

Thinking of this, Xu Dingchen couldn't help but stroke his beard with pride, marveling at his discerning eye for talent, having discovered another loyal and capable minister for the court.

But just when he thought he was safe and sound, he suddenly received shocking news:

The rebels have an inside accomplice; Kelan County is about to fall!
Xu Dingchen was stunned when he heard this.

How could there be an inside agent in Kelan County?!
Xu Dingchen would never have imagined that the spies who had infiltrated the area were brought in by Deng Yang, one of his newly recruited and formidable generals.

(End of this chapter)