The Military Governor in Dream of the Red Chamber

"Sister Huang, I know I was wrong, Your Excellency is wise." Wang Baisheng sighed, "This cannon is indeed very useful~~~ Ah, your muskets are also very effective!"

These are Wang Baisheng's true feelings.

The arquebus had a long range, and the Northern barbarian archers were eighty paces away, beyond the reach of the Tiger Crouching Cannon, but Huang Xiuer and her women could still shoot them down.

While not every shot hit its target, it put immense pressure on the northern archers, forcing them to retreat considerably.

With this withdrawal, most of the arrows could no longer reach the city walls.

Without the threat of arrows, the gunners of the tiger-squat cannons and the musketeers of the three-eyed guns on the city wall had nothing to fear and could fire with peace of mind.

"Who's your sister? Don't call me that again!" Huang Xiuer glared at Wang Baisheng.

Wang Baisheng chuckled and said nothing more.

"My lord, are the Northern Tartars about to withdraw?" Huang Xiuer ignored Wang Baisheng and asked Jia Chen instead.

"We don't know Abunai's intentions yet; perhaps he wants to reorganize the attack," Jia Chen said in a deep voice. "Everyone must remain vigilant."

Everyone nodded.

They cannot rest easy until the northern barbarians have completely fled north.

"My lord, we can't let the northern barbarians leave like this! Thousands of our fellow villagers are in danger!" Huang Xiuer's eyes reddened, and if she hadn't been holding back, tears would have already fallen.

So many people died right before our eyes, and she wanted revenge.

At the same time, he also wants to avenge what he suffered before.

She and her sisters had been waiting for this day.

Jia Chen shook his head and sighed, "Right now, it's good enough that we can hold onto Qianshan Fort. If the Northern barbarians want to leave, there's nothing we can do."

"Yes, the Northern barbarians are all cavalry. If they want to leave, how can we catch up? Besides, it would be too dangerous to face the Northern barbarians once we leave the city," Wang Baisheng said.

They can only use firearms with confidence now because they are relying on the city walls. Once they are outside, the northern barbarian cavalry will not be to be trifled with.

Huang Xiuer gritted her teeth but didn't say anything more.

She understood all of this, of course, but how could she remain calm?

Jia Chen understood everyone's feelings: if they wanted to leave the city and fight the Northern barbarians in the open field?

He's not that arrogant; that would be suicidal.

The northern barbarians retreated, and it wasn't until dusk that they made any further moves.

"It moved?" Wang Baisheng's eyes lit up.

The fortress at Qianshan immediately got into position, keeping a close eye on the northern barbarians.

"What's that?" Wang Baisheng squinted and peered into the distance, then suddenly exclaimed, "Oh no, it's a Great General's Cannon!"

His words immediately drew everyone's attention.

Everyone hurriedly followed Wang Baisheng's gaze and, sure enough, it was the Great General Cannon.

Although it was several miles away, it was still visible.

Then, a group of people from the Northern Barbarians pushed out three large cannons, their muzzles pointed towards the front mountain fortress.

"The cannons of Zhenqiang Fort!" Jia Chen whispered.

"Damn it!" Wang Baisheng cursed.

Everyone knows who Wang Baisheng was criticizing; it was clearly He Liding.

If Zhenqiang Fort is breached, won't the cannons inside fall into the hands of the Northern barbarians?

Now the northern barbarians are coming with cannons to attack Qianshanbao.

Now, the enemy can attack us, but we can't attack the Northern Barbarians.

The effective range of the farthest-firing breech-loading cannon on our side is about one mile.

"Everyone, take cover in case of artillery fire," Jia Chen said in a deep voice. "Of course, don't worry too much. It seems the Northern Barbarians only have three large cannons. Do you really think they can break through Qianshan Fortress with just three cannons?"

"No way!" Wang Baisheng shouted. "Only three gates? Are you trying to tickle Qianshan Fortress? Haha~~"

Wang Baisheng's words made everyone burst into laughter.

The atmosphere immediately relaxed.

The pressure from the Great General's Cannon dissipated considerably in an instant.

Abnai looked at the three cannons in front of him and smiled: "Let Qianshanbao taste the power of their own General Cannon."

His men went to Zhenqiang Fort and finally managed to pick out these three cannons, because these three were the least damaged and still usable.

However, these three general cannons were made of cast iron and weighed two thousand catties, so it took a lot of effort to pull them over.

Fortunately, the cannons have an effective range of up to 2 miles, so there's no need to worry about being hit by the cannons from the front hill fort.

"Where's the gunner?" Abna asked.

His men immediately led several trembling Da Hong Dynasty soldiers.

"Them?" Abna asked his men.

"Taiji, all the people in Zhenqiang Fort who knew how to fire cannons are dead. These few have some experience with them, so firing the cannons shouldn't be a problem," his subordinate said.

Abunai frowned. When he attacked Zhenqiang Fort, he was afraid of accidents, so he issued a massacre order to kill all the soldiers guarding the city.

Few of them survived.

"Alright, as long as you can fire the cannons," Abunai said coldly, staring at the group. "Fight well. If you capture Qianshan Fortress, there will be a reward!"

Abunai does speak some Chinese.

After hearing this, the soldiers nodded repeatedly.

They were terrified of being killed, and now that they had a chance to live, they naturally complied.

They wouldn't care if they were firing at their own brothers.

The Great General's Cannon was moved to a point 2 li away from the south gate of Qianshan Fort, where several horse-drawn carriages loaded with cannonballs and gunpowder were parked.

The men weren't professional gunners, and they frantically tried to load gunpowder and shells.

Fortunately, not many people on the Northern Barbarian side understood these things, so they didn't say anything.

They decided to try it out with a cannon first.

After a while, before Abunai's patience ran out, he finally finished loading a shell into a general's cannon and fired it!

With a loud "boom," Abunai's mount neighed in terror, nearly throwing him to the ground.

After finally managing to steady the horse, Abunai exclaimed in surprise, "As expected of the General's Cannon!"

He had heard before that the soldiers guarding the city had fired the Great General Cannon, and back then, even from several miles away, one could feel its power from the loud bang.

Now, he is listening to the sound of cannons up close, and it is deafening; he can hardly believe it.

"Hmm?" Abunai's praise quickly came to an end.

He noticed that the cannonballs seemed to fall to the ground without hitting the city wall, indicating that the range was insufficient.

Seeing Abunai looking in their direction, the soldiers turned pale with fright, and one of them hurriedly shouted, "M---sir, we are still adjusting."

"Hurry up." Abnai withdrew his gaze.

He had heard of artillery debugging.

So no action was taken.

Several soldiers were sweating profusely, fearing that their mistake might cost them their lives.

They had only transported gunpowder and shells a few times before, and had no idea how much gunpowder to load.

"We didn't have enough gunpowder just now. We need more. Once we get past the city wall, we'll be done," someone whispered.

The others nodded in agreement.

If the distance isn't enough, it'll be a disaster at first glance.

Without training, it would be very difficult for them to hit the city wall.

Because it requires adjusting the angle and using the right amount of gunpowder, which they don't understand.

However, if there is more gunpowder, it can be fired farther. Even if it hits the city, it can still be considered a hit, right?

So they kept loading gunpowder into the cannon barrel and compacting it.