Late Ming Dynasty: Special Forces in 1645

Jin Shenghuan sent four thousand men to attack the city, but they were easily defeated by the Xingfu Army defending the city.

Aside from cannons, the Restoration Army didn't even use explosive shells, but instead poured molten gold, threw stones, and occasionally fired a few flintlock musket shots to kill a few poorly protected attacking soldiers.

After suffering hundreds of casualties among the four thousand Jin soldiers who attacked the city, they dared not attack again and retreated across the board.

Jin Shenghuan and Wang Deren, who were behind them, both looked somber and remained silent when they saw this scene.

Although these four thousand men were Wang Tizhong's former troops, they were still Jin Shenghuan's troops under his command. Following Jin Shenghuan's orders, they retreated without even touching the shadow of the Xingfu Army during this attack on the city, leaving behind hundreds of corpses. How could this not infuriate people!

For Wang Deren, these four thousand men were directly under his command. Although many people were not convinced by him, he was confident that he could completely control the troops if he could take advantage of the momentum of this great victory. However, the siege was fruitless, and Wang Deren was blamed for poor command, which caused his already limited prestige to be almost completely lost.

Compared to Jin Shenghuan, Wang Deren suffered a greater loss, which made him even angrier.

Regardless of Jin Shenghuan and Wang Deren's reactions, Zhou Lei and Yan Huidong were in good spirits on the walls of Qianshan. Seeing that the Jin army had retreated, they even had time to instruct their men to bring up clean water to wash away the gold residue left on the walls.

He tied the note to an arrow and shot it, signaling Jin Shenghuan to send someone to collect the body.

When the Jin army sent people to collect the corpses, neither side launched an attack; this can be considered a tacit understanding between the two sides in the war.

Night fell quickly. Zhou Lei and Yan Huidong had been smelling the stench of excrement on the city wall all day, and it took them a long time to recover after they came down.

The golden juice was both harmful to the attackers and the attackers; it was a physical attack for the Jin army, but a severe psychological attack for the Restoration Army.

Yan Huidong said to Zhou Lei, "Calm down, calm down, these are just minor incidents. I experienced the same thing in Xinzhou City last time."

Zhou Lei said, "I'm not too worried about defending the city. Apart from a few soldiers getting unlucky enough to be hit by arrows today, there haven't been any major casualties, so it's acceptable. I was thinking... that smell was just too pungent. Everything I smelled today smelled rotten."

Yan Huidong laughed heartily, patted Zhou Lei on the shoulder and said, "Young man, you still lack experience. Back in Xinzhou City... Anyway, next time be careful not to stand downwind, or you'll stink if you stand there for too long."

The first day of defending Qianshan City was easier than expected, because the preparations were sufficient. As long as tens of thousands of troops did not rush in at once, it could be dealt with easily.

Zhou Lei reported the situation in Qianshan City to Li Chengming and assured him that it could be defended for a month without any problem.

Zhou Lei assured him he could hold out for a month, but Li Chengming had no intention of actually letting him hold out for a month. Instead, he urged Liangzicheng to speed up the production of muskets and cannons and planned to send troops from Xinzhou City no later than half a month later.

The latest batch of guns and cannons has been delivered to Ehu Town. Unlike Zhou Lei, He Mingqiu in Ehu Town is not on edge. On the contrary, He Mingqiu is willing to delegate authority to his subordinates. As long as it is not a major event such as an enemy attack, he usually entrusts it to his subordinates. He Mingqiu himself even has the leisure to go fishing on the Xinjiang River.

It wasn't until Jin Shenghuan's 50,000-strong army arrived at the gates of Qianshan City that He Mingqiu became nervous. He began to strengthen the training of the troops stationed in Ehu Town and personally inspected the town's fortifications every day.

Even with firearms troops, Ehu Town only had 3,500 defenders. Without city walls to rely on, He Mingqiu did not believe he could withstand the attack of 50,000 troops.

He Mingqiu pondered that even if the captain was here, he couldn't withstand an army of 50,000, so why should he stay here?

Why didn't he just lead his troops and run away as soon as Jin Shenghuan's 50,000-strong army arrived?

He Mingqiu directly told Li Chengming his thoughts, and Li Chengming's response was as follows:

"If Jin Shenghuan sends 50,000 troops to attack you, you only need to hold out for half a day, and then I will send troops from Qianshan City to support you, and Xinzhou City will also send troops to support you!"

If Jin Shenghuan sends 30,000 troops to attack you, you only need to hold out for one day, and I will send Xinzhou City to support you!

If Jin Shenghuan sends no more than 20,000 troops to attack you, hold out for a while. I'll come to your aid once the guns and cannons are ready!

He Mingqiu felt that Jin Shenghuan was not stupid and would not send all his troops to fight him. Most likely, he would send 10,000 to 20,000 troops. Therefore, in the end, he would have to rely on himself.

As expected, Jin Shenghuan dispatched an army of 5,000 men to keep an eye on Ehu Town. Two thousand of these men then launched a probing attack, leaving behind dozens of corpses before daring to make any further moves.

The Jin army dared not attack, and He Mingqiu was left with nothing to do, now just waiting to see how the battle would unfold in Qianshan City.

If Qianshan City is in crisis, He Mingqiu will first eliminate the 5,000 troops monitoring Ehu Town, then lead his troops to raid the rear of the Jin army, burn their supplies, and force them to retreat!

If Qianshan City remains stable, He Mingqiu won't have to risk such heavy casualties; he can simply wait for Xinzhou City to send troops.

......

In an attempt to salvage the situation following the previous day's failed siege, Jin Shenghuan not only ordered Wang Tizhong's former troops to continue the attack on Qianshan City the next day, but also dispatched 3,000 of his own elite troops, bringing the total to 7,000 men.

As for siege equipment, the catapults and siege ladders that had been built long ago were transported across the moat, and the simple thick wooden planks blocking the way were no longer replaced by tall wooden carts, which were specially built for sieges.

It wasn't that Jin Shenghuan didn't want to send more troops to decide the outcome in one battle, but rather that one wall of Qianshan City could only accommodate this many people attacking.

Jin Shenghuan also sent a small number of troops to attack from other city gates. This "small number" refers to about four thousand troops. Although they did not have the complete siege equipment and overwhelming power of the seven thousand troops in the main attack direction, they should not be underestimated. Without the presence of assault team members, there was still a risk of being breached!

Yan Huidong stared intently at the tablet computer, his expression grave. "This time, Jin Shenghuan has mobilized nearly half his forces. It seems he's serious!"

With a major battle looming, Zhou Lei was not so nervous. He calmly said, "The 50,000 troops are on a long and arduous expedition. The daily consumption is staggering. Jin Shenghuan is also eager to quickly capture Qianshan City to replenish his forces."

Yan Huidong asked, "So, are you confident you can hold on?"

Zhou Lei nodded and said, "Of course I have them, but now we'll have to use all our trump cards. Point out the enemy generals you've identified, and I'll take them down one by one!"

As he spoke, Zhou Lei took out a sniper rifle from the wooden box. This sniper rifle was brought over by Yan Huidong on Li Chengming's behalf.

Previously, it was determined that Jin Shenghuan was likely to attack either Qianshan City or Ehu Town. Whichever side Jin Shenghuan attacked, the sniper rifle would be given to that side.

If one can assassinate the enemy general during a major battle, it will have unexpected results.

There's no need to worry about Zhou Lei or He Mingqiu being unfamiliar with sniper rifles. In fact, any assault team member is extremely familiar with any weapon they are equipped with.

Even with a first-aid kit, it's not entirely unusable; every assault team member must master basic medical knowledge and first-aid skills.

Not to mention the weapons: pistols, rifles, machine guns, sniper rifles—these are all basic training subjects, and the assault team members are the best in them, with virtually no weaknesses!

Therefore, with just a sniper rifle, as long as the enemy general is located, it is not difficult to snipe him from a distance.