County Magistrate (for all citizens): I can watch ads and get unlimited resources.

The war drums sounded.

Dozens of siege ladders were lifted by the combined efforts of the Pingtian Army soldiers and pressed down on the city wall in a mighty procession.

At the rear of the team,

Five hundred archers simultaneously drew their bows and nocked their arrows.

As the attacking force approached the city wall, at the officer's command, a dense barrage of arrows soared into the air and rained down on the city walls.

Under the suppression of arrows,

The unprotected militia defending the city were pinned down and unable to lift their heads, forced to watch helplessly as the Pingtian Army soldiers climbed up the siege ladders.

In a blink of an eye,

The first batch of soldiers,

They had already climbed onto the city wall.

the whole process,

It went more smoothly than they had imagined.

however,

What awaited them was not a militia with unevenly armed weapons, but light infantry who had been waiting in the rear, ready for battle.

These soldiers,

Before they could even get a foothold,

Several streaks of cold light slashed towards them.

puff!

Blood splattered.

The first few Pingtian Army soldiers to scale the city walls were cut down on the spot before they could even see what was happening.

The soldiers who climbed up later saw clearly that they were greeted by fully armed professional soldiers wielding Miao swords on the city wall.

The reason Han Yilin made this arrangement was...

the reason is simple,

Currently, Zhatian County has no archers. If they defend the city under a hail of arrows, they will only suffer the suppression of the Pingtian Army's archers and crossbowmen.

In this case,

Why not voluntarily give up the city gate tower?

Bring the enemy up.

The ladder is narrow.

Each time, only a handful of soldiers could scale the city wall. He would arrange for soldiers to set up the landing points for each ladder in advance.

As long as the Pingtian Army comes up...

They then launched a siege.

For a time,

The Pingtian Army's offensive thus came to a standstill.

Outside the city,

Upon seeing this, Niu Hongshan's face immediately darkened.

In his opinion,

This small county town,

It should be an easy task to break through. In the past year, he has captured many cities and strongholds. Often, when the county magistrates see the arrival of the Pingtian Army, they either flee with their families or surrender the city.

But now,

How dare these people resist?

That's practically suicide!

"What a bunch of useless fools. They haven't even taken down this small county town yet."

"Have the entire rear guard advance; we must take it before nightfall."

The order was issued.

The entire Pingtian Army participated in the siege.

Three thousand men split into four directions, continuously using ladders to scale the city walls. Their tidal wave of attacks instantly put immense pressure on Han Yilin.

especially,

Five hundred light infantrymen

They needed to be dispersed to all four sides of the city wall, which meant they were completely unable to stop the Pingtian Army from constantly scaling the walls.

Even if Cheng Murou joins the battlefield,

Individual strength

It also couldn't change the overall course of the war.

For a time,

Under immense pressure,

The militia had no choice but to be sent to the battlefield. Although their participation could slow down the Pingtian Army's offensive, casualties were inevitable.

For a time,

On the four city walls of Zhatian County,

It instantly turned into a meat grinder.

Blood splattered everywhere

Corpses and severed limbs were everywhere, and the air was thick with the stench of blood.

Fortunately,

In this situation,

It didn't last long.

Just as the defensive pressure on Zhatian County reached its peak...

far away,

Suddenly, a muffled rumble came from behind.

Rumble—!

The sound came from afar and approached.

The earth trembled slightly in response.

Feeling the ground tremble, Niu Hongshan immediately had a bad feeling. He turned his head and looked in the direction of the sound, only to see a cavalry unit that had appeared behind the column at some point and was charging towards him.

A large cloud of smoke and dust rose into the sky.

The horses' hooves thundered.

The momentum was astonishing.

Li Zehao, wielding a halberd, took the lead.

This scene,

This made Niu Hongshan's face extremely gloomy.

According to intelligence,

Zhatian County only had five hundred soldiers.

But now, not only are there a large number of garrison troops on the city walls, but there are also two hundred cavalrymen lying in ambush outside the city.

right now,

The cavalry was about to charge.

Niu Hongshan had no time to spare for the siege and hurriedly ordered, "Cease the attack! The rear guard is to become the front guard! Stop them!"

These soldiers,

They were all seasoned veterans.

Although it was a last-minute change of formation and there was some initial confusion, they quickly withdrew and switched to a defensive formation.

however,

Just as the Pingtian Army had finally managed to set up their formation,

When preparing to defend against a cavalry charge,

Li Zehao suddenly reined in his warhorse.

When they were still more than a hundred paces away from the army formation, the two hundred light cavalry turned around in unison and sped past the Pingtian Army.

There was no charge at all.

even though,

These cavalrymen were all wearing armor, but they were not heavy cavalry in essence. Moreover, the Pingtian Army was already prepared. At this time, charging into the enemy lines would not be a question of whether they would win or lose, but they would certainly suffer heavy casualties.

Han Yilin's orders to Li Zehao were merely to conduct flanking attacks.

Such a scene,

Enraged, Niu Hongshan's face flushed red. "Damn it! Are these bastards trying to toy with me?!"

"Continue the siege!"

Niu Hongshan roared in exasperation, "Ignore those cavalry, continue the siege!"

The army launched another attack.

But this time,

Just as they launched their strongest offensive, Li Zehao appeared from the flank.

This made Niu Hongshan so angry that his veins bulged and his teeth were grinding. He knew that the cavalry was in a state of suicidal turmoil, but he simply couldn't let it go unchecked.

just in case,

He ignored it.

If the other side really attacks, then there's really no way to play.

And so on,

It took several attempts.

Li Zehao would always appear at the right time during the siege, making the Pingtian Army hesitate and unable to attack the city with full force.

After all this trouble...

The soldiers of the Pingtian Army ran back and forth, their strength nearly exhausted.

As darkness fell,

Despite his resentment, Niu Hongshan had no choice but to order a halt to the siege. Continuing the attack would not only fail to make progress but would also result in the needless deaths of his soldiers.

"Sound the retreat!"

"All troops, retreat!"

As the gong sounded, the Pingtian Army below the city wall retreated like the receding tide.

but,

He did not retreat too far.

Instead, they set up camp not far from the East Gate.

After the afternoon's battle, he had figured out Zhatian County's plan: the city's defenders would hold out to the death, while the cavalry would harass them from the flanks.

The two work together.

This prevented the Pingtian Army from launching a full-scale attack on the city.

In that case,

Let's solve the cavalry problem first.

Niu Hongshan ordered his soldiers to cut down trees and build wooden walls, barricades, and stakes around the camp.

The point is,

These defensive lines were not built in front of the camp, but on the flanks and rear of the camp.

His idea was simple.

By using camps to build defensive lines, they could withstand the charge of cavalry during a siege.

By then,

Then we can launch a full-scale attack on the city.

After the city falls,

It's not too late to deal with that cavalry unit later.

now,

The sky gradually darkened.

Following orders, the soldiers felled trees in the vicinity to build camps and set up defensive lines.

not far away,

Niu Hongshan stared at the walls of Zhatian County, his face grim: "I'll let you live one more night today, but after we breach the city tomorrow, I, the commander, will make sure your blood flows like a river!"

The Pingtian Army worked for most of the night.

Until the early hours of the morning,

The camp was finally completed. After a day of traveling, attacking the city, and repeatedly forming ranks, most of the soldiers were exhausted.

After finishing,

They went into their tents to sleep one by one, and the entire camp quickly quieted down, except for a few soldiers patrolling the perimeter.

at the same time,

Within the county,

Han Yilin stared at the dense red dots outside the East Gate, pondering whether he should take this opportunity to launch a night raid.