After a perfunctory ceremony, Chai Shao summoned his generals to the main tent to discuss the attack plan for the next day.
The plan was finalized.
Cheng Yaojin would lead three thousand soldiers and seven cannons to attack the east gate.
Zhang Gongjin would lead an equal force of three thousand soldiers and seven cannons to attack the west gate.
Chai Shao himself, with the remaining soldiers and cannons, would lead the main assault on the north gate.
The following morning.
Outside Honghua City, the Tang army arrayed its forces.
Cannons were lined up in front of the east, west, and north gates, aimed at the city walls.
Ma Duan, standing on the city wall, felt a flicker of unease.
What were those things?
Wasn't the usual tactic to swarm the walls or for trebuchets to bombard first?
Fang Er, beside Cheng Chumo, observed the distance.
"Can they even hit anything?"
He chuckled. "Whether they hit or not doesn't matter. At three hundred paces, their ballistae can't reach us. We can just pound away slowly."
As Cheng Chumo raised his hand and then slammed it down,
Seven cannons roared with thunderous might.
Before Ma Duan could even comprehend what was happening,
Seven iron balls slammed violently into the city wall.
The rammed earth wall bore the impact, with craters forming, and the soldiers standing on it felt the wall tremble slightly.
As Cheng Chumo's cannons opened fire, the west and north gates echoed with the same artillery roar.
"Continue!"
Two to three minutes later, another volley was unleashed.
The black iron balls, under Ma Duan's horrified gaze, once again struck the city wall.
"Damn it!"
"This city can't be defended!"
The furthest-reaching weapon the city possessed was the ballista.
This weapon combined two or three bows, greatly increasing the tension and strength of the bolt. When drawing the bowstring, thick ropes connected it to a winch. Soldiers would turn the winch to draw the string, fit a giant bolt, and fire by soldiers striking the trigger with a large hammer. The mechanism would then launch the bolt into the distance.
However, the range of this contraption was only about two hundred meters!
It couldn't reach the cannons three hundred paces away at all!
"This is too much bullying!"
"General Ma, this won't do. If they keep this up, the city walls won't hold for long," one of Ma Duan's advisors cautioned.
"Pass down the order: sortie and engage!"
Ma Duan gritted his teeth, grabbed his weapon, and descended the city wall.
Honghua City was garrisoned by a total of thirty thousand troops. Apart from those defending the walls, the rest had received orders and were assembling in the city's training grounds.
"The Tang army outside the city is too arrogant, only daring to use cowardly means to attack from afar! Follow me and destroy them!"
"Tu Zi, you lead five thousand men out from the east gate. Xi Zi, you lead five thousand men out from the west gate. The rest will follow me, and we'll charge out from the north gate!"
As fewer soldiers remained on the city wall, Fang Er sensed something was amiss.
"They're coming out of the city! Zhuzi! Firearm formations!"
The sound of orderly footsteps approached from behind.
Five hundred musketeers, divided into four squads, lined up precisely behind the cannons.
Cheng Yaojin also noticed the change.
Three thousand elite soldiers surrounded the cannons and musketeers, forming a concave formation.
At the very rear were several trebuchets, their baskets filled not with stones, but with explosive packets with long fuses.
Chai Shao and Zhang Gongjin reacted simultaneously.
Creak!
The heavy city gates were opened.
Neatly arrayed Liang soldiers surged out of the city.
"Follow me and kill!"
At the east gate, Shang Tuzi led five thousand cavalry, charging directly towards the cannons.
Immediately after, deafening roars of battle and the thud of hooves erupted from the north and west gates.
The cavalry advanced rapidly.
In moments, they had covered dozens of meters, closing in on the Tang army.
Just as Cheng Yaojin was about to lead his men forward, Fang Er stopped him.
"Brother Cheng, don't rush. Let's fire a few rounds first."
Seven cannons swiveled their muzzles towards the charging cavalry.
The Liang army was less than two hundred paces from the Tang army!
Boom!
As the first volley struck, it was even more devastating than when it hit the city walls!
Because the Liang army had just exited the city gates, their formation was extremely dense. Seven iron balls whistled through the ranks, carving seven bloody paths!
Shang Tuzi felt a gust of wind brush past his ear. When he turned his head, one of his guards beside him was inexplicably reduced to half a body.
Looking around, some warhorses had their heads smashed, while others had their legs shattered by iron balls that had landed, bounced, and then struck.
The scene was rapidly spiraling out of control.
Shang Tuzi gritted his teeth and, leading the cavalry, endured two rounds of artillery fire. After suffering several hundred casualties, they reached within a hundred paces of the Tang army.
Before he could feel any relief, countless dark specks rained down from the sky.
These specks grew larger and larger.
They were clearly bags wrapped in cloth, trailing long fuses, and emitting sparks.
One of them plummeted directly towards Shang Tuzi.
On his horse, he drew his long saber and slashed at it.
The cloth bag was split in two.
A cloud of black dust suddenly scattered from within.
Then he witnessed a terrifying sight!
As the dust drifted onto the sparks, there was a thunderous "Boom!"
A massive fireball enveloped him!
When the fireball dissipated, Shang Tuzi was a roasted husk, falling straight from his horse.
Cavalry charges were fearsome, not just to the enemy, but also to themselves.
Their immense momentum made them unstoppable!
If the front faltered, the cavalry behind would crash into them.
The fallen, roasted Shang Tuzi was trampled into a bloody pulp by the warhorses behind him.
The other explosive packets also landed amidst the Liang cavalry.
Explosions and flashes of fire erupted.
Shards of pottery from the explosive packets flew everywhere!
Soldiers' screams!
Warhorses' whinnies!
In an instant, the Liang army descended into chaos. The startled warhorses, beyond control, galloped wildly!
Fang Er, who had been waiting for the opportunity, decisively gave the order.
"Fire!"
Bang! Bang! Bang!
As the gunshots rang out,
The musketeer squads began their merciless reaping.
The front ranks fired, then crouched down, cleaning their muzzles and reloading.
The pre-loaded cartridges greatly increased the soldiers' operational speed.
With the four squads rotating, the gunfire seemed incessant.
Liang cavalrymen fell one after another.
With Shang Tuzi dead, their backbone was broken.
The scene became even more chaotic.
Seeing this, Cheng Yaojin issued the order to advance to the soldiers behind him!
Three thousand elite troops bypassed the musketeers on the flanks and charged towards the Liang army.
To prevent friendly fire, Fang Er halted the musketeer squad.
Meanwhile, on the Liang side, the frightened warhorses continued to charge through their own ranks.
Countless soldiers were thrown from their saddles by their own mounts, only to be trampled underfoot.
Seeing the Tang army charging, many Liang soldiers lost their will to fight. The outer soldiers jumped off their uncontrollable steeds and fled in all directions.
Defeat cascaded like an avalanche.
The rout, like a chain reaction, swept through the remaining Liang forces.