Chapter 482: Attack the City! (Thanks to the book friend 52464 for the reward!)
After briefly bidding farewell to his family, Ye Mingsheng officially led his troops to the Youyan battlefield the next day.

There are a total of more than 20,000 soldiers and horses following Ye Mingsheng to Youyan this time, and the personnel composition among these 20,000 people is also very particular...
The Fengwu Army had a total of five divisions. Among them, Yuan Song’s First Division, Lin Huaiwu’s Second Division, Guo Zhiping’s Third Division, and Ye Tie’s Fifth Division were all led by Ye Mingsheng himself. Only Peng Ce’s Fourth Division was the result of mutual compromise between Ye Mingsheng and the Cui family.

In order to limit the power of the Cui family in the army, Ye Mingsheng had planned to reorganize the army. The Cui family's troops were organized into the Fourth Division. The main structure was still mainly composed of Cui family members, and the soldiers were basically tenants and slaves of the Cui family. However, the size of the troops was reduced to about 11,000 people.

However, as Ye Mingsheng gradually added influence to the 4th Division and it participated in the Battle of Gongdu, the 4th Division's establishment slowly expanded to about 15,000 people.

In order to win the battle this time, Ye Mingsheng sent all his three ace main divisions to Youyan, leaving only Peng Ce's Fourth Division and Ye Tie's Fifth Division in Liaoyang. This increased the probability of capturing Youyan, but it undoubtedly also made Liaoyang's own defense appear very empty.

On this basis, if Ye Mingsheng wanted to lead his troops into the pass personally, he would inevitably have to draw troops from the Fourth Division and the Fifth Division. Whether to draw troops from the Fourth Division or the Fifth Division was a question that Ye Mingsheng needed to consider carefully.

Although under a series of measures taken by Ye Mingsheng, the control of the Cui family over the Fourth Division has been greatly reduced compared to when the army was just formed, but because the Cui family has always been actively cooperative, Ye Mingsheng has not made too many adjustments to the middle and senior management of the Fourth Division. Now more than half of the middle and senior management of the Fourth Division are still related to the Cui family...

Even though the Cui family led by Cui Shao had always performed well and had previously kept silent on the Yun family's affairs, Ye Mingsheng was still somewhat worried about leaving the Fourth Division alone in Liaoyang to look after the family.

Therefore, this time he personally led the troops into the pass. To be on the safe side, Ye Mingsheng transferred Ye Tie's Fifth Division to Dongning and let this former captain of his personal guards take charge of the center and stabilize the rear.

Then Ye Mingsheng recruited a battalion of 5,000 soldiers from the Fourth Division, and 10,000 soldiers from Xun Ke's reserve. He then reorganized the tenants and slaves of the Gongsun and Yun families into two battalions totaling 5,000 people each. Together with his own 1,000 guards, a total of 21,000 people formed a joint force to march to Youyan.

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Yijing
Standing on the observation deck, Yuan Song looked at the tall and majestic Yijing City in front of him with a serious expression, while Lin Huaiwu and Guo Zhiping beside him also looked not very relaxed.

"General Guo, how was your previous attack on Yijing?"

After observing Yi Jing's situation with a telescope for a while, Yuan Song asked Guo Zhiping:

According to Ye Mingsheng's deployment at the combat meeting before the expedition, when the three divisions gathered under the city of Yijing to attack the city, Yuan Song would become the commander-in-chief of the siege. Lin Huaiwu and Guo Zhiping would need to assist Yuan Song in his work and obey Yuan Song's command and dispatch.

Facing Yuan Song's question, Guo Zhiping introduced without hesitation:

“Yijing’s city defense is still very complete, and the combat effectiveness of the defenders in the city should not be underestimated. Although my previous sneak attack caught them off guard, they quickly stabilized their position. I had no choice but to give up the strategy of capturing Yijing and instead implement the plan of harassing Youyan’s hinterland…”

Yuan Song nodded slightly and asked again:

"General Guo, do you know how many troops Yijing currently has?"

Guo Zhiping thought for a moment, then said slowly:

"I can't tell you the exact number of people, but from what I've observed, it should be between 10,000 and 15,000!"

Yuan Song's expression eased a bit when he heard this. He knew Guo Zhiping, his potential competitor in the Fengwu Army, very well. He knew that Guo Zhiping was a capable and reliable person. Since he judged that the other party had so many troops, the troops in Yijing City should be almost the same as well.

Now let’s take a median between 10,000 and 15,000 people and assume that there are 13,000 soldiers guarding Yijing City.

Now under the city of Yijing there are 20,000 men from the First Division, 20,000 men from the Second Division, and 20,000 men from the Third Division, totaling more than 60,000 men. Although some troops have to be assigned to perform other harassment, alert and blocking missions, the total number of troops that can be deployed in the siege will be several times more than the enemy’s. In this way, the troop advantage is still obvious, which can also make up for the Fengwu Army’s lack of experience in sieges...

Thinking of this, Yuan Song already had a rough plan for the siege, but before making any combat deployment, he had to ask Guo Zhiping an important question!
Looking at Guo Zhiping, Yuan Song asked very seriously:

"General Guo, what is the current situation in Zhuo County? Are there any signs of support coming north?"

The 20,000 soldiers of Zhao Yong in Zhuo County may not have a large number of troops in terms of numbers, but judging from their past battles with the Luobi people, these 20,000 soldiers are skilled in archery and horse riding, and each of them is a tough guy. Even the Luobi people, who are a nomadic people, can hardly gain any advantage over them in horse riding and archery!
Therefore, the movement of Zhao Yong's troops was very important. Although the Coordination Office had already informed Yuan Song of Youyan's internal conflicts and judged that Zhao Yong would most likely not support Zhao Jianan, even if he sent troops to support, they might not act quickly or with all their strength.

Although he had the information from the Coordination Office in his hands, Yuan Song did not dare to be negligent as the matter was of great importance and wanted to confirm it with Guo Zhiping again.

Guo Zhiping was also aware of the seriousness of the matter, and he said very seriously:

"According to the scouts' report from my cavalry unit, Zhao Yong in Zhuo County is still very quiet. There is no sign that Zhao Yong will send troops to support Yijing..."

"But just in case, one of my battalions of 3,000 men has already captured Guangzong County. Even if Zhao Yong sends troops to support us, my battalion can still hold out in Guangzong County for a while, buying us time to react!"

Hearing this answer, Yuan Song nodded slightly, then pointed to Yi Jing's map deployment beside him and said:

"Today is the first day that our three divisions have gathered together, so I think we should act more cautiously. Therefore, we are only conducting some exploratory attacks under the cover of artillery fire to see if there are any loopholes in the defense of the various sections of Yijing's city gates!"

"General Lin, your Second Division is responsible for attacking Yiyang Gate, Xiyi Gate, and Wende Gate!" "General Guo, half of your Third Division is composed of cavalry, and there is one infantry battalion stationed in Guangzong County. There are only a few thousand infantry left, so your division only needs to be responsible for attacking Chongyang Gate!"

"As for the remaining Wu'an Gate, Guangwen Gate, and Dongyi Gate, they will be under the charge of my First Division. What do you think?"

Faced with Yuan Song's plan, Lin Huaiwu and Guo Zhiping thought about it and nodded without objection.

Seeing this, Yuan Song continued:

"In that case, everyone go back and prepare. We will begin the siege in an hour!"

"it is good!"

An hour later·················

Looking at the fluttering flags of the Fengwu Army and the soldiers gathering outside, Zhao Jianan, who was hiding behind the battlements, asked Sun Zhunde behind him in a low voice with a serious expression:
"Mr. Sun, has the letter been released?"

"Yes! The carrier pigeon was released last night!" Sun Zhunde replied:
Listening to Sun Zhunde's words, Zhao Jianan nodded slightly but the solemnity in his expression did not ease in the slightest.

At this time, a burly man standing next to the two of them opened his mouth to remind Zhao Jianan:

"My Lord, the enemy has formed a battle array and is about to attack the city. The Fengwu Army's firearms are very powerful, so please stay out of their way!"

Zhao Jianan did not move when he heard this, but asked the burly man:
"Zhang Hongxiang, what do you think of the Fengwu Army under the city?"

Facing Zhao Jianan's question, Zhang Hongxiang, who was in charge of guarding the Dongyi Gate, subconsciously wanted to speak, but as soon as he opened his mouth and had no time to speak, he seemed to realize something, and a hint of hesitation flashed in his eyes...

Seeing this, Zhao Jianan shook his head and said:
"The Fengwu Army is already at the gates of the city. Zhang Hongxiang, you don't need to hide anything. Just say whatever you have to say!"

Zhang Hongxiang, who received Zhao Jianan's order, no longer had any scruples, but still said very tactfully:
"I have observed that the Fengwu troops under the city are following orders in an orderly manner. This shows that the enemy army has strict military discipline and is definitely not a mob."

Hearing this answer, Zhao Jianan smiled bitterly, shook his head and sighed:

"Ye Mingsheng is a very cunning man with eagle eyes and wolf backs. We have fallen into his evil scheme!"

After saying this, Zhao Jianan turned around and left helplessly.

One stick of incense after Zhao Jianan left, the Fengwu Army officially launched an attack on Yijing. More than fifty red cannons roared towards the majestic city walls of Yijing...
It has to be said that Yijing is indeed one of the strongest cities in the northern part of the Great Zhou Dynasty, and after more than ten years of hard management by Zhao Fuqu, the city is indeed very strong. Facing the first round of bombardment by the red cannons, although it was beaten very badly on the surface, the damage was actually not great. At most, some battlements of the city walls were blown away.

Standing on the observation deck and observing the situation through a telescope, Yuan Song's expression became more serious, but he continued to give orders;
"Redcoats start covering, infantry charge with grenades!"

"Yes!"

Following Yuan Song's order, tens of thousands of Fengwu Army soldiers holding tall shields, pushing battering rams, carrying battering rams, and using ladders launched a charge towards the seven outer gates of Yijing.

When the soldiers of the Fengwu Army rushed within a hundred steps of Yijing, the soldiers of the Yan Army on the city wall of Yijing also began to counterattack. Long-range attacks such as arrows and muskets began to take effect. For a while, stray arrows and bullets rained down on the charging Fengwu Army soldiers...
"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

Soldiers of the Fengwu Army were knocked to the ground every second during the attack, but none of these brave and fearless soldiers chose to retreat or give up. They faithfully carried out the orders of their superiors with their lives and blood, and rushed towards the tall walls of Yijing with all their might.

While the infantry brothers were fighting desperately, the artillerymen operating the red cannons also adjusted the shooting parameters, set the elevation angle to the maximum, and launched an attack on the battlements of Yijing. Compared with the thick city walls, the battlements and arrow towers were obviously not that strong, and they were soon blown to pieces. The Yan army soldiers hiding behind also suffered heavy casualties.

Under the cover of artillery, the Fengwu Army soldiers who rushed to the city of Yijing began to deploy ladders and battering rams. At the same time, the Yan Army defending the city also began to throw down the prepared rolling stones and logs. Hundreds of Fengwu Army soldiers were killed or injured. After paying these prices, dozens of ladders were placed on the walls of Yijing, and countless Fengwu Army warriors climbed up the ladders without the slightest hesitation...
At this time, the Yan army defending the city also began to take out the most vicious weapon - golden soup!
Although Jin Tang has a good name, it is actually very disgusting and despicable!

The so-called golden soup is a mixture of hot oil, feces and urine, which is comparable to biological weapons. After being burned to boiling hot, it pours down from the city wall. If it falls on the skin, it will cause severe burns. Not only that, the feces mixed in it will also cause wound infection and cause secondary damage. In the feudal era without antibiotics, encountering this thing would mean death or injury!
As the golden soup poured down from the walls of Yijing, screams of the Fengwu Army soldiers suddenly rang out under the city of Yijing. However, even so, they continued to advance, climbing up the ladders one after another and continuing to attack the walls of Yijing.

After making so many sacrifices and with the help of grenades, the Fengwu Army soldiers finally climbed onto the wall of Yijing. Although they were outnumbered, they still fought bravely, sacrificing their lives for their brothers behind them and buying time to climb up the ladders.

Soon, a bloody hand-to-hand fight broke out on the walls of Yijing. Although the Fengwu Army soldiers who climbed up the wall were far inferior to the Yan Army, they cooperated very well with each other and relied on each other to kill and wound many Yan Army soldiers. The casualties of both sides in the hand-to-hand fight were almost one to one!

Although the soldiers of Fengwu Army fought very bravely, unfortunately there were too many soldiers of Yan Army on the city wall. They were outnumbered and were soon driven down...

On the first day of the first official siege, the Fengwu Army was declared a failure!
(End of this chapter)