Big man: I am the Champion Marquis!

Chapter 96 Demolition Soldier

The army continued to besiege the city, and the Han army's siege equipment continued to increase. From time to time, some stones flew towards the outer city of Guishan.

At the same time, the drinking water problem in Guishan City became increasingly prominent. The Han army had been besieging the city for 25 days, and the water supply had been cut off for 20 days.

"General, it's not a good idea to keep wasting time like this." Although he seemed to have some advantages, Gongsun Ao was also worried, "I'm afraid that Guishan City has not yet completely run out of food and water."

Huo Xian nodded and said, "I'm afraid that's the case. It's said that there are no wells in Guishan City. It seems that they can get some water from other places."

Pointing at the mountain, Gongsun Ao asked, "Maybe there is a river flowing into the city from the mountain."

Such a possibility certainly exists, but intelligence from all sides shows that if it is just the mountains behind the city, there are only some small streams, and they do not flow directly into the city.

Huo Xian did not think that cutting off the river was a problem, as this strategy was correct. However, he did not expect that Guishan City still had some water stored, so it had not collapsed after twenty days.

Gongsun Ao continued, "If this continues, our army may not have enough food. Kangju's troops may come to support us at any time."

Huo Xian thought about it carefully and said, "I know what I am doing. I will order the soldiers to prepare more stones and attack the outer city day and night in the next two days."

Intensifying the offensive seems to be a good idea. As long as the outer city is breached, the Dayuan people's will to resist will be weakened.

Gongsun Ao went to carry out the order. He used catapults to attack in the past few days, but the actual damage caused by the attack was limited. So now he has to increase the intensity.

Li Guangli came over again, "General, Dayuan has sent an envoy."

Huo Xian became interested and asked, "Emissary? I'm afraid he's here to ask for peace again. Did he bring the head of the King of Dayuan?"

Seeing Li Guangli shaking his head, Huo Xian said directly, "Then there is no need to meet. General Ershi can tell him directly that if he wants Tianhan to withdraw his troops, he must do what I mentioned before."

Li Guangli didn't know what to say. Although he didn't quite approve of Huo Xian's approach, a higher-ranking official could crush a person, not to mention that it was not just one level higher.

Huo Xian returned to the tent and called Feng Dan over. "Look, I'll teach you how to use these things."

Feng Dan watched intently while Huo Xian carefully mixed some powders and then took out the flint.

The moment the sparks landed on the powder, there was a cloud of smoke and a slight explosion.

Feng Dan pointed at several bags piled in the corner and asked, "My Lord, these things are too dangerous. I'm afraid they are not appropriate."

Chen Ju and others also nodded repeatedly. The prince had often made alchemy since he went to war, and brought a lot of things with him. But now look at it again, where is the alchemy?
Huo Xian smiled and said, "It's not a big problem to pack them separately. You should learn it carefully in the next two days. When you go to capture the city in two days, I will record your credit."

Feng Dan was surprised and embarrassed, "My Lord, I am a member of the Guanjun Marquis's army. What use is there for me to have military merits?"

"Stupid!" Huo Xian scolded immediately, "You guys are my family, how can I not work for your future? Being my subordinate is good, and your children and grandchildren can follow me, but that is not as good as having a title and an official position!"

Zhao Congxiao and Liu Zhengnu also lowered their heads and said nothing. They both believed that their destiny was to protect the prince and nothing else.

Chen Ju was touched and advised, "Sir, these little ones have some abilities, it is best for them to stay with you."

"Uncle Chen, I won't talk about you guys for now. Some of you are injured, some are disabled. If I don't take care of you, who will take care of you?" Huo Xian said earnestly, "It's because Grandfather cares about you, and I can take care of you. But what about the future? If I am gone, or my offspring are not good enough, can you have a stable life?"

Seeing that Chen Ju wanted to speak, Huo Xian raised his hand to interrupt him, "Let these people seek official positions, so that even if my children and grandchildren are unreliable in the future, you can still live a good life."

Chen Ju hurriedly said, "Sir, it's not possible, it really isn't possible!"

"You are not the only son in your family. Find an official position and let your brother come over." Huo Xian waited for Feng Dan and others and said, "If you go to the army, you can follow me to the battlefield in the future!"

Chen Ju stamped his feet in anxiety, but there was nothing he could do because he had experienced the same scene before.

It was the same when the general was around. He always gave those around him the opportunity to make meritorious contributions. If some of them had not been disabled or injured, they would not have stayed in the Marquis Guanjun's Mansion forever.

Huo Xian said, "Come here, I will teach you how to prepare gunpowder. Even if it can't destroy the city in one go, it will be enough to scare them!"

Feng Dan and the others lowered their heads, unable to hold back their tears. They knew who was good to them.

"You useless things!" Huo Xian scolded with a smile, "I'm sending you to your death! You never know when this thing will explode, and nothing will be left of you. Do you still think I'm being nice to you?"

Feng Dan wiped his tears with the back of his hand and grinned, "Sir, if there is really any danger, it has to be us who go!"

Huo Xian pointed in the direction of Guishan City and said, "Tomorrow night you will go over there in the dark and look for leaks in the city wall. I will prepare and pack the gunpowder. Remember to light the fuse and run immediately!"

Chen Ju immediately knocked on Feng Dan and the others' heads, "Listen carefully, the Lord wants to break into the city, you must not miss the big event!"

Feng Dan and his men were not afraid of danger at all. Even if they were killed, it didn't matter. They were born to do these things and couldn't let the prince's important affairs be delayed. The efficiency of the catapult was indeed a little insufficient, so Huo Xian naturally thought of using some black technology.

Although the gunpowder he made was not a true explosive and did not have such great power, it was enough to intimidate the Dayuan people.

The defenses of Guishan City are strong, but that is relatively speaking. After all, it is not a fortress built with reinforced concrete.

Huo Xian naturally understood that gunpowder was best used to make firearms, such as guns and cannons. However, the current level of productivity was limited, and it was difficult to make some copper cannons and so on.

Then let's increase the quantity, make some super-sized "firecrackers", and set one off in Guishan City to celebrate!
The Han general refused to meet with the envoys and put forward unacceptable conditions, which made the Dayuan nobles very angry.

However, at the same time, some Dayuan nobles also complained about King Wugua of Dayuan. It was this Dayuan king who killed the Han envoy, which led to the revenge of the Han army.

King Wu Gua of Wan was also anxious, and he quickly appeased the nobles. There was still a lot of food in the city, and some of the Han people found earlier could dig wells, so the water problem would soon no longer be a problem. When the reinforcements from Kangju arrived, they could kill those Han people!

King Wugua of Wan assured him solemnly that the Han army was certainly short of food and would soon be overwhelmed.

As a confirmation, the Han army suddenly intensified its offensive, and their catapults began to attack the outer city day and night.

Although some minor damage was caused, the Dayuan nobles, led by King Wu Gua of Dayuan, became more confident. The Han army may have no other choice but to intensify the attack.

Feng Dan, Zhao Congxiao and Liu Zhengnu were very energetic. They had slept for a long time during the day and were waiting for the moon to get dark.

Huo Xian smiled and handed the cloth bag to the three people. "Remember this. When you get to the city, pour the powder into the jar, stir it evenly with a wooden stick, and stuff it into the cracks in the city wall."

Feng Dan would answer immediately, saying, "I know, then we'll light the fuse and run!"

"Well, I sent people to attack the city in the first half of the night, and the Dayuan people should be tired." Huo Xian continued, "It's the second half of the night now, and it's time to relax. I'll send someone to follow you, and make sure they go and come back quickly."

With the help of more than a dozen assistants, the three demolition soldiers quietly moved towards Guishan City in the dark.

Of course, there were still some Dayuan soldiers on guard in the outer city, but they were all exhausted.

Feng Dan and his companions reached the city wall and whispered, "Hurry up and do as the Lord said and squeeze them all in!"

Zhao Congxiao untied the cloth bag and said, "Brother, find a few more gaps. It's not good to pile them all together. I say, make a few more."

Feng Dan thought about it and felt that it made sense. A dozen people were sneaking along the wall pouring powder. Some were responsible for stirring it, while others were responsible for finding the cracks in the wall under the moonlight. Everyone had a clear division of labor.

Feng Dan stuffed the two earthenware jars into a gap, left one person to guard it, and then carried the jars into a depression.

"Follow me and run along the city wall. Don't run back directly." Feng Dan reminded everyone in a low voice, "If there is any noise, the Dayuan people will definitely shoot arrows."

Zhao Congxiao and others nodded quickly. They were not afraid of death, but if they could avoid death, they would definitely not die.

Seeing that it was almost done, Feng Dan took out the tube in his arms, which was filled with charcoal. He pulled out the tube mouth and blew carefully, and sparks came out.

There seemed to be a few lights of fire under Guishan City, but neither the defenders in the city nor the Han army not far away noticed it.

Huo Xian was a little anxious, but he was still waiting. In order to avoid causing panic among the soldiers due to the loud noise, he had specially asked the military academies to call up the soldiers, apparently preparing to send out troops directly after daybreak.

"boom!"

"boom!"

"boom!"

Suddenly, several muffled sounds and explosions were heard from the direction of the outer city of Guishan City, and the Han army two or three miles away heard the noise.

The Dayuan defenders were naturally even more panicked. They were not afraid of the earth shaking, but they did know that there was an explosion outside the city wall. Some places collapsed, some places had gaps, and large rocks were falling.

It seemed that in an instant, the entire city wall was about to collapse!
"Sir, the city has collapsed!" Feng Dan shouted as he ran wildly, "I saw a big hole in the city wall!"

Huo Xian's eyes lit up, and he immediately urged, "General Yu Cheng, lead your troops in immediately!"

Although Gongsun Ao didn't understand why they said the city had collapsed, he didn't care about anything else at the moment and rushed over first. If the outer city of Guishan City really collapsed and there was a gap, the Han army could leave the city!

The iron turtle shell is about to be smashed!
As long as we break the outer city, taking over the inner city of Guishan City will be a piece of cake!

(End of this chapter)