On the night of the fourth day, he first discussed with the generals in the Great Tent about the situation of today's battle.

"My lord, in the past few days of attacking the city, our army has suffered heavy casualties, and the soldiers are also exhausted, do you want to take a break for a while?" A thousand households in the tent also suggested to the one who sat high in the middle.

"No, our army is tired, but the thief army is even worse! If you don't try to do it, I'm afraid that the thief army will have a chance to breathe. A thousand households located on the opposite side immediately dissuaded.

"But the casualties in the past few days have inevitably been a bit large, and the morale of the various troops has begun to be unstable, even if the reward for climbing the city has been raised, the soldier's fighting spirit has not changed much!" These two thousand households are a little bit at odds with each other, and their views in front of Yexian are completely opposite.

"Even some of the newly transferred troops, seeing the current war situation, it is difficult to mobilize this fighting spirit."

also calmed his face first, turned his head and asked a staff member on the side: "What does Mr. Jiang think?" ”

This Mr. Jiang is Jiang Bin, he is about fifty years old, his body is thin and tall, and his fair face has only a long beard. He is a guest secretary of Yiwang's Mansion, and this time he went south with him to give advice and temporarily serve as a staff member in the army.

"As the two generals said, the casualties of our army in the past few days of siege are indeed not small, and more than half of the siege weapons have also been destroyed by thieves. If it continues, it is inevitable that the morale of the military will waver. Mr. Jiang stroked his beard and said slowly, "I wonder if the general has the intention of using those thieves?" ”

He was talking about the nearly 10,000 displaced people and artisans who had settled outside the city. After Liu Zhengfeng planted the flag in the county seat, at least tens of thousands of people in the surrounding prefectures and counties joined him. Many of these people were old and weak, women and children, and according to Yu Zhilong's suggestion, some were placed in various villages, and some were placed in makeshift shacks and earthen houses outside the city. At the beginning of the war, some of the people fled into the city, some fled into the mountains, and the rest were captured by the Yuan army.

Jiang Bin's meaning was to drive the people of these thieves as the forerunner during the siege of the city, so as to reduce the casualties of the Yuan army.

In order to thwart the offensive of the Yuan army, Mingxiong and others successively used a large number of arrows, crossbow arrows, catapults, boiling oil, gold juice, and rolling wood and stones, causing great casualties to the Yuan army. If they are the forerunners, the children of these people who are in the army may not bear to do it because of their scruples. Historically, siegers have tried this trick many times.

As soon as Jiang Bin's suggestion came out, the generals in the audience had different expressions. Dengzhou guard general Wanhu Liao Kai was ordered to come to aid Yidu this time, which was for the sake of military merit, and he, Tian Hui and Meng Qing seconded it. These people are not from Dengzhou, so what does it matter to him whether they live or die? Meng Qing hated these people to the core, many of the thieves were from Yidu, near Linzi City, many of them were the Meng family's drivers and hired workers, they used to be small people who were reprimanded and disposed of, but now they dare to attach thieves and pick up knives and guns to resist! If you don't give it color, how can you stabilize the peace in the family?

What's more, the loss of soldiers a few days ago, the two of them had a lot of subordinates, and they also ordered the siege of the city first, and the first to drive was Liao, Meng, and Tian.

The rest of the Han generals in the tent showed unbearable expressions. Li Zhenxiong and more than a dozen Daru Huachi are better clapping!

also thought about it first, and said: "This plan is very good, it is late today, the army will rest for the time being, and tomorrow morning, act according to the plan." "With the order of Meng Qingbu as the forerunner, these captive homeless people will be taken care of tonight. Ministries have strengthened their security at night.

The generals were discussing, and someone reported that the little prince who bought slaves from Yiwang and the rich and noble children of Yidu also came to serve in the army.

The little prince Luo Tier and other rich and noble children have long been suspended in the Menghan Army, but they have been addicted to amusement and dogs and horses for a long time, and there are almost no overnight stays in the barracks, let alone exercises and drills.

The general in the tent was excited on his face, and sneered in his heart, this is seeing Linqu coming, he rushed to share the credit!

Meng Qing returned to his camp, summoned his fourth son, Meng Jiaqi, and told him to make friends with Luo Tier and others to protect him as much as possible on the battlefield. The Meng family is a local Han gentry, and if they have a strong Han army in the future, it will inevitably attract suspicion.

"Daddy, rest assured, this kind of gentleman just needs to coax him to be happy. It's just that there are silent dogs and horses in the army, so the child sent a letter to his home, and quickly sent some treasures and treasures, and tried them. Meng Jiaqi is full of confidence, he is the last of the four brothers, the best in private school, and learned to bow horses, Meng Qing cherishes the most, so Meng Jiaqi has been arrogant since he was a child, calling friends on weekdays, walking Ma Zhangtai, and loving beautiful prostitutes, although Meng Qing reprimands him every day, Meng Jiaqi is only slightly restrained, trying to hide from his father.

"Everything is careful, when today's turmoil, the thieves are burning like sparks, the officials and soldiers have been invincible, and the father responded to the Dayuan court, the rebels were in the countryside, and the soldiers and horses were gradually prosperous. I heard that Shen Qiu Chahan and Luo Shan Li Siqi are also local gentry and small officials, who recruited volunteers and repeatedly broke the red scarf thieves, and now they are tens of thousands of soldiers and horses, and their official residences are four grades, so big momentum! The so-called wealth should be taken in troubled times, and the power must come immediately! Thinking about it day and night for my father, the Qingzhou soldiers are majestic, and they have been called in ancient times, and I have ordered Jiaxu to recruit another 4,000 volunteers in the township, and after more than a month of training, they can become an army. If the Meng family can leave a name in history because of the army, it is also at this time! ”

Meng Jiaqi changed his color and said: "Daddy is a great talent, a model for the world!" The child is not talented, willing to be in front of the saddle horse! ”

Meng Qing praised: "Those who achieve great things are more long-term, I look at the people of Dengzhou and Laizhou who are brave and unscrupulous, the officials and soldiers of Yidu are greedy for profit and lack of righteousness, and the Jingshi Suwei is even more obsessed with money, which is difficult to achieve." King Yi's father and son are local townsmen, and for the future, it is always a good thing to make more friends with him, so you should be attentive. ”

"It's just that the child sees that there are few thieves on the Linqu city wall, and he is afraid that he can go down in two or three days, and I am afraid that there will not be many opportunities to get acquainted with the little prince."

Meng Qing shook his head slightly: "Otherwise, although the thief army is not numerous, it is quite a group." And the heart of resisting the king is extremely strong. Liu Zhengfeng is a rough person, and he followed Yu Hai to fight with us back then, but he never saw anything bright about it. However, it is less than accustomed to bewitching the foolish, and its brave battle, quite able to use people, when we were defeated in the mountains, so that the erector became famous. It's really hateful! ”

"But this thief has long been gone, and there are no more generals in the city, maybe it is not difficult to take the city?" Meng Jiaqi asked.

"It is the fear of the Father that is less than wisdom, and there must be a plan in what he does! Qi Ning did not care about the arrival of the Yidu army, and the secret line is missing, and the one who will plot is great. Now it seems that it is undoubtedly going south. I just don't know how Ju County responds? ”

Yidu has already issued a document reminding the officials and military towns in Ju County that even if it is less than a frequent trick, it is difficult to please. Besides, as long as you take Linqu, it will become a rootless tree and a sourceless water, so why worry! ”

Meng Qingshang hesitated a little: "The military aircraft is a big matter, your two brothers are thoughtful in their thinking and actions, and they have the style of a general, so you should follow suit." ”

Only then did Meng Jiaqi say cautiously: "Follow my father's teachings." ”

Meng Jiaxu has been staying in the Meng family in Linzi, Meng Qing led the army to fight everywhere, and there were more big and small affairs in the family, although Meng Jiaqi was favored, his status in the clan was still far inferior to his eldest brother.

Meng Qing's second son, Meng Jiaxun, is good at management, Linzi, Bin, Di all over the grain and rice, oil, silk, silk and linen, wood and stone, etc., the business has even reached Jinan Road and Jining Road, that is, there are a few stores in Yidu City, which raised a lot of military funds for Meng Qing's army, and was also relied on by Meng Qing. It's just that the second son, Meng Jiaxun, does not belong to the position of the head of the family and the commander of the army, but has fewer conflicts with the third and fourth brothers.

Luo Ti'er served in front of the army, and naturally he would not let him be in danger first, and Meng Qing's arrangement basically ensured Meng Jiaqi's safety.

During the conversation between the father and son, the subordinate Qianhu Menghe came in to ask for instructions, and it turned out that Linzi sent some grain and grass and 400 new soldiers. Meng Qing was overjoyed and took the two out of the account to inspect.

When the Yuan army wantonly plundered the people outside the city, Mingxiong and Ji Xiancheng had to send a unit out of the city to rescue under the collective appeal of their generals.

also saw the thief army out of the city, naturally overjoyed, urgently dispatched Li Zhenxiong and other troops to intercept and kill, cut off its retreat, other Yuan troops have surrounded over, Huang Er, Qu Bo, Xia Houen, Luo Cheng and others rushed to kill, but only rescued four or five thousand people, and he also folded hundreds of soldiers, if it was not for Ji Xiancheng personally led his subordinates to rescue and break off, I am afraid that most of the soldiers who went out of the city would fall into the hands of the enemy!

Meng Qing and Liao Kai commanded Qu to follow the Jing'an army and others to enter the city, but fortunately, Mingxiong and others sacrificed their lives to defend the temporarily retreating Yuan army, so they had a chance to fall at the city gate.

Yu Lan, Liu E and other young women also climbed to the top of the city, passing stones, lime and other things, and personally slashed the Yuan army who took advantage of the situation to enter the city with swords in an emergency. Liu E also broke her arm because of this, and Huang Er was so shocked afterwards that she couldn't lock her in the inner room before she was relieved.

It's just that in this way, the inner camp of the Jing'an Army outside the city has to be abandoned, and the baggage inside is lost! It is a failure or a failure this time.

However, many people were saved, and many officers and soldiers of the Shuntian Army had a good impression of Ji Xiancheng and others, and they were willing to listen to his assignment. The rescued people were also grateful, helping to defend the city, and were willing to risk death. This is the lost corner of the east, and the mulberry elm is harvested.

"Be careful!" Yu Lan was not on guard, and a strong force pushed her violently, and a sturdy figure firmly pressed against Yu Lan's body.

Bang. A stone the size of a large winter melon flew through the air and smashed on the back wall of the city, and with a bang, more than a dozen green bricks flew and smashed directly. There were several screams from below the city, and the boulder fell, and I don't know who was hurting.

Yu Lan was shocked at this time, and after being afraid, she noticed that a young man was still pressing on herself, and the man took a long breath when he saw that he had escaped the flying corpse, turned his head and saw Yu Lan's slightly flushed pretty face, and hurriedly got up, muttering on his lips, not knowing what to say.

Yu Lan took a few quick breaths, his chest heaved and heaved, and at this time, everyone around him was busy defending and delivering stones, fire oil, arrows, etc., except for seven or eight women and sergeants nearby, no one noticed that Yu Lan just avoided the catastrophe.

At this time, the Yuan army was attacking very urgently, and had already reached the head of the city twice.

"Thank you!" Yu Lan is not hypocritical, and there is no intention of male and female defense, "Little brother's surname is big?" ”

The man said for some time: "Little Meng Qi, the head of the Jing'an Army's baggage team, is recuperating in the city due to injuries. ”

Yu Lan stared at him, blinked, suddenly realized, and said happily: "Recognize, recognize, you and Huang Er rushed to save me that night, twice in a row, it is really my life-saving Bodhisattva!" ”

Meng Qi blushed for a moment, bowed his head and said: "Sister is the Bodhisattva who saves suffering, you are auspicious, and you have the blessing of the gods!" If you can protect your sister thoroughly, the little powder will be willing! ”

Yu Lan was in the health team at the beginning, carefully caring for the wounded of the Shuntian Army, not avoiding blood stains and dirt, and taking a group of sisters to change dressings for the wounded in various departments, wipe their bodies, sew and mend, pulp and wash clothes, and was very respectful of the soldiers. Meng Qi is also one of them, so he is willing to sacrifice his life to save him. Unconsciously, the figure of the person who missed her hometown in Meng Qi's heart gradually faded, but Yu Lan's voice and smile became clearer.

It's just that how dare Meng Qi reveal this feeling? Being able to accompany him and protect him is Meng Qi's greatest joy! The battle situation was urgent, and the noble headquarters of the Jing'an Army were also selected to go to the city to help defend it. Meng Qi's team was divided into Yu Lan's group by Gao Shang.

The two said a few words briefly, and the Yuan army under the city made a big noise, and it was another wave of offensive! The two did not dare to delay any longer, and continued to defend separately.

On the fifth day, the morning light brightened, and the red sun rose above the horizon. The camp of the Yuan army was noisy, and after breakfast, the soldiers of each department formed a team and left the camp in turn under the order of the first general. Various surviving and rushed siege engines followed.

Listening to the continuous low horns in the Yuan army camp, Mingxiong appeared on the city wall, and his already thin and pale face couldn't help but twitch.

In these days of defensive battles, Mingxiong almost did not sleep for several days, and the Yuan army not only attacked during the day, but also attacked several times at night. All departments of the Shuntian army have no experience in defending the city, all the scheduling and repair of the equipment are almost single-handedly arranged by Mingxiong, at the beginning of Ji Xiancheng ordered Mingxiong and Qu Bo to be the main, responsible for the defense of the city, some of the generals of the Shuntian army also have a lot of criticism of Mingxiong, thinking that a Han army hundred households can do much, and actually lead the whole city to defend the palace!

However, after a few days of bloody fighting, everyone was convinced. It does not mean that Xiong's personal courage and perseverance on the city wall day and night, and many times to turn the tide, is his strategy of guarding the palace and sending troops to transfer generals are breathtaking.

"My lord, listen to the horn of the Tartars, look at their formation, the Tartars are going to fight hard today!" Mingxiong said with a dark face to Ji Xiancheng, who was walking quickly to the top of the city.

"Tartar is just these means, what new goods can there be this time, look at my old yellow!" This is Huang Er next to him saying hard words. The current Huang Er's upper body armor is not half a piece, and it is bandaged from the left shoulder to the right waist, like a large zongzi. He finally recovered from his injuries, and in the past few days, because of the charge, he has added a lot of wounds, but fortunately, this time it is mostly skin trauma, and he can barely fight after bandaging. Liu E and Yu Lan repeatedly persuaded him to go down to recuperate from his injuries, but Huang Er just didn't do it.

After losing the camp outside the city, Ji Xiancheng led all the troops into the city and assumed the responsibility of the main general to guard the palace, and all the materials outside the city naturally fell into the hands of the Yuan army.