After two years of severe drought, although the second year of Chongzhen was not very good, the rainy season in summer still could not avoid the arrival of heavy rain. The rain in the north tends to start out so quickly that it doesn't take long for it to turn into a continuous drizzle, like the refractory period. Compared with the general armed forces in the north, the elite of the southwest region led by Zhu Xieyuan knew better how to store and avoid the dampness of gunpowder in such weather, so Zhu Xieyuan was also very confident that although carrying out artillery operations at such a time would have a certain impact on his own combat effectiveness, the weakening of the opponent would be greater. Especially in the summer, the role of armor and horses is reduced to a minimum, but those who are good at shields are the most effective.

Shortly after the thunderstorm, the rumbling of cannon rang out continuously. Eighteen giant cannons with about 2,000 catties of barrels equipped with 20,000 vanguard Ming troops opened fierce fire along both ends of the city wall. After each fire, Catholic gunners from Macau measured the angles of the guns with gun gauges after the guns were reset.

The appearance of the gun gauge and related gunnery that began in the sixteenth century was largely a secret of Christianity, and even if it was the case with the Ming and Qing dynasties, it was impossible to teach the true "core technology" to the Chinese people at that time. In the understanding of some so-called scholars who are proficient in Western science in the south of the Ming Dynasty, the gun gauge is a way to measure the elevation angle of artillery, because it is difficult to keep it secret in use like the people who follow it, and it is quite troublesome to adjust the elevation angle of the artillery, especially to adjust the elevation angle of the heavy artillery, but I don't know how to judge the quality and fineness of gunpowder and even the amount of related gunpowder is the best way to judge the range, and I don't know some secrets that seem very simple in modern times in ranging.

The saltpeter brought from India changed the power of gunpowder to such an extent that even if the Chinese officers or related personnel who followed them carefully examined the amount of gunpowder, they could not necessarily judge the true standard.

However, the only thing Zhu Xieyuan can know is that when these Western gunners use the gunpowder and shells they bring to fire, the same standard seems to be able to see the fire with a faster rate of fire, and the accuracy is also greatly improved. Coupled with the fact that the trajectory is straighter, the difference is simply incalculable.

Within about half an hour of the bombardment, more than 900 shells were fired from 18 guns one after another, and most of them hit the city wall in a mile or so. The fortifications like a wooden fort that had been well fortified on the head of Dongchang City also looked dilapidated under the fierce bombardment. In order to avoid the heavy artillery fire, most of the officers and soldiers defending the city at the corners had to hide behind the flanks of the city walls. However, in order to prevent the defenders from taking the opportunity to attack the city, two or three hundred people were either killed or maimed under heavy artillery fire.

Li Zicheng, who was watching the battle at the head of the city from a building in the city, couldn't help but feel a huge pressure. Whether it was with the ordinary Ming army or with the forbidden brigade led by today's son before, I didn't see what the fierce artillery fire and firepower were like, so I also paid attention to strengthening the city head according to the standards of the "Defending the City" in Dongchang City, which had been entrenched for many months, but I didn't expect that the artillery power I faced this time was completely different from the previous ones. Those heavy artillery shells could not even stop the wooden rafts covered with a few inches thick.

Under the cover of artillery fire, the offensive of the vanguard of the Ming army was launched. Under the cover of the unloaded car shield from the ship, the attacking team soon approached a distance of about ten feet from the city. At this distance, some bows and arrows, javelins, and even fist-sized lead bullets were thrown one after another. However, most of the arrows were blocked by the shield. However, the 10,000 enemies thrown from the top of the city or other common types of defensive equipment could not threaten the heavy defensive targets 100,000 kilometers away.

At this time, Zhu Xieyuan issued a military order to throw "Mao Hulu Throwing Thunder". In fact, whether it is shooting the city wall along the double T-shaped head of the city wall, or blasting the attack, of course, it is also the result of Zhu Xieyuan hearing a lot of new tactics from Li Zicheng and other thieves when attacking the city along the way.

Of course, Zhu Xieyuan, who has more actual combat experience, has his own opinions on the bamboo pole thunder blasting siege method spread by Xiao Xuan. If it is said that Xiao Xuan is more influenced by Western military thinking and modern scientific thinking, he attaches more importance to "killing". However, the more prominent traditional generals such as Zhu Xieyuan paid more attention to the role of seizing qi. The power of the black powder dropped by only about ten taels in the gourd was very poor, and even if it landed next to an armored soldier and exploded, it would not necessarily let it be carried down, even for people who were completely unprotected, the killing range was also very small. However, the sound and acoustic effects it brings, as well as the suppressive effect brought by the interference effect, are often ignored by Xiao Xuan.

Not to mention the kind of "gourd mine" that is similar to a modern grenade can be thrown farther and more. Some of the ones that didn't explode were often still able to have a great impact on the psychology of the defenders.

Although the white smoke that continued to rise below the city head and even on the city head did not kill or injure many officers and soldiers defending the city, the projected fire on the city head suddenly withered. The elite southern soldiers, who were very good at climbing, climbed to the top of the city with ease in this situation with hooks with special knots, and when the defenders at the top of the city reacted from the smoke of the explosion, which lasted for several minutes, the melee soldiers with shields and short spears had already gained a foothold on the top of the city, jumping and screaming and rushing towards them.

The defenders in other directions of the city were also suppressed by the "gourd mines" that were thrown one after another, and the seemingly well-prepared defense of the city quickly collapsed under the suppression of heavy artillery, gourd mines, and those elite hand-to-hand fighters who were good at climbing.

Although the Vauban siege method against the fortress system in the real sense did not appear in Europe until more than half a century later, what Xiao Xuan did not expect was that some of his tactical inventions inspired some people in this era and created stronger opponents.

At this time, Li Zicheng of course knew that if such a person continued to defend to the death, the morale of the defenders would soon be exhausted, and he had to send a signal in advance, and the main force that had long been ambushed outside the city launched an attack on the siege site.

A group of about 20,000 cavalry horses lying in ambush a few miles east of the city suddenly rushed out of the trenches that had been prepared long ago, hoping to deal a fatal blow to the enemy army while the formidable enemy army was attacking the city.

(End of chapter)