A rooster crow tore through the silence of the night, and the news of the invasion of the Yue Kingdom had spread throughout the city. Soon, there was a slight glimmer of light in the sky, and the people of Gusu also began to make intense preparations before the war.

Gong Wanran stood on the city gate and looked into the distance, and sure enough, the 20,000 troops of the Yue Kingdom had arrived, and it was only a stone's throw away from Gusu City.

Yu Xianyao hurriedly ran over, and he excitedly reported to Gong Huiran: "Lord Gong Hui! Good news! As soon as the people heard that the Yue people were calling, they enthusiastically applied for the draft, and they vowed to live and die together with Gusu City! ”

"Good! As long as the people can stand up and defend their homeland, I believe we can defend it! ”

"Hmmm! I've also solved the money thing! I took the lead and took out another hundred taels of gold, and the other brothers also donated one after another, and finally made up another thousand three hundred taels! ”

"Thank you!"

"Hey, why do you want to say thank you? In times of national crisis, everyone is responsible, not to mention, we businessmen are just contributing some money. Money is nothing compared to life. ”

"Well, thank you. Also, how did you deal with the size of the business? ”

"It's all taken care of, and the body has been sent to Dazaifu."

Gong Wan nodded, still looking a little worried, "Even so, I'm still worried that Dazai-sama will be angry with me, after all, I also have the responsibility of failing to protect me. ”

"Humph! Lord Gonghui, that ruler clearly deserves it, and now that you have made him a hero, what else is there to anger Dazai-sama? If he knew the truth, he should not be angry with you, but should be grateful to you. ”

"I hope so."

"My lord understands the righteousness, and the people have their own aspirations!"

At this time, several guards surrounded the prince and climbed the city wall, and when the prince saw Gong Huiran, he hurriedly stepped forward, he pointed to the Yue army under the city, and asked tremblingly: "Lord Gong Hui...... This...... How many people are there in this city?! ”

"The Vietnamese army has a total of 20,000 people."

"Twenty thousand! Yes?! Oh, my God! This...... How can this be kept! ”

Gong Wanran saluted and said: "Your Royal Highness the Prince, now that the people have the same hatred and hatred, and swear to live and die with Gusu City, as long as we do not give up hope and persist with all our might, we should be able to defend until the king comes back to save us." ”

"That's right! Tell your father! Let Father come back and save us! ”

"Gusu is more than 2,000 miles away from Huangchi, three days ago, I have sent people 800 miles to Huangchi to rush to Huangchi to report the news, if there is no accident, the king should have learned the news of the invasion of the Yue Kingdom."

"Oh, oh. That's good, that's good. But when will the king return? ”

"Even if the army sets off immediately, it will take a month and a half at the earliest, and the vanguard army will take twenty days at the earliest."

"Huh?! Twenty days! Without a single soldier in the city, how could it be possible to hold it for twenty days?! ”

Gong Wanran did not answer, but pulled the prince to the lookout, he pointed to the people who were preparing for war and said, "Your Royal Highness the prince, you see, this is the defender of our city. ”

The peasants who used to only be able to farm and chop wood are now carrying ordnance and stones, and the women who were supposed to spin knitting threads at home are also preparing food for the warriors defending the city, and everyone is doing their best to contribute to the defense of the city.

The prince felt a little relieved, he patted Gong Wanran's shoulder hard, and said, "Lord Gong Hui! I officially appoint you as the commander of this battle to defend the city! Please be sure to lead the people of the city to defend Gusu City! ”

"Whoa! Ministers should do their best. ”

"Good! Then please Princess! ”

The prince was just about to leave, but was stopped by the public, "Your Highness! ”

"Oh? What else? ”

"Can the three thousand Praetorian Guards of the Imperial Palace be called by me?"

"This? ......" Prince Friend hesitated.

"Although thousands of civilians stepped forward, there were only a few hundred real soldiers in the city, and it was still difficult for such a force to hold the city. Once the city is broken, let alone 3,000 Praetorian Guards, even 30,000 Praetorian Guards will not be able to guarantee the safety of His Highness. ”

"That'...... All right...... Give you half. ”

"No, the minister needs all, three thousand."

"Hey, okay, listen to you, be sure to defend the city!"

"Whoa!"

The sky was getting brighter, and the 20,000 troops of the Yue Kingdom were assembled under the city of Gusu and stood by.

Xiao Se rode on his horse and stood at the forefront of the army. He looked at the public on the city wall, and the public looked at him, although they were far apart, but they looked at each other as if they were speaking a thousand words.

Li Zida stepped forward and reported: "General, our army has surrounded all the four gates of Gusu City, southeast, northwest and northwest, and we can launch an attack just after you give an order." ”

"Okay." Xiao Shi nodded, his eyes always fixed on the city wall.

"General, there's something unclear down there."

"Say."

"Since we are far superior to the enemy, why don't we attack the four gates at the same time, but only the south gate?"

"Attacking Simen at the same time will cause unnecessary casualties, and we still have to conserve our troops as much as possible. It is enough to surround the other three gates and distract the enemy forces by making the illusion of a full-scale attack. ”

"Understood."

Xiao Shi raised his hand and ordered: "Go and give the order immediately, the whole army will bury the pot and cook, and after half an hour, launch an attack on the south gate." ”

"Whoa!"

Subsequently, the Vietnamese National Front moved and surrounded all four gates of Gusu City, but the main forces were still assembled at the south gate. Standing on the south gate, looking at the smoke rising from the camp of the Yue Kingdom, Gong Wanran ordered the adjutant: "The whole army will be transferred to the south gate for defense, and the other three gates will only be left to monitor the troops." ”

"Whoa!" The adjutant received the order and turned to give the order.

At this time, Yu Xianyao on the side asked puzzledly: "My lord, the Yue people are surrounding the four gates, and it is very likely that they will attack from any gate, why do we only defend the south gate?" Isn't that too risky? ”

"There are some adventures, but the main force of the Yue people is still concentrated at the south gate, the reason why they surround all the city gates is to disperse our forces, we are already short of manpower, so we can't divide the troops to defend, we must concentrate the limited forces."

"My lord, I don't know if I have an idea." Yu Xianyao hesitated for a moment, but still asked, "Since the Yue people are attacking the south gate with all their might, why can't we escape from the other gates?" As long as everyone is there, when the king returns with the army, let's turn around and recapture Gusu......"

"No!" Gongwan categorically denied, "Gusu is the foundation of the country, once Gusu is lost, it will be a sign of the country's demise!" The losses are immeasurable! So in this battle, we must hold on until the last moment! ”

"I understand, the people of Gusu are of the same heart as adults, and they will stick to it until the king returns!"

"Well, Old Yu, the big war is coming, it's very dangerous here, you should go down to the city quickly. What I asked for before, please ask Mr. Yu to help me deliver it as soon as possible. ”

"Okay, during this time, the craftsmen are working day and night, and it should be almost finished, so I'll urge it now! Ship it as soon as it's finished! Take care! ”

"Thank you, Mr. Yu."

Half an hour later, it was dawn. At this time in the past, Gusu City has begun to be busy and noisy, but today, there is a dead silence in Gusu City.

On the city gate, the Wu soldiers were in full array, and under the city gate, the Vietnamese army was ready to go.

Suddenly, the noisy war drums sounded on the Vietnamese front, and 20,000 soldiers roared in unison, and the roar shook the heavens and the earth, and even the tall and sturdy Gusu city wall seemed to tremble slightly in the roar.

After a long time, the roar subsided, and the Vietnamese National Front was ready to move, and a big war was about to break out. A militiaman who had just been conscripted leaned against the city wall, his legs were weak, his body was trembling, and if he hadn't been holding on to the wall, he would have been so frightened that he would have sat on the ground.

At this time, Gong Wanran stepped forward, gently patted the shoulder of the militiaman, and said with a smile: "Don't be afraid, I will live and die with you." ”

The militia turned around and saw that it was Gong Huiran, and hurriedly knelt down and saluted: "Lord Gong Hui! ”

When everyone heard that Lord Gonghui was coming, they all turned their eyes to this place. I saw Gong Wanran covered with bright silver armor, wearing a cold iron sword on his waist, the feathers on his helmet and the cloak behind him flying in the wind, heroic and high-spirited.

He slowly walked up to the platform, drew his sword, and shouted to the crowd.

"Brothers, the 20,000 troops of the Yue Kingdom are under the city, and today we will fight to the death!"

"You may be afraid, you may lose hope, but you are still here!"

"I know that some of you are taking up arms for the first time, and the first time you will face enemies many times your size!"

"So, what made you choose to come forward?!"

"It is the responsibility to defend the family and the country! It is the courage and pride of being a Wu Guonan! ”

"Remember! We defeated them! We fought all the way to the city of Huiji, not a shameless sneak attack like theirs! ”

"Today! We will defeat the enemy again! We will hold the ground under our feet with the sword in our hands and the blood under our feet! Defend our homes and loved ones! ”

"Brothers! Good sons and daughters of the country of Wu! Today! We will win! ”

As soon as the words fell, the city wall suddenly boiled, and everyone raised their swords and shouted in unison.

"Victory!"

"Victory!"

"Victory!"

Suddenly, a horn sounded under the city, and the army of the Yue Kingdom stormed Gusu City like a tide.

"Shoot the arrows!" Gong Hui waved his sword and ordered.

The Wu soldiers drew their bows and crossbows one after another, firing a volley into the sky. After a rain of arrows, the position was full of dead and wounded, but the Vietnamese people were undaunted, and they stepped on the corpses of their comrades and continued to rush forward.

"Shoot the arrows!"

There was another rain of arrows, and more Vietnamese people fell to the ground and died. But such casualties were simply insignificant for the Vietnamese army.

In the blink of an eye, the soldiers of the Yue Kingdom had rushed to the bottom of the city, and countless ladders were like tree demons emerging from the ground, and the branches of the fangs and claws were clinging to the city wall. The Vietnamese soldiers were like ants parasitic on the trunks of trees, black and pressing, desperately climbing up along the trunks.

The soldiers of Wu raised a half-person-high long stick, used the fork head of the "Ya" shape at the top of the stick against the ladder, and pushed it out vigorously in groups of three or five. One after another ladders collapsed, and the Vietnamese soldiers on the ladders were killed and wounded.

As soon as a ladder fell, more Vietnamese soldiers lifted it up again, desperate to climb upwards. Countless pieces of wood and rolling stones began to fall from the city walls, and the Vietnamese soldiers were smashed to the head and bleeding and their brains burst open if they were not careful.

A Wu soldier had just lifted a heavy stone to the wall, and before he could throw it, he was pierced through the chest by an arrow flying from the city. The archers on the city walls did not show weakness and immediately returned fire, giving priority to the crossbowmen under the city.

The battle has intensified, and some Yue soldiers have climbed the city wall and fought with the Wu soldiers on the city wall. Gong Wanran also personally rushed into the battle, and ordered in a loud voice: "Set fire!" ”

The soldiers of Wu poured the hot oil down the city, the Vietnamese soldiers under the city did not have time to dodge, they were burned and cried for a long time, and then, the torches fell from the sky, the hot oil was burned in the fire, and the black smoke mixed with the flames rose into the air, and the soldiers of the Yue Kingdom were killed and injured countless times.

Suddenly, the rapid sound of gold sounded on the Vietnamese position, and the Vietnamese soldiers began to retreat, and the soldiers who had already climbed the city wall had no way to retreat, so they had to fight hard before dying.

The daylight became brighter, the flames slowly extinguished, the smoke dissipated, and the battlefield was temporarily calm. Gong Hui wiped the blood from his face and inspected the situation of the position. The soldiers of Wu suffered heavy casualties, and the city walls were already full of corpses, and the wounded were countless.

A young soldier with an iron sword in his chest was leaning against the wall and moaning in pain. Gong Huiran squatted down and looked at him distressedly, and the soldier stretched out his hand to Gong Huiran for help, but he was too seriously injured and Gong Huiran couldn't do anything. His face was full of tears, not only because of the pain, but also because of his reluctance to give up on the world. Soon, he stopped breathing, and his dilapidated home was reflected in his blinding pupils. Gong Hui gently stroked his eyes and helped him close them.

Gong Wanran slowly stood up, leaning against the city wall and looking at the Vietnamese position, where the dense Vietnamese soldiers were preparing for the next round of attacks.

At this time, several guards protected the prince to climb the city wall, and when the prince saw Gong Huiran, he hurriedly asked, "Lord Gong Hui, how is the battle going?!" ”

Gong Wanran frowned and sighed softly, "The battle situation is not ideal, although we have defended the first round of attacks, but new attacks will come soon, leaving us with a very short time to rest. ”

"Huh?! That...... That...... Will we be able to defend ourselves against the next attack? ”

"It should still be able to hold, judging from the intensity of the first round of attacks, the Vietnamese intend to engage in a war of attrition, through two or three rounds of attacks to consume our troops and defensive materials, and when we are exhausted, they will concentrate their forces to capture the city."

"So what are our consumption now......

"Big, big. It's been much more than I imagined, and if we look at it that way, we'll have one more attack at most. ”

"What should I do?" The prince is as anxious as an ant on a hot pot.

"Your Royal Highness the Prince, don't panic, I have also prepared some secret weapons, which should be delivered soon."

"Secret weapon?! What is that! ”

"His Royal Highness the Crown Prince will find out soon."