Chapter 61 Attack and Defense

Josk, the archer, was about thirty years old, tall and fit, with blond hair, a handsome appearance, and a resolute expression. It was only that Lorist noticed that there always seemed to be a faint sadness between his brows.

After exchanging chivalry and a knightly salute, Lorist invited the Knight of Joske to the Great Tent for a chat.

When he arrived at the Great Tent and introduced the knights of the family to the knights of the Josk family, Lorist briefly explained the origin of the convoy and the circumstances of the attack on the lancers in the afternoon, which led to his capture of the barracks in a fit of rage, and asked the knight of Joske about the purpose of his visit.

Knight Joske was also very straightforward, saying that he had come to see if the convoy could withstand the attack of a large garrison and a squadron of lancers under the command of Count Corbilly. Originally, he approached the barracks in the afternoon to camouflage and reconnoitre, just to take advantage of the lack of defensive strength in the barracks to sneak in and set fire to the grain and grass supplies, so as to force the army of Count Corbilly, who was sweeping in the western mountains, to turn back, and give the rebels in the western mountains a chance to breathe.

Now that Lorlist's convoy has captured the barracks, it is undoubtedly a great favor for the resistance. Knight Joske was blunt, saying that when he saw Lorist capture the barracks with less than 100 light cavalry in the afternoon, he thought they were not strong enough, and at most he withdrew from the barracks with the same aim as he could. At that time, he wondered when there would be a cavalry force in this area that could compete with the lancers, and it was not until he found Fat Man's convoy heading towards the barracks on the way back that he realized that Lorist and they were probably passing through this place and clashing with the lancers. Because they were worried that Lorist did not understand the strength of Count Cobilly's army, they would suffer a big loss if they turned around, so they specially came to report to Lorlist.

The knight of Joske said that what Count Corbilly had swept through in the western mountains was a garrison brigade and a garrison squadron that had been stationed in the barracks, making a total of five squadrons, each consisting of a squad of longbowmen, a squad of sword and shield men, and two squadrons of spearmen, each of which was full of one hundred and twenty men. Five squadrons of nearly 2,400 men, plus a squadron of lancers roaming the outskirts of the mountains, the total force is close to 2,900 men.

Shi Fatzi interjected, he said that the information he got from the Soria knights was more than 1,000 lancers and more than 2,000 garrisons, why is Count Corbilly's military strength expanding so quickly?

Josk asks who the Knight of Soria is, and Fat tells him about Baron Charles and the Knight of Soria.

Knight Joske pouted, Baron Charles he knew and met several times. Knight Soria was right, but he said it was more than a year ago, when Count Corbilly had just returned to the realm. And now Count Corbilly is fighting everywhere in this region, conquering and destroying the territorial nobles in this region by force, how can he not vigorously strengthen the army. In addition to the troops that came to the western mountains to sweep this time, there were three squadrons of lancers in Earl Billy's family domain, a fully equipped garrison brigade, and two newly formed garrison squadrons.

Some time ago, the sweeping troops broke through several cottages in the western mountainous areas, obtained a batch of grain and grass materials, and in the past two days began to attack the Funiuling Cottage, the largest resistance in the western mountainous area, relying on the treacherous terrain and the resolute resistance of the Funiuling Cottage Resistance Forces, although they held the cottages, the losses were also very large, and the situation was precarious. That's why the Chosk knights wanted to attack the barracks and burn the grain and grass. However, Lorist took possession of the barracks, and as soon as the news reached the western mountains, it was assured that Earl Corbilly's sweeping forces would soon turn around and attack the barracks.

Knight Joske's advice to Lorist was to evacuate as soon as possible if the convoy was not strong enough to resist the mopping force, and to burn the food and grass to force the Count of Corbilly's mopping force to withdraw to the family territory. The western mountains are only a day's journey from here, and the news that the military camp has been occupied tonight will be able to rush back tomorrow evening.

Lorist shook his head, the convoy could not go, and if it did, it would be easy to be overtaken, as long as the lancers entangled the convoy and the large force behind them caught up, the convoy would have to fight with Corbilly's army. It is better to fight a field battle with the superior enemy on the way to evacuate than to defend the barracks, at least it still occupies the terrain and can reduce casualties.

Lorist said murderously, if there is a battle, there will be a big one, and I will use this barracks to annihilate the 3,000 people of the sweeping troops, and give Count Corbilly a profound lesson.

Lorist analyzed that although Count Corbilly's sweeping force was three times larger than ours, his real combat strength was far inferior to ours. According to the captive's confession, the only threat to us from Count Cobilly is the lancers, which are all composed of soldiers who have awakened their fighting spirit, but if these black iron and bronze spears lose their impact and fight in close combat with our black iron strength heavy armor soldiers, it is guaranteed to be a massacre of the lancers. As for the more than 2,000 garrisons, they have no fighting spirit, and under the impact of the Knights of Telman Silver and Black Iron Strength, aren't they just a flock of sheep?

Yuri's squad of light cavalry scouts was cruising around the perimeter, sparing not a single enemy who slipped through the net, and we had crossbowmen, spearmen, and crossbow chariots, and I couldn't think of a reason why we couldn't win.

As for how to lure the enemy into our trap, it's simpler. As Knight Joost said just now, although the sweeping troops broke down a few cottages and obtained a batch of food and grass supplies, it was only enough for them to consume for five or six days. Hearing the news that the barracks had been occupied, the sweeping troops had only two options, one was to withdraw to the family territory, and the other was to turn around and recapture the barracks. I believe that the commander of the mopping force will definitely choose to capture the barracks. If he chooses to withdraw to his family's domain, he will be scolded by Count Corbilly, even if his military strength is not damaged, and he cannot afford to lose two spear squads and three bastard brothers. He had no choice but to return to the army to destroy us and recapture the barracks for supplies.

We chose to resist step by step, the first two days to make the other side feel that they could capture the camp as long as they worked harder, delay for two days and wait for him to devote all his military strength, then let them into the camp, use all kinds of obstacles to divert their military strength, and then send out heavy armor to give them a fatal blow, at that time, it will not be difficult to annihilate them.

Lorlist's words lifted the spirits of everyone in the big tent, everyone knew that this big battle could not be avoided, as Lorist said, even if he left now, he would inevitably be caught up in the field, so it was better to guard the barracks and fight. And Lorist came up with a strategy that sounded good, as long as it was implemented properly, it could really be able to annihilate more than 3,000 people.

Shi Fatzi immediately found the map of the military camp, and began to discuss with everyone how to lure the other party, how to set up a battlefield in the military camp, arrange traps and ambushes, how to divide the other party's military strength, etc., and the discussion was in full swing for a while.

The Knight of Joske seemed to be a little envious of the harmonious atmosphere between Lorist and the knights of the family, and saw that everyone was discussing a plan of defense measures and turned to Lorlist, volunteering to ask if he could contribute to this big battle?

Loriskey nodded, and he told the Knight Joske that all the armed forces of the Norton family's convoy would be invested in this big battle, and if the Knight Joske had the ability, he would take advantage of the ambush of Count Corbilly's sweeping troops to lead a group of men and horses to take his large camp in the rear, which would be the greatest help to this big battle.

When the Knight Josk heard this, he was in good spirits and replied that it was not a problem. He immediately went back and rallied the rebels, secretly followed the mopping forces, and kicked their lair when they attacked the barracks and fell in. After saying that, the Knight Josk hurriedly took his leave and left.

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In the evening of the next day, the sweep army of the Earl of Corbilly appeared in front of the barracks, and it was the squadron of lancers who were in the vanguard. When they rushed to the front of the barracks, they soon saw the heads of sticks on both sides of the road leading to the barracks, and the head of the big brown-haired man in the front was particularly eye-catching.

The lancers were furious one by one, scolding at the barracks, and even some of the lancers even wanted to storm the gate of the barracks, but they were shot back by more than a hundred crossbow archers arranged on the parapet wall of the barracks gate, and they also dropped a dozen lancers who fell with arrows.

When the garrison arrived, the commander of Count Cobilly's sweeping force sent four squads of sword and shield men, and under the cover of shields, collected the heads of the sticks and the corpses of the dead lancers before setting up camp.

Lorist stood on the parapet and nodded, commenting: "The commander of this army is quite clear-headed, and he is decent in leading the army. Let's go, fatty, El, it should be fine tonight, and the big show will start tomorrow morning. ”

Shi Fatzi was still a little worried: "What if they don't attack from the side of the gate, but instead find a parapet wall in the barracks and launch a sneak attack? ”

"No," Lorist pointed outside the parapet, "You see, Count Corbilly chose to set up a permanent military camp here. First, the terrain here is flat, and there is no high ground nearby, so the barracks are about two meters higher than the outside, which is suitable for lancers to attack, and also prevents the enemy from peeking into the movements in the barracks from the outside. Second, in addition to the three-meter-wide avenue leading to the barracks gate, the barracks are surrounded by this two-meter-wide moat, and the water depth we have tried is also more than two meters, and the moat is still a row of rejecting horses, and behind the rejecting horses is a four-meter-high stone parapet, while the parapet wall inside the barracks is only two meters high. There is also a 1.5 meter high wooden fence on top of the parapet, and people can stand on the parapet wall and hide behind the wooden fence to defend. ”

"If they want to break through the parapet of the barracks, they have to fill in the moat first, and then clear the banks of the river to remove the horses, so that there is room for ladders, and the ladders must be more than five meters long. Don't forget that this barracks is theirs, and they naturally know that it is most efficient to attack from that part of the barracks. Add to that the time constraints, I don't think they would even think about breaking through the parapet. To tell the truth, the defense of this barracks is stronger than the castles of some lords, and Earl Corbilly would never have imagined that he had done such a good job of defending the barracks to prevent them from being attacked by the rebels, and now it was them themselves attacking the barracks, was this considered self-inflicted?"

"In addition to the barracks gate, there is a small gate behind this barracks, but to pass through the small gate, you have to lower the drawbridge over the moat, which is very inconvenient for people to pass, I think they will send a squad of lancers to the back of the barracks to block the drawbridge to make sure we don't escape. As for the brigade, it is most convenient to attack from the barracks gate, for them, we are finished by breaking the barracks gate. Tomorrow morning, let those old men and children wear leather armor and carry spears to walk around the parapet, and let them be sure that our strength is insufficient, and even the old men and children will mobilize to defend themselves. ”

El asked, "Will they send a Gold-Tier master to sneak into the barracks that night?"

Lorist smiled: "You think they are all you, wandering around all night without sleeping, and the captives said that the illegitimate sons of the eleven Earls of Corbilly who led the team this time, three gold and eight silver, have been slaughtered by us for one gold and two silver." The rest definitely didn't dare to risk sneaking in alone. You must know that fighting alone is different from fighting on the battlefield, the enemy who can't be defeated on the battlefield can use his soldiers to pile him to death, and the more they are soldiers. If we find out and no one helps him, he might die, so they won't take the risk. Besides, with Boderfinger and his comrade-in-arms Ross patrolling the night at night, what are we worried about?"

......

The night was uneventful.

Earl Cockbilly's sweeping troops were on the road for a day, and it was normal to have a good night's rest without tossing. And Lorist, who occupied the barracks, did not send anyone out to harass them, plus the old man and children who were wandering around the parapet wall of the barracks early in the morning, after being seen by the lancers who were monitoring the barracks, it was easy to come to a conclusion that the enemy occupying the barracks was not strong, and even the old people and children were also sent into battle.

In the morning, the sweeping troops sent a few garrisons with loud voices to come over and shout at the gate of the barracks, demanding that the people in the barracks come out and surrender immediately, otherwise they will all be hanged when they enter. Horist thought they were too noisy and told the crossbow archers to shoot them like hedgehogs. Then he ordered the old men and children on the parapet of the barracks to evacuate immediately, and soon the battle would begin.

Sure enough, the soldiers who had come to persuade them to surrender were shot dead, which enraged the enemy, and they swarmed out of the camp, with sword and shield men in front and longbowmen behind, and then engaged in a confrontation with the crossbowmen in the barracks. It's just that the crossbow archer has the cover of a parapet wall and a wooden fence, and the crossbow is easy to aim and shoot directly, and its lethality is stronger than that of a longbow that can only be projectile at a long distance.

The longbowman was in an awkward position, he was vulnerable to crossbow shots when he got close, and if he didn't get close, he could only throw it, which would not damage the crossbowman at all. After a few rounds of fire, no damage was done to the crossbowmen except for a few more long arrows on the wooden fence on the parapet of the barracks.

The longbowmen were withdrawn, and the enemy changed their tactics, sending sword and shield men to make a feint, preparing to lure the crossbow archers into firing their crossbow arrows, consuming as many crossbow arrows as possible. Lorist ordered that no arrows be fired, and let the two squads of sword and shield soldiers reach the gate of the barracks, and then open the gate, and Telman, who had been prepared, led the knights to rush into the sword and shield soldiers like a tiger into a flock, killing extremely painfully. The two squads of more than 200 sword and shield soldiers only escaped back to more than 50.

The lancers tried to rush up, but were stopped by the crossbowmen, and when they pulled the longbowmen up, Telman had already led the knights back to the barracks. The sweeping force lost more than a hundred and fifty sword and shield soldiers, but Telman and them were unscathed.

Combined with the description of the lancers who fled back from the second attack convoy, the escort force of the convoy occupying the barracks was the more than 100 crossbow archers guarding the gate of the barracks, as well as more than 40 knights who had just rushed out of the barracks to slash and kill the sword and shield soldiers, and the rest were hundreds of spearmen. However, the spearmen I saw in the morning were all old men and children, and I think they should have suffered a lot of damage when they captured the barracks, and their combat effectiveness was negligible.

In the afternoon, the mopping forces stopped attacking the barracks and sent only lancers to monitor from afar. Send out a large garrison to cut down the groves and haul the trees back to the camp. Standing on the parapet, Lorist saw many garrisons in the camp of the sweepers, busy making platoons and crashing cars.

"Looks like they're ready to get real tomorrow, are our canisters ready?" said Loristven standing next to Shi Fat.

"It's fifty-five in total, I don't know if it's enough. Shi Fatzi was worried.

"That's enough, we'll give him a fire tomorrow, and then it's our turn to clean them up. Lorist chuckled.

......

In the morning, after Lorist's morning exercise, and just as he was about to wipe his body, Shi Fatzi ran to say that the enemy's troops had been dispatched.

Lorist looked up at the sky, only to find that the sky was cloudy and gloomy today, and it seemed that it would snow heavily in the afternoon or evening. It's January and there are still a few heavy snowfalls. The sweeping force over there may have also noticed a change in the weather, so they launched an attack in advance.

Lorist said to Shi Fatzi: "You go to see the dependents of the army, and you need to add more clothes when the weather changes, so as not to cause many people in the convoy to catch a cold and get sick, you have to worry about these things." I'll take care of the battle outside, so you can rest assured. ”

......

Standing on the parapet, watching the enemy on the opposite side shrink behind the wooden platoons, and then gradually move the wooden platoons forward step by step, in the wooden platoons, three poorly shaped crash cars "creaked" slowly along the avenue under the impetus of dozens of people.

Lorist smiled at Bodfinger, who had been patrolling around all night, "It's going to be a tough battle today, it seems that they are all in a hurry." ”

Bodfinger nodded: "The change in weather has a big impact on them, and if it lasts for a few days and it snows heavily, they will be able to retreat now." Supplies were insufficient to last, and they had to take the barracks early to maintain their troops. What is now in front of them is a strong attack, regardless of casualties, and the barracks will be captured at any cost. Maybe we don't have to wait until tomorrow to activate the trap. ”

"Well," said Lorlist, "if they keep storming, then we'll give up the barracks gates and bring them in." Anyway, it doesn't matter if it's a day earlier or a day later, even if they want to escape in this weather, they can't escape far. Reddy, you go and tell everyone to be in place, we're going to surprise the enemy. ”

......