Since the invention of gunpowder, artillery has become an important force in siege warfare, the Ottomans were not pedantic and receptive to emerging affairs, and the merchants were happy to do so.

With Urban's help, the Sultan's army had sixty-nine artillery pieces, the largest of which fired two fifteen-hundred-pound stone shells, which the Sultan divided into more than a dozen independent companies, each with a large artillery piece, and placed the two most critical cannons in the central river valley.

On April 12, the most important moment in the history of world warfare, Sudan's artillery demonstrated its unparalleled destructive power.

With a loud bang, the stone projectile fired by the giant cannon smashed on the strong city wall, making a thunderous sound, the stone bullet could not withstand the pressure, and exploded, and the surrounding people died instantly, and most sections of the city wall collapsed.

"Quick, quick, everyone hide first." Giovanni shouted, and although he was not lightly frightened, he did not forget his duty.

The cannons were fired continuously, and the sound of stone projectiles colliding with the city walls was incessant, and the people in the city could only hear the instructions clearly by shouting.

"We have to find a way." Cecipe shouted to Giovanni, "Don't let the enemy do whatever they want. ”

Giovanni shook his head, "Don't worry, wait for now. ”

It didn't take long for the cannon to sound quieter, and it was clear that the cannon could not work for a long time, otherwise there was a danger of exploding, while the small cannon continued to show its power.

"We have to patch up the collapsed walls first." Giovanni instructed Cécipe, "Go find pointed stakes and nail them into a fence, and patch up the broken parts with stones, dirt, and wood." ”

"Also, put a log full of earth at intervals on a stake to serve as a battlement."

It's not very sturdy, but at this stage, it's the best thing to do.

After an hour of shelling, Sudan's army launched a tentative offensive, not with elite troops, but with ordinary militias.

In order to boost morale, Giovanni prepared to go out of the city and fight it back.

"You repair the walls as soon as possible, and I'll teach them a lesson." After saying that, he rushed out with people.

As cannon fodder specially summoned by the Sultan, the Ottomans who rushed over had a very low armor rate, and most of them were holding a long sword, while Giovanni's troops were all in armor, and the victory or defeat was self-evident.

Giovanni took the cross sword, took the lead in rushing into the enemy formation, and together with his hands, accurately cut the enemy's throat, kicked the corpse away, and killed several people in a row.

Seeing that the main general was so brave, the soldiers' hearts were lifted, and they shouted and followed Giovanni, and directly fought a bloody way.

Giovanni was covered in blood, his face was calm, there was no enemy under him, one enemy after another clutched his throat, his face was flushed, and the enemy's hands began to tremble, but in such a battle, the enemy could not dodge, and could only watch with horror as the long sword swung towards him.

In advance, the Ottomans did not expect the enemy to dare to attack, and for a moment of carelessness, seeing that the array was about to be killed, an Ottoman general shouted.

"Come here, get close to me, reorganize the array, and besiege the enemy's generals first."

He spoke Turkic, which Giovanni did not understand, but seeing that the people were gathering towards him, and there was a faint tendency to regroup, Giovanni understood that this must be the enemy's general.

Giovanni took the lead, and no one dared to stand in front of him, and they retreated to both sides, which made it easy for him to kill in front of the enemy general.

With a loud roar, Giovanni raised his sword and slashed, the momentum sank, and the enemy general barely raised his sword to parry, but he didn't watch out for the other party to suddenly turn to slash, and with a scream, one of his palms was slashed off to the ground.

With another wave, the enemy general's eyes widened and he fell to the ground as if in disbelief.

After the Byzantines had gouged through the enemy, they pursued and slaughtered the Ottomans who could not escape, and Giovanni wielded his scythe like the Grim Reaper, easily taking a person's life with each blow.

Chasing him to the ditch and burning the improvised pontoon bridge built by the Ottomans, Giovanni wiped the blood from his face, looked at the sultan on the opposite hill, and without saying a word, turned back into the city.

The Sultan suddenly snorted coldly, although it was only a temptation, and failure was normal, the fighting spirit of the Byzantines was still beyond his expectations.

"Within three days, all the trenches will have to be filled." The Sultan's face was ugly, and he had to fight quickly, otherwise the enemy's aid would only increase, as his ancestors had given him.

"Your Majesty, our fleet is about to arrive."

This is Khalil reporting news to his sultan.

"Let's go, come with me to meet you."

With that, the Sultan rode his horse ahead.

During this season, the sea of Marmara was dominated by northerly winds, which favored the Byzantines, but the navy was an important part of the Sultan's plans, and in any case, the navy played the role expected by the Sultan.

The Sultan looked at the sea, waiting for his fleet, and in the distance, small dots loomed, gradually, becoming clearer.

Ships came by, high masts, huge hulls, and small warships around them, the entire sea seemed to be occupied by the Sultan's fleet, and the brown-black hull was in stark contrast to the sea, and everyone who saw it would be shocked.

Bartoglu descended from his flagship to meet the Sultan.

"My general, I have a task for you to complete." The Sultan said to his naval commander.

"Blockade the city, try to storm the Golden Horn, and hold off any fleet that comes in from the Sea of Marmara."

"Die to complete the mission." The general did not hesitate for a moment.

Although the Sultan had many ships, naval battles did not depend on the number of ships, but on the proficiency of the seamen, and a single mistake could destroy an entire fleet, and the Italians in the city were confident that the Ottoman fleet would not be able to advance an inch.

The emperor also knew about the arrival of the navy, and the sultan did not intend to sneak forward, but to show his might with great fanfare.

In front of the chain of the Golden Horn, ten of the largest merchant ships have sailed here, in a tight formation, with their bows forward, and sturdy galleys deployed next to the merchant ships, fully armed and orderly.

The disparity in power on land was so great that it was easier to make a breakthrough at sea, as both the Sultan and the Emperor thought, and both sides tried to annihilate the other's sea power in one fell swoop to force the other to submit.

In order to better combat the enemy, the Sultan mounted cannons on galleys for the first time in history, although only small cannons, but this was a major breakthrough in the history of world naval warfare, and the emperor was also plotting to surprise the Sultan.