The Xi'an city wall was different from ordinary city walls, and the navy's warships did not intend to blow up the city wall after a few rounds of bombardment.They had arrived with enough shells to bombard from morning to afternoon.The northern wall stretched for miles, after night fell.From east to west, it was almost a ruin.Ten 500-ton warships, each with seven guns firing at the same time, fired thousands of shells.The defenders in the city were in a hurry, and in order to deal with the warships of the Huaxing army, they also specially sent soldiers to rush out of the city under artillery fire.But once he rushed out, he was beaten back by the Huaxing army, which had already been fortified outside the city.After more than half of the soldiers were killed or wounded, the generals defending the northern city wall finally retreated into the city with their men, only waiting for the artillery fire of the Huaxing army to stop before making plans.The Taiyuan Military Region mainly attacked the east gate of Changle Gate and the west gate of Anding Gate, the right army was responsible for the east gate, and the New First Army was responsible for the west gate.The Lanzhou Military Region mainly attacked the south gate of Yongning Gate and the north gate of Anyuan Gate, the New 11th Army was responsible for the south gate, and the New 12th Army was responsible for the north gate.The navy's warships bombarded indiscriminately outside the north gate for a day, and the soldiers defending the other three city gates could not spare time to rush to support.The next day, after the rising sun, the new 12th Army outside the north gate immediately began to attack the city wall.The city wall, which was originally more than ten meters high, was blown down by two-thirds, but it still had a certain defensive effect.The New Twelfth Army, with the cooperation of the navy, immediately crossed the moat.The three mortar battalions were still bombarding the crumbling walls along the moat, and the defenders did not dare to defend the walls.The eyes of every soldier were angry, and they scolded Huaxing Army for not being a thing, and they didn't dare to fight it in a dignified manner.It only took half an hour for the Huaxing army to completely control the northern city wall, climbed the city wall along the ruined wall, and then cleared the city wall on both sides.The mission to enter is to take control of the four walls and launch a general assault on the city tomorrow.The other three city walls saw that the north city wall was lost, but they were dragged by the Huaxing army attacking outside, and they just couldn't leave.The New 12th Army charged in a gun formation on the city walls, and engaged in a fierce exchange of fire with the defenders.Most of the defenders of the city wall were armed with foreign guns, and they also lined up in layers to meet the attack.The New Twelfth Army has been following Wang Shijie for a long time and has long been familiar with the gap between the two sides.At a distance of three hundred meters, ten machine guns were brought up, with the riflemen taking cover behind.Both sides opened fire almost simultaneously, and for a moment a loud noise enveloped the entire city wall.The defenders on the city walls immediately felt bad, and the bullets from the machine guns rained down.Ten heavy machine guns fired a salvo, and there was not a single dead spot on the walls to dodge.The breech guns they held in their hands did not pose any threat to the machine gunners lying on the ground at a distance of 300 meters.The defenders' guns were like onions, peeled apart layer by layer."
Withdraw, retreat, retreat to the city" Painful wails, fears, and roars were mixed together, and although the defenders were determined to die, they were still beaten in a daze.After the generals gave the order, the soldiers involuntarily fled under the city walls.In just a few minutes, thousands of defenders fell under machine-gun fire.The blood of the city walls mingled into a river, and it flowed down the city with a clamour.The defenders on the east and west walls were the first to be dispersed, and then the gates were wide open, and the right army and the new army all ascended the walls.The three-way army converged along the city wall to the south gate, and the defenders of the south city wall dared to resist, so they all withdrew the city wall and fled into the city.The walls of the city, which were as strong as iron, fell in just one morning.The two sides are like two centuries of people fighting, one choosing the defense of the cold weapon age, and the other choosing the impact of the gun age.Luo Bingzhang's regimental training army is not only backward in weapons, but also far from tactical thinking.Relying only on a city, it is already difficult to resist the footsteps of the Huaxing army.After the Huaxing army occupied the city wall, it was in no hurry to attack.In their eyes, the defenders are like fish on the board, and now it is not a matter of whether to fight or not, but whether to kill or not.It took the logistics troops an afternoon to replenish all the supplies and ammunition.The joint command of the front also decided to launch a general attack on the city tomorrow.The city walls of Xi'an have temporarily returned to calm, but the city is already in chaos.The people didn't know the origin of the Huaxing army, and everyone was panicked, for fear that after the Huaxing army took Xi'an City, they would slaughter the entire city.The war room of the Xi'an Mansion was also full of generals from all walks of life, all of whom were talking in a panic, waiting for Luo Bingzhang's arrival."
The handsome man arrived" The soldiers outside the door shouted at the top of their voices, only to see an old man with gray hair and beard, dressed as a Confucian student, into the war room."
The last general will see the commander" All the generals in the war room clasped their fists and bowed."
Get up, let's talk about how long this city can last" Luo Bingzhang sat down on the handsome seat with a tired face, and overnight, he looked even more tired.He was already seventy-three this year, and he was about to run out of oil, but he still relied on his willpower to survive until now."
This", "How did the marshal ask about this", "The generals whispered below, and no one dared to answer."
Okay, I understand if you don't say it.The outer city has now been completely lost, and if the inner city is to be taken, it will only be a matter of three or two days for the Huaxing army. ”Luo Bingzhang waved his hand, took out the silk scarf in his arms and coughed a few times, his face was a little pale with pain."
Please take care of your body, the last general is willing to live and die with the marshal" Luo Bingzhang's descendant general Cai Guangyuan first hugged his fists and shouted, he was the first general brought out by Luo Bingzhang after entering Sichuan."
Please take care of your body, the last general, I am willing to live and die with the commander" All the generals in the hall clenched their fists and shouted, and everyone had different expressions on their faces."
How many soldiers and horses do we have now" Luo Bingzhang slowed down for a long time, and his body finally calmed down."
Report to the marshal, in today's battle to defend the city, there were heavy losses and casualties of more than 10,000 people from all sides, and now there are only more than 50,000 soldiers and horses left in the city."
Cai Guangyuan looked embarrassed and acted according to the facts, he just counted the specific figures, and he didn't dare to tell Luo Bingzhang all.These 50,000 soldiers and horses, the elite who can fight with guns, are more than 20,000 people at most.In the face of the Huaxing Army, don't say it's a cold weapon, even a foreign gun has no effect."
Marshal, will the imperial court send a large army to support us" A general under the seat asked with a bitter face, and all the generals had the same expression, staring at Luo Bingzhang."
No, the imperial court just wants to rescue, and there is no time.This time, Qiao Zhiqing was well prepared, wanting to completely quell the battle in a month.In such a short period of time, the imperial court did not even have time to prepare. ”Luo Bingzhang didn't want to hide it, and at this point, he didn't need to hide it.50,000 people is no different from 5,000 people for the Huaxing army, but it costs a little more ammunition.He has never been able to understand why Huaxingjun has developed into what it is now in just three years.Where did these weapons come from, not even foreigners, why was Qiao Zhiqing able to develop them.Now that the two armies are fighting, he has already guessed the result.Now his heart is struggling, and he wants to find a way to survive for these men.He can be loyal to the Qing court, but these subordinates still have a great future, and they can't just be ruined in their own hands."
What can we do about this, is it really impossible for us to escape death" "Yes, now that the city wall of Xi'an has been blocked, we have no way out. ”The generals who had vowed to live and die with Luo Bingzhang just now all whispered indignantly, their faces full of fear.The ants are still stealing their lives, and when disaster comes, who will be indifferent."
You are all discussing what kind of marshal is more important to us than the mountain, even if we die, we can't repay the kindness of the marshal" Cai Guangyuan heard the generals' discussion, and immediately his anger rose, and he roared when he drew his sword."
Guangyuan, put down the knife quickly, what are you doing" Luo Bingzhang hurriedly scolded, and couldn't help coughing dryly."
Marshal, these generals who are greedy for life and afraid of death, what's the use of staying" Cai Guangyuan glared at the surrendering faction depressedly, and threw the big knife on the ground.The sound of "bang" made all the generals in the hall tremble in fright."
Dashuai, we were wrong.It's not that we're afraid of death, our brothers don't want to die for the Manchu Tartars.Many of our brothers and sisters have made a difference in the Huaxing Army, and they have given land and houses, and their monthly military salaries are paid on time.But what did the Qing court give us, even the military salary was raised by the marshal, we are Han.You see, the soldiers in the city are not desperate.Why should we carry our heads and can't get along with our compatriots, and stubbornly defend the country of the Manchurians" A general knelt on the ground and wailed, full of grievances, and the thought of dying for the Qing court was full of unwillingness.He was a general just recruited by Luo Bingzhang in Shaanxi, and when Shaanxi returned to chaos, no one in the imperial court asked.Later, it was the Huaxing Army that settled the Hui people, and these were all in the eyes of the Shaanxi soldiers.As soon as the general's words were spoken, all the people in the tent bowed their heads in default.Even Cai Guangyuan didn't have the anger just now, and secretly lowered his head and thought a lot."
I know that the current court has disappointed you.But loyalty to the monarch and patriotism is the duty of a courtier, eating the king's fortune and worrying for the king.You can't change your beliefs because of the court.I'm old, and I don't have much time left.Maybe you have more than I thought, and I called you here today to give you a way out.If anyone wants to defect to the Huaxing Army, Ben Shuai will not stop you.You guys are just like me, I can't let you compensate me to death" Luo Bingzhang finished speaking in one breath, sighed, and closed his eyes helplessly.The "handsome" generals were all moved by Luo Bingzhang and wanted to say more.Luo Bingzhang waved his hand impatiently and motioned for everyone to disperse."
Dashuai, are you really going to admit defeat" Cai Guangyuan stayed and asked Luo Bingzhang unwillingly.Looking at Luo Bingzhang's depressed appearance, there is always a sadness of the end of the hero
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