plumnovel Chapter 63 Siege, Extermination of the Clan
Chapter 63 Siege, Extermination of the Clan
"What? Noon!"
Liu Feng glanced at the clock in the corner and said to the officer in charge, "Burn it all! Burn it all! Return to the city immediately!"
The officer hesitated, then cupped his hands and asked, "Sir, what should we do with those valuables?"
"At this critical juncture, you're still thinking about these things!" Liu Feng was somewhat annoyed. "Burn it all! We can't let the Mongols get it!"
"Yes." The officer bowed and withdrew.
Liu Feng then loudly ordered, "Quickly send people to inform the nearby residents that those who haven't entered the city yet should immediately hide in the mountains!"
After organizing the confession, Liu Feng stuffed it into a leather envelope. Since he couldn't seal it properly, he took out his personal seal, breathed on it, and stamped it lightly on the envelope's seal.
Since the envelope wasn't sealed, and Liu Feng was worried that Wang Daniu wouldn't be able to explain himself, he stamped it again on both sides.
Liu Feng handed the envelope to Wang Daniu, saying, "You must set off immediately and deliver this to the Imperial Study within three days."
"Yes!" Wang Daniu took it with both hands, turned around and strode away.
Liu Feng sighed. Before, it was all speculation. Without definite information, he dared not report the matter to the court rashly. He hoped that the court could send reinforcements as soon as possible.
The Mongols were much faster than Liu Feng had anticipated; he was just a hair's breadth away from being trapped outside the city.
"boom--"
A solid iron bullet, trailing a crimson flame, slammed into the Mongol cavalry, carving a deep furrow in the ground and causing the Mongol cavalry to retreat in terror.
With a piercing creaking sound, the drawbridge over the moat at the East Gate slowly rose, completely cutting off access to the outside world.
On the city wall, Liu Feng wiped away his sweat.
There were about two or three thousand Mongols outside the city, each with two horses. The number wasn't large, but there were no cavalry inside the city, so no one dared to go out to meet the enemy. They could only keep the city gates tightly shut and wait for reinforcements from the imperial court.
"Look!" a general exclaimed, his voice trembling.
Liu Feng raised his telescope and saw a Mongol cavalryman holding a tattered battle flag, scorched by the flames of war, riding his horse beyond the range of arrows and muskets, waving the flag wildly and letting out bursts of ear-piercing laughter.
The city wall fell into a deathly silence. Liu Feng clearly sensed that the morale of the Datong garrison was rapidly declining and collapsing.
Could this battle flag be the banner of the commander-in-chief of the Datong Guard?
Liu Feng turned to look at Li Mu beside him, who happened to be looking over at him with a very serious expression.
Liu Feng's mind went blank. The 10,000 elite troops of Datong Guard had been completely annihilated in just one day and one night. Could it be that the Mongols had sent an army of 100,000? How could that be possible!
We must not allow the Mongols to continue to run rampant.
Liu Feng glanced at the pre-made mark, which was 250 paces away. At such a distance, even if Xiang Yu, the Hegemon-King of Western Chu, were to be resurrected, it would be difficult for him to hit the target.
Just then, he suddenly thought of the mother-and-child cannon. Ordinary bows and arrows couldn't reach it, but this thing could shoot more than 300 paces, which was just enough!
Liu Feng turned to the Imperial Guard beside him and said, "Go, bring up the breech-loading cannons from the camels!"
Before long, the three mother-and-child cannons that were originally intended to be used to attack the Fan family manor were brought up.
This thing isn't heavy, only seventy or eighty pounds, and four people can carry it without any effort.
Each of the soldiers behind them was carrying two cannons.
The so-called "mother-and-child cannon" refers to a cannon with one main gun and multiple sub-guns that fire in rotation. The main gun is the mother gun, and it has an open propellant chamber on its rear side, specifically for loading the sub-guns. Each mother gun is equipped with five sub-guns, and the next gun is switched immediately after the previous one is fired, resulting in a very high rate of fire.
In addition, this thing can fire solid iron bullets and shotgun shells. Each shotgun shell contains 4 to 500 small pellets, and one shot can wipe out a large number of people.
Liu Feng immediately ordered his men to load the grapeshot, level the cannon muzzles, and aim at the Mongol cavalryman. Fearing that the first shot might miss, the three breech-loading cannons fired simultaneously from three different directions.
"BOOM BOOM BOOM!!!"
Three cannon shots rang out, and the Mongol cavalry, who had been galloping and shouting wildly just moments before, were instantly riddled with bullets, man and horse alike.
The gruesome sight of his head exploding on the spot, with blood and flesh flying everywhere, made Liu Feng's stomach churn, and he almost vomited.
The city walls and surrounding areas fell into a deathly silence.
Someone shouted first, "Victory!"
The next moment, a deafening shout resounded throughout the heavens and earth!
Cheers of "Victory!" rose and fell, igniting the morale of the defending soldiers. Everyone was filled with fighting spirit and high morale!
"The Mongols have retreated! They've retreated!"
Liu Feng raised his binoculars; the Mongols had indeed retreated, but his heart sank.
The Mongols retreated in the direction of the beacon towers, intending to completely sever the city's connection with the outside world.
Liu Feng suddenly remembered that Zhang Laifu and his group were arriving this afternoon. He hoped they wouldn't run headfirst into the arms of the Mongolians!
On the morning of the third day, the mournful sound of the horn continued endlessly, echoing throughout the heavens and earth.
Liu Feng, Li Mu, and the others stood on the city wall, their faces solemn.
The Mongol cavalry, a dark mass stretching as far as the eye could see, set up camp, dug trenches, and laid out layers of defense right under their noses, seemingly intent on trapping Datong City.
Liu Feng slowly lowered his binoculars and turned to look at Li Mu beside him: "What are they trying to do?"
Li Mu was silent for a moment: "Surround the point and attack the reinforcements, intercept the imperial reinforcements."
Liu Feng nodded, but a question lingered in his mind: with tens of thousands of Mongol troops, the consumption of food for both men and horses was enormous, so where did they get so much food and fodder?
Just then, a man and a horse came rushing from afar, holding a white flag high, and stopped 250 paces away.
"Listen up, soldiers on the city walls! I am the eldest son of the Fan family! We are all from the same hometown, and I cannot bear to see my homeland, where I grew up, engulfed in war, devastated, and reduced to ruins..."
Liu Feng's eyes flashed, and he said to the Imperial Guards behind him, "Bring the Fan clan members up."
Because of the Mongol siege, there hadn't been time to deal with the Fan family. Unexpectedly, they came in handy.
The eldest son of the Fan family said, "I have already pleaded with the Prince on your behalf. As long as you open the city gates and surrender, everyone will receive high-ranking official positions and enjoy a lifetime of wealth and honor!"
Seeing no one respond, Young Master Fan bluntly revealed the truth, aiming to demoralize the defending troops: "To tell you the truth, outside the city are not only tens of thousands of elite Mongol troops, but also the iron cavalry of the Two White Banners! We Shanxi merchants have also long ago raised ample provisions and weapons for the army, just waiting for this day. The imperial court is doomed to defeat in this battle, so you should retreat as soon as possible."
"Surrender the city! Must we wait until the Prince breaches Datong City and the entire city suffers before we're satisfied?"
Liu Feng's heart sank; the imperial reinforcements were in danger!
"These traitorous merchants who sell out their country for personal gain!" Li Mu slammed his hand on the city wall, his eyes red with anger.
A heart-wrenching cry rang out as the Imperial Guards arrived, bringing the entire Fan family with them.
"My lord, I have brought all eighty members of the Fan family, young and old, here!"
Outside the city, Young Master Fan remained defiant, shouting at the top of his lungs, "Datong's fate is sealed; it will fall sooner or later! Why do you still stubbornly refuse to surrender?! The Datong Guard generals are blindly loyal to the Liu imperial family; in the end, they will only meet their demise when the city falls! Anyone who opens the city gates and surrenders will be a hero, saving the entire city's inhabitants!"
On the city wall, the head of the Fan family was pushed to the edge of the battlements by the executioner, and the rag stuffed in his mouth was ripped off.
As soon as the head of the Fan family was able to speak, he roared with all his might towards the city walls: "My son—"
"...After capturing the city, the Prince will reward those who have contributed..."
Upon hearing this, Young Master Fan was slightly taken aback. Without time to think, he immediately spurred his horse forward and shouted, "Father!"
On the city wall, Liu Feng waved his hand: "Kill!"
A flash of cold light, and the executioner's massive blade came crashing down. The head of the Fan family patriarch flew off the city wall and tumbled down below. Then, the headless body was thrown off the city wall by the Imperial Guards.
"Father! Father!"
The white flag used by Young Master Fan to surrender fell to the ground with a thud, and his body went limp, causing him to fall heavily off his horse.
Another piercing scream rang out, and the head of a woman from the Fan family rolled down the city wall.
"Mother! Mother..."
Overwhelmed with grief, Young Master Fan collapsed to the ground, his legs giving way. He was too weak to stand up and could only crawl forward desperately, supporting himself with his hands.
He watched helplessly as the heads of his loved ones fell one after another from the city wall. Finally, exhausted, he collapsed to the ground and wept bitterly, cursing the defenders on the wall as he cried. Overwhelmed with grief, he eventually fainted.
A Plain White Banner cavalryman galloped in from afar and took Young Master Fan away...
The massacre on the city wall continued; with each piercing scream, a member of the Fan clan was beheaded.
Liu Feng turned to look at the capital. Tens of thousands of people from the two white flags had disappeared from Shengjing. Such a huge commotion, yet the emperor's spies hadn't caught a single clue? Were they all just sitting around doing nothing?!