Chapter 13 True and false
Just on the fourth day, Jinghu and Songjiang returned to Mishanling.Jing Hu was very happy, he learned a lot from observing the terrain this time, he had already made a strategy, and he was confident that he could win this battle.
The generals are also full of confidence.They didn't have to ask why, as long as Jing Hu said he would win, he would definitely win.They just believed in Jinghu so much.
The next day, the army went out again.On the same day, Usami decided to lead his troops to Hojo to join forces with Jinghu.We spent one night on the way, and arrived at Yoban the next day. This place is on the left bank of the Shinano River, four miles away from Sanjo Castle.
That night, Jing Hu quietly went to the Usami camp.
Usami was quite terrified: "Oh! I don't dare to be, I don't dare to be, it should be my subordinates who went to pay a visit."
"I don't want to attract attention, I'm going to be less conspicuous." Jing Hu sat down on the leather cushion, "I want to hear your plan for the siege."
"What a coincidence, I also want to ask my lord's opinion."
"Very well, let me tell you my opinion first. You know, Santiao City is on a sandbar surrounded by four waters, which is quite strong. The city is in the southeast corner of the sandbar, and the southeast and southeast sides are surrounded by wide and deep rivers. The defense is relatively loose, and the heavy troops are placed on the northwest. I have thought about using a small number of people to attack from the west or north to lure the enemy's attention, while the large soldiers cross the water from the southeast to attack the city, but this is only a trivial method. As for the strategy, our side has suffered a lot, and Zhaotian can respond immediately. Therefore, I want to use the strategy, the main force will attack from the southeast to contain the enemy's main force, and another surprise force will attack from the northwest to defeat the opponent in one go, what do you think?"
Usami took out a picture from her pocket and placed it in front of Jinghu.
"This is what I prepared in advance."
"Is it the floor plan of Sanjo City?"
"It was drawn a long time ago. Later, because of military affairs, Santiao City was rebuilt again. There may be many discrepancies, but it is still possible to refer to."
"It couldn't be better!"
Jing Hu inspected carefully.The map is quite detailed, and he corrected it by comparing the places he has surveyed, and it is almost correct with the real city.
Jing Hu pointed out the different places one by one, and Usami smiled and said, "Oh? Have you been there recently?"
"Just went there two or three days ago."
Jing Hu told Usami how he and Songjiang disguised themselves to investigate the enemy's reality.
Usami kept smiling and nodding in praise.
Jing Hu said again: "The outline is as I just said, but the details are as follows. We first move troops from the north or west, retreat after a short battle, and then attack from the southeast. At this time, the enemy must think that we The main force of the army is attacking the southeast where the defense is weak, right?"
Usami nodded: "That's right."
"Therefore, our attack in the southeast must be specially planned so that we can lure the main force of the enemy with a small number of troops. We must prepare for the construction of ship bridges and high ladders for climbing the city. We also need someone to actively attack and make it vigorous so that we can distinguish the real from the real. However, if Our soldiers know that this is a fake, the actions may not be so realistic, and maybe the enemy will see the flaws, so even our side can't know this plan, we have to let them attack with all their heart."
Usami's face was filled with joy, she was pleased that Jing Hu's wisdom had improved a bit.
Jing Hu asked: "What do you think of this plan?"
"Excellent! I can't think of anything better. Let's do this! The southeast attack will be left to me."
"Very well, I also feel that I don't think of anyone other than you."
Usami nodded her thanks and said, "Since that's the case, I hope you can stay with me, because you must be present if you want to hide it from your own people."
Usami didn't explain it in detail, but Jinghu already understood it very well.If you want to deceive your own people, you have to pretend that you have enough troops, and when you have deceived the enemy and transferred the guards in the northwest to the southeast, you can take advantage of the gap from the northwest to enter.
"Very well, let's do it!"
With the plan established, Jing Hu returned to the base camp, sent envoys to summon the generals, and issued orders for tomorrow's battle.
"You also know the terrain of the enemy city. We can only attack from the northwest. In order to disperse the enemy's defense, we divide into three teams and attack from three places. One team goes from the left ferry, one from the big weir, and the other from the The eight princes attacked at the same time. We used the gunfire as a signal, and we dispatched as soon as we heard the gunshot. The attack time was just before dawn, and each team had to reach its position at night. After we crossed the river, we immediately assembled for the base camp. We I plan to set up the base camp in the northwest of the city. I will light the beacon there, and everyone will focus on that. Since the island is a flat land, only the area that is slightly higher should be visible. There are many paddy fields on the island. Everyone, be careful not to fall into the field, try to go as high as possible, the map is here, study it carefully!"
He proceeded to assign deployment locations for the teams.The generals disbanded after memorizing the terrain deployed by their teams.
The Chunri Mountain Army, which launched operations late at night, came to the river crossing point at night, waiting for the opportunity. Jing Hu assembled the home team at the entrance of Bawangsi.A few days ago, he had surveyed the river crossing point. He walked through Zuo Ferry and Dayan Pass by himself, and Bawangsi Pass was a good crossing after inquiring about nearby residents in detail. In the chilly spring season, the temperature at night is even lower.The water vapor rising from the river condensed into a thick fog, covering the river, making it almost impossible to see the opposite bank. Jing Hu sent people to spy on the movement on the other side, and the spies reported back that quite a few guards set up a fence and waited.When he came last time, there was no fence, probably he built it hastily when he heard that the Chunri Mountain Army was coming to attack.Although Jing Hu wanted to minimize the damage, it would be dangerous to change the crossing point at this time. He decided to cross the river in one go, which might reduce casualties. Jinghu summoned Jinjin Xinbingwei, who had just led the troops from Tochio to join the army today, and after whispering a few words in his ear, he led Sugihara Kenke's musketeer team to row to the middle of the river by boat.Knowing that muskets are the most advantageous weapons, Jinghu specially sent people to Sakai to buy 30 guns last winter, and put them all in Sugihara's place. Adding the seven guns that Sugihara already had and one of Jinghu's own, there are a total of 38 guns. The power of a gun should not be underestimated. In the vast milky white gas, the boat moved forward quietly, and it didn't take long to vaguely see the upper part of the tower built in the fence along the bank. Jing Hu ordered someone to stop the boat, "Aim at a place five or six feet away from the top!" After all aimed, Jing Hu ordered a salvo. Thirty-eight muskets spit out fire at the same time, bursting out astonishing explosions. At the same time, Jing Hu's army on the bank shouted and killed, and the entire river was full of noise.Distinguish carefully, and there are also killing sounds in the far left. Although the enemy was mentally prepared, they did not expect the Kasuga Mountain Army to approach so close and to attack with so many muskets. They hurriedly shot arrows up the river, but Jing Hu had already moved downstream to 20 meters away, and then started shooting at the enemy. The city defenders were even more embarrassed and the commotion was even greater. Jing Hu rowed back upstream and started shooting again.In this way, when he moved up and down in the fog and fired repeatedly, his own troops also approached with killing noise.The defenders were at a loss. Jing Hu then rowed the boat 40 meters downstream, landed from there, and waited for his own army to attack the shore. When the two armies were about to start a contact battle, he shot at the running enemy army again.The power of the muskets frightened the enemy, and they turned back and ran away. Jing Hu's army chased outside the city from the embankment, but a strong fence was built outside the city, which temporarily stopped the pursuers. Jing Hu just wanted to attack slightly and then withdrew his troops. They put up their shields to block the arrows and waited for other teams to gather.At this time, the sky was bright and the fog had lightened. The troops who landed at the other two places encountered some resistance, but they pushed forward, broke through the defenses, and joined the main army at about nine o'clock. Jing Hu didn't intend to stick to the original strategy. He felt that the army had already attacked here, so it's okay not to follow the plan.The resistance of the defenders was quite strong.The island is full of paddy fields, and the only way to attack is along the embankment or the high castle town area, which is an extremely favorable terrain for the defenders. After Jing Hulue attacked, he retreated back to Bawang Temple according to the predetermined plan, and then went around to the opposite bank of the southeast entrance of the city that day. There was no fighting that day, and many people were busy on the river, either gathering boats, requisitioning ropes from nearby houses, or demolishing houses to collect wood.They carried out separately throughout the night, and they all gathered by the river at dawn. By noon, hundreds of boats were connected on the water, and several hills of wood were piled up on the river beach. Jing Hu ordered to build the boat bridge quickly.The people lined up the boats, laid wooden stakes on the left and right to fix the hull, and then put the wood on the boat.There are also some soldiers who build ladders, find out the longest wood, hit the crossbars, and then wrap them with ropes to fix them.These operations were deliberately carried out on the river bank so that the people in the city could see them. This area is a low wetland alluvially formed by the Shinano River and the Igarashi River.Jinghu's main camp was set up on the embankment of the Igarashi River, and the military flag and the golden fan and horse seal were erected to highlight its presence as much as possible. At the same time, a blazing campfire was lit, as if it was about to scorch the sky. At the beginning of these operations, the city defenders didn't seem to care much, because they thought that halfway through the operations, the water from the snowmelt from the back mountains flowed into the river, increasing the flow of water, and the operations were naturally blocked. Jinghu ordered Usami to make the stakes deeper. Usami personally commanded on the river in a boat: "Don't worry, just concentrate on building a prison!" Although the speed is slow, a solid bridge is gradually taking shape. The guards in the city began to waver, and more and more people climbed to the towers and walls to observe. Seeing the shaking in the city, someone here also tried to attack the city.They quietly approached the city on foot or by boat, and climbed up the embankment to fight. However, because their actions were sporadic and ineffective, they often suffered small losses. Even so, their own fighting spirit was still high.The most important thing is that the three armies have begun to pay attention to this aspect of attack, and the number of guards on the city wall has increased significantly. Jing Hu judged that it was time to take action. Unfortunately, the moon was nearly full and there was a moon all night long.This was something he hadn't expected at first, and he laughed at himself wryly: "Thousands of calculations have been made, but there are still things that haven't been calculated." In this way, we have to wait until the full moon passes.During this season, there is little rain along the Hokuriku Road, and it is rarely cloudy.But on the afternoon of the seventh day, the sky turned cloudy, and it began to rain after nightfall.The rain stopped after only a little, but the sky remained overcast. Jinghu approached Usami: "Just tonight! It's all up to you!" "do not worry." "I'll take the musketeers with me. When you hear the gunshots, you'll fire rockets into the city. It's rained just now, so it probably won't be a problem. As long as there is a fire in the city, the people inside will be confused." "Fire attack is a good idea. I didn't expect that using fire attack in this season would really work!" Usami is even more delighted with Jinghu's growth. Jing Hu led two thousand men and horses, quietly went around to the upper reaches of the Wulan River, crossed the river, and went far to the south, crossing the river at the mouth of Bawang Temple.Although the defenses in this area still have troops, they underestimate the enemy, so they fled without being blocked.Jing Hu deliberately did not pass through the castle town, rushed to the south embankment, and suddenly rushed to the main gate of the city, ordering the musketeers to shoot together. The defenders opened the city gates to fight, but after a while they heard the astonishing shouts from the rear gates, and they were slightly shaken. "Look! The enemy has faded! Hurry up!" Jing Hu personally led the troops and galloped forward, beheading several people with his sword. The three armies were in chaos and hid back in the city. Although the Chunri Mountain Army tried their best to catch up, they still failed to catch up, and the city gate was closed tightly. "Come out! Come out! I'm a woman! I was chased by a woman and fled back to the city, how dare you have shame?" Songjiang brandished a long-handled sword and yelled towards the city.There was no reaction in the city, just shooting arrows non-stop.Songjiang waved his sword like a water wheel dancing, blocking the incoming arrows. Everyone admired his neat movements.However, Jing Hu called her back to the formation, waiting for changes in the city. Not long after, there was a violent noise in the city, probably because Usami's fire attack had worked. Jing Hu looked up at the sky and observed the clouds, and saw that the clouds covering the slightly white sky moved northward, and the fire would spread to the north. The city gate was just on the left side, and the enemy troops must come out from here.Inflict maximum damage on enemy troops while evading fire. Jing Hu moved his troops to the embankment, "Now that the city is on fire, the enemy army will rush out from the city gate immediately, everyone prepare bows, arrows and muskets!" Just as the conversation stopped, thick smoke and flames were already rising in the city.
The commotion in the city approached the city gate.The sound of objects being smashed and people's angry howls were all intertwined. In the commotion of bumping into each other and swirling into a ball, the screams of women and children came from time to time. "Wait until I give the order to shoot. Before that, you must not shoot, and you are not allowed to shoot arrows!" While Jing Hu ordered loudly, the city gate slowly opened.I saw a faint smoke floating from the door, and under the smoke, crowds of people rushed out like popping out.Looking at it, the amount of smoke and the number of people have increased.Those people seemed to be rushing out without a sound, cutting diagonally past the Jinghu army kneeling on one knee and posing for shooting on the embankment, and rushed to the castle town.The soldiers were ready to move like prey gliding past the hounds in front of them, but Jing Hu said: "It's not the time, it's not the time!" He knew that if he attacked the vanguard of the enemy army at this time, the enemy army would probably fight to the death, resulting in a great sacrifice for his own side.The important thing is to kill the main general. The little soldiers in front of them try to let them escape as much as possible. When they escape and then attack the team, they will rarely turn back to help.Because there is no one more cowardly than a soldier fleeing from a dangerous place, Jing Hu plans to just attack the enemy's own team. Not long after, the enemy army came out.Three or four hundred guards surrounded the women and children on horseback.The guards were all fully armed, holding shields, and gathered in one place.The flames in the city became more and more blazing, spouting black smoke and red and black flames, spreading to the north against the gradually brightening sky, the city was completely enveloped in thick smoke and flames, but the dense guards moved calmly and calmly . The strong city wall seems to have been shaken.Akita rode his horse in front, wearing a smoked leather armor, a white star helmet with a half-moon gold ornament on his head, a shield in his left hand, and a long-handled sword in his right hand. Jing Hu blew on the matchlock and pulled the trigger upwards. The soldiers who had waited impatiently fired their guns and arrows together, making killing noises.Several people fell down in the dense team, but they showed no signs of panic and continued to move forward without looking back. "Shoot! Shoot the arrow!" Jing Hu waved the command flag vigorously.The musket burst into flames several times, the arrows shot out continuously, and several people fell to the ground.However, Zhao Tian's army did not waver, and continued to advance without haste. They must have judged that it would be useless to fight at this time, and they must retreat to a certain distance without changing their attitude. Therefore, the attack on Jing Hu's army was useless. reaction. Jing Hu felt very unhappy, thinking that they must disrupt their formation. He waved the flag: "Go!" The samurai on standby immediately jumped up and rushed forward.They intend to detour to the front of the enemy and stop the enemy from advancing. Perhaps Zhao Tian's army had thought of this move first, they stopped suddenly, put up their shields, their demeanor was calm, not wavering at all, but they had the determination to fight calmly. Although Jing Hu admired their calmness in the face of danger, he couldn't help but throw away his helmet, kicked the horse's belly and galloped forward: "Follow me!" He raised his saber aloft, and charged at the side of the enemy army. The whole army followed behind him, shouting to kill with all their might. The enemy's arrows kept flying, Jing Hu swung his knife to block the arrows, kicked down the shield and rushed into the enemy's formation in an instant.The whole army of Zhao Tian's army came to attack him, Jing Hu didn't flinch, and killed the enemy immediately.At this time, the troops following Jing Hu and the detours had arrived, and the two armies clashed and fell into a melee. Jinghu rode his horse around: "Where is Akita Hitachi? Come out! I'm Xiping Erjinghu!" Like a storm, Zhao Tian's fast horse rushed to Jing Hu's side, he pulled the reins hard, and the horse's front legs kicked in the air. "Akita Hitachi is here! Look at the trick!" He swung the big knife in his hand. "Well done!" Jing Hu turned his horse around and wanted to chop off from the top of his head. At this time, the two horses bounced off violently, and Jing Hu swung his knife and missed. Jinghu's warriors on horseback had rushed to his side, "My lord! Let the subordinates serve!" They all wanted to surround and kill Zhaotian. Jing Hu rebuked loudly: "Don't shoot! This is a traitor, I want to kill him myself!" All the warriors retreated as they said. Jing Hu and Zhao Tian turned to fight on their horses, and the swords collided with clangs.Zhao Tiannian was over seventy years old, after a few rounds, his saber technique became disordered.The half-moon-shaped helmet was cut off by Jing Hu, and his shoulder was slightly injured. Seeing that he was invincible, he immediately rode his horse back to his own formation. "Despicable! Don't run away!" Jing Hu was furious and chased after him, but Zhao Tian's army blocked him, and Zhao Tian quickly hid behind the formation. Akita and his family were being closely guarded by the confidant guards, and Akita retreated back to the city gate as if he had driven his family back.Inside the gate was thick smoke and flames, women and children screamed, but under Zhaotian's persuasion and coercion, they ran into the city in silence, Zhaotian dismounted and ran, and the city gate was slowly closed.Jing Hu judged that he must want to commit suicide in the flames. As a result, Zhaotian's army was no longer able to fight anymore, its formation collapsed, and it retreated all the way to the north. Jing Hu's army chased after him, but Jing Hu didn't move, he put his hands together and bowed to the city gate.The strong wind blew the flames and thick smoke to the north, but the heat far reached Jinghu, who was more than ten meters away from the city gate. His face was burned hot, and the screams of women and children who were interrupted halfway still lingered in his ears. . "Although it is the retribution of Zhao Tian's rebellion, what is the crime of women and children? Poor! Su Sucha became a Buddha! Su Sucha became a Buddha..." At this time, there was another movement inside the city gate, and a figure was caught in the thick smoke from the half-opened city gate. The man was not wearing armor, with disheveled white hair, a knife around his waist, and a long knife in his hand. He opened his eyes and looked around. Those eyes met Jing Hu's and then stood still. It was Zhao Tian. Anger filled Jing Hu's body, roaring: "Is this still a man?!" Then he drove his horse and galloped forward. Zhaotian turned around and wanted to escape, but Jing Hu chased after him, Zhaotian turned around and threw the long knife, Jing Hu easily parried it, then swung the knife and cut him straight from the left shoulder to the right rib.
Three cities finally fell.The whole city had been reduced to ashes, but Jing Hu immediately ordered people to build a temporary small city, and appointed the newly-accommodated nobleman Yamayoshi Toyo as the acting lord of the city, and returned to Tochio temporarily.Because there are still matters related to Sanjo Castle to take care of, I can't return to Kasuga Mountain immediately. About a month later, at the beginning of May, Kasuga-san sent an urgent envoy, saying that Uesugi Nodami was in critical condition. Dingshi is the leader of the Changwei clan. Although he has no real name, he is always the master in name. Moreover, he has always treated Jinghu kindly. When their brothers had disputes, he was the one who intervened to get both sides. Besides, he is also Jinghu's brother-in-law. Jing Hu only led the guards and rushed to the mansion. Dingshi was very weak and aged a lot.When Jing Hu sent troops to bid farewell to him, he only had a little white hair, but now it is all white, and his thin, yellowish skin is full of wrinkles.He shouldn't be in his fifties, but he looks like he's in his seventies or eighties. "I can't do it anymore!" Dingshi squeezed out a wry smile and said, he was panting very badly, and he only spoke this sentence, his thin shoulders undulating like waves. "No, you are still young, you have to cheer up!" "The fever never goes away, alas! Oh, yes, I'm so happy to see you, I forgot such an important thing, congratulations on avenging your revenge and destroying your old enemy. From now on, Echigo will be safe and peaceful. Well done! Well done!" "It's all thanks to you." "Where, it depends on your own courage and talent, very good. Give me your hand, I want to shake your hand!" His hands were dry and weak, and Jing Hu was a little apologetic for how young and strong his hands were.Ding Shi held Jing Hu's hand for a long time, his limp and thin hand was hot like a fire. It wasn't long before Jing Hu accompanied Dingshi, and Dingshi fell into a drowsy sleep.Jing Hu's young and vigorous body could not stay safely in this lifeless room, he winked at the accompanying samurai, and tiptoed out of the ward. Outside is a crisp early summer climate.The sun was shining, the wind was blowing pleasantly through the green trees, and there were white clouds in the sky.Jing Hu walked down the yard wearing a wooden gown.He strolled along the courtyard, sucking in fresh air, and between breaths, the maid of his sister, Mrs. Dingshi came. "Madam has prepared some refreshments, please go and enjoy them!" "Well!" He followed the maid across the garden. This maid is beautiful, with a slightly tall figure, but her skin is smooth, delicate and white.She walked in front, the bulge around her waist swaying gracefully.Jing Hu panicked when he saw it, and quickly looked away, only to see the smooth neckline on both sides of the black hair tied in silk knots hanging behind his back, with a tinge of cyan, so white that there is no spot.Jing Hu's heart beat violently, and he looked away again. At this time, he suddenly felt a swaying figure like a big white flower in the depths of his heart, and then, this figure was immediately replaced by various memories of his time on Pipa Island. Mrs. Dingshi's room is two connected spacious halls, brightly lit, and a gentle breeze passes through the room. "It's rare for you to come back to visit your doctor in such a busy schedule!" Mrs. Dingshi described the situation and changes of Dingshi's illness when she became ill: "I had a cold and got up after only lying in two or three days. I didn’t care, and I fell down again. Not only did I have a severe cough, but I also had a high fever, and I became weaker and weaker. As it is now, it seems that there is no other way, it’s fate!” "Don't say that, Mr. Dingshi is a little weak, but I don't think it's serious!" Jing Hu doesn't mean to lie. Usually, people can't feel the psychology and things that they don't have, just like the wicked don't feel good, the weak don't feel great, and the atheists don't feel the existence of God. Jing Hu, full of vitality, naturally Can't feel the shadow of death quietly approaching Dingshi. "You say that to comfort me! That's fine, I understand everything, and I'm mentally prepared. The only thing I'm worried about is that I don't have a child under my knees. This is fate, and there is no way." Her eye sockets were a little wet, but she was not agitated, calm and calm as usual. Jing Hu was very moved. There was the sound of clothes rubbing against each other from behind, Jing Hu looked back calmly, and saw a young girl holding a tea tray.She is not the waitress just now, she is two or three years older, and she is also very beautiful, with a petite figure and a long face, her appearance is as elegant as a beautiful jade ornament carved by a famous master. She gracefully put the teacup in front of Jing Hu, stepped back slightly, and looked at Jing Hu fixedly with generous and kind eyes. Jing Hu's cheeks were a little hot, wondering why this girl looked at him with such eyes? "Thank you!" He picked up the tea bowl and drank it politely. "It tastes just right!" There was no one in particular. "anything else?" "No, that's enough." Mrs. Ding Shi looked at the two of them with a smile, then looked directly at Jing Hu and said, "Jing Hu, do you know who this girl is?" "have no idea." "It's someone who knows you very well." "what?" Jing Hu turned his head to stare at the girl, and she looked back with a generous smile.However, Jinghu has no memory. "Who is this girl?" "Don't you know? She is also from a daimyo family. Although she is your relative, she left home when you were young!" Madam sighed and pressed the corners of her eyes with her cuff, "She is the sister who is two years older than you. Sister Aya." "what!" Jing Hu turned back to stare at the other party again, watching, tears overflowed from the girl's beautiful eyes, and flowed down her white and tender cheeks. Jing Hu also felt his eyes heat up, "Sister Ling?" "You finally recognize me!" A Ling wiped away her tears, choked up and said, "I secretly looked at you several times...but, you don't know, our sister and brother finally recognize each other..."
The Chunri Mountain Army, which launched operations late at night, came to the river crossing point at night, waiting for the opportunity. Jing Hu assembled the home team at the entrance of Bawangsi.A few days ago, he had surveyed the river crossing point. He walked through Zuo Ferry and Dayan Pass by himself, and Bawangsi Pass was a good crossing after inquiring about nearby residents in detail. In the chilly spring season, the temperature at night is even lower.The water vapor rising from the river condensed into a thick fog, covering the river, making it almost impossible to see the opposite bank. Jing Hu sent people to spy on the movement on the other side, and the spies reported back that quite a few guards set up a fence and waited.When he came last time, there was no fence, probably he built it hastily when he heard that the Chunri Mountain Army was coming to attack.Although Jing Hu wanted to minimize the damage, it would be dangerous to change the crossing point at this time. He decided to cross the river in one go, which might reduce casualties. Jinghu summoned Jinjin Xinbingwei, who had just led the troops from Tochio to join the army today, and after whispering a few words in his ear, he led Sugihara Kenke's musketeer team to row to the middle of the river by boat.Knowing that muskets are the most advantageous weapons, Jinghu specially sent people to Sakai to buy 30 guns last winter, and put them all in Sugihara's place. Adding the seven guns that Sugihara already had and one of Jinghu's own, there are a total of 38 guns. The power of a gun should not be underestimated. In the vast milky white gas, the boat moved forward quietly, and it didn't take long to vaguely see the upper part of the tower built in the fence along the bank. Jing Hu ordered someone to stop the boat, "Aim at a place five or six feet away from the top!" After all aimed, Jing Hu ordered a salvo. Thirty-eight muskets spit out fire at the same time, bursting out astonishing explosions. At the same time, Jing Hu's army on the bank shouted and killed, and the entire river was full of noise.Distinguish carefully, and there are also killing sounds in the far left. Although the enemy was mentally prepared, they did not expect the Kasuga Mountain Army to approach so close and to attack with so many muskets. They hurriedly shot arrows up the river, but Jing Hu had already moved downstream to 20 meters away, and then started shooting at the enemy. The city defenders were even more embarrassed and the commotion was even greater. Jing Hu rowed back upstream and started shooting again.In this way, when he moved up and down in the fog and fired repeatedly, his own troops also approached with killing noise.The defenders were at a loss. Jing Hu then rowed the boat 40 meters downstream, landed from there, and waited for his own army to attack the shore. When the two armies were about to start a contact battle, he shot at the running enemy army again.The power of the muskets frightened the enemy, and they turned back and ran away. Jing Hu's army chased outside the city from the embankment, but a strong fence was built outside the city, which temporarily stopped the pursuers. Jing Hu just wanted to attack slightly and then withdrew his troops. They put up their shields to block the arrows and waited for other teams to gather.At this time, the sky was bright and the fog had lightened. The troops who landed at the other two places encountered some resistance, but they pushed forward, broke through the defenses, and joined the main army at about nine o'clock. Jing Hu didn't intend to stick to the original strategy. He felt that the army had already attacked here, so it's okay not to follow the plan.The resistance of the defenders was quite strong.The island is full of paddy fields, and the only way to attack is along the embankment or the high castle town area, which is an extremely favorable terrain for the defenders. After Jing Hulue attacked, he retreated back to Bawang Temple according to the predetermined plan, and then went around to the opposite bank of the southeast entrance of the city that day. There was no fighting that day, and many people were busy on the river, either gathering boats, requisitioning ropes from nearby houses, or demolishing houses to collect wood.They carried out separately throughout the night, and they all gathered by the river at dawn. By noon, hundreds of boats were connected on the water, and several hills of wood were piled up on the river beach. Jing Hu ordered to build the boat bridge quickly.The people lined up the boats, laid wooden stakes on the left and right to fix the hull, and then put the wood on the boat.There are also some soldiers who build ladders, find out the longest wood, hit the crossbars, and then wrap them with ropes to fix them.These operations were deliberately carried out on the river bank so that the people in the city could see them. This area is a low wetland alluvially formed by the Shinano River and the Igarashi River.Jinghu's main camp was set up on the embankment of the Igarashi River, and the military flag and the golden fan and horse seal were erected to highlight its presence as much as possible. At the same time, a blazing campfire was lit, as if it was about to scorch the sky. At the beginning of these operations, the city defenders didn't seem to care much, because they thought that halfway through the operations, the water from the snowmelt from the back mountains flowed into the river, increasing the flow of water, and the operations were naturally blocked. Jinghu ordered Usami to make the stakes deeper. Usami personally commanded on the river in a boat: "Don't worry, just concentrate on building a prison!" Although the speed is slow, a solid bridge is gradually taking shape. The guards in the city began to waver, and more and more people climbed to the towers and walls to observe. Seeing the shaking in the city, someone here also tried to attack the city.They quietly approached the city on foot or by boat, and climbed up the embankment to fight. However, because their actions were sporadic and ineffective, they often suffered small losses. Even so, their own fighting spirit was still high.The most important thing is that the three armies have begun to pay attention to this aspect of attack, and the number of guards on the city wall has increased significantly. Jing Hu judged that it was time to take action. Unfortunately, the moon was nearly full and there was a moon all night long.This was something he hadn't expected at first, and he laughed at himself wryly: "Thousands of calculations have been made, but there are still things that haven't been calculated." In this way, we have to wait until the full moon passes.During this season, there is little rain along the Hokuriku Road, and it is rarely cloudy.But on the afternoon of the seventh day, the sky turned cloudy, and it began to rain after nightfall.The rain stopped after only a little, but the sky remained overcast. Jinghu approached Usami: "Just tonight! It's all up to you!" "do not worry." "I'll take the musketeers with me. When you hear the gunshots, you'll fire rockets into the city. It's rained just now, so it probably won't be a problem. As long as there is a fire in the city, the people inside will be confused." "Fire attack is a good idea. I didn't expect that using fire attack in this season would really work!" Usami is even more delighted with Jinghu's growth. Jing Hu led two thousand men and horses, quietly went around to the upper reaches of the Wulan River, crossed the river, and went far to the south, crossing the river at the mouth of Bawang Temple.Although the defenses in this area still have troops, they underestimate the enemy, so they fled without being blocked.Jing Hu deliberately did not pass through the castle town, rushed to the south embankment, and suddenly rushed to the main gate of the city, ordering the musketeers to shoot together. The defenders opened the city gates to fight, but after a while they heard the astonishing shouts from the rear gates, and they were slightly shaken. "Look! The enemy has faded! Hurry up!" Jing Hu personally led the troops and galloped forward, beheading several people with his sword. The three armies were in chaos and hid back in the city. Although the Chunri Mountain Army tried their best to catch up, they still failed to catch up, and the city gate was closed tightly. "Come out! Come out! I'm a woman! I was chased by a woman and fled back to the city, how dare you have shame?" Songjiang brandished a long-handled sword and yelled towards the city.There was no reaction in the city, just shooting arrows non-stop.Songjiang waved his sword like a water wheel dancing, blocking the incoming arrows. Everyone admired his neat movements.However, Jing Hu called her back to the formation, waiting for changes in the city. Not long after, there was a violent noise in the city, probably because Usami's fire attack had worked. Jing Hu looked up at the sky and observed the clouds, and saw that the clouds covering the slightly white sky moved northward, and the fire would spread to the north. The city gate was just on the left side, and the enemy troops must come out from here.Inflict maximum damage on enemy troops while evading fire. Jing Hu moved his troops to the embankment, "Now that the city is on fire, the enemy army will rush out from the city gate immediately, everyone prepare bows, arrows and muskets!" Just as the conversation stopped, thick smoke and flames were already rising in the city.
The commotion in the city approached the city gate.The sound of objects being smashed and people's angry howls were all intertwined. In the commotion of bumping into each other and swirling into a ball, the screams of women and children came from time to time. "Wait until I give the order to shoot. Before that, you must not shoot, and you are not allowed to shoot arrows!" While Jing Hu ordered loudly, the city gate slowly opened.I saw a faint smoke floating from the door, and under the smoke, crowds of people rushed out like popping out.Looking at it, the amount of smoke and the number of people have increased.Those people seemed to be rushing out without a sound, cutting diagonally past the Jinghu army kneeling on one knee and posing for shooting on the embankment, and rushed to the castle town.The soldiers were ready to move like prey gliding past the hounds in front of them, but Jing Hu said: "It's not the time, it's not the time!" He knew that if he attacked the vanguard of the enemy army at this time, the enemy army would probably fight to the death, resulting in a great sacrifice for his own side.The important thing is to kill the main general. The little soldiers in front of them try to let them escape as much as possible. When they escape and then attack the team, they will rarely turn back to help.Because there is no one more cowardly than a soldier fleeing from a dangerous place, Jing Hu plans to just attack the enemy's own team. Not long after, the enemy army came out.Three or four hundred guards surrounded the women and children on horseback.The guards were all fully armed, holding shields, and gathered in one place.The flames in the city became more and more blazing, spouting black smoke and red and black flames, spreading to the north against the gradually brightening sky, the city was completely enveloped in thick smoke and flames, but the dense guards moved calmly and calmly . The strong city wall seems to have been shaken.Akita rode his horse in front, wearing a smoked leather armor, a white star helmet with a half-moon gold ornament on his head, a shield in his left hand, and a long-handled sword in his right hand. Jing Hu blew on the matchlock and pulled the trigger upwards. The soldiers who had waited impatiently fired their guns and arrows together, making killing noises.Several people fell down in the dense team, but they showed no signs of panic and continued to move forward without looking back. "Shoot! Shoot the arrow!" Jing Hu waved the command flag vigorously.The musket burst into flames several times, the arrows shot out continuously, and several people fell to the ground.However, Zhao Tian's army did not waver, and continued to advance without haste. They must have judged that it would be useless to fight at this time, and they must retreat to a certain distance without changing their attitude. Therefore, the attack on Jing Hu's army was useless. reaction. Jing Hu felt very unhappy, thinking that they must disrupt their formation. He waved the flag: "Go!" The samurai on standby immediately jumped up and rushed forward.They intend to detour to the front of the enemy and stop the enemy from advancing. Perhaps Zhao Tian's army had thought of this move first, they stopped suddenly, put up their shields, their demeanor was calm, not wavering at all, but they had the determination to fight calmly. Although Jing Hu admired their calmness in the face of danger, he couldn't help but throw away his helmet, kicked the horse's belly and galloped forward: "Follow me!" He raised his saber aloft, and charged at the side of the enemy army. The whole army followed behind him, shouting to kill with all their might. The enemy's arrows kept flying, Jing Hu swung his knife to block the arrows, kicked down the shield and rushed into the enemy's formation in an instant.The whole army of Zhao Tian's army came to attack him, Jing Hu didn't flinch, and killed the enemy immediately.At this time, the troops following Jing Hu and the detours had arrived, and the two armies clashed and fell into a melee. Jinghu rode his horse around: "Where is Akita Hitachi? Come out! I'm Xiping Erjinghu!" Like a storm, Zhao Tian's fast horse rushed to Jing Hu's side, he pulled the reins hard, and the horse's front legs kicked in the air. "Akita Hitachi is here! Look at the trick!" He swung the big knife in his hand. "Well done!" Jing Hu turned his horse around and wanted to chop off from the top of his head. At this time, the two horses bounced off violently, and Jing Hu swung his knife and missed. Jinghu's warriors on horseback had rushed to his side, "My lord! Let the subordinates serve!" They all wanted to surround and kill Zhaotian. Jing Hu rebuked loudly: "Don't shoot! This is a traitor, I want to kill him myself!" All the warriors retreated as they said. Jing Hu and Zhao Tian turned to fight on their horses, and the swords collided with clangs.Zhao Tiannian was over seventy years old, after a few rounds, his saber technique became disordered.The half-moon-shaped helmet was cut off by Jing Hu, and his shoulder was slightly injured. Seeing that he was invincible, he immediately rode his horse back to his own formation. "Despicable! Don't run away!" Jing Hu was furious and chased after him, but Zhao Tian's army blocked him, and Zhao Tian quickly hid behind the formation. Akita and his family were being closely guarded by the confidant guards, and Akita retreated back to the city gate as if he had driven his family back.Inside the gate was thick smoke and flames, women and children screamed, but under Zhaotian's persuasion and coercion, they ran into the city in silence, Zhaotian dismounted and ran, and the city gate was slowly closed.Jing Hu judged that he must want to commit suicide in the flames. As a result, Zhaotian's army was no longer able to fight anymore, its formation collapsed, and it retreated all the way to the north. Jing Hu's army chased after him, but Jing Hu didn't move, he put his hands together and bowed to the city gate.The strong wind blew the flames and thick smoke to the north, but the heat far reached Jinghu, who was more than ten meters away from the city gate. His face was burned hot, and the screams of women and children who were interrupted halfway still lingered in his ears. . "Although it is the retribution of Zhao Tian's rebellion, what is the crime of women and children? Poor! Su Sucha became a Buddha! Su Sucha became a Buddha..." At this time, there was another movement inside the city gate, and a figure was caught in the thick smoke from the half-opened city gate. The man was not wearing armor, with disheveled white hair, a knife around his waist, and a long knife in his hand. He opened his eyes and looked around. Those eyes met Jing Hu's and then stood still. It was Zhao Tian. Anger filled Jing Hu's body, roaring: "Is this still a man?!" Then he drove his horse and galloped forward. Zhaotian turned around and wanted to escape, but Jing Hu chased after him, Zhaotian turned around and threw the long knife, Jing Hu easily parried it, then swung the knife and cut him straight from the left shoulder to the right rib.
Three cities finally fell.The whole city had been reduced to ashes, but Jing Hu immediately ordered people to build a temporary small city, and appointed the newly-accommodated nobleman Yamayoshi Toyo as the acting lord of the city, and returned to Tochio temporarily.Because there are still matters related to Sanjo Castle to take care of, I can't return to Kasuga Mountain immediately. About a month later, at the beginning of May, Kasuga-san sent an urgent envoy, saying that Uesugi Nodami was in critical condition. Dingshi is the leader of the Changwei clan. Although he has no real name, he is always the master in name. Moreover, he has always treated Jinghu kindly. When their brothers had disputes, he was the one who intervened to get both sides. Besides, he is also Jinghu's brother-in-law. Jing Hu only led the guards and rushed to the mansion. Dingshi was very weak and aged a lot.When Jing Hu sent troops to bid farewell to him, he only had a little white hair, but now it is all white, and his thin, yellowish skin is full of wrinkles.He shouldn't be in his fifties, but he looks like he's in his seventies or eighties. "I can't do it anymore!" Dingshi squeezed out a wry smile and said, he was panting very badly, and he only spoke this sentence, his thin shoulders undulating like waves. "No, you are still young, you have to cheer up!" "The fever never goes away, alas! Oh, yes, I'm so happy to see you, I forgot such an important thing, congratulations on avenging your revenge and destroying your old enemy. From now on, Echigo will be safe and peaceful. Well done! Well done!" "It's all thanks to you." "Where, it depends on your own courage and talent, very good. Give me your hand, I want to shake your hand!" His hands were dry and weak, and Jing Hu was a little apologetic for how young and strong his hands were.Ding Shi held Jing Hu's hand for a long time, his limp and thin hand was hot like a fire. It wasn't long before Jing Hu accompanied Dingshi, and Dingshi fell into a drowsy sleep.Jing Hu's young and vigorous body could not stay safely in this lifeless room, he winked at the accompanying samurai, and tiptoed out of the ward. Outside is a crisp early summer climate.The sun was shining, the wind was blowing pleasantly through the green trees, and there were white clouds in the sky.Jing Hu walked down the yard wearing a wooden gown.He strolled along the courtyard, sucking in fresh air, and between breaths, the maid of his sister, Mrs. Dingshi came. "Madam has prepared some refreshments, please go and enjoy them!" "Well!" He followed the maid across the garden. This maid is beautiful, with a slightly tall figure, but her skin is smooth, delicate and white.She walked in front, the bulge around her waist swaying gracefully.Jing Hu panicked when he saw it, and quickly looked away, only to see the smooth neckline on both sides of the black hair tied in silk knots hanging behind his back, with a tinge of cyan, so white that there is no spot.Jing Hu's heart beat violently, and he looked away again. At this time, he suddenly felt a swaying figure like a big white flower in the depths of his heart, and then, this figure was immediately replaced by various memories of his time on Pipa Island. Mrs. Dingshi's room is two connected spacious halls, brightly lit, and a gentle breeze passes through the room. "It's rare for you to come back to visit your doctor in such a busy schedule!" Mrs. Dingshi described the situation and changes of Dingshi's illness when she became ill: "I had a cold and got up after only lying in two or three days. I didn’t care, and I fell down again. Not only did I have a severe cough, but I also had a high fever, and I became weaker and weaker. As it is now, it seems that there is no other way, it’s fate!” "Don't say that, Mr. Dingshi is a little weak, but I don't think it's serious!" Jing Hu doesn't mean to lie. Usually, people can't feel the psychology and things that they don't have, just like the wicked don't feel good, the weak don't feel great, and the atheists don't feel the existence of God. Jing Hu, full of vitality, naturally Can't feel the shadow of death quietly approaching Dingshi. "You say that to comfort me! That's fine, I understand everything, and I'm mentally prepared. The only thing I'm worried about is that I don't have a child under my knees. This is fate, and there is no way." Her eye sockets were a little wet, but she was not agitated, calm and calm as usual. Jing Hu was very moved. There was the sound of clothes rubbing against each other from behind, Jing Hu looked back calmly, and saw a young girl holding a tea tray.She is not the waitress just now, she is two or three years older, and she is also very beautiful, with a petite figure and a long face, her appearance is as elegant as a beautiful jade ornament carved by a famous master. She gracefully put the teacup in front of Jing Hu, stepped back slightly, and looked at Jing Hu fixedly with generous and kind eyes. Jing Hu's cheeks were a little hot, wondering why this girl looked at him with such eyes? "Thank you!" He picked up the tea bowl and drank it politely. "It tastes just right!" There was no one in particular. "anything else?" "No, that's enough." Mrs. Ding Shi looked at the two of them with a smile, then looked directly at Jing Hu and said, "Jing Hu, do you know who this girl is?" "have no idea." "It's someone who knows you very well." "what?" Jing Hu turned his head to stare at the girl, and she looked back with a generous smile.However, Jinghu has no memory. "Who is this girl?" "Don't you know? She is also from a daimyo family. Although she is your relative, she left home when you were young!" Madam sighed and pressed the corners of her eyes with her cuff, "She is the sister who is two years older than you. Sister Aya." "what!" Jing Hu turned back to stare at the other party again, watching, tears overflowed from the girl's beautiful eyes, and flowed down her white and tender cheeks. Jing Hu also felt his eyes heat up, "Sister Ling?" "You finally recognize me!" A Ling wiped away her tears, choked up and said, "I secretly looked at you several times...but, you don't know, our sister and brother finally recognize each other..."