GBP Chapter 439 Defense of Hezhou
Chapter 439 Defense of Hezhou
Seeing the vast army of refugees covering the mountains and plains, everyone on the city wall was stunned; the number of the enemy was simply too great.
The prefect of Hezhou, Wang Ruolu, said with trepidation, "The bandits are powerful; I'm afraid we won't be able to resist them..."
Zhu Dadian looked at him with disgust: "Before the great battle, you actually boosted the enemy's morale and diminished your own. With such a lack of courage, you shouldn't be an official anymore. Go home and farm!" He ordered his men, "Men, take Prefect Wang away. From today onwards, the affairs of the prefect's office will be managed by the assistant prefect until the end of the battle to defend the city. After the battle, I will petition the court to remove him from his position as prefect."
Before the battle even began, the newly arrived governor-general had already stripped him of his official hat. The military officers involved in defending the city were all on high alert, fearing they would be made an example of. Although the appointment and dismissal of a fourth-rank prefect was the responsibility of the imperial court, if the governor-general, who held both military and political power, wanted to impeach him, he would be severely punished, if not killed. If he was also accused of failing in his defense, losing his post would be a certainty.
After dealing with the cowardly Prefect Wang Ruolu, Zhu Dadian turned to Su Hongtu and asked, "Has the city's defense been properly arranged?"
Su Hongtu nodded and said, "Please rest assured, Governor, everything has been arranged."
After taking over the city's defenses a few days ago, Zhu Dadian summoned all the city's officials and ordered that during the city's defense period, everything should give way to resisting the bandits. All civilians, weapons, money, and provisions should be gathered together for the city's defense needs. The specific command authority was handed over to Su Hongtu, the battalion commander.
Although Su Hongtu had never formally commanded a city defense, his first major battle after joining the army was the defense of Bofu, making him very experienced in combat. While integrating the city's garrison and local militia into a defensive system centered on the standard battalion was a technically demanding task, Su Hongtu was confident he could withstand the attack of tens of thousands of bandits—having experienced a defensive battle where a thousand men resisted nearly twenty thousand elite Guangdong soldiers, the bandits swarming across the mountains didn't seem so daunting anymore.
The number of refugee soldiers was frighteningly large, but they seemed to have no military discipline whatsoever. Everywhere was noisy and chaotic, like a swarm of mosquitoes buzzing outside the city. Su Hongtu seized the opportunity to encourage the new recruits of the standard battalion and the civilian militia of Hezhou City: "These bandits are just a rabble. Without military discipline, they might be okay in a winning battle, but once they suffer setbacks, they'll definitely collapse like a house of cards. As long as we hold out against their initial onslaught, defending the city will be no problem!"
After a brief mobilization, Su Hongtu inspected the defensive preparations along each section of the city wall, checking that the equipment was in place, including spiked clubs, logs, ramming stones, and boiling water. If the Qionghai Army were defending the city, they could simply set up cannons and bombard the area below, ensuring that nothing would grow for miles around. If they got close enough, they could use rifles, and tens of thousands of soldiers wouldn't be able to get near the city. However, given the current conditions, they could only make do with these ancient defensive weapons.
At dawn, a cannon fired from the bandit camp, and tens of thousands of refugee soldiers roared and began their charge—the siege of the city had begun.
Despite repeatedly telling himself that the bandits, no matter how numerous, were just a rabble, Su Hongtu still felt dizzy and disoriented for a few seconds when he saw tens of thousands of people surging towards him at the same time.
Once he regained his senses, he quickly shouted, "Stay where you are and don't move. Remember what you're supposed to do."
Leading the charge were mostly beggars and refugees, armed only with ladders and sacks of earth. These were cannon fodder, meant to be the first to climb the ladders after they were set up. They would either be killed by the defenders or fall to their deaths. If they were lucky enough to survive, they would receive enough food to fill their stomachs after the battle. If they were exceptionally lucky, they might even get the head of an officer and have the chance to join the main camp, where they would live a life of luxury and comfort.
Behind the cannon fodder were refugees who had survived one or two battles. This was the backbone of the army, possessing considerable battlefield experience, having killed and seen blood, and thus less prone to panic in the face of unforeseen circumstances. Once the cannon fodder had engaged the defenders, they charged forward to capture the city walls, buying time and opportunity for the main force.
At the rear of the column was the old camp. This camp comprised the elite of the refugee army, seasoned veterans honed on the battlefield, possessing exceptional combat skills and rich experience. They primarily served as the supervisory force, responsible for eliminating refugees who disobeyed orders and retreated. If the situation deteriorated, they could be deployed directly to the battlefield. Of course, the old camp was the core strength of all the refugee armies and was not easily mobilized.
The beggar-like "cannon fodder" howled as they ran to the moat, throwing the sacks they carried on their shoulders into the water, then running back to fetch the next sack. The sacks were filled with yellow soil, which sank to the bottom as soon as they were thrown into the water. Hundreds or thousands of sacks were thrown into the same section of the canal, and the effect was immediate. The sacks piled up like small mountains and soon rose above the water, allowing the refugee army to cross the moat unimpeded.
At that moment, arrows from the city wall came whistling through the air, catching many "cannon fodder" off guard and killing them instantly. Immediately afterward, the sound of musket fire rang out, and lead bullets whistled through the chests, abdomens, and skulls of one refugee after another. Due to the high vantage point, many were hit in the head, their skulls ripped open, and their brains splattered everywhere.
Even though the refugees were used to death, this horrific scene still deeply shocked them. Some became frightened, dropped their sacks, and turned to run back. But they hadn't gone far before the supervising officers chopped off their heads. The soldiers from the old camp roared with wide eyes, "Anyone who retreats without permission will die!"
The dual threats of death and hunger emboldened the refugees who were trying to escape back to their base. They returned to their charging positions and continued filling the river despite the hail of bullets.
After suffering nearly a thousand casualties, a small section of the moat outside the west gate, the main attack route, had been filled in. The waiting attacking force, armed with a variety of weapons—including swords, iron rulers, and wooden clubs—charged forward with shouts. They stepped over the burlap sacks exposed in the water, splashing water everywhere, and after crossing the moat, began their swarming assault.
The cannon fodder carried ladders and charged in, setting them up against the city walls. The refugees responsible for the siege held their knives in their mouths and nimbly began to climb. In their experience, once the city walls were breached, the battle was essentially over—the closer the prefectures and counties were to the south of the Yangtze River, the weaker their will to resist. As soon as they saw the enemy breach the walls, the defending soldiers and civilians would scatter like birds and beasts, unwilling to remain on the walls to fight to the death.
Seeing dozens of ladders being erected one after another, Su Hongtu shouted, "Use logs and boulders to smash them!"
The militiamen laboriously lifted the logs one by one, shouting as they carried them over the city wall and rolled them down the ladders. The refugees on the ladders had nowhere to hide and were hit on the head by the logs, bleeding profusely. They then fell to the ground, and many were injured and killed on the spot.