The sky was dimming, Qian Wenxian finally closed his eyes and fell asleep for a while, but was woken up from his drowsiness by the Yamen servant again.
This time, it was not that foreign generals came to ask for money and food, but that the real owner had already arrived in Yixing County.
"Sir, the Haihan people... The Haihan people have attacked outside the county town!"
Qian Wenxian's heart was agitated, and he was frightened out of his sleep: "Is there a fight outside the city?"
The officer shook his head and said: "Not yet, but it looks like it will be soon! Sir, do you want to go to the top of the city to supervise the battle?"
Qian Wenxian thought to himself that I am supervising you, a big-headed ghost. Should I, a small seventh-grade county magistrate, go to such a dangerous place?
But then I thought about it, if I didn't show up, God knows what those foreign generals would do, so I still had to keep an eye on them.
After a while of burning incense, Qian Wenxian arrived at the south gate of the county seat. Seeing that all the generals were there and no one seemed to be sneaking away, Qian Wenxian felt reassured and stepped forward to greet everyone.
"My lords, why are you all standing here instead of going up to the tower to supervise the battle?" Qian Wenxian asked in confusion.
Someone responded: "Sir Qian, we are discussing strategies to fight the battle. We are not in a hurry right now."
Qian Wenxian was a little disapproving when he heard this. These military attachés had been in the county for two or three days, and they still hadn't made up their minds when the matter came. It seemed a bit unreliable.
However, at the moment, he still had to count on these people to defend the county and repel the invading Haihan army, so he wisely did not say any unpleasant words.
General Qin, who came to the county government last night to ask for money and food, said: "If Master Qian wants to see the Haihan Army, you can quietly go up to the city wall and look out from the crenellations, but be careful not to reveal your body."
Qian Wenxian asked: "Is there any danger?"
General Qin said: "The war has not started yet, and Mr. Qian has not worn official uniform, so there should be no problem. Don't stay too long, and come down quickly after watching."
When Qian Wenxian heard what he said seriously, he put away his contempt and tiptoed onto the city wall. He leaned close to the crenellation and cautiously looked out of the city.
About two or three miles away from the city, you can vaguely see some flags fluttering, and Haihan soldiers and horses are setting up in the fields. Qian Wenxian estimated that there are at least a thousand people.
"Is this the Haihan Army, which is said to be invincible in the world?"
At this time, the morning fog had not cleared, and the distance was so far that Qian Wenxian could not see clearly, and he did not feel that the Haihan army outside the city posed much of a threat.
But the generals in the city must be so cautious for a reason. Qian Wenxian rubbed his hands at the crenel, but in the end he didn't dare to stand up and watch.
Qian Wenxian returned to the city wall and listened to the generals' discussion for a while. He found that the dispute among this group of people mainly focused on the choice of two tactics: "defending in the city" and "going out to fight".
Using city fortifications to resist foreign enemies is a very traditional defense tactic. However, some military attachés believe that the county wall, which is only four to five feet high, can hardly withstand the offensive of the Haihan Army. It is also difficult for thousands of people to be blocked in the city to exert their full strength. If you don't have enough combat power, you may be caught in a trap by your opponent.
If you choose to go out of the city to fight, the scope of the battlefield will not be limited to the county seat. The cavalry can even go around the enemy's rear and try to attack its logistics supplies. If the situation goes bad, there is greater depth to retreat without being blocked in the city. However, although there is a lot of room to play out of the city, the disadvantages are also obvious. The Ming army lacks long-range anti-personnel weapons. Judging from past combat experience, it is likely to suffer huge casualties against the Haihan army on an open battlefield with flat terrain.
Moreover, the Ming armies currently assembled in the county come from different areas. They usually have little chance to meet each other, and it is difficult to ensure their cooperative combat capabilities. They are likely to become scattered after leaving the city, fighting on their own, which will be worse than staying in the city. Keeping is more dangerous.
The relevant debate actually started a few days ago, but no conclusion has been reached that is convincing to everyone.
As a local official, Qian Wenxian should have organized the defensive battle in Yixing County, but his rank was too low and he was a civilian official, so he was not qualified to command such a large operation.
So far, the imperial court seems to have no intention of sending senior officials to Yixing County to take command, so these generals have their own opinions and do not want to serve as a stepping stone for other people's battle plans.
The final result of the debate was that each family acted in accordance with their own opinions. Those who believed that they should go out of the city to fight, led their troops out of the city on their own, while those who believed that the city should be securely defended stepped up their efforts to install rolling stones, wood and other defensive facilities on the city walls.
Seeing such chaos, Qian Wenxian had nothing to do. He could only secretly pray to God for blessings and that Yixing County would be lucky enough to pass this test.
After dawn, the two Ming armies that left the city launched attacks on the Haihan position from the left and right wings.
But the attack did not go well from the beginning. The Haihan Army fired artillery at the Ming Army's array before they could get close. One of the guns directly hit the Ming Army's flag on the left wing. The general's casualties were unknown, but the team soon appeared. Collapse.
The generals who were quietly lying on the crenellations of the city watching the battle sighed at the same time. If such a situation occurred on the battlefield, even if the general was not dead, it would be difficult to organize his troops to launch a second round of offensive.
Sure enough, after a while, the Ming army on the left lost the will to continue fighting and began to withdraw from the battlefield.
The Haihan Army did not pursue it fiercely, but stopped firing after it took the initiative to break away from the battle.
The Ming army on the right attacked more fiercely, but suffered more casualties. It is by no means an easy task to attack with the firepower of the Haihan Army on an open battlefield.
The armor on the soldiers was not enough to withstand the Haihan Army's gunfire. When they were still a hundred feet away from the Haihan Army's position, the charging Ming troops began to fall in pieces.
After losing about one-third of his troops, the general realized that they would not be able to break into the Haihan position even if they risked their lives, so he ordered the troops to retreat, and the troops also left sadly.
From the beginning of the battle to the end, it actually only took a moment, but the backs of everyone who was hiding in the county seat watching the battle were soaked through.
To be fair, if they were to lead the team out of the city to attack the Haihan Army, their performance might not be much better.
In the past, I had only heard that the Haihan Army's firepower was fierce and there was almost no chance of close combat. Everyone could only imagine how ferocious it was. Today, when I saw it with my own eyes, I knew the rumors were true.
Not to mention the two thousand-man teams fighting out of the city, even if the entire county's defenders were pulled out, they might not be able to withstand such fierce firepower output. When that shot hit the array, dozens or hundreds of people were killed or injured, and the armor was as useless as paper. Who could withstand this?
Everyone was secretly glad that they had chosen to stick to the city. At least with the protection of the city wall, they would not end up like their colleagues outside the city.