Chapter 17: Qing Army Attacks Again

"General, today our morale has been shaken, the Han Army has also prepared defenses; we should withdraw our troops first! When an opportunity arises later, we can attack the city again!" a Qing Army general beside Fei Yanggu advised.

The others also nodded in succession, expressing their agreement.

"Hold on!" Fei Yanggu, however, stopped them.

"The fog hasn't lifted today, and the youngster Jia Jing just repelled our forces; he surely didn't expect us to assault the city again, so his defenses must be lax. Attacking once more now might have a surprising effect!"

"Select five thousand elite troops from the central army, bring all siege equipment, and after a quarter hour attack the South City Gate again."

Fei Yanggu pondered for a moment, then ordered the assembled soldiers.

"General, you truly are our famed commander; by taking this contrary approach, the youngster Jia Jing could not have anticipated it. In this battle I am willing to be the vanguard, to break through Jinzhou City for you and capture Jia Jing!" the Qing Army generals eagerly volunteered.

……

At the South City Gate, Jia Jing ordered the battlefield to be cleared; looking at the corpses strewn across the wall, he frowned and asked:

"What are the casualties of this battle?"

His companions Feng Ziying and Han Qi, whose wounds had already been bandaged, replied:

"In this battle our forces suffered over half casualties; of the two thousand defenders at the South City Gate, fewer than a thousand survived."

Feng Ziying's expression grew somber, clearly grieving the Han Army soldiers' losses.

At this moment he no longer bore any trace of the aristocratic demeanor he had when he first arrived from Liaodong; now he resembled a steel blade forged by the battlefield, radiating murderous aura.

"The Qing Army suffered over two thousand casualties in this battle, and a Qing Army deputy general was slain by the general!"

Han Qi added.

"The fallen should have their bodies tended, the seriously wounded should be promptly attended by physicians, and every effort must be made to ensure the brothers' lives are unharmed!"

"Those with minor injuries should have their wounds bandaged and rest on the spot as soon as possible; I sense the Qing Army will strike again shortly!" Jia Jing stood at the edge of the wall, observing the Qing Army through the fog.

"The barbarian dogs still dare to siege?!" Feng Ziying's tone was full of astonishment and doubt.

"Indeed! The fog still lingers, giving them a chance to strike while we are unprepared; they are likely to attack again!"

"Fei Yanggu is a senior Qing Army general; now fifty thousand troops surround my Jinzhou City, and it is taking them a long time to capture it, so his pressure is also great!"

Jia Jing pondered for a moment and explained. He possesses Zhao Yun-like battlefield experience and intuition, and he believes he will not misjudge.

"He intends to launch a surprise attack on us, unaware that I also intend to settle the score with them! To achieve glory, it is today!"

Jia Jing looked around, made up his mind, and spoke in a deep voice:

"Feng Ziying, Han Qi, obey the command!"

Seeing Jia Jing issue the command, Feng Ziying and Han Qi saluted in unison, saying:

"Please, General, give the command!"

Although they did not know how Jia Jing would achieve victory, past battlefield experience told them that the chance to earn glory had arrived!

They trusted Jia Jing's ability, because he had not lost in two years.

"Feng Ziying shall lead the remaining one thousand men of South City together with the two thousand elite he brought, reinforce the defenses, stock ample fire oil, large stones, rolling logs, bows and crossbows, and secretly ambush beneath the wall, delivering a head‑on strike when the Qing Army attacks."

"Han Qi shall immediately dispatch messengers to the defenders of West City, East City, and North City, ordering them to leave only three hundred men to guard each city; the rest shall covertly converge on the South Gate, and the defensive supplies shall also be moved to the South Gate."

"The messenger shall promptly send a dispatch to General Qin Qiong, ordering him to prepare; when our forces clash with the Qing Army, we will strike out from behind the Qing Army, with the Xuanjia Army as the vanguard, directly assaulting the Qing Army's great banner!"

"This time, I will seize the moment of the Qing Army's failed siege, lead all the defenders to break out of the city, and together with the outside cavalry execute a pincer attack, crushing the Qing Army!"

Jia Jing's orders were issued one after another.

At this moment, Feng Ziying and Han Qi finally learned that the cavalry unit, previously unseen, had already slipped out of the city and circled behind the Qing Army.

A few days earlier they had been puzzling over why, despite Jinzhou City having roughly four thousand cavalry, there was no movement during several critical gate emergencies.

It turned out Jia Jing had long planned this grand stratagem, waiting to seize the opportunity for a combined inside‑outside attack to annihilate the fifty thousand Qing troops outside the city.

Originally, merely holding Jinzhou City against fifty thousand Qing attackers was already a great achievement; they did not expect Jia Jing had already plotted to eradicate the Qing forces outside.

If they truly manage to defeat the Qing army, it would be no small matter for the entire Da Han Empire.

After all, since Emperor Chengzu, the Han Army has been at a disadvantage against the Qing Army, and such a decisive victory is rare.

As for whether Jia Jing can accomplish it, they have no doubt, for they know the combat power of the so‑called Xuanjia Army and Jia Jing's martial prowess.

With such a pincer attack, the Qing Army has little chance of survival!

Feng Ziying, Han Qi, and the messenger, each with a hint of excitement and anticipation, saluted Jia Jing and then set off to carry out the orders.

A quarter hour later.

Just as the Han Army atop the city had just replenished the defensive supplies and were preparing to rest, a sentinel's shout rang out:

"The Qing Army is attacking the city again!"

Jia Jing and Feng Ziying hurried to the wall's edge and looked down,

where, shrouded in thin mist, swarms of dark silhouettes surged toward the wall,

massive battering rams and siege ladders were being carried by the Qing Army, racing toward the wall.

Feng Ziying wore a hint of surprise; he had not expected the Qing Army to truly follow the general's prediction and attack again so swiftly.

Had our side been unprepared, we might indeed have been breached by the Qing Army's momentum.

But at this moment...

The Han soldiers on the wall looked toward Jia Jing with a measure of reverence, awaiting his command.

Jia Jing raised his right hand, signaling the troops not to act rashly, to let the Qing Army draw near before striking.

When the Qing Army reached the base of the wall, Jia Jing let out a loud shout:

"Release!"

In an instant, the Han soldiers hidden behind the wall sprang up,

and at once hurled their fire oil, large stones, rolling logs, and molten metal at the Qing Army below the wall.

The bowmen behind the Han troops also shot their bows and crossbows at the Qing Army.

"Bang bang..."

Thump thump…

Bang bang…

Buzz buzz…

One loud bang after another rang out, accompanied by huge objects scraping across the city wall.

Ah! Ah…

Instantly, countless screams rang out from the Qing Army ranks; the area beneath the city wall turned into a hell on earth, Qing soldiers fell in swaths, blood staining the ground red.

One of the oil tanks happened to smash onto the head of a Qing commander; despite his full armor, the penetrating oil drenched him completely.

Before he could react, countless torches rained down from the sky.

Ah…

No…

Numerous Qing soldiers had no time to retreat as flames shot up into the sky, hundreds of figures struggling and twisting in the fire.

Others were crushed by rolling logs and stones, scalded by molten metal, or pierced by arrows and bolts.

Miserable screams of extreme anguish filled the area beneath the city wall.

Whoosh whoosh whoosh…