Chapter 1245: Teaching Through Battle

The atmosphere atop Linqing's walls was already unbearably tense. When the messenger approached to deliver the ultimatum, arrows were loosed directly from the battlements. Shouts and curses followed, ordering the reckless archer to get lost. By this point, Li Yuliang and the archer beside him could not even be bothered to shout a warning. They simply drew their bows before the city gate, shot the letter onto the gate tower, and shouted, "Deliver this to whoever can make a decision inside the city, and reply quickly!"

The Zhao Army gave Linqing no room for a conciliatory misunderstanding. After the demands were shot into the city, the artillery regiment began setting up their cannons outside the walls. Watching cannon after cannon being positioned just a few hundred paces from the city, and watching the Xuzhou troops bustling around the artillery with intense focus, chaos erupted on Linqing's walls. Figures could be seen running back and forth along the ramparts. Soon, however, the section of wall directly facing the cannon muzzles grew deserted; no one wanted to stay up there and court death.

Yet an entire two-hour period passed, the sun already sinking westward, and there was no response from within Linqing. The city gates remained tightly shut.

Zhao Jin, along with the brigade commanders and regiment commanders, had already left the command tent and were observing the artillery position from a distance. Lu Da had led the Fengpei Regiment further forward, already arrayed in formation and ready to attack.

"General, should we ask Linqing for their reply again?"

"No need. They think we won't waste our strength storming the city, and that these cannons will do nothing more than smash a few wall bricks. So they're stalling in this state of neither war nor peace, waiting until we can't afford the delay and leave. Open fire!" Zhao Jin replied.

The order was passed down. A flag was seen raised and waved at the artillery position. With a thunderous boom, the tall city gate of Linqing shuddered, a gaping hole blasted through it as dust and smoke erupted. A target as large as a city gate required little fuss over aiming. But only one shot was fired at the gate before the artillery team immediately sent word back to Zhao Jin: Linqing had already blocked the gate tunnel with earth, rocks, and sandbags. Even if the gate was blasted open, entry was still impossible.

A second volley rang out immediately. This time the target was the city wall. The cannons roared, and the wall bricks were pulverized. Under the immense impact of the sixteen-pounders, a large crater was blasted into the wall, but the rampart itself still stood firm.

"Regulation city walls are all rammed earth faced with brick and stone. A frontal bombardment like this isn't very effective. Even with our cannons' sufficient caliber, who knows how long it would take to bore through," Zhao Jin said grimly. Everyone nodded in agreement.

The top of Linqing's wall remained utterly silent. Under such a bombardment, they dared not show their heads. Yet those outside could sense that Linqing was not truly panicking. Such shelling, while terrifying in its display, found it very difficult to breach the city's defenses. In the end, it would still come down to soldiers swarming the walls like ants. The city's gamble was likely that the Zhao Army was unwilling to waste lives on such a pointless sacrifice.

The cannons from the first two volleys were all turning and recalibrating. The third volley, from guns positioned at a preset location, then roared to life. This time, the target was a corner of the city wall. A city is enclosed by four walls, and they were aiming for one of the four corners.

The cannons thundered, and a chunk of the wall corner was blasted away. The guns fired in succession, a rolling peal of thunder. The damage to the corner grew more and more extensive, as if an invisible giant were swinging a massive sledgehammer, smashing it blow by blow. Bricks and rammed earth crumbled and scattered under the relentless assault. Finally, unable to bear the strain, the wall corner collapsed entirely.

"Back when we were at Jining, we used a single twelve-pounder to fire continuously and managed to collapse a corner of the wall, breaking it into a slope we could charge up. Now we have over ten cannons firing here; there's no reason we can't break through," Zhao Jin explained.

The cannonade did not cease, because the collapsed corner was not yet a proper slope. Soldiers could not yet charge up it smoothly. But anyone could see it was only a matter of time. The Fengpei Regiment, led by Lu Da, was already moving toward that position.

"Give the city one more chance before the assault begins. If they surrender, it's still not too late. We won't waste our strength here." Zhao Jin gave a simple instruction. Li Yuliang left, profuse in his gratitude.

Zhao Jin and the officers around him paid no attention to the attack and defense of Linqing. They listened intently to the reports coming back from the artillery position, using their telescopes to observe the damage to the wall. Every face was solemn. For Linqing, the most important thing was using a real city to verify the power and tactics of their cannons. The Zhao Army mostly fought in open fields; they had very few experiences with storming cities.

"I remember those foreigners all said their armies have no shortage of cannons like these. If we were defending and they were attacking, a city like this would certainly be indefensible. However, we could build gun emplacements on the walls. Then it would just be a contest of cannon fire!" Chen Sheng said gravely.

Everyone nodded. Zhao Jin waved his hand, and Sun Dalin along with several personal guards carried over a wooden chest. Inside the chest was a model, exquisitely detailed. It looked like a fortress or stronghold, but not the square, trapezoidal style of the Great Ming. It was polygonal—this one was hexagonal—and the walls did not drop straight down but had a certain sloped interval.

The model sat on a board, the wood surface sculpted with clay and fine sand to depict the surrounding terrain. One could see a ditch and a moat. The foundation on which the fortress sat resembled terraced fields, each level with different configurations. Everyone focused their attention on it.

At this moment, the members of the Training Brigade's Student Soldier Company enjoyed a perk: they could observe and listen from the perimeter, simultaneously serving as a human wall to separate the command area from the surroundings.

"This was made by Louis and that Tang Ruowang. They drew the plans and provided the design. Our shipwrights' craftsmanship is truly excellent," Zhao Jin explained. Everyone crowded closer to look.

Chen Sheng studied it for a moment, then said gruffly, "So this is the so-called Western-style bastion. It looks like they've turned the barbicans on our city walls into acute angles. The truly impressive parts are actually the ditches and fortifications below. Attacking a fortress like this, as long as it's manned with firearms and bows, is extremely difficult from the outside. You'd lose a layer of men for every layer of defense you cross. Hmm, I can't see any blind spots. Cannon fire from any direction would have the same effect."

As he mused aloud, Zhao Jin smiled and tapped the outer angle of the fortress model. He explained, "With enough cannons, you could still blast it open. But without absolute superiority, attacking any single angle won't compromise the integrity of the fortress. The inside can quickly repair and resume resistance. The angles can support each other, a step beyond the barbicans on our walls. What Dasheng just said is correct; the brilliance of this fortress lies below. Actually, the outer fortifications and ditches are similar to a rampart wall, allowing the defenders inside to sortie out and support the fight at any time. This kind of defense is an active defense, not just huddling behind the walls in a passive, rigid holdout like over there."

The officers' expressions varied; some showed sudden understanding, others remained puzzled. But ultimately, everyone could grasp it. With a physical model before them, having just witnessed cannons bombarding a city with their own eyes, and with Zhao Jin and Chen Sheng's Q&A hitting the key points, everyone quickly understood and absorbed the lesson.

Li He, the regiment commander of the Pizhou Regiment, stood slightly behind the others. He was the oldest among the brigade and regiment commanders; only the commanders of the Patrol Regiment and the newly formed Soldier Regiment were around his age. Because of this, Li He was always quiet and low-key on such occasions. Yet hearing this, an expression of admiration still involuntarily appeared on his face.

Before joining Xuzhou, Li He had always believed that marching and fighting were nothing more than relying on daily drills and battlefield valor. The military principles Li Daqin discussed in idle chat seemed useless. After joining the Zhao Army, he was very unaccustomed to their way of seeking reason and order in everything. But as his experience grew, he became more and more accustomed to this style.

Knowing how, and knowing why it is so, allows for more precise adjustments and execution during training and battle. The Zhao Army also valued on-the-spot decision-making and adapting to circumstances. Although their overwhelming strength meant it was rarely needed, when you train according to rules and discipline in peacetime, and understand the various reasons and principles, you discover that when encountering various situations, there aren't actually that many random variables. You have some understanding of the situations that arise, or you know the logic behind them. Naturally, you can then find and apply the methods learned during training and study.

Before joining the Zhao Army, Li He felt that if he went into battle against an enemy of equal strength, winning three out of ten fights would be considered good. Because when facing an enemy general who was flexible and understood stratagems, he had no real countermeasures, relying only on a fierce spirit to charge and strike wildly. But after joining the Zhao Army, Li He felt that if he faced an enemy of equal strength, barring extreme conditions, he couldn't guarantee ten victories out of ten, but there certainly wouldn't be any major defeats. At the very least, it would be a draw. Because under the Zhao Army's system of regulations, you knew how to respond to various situations and wouldn't make any baffling mistakes.

"... Actually, the terrain around this bastion has also been treated. Under normal cannon fire, it's very difficult to hit the soldiers in the ditch. The cannonballs should land around this position..." Zhao Jin began explaining the details.

At that moment, Li He's mind wandered slightly. He suddenly thought that if the Zhao Army's system were widely adopted, famous generals would become fewer and fewer. In the future, generals would not gain renown through on-the-spot tactical decisions, but through grand strategy and the overall situation. The Zhao Army's generals were like implements produced in an ironworks, all forged and rolled out by hydraulic machinery, each one nearly identical in form.

Thinking this, Li He turned his head to look at the intensely focused student soldiers. He suddenly realized that when their generation grew up, the military officers of that time would certainly be very different from those of today. The battles they fought, leading their non-commissioned officers and soldiers, would surely be very dull, but very hard to lose. And when his own children grew up, the situation would undoubtedly be different again.

Li He thought of the beautiful wife he had married, and of his child, just two years old. A smile had already appeared on his face. He couldn't help thinking about his wilder days in Yangzhou and Taizhou, wondering if he might have left behind any illegitimate children. If so, the most important thing would be to send them to the martial academy and school early.

"General, Linqing has surrendered."

Just as the lecture was underway, the expected response came from the front. Zhao Jin paid it little attention, simply replying, "Have them clear the city gate as quickly as possible. Then the Fengpei Regiment will guard the walls and all key points. The Suzhou Regiment will enter the city to maintain order. Do not touch the areas related to the government offices; just cordon them off and ensure they have food and water. Tomorrow, the Pizhou Regiment will sweep the area around Linqing to ensure there are no hidden threats."

Thanks to old friends "Duan Yichen" and "Huang Qi__Wang Meng" for the tips. Thank you everyone for your subscriptions and monthly tickets. Thank you all.