Chapter 819 Rurik Points His Sword at the Skull of the King of Denmark at the Gate of Godfrehagen
A man fled desperately in the night. He ran under the wooden wall and shouted loudly.
The guards on the city wall noticed the presence of this man. They were quite surprised that Rasmussen, who had gone to negotiate, came back so quickly?
The rope was lowered, and Rasmussen made a noose for one foot to stand on. Then he grabbed the rope with both hands and held the folded letter in his mouth, and was pulled up by the defenders.
As soon as he returned, he was interrogated by nervous soldiers: "What's the situation? What do the Russians want?"
What else could Rasmussen say? Can't you tell the brothers that Ross is confident about the plan to attack the city? What's more, it's better for ordinary soldiers not to know many inside stories.
He encouraged in every possible way: "You insist on standing guard to observe the situation and open a way for me. I will tell the king the request of the leader of Ross!"
Although this brave messenger did not explain the situation, looking at the attitude of his words, it seems that the negotiation is in danger. Because the two attendants did not return, Rasmussen's heavy breathing was clearly a sign of escape.
The inner city is full of people sleeping on the ground. Thanks to the fact that it is the warmest season in Northern Europe, they wear leather armor and huddle up like armadillos. This way, they don't have to worry about catching cold while holding swords and axes while sleeping. They did not dare to take off their leather armor or hard skin, for fear that the Russians would suddenly launch a surprise attack and they would not be able to launch an immediate counterattack.
King Horik of Denmark is sitting in his palace, in a huge long room with a pointed roof. He has no intention of getting involved with any of his wives or concubines. He had trouble sleeping, eating and sleeping. Being surrounded by an unknown number of Russian troops was a unique thing. Instinctively, he felt that this battle was more dangerous than the previous battle against the Frankish army.
Horik's concerns are not unreasonable. The single-round "siege war" is not uncommon in the East, and often even becomes the norm, but it is extremely rare in the current European world.
The traditional European army preferred that each lord personally lead his retinue and peasant soldiers to the battlefield, and lead the army under the lord's flag. Multiple lords would lead their respective armies in an array that was not subordinate to each other.
Both sides of the battle mostly adhere to this array pattern, followed by the sound of drums and trumpets, and the two armies impact, clash, and chop with swords and axes.
They didn't even use bows and arrows very much, and the winner always favored the side with more infantry and more cavalry.
A battle in the wilderness often resolves most of the grievances between nobles. Sieges and sieges are difficult to achieve and often mean thankless efforts.
But the Rus' army under Rurik's rule was clearly an army beyond the times! Any kind words are redundant. Whether the military is powerful must be proven by actual combat.
Just when the fleeing Rasmussen was about to deliver the letter to Horik, Rurik's entire army was not fast asleep.
The only sounds in the night were the snoring of soldiers, the crackle of burning firewood, the gentle south wind, and some low rumbles.
All the parts from the flagship cabin have been transported to the beach, and a siege weapon is being assembled!
The Danish walls were made of wood. How strong could they be?
The engineering rush vehicle is being assembled, and two two-wheeled vehicles are pieced together to form the base. A long-cut pine tree was unloaded from the ship and floated in the sea water before being pulled ashore. Now the trunk of the tree is connected to a tapered bronze collision angle. This tree trunk is the core unit of the impact vehicle. A large number of straight wooden beams from demolished houses are thrown directly onto the impact vehicle to increase the mass and obtain greater potential energy during impact.
The prefabricated parts were further assembled to form the arrow-proof and stone-proof frame on the top of the ram car. The prefabricated wooden boards were placed directly on top, and the soldiers used small hammers to hammer down the nails to hammer out the hard top cover.
Heavy siege weapons must be manufactured on the battlefield. In order to assemble them efficiently, the Ross Army brought all the parts. The many tricks on the weapons are definitely not Rurik's deliberate actions. Everything comes from bloody lessons!
Is Godfreyhagen even more disgusting than the Borgholm fortress of the Saxon settlers on the island of Öland?
As long as there is such a siege ram, Rurik doesn't have to worry about whether the defenders pour hot water or throw stones. The top cover can not only block falling debris, but the soldiers at the bottom can push the ram body to ram it or carry it. Using a double-edged ax to smash the wall, the enemy could only watch as his wooden wall was broken open bit by bit.
However, such siege vehicles are not completely unfamiliar to the Danish army. According to the Franks, this weapon is called a "war pig". It relies on brute force to directly smash the gate of the fortress. This is the Danish general Stade a year ago. I was able to imitate the Franks and crash the wall of Rose's shop with a car.
There was only one other weapon for the Rus' army - powerful arrows. The current Danish King Horik is no stranger to it. The information last year was indeed completely true, just because he saw the true power of the hateful arrows of the Russian army this year.
The soldiers of the Russian Army could endure the ups and downs of the ocean and fall asleep, and they could ignore the sound of "ding-dong-dong-dong" in their ears.
The soldiers on guard at night were rotated as usual. As time went by, the short night seemed to be passing, and the sky turned dark blue. It was obvious that the Danish army would not launch a dawn raid.
On the other hand, at the end of the night, Rasmussen delivered Rurik's autographed letter to the King of Denmark.
A strange thing became the carrier of writing? It feels like silk, but it breaks into pieces when you tear it.
King Horik was already in a bad mood, like a stone weighing on his heart. Now when he saw the content of the letter, he was even more furious!
He tore the paper clean in a few seconds and said angrily: "Prince Rus himself is here to beat me?! That villain wants to use my skull as a wine bowl! Fool! It should be your skull as my bowl!" "
King Horik was so angry that his round face turned red. The matter was very clear. Not only did the Russians not accept any negotiation, but they also saw his plan to delay time. Horik gave up his fantasy. Since Prince Rus provocatively wanted to launch an attack after dawn, let's fight!
Horik did not forget to stomp on the confetti on the ground a few more times, waiting for Rasmussen's face: "The Russians want to kill me! And I also want to kill them. Tomorrow is the day of the decisive battle, We have to prepare some stones and clay pots, and use these things to smash the Russians to death."
It sounded like he was asking himself, and the frightened Rasmussen hurriedly echoed: "Your Majesty, your Majesty wishes you the best."
"The Russians are really bullying! Now that you have entered their camp, tell me what you have seen. How many troops do the Russians have and their weapons?"
But had Rasmussen visited all of Ross's camps at night? How much could he see?
"There are about three thousand people in Russia, and many of them are equipped with bows and arrows. They have a kind of bow that lies flat. I'm afraid this is the key to their accurate shooting..." he muttered.
"What else?" Horik urged.
"Prince Rus is very young, I'm afraid he is not even twenty years old. Such men are often brave and usually have the least sense of propriety."
"I can understand this, so he wants to kill me. I'm surprised. I don't want to provoke any monarch now, so why am I being attacked like crazy by this guy from the East?"
Rasmussen's mouth trembled, and Horik noticed this.
"You? What did you see again? Tell me quickly and I will forgive you."
Rasmussen plucked up the courage and said bluntly: "I think I already know the whole story. This is the revenge of the Russians! It is because our Stade killed many Russians in Hedeby, which attracted the attention of the Russian prince. Angry. Moreover, there are traitors in those ranks who betrayed us."
Horik immediately became alert: "Destroying the Russian shops was a failure. I admit this. If only a few people died, would the Russians have to attack in an all-out way? No, no, it is the power that the Russians covet. As for those Human traitors? Could it be that those exiles are also attacking us?"
"It's Ragnar."
"Huh? Ragnar the Hairy Pants? The coward who ran away is not dead?"
"Not only did he not die, I noticed that the Russians had attracted many exiles. That Ragnar said that this battle was his revenge."
After learning the news, Horik's legs couldn't help but tremble. At this moment he had to think about some very deep questions - how many Danish lords really recognized me?
In a daze, he felt that the messenger sent out would not attract many troops from King Qin, and the exiles from various places were won over by the Rus who also spoke Norse to form a coalition to kill him.
Horik had thought about this, but he never dreamed that this decisive battle would come on the first anniversary after he became king. It was as if the entire Denmark and the external Viking forces deliberately rushed to provoke a war on this day.
Three thousand people is not a small number, and the Russian ships are very large. Naturally, it is impossible to estimate the enemy's strength based on the number of rowed long boats. He tentatively believed Rasmussen's description of the Ross army's strength. Looking at his own military strength, he found that it was a numerical disadvantage.
It was precisely because of the "three thousand people" that Rasmussen said and the resolute attitude of Prince Rus that Horik did not dare to act rashly. Because the core camp of the Russians has been fortified, they are prepared to launch a night attack on themselves, and they have a huge force. Carrying out a night attack would be harmful rather than beneficial to Denmark, and the army needs to practice tonight to maintain an excited salute.
The Danish soldiers were fast asleep, with huge pressure on their shoulders. Horik could only sleep until dawn.
When the sky turns blue and the sun in the east is about to break through the sea, the inner city of Godfreyhagen is filled with the sound of horns.
The Danes were blowing their trumpets loudly, as if they were about to open the door and launch an all-out counterattack.
It's very possible!
Rurik had long since awakened, and so had the Russian army. The army was busy cooking breakfast to replenish a lot of physical energy for today's decisive siege battle. Just as everyone was busy grilling fish and cooking wheat porridge, the intensive sound of Danish trumpets made the entire Ross army nervous.
"Damn King of Denmark, they may counterattack our army. You and your troops should be on alert, and all the torsion slingshots should be charged..." Rurik gave the order, and the generals immediately followed it.
All of a sudden, the Russian army was on high-intensity alert. The infantrymen holding shields had formed a shield wall. Behind the sword and shield bearers, there was a group of spear formations composed of Slavs.
A group of extremely burly warriors put on heavy iron armor and wore helmets with only observation windows and bear heads hanging on them. This is the "Iron Man" that Rurik is quite proud of. It is a real heavily armored legion, and its soldiers are also composed of his personal guard mercenaries. Its leader is Grund.
More than a hundred torsion slingshots and as many as 600 crossbow-wielding warriors were aimed at the inner city of Godfrey Hagen.
But the Danish horns kept blowing, and gradually the vigilance of the Russian army gave way to numbness.
Arik, who was on guard, hoped for a quick kill, and Grund, who was wearing heavy armor and holding an ax in both hands, even hoped to kill the enemy as soon as possible and take off his heavy armor.
It seems that everyone is competing in a battle of wits and courage in the air?
Rurik gradually felt that this was a tired tactic of the Danish army. The enemy did not look like he was about to leave the city to attack. He ordered the crossbowmen to be left on standby. The others ate quickly, and when they were full, they switched defenses with the crossbowmen.
The Russians were always on guard, knowing that the entire army had a feast. The fish meat is mixed with boiled wheat in the stomach, and the warrior's body is full of strength.
"Your enemies are blowing trumpets and beating drums, what are we going to do? We are going to blow trumpets too!" Ragnar admonished Rurik aggressively, and received full support.
Rurik's resolute eyes looked at all the soldiers who were ready to go. He drew his sword and pointed in the direction of the wooden wall: "Odin's warriors! The blessing of the God King will shine on you, and the time has come to win glory and revenge. ! Now follow me, attack! Trumpeter! Blow the trumpet!"
The organized trumpet holders worked together to blow the horns, and the holders also banged hard.
The whole army shouted the Viking war cry rhythmically. This positive signal conveyed the next meaning to the Danish army defending the city - the Russian army began to attack.
The army advanced along the winding alley, with a group of warriors holding crossbows in front and sword and shield bearers behind. There are more than 500 people in the vanguard army. They are the veterans of the First Standard of the Russian Army led by Arik, and the allied army composed of the exiled Danes led by Ragnar.
The slave soldiers from Bornholm Island were also among them, but their clothes were too casual and not as uniform as those of Arik and Ragnar.
The lanes inevitably dispersed the width of the Ross army's front. If the Danish army could launch a cavalry attack at this time, there would be a chance that part of the Ross army could be overwhelmed.
But King Horik chose a conservative strategy. He ordered the trumpeters in the city to blow the trumpets desperately, which also called for the confused warriors to wake up and actively prepare for war.
Danish warriors holding bows stood on the city wall, and a batch of stones and earthen jars also arrived at the city wall.
At the foot of the city, the confused warriors slapped themselves in the face. They stood in a dense formation in an empty space inside the city.
The cavalry team regained its vitality. They held short spears in their hands and were as perseverant as a wall. They were waiting for King Horik's order to open the city gate at any time and rush out to fight with the Ross army.
Horik rode his famous horse. He felt that this would be a fierce battle, and he must fight for his own glory. Therefore, although there is clearly a back door to escape, even if you have to evacuate in the end, you can only evacuate when the defense is defeated.
He even mobilized the women in the city. Danish women wore braids on their heads or tied them into a ball. A large number of infantrymen did not have armor, and these women only had leather clothes and cloth clothes. They have a round shield in one hand and a sword in the other, and their faces are painted with light blue or black lines to show their bravery.
If it is a simple sword and shield fight, go to Shuyuan www.zhaoshuyuan.com. Horik actually has a huge advantage!
But Rurik didn't want to give his enemy time to show those damn advantages.
A group of Russian soldiers escorted a "little house" in motion. It was pushed by as many as thirty people and moved quickly on the slope approaching the inner city.
The morning sun shone on the soldiers who were approving the iron armor. Grund and his men formed a fifty-strong "Array Breaking Iron Man". They usually carried double-edged prisoners of war. It was their mission to attack holes. They entered the wooden wall and chopped down the wood directly. Piles are also tasks. They are combat engineers!
Horik was not at all disadvantaged by the Ross army's advance. Rurik on the other side of the battlefield was also betting. He was mentally prepared to lose part of his troops, but his only enemy had already arrived at the gate of the inner city. , the enemy still has no intention of leaving the city for a decisive battle.
"Okay, the most troublesome thing is that time has passed, and now it is time for me to perform. King of Denmark, I will accept your skull." Rurik laughed with satisfaction, because his army had successfully defeated the enemy. The formation is completed under the city. It all depends on your own wishes whether it is appropriate to attack the city.
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