Chapter 178: October Siege, the World Shocked (Part 1)
In the golden autumn of October, a flock of geese come from the north and descend on the sparkling water. The clouds passed away with the breeze and melted into the clear sky. The sun is shining, the wind is light and the clouds are light, the birds and animals have changed into autumn down, and the fragrance of fruits is spreading between heaven and earth. After the last farewell drizzle, the rainy season has quietly passed and the corn harvest has begun.
On the banks of the Leman River, the warning bonfire was lit again, and the trusted messengers who were good at running fled from the river mouth fortress. He headed south from Acambalo State, passed through the short gap where the Mexicans were about to encircle, and ran through the overgrown northern fields, where everything he saw was desolate and full of murderous intent. He kept running, passing the dense villages of the Patzcuaro lake area. Wherever you look, the prosperous scene of the past is no longer there. Women and old people have sad faces, working hard in the vast farmland. In these villages near the front line, the recruitment of young men has already been completed.
The envoy continued southward in silence, and finally came to the capital of the kingdom, the "City of Hummingbirds", the copper capital of Qin Congcan.
There are still young men working in the farmland outside the city, huge transport fleets are passing through the lake, and ruthless grain collection teams disperse from the city gate to various places. He walked through the city, passed by the vaguely prosperous urban market, passed by the huge craftsmanship building for making weapons, and looked at the smoke-filled "House of Wind" Akarta in awe. On the sacred pyramid, the priests chanted and danced wildly, and performed complicated sacrifices day and night.
The messenger showed the talisman of the Northern Marshal and finally arrived at the center of the kingdom, the supreme "Palace of Winds" Akatas. In front of the solemn chief minister, he knelt on the ground exhausted and conveyed the marshal's message word by word.
"The Honorable Chief Minister fought a decisive battle on the water with the burning rockets of the Mexica. The Chapala Army fled without fighting. The entire army of the Northern Marshal was defeated"
Then, the messenger fell to the ground, not daring to look at the clouded face of the chief minister. He gasped several times and begged loudly.
"Chief, the Marshal of the North asked for help from the Supreme King! The Mexica people were as fast as the wind, and 20,000 troops arrived in a few days and surrounded the river mouth fortress. The Mexica fleet rushed into the river mouth, blocked the water gate, and the fortress support was completely cut off .”
Hearing this, Chief Minister Zinzini frowned and finally couldn't help shouting.
"The estuary channel is narrow and long. The narrowest point is only 30 meters. It can be blocked by seven or eight large boats. The fortress wall at the estuary is tall, and the western wall stands beside the river mouth. Archers and slingers stand on the high wall and can suppress the water channel at will. Up and down. As long as a few hundred elite navy troops block the waterway and thousands of archers throw stones at the wall, it is impossible for the Mexicans to break through the defense line even if they die in the tens of thousands! How can the water gate in the west be blocked?
Faced with the chief's rebuke, the messenger bowed deeply again. He looked horrified and explained in a low voice full of fear.
"The marshal was defeated in the water battle. He was so defeated that he only returned with his body. The main force of the navy was lost and all the big boats were lost. Only more than 300 small boats were left. The enemy's large boats were equipped with wooden shields and wooden sheds to prevent arrows. They carried longbows with extremely long range and rockets to light up the boats. The three hundred small boats only blocked the way for one day and were scattered by the enemy ships."
Hearing this, Jinzini's chest tightened, and the pain was as painful as a knife. Of the mighty and powerful Kingdom Navy, only these shabby boats are left! This is the kingdom's accumulation over decades or even nearly a hundred years, and it is the most powerful naval force in the world!
The chief minister's face was as dark as water and he was silent. He felt fierce in his heart and secretly made a decision.
"The Russian navy who ruined the kingdom should be killed by the Russian faction! When this battle is over, the 'Crocodile' body will be sacrificed to the gods, and the 'Crocodile' fiefdom will be taken as a direct subordinate!"
The courier glanced furtively at the chief. He did not dare to mention in detail how the enemy obtained these large boats equipped with wooden shields and wooden sheds. He just continued to lie on the ground and reported back carefully.
"Dozens of enemy large boats endured the shooting from the city, forced their way through the estuary channel, and entered Lake Quetseo. Subsequently, the enemy troops besieging the city went around to the southwest of the fortress and established a stronghold on the edge of Lake Quetseo to prepare for this force. The fleet provides supplies. The Mexican fleet will be centered here to spy on the shores of Lake Quiceo and cut off the water support of the river mouth fortress! "
Jinjinni closed his eyes slightly and calmed down. Then, he asked in a deep voice.
"Look up at me! How many warriors are there in the Hekou Fortress? How many militiamen are there? How much food is stored? How long does the marshal expect to be able to hold on?!"
The messenger then raised his head, met the chief minister's stern eyes, and couldn't help but shudder. He answered truthfully, not daring to hide anything.
"The Mexica people are coming very fast, and only one-third of the remaining warriors in the northern defense line have time to enter the fortress. Now, there are two hundred family warriors left in the hands of the marshal, three hundred warriors in the hands of General Kukuna, and Akanbarobang The local nobles have a thousand warriors, a total of fifteen hundred!"
"As for the militia, when the war went out, there were 3,000 Chapala militia stationed in the fort and 5,000 newly supported Lake District militia. The two thousand remaining soldiers who escaped during the war, plus the 3,000 militiamen who were urgently transferred from nearby, totaled 13,000 people. !”
"After supporting the fortresses, many fortresses in the north are empty of troops. Now there are less than 2,000 local warriors and 12,000 militiamen! The warriors and militiamen suffered heavy losses, but the originally stored food was sufficient. Each fortress has at least half a year's food reserves, and Hekou The fortress has enough food for a year!"
The messenger was obviously a close associate of the Northern Marshal and knew the military situation everywhere. At this time, he took care of all the details, and by going through them one by one, the situation in the north was completely clear. Finally, he kowtowed violently and shouted loudly.
"Before leaving, the marshal cut his palms and swore an oath! He will defend the fortress to the death until the food reserves are completely exhausted, and until the last soldier is killed, he swears to live and die with the Hekou Fortress!"
Zinzini looked at the messenger carefully for a while, nodded slightly, and then fell into deep thought.
In accordance with the king's request before leaving, he went to the north in one month to transport 10,000 Lake District militiamen, 5,000 men each for the river mouth fortress and the northern fortress. These urgently recruited ordinary militiamen are not good at field battle formations, but they can be used to defend the city. The siege army in Mexico was no more than 20,000 people. Given the strength of the Hekou Fortress, with 1,500 warriors and 13,000 militiamen, it should be able to hold on for at least half a year!
The problem now is that the north is extremely short of warriors and has lost the ability to fight outside the city. The communication between the defense lines was allowed to be cut off by the Mexica. The fortresses and fortresses fight on their own, and will eventually fall one by one.
According to his thirty years of experience in presiding over wars, if you want to defend the city for a long time, you must have the strength to defend the countryside! Only by having a capable warrior legion that can attack at any time and attack the enemy's weak points can the enemy's siege be prevented from advancing smoothly. Now, the river mouth fortress cannot support, so it can only support the weak northern line fortress group.
Thinking of this, Zinzini waved his sleeves and pointed at the messenger.
"Take it down."
The messenger opened his mouth to say something more for the marshal. The guards had already rushed up and took the northern envoy away.
Afterwards, the chief minister closed his eyes and frowned, counting with his fingers in his sleeves.
"Since the last time we discussed the war with His Majesty, the Lake District has conscripted 30,000 more militiamen. Ten thousand were sent to the northern front, and 20,000 were sent to the southern front. Since the war began, 100,000 men in the Lake District have been engaged in the war, and nearly half have died in the battle. !”
Thinking of this, Zinzini trembled all over. The Lake District, the core of the kingdom's rule, has a population of less than one million. This ratio of young adults to conscripts is almost devastating to agricultural production. At this rate of consumption, two entire generations are being wiped out, along with the future of the kingdom!
What made Zinzini even more desperate was that he only had three thousand warriors in his hands, and he had to further recruit strong men to maintain the situation between the north and the south.
The long wind blows into the magnificent "Palace of Winds", causing a shrill sound of wind chimes, like the ominous sound of national subjugation. The chief minister's fingers shook violently, and finally he could no longer calculate. After a long while, he finally opened his eyes suddenly, revealing a cold and captivating gaze, and shouted in a hoarse voice.
"Recruit all the able-bodied young men in the Lake District, and any nobles who stand in the way will die! Those who are over fourteen years old, under fifty, and are half as tall as a spear, will be recruited into the army! All strong peasant women, who can wield a spear, will be recruited into the army. !”
"Mobilize a thousand warriors to support the fortresses in the north, and be careful to harass the Northern Army of Mexico!"
"Send an envoy to the west to express condolences to the Chapala Legion! Promise the prince of the 'Feather' family to be enfeoffed and quickly reorganize to come for reinforcements!"
"Send an envoy south to the mountainous state of Wetamo, ordering reinforcements from the north, and also promise the prince's enfeoffment!"
"Send the divine envoy, together with the Tlaxcala envoy, to escort the ancestors and princesses to the east and complete the marriage immediately!"
"Send divine envoys to urge the Tekos tribe in the south. The kingdom agrees to their autonomy conditions, but must send more warriors or militiamen. Each tribe will be granted a title based on the number of troops it sends, and the one with the most will be crowned Prince of Tekos, with a higher status than each tribe. The supreme royal family will also marry the princess to Prince Tekos!"
"Send an envoy in a low-key manner to inform His Majesty on the southern front!"
Following the chief minister's order, the guards followed the order and left one after another. Soon, only the old man in rich clothes was left in the solemn palace hall, with a majestic expression and solemn silence.
Jinzini was silent for a moment, then slowly took off the feather crown on his head, finally revealing a head full of white hair. He raised his head and looked at the ancient murals on the top of the temple. The hummingbird of the family accompanied the royal eagle, fluttering its wings and flying through the place for thirty years.
"Your Majesty, I have served all kings for thirty years. If this battle is won, I will use my life to be responsible for today's decision!"
The breeze blew by, and the old man's white hair was scattered in the wind, and he no longer looked majestic. Immediately, the breeze blew thousands of miles, and a new round of running messengers set off from the royal capital again.
The envoy from the royal capital rushed out of the city gate. He saw thousands of conscript warriors about to go to the eighty-one surrounding villages to squeeze out the last manpower in the lake area. Then, he quickly headed south, passing through the half-harvested fragrant fields, and caught up with the large group of farmers transporting grain. All he looked at were tired and numb faces. He passed the last group of supporting Lake District militiamen. The militiamen had no armor and only stone spears in their hands. Soon, the fields in front of us became deserted again, and this was already the Sitacuaro state on the front line.
Without stopping, he passed by the dots of rear camps and headed towards the stone castle where the king's flag was fluttering. He ignored the patrolling warriors' vocal inquiries and entered the solid bluestone fortress. He passed by the loosely disciplined barbarian mercenaries, passed by the pike regiments stationed in formation, and stopped briefly on the fortress's grounds. There were hundreds of archery warriors there, familiarizing themselves with the huge Mexica longbows. The sound of arrows breaking through the air was like the roar of wild beasts.
The messenger lowered his head and continued to move forward quietly. He calmly walked past the neatly formed warriors, silently sizing up the serious-looking nobles, and finally came to the king's guard holding a big axe, and found a guard captain wearing a feather on his head.
"A letter from the capital, the moon goddess is blessing us."
The envoy from the royal capital said seriously.
The captain of the guard tensed up. For the moon goddess who symbolizes death, this is definitely not good news! He nodded slightly and turned around. After a while, the guard captain returned silently and led the envoy to a side hall, where the supreme king was right in front of him.
Then, the guard captain turned and left. Not far from the side hall, he heard the king's angry low roar.
"Damn it!"
Then, there was another loud bang of metal and stone falling. Hearing the sound, the captain of the guard was startled. He did not dare to look back, quickened his pace, and hurried away from danger.
In the stone house behind, the buzzing copperware and the jingling gold ornaments rolled together on the brick and stone floor. King Suanggua was dressed in military uniform, wearing gorgeous copper-studded leather armor and an eagle-shaped feathered copper helmet on his head, majestic like the incarnation of a god. At this time, he looked murderous and glared at the messenger crawling on the ground.
After a long time, the king calmed down and spoke slowly.
"You are innocent, and it is not you who should die! The chief of the 'Hummingbird' has handled everything very well, and I will endorse his orders afterwards. You go down!"
The messenger got up from the ground and walked away backwards.
There was no one else in the side hall, and the young king suddenly pulled out the copper axe and chopped off the wooden table in front of him with one axe. Then, he thought for a moment, picked up the copper axe, and went straight to the highest watchtower.
I caught a cold while running yesterday, and I have a headache that makes it hard to write. I apologize to everyone. I wrote for a long time today, and I divided it into two chapters. This chapter is from yesterday. Thank you~