The strongest devouring system in the Three Kingdoms

Chapter 119 Constant Warfare

“Well, in that case, we should act more realistically,” Li Jue said to Niu Fu. “Brother Niu, you can try to act as if you absolutely have to take it back.”

“I understand,” Niu Fu said, then turned and left, returning to his command post to prepare for the midnight counterattack.

Even though many soldiers suffer from night blindness, this cannot be a reason for the Xiliang army not to try to retake the city walls. Gongsun Zan understood that the Xiliang army was simply preparing for its most intense attack.

"Tell the brothers that we must be even more vigilant as the night goes on. The enemy is hiding in the shadows, waiting for us to let our guard down. If we show even the slightest sign of weakness, the Xiliang army will pounce on us like hungry wolves," Gongsun Zan said to Gongsun Pu.

Gongsun Pu nodded and then walked out of the city tower. He wanted to inspect the city personally. Originally, this was something that should have been done by the junior officers below him, but seeing how much Gongsun Zan valued it, Gongsun Pu decided that he should go and see for himself so that he could feel more at ease.

"Is there anything unusual?" Gongsun Pu asked the soldier on guard as he approached a sentry post. Upon seeing Gongsun Pu, the sentry quickly saluted him and said that there was nothing unusual.

Gongsun Pu nodded and left, preparing to go to the next sentry post. Just then, a series of strange sounds suddenly came from the air, a whooshing sound. What was that sound?

After listening carefully, Gongsun Pu shouted loudly, "Take cover! Enemy attack!"

Lacking sufficient warm blankets, the Chang'an army lit makeshift fires on and around the city walls. While these fires provided them with warmth, they also exposed them directly to the enemy's view.

In the first volley of fire, the Xiliang army killed two or three hundred men, and many more were wounded. The cries of agony and Gongsun Pu's roars immediately echoed throughout the city walls. Gongsun Zan, who had just lain down, quickly stood up. Hearing the sounds of battle outside, Gongsun Zan knew that the Xiliang army's counterattack had begun.

"That's more like it," Gongsun Zan thought to himself. Previously, the Xiliang army hadn't made any major moves, which made Gongsun Zan wonder if it was a trap set by the Xiliang army for him. Otherwise, why hadn't they retaliated? Did the Xiliang army just stand by and watch the southern city fall without doing anything? This was obviously not in line with normal human thinking. Now that the Xiliang army had launched such a counterattack, it immediately dispelled most of Gongsun Zan's concerns.

"Organize a counterattack immediately!" Gongsun Zan said to his personal guards outside the door.

After quickly donning his armor, Gongsun Zan left his room. Gongsun Pu ran back at this moment and reported the current situation to Gongsun Zan. Gongsun Zan nodded and said to Gongsun Pu, "Tell the brothers to conserve ammunition and defend the city walls. Our current objective is to hold the city walls."

"Yes, brother, I understand." Gongsun Pu quickly ran away.

It must be said that the flintlock musketeers under Gongsun Zan played a crucial role at this time, and their continuous firepower caused great suffering to the attacking Xiliang army. The area around the city wall was open, and if the Xiliang army wanted to counterattack, they had to rush through this open space first. Meanwhile, the Chang'an musketeers on the city wall kept throwing fire at the Xiliang army, and the Xiliang army simply could not get through this open space that was only twenty or thirty meters wide.

Seeing that most of the men were dead, Niu Fu ordered a retreat. This night raid had already happened two or three times that night, and Niu Fu's troops had lost more than two thousand men again. This pained Niu Fu greatly. Fortunately, Guo Si and the other man had promised to help replenish Niu Fu's army, which gave Niu Fu a boost of confidence.

"This is the last time. After this battle, we'll go back to rest and have the other two generals' troops take over the defense of the south city and the street fighting." Niu Fu said to his deputy. In the previous attacks, Niu Fu clearly realized the fighting power of Gongsun Zan's army. They were strong, indeed very strong. After the attacking and defending sides switched positions, Niu Fu realized how big the gap was between the two sides. Although crossbows were concealed and had a fast firing speed, compared to firearms, especially the flintlock muskets equipped by the Chang'an army, they were really too weak and lacked killing power.

If it weren't for the darkness, which made it difficult for archers to reveal their positions, Niu Fu would probably have given up the attack during the previous one. However, since it was a performance, it had to be done well. Niu Fu told his officers that this was related to the outcome of the daytime battle. They had already invested so much, and they couldn't let Gongsun Zan develop anything wrong, which would cause all their previous efforts to be wasted.

More than ten minutes later, seeing that the fighting at the front line was almost over, Niu Fu said to the messenger, "Sound the retreat!" It was time to withdraw. Of the five thousand men he had led out for the night raid, only a little over a thousand remained. "This charade has been very convincing," Niu Fu thought to himself.

"Has the enemy retreated?" As the surroundings gradually quieted down, Gongsun Zan shouted loudly, "Cease fire! Cease fire!" The enemy must have already retreated.

"Ceasefire, ceasefire!"

Upon hearing Gongsun Zan's voice, the surrounding officers quickly gave orders to their soldiers.

Gongsun Zan said to Gongsun Pu, "Strengthen security and be careful of the enemy launching a surprise attack."

“Yes, brother, I understand,” Gongsun Pu said.

Gongsun Zan turned and left. Gongsun Pu said to the two officers around him, "Have your men take over the security duties. Make sure to rearrange all the sentry posts and don't leave them in their original positions."

"Yes! General."

After arranging the guards, Gongsun Pu returned to his resting place. Although the conditions were a bit poor tonight, as a general, his resting place was still cleaned by his personal guards and even had blankets to keep warm.

Night gradually passed, and the sky gradually brightened. The Xiliang army did not launch any further attacks, but no one dared to let their guard down. Even when sleeping, they kept their weapons in the most convenient positions, and no one dared to take off their armor. Even Gongsun Zan slept with his armor on.

"General, breakfast has been served."

In the latter half of the night, the supply troops from the main camp delivered a large amount of cotton quilts and food to the foot of the south city wall, and the Chang'an soldiers stationed in the south city finally got their food.

When Gongsun Zan got up in the morning, his personal guards brought him breakfast. Although it was just a simple steamed bun and a bowl of meat soup, Gongsun Zan, who had been fighting for many years, was already used to it. Moreover, it is said that steamed buns and meat soup are the most delicious things in the world. However, after all, having steamed buns and meat soup to drink after years of fighting is indeed very good.