Nurhachi felt that this would not work, so he arranged for archers with crossbows to protect the soldiers who destroyed the traps and roadblocks at all times.
When the North Korean guerrillas came to harass them again, they suffered more serious losses. After one or two times, they came less often. In the morning, Nurhachi broke out of the trap area and approached Kaesong. He could see the tall city wall in the distance.
In order to take Kaesong, Nurhachi and Li Rusong had broken in together. After a bloody street battle, they defeated the Japanese pirates and successfully occupied Kaesong. Nurhachi wanted to use the same trick again, but when he saw that Kaesong looked like it was facing a formidable enemy, he knew that it would not work.
The trick of using the heads of the North Korean reinforcements to scare the Pyongyang city gate was probably not going to work. This time, it was obvious that the North Korean guerrillas were not scared out of their wits. Instead, they were determined to defend Kaesong and even dared to go out to fight.
This was not good. Attacking would not work. They would definitely encounter strong resistance. Now that the Qin Army was chasing after them, they could not stay any longer. They had to leave as soon as possible.
Although he knew that there must be water in the city, it did not matter. As long as he could break through the Kaesong area and reach the Imjin River, he would not be afraid. With such a large volume of water, how much poison would it take?
Thinking of this, Nurhachi decided to give up on attacking Kaesong. He went straight to the Imjin River to have a full drink of water, then crossed the river and ran directly in the direction of Seoul.
Moreover, Nurhachi also noticed that the initial benefits of the invasion had disappeared. Some North Koreans had reacted and were ready to fight back bravely. At this time, if the North Koreans were to figure out their actual strength and lose their fear, the situation would become very bad.
Although he had given his women and children weapons, and their bodies were strong enough, compared to the professional army, they were still lacking. If they faced the North Korean army head-on, they might be able to defeat them, but after a few battles, they wouldn't be able to hold on.
After all, one dead meant one less.
But on second thought, he realized that this was also his last celebration. When he reached the last coast, what else could he do?
Thinking of this, Nurhachi could not help but feel a little depressed.
But right now, they couldn't show their dejection. They couldn't let the people know their dejection. They had to let them think that they were rushing towards survival and hope, not a road of death.
Fei Yingdong was probably the only one who knew his real purpose.
Nurhachi thought.
Therefore, he decided to lead his troops to bypass Kaicheng and directly reach the Linjin River, preparing to cross the river on a pontoon bridge.
Inside the city, Liu Chenglong had already made all the preparations. He was ready to fight the invading enemies until the last soldier. With such a big shot leading the defense, the soldiers felt that there was nothing to be afraid of. Their morale was greatly boosted, and they decided to fight to the death with the invading barbarians.
Everyone made a lot of preparations, they moved the fire to the top of the city wall, set up the cannons, bows, spears, logs, stones, and other things were all prepared at the top of the city wall. The commoners in the city even contributed a large amount of oil, preparing to heat it up to deal with the barbarians who tried to climb the city.
When the news of the barbarians' attack came, everyone was ready for battle. Liu Chenglong personally went to the top of the city wall to face the enemy, but after observing for a long time, he did not find any traces of the enemy. Liu Chenglong felt strange, so he asked the soldiers who were sent out for guerrilla warfare.
"Didn't you see with your own eyes that the barbarians fell into my trap?"
"Yes, it was like that."
"What about the barbarians?"
Liu Chenglong pointed outside the city.
He could not see any traces of the barbarians as far as he could see.
The soldiers were also very puzzled, but they insisted that they saw a large group of barbarians when they went out for guerrilla warfare. There were a lot of them, and they were definitely heading towards Kaicheng. Just when Liu Chenglong was puzzled, the commander of the East Gate reported that there were traces of the enemy.
Liu Chenglong was shocked. Were the barbarians going to attack from the East Gate instead of the North Gate?
He immediately went to the East Gate. When he arrived at the East Gate, the commander of the East Gate reported that the barbarians were moving towards the South of the city. They were some distance away from the city, and it seemed that they did not intend to attack the city.
Liu Chenglong saw a large amount of smoke and dust not far from the East Gate. It was obvious that it was not caused by one or two small troops. What was going on?
Without figuring out what was happening outside the city, Liu Chenglong did not dare to open the city gate to investigate. He could only continue to send people to keep an eye on the city wall. He went to the South and West Gates, but there were no signs of the barbarians arriving. His plan to surround the city was abandoned.
The barbarians had come, but they did not attack the city. This situation made Liu Chenglong very puzzled.
He could only order the entire army to be on alert and be ready to fire at the barbarians.
The cannons in North Korea were basically the standard cannons of the Ming Army. They were introduced by Xiao Ruxun during the Battle of Korea. They replaced the firearms used by Zhu Di and Zhu Zhu Yuanzhang. They replaced them with muskets and Francis guns. However, they had not practiced the muskets for a long time. Only the Francis guns were still considered proficient.
After all, there were people in the North Korean army who had followed Xiao Ruxun to attack Japan. They had witnessed how Xiao Ruxun used the advantage of cannons to defeat the Japanese pirates step by step. They respected the cannons very much. North Korea also tried to imitate the Francis guns. There were dozens of Francis guns on the city wall specially prepared for the Jianzhou soldiers.
In the end, they did not come.
Kaesong was the last barrier to protect Han City. Behind Kaesong was the Imjin River. After crossing the Imjin River, Han City was a vast expanse of flat land.
In the past, the Japanese pirates had attacked the Ming Army at Kaesong, the Imjin River, and the Jade Hoof Hall. They had lost all three battles. Xiao Ruxun had defeated their main force. They had lost their courage and directly abandoned Han City and retreated to Pusan.
Liu Chenglong wanted to set up a defense at the Imjin River, but he did not have enough troops. Secondly, it would be a pity not to use the good city wall of Kaesong. Thirdly, Li Zhi had already escaped. Han City was equivalent to an empty city. There was nothing worth defending.
Therefore, he decided to fight the Jianzhou soldiers at Kaesong. In the end, the barbarians did not come.
When the sun set, the barbarians still did not come. The soldiers on the city wall were very puzzled. Liu Chenglong also frowned.
In the end, they decided to use a rope to release a few agile soldiers to investigate the situation. They would then come back to inform Liu Chenglong. Liu Chenglong then ordered the people in the city to start a fire and let the soldiers have dinner.
After nightfall, the barbarians still did not come. Instead, the scouts returned. Their report surprised Liu Chenglong.
"The barbarians are building a pontoon bridge. They seem to be planning to cross the river!"
Hearing such a report, Liu Chenglong was even more surprised.
Were they not going to attack Kaesong?
Or could it be that this was a scheme?
Bypassing Kaesong and building a pontoon bridge, did they not intend to attack Kaesong in the first place? Or did they want to lure the Kaesong army out of the city and then use the advantage of the cavalry to destroy the Kaesong garrison?
The barbarians were very cunning. That was for sure. Otherwise, Pyongyang would not have fallen and Guo Zaiyou would not have died.
Moreover, Liu Chenglong also understood that if the barbarians did not fight with Kaesong and directly crossed the river, they could directly take Han City.
Although Han City had been fortified, there were only 500 garrison troops. As long as they attacked, they could directly take Han City.
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