The ammunition that Li Feiyu mentioned was the black gunpowder balls that he held in his hands. These black gunpowder balls were black spherical weapons made of black gunpowder. There was a fuse in the middle that could be ignited. As long as the fuse was ignited and thrown out with force, it could cause great damage to the enemy.
This was the grenadier weapon of the Tang dynasty. In fact, there were no professional grenadiers. Ordinary infantrymen only needed to be equipped with this kind of black ammunition, and then they would be grenadiers.
In ordinary battles, there was no need to use this kind of weapon, because there were artillery units for long-range attacks. Moreover, the distance that the grenadiers could throw out was very limited. It was easy to injure one's own people by mistake, so it was not very practical. However, if one stood on the city wall to defend the city, this kind of weapon was more useful. After igniting it and throwing it down, it could blow up a large number of enemies. Moreover, it would never injure one's own people by mistake. The city wall was so high that the power of the gunpowder could not reach it at all.
Another important reason why the Tang Dynasty fleet prepared this kind of weapon was that it was cheap and easy to make. It only needed to mix a few simple materials according to a certain ratio. The fleet only needed to disperse and store sulfur and saltpeter, and make charcoal powder in the local areas before they died.
Ang Lee would take time to personally direct the mixing of the materials, and then the rest of the work could be done directly by the craftsmen. This kind of cheap and easy to make simple weapon was a must-have weapon for the Tang Dynasty fleet. There was not a lot of it in storage, but it was valuable because it could be manufactured at any time. It could be manufactured as much as needed.
"General, don't worry. More than 2,000 have been transported up, a total of 20 baskets, evenly distributed on the city wall. It is enough to resist the attack of the Lion Kingdom."
The soldier replied seriously.
Li Feiyu nodded with relief and encouraged, "Cheer up. There is a great possibility that the Lion Kingdom will launch a surprise attack on the city tonight. You must keep your eyes open. Once you discover something, don't make a sound and report it immediately."
"Yes, General."
Li Feiyu continued to patrol on the city wall. Then, he yawned and went to the city gate tower to rest.
South Tianzhu's Garigal Harbor was relatively large, but the city walls were not high. They were only two feet tall at most, and one could climb up with a ladder. Therefore, in order to defend such a city wall, a large number of soldiers and horses had to be deployed. South Tianzhu had deployed three thousand soldiers and horses to guard the harbor.
However, without the help of the Tang dynasty's soldiers and horses, his 3,000 soldiers and horses and horses could not cope with the surprise attack at most. It would be good if they could hold on for a few hours.
Other than the fact that their weapons were not good enough, the bigger reason was that their will to fight was relatively weak. They were much weaker than the tyrannical Leo army. If their side had a greater advantage, they might still be able to hold on. However, if they discovered that the other side was too strong, and continued to resist would cause heavy casualties, these fellows would very likely flee.
After all, not all countries' soldiers were brave and good at fighting. South Tianzhu's soldiers were not brave enough.
Now that they had the help of the Tang Dynasty's soldiers and horses to defend the city, the morale of South Tianzhu's soldiers and horses suddenly became much higher, and they prepared for the battle even more vigorously.
At night, all the city gates were closed, and the port was also sealed, so that no ships could enter or leave the port at will. First, it was for the sake of defense, which was the most basic. Second, it was to prevent the spies of the Lion Kingdom from leaking the latest situation in the city, which would cause the defending soldiers and horses to be passive.
It was easier to close the city gates. They just had to close them tightly. However, it was more difficult to seal the port. After all, it was impossible to build a floating gate on the sea. It was too difficult.
Therefore, the measures to seal the port were different from the city gates. After the city gates were closed, no one could pass through. After the port was sealed, ships could still pass through, but they would be intercepted by patrol ships. In addition, the port was also built with defensive weapons. If a small ship that did not listen to the command insisted on entering, it would be attacked by the defensive weapons.
However, no matter what, the port's defense was indeed much weaker than that of the city gates. Unless it was a port in a very special geographical location, the port's entrance was smaller and the defensive weapons were higher up. Then, the defensive effect of the port's defense would be much greater.
The port's watchtower was also guarded by Tang Dynasty soldiers. They also brought the most advanced binoculars, so that they could detect possible threats in the distance faster and better.
The patrol ships were mixed. There were both Tang Dynasty's patrol ships and South Tianzhu's patrol ships. In order to be flexible, only small ships could be used as patrol ships.
The Tang Dynasty's patrol ships were installed on large ships. Generally, a large steamship could carry two small patrol ships, which were directly fixed to the deck at the stern.
In addition to these necessary sentry posts, there were people on duty on all the ships to prevent spies hiding in Caligar from taking the opportunity to climb onto the ship and cause trouble.
With such strict defensive measures, Li Feiyu was very relieved. He felt that even if the Lion Kingdom launched a large-scale sneak attack, they would not have the slightest bit of success.
Not too far away from Caligar, the Lion Kingdom's troops had finished assembling and were ready to launch a surprise attack at any time.
"What's the situation? How many troops does Caligar have? How are the battle preparations? "
The commander of the naval route looked at the spy who ran out and asked seriously. The clearer the situation in the city, the more successful their operation would be.
"There are five to six thousand troops in the city. The Tang Dynasty and South Tianzhu have half each. The defense is not weak, and the battle preparations are good. If we launch a sneak attack, we will definitely succeed. However, it is inevitable that we will lose a few thousand troops."
The spy said.
The commander looked at the flag and said happily, "It is actually a favorable wind. It seems that even the heavens are helping us. This way, we can break into the port faster and set fire to all the ships. This way, under the fire, the troops in the city will definitely fall into chaos. This way, our army on land can easily break through the walls of Caligar."
"The commander is right. Let's take down Caligar in one go."
The commander ordered, "Advance at full speed immediately. The fate of the Lion Kingdom depends on this battle."
Hundreds of Lion Kingdom's warships and fire ships advanced quickly. Their target was Caligar in South Tianzhu.
On land, the main force of the Lion Kingdom's 20,000 troops were already close to Caligar. However, due to the cover of the trees, no movement could be seen from the city walls. However, as long as they continued to advance, they would definitely be discovered by the scouts of the Tang Dynasty.
Just like the commander on the sea, the commander on land also received the spy's information. After some consideration, he decided to hide temporarily and wait for the attack on the sea. When the attack on the sea was discovered, he would use the fire as a signal to launch a surprise attack on the city walls of Caligar.
This was the sneak attack plan that the King of the Lion Kingdom, Kulam, had long formulated. This way, he could minimize his own casualties to the greatest extent. It was also the best way to take down the city by surprise.
The sea was flat and there was no cover. Therefore, the navy had no way to hide and attack the enemy. As long as they approached the port, they would definitely be discovered. Especially when they encountered the troops of the Tang Dynasty who were equipped with binoculars, there was nowhere for them to hide.
The soldiers of the Tang Dynasty who were in charge of security quickly discovered the ships on the sea through their binoculars. Although the sky was dark, with the help of the moonlight, they could still see that these were the warships of the Lion Kingdom.
"Warning, the warships of the Lion Kingdom are approaching. There are 300 to 500 of them."
The soldiers of the Tang Dynasty sent out the warning and monitored the approaching enemy even more closely.
"General, the enemy is indeed here."
The warning quickly reached the top of the city gate.
Li Feiyu was not asleep. When he heard the news, he quickly got up and asked, "How many of them are here? Where are they?"
"General, the army of the Lion Kingdom is coming from the sea. There are 300 to 500 warships. It's a huge black mass!"
The subordinate said.
Li Feiyu was stunned for a moment and said, "The army of the Lion Kingdom is coming from the sea. Pass down my order. Get all the warships ready for battle. We must attack the enemy."
"Yes, General."
The subordinate responded and quickly ran to pass down the military order.
"General, since the enemy is coming from the sea, why are we still staying here? Let's reinforce the port!"
The subordinate said.
Li Feiyu looked at the woods in the distance and said, "No, this may not be the only enemy. The guards on the city wall must not be reduced. We must closely monitor the situation outside. Our steam gunships are at the port. No matter how many enemy ships come, they will not be able to defeat us."
This strong confidence came from the powerful strength of the Tang Dynasty fleet. The steam gunships alone were enough to fight dozens of small warships.
After the order to prepare for battle was issued, all the soldiers of the Tang Dynasty and the South Tianzhu army who had fallen asleep all got up and picked up all kinds of weapons in their hands, ready to enter the battle at any time.
According to the previous preparation strategy, the entire army was divided into three parts. One-third was responsible for guarding the city wall, one-third for guarding the port, and the remaining one-third was a mobile regiment ready to reinforce the two sides at any time. At the same time, they would maintain the security of the city and prevent the enemy's spies from taking the opportunity to cause trouble.
Therefore, the status after the preparation was completed was that there were 1,000 Tang Dynasty army and 1,000 South Tianzhu army on the city wall, and the port and the city had the same configuration.
This configuration was enough to resist the attack of the Lion Kingdom army. Moreover, the main force of the Tang Dynasty army was still at sea and was not far from the port of Caligar. Reinforcements could come at any time. As long as a signal was sent from the port, the main fleet could reinforce at any time and surround the invading troops of the Lion Kingdom.
The general of the steam gunships had not fought for a long time and was itching for a fight. Seeing hundreds of ships coming from the sea, he was immediately energized and ordered everyone to go to their respective posts to teach the invading enemy a good lesson.
"General, there are so many enemies. Should we send a signal for the main fleet to reinforce?"
The guard asked.
The general was afraid that others would take the credit, so he hurriedly said, "There are so few enemies. Are they not enough for our warships? How can we let others have a share of such a good opportunity? Without my order, no one is allowed to send a signal for help. "
"Yes, I understand."
"Set sail and prepare for battle."
The generals of the steam gunships gave the order to set sail one after another. They were very excited and could no longer suppress the enthusiasm in their hearts.
There were a total of 33 ships of the Tang Dynasty docked at the port of Caligar. Among them, there were eight steam gunships, Ang Lee's ship, troop transport ships, transport ships, various supply ships, and so on.
Although there were only eight steam gunships with combat capability, they were enough to deal with the hundreds of small warships of the Lion Kingdom. The large number of cannons equipped on the ships were not just for decoration. As long as one shot was accurate, it could completely destroy a small warship.
Large ships were slower to start, but the small warships of the Lion Kingdom were sailing with the wind and had sails. Therefore, they quickly approached the port of Caligar.
After getting closer, the scouts of the Tang Dynasty saw clearly that the hundreds of ships of the enemy were not all warships. There were also many troop transport ships and some small boats that did not seem to have any combat capability.
"Firewood, not good, the enemy is going to attack with fire."
The scouts of the Tang Dynasty shouted and immediately warned all the ships to be prepared to avoid the fire attack.
The troops of the Lion Kingdom on the sea were getting closer and closer. They were ready to attack.
"Light the fires immediately and prepare for the fire attack."
After the general gave the order, a total of 100 small boats filled with straw and all kinds of things to ignite the fire were set on fire. Then, they headed straight for the port of Caligar at a very high speed.
This scene shocked everyone in the port. A hundred fire dragons were rushing towards them. This kind of shocking feeling was not a joke. Once the defense facilities and ships in the port were set on fire, the scene would be too big. It was estimated that the whole of Caligar would be as bright as day.
"Quick, set sail quickly. We must avoid these fire ships and go around to attack the enemy's warships."
The generals of the steam gunships were all frightened and hurriedly gave orders loudly. If these fire ships were really allowed to get close, they would suffer great losses. After all, the main structure of the steam ships was still wood, and wood's fire resistance was very poor. It could not withstand the test of fire at all.
At the same time, Ang Lee's ship and some transport vehicles also started moving. They had to leave the port immediately. Otherwise, what awaited them could only be the fate of being burned down.
Li Feiyu, who was standing on the city wall, was shocked when he saw the scene on the sea. He did not expect the Lion Kingdom to launch such a large-scale fire attack. If the ships of the Tang Dynasty were all burned down, the losses would be really great.
"Immediately order the gunships to fire at the fire ships and sink these fire ships. Quickly."
Li Feiyu made a prompt decision and gave the order to attack the fire ships of the Lion Kingdom. Now, the most important thing was to stop the fire ships as much as possible. Attacking the warships behind the fire ships became a secondary task.
The eight steam gunships quickly received the order and immediately started firing at the fire ships of the Lion Kingdom.
"Boom, boom, boom …"
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
