Daming: At the start of the showdown, Lao Zhu was stunned

Chapter 1127 King Yan Comes to Help

Chapter 1127 King Yan Comes to Help

Just three months later, with the support of two popes, the number of crusaders coming to the East reached 80,000. Not only France, Venice, Hungary and other countries, but also Germany, England, Austria and other countries that did not participate originally, as well as the Byzantine Empire that got rid of the threat of the Ottoman Empire, also sent troops to share the delicious fruits of Central Asia.

Kangju City, which was originally in the upper hand, became increasingly precarious as the Crusaders increased their forces. As the number gap widened, the strategy of tiring out the soldiers and night attacks gradually lost their effectiveness, and the Ming army finally became a passive defender in the true sense.

If those new recruits had not been trained, and if Zhang Dingbian had not been in command and had not attacked while defending several times, and had not used surprise forces to attack the Crusaders and forced them to retreat, Kangju City would probably have fallen long ago.

On this day, after successfully defending the city from another siege by the Crusaders, Yao Guangxiao still brought food and supplies to the Ming army camp outside the city. As usual, he discussed the war and communicated with Zhang Dingbian in the tent. But this time, he was no longer as relaxed and confident as he was a few months ago.

"The Western Barbarians are invading very quickly. Judging from their movements, I think they will launch a general attack tomorrow... If it is difficult to support, it is better to enter the city first and rely on the city to defend it."

"No, if we enter the city, this place will become a dead end, and we will have to endure the hardship afterwards... Will reinforcements from the three sultanates come to help?"

"Even if they come, I'm afraid they won't be able to do anything. The three sultanates are in disarray and are scheming against each other, so they can hardly be of much use."

Yao Guangxiao was silent. What Zhang Dingbian said was the truth. The Ming Dynasty established three sultanates, divided the empire left by Timur into three parts, and designated the most elite Kangju City as a colony of the Ming Dynasty. This was to prevent the three countries from becoming a threat like the Timurid Empire.

But precisely because of this, the strength of the three sultanates themselves was greatly suppressed, and they were unable to form a powerful force at all.

The Crusaders that are now coming in droves are even more powerful than when they destroyed the Ottoman Empire, and they are definitely not something that the three major sultanates can shake.

Even if they really sent reinforcements, they would end up being surrounded and attacked.

"...It's better to enter the city. Kangju City has tall walls. We can hold the city for another two months without any problem." Yao Guangxiao said. His eyes flashed, revealing a bit of coldness. "Even if it doesn't work...you should lead the core soldiers of the Ming Dynasty to break out to the east."

"When our great Ming army arrives one day, we will eventually recapture this city."

This was actually a suggestion to Zhang Dingbian to prepare for abandoning the city. Yao Guangxiao knew that if he abandoned the city, Kangju would definitely be looted or even massacred by the Crusaders.

... He didn't mind if the residents of Kangju City of all ethnic groups were massacred. In fact, if such a thing really happened, it would be beneficial to the Ming Dynasty's rule over this place in some aspects.

The three sultans are unreliable, and the Western Catholics want to massacre them. As long as the Ming Dynasty successfully recaptures Kangju City and avenges them, these Central Asian ethnic groups will become more dependent on the powerful China that is willing to lead them.

Yao Guangxiao was never a vegetarian, Buddhist, and compassionate monk.

Zhang Dingbian looked up at Yao Guangxiao, and his deep old eyes seemed to understand Yao Guangxiao's plan. He was slightly unhappy, but this time he did not refuse harshly.

Instead, he said, "Well, old monk, please hold on for another half a month."

"Wait for half a month, then enter the city and defend it. If it still doesn't work, you can just take your men and withdraw from the city."

"The old monk can cover your retreat."

He was unwilling to do such a thing that went against his conscience, but he also knew that Yao Guangxiao put the interests of China first.

If it really came to that, he would not stop Yao Guangxiao, but would stay in the city and fight to the death.

Yao Guangxiao was speechless for a long time, then he bowed to Zhang Dingbian with a solemn expression and stood up to say goodbye.

His back was still determined. Now was the time for China to expand. As long as he could gain benefits for China, he would move forward even if the road ahead was not a Buddhist country but hell.

On the second day, at daybreak, the Crusaders began to prepare for a general attack on Zhang Dingbian's troops.

Zhang Dingbian stood on a high platform, using a telescope to observe the enemy's situation. The reason for deploying troops outside the city was to maintain the flexibility of the army's attack and avoid sitting back and waiting to die after entering the city.

But there are also disadvantages, that is, the most feared thing is that the enemy will surround and attack at once. When that happens, two fists cannot defeat four hands, and it is definitely better to stay high on the city wall and occupy the advantage of terrain.

Zhang Dingbian was unwilling to enter the city because he still wanted to turn defense into offense. He carefully observed the Crusaders' formation, trying to find a flaw that could be broken through.

Of course there are flaws, otherwise, the Ming army would not have been able to stand outside the city for so long and still survive. But... the gap in military strength between the two sides is too great, and a few small flaws are not enough to fill such a huge gap.

"Old man..." Wang Xian, who was standing next to Zhang Dingbian, looked at the Crusaders who were ready to move in front of him, and he couldn't help but feel worried.

"Don't panic, we can hold it." Zhang Dingbian said as he continued to observe through the telescope.

"...If it doesn't work, the old monk can charge into the battle a few more times and take off the heads of these Western Barbarians' commanders, that's it."

He muttered to himself. Although his tone was light, in fact, he was ready to risk his life.

No matter how brave he was, he was already so old. He had actually sprained his waist when he charged into the battle and killed the leader of the Knights Hospitaller a few months ago, and he had not yet fully recovered.

During the past few months, I have only been coordinating the actions and have not taken the lead.

"Huh?" As he was watching, he suddenly noticed that the formation of the Crusaders suddenly stagnated.

Then, several troops turned around and headed south.

"Is there any unusual movement in the Western Barbarians?"

"The general attack is imminent. Are they going to divide their forces? Have they suddenly lost their minds?"

The generals also noticed the abnormality of the Crusaders and became agitated, puzzled. Zhang Dingbian turned the telescope and found a cloud of dust coming from the south.

"Report! A large army is coming from the south!" Immediately a messenger came to report the news.

There have been quite a few armies coming over these days, but they were all reinforcements from the European mainland for the Crusaders. However, this time the Crusaders seemed a little abnormal, and it was very likely that the army that came this time was not from the Crusaders.

"Go and investigate! Send out scouts to try to find a gap to break out! We must find out who is coming from the south!" Wang Xian gave the order on behalf of Zhang Dingbian.

The messenger received the order and galloped away. In front, the Crusaders, who had originally taken an attacking stance, returned to their original posture of merely surrounding the enemy. After a while, a scout showed a happy expression and rode back to report:

"It's reinforcements! They are reinforcements from the Ming Dynasty!"

"The reinforcements led by His Royal Highness Prince Yan are already 20 miles south of our army!"

(End of this chapter)