Chapter 5350 Fighting and Talking

Chapter 5350 Fighting and Talking
Last winter, news of Prince Yazid's repeated defeats during his invasion of the Tang Dynasty, including the fall of the important city of Mulu in the Seven Rivers region, had already spread throughout the Abbasid Caliphate. Denilari, who was stationed in Mosul, had naturally heard about it as well.

Therefore, when the Tang army suddenly appeared at the city gates like a divine army descending from the sky, he had already made preparations for a tough battle. He paid as much attention as possible to the Tang army rushing towards him and tried his best to go all out.

However, he still underestimated his opponent.

The rumors exaggerated the power of firearms, but Denilari didn't entirely believe them, as they were far beyond his comprehension.

Mosul has been built for over two hundred years, and each successive lord has continuously maintained and strengthened it. The city walls are high, thick, and sturdy, and it is no exaggeration to say that they are "as solid as a rock."

No matter how powerful firearms are, what can they do to this fortified city?

However, when the Tang army began its assault and advanced to the base of the city wall, they buried several gunpowder charges. After the charges were ignited, several muffled thunderous explosions followed, and the city wall, which Denilari considered "indestructible," immediately collapsed, creating several breaches.

Denilari, who was directing the battle from the city wall, was almost buried under rubble and bricks. Fortunately, Ethil, who was beside him, reacted quickly and pulled him aside, thus saving him from disaster.

The two quickly descended from the city wall and retreated rapidly under the protection of their personal guards.

Tang infantrymen, fully armored, surged into the city through the breach like a tide.

In the blink of an eye, Denilari's confident city wall defenses were breached.

Denilari retreated to the palace, sighing deeply and full of regret: "When the prince's battle report came before, he said that the Tang army's firearms were invincible. I just thought that the prince was exaggerating to shirk responsibility for the defeat. Now I know that those battle reports were not false at all, but rather that the evaluation of the power of the Tang army's firearms was too conservative!"

"How can we resist such earth-shattering power?"

"No fortified city in the world can withstand the explosion of gunpowder!"

"What should I do now?"

He paced back and forth in the hall, regretting both his rash attack on the Tang army and his underestimation of their strength. Now, faced with the Tang army's overwhelming offensive, he was at a loss and helpless.

Etir remained relatively calm: "The most urgent matter is for the city lord to make a choice as soon as possible."

"What other choice do we have?"

"Of course you have a choice!"

Etir said urgently, "Although the city wall defenses have been breached, we still have as many as 20,000 troops. We can rely on the city's buildings to advance step by step and fight a street battle! The Tang army has only about 10,000 men. They have come on a long march, and it is clear that they are not here to conquer cities and territories, but have a more far-reaching strategic purpose. If we drag them into street battles and cause their casualties to increase, they will definitely not be willing! This is our advantage."

“If the city lord is unwilling to hold off the Tang army here for the Caliph, then he should gather his troops, take provisions and money and leave the city to hide, and hand over the city to the Tang people! They cannot stay here for long. Once they have completed their mission, they will surely retreat, and we can then take over the city smoothly.”

"Ok?"

Denirari quieted down, as if things hadn't truly reached a dead end yet...

It can even be used for both offense and defense.

Of course, if it were to fight a street battle with the Tang army, the Tang army might be concerned about casualties, but the casualties in Mosul would probably be even greater.

The Tang army clearly did not come from a long-term siege of Mosul. Unfortunately, Mosul happened to be blocking the Tang army's path to Damascus, which was a completely undeserved disaster!

Why should the Assyrians sacrifice themselves for the Caliph in vain?
Even if the Assyrians suffered heavy losses in the end, the Caliph would only blame them for not stopping the Tang people. He would never praise them for their selflessness, nor would he make up for their losses!

"Then retreat immediately and hand over the city to the Tang people!"

Denilari thought for a moment and then made a decisive decision: "You immediately send someone to contact the Tang army commander. After we withdraw, we will allow them to garrison in Mosul. We will return whenever they leave. During this period, we will cease hostilities and not harm each other in any way!"

"The city lord is wise!"

Ethel was full of admiration.

The city lord is rude, violent, lecherous, suspicious... he has a whole host of bad habits, but there is only one thing that is truly commendable: his decisiveness in killing!
Although he lacks wisdom, once he makes up his mind, he will resolutely carry it out.

……

Xue Rengui had moved his command tent forward to within an arrow's reach of the city wall, and heavily armored infantrymen had broken into the city through the breach in the collapsed wall. The enemy's city wall defenses were breached in one fell swoop, and musketeers, archers, and light cavalry surged into the city like a tide. The situation was extremely favorable.

This time, Wang Xiaojie did not act as the "vanguard," but instead stayed in the command tent to handle the tasks of receiving and sending battle reports and transmitting military orders.

A group of soldiers quickly approached and stood outside the commander's tent. The captain in charge reported, "This humble general has captured an enemy officer who claims to have been ordered by Denilali of Mosul to pay his respects to General Xue."

Wang Xiaojie stepped out of the tent, glanced at the enemy officer who was bound hand and foot, and said to the captain, "Wait a moment, I'll go inside and report."

He turned and went inside.

He turned around after a moment and asked, "Did you search me?"

"We've already searched it; there was only a letter with sealing wax on it, nothing else."

"Alright, I'll take him in. You all wait here."

"Here."

Wang Xiaojie dragged the pale-faced enemy officer into the commander's tent.

……

After reading the letter, Xue Rengui handed it to Wang Xiaojie and asked the official, "Do you know what's written in the letter?"

The official shook his head, speaking fluent Mandarin: "I don't know, I'm just here to deliver a message on the orders of the city lord."

Xue Rengui nodded: "In war, messengers are not to be killed. I have received the letter. You can go out and wait now."

Xue Rengui instructed the captain to lead the official outside to wait. He took a sip of tea, listening to the sounds of fighting and gunfire from the front. After a moment of contemplation, seeing that Wang Xiaojie had finished reading the letter, he asked, "What do you think?"

Wang Xiaojie put the letter aside, thought for a moment, and said, "I think it's credible. Besides, whether it's credible or not, it poses no danger to us."

Xue Rengui nodded: "It is understandable that the Assyrians guarding Mosul are unwilling to fight to the death. After all, the Arabs are outsiders and conquerors. The Assyrians have lived on this land for generations and not only have to obey the Arabs' orders, but also shed blood and sacrifice for them. How could they be willing to give up Mosul so that we can pass through to Damascus?"

Wang Xiaojie laughed and said, "But if they knew we had no intention of going to Damascus at all, wouldn't they be devastated?"

"That's not necessarily the case."

Xue Rengui got up and went to another table, leaning over to look at the map of Mosul: "This Denilari has already calculated our intentions. Whether we go to Damascus or not, we will not stay in Mosul for long. As soon as we leave, he can come back without lifting a finger. In that case, why bother fighting us to the death?"

"Then let's try to work together in a tacit understanding?"

"Why not? Just as Denilari thought, we don't intend to occupy Mosul for long anyway."

Xue Rengui nodded in agreement: "However, we can't just do whatever they say; we have to take the initiative."

He summoned the official and said, “Go back and tell Denilari that I agree with his suggestion in principle, but he can take all the money and silk, but the provisions must be left behind.”

Perhaps intimidated by the imposing presence of the Tang army's position, the official remained silent, obediently nodded, and took his leave to relay the message.

Then Xue Rengui ordered: "Go and tell the troops entering the city to fight fiercely and ruthlessly, so that those Assyrians will not have any illusions."

"Here!"

Upon receiving the order, Wang Xiaojie strode out of the command tent, rode into the city, and relayed the command.

……

The offensive within the city was in full swing.

Although it was their first time in the area, the Tang army had already gained extensive experience in street fighting. Moreover, as the key city for this long-distance raid, the Ministry of War's spies had already completed a map of Mosul. Various branches of the army cooperated and advanced methodically along the main streets of the city.

Swordsmen and heavily armored infantry led the way, meticulously searching and fiercely fighting every alley and even every house, while archers and musketeers followed from behind, shooting down any enemy soldiers who were hiding and whose whereabouts were exposed.

If the enemy forces launch a counterattack while holding strong defenses, thunderbolts will be thrown at them, causing them to explode with a deafening roar. Even the most sturdy houses will collapse and be reduced to rubble.

Light and heavy cavalry charged back and forth along the streets, dividing and scattering the enemy, preventing them from launching a coordinated counterattack.

As soon as the Tang army entered the city, they began to overwhelm the Assyrians.

Inside the palace, Denirari, anxiously awaiting a reply, watched the constant stream of battle reports, his face ashen and filled with unease.

The Assyrian warriors, who had the advantage of playing on home soil and were considered a source of pride by Denilari, suffered a complete rout and proved utterly vulnerable when the Tang army advanced.

What was previously thought to be an overly brutal and devastating urban warfare scenario now appears to have been directed only at the Assyrians.

The Tang army's attacks were sharp and its defenses were tight, making it virtually impossible to inflict casualties on them...

Denila suddenly asked, "If this Tang army really does advance to the walls of Damascus, what do you think their chances of capturing the city are?"

Etir stroked his beard and pondered for a moment: "The possibility of capturing Damascus is extremely high, but the ability to occupy the entire city is beyond our reach. After all, the Tang army is not only too small in number, but also lacks all logistical supplies. They rely entirely on fighting to sustain the war. The Caliph only needs to adopt a scorched-earth policy and deplete the food and fodder supplies near Damascus, and the Tang army will have no choice but to retreat without being defeated."

Denilari then asked, "What if the Tang Dynasty mobilized its entire army to fight the Caliph to the death?"

"That's impossible... It's still the same reason. Defeating the Abbasid Caliphate is easy, but conquering it is incredibly difficult. After all, the Tang Dynasty is too far away from the Abbasid Caliphate, and the logistical support itself would be extremely costly. Even if we eventually conquer the Abbasid Caliphate, we would exhaust our national strength and ultimately be overwhelmed by the Abbasid Caliphate's protracted war, which would be a losing proposition."

To conquer simply for the sake of conquering is the most absurd decision.

The Tang people weren't that stupid.

An official strode in from outside the door; the Tang army's feedback had finally arrived.