On the Ming Army's side, Qi Jiguang watched the North Korean army attack the city with a pair of binoculars. He shook his head helplessly. It would be strange if they could break the city.
But Qi Jiguang also knew that it was impossible to rely on the North Korean army.
The only thing left was to see if they could use the explosives to blow up the city walls.
In fact, the city walls were very effective against firearms. During World War II, when the Japanese attacked Jinling, they used countless heavy artillery but still failed to blow up Jinling.
Later, they used planes and powerful aerial bombs to blow up Jinling.
But that was Jinling, which had been reinforced by later generations, while this was North Korea's Seoul.
If the Japanese pirates were risking their lives to thicken the city walls, they probably wouldn't be able to blow it up. But at least they could give it a try.
Qi Jiguang had considered everything. Anyway, there was nothing to lose by trying.
Along with the North Korean army, there were also hundreds of Ming Army's dynamiters.
With the explosives in their hands, they rushed to the bottom of the city wall and directly punched a hole in it.
This wasn't too difficult for them. They had practiced it countless times before.
Stake and hammer went to work together. They dug a hole and stuffed the explosives into it.
If the explosives were not stuffed into the city wall but placed under it, it would be impossible to blow it up.
More than a dozen explosives were stuffed into the city wall. Then the Ming Army's soldiers pulled the line and ran.
The North Korean soldiers also retreated like the tide. They had suffered too many losses.
The Japanese pirates on the city wall had guns and arrows. They couldn't attack at all. The North Korean army didn't have the courage to use human lives to fill the gap.
Lee Sun-sin and the other two generals all had ugly expressions because the North Korean army retreated too quickly.
Standing on the top of the city wall, Kobayakawa Takagi nodded with satisfaction. He looked at the Ming Army's formation opposite him with a mocking expression.
In fact, they had already discussed the strategy. They couldn't defend Hancheng.
Holding the North Korean people as hostages was not a long-term solution.
Whether it was the North Korean army or the Ming Army, their patience would run out one day. Once they ignored the people in the city and directly bombarded the city, they would suffer great losses.
Han City could not be defended. This was the consensus of everyone. It was necessary to break out of the siege.
The battle strategy was to break out of the encirclement from the north. That was where the Daming Navy was stationed. After rushing over, they would be able to escape the encirclement of the Ming Army.
After killing their way out of the encirclement, they would be able to retreat to Pusan.
Once they reached Pusan, they would be able to stabilize their base of operations and attempt to cross the sea.
Although there was no guarantee of success, it was better than waiting for death here. There might be heavy casualties along the way, but it was better than being completely annihilated here. When the time came, it would be better to escape as many as possible.
Although it was sad, it couldn't be helped.
As long as they could hold out for a few days, while the morale of the Ming Army was down, there was still a high possibility of breaking out of the encirclement.
Kobayakawa looked at the retreating North Korean army and heaved a sigh of relief. It seems like the North Korean citizens can still hold on for a few more days.
However, before Kobayakawa Takashi could even heave a sigh of relief, a violent explosion was heard, followed by a series of explosions.
The city wall instantly shook as if there was an earthquake.
When he looked in the direction of the shaking, Kobayakawa Takashi was shocked.
The city wall suddenly collapsed, and a long section of it collapsed. The Japanese pirates standing on the city wall tumbled down like gourds. Many of them directly smashed into the city wall and were immediately smashed into meat paste.
Kobayakawa Takashi's soul almost left his body. He only had one thought in his mind, and it was over.
Seeing that the city wall had collapsed, a smile appeared on Qi Jiguang's face. He turned to the messenger and said, "Let's attack!"
His words were very calm and did not have much momentum. Qi Jiguang had long since passed the time to encourage morale with words.
As long as the Daming God of War was here, the morale would not be low.
Following Qi Jiguang's order, the Ming Army surged towards Hancheng like a tide.
The army directly entered Hancheng. At the forefront were all young generals, including Cao Wenzhao, He Renlong, and the children of the East Camp of the Capital Camp.
The Liaodong Army was not to be outdone. Although Li Chengliang did not go, the generals under his son, Li Rusong, such as Cha Dashou, also rushed forward with high morale.
"Block the gap, block the gap, we must not let the Ming Army rush in!"
Kobayakawa Takashi, who was standing on the city wall, had long been panicking. He quickly ordered the Japanese pirates to block the gap. Once the Ming Army entered the city, everything would be over. They must block the gap and repel the attack of the Ming Army.
It was a good idea, but could it really be done?
Hancheng was the capital of North Korea. Although it was not as big as the Daming Empire, it was not small. There were only 80,000 Japanese pirates. How many of them could they divide into four directions?
Kobayakawa Takashi's side was considered a lot, with more than 20,000 people.
But how many of the Ming Army were there?
Qi Jiguang's side had 150,000.
Not counting the North Korean army, not counting the Royal Navy, once the Ming Army rushed in, how could they stop it?
As soon as the Japanese pirates formed a formation at the gap, the Ming Army's shield soldiers rushed up and threw grenades directly at the Japanese pirates' military town.
The explosion instantly sounded in the Japanese pirates' military formation.
The Wokou army's formation was thrown into chaos. The Ming army's shieldbearers charged right into the Wokou army's formation. Soon after, the Ming army also charged in. After that, the Wokou army could no longer hold on.
Kobayakawa Takashi saw this scene, his body swayed, and he almost fell to the ground.
The 100,000 troops swarmed in and directly rushed toward the Japanese pirates in the city. The North Korean army also rushed in. At this time, the North Korean people in the city also moved. These days, they had long been angry with the Japanese pirates.
The Japanese pirates burned, killed, and looted, and did all kinds of evil. They forced the North Koreans to the top of the city, holding knives and forcing them to work.
Now that the imperial army had come back, the North Korean people immediately broke out. They led the way for the Ming Army, and some even directly took out knives and attacked. They had been holding back for too long.
For a time, the whole of Hancheng was in chaos, and the Japanese pirates were defeated.
Outside Hancheng, Qi Jiguang glanced at Li Chengliang and said with a smile, "If the Japanese Empire abandons the city, the rest will be left to General Li!"
Behind Li Chengliang was Daming's cavalry, and on the other side was the Jurchens' cavalry. The Yehe Four Tribes and the Jianzhou Jurchens were all there.
Qi Jiguang also had 50,000 soldiers around him, ready to give chase at any time.
The Royal Navy's Marines did not move in the north. They did not enter the city.
The south wall had been broken, so they naturally could not enter the city from the north. His eyes were full of expectation.
Qi Jin stood in front of the army and stared at the north wall of Hancheng. His eyes were full of expectation.
The south wall had been broken. If the Japanese pirates did not abandon the city and escape, then they could only all die in Hancheng.
If they abandoned the city and escaped, then the north wall would be their choice. Once they came out from the north gate, then his opportunity to make a contribution would come.
Luo Shangzhi, who was beside Qi Jiguang, was already rubbing his palms together, looking impatient.