"Yes!"
At his command, hundreds of laborers immediately began moving large wooden crates onto the city walls.
"Hehehe, my lord, if we manage to 'devour' those Jurchens, won't the Jin forces outside the city weep!"
Watching the specially made spiked shoes being distributed, the four captains standing beside Wang Bing began to chuckle sinisterly.
Among the Jin army, the true Jurchens were actually not that numerous.
The largest proportion consisted of Han Chinese from the northern regions and Khitans who had surrendered to the Jin, followed by other subjugated minority peoples like the Xi.
They cared little for the casualties among these foreign troops. However, they would be driven mad with grief if thousands of their own true Jurchens were killed or wounded.
"You all go down and prepare yourselves! Since they intend to come, let's show them a taste of our power this time!"
Although these soldiers were his last remaining effective force, he truly didn't mind the potential losses if it meant giving the Jin a harsh lesson.
"Yes!"
After hearing Wang Bing's words, the men acknowledged and began to make their preparations.
Moments later, a thousand burly soldiers of the Shengjie Army, their feet clad in specially made spiked shoes, stood ready on the city walls in groups of three.
Within each group of three, two men held iron chains, and one wielded a large hammer. All of them stared intently at their designated areas.
"Down!"
Seeing that they were all prepared, Wang Bing once again waved his hand with a cold smile.
Soon, laborers on the city walls began pouring bags of yellow beans onto the defenses.
In a mere moment, the entire city wall was practically covered in yellow beans.
And just at this time, the Jin forces began to ascend the city walls.
"They're on!"
Upon seeing the first soldier reach the top, Wanyan Loushi couldn't help but clench his fists.
Despite the significant losses, all the Jin generals became invigorated as their troops began to scale the walls.
"Thump—"
However, contrary to what the Jin generals anticipated, the first batch of soldiers who jumped down from the wall barely had time to react. They stumbled and fell in disarray the moment they landed.
Even though their armor was of excellent quality, in the face of Song soldiers wielding blunt weapons, even the Song army's most formidable infantry armor couldn't withstand the assault, let alone theirs.
Only a few who were exceptionally skilled managed to struggle for a few rounds. The rest were almost instantly incapacitated by the blows.
Wang Bing showed no mercy to these true Jurchens. After all, in warfare, armor was a precious commodity.
Every arrow shot carried iron!
At his command, the Song soldiers moved with fluid grace. One soldier would grab a head, another would pull at an ankle, and they would toss the Jin soldiers down towards the inner city as if they were mere sacks.
While the walls of Taiyuan were not as terrifyingly high as ten zhang, they were still over three zhang tall.
These already near-death Jin soldiers, once thrown down, had little chance of survival.
"Attack!"
As the first wave of troops scaled the wall, Wanyan Yinshuke below became enraged.
Taiyuan was arguably the most crucial stronghold in the Song dynasty's northwest. If he could capture Taiyuan, the glory would be entirely his, and he would truly make a name for himself.
Although he was not a prince, he was a member of the imperial clan. If he could use this achievement to secure a princely title, it would be wonderful!
At his command, the signal flags behind him were waved again, and the overseers at the front began wielding their sabers to kill any surrendered soldiers who deliberately lagged behind.
Unfortunately, they were engaged in a siege, and they were attacking Taiyuan, a city with treacherous terrain and formidable defenses.
If the defenders didn't make a mistake, capturing it before their supplies ran out would be no easy feat!
"Smash them!"
Seeing the Jin offensive intensify, Wang Bing waved his hand fiercely again. The long-absent rolling logs and stones were once again unleashed from the battlements.
The Jin soldiers who had managed to approach the wall were immediately crushed by the dozens.
But for them, this was only the beginning of their nightmare!
After an initial surge, the battlements were cleared once more.
As a gong sounded again, several hundred Jin soldiers were sent forward.
The exact same tactic was repeated. The city wall acted like a monstrous beast, devouring everything without a trace, no matter how many Jin soldiers charged.
Every time Jin soldiers reached the wall, they were met with a barrage of rolling logs and stones, interspersed with lime jars. In some critical bottlenecks, even boiling oil was poured down.
After several rounds of this, the Song soldiers on the wall became incredibly proficient, their coordination growing more perfect.
By this point, the soldiers who had initially questioned Wang Bing's methods finally understood his profound intentions.
With Jin soldiers on the wall, the enemy below couldn't use indiscriminate arrow barrages.
This way, even though they were outnumbered, the pace of the battle remained firmly in their hands.
The Jin soldiers who reached the wall were dealt with by specialized teams. As for the more agile ones who didn't jump down, the original defenders engaged them.
Despite the tension, the Song army maintained a very good control over the rhythm of the battle.
Even with inevitable casualties, under this controlled pace, the vast majority of the wounded could be quickly evacuated to the rear.
"Iron Cavalry, advance!"
Seeing that nearly half of his men were already dead or wounded, Wanyan Yinshuke could no longer hold back.
Although there were only three hundred of them, the moment these Iron Cavalry began their assault on the ladders, the morale of the Jin forces surged.
The armor worn by these Iron Cavalry weighed over fifty kilograms. As long as they weren't hit directly, even the rolling logs and stones couldn't inflict significant damage.
As for arrows, they were like mere tickles. Even lime and boiling oil proved ineffective against these heavily armored cavalry.
"They're here! Everyone, brace yourselves and beat the drums!"
Upon seeing the appearance of the Iron Cavalry, Wang Bing also became invigorated.
"Dong—"
"Dong—"
"Dong—"