This is the first time artillery has been used in field battles. After Zhang Yanshuo and others' modifications, artillery is no longer a deterrent weapon.
When Du Rui went on a long trip to the sea, the artillery he brought with him fired solid bullets. The effect it had was more of a deterrent effect on the fear of strange things. The solid bullets, If it does not hit the enemy directly, it will basically have no killing effect.
But the explosive bullets fired today are different. The projectiles are packed with gravel, gunpowder, iron filings, and fire oil. Once exploded, a tiny iron filing can kill a person, and the burning Once the fierce fire oil adheres to the enemy's body, it cannot be extinguished. It can only continue to burn until the enemy is burned to the bone.
At this moment, hundreds of thousands of artillery shells landed in the Arab military formation, erupting with an earth-shattering sound that made the earth tremble and tremble. Even if the Tang army was far away, they were almost thrown off their horses by the huge sound. When it fell down, it felt like being trapped in a giant drum and then hit hard by the giant drum. It was so shocking.
¡°Ah~~~~~~~~~¡±
The Arab soldiers who were hit were blown to pieces in an instant. They didn't even have time to scream and went to see their God, Allah. And those who were hit by gravel and iron filings, whether they were vital or not, were covered in wounds all over their bodies. , were all bloody and bloody. What was even worse were those who were caught by the fierce fire oil. They kept rolling on the ground, trying to extinguish the terrible flames on their bodies, but it was all in vain. They could only watch helplessly. The fire grew bigger and bigger, burning through their armor, scorching his body, and finally, in despair, he was burned to ashes.
Even the Arab soldiers who were not covered by the artillery fire were affected by the loud noise and screamed. Many people covered their ears and bent down in pain. Some people even fell to the ground and rolled around, with traces of blood coming out of their ears and their eardrums being shattered.
Khalid was stunned. He was lucky to be standing at the front of the team and was not harmed at all. However, looking at the tragic scene behind him, his teeth were rattling and he almost broke a steel tooth. , his ears were also extremely uncomfortable, but as a commander-in-chief, he could never cover his ears with his hands, he could only grit his teeth and grit his teeth. He had encountered many things like this in his life, but this was the first time that he had experienced such pain.
The mysterious weapons of the Tang Army made him a little overwhelmed. According to past experience, after the Tang Army started the war, the first wave of offensive should be a rain of arrows. For this reason, he also specially prepared tens of thousands of giant shields. The most important thing is to defend against the invincible arrow array of the Tang army. But look at how the wooden shield can block this kind of thunder now.
Facing this terrifying weapon, Khalid could only keep praying in his heart: "Almighty Allah! Please send a miracle to save your servant!"
"It's a pity that in the face of the terrifying weapon of the Tang Army, even God would be timid to avoid it, and there would be believers and servants who would stand up to help them. The sky is still clear, but the Tang Army's artillery attack continues.
The shells continued to fall, and the Arabs just ran away. Even if they didn't want to escape, the frightened horses would not agree. For a time, the originally strict Arab army formation became chaotic, and everyone was running for their lives, completely forgetting about them. The only way to survive should be to move forward.
After the three rounds of shelling were over and the smoke cleared, Du Rui frowned and took a closer look. He saw that the originally dense Arab army formation had actually sunk into a large pit in the center. The pit was full of broken limbs. arms, the body of the Arab soldier was almost completely decomposed.
Even after watching countless war movies in his previous life, Du Rui was still stunned by the primitive power of artillery. War is cruel. In the face of powerful weapons, personal bravery has no effect at all. , let alone a lone hero who can stand up to a thousand.
The Arab cavalry is not elite. It can even be said that their strength can definitely be ranked among the top ten strong soldiers in the era of human cold weapons. However, facing the more powerful artillery, which has entered another war situation, Their bravery and skill in fighting were of no use at all.
It took Du Xuexian a long time to react. He was not a timid person, but when he saw the power of artillery for the first time, he couldn't help but feel weak in his legs. He wandered in front of Du Rui and finally calmed down his excitement. , said: "Commander Qi, three rounds of shooting~~~~~~~ the shooting is completed!"
Du Rui nodded. He did not blame Du Xuexian for his gaffe. In fact, even a battle-hardened general like Su Lin or Qin Shu would not necessarily react better than Du Xuexian when faced with a salvo of artillery fire for the first time. .
"Stay back!"
" Du Rui waved his hand, and the artillery arrayed in front of the formation was immediately pushed back. NowAlthough the artillery is more powerful, there are still various problems, such as the durability of the gun body.
After repeated tests, three consecutive shots are basically the limit of the gun body. It can guarantee that the barrel will not explode, but it must be maintained.
" Du Rui cannot be said to be satisfied or dissatisfied with this. He knows very well that the development of anything requires a long process, especially an epoch-making weapon like artillery.
As early as the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period more than 2,000 years ago, the world's earliest weapon that used stones to kill enemies was manufactured by the Chinese. This was the trebuchet, the ancestor of artillery.
This kind of trebuchet is like a large scale. One end of the bucket contains a stone bullet weighing several kilograms to dozens of kilograms, with different shapes. The other end is tied with many ropes, and the ropes are held by many soldiers. Pull. When the cannon was fired, as long as the commander gave the order, the soldiers would pull the rope hard together, and the end of the stone bullet would be thrown up quickly, and the stone bullet would be thrown out.
There is the earliest record of artillery in "Fan Li's Art of War": "The flying stone weighs twelve kilograms, and it is fired by the machine and travels two thousand steps."
In the famous Battle of Guandu in the Han Dynasty, Cao Cao defeated Yuan Shao with a thunderbolt chariot. This thunderbolt chariot was an ancient stone cannon.
During the Eastern Jin Dynasty, Du Chi mounted stone-throwing equipment on warships for use in water battles. By the Tang Dynasty, the use of trebuchets gradually increased. For example, there is a record in the history books that "Li Guangbi made a cannon, flew huge rocks, and killed dozens of people with one shot." However, before the Song Dynasty, the scope of use of stone cannons was limited, and there were no soldiers dedicated to operating the cannon mounts.
The Song Dynasty was the heyday of the use of trebuchets in China, and it was not uncommon for more than a hundred units to be used in one battle. But it was also during this era that artillery with gunpowder spray began to appear, and the era of stone cannons gradually became history.
In the 9th century AD, China was the first to invent gunpowder in the world. The emergence of gunpowder inevitably led to the birth of gunpowder weapons. After gunpowder was used in the military, people made gunpowder into gunpowder bombs instead of stones and fired them by trebuchets. This was the prototype of the original artillery.
This primitive gunpowder weapon quickly attracted people's attention and has been continuously improved and developed as a result. In the famous military book "Wu Jing Zong Yao" compiled by Zeng Gongliang and others in the Northern Song Dynasty in 1044, the preparation methods of a variety of gunpowder weapons and quite complex artillery gunpowder have been recorded.
China¡¯s Song Dynasty also saw the world¡¯s earliest tubular firecrackers, which used the pressure generated by burning gunpowder to launch projectiles. According to records, the early fire guns of the Song Dynasty used bamboo as a tube and contained gunpowder projectiles. This kind of firearm made of bamboo tubes is easy to burn when fired continuously and cannot be used for a long time. Therefore, in the late Song Dynasty or early Yuan Dynasty, the Chinese created the world's earliest metal tubular firearms, which had a larger caliber. Before launching, gunpowder and projectiles are loaded from the mouth of the tube, and a fuse is loaded into the rear end of the tube. When launching, the fuse is ignited with fire to ignite the gunpowder. The gunpowder burns in the tube to generate air pressure, and the projectiles are ejected from the mouth of the tube.
The head of the gun is like a large bowl, which is used to place stone bullets. The body of the gun is filled with gunpowder and has eyes for ignition. The tail of the gun is a cylindrical hollow with a hole on both sides for fixing with pins, indicating that it was mounted on a wooden frame and fired.
By the Ming Dynasty, European artillery began to be introduced to China, among which the Franchise gun and the Hongyi artillery had a greater impact. The Fran machine gun is a short-barreled cannon. It was introduced to China from Portugal around the end of Zhengde. It has a mother gun and several child guns. The mother gun has a slender barrel and a smaller caliber. The gun body is cast with a front sight and a rear sight. Aim and shoot. There is a "giant belly" behind the gun, with long holes on the belly for loading the gun.
The Hongyi Cannon, also known as the Western Cannon, is a large-scale artillery, also known as the Red Coat Cannon. It was introduced to China from the Netherlands in the late Wanli period. The Hongyi cannon does have its advantages in design. Its barrel is long and the wall is very thick. It is gradually thickened from the muzzle to the tail, which is in line with the principle that the chamber pressure goes from high to low when gunpowder is burned. There are cylindrical lugs on both sides of the center of gravity. The artillery can adjust the firing angle based on this axis, and change the range according to the amount of gunpowder. It is equipped with a front sight and a rear sight. The ballistic trajectory is calculated according to a parabola with high accuracy.
In the early Qing Dynasty, the Qing government carried out a large number of imitations and manufactured large quantities of artillery to meet the needs of unifying the country and quelling the San Francisco Rebellion and other wars. However, the Qing Dynasty did not make any technical innovations in the Hongyi cannon, but only increased the weight in order to increase the range. The manufacturing technology of the artillery lagged far behind that of the West. During the two Opium Wars, the Hongyi Cannon, the advanced weapon of the Ming Dynasty two hundred years ago, was no longer in its glory two hundred years later. It was too old to resist the invasion of Western powers.
Before firearms really came onto the stage of history and gunpowder weapons really came in handy, centuries of experiments went by. The biggest difficulties in developing gunpowder are fast ignition, uniform quality and powerful power. In addition, it is not easy to design a suitable artillery. If the design is not correct, it will not be able to fire immediately. Due to the limitations of early manufacturing technology, the level of danger faced by those firing artillery was actually different from that of artillery bombardment.The target objects are almost the same.
By the mid-fifteenth century, the technology of artillery and gunpowder had reached its peak and became important weapons. The most obvious example is that in 1453, the walls of Constantinople were destroyed by large stone shells fired by siege cannons. Although the fall of Constantinople seems to have been caused by the blasting of small city gates, it can actually be attributed to the bombardment that made the assault possible.
Artillery in medieval times was used to bombard city walls during sieges and to fire on large numbers of enemy troops on the battlefield. They can accurately destroy the vertical facades of buildings inside the castle, so people developed sloping and low facades to replace tall vertical facades. During this period, the role of artillery on the battlefield was limited because the artillery at that time was still very heavy and difficult to move to a new position to fire during combat.
However, this cannot deny the huge role of artillery in war. Artillery is an important part of the army and the main fire assault force. It has strong firepower, long range, good accuracy and high maneuverability. It can concentrate, Sudden and continuous fire assaults on ground and water targets. It is mainly used to support and cover the combat operations of infantry and armored troops, and to cooperate with other arms and services. It can also conduct independent fire battles. Therefore, in later generations, artillery has the title of "God of War".
Especially in the three-dimensional wars of later generations, firepower is still the core of combat effectiveness. Artillery is the backbone of firepower on the battlefield. With its advantages of strong firepower, flexibility, reliability, economy and versatility, it has become the main content of combat operations and an important factor influencing the battlefield situation. Artillery can destroy various targets on the ground, as well as aircraft in the air and ships at sea. Therefore, as a basic means of providing offensive and defensive vitality, artillery occupies a solid position among conventional weapons.
But at the moment, artillery is obviously not enough to occupy such an important historical position, but Du Rui is not in a hurry. Datang is already a lot ahead in this regard. They have enough time to develop more advanced ones that can bear the burden on the battlefield. Artillery with greater effect is coming.
The Tang army's bombardment stopped, and the Arab army gradually calmed down from the panic. Looking at the hell-like scene around them and their dead companions, the Arab army ranged from Khalid to ordinary people. The soldiers felt chilled, and none of them had any confidence in winning this war.
Although Khalid had experienced many ups and downs in his life, the power of artillery was something he had never seen before. It was far beyond his imagination and broke his confidence. He really had no confidence in defeating the Tang army.
Although the artillery no longer showed its power, Khalid's heart sank because he knew very well that the morale of the army was gone. The Arab soldiers no longer had the courage to fight. It was impossible for them to withstand the attack of the Tang army. .
The end is not far away, and the cruel reality is approaching Khalid step by step.
But even so, Khalid still stubbornly wanted to fulfill his promise and escape. For a soldier, that would be an absolute shame and he would never do it.
Just die!
The Arab Empire has already passed its glory in this world. They once conquered countless countries and massacred countless ethnic groups. Now they just changed their status.
¡°Loyal servants of Allah, the time has come for us to fulfill our promises and dedicate our loyalty to the great Allah. We will fight bloody battle to the end under the watchful eye of the great Allah. We must dedicate the blood and lives of the Tang people to the great Allah! "
Khalid knew very well that he had no retreat but to fight to the death. Although the situation was extremely serious, he still showed enough courage to inspire the army and prepare to fight to the death with the Tang army.
The Tang Army began to attack. The Tang Army soldiers standing at the front of the team showed their weapons, the cold-lighting Mo Dao.
Mo Dao Battle Formation!
I saw teams of Mo Dao soldiers holding sparkling Mo Dao, lined up in a neat battle formation, and charging towards the Arab army with firm steps.
"Damn Mo Dao!" Khalid saw this and was shocked, and couldn't help but cursed.
Khalid had never fought against the Tang Army, but how could he not know the reputation of the Mo Dao. The Mo Dao was one of the sharpest weapons of the Tang Army. Whether it was fighting in the field or in street fighting, it was extremely sharp. Any attempt to stop the Mo Dao would be impossible. All enemies in the battle formation will have only one fate, and that is to turn into minced meat.
Facts have proved this, even though the Arab soldiers knew that they had reached the most critical moment, with no retreat and no way to survive, the Tang army would kill them all. As a result, the Arab soldiers burst out with unprecedented fighting spirit. Under Khalid's order, they were not afraid of life and death, and went forward one after another, planning to fight to the death with the Tang army.
However, the result was that they were frustrated,Yes, it¡¯s frustration. No matter how great their resistance is, in front of Mo Dao's battle formation, it is no more than a layer of paper, which can be broken by Mo Dao's strike. Soon, the Arab soldiers were chopped into pieces.
The Mo Dao battle formation was unsolvable. All the Arab soldiers who stood in front were chopped into pieces. The Mo Dao soldiers' steps were still neat and firm. They stepped on the minced meat and continued to harvest the lives of the Arab soldiers.
Khalid was also anxious and shouted loudly, asking the Mamluk cavalry to charge forward. He was a famous general who had achieved countless glorious battles. He had countless strategies in his mind, but at this moment, the only thing he could think of was It was a head-to-head fight with the Tang army.
In exchange for human lives, they have many people anyway. Even if they exchange five for one, they can still kill a lot of Tang troops. After the northern army moves south, they may still have a chance to win.
Failure was something that Khalid did not dare to think about, because if the Arab Empire really failed, the news would definitely trigger a political earthquake immediately. By then, the entire Arab Empire would be in turmoil, and all regions would be in turmoil. It can be foreseen that by that time, the huge Arab Empire will quickly disintegrate.
Khalid¡¯s foresight was good, and now what he was worried about had begun to happen. When the Tang army rushed to Damascus, slaves in various places began to revolt, driving away the Arab troops in large numbers.
At the beginning, there were not many slaves participating in the riot. Soon, the number of slaves participating in the uprising increased. It grew at a snowball-like speed, exceeding a thousand people, and then thousands, tens of thousands, and three taels. Thousands, tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands, hundreds of thousands, and in the end, the entire colonial area of ??the Arab Empire was in riots, and slaves were everywhere revolting.
With the exception of the Arabian Peninsula, the areas now controlled by the Arab Empire were conquered and plundered by them. The natives who originally lived there have suffered endless persecution from the Arabs over the years. I don¡¯t know how many people have been destroyed and died. Their hatred has been accumulated for so many years and there is nowhere to vent it. Now that they finally had the opportunity, how could they not repay the blood debt on behalf of their ancestors?
The Arab army stationed there was caught off guard and was caught off guard by the slaves. By the time the garrison reacted and prepared to mobilize a large army for encirclement and suppression, it was already too late because too many slaves were rioting and the situation was out of control. A large part of the garrison was beaten to death by the angry slaves, and only a small part escaped.
The same thing was happening all over the Arab Empire. After the news of the Tang Army's Western Expedition spread, a storm immediately arose. The slaves roared loudly and organized to attack the Arab Empire's garrison.
At first, the local garrison could resist, but as more and more slaves arrived, they were able to resist. Finally, destroyed in the slave's anger.
In this way, uprisings broke out in more and more areas. Some places successfully expelled the Arab Empire's garrisons, and some places failed. Those who have failed are still persisting in the struggle because they have hope and hope. Who can not persist in the struggle?
At this time, in the palace in Damascus, King Yezid I's face was ashen, his whole body was shaking, as if he was having a stroke, and he was almost foaming at the foam. No, he was spraying foam from his mouth. He was spraying, not spitting, because he was inflated and was yelling in anger.
"Khalid, you stupid pig, you claim to be intelligent and extraordinary, so you insist on shrinking your troops. I listened to him, but what was the result? All the troops were concentrated, and I handed over half of the Arab Empire's troops. He defeated him, but did he defeat the Tang people?" The roar of Ye Zide I was like thunder, echoing in the palace, "He gathered millions of my elites together, withstood the thunder bombardment of the Tang people, and lost It¡¯s almost done.¡±
Ye Zide I also heard the shelling just now. After receiving the reward, he was stunned, thunder! That was an ability only possessed by gods. How did the Tang people master it? What was even more frightening was that, under the bombardment of sky thunder, the Arab Empire had already lost tens of thousands of elite soldiers before the two sides actually engaged in battle.
If Khalid is defeated in the end, Damascus will definitely not be saved. If Damascus is lost, it will be completely over. You know, Damascus is the center of the Arab Empire and the location of the capital. There is a huge amount of money and food stored here. If it all becomes the Tang army The spoils of war greatly improved the strength of the Tang Army, but greatly weakened the strength of the Arab Empire.
"Damn the Tang Dynasty people, you are so vicious and cruel, and you actually resorted to vicious tactics to draw fuel from the bottom of the cauldron."
Yezid I was right. The Tang army's direct capture of Damascus was indeed a blow to the bottom. Capturing the capital of the Arab Empire was equivalent to completely disrupting the Arab Empire. By then, slaves everywhere who suffered from other slaves would surely rise up and revolt.
¡°The Great Caliph, KhalidNews came from the army that Damascus is likely to be insecure. Please leave here immediately and go to Baghdad! "
"Khalid, he is a pig, a stupid pig. I handed over an army of millions to him, but he couldn't even deal with the Tang Dynasty. I was still waiting for news of his victory. Fortunately, he actually let me escape. I How to escape? What if we escape to Baghdad?"
Yezid I vented his anger and calmed down. Now it seems that Damascus cannot be defended. Damascus cannot be defended, let alone Baghdad.
Where to escape?
Yezid I secretly made up his mind: "Take everything you can, burn the palace, and let's go to Medina!"
The city of Medina is the second holiest place in Islam. When the Prophet Muhammad was ostracized by the locals in Mecca, he fled to Medina and established the earliest Islamic regime there. Medina became the first city in a Muslim country. a capital city.
During the era of Muhammad and the four caliphs, it was the political center of Islam and occupied an important position in the Islamic world. Muslims once called it the "Illuminated City", "The City of Peace", and the "City of Victory". There are many monuments in the city, the most famous of which is the Prophet's Mosque, which was built under the supervision of Muhammad himself. The temple contains the tombs of Muhammad and others. Medina is the first capital of a Muslim country and is known as the three holiest places in Islam along with Mecca and Jerusalem.
??Every person who goes to Mecca for Hajj has been to Medina. Every year during the Hajj, before and after the Hajj ceremony, as many people visit Medina as in Mecca. Medina is located 400 kilometers north of Mecca. It is surrounded by fertile land with abundant mountains, rivers and grass on three sides. It is surrounded by fertile fields and orchards. It has a developed economy and convenient transportation.
It is said that the Prophet Muhammad was born there. God selected the Prophet Muhammad as the final messenger and began to reveal the Quran to him in Mecca. The Prophet Muhammad and his disciples were persecuted by disbelievers in Mecca. God inspired them to move to Medina for development. There was a beautiful natural environment and Islam-friendly people there. The Prophet transformed the spirit of the Quran there. It became a social practice, created the first Muslim society, and formulated Islamic etiquette and social management laws.
If Mecca is the birthplace of Islam, and the Muslims in Mecca are the base of Islamic society, then Medina is the first step for Islam to go to the world, because in Medina, the Prophet began to teach people of different faiths and nationalities People spread Islam.
In 622 AD, the nobles of Mecca harbored a deep hatred for Muslims and organized tribal alliances to launch armed invasions of the newly built Muslim society in Medina many times. The enemy assembled a strong force and pressed heavily on the territory. This was a severe test for the newly established Muslim society and a test of Allah's will. At the same time, many hypocrites were exposed. The slaves of Allah became more firm in their faith and braver in fighting. The first generation of Muslims led by the Prophet won a great victory and consolidated the Islamic regime.
Medina can be said to be the birthplace of Muslims. It is the foundation of the Arab Empire. As long as it can be held there, there is still hope for the Arab Empire.
While Yezid I was preparing to escape, the battle outside the city also became intense. After the Modao battle formation broke through the first line of defense of the Arab army, the Tang army poured into the Arab army's formation like a tide. To use a metaphor, if the Arab army at the front of the formation is a floodgate, then the Tang army is the flood that destroys the gate, surging, overwhelming, and unstoppable.
"Kill all the big food dogs!"
The morale of the Tang army, which was already high, became even higher. They broke out with a shocking roar, waved their swords, and shouted fiercely at the Arab soldiers to vent their hatred.
Blood debt needs to be paid with blood!
In the bloody battle of Talos, the heroic souls of hundreds of thousands of soldiers of the Tang army are not far away. Now, the Tang army is avenging them and must use the blood of Arab soldiers a hundred times a thousand times to repay.
The Tang army had no mercy, only hatred. They were extremely ruthless. Wherever the Tang army passed, the Arab soldiers were slaughtered. If the layers of corpses on the ground hadn't proved that they had existed, they would have thought that they had never existed. does not exist.
The Tang army was like a huge wave, while the Arab army was just a small boat in the huge wave, which could capsize at any time. When Khalid saw this, his heart ached as if torn apart. This was the foundation of the Arab Empire, the fruit of the lifelong efforts of the Prophet and generations of caliphs, and was ruthlessly torn into pieces by the Tang army.
"It's over! It's over!" Khalid no longer had the courage to resist. He pulled out the scimitar and swiped it at his neck. However, his wrist hurt and the scimitar in his hand hit the ground.
"Khalid, you are captured!" A strong voice sounded.
This event, which should have been a highlight in the history of human war, did not last.??A long time, but it was over in half a day.
The morale of the Tang army was already high, and the fighting was fierce, which aroused hatred in Du Rui. He regarded revenge as the New Year and used every bit of his strength as ten points. However, the Arab army's fighting spirit had already been shattered when the Tang army started bombarding them. Coupled with repeated setbacks, their morale dropped again and again. In the end, they no longer even had the courage to resist. Only those who were massacred by the Tang army share.
Not only did the Tang army have an astonishing fighting power, but their killing speed was also astonishing. They were like experienced butchers, quickly harvesting the lives of the Arab soldiers.
"The Tang Dynasty is victorious!"
When the battle ended, the Tang army burst out with a shocking roar. Everyone's head, body, legs, and hands were covered in blood, just like a bloody man. And they were dancing with joy. At first glance, it looked like the dance of the devil, which was very scary.
"The Tang Dynasty will be victorious!" Du Rui also pointed the spear in his hand at the sky, like a pillar holding up the sky, unshakable.
Damascus is the capital and center of the Arab Empire. Now that it was defeated by the Tang army, it means that the Arab Empire has suffered an unprecedented heavy blow, which is of unparalleled strategic significance.
The dedication of the capital is undoubtedly a great trauma for a country. It can not only undermine the enemy's fighting spirit, but also arouse the determination of those foreigners enslaved by the Arabs to resist.
Of course, more importantly, this will make the next war easier, reduce the casualties of the Tang army, and avoid unnecessary losses. This is what Du Rui is most concerned about.
The next battle will be much easier to fight!
"Commander, look, who is this?" Su Lin threw Khalid to the ground with a smile and smiled at Du Rui.
? Khalid is a famous general in the Arab Empire. He is a great figure known as the Sword of Allah. He has a high position of power, one person is inferior to ten thousand people. He was Du Rui's main enemy in this battle, and now he has been captured alive by Su Lin. This is a great blessing in life. Although Su Lin didn't care about these achievements, he couldn't help but feel a burst of ecstasy. His mouth was open and could not be closed.
Du Rui did not expect that this battle would be won so easily. He won the victory with almost no effort, and even captured Khalid, a famous Arab general.
It seems that Du Rui still underestimated the power of artillery before.
Feeling Du Rui's gaze, Khalid really wanted to get in immediately. He had been preparing for this battle for so long. He even gave up so much territory in order to concentrate his superior forces and fight a war of attrition with the Tang army. , but now, he actually lost so lightly, which made him lose face, and he himself became a prisoner. This humiliation is far beyond what words can describe, even if you use the water of the three rivers and four seas to grind the ink, you can't describe it. All.
"Khalid! The Sword of Allah! It turns out it's nothing more than that!"
Khalid closed his eyes and said in a deep voice: "Du Rui! You won, but the reason why you won is entirely because you have mastered new weapons. If we fight with real swords and guns, I will not necessarily lose." you!"
Hearing this, Du Rui was not angry, but smiled and said: "Of course! I don't deny this, but the fact that the Tang Empire can master new weapons doesn't prove that the Tang Empire is stronger than Arabia?"
Khalid was speechless for a moment, and after a long while he said: "Please kill me! Give me the final dignity of a soldier!"
Du Rui nodded and said: "Yes! For the opponent I respect, I am willing to fulfill your request. Come on! Take him down and behead him!"
Gao Xingzhen heard the words and said: "Commander! This is a cannibal marshal. If he is sent back to Chang'an and presented as a prisoner, it will be a great achievement!"
Du Rui smiled and said: "The whole Dashi will cease to exist, so what does it matter about a marshal? He is a real soldier, knowing that he cannot do anything but doing it. Although it is stupid, there is no denying his bravery. As long as He is a real soldier, so we should respect him and kill him! Then spread it to the outside world and say that Khalid died in battle!"
Hearing this, Khalid opened his eyes, looked at Du Rui gratefully, and said, "Thank you!"
He didn¡¯t expect that in the end his confidant would be Du Rui.
After taking Khalid into custody, Du Rui led the generals straight to the palace of Yezid I. The fire here was still burning. Even if he was caught by the fire dragon's claws, Du Rui was very surprised after seeing it. This palace is really It is so luxurious, even compared to the imperial palace in Chang'an.
"Put out the fire, then dismantle all the treasures here and send them to Chang'an." Du Rui said flatly and ignored them.
"Commander! We have just searched and captured several prisoners. They all say that Ye Zide I escaped while our army was entering the city! Before leaving, he ordered people to let him go and burn down the palace!"
?The reason why this battle was won so easily in the end was largely due to Yazid I. If he had not burned down the palace and destroyed the will of the Arab soldiers to fight, although the final victory would definitely belong to the Tang Dynasty, the Tang army It also costs a lot to come back.
Speaking of which, Ye Zide I did a good deed. Perhaps even he himself would not have thought that his momentary act of loyalty would actually help Tang Jun so much.
Du Rui smiled and said: "Let him go! A lost dog is nothing to be afraid of!"
Du Rui indeed no longer paid attention to Ye Zide I. With the capture of Damascus, the Tang army had basically won the war, and the rest was just a matter of cleaning up.
In the evening, the fire in the palace was put out. The Tang army entered the city early and the damage to the palace was not very great. Du Rui placed the military meeting in the palace.
"Everyone! Damascus has been captured by us, and the center of Dashi no longer exists. If we use it well, our next battle will be much easier, and we may even destroy Dashi without a fight."
"Destroy Dashi without a fight?"
Although the generals knew that the next battle would be much easier, they were still surprised and looked in disbelief.
"It's very possible!" Su Lin was the first to agree.
"If used well, it may not be impossible to destroy Da Shi without a fight. Even if it is not possible, the battles will not be too many. It is just a matter of one or two battles." Gao Xingzhen also said.
Seeing that the generals were still a little confused, Du Rui explained: "If you want to fundamentally solve Dashi, you only need to capture their Mecca and Medina, and the speed of the advance does not need to be too fast. Yazid I has enough time to mobilize the army, and we can decide the world in one battle. As you know, although Dashi conquered many lands, they did not have time to govern them, and they were still divided and each went his own way. More importantly What's more, they use iron and blood to promote their religion and force the people of these conquered lands to believe in Allah. Anyone who dares not to be killed or demoted as a slave will be killed. Needless to say, how much this hatred has accumulated over the years Yeah, just thinking about it is shocking.¡±
The Arab Empire was a slave-owning country, which was a retrogression in itself. It plundered slaves in large numbers, which laid the foundation for endless troubles. What's even more terrible is that the Arab Empire did not take political measures to solve this problem. Instead, it intensified its efforts to promote religion with iron blood. Those who did not believe in converting to Islam would be severely punished, either killed or demoted as slaves, and their families would be destroyed without even knowing it. how many.
It only takes a little spark to arouse this hatred, enough to form a prairie fire, and the huge Arab empire is likely to fall apart.
Now that Damascus has been captured, it is definitely enough to shock the world. Although Damascus has not been the capital of the Arab Empire for a long time, its status is obvious.
The reason why Du Rui is not anxious at all about Yazid I's escape is because of this. In the next war, there is no need to be too hasty, as long as it advances slowly, the Arab Empire will become chaotic on its own.
The fall of Damascus basically represents the decline of the Arab Empire. Those foreigners who have been oppressed for a long time will definitely take action. The Tang Dynasty only needs to push behind it, which is enough to plunge the Arab Empire into a situation that is beyond redemption.