Chapter 544 Planning! The power comparison between the Ming and Qing Dynasties...
As the commander-in-chief of the Lishan tribe, Lishan Jun is actually the leader of a Ding-level martial clan, and his own cultivation level is no more than Wuzhen.
At this time, the master of Lishan County was kneeling in front of Jiang Yao in silence, not daring to raise his head.
Below him, there is a man kneeling, who is the lord of Jiuxi Manor at that time: Xiang Rang!
At that time, Xiang Rang was called Lord Xiang Rang and decided the life and death of all serfs within a thousand miles area.
Forty years ago, Jiang Yao was still a serf in his territory.
However, "Master Xiangrang" would never have thought that this high-ranking man who could control his life and death was the little serf in his manor back then.
If he knew it, he would be scared to death.
"Go down. From now on, Lishan County will be the land of the Ming Dynasty. Mr. Lishan, do you have any objections?" Qin Yu's voice sounded faintly.
As for Ming Wang Jiang Yao, he didn't even raise his eyelids and completely regarded the other party as nothing.
"Yes, yes! I obey my orders..." How dare Mr. Lishan say a word "no"?
Over the years, the reputation of Jiang Yao and the strength of the Ming army have spread throughout the world. He, a mere Ding-level clan leader, is just an ant in the eyes of the Ming King.
If you accept your fate, there is still a way to survive. If you resist, you will immediately end up dead.
"Yeah." Qin Yu nodded coldly, "You guys go down."
In one sentence, Lishan County belonged to the Ming Dynasty.
When Li Shanjun and others retreated in sweat, Jiang Yao began his first military meeting after entering the Southern Territory.
Deputy Commander Qin Yu stood up first and said: "Lord, although our army claims to be 600,000, half of them are just new soldiers. They can defend the city but cannot fight in the field."
"Compared to Long Muhuang, our army's military strength is still at a huge disadvantage. From what I see, we should cross the Wei River first, occupy Dacha City, and echo Yue Anshi and Li Luoer."
"At present, although the divine religion is revolting in the southern region, it can only contain and disperse the Qing army. But in fact, our army should fight quickly, while the Qing army should fight later."
Everyone nodded when they heard this.
Now it seems that we need to cross the Fe River first, capture Dacha City, and control the strategic location in the northern part of the Southern Territory. We must first stabilize the rear and capture the eight states in the north of the Southern Territory.
Otherwise, the Ming army would have insufficient troops and an unstable rear. It would be difficult to take advantage of the Qing army, which had strong combat power and a numerical advantage.
According to the intelligence, the Qing army had a million troops already in the Southern Territory, not counting the 300,000 reinforcements that had not arrived in the Southern Territory.
The more than 600,000 troops Long Muhuang brought to fight were only mobile troops.
What's even more troublesome is that all the soldiers of the Qing Dynasty have a cultivation level of level three or above!
"The Qing army is indeed powerful." Jiang Yao's expression became solemn, "They have sent hundreds of thousands of reinforcements. Our army must kill Long Muhuang's main force before the Qing reinforcements arrive!"
"Zi Zhou is right, our plan is indeed going to change."
The original plan was to use the anti-Qing rebels all over the place to consume the Qing army's combat power and make the Qing army sink deeper and deeper, and then the Ming army would look for an opportunity for a decisive battle.
The strategy adopted was to exhaust the Qing army, surround it, and then annihilate it in one fell swoop with the cooperation of the vast anti-Qing rebel forces.
But now it seems that the Qing army is too strong and determined to annex the Southern Territory. Reinforcements have been flowing into the Southern Territory continuously, and they are not afraid of delaying time.
On the contrary, the Ming army wanted to fight quickly.
"What my lord said is absolutely true." General Li Yang said, "It is because of what I am worried about. On the contrary, it is the Qing army that has superior strength but refuses to fight."
Xi Shan, the commander of the Jinyi Guards, also said: "My lord, Long Muhuang has always been cautious in using her troops. Even if she has a superior force, she must be sure to take the lead."
"I guess that according to her temperament, she may delay the fight and use the Blocking Art. As long as she delays it for a month or two, our army will be passive."
Although the uprising launched by the Divine Religion and the Jin Yiwei was massive and well-organized, with many powerful Divine Religion members participating, how could it possibly be a true opponent of the Qing army?
No matter how many righteous people there are in the poor family, there is no military formation and battlefield, and the final defeat is inevitable.
Although the Wulords and Qing troops who were instigated to rebel were regular armies that could unite the battlefield, they were at an absolute disadvantage in terms of numbers.
Therefore, Xishan's Jinyiwei assessed that the anti-Qing uprising sweeping the southern region could only last for two months at most.
Within two months, hundreds of thousands of Qing reinforcements arrived in the southern region.
Then Jin Yiwei’s analysis conclusion is:
Within two months, if the Ming army could not gain a strategic advantage, they would have no choice but to abandon the Southern Region and retreat to the Western Region, watching helplessly as the Southern Region fell into the hands of the Qing army.
"Two months!" Jiang Yao said, "Within two months, no, it should be within one and a half months, our army must destroy Long Muhuang's main force!"
"Otherwise, our army will have no chance."
It is said that you know yourself and the enemy. Why is it difficult to fight? This requires calculation of the strength comparison between the Ming and Qing Dynasties.
This comparison was well known to the kings and ministers of the Ming Dynasty!
The Qing Dynasty had seventy-six states, accounting for 55% of the territory of the Witch Territory, and its population and resources were five or six times that of the Ming Dynasty!
In addition, the Qing leader Jiang Zhengyi colluded with Haizhen, Xue Clan, and Youyu without any bottom line, and their military strength was far superior to that of the Ming army.
A few years ago, when the number of soldiers was at its highest, the Qing army numbered tens of millions!
With such abundant capital, the Qing court eliminated the second-level troops and horses earlier than the Ming Dynasty, and now relies on the third-level troops and horses as the main force.
Although the second-level troops and horses were eliminated and the number of soldiers dropped significantly, the Qing army's combat effectiveness actually increased.
Today, the Qing army has four million third-level troops, but half of them are Hailu, Youyu, and Blood Demons! The real Eight Banners Qing army only has about two million.
Not counting this, the Qing army still had 300,000 fourth-level soldiers and horses (Wuzhen). Of course, the real Qing army only accounted for half, and the other half were reinforcements from the Hailiu and other three tribes.
With such a powerful military force, it is no wonder that besides fighting against the Chu State, they can still draw out a large army to attack the southern region and fight two major battles at the same time.
On the other hand, the Ming army was much shabby.
The resources and population of the Ming Dynasty were only a fraction of those of the Qing Dynasty. It was the smallest country with the smallest territory and population among all the countries.
Although the Ming Dynasty has undergone reforms and its strength has skyrocketed in recent years, it has only been five years since the Ming Dynasty unified the Western Regions!
In just five years of reform, the power of many places has not yet exploded, and it will take at least another five years.
Five years ago, the Ming Kingdom, which had not yet unified the Western Regions, was a small country that only occupied one state in the Western Regions!
What about the Qing Dynasty? It has occupied half of the Witch Territory for 20 to 30 years. It has long integrated the power of the large and small nobles in the Witch Territory and gained their support.
In Jiang Yao's eyes, the current gap in comprehensive strength between the Ming and Qing Dynasties is greater than the gap between Shu Han and Cao Wei!
Without Chu, Ming's southern expedition would have been more difficult than Wuhou's northern expedition.
So, what is the Ming Dynasty’s family background now?
This means that the Ming army has deployed almost all its main force in this southern expedition. It is called an army of 600,000 Wuzong, which sounds a bit scary. But the soldiers of the Ming army all know that this number is actually very low.
Yes, the Southern Expedition army is indeed 600,000, and the soldiers are indeed Wuzong (level 3) and above, and there are 30,000 Wuzhen (level 4) troops among them.
But in fact, there are only 300,000 elite veterans, including Ghost Taoist's ghost army and Qin Que's monster army.
The remaining 300,000 are all new troops!
The average cultivation level of these new armies is not low, and the soldiers are all martial sects. Their fighting spirit and loyalty are very high. However, their training time is not enough, and their battlefield power is too poor.
It takes at least three years of training in the military field to be considered an elite.
This person can still barely go to the battlefield. He has at least been trained for several years and can be used as an auxiliary soldier.
In the Ming Dynasty, there were still hundreds of thousands of Wuzong's new troops undergoing intense training, but they had just been formed and could not even serve as auxiliary troops. They were completely rookies.
Letting them go to the battlefield means letting them die and give their lives to the Qing army.
As for the large number of second-level soldiers that were eliminated, they are now used as patrol patrols to maintain public order. There are also the aircraft carrier fleet and aircraft fleet in the Tianhuang River. Although they are large in scale, they cannot be used for the southern expedition.
After all, we only have so much wealth left.
Therefore, although the Southern Expedition Army has 600,000 troops, its actual combat strength is greatly reduced.
The mobile Qing army under Long Muhuang also numbered 600,000. According to intelligence, these 600,000 Qing troops were all elites who had been fighting against the Chu army for many years.
The two yellow flags, the two blue flags, and the bordered white flag all removed part of the main force, as well as a large number of sea turtle soldiers, blood demon soldiers, and ghost soldiers.
They are all veterans who are familiar with the battlefield, and there are no new troops.
Among them, there are 60,000 to 70,000 level 4 soldiers (Wuzhen) alone! There are as many as 5,000 to 6,000 level 5 soldiers (Martial God)!
The Ming army also numbered 600,000, with only 30,000 fourth-level soldiers and only 3,000 fifth-level soldiers.
The generals made repeated calculations, combined various factors between the enemy and ourselves, and concluded that although it was 600,000 versus 600,000, the actual combat strength of the Ming army was only 70% of the Qing army at most.
No more.
This has fully taken into account the higher morale and stronger fighting spirit of the Ming army.
No matter how optimistic the assessment is, the actual combat power is only 70% of Long Muhuang's.
Moreover, this comparison is only comparing the 600,000 mobile Qing troops under Long Muhuang's command, not the entire Qing army in the Southern Region.
You know, there are as many as one million Qing troops in the entire southern region, not including the hundreds of thousands of warriors who surrendered to the Qing!
Not to mention the hundreds of thousands of Qing army reinforcements that have already set off from the Qing Dynasty!
However, the Ming Dynasty has already used all its main forces, and it is difficult to get reinforcements.
With this calculation, it will be clear how the battle is going to be fought.
Can't drag.
The longer it delays, the greater the Qing army’s advantage!
Jiang Yao stood up, walked to the huge map of the Southern Territory, and pointed out the positions of the Ming army.
Northwest of the Southern Territory, Fanzhou and Lishan County.
"Yunong, where is Long Muhuang?" Jiang Yao asked.
Xi Shan stood up and pointed at the Modao Gorge in Xizhou in the middle of the Southern Territory. "Back to my lord, Long Muhuang is in Xizhou at this time and has not crossed the Modao Gorge yet."
He moved his finger to the west, "According to the latest information, she should have gone to Mengshuiguan."
Everyone can see it clearly.
The distance between us and the enemy is approximately more than 1.3 million miles.
If both sides have the intention of a decisive battle and march opposite each other, they can meet each other in ten days.
However, looking at Long Muhuang's marching route, we can judge that she wanted to pass through Modao Gorge and occupy Mishui Pass.
If she had the intention of a decisive battle at this time, she would definitely not take a detour to Mengshui.
Obviously, she wanted to block the Ming army.
Although she clearly had a considerable advantage in military strength, she still wanted to avoid a decisive battle.
He is indeed a cautious person.
This kind of person is actually very difficult to deal with. Because this kind of person is never greedy for success and does not have enough assurance. He must first seek stability and be in an invincible position.
Jiang Yao, Qin Yu and others all frowned.
Opponents like Long Muhuang are very annoying.
"I have already sent a flight message to Li Luo'er, Li Xi, and Yue Anshi. I hope they will cooperate and help our army cross the Meishui Pass first."
Jiang Yao pointed at the location of Meishui Pass, "If Long Muhuang seizes Meishui Pass first, our army will be blocked north of Meishui and west of Pishan Mountain."
"In this way, the Qing army has locked up our army in a corner of Fanzhou, delaying the fight. Once the uprising is suppressed and reinforcements are received, they will be able to concentrate their full strength and attack with the force of a mountain."
"By then, there will be a huge disparity in strength between the two sides, and our army will undoubtedly be defeated."
The situation is very clear. The Ming army has occupied Mingshui Pass and can only gain the initiative in the decisive battle, but winning the decisive battle is still a big unknown.
But if the Qing army occupied Mishui Pass, the Ming army would be completely passive, and the best choice would be to quickly retreat to the Western Regions.
Who is in charge of Mengshui today?
In the hands of the Yin family, a noble of the Wu family.
The Yin family is one of the eight first-class powerful vassals in the southern region. Because it occupies the most important mountain and water channels of Feishui and Pishan, it has always been relatively strong.
Among the hundreds of martial arts clans in the Southern Territory, the Yin family ranks among the top five in terms of strength. They are truly a small tyrant in the Southern Territory and should not be underestimated.
The Yin family had actually changed their banner and surrendered to the Qing Dynasty, but they did not participate in the formation of the Ming Suppression and Anti-Rebellion Army. It is said that they were waiting for a price and were not satisfied with the conditions of the Qing army.
Because the territory is located in the northwest of the Southern Territory and is relatively remote, the Yin clan has never participated in the resistance against the Qing Dynasty before. It seems that the matter has nothing to do with him.
Meishui Pass is very important, easy to defend but difficult to attack, and has always been heavily guarded by the Yin clan. Although the Yin clan has Jin Yiwei spies, they can only spy on information and cannot earn money from Meishui Pass.
Duanmu Hongdao looked solemn, "Your Majesty, the key to the first battle is indeed to seize the Meishui Pass."
"But Meishui Pass is in the hands of the Yin clan. Even if our army reaches Meishui Pass first, we will still have to work hard to attack it. After all, it will be difficult for our army to take the lead."
Jiang Yao smiled and said, "We have already made a plan for this battle. If Long Muhuang wants to occupy Meishui Pass, let her do it."
"Isn't it possible to fight decisively at Meishui Pass? Why don't our army follow the plan and do the opposite?"
"Humph, if she wants to occupy Meishui Pass and delay the fight, then we can just use Meishui Pass as the battlefield for a decisive battle!"
Everyone looked at each other with concentration.
What? Just take advantage of the situation and have a decisive battle at Qishui Pass?
This...how is this possible?
Meishui Pass is a southern pass and is notoriously easy to defend but difficult to attack.
The Qing army already has a great advantage, and it has the huge formation of Xiongguan in its hands. But under such disadvantage, our army wants to attack and fight decisively?
However, the Lord must have another deep meaning.
Qin Yu held up his palms and said with a smile: "My lord's clever plan, it is really interconnected, I feel ashamed."
Xi Shan also understood and immediately said: "Don't worry, my lord, I will go and do it!"
The others looked at each other in confusion. They looked at the map of the Meishui Pass area, and then they all came to their senses.
High, really high!
In this case, I was afraid that Long Muhuang would not come.
Just after Jiang Yao concluded the military meeting, Long Muhuang, the general of the Qing army conquering Peking, who was more than a million miles away, also led his army through the Modao Gorge.
The Qing army finally entered the west of the Southern Territory.
More than 600,000 troops lined up in a three-dimensional formation and came overwhelmingly. Wherever they went, monks from poor families fled one after another.
Those in the Qing army with low cultivation level rode on superior thousand-mile horses. Those with high cultivation level rode on spaceships and birds.
There are huge armies on the ground, low altitude, and high altitude.
Amidst the majestic momentum, there is a bloodthirsty murderous intention.
The aura of ferocity, cruelty, blood, violence, cruelty, and cruelty filled the world.
"General, the sea scorpion soldiers and blood demon soldiers in the army left the formation again and went out to plunder."
A general came to report.
Long Muhuang's expression was indifferent. Although his eyes showed disgust, he still said:
"Let them go. The emperor said that they are also warriors of the Qing Dynasty. Don't wrong them."
"As long as they serve the Qing Dynasty, they can do anything. They are still very capable in fighting, and they are still strong soldiers. Don't worry about it. If you control them too much, their combat effectiveness will decrease."
Long Muhuang's words are not wrong. The reason why the barbarians are powerful in battle is indeed related to their own barbarism and cruelty.
When Long Muhuang said this, the great sage's spiritual consciousness also swept away.
In the consciousness, countless women who were unable to escape in time were caught by the sea scorpion soldiers and blood demons, and were pressed to the ground on the spot...or were eaten and their blood was sucked dry.
Almost all the humble caves of the poor families were destroyed.
There are corpses, blood, roars, screams, and laughter everywhere.
Both the Sea Demon Soldiers and the Blood Demon Soldiers were in teams of a hundred or even ten people, and they were unscrupulous.
Although monks from poor families all have cultivation bases, due to a long-term lack of resources, their average cultivation bases are relatively low, and there is no military formation or battlefield. How can they resist?
The nobles and lords of the Wu family had nothing to do with it, because they had already surrendered to the Qing Dynasty, and they had soldiers and horses, as well as formations with strict restrictions.
This is enough to protect them.
It's miserable for a poor family.
Long Muhuangzhi took one look and withdrew his consciousness.
Eyes expressionless.
For the Qing Dynasty's hegemony and the emperor's royal plan, these are all worth it.
The monks in the southern region were in a worse situation, but the Qing Dynasty could not live without the support of these barbarian soldiers and horses.
"This palace general's order." Long Muhuang said, "Tell the Hailun warriors and the Blood Demon warriors not to leave the bodies of the monks behind. Especially the naked bodies of women must be burned."
"Otherwise, letting others see it will cause more resistance and they will hate the Qing Dynasty even more. Do you understand?"
Logically speaking, she is also a woman, and she should have reacted when she saw so many women being ravaged and tortured.
At least you can't remain indifferent.
But Long Muhuang turned a blind eye and downplayed it.
She is indeed determined to win over the people of the Southern Territory, eliminate resistance, and stabilize the situation as soon as possible.
But the people's hearts in her eyes are the people's hearts of the Wu family nobles and the lords, not the people of poor families.
The people's support from a poor family is not worth attracting at all. Because it will never be attracted. Unless, like Jiang Yao, she changes her ways.
Is it possible? Impossible.
Following Long Muhuang's military order, the brutal behavior of Hailiu and the Blood Tribe has not stopped, but there is an additional procedure for disposing of the corpses.
It was so outrageous that even the Wu soldiers in the Qing army could not look past it.
Many soldiers did not understand why the Qing Dynasty asked these barbarians for help.
The powerful Qing army just created terror all the way and headed towards Mishui Pass.
The poor monks who fled upon hearing the news had no choice but to flee into the mountains.
Many people looked to the north and shouted loudly: "King Ming has arrived! We are waiting for great revenge!"
Some people even shouted: "If the Ming Dynasty fails to win, we will have no choice but to follow King Ming to the Western Regions!"
PS: This chapter talks about the military comparison between the Ming and Qing Dynasties. It is actually an account that must be explained. Don’t be anxious, the fight will start tomorrow! To be honest, this battle will not be easy to fight. Good night, Crab.