Li Dazhuang, commander of the Seventh Army, watched as Tan Fangyuan's First Division suffered a setback in its attack on Tianjin.
They prepared for the tenth battle to seize the Tianjin city wall, but still failed.
"What's going on with the logistics troops? Why haven't they delivered the ammunition yet?
How can we fight if we have artillery but no ammunition?"
Li Dazhuang knew the specific reason, but he still couldn't help but complain.
He looked at Tianjin City. Every time the Qin army failed to attack the city, Zhu Dadian used various methods to mock the Qin army.
He was just venting the anger in his heart to prevent himself from being tempted to launch a general attack on Tianjin City because of his anger.
The Seventh Army has been besieging Tianjin City for half a month, but due to lack of ammunition, it has never captured Tianjin City.
The city of Tianjin is very well defended. There are more than a hundred Hongyi cannons on the top of the city, and they also store a lot of supplies.
The defenders of Tianjin City were large in number, but Zhu Dadian, the governor of Shandong Province, still used a large number of firearms to prevent the Qin army from attacking the city.
Hongyi cannons were used to fire shotgun shells, killing and injuring a large number of Qin soldiers.
Pan Hongcai, the commander of the Seventh Army, said helplessly: "Commander, the weather is rare in Henan this year.
Qian Mingyi, the governor of Henan, wrote that in order to ensure the logistics and transportation of the army, Henan had to lose a large number of young people, and there was no way to ensure the normal progress of spring plowing.
The king personally approved it, giving priority to ensuring the normal progress of spring plowing in Henan.
The transportation of grain and grass supplies for the army has been lowered in priority.
Now that the number of people in the logistics team has been reduced, we can only ensure the normal transportation of food and medicine.
The quantity of weapons and ammunition transported is very small, and most of the ammunition transported is bullets that are easy to transport.
The garrison can also use a gun to capture the city.
Our army is attacking a fortified city. Without a large number of heavy artillery shells, it is impossible to break through the defense line of Tianjin City.
I estimate that in another half month, the spring plowing will be completely completed and the logistics materials will be delivered.
We continue to besiege Tianjin, and we have enough time anyway.
The king himself said that he would rather occupy Shuntian Mansion two or three months later than to ensure that the people of Henan will not go hungry."
When Li Dazhuang heard Pan Hongcai's explanation, he also knew that King Qin Su He made this choice.
They have already occupied Henan, and this is their territory.
The people in Henan are all their subjects.
Don't be so anxious to capture Shuntian Mansion that the people here won't be able to farm and grow food this year.
By then, tens of millions of people will starve to death.
If such a tragedy happens, the rule of King Qin will be shaken.
Capturing the capital a month or two late would not have much impact on Qin King Su He.
King Su He of Qin had a choice between quickly defeating the Ming Dynasty and ensuring food security. He chose to ensure food security.
Li Dazhuang sighed with emotion and said: "It means that the Fourth Army will not be affected.
When the Fourth Army attacked Shanxi, their logistics personnel were directly removed from Shaanxi and other places.
The popularity of cattle in Shaanxi is so high that even a woman can cultivate two or three acres of land with the help of an ox-pulled cultivator.
The king's army and we will be affected.
First besiege the city of Tianjin and wait for the logistics roads in Henan to be clear.
We will launch a general attack on Tianjin City again."
Chief of Staff Duan Ruide ran over with a look of surprise on his face.
"Weapons and ammunition are coming, a lot of heavy artillery and ammunition.
We can flood the city of Tianjin with artillery shells and see if Zhu Dadian can continue to be arrogant.
He actually dared to stand at the top of the city and provoke our army."
Li Dazhuang stepped forward to help him because he was too excited and didn't notice there was a small pit under his feet.
Chief of Staff Duan Ruide stepped into a pit and almost fell.
"Chief of Staff, what did you just say? Our army has logistics supplies delivered.
This is impossible. I only received a personal reply from Jiang Zhiyu three days ago.
It will take them the next month to mobilize enough manpower to transport a large number of artillery shells.
How could it be possible that all of a sudden, the land in Henan could be cultivated well?
Even if hundreds of thousands of cattle are shipped from Mongolia, this is not possible."
Duan Ruide immediately explained: "I didn't make it clear just now, it's not supplies shipped from Kaifeng, Henan.
These are supplies shipped from Dagukou.
The navy has opened a route from Guangdong to Tianjin, and transport ships can transport weapons and ammunition from Guangzhou to us by sea.
I heard that Li Ran, commander of the Navy's Third Fleet, said that they had brought weapons and ammunition from more than 40 large ships.
If our army uses it, it will be enough for our army to use it intensively for one year."
Li Dazhuang said in surprise: "This is true, the navy can reach Tianjin from Guangdong so quickly.
This is from south to north, the speed is really too fast.
I never thought that one day I would be able to use ammunition shipped from Guangdong in Tianjin.
Where are they, is the ammunition by the sea?"
Duan Ruide pointed eastward and said: "They are right there by the river, using small boats to transfer weapons and ammunition.
I was visiting wounded soldiers in a field hospital.
After hearing the report from the soldiers that strange soldiers had brought a large amount of weapons and ammunition by ship, I immediately went to learn about the situation.
Only then did I know that they were from the Navy's Third Fleet.
I have arranged for soldiers to help them unload the cargo from the ship."
Li Dazhuang and his party immediately rushed to the river.
They saw more than thirty large cargo ships docked on the river next to the field hospital.
Among them were more than twenty cargo ships, all flying the flag of the Qin army.
Li Dazhuang saw that a temporary dock had been built here.
The transport ship's own steam hoist has been set up and the steam engine is started.
The steam crane was unloading the goods from the ship, and several soldiers of the Seventh Army were carrying a large wooden box and stacking these things neatly.
Zhuang Renyi, commander of the Second Division, saw Li Dazhuang and the others approaching, and he said with surprise:
"The weapons and ammunition brought by the Army Commander, Chief of Staff, and Division Pan Zhu are all the most advanced models.
He directly opened the big box next to him, revealing a huge cannon.
The artillery is mounted on a state-of-the-art tube-retractable gun mount.
There are only a few of the most powerful 150-meter artillery pieces in our army. This time, more than fifty pieces were shipped in total.
With these artillery pieces, it would be really easy to capture the city of Tianjin."
When Li Dazhuang saw these supplies, he had a look of surprise on his face.
"You sort out the supplies first, and I'll go meet with the people from the Third Fleet. We can't neglect our guests."
Li Dazhuang told him that they were going to meet Li Ran, the commander of the Third Fleet, who was directing the loading and unloading at the dock.
After they met, they greeted each other.
"Hello Master Li Zhu, I am Li Dazhuang, commander of the Seventh Army.
This is Chief of Staff Duan Ruide, and this is Zhu Shi Pan Hongcai."
Li Dazhuang shook hands with Li Ran affectionately and introduced him to the officers of the Seventh Army.
This man is simply the savior of their Seventh Army. Now they are short of weapons and ammunition, so he came with a large amount of weapons and ammunition to support them.
Li Ran exchanged greetings with them and explained that the weapons and ammunition shipped so far were only a very small part.
The Seventh Army needs more weapons and ammunition, and they can transport them from Dagukou at any time.
Li Ran finally asked: "Commander Li, do you know where the king is? We need to report on the situation of the navy."
He knew that Li Dazhuang was a famous military officer and must have known about the movements of King Su He of Qin.
Li Dazhuang briefly introduced: "The king is currently fighting against Zhuzhou, the specific situation.
Since I haven't received any military intelligence briefing from the Third Army, I don't know much about it yet.
There are battlefields everywhere in Beizhili now. If you are a small number of people traveling across the battlefield, it is easy for something to happen.
If you really go to Zhuzhou, by the time you get there, the battle may be over.
You might as well follow me. After we capture Tianjin, we will send heavy troops to attack Tongzhou.
Tongzhou is very close to the capital. After the king leads his troops to capture Zhuzhou, the army will also go to the capital.
For the battle to attack the capital, the king will definitely summon the generals of all the armies, and then you can see the king."
After Li Ran listened to Li Dazhuang's introduction, he also recognized Li Dazhuang's suggestions.
"Commander Li, please unload the cargo as soon as possible.
After the transport ship has finished unloading its cargo, these armed merchant ships can help you attack the city. I will take the transport ship back to the seaside.
Admiral Zhang doesn’t know the situation here yet, I’m going to report the news.”
Li Dazhuang said kindly: "Master Li Zhu, please rest assured that our Seventh Army will not waste your time and will unload the cargo of the transport ship as soon as possible."
The soldiers of the Seventh Army quickly unloaded the cargo from the transport ship.
Li Ran evacuated with the transport fleet.
In order to compete for weapons and ammunition in time, the divisions of the Seventh Army all found reasons to come here.
Li Dazhuang looked at the weapons and ammunition boxes piled on the shore, and he smiled happily.
"Chief of Staff, immediately distribute these weapons and ammunition to each regiment.
Let the soldiers have a good meal today and recharge their batteries, and tomorrow they will officially attack Tianjin City.
Now that the Seventh Army has sufficient weapons and ammunition, it will no longer be able to defeat the turtle shell of Tianjin City.
Others will think that our Seventh Army is too useless, and I don’t want to be known as a useless person in the army."
He looked at the division commanders of the Seventh Army and said loudly: "We have enough weapons and ammunition now, please perform well for me tomorrow.
Our Seventh Army still has the task of garrisoning Jizhou.
This force is mainly responsible for defending the enemy forces in the direction of Shanhaiguan and providing sufficient warning time for the army.
Once you receive this mission, it has nothing to do with attacking the capital.
Whichever of the three of you performs poorly, I will send him to perform this task."
Tan Fangyuan, Zhuang Renyi, and Cui Xiuzhu looked at each other. They were all determined to bring out the best in their troops tomorrow.
…………………………
In Tianjin City, Shandong Governor Zhu Dadian was very uneasy.
The strength shown by the yellow-robed thieves besieging Tianjin City was far less than what the rumors had spread.
He led the King Qin's army in Shandong and the defense post in Tianjin.
Many of the people under his command are poorly trained troops, only the artillery is stronger.
This was all the old foundation left to him by Sun Yuanhua, the previous governor of Shandong.
Sun Yuanhua was promoted to Minister of the Ministry of Industry by Emperor Chongzhen, who was specifically responsible for casting artillery.
Some of the artillery he trained were taken away by Kong Youde and annihilated by yellow-clad thieves in Shaanxi.
The remaining artillery units were all brought to Tianjin City by him.
Zhu Dadian relied on these artillery and his relationship with Sun Yuanhua to obtain more than 100 Hongyi cannons.
He defended Tianjin City for half a month, buying enough time for Tongzhou and Beijing.
Zhu Dadian felt a little disheartened. The yellow-robed thieves besieged the city for half a month, and the imperial court did not send any reinforcements.
He and the city of Tianjin have become abandoned by the Ming Dynasty.
Even as an abandoned son, Zhu Dadian must fight for more time for the court and never let down the court's training.
Today, he noticed that the thieves in yellow outside the city had undergone great changes.
Except for the first two days, the thieves in yellow kept testing Tianjin City.
During the rest of the time, the thieves in yellow used small groups of troops to test the strength of various locations in Tianjin City.
Zhu Dadian taunted the yellow thieves many times, hoping to trigger a general attack by the yellow thieves and consume the yellow thieves' strength.
None of them were fooled.
Now Zhu Dadian clearly noticed that the entire camp of the yellow-robed thieves was moving.
He immediately ordered the garrison in the city to be more vigilant to prevent thieves in yellow from stealing the city at night.
…………………………
It was just dawn and the Qin army had completed preparations for the general attack.
Li Dazhuang inspected the camp and saw that the soldiers had good food today.
They ate white flour steamed buns, and the food was canned fish shipped from Guangzhou.
There was also canned pineapple for dessert after the meal.
He was very satisfied with the morale and condition of the soldiers.
After the entire military camp had finished breakfast, the Qin army lined up in formation, waiting for Li Dazhuang's order to prepare to attack Tianjin City.
Zhuang Renyi stood in front of the Second Division Artillery Regiment, pointing to the twenty new 150-mm artillery pieces ahead.
"You all gave me a good start.
I used 200 boxes of cigarettes and asked the officers of the South China Sea Fleet on the armed merchant ships to teach me.
Why? Because their cannons shoot better than ours.
That's the navy, the art of firing cannons, that's the ability to survive.
With the same cannon, you can only go straight and attack the target in front.
People can shoot out at an angle, making the trajectory form a curve, and attack the target on the wall.
I don't know how much you can master these artillery formulas after you learned the techniques all night.
But I hope these two hundred boxes of Tiger cigarettes are not in vain."
These are Erbai and Tiger cigarettes, the top brand of specialty cigarettes.
Zhuang Renyi only distributes ten boxes for free every month.
He took out these cigarettes and asked the artillery officers on the armed merchant ships for advice. Several of them had put together a stockpile.
The officers on armed merchant ships are really powerful. They adjust the artillery on armed merchant ships.
Zhuang Renyi saw that they had extraordinary artillery skills.
After chatting, I learned that naval officer Wang Doudou used mathematical formulas.
He calculated the cannon in all its configurations and the impact points of the cannonballs.
Wang Doudou taught this technique to all naval artillerymen. With only simple formulas and parameters, the artillery shells can land at the approximate location.
Zhao Walao, the commander of the artillery regiment, immediately stood up and assured: "Please rest assured, division commander, our artillery regiment guarantees to hit the target and will not embarrass the division commander.
This technology is not difficult, the key is the mathematical formula and related parameters."
At the station of the First Division, Tan Fangyuan discussed the plan to attack the city with the officers.
"The performance of this siege is extremely important and is closely related to the future of each of us.
Everyone must show their strongest condition and break into Tianjin City.
Our division also has its own secret weapon.
There is a company of trainers in our division, and you usually say that I treat them very well.
Today is their moment to show off.
Zhao Manggang, are you confident that you can complete the mission?"
A muscular man with a height of 1.8 meters stood up and said: "Please don't worry, sir.
Raise an army for a thousand days and use it for a while.
Normally the division commander spends several times the resources of ordinary soldiers to train us, but now is the time for us to work hard.
Even if we really sacrifice, as long as we can confuse the Ming army, our sacrifice will be very worthwhile."
Tan Fangyuan said in a solemn tone: "When I proposed this plan, I definitely did not ask you to die.
Today is the time for the army to attack, and the hot air balloons will also drop bombs. You will follow the hot air balloon troops to act together.
As long as we can hold on for a few hours, Tianjin City will inevitably be captured by our army.
There are our people in the city to assist them, and as long as they are not exposed, safety is still guaranteed."
Winter! Winter! Winter!
The huge war drums sounded, and the general attack on Tianjin was about to begin.
