Chapter 129 Defeat the enemy army in front of the formation (4k chapter)
"Poof!"
Nurhachi drew his sword with great strength and with a speed that was almost difficult for the naked eye to follow, he split open a dead tree with one blow.
"We must kill Zhou Dunji in this battle! Tell Huang Taiji to attack from the side.
Unless this man and his troops are eliminated, the Ming army will not be defeated, and our people will never have peace!"
…
"All the people have crossed the river!"
A big stone fell to Zhou Dunji's heart.
Three years ago, he and the veterans of the Sichuan Army came to Liao's aid and were assigned to defend the country. They did not have the opportunity to join Liu Wei in killing the enemy and serving the country.
This time the guerrillas who personally killed Jiannu took another step forward on the road to revenge for Liu Wei and others.
If it weren't for the third brother's plan and his proposal to return early without telling Yuan Yingtai, the Southern Army would have marched as fast as possible and just reached the Hun River.
This time, the third brother saved You Shigong and tens of thousands of soldiers and civilians, and his third brother was actually the first to do so.
"Third brother, how is General You doing?"
He walked to the middle of the spear formation and saw Wang Hongyu using a red-hot knife and ax to amputate You Shigong's limbs.
You Shigong bit a piece of thick cloth in his mouth, his face turned pale and he was sweating profusely. He endured severe pain and underwent amputation surgery.
He watched as the remaining half of his right calf was amputated, and the flesh below the knee was cut off bit by bit.
High-temperature knives, boiling water for disinfection, hemostatic drugs and the fastest bandaging will increase his probability of survival as much as possible.
Seeing Zhou Dunji and Wang Hongyu standing beside him, although You Shigong was close to collapse, he still gritted his teeth and said:
"General Zhou, Wang Guoji..."
Zhou Dunji advised: "The general soldiers should conserve their strength and rest first. Tens of thousands of refugees in Shenyang have already crossed the river. Our troops will also defeat the Jiannu."
You Shigong regretted: "Okay... I really regret that I took in too many Mongolian refugees and did not do my best to eliminate the spies. If Xiong Jinglue..."
"If Xiong Jinglue is still here, he will strictly control all the ministries, there will be no traitors, and there will be no wasted war... Shenyang, Fengji Fort, and Tiger Skin Post will never be destroyed in one day!"
Zhou Dunji and other generals who aided the Liao Dynasty admired Xiong Tingbi very much. They knew that the former manager's method of exhausting the enemy would make it difficult for Jiannu to hold on, and it would be difficult for the attackers to storm the heavily guarded city. Field battles could only be carried out when the Ming army wanted to fight in the field.
Only then can we fight.
How can it be like now, when He Shixian and Li Bingcheng are in charge of a place, and they feel happy after winning a little bit, only to be pulled out by Nurhachi in one breath.
You Shigong's energy was almost exhausted and he had to be sent to the rear to rest.
"By the way, there's one more thing!" You Shigong suddenly woke up: "Bao Chengxian, who you have reminded... there is indeed something wrong!"
He introduced the situation at that time. There were other generals in the east and west of the city. Mongolian soldiers first made trouble in the city, but at the critical moment, terrible rumors appeared, "It was said that he killed He Shixian."
The morale of the remaining Ming troops in the city was in chaos, and they became completely uncontrollable.
"Bao Chengxian is the deputy commander-in-chief, so he should be able to resolve rumors and prevent civil unrest and fires from completely getting out of control, but..."
Wang Hongyu nodded. It seemed that a big traitor was a big traitor. Bao Chengxian followed Fan Wencheng and was included in the must-kill list.
Zhou Dunji had heard from Wang Hongyu that this person had some problems before, but now he has basically implemented it.
After communicating with Chen Ce, Tong Zhongkui, Qi Jin and others, he wrote a secret letter to Inspector Zhang Quan to report Bao Chengxian's unusual activities.
At the same time, someone was sent to Guangning to strictly screen the defeated troops from Shenyang heading to Guangning.
The injured Ming troops such as You Shigong were also safely transported to the south of the Hun River. Then Chen Ce, Tong Zhongkui, Ran Yuelong, Qin Bangping and others led the Shizhu and Youyang chieftains to cross the river.
Just like those marching north are in formation, the same order is followed when retreating.
Only Zhou Dunji, Wang Hongyu and the last 3,000 Sichuan soldiers were left.
Suddenly, intensive horn sounds came from the north. Nurhaci personally led the Yellow Banner, the White Banner, the Two Red Banners and the Blue Banner. There were five flags in total, with more than 30,000 soldiers, pressing over from three directions.
Blessed by the north wind, the chilling air almost crushed the 3,000 Confederate troops. Nurhachi raised his chin very high and looked down at the Ming army gathered in a small group by the river with absolute contempt.
After seeing clearly that the banners of the Ming army were General Zhou Dunji and Guerrilla Wang Hongyu, the contempt in his eyes immediately disappeared.
Are the two tall men in front of the spear phalanx Zhou Dunji and Wang Hongyu?
Wang Hongyu and Zhou Dunji looked under Nurhachi's banner, and saw Nurhachi in dazzling yellow armor, staring at the two of them.
Wang Hongyu said: "When Nurhachi arrives in person, he will inevitably launch a fierce attack by the entire army. We can quickly cross the river to the south bank."
"Okay! According to your plan, the Zhejiang soldiers' line has been prepared for a long time."
The spear phalanx began to cross the river, and Wang Hongyu, Zhou Dunji and the sword and shield soldiers cut off the rear in person.
Nurhaci was thinking that Zhou Dunji, a tough enemy, only had so few people under his command... If he didn't kill them all now, it would be a big trouble in the future.
"What! Crossing the river..."
Nurhachi smiled contemptuously, and retreated with his back turned in front of several times our army... This was a very direct strategy to lure the enemy~
But how could the Ming army lay an ambush?
This section of the Hun River in spring is a full 200 paces wide. The warriors of the Later Jin Dynasty could not shoot to the other side, and the Ming army's blunderbuss and crossbow arrows could not... Then they could only use artillery!
Looking towards the south bank of the Hun River, we can vaguely see some Ming troops arrayed along the river.
Are there French guns and other artillery hidden there?
"Pass the order, all flags must not..."
"Kill! Attack halfway across the river!" Xiangbaiqi didn't listen to the order and attacked privately.
The Eight Banners is a barbaric army that loots and kills, rather than an upright division with strict discipline.
These barbaric plunderers will get more rewards if they perform more meritorious deeds, and they will get more slaves and livestock if they are ahead in raiding. Of course, there will be cases where they attack privately without listening to orders.
Zhen Dudu, the man with the white flag on Gushan'er, was not one of the Four Baylors. He was eager to achieve success and acquiesced in the attack by his cavalry.
"Ming Jin, let them come back!"
Later, the Jin army hurriedly called for gold, but unfortunately hundreds of cavalry rushed too fast, and they were only a few dozen steps away from the Ming army.
It has reached a point where neither fighting nor retreating is possible.
The pikemen were retreating on the pontoon bridge with their backs to them, while the sword and shield soldiers were facing them and had just retreated to the bridge.
Hundreds of Jiannu cavalry hesitated and formed a group on the north bank of the Hun River.
This becomes the best target~
"Line fire!"
Wang Hongyu turned around and saw that the time had come, and shouted at the Zhejiang soldiers on the south bank.
The Zhejiang soldiers lined up in a line beside the pontoon bridge and had been waiting for a long time.
They took a step back and stood next to the Tiger Gun and Franco machine hidden behind them. A line of 1,000 people gathered together 200 of this type of artillery from the entire Confederate Army.
The Hun River is more than 200 steps wide, and the enemy cavalry is about 300 steps away.
All within fire coverage!
"volley!"
The Jiannu cavalry only saw hundreds of photoelectrics flashing on the south bank for a moment.
"Boom boom boom!"
Then they heard a roar and the harsh sound of a large number of flying objects tearing through the air.
Before he had time to think, he was knocked to the ground by the wind-like shells.
People were smashed into dents one after another, and horses were hit with bloody holes. The Jiannu cavalry, who had been arrogant just now, were beaten until they were screaming and wailing in embarrassment.
Du Du, the leader of the banner with a white flag, saw that the cannon fire was finished and was about to lead people to rescue them when he heard another round of cannon fire and was frightened.
"Keep playing!"
The Franco machine and the Tiger cannon fire at extremely fast rates, one shooting directly and the other shooting in a curved direction.
Especially the Franco machine, according to the time measurement of later generations, can fire more than ten shots in a minute.
It adopts the loading method of sub-cannon. The main cannon is the gun body and the sub-cannons are loaded with ammunition. Once the cannon is fired, the sub-cannon can be fired again by replacing the sub-cannon.
As long as a sufficient number of sub-cannons are prepared in advance, and the mother cannon is not overheated or the mother cannon is cooled down in time to remove debris, it can fire more than a dozen shots continuously in a short period of time.
The secret of line attack lies in concentrating firepower with salvos; the use of Franchise lies in continuous output in a short period of time.
One plus one is greater than two!
Most of the hundreds of Jiannu cavalry were only wounded or fell off their horses in the first round of bombardment.
The second round, the third round, the fourth round...after the tenth round of shelling.
Hundreds of cavalrymen with white flags, including men, horses, and even no moans, were all too dead to die.
This scene was equivalent to hundreds of elite soldiers with white flags standing in front of them, being shot to death directly in front of the two armies.
The morale of the Ming army was greatly boosted, and Jiannu took a deep breath.
Wang Hongyu was the last one to step onto the pontoon. He turned towards Nurhachi, who was wearing yellow armor in the distance, and stretched out his fisted right hand.
Rotate the fist 180° so that the center of the fist faces upward.
He raised his middle finger.
Although Nurhaci couldn't see clearly from hundreds of steps away, he could guess that this action meant great disrespect.
He flicked his riding crop, veins bulged on his forehead, and he cursed and spat.
But after a while, he laughed sinisterly again: "It's crazy, isn't it... My son Huang Taiji will surprise you!"
…
The entire Ming army retreated across the Hun River, demolishing the pontoon bridge and leaving only the original stone bridge.
"Wan Sheng!"
It was so satisfying to shoot down the Jiannu cavalry just now, the morale of the whole army was greatly boosted, and the prestige of Zhou Dunji and Wang Hongyu increased again.
Chen Ce, Tong Zhongkui, Qi Jin and others welcomed them back, and everyone was encouraged by the defeat of the main force of the Eight Banners.
You Shigong was injured, and most of the Shenyang army was exhausted.
Let them escort tens of thousands of refugees to retreat in the direction of Guangning.
Regarding the current situation, Tong Zhongkui believed: "Our army only needs to line up guns and artillery to guard the Hun River. No matter how good Nurhachi is at field warfare, he cannot break through the firepower of our army."
Qi Jin also nodded: "Half a year ago, Wang Youyi proposed to reserve gunpowder, and now it plays a key role! As long as there is enough gunpowder, our Zhejiang soldiers will definitely be able to stop Nurhaci and prevent them from crossing the river!"
The fighting spirit of the generals was high, the clouds of the loss of Shenyang dissipated, and everyone in the Southern Army broke the psychological fear that the Jiannu field battle would be difficult to defeat.
Wang Hongyu kept frowning, thinking about one thing.
"Brother Wang, you look so serious, weren't you injured just now?" Tong Zhongkui asked with great concern.
He watched Wang Hongyu become a martial arts expert and knew that he was very skilled. This trivial matter should be fine, but there is always a chance...
"Is there no news yet about Li Bingcheng's rout?"
Chen Ce and others looked at each other, and everyone was at a loss.
Guns expert Zhang Mingshi thought for a while and guessed: "The messenger was sent two hours ago, maybe he is on his way back?"
"It's possible..." The other generals also felt that Li Bingcheng didn't need to worry too much.
"No!"
Wang Hongyu categorically denied this view.
I just saw yellow, red, blue and white flags during the battle.
Both the red flag and the red flag have arrived.
The blue flag, the yellow flag and the white flag also appeared.
The yellow flag belongs to Nurhachi himself, probably in Shenyang behind...
The most terrifying Huang Taiji and his Zhengbai flag did not appear!
"Let the Zhejiang troops withdraw from the Hun River and go directly to the Hun River Bastion to defend. The other armies will also retreat and redefine."
The Hun River Bastion is a small fortress temporarily built in the name of a prison. It is located two miles further south than the Hun River.
After listening to Wang Hongyu's suggestion, everyone's expressions changed.
"Isn't it appropriate? Our army fired artillery in a linear formation along the river. Jiannu couldn't cross the river at all. Why should we withdraw?" Zhang Mingshi was very puzzled.
Ran Yuelong, Qin Bangping and other chieftain generals also thought of counterattacking before attacking... and must conquer Shenyang, but they all felt that they should not retreat.
Even Tong Zhongkui, who had always been supportive, shook his head: "It's not appropriate. It's a big push, then it weakens again, and it's exhausted all the time. How can our army retreat after winning? This will be discouraged..."
The old general Chen Ce closed his eyes and thought, and finally said: "Even if Li Bingcheng's troops don't move closer to me, he will be fine with his 10,000 troops.
In addition, I have asked for reinforcements from Liaoyang. We only need to use firearms to guard the Hun River, and we can counterattack as soon as the reinforcements arrive. We really should not retreat, even to a small fortress two miles back."
Wang Hongyu continued to insist on his own opinions alone.
Finally, the eldest brother Zhou Dunji also spoke up and said: "I agree with the third brother's suggestion. The Jiannu troops are still there. Huang Taiji is more cunning than the other leaders of the Jiannu. We need to be on the safe side."
"That's not right! It was you who just shouted, 'If you can't save Shen, what will happen in three years?'! Now it's you who agree to retreat! Isn't this inappropriate?" Guard Lei Anmin questioned.
Although he was also affiliated with the Sichuan soldiers and Tusi soldiers, he had little contact with Liu Wei and Zhou Dunji, so he started to question them without any worries.
With Lei Anmin taking the lead, all the generals still felt that they could not listen to Wang Hongyu and Zhou Dunji this time.
"I think we should retreat to the small fortress."
Everyone looked around and saw Zhao Hannian, the commander-in-chief of the Zhejiang Army, speaking.
"After all, there are only less than 4,000 Zhejiang soldiers. If we gather the entire army of Franconians and only 200 Tiger Guns, they will not be able to stop tens of thousands of Jian slaves from crossing the river at night."
There are only three people who have different opinions from the generals, and their positions are Staff General, Guerrilla and Chief Qian.
The remaining two generals, a deputy general, a staff general, and the chieftain general all felt that we should continue.
In the end, due to the number of people and positions, we continued to hold on to the south bank of the Hun River, and the Southern Army camp continued to be placed not far from the river, and there was no retreat for the time being.
Night quickly fell over.
The Jiannu on the north side of the Hun River withdrew to Shenyang City. Chen Ce and Qi Jin also sent people to pay attention to the water volume of the Hun River, but found no signs of the Jiannu mobilizing troops and using water to attack.
"It should be okay to continue holding on..."
Chen Ce confirmed it repeatedly, but he also felt a little uneasy in his heart.
In particular, the messenger who contacted Li Bingcheng's ministry never came back, so he had to send several groups of people to contact Li Bingcheng and Liaoyang.
Wang Hongyu did not give up. Thinking about the current situation, there are subtle differences between his own influence and the historical trend.
Among the Manchu people, Huang Taiji was the most terrifying.
I didn't see this person today. It's impossible that he was left behind, and it's impossible to go to Liaoyang with just one or two flags.
Therefore, it is very likely that when attacking Shenyang, they would cross the river from the lower reaches and deal with the defeated Li Bingcheng...
No, can't wait.
Let’s go to the elder brother first and convince the other generals one by one...
"Third brother!"
Just as we were about to leave, our eldest brother Zhou Dunji came first.
The two of them were not long-winded. After a brief exchange, they both felt that they could not sit still and wait for death.
First, he communicated with Qin Liangyu's brother, and then came to find Chen Ce.
When we arrived at Chen Ce's camp, Tong Zhongkui happened to be there too.