As soon as the hot air balloon inflated, it was discovered by the Turpan army below, and a burst of gunfire rang out at the same time.
Just this year, the Prussian watchmaker John Keevers invented the revolving musket (flintlock). But it was not an impact type, but a friction type. Inspired by matches, this friction type flintlock may be the key to success.
Sometimes I can't start a fire.
With Wang Yuan's directional guidance, everything from the three-eyed musket to the matchlock gun to the percussion flintlock gun was a matter of course.
At the turn of autumn and winter last year, the matchlock gun was already out. It was not built on a large scale immediately. Instead, flint and fire doors were added to turn it into a flintlock gun. The craftsmen hammered and hammered, hurrying and slowly. When the Shenji Camp moved to Hami,
In total, 923 guns were made, and granular gunpowder was used.
"Snap, snap, snap!"
A burst of white smoke rose from the hillside, and more than twenty Turpan cavalry below fell instantly.
Alas, far away in the Western Regions, gunpowder is precious and there is no live ammunition training. More than 900 flintlock muskets were fired in a salvo, and it was still in ambush mode, but only more than 20 cavalry were hit.
The Turpan army instantly panicked, especially when they saw the hot air balloon rising. Many soldiers and civilians subconsciously ran away or knelt down.
Fortunately, this is a mountain pass. Otherwise, after the Turpan soldiers and civilians were ambushed, they would probably have fled in small groups. Now they can only choose to break out to the grassland to the north, or go back to Hami, whichever is closer.
Just run away wherever you go.
Man Su'er was also frightened. This was the first time he encountered a firearm since he was a child!
There were artillery and muskets in Jiayuguan, but Mansu'er had not really checked the pass and had not personally experienced the power of firearms. He had only heard about it from spies.
According to Man Su'er's knowledge, the Ming Dynasty's fire cannon can only hit a distance of ten feet (about 30 meters), but it has no power further away.
Seeing the commotion in his army, Mansuer immediately commanded the guards around him and used his prestige and force to calm the mood. He pointed at the hot air balloon and shouted: "That is the devil, Allah asked us to kill the devil!"
Four to five thousand cavalrymen rushed up the hillside. They had to dismount halfway and then climbed crazily upwards.
The rest of the troops urged the people to cross the mountain pass quickly and throw away any belongings that were inconvenient to move.
"Dang-dang-dang-dang!"
Gongs and drums were beating on the hillside, and more than 900 fusiliers retreated directly to the mountain without firing a second shot.
The hillsides here are in the shape of steps, with one part flat and the other steep.
By the time the Turpan soldiers climbed to the position of the fusiliers, the second row of 1,000-and-3-eyed musketry troops were already waiting for them to die with their fire certificates.
Facing a cavalry charge on the flat ground, these Shenji battalions in the capital might be afraid, or they might just shoot them. But this is a hillside, so what a fright!
Those Turpan soldiers rushed towards them brandishing machetes, and fired a volley of 1,030-eyed muskets instantly.
Standing down from a high position, with a distance of more than ten meters, the three-eyed gun has the attribute of a sprayer, and it sweeps away a large area. Steel balls, iron sheets, iron sand... With the gunpowder sprayed out, more than two hundred enemies were knocked down in an instant.
And he didn't die on the spot. He was embedded with iron pieces and iron sand all over his body. He was rolling on the ground in pain. The killing effect was more terrifying than that of a flintlock gun.
"Dang-dang-dang!"
This row of three-eyed musket soldiers also quickly retreated. The third row of three-eyed musket soldiers were on standby. The more than 900 fusiliers who had retreated earlier had already arrived at the firing position.
Four thousand Turpan soldiers lay on the ground, neither daring to retreat nor to charge again.
They had already crossed a relatively flat area, and the front was extremely steep. This position was in a blind spot for shooting. They would be beaten if they retreated, and they would be beaten if they climbed up. Instead, it was safest to lie down where they were.
For Mansuer, this is enough.
Because the Ming Dynasty's musketeers had withdrawn beyond the effective range, they were unable to kill the Turpan soldiers and civilians passing through the valley.
"What should I do?" Zhang Zigao was a little worried.
Could a well-planned ambush kill two to three hundred enemies?
Li Ying pointed at the hot air balloon and said with a smile: "Look at them."
The wind direction in the valley is fixed all year round. Affected by the westerly airflow, it forms a narrow tube effect, with frequent and strong winds.
More than a dozen hot air balloons were tied by ropes to the hillside, but were blown high over the valley by the strong wind.
The rattan basket kept swaying with the airflow, and seemed to fall down at any time. Although the heater was equipped with a windproof device, the flames were still blown out by the strong wind, but in the end they were firmly suspended in the sky above the valley. The soldiers used their bodies to block the strong wind, and the fire broke out.
When I came out, the wind blew me into an open flame.
Mines!
This thing existed in the early Ming Dynasty. Zhu Di encountered it when he beat Zhu Yunwen: "In the place where firearms are hidden, if people and horses encounter them, they will die!"
The soldiers on the hot air balloon lit the fuse and immediately threw it down.
The thunder shell is made of stone and contains a lot of iron sand.
Due to the strong wind, some fuses were blown out and fell down, hitting the unlucky guy. Some were blown to accelerate combustion and exploded in mid-air, scattering the iron sand and pieces in the mine.
There were not many people killed or injured in the explosion, but it was more terrifying than the previous volley of muskets.
The war horses, which had never experienced the baptism of firearms, were so frightened that they were no longer under the control of their masters and ran wildly with their hooves raised.
Mansu'er was almost thrown over by his mount and led his troops in a mad dash through the ambush site.
But the cavalry troops had lost order, and some horses even rushed up the hillside, or turned back to attack the people of Turpan.
The more than 4,000 cavalrymen at the rear did not dare to run back. Even if it was safer to escape from the valley, they would die if they returned to Hami. They could only rush in and hack to death the civilians who stood in the way.
The civilians don't care about so many, they don't want their livestock or property, some run to the north, some run to the south, or they don't know how to run, anyway, they just don't want to stay where they are and wait to die - in fact, mines and muskets are both
Stay far away from them, and you won't be killed by firearms if you stay where you are.
"Boom boom boom!"
Finally, two landmines fell on the train and exploded. More than a dozen camels and cattle ran around in panic, killing and trampling countless people along the way.
The scene was chaotic. In fact, the direct damage was limited, and most of the enemies were trampled to death.
Unfortunately, the load of the hot air balloon was limited, and all the landmines were thrown away in a short time.
Being blown by the strong wind, the fuel was quickly consumed, and it could only be pulled back by the combined efforts of soldiers on the ground.
"Go back and organize the army!"
Mansu'er, who rushed out of the ambush area, returned with his guards and organized civilians to continue escorting the supplies forward.
How to organize?
If you don't obey, you'll be killed. If you chop a few more times, you'll calm down!
The three thousand musketry soldiers were very embarrassed. They were forced to leave the effective firing range. At the same time, they did not dare to go back because there were still four thousand Turpan soldiers lying on the hillside.
The four thousand Turpan soldiers were also embarrassed. They lay in the blind spot and did not dare to move. They were in a dilemma.
What's even more speechless is that because the wind in the valley is too strong, the Turpan soldiers' bows and arrows become decorations, and they are blown away after being shot. Otherwise, they can still lie in the blind corner and throw arrows at the fire cannon soldiers above.
There are still more than 20 landmines that have not been carried to the sky by hot air balloons.
Li Ying directed the soldiers to move to the front, light them with fire sticks and throw them down.
"Boom boom boom!"
The Turpan soldiers who were lying in the blind spot were immediately blown to pieces by the mines, and then turned around and fled into the valley desperately.
The soldiers with three-eyed guns who had been prepared for a long time immediately fired a volley of thousands of people. Unfortunately, the distance was a bit far and the wind speed was too strong, so they only killed and wounded dozens of people.
The two thousand musketeers who had retreated quickly rushed back to their original shooting positions and fired volleys at the enemies in the valley.
Unfortunately, the firing speed is too slow, the wind is too strong, and the accuracy is too low.
Although a large formation was launched and the enemy was shot in disorder, it still could not cause huge casualties. Instead, the enemy's self-trampling was astonishingly lethal.
Li Ying looked at the chaotic valley and muttered: "It would be great if there was a cavalry at this time."
"Boom!"
The thunderous sound of horse hooves came from outside the valley, and Mansu'er shouted in panic: "Abandon the baggage and the population, and withdraw the entire army to the north!"