Chapter 348: Unreasonable march arrangement

In the 14th year of Chongzhen, the Qing Dynasty outside the pass used the technology brought by Han firearm craftsmen to start casting artillery. When Jierharang and Abatai attacked Xingshan City, the artillery used was a twelve-pound cannon, which is the so-called general cannon.

The twelve-pound cannon cast by the Qing Dynasty weighed 3,800 kilograms. When transporting this cannon, you should not use a horse to pull the cart, but a cow with more powerful strength to drag it.

In fact, for most of the time, whether it was the Ming Dynasty or the Qing Dynasty outside the pass, these cannons were placed on the top of the city for defense. There was no other reason, and the cannon was too heavy.

The Weapon Manufacturing Bureau of Jiaozhou Camp strives for excellence in all craftsmanship and is strict in the process. The person in charge is Sun Hedou who is familiar with cannon making. The cannons they made are about 3,200 kilograms, and there are special cannon mounts and cannons, which are much more flexible when moving.

However, this kind of ambition is also relative. Even the weight of such cannons is the gun mount and cannon truck, ordinary roads cannot afford it, let alone the wet land in the water net area.

But a large number of civilians and Ding Zhuang had prepared a long time ago. Each of them carried a bag of gravel on their backs. There were other materials on the ship behind them. After they got ashore, the soldiers piled up in front, and three three-pound cannons were there to move at any time, pushing forward step by step.

The civilian Ding Zhuang, behind, hurriedly paved the way. Such a job is comfortable to do. Anyway, the soldiers in front are holding on, and they will run first if they want to run. The more money you give, the job is safe, and the end is very sufficient, with gravel on the ground and simply compacting it.

Then he used a large wooden board to mat it, and the paving civilians also pulled the cannons under the command of the officers. The ground was solid and the people were numerous and the power was great. This was how he tossed the twelve-pound cannons up.

The twelve-pound cannons are general cannons, and the fifteen-pound and eighteen-pound cannons are called general cannons. In the notes and articles of literati in the late Ming Dynasty, they were called "one cannon is shot out, and it is decayed for several miles."

Although the real power is not so exaggerated, compared to the three-pound cannon and the six-pound cannon, the power cannot be measured by the increase in the number of pounds.

Liu Xiyao, the king of the Left Jin in the Fifth Camp of the Left, was good at defending. Although he was not good at fighting the Huaiyang Army outside, he did have his own uniqueness in the defense within Zhengyang Town.

If the troops were allowed to rush in, the strengths of the Huaiyang Army and the power of the Jiaozhou Ying Huaiyang Army and the power of the spear and muskets could not be displayed, but they would fall into a melee battle with the other party and would definitely encounter great losses.

There is almost no need for Shandong Salt Gang to inquire about these situations, and a lot of news is open. The 20,000 Nanjing Imperial Guards led by the eunuch Lu Jiude of Nanjing, but they have no sense of confidentiality. They are like sieves, and all kinds of news can be found out.

Since this is the case, Chen Liu, the local lieutenant general of the Huaiyang Army, did not want to pay attention to the brave ones who met on a narrow road. He simply used artillery to blast them out first.

Even if you can't fight, the troops under Liu Xiyao, the King of Zuo Jin, were all pulled into the town. Thinking about it, something was wrong, and thinking about organizing a charge to attack. The range and power of the cannon outside, with the firepower arranged by Zhengyang Town, may have to be passively beaten.

The closer you get to Zhengyang Town, the wider the terrain becomes, but the front is almost filled with musket soldiers and spear soldiers of the Huaiyang Army in Jiaozhou. How can you rush out in front of such a situation? As soon as you show up, you will be beaten out immediately.

After reaching a certain position, the civilians began to build a soil platform, which was as high as possible than the flat ground on the side. The four twelve-pound cannons were pushed to this point with difficulty.

Four twelve-pound cannons and four three-pound cannons were placed under the earth platform, building artillery positions at a very close distance.

As soon as the posture was changed, the soldiers of the Fifth Battalion of Gezuo in Zhengyang Town no longer cared about defending fortifications and ran out of the room and fled away from the artillery.

Liu Xiyao's artillery was set in the middle of the town. He wanted to attack the officers and soldiers rushing into the town, but now he didn't even have a chance to counterattack.

There are no soldiers in front of the artillery. In the artillery position, far from the gunpowder site, there is a burning stove, and metal shells are burning red in this stove.

The Huaiyang Army soldiers on the fleet on the river had already started to disembark. Although the space for laying down the troops was very narrow, they still piled up the troops as much as possible. Chen Liu also came to the front place. His personal guards set up a simple wooden platform for him and let him stand on it to watch. This was a safe enough distance.

Chen Liu did not give too many instructions in the battle next time. When the battle situation was completely based on the plan and plan, there was no suspense about victory.

In the first round of volleys of the twelve-pound cannons, the burning iron balls that roared and flew rapidly, turned into a disaster in Zhengyang Town. There were people hiding in the houses and fortifications on the front line, hoping to ambush and kill the officers and soldiers who rushed in, but the shells of the twelve-pound cannons directly penetrated the walls and houses.

Not only were the people on the front line unlucky, but also the soldiers of the Fifth Battalion of Gezuo who felt they had retreated to a safe distance were also hit by the flying shells.

Such red shells were extremely miserable as long as they were scratched. After the first round of artillery shells, the troops of Liu Xiyao, the troops in Zhengyang Town could no longer be suppressed. After the second round of artillery shells, the King of Zuo Jin no longer hoped to control the troops and fled to the town with his men.

If he didn't run away, his troops would also collapse. The range of the twelve-pound cannon almost covers the entire Zhengyang Town. No one felt that he would have such good luck to avoid the attack of this cannon that looked like thunder.

The first round was shooting at an elevation angle, and the second round was similar flat shooting, and the houses in front of the artillery position were smashed into pieces.

Seeing the Zuo Jin King Liu Xiyao leading the soldiers to withdraw from the town in panic, Chen Liu, the Huaiyang Army general, did not order the pursuit, but just let his subordinates enter Zhengyang Town.

There were no residents in this town here for a long time. They either arrested the civilians by the Fifth Camp of the Left, or fled before the war disaster came.

But Chen Liu had already brought a large number of civilians and Ding Zhuang. The first thing the soldiers of the Huaiyang Army did when they entered the town was to search for the remaining enemies. At the order of the officers, they divided into small teams to search door to door in the town. However, the fighting will of the Gzuo Fifth Camp was even weaker than what the Huaiyang Army had expected.

However, seeing some wounded soldiers who were abandoned by their companions because of their disability made the Huaiyang Army even more despised the Fifth Battalion of the Gleath. It was really overestimated to treat them equally with the Chuangzang and Cao Cao's army.

After the search of the remaining enemies, the Huaiyang Army immediately pushed the light artillery to various crossings, and the soldiers from each battalion also fell under the command of the officers.

The civilians and Ding Zhuang, who followed the fleet, immediately started to build a circle of low walls on the land around the town with the civil engineering that was bombarded with the ruins of the houses. The wrecks on the river were also salvaged as much as possible and used as construction work.

The fortifications built by Liu Xiyao, the king of Zuojin, in Zhengyang Town, were all repaired as much as possible by soldiers of the Huaiyang Army in Jiaozhou Camp, and there were positions for fire to muskets and cannons at various points.

In the direction where the Left Jin King Liu Xiyao left, there were always two cannons and the power of two battalions of soldiers to defend, so as not to return.

After the construction of simple fortifications and defense systems was completed, the river was almost cleaned up. Although the soldiers had participated in the battle since they got off the ship. There was no rest time to build fortifications, Chen Liu, as the head coach, did not mean to let the soldiers rest.

Even he himself participated in the fortifications and construction activities, but the people from the place he followed the boat had already started to eat and rest, and everyone was very happy.

These civil servants were originally the vassals of the Jiaozhou-ying Tuntianzhuang in Jiaozhou. However, more were vassals and tenants of the wealthy merchants in Yangzhou who were in Fengyang Prefecture and Luzhou Prefecture. This time, the recruitment was made nearby and it was convenient to gather together, but the orders of the master cannot be disobeyed.

But these civil servants were reluctant. This was the busy season of farming, and they were conscripted by officers and soldiers to fight for labor, delaying their farm work. Moreover, there were other soldiers and horses recruited civil servants from the Southern Zhili period, without giving any rewards, and they were often arrested for military service.

Every time I encounter such a matter of recruiting civil servants, even the salt merchants behind these civil servants refuse to refuse. Who would have thought that this time they would take the initiative to deliver them to their door.

I came over with anxiety. The more I worked, the more I became more and more excited. As soon as the war started, the soldiers from Jiaozhou camp were in front of me. They came to work, so they didn't have to worry about being arrested as cannon fodder. They also had a good meal, had a few strength to sell and did a good job, and the soldiers from Shandong were given a few more money on the spot.

There is such a good thing. The civilians who followed the troop transport ships were very energetic, and even the officers and soldiers were unwilling to let them take a rotation rest.

The civilians and men are relatively simple to think about, and many people don’t think about something wrong. That is, after the Huaiyang troops entered Zhengyang Town, most of the troops were arranged in the east of the town, that is, Shouzhou. To the west of the town, there were layers of construction fortifications in Yingshang and Huoqiu, and several cannons were also transferred there.

The civilians who had a short rest were soon mobilized again. They also had to dig a deep enough trench outside Zhengyang Town to cover the entire town.

If you cannot set up a high wall in a hurry, you have to use deep ditch instead...

Around Zhengyang Town, there are low walls and trenches, and there are various fortifications in the town. Several powerful cannons were placed in key positions. It seems that Chen Liu, the leader of the Huaiyang Army, also wanted to hold on here, but Zhang Xianzhong and the large troops of the Fifth Battalion of the Gezuo were clearly in Yingshang and Huoqiu, west of Zhengyang Town.

What Chen Liu, the general of the Huaiyang Army who had gained the upper hand, should do is to use Zhengyang Town as a base for military supplies and then continue to advance and fight, why is it built into a fortress?

This situation is a bit unpleasant. If you go out to pursue and retreat, there will be such a fortress standing there, which will block the retreat route.

The actions of Chen Liu, the general of Huaiyang Army, had a positive saying, "It is steady in dealing with things and dare not make a rash move, but it still seems a bit strange."

Lu Jiude, the eunuch in Nanjing who was stationed in Shouzhou City, is still focusing on Li Chuang's troops in Henan. The current king of rebellion Li Zicheng and Cao Cao Luo Rucai are still changing the order of the army, adjusting the defense direction of the team, and waiting for the horse to find out the news in Guide.

But their unmoving and the rumors that they are becoming more and more outrageous in Nanzhili give people the illusion that the millions of troops in Henan are about to move south.

Although Zhang Xianzhong and Ge Zuo Fifth Battalion had different thoughts, they still reduced their teams to ensure a more stable control of the territory that had been captured, so as not to have any unexpected happenings.

Lu Jiude relocated the 60,000 troops in Nanzhili in his hand. In addition to focusing on the focus of his defense in the northern and northwest of Shouzhou, he also allowed the reinforcements of Fengyang Zhongdu who had been transferred back to Fengyang. He was preparing to divide the troops in his hand into another 5,000 troops to Fengyang.

In Nanzhili, Fengyang and Nanjing City, where the imperial tomb are located, are absolutely not allowed to be misleaded. If any mistakes occur, officials must be responsible for their own heads. I really don’t dare to be careless.

The more than 10,000 troops led by the deputy general of Shandong and the Huaiyang Army General Chen Liu, now seem to have been forgotten by all parties. For Zhang Xianzhong and the fifth camp of Ge Zuo, these more than 10,000 troops did not pose any threat at all. Moreover, they were too low-key. After capturing Zhengyang Town, it seemed that they had no intention of moving forward.

As for the eunuch Lu Jiude, the governor of Nanjing, the Huaiyang Army is an external Shandong army. Whatever he does, he will do whatever he does.

As a result, this army became a temporary forgetful existence on both sides.

During these days, under the command of the officers, civil servants and Ding Zhuang continued to repair fortifications. In the river beside Zhengyang Town, ships flowed endlessly. A large number of supplies and support were sent.

It seems that the more than 10,000 troops in the Huaiyang army and the land also regard this place as a permanent camp, but no one cares about their thoughts. When it comes to this urgent situation, who can care about them?

After all the Qingzhou troops in Shandong entered Shuyang, they took a break and did not take over the already thin Huaiyang Army defense zone. Instead, they used the water system of the canal transport and the salt transport river to go south. After heading south to the Huaihe River, they followed the Huaihe River all the way westward and finally stopped in Zhoujiaqiao Town on the shore of Hongze Lake.

The camp was stationed in Henan for so long, although the officers and soldiers were thinking about just getting by and ensuring that everything was foolproof, but in Huoqiu, Zhang Xianzhong and Ge Zuo Fifth Camp in Yingshang finally couldn't sit still.

At the end of mid-May, Ainengqi and Feng Shuangli led a 40,000 army to try to retake Zhengyang Town. In this terrain with dense water networks, the appearance of 40,000 people was really amazing.

Watching Zhang Xianzhong soldiers rushing from all directions all over the mountains, some on small boats and sampans, and some rushed over directly on foot from all over the land.

Ai Nengqi and Feng Shuangli were both old subordinates who had followed Zhang Xianzhong around for so many years, and were also the backbone of military generals and military officers. After knowing the battle example of Liu Xiyao, the King of the Left Jin, he could not think of any way to repel the opponent. Originally, the southern part of Fengyang Prefecture was densely covered with water networks and the terrain was very cramped.

When a close fight is truly close, you cannot deploy too many troops. Compared with the quality of the troops, even the strongest troops led by Zhang Xianzhong - the inner camp, there may not be the sudden appearance of the Huaiyang Army. If you choose a little attack, you will not be able to break it.

It would be better to surround the ten sides and attack as many as possible. After all, this group of officers and soldiers is only 10,000. With a large number of people, as long as they can break into Zhengyang Town, this small town will definitely collapse completely.

After demolishing several houses in Zhengyang Town, two observation buildings were built, and you could see the amazing army of refugees outside.

As the commander-in-chief, Chen Liu stood on the lookout building, looking around with one hand. Seeing the sound, he just tsk twice, but there was no look of surprise and fear.

Ainengqi got closer and saw that the construction of Zhengyang Town fortifications seemed to be a normal one. After many years of fighting, although he was in his early thirties, he could still take a veteran. He subconsciously took a breath of air conditioning and thought about how to fight. He saw that there was almost no flaw in his own eyes.

Soon, Feng Shuangli brought his personal guards to the other side. Ainengqi turned to look at his colleague. Feng Shuangli immediately understood what the other party meant when he saw the embarrassed look on his face. He lowered his voice, but said indifferently:

"It's not worth a penny, he will die!"

This is what Zhang Xianzhong said in private, Sun Kewang, Li Dingguo and some of their confidant generals, including the two of them, said that I have you and the backbone soldiers you brought, no matter where you go, you can make a comeback. As for these gathered refugees, it is not worth a penny. There is no need to be a pity when using it, even if you let them die.

Since Zhang Xianzhong started his army in Shaanxi, he has never been able to take advantage of the Ming Dynasty's official army. He won several battles either with Luo Rucai or with Li Zicheng.

But when I was walking alone, I rarely saw any glory, but the world was really chaotic. The famous name of the Eight Kings Zhang Xianzhong, no matter where I went, there were refugees looking at the scenery and could easily gather an army.

There are always large troops, but there is no highlight. It is obviously related to Zhang Xianzhong's "not worth a penny" attitude, but this practice of maintaining backbone and ignoring the death and injury of refugees has indeed trained a group of generals. Sun Kewang, Li Dingguo and Today are both gradually growing up.

With such a tentative attack, the Eight Kings Zhang Xianzhong was reluctant to use the backbone forces to fight. Today, the 40,000 are mostly the newly gathered refugees, and they are completely used as cannon fodder to test them.

Although the Fifth Battalion of the Left was nominally obeyed Zhang Xianzhong's orders, the two sides were still clearly divided. Liu Xiyao, the King of the Left Jin, had already suffered a loss, and it was Zhang Xianzhong's turn to be his troops.

Feng Shuangli said unscrupulously, and the personal guards surrounded him all had their faces unchanged, and they didn't feel strange at all. They were also from refugees who were worthless, but they survived the bloody battle. Now they became valuable, which is naturally different from those cannon fodders.

Since the tone was set, Ai Nengqi had nothing to say, so he directly ordered an attack, whether it was the troops of the Eight Kings Zhang Xianzhong, the Fifth Battalion of the Glea Left, or even the millions of refugees in Henan. Everyone has a habit of developing past battles, that is, they are disdainful of the combat power of officers and soldiers.

Even though these refugees were all new recruits and did not even have decent weapons, they still rushed up with confidence, either because of fanaticism or because they felt that the other party was vulnerable.

An army that shrinks into this small town with a slight victory is not worthy of attention.

When the refugees shouted and rushed up from all directions, they fired six three-pound cannons first. The crowd was so dense that the place where the shells flew past was a bloody road.

Four twelve-pound cannons were about thirty steps behind the three-pound cannons. When these four cannons roared, the tide-like chargers suddenly became quiet.

The heavy shells of the twelve-pound cannon directly wade through several blood rivers in the crowd. This was like a blow, full of confidence and high morale, the offensive of the refugee troops immediately slowed down.

But the cannons can only attack a few lines, and more refugees rushed to the low walls and trenches, and then the muskets that ejected from the shooting holes of the low walls began to roar.

All around Zhengyang Town were instantly filled with smoke...
Chapter completed!