On the twenty-eighth day of the twelfth lunar month of the Yongli calendar, the Ming army launched a crazy offensive against the Qing army in a defensive state before dawn in the morning. In just one morning, the Ming army conquered three fortresses and killed, wounded, and captured no less than 700 green battalions.

More than 700 casualties, which was not a real loss for the Qing army - when the casualties reached this number, it meant that more officers and non-commissioned officers fled, and it was difficult for the defeated army to reorganize and enter the battle for a while. That is to say, the green battalions stationed in these three fortresses can basically be said to have disappeared in the battle sequence of the main force of the Qing army in Quzhou, and the number presented before the Jidu case was as many as 2,000 green battalions.

The 2,000 Green Battalion is nothing to the main force of the Qing army in Quzhou, which still has an army of 38,000 after several divisions. Especially if the losses are all the green battalion soldiers who are at the forefront of the battle line, it is even more insignificant. However, this was only a morning's work, and the Ming army wiped out the number that had not been eaten for a month in a few hours on the eve of the Lunar New Year. And even worse, such an offensive is still ongoing. Jidu could even imagine that before he received the first urgent document, there might have been more forts in jeopardy under the Ming army's offensive.

Artillery!

Artillery!

Or artillery!

Every urgent document sent back from the front invariably mentions that the Ming army transferred an astonishing number of artillery pieces and bombarded the fortress indiscriminately. Immediately afterwards, the infantry with superior numbers launched a surprise attack, and the Qing army was completely passively beaten, until the fortress was lost, and the rout fled in disarray.

According to past intelligence, in order to ensure the combat effectiveness of the front-line army, the Ming army would adopt the method of changing defenses, replacing the tired troops on the front line with the rear to rest and recuperate, and replacing the new forces in the rear to continue to maintain the offensive. What the troops on the front line of the Qing army and the Tanma can see is that the numbers of the Ming army are constantly alternating.

However, with so much artillery, the Qing court's meticulous work lurking in Fujian did not report it. Or, they were all rebelled by the Ming army; Either that, the Ming army took advantage of the normal change of defense and left the artillery groups under the town that should have been withdrawn to northern Fujian with the towns north of Xianxia Pass and hid them......

The process is no longer important, and now what is in front of Ji Du is the offensive launched by the Ming army a year ago, and it is clear that it is to open up the situation before Guan Xiaozhong arrives. Recalling Kadahun's letter, he was even more sure of the Ming army's intentions.

"Let Kadahun and Badu withdraw to Quzhou!"

Gushan Ezhen Gadahun was in Longyou, and Mel Zhangjingba were both in Longyou, and they were respectively responsible for assisting in the defense of the flanks of the main force in Quzhou and ensuring the food route of the army. Here, after the shock of the Ming army's onslaught, Jidu's first reaction was to transfer all the troops back and fight Zheng Chenggong in a decisive battle.

Hearing this, all the generals spoke out against it, and even the most reckless Mel Zhangjing Akshan on weekdays did not agree with such a disposition, thinking that there was simply not enough time to return to help now.

"Then leave all your heavy equipment behind and rush back day and night. The pirates have not been able to pass for many years, and this is to seek a decisive battle with our army! ”

Jidu pressed his hands on the table and gasped as he spoke. In this regard, Akshan still wanted to persuade, but was preempted by Baya Laja Zhangjing Jue Luo Yabulan.

"Lord Wang, the slave thinks that there are only two thousand Eight Banner troops in Badu, and the rest are green battalion soldiers. Moreover, Ma Jinbao's ......"

Jue Luo Yabulan said it very tactfully, but this reminder made Jidu calm down a little. Indeed, he still had 18,000 Eight Banners from Manchuria, Mongolia and Han armies, and the return of these 2,000 men could not be of great use. However, once Badu withdrew with the Eight Banners Army, Ma Jinbao of Jinhua might have thoughts such as the Qing army was tight in Quzhou and the Ming army already had an advantage. At that time, Huang Ting invaded Jinhua Mansion again, and it was difficult to guarantee that Ma Jinbao, who had long been in contact with the anti-Qing people in eastern Zhejiang, would not raise troops against the Qing.

Once Ma Jinbao is anyway, in order to prove his worth to the new master, he will definitely send troops to block Guan Allegiance. That guy is not the chief military officer of the town, the system of the early Qing Dynasty, the general army of Jinhua is responsible for the defense of Jinhua, Quzhou, Yanzhou, and Chuzhou. Even if Chuzhou has been lost, Quzhou has a large army stationed at this stage, and that guy is in charge of the two prefectures of Jinhua and Yanzhou. If Guan Allegian wanted to reach Quzhou, he must pass through Yanzhou and Jinhua, and there were many places that could be fortified during the period. At that time, even if Guan Allegiance defeated Ma Jinbao, it would inevitably delay his arrival in Quzhou.

This is a chain reaction, compared to continuing to let Badu sit in Longyou and transfer back the 2,000 Eight Banner Army, which led to the erosion of the hinterland of Zhejiang, and the Ming army cut off the connection between the Quzhou army and Hangzhou in one fell swoop, and Guan Zhong's southward aid was blocked, which can be said to be more than worth the loss.

Ji Du, who had calmed down again, also sat back on the Taishi chair, and after a while, he immediately gave up Longyou's order to return to the Eight Banners Army. However, Kadahun had to return to Quzhou.

"Lord Wang, Kadahun has returned to help, and the army has to go out to Jiangshan County, and even the first line of Wuqing Mountain and Horse Riding Mountain."

The Ming army regained Fujian, but because it swallowed too much of the control area in the short term, it was eager to digest it, and did not launch an offensive north of Xianxia Pass. After Jidu led the army to Quzhou, he deployed the first line of defense in Xiakou Town. During this period, the Ming and Qing armies repeatedly fought for the fortress of this line. If nothing else, the Qing army has now retreated to the front line of Erdu and Fenglin Town. Perhaps, the next urgent letter will be the bad news that this line has been lost.

Once the Ming army controlled the first line of Erdu and Fenglin Town, it could attack Yongfeng County in Guangxin Prefecture to the west, and then threaten the city of Guangxin Prefecture, thus cutting off the connection between the main force of the Qing army in Quzhou and the partial division of Guangxin Prefecture. And once the Ming army further breaks through the defense line of Wuqing Mountain and Horse Mountain, it can enter the land of no one all the way to Jiangshan County. At that time, Yushan County and Changshan County were still second, and the key was that they were forced to Quzhou by the Ming army, and the Qing army could no longer suppress the hearts of the people in Zhejiang. At that time, the anti-Qing movement will be revived, and their army will be mired in a quagmire from which they will not be able to extricate themselves.

What Ashanger said was right, and Jidu knew very well that he not only needed to do it, but also did it as quickly as possible. Because, Jianning Mansion and Quzhou Mansion in northern Fujian are like an hourglass, and the narrowest place is Xianxia Pass. After passing the Xianxia Pass, every time the Ming army moved north, the terrain would become wider, and the more troops could be deployed, the more unfavorable it would be for them.

Taking advantage of the fact that they still have the advantage of strength at this stage, they should go south to block the way for the Ming army to continue to go north, so as to force the Ming army not to dare to divide a large number of troops to Guangxin Mansion, so as to ensure the passage of Kadahun's return to the division.

When the order was issued, the Qing army poured out, and the Eight Banners Army came out of the city empty, leaving only a very small number of green battalions to defend the city - the army could win the battle, and even as long as the Ming army's offensive could be intercepted, the capital city of Quzhou could be as safe as a rock. If it can't do what he wants, even if he leaves more troops, Quzhou City will not be able to hold it.

Along the official road, the Mongolian Eight Banners, all of which were cavalry, galloped towards the southwest as the vanguard of the army. At the iron hoof step, even if there are only more than 2,500 riders, it is like thunder. After running for more than 100 miles, it took less than a day to rush to the Qing army camp on the front line of Wuqing Mountain and Horse Mountain.

This is the reserve camp of the Quzhou Qing army against the three lines of defense of the Ming army in northern Fujian, and it is also the core support point of the fortresses as the last line of defense. At this time, the vanguard of reinforcements arrived, but Mel Zhangjing Ayuxi, as the commander of the front, did not see the slightest joy. Seeing this, it also surprised Ashangge, who came day and night.

"How's the battle going?"

"Back to the master's words, Erdu and Fenglin Town have been lost yesterday afternoon. If it weren't for the forts on the front line of the five green mountains and the horse riding mountain, they were all built by the mountains and defended by danger, I am afraid that they would not be able to hold out until now. But even so, the two fortresses at the front have been lost, and the Haikou has entered the mountain, and I am afraid that this place will not last tomorrow. ”

In just one day, the Ming army had already broken through two lines of defense, and then launched a fierce attack on this third line of defense after only one night's rest. Such an offensive really made Ah Shangge's brows tighten: "How many people are there in Haikou, how can they be defeated so quickly?" ”

As soon as these words came out, Ah Yuxi could only smile bitterly: "According to the banner people who fled back, it was the right pioneer town that Haikou took the lead in attacking Xiakou Town, and it was the left town of Rongqi and Qinding Town that rushed to the strongest side when the city of Erdu and Fenglin Town was broken. From yesterday afternoon to the present, the banners of Rong Banner Right Town, Left Chong Town, and Zhengbing Town have also appeared among the Haikou. In addition, in the past few days, Tanma has also discovered the banners of Haikou's North Town, Ranger Town, and Cheqi Town......"

Ah Yuxi's eloquent speech did solve Ah Shangge's doubts, but it also really made his brows get closer together, squeezing the center of his eyebrows almost without a cone.

The Qing court had been dealing with the Ming army in Fujian and Guangdong provinces for more than a decade, and according to the intelligence and battle records, Ashang knew that the Qing court also had a ranking of the strength and weakness of the Ming army's fighting power.

The first place is naturally Chen Kai's first town. It was the elite troops who had defeated the Southwest Jingbiao, Pingnan Jingnan and the two feudal domains, as well as a small number of elite troops of the Manchurian Eight Banners, and it was the Dinghai Shenzhu of the Ming army in the battlefields of Guangdong and Southern Jiangxi. This is a unit that is obviously superior to other towns in terms of combat effectiveness, and it is also a force that makes the Qing army scratch their heads. Because in addition to being cumbersome and unsuitable for fighting in the mountains, this town basically has no shortcomings, not to mention, and fighting in formation is even more invincible.

The other units of the superintendent, which are newly built and newly reorganized, are still unknown. The rest are not too conspicuous, and may also be too dazzling from the first town of the superintendent. Such a dazzling light not only obscures the light of the towns in Guangdong and southern Jiangxi, but also is difficult to avoid in Fujian.

However, as far as Asangge knows, Zheng Chenggong is not without ace troops in his hands - Qinding Town, Left Pioneer Town, Right Pioneer Town, which was the earliest army and has the most veterans, as well as Rongqi Left Town and Rongqi Right Town, which were formed by the elite of each town. They just didn't have as many opportunities to fight against different strong enemies as the first town of Dubiao, but they also defeated opponents such as the Eight Banners garrisoned in Hangzhou, and their combat effectiveness could not be ignored.

In the meantime, there have been Rongqi Left Town, Rongqi Right Town, Qinding Town, and Right Pioneer Town in Ah Yuxi's mouth, and four of the five elites of the Ming army in Fujian have emerged. Add to that the staggering number of artillery, and it's not surprising that these three lines, almost all of which were built on a smooth road, were beaten like this.

When he heard Ah Yuxi mention Beizhen, Ranger Town, and Cheqi Town, Ah Shangge was already very clear that his Mongolian Eight Banners reinforcements were actually impossible to stop the Ming army's offensive even a little bit - the terrain here was not suitable for cavalry performance. During this period, the Ming army gathered in three cavalry towns in northern Fujian, and the two thousand five hundred Mongolian Eight Banners had no advantage in numbers. As for letting the Mongolian Eight Banners get on their horses as if they were walking on the ground, and they might not even be able to walk steadily when they got off the horse, he asked himself if he could do such a stupid thing.

"In addition, Tanma reported that Haikou divided two towns to the west after capturing the Erdu, and it should be to attack Yongfeng County."

This is good news, and it's not good news.

Ashang followed the map in his mind, according to the map, and repeatedly calculated the division of troops of the Ming army again and again, especially the number of division troops, and the number of troops that the Ming army could gather on the main battlefield naturally became smaller and smaller. Moreover, Zheng Chenggong used these elite troops to storm the Qing army's defense line, although he could achieve a breakthrough faster, but it also inevitably consumed the combat power of these troops.

However, even so, their opponents still chose to divide two towns to attack Yongfeng County at this time, not only to complete the severance of the connection between Guangxin Mansion and Quzhou Mansion as soon as possible, but also to have great confidence in defeating the main force of the Qing army in Quzhou, an unknown confidence.

"Which two towns?"

"It's Forward Town and Soldier Town."

Yu Xin, the chief officer of Qianfeng Town, fought bravely, and this Qianfeng Town was only slightly inferior to the five elite troops in the Fujian Ming Army, which can be said to be a strong army. And that Yingbing Town, in the Fujian Ming Army, is almost a passerby-type existence. The chief military officer Huang Wu was only a military officer, relying on the merit of the surrender of Kaesong to join the Ming army and become an officer, and in the following years, he was promoted step by step until he led a town, and did not show anything outstanding.

After going through the military situation in his mind, Ashang probably figured out what the Ming army's division of troops meant this time, which was also a mixed blessing.

At this time, Ayuxi explained the current situation, and then asked about the main force of the Qing army, and after getting the answer that Jidu was leading the army to arrive, he immediately said that this line of defense could not hold on to Jidu's arrival.

"At most, when the prince arrives in Jiangshan County, this place will be conquered by the pirates. Throw the green camp down, we have to take the Eight Banners Army back to Jiangshan County to hold on. ”

If the situation is really critical enough to have to treat the Mongolian Eight Banners or the Eight Banners of the Han Army as outcasts, they will definitely do the same. What's more, it's just some green camps, some beards and eyebrows, it's not a big deal.

Of course, in order to avoid the Eight Banners Army smearing oil on the front foot, the Green Battalion surrendered to the Ming army on the back foot, so that they could not get out of danger safely. In this way, the more the Green Battalion worked hard, the greater the damage of the Ming army, and the easier it would be for them in the next confrontation.

Ashang Ge walked through the scene with the Mongolian Eight Banners, and vigorously publicized that Jidu was on the way with the main force, which really boosted the morale of the Qing army and allowed them to hold out until the evening. Next, with the help of the cover of the night on the 29th of the lunar month, the Eight Banners Army threw away all the baggage, grain and grass, artillery, grass and horses that were inconvenient to carry, and quietly left the camp, and then walked all the way until the green battalion, which could ensure that the defense line could not hear the movement, then rode its horse to Jiangshan County.

Early the next morning, I found that the green battalion, which was no big deal, blew up the camp, which frightened the Ming army who were having breakfast. Before the Ming army's scouts figured out what was going on, the Qing army from one fortress after another came to think that the Ming army would surrender, complaining with tears in their eyes how they were coerced and oppressed by the Eight Banners Army, and begging the Ming army for forgiveness for their past sins with a handful of snot and tears.

Killing prisoners, Zheng Chenggong didn't have that plan, and dragged the Ming army back, so he simply collected his weapons as usual and put them in the prisoner camp. As for the final disposition, whether to send him to hard labor, or to be scattered and integrated into the army, or to return to his hometown, that is also a matter after the war, and now he doesn't have that hard work to worry about.

The Ming army was like this, and there were many veterans in the surrendered Qing army, plus the appearance of those Qing soldiers who were captured more than ten hours earlier than them, and most of the remaining people were also at ease. What's more, some big-hearted guys even began to think about how the dinner would be at night - today is the thirtieth year of the Chinese New Year's Eve, if it weren't for the Eight Banners Army being too unscrupulous, some of them originally planned to hold on for one more day, so that they could finish the Chinese New Year's Eve meal, and it could be regarded as fulfilling their duty of loyalty to eat the imperial grain of the Manchu Qing Dynasty for so many years.

Having taken control of this line, the Ming army sent troops from two towns in the direction of Yushan County in the northwest to defend the flank, while the army continued to advance along Jiangshan Port and attacked Jiangshan County.

Whether it is Qianfeng Town, Yingbing Town earlier, or the current Zhengbing Town and Qibing Town, they are all used to guard against the Qing army in the direction of Guangxin Mansion. There, the Qing army still had more than 16,000 Qing troops, including 1,000 Manchurian Eight Banners, 1,000 Mongolian Eight Banners, 2,000 Han Army Eight Banners, and more than 3,000 Fujian Banners, 3,000 Shanxi Green Battalions, more than 1,000 Guangxinfu Town Banners, and 4,000 Henan Green Battalions. Even if the 4,000 Henan Green Battalion was basically a half-finished prisoner, the Manchu veteran Kadahun still had 12,000 Qing troops in his hands.

However, the reason why the flanking army existed was because the threat of the Ming army forced them to do so. When Kadahun received orders from Jidu, the first problem he faced was that his troops were still in contact with the Ming army. Moreover, the young man surnamed Du didn't talk about martial arts at all, and he came to attack him when he had nothing to do, and he seemed to look down on the green camp, staring at the Eight Banners Army, which made him and Tong Guoqi very helpless.

"Master, set up an ambush, or you won't be able to escape."

The ambush is not to cause much damage, but to let the opponent throw a mouse bogey, and dare not chase too closely. The meaning of Tong Guoqi's words, of course, Kadahun understood. However, since he has already understood the intention of the Ming army's series of actions during this period of time, he can naturally guess what kind of disposition his current opponent will make. Moreover, what is more important is time, the distance between Leadshan County, where they are located, and Jiangshan County, which should become a battlefield, is 300 miles, and even if they start immediately, they may not be able to catch up, let alone delay for another day or two because of the ambush.

Thinking of this, Kadahun couldn't help but shake his head, and then proposed to let Tong Guoqi take over the command of the lead mountain front. And he wanted to take the Eight Banners Army, which had dropped to less than 5,000 in the past half a month, to immediately set off back to Quzhou.

"There is a saying among the Han people that a bird's nest falls from a tree, and the bird's egg will definitely not be saved. Governor Tong, you must hold off the Haikou! ”

"Don't worry, master, the slave will do his best."

The Green Battalion quickly took over the position of the Eight Banners Army, but the deployment of the Qing army was soon detected by the Ming army. Next, in the shouting and killing of the lead mountain and river, Kadahun led the Eight Banners Army to turn east, day and night, and rushed to a small village more than ten miles away from Fucheng in only one day.

"Master, the minions below have met Haikou, look at the banner is Qianfeng Town."

"It came so quickly."

Since the Ming army was able to divide its troops to the west, the second line of defense of the two capitals must have been lost, and even the county seat of Yongfeng should no longer be owned by the Qing army. The south bank of the Xinjiang River has become an enemy territory, and only by crossing the Xinjiang River in the north can the safety and speed of the army be ensured. However, at this moment, Kadahun did not give an order immediately, but asked Goshha to spread out the map, as if he did not know the way.

Since the first line of the two capitals was already owned by the Ming army, then they were a moment later, and the main force of Quzhou would have to bear an extra moment of threat. Seeing that Kadahun was so hesitant, the generals were like ants on a hot pot, eager to give him the order to cross the river.

"No! It's the New Year soon, and you can't spend the New Year at home and have to come out to fight, and Haikou must fight a decisive battle with Prince Zheng as soon as possible, so as not to be unstable after a long time. Now that the Haikou's offensive is so swift, we are afraid that we will not be able to catch up. ”

Raising his head again, the Manchurian veteran shook his head firmly, and said undoubtedly: "We are still more than two hundred and twenty miles away from Jiangshan County, even if we travel day and night, it will take three days at the fastest to rush to Shanhaiguan at the earliest. If Yushan County is captured by the Haikou, our army will be tired and it will be difficult to rush through. And in the second capital, there should be thousands of green camp prisoners, as well as the grain routes of the pirates, and even the baggage camp. The most important thing is that it only takes half of the distance to go to the second capital, and it can be reached in a day and a half, which is just right to cooperate with Prince Zheng to annihilate Haikou. ”

Unlike these subordinates, he knows best, as long as he can cut off the grain route of the Ming army, even if Jidu is beaten all over the ground by Zheng Chenggong, and the grain route is cut off, he will not be able to continue the offensive, and the Qing court will have a chance to breathe in Jiangsu and Zhejiang. And they are bound to take the huge risk of being completely annihilated by the Ming army. Unless, Jidu can hold Jiangshan County, or defeat the main force of the Ming army. Otherwise, even if they are not completely annihilated by the Ming army, at least half of their lives will be lost.

It's a tough one, but it's a better chance to turn the tide of battle. Boosting morale, the army turned south, trying to bypass the Ming army, which had already advanced to Qianfeng Town, not far from Guangxinfu City.

In order to ensure that their final intentions were not discovered by the Ming army, Kadahun relied on the superior cavalry to force all the horses in Qianfeng Town back to their town, forcing the Ming army to camp in place. It was not until the infantry of the army completely bypassed the front town and walked away that the cavalry of the brigade withdrew one after another to the starting point on the south bank of the Xinjiang River, and then pursued the headquarters, so as not to see its direction immediately for the Ming army.

What he fought for was the gap of these few days, and at the same time as he completed the first step, those Tanma dressed as woodcutters who went out to Yongfeng County also discovered the movement of the Ming army, which really made him breathe a sigh of relief.

"It's really a god to help the Qing Dynasty, Yongfeng County is a British soldier town, and great things can be done!"

With a town that ranks last in combat effectiveness among the field troops under Zheng Chenggong, how can it stop the Eight Banners Army of nearly 5,000 under his command; With a chief military officer who was born in a military service, how can he be an enemy who has led troops to fight since the time of Nurhachi. If he said that he would be a little afraid of the strong troops in Qianfeng Town, he was worried that he would not be able to break through quickly, delaying the follow-up outflanking operation. Now, there's nothing to worry about.

"Early tomorrow morning, I will take the head of the yellow Wu to sacrifice the flag. Of course, it would be better if he was willing to submit to the court and turn against him. ”