Chapter 628: Battle of Pufan (continued)
Groups of Qing cavalry, under the action of great inertia, swooped down on the infantry phalanx of the Southern Yue Army. The www.biquge.info of the Pen Fun Pavilion tried to destroy the hollow phalanx in front of him with hundreds of firecrackers with the powerful kinetic energy and momentum brought by the speed.
The scene in front of me is like a hurricane on the sea, and the violent sea water has set off a huge wave to crash against the reefs in the sea. Although the reef is insignificant in the waves, constantly being swept into the crests and troughs of the waves, and it seems that it is about to fall into a situation of no return, but in an instant, the waves reced, and the reef appeared tenaciously on the sea level.
Columns were placed in the corners of the phalanx, and several battalion three-pounder guns that served as a junction between the two sides of the phalanx to strengthen the weak part of the fire, desperately firing shotguns at the onrushing cavalry wave.
A puff of red-hot shotguns was fired from the muzzle. These shotguns, along with the horsetail grenades that were constantly being thrown from the phalanx, were two huge iron brooms to the cavalry that was running wildly in the clashes.
If the infantry phalanx of the Nanyue Army was like a reef in the rough waves of the sea on the plain, then the cavalry of the Qing army, which rushed back and forth among the various phalanxes, trying to kick through the infantry phalanx, was like a duck stuck in a water tank under the fire of the three-pounder cannons, grenades, and platoon firepower constantly released by the phalanx. The invisible hand kept rushing from one side to the other with a long pole.
Each time the direction of the attack changed, the cavalry team shrank in size. Someone kept falling from the back of the wailing war horse, trampled into a puddle of flesh by hundreds of iron hooves. In the distance, the artillery, which the Qing cavalry originally regarded as a delicacy in the bag, continued to fire shells, blocking the cavalry's charging momentum and desperately relieving the pressure on the infantry brothers.
Accompanied by the rumbling sound of grenade explosions, the musketeers of each phalanx kept standing up, pulling the trigger, firing, shooting, reloading ammunition, and re-firing. There were also people who were hit by long-range weapons such as bones thrown by the cavalry galloping, and they fell down without a snort, and were dragged to the formation for treatment.
Immediately after the explosion, the sound of the guns burst like beans, and one after another shot of fire guns sprayed flames and projectiles at the galloping cavalry. As the thick white smoke rose densely, thousands of muskets took turns firing, knocking the cavalry off their horses.
With the sound of the gun, the charging cavalry horses stumbled and threw the riders on horseback, or fell to the ground on their sides, and the riders and horses were connected together, and were trampled to death by the cavalry galloping behind. Where the cavalry and war horses were shot, large streams of blood continued to gush out. When the riders dismounted, they howled and cursed with all their might, cursing the enemies in front of them for not following their routines.
In Qin Zimian's view, according to the general law, on the plain, how can any army be able to line up with pure infantry and field formations, and meet the impact of nearly 10,000 cavalry without falling behind? Judging from his experience, even if he relied on shield chariots, side vans and other chariots to form a formation, he might not be able to withstand the fierce impact of so many cavalry. And these southern barbarians in front of them have obviously suffered heavy casualties, but they are still in chaos and their morale is not reduced!
"What kind of army is this! That's a bunch of walking dead! ”
A thought suddenly flashed in Qin Zimian's mind, someone once said that there were people in the Nanyue army who were good at witchcraft, and used Nanban evil art to control the soldiers, so that the soldiers became like walking corpses, so that thousands of people could be like one person, like an arm and a finger, not avoiding white blades, not afraid of artillery fire!
In the face of the rapid assault of hundreds of cavalry, these infantry not only did not panic and retreat, but lined up more closely side by side, not only bombarding the cavalry with platoons, but also beckoning those who dismounted and fought on foot with their spears, trying to kill the guys who opened a road with long knives and horse lances.
After a few reciprocating impacts, Qin Zimian was very sad to find that the nearly 10,000 cavalry who followed him to charge had fallen a lot. From the road to the charge, to the gaps between the phalanxes, the stumps of people and the corpses of war horses covered the ground. The ownerless warhorse carried an empty saddle and let out a long neighing among the corpses everywhere.
In the neighing sound of the war horses, many cavalrymen were already covered in blood, and they didn't know whether it was their own wounds or other people's blood splashed on their bodies. They were either overwhelmed by the dense volley of gunfire or stunned by the roar of the huge artillery, and their horses stood in a daze.
Compared with the Qing army's confusion and panic, the morale of the Nanyue army is getting higher and higher. Although there were constantly comrades-in-arms around him who were injured and fell to the ground, the rest of the people were still fighting in the sky.
"Brothers, hit hard! Let out our evil breath! ”
The soldiers who had hung up the paint, after a simple bandage, struggled to take the guns of their fallen comrades, or lie down or sit, and reloaded the guns with projectiles and handed them to the brothers who were still fighting side by side on the front line.
After a few rounds of counter-impact, these soldiers gradually entered the state, and slowly found some ways to use the combination of several weapons in their hands to exert the greatest power.
When the Qing cavalry rushed into a distance of about 50 meters, the grenadiers began to prepare, and the horsetail grenades passed over the heads of the brothers one after another, and exploded in the middle of the Qing army's horse team, which happened to be the moment when the Qing army's horse team rushed to about 30 meters away from the phalanx.
The poor war horses of the Qing army were deducted by their own masters in the Ming army era, and they were already weak. After surrendering to the Qing army with his master, although no one dared to detain him, where did he see those small hammers flying in front of and behind him, bursting out with huge noises and fires? With this loud noise and clusters of firelight, there was a scream from the horses and the people on their backs.
Each wave of grenades thrown would cause great damage and chaos among the Qing army's war horses that had not been trained in explosives@objects. And when the cavalry of the Qing army was chaotic because of grenades, resulting in a slowdown in the impact speed, confusion in formation, and a gathering of men and horses, it was precisely the best time for those Nanyue soldiers to shoot in a platoon!
Rows of firearms were fired, and as the thick gray-white smoke rose and the orange-red flames jumped, the offensive momentum of the Qing cavalry was destroyed.
In addition to grenades and firecrackers, spurs were also a nightmare for the Qing cavalry. Occasionally, a few brave and fierce cavalrymen would rush into front of the Nanyue army on horseback, killing and wounding the soldiers of the Nanyue army with their long knives and three-eyed horse guns. But every time he had just stabbed the sword and spear in his hand, three or five spears came from his right and left, stabbing men above and horses below. In the blink of an eye, he and his mount were stabbed into a blood gourd and fell in front of the phalanx. Acts as an obligatory obstacle to block the next cavalry charge.
The battalion three-pounder cannon arranged at the corner of the phalanx is very insidiously playing the role of mending knives and beating sticks. From time to time, a cannon was fired at the Qing army, which was already a mess, and a puff of shotgun was forcibly sent into the body of the Qing army, who did not want to see them.
With the defeat of waves of cavalry attacking the Nanyue army's formation, Qin Zimian, who was supervising the battle in the back, clearly saw that those cavalry who were originally fresh and alive rushed into the phalanx of the Nanyue army, and a violent sound of guns came, and then there was no sound, only some colorless cavalry were silent like cicadas, covered in blood and fled back.
The sound of explosions, the rise of gray-white gunsmoke, and the neat and continuous sound of firecrackers, each time these scenes repeated, I don't know how many Qing cavalry disappeared. This terrifying consciousness quickly spread among the cavalry of the Qing army, so that they no longer had the spirit to launch a charge, and they no longer had the courage to advance!
"Handsome! Our brothers have suffered heavy casualties, and if we rush again, I'm afraid we will die all! ”
"That's it! We have killed so many people, and we have also caused huge casualties to Nanban! Don't you let Lord Demutu's Eight Banners Mongolian Iron Ride up! We are willing to give them the first credit for this great achievement! ”
Several close confidants shouted loudly in front of Qin Zimian and expressed their thoughts and thoughts.
"Good! Just listen to you! ”
Qin Zimian turned around and found his herald, and asked him to go to the troops behind him and ask the thousands of Mongolian and Horqin cavalry of Lord Demutu to charge on his left and right flanks, and destroy these southern barbarians in front of him in one fell swoop.
However, without waiting for the herald to ride his horse away, a scene appeared that made Qin Zimian about to vomit blood.
Those who usually have their eyes facing the sky and are only accustomed to looking at Qin Zimian with their noses and eyes, these Eight Banner Mongolian and Horqin Mongolian cavalry, riding horses and whips in a uniform manner, and the iron cavalry gallops like thunder. It's just that the direction is slightly off, and their war horse butts are facing the direction of Qin Zimian.
"Handsome! Demutu ran away! Leave us behind! ”
"This damn tartar! I knew they couldn't be trusted! ”
"Dashuai, what should we do?"
The friendly army was a pig teammate, who fled before a fight, and abandoned himself under the fire of the Nanyue army. The generals and officers around him were even more agitated, and they were afraid that if they were ordered to attack again, they might immediately erupt in mutiny, or even defect to the battlefield.
"Marshal, we have been fighting for a long time, and the casualties are huge. And at the moment, only the infantry and artillery of the Nanyue Army are entangled with us, and their cavalry has not yet appeared. If their cavalry suddenly comes out at this time, we can see that we can't leave if we want to! ”
Most of the cavalry under Li Huayu were headed by Ekui and Tuha, and were composed of soldiers and horses from the eastern Liao tribe and the two yellow banners and Guishun, and their combat effectiveness was even more formidable. Hearing his subordinates mention the strong cavalry, Qin Zimian immediately made up his mind.
"Withdraw! Withdraw it! Lao Tzu wants to sue him in front of the general, accuse him of escaping from the battle, and delay the fighter! Originally, we had already defeated the Nanban, but as a result, this guy was cowardly and fled with his troops, and we broke through in a bloody battle under the siege of more than 10,000 Nanban cavalry! Do you understand everything? ”
"Got it! The more than 10,000 cavalry are all Liaodong barbarians, as well as traitors with two yellow flags and blue flags! ”
Demutu led thousands of cavalry from the Eight Banners Mongols and Horqin Mongols to flee first, giving Qin Zimian a good reason to retreat. After colluding with his subordinates, everyone turned their horses' heads and fled back in the direction of Demutu.
In the blink of an eye, tens of thousands of forwards suddenly made a mess!
Facing the slow but resolute brigade of the Nanyue Army, these Qing troops, who had long been frightened, suddenly scattered.
The appearance of the cavalry and horse team of the Nanyue Army made the defeated crowd more and more panicked. In a trance, these former Ming soldiers returned to the beginning, when they were still the Ming army, weren't they also being chased around like ducks by those pigtailed soldiers and cavalry? Now, although he has shaved his head and braided his head, the cavalry on the opposite side is still from Liaodong!
On the entire Great Plains, on one side was the visible rout of the Qing army, and among them, there were many screaming people. On the one hand, the infantry was tightly organized, slowly covering the infantry cavalry of the Nanyue Army. Not to mention anything else, just because of the momentum and discipline of the two armies, the Qing army has already lost.
The routs, the cavalry, the infantry, and the men were mixed together, and the baggage carts, chariots, and artillery carts were parked in a mess on the road, and the mules and horses used for pulling had long been used by the drivers and the routs as the leg force to escape, and these vehicles parked everywhere were scattered across the road, greatly slowing down the speed of each person's running. The people unceremoniously pushed aside the vehicles that were preventing them from escaping and continued to run forward.
The fleeing people were in a mess, and as soon as someone fell, they were immediately trampled on by countless big feet, and after a few short howls, those who fell to the ground were trampled to pulp.
The so-called defeat is like a mountain, and that's about it.
From time to time, the cavalry of the Southern Guangdong Army marched forward in small units to drive sheep to the scattered crowd, which made the already chaotic Qing army more and more boiling. The running people shouted, cursed, gasped, and looked around from time to time. On the plain, it seemed that the cavalry of the Southern Yue Army lined up in the shape of a wall was everywhere, rushing back and forth, sweeping across the battlefield. It gives the impression of almost despair that there are enemies everywhere, and there are enemy cavalry everywhere, and there is only one way to run forward, and there may be escape.
Behind them, cavalry and horses chased after them, cutting the fleeing people from the brigade and surrounding them, and then, at the sound of a command, dismounted, knelt on the ground, discarded their weapons, disarmed, and then, according to the principle of separation of officers, soldiers, and civilians, they formed several long lines and slowly walked towards the main road to the east. As soon as they moved a little slowly, or showed the slightest sign of resistance, they were greeted by the stabbing of the long knives of the fire guns, and they were slammed to the ground, stabbed to the ground.
Groups of infantry and cavalry of the Nanyue Army ran past the growing number of captives and ran forward. They took over the task of their comrades and continued to move forward, interspersing and dividing among the retreating brigades of the Qing army, tearing off a few pieces of bloody fat from their huge bodies.
Any Qing army officer who tried to restore command, contain the defeated troops, organize the formation, and launch a blockade on the spot was a key target for the outflanking Nanyue army.
The steppe wolf tactics that have been boasted to the sky by a certain writer are not just the unique secrets of those nomadic fishing and hunting peoples! More than 1,000 years before Temujin and Nurhachi were born, the soldier saint Sun Wu put forward the tactical principle of "avoiding its sharpness and attacking its lazy return", which can be used by the Mongolian army, the Eight Banners can be used, and the Nanyue army can also be used on them!
The infantry cavalry of the Nanyue Army, which continued to advance, were like the fangs and claws of wolves, constantly slaughtering and capturing groups of Qing troops like lambs, and then disarming them on the spot and escorting them eastward.
However, the tens of thousands of Qing troops who fled in rout did not take care of them, and each of them took care of their own escape, especially when the infantry and horses of the Nanyue Army continued to rush up to cover up and outflank. Under the fear, countless people only knew how to run desperately, and after running for several miles, many people ran to death like this. Even some of the horses that were routed were spouting white, and they couldn't see it.
It pursued forty or fifty miles all the way to the west, and it was not until the cavalry of the Azig Central Army appeared in front that the Nanyue Army stopped the pursuit.
In this battle, more than half of the tens of thousands of forwards under Duoduo and Azig were annihilated. More than 10,000 cavalry horses were lost, and mules and horses had more baggage and artillery.
Looking at the sporadic fires on the battlefield during the day dozens of miles away, Azig and Duoduo knew very well that it was the Nanyue army cleaning up the battlefield, checking their booty and capture, and capturing prisoners all over the mountains.
When he learned that Demutu fled first in a cowardly battle, ignoring the friendly army and other crimes, several princes of the Eight Banners Mongolia and Horqin Mongolia suddenly felt like deflated balls, and did not dare to open their mouths to intercede with him.
Originally, when they saw Qin Zimian and other Han army generals who were also forwards, they were covered with blood and smoke on their faces, and then they looked at the oily and slippery Demutu and others, and they knew that something was not good. After hearing about Demutu's crimes, no one dared to come out to intercede for him.
In particular, in order to try to justify himself under the anger of the two great generals, Demutu could not help but exaggerate the formation and tactics of the Southern Barbarian Army, and the sharp and ferocious artillery fire. This fueled Dordor even more.
"On the plains and wilderness, you dog slave didn't dare to rush the infantry formation of the Southern Barbarians? And the face chattering in front of the king for the Nanban?! Dodor almost drew his knife and slashed the dog-like minion in front of him.
Perhaps there was a consensus between the magistrates and the multi-priests, how could infantry be used against cavalry in the plains without automatic firearms such as machine guns, and the battle could be won? Just a simple hollow phalanx? Wait! There are many such cases in ancient and modern times, both in China and abroad.
At Waterloo, the elite cavalry of Napoleon the Short of Corsican faced the infantry phalanx of the British army, and also returned with a feather. Domestic examples of war are even more numerous, once the Mongolian cavalry led by the Mongolian prince Horqin monk Lingqin completely annihilated the army, in the face of the Huai army with rifles and artillery array, but also sighed, and was finally suppressed.
As for the combination of grenades and platoon guns, it was the tactics of the Red Army in northern Shaanxi when facing the Ma Jiajun and the cavalry of the Northeast Army.
How, however, could Dordor have such an understanding?
"General Qiqi! Nanban has begun to retreat! ”
Outside the tent, one of the guards hurriedly informed Dordor of the urgent military situation.
"Ignore him! These damn bunch of damn things! It must be playing some kind of trick there to lure the enemy deeper again! The order went down, and all battalions and departments stepped up the construction of fortifications for the general! Those who do not have an order to fight without permission will be beheaded! ”
Duoduo kicked Demutu like a dead dog, he wanted to slash this minion, but this dog minion is inextricably linked with Horqin Mongolia and Eight Banners Mongolia, and the so-called broken bones and tendons. What's more, it is another Borzigit with the same surname, and after returning to the capital, he must not look good in front of his sister-in-law Zhezhe. If Zhezhe didn't let him go to the kang, this matter would be a little embarrassing.
"Deprive him of his flag and degrade him to a coat! Beat a hundred whips, escort back to the capital, and ask the regent to send it down! ”
In the face of the endless stream of marching troops of the Nanyue Army to the east, the whole army withdrew to Shandong, which was dozens of miles long, and the captives in the ranks cried and wailed, and the Qing army, like the original Ming army, just turned a deaf ear. Buried in the camp for overhaul and special repair, deep ditch and high base, stick to it. Let the Nanyue army withdraw to Shandong.
The Battle of Pufan ended like this.
This battle was actually a cover guard battle before the retreat of the Shandong soldiers and horses of the Southern Guangdong Army.