Chapter 370: Black Pressure Cloud Domain - Battle of Delhi

The remnant sun is like blood.

On the heights of Panibat, after tens of thousands of cavalry fought for five or six hours, the corpses piled up like mountains and rivers of blood.

Head-to-head, the heavy cavalry is the nightmare of the light cavalry, and the difference in strength is huge.

Tucker's 20,000 cavalry fought to the last soldier, although they still could not stop the heavy cavalry of the Royal Chinese Army, but it delayed for nearly six hours, and after the fierce battle, the cavalry soldiers of the Chinese Empire needed to rest for two hours, and this precious eight hours was enough for Shah Jehan of Delhi to prepare for battle or escape.

However, Shah Jahan did not understand Tucker's painstaking efforts and did not understand why Tucker had to run to Panibat to die, but the officials in Delhi believed that Tucker would directly reinforce Delhi and waited in Delhi.

If Tucker were still alive, he would have been.

Shah Jahan eventually chose to hold on to Delhi because there were two things in Delhi that he couldn't let go of. The first thing is that as an emperor, it would be too embarrassing to run away, and it would severely damage the morale of the people. The second thing is that Shah Jehan is urging the workers every day to build the Taj Mahal Mausoleum, which is the mausoleum of his late queen Ajman Banu.

This Taj Mahal, known as the "perfect building", has won the praise of many people in later generations, and has deceived countless infatuated men and women into tears. It is composed of a hall, a bell tower, a minaret, a pool, etc., all of which are built with pure white marble, inlaid with glass and agate, which is gorgeous and beautiful.

Of course, the Taj Mahal, which was built in the first year of Shenwu, by the end of the ninth year of Shenwu, its main project has been completed, with 20,000 people mobilized every year, 22 years at once, and more than 800 million silver dollars spent on the Taj Mahal, plus the construction of the new palace Red Fort, so that the powerful Mughal Empire exhausted the treasury and went into decline.

I have to say that Shah Jie Khan, the emotional emperor, should be grateful to his son for killing his brother and taking away his throne, otherwise there would be no Aurangzeb Zhongxing in history.

However, the same history is no longer possible. The Chinese Empire's Shenwu Emperor has set off a butterfly effect that has been blown into the South Asian subcontinent, and the doomed outcome must be that Shah Jehan will pay the price for his extravagance and mediocrity.

After the Battle of Panibat ended, Zhan Zengyong had already understood that the Mughal Empire was prepared, and there was no need to hide his whereabouts. Therefore, he directly ordered the whole army to abandon the "clearance" operation along the way and directly take the main road to attack Delhi.

The cavalry division stopped slaughtering and cleared the field, and the infantry division behind had no need to set fire to the houses and destroy the corpses, so the march was very fast, and reached the north of Delhi in the evening of the next day.

The black pressure cloud region, for the soldiers and civilians of the Mughal Empire, the days when the soldiers came to the city were very sad.

In ruins outside the city of Delhi, the Mughal government ordered the walls to be cleared, and all the people within 20 miles of the main city retreated to the city, and all the houses and houses were burned, and not a single grain of food could be left for the enemy army.

After the arrival of the Imperial Chinese Army, there was still a sea of fire outside the city, and thick smoke billowed out of the sky.

Zhan Zengyong saw that the soldiers were sleepy and tired, and it was getting late, so he ordered the siege of the city and set up camp until tomorrow after dawn.

There will be survivors after any war and massacre, perhaps because God deliberately wanted future generations to know. Although Shah Jie Khan had ordered all the people outside the city to retreat to the city, there were still some bold people, or some people who thought they were smart and still secretly stayed, either because they were reluctant to give up their homes, or because they wanted to make some money in the country.

In short, the scout cavalry sent by Zhan Zengyong brought back the news he wanted, that is, all the civil and military officials of the Mughal Empire were in the city, including the unscrupulous Shah Jie Khan.

Shah Jie Khan was still there, which made Zhan Zengyong breathe a sigh of relief, he had thought that Shah Jie Khan would abandon the city and flee.

"When are you going to attack?"

The tent curtain was raised, and Dong Nan came in from outside.

Looking at Dong Nan's fully armed appearance, Zhan Zengyong was stunned for a moment, and then quipped: "What? You can't help it? ”

Dong Nan came closer, smiled, and said, "Of course, I haven't moved my muscles and bones for several years, and it will rust after a long time."

Zhan Zengyong said with a smile: "Then you don't need to go into battle to kill the enemy in person, a lieutenant general, running to the front line to fight, the courage is commendable, but it will make the emperor's ** team very faceless."

"I'm fully armed, it's just a feeling" Dong Nan suddenly changed his words: "I'm reminding you that it's time to prepare for war"

Zhan Zengyong snorted and said: "Your secret service is all machine people, we can't compare to me, I just know, my soldiers want to sleep, my war horses want to rest, that's all"

"And when are you going to attack?"

"Dawn Tomorrow"

Zhan Zengyong replied in the affirmative.

Dong Nan said: "I'll do it tonight, because the enemy will also think that we are sleepy and tired, and will do it again tomorrow during the day."

Zhan Zengyong nodded, smiled bitterly, and said, "I think that I have been a cat in the forest for several months, and this bird crime needs to be vented urgently." Besides, the sooner the war in South Asia ended, I would have returned to China earlier to accompany my wife and children."

Then he changed his words and said, "However, we are now sleepy. On the opposite side is the capital of the enemy country, and the enemy will definitely fight to the death, and once the fight starts, it will be a situation that will not stop thinking about it, I have to think about it for the sons."

Dong Nan nodded, it looked like he had to wait until tomorrow.

Zhan Zengyong called Dong Nan to the map, pointed to the map and said: "Look at the capital of the Mughal Empire, the castle is made of hard red stone, although it has not been built into a star-shaped fortress in Western countries, but this Agra castle is built very high, like a hornet's nest, easy to defend and difficult to attack."

Then he looked at Dong Nan and asked, "Do you have anything to build?" ”

Dong Nan replied: "I have sent a few small detachments to look around for gaps and the best route to break the city, the opponent's city is very strong, but there are not many firearms to defend the city, and the artillery is the kind of old-fashioned firearm in the Mengyuan era, which will not work against our army when attacking the city."

Then, Dong Nan continued: "I have two buildings, the first is to cut off the water source, according to the information we have obtained before, Shah Jie Khan abandoned the former Fadipur-Sigri Castle because of the lack of water. At this time, a new castle was being built in the city, and the main project was not yet completed, and it was necessary to use the water of the Yamuna River, and if we cut off their water supply, the hundreds of thousands of soldiers and civilians in the fort would soon be severely short of water, and the second construction was to cross the Yamuna River and attack the Taj Mahal on the other side of the river, where was the tomb of the queen of Shah Jehan, although it had not yet been built, it was said to be very luxurious, the doors and windows were made of gold and silver as a whole, and the marble was all inlaid with various jewels. The jewels in Taj's tomb are even more numerous."

Zhan Zengyong was stunned for a moment, and agreed with the first one, but the second one didn't seem to understand.

"You're telling us to rob the Taj Mahal?"

Zhan Zengyong smiled bitterly, and then said: "Don't be in such a hurry, wait until we take Delhi, are you still afraid that the treasure in the Taj Mahal will run away?" ”

Dong Nan rolled his eyes, but he was happy, and said: "Of course I know the priority, I want to sue you, and I can judge a piece of news from the captured captive, that is, this Shajie Khan is a well-known lover." Judging by his reluctance to escape, Delhi has his spiritual sustenance. And this spiritual sustenance I think is the Taj Mahal, if you think about it, this guy has spent almost more than ten years of treasury gold and silver on the Taj Mahal, which shows the importance of this Taj Mahal to him. If we take the Taj Mahal, how would this Shah Jehan react? ”

Zhan Zengyong was stunned and said: "This is too bad, Dong Nan rolled his eyes in anger, looking like he didn't know Zhan Zengyong."

Zhan Zengyong hurriedly gave him a smile and said: "Also, we are robbers in their eyes, robbing a Taj Mahal can also threaten Shajie Khan, killing two birds with one stone, not bad."

Dong Nan continued: "If it works, I think Shah Jie Khan will order his troops to go out of the city to obstruct even if he does not open the city and surrender."

"Once their army is out of the city—"

Bahaha, the two of them laughed evilly in unison That night, Zhan Zengyong sent troops to surround the Taj Mahal, but there was no action. At the same time, several teams of sappers were sent to cut off the waterway of the Yamuna River to the citadel.

As Shah Jehan was in the process of rebuilding the palace, the waterways needed to be modified, so they were only built temporarily. The sudden attack of the Chinese Emperor's ** team, the Mughal Emperor ** rushed to the battle, and the problem of the waterway was cut off before it could be solved.

What a coincidence.

Fadipur-Sikri Castle, which means "victory", is located 40 km west of Agra Citadel and was home to the earliest palace city of the Mughal Empire. It was ordered to be built in 1569 by Akbar the Great, but it was abandoned 14 years after completion due to water problems.

Shah Jie Khan rebuilt the castle just in time for the construction of the Taj Mahal, so the two collided, and Shah Jehan focused on the Taj Mahal, causing the new Agra Citadel to slow down due to lack of funds. But Shah Jie Khan was very picky, and the funds were not much, but he insisted on building the Taj Mahal, making Agra Citadel a castle comparable to the Taj Mahal. In addition to the spectacular appearance. In addition to its vast area, the palace is beautifully composed and the interior design is as sophisticated as the Taj Mahal. The city is surrounded on three sides by a total length of 6 kilometers of walls, with towers and 7 gates. The ancient city is home to many monuments and temples of different styles, but because they are all red sandstone, they still have the same identity and look like a model of architectural ensemble.

The citadel's waterways were a lifeline, and since it was the capital of the Mughal Empire, there were no forces on the entire South Asian continent that could threaten the capital, so when the new citadel was built, the waterways were changed before they could be protected. When the Chinese Emperor's troops approached the city, this waterway became the biggest weakness and vital point.

Originally, the Agra Citadel and the Taj Mahal would be completed in eight years, after which the Mughal Empire would have a large amount of money for other economic and military reforms, but at this time of scarcity, the large-scale military invasion launched by the Chinese Empire made the Mughal Empire, which had been empty for ten years, even worse and came to the brink of extinction.

In general, it was absolutely wise for the Chinese Empire to choose to invade the Indian subcontinent at this time, when the Mughal Empire was at its weakest, and he could be knocked down with a single stick, not to mention a surprise decapitation operation.

The next morning, after the soldiers of the Chinese Empire had rested for the night, the fatigue of yesterday had flown away, and they were full of energy and high morale.

Three heavy cavalry divisions surrounded the city of Delhi, and two infantry divisions pulled to the open field outside the north gate, opened up the formation, and formed a phalanx of 20 thousand men, with great momentum. Between the aisles of the phalanx, there are cavalry passages and artillery passages. However, most of the artillery was placed in the back, with every ten guns forming an artillery detachment position, and three artillery detachments forming an attack echelon, firing in turns, forming a continuous artillery bombardment posture and providing continuous fire suppression.

Infantry, artillery, and cavalry coordinated operations, and the Imperial Army of the Chinese Empire gradually formed its own combat system, which will continue to have a far-reaching impact on all teams around the world.

Now is the time to teach the backward Mughal Empire a good lesson.

"Report the readiness of all units of the army"

Zhan Zengyong picked up the binoculars, nodded, and said, "Execute as originally planned."

"Yes"

The flag was waved, and the first phase of the offensive began, also called dismounting.

The sound of cannon bang and thunder broke the silence of the early morning and opened the prelude to the battle of Delhi.

Knock knock

Dense cannon fire rang out, hundreds of Shenwu cannons opened fire in turn, and countless shells were fired at Delhi City. Suddenly, the cannon roared, the ground shook, and the smoke of gunpowder filled the air, covering the sky and the sun.

The cannonballs whistled and smashed against the city walls, and suddenly the rubble and clods of earth were scattered, and the mud and dust instantly enveloped the city of Delhi.

It was the first time that the army of the Mughal Empire had seen the power of artillery, and the soldiers of the Delhi Praetorian Guard, who had been in a peaceful environment all the year round, were suddenly stunned, and they all hugged their heads and ran away, and ghosts cried and howled wolves.

Every time the cannonball hit the city wall, the Mughal soldiers hiding behind the female wall would feel the tremor of the city wall strongly, causing them to hold their heads tightly, and their bodies curled up into dogs, shivering.

The shelling lasted for an hour, and only after the Shenmu cannon heated up sharply did the artillery brothers of the Imperial Royal Army stop the shelling operation.

Due to the continuous shelling in turns, the shelling was supposed to take two hours, but because of the hot climate of the Indian subcontinent, the heat dissipation of the artillery was slow, and after an hour of shelling, the barrel of the artillery was very hot, so the shelling operation had to be suspended.

After the shelling stopped, the gunners hurriedly pressed the muzzle of the gun, flushed the barrel with the river water that had been prepared for a long time, and carried out the cooling operation.

On the forward position, Zhan Zengyong sent a team of propagandists, holding iron buckets and horns, to shout loudly, telling Sha Je Khan in the city that the Royal Army of the Chinese Empire had surrounded the Taj Mahal, and if Sha Jie Khan did not surrender, the Taj Mahal would be destroyed.

Faced with such a threat, Shah Jie Khan was dumbfounded. For him, the Taj Mahal is his life, and if he is destroyed by the Chinese Emperor's ** team, then Shah Jie Khan will be worse than dead.

"I surrender"

When Shah Jie Khan couldn't wait to shout out, a large number of nearby civil and military officials suddenly fainted, and the morale of the soldiers defending the city fell to the bottom.

Fortunately, there were still many officials who fought the main battle, and the general Zamut fought hard, but in order to comfort Shah Jie Khan, Zamut personally led 30,000 horse infantry troops out of the city to fight.

The city gate opened, which was exactly the effect that Zhan Zengyong was looking forward to.

Between the Mughal Emperor's ** team going out of the city to line up, Zhan Zengyong suddenly glanced at Dong Nan happily, who just looked at the cannon fodder on the opposite side pitifully, shook his head, and smiled helplessly.

Zamut's horse infantry army was very elite, both cavalry and infantry had armor, and it was obviously the forbidden army of the Mughal Empire, which was called hoplite cavalry and hoplite in the Chinese imperial party.

Of course, on the word "reload", the level of armor of the Mughal Empire was far inferior to the concept of "reloading" of the Chinese Empire.

Half an hour later, the trumpets sounded, and the heavily armed infantry of the Mughal Empire charged.

Facing the enemy's hoplites and hoplites for the first time, the soldiers of the Royal Army of the Chinese Empire were a little nervous, after all, they had never encountered them, and they didn't know how powerful the other side was. However, the commanders and staff officers of the various companies and platoons soon gave the soldiers enough breath for the simple reason that the Imperial soldiers' Shenwu rifles could still penetrate the enemy's armor.

"Open the gun"

At the sound of an order, between the infantry phalanxes, infantry guns loaded with grenades opened fire one after another.

Suddenly, projectiles shot out all over the sky, dense like rain. The hot steel balls instantly pierced through the armor of the enemy soldiers, causing a large number of casualties, and a large number of enemy horses and infantry were shot and killed.

Although grenade projectiles can still kill and injure enemies in a large area, although the armor on the enemy's body cannot protect themselves, it can block the penetration of the projectile, so that the soldiers behind can save their lives. Comparatively speaking, compared to soldiers without armor protection, it still works.

However, this large-scale casualty still surprised the forbidden army of the Mughal Empire.

The dense artillery projectiles could not be dodged at all, and the soldiers who rushed to the front were suddenly beaten into a meat sieve, and their flesh and blood were mush.

The infantry artillery fire was direct, and after a round of lightning, the Mughal Empire's Praetorian Guards fell in large numbers, killing and wounding countless people.

The sound of the horn continued, and the Praetorian Guards of the Mughal Empire continued to launch wave after wave of charges, and the soldiers fell in rows, which made Zamut, who was supervising the battle behind, feel frightened.

Half an hour later, the Mughal Praetorian Guard, after paying heavy casualties, finally crossed the artillery blockade, and the forward cavalry rushed towards the infantry phalanx of the Royal Chinese Army.

"Ready-to-Release"

Row after row, the infantry of the Chinese Empire held up their muskets and fired in an orderly manner. Rows of dense projectiles were fired, and the tall targets of the enemy cavalry suddenly became live targets.

The hot buckshot pierced through the armor, and the powerful impact instantly knocked the knight off his horse, killing him instantly.

Most of the people who rushed through the artillery blockade were cavalry, but there were not many of them, and the blocking and firing capabilities of the Chinese imperial artillery had matured, so that there were fewer and fewer enemies approaching the infantry phalanx, and they were easily killed by the infantry.

Zamut commanded the soldiers to charge, but he soon found that there was no effect, and the soldiers were undoubtedly killed in such a charge, so he withdrew his troops.

However, Zamut overlooked the fact that the other side also had a strong cavalry.

Just as Zamut ordered a retreat, Zhan Zengyong ordered the black-armored elite cavalry to launch a counter-charge. X