Liu Xian stopped in Yecheng until the end of the year, the Spring Festival of the eighth year of Tongzhi, the lively past, a heavy snow stopped, and he began to send troops with his left hand.

And the target is not set on Shache, but on Qi Pan and Shi Lap.

Dong Fuxiang and Abduli led the troops to attack Qipan, and Cao Huailiang oversaw the army to attack Hashrap. The latter's request for war was accepted by Liu Xian, and two infantry brigades of hussar battalions were newly reorganized, all of which were transferred to Cao Huailiang's command.

During this period of stay, thirty British artillery pieces and corresponding cavalry guns were also sent to the front of Yecheng's army. These British guns are all front-loading smoothbore guns, which are not much different from the artillery used in land warfare during the Second Opium and Chip Wars of the British Army.

Calibers varied in size, with eighteen six-pounder guns, six nine-pounder guns, and six twelve-pounder guns.

Because there was no shortage of gunpowder and coal and iron, during this time, a large number of flowering shells, iron bullets, and shotguns had been made by the craftsmen of the army, and the supply of shells kept up. Although there has never been any breakthrough in the performance of the flowering shell, it is needless to say that truckloads of ammunition are delivered to the front of the army, and it is needless to say that it has boosted morale.

The 10th day of the Lunar New Year. Two armies marched out from the west and south gates of Yecheng, each dragging ten artillery pieces. One of the two armies was to march thirty miles westward, turn into the Yarkand River, the largest river in the Yarkand region, and use the ice to quickly drag the cannons towards Hashrap in the south. The other one, a short walk to the south, is the Abu River, which is also dragging cannons on the sealed Abu River ice, which will save a lot of effort.

It was a hundred and fifty miles from Yecheng to Hashlap, and Cao Huailiang's army walked all the way for four days before arriving outside Hashlap. The first thing Cao Huailiang saw was the Ying'e Qipan Mountain, which was more than ten miles east of the city, standing majestically, and a series of towering peaks made people dazzled.

Here is a dividing line, the two cities of Qipan and Hashrap, separated by this steep Ying'e Qipan Mountain. In winter, the trees on the mountain are bare, and the snow that had fallen a few days ago has not melted, and it is all white as far as the eye can see.

Looking at the city of Hashrap again, the defenders are already in full position. There was not a single house outside the city, not a single cow, sheep or livestock. The traces of Wei Ming's troops before were completely submerged in this cold aura.

How many Agubai rebels were in the city of Hashrap, Cao Huailiang did not get a letter from Liu Xian. It snowed for a few days during the Chinese New Year, and it was inconvenient to travel back and forth, so Liu Xian did not send people to Hashlap to investigate. The previous reconnaissance had reported that there were not too many defenders.

Cao Huailiang looked at the city of Hashlap, and the rebel army set up a camp outside the city, surrounded by earthen ramparts, and also had artillery emplacements. Looking at the people moving inside, it seems that there are not many people.

But anyway, let's fight a dozen first.

And Cao Huailiang's style of play is very simple, starting from the north to attack, bombarding with artillery in the army, the power of the flowering bomb can not be underestimated, bombarding for two quarters of an hour, and then charging directly with Buyong.

This is a crushing tactic that relies entirely on the superiority of firepower. But the rebel army just couldn't resist it, the earth fortress was completely destroyed, and the fort became dumb after a few shots. The artillery inside seems to be the mountain-splitting cannon of the Qing army, and the range is not comparable to that of the British artillery at all. Within two quarters of an hour's bombardment, the defenders fled back into the city.

Cao Huailiang urgently ordered a team of hussars under him to attack and caught a pinch of tails.

After interrogation, it was learned that the defenders in the city of Hashlap were 2,000 men, but most of them were newly recruited strong men. There is nothing to be done under the fighting spirit in the army.

After conquering the northern camp, Cao Huailiang set out to build the camp in the east. The same tactics, but this time the rebel army in China seemed to be prepared, resisted by the wall, let the shells bombard, and did not collapse without a fight. Cao Huailiang ordered his infantry to attack twice, but they were all beaten back, until another round of bombardment, before the smoke cleared, the captain Wang Guosheng took the lead in the charge, and only then did he break through this camp. The rebel army inside lost more than a hundred dead in battle, captured a hundred and ten, and the remaining one hundred retreated into the city.

After interrogation, it was found that among the three hundred people here, veterans accounted for nearly a hundred. The general at the head was very good, using veterans to press the recruits, hiding in the tunnel, and carrying two rounds of artillery shelling. If it weren't for the fact that the general who led the troops was suddenly killed by a bullet in the third fight, the rest of the people would not have collapsed so quickly and lost so badly.

By the afternoon, the barracks outside the two gates were empty. Seeing that the momentum was not right, the Hashrap garrison summoned the soldiers of the two camps back to the city. In this way, the outer outskirts of Hashlap were cleared, and Cao Huailiang officially led the troops to the city.

Two twelve-pounder British guns, with two nine-pounder British guns and six British six-pounder guns, fought without sacrificing ammunition until the evening, and then gradually stopped. The north gate and city wall are all damaged, and it is estimated that a few more rounds tomorrow will open several large gaps in the north city wall.

The city of Hashlapu has a history of five or six hundred years, and the city is all brick and earth structure, which is enough to put in the ancient period of cold weapon war. But in the modern era of hot weapons and weapons warfare, it is simply not enough to blow up the flowering bomb.

Cao Huailiang kept the south gate in line with the old rule of "besieging the city", and prepared to force the rebel army in the city to retreat south in the next day's attack. The team of horses in his hand was already cruising five miles south of the city. In order to rob and kill the retreating rebel army.

It's just that Cao Huailiang has little experience in the end. At night, Hashlap City found an army and attacked Cao Huailiang's army, although it was thunder and rain, but when Cao Huailiang cleaned up all this small army, he found that the main force of the rebel army in Hashlap City had already taken the opportunity to run from the West Gate.

To the west of the city of Hashlap is the Seri River basin, one of the tributaries of the Yarkand River, where there are also two small towns.

Cao Huailiang scolded his mother angrily, but he didn't dare to send troops to pursue. He was afraid that he would ambush the rebels again by taking advantage of the nightfall. At night, the musket was greatly reduced, and the Enfield M1853 rifle was no better than a spear.

In the following month, Cao Huailiang was caught in pursuit and grappling, and it was not until mid-February that he eliminated the opponent's main force. If it weren't for the fact that the Agubai regime really didn't have the support of the Yarkand people, a large number of Ding Zhuang fled and broke away from the ranks, and many people also took the initiative to find the expeditionary army and report the location of the rebel army, Cao Huailiang wanted to completely wipe out the main force of the rebel army, and he didn't know how long it would take.

At this time, Dong Fuxiang and Abduli, who attacked Qipan, not only won Qipan, but also waved their troops to the southeast. When Cao Huailiang was chasing and suppressing the rebellious army, he even went down to Leke, Tuohe, Naik, and Saidura, and bluffed more than 10 towns and cities along the road from Qipancheng to the southeast of Aksaiqin, as well as the tribes around Aksaiqin, sent people to Yecheng to surrender and 'pay tribute'.

More than 1,000 cows, sheep and 200 small horses. Although the 'tribute' is not much, it is also a windfall for Liu Xian. The cattle and sheep were included in the army, and the horses were distributed to Dong Fuxiang and Abduli with a wave of their hands.

The Aksai Chin area obeyed, and Liu Xian opened up contact with Tibet, but it was useless. Could he still expect the Buddha in Tibet to bring a batch of grain and grass? Or is it to bring in a Tibetan soldier and listen to it before the army?

It's all impossible nonsense.

Liu Xian launched an attack on Shache in February. Defending here, of course, is Yunusjiang, the Aqimu Burke of Yarkand.

Liu Xian's troops advanced quickly, as soon as the army came out, they conquered Kanmu on the third day, and took Campos on the fourth day.

Yunusjiang built seven camps outside the city, and the vanguard led by Wei Ming tried to attack once, but lost more than 30 horsemen and failed to make a profit.

After Liu Xian led the main force to arrive, he immediately ordered Zhang Zhongkui to lead the infantry army to attack the camp. The gunfire was intense, which did not surprise Liu Xian. Shache was the last line of defense in the east of the Kashgar region, and if it was lost, Liu Xian would be able to kill Ingishar in a few days. And Kashgar, Agubai's base camp, is also at most one hundred and fifty miles away from Ingishal.

Liu Xian concentrated all the artillery in the army, and when he sent out the troops, he withdrew the artillery team from Cao Huailiang and Dong Fuxiang, and now the British artillery, cavalry artillery, and mortar artillery added up to more than 80 pieces, and they bombarded in the direction of Shache.

White smoke enveloped the entire forward position. In the roaring explosion, Liu Xian felt that the ground seemed to be shaking violently, and a huge wave of sound in the air poured into his ears. Liu Xian didn't feel that his ears were shaking uncomfortably, but only felt that his blood was full of blood and spirit!

It's been two years. Two years ago, he led his troops into Xinjiang, and he didn't even stay with his wife who had just married into the family for a few days. For what?

In addition to the helplessness of the world, it cannot be said that there is no blood boiling in his heart.

Little Kokand, a shit-like Ottoman, has no time to take care of himself, and he dares to reach out to Xinjiang! Ottoman he can't reach, Kokand doesn't teach a lesson, Liu Xian really can't swallow this breath!

Now Shache is in sight, and Kashgar is not far away. Agubai's main force has been destroyed, and this battle really gave Liu Xian the hope that it was about to be flattened.

What's more, it is now the eighth year of Tongzhi, 1869 in the Western calendar, and there are still two years before Tsarist Russia seizes Ili.

The iron bullet mercilessly tore and sliced the qiē it came across, and the flowering bullet sprinkled the scorching shrapnel in all directions. It is not easy to use shotguns in the offensive and defensive battles of fortresses and towns, but only iron bullets and flowering bullets are enough for Shache to suffer.

Whether it's a house or a person's flesh and blood, these two weapons are so fragile in front of them. The city and the seven barracks outside it were littered with severed limbs, even human bodies split in two.

Countless groans and screams were drowned in the smoke of gunpowder amid the sound of cannons that shook the eardrums.

The walls have been punched out with many gaps.

Sweat came from Liu Xian's clenched palms, and he wondered: If the Qin army encounters this or more fierce artillery fire, will it be able to continue to persevere?

More than eighty artillery pieces seem to be very powerful, but not to mention foreign countries, even the Hunan army, the Huai army and the Chu army also have more powerful field artillery groups than this.

The artillery fire intensified.

"Blossom shells, blossom shells......" In the smoke of gunpowder, someone in the artillery position shouted. R1152