That's right, retreating before the battle is always a very dangerous thing. Although the Ming army was nearly two hours late, the Qing army may not be able to run far except for the cavalry. With the number of ships of the Qing army's naval division, it is not enough to carry as many troops and horses as possible, and those who sit on the boats may be able to escape, but those who travel along the coast may be in trouble.

A group of robbers with the proceeds of looting, do they still have the determination to stop fighting? The rear is still the Han army, as long as it is crushed, the Qing army wants to turn back and fight again, I am afraid it will be a difficult task to complete.

"The order, the Marquis of Yangcheng and the Marquis of Yidu have a meritorious service in seizing the city, and they are ordered to step up their control of the city, and they will lead the team into the city." Zhu Yongxing nodded and smiled at the few knights who came to report the news, as a sign of appreciation.

"Back to Your Highness, the Marquis of Yangcheng and the Marquis of Yidu also ask Your Highness to stay for a while, and when the city is indeed peaceful, then send someone to ask for a ride." The petty officer who reported the news was articulate and respectful, and Ma Xiangyun and Ta Tianbao were also cautious and thoughtful.

"It's fine." Zhu Yongxing smiled and nodded, "That lonely person is waiting outside the city." Well, that's—"

"The sinner general Fu Jiude, the cheap name does not dare to defile His Royal Highness's ears." Seeing Zhu Yongxing stretching out his finger, the Qing general who surrendered to Cheng hurriedly kowtowed and introduced himself.

"Get up!" Zhu Yongxing was in a good mood, and his tone was easy-going, "With the lonely king, talk about the situation of the Qing army." Well, it's those Tartar generals, tell me more about them. ”

………………

The sky turned a light gray, and there were still a few lost stars in the northwest corner, all of which were still asleep.

The Qing army in Jingzhou, which began to retreat in the middle of the night, reached Jishan in the north of Jingzhou at this time, and then turned eastward and went straight to Shayang County by the Han River.

If you look at the map, after leaving Jingzhou, you will travel directly to the east, and the distance to Hanshui will be shorter. But there is Changhu Lake to the north of Jingzhou. To take this road is to cross the river, which is very inconvenient. Therefore, after discussion, Le Erjin and the others decided to make a slight detour by land, which was faster than crossing the river.

The ranks of more than 20,000 Qing troops were getting longer and longer, and the Manchurian and Mongolian cavalry were in front. The baggage vehicles were in the middle, and the Han army of the green battalion was behind. When they first set off, the distance between the various divisions was still very close, but the more they walked, the more they pulled apart, and the Manchurian cavalry looked back anxiously and scolded one after another. But he didn't say that he was walking on four legs, but the Green Camp Han Army was using steps.

If the Ming army only discovered the situation after dawn and the whole army came to chase after it, it should be too late. Le Erjin secretly thought in his heart. Looking back at the vehicle in the middle, there was the looting he had looted. Well, if there is a fire in the city, there will be more time to buy. Thinking of this, he breathed a sigh of relief.

"The prince planned properly, and finally got our army out of danger, which can be regarded as a great achievement!" Baylor Shangshan also seemed to be a little relaxed, and shook off his horsewhip with a smile. said: "Bluff, retreat in the middle of the night." The famous generals of the ancients are not as good as them. ”

"It's too early to say that before the ship is offshore." Leerjin was proud in his heart, but his face was still silent.

"The thief army lacks cavalry, and even if they find out, they are afraid that they will not be able to catch up." Shang Shan analyzed: "As long as the thief army only knows after dawn, our army will be free of worries." ”

Le Erjin nodded approvingly. Turning to the herald, he commanded, "Pass on the king's military order, and order the rear team to speed up." When life and death are at stake, how can it be so procrastinated? ”

Watching the herald fly away, Le Erjin continued to hurry, thinking about how to play to the court. How to say the shape shì severely, in order to get the understanding of the imperial court. If the court condemns the crime, will the property he loot be worth it?

……………

"Keep up, quick."

Under the urging of one order after another, the ranks of the Ming army kept advancing rapidly. Unlike the Qing army, the soldiers of the Ming army were all lightly armed, carrying only weapons, ammunition and a day's rations, and their morale was strong, and they began to pursue more than an hour earlier than the estimation of Lerjin and others.

The faint light of the dawn shrouded the villages, the trees, the paddy fields, and the fields covered by withered grass, and also reflected the rapidly moving figures reflected in the fields. Along the way, only the sound of human footsteps and horses' hooves, mixed with the barking of startled dogs and the chirping of birds, broke the silence of the early morning.

There are two Ming armies pursuing the Qing army, all the way along the route of the Qing army's retreat, and the other way the sailor division of the marines, advancing straight from the east, crossing the river at Guanfukou, and directly inserting into the Han River, which resembles a volley.

The sound of horses' hooves was hurried, and more than 2,000 soldiers of the Ming Army carried muskets on their shoulders, and galloped along the road in a chaotic manner. In order to pursue the Qing army, even the horses used to pull the cart, and the soldiers who could ride horses were dispatched, and some soldiers only rode horses, and the posture of the horses was clear at a glance.

From the founding of the army to the present, there are only a few hundred real dragoons in the Shushuo army and the Shuo army, which are only at the battalion and company level. A small number of good horses are allocated to scouts and sentinels. Only the Zhenshuo army in Sichuan has more than 5,000 war horses in the true sense, and 3,000 horses per year are already the limit of government finances by exchanging tea, ironware, glass products, mirrors, silk and other items from Mongolia and Tibet.

The exterminating army in Fujian Province and the conquest army in the lower reaches of the Yangtze River each had 3,000 dragoons, because they fought frequently and were formed with captures along the way.

This horsemanship, and this horse, is enough to see. Xingping Hou Dang Shousu turned his head and glanced at a Ming knight with his hands around the horse's neck, pouting his buttocks, and looking nervous. There's no way, I don't even have a saddle lock, and I can't say that this guy's riding skills are too bad.

Dang Shousu sighed secretly, he was not very lucky, and he figured out that he wanted to make a contribution, but the Qing army left without a fight. Ma Xiangyun and Ta Tianbao were good, and they took Jingzhou City down after being tempted, which is too much.

Zhu Yongxing's strategic plan was to form another army in Jingxiang, with Yunyang and Xiangyang as bases, and suppress Henan; The Shuo army faced Ganshan. After Henan and Gansu were pinned, the Ming army could more easily advance east along the river and recover the land south of the river.

If you become an army again, it is estimated that the highest commander should be Li Laiheng, the Duke of Linguo, and it is uncertain whether he can compete for a full-time division commander! Dang Shousu knew that only when he got a position in the regular army could he be regarded as integrating into the Ming army. Now, it's time to take credit for it.

The wind was whistling in his ears, and the party guards urged the horses to fly fast, gradually protruding from the brigade, and even a few guards were left behind.

……………

Shayang was originally the ancient town of Hanjin, a place where soldiers of all dynasties must fight, and an important port for water transportation on the Han River. In the eighth year of Tang Zhenguan (634), Tang Wei Chi Gong (Jingde) built "Shayang Fort" on Qiongtai Mountain near the Hanjin Pass, and the name of Shayang began here.

The water was densely populated with boats, and the people on the dock shouted and neighed. In the midday sun, it was noisy and chaotic.

"Anyone who dares to board the ship indiscriminately will be killed!"

"Let the soldiers of the Eight Banners go first, and there are horses, not a single one can be left to the thieves!"

Zhang Xiaosi was kicked in the ass and almost fell off the gangplank into the water. There was a scolding in his ears, "Hurry up, lead the horse, move the box." ”。

"Damn, it's a ×, Lao Tzu is not even as good as a horse!" Zhang Xiaosi cursed in his heart and jumped ashore in one step.

The commander of the fox and the tiger was still shouting and directing in the boat behind him, but he ignored his soldiers and only cared about carrying goods and pulling horses.

Ships though quite a few. But there were things to be transported, and Manmeng Taijun's horses and tickets were also available, so he could only suffer the Han soldiers of the green camp who could not board the ship. Walk along the coast and return to Wuchang with steps!

A war horse suddenly went crazy, neighing and running and jumping, kicking and biting, stirring up a wave of chaos. It took a long time to toss before Crazy Horse was subdued. But I found that there was a sharp wooden peg inserted in my anus, and I couldn't live when I saw it.

At this time, it is naturally impossible to find the saboteur. Moreover, there are many Han soldiers in the green camp who can't board the ship, and they may all be resentful, and it is not good to investigate deeply. And Zhang Xiaosi hid in the crowd and sneered secretly.

"Damn× it!" Shen Jizhao, the deputy general of the green battalion, gritted his teeth, spat in the direction of the dock, and scolded: "Don't let Lao Tzu lead troops to board the ship." Don't you let Lao Tzu lead the troops first, and be a substitute for you as a ghost? ”

Not only were many officers and men of the Green Battalion unable to board the ships, but they were also unable to march along the coast immediately, and they had to do their utmost to maintain the rear line in order to resist possible pursuers. Ensure that the Manchurian generals and Caima horses can calmly board the ship.

Ordinary discrimination is enough, and at this critical juncture, the resentment accumulates even greater. Many of the generals of the Han army in the green camp were all pale and cursed secretly. If you go for a few more moments, you will be safer, but the military order has been issued, and those who leave without permission will be beheaded, isn't this obviously regardless of their life or death?

Resentment was accumulating, and the fuse that ignited the resentment was the sudden burst of gunfire from afar.

"The Ming army is catching up." The same thought arose in the hearts of the Qing soldiers, accompanied by fear and despair.

The gunfire was getting closer and closer, and the rear army was defeated very quickly. Or rather, they were terrified when they saw the smoke and dust rising, and when thousands of cavalry rushed in front of them, the Qing soldiers had already turned and fled. This is the confusion and loss of morale of the army brought about by the retreat.

The defeated soldiers scattered and fled, and many people flocked to the docks with luck, hoping to catch a boat. The Ming pursuers grabbed their buttocks, shouted and killed, and pressed them like ducks.

"Those who rush into battle will be killed!" With the shouts of the officers, the shields were struck, the spears were pointed at the front like a dense forest, and the bows and arrows were aimed ahead.

The second line of defense of the Qing army was the Henan Green Battalion, which believed in the northern Han army more than the southern green battalion, and the combat effectiveness of the northern Han army was much higher than that of the south.

"Shoot the arrows!" With an order, dense arrows flew up in the air and shot at the fleeing Qing soldiers.

With a scream, the deserter fell in large numbers, and the dead widened in disbelief, wailing and rolling on the ground without death. The consternation and fear in front couldn't help but stop, but the back didn't know why, hugging, pushing, and squeezing upward.

"Those who rush into battle will be killed!" "Those who rush into battle will be killed!" ……

A neat shout rang out, suppressing the screams and wails, and suppressing the deserters' desire to run back to their own positions. There were military formations in front and pursuers behind, and the deserters fled on both sides with a roar, leaving behind corpses and wounded, as well as a mess of weapons and armor.

"Henan guy, ruthless enough." Shen Jizhao swallowed his saliva, only to feel a chill in his back.

"Your Excellency." One of his subordinates shouted, "The king of the county has sent an order to outflank the enemy. ”

"Outflanking?" Shen Jizhao's eyes rolled, he laughed twice, and said, "Okay, let's go from the flank." Order, go east along the river, let's outflank the enemy. ”

Seeing that the deserters were scattered on both sides, and a tight military formation appeared in front of them, Dang Shousu and the others did not dare to be careless, and ordered to stop advancing. The Ming army dismounted one after another, tied the reins of the horses together, and also listed the formation.

At this time, I can see the benefits of wearing a military rank, those who are soldiers listen to officials, and those who are small listen to officials, although they are not the previous bosses, but there are always orders to follow.

A cold wind blew and rolled up the dead leaves and grass on the field. The two sides confronted each other, and the atmosphere of slaughter became stronger and stronger.

The Henan Green Battalion, which numbered more than 4,000 people, was in no hurry to attack, they were waiting for friendly troops on the flanks to make a detour. Although the number of Ming troops was small, they were not timid in fighting and checked their weapons. Loaded with a bayonet, and then slowly pressed through.

This is the momentum of the Ming army now, and the confidence that has grown under the successive victories. Most of them were veterans of the Shushuo army, who knew more about the weapons in their hands and were more proficient.

"It's really a big deal, treat us as those useless Huguang green flags." The deputy general of the Henan Green Battalion sneered, in his eyes, the Ming army's formation was too thin, and there were four people in a column. The spread surface is large, but it can be washed by cohesion, and it will not be cut off and separated?

"What about the outflanked troops?" The adjutant general glanced south, but he couldn't see any figures, and couldn't help but be angry, "These soft eggs, when they ran, were fast, but now they are as slow as turtles." ”

The party defended the mound behind the formation. The big gun in his hand cut a small groove on the ground, and he stared intently at the battlefield. He had seen the training of musketeers. I also know the noun, and I know that this is another battle formation in addition to the hollow phalanx, called the skirmisher line. It can be a column of three people, a column of four people, or even a column of five people, which can give full play to the firepower.

Although seen. also knew, but the party Shousu did not dare to command without authorization, let alone know how powerful such a thin battle formation was.

As the Ming army became more proficient in flintlock muskets, new tactics emerged. If you are facing an enemy that is mostly infantry, or has very little cavalry. This lack of depth was used to make the muskets more effective; If the enemy cavalry is strong, use a hollow phalanx and make the most of the power of the artillery.

"One, two, one; One, two, one ......" accompanied by the password, the soldiers of the Ming army marched with a unified pace, forward, forward.

"Shoot the arrows!" The Henan Green Battalion took the lead in launching the attack, but the Ming army was still out of range, and this attack had some deterrent effect, and the Henan Green Battalion still wanted to delay time and wait for friendly troops to come out from the flank.

"First row, run twenty paces quickly, half-kneeling and fire." The officer was in the center of the queue, shouting loudly.

"Roar!" The soldiers let out a neat response.

"Charge!" The shout was followed by an elongated whistle, and the Ming troops in the first row took a big stride, and under the guidance of the officer's sword, they ran quickly.

"Shoot the arrows!" Arrows flew out of the Qing army's formation, and some Ming soldiers were shot and fell to the ground, but the others ran forward as if they had not seen them.

The officer ran to his position, staggering, with two arrows stuck in his body, but he was half-kneeling, pointed his saber forward, and blew the whistle in his mouth.

There was a dense explosion, bursts of white smoke rose up, and the Ming soldiers fired their first shot since the beginning of the war.

"Second platoon, run to follow--" At the shrill whistle, the soldiers in the second row trotted again, and fell down a little more in the fire of arrows, but the second shot brought a lot of damage to the Qing army.

"Follow up, fire!"

"Follow up, fire!"

The command was already faint in the sound of gunfire, but the whistle was sharp and audible in the interval between rounds of gunfire.

The Ming soldiers who quickly entered the range of the muskets gathered fire, forwarded, fired, advanced, and repeatedly, and the white smoke was so thick that it was almost impossible to see the face of the enemy in front of them.

Ahh......h The screams of the bullets came one after another, and the battle formations of the Qing army were stripped away and weakened layer by layer. The shields and armor became more and more fragile, and in the rising white smoke, the Ming army advanced step by step, and after each dense firelight, it flew with the lead bullet of death.

"Shoot the arrows, release the arrows!" The deputy general of Henan shouted loudly, there were only 500 archers in the army, and the intensity and persistence of firepower were far inferior to the Ming army, but only the archers could compete with the Ming army at a long range.

Another row of Ming soldiers came out of the white smoke like demons, aimed the muzzles of the black hole at the Qing army, and the fire points were one after another, and the explosion of the fire almost became a sound. With screams, the archers of the Qing army finally lost the protection of the soldiers in front and were hit.

After two consecutive rounds of fire, the bows and arrows had become sparse, and the battle formation of the Qing army began to waver. And the Ming army's front still advanced forward, round after round, with dense bullets, with a higher hit rate to ruthlessly shoot the enemy who is increasingly losing the ability to return fire from a long range.

There was another gunsmoke in front of him, as if it was the sound of firecrackers on the occasion of the New Year's Day, and the deputy general of Henan suddenly felt that something had hit him heavily under the ribs, and a bullet from the crack of the person hit him off. He shook his horse for a moment, his eyes were black, his internal organs seemed to be turned over, and the kinetic energy of the buckshot caused him great damage.

In the blurred vision, Vice General Henan saw a dazzling light flashing in front of him, and was rapidly approaching. The Ming army began to charge with white blades, and the shouts could be heard, but they were a little ethereal, and they seemed to be far away. Blood oozed from his mouth, and his internal organs were indeed hit hard.

collapsed, Henan Green Camp finally collapsed. The musket fire had already inflicted great damage on them, and their hearts were filled with fear and panic, and the white-bladed charge became the last straw that broke the camel's back. As soon as they made contact, the Henan Green Camp turned around and fled screaming, just like the Huguang Green Camp they had laughed at and despised.

"It's our turn." Dang Shousu roared, and galloped with more than a dozen guards who had followed him for many years, stabbing obliquely towards the fleeing Qing army.

"My lord, the Henan Yankees seem to have been defeated." One of his subordinates galloped over and reported to Shen Jizhao.

"So fast?" Shen Jizhao's eyes widened, looking back at the battlefield where the smoke and dust were flying, and then said angrily: "You deserve it, you can't do it." Let's go-" (To be continued......)