After nightfall, the main force of the Ming army also advanced to the mouth of the floating river.

At this time, the scout cavalry of the cavalry town had already checked each of the platforms in the Fuhekou camp and made sure that there was nothing abnormal, so the main force of the Ming army was able to enter with confidence.

But more than 20 guns could not squeeze so many soldiers and horses.

Therefore, more soldiers and horses could only be settled in the outer trenches.

Fortunately, the Ming army was equipped with tents and felt quilts and other bedding as standard.

Chongzhen still maintained his previous hard and simple style, and did not enter the bunker of the platform to rest, but insisted on camping in the trench outside the platform.

The emperor is like this, Xu Yingwei, Yan Yingyuan and other scholars are naturally vying to follow suit.

Because the weather was so cold, felt and quilts alone were not enough to keep out the cold, so they had to resort to campfires.

Piles of bonfires lit from the trenches, lighting up the night sky and warming the bodies of the Ming soldiers.

The iron pot on the fire was also steaming out, and soon the air was filled with the smell of cured pork or lamb.

Compared with the past, the Ming army's current supplies are really worlds apart.

Meats such as cured pork and lamb are also standard.

Of course, it is definitely impossible to eat and drink three meals a day, each person only has a small piece of bacon per meal, and then every ten days can eat a large meal, and today is exactly a plus meal every ten days.

Xu Yingwei opened the lid of the iron pot, took out the wooden chopsticks from the satchel and tried it.

found that the bacon had been stewed, so he hurriedly took an iron lunch box and served two large pieces to Chongzhen.

The iron lunch box is now the standard tableware of the Ming army, and it has been blackened and anti-rust.

Although the iron lunch box has been made the lightest and thinnest, it is still a little heavy in his hand, and Chongzhen can't help but start to miss the aluminum lunch box he used in his previous life.

Chongzhen was eating white rice with bacon, and asked Hu Guozhu: "Taiyi, how many Jiannu who retreated to Cangzhou are there?" Is it the Jurchens, the Mongols, or the Han? ”

"On the sage, looking at the costumes, it should be the Eight Banners Han Army."

Hu Guozhu took the lunch box from Xu Yingwei and thanked him.

After taking a sip of food, he continued: "The number of people should be between twenty and thirty thousand." ”

"Then the situation is basically clear." Xu Yingwei analyzed, "It should be that Jiannu expected that we might march by water, and stationed at the mouths of various rivers in advance. ”

"So if nothing else, there are Jiannu garrisons at all the estuaries to the north."

Speaking of this, he spread out the map again, and then pointed to the map and said: "Needless to say, there must be Jiannu at the mouth of the Chaohe, Shahe and Dingliu rivers in the north, once our army attacks a certain estuary, the Jiannu will light a beacon fire and call the Jiannu in the rest of the large camps to come to reinforcements." ”

Yan Yingyuan said: "Jiannu is stationed at the mouth of the river, the intention must be to block our army on the coast, not to let us go deep inland, let alone let us get close to Beijing, in this case, why did Jiannu at the mouth of the Fuhe River withdraw his troops?" It stands to reason that Jiannu's army should stay in the camp of Fuhe and stick to the reinforcements. ”

"There can only be one explanation for this." Xu Yingwei said with a smile.

Hu Guozhu was fascinated by what he heard, and subconsciously asked, "I don't know what the explanation is?" ”

Xu Yingwei said lightly: "Jiannu doesn't want to fight our army in a decisive battle at the mouth of the floating river, but hopes to fight with me in another battlefield that is more suitable and conducive to Jiannu." ”

"Dagukou?" Hu Guozhu was stunned and asked, "Or the Chaohe estuary?" ”

"I don't know." Xu Yingwei shook his head, and then continued, "But one thing is certain, Jiannu must have prepared enough means over there. ”

"But it didn't work." Yan Yingyuan shook his head and said.

"Because before the Dagu Pass, our army will switch to the land route."

Xu Yingwei smiled and said, "Jiannu will definitely be extremely disappointed. ”

Yan Yingyuan then quipped: "If we are disappointed, we will not continue to go north." ”

"I can't help it." Chongzhen spread his hands and said, "Strength does not allow it." ”

"Strength doesn't allow?" Xu Yingwei and Yan Yingyuan were stunned for a moment when they heard this, and then laughed.

The heart says that the saint is really playful, and there is always an unheard of classic quotation.

……

Chongzhen is feasting, but Hong Chengchou is already unaware.

At this moment, Hong Chengchou was pacing back and forth in his big tent.

Hong Chengchou was worried, worried that the Ming army would not continue to advance north according to his "plan".

If the Ming army directly changed to Cangzhou by the Fuhe River waterway after capturing the Fuhekou camp, then all the preparations they made at the mouth of the Chaohe River would be immediately wasted.

Hou Fangyu was extremely calm.

"Hong Butang, don't worry, there will be no mistake."

"It is impossible for the Ming army to go to the floating river, they will definitely come to the Chaohe River!"

"How so?" Meng Xueli rarely questioned Hou Fangyu's opinion.

"If the Ming army really intends to march along the Chaohe River, why not cross the Beihai from Dengzhou and come directly to the Chaohe River? But you have to go along the coast from Laizhou Bay? You must know that it is only 600 miles from Dengzhou across the Beihai River to the Chaohe River, but it is more than 1,000 miles along the coast to go around a big bay from Laizhou Bay! ”

"This ......" Hou Fangyu was speechless for a moment.

Nor could he find a reason to explain it.

Hong Chengchou looked at Meng Xueli seriously for the first time.

Although Meng Xueli and them used to be one of the Qinwang scholars in the Shizi Battalion, to be honest, Hong Chengchou didn't look down on Meng Xueli and them because he felt that they had no vision.

With the current situation between the Ming and Qing dynasties, how stupid would it be to betray the Ming and surrender to the Qing Dynasty?

But Meng Xueli and the three of them rebelled against the Ming Dynasty at this time.

But what he said just now made Hong Chengchou realize that Meng Xueli still has some insight.

At that moment, Hong Chengchou asked sincerely: "Regarding this matter, I don't know what Meng Zhizhi has to say?" ”

"Lord Ministry, the lower officials think there is only one explanation." Meng Xueli said with a serious face, "This is the strategy of the Ming army, and the march along the coast is only the partial division of the Ming army." ”

"Because Nanming's new army has 270,000 people!"

"And the Ming army that appeared on the coastline of Laizhou Bay was only more than 100,000."

"Sound from east to west? The Ming army is biased? Hong Chengchou's face changed dramatically.

Hou Fangyu's face was ugly at first, but when he heard this, it instantly turned cloudy.

"Yes, this is the Ming army's strategy to attack the east and west!" Meng Xueli then said, "Most of the main forces of the Ming army have crossed the Beihai Sea and come straight to our army's Chaohekou camp. ”

Hou Fangyu echoed loudly: "It must be so. ”

Hong Chengchou actually believed it, and shouted: "The order is to go down to the clouds, no one is allowed to sleep tonight!" ”

When the military order was handed down, Hong Chengchou instructed the captain of the family, Hong Dadao: "Ah Da, come and put on armor for the master!" ”

Taking advantage of the gap between Hong Da putting on his armor, Hong Chengchou said to Hou Fangyu and Meng Xueli: "Hou joins the army, Meng gives advice, you also hurry back to put on the armor, there may be a big battle tonight!" ”

"So the official retired." Hou Meng and the two turned around and went out of the account.

……

On this night, including Hong Chengchou, the governor of Jiliao, the 40,000 Han troops of the Eight Banners, the 8,000 Green Battalion soldiers and the 20,000 Eight Banners of Mongolia stationed in the Chaohekou camp did not take off their armor and waited for the day.

However, when it was bright the next day, there was no movement on the sea.

However, there was a military report from the south that Shang Kexi, the king of Dingnan, had retreated to Cangzhou with the 30,000 troops of the Fuhekou battalion, and although the Ming cavalry launched a pursuit, they returned due to the Qing army's tight defense.

Now Shang Kexi's army is stepping up the construction of a platform outside Cangzhou City, preparing to hold on.

In addition, there is also a news that I don't know if it is good news, after the Ming army captured the camp at the mouth of the Fuhe, it did not march along the course of the Fuhe River, but continued to march north along the coastline.

This really stunned Hong Chengchou, what is the Ming army doing?

"I don't understand it at all." Looking at the map, Hong Chengchou fell into deep doubt.

If it is what Meng Xueli said, the Ming army should decisively march west along the course of the Fuhe River after seizing the camp at the mouth of the Fuhe, because this can not only lead the Qing army in other directions away, but also make the Qing army in other directions stay away from the Chaohe River as much as possible, so that the Qing army will not have time to rescue.

Then if it's not a noise, then it's completely unnecessary.

The Ming army will soon reach Dagukou if it goes further north, and it is only 600 miles in a straight line from Dengzhou to Dagukou, so it is necessary to go around a big bay along Laizhou Bay? Is there no place for the Ming army to have too much strength?

Chongzhen, the dog emperor, what kind of medicine is sold in the gourd?

At this time, Hou Fangyu suddenly said: "Let him Chongzhen be cunning, we only need to identify one, that is, the Ming army must and can only march along the waterway, so it is either the floating river, the Wei river or the tide river!" We only waited for the Ming army at the mouth of the Chaohe River, and the Ming army would not be so stupid as to completely ignore the logistics and take the land route instead of water. ”

"Logistics?" A bright light bloomed in Hong Chengchou's mind.

"I see, I see!" Hong Chengchou's face suddenly turned red, as if he was drunk, "I understand why the Ming army went to Laizhou Bay to make a big circle!" ”

"Lord Ministry, what do you want to understand?"

Hou Fangyu asked confusedly, "Can you tell the lower officials?" ”

Hong Chengchou ignored Hou Fangyu, and instead instructed Hong Dadao: "Hong Da, immediately send a flying horse to inform the king of Dingnan, and ask the king of Dingnan to send a night to conduct in-depth reconnaissance along the coast of Laizhou Bay to see if the Ming army has built a camp at certain distances on the coast of Laizhou Bay?" After the discovery, immediately send the flying horse to report. ”

"Huh!" Hong Da hit a thousand with one hand, turned around and rushed out of the tent.

At this time, Hou Fangyu also reacted: "Lord Mintang is saying that the Ming army marched along the coastline of Laizhou Bay in order to build a camp for stockpiling grain on the seashore of Laizhou Bay, so as to transport grain and grass?" ”

"Exactly." Hong Chengchou sighed, "It's a pity that we have so much gunpowder in ambush on the ice of the North Sea. ”

"It can't be!" Hou Fangyu was like a puppy that had been stepped on by its tail, and jumped up at once, "This is absolutely impossible, it is absolutely impossible for the Ming army to guess that we will set up an ambush on the ice!" ”

(End of chapter)