Seventy or eighty miles southwest of Yueyang, there is a town of antlers.

From Antler Town to the south, there are nearly 200 large and small pottery workshops along the way. Not counting the types of work such as carrying coolies, there are as many as four or five thousand craftsmen who are directly involved in pottery making.

This is the largest handicraft base in the Dongting Lake area.

At the same time, Lujiao Town also choked the throat of Dongting Lake entering the Xiangjiang River!

The water area between the two "antlers" is also a natural excellent military port, and one-fifth of Zhong Xiang's sailors are stationed here.

Since last year, "deer antler pottery" has not been able to be shipped out, and can only be sold in Hunan.

Other commodities are similar, all of them have been embargoed by the Ming Dynasty, which has dealt a heavy blow to the pseudo-Chu economy.

More than half of the nearly 200 pottery workshops in Lujiao Town were directly suspended, and the unemployed craftsmen were organized into the army by Zhong Xiang on the spot.

This army was called the "Antler Army", and although it was only 3,000 men at full strength, its combat effectiveness was extremely terrifying. They were brainwashed by Zhong Xiang for religion, and at the same time resented the embargo of the Ming Dynasty, which caused them to lose their jobs and find it difficult to make ends meet, so they fought and died one by one.

Bai Qi stood on the deck of the warship, observing the Qingcao Lake south of Lujiao Town from Dongting Lake.

In the telescope's field of view, the color of the lake is noticeably different.

The lake is very shallow, and the water level drops in winter and spring, often exposing the grass at the bottom of the lake.

"There is no spoonful of water in the ground, and there is a lake name," Bai Qi recited Jiang Zhiqi's poem and sighed, "If the water master wants to fight over, it will have to rain two more times." ”

Ying Xuan said: "If there is an old helmsman to lead the way, the warship can still pass." But the draft must not be too deep, otherwise the old helmsman will not dare to guarantee safety. ”

Yingxuan, the pseudo-Holy Duke of Chu, said that he would not participate in the battle against Zhong Xiang when he took refuge in Zhu Ming.

He spent both years building warships and training sailors.

Now he is taking the initiative to ask for help, wanting to end this chaos as soon as possible. As long as Da Ming wins two games ruthlessly, Yingxuan will personally come forward to persuade him to surrender and strive to save the lives of some old friends.

Bai Qi looked at Antler Town and said, "I hope that Antler Village can fall, otherwise it will rain, or simply send troops to attack by land." ”

The guard of Lujiao Village is called Zhou Lun, although he surrendered to Yue Fei in history, he was forced to surrender when he was cornered.

If you don't fight hard, this person will definitely not fall.

Ying Xuan said: "Zhou Lun's hometown is in Dingzhou, and he entered Zhong Xiang's Manichaeism very early. He is Zhong Xiang's confidant and favorite general, how can he be so easy to persuade him to surrender? ”

As soon as he finished speaking, he saw a small boat in the distance, speeding from the direction of Antlerstown.

When the boat returned to Bai Qi's ship, a sergeant was dragged up by a rope and reported the news: "The thief general Zhou Lun learned that I was sent by the British general to persuade him to surrender, and he did not make it difficult. It's just that...... Just let me come back and pass the word......"

Bai Qi asked, "What did he say?" ”

The sergeant bowed his head and said, "He scolded General Ying for being a thief who betrayed the master, and said...... He also said that the British general should wash his neck and die. ”

Ying Xuan shook his head and smiled bitterly when he heard this.

The territory newly occupied by the Ming Dynasty last year was full of Zhong Xiang's meticulous work, and it was impossible to conceal the movement of troops and materials at all.

Prime Minister Zhong Yi, who stayed in Changsha, had quickly gathered troops to the north and stationed them in Dingzhou (Changde), Chenyang, Yuanjiang, Xiangyin and other cities. Then he personally led the pseudo-Chu elite, and quickly supported Lujiao Village by land and water.

Wang Yuan also led tens of thousands of troops to kill here by land, and camped more than ten miles away from Lujiao Village (northwest of Yueyang County in later generations).

"Boom!"

At the beginning of the fifth month of the lunar calendar.

Dongting Lake finally rained continuously, and the lake water rose little by little, and Qingcao Lake could allow large warships to pass.

In the past, I suffered from the loss of rainy days in the south, but now the gunpowder is more carefully preserved.

Where the powder kegs are stored, a layer of straw is laid first, and then a layer of lime. If the lime gets slightly wet, the straw and lime are replaced immediately.

Moreover, all the gunpowder prepared this time was placed in the cabin of the ship, so it would not rain by land.

After days of heavy rain, it finally cleared.

Zhong Yi looked at Qingcao Lake, where the water level was rising, and couldn't help but think of last year's water war, worried and anxious.

Zhou Lun suggested: "Prime Minister, the thieves and firearms are powerful, and it is difficult to win the water war." Once our army's naval division is defeated, the thief warships will definitely bombard the water village. It's better to take the initiative to go north and fight a decisive battle with the thief army stationed on the shore of Dongting Lake! ”

Zhong Yi shook his head and said, "The thief army is brave, I am afraid that it will not be able to win easily." If there is a slight mistake, the antler village will fall. ”

Liu Heng, the pseudo-Chu general, said: "The news sent back by Xizuo is that the elite of the thief army has been withdrawn, and all the exchange is the violent Song Xiang army. What are you afraid of? Just hit it! ”

"Where is the Xiang Army, it is the new army reorganized by the Zhu thief!" Zhong Yi was indecisive and had a deep fear of the Ming army. The big defeat two years ago has already left a psychological shadow on him.

Wang Yuan led tens of thousands of troops and camped more than ten miles away from Lujiao Village, waiting for the sailors to come and cooperate, just because most of them were new troops.

Most of those new troops were Huainan people, who were either born as bandits or ran transportation troops.

Although when Fang Mengqing captured Huainan, they fought for more than half a year. But it was all some tailwind battles, and the officials of the Great Song Dynasty always looked to the wind. After the reorganization, it went south to seize Zhejiang, and it was still fighting a tailwind battle.

This kind of troops, even if they have been trained for a long time, can directly fight a big battle of tens of thousands of people, and the opponent is still Zhong Xiang's elite, Wang Yuan really has no confidence in his heart.

Zhong Yi didn't know the bottom of his heart, so the two sides confronted each other.

The pseudo-Chu general Gao Leyi was quite impatient: "I don't dare to send troops to fight, and I will be bombarded by warships again, so what else is this Antler Village guarding?" It's better to abandon the village and retreat to Xiangyin, the city is high and Chishen will definitely be able to hold it! ”

Zhong Yi said: "Lujiao Town is located in a key chong, so the water village was set up, how can you give up so easily? ”

"Don't dare to fight, don't want to give up, this will be lost sooner or later!" Gao Leper is straightforward and fast-talking, and does not save face for Zhong Yi.

To be honest, these generals are not very convinced by Zhong Yi.

A person with relatively mediocre talents, just because he is Zhong Xiang's younger brother, he is not only the king but also the prime minister. The internal affairs are not going well, and the military still has to be the commander-in-chief.

Zhong Yi said: "Your Majesty will be back soon." ”

As soon as these words come out, the congregation will no longer speak.

When Zhong Xiang arrives, they will have the backbone, and they will definitely take the initiative when the time comes.

"Dangdang, dang!"

"The thief Mingshui is here!"

Zhong Yi stood up suddenly, and the generals also went out to check the situation.

But he saw the overwhelming warships coming from the north, and the puppet Chu sailors also left the port one after another to arrange in the south.

The two sides are not of the same magnitude at all, especially after the water battle last year, the strength of the Daming Water Division was more than twice that of the Pseudo-Chu Water Division.

Moreover, the ship is strong and the guns are sharp!

The pseudo-Chu water division did not dare to directly meet the attack at all, but guarded the area where the Xiangjiang River joins Dongting Lake, trying to defend and counterattack with the complex terrain of Qingcao Lake.

At this moment, the commander of the puppet Chu Water Army will be Lei Dejin, and the deputy will be Yang Mi.

On the side of the Daming Water Division, the main general will be Pang Dingzi, the deputy will be Qiu Shanshui, and Yingxuan will take the initiative to give up the command. (Pang Dingzi and Qiu Shanshui are both salt lords who took refuge in Li Bao in Bazhou.) ）

"Boom, boom, boom!"

The distance between the two sides was one mile, and the Daming Navy Division opened fire.

Only a dozen or so ships were armed with artillery, and it was completely unreasonable for these ships to open their way with artillery and advance while firing their guns.

The rest of the warships, all following the gunboats, prepared for the next close battle.

"It's like this again, bullying us without firearms!" Yang Mi stood at the bow of the boat, with nowhere to vent the evil fire in his belly.

The only advantage of the pseudo-Chu water division is to occupy a favorable location and smooth sailing. In the era of cold weapons, these are enough to turn the tide of the war, but how to fight one-sided artillery bombardment?

Lei Dejin, as the chief general of the Chu Army's water division, was also uncomfortable: "Pass the order and prepare for a fire attack." ”

The topography of the Xiangjiang estuary is more complex, not only are there islands, but also reeds are thick, and thousands of boats full of firewood and grass are hidden.

As long as the Daming Sailor dares to come, more than a thousand fireboats will go down the river with the wind.

However, after approaching the Antler Village, the Daming Sailor began to slowly stop advancing. The more than a dozen gunboats at the front brushed around and turned around and shelled wildly towards the Antler Water Village.

Although Ying Xuan did not participate in the command, he also helped with the planning, after all, he was born as a bandit in Dongting Lake.

For this battle, from beginning to end, Ying Xuan only said one sentence: "Don't drive into the mouth of the Xiangjiang River." ”

Seeing that his water village was continuously shelled, and the enemy army was not in the trap, Yang Mi said anxiously: "Go and tell General Lei, I want to go out to lure the enemy!" ”

A small boat sailed towards Lei Dejin's ship, and after thinking for a while, Lei Dejin said: "Go back and tell Yang Mi that he must be careful and bring fifteen boats over to lure the enemy." ”

Soon, Yang Qi personally led fifteen warships, left the mouth of the Xiangjiang River, and resolutely killed the Daming Navy.

Ying Xuan put down the binoculars and said to Pang Dingzi: "The one who lured the enemy is here." ”

More than a dozen gunboats turned one after another and shelled Yang Mi's warship.

The two sides got closer and closer, and the fifteen warships brought by Yang Mi were sunk on the way, and two were shot and not sunk for the time being.

Seeing the enemy warships surrounding, Yang Qi shouted: "Withdraw!" ”

The flag waved, and the Chu warships began to retreat.

As soon as Yang Qi withdrew, the Daming Water Division also stopped, did not chase after him at all, and continued to bombard the Lujiao Water Village.

The Antler Water Village was reinforced last year, and the water structures are wooden, but rammed earth castles have been built on the shore. In addition, on the two "antlers", twin castles were built, which could be connected to each other by small warships.

The first step of the battle plan of the Daming Navy Division is to collapse the water buildings, and the second step is to collapse the rammed earth castle.

Zhong Yi lay behind the female wall of the castle, feeling the vibration of the artillery bombardment against the wall. He knew that a small number of troops should be left to defend the castle, and the main force would go north to fight a decisive battle with Wang Yuan.

However, Zhong Yi was not confident in his command ability, and was afraid that the decisive battle would wipe out the entire army.

Moreover, the strategic location of the Antler Village is too important. Once Da Chu loses here, he will never want to step into Dongting Lake again, and Zhong Yi can't afford to lose the consequences of losing Lujiao Village.

Zhong Yi now has only one thought left, which is to continue to drag on until Zhong Xiang personally comes here to direct the battle.

"Prime Minister, Lord Lei Hou has been killed!"

The shouts of the pro-soldiers startled Zhong Yi and quickly stood up and looked out at the risk of being bombarded.

However, Yang Mi failed to lure the enemy, Lei Dejin was unwilling to sit idly by, and the two of them actually led the Chu Army Naval Division out of the Xiangjiang River Estuary, wanting to fight a decisive battle with the Daming Naval Division, which was twice as large as himself and artillery.

There were also more than 1,000 sailors and fishermen, rowing boats full of firewood and grass, following the warships out of the Xiangjiang River.

"Quickly sound the golden flag and let them withdraw to the Xiangjiang River!" Zhong Yi roared in shock.

(End of chapter)