weaving

Chapter 1580 Not All Cowards
Li Deng, a guerrilla commander under Zhou Yuji, led a contingent of infantry to break into the enemy camp through the east gate.

They lacked the speed advantage of cavalry, and the enemy camp had already been disrupted by the cavalry that had broken in earlier. Burning tents were everywhere, with flames rising, smoke and dust flying, and shouts of battle echoing throughout.

After Li Deng broke into the enemy camp, he immediately advanced towards the center of the camp with a well-organized formation, killing lone enemy soldiers along the way and finishing off the wounded ones.

When they first entered the enemy camp, they had a smooth journey and did not encounter any groups of enemy bandits. Even if a few enemy bandits came to fight, how could they be a match for the Ming army in formation?

However, after they advanced a certain distance, they encountered their opponents—the Han army's Bordered Red Banner infantry, led by Jin Li, the Gushan Ezhen of the Jurchen Han army.

The Manchu Eight Banners of the Jurchens were the absolute main force, excelling in cavalry warfare and even more so in infantry warfare; while the Mongol Eight Banners were the second main force, not weak in cavalry warfare, and most adept at mounted archery harassment, even surpassing the Manchu Eight Banners troops.

Only the Han Chinese Eight Banners were average in both cavalry and infantry combat, but they were most skilled in handling firearms. Almost all of the Jurchens' cannons and muskets were in the hands of the Han Chinese Eight Banners, and they were often used as the main force for attacking and conquering cities.

Jin Li, as a surrendered general, was still despised by the Jurchen officials and was often bullied and humiliated by them.

Therefore, Jin Li was always cautious and prudent in the Han army's Eight Banners, and always acted with composure, trying his best not to give those Jurchen nobles and generals any handle to use against him, so as not to be suppressed, humiliated, or even punished by them.

After setting up camp today, Jin Li ordered that only half of the Han soldiers under his command, who were under the Bordered Red Banner, were allowed to remove their armor, while the other half had to rest in their armor. This was done in rotation every day, with only half of the soldiers allowed to remove their armor normally.

Since breaking through the pass and invading, Jin Li's camp has always maintained this requirement. Even if his soldiers had some complaints, Jin Li ignored them and never made any changes.

His actions even drew ridicule from other Manchu and Mongol generals, and even the other Han Chinese Eight Banners generals and their men secretly scoffed at his behavior.

However, Jin Li's caution has finally paid off, and his performance has given a resounding slap to those Manchu and Mongol traitors who once mocked him!

Upon hearing the commotion in the camp, Jin Li fired his gun to summon the soldiers of the Bordered Red Banner to form a battle formation. Because half of the soldiers were still in their armor, they quickly formed a battle formation.

Just as Du Lei was about to be ordered to support the central army, he heard a report that the east gate had fallen and a large Ming army force was attacking his own camp.

From a strategic perspective, Jin Li ordered the soldiers who had already formed ranks to immediately go and meet the enemy, and to first block the advancing Ming army, so that the other half of the soldiers would have time to put on their armor and form ranks, and then go to reinforce the central army commander, Du Lei.

But things didn't go as Jin Li had planned...

The infantry in Zhou Yuji's camp were also skilled in using firearms and crossbows. Only one-third of the infantry in his camp were shield bearers, while the rest were either archers or musketeers.

Jin Li's more than 1,000 Han soldiers with the Bordered Red Banner were thus tied down by the Ming army led by Li Deng, unable to support their commander-in-chief Du Lei or defeat Li Deng's Ming army.

However, Jin Li also successfully blocked Li Deng's Ming army, preventing them from advancing any further and protecting the enemy camp behind him.

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Guo Yuzhong was the commander of Zhou Yuji's camp. He led a contingent of infantrymen who followed behind the cavalry and charged into the enemy camp through the breach in the palisade.

They were slower than the cavalry, so they advanced from behind, killing lone enemy soldiers along the way and finishing off the wounded, following in the footsteps of the cavalry all the way to the center of the enemy camp.

Just as Zhou Yuji and Du Lei were locked in a stalemate, Guo Yuzhong led his troops to catch up. They had not been through any major battles along the way, so their physical strength was not greatly depleted, making them a truly fresh force.

With the support of Guo Yuzhong's infantry, Zhou Yuji's side immediately gained the upper hand.

Meanwhile, news from other fronts also reached Du Lei's side. The entire enemy camp was in chaos, with fires raging everywhere and enemy attacks occurring from three sides. Even the rear camp where the captured civilians were being held was being attacked by Ming cavalry.

"Warriors, we cannot tarnish the prestige of our Great Qing! Let's all join Bengushan in killing the Ming dogs!" They were all in a hurry.

Jia Laji Ling'an, who was standing to the side, quickly spoke up to stop him: "Du Lei Gu Shan, you are the commander of an army. You must leave the central army to control the overall situation. You can leave the mere Ming dogs to Ji Ling'an."

Du Lei glanced at him and said, "Fine, here are seven hundred warriors. If you don't drive back the Ming dogs, you'll have to bring back your head!"

"Yes, sir!"

Although Zhou Yuji's night raid on Jinduiji failed to defeat the enemy, it still achieved great results, causing them considerable losses. He also took advantage of the chaos to rescue nearly 10,000 Shandong villagers who had been kidnapped.

Although he was very brave and fearless of the Tartars, he was not a reckless brute.

When Zhou Yuji's main night raid force encountered resistance, he wanted to retreat. Just then, Guo Yuzhong led his infantry to catch up, and Zhou Yuji's fighting spirit was rekindled.

However, after charging forward three times, he was blocked by the Jurchen infantry and cavalry each time. In order to prevent the Jurchens from recovering and trapping his army, he wisely chose to retreat.

He left two hundred cavalrymen under Guo Yuzhong's command, ordering him to fight and retreat, withdrawing from the enemy camp via the route they had come from, and then regrouping in Anqiu.

Zhou Yuji led the remaining cavalry to retreat a distance before turning east to meet up with Li Deng's troops who were charging into the enemy camp from the east gate.

At the same time, Zhou Yuji did not forget to send a small team of nearly a hundred cavalrymen to advance rapidly northward to convey the message of retreat to Xue Minzhong's troops, so as to prevent them from being trapped in the camp by the enemy.

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Although it was gradually getting light, Du Lei was still somewhat uneasy about Zhou Yuji's night raid, especially with the other Mongol and Han soldiers offering reminders from the side...

This Ming army force is quite different; fearing they might have other deadly traps hidden behind them, everyone advised against pursuing the fleeing enemy to avoid falling into an ambush.

Although Du Lei was unwilling, the reality was that it was not convenient to leave the camp to pursue the Ming army. Many warriors did not even have their armor properly put on before they were thrown into fierce battle.

From dawn to dusk, the enemy had been fighting fiercely for nearly two hours and were now exhausted. In addition, they had been scattered by the sudden night attack. Now, in a hasty pursuit of the fleeing Ming army, their organizational structure could not be guaranteed to remain intact, which was not advisable.

Du Leice, on horseback, had a sinister look in his eyes, but he was helpless. He gritted his teeth and ordered Hu Shibu to send out Mongol troops from the Bordered Blue Banner to guard two hundred paces outside the camp.

At the same time, he also ordered Jin Li's Han troops to assemble under the red banner and await orders in preparation for the Ming army's return.

After all, Jin Li's troops were the only ones with the most complete organization and the fewest casualties in the enemy camp, so they naturally became the main force for defense.

The remaining units tidied up the camp, fighting fires and treating wounded soldiers.

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Zhou Yuji and Xue Minzhong also suffered considerable losses. Although their retreat went smoothly, some wounded soldiers were not brought out, not to mention the bodies of fallen soldiers, which was inevitable.

However, the number of enemies killed in this battle was no less than the number of casualties suffered by our side.

Zhou Yuji's troops suffered over 80 dead infantry and cavalry, and over 370 wounded; Xue Minzhong's side suffered fewer than 100 dead, and over 280 wounded men and horses.

They killed or wounded five or six hundred enemy soldiers, and some enemy soldiers were trapped in the burning tents, where they were burned to death or injured.

Of course, the bandits killed and wounded also included bondservants who had accompanied the army into battle, but in any case, these bondservants were now enemies who had invaded the territory of the Ming Dynasty.

However, since the enemy's corpse and head were not obtained, this victory was just a number.

In addition, Zhou Yuji's troops also captured a Jurchen Niru Zhangjing (a military officer in charge of military affairs) and three genuine Jurchen Plain Red Banner soldiers, which was a real victory.

Another incident involved a cavalry unit under Zhou Yuji who unexpectedly stumbled upon a camp where captive civilians were being held. They fought off the Tartar guards and rescued over ten thousand captive civilians, with eight or nine thousand ultimately escaping the enemy camp.

The greatest achievement of this battle was not the number of Tartars killed or wounded, but rather that it demonstrated to the Jurchens that the Ming Dynasty was not entirely weak and was not a place where Tartars could come and go as they pleased!
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Meanwhile, elsewhere in the Ming Dynasty, a great battle was brewing, far more devastating than Zhou Yuji's night raid on the enemy camp, both in terms of the number of troops involved and the intensity of the fighting…