The wind rises at the end of the Ming Dynasty

Many people may not be familiar with Huayin, but the name "Tongguan" is as resounding as thunder, engraved in the hearts of the general public.

Tongguan has been the site of more than thirty large-scale battles throughout history, and the rights and wrongs of these battles are difficult to discuss.

It has been a crucial military stronghold since ancient times, controlling all directions.

Huayin is located not far to the west of Tongguan, and it was also a major battle zone in many large-scale battles fought by Tongguan.

Wang Mang's usurpation of the Han dynasty sparked a nationwide uprising of rebel armies. After a great victory at Kunyang, the Gengshi army marched into Guanzhong, where they defeated Wang Mang's nine generals at Huayin, and then captured Chang'an, thus destroying the Xin dynasty.

Huayin, as the name suggests, is the south side of Mount Hua.

Huayin is protected by the natural barrier of Mount Hua to the south, the Yellow River to the north, and the Wei River flowing eastward into the Yellow River, forming a natural defense system.

Huayin is located at a strategic crossroads of waterways and land routes, where the Yellow River canal and the Tongguan land route converge, making it a vital artery connecting Guanzhong and the Central Plains.

At this time, the Yellow River had not yet shifted northward, and the turbulent current rushed eastward along the northern foot of Mount Hua. The relationship between the mountain and the river was even closer and more treacherous than in later generations.

Because Mount Hua is a huge water conservation area, groundwater overflows in front of the mountain, forming many springs and streams.

These clear, cool water sources nourish the villages and farmlands in front of the mountains, allowing Huayin to retain a rare patch of greenery even during years of severe drought in Shaanxi.

The surrounding area, especially the foothills and riverbanks, still has a large number of wetlands and marshes, and the ecological environment is different from the dry plains of today.

The area where the northern foothills of Mount Hua transition to the plains is a group of alluvial fans formed by mountain torrents.

Nearly 180,000 Jingnan troops marched out of Tongguan. Such a large-scale military mobilization could not possibly be concealed in the slightest.

The scouts scattered along the front lines rode back at breakneck speed, bringing news of the military situation at Tongguan.

"The Jingnan Army has gathered hundreds of thousands of troops and marched out of Tongguan. Scouts at the front reported that the vanguard of the Jingnan Army, numbering 50,000, is coming from all over the mountains and plains. When they looked into the distance, they saw that the enemy general's banner had already left the pass!"

Li Zicheng, wearing a phoenix-winged helmet and mountain-patterned armor, with his hand on the sword at his waist, walked step by step towards the tent with a gloomy face.

Yuan Zongdi, with a solemn expression, followed closely beside Li Zicheng, reporting on the military situation at the front.

"Your Majesty, the vanguard of the Jingnan Army has approached Mengyuan Town by no more than ten miles. The main force of the Jingnan Army infantry is advancing rapidly along the official road. The Jingnan Army's armored cavalry is fierce and valiant, and our scouts have been completely driven out."

Yuan Zongdi's last few words were almost spat out from between his teeth.

His eyes were filled with deep worry; the Jingnan army's strength was far more formidable than he had anticipated.

Who were the vanguard commanders of the Jingnan Army?

Li Zicheng's expression remained unchanged, but his heart was equally heavy.

The sudden defeat of the Qing army caught him off guard, and he was filled with regret. If he had known that the Qing army was so vulnerable, he would never have taken such a slow and methodical approach. He would have launched a fierce attack on Tongguan or advanced into Hanzhong from the very beginning.

The Qing army retreated, and the Jingnan Army strengthened its position at Tongguan. After several days of fierce fighting, they failed to gain any ground advantage, and the balance of power shifted. Their situation was extremely precarious.

"The vanguard of the Jingnan Army consists of the three divisions, the central army is led by General You Shiwei of Hanzhong Town, and the left and right armies are led by Generals Li Dingguo and Ai Nengqi."

"That good-for-nothing You Shiwei can actually serve as the vanguard of the Jingnan Army? The Jingnan Army really has no one left."

Li Zicheng's eyes sharpened slightly, and he snorted coldly. He had clashed with You Shiwei before.

You Shiwei had a history of more defeats than victories, and in the battle of Lushi, he was defeated in a single charge.

"Those two petty thieves, Li Dingguo and Ai Nengqi, have now become honored guests of the Jingnan Army. How laughable!"

Li Zicheng clenched his teeth involuntarily, his cheek muscles twitched slightly, and his hatred for Li Yan grew stronger.

"If it weren't for that idiot Li Yan's doing in Nanjing, how could Chen Wang have swallowed up the Western Army's troops!"

Feeling frustrated, Li Zicheng leaped onto the warhorse brought by his personal guards.

"Bring Gu Kecheng and Ren Jirong here."

Li Zicheng raised his riding whip and shouted angrily.

"Have them bring up all the cavalry from the old camp!"

"Your Majesty, please be cautious!"

Yuan Zongdi's expression changed drastically. He had followed Li Zicheng for many years, so how could he not understand Li Zicheng's thoughts?

"Although You Shiwei had many unsatisfactory experiences in the past, with more defeats than victories, the reason for this was that his soldiers were infected with the plague and his allies fled first."

"Chen Wang has appointed You Shiwei this time, and the troops he leads are all elite soldiers and strong generals from Hanzhong Town. It would be rash to..."

Li Zicheng raised his hand to stop Yuan Zongdi from speaking, interrupting him directly.

"No need to say more!"

Li Zicheng's pupils burned with the flames of desperation as he spoke coldly.

"The Jingnan Army has spread a net on all sides, and troops from all directions are advancing at the same time. The overall situation is unfavorable. This time, only by taking risky measures can we win."

Yuan Zongdi wanted to say more, but Li Zicheng's mind was made up, and he was not allowed to say anything more.

The neighing of warhorses rang out, and Li Zicheng had already led his guards and armored cavalry away in a cloud of dust.

The thunderous sound of war drums resounded over the Shun army's central camp outside Huayin City, and in an instant, the vast Shun army camp was in an uproar.

The black banner followed Li Zicheng from the camp gate all the way forward, the deep drumbeats shaking the earth, the sound waves carrying dust that swept across the entire military camp.
To the east of Huayin City, the precipitous Mount Hua and the Yellow River form a natural funnel-shaped opening, resembling a throat.

Tongguan is the narrowest point of the funnel-shaped passage, extending all the way to the west, where the space becomes increasingly open.

Without Tongguan, Huayin would be the last chance for the defenders.

Otherwise, once the forces outside the pass break through Huayin, the vast Guanzhong Plain will be left without any natural defenses, and they will be at the mercy of these forces.

Therefore, during the Tang Dynasty, after the rebels defeated the Tang army that had crossed the pass, the defenses along the Tongguan and Huayin lines collapsed, which led to Li Longji's hasty escape from Chang'an.

On the open fields in the eastern suburbs of Huayin.

The vanguard force, consisting of nearly 40,000 troops in three formations, slowly spread across the vast land like mercury spilling onto the ground.

The morning light reflected off the armor and bayonets, flashing and refracting a chilling gleam, forming an endless forest of bayonets.

The Jingnan Army's cavalry, clad in red armor, had already obscured the entire battlefield, their warhorses neighing and kicking up clouds of yellow dust.

The cavalry that Shunjun had deployed earlier had already been routed by the swift and fierce attack of the Jingnan army's cavalry and could only flee far away.

Those Mongol cavalrymen from the grasslands beyond the Great Wall and the Qiang cavalrymen who once roamed the Luchuan region were indeed highly skilled riders.

However, the cavalry of the Jingnan Army was far stronger than them.

They certainly didn't grow up on horseback.

However, their long-term rigorous training and countless battles filled with carnage have made their horsemanship no less than that of the Mongol and Qiang cavalry.

With their superior weaponry, the Mongol cavalry were extremely vulnerable to their offensive.

The sporadic sounds of gunfire echoed across the open field.

The Jingnan Army's military equipment was much better than it was during the Battle of Jining.

Not only were the main infantry almost entirely equipped with the Sea Oath musket, but the cavalry also received a batch of special muskets.

The muskets used by cavalry were much shorter than those used by infantry, making them more suitable for mounted combat, although their range and power were somewhat reduced. However, they still had a much greater range and power than ordinary horse bows.

Therefore, in long-range engagements, the Jingnan Army's cavalry always held an absolute advantage.

Thousands of cavalry swept across the plains, while the vanguard of infantry slowly pressed forward.

However, the strength of the Jingnan Army is far more than that.

The vanguard of the Jingnan army had already covered the entire front, while the troops behind seemed endless.

Behind them, the central army of the Jingnan Army was in full force, its massive formation fully deployed.

The central army of the Jingnan Army, consisting of nearly 100,000 soldiers, stretched for several miles.

The soldiers of the 7th Division of the Jingnan Army were lined up in two lines, their banners billowing like a red sea in the wind.

The dense bayonets converged into a steel jungle, obscuring the sky above them, gleaming coldly in the morning light.

Hu Zhiyi pulled on the reins and slowly drove his warhorse forward, his eyes sharp as torches. He passed over the undulating hills and scattered fortresses ahead and landed on Mengyuan Town, which was known as Huludi.

Beside him, Chen Ming, the garrison commander of Henan Town, rode his warhorse closely behind, bowing and respectfully reporting the military situation to Hu Zhiyi.

"The Shun army has moved. Li Zicheng has led his troops out of the Huayin camp and is heading straight for the front line towards Mengyuan Town."

The narrow passage from Tongguan to Huayin ends in a place shaped like a gourd, hence its name.

“Shunjun built fortresses around Mengyuan Town, taking advantage of the surrounding terrain, along the southern mountains and the banks of the Yellow River.”

The character "Yuan" in Mengyuan Town comes from the unique loess plateau terrain of Shaanxi Province.

Loess plateau is also known as loess platform or loess table-shaped highland.

Loess plateaus are often shaped like flower petals. The top of a loess plateau is flat, with sloping edges and deep gullies all around.

Mengyuan Town is a platform in the Loess Plateau, which is high up and easy to defend, making it difficult to attack even with superior forces.

If it is an attack, the soldiers need to attack from above, while the defenders can take advantage of the terrain and deal with the situation from a high position.

Chen Ming pointed to the faintly visible yellowish-brown outline in the distance, his tone solemn.

"The walls of each fort of the Shun army were all built with rammed earth and covered with meadow. They looked crude, but they were extremely resistant to artillery fire."

Chen Ming's voice was low and deep. The message from You Shiwei indicated that the infantry artillery fire at the front lines had been significantly less effective at damaging the fortresses built by Li Zicheng.

Therefore, the outer fortresses were eventually breached by superior forces, resulting in heavy casualties.

“The Shun army built a defensive line from the top of the plateau to various strategic locations. The main fortress was located at the highest point of Mengyuan Town. The surrounding fortresses, watchtowers, and gun emplacements were connected one after another. Between the fortresses, there were more than twenty deep and wide trenches of various sizes, which supported each other.”

Hu Zhiyi's gaze slowly swept across the area Chen Ming was pointing to.

The main fortress of the Shun army is located in the center of Mengyuan Town. The fortress complex, along the riverbank and foothills, forms a huge pocket like outstretched arms.

In the central area, several fortresses also extend out, resembling the Chinese character "山" (mountain).

"Li Zicheng suffered several heavy losses at our fortress under the jurisdiction of Hanzhong Prefecture, and now he has learned his lesson quite well."

Hu Zhiyi remained calm and sneered.

Initially, when Li Zicheng attempted to attack Hanzhong, he suffered a crushing defeat at the fortress set up by Chen Wang below Mian County.

Subsequent attacks on Hanzhong Prefecture all ended in defeat.

"These defenses are tough to break through, but now, time is on our side."

Hu Zhiyi's vision encompassed the entire situation.

With the Shun army occupying Huayin, the defending side could rely on the natural defenses of Mount Hua to the south and the Yellow River to the north to organize defenses in the relatively open Huayin area.

As the attacking force, they emerged from the narrow Tongguan Pass, making it impossible for them to effectively deploy their troops.

In the distance, outside the Shun army camp in Mengyuan Town, a large number of banners were constantly converging from all directions.

"Since infantry artillery is not performing well, then we should redeploy heavy artillery to the front lines."

If six-pound infantry cannons can't break through the Shun army's fortifications, then bring in siege cannons weighing eighteen or twenty-four pounds.

During the Battle of Jining, they faced the Qing army in a battle that determined the fate of the nation.

Limited by the military industry at the time, Chen Wang only brought forty-eight heavy siege cannons.

For this westward expedition to Shaanxi, Chen Wang not only entrusted him with a terrifyingly elite army, but also prepared fifty-eight cannons weighing eighteen jin each and eighteen cannons weighing twenty-four jin each, for a total of seventy-six heavy cannons.

With seventy-six heavy cannons at their disposal, what fortress in the world could possibly withstand their onslaught?

"Each vanguard battalion, advance in order, and divide your forces to capture fortresses!"

"The First and Second Divisions of Hanzhong Town, advance immediately to provide support as the vanguard and stabilize the battle line!"

"All artillery units, escort the heavy artillery and advance to construct positions!"

Clear and decisive military orders were quickly repeated and confirmed, and then translated into concrete actions.

On the central command platform, flags of various colors representing different units and orders waved in succession, weaving together a dazzling display of flag signals.

The messenger cavalry, who had been waiting for a long time, sped out from both sides of the central banner like arrows shot from a powerful bow, rushing towards various directions of the main formation along the pre-prepared passages between the formations.

The Jingnan Army's formation also began to change constantly.

The heavy artillery units, dragged by countless packhorses, carved heavy tracks into the ground.

The thunderous sound of war drums echoed across the open fields on the eastern outskirts of Huayin, while the deep blasts of horns rose and fell.

The massive red battle formation of the Jingnan Army began a series of breathtaking transformations.

Driven by the soldiers, countless strong packhorses neighed low as they struggled to pull the incredibly heavy artillery and ammunition carts behind them.

Huge iron-clad wooden wheels rolled across the ground, ploughing deep furrows into the dry loess.

At the same time, the First and Second Divisions of Hanzhong Town, which formed the central army and served as the vanguard, also pressed forward with more than 40,000 elite soldiers.

The glint of the bayonets converged into a flowing sea of ​​metal, and the heavy footsteps blended into a suppressed thunder.

Beneath the grand scale of the battle, there are countless schemes, intrigues, and plots.

Ultimately, it was all in vain...

The mountains are towering high, and the Yellow River flows eastward with a clear and resonant sound, its force like thunder.

however.

When the seventy-six heavy cannons deployed by the Jingnan Army began to roar.

When the thunderous shouts rang out from the nearly 40,000-strong vanguard Third Division.

Everything in the world paled in comparison at that moment.

All the sounds of nature eventually became insignificant background noise. (End of Chapter)