Southern Ming: A boy soldier at the beginning, supporting the world

Chapter 195: Entering Suoyifa

At Cen Danchu's insistence, Jiao Lian postponed the date of the second attack on Quanzhou.

In mid-May, victory news came from Daozhou. Cao Zhijian, the Duke of Yongguo of the Southern Ming, led his army to recover Daozhou, and echoed with Jiao Lian of Xing'an and Li Chixin of Chenzhou. The Ming army in southern Hunan seemed to be united. Upon hearing the news, Jirgalang ordered Lekedehun to counterattack Daozhou, and the whole state was empty again.

Upon hearing the news, Jiao Lian decided to immediately counterattack Quanzhou. May 30th was an auspicious day, and the Ming army moved north from Xing'an to attack Quanzhou for the second time. At this time, it was exactly one month since the last defeat.

The Ming army's strength was basically the same as last time, still mainly composed of the Yunnan Division, the Guangxi Division, and the Red Army, as well as the Chu Division's Xiong Zhaozuo and Zhou Jintang's troops.

Xiong Zhaozuo and Zhou Jintang were people whom He Tengjiao valued during his lifetime. After the defeat, they were unwilling to rely on Du Yinxi and joined Qu Shisi. They still had 5,000 infantry and 800 cavalry under their command.

The deployment of troops was adjusted. The Yunnan Division and the Guangxi Division continued to take the west bank of the Xiangjiang River and took on the task of attacking the city after arriving in Quanzhou. The Guangxi Division was deployed at Shufangling and was the main force for the attack. The Yunnan Division was deployed in the east of the city and was responsible for the auxiliary attack. The Chu Division followed the Yunnan Division and the Guangxi Division and, after arriving in Quanzhou, went down Quanzhou ten miles to Suoyifur, responsible for blocking the Qing army's reinforcements on the west bank of the Xiangjiang River.

The Red Army's fighting power was obvious to all, and they continued to fight alone in this battle, blocking the Qing army's reinforcements on the east bank of the Xiangjiang River. Jiao Lian originally wanted the Red Army to advance to Huangsha Town and block the Qing army there.

But Huangsha Town was too far from Quanzhou, more than 30 miles away. If the Red Army was deployed in Huangsha Town, it would be difficult to coordinate with the main force, which would be extremely dangerous. Danchu argued with reason, and Jiao Lian had to give in and agreed that the Red Army should set up defenses at Suoyifur to coordinate with the Chu army from a distance.

On June 2, the Ming army arrived at the designated location and began to set up camp. The Guangxi and Yunnan divisions also learned from the Red Army's lessons and imitated the Red Army's strategy of building strong camps and fighting stupid battles, trying their best to dig deep trenches and build chevaux de frise walls.

The Red Army also crossed the Guanjiang River and set up camp again at Leigong Ridge. The specific deployment was also adjusted. The personal soldiers camped at Suoyi Ferry, which was open and only had one large camp. The second infantry battalion set up a large camp at Leigong Ridge, less than ten miles away from Suoyi Ferry. The Tusi soldiers also crossed the Guanjiang River and set up camp on both sides of the Guanjiang River, responsible for protecting the floating bridge and ensuring the Red Army's retreat.

The Ming army was divided on both sides of the Xiang River, so a floating bridge had to be built on the river to support each other. This time, because the Ming army advanced to Suoyiferry, the floating bridge on the Xiang River was moved to the vicinity of Leigongling. In order to protect the bridge, the Second Infantry Battalion built a small wooden city in front of the bridge to support the main camp.

The second Quanzhou combat deployment was more active and bold, which shows that Jiao Lian was determined to win Quanzhou.

At noon, the imperial guards arrived at Suoyi Ferry and immediately began to select a site to build a camp. If the Qing army went to the east bank of the Xiangjiang River to reinforce Quanzhou, they would first encounter the Red Army at Suoyi Ferry. The imperial guards had the strongest combat effectiveness and the highest treatment, so they should be stationed on the front line.

When he first arrived at a place, Danchu had the habit of surveying the terrain first. Under the protection of his personal guards, he took the director of the intelligence bureau, the director of the operations bureau, and the officers of each battalion out to check the terrain.

Dan Chu was preoccupied with thoughts, but the others were chatting and laughing, as if the entire state was within their grasp.

He deliberately tried to provoke everyone, forced a smile, and asked, "Do you think of this battle in this way?"

The generals were quite confident and said in unison:

"Lekdehun led the Tartars to Daozhou and will not be able to return to Quanzhou for a while. Tongtulai is now isolated and helpless."

"The last time Xinxing Hou attacked Quanzhou, he has a lot of experience in attacking cities. This time he sent the Chu army and the Red army to advance to Suoyifal, and Quanzhou is within his grasp."

"The Tartars are nothing to be afraid of. Didn't our Red Army defeat them twice?"

"Marshal Jue has just been conferred the title of Dinglubo. His morale is high. If the officers and soldiers obey orders, we can defeat the enemy in one blow."

……

"Wrong, wrong, wrong!" Dan Chu said three wrong words in a row. The generals were stunned. Seeing that their commander looked unhappy, they shut up and stopped talking.

"Every time you fight, you must first have the overall situation in mind. Every time you face a battle, you must first grasp the key. For example, when playing chess, you must first look at the entire chessboard and grasp the key point. What do you think is the key to this battle? Is it Xinxinghou? Is it the Red Army? Is it Lekedehun?"

The generals had no idea and dared not guess, but they heard Danchu say: "I have decided that the key to this battle lies in the Loyalty Camp and Li Chixin." The Loyalty Camp is far away in Chenzhou, and has nothing to do with Quanzhou. What does it have to do with the battle of Quanzhou?
Just when the generals were confused, someone suddenly understood. Dan Chu saw that the musket battalion commander Qiao Song's expression changed, so he asked, "Qiao Song, what do you think?"

Qiao Song said: "The Loyalty Battalion has tied up the main force of the Tartars in Chenzhou, so our army can attack Quanzhou with confidence. Otherwise, if the Loyalty Battalion is defeated, the Tartars can send their main force to reinforce Quanzhou overnight. By then, our army will be exhausted under the city of Quanzhou, and the Qing army reinforcements will arrive, and we will repeat the same mistake."

"Well said!" Danchu praised: "The biggest problem of the Ming army is that the organization is lax and the leadership is poor. There is no prestigious commander on the front line. The troops in each town act on their own and are easily defeated by the Tartars.

"Our army's operations in Quanzhou really rely on the Zhongzheng Battalion in Chenzhou. If the Zhongzheng Battalion is defeated, the Qing army can mobilize a large army to reinforce Quanzhou. As far as I know, the Zhongzheng Battalion has more defeats than victories, and it is difficult for it to gain a foothold in Chenzhou."

The generals were stunned and their faces turned serious.

"But there's no need to be too scared. The Red Army has fought with the Tartars before, and has replenished its troops and ammunition. We are fully equipped and equipped to fight the Tartars. Everyone must pay full attention and not be blindly optimistic. We must not be careless about the fortifications that need to be built and the scouts and outposts that need to be sent out."

All the generals agreed and followed Danchu to survey the terrain.

"How far is the Lion Ridge in the distance from here? How high is it?" Dan Chu asked.

This matter was under the jurisdiction of the Reconnaissance Section of the Operations Bureau. Director Yang Yuqi had already made up his mind and said, "The Lion Ridge is less than three miles away from the camp and is about thirty feet high."

It was not easy to stop the army and set up camp. The location was extremely important. Water sources, toilets, granaries, fire prevention and other issues had to be carefully considered. The imperial guards camped three miles away from Lion Ridge, mainly to prevent the Qing army from occupying Lion Ridge and then setting up artillery to bombard the Red Army camp.

Lion Ridge is a high ground and should be occupied. However, if Lion Ridge is to be occupied, the Royal Guards must be divided into two camps.

"What do you think? Should we concentrate all our troops in one camp, or divide them into two camps, or three camps?"

Inspirational education begins again.

Inferring from the results, it is easy to conclude: "It is better to combine them into one large camp, just like now."

"No," Danchu said clearly, "The number of camps should be determined by the terrain, and there is no definitive answer. If conditions permit, camps should be set up as far apart as possible. An army of two or three thousand people should be divided into two or three camps.

"Risks should be dispersed as much as possible, and all eggs should not be placed in one basket. Otherwise, if there is an epidemic, fire, flood, or military riot in the camp, the entire army will be affected.

"With the terrain of Suoyifal, we can definitely set up two or three camps. But because our army has little combat experience, it is difficult to disperse and fight, the firearms are not well equipped, and the enemy is a powerful force of the Eight Banners, so we have to form a large camp. Otherwise, I would have to place artillery on Lion Ridge. Why would I camp three miles away from Lion Ridge?"

The generals looked ashamed.

Yuan Ping, the commander of the imperial guards, hesitated for a moment and said, "Marshal Jue, perhaps we can ambush the troops at Lion Ridge and attack the Tartars from the flank if necessary."

Danchu's expression changed, and he fell into deep thought. In the early days of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, there was a famous battle of Suoyi Ferry, but the battlefield was not at Suoyi Ferry, but at Shiziling. Jiang Zhongyuan led the Chu Yong to drive wooden stakes on the Xiangjiang River below Shiziling to block the Taiping Army's ships, and set up artillery on Shiziling, causing the Taiping Army to suffer heavy losses, which can be regarded as the biggest defeat since the establishment of the army.

It is not convenient for the Red Army to camp on Lion Ridge, so perhaps a group of elite soldiers can be ambushed on Lion Ridge. Tusi soldiers have been climbing mountains and crossing streams since childhood, and are hardworking and persevering. They did not make great achievements last time, so officers and soldiers at all levels have enthusiastically requested to fight, and this time they can take on this task.

Danchu had made up his mind and said, "Move a thousand Tusi soldiers to set up an ambush on Lion Ridge at night. Order them to lie in ambush carefully, not to light fires, and not to go out to fight without my order."

(End of this chapter)