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

Chapter 200: Repulse the Qing Army
At the hour of You, the rain became heavier and denser like a curtain of pearls. The matchlocks, cannons, and bows and arrows were completely ineffective, and the two armies had to fight hand-to-hand.

The Ming army's reinforcements have arrived, pouring into the western wing of Leigong Ridge like a tide, greatly boosting the morale of the imperial guards.

The Qing army did not want to fail at the last hurdle, so they continued to advance towards the Red Army's square. They formed a horizontal column with a wider front and continued to take the offensive. The Red Army formed a square formation with a narrower front and took a defensive position.

There were not many spearmen in both armies, and they were concentrated in the front direction.

Soon, the two armies gradually approached.

The two wings of the Qing army rushed out and attacked the flanks of the Red Army. The front was filled with heavily armored spearmen who thrust their spears at the Red Army without hesitation.

"Bang! Bang! Bang!" The spear tips collided, making the unique crisp sound of metal collision, which made people feel depressed.

The Qing army's spearmen did not stop or hesitate, and continued to advance, as if they were oblivious to the spears in front of them.

"What a courageous Tartar!!" Danchu secretly admired in his heart. Normally, when the spearmen of the two armies were about to engage in battle, they would hesitate and be afraid, and would not dare to move forward until the rear army forced them to move forward, and then they would have to move forward to engage in battle.

This group of Tartars was surprisingly brave, but reinforcements were coming, so the Red Army did not need to be afraid of them. With the addition of reinforcements, the Red Army had two or three times the number of troops as the Qing Army, and had already gotten rid of the passive situation.

Kuang Shi's abandonment of the Leigongling camp was a brilliant move. Hundreds of Qing troops entered Leigongling, thinking they had achieved great success in seizing the camp, but there was no Red Army soldier left.

These Qing soldiers were greedy for spoils and had no intention of fighting. They scattered around to plunder the camp. The war was intense and every soldier was precious. Hundreds of Qing soldiers left the battlefield, which indirectly weakened the strength of the Qing army.

At the same time, 3,000 Red Army infantrymen abandoned their camp, which was equivalent to adding 3,000 manpower to the front line.

I guess Jirgalang must have been in a state of panic at this time. If he wanted to defend the Leigongling camp, he would have to divide his troops to defend it. It was getting dark, and if the battle was not going well, he could retreat to the camp to rest. But the camp was built by the Red Army, and they knew everything. There was no guarantee that they would not rob the camp at night. Or, the Red Army surrounded the camp and used trenches to besiege the Qing army, which was extremely dangerous.

If they abandoned the Leigongling camp, if they could not defeat the Ming army, they would have to withdraw from the battlefield before dark. Where to withdraw? At least they had to withdraw to Huangsha Town to be safe.

I was careless, really careless. Since entering the Pass, Jirgalang had never been defeated, but I didn't expect to encounter a tough opponent at Suoyifal.

The spearmen's spears collided with each other, making a dull and depressing sound.

Soon, the spear tip was in front of the enemy. The spearmen were all wearing iron armor, leaving only gaps at the face and neck. The cavalry spears were not as long as the infantry spears, but they were also ten feet long. There was no special skill for the soldiers to use this weapon. They just had to hold the spear shaft tightly, find the enemy's face and neck, and then pierce the spear tip into the enemy's weak parts.

The sound of killing rang out, interspersed with the screams of wounded soldiers. The spearmen in the front were already engaging in close combat, and the Qing troops on both wings also came over to try to surround the Red Army.

The Qing army on both wings had few spearmen, and most of them held sabers, which were actually waist knives with thickened blades. The Red Army on both wings also had no spearmen, and all held muskets and used bayonets for self-defense. Rifles plus bayonets were longer than the Qing army's sabers, so the Red Army's musketeers were able to hold their own.

The sky was gloomy, the rain was getting heavier, and the Qing army was gradually pressing forward. Even the cavalry scattered behind the formation were gradually approaching, as if ready to charge at any time.

"Swoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!" Three or four hundred archers rushed out of the Red Army's formation and unexpectedly shot a hail of arrows, catching the Qing army off guard.

The Red Army could not afford the long-pointed bow, so they were mostly equipped with lacquer bows, which were common in Guangdong and Guangxi. Although they were weak in power, they were not afraid of rain and could be used on rainy days.

Haha, the Red Army can also shoot at the face from five steps away. There were screams in front of the Qing army, and the offensive weakened.

"Cavalry, mount your horses! Get ready to engage the enemy! Infantry, hold on, don't retreat a single step! Reinforcements are coming, and we will surely defeat the enemy!" Dan Chu stood on his horse with his spear in hand, shouting loudly.

The Qing army's infantry could not break the formation, and with their cavalry arriving in large numbers, they were about to make a last-ditch effort.

"Yes! Yes! Yes!" The soldiers of the royal guard responded loudly, their voices grew from small to large, from chaotic to uniform, gathering into a huge force.

The Imperial Guards also had three or four hundred cavalrymen who had been waiting in the formation. After receiving the order, they immediately mounted their horses and prepared to fight against the Qing army that rushed into the square formation. The rain was like a continuous stream of pearls, and the sky seemed to be broken. Although the Imperial Guards were trapped in the enemy's formation and it was their first time to fight against the Eight Banners in the field, the soldiers completely overcame their fear, their fighting spirit was high, their spirits were high, and they were full of confidence that they would win.

It is said that the Marshal is God's prophet. As long as we follow the Marshal and listen to him, the Royal Guards will never be defeated by the enemy.

Don't you see that reinforcements are already in sight, the 3,000-man 2nd Infantry Battalion and the 1,000-man cavalry of the Gui Division have already pressed forward from the right wing. The Qing army is unable to withstand their attack, and the defense line has been shaken.

A group of Qing heavy cavalry, with their horses covered in vests, charged towards the left wing of the Red Army.

"Kill!" The enemy cavalry was approaching, but the Red Army musketeers still refused to retreat and shouted in unison.

The Qing army all rode on big, mighty, and well-trained horses. However, animals were still animals after all, and they were still frightened by the white bayonets. At the moment of contact with the enemy, the big horses jumped up one after another, trying to avoid the bayonets and jump over the musketeers.

"Stab!" The musketeers' assassination technique only consists of a few moves, and they have already practiced it to perfection.

Daxima was stabbed in the chest, blood spurted out, and he neighed in pain, then fell heavily to the ground. The Qing cavalryman took advantage of the horse's momentum and hacked at the Red Army with his saber.

Fortunately, with the protection of armor, the Red Army musketeers only suffered superficial wounds. Afterwards, regardless of the pain, they immediately drew their bayonets and held their defense line.

The Qing soldier fell to the ground, and before he could get up, a Red Army cavalryman rushed over and killed him with a single blow.

In terms of single-handed combat, the Eight Banners soldiers had no obvious advantage over the Ming army. The Ming Dynasty had profound knowledge of martial arts, and the well-trained soldiers could easily defeat the Eight Banners soldiers.

As for the cavalry charging the spear formation, there are only two key points:

1. Circle around the enemy formation, interspersed with cavalry and archery, until the infantry is frightened and the formation collapses. During the Yuan Dynasty, the Mongolian army used this tactic to destroy forty countries and shocked the world.

Second, sacrifice cavalry to charge the enemy formation until it breaks down. Charging straight into the enemy formation will inevitably cause casualties among cavalry and horses, but it will also break the enemy's spears, causing unbearable psychological pressure on the enemy. However, if the enemy is well-disciplined and their spears are tough and durable, it is possible to counter the cavalry like the European spear infantry formation, or even defeat the cavalry. The "white-pole soldiers" of the Shiqu Tusi in Sichuan in the late Ming Dynasty were well-trained and hardworking. The white-pole spears they used were tough and durable, and they once severely damaged the Eight Banners in Liaodong and were highly praised by the Eight Banners. The Red Army's bayonets were triangular in shape and not easy to bend, making them a sharp weapon for killing the enemy.

The Red Army lacked spearmen on its wings and in the rear, so the musketeers fought in the front to resist the Qing cavalry, taking on the role of spearmen and fighting to the death, which was truly impressive.

The Qing cavalry came with great force, but they fell off their horses one after another. Inside and outside the square, the corpses of horses and people were mixed together, and blood and rain merged into one.

The Red Army fought more and more bravely. Although there were casualties, they continued to shrink their formation, making their formation tighter and their defense more and more tight.

"With an army like this, nothing in the world is impossible!" Dan Chu was full of passion and gained a lot of confidence.

The Qing army made a desperate move and pushed its cavalry towards the left wing of the Red Army.

When Dan Chu saw this, he also spurred his horse and waved his spear, leading his troops to rush to the left wing to support it, fighting to the death to stop the Qing army.

Not far away, the sound of swan trumpets came from far away, from weak to strong. This was the signal for the Red Army to attack.

The Second Infantry Battalion and the Gui Division Cavalry are already within sight and are very close!
Soon, a mournful horn sounded through the sky. The Qing army received the order and fled the Red Army formation as if they had been pardoned, and assembled on the Red Army's eastern wing.

In the northwest, a group of elite Ming cavalry broke away from their main formation and came to the front of the Red Army formation as fast as the wind. In front of them was a large flag with the word "Jiao" written on it, which was Jiao Lian's troops.

At the moment, a deputy general was riding a spotted Yunnan horse, covered in blood, his eyes gleaming with blood. He held a spear in one hand and the reins in the other. He gestured to Danchu from a distance and said loudly, "General Jue, the national horse is late!"

(End of this chapter)