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

Chapter 24 Assault
The rain was pouring down, the sky seemed to be broken, and thousands of raindrops poured down like waterfalls.

At noon on the 26th, the rain gradually subsided and the sky became gloomy as dusk. The standard camp had lined up inside Wenchang Gate, ready to go out of the city to meet the Qing army.

Cen Danchu rode on a chestnut horse, looked around at his subordinates majestically, and said:
"Brothers, the battle is imminent, everyone must follow my orders. Those who disobey the orders and act recklessly will be killed! Those who fight for heads will be killed! Those who covet treasures will be killed! If a soldier retreats before the battle, the sergeant will kill him! If the sergeant retreats, the sentry will kill him! If the sentry retreats, I will kill him myself! If I retreat, everyone can kill him!"

After that, the officers and soldiers arranged their armor and weapons and checked their weapons. On rainy days, firearms and bows and arrows could not be used, so horse lances, long swords, and long spears became the best weapons in the hands of the cavalry.

Yesterday, the three teams ran to the Dusi Yamen to seize military weapons and got a batch of good equipment, which can be used today.

Cen Danchu still felt inexplicably excited when he went to the battlefield for the second time. On weekdays, whether it was recruiting soldiers, training soldiers, fighting with merchants, or fighting with friendly forces, most of them were boring and depressing.

It was different on the battlefield. Armor could protect you and keep you safe. Martial arts and courage could help you gain military merit. It was a good thing to gain military merit. If you gained military merit, you would be promoted and be in charge of more troops.

Soldiers and horses, only soldiers and horses are the kingly way, and are the foundation for survival in troubled times.

At the sound of a cannon, the central army of the standard camp raised the red flag, and the three teams of flag bearers also raised the red flag immediately afterwards.

The city gates are open, and it's time to go out and fight.

Cen Danchu subconsciously tightened his grip on his lance, touched the scabbard at his waist, looked back at his subordinates again, and said, "Follow the banner closely and follow me!"

The drawbridge was lowered, and the third team of the standard camp led the way, passing through the city gate and the drawbridge, and came to the outside of the moat to gather their formation.

During battle, neither cavalry nor infantry would charge blindly, but would stop from time to time to gather the troops and organize the formation.

The third team will be led by Cen Danchu and the fourth team to attack the Qing army first. The first and second teams, led by Jiao Lian, will continue to attack the Qing army. The fifth and sixth teams, led by Jiao Ke, will be next.

This was the first wave of attack, with the standard battalion as the vanguard and the model. They were all cavalry, and their impact was very strong.

Bai Gui led 1,500 soldiers and horses and went out of Wenchang Gate. Zhu Minru led 2,500 soldiers and horses and went out of Rongshu Gate (the ancient south gate). Zhao Xing led 1,500 soldiers and horses and went out of Lize Gate (the west gate).

Only 2,000 soldiers under Ma Qijiao were left in the city as a reserve force.

Jiao Lian was bold and aggressive in commanding battles, and his methods were rather rough, but often effective.

The Qing army came in the rain, prepared hastily, and set up the camp in a sloppy manner. They could not have imagined that the Ming army would dare to challenge them and launch an attack in the rain and mud.

After the Battle of Shanhaiguan, there were only a handful of people who dared to challenge the Qing army!

The Qing army had been through many battles and remained calm in the face of a battle. The vanguard was Lian Guoan, a general under Kong Youde. He summoned the cavalry to fight, but before they could form up, more than 200 Ming cavalrymen attacked. They were the third and fourth squadrons of the standard camp.

Cen Danchu took the lead, waving a new horse spear and rushed into the enemy army.

The production process of the horse lance is complicated and expensive, and it has strong armor-piercing ability. It is usually a weapon passed down from generation to generation in a military family.

This horse lance was just snatched from the Dusi Yamen yesterday. It didn't even have a sharp blade. It looked like a royal ceremonial weapon. The lance shaft was extremely flexible. I don't know how long it had been soaked in oil. The lance head was two feet long. Although it was not sharpened, it was forged with good steel and flashed a little light in the darkness.

Cen Danchu fell in love with it at first sight, and he sharpened it overnight, cutting the hair off with it.

With a "clang" sound, the weapons collided, and Cen Danchu's horse lance cut the spears in the hands of the Qing army into two pieces.

It was so sharp that Cen Danchu was delighted and stabbed a Qing soldier to death with his spear. The Qing soldiers were still in a panic and had no time to put on armor. They were either killed or injured by the weapons.

The two armies met, slowed down, and the men and horses mixed together. "Call!" Danchu shouted loudly, and the flag bearer beside him took the trumpet and made a sound like a swan.

This means the whole army shouts, often used during a charge to encourage morale.

"Kill!" The soldiers of the third and fourth teams shouted in unison, their voices shaking the sky. When going into battle, new soldiers are often timid, and shouting in unison can both give them courage and scare the enemy.

The veterans have fought for many years and are used to fighting on the battlefield. Many of the new recruits in the third team are on the battlefield for the first time, and some are afraid, but also excited.

However, with sharp weapons in their hands and their superiors leading by example, the recruits were not so afraid. Fighting hard, beheading a few enemy soldiers, eating meat and drinking wine after the battle, and getting some silver rewards, isn't it better than farming, being a prisoner, or sitting in a death row?
Then he stabbed two more Qing soldiers to death. Cen Danchu was too far forward, which attracted the attention of the Qing army. Dozens of enemy cavalry came and surrounded Cen Danchu and the flag bearer Wu in the center.

Without waiting for Danchu to give the order, a standard-bearer beat the waist drum, meaning that all troops should rush forward to engage the enemy.

Military law states that if a captain is trapped in battle and his guards do not come to his rescue, his three guard leaders will be beheaded. If a guard leader is trapped in battle and his squads do not come to his rescue, his three squad leaders will be beheaded. If a squad leader is trapped in battle and his soldiers do not come to his rescue, his nine soldiers will be beheaded.

The third team of soldiers rushed forward and moved closer. The first sentry leader Wu Jie was the most courageous, rushing ahead and breaking through the Qing army's encirclement.

Wu Jie shouted, "Captain, Wu Jie is here!"

A new soldier behind him also rode forward and shouted, "He Guoju is here too!"

He Guoju was a light cavalryman, a captive, a Yao from Yangshuo, of short stature. He held a red tasseled spear that was soaked in blood, with the tassel stuck to the spear mark.

He was wearing a cotton armor, which had been soaked by the rain and was very uncomfortable to wear. However, the Yao people grew up in the mountains and had been climbing mountains and crossing streams since childhood, so they were very agile and resistant to hardship.

He Guoju was extremely brave. He rode an unarmored horse and rushed ahead of Wu Jie to engage in battle with the Qing army. With his long spear, he quickly stabbed down a Qing soldier like a dragon emerging from water.

Wu Jie laughed and said, "The pawn stole our limelight!"

Cen Dan didn't like to talk when he first started a battle, but he also found time to say, "He Guoju is really brave!"

The three men used their own weapons, the horse lances and long spears complemented each other, and made the Qing army terrified.

At this time, Jiao Lian arrived with the first and second teams. The Qing army became even more frightened and retreated one after another.

The beating of the war drums was the signal for pursuit. The flag bearer hoisted the red flag, meaning to continue the attack. Teams 3 and 4 fought bravely and beat the enemy who was down and out.

Cen Danchu took the time to look at the team and saw that the troops were in good order. The second sentry had the best formation, and the team's formation was better than the fourth team.

There was no time to organize the formation, so let's continue charging. After a while of chopping vegetables and melons, Cen Danchu led the team to a camp.

The Qing army’s camp was very simple, without even a trench. There was a circle of stakes outside, a circle of baggage vehicles inside the stakes, and further inside were the tents.

A team of archers stood behind the baggage wagon, with their bows and arrows drawn, ready for battle.

The air was humid and the drizzle continued, which affected the power of bows and arrows, and firearms even more. The Ming army lacked long bows and firearms, so they simply put them away.

What to do? Cen Danchu didn't think much about it. The flag bearer blew a series of rapid and continuous sounds on the trumpet.

The formation changed, with the heavy cavalry in front and the light cavalry in the back. The Ming army was about to attack the camp under a hail of arrows.

(End of this chapter)