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

Chapter 250 Surprise Attack
The Red Army entered Foshan, and the Qing army outside Guangzhou felt threatened. Shang Kexi had no choice but to shrink his defense line, tighten the siege on the city, and wait for reinforcements, not daring to advance to Foshan at all.

Foshan and Guangzhou are separated by the wide Pearl River. If the Red Army wants to fight the Qing army, it must first defeat the Qing navy and then cross the river to attack the Qing army. Duke Du Yonghe of Rui was unwilling to cooperate, and Danchu did not want to take the risk of crossing the river.

Therefore, although the troops gathered in Guangzhou and Foshan, the battlefield was quite quiet, which was quite strange. Sometimes, the Guangzhou defenders would go out of the city to attack the Qing army, and occasionally there would be the sound of artillery and shouts of killing.

On the night of the 28th, Danchu secretly returned to Sanshui and immediately summoned the generals who stayed behind.

The night was dark, and the air was a little hot like early summer. The generals were in a bad mood. Yang Yuqi, the military assistant who was in charge of the garrison, complained:

"Lord He is quite enthusiastic in counterattacking Qingyuan, but the towns are not in harmony and have not yet moved their camps. Chen Bangfu has no intention of fighting and only wants to preserve his strength. Liu Guochang is the remnant of the Shun army and is being marginalized. Guo Dengdi is limited in strength and has the will but not the ability. Lord He is so angry that he threatens to lead his own army to the north alone."

Ma Bao, the Earl of Anding, and He Guozuo, the commander of the cavalry brigade, stayed behind in Sanshui and were unable to go south to Foshan. They also had complaints. He Guozuo did not dare to speak, but Ma Bao complained bluntly: "The various garrisons have no less than 50,000 soldiers and horses on the front line, but some are hesitant to move forward, while others are out without fighting. Isn't this a cause for ridicule in the world?"

This Ma Bao is still a little unruly. It's hard to shock him unless you show some real skills.

"No one in the world can laugh at us." Danchu smiled and said, "Chengbi, I have a big business to give you, but I'm afraid you don't dare to do it."

Ma Bao's stubborn temper came out, and he said, "I'm not bragging, Sanbao is not afraid of anything. If the general has any arrangements, just tell Sanbao."

He Guoju did not dare to show weakness and said, "General, I have come all the way with you. What kind of scenes have we not seen? We have even done it to the Manchu Tartars. What else can we not do?"

Haha. In the candlelight, Danchu looked at Ma Bao and then at Ho Kuo-kui, and seemed to be unable to choose. These two were both fierce generals, hidden by Danchu in Sanshui, and they were ready to be used.

"Great!" Danchu clapped his hands in praise, and led everyone to a simple map. He said, "I have been planning for a long time, preparing to launch a surprise attack on Conghua and Qingyuan."

The two men's eyes lit up and they were happy to hear about the war.

Danchu continued, "The main force of our army has advanced to Foshan, threatening the Tartars' flank. Shang Kexi did not understand why and thought I was going to use troops in Guangzhou, so he also sent troops to reinforce Guangzhou. The defenses in Conghua and Qingyuan must be empty.

"We have obtained accurate intelligence. The Tartars are casting cannons and shells in Conghua, and are supervising the construction of warships in Qingyuan and Yingde. Once the cannons are completed, Guangzhou will be threatened. Once the warships are completed, the Tartars can compete with us on the water.

"Therefore, I plan to send troops to launch a surprise attack on Conghua and Qingyuan, destroy the Tartar shipyard and cannon foundry, and kill the officials and craftsmen who surrendered to the Qing Dynasty. The guide and route are ready, and if we need to cross the river along the way, there will be people to help us. Do you two dare to take on this heavy responsibility?"

"We dare!" the two generals answered in unison. Ma Bao sighed, "The general is very thoughtful and has made every possible effort. He is truly a god."

The chirping of a few nightingales broke the tranquility of the night.

Danchu was in a good mood and said, "If we want to launch a surprise attack, we have to catch the enemy by surprise and march quickly. Only brave generals can take on this important task. Sanshui is 110 miles away from Qingyuan and 160 miles away from Conghua. A cavalryman can reach the destination in one day with two horses. Chengbi, you lead the troops to attack Qingyuan. Guoju, you lead the troops to attack Conghua. How about that?"

The difficulty of going to Conghua and Qingyuan is completely different. From Sanshui to Qingyuan, the distance is relatively short, and the river is a tributary of the Beijiang River. The river is not deep, and it is easy to find a section of the river for wading as long as it is not rainy season. From Sanshui to Conghua, the distance is half longer, and the river is a tributary of the Pearl River. At least two rivers with wider channels must be passed, which may not be possible to wade.

Ma Bao was stationed in Guangdong with Dong Xun. He paid close attention to the terrain near Guangzhou and a trace of worry flashed through his mind.

Everything is easier said than done, let alone a major military event? If the cavalry marched at night, what if they took the wrong road, what if they could not cross the river smoothly, wouldn't all their efforts be wasted? What if they were discovered by the enemy, would they lose more than they gained? I am not a direct descendant of the Red Army, would Danchu sacrifice his troops to save the chariot? Especially for a surprise attack on Conghua, it would require a forced march of 160 miles, passing through the most heavily defended area of ​​the enemy in the north of Guangzhou, and going deep into enemy territory to destroy the cannon foundry. It sounded incredible.

Danchu seemed to see through his thoughts and said, "The headquarters has already made careful plans for this matter. I have thought about it again and again and feel that it is feasible. The intelligence agency has arranged reconnaissance, routes, guides, river crossing points, and bridges. The Tartar gun foundry and shipyard also have internal support.

"Tomorrow, Foshan will launch a feint attack. The navy will move first to test the Red Flag pirates. Everything is ready. Do you two dare to do it?"

He Guoju is a general of the Red Army and also Dan Chu's confidant. He always keeps his word. How dare he disobey military orders?

These words were obviously meant for Ma Bao. Ma Bao was competitive, so how could he not obey?

Danchu suppressed his smile and said, "A surprise attack is about taking the enemy by surprise. Therefore, I kept it a secret until today. The quality of the soldiers is more important than the quantity. For the surprise attack on Conghua and Qingyuan, all cavalry should be used, with at least two horses for each person. For each route, a maximum of 1,000 cavalry will be dispatched. There should be no problem with the cavalry on this side. Chengbi, how many cavalry can you send out?"

Ma Bao was not high in the Eastern Ranks, only an earl, and his troops were not elite either. He said, "If we gather our troops, we can provide 1,600 war horses and 800 cavalry."

Eight hundred elite cavalrymen are enough for a surprise attack on Conghua.

Danchu instructed them, "As soon as you get up tomorrow morning, you will select your soldiers and horses, equip them with weapons and dry food in the morning, and rest in the afternoon. After dark, each of you will set out on your own. If the battle goes badly and you cannot retreat with your entire army, send someone on horseback to ask for help. I will stay in Sanshui for the next few days and can send reinforcements at any time."

The next day, at the beginning of the evening, when it was already dark, Ma Bao led 800 elite cavalrymen, each holding a gag and each with their horses' hooves wrapped, and set out in the dark towards the north.

Although he was young, he was also a veteran of many battles. This time, the preparations were too hasty and the troops were too hasty, which always gave him a feeling of being unreliable.

The Red Army sent two guides and a spy from the Intelligence Bureau to accompany them along the way, but Ma Bao was still worried. He wanted to find out more, but he was against military discipline and would be laughed at if the news got out.

After walking for half an hour and about ten miles, we could hear the sound of flowing water ahead. This was Qu River, named after its winding curves. This river connects Beijiang River and Xihai Channel. Because of its curves, the water is not deep and the flow is not fast, so some sections can be waded.

A Red Army scout rode forward and uttered five calls of a turtledove. Soon after, three calls of an owl were heard from the other side of the river, so lifelike that they could be mistaken for the real thing.

Soon, two men in black rode over, stopped three feet away, and shouted in a low voice: "Loyalty!"

The detective replied, "Destroy the enemy!"

After exchanging commands, the man in black let his horse come forward and said, "Brother, you can cross the front without worry. The Tartars have no spies here."

Ma Bao waved his hand, and several scouts went over to check, and it was indeed possible to wade. The large group of people and horses passed the Quhe River safely, and Ma Bao was relieved and secretly admired it.

The Red Army was well-organized and fully-fledged, and was in no way comparable to the Guangdong Army.

(End of this chapter)