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

Chapter 297 Knowing shame and then being brave

On December 2nd, at 3 p.m., ten miles south of Dumo Village, Lipu County, Pingle Prefecture.

Not long ago, a fierce battle had just broken out here. When the smoke cleared, the village was in a mess, with the bodies of horses and soldiers mixed together, and weapons and armor scattered all over the ground. There were seriously injured soldiers who had not yet evacuated, and they groaned in pain from time to time.

The Fourth Battalion of the Second Brigade of the Red Army suffered a defeat, losing more than 600 men. The opponent was Sun Long, a second-class Asihahaban, who was leading his troops back to Guilin. The Fourth Battalion pursued the Qing army fiercely, underestimated the enemy and advanced rashly, and was taken advantage of by Sun Long.

Upon hearing the bad news, Assistant Commander Kuang Shi rushed from outside Lipu City to Dumo Village to inquire about the military situation.

"We have never suffered such a defeat since we left Liuzhou. Where do we blame for today's defeat?" Kuang Shi looked around at all the generals and asked viciously.

Cen Danchu led his army to attack Yanguan, and the siege of Liuzhou was lifted. The Qing army's main general, Xian Guoan, did not dare to take the Luoqing River Valley Road, and detoured to Pingle and Guilin via Xiuren and Lipu. Kuang Shi and Li Laiheng led the Second Infantry Brigade and the Fourth Infantry Brigade respectively, chasing Xian Guoan while advancing towards Guilin.

Kuangshi's journey was quite smooth, and he even conquered Luorong and Xiuren counties. However, the fourth battalion of the vanguard underestimated the enemy and advanced rashly, and suffered a defeat at Dumo Village, losing six or seven hundred people.

Cen Xun, the commander of the Fourth Infantry Battalion, stepped forward and said, "The responsibility lies with my Fourth Infantry Battalion. The Tartars attacked the war elephants with their guns and cannons, and the elephants were terrified and fled from the battlefield, trampling on the infantry, and were taken advantage of by the Tartars."

War elephants are very expensive. Raising one war elephant can support more than a dozen war horses. Therefore, the Red Army did not organize elephant soldiers. However, Cen Xun was the chieftain of Si'en and the father of Mrs. Cen, so he equipped the Fourth Infantry Battalion with three war elephants.

"When a war elephant is frightened, the fault lies not with the elephant but with its driver. Military judge, what punishment should be imposed on an elephant soldier who deserts from the battlefield?"

"The war elephant trampled the soldiers and caused the battle to be lost. The driver should be severely punished, at least beheaded."

Without hesitation, Kuang Shi threw out a command arrow and said, "Military law is ruthless. The drivers of the three war elephants will be beheaded immediately."

The military judge took the order and left.

"Did the second batch capture Lipu?"

The director of the camp office replied: "The Tartars are defending very tightly. The second battalion is digging a tunnel and has not yet recaptured Lipu."

He paused and added, "Sun Long's 2,000 troops have been marching for days and are exhausted. Just now, the scouts reported that he took advantage of the victory to break through Dumo Village and looted it. He will camp in the village tonight."

The Second Infantry Battalion was the unit led by Kuang Shi, the first unit of the Red Army to rise up, and the main force of the Second Infantry Brigade. The Fourth Infantry Battalion suffered heavy losses, and if the Second Infantry Battalion could be transferred over, they would surely be able to defeat Sun Long.

"Why not transfer Liu Fangliang's Sixth Infantry Brigade here?" someone suggested.

Liu Fangliang was good at using cavalry and was ordered to attack and occupy Guangyun Fort, cutting off the Qing army's route to retreat to Wuzhou from Guilin and Pingle.

Others said: "The Art of War says that you should not pursue a desperate enemy. The Tartars are defending Guilin and Pingle, and Sun Long is like a desperate enemy. It is better to wait for the second brigade to capture Lipu, and then join forces to attack Sun Long, and we will surely defeat him in one blow."

"Humph!" Kuang Shi sneered and said, "Sun Long is just a small general, and Dumo Village is just a small village. How difficult is it to break it? After being defeated once, you dare not counterattack again?"

Cen Xun couldn't hold back his pride anymore, so he raised his head and said, "Xietai, although the Fourth Infantry Battalion suffered a defeat, we can still fight again. I am willing to make amends for my crime and continue to lead the troops to attack Dumo Village."

Kuang Shi wanted this effect, and provoked him: "Commander Cen Biao, there is no joking in the army. Your Fourth Battalion has suffered heavy losses and its morale is low. Can you still attack Dumo Village?"

"Yes!" Cen Xun said without hesitation, "If the commander transfers the Sixth Battalion to attack Dumo Village, my Fourth Battalion will never be able to hold its head up again. Please give me another chance. The Fourth Battalion will definitely capture Dumo Village and defeat Sun Long to avenge our previous humiliation." "Okay! Knowing shame will lead to courage! Commander Cen Biao, I will assign the Firearms Battalion to you. I hope you can capture Dumo Village in one battle and clear the road to Pingle."

"promise."

After returning to the camp, Cen Xun immediately summoned officers above the rank of captain. The three elephant drivers had been executed, and their heads were hung on the flagpole of the central army's flag, and all the flags were in awe.

Cen Xun was angry and anxious, and said, "Brothers, Xietai just came to discuss with me and asked to transfer the Sixth Battalion to attack Dumo Village on our behalf. Our battalion will switch defense with the Sixth Battalion and defend Guangyun Fort on their behalf. This is really embarrassing! The Sixth Battalion is a rising star. Do you think we can let them come and compete for the credit?"

Where you fell, you must stand up there. The commander was eager to take revenge and said, "Winning and losing are common in the military. We lost the battle, so we should boost morale and counterattack. But if the Sixth Battalion comes to steal the credit, how can all the officers and soldiers of the Fourth Battalion put their faces? How can we survive in the Second Division in the future?"

The director of the camp office was a first-term student of Longmen. He was also filled with righteous indignation and said, "We fought the Manchurian Tartars and never lost, so how can we be frightened by the Han Tartars? Biaotai, let's counterattack Dumo Village as soon as possible, so that the second and sixth battalions won't underestimate us."

The next morning, at daybreak, the Fourth Infantry Battalion of the Red Army went to Dumo Village to counterattack. Just like yesterday, three war elephants served as the vanguard and marched in the front of the Red Army.

Sun Long was anxious to get back to Guilin, and upon hearing the alarm, he immediately went out to fight. Looking at the familiar formation, Sun Long despised it and ordered the concentration of firearms in front of the formation, repeating the old trick and using artillery to scare off the war elephants first.

The Dingnan vassal army is good at firearms, and Sun Long's reinforcements have a lot of firearms and the artillery shells are quite dense.

The war elephants were terrified and neighed "Moo-Moo". The female elephant on the left was hit by a lead bullet and became timid. She turned around and fled to the back of the formation.

There were three elephant soldiers on the elephant's back, one driving the elephant, one holding a spear, and one using a musket. The previous driver had been beheaded, so the new driver dared not neglect it and pulled the reins desperately, making a "whoosh-whoosh" sound.

The infantrymen under the elephant's feet also stretched out their spears and stabbed the elephant's trunk. The mother elephant was trapped and had to return to her camp and rush towards the Qing army under the cannon fire.

The Red Army musketeers were deployed on both wings of the war elephants, advancing steadily under the cover of the war elephants. The Qing army focused its attention on the war elephants, concentrating its artillery fire on the war elephants, and paid little attention to the infantry on both wings.

When they advanced a hundred steps, a war elephant in the middle had been hit by a cannon and fell to the ground, dying. The Red Army musketeers fired one after another to suppress the Qing army's artillery fire.

"Charge!" Cen Xun was eager for revenge and ordered his cavalry to attack. Si'en Prefecture produced horses, and most of the soldiers in the Fourth Battalion were from the Si'en Tusi. They had a cavalry battalion with more cavalry than other infantry battalions.

The cavalry charged out from the rear wing despite being hit by bullets, and the elephant soldiers were also encouraged to charge forward with their war elephants. The war elephants were huge and had great impact force.

Sun Long was caught in a dilemma. On one hand, he sent out his cavalry to fight, and on the other hand, he directed his artillery to bombard the Red Army's war elephants.

Another war elephant was killed by artillery fire. Finally, there was a middle-aged male elephant left. It luckily avoided the Qing army's artillery fire and rushed into the Qing army's battle formation.

The battle was urgent, and Sun Long went to the front line to fight the war elephants. The war elephants charged very fast, almost as fast as war horses. The Qing army was all from the north, and had never seen such a huge beast. They were so frightened that they dropped their firearms and ran away.

The war elephants rushed to the front of the battle formation, charging forward, using their tusks, trunks, and big feet to disrupt the Qing army's formation in a short time. Sun Longyou tried to struggle, but was killed on the spot by the Red Army.

With the death of their commander, the Qing army was defeated and retreated northwards. The Red Army took the opportunity to hunt them down, killing them with great pleasure.

(End of this chapter)