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

Chapter 317 Field Battle Failure
Danchu was exhausted from the days of rapid march, and went to bed early last night to the sound of rain. When he woke up, he saw that it was already light outside the tent, and the raindrops were hitting the tarpaulin with crackling sounds.

The rain had not abated at all. In such heavy rain, the flintlock rifles that the Red Army was proud of, the matchlock rifles of the Jingnan Fan Divine Weapon Battalion, and the large bows of the Manchu and Mongolian Eight Banners could not be used. The roads were muddy, making it difficult for people and horses to walk, which was not conducive to fighting.

If he were the commander of the Qing army, Bashan, what would he choose? Should he launch an attack in the rain, or enter the city and hold out? Should he pursue them relentlessly, or wait for the Green Camp infantry to arrive? Danchu lay in bed thinking, repeatedly weighing the strength comparison between the enemy and us.

The eight banners of Manchuria and Mongolia were all elite troops who had fought many battles, and they were more advantageous in hand-to-hand combat. Once the weather cleared, the Red Army's flintlock rifles could be used after a slight wipe, making them invincible on the battlefield. The Qing army's trump card was the long-pointed bow, and the bowstring could not be quickly restored if it got damp.

Bashan had long served as the governor of Jiangning, and had often sent troops to suppress the Ming army in the south, with few defeats. He had rich combat experience, deep qualifications, and was arrogant. Presumably, at daybreak, the Qing army would move south and fight the Red Army in the rain.

Thinking of this, Danchu was refreshed, jumped up from the bed, and asked the guard Yang Dingzhen at the door of the tent: "Did you get any military reports last night?"

Yang Dingzhen was Danchu's chief guard, a native of Xunzhou, Guangxi. He was skilled in martial arts and a cautious person. He was used to coming to the tent early in the morning to await orders.

He picked up the military newspaper, glanced at the colors marked on it, and said, "There are three copies. None of them are urgent. The Operations Bureau has already marked them."

Danchu put on his clothes and took the military newspaper to read before he had time to wash up.

There was indeed nothing urgent. The Qing army reinforcements camped in Jinkang Township, more than 30 miles away from Luoding Prefecture. It was found that they were the Eight Banners of Manchuria and Mongolia and the Jingnan Fan Shengqi Camp, with a total number of no less than 6,000. There were also 7,000 Green Camp soldiers, still in Deqing.

The Red Army was affected by heavy rain and the mountain roads were difficult to travel, but the troops overcame the difficulties and arrived in Luoding as scheduled. The cavalry unit directly under the Second Infantry Regiment was the closest, with about 2,000 troops and horses, and would arrive in Luoding tomorrow.

There is no news from the southern front. However, no news is the best news. The Red Army can use one group of troops to stop the 40,000 Qing troops, and then they can concentrate more troops in Luodingzhou and strive to break through the Qing army's defense line in Luodingzhou.

"How did the soldiers sleep last night?" Dan Chu asked.

"Fortunately, there is no siege tomorrow, so we can set up camp in time. Although it is raining, we have tents after all, and they are all set up on high ground. We have dug drainage ditches in advance, so the soldiers sleep well."

Danchu was relieved and said to himself, "The Tartars are really patient. I wonder if they have moved camp yet."

It was not until 9 o'clock in the morning that the scouts finally brought news that the Tartars had broken camp in Jinkang Township and were heading towards Luodingzhou.

Danchu was shocked and ordered the whole army to be on alert, and the personal soldiers, cavalry and auxiliary soldiers were ready to go out of the camp to fight. The Red Army camps were scattered and because of the heavy rain, they were very simple and could not be relied upon to hold on, so they had to go out of the camp to fight in the field.

The soldiers had eaten hot meals in the morning and were well-rested, just the right time to fight the Qing army. Even if they couldn't defeat the Qing army, they could at least end up in a draw.

At noon, the Qing army approached Luodingzhou City. They did not enter the city, but bypassed it from the east and continued to advance towards the Red Army position. The defenders also opened the city gates and sent soldiers to escort them.

The rain was like a curtain of beads, drifting with the wind, and its momentum had weakened slightly. The water in the waterfall had turned muddy and yellow, and the water level had risen a lot. A great battle was about to begin outside the city of Luodingzhou.

Danchu ordered the troops to fight, and the personal guards, cavalry and auxiliary troops went out of the camp to form a battle array, while the artillery troops stayed in the camp as a reserve. The auxiliary troops were on guard on the west bank of the Longshui River, waiting to cross the river to provide support.

The Red Army was well prepared, and lined up in the rain a mile outside the camp, still taking a defensive stance, and erected a row of stakes in front of the formation. The stakes were simple and easy to carry, but their defensive capabilities were very poor and could only delay enemy cavalry.

At noon, the two armies approached each other and were less than a mile apart. The Red Army's personal guards were in the front, the cavalry were on the two wings, and the auxiliary troops were in the back.

The dark mass of Qing troops gradually approached from the north. Danchu raised his telescope and saw the Qing cavalrymen were like a forest, almost everyone was wearing armor, and most of the front row were wearing Ming armor, each with two horses.

Whenever the Eight Banners fought with the enemy, they often sent their death soldiers to the front to carry out tasks such as moving the fortresses, filling the trenches, and pushing the shield carts. These death soldiers often wore two or even three layers of armor, with the outermost layer being the most protective Ming armor.

The rain soaked the telescope from time to time, and Danchu couldn't help but take a breath of cold air, and actually felt a little chilly. The rain was still heavy, and the artillery and muskets could not be used. The Red Army could only engage in hand-to-hand combat with the Eight Banners. Since the Red Army was established, it has never engaged in hand-to-hand combat with the Eight Banners of Manchuria and Mongolia without artillery preparation like today.

Now that things have come to this, we can only grit our teeth and go ahead.

Like the Red Army, the Qing army was mostly composed of cavalry and was advancing at a slow pace. There were many flags, each with its own pattern, which showed that the Qing army had complex command. Due to the rain, the flags were not raised and were mostly attached to the flagpoles.

They found the stakes in front of the Red Army. Soon, the horn sounded, and a team of more than a hundred soldiers rode forward, ready to move the stakes and clear the obstacles in front of the formation.

The Red Army responded quickly. The cavalry battalion sent out a group of elite cavalry, whose number was roughly equal to that of the Qing army's death squad, to stop the Qing army.

The deer fortress was just a hundred steps in front of the Red Army formation, and could be seen clearly with a telescope. The Qing army's death soldiers mostly used long-handled broadswords or meteor hammers, which were commonly used weapons by the Manchu cavalry.

During the Nurhaci period, the Eight Banners were simply divided into four branches, namely the Ring Sword Army, the Iron Hammer Army, the Chuan Chi Army (shield chariot soldiers), and the Nengshe Army (archers). The Ring Sword Army used long-handled broadswords, and the Iron Hammer Army used meteor hammers, which were commonly used weapons by northern nomadic peoples.

The Red Army's cold weapons were more diverse, with spears being the majority, and sabers, meteor hammers, and horse lances being the occasional weapons. As for armor, even the Red Army's most elite personal guards were far inferior to the Eight Banners.

After a short battle, the Red Army gradually lost the upper hand, and several of the Qing army's forts were knocked down by the Qing army's death squads. The Red Army sent cavalry to support them, and the Qing army also sent more troops. The main force then switched to fast pace to speed up the advance.

"Forward!" Danchu ordered calmly, and the central army beat the war drums. The Red Army had been patient for a long time, and finally got the order, and rode forward, first at a slow pace, and soon at a fast pace.

The sky seemed to be leaking, pouring endless rain onto the ground. Danchu handed the telescope to the guard beside him and said in a deep voice: "Bring the horse spear!"

He often went to the frontline, but he had not wielded a sword to kill people for a long time. This time, holding the horse lance again, he felt like he had met someone after a long absence. This familiar horse lance had helped him kill the famous Eight Banners general Juelu Guoke, helped him stand out from the Ming army, and helped him be awarded the title of Dinglubo. Today, he was going to wield the lance again and fight against the famous Yellow Banner general Bashan.

"My personal soldiers, follow me to kill the Tartars! Forward!"

"Kill! Kill! Kill!" The Red Army shouted loudly. They rode their horses to the front of the deer fort and engaged in close combat with the Eight Banners.

Without muskets or bows, this battle became a pure competition of courage and martial arts.

The Qing army quickly broke through the fortress and engaged the Red Army in close combat. The Manchu and Mongolian banners were in the front, and the Jingnan clan was in the back, and their front was very sharp.

The Red Army was well-rested and did not give in. The cavalry flag was in front, the personal guard flag was in the back, and Cen Danchu was in the middle, under the central army flag. This central army flag was the personal guard flag, and the flagpole was tall and could be clearly seen from any position on the battlefield.

Compared with the Manchu and Mongolian Eight Banners, the Cavalry Banner had a gap in armor rate, soldiers' martial arts, and weapons. After about two quarters of an hour, the Cavalry Banner gradually lost the upper hand, and the Qing army opened a gap on the right wing. A Qing army cavalryman on a blue horse rushed through the gap and attacked the central army flag. Danchu was furious and rushed forward to fight. However, a lieutenant rushed out from the side and fought with a white spear.

The spear was more than ten feet long, and it danced beautifully in the lieutenant's hand like a dragon. He pierced the chest of a Qing army general with one spear, and people couldn't help but cheer inwardly.

Unexpectedly, the spear tip just pierced the armor plate of the enemy's armor, and was blocked by the inner layer of armor, causing no harm to the enemy general. The deputy general was sturdy and took advantage of the momentum of the big horse. Not only did he not fall down, but he continued to push forward with a ferocious look on his face.

The white-shafted spear was made of solid white wood, covered with a layer of bamboo and twisted with fine wire, making it very tough. The Red Army lieutenant refused to let go, and the Qing Army lieutenant continued to ride forward, bending the white-shafted spear into a bow shape.

With a crackling sound, the white pole broke, but the spear tip did not pierce the armor. The Red Army lieutenant lost his weapon, with only half of the broken spear pole in his hand. The Qing army deputy general grinned, swung the sword in his hand, and chopped at the Red Army lieutenant.

The lieutenant subconsciously used his spear to block, but he couldn't stop the heavy and sharp sword. "Ah!" He screamed and fell off his horse. The Qing soldiers followed and killed the Red Army lieutenant with a knife.

Danchu was extremely angry, and rode forward with his spear in hand, determined to kill the general. Yang Dingzhen led a team of guards.

When the Qing army general saw Dan Chu wearing a golden helmet, he knew that he was of extraordinary status, so he braced himself and came forward to fight.

With a "clang", the broadsword collided with the horse lance. The broadsword was already heavy, and the enemy general used brute force, causing Danchu's palm to tighten and feel a dull pain.

"Good Tartar, he can actually wield a broadsword like the wind on a war horse." Dan Chu thought of the lieutenant just now, and he was so angry that he wanted to take his life.

The two fought on horseback for seven or eight rounds, but there was no clear winner. The deputy general became anxious, turned his horse back a few steps, then kicked his mount, driving the large horse forward.

Danchu did not give in either, and threw the horse lance at the enemy general with all his strength. This was the secret skill passed down from the family of Hu Yiqing, a famous general of the Yunnan Division. Hu Yiqing relied on this skill to become famous on the battlefield, and he could often kill the enemy with one throw.

The general, who had been in battle for a long time, was shocked and tightened the reins. The horse, in pain, raised its front hooves high, and was hit by the horse spear for its master, falling heavily to the ground.

The enemy general fell off his horse and fell to the ground, his armor plates tilted upward, revealing layers of cotton cloth.

During the Ming and Qing dynasties, plate armor was rarely used, and cloth armor was mostly used, which was convenient for production and repair. Generally speaking, armor plates on the outside are called visible armor, which has stronger protection, while armor plates on the inside are called hidden armor, which has weaker protection.

Just now, the Red Army lieutenant used a white spear to pierce the enemy general, but the tip of the spear was blocked by the armor and failed to penetrate the enemy general's second layer of armor, so he was killed by the enemy general.

The guard Yang Dingzhen had already arrived and stabbed the enemy general in the face with his red tassel spear. The enemy general struggled and even rolled on the ground.

"Stab under the scales!" Dan Chu shouted.

Yang Ding really obeyed the order and used all his strength to stab from under the nail plate.

"Ah!" The enemy general screamed, blood seeping out of his armor. Another guard stepped forward and stabbed the enemy general in the throat with a red tassel spear, killing him.

At this time, the two armies were fighting fiercely. The Qing army had gained the upper hand, and the Manchu and Mongolian Eight Banners opened several gaps in the Red Army Cavalry's defense line. The Jingnan Fan Shenqi Battalion engaged in battle with the Red Army's personal guards.

"Lord, please step back a little and join the formation of your personal guards." Yang Dingzhen took the time to come to Dan Chu and said in a low voice.

"We cannot retreat. Let the personal guards advance and protect the central army flag in the middle." Danchu remained calm. The central army flag must not be moved lightly, lest the morale of the army be shaken. "Order the personal guards to assist the auxiliary guards to go into battle, and the auxiliary guards to assist the engineers and boat bridges to cross the river immediately to reinforce."

This time I was really careless.

It was obvious that in hand-to-hand combat, the Red Army cavalry was no match for the Manchu and Mongolian Eight Banners. The Manchu and Mongolian Eight Banners had only a thousand soldiers, but if the baoyi aha were included, the number should be more than 2,500.

In order to make up for the shortage of bannermen, the Qing court had already begun to encourage the baoyi aha to join the war. If the aha made military achievements on the battlefield, they would have the hope of being promoted to a bannerman, and from then on they would receive a fixed share of crops on the banner, and their descendants would have no worries for generations.

Therefore, the Aha were very enthusiastic in fighting. Many Aha had followed their masters in the north and south for many years and their martial arts skills were very strong, not much worse than their masters.

The personal guards were not as good as the cavalry in hand-to-hand combat, and were no match for the Manchu and Mongolian Eight Banners, but they could overpower the Jingnan Fan Divine Artifact Battalion. They mainly used Dinglu rifles as weapons, with three-edged bayonets on the muzzles, which could be up to five feet long.

Generally speaking, the long board effect is more prominent in attacking cities and outdoor encounters, while the short board effect is more prominent in defending cities. At present, in such an open battlefield in the wild, in such rainy weather, the Manchu and Mongolian Eight Banners have the strongest combat effectiveness, and the long board effect is obvious, so the Qing army has a better chance of winning.

If the Red Army wanted to turn the tide of the battle, or at least to draw a tie, it could only rely on courage and send more troops to the battlefield, and overwhelm the Qing army with its numerical advantage.

We must not retreat at this time, as retreating would lead to the danger of a crushing defeat. The Red Army's camp was poorly built and not reliable enough. Even if we retreated to the camp, our forces would be dispersed and could be easily defeated by the Qing army.

Danchu could only grit his teeth and wait for the auxiliary troops to cross the river for reinforcement. Since he started his army, he had never been so embarrassed as today. He was at a disadvantage from the beginning of the battle and had almost no hope of turning the tables.

Looking around the battlefield, the two armies were already in a complete tussle, with the Qing army gaining the upper hand and the Red Army slowly retreating. But the Red Army soldiers were very brave, and even though they were inferior in skills, they dared to fight tenaciously and would rather die than retreat.

Li Jianjie, a deputy general of Dongxun, had only six or seven light cavalrymen left behind him. Although they were foreign troops, they were extremely brave and led the way into the encirclement. He used a boring knife with a black handle and a white blade to cut off four heads of the enemy and hung them on the heads of his horses, and he was invincible.

Zhou Yiming, the commander of the imperial guards, led his troops to guard the front and the center, repelling several attacks by the Tartars. The Tartars rushed to attack the center, but Zhou Yiming fought hard and refused to give in. He used a spear, but halfway through the battle, the spear broke and split into two. Zhou Yiming dismounted to pick up the spear, and the enemy general rushed over. The horse was very tall, and the enemy general had to lean over to attack, and the armor plates were slightly lifted. Zhou Yiming saw the flaw and simply met the enemy on foot, and seized the opportunity to stab the enemy general with a spear.

However, flesh-binding masters like Li Jianjie and Zhou Yiming are a minority. Most soldiers have short military service, lack experience, and are used to using firearms. They are no match for the Tartars in hand-to-hand combat. As long as they rely on courage and sacrifice to persevere, they will not retreat.

By the time the battle reached 3 p.m., both sides were exhausted. The Red Army's auxiliary engineering and pontoon bridge units arrived and joined the battle, boosting the morale of the soldiers.

The Qing army knew they were powerless to defeat the Red Army, so they had to call it a day. The Red Army also suffered heavy casualties and was unable to pursue, so they led their troops back.

The rain continued to fall, the ground was muddy, and the groans of the wounded could be heard one after another. The auxiliary soldiers of both armies cleaned up the battlefield and carried back the wounded.

(End of this chapter)