The Ming Dynasty began from Sarhu

Chapter 446 Shenyang Meat Grinder

After the fall of Laohutai, the surrounding fortresses, densely packed like a spider web, continued to resist stubbornly and engaged in an orderly bombardment against the Uzhenha super artillery group.

Despite the support of British, French, and Dutch naval guns, some of the largest of their era, the Qing gunners' visibility was obstructed by nightfall, significantly reducing their effectiveness. Coupled with the Qi artillery's reckless counterattacks, Wuzhenhachao's casualties steadily mounted. The ever-cautious Dudu ordered a temporary halt to the attack, and Baoyi Aha withdrew his artillery from the battlefield, bringing the first day of the battle to a close.

"My great Qing warriors are no match for the Kaiyuan troops in a night battle. I order the Plain Blue Banner to retreat. Tonight, I will personally lead the Plain Yellow Banner on guard duty. The other banners will camp and rest. Tomorrow, the Plain Red Banner will lead the attack, while the Bordered Red Banner and Plain White Banner will provide support. We must clear the Nikan fortresses before sunset."

Dudu issued orders for tomorrow's battle to several flag owners. Dorgon, Dodo and others dispersed one after another. A Goshiha under the golden dragon banner waved a yellow command flag. The golden drummer who was still beating the drum in front of the formation put down the drumstick and began to strike the golden bowl. Two miles in front of the formation, the 3,000 Zhenglan Banner infantrymen who had just occupied the ruins of Laohutai heard the sound of the golden drum behind them and retreated like a tide.

"Ao..."

Du Du was about to ask about the preparations for the shield carts and ladder trucks when he suddenly remembered that Aobai had already gone to Sakhalin Island and wondered if he had returned yet. He said to a Goshiha:
"Call in Grand Secretary Fan."

A moment later, the obese Fan Wencai staggered over and before he could even stand firmly, he hurriedly kowtowed to Emperor Kangxi and Qianlong.

"Lord Fan, please stand up and speak. Please take a seat."

Bonfires were burning around the golden dragon banner, illuminating Du Du's gloomy face. He glanced at Fan Wencai, and the emperor's eyes were a little blurry in the firelight.

Every time he saw Fan Wencai, Du Du would think of Huang Taiji, the Khan of the Later Jin Dynasty who had been dead for many years.

If Lao Ba were still alive, he would probably be as fat as this bondservant.

Unfortunately, Huang Taiji was not calm enough at that time. He challenged Liu Zhaosun before he was fully prepared, and was eventually killed by the Kaiyuan army.

Du Du put down the telescope and pointed at the main city of Shenyang, which was like a sea of lights under the night sky. Although it was five miles away from the Golden Dragon Banner, Du Du could still see the torches jumping on the top of the Shenyang city wall.

"Look at the top of Shenyang City."

Fan Wencai hurriedly followed his master to look at the distant city wall. He squinted his eyes because he often read by candlelight at night and could not see clearly in the distance.

Du Du smiled and said, "Do you think Kang Yingqian is on the city wall?"

Fan Wencai thought for a moment and said uncertainly, "I've dealt with Kang Yingqian before. He's greedy, lustful, and cowardly. He must be hiding in his mansion right now, perhaps with a few women around him. How could he climb the city wall?"

Du Du snorted coldly, disapproving: "Kang Yingqian is cunning and sly. Judging from what the Qi army did on the battlefield today, this old man has learned a lot of skills from Liu Zhaosun over the years. He doesn't care about his life when fighting."

Fan Wencai quickly stood up and saluted, saying, "Master, how about I ask Tong Puhan and his men to fire a few cannons at the city wall to kill these Nikans?"

Du Du shook his head and laughed, "That's not necessary. I don't expect to kill Kang Yingqian with just one shot. This bastard has dug up the area around Shenyang like a rat hole, with ditches and ridges everywhere. I don't know how many more people will have to die before we can capture the city."

When Du Du said this, he suddenly remembered something and looked up at Fan Wencai.

"The Red Barbarians' third batch of naval artillery will arrive in Lushun the day after tomorrow. I have sent Shuotuo, leader of the Red Banner, to lead troops to escort it. You must also take your men and follow Shuotuo to southern Liaoning. Make sure these fifty massive cannons are brought back safely. No one can lose them! You must leave tonight!"

Fan Wencai knew that the emperor was worried about Daishan's two sons, so he had asked him to supervise them along the way. However, he could only secretly complain about such a difficult task. Fan Wencai replied with a "yes", shook his fat body, and hurriedly retreated.

At this time, the sky had completely darkened. Du Du stood up, put on a cloak, and walked slowly towards his tent. When he passed by the Zhengbai Banner camp, he heard the chirping of birds from the Red Haired Barbarian Advisory Group.

A Fujian tea merchant loudly translated to Dorgon and the Niulu Ezhen of the Plain White Banner, instructing the Qing army on the tactical moves for tomorrow's attack on the fortresses:
"Remember, each Niulu will be responsible for attacking one fortress with 300 men. The infantry will approach in columns, and at 300 paces (outside the Qi army's range), deploy in horizontal formations! The musketeers and archers will fire separately, don't crowd together, and ignore the mines and cannons! The auxiliary troops will be responsible for clearing them." "Before Wuzhenhachao's musketeers, each Niulu will select 30 men to serve as skirmishers, carrying small axes, hoes, bundles of firewood, and ladders to assist."

"The main focus of the musketeers' attack should be on the two sides. Don't charge directly at the front of the fort. The second wave of attack must encircle the two salient polygonal redoubts and the enemy defending them."

Du Du listened to the Red Haired Barbarians' tactics and found them quite interesting. The Red Haired Barbarians' tactics were obviously different from the Eight Banners' tactics of infantry armor breaking through and cavalry supporting, and were obviously more effective for sieges.

"When you're halfway within range of the Qi army's artillery, you must run, jump into the occupied trenches, tear down the breastworks, and open up the path inside. Meanwhile, the Tiger Crouching Cannons and various light artillery pieces will advance steadily, firing at the fortress as they advance. Wuzhenhachao's heavy artillery will cover you from behind.

······
Du Du stood at the camp gate and listened for a long time, a satisfied smile on his face. Finally, he looked at the ruins of the destroyed Tiger Terrace Fortress and said with gritted teeth at the Shenyang City standing alone in the distance:

"Kang Yingqian, Liu Zhaosun is already dead, and you can't escape. Tomorrow, I will break open these tortoise shells, pull you out, and send you to Seoul to be a male prostitute!"

~~~
It has to be said that the Qing emperor’s ideals were very grand, but the reality was very bleak.

The outer fortress group of Shenyang is a masterpiece created by the joint efforts of Jin Ni Ge, Xu Guangqi and Song Yingxing, and tens of thousands of Qi soldiers and civilians fought for more than four months. It consists of numerous fortresses, blockhouses, trenches, dams, swamps and canals.

Tiger Terrace is just a fulcrum among the scattered fortresses, or to be more precise, the southernmost fulcrum.

The fortress consisted of a thick earthen retaining wall that sloped down to the Hunhe River bank. The slope was protected by horizontal fences to prevent enemy ladders. At the foot of the earthen ramparts was an outer layer of earth and stone fortifications that controlled the trench.

When designing and building the fortress group, Jin Ni Ge and Xu Guangqi fully considered the range of muskets. The distance between all the fortresses was within two hundred steps, which was the maximum range of the Qi army's flintlock rifles. All the positions were long and narrow, and the surfaces intersected at convex angles, ensuring that every Qing infantryman could receive fire support from five directions: front, back, left, center, and right after entering the Shenyang battlefield.

Emperor Wu Ding's rule of deploying troops was to give priority to artillery, and the Qi army strictly followed this rule, so infantry field artillery and divine fire flying crows were installed in each fortress. The artillery fire could cover all shield carts, ladders and battering rams that dared to enter the battlefield without blind spots.

Of course, this defensive system is not without weaknesses. First, it requires a large number of troops to guard such a group of fortresses. Second, once the outer fortifications fall into the hands of the enemy, the enemy will have a perfect foothold and a place to set up siege artillery.

Finally, after the water from the Hunhe River was introduced, the middle of the trench was filled with mud, making it extremely inconvenient to pass through. This also brought difficulties to the Qi army and was not conducive to the defenders in the city providing supplies and military support for the outer fortifications.

However, these two points had little impact on the Qi army.

All the Qi troops in Liaodong were gathered around Shenyang, and there were more than enough troops to guard the fortress. More importantly, the Qi troops were not afraid of death.

Because of his character flaws and bad luck, Emperor Wu Ding's time travel mission almost failed.

However, one thing is certain, that is, the army that was tempered by his hands has strict military discipline and tenacious fighting will, which is not inferior to any army in ancient and modern times.

All the Qi soldiers guarding the outer fortifications had already prepared to die calmly, even if they were facing the Qing army, which was much larger in number and better equipped.

No one will back down.

~~~
The darkness looked down on the land, and death corroded people's hearts. Kang Yingqian stood on the south gate city wall, overlooking the endless Qing army camp in the distance.

The dim light from the oil-paper lantern illuminated the gaunt, old face. He coughed lightly, and his sparse beard trembled habitually.

He waited quietly for dawn, waiting for the Shenyang meat grinder to start working.

(End of this chapter)