A small soldier of the frontier army in the late Ming Dynasty

Chapter 245 Battle of Dingzhou
Xuanda's more than 1 officers and soldiers set off from Qingdu County early in the morning and arrived at the Tang River in the afternoon of the same day.

The stone bridge in Dingzhou was defended by elite Qing soldiers. Lu Xiangsheng ordered the march to stop a long time ago. He was quite surprised. He didn't expect the Qing soldiers to defend against danger.He ordered to line up troops on a hard river beach field not far from the Tang River.

Then all the generals followed his horse and raised their eyes to look in the direction of Dingzhou on the opposite side.From a distance, one can see the majestic figure of Dingzhou City. Dingzhou City is surrounded by water on three sides, and is known as an important town in Hebei Province.The local command envoy of Teng Xiangwei, as well as the governor of Muzhou, stationed in the city together.

Around the city, you can faintly see a large white tent with a red flag inlaid. The Qing soldiers who besieged Dingzhou there were the Qing army with a white flag inlaid. Thai.

The cold wind swept over along the river beach, making everyone's clothes and flags flutter, whistling across the face, as painful as a knife cut.Dingzhou is located in a semi-humid and semi-arid zone. Winters have always been cold, dry, and less snowy. During the Little Ice Age in Daming, the weather was even colder.

In the cold wind, Lu Xiangsheng and the others remained motionless. After a long time, Lu Xiangsheng sneered and said, "Slave bandits guard against danger. They seem wise, but they are actually stupid. There are so many cannons in my army, how can a mere stone bridge stop me?" The marching pace of the army?"

"Today, we will capture the stone bridge, gather our troops under the city of Dingzhou, and then fight to the death with the slaves and thieves!"

He ordered Wang Dou to fight, and ordered the artillery to cover the bombardment.

……

The five heavy Hongyi six-pound guns in the Superintendent Battalion were pushed to the shore, and their black muzzles were aimed at the enemy on the other side of the shore.Zhao Xuan, the artillery team officer in Wang Dou's army, did not show any weakness, and pushed the Buddha Wolf machine guns in his own army out of many doors.The [-]-meter-wide river channel, with the range of the army's Big Buddha wolf machine, can cover and suppress the opposite bank with shotgun bullets.

While the artillerymen were busy, Wang Dou's thousands of troops were quietly lined up behind the densely packed artillery.

It can be clearly seen that on the opposite side of the stone bridge, there are multiple layers of Juma, and the bridge is covered with caltrops. It seems that there are many trenches dug along the edge of the stone bridge.The formation of the Qing soldiers is very incomprehensible.

No matter how they arrange it, if they use force to convince people, the artillery and guns will open the way.

Compared with Wang Doujun's Buddha wolf machine cannon, the loading method of the cannon is slightly different. The Hongyi cannon of Dubiaoying is slightly different. The front chamber is loaded, and the bullet holder is used. One large bullet is wrapped in wooden red cloth and sent into the abdomen.Then a pack of twelve small ammunition was sent in.They also use cranks and screws to adjust the direction of the muzzle, unlike the Buddha wolf guns that use wooden sleepers.

The gunners in the Supervision Battalion also seemed to be quite well-trained and well-trained, but Wang Dou used the relatively primitive parallax method to estimate the distance with his eyes and thumbs when he saw their artillery aiming.The gunners in Wang Dou's army gained experience after firing a large number of cannons.

It's just that for the current shotgun shooting, there is no need to estimate the distance of the shell's impact, as long as the artillery is leveled and fired.

Seeing Zhao Xuan commanding the gunners, staring at the friendly soldiers of the Supervising Biao Battalion from time to time, with a victorious look like a rooster, Wang Dou couldn't help but smile.See that the gunners on both sides have been deployed.The gunners of the five Hongyi cannons turned the cranks, lowered the muzzles, and tried to aim at the large Qing army and the refusal horses on the other side of the bank.

One of the red barbarian cannons was placed not far from the entrance of the bridge. From the black muzzle, facing the Juma at the other end of the bridge, one could faintly see the gleaming mercury armor of the Qing army’s Baya soldiers on the Juma’s side. And the flags waving on their backs.

"fire!"

It seemed that at the same time, there was a deafening cannon fire, a large cloud of smoke rose, and the howling shells rolled towards the opposite bank one by one.Especially those few Hongyi cannons fired more than a dozen large and small shells in one shot, and the scene was even more spectacular.

After the shells were fired, Wang Dou and the others watched intently the results of the shelling.It's a pity that although the Qing soldiers on the opposite side had a commotion, they were mostly fine.The river beach on the opposite bank may have a relatively soft surface, and the jumping ability of the shells is not high after landing. Unless they hit the ground directly, the lethality rate is a little bit worse.

Obviously, it is still a bit difficult for the shells of these artillery to accurately hit the small horse-repelling target.It seems that there are still many Qing soldiers hiding in the trenches, and the shotgun shots from the Buddha Wolf machine guns have no effect on them.

Only the Hongyi cannon not far from the bridge head made a difference. The six-pound bullet directly knocked down a large part of Juma, and the cannonball flew into the air and jumped into a Baya not far behind. In La Bing's chest, a huge blood hole was opened in his body.The rest, a dozen small bullets flew in all directions, bouncing on the hard bridge surface, directly hitting a path of blood.

"Pull the Buddha Wolf machine to the bridge!"

Zhao Xuan jumped happily. Under his orders and under the watchful eyes of the friendly troops, several Shunxiang Army gunners pushed a heavy Buddha Wolf Machine Cannon onto the bridge. They unhurriedly loaded their shotguns.

"fire!"

Amid Zhao Xuan's earth-shattering orders, a gunner ignited the cannon.

"Boom!" There was a loud noise, and a large area of ​​lead pellets and iron bullets directly wiped out several rejecting horses on the opposite side of the bridge. Accompanied by the screams of a lot of Qing army Baya soldiers on the other side of the bridge, and their Rolling back to running figure.

"Shooters, get on!"

Wang Dou gave an order, and Tian Qiming, the officer of Han Zhong's C Division A, waved his long knife, and immediately a group of firecrackers rushed to the bridge, and then a group of firecrackers lined up behind them, waiting for him to join the war.

Only five firecrackers can walk side by side on the bridge deck. After the team of firecrackers got on the bridge, they immediately held firecrackers and followed one by one.The Qing soldiers in front did not shoot bows and arrows, so they cleared the horses and caltrops on the bridge. When the Qing soldiers appeared a hundred steps ahead, or dozens of steps away, they shot on the bridge, one by one. constantly.

The bows and arrows of the Qing soldiers were far from threatening to them, but their firecrackers could break through their heavy armor dozens of steps away.Those Qing soldiers, even with the ferocity of the Bala soldiers, rushed in batch after batch and could only be sent to death.Soon, Tian Qiming's team unleashed firearms and occupied Dingzhou Bridge.

His eyes lit up, and there was an open plain in front of him, a flat official road leading directly to Dingzhou City along the Dingzhou Bridge.Dispersed from both sides of the stone bridge, several tens of steps away from the river bank, each dug several trenches. It seems that the Qing soldiers escaped the shelling by hiding in the trenches.

But on the official road in front of him, no trenches have been dug.After occupying the Dingzhou Bridge, Tian Qiming immediately set up a protective area based on the radius of the bridgehead, covered it with swords and shields, and kept shooting the Qing soldiers rushing from both sides in front.

Their firecrackers advantageously blocked the impact of the Qing soldiers, and then groups of firecrackers followed.Afterwards, another chariot was pushed up one after another, and the bridgehead was already occupied by Lao Lao.

……

A few hundred steps away from Dingzhou Bridge, there is a large group of Qing soldiers gathered here, a huge sea of ​​red and white flags.Among the flags, there are three huge gold-woven dragon banners erected high. The owners of the dragon banners are Duduo, the owner of the banner with a white flag, Rao Yubeile Abatai, and the Baya Latiao Zhangjing with a white flag. .

Listen, look at the gunpowder smoke, shouts and killing sounds, and the deafening sound of gunfire.Duoduo and Abatai kept their expressions on the ground, while the flesh on Nabaya Latuzhangjing's face kept shaking. The bravery of the Ming army was beyond his expectation.Zhang Jing roughly estimated that in this short battle, the Ba Yala warriors in his battalion had suffered hundreds of casualties, but the Ming army still advanced step by step, and the sons under his command were just doing nothing. resistance.

After a long time, the owner of the Xiangbai Banner said: "Seventh brother is right, Wang Dou is indeed a formidable enemy, we must not underestimate the Ming army."

Rao Yubeile said indifferently: "The firearms of this Ming army are sharp. In fact, there is nothing terrible about it. There are also many excellent firearms in the Ming army. Just like the king of obedience, didn't they also surrender our Qing Dynasty? What is terrible is the courage of this army. , The discipline is strict, from the general to the small army, all have the heart to fight to the death, which is very different from other Ming armies."

Duoduo's young face was a little disconvinced, and he said: "In this way, the Ming army is invincible? In the future, when our warriors from the Qing Dynasty encounter the Ming army from Wang Dou's department, do we have to take a detour? If you say too much, destroy your own prestige and increase the ambition of others!"

Abatai said: "Ming general Wang Dou was praised by the emperor of Ming as the champion of the three armies, and the owner of the red flag suffered a big loss because of his contempt. After encountering Wang Doubu, we need to be more careful, cautious and cautious. Do not underestimate the enemy, so as not to damage the warriors in the banner!"

Xiangbai Banner said: "Then according to what Brother Seven said, how should we fight when we meet Wang Doubu in the future?"

Abatai pondered for a long time, and said: "It's hard to find their weaknesses in the field battle with Wang Doubu. I can only use my knight's strengths and not confront them head-on. We will deal with them after they run out of ammunition and food."

Then a look of sadness appeared on his face: "It's a pity that Wang Dou is now under the command of Lu Xiangsheng, Shangshu of the Ming Dynasty. Lu Xiangsheng has many cavalry under his command. Wang Dou has a reliance... It's hard..."

Duoduo didn't speak, he was young and energetic, and didn't take Abatai's words seriously, and there was another layer of worry on his face: "The Lu Xiangsheng Department of the Ming Dynasty is now full of troops, with tens of thousands of troops. 5000 people, less than [-] people in armor, asked Gao Yang's Fourteenth Brother for help, and I don't know if he will send reinforcements..."

This time the Qing soldiers entered the bandits, except for the two yellow banners of Huang Taiji and his son Haoge, including the Eight Banners of Mongolia, the Qing soldiers of the rest of the banners were dispatched, and tens of thousands of auxiliary soldiers followed.However, since Baoding, the main force of the Qing army has been divided into eight groups to attack and plunder the city. Up to now, the strength of each group and each group has been diluted.

In the past, they bullied the Ming army and dared not fight in the field, but when they met those who really dared to fight, they had no choice but to realize that their troops were too weak.Duoduo only hoped that the reinforcements sent by Dorgon under Gaoyang City would arrive quickly.

Abatai suddenly said: "Fifteenth brother, in my brother's opinion, it is better for us to withdraw to Gaoyang and join up with the general who was ordered. The Ming army is very powerful, we don't need to confront them."

Abatai's words aroused Dodo's arrogance. He had always looked down on this elder brother. Hearing his dejected words now, he shouted loudly: "Retreat? In the eyes of my warriors of the Qing Dynasty, Has there ever been a word of retreat? Although the Ming army has more than [-], after the rise of the Qing army, which time did we not attack the crowd with a few? I have [-] warriors with white flags, and I can easily kill the Ming army on the opposite side. "

There was a sneer on his face: "Bravely crowned the three armies? Can't confront each other head-on? Tomorrow, the king will face off against Lu Xiangsheng and Wang Dou, and they will be thrown off the title of the brave champion of the three armies. Let them also see, we The greatness of the Qing Dynasty with the white flag made them terrified, and they never dared to fight me head-on again."

Looking at Duduo's young and arrogant face, Abate sneered in his heart: "Idiot!"

……

The sound of the golden drum sounded, and the Ba Yala soldiers guarding the bridge with the white flag retreated like a tide, and then gathered under the banner of Duoduo, and slowly retreated to their Dingzhou camp with a strict military force.Wang Dou led the Shunxiang Army and successfully occupied the Dingzhou Bridge. On the bridge head, he welcomed Lu Xiangsheng and others who were all smiling.

In the afternoon of the same day, Lu Xiangsheng led more than 3000 Xuanda soldiers to cross the Dingzhou Bridge in a mighty manner, and set up camp on the Tang River several miles away from the Qing army camp.The local Dingzhou magistrate and Teng Xiangwei officers and soldiers were overjoyed when they heard that the reinforcements had arrived, and they sent supplies and food for the labor force for several days.

In the evening of that day, Lu Xiangsheng summoned the generals from all the towns to discuss military affairs overnight. In the Qing army camp, Duduo did not expect reinforcements that night, but received a warrant from Dorgon, asking Duduo to pull out all his troops to go. Gao Yang quickly evacuated from the city of Dingzhou, angry Duoduo tore the warrant to pieces.

He has already made up his mind, and he will go out of the camp early in the morning to fight a decisive battle with the Ming army on the opposite side.

……

On the tenth day of November in the 11th year of Chongzhen.

The weather is still cold, with gusts of wind sweeping past, freezing cold to the bone.

From early in the morning, most of the Ming army and Qing soldiers left their camps and gathered in front of their barracks.Looking from the opposite side of the enemy and us, the banners and soldiers of the other side are everywhere.

Wang Dou looked back at his left and right sides. On both sides of his army formation, there were dense formations of friendly troops formed by war horses and vermilion lacquer armor. The mighty sea of ​​fiery red flags seemed to be boundless.In Lu Xiangsheng's army arrangement, he formed the Chinese army with Wang Pu, the commander-in-chief of Datong Town, and Zhang Yan, the general of Xuanfu Town, with Yang Guozhu, the commander-in-chief of Xuanfu Town, as the left wing, and Hu Dawei, the commander-in-chief of Shanxi Town, as the right wing.The Shunxiang Army of Wang Dou's Department is the former army.

On the opposite side, the soldiers of the Xiangbaiqi Qing Dynasty seemed to be planning to confront each other head-on. Wang Doubu, who won the three armies bravely and beheaded nearly a thousand ranks twice, was the main force of the former army. Everyone had no objection, and Wang Dou didn't care.With this arrangement, there are many cavalry on the two wings and the central army, and the sides and rear are quite safe, and you can fight with confidence in the front of the army formation.

Looking at most of the Qing soldiers rolling on the opposite side, the sea of ​​white and red flags seems to be endless, and three huge golden dragon banners standing tall can be faintly seen.Wang Dou took a deep breath as he rode on his maroon horse.

This is the first big battle that I have cooperated with my allies since I went to battle this year. Opposite is the main force of the Qing army with white flags. It is unknown who will win the battle.But Wang Dou knew that in today's battle, he would definitely teach the Qing soldiers on the opposite side an unforgettable lesson, and he had the confidence to do so!
Wang Dou's Yuanrong chariot has become Lu Xiangsheng's command chariot, and his watch pole chariot is also erected not far from the standard bearer of Lu Xiangsheng's Chinese army. The flag bearer of the Shunxiang army on it can pass the Qing army formation at any time trend.Lu Xiangsheng was naturally disrespectful of Wang Dou's feelings.

Standing on the chariot, he looked at the former army Wang Dou's army with great relief. Since they formed their formation, they have stood rigidly in the cold wind, and no one has moved a little, from the general manager to the small army.Even if you can't see their expressions, you can imagine the calm look on their faces.

On the other hand, the sergeants of the Dubiao Battalion and the sergeants of Datong Town next to me showed nervous expressions. After all, the Qing soldiers had a long reputation, especially invincible in field battles. Although they only had 5000 people, I had 3000 people. A few days later, there was a victory.However, many Xuanda soldiers still couldn't restrain their inner fear and uneasiness when they fought directly against the Qing soldiers without forming a chariot formation or relying on barriers.

The name of Wang Dou's Department of Bravely Championing the Three Armies is worthy of the name. It is a blessing to Ming Dynasty to have Wang Dou's Shunxiang Army!Lu Xiangsheng sighed with emotion, and ordered the flag bearers beside him to wave their flags. Immediately, the front army, the middle army, the left and right wings echoed the flags one by one, like a forest of spears and halberds were raised.

Lu Xiangsheng's heart surged with pride, today's battle will definitely deal a heavy blow to the slaves, so that they will not dare to underestimate their Ming Dynasty officials and soldiers from now on.His mind flew to Gaoyang, after the battle of Dingzhou, he could muster up his remaining courage, and then break the siege of Gaoyang.

Hearing the low sound of horns, the large formation of Qing soldiers on the opposite side was slowly advancing. They were densely packed with guns, and the sea of ​​red and white flags was slowly getting bigger.You can already see the white armor of the knights on their horses with red borders, and the red tassels fluttering on the helmets.

They didn't say a word, only the sound of heavy horseshoes trampling the ground, although the momentum was dull, but there was an unstoppable taste.Lu Xiangsheng heard heavy panting from the soldiers beside him, snorted coldly, and said, "Give me the order of the governor, and go up!"

The flag of the Chinese army was waving again. Following the flag, the formation of the sergeant Xuanda paused, and the formation formed by the four formations also moved slowly.Countless soldiers from the Three Towns urged their horses to move forward, holding their own weapons and flags.The officers shouted orders from time to time, reminding the subordinates to keep the marching array in order.

In the direction of the front army, three thousand and hundreds of soldiers of the Shun Township Army also marched forward. Whether they were musketeers or pikemen, they all held their weapons against their shoulders and advanced like a wall.Unlike friendly troops who march forward for a few steps or a dozen steps, they have to stop for a while to rectify. The Shunxiang Army marched all the way, and the military formation was always kept in order.Thousands of them were walking, only to hear the sound of orderly footsteps.The Wang Dou Department is well-trained and has strict orders, which can be seen.

Wang Dou rode his horse on his own army formation. In this battle, all the cavalry in Wang Dou's army had become infantry.All in all, there are about 500 firecrackers in the army, divided into three rows of 500 people each, forming a huge front.

Behind the three rows of firecrackers, there are three rows of pikemen or sword and shield soldiers, and the rest of the Ye Buchao and the standard bearers and drummers have become Wang Dou's central army.Lu Xiangsheng, Yang Guozhu and others were quite worried about Wang Dou's army formation, thinking that Wang Dou's army formation was too thin, with only six rows of sergeants, and they might be in danger of being broken by the Qing army.Moreover, the cannons and other things in Wang Dou's army have been arranged to the two wings, which has even more dispersed the firepower of the Shunxiang army.

Wang Dou insisted on his army formation, thinking that this would maximize the power of his firecrackers. He estimated that the Qing soldiers might collapse if they could not withstand the blows from his three rows of firecrackers. Even if they did not collapse, he still had three rows of spearmen. It is still able to resist, such an army arrangement is the most suitable.

At Wang Dou's insistence, Lu Xiangsheng also agreed with Wang Dou's formation arrangement. Anyway, the Chinese army has a large number of troops. If Wang Dou's troops are weak, there is still time to arrange reinforcements.

……

Looking down from the sky, the dark sea of ​​flags on both sides was slowly approaching, and finally, the two sides stopped at a distance of one mile from each other.

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Old White Bull: There is another chapter tonight.

(End of this chapter)