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

Chapter 384
"It should be the Hongyi big blunderbuss. Only Luoyang City and Kaifeng City have them in Henan, but these big blunderbusses are for defending cities, and I have never seen them used in the wild."

Yuan Zongdi said something. He reported to Li Zicheng about the attack on Luoyang City, but Liu Fangliang took the topic away. At this time, he inserted a sentence to show his existence.

He said: "There are several Shenwei Invincible General Cannons in Luoyang City. They can hit three to five catties and can hit more than one mile. Those few red barbarian guns should be able to shoot more than two miles, but they weigh three to five pounds. Four thousand catties, loaded on a four-wheeled vehicle, it is very difficult to move to the wild. Wang Dou is a guest soldier. I heard that he came from Xuanfu Town. It is thousands of miles away. Such a heavy gun must not be able to drag it. .”

"In their army, there may be lighter red barracks."

Then he said: "It's also strange, how can these lighter Hongyi big guns hit so far?"

Liu Zongmin said: "That's right. Officers and soldiers often use chariot battalions in field battles. The first battalion has 250 cannons. The heaviest cannon of the invincible general weighs a thousand catties. The cannon is almost three catties and can hit more than one mile. They are all big blood holes. But this is the heaviest cannon for officers and soldiers in the field, and the others are a few taels of cannon, at most one catty. It is really strange for Brother Fang Liang to encounter the artillery used by officers and soldiers."

Liu Zongmin has experienced many battles, and when it comes to the equipment of the Ming army, he is naturally familiar with it.

Liu Fangliang calmed down, and he said: "King Chuang, chief sentry, in my opinion, it may be a novel firearm among the officers and soldiers. After all, the Wang Dou army came from Xuanfu Town, which is one of the nine sides. In war, it is normal to have a lot of novel firearms, and the officers and soldiers in the hinterland cannot compare."

Li Zicheng tapped his fingers on the table next to him, and he said: "This Wang Dou has some powerful blunderbusses and cannons. In fact, it's nothing to worry about. Mingyuan was also surprised by them. If you are prepared, hurry up and go on." The battle that comes down will definitely not be like that in Ruzhou."

"Our rebel army has also fought many officers and soldiers. Many officers and soldiers have very powerful firearms. The cities we captured have many excellent firearms and artillery, but they dare not fight. These firearms have become the spoils of my rebel army. The key is that Wang Dou's soldiers and horses are very elite, with high combat power. According to Mingyuan, the 7000 troops in Wang Dou are all as elite as their forward soldiers and horses. They seem to be better than our old battalion's soldiers and horses. To eliminate these 7000 people..."

He shook his head: "It's strange, how could there be such an army of officers and soldiers in Ming Dynasty."

Everyone present was pondering, feeling that this Wang Doujun was different, and the various tactics they were good at could not be used at all.If you encounter officers and soldiers from other departments, they will soon be finished after setting up an ambush several times.Or buy them, they will not fight to the death, but it seems that the officers and soldiers cannot be bought.

In the past, when encountering such tough officers and soldiers, there was still a way to break into the army, that is, to avoid the strong and attack the weak, and to avoid it, wandering to other states and counties.But now it's hard to ride a tiger to fight Luoyang, can it be that he can only fight the king hard?
Chuang Jun had never encountered such a head-on confrontation. Those cannon fodder hungry soldiers were fine. What Li Zicheng and others were most afraid of was to damage their old battalion and cavalry, and they were absolutely reluctant.

But besides using your own backbone strength, what other forces can you use?Although counting the hungry people, the Chuang army can now pull out 10 people, but most of them are hungry people who have never fought or trained, and there are very few soldiers who can really fight. Can they beat Wang Dou's soldiers and horses?
Everyone was having a headache, feeling that this Wang Dou was indifferent, and it was very difficult to deal with.In fact, everyone here has been through the battlefield and has rich experience in combat. In the past, when they faced other officers and soldiers, they easily thought of a lot of ways to deal with them.

Counting it, Liu Fangliang also played well, although the ambush failed, he still trapped the forward of Wang Doujun.In the past, it would be like Cao Wenzhao, the mighty general of the Ming Dynasty, trapped on the plain by tens of thousands of peasant troops.Most of his 3000 men were still cavalry, and Cao Wenzhao still died in the end.

Also trapped, how could Cao Wenzhao die, and Wang Doujun's vanguard would fight back and defeat his own side?There is an indescribable feeling in everyone's heart, this kind of feeling has never been encountered before.

In fact, it is very simple, that is, to drop ten meetings with one force.It is good for generals to have strategies, but they must match the quality of grassroots soldiers and the level of grassroots officers.The quality of the soldiers and officers at the bottom is not high, and the overall strength is not good. No matter how high the master's strategy is, it will only become empty talk in the end.

There are many examples of this kind. It is not that the officials and generals in the late Qing Dynasty did not have strategies. Unfortunately, the quality of the soldiers was not high. As long as the opponent launched a war, all the intrigues would be in vain.Also during the Anti-Japanese War, tens of thousands of national troops ambushed one or two thousand Japanese troops. They often set up ambushes successfully, but most of them were counter-killed and defeated. This is the effect of overall strength.

Of course, this kind of feeling can only be understood by Li Zicheng and others, but it is difficult to express it in words, because they still stay in the thought that it is easy to get a thousand soldiers, but hard to find a general.It is difficult to imagine that kind of upright push and confrontation of strength.

Hao Yaoqi scolded: "Donkey ball, his mother's hair, the Guan Ning soldiers led by Lu Lian were already very powerful, and people said that they were firmly ranked first in the frontier army of the Ming Dynasty. They are even more powerful, where are the freaks coming out?"

……

His rude scolding awakened everyone, and everyone came back to their senses. Niu Jinxing frowned, Li Yan suddenly stood up, and saluted Li Zicheng: "King Chuang, generals, students have something to say, I don't know what to say." Improper speaking."

Li Zicheng said kindly: "Sir, please tell me if you have something to say."

Li Yan saluted again with a smile: "Students take orders."

His posture was so graceful that everyone in the audience was amazed and thought: "Students behave like us, but they are not the same as our bosses."

Li Yan said: "Speaking of Wang Dou's army horse, the students think of one person, Qi Jiguang and Qi Shaobao."

He said: "It is said that an upright and upright teacher is the most difficult to deal with, because all schemes are useless, so the two sides have to confront each other, and the dignified will use the hard to the hard."

He said: "In the past, before Qi Shaobao became an army, the Japanese pirates were rampant in the southeast, and the officers and soldiers were incompetent. Thousands of officers and soldiers often fought against dozens of Japanese pirates and were defeated. However, after Qi Shaobao became an army, he was never defeated. He often beheaded more than a thousand and suffered casualties. There were only a few people. In the Battle of Huajie, more than 500 Japanese pirates were beheaded, and two Japanese heads were captured alive. The casualties were no more than three. In the Battle of Baishuiyang, 2000 people fought against 680 people. The Japanese pirates were wiped out, and the Japanese casualties were three. In the battle of Niutian, tens of thousands of Japanese pirates were defeated, [-] and eight ranks were beheaded, and there were no casualties on our side."

"Qi Shaobao had the heaviest casualties in the southeast, but it was the Battle of Lindun, with 960 beheads and 69 casualties on his own side. Looking at his life, he fought against the southern Japanese and northern captives. From the southern country to the northern border, he had tens of thousands of beheads, and his subordinates suffered countless casualties. Up to a thousand people. See that Wang Dou's soldiers and horses are fine, and the camp is strict, which is quite like Qi Shaobao's style. Just like this Wang Dou's army and horses, Qi's army also has no servants, but the soldiers are so brave that everyone is as strong as a servant."

"Facing such a rigorous and excellent division, our rebel army must not underestimate the enemy, lest we lose the strength of our division in vain."

Li Shuangxi was surprised: "This Qi Shaobao is so powerful?"

There is a sense of leisurely fascination in the tone.

But Liu Zongmin burst into laughter: "Mr. Li, of course Lao Liu and others have heard of Qi Shaobao's reputation. Back then I was working in Mizhi, and when I was free, I would go to teahouses and restaurants. There are many stories about Qi Shaobao. But Mr. The comparison between Wang Dou and Qi Shaobao is exaggerating them? No matter how powerful he is, he is not superhuman, but my old Liu would like to meet, find a time, and have a big fight."

As he spoke, he put his huge palms on his knees and slapped them vigorously, as if that was Wang Dou.

When he moved so vigorously, the chair under him creaked and shook.

Li Zicheng scolded: "Jiexuan, why are you talking to Mr. like this? Quickly apologize."

Li Yan hurriedly said: "Chuang Wang's words are serious. General Liu is bold and unruly, with a gentle temperament. The students are very happy, so how can they blame them?"

Liu Zongmin shook his huge head and said: "My old Liu is a rough man, if you have something to say, it's fine if you don't blame me."

Li Yan called him a general, which made him feel very comfortable. Usually, everyone in the army only called him Master Liu, the commander-in-chief. He sounded like a businessman, and he was much more noble when he heard this general.Moreover, Li Yan was polite and courteous in the army, unlike Niu Jinxing and the others. The more so, the more Liu Zongmin liked Li Yan.

He smiled at Li Zicheng: "Look, King Chuang, Mr. is no longer strange."

Li Zicheng sighed: "Jiexuan, you are such a straightforward person, you don't know how to hide your words."

For Li Zicheng, Liu Zongmin was his confidant general who was born and died, and he relied most on him on weekdays. Li Yan was also an outsider who had just arrived.No matter what, which one is more important, the two cannot be compared at all.His appearance just now was just like that of a corporal.

When Li Yan said this, he happened to take him along, and said, "According to Mr. Wang, this Wang Dou should not be underestimated. I don't know if Mr. Wang knows more about that Wang Dou?"

Li Yan said: "Student Wang Dou has also heard about it. In the 11th year of Chongzhen's reign, the Eastern slaves invaded the bandits, and their reputation has risen since then."

He told some things about Wang Dou in detail, mostly teahouses, wine shops, literati class, and news from various residences.Li Yan was always concerned about the current situation, so he also paid attention to Wang Dou's affairs.After hearing Li Yan's words, everyone in the venue took a deep breath. This guy has a lot of background.

Li Zicheng said softly: "With such a great contribution, he was finally named a general. He should be dissatisfied with the imperial court. Can we win over the rebels?"

Li Yan shook his head and said, "I'm afraid it's impossible."

Li Zicheng pondered for a long time: "In Mr. Yi's opinion, how can we deal with his military horse?"

Everyone in the hall looked at Li Yan, Niu Jinxing and Song Xiance also paid close attention.

Li Yan resolutely said: "Using the way of the other, return it to the other body. Their blunderbuss are sharp, and our rebels can use rockets. Even if the rockets are not accurate enough, they can't stand the large volume, and there will always be gains. It is better than bows and three-eyed blunderbusses." Wait until there is no strength to fight back."

"Their red barbarian guns are powerful, and our rebel army can also use artillery. Our army captured many cities and captured a lot of artillery. Although the range is not as far as theirs, the power is not as strong as them. The more ants kill elephants, there is always a fight."

Li Zicheng laughed loudly: "That's right, that's right. Our army captured so many cities in Henan Prefecture, and I'm afraid we'll capture hundreds of cannons of various kinds. Those gunners are all owned by our rebel army. It's really a fight to pull out hundreds of cannons. "

Liu Fangliang got up suddenly and said, "King Chuang, there is actually another way."

He said: "Brothers Li Guo and I, and Brother Dayong once besieged the vanguard of Wang Dou's army, and their blunderbuss soldiers were unable to cope with it, and their spearmen were almost exhausted. Wang Dou's army was very fierce, but they were few in number after all. , Our rebel army has hundreds of thousands of divisions, attacking them non-stop with a sea of ​​people, there will always be times when they can't cope."

Everyone in the hall looked at each other, and Li Zicheng hummed, and he quickly made a decision to use hungry soldiers to continuously consume Wang Dou's army.However, there are a few literati in the hall, and he also claims to be a teacher of benevolence and righteousness. Such tactics can be practiced, but cannot be said.

……

Suddenly someone laughed, but it was Niu Jinxing who opened his mouth. He gave Li Zicheng a deep salute and said, "King Chuang, all generals, there is an ancient saying: Ji's worries are not in Zhuanyu, but in Xiaoqiang. Ming court Corruption, the fate of the country is coming to an end, we wait for the destiny of the righteous army to return, although Luoyang is strong, and there are reinforcements from Wang Douzhu, how can we live in peace?"

He was in a cloud of fog, and the generals in the field were completely clueless. Liu Zongmin stroked his beard: "Mr. Niu, can you explain it more clearly?"

Niu Jinxing stroked his beard and smiled: "Okay."

He said: "Everyone knows that King Chuang raised his banner again and swept away many counties and counties in Henan Province in a few months, leaving only Luoyang an isolated city. What is it relying on? People's hearts! The court is corrupt, natural disasters and man-made disasters occur one after another, and the people are waiting to be fed, so we are waiting for you." The Rebels are invincible."

"Whether it is the capture of Yongning, Yiyang, or the cities of Lingbao, Xin'an, and Yanshi, it is the response of the righteous people. My master has conquered so many cities without any effort. If you want to capture Luoyang City, it is also in this righteousness. The word people. Wang Dou can fight again, the righteous people rise everywhere, open the city, and bring disaster to the Xiaoqiang, he will definitely have no way to return to heaven."

Everyone in the hall whispered to each other, Li Zicheng was also moved, he asked Yuan Zongdi: "Brother Yuan, how are you doing with the internal response to the righteous people?"

Yuan Zongdi was the first to report the attack on Luoyang to Li Zicheng, and he continued to pick up the topic at this time. He was a little embarrassed: "The government patrols are very strict, and the city is full of bravery training, and it is difficult for the rebels to do their work carefully. Luoyang City is like Yongning and Yanshi That would be difficult."

Li Zicheng frowned: "Could it be that we can only attack hard?"

Niu Jinxing reminded with a smile: "King Chuang, don't forget that there are righteous people in the city, and there are also righteous soldiers."

Yuan Zongdi said: "King Chuang, Mr. Niu, in fact, the elaboration of the rebel army has also been linked to a rebel army that entered Henan from Tongguan. They killed their superiors because of arguing about pay, and were called to Luoyang Association by Wang Shaoyu, the general soldier of Henan. Guarding. They are afraid that the government will pursue them afterwards, and they promised us to raise the flag of rebellion and act as an internal response. However, they don’t have many soldiers and horses, and they are not assisting in guarding the key parts of the city. I’m afraid they won’t be of much use.”

Niu Jinxing said with a smile: "There are not only people available in this department. The students have traveled to various places in Henan Province and understand the factions of the Ming generals in Kaifeng Prefecture. The general Wang Shaoyu is greedy and incompetent. He usually deducts military pay. His subordinates have already complained. Luo Tai and Liu Youyi The two were greedy for life and afraid of death, and they were equally greedy. They had less than half a man under their command. At the beginning of the month, they were ordered to rescue Luoyang. As Brother Yuan said, Liu Jianyi guarded the east of Luoyang City, Luo Tai guarded the south of Luoyang City, and Wang Shaoyu guarded the north of Luoyang City. My rebel army needs to focus on these three people..."

The eyes of Li Zicheng and others lit up, and Niu Jinxing suddenly saluted Li Zicheng deeply: "Chuang Wang, the students are willing to issue a military order, and persuade these three people or one of them to dedicate the city to the battle and share in righteous deeds."

(End of this chapter)