I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

Because they were simple to make, extremely inexpensive, and yet possessed considerable destructive power, "slingers" were frequently seen on the battlefields of ancient Japan.

The famous swordsman Miyamoto Musashi had a dark history of "going into battle full of confidence, only to be knocked unconscious by a flying stone before even seeing the enemy's face."

Miyamoto Musashi remembered this incident for the rest of his life.

In his later years, he even wrote in a letter to someone: "Now I will no longer be hit by stones!"

The soldiers, armed with bows, muskets, slings, and other ranged weapons, rushed into the trenches and unleashed a barrage of bullets, arrows, and stones at the approaching Eighth Division.

As for the soldiers who were armed with long spears, swords and other melee weapons, they also crawled into the trenches, but because they lacked means of attack, they could only watch helplessly.

boom!boom!boom!boom!

Whoosh!Whoosh!Whoosh!Whoosh!

Woo! Woo! Woo! Woo!

The sounds of gunfire, arrows being fired, and stones being thrown rang out in unison.

Due to the distance, the hit rate is not ideal.

However, with so many bullets, arrows, and stones, some of them are bound to hit.

Before long, some unlucky members of the Eighth Division collapsed to the ground, groaning in pain after being hit.

The generals of Choshu were full of hope that their offensive would stop the advance of the Eighth Division.

Clearly, their hopes were doomed to be dashed.

No matter how many people fall, the soldiers in the next row will immediately take a few quick steps to fill the gap.

No matter how the Choshu army attacked, the Eighth Division showed no sign of stopping.

He pressed forward despite the attacks, closing the distance to a certain point. Then, Todo Heisuke raised his sword and issued a new order that sent chills down the spines of the Choshu soldiers opposite him:

"Stop! Raise your guns!"

The Eighth Division stopped in their tracks.

Then, the sounds of gunshots rang out: "click," "click," "click"!

What happened next needs no further explanation.

Raise your gun, aim, and fire!

In an instant, rows of bullets, like dark clouds, enveloped the Changzhou soldiers hiding in the trenches.

With just one volley of fire, the Choshu men, unable to rise again, were far superior to the Eighth Division soldiers who had just fallen to the ground!

Anyone could see that with such terrifying firepower, the Choshu army would be completely destroyed after just two or three more volleys.

Perhaps unable to bear the oppressive and desperate atmosphere, the soldiers of Choshu, who were also hiding in the trenches and holding close-combat weapons such as spears and swords, became fierce.

"Damn it! Let's fight them!"

Someone shouted this, and they raised their spears and swords, swarming towards the Eighth Division like ants emerging from their hole.

Admittedly, their courage is commendable.

Unfortunately, their heroic charge was destined to be in vain.

"Wait! Don't be impulsive! Come back quickly!"

Someone immediately spoke up to warn them, trying to stop this reckless tactic.

But it was too late.

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!

Amidst the billowing smoke from the explosive gunpowder, the Choshu soldiers who had left the trenches and were charging head-on at the Eighth Division fell to the ground like mowing grass.

No matter how fast they sped up, no matter how much they prayed, not one of them managed to get within ten steps of the Eighth Division.

It must be said that the tactic of "artillery bombardment followed by infantry charge, infantry charge followed by artillery bombardment" may lack military technology, but it is indeed effective!

Qingdeng only sent out the 8th and 11th Divisions, and they defeated the Choshu army so badly that they had no chance of turning the tide!

……

……

Main camp—

Qing Deng gazed at the battlefield, where the outcome was already decided, and said calmly:

"Matsuhara-kun, Nakazawa-san."

Matsubara Tadashi (Vice-Captain of the 10th Division) and Nakazawa Koto (Vice-Captain of the 7th Division) were slightly taken aback, and then hurriedly stood up and stepped forward.

"Each of you lead 300 cavalrymen to pursue the remaining enemy. Do not return to see me before your horses are exhausted."

This one-sided battle required no personal intervention from Aoto or Harada Sanosuke.

Therefore, Qingdeng decided to take this opportunity to give the newcomers more training.

Seeing that Aoto had entrusted them with this important task, Matsubara Tadashi and Nakazawa Koto both showed excited expressions.

The two solemnly accepted the task, then hurried away from their own camp to assemble their troops and lead their teams.

Seeing that the Choshu army was doomed to defeat, as expected, some of the feudal lords and generals of the main camp—most of whom came from small, weak feudal lords—forced in obsequious smiles and rushed to flatter Aoto.

Their own vassal state was too weak, so in order to survive, they unconsciously developed the habit of "flattering" and "sycophancy".

"General Tachibana, the Shinsengumi truly is a formidable force in this era!"

"Indeed! With such a powerful army, how can we not destroy Changzhou and bring peace to the world!"

"General Tachibana, today's battle has truly broadened my horizons!"

Of course, not all of these words were insincere flattery.

The Shinsengumi's formidable fighting prowess, especially their dense barrage of artillery shells and their musketeers advancing like a wall, greatly shocked them.

Following the "Summer Siege of Kyoto," many feudal lords and generals were so shocked by witnessing the terrifying fighting power of the Shinsengumi that they could hardly express their feelings.

Qingdeng was already used to such sycophantic flattery.

Now that things have come to this, he not only doesn't feel happy after hearing these flattering remarks, but he also finds them somewhat amusing.

Of course, since they took the initiative to be friendly, he wouldn't refuse them.

He skillfully flashed a polite and appropriate smile, responding to each question in a neutral tone.

While engaging in social activities, his attention remained focused on the distant battlefield.

His facial expression did not relax in the slightest after defeating the Choshu army opposite him.

……

……

Matsubara Tadashi and Nakazawa Koto's pursuit was nothing particularly noteworthy.

When they led their cavalry into battle, the opposing Changzhou army was on the verge of collapse, barely clinging to life—the arrival of the cavalry extinguished that last breath.

Charge, hack and slash, assault... The Changzhou army suffered a complete rout, losing all will to fight.

Under the relentless pursuit of the cavalry, they were either killed or fled, and almost the entire army was wiped out.

Thus, in less than an hour, this crucial pass to Changzhou was completely lost!

Qingdeng's goal was to break through Yizhoukou within half a day—but as it turned out, "half a day" was far too much time!

Capturing Yizhoukou is tantamount to opening the gateway to Sufang Province.

In Qingdeng's plan, after breaking through Yizhoukou, the legion would advance rapidly southwestward and invade the heartland of Sufang Province.

First, occupy the Forty-Eight Slopes and Iwakuni, then launch a full-scale attack on Zhou Nan.

Zhou Nan was an important town in the State of Zhoufang.

Taking down Zhou Nan is equivalent to taking down half of Zhou Fang.

Next, the legion used Zhou Nan as a fulcrum to maneuver northwestward, its advance aimed directly at the mountain pass.

Yamaguchi was not only an important town in Suo Province, but also the gateway to Nagato Province.

In other words, once Yamaguchi is captured, we can advance into Nagato Province and conquer Hagi Castle!

If Hagi Castle falls, Choshu will perish!

A simple and clear route of advance.

If all goes well, according to Qingdeng's expectations, the legion will be able to reach Hagi Castle in just half a month!

Of course, whether his expectations can be realized depends on the premise that things go "smoothly".

After a brief rest, Qingdeng left 3000 men to guard Yizhou Pass, and then led the remaining troops to break camp that afternoon and attack into the heart of Changzhou.

The reason for the hasty advance was, on the one hand, to adhere to the operational concept of "speed is of the essence" and to take advantage of the recent defeat of the Changzhou army, which had not yet had time to reorganize its remnants, to push forward the battle line in one fell swoop and expand the results of the war.

On the other hand, it was also to find the main force of the Choshu army as soon as possible... namely, the elite troops.

The day after capturing Yizhoukou, the two legions responsible for launching feint attacks at Shizhoukou and Xiaocangkou respectively sent battle reports to Qingdeng.

According to their report, following Qingdeng's instructions, they spared no effort in attacking the passes (Shizhoukou and Xiaocangkou). All three armies fought bravely, but the Changzhou army was too cunning and they did not make any substantial progress.

It's obvious that their "relentless attack" was actually "relentless shirking of responsibility."

It's truly remarkable that they came up with the excuse that "the Choshu army is too cunning" to absolve themselves of responsibility.

The poor performance of these two legions was entirely within Qing Deng's expectations.

Since I never had any expectations of them, there was naturally no question of disappointment.

It wouldn't be accurate to say they made no contribution at all.

At the very least, they accomplished their mission of "restraining Changzhou" very well, and at the same time helped Qingdeng confirm that the surprise attack team was neither at Shizhoukou nor Xiaocangkou.

Where did the surprise troops go?

This question weighed heavily on Qingdeng's mind like a boulder.

A persistent unease lingered in his mind.

Only by sending troops to advance into the heart of Choshu and gradually approach Hagi Castle can this predicament be somewhat alleviated.

……