Liu Yan was wearing armor and couldn't hide his excitement. This battle was the first time that he led his troops to participate in a battle. This was a rare opportunity to test the new army of Xiahe Village, and it was also a great opportunity to increase his experience.
At this time, Liu Yan looked back at his left and right sides. On both sides of his military formation, there were dense formations of friendly troops formed by war horses and red lacquer armor. The vast sea of flaming red flags seemed to have no edge.
In Lu Xiangsheng's military formation layout, he led his troops to form a central army with Datong Town Chief Soldier Wang Pu and Xuanfu Counselor Zhang Yan. Xuanfu Town Chief Soldier Yang Guozhu was on the left wing, and Shanxi Town Chief Soldier Hu Dawei is the right wing. The new Xiahezhai army led by Liu Yan served as the front army.
In the previous fierce battles, the combat power of Liu Yan's troops had been recognized by Lu Xiangsheng. The special equipment was the sophisticated blunderbuss equipped by Liu Yan's troops, as well as the strong defensive power of the entire army. At this time, Lu Xiangsheng was able to take the lead as the first Dao's front army can be safely handed over to Liu Yan to command.
The Qing soldiers with the white flag on the opposite side seemed to have plans for a head-on confrontation. With Liu Yan's tribe as the main force of the front army, no one had any objections, and Liu Yan didn't care. With such an arrangement, there were many cavalry on both wings and in the center. The two sides and rear of the new army in Xiahe Village were quite safe. Liu Yan could fight with confidence in the front of the army.
Looking at the vast majority of the Qing troops rolling in from the opposite side, the ocean of white and red flags seems to be endless, and three huge woven gold dragon flags erected high up are faintly visible. Liu Yan rode on his horse and took a deep breath.
This is the first major battle in which he cooperates with friendly forces after his participation in the battle this year. The opponent is the main force of the Qing army with a white flag. It is still unknown who will win the battle in the end. However, Liu Yan knew that in today's battle, he would definitely teach the Qing soldiers on the opposite side an unforgettable lesson. He was confident of this!
At this time, Lu Xiangsheng stood on the chariot and was commanding from a high position. He looked at the former Liu Yan's army with great joy. Since they formed the formation, the officers and soldiers of the new army in Xiahe Village stood in strict order in the cold wind. No one moved a little. This is not the case from the general manager to the small soldiers. Even if you can't see their expressions, you can still imagine the calm look on their faces.
On the other hand, the officers of the Dubiao Battalion and the officers of Datong Town next to him had nervous expressions on their faces. After all, the Qing army has a long-standing reputation, especially invincible in field battles. Although they only have 5,000 people, our own side has more than 16,000. Man, I experienced a victory a few days ago. However, many soldiers of Xuanda still could not restrain their inner fear and uneasiness as they faced the Qing troops without forming a formation or relying on barriers.
Having Liu Yan's new army in Xiahe Village is really a blessing for the Ming Dynasty! Lu Xiangsheng sighed in his heart, and ordered the flag bearer beside him to wave the flag. Immediately, the front army, center army, left and right wings, all echoed the flags, like a forest of spears and halberds rising.
Lu Xiangsheng's heart surged with pride. Today's battle will definitely deal a heavy blow to the slave thieves, so that from now on, they will not dare to underestimate the Ming Dynasty's army. His mind flew to Gaoyang. After the battle of Dingzhou, he could muster up his courage and break the siege of Gaoyang again.
Hearing the low sound of the horn, 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 with red edges on the knight's horse, as well as the red tassel flying on the helmet.
The Qing soldiers said nothing, and only the sound of heavy horse hooves on the ground could be heard. Although the momentum was dull, it had an unstoppable flavor. Lu Xiangsheng heard the heavy breathing coming from the soldiers beside him, snorted coldly, and said: "Send the commander's order and come forward to meet us!"
The flag of the Chinese army was waving again. Following the flag, the large formation of Xuanda generals paused, and the large formation formed by the four military formations also moved slowly. Countless soldiers from the three towns urged their horses and controlled the horses to move forward with their own weapons and flags. From time to time, officers from various departments shouted orders, asking their subordinates to pay attention to maintaining the order of the marching array.
In the direction of the front army, the Xiahezhai New Army's 3,000 and hundreds of soldiers also marched in formation. Whether they were gun soldiers or spearmen, they all held their weapons on their shoulders and advanced like a wall. Different from the friendly army formation which had to stop and reorganize after taking a few or ten steps forward, the Xiahezhai new army marched all the way forward and kept their military appearance neat and orderly. Thousands of them were walking, and they could only hear the sound of neat footsteps. It can be seen that Liu Yan's troops are well-trained and have strict formation orders.
Liu Yan rode his horse on his own army formation. In this battle, all the cavalry in Liu Yan's army have been turned into infantry, and all the night guards and guards are also equipped with muskets. At this time, they all become musket soldiers for use. All in all, there are about 1,900 gun soldiers in the army, divided into three rows of 600 people each, with more than 100 people following as reserve soldiers, thus starting a huge battle. of the front.
Behind the three rows of cannon soldiers were three rows of spear soldiers or sword and shield soldiers. The remaining flag bearers, messengers, and drummers became Liu Yan's central army. Lu Xiangsheng, Yang Guozhu and others were very worried about Liu Yan's military formation. They believed that Liu Yan's military formation was too thin, with only six rows of soldiers, and they might be in danger of being broken through by the Qing army. Moreover, the artillery and other equipment in Liu Yan's army have now been arranged on the two wings, which has even dispersed the firepower of the new army in Xiahe Village.
Liu Yan insisted on his military formation arrangement, believing that only such a formation could maximize the power of his muskets. He estimated that the Qing soldiers might collapse if they could not withstand the blows of his three rows of muskets. Even if they did not collapse, he would still be able to do so. With three rows of pikemen, they can still resist. This kind of military formation arrangement is the most suitable.
At Liu Yan's insistence, Lu Xiangsheng also agreed with Liu Yan's formation arrangement. Anyway, the Chinese army had a large number of troops. If Liu Yan's troops failed, it would still be late to arrange reinforcements.
Looking down from the air, the black sea of flags on both sides was slowly approaching. Finally, both sides stopped one mile away from each other.
From such a close distance, the situation of both sides can be clearly seen. In the Qing army formation, under the largest gold-woven dragon flag, the leader of the flag with a white flag, Duduo, wearing gilded armor, was riding majestically. A fine horse.
After seeing clearly the layout of the Ming army on the opposite side, Duduo couldn't help but sneered: "I've heard for a long time that Lu Xiangsheng is good at using troops, but how can he be so stupid and underestimate the enemy in this battle?"
He saw clearly that there was no problem with the Ming army's center and two wings. Not only were each guarded by a general with several thousand cavalry, but they also had a large number of artillery. If we attack their two wings and center, it will indeed be difficult to gain any benefits, but the front army...
Only a few thousand of Liu Yan's soldiers were deployed there, and there were only six rows of them, three rows of gun soldiers and three rows of spear soldiers. Could it be that Lu Xiangsheng still had confidence in the thousands of elites he led?
No matter how powerful the firearms of the front army of the Ming Dynasty are, can those thin three-layer fire blunderbuss be able to stop the sharp archers in the own army, as well as the dismounted and formation attacks of dead soldiers and sharp soldiers?
No wonder Duduo was full of confidence at this time. Compared with cavalry warfare, Qing soldiers were indeed better at foot warfare. The Ming Dynasty Notes "Qing Jian Xin Lue" once recorded: "It is said that slaves are good at short battles in the mountains, but horse soldiers are weak. Ye He's horse soldiers are the most powerful, but the infantry is weak. Therefore, the slaves are afraid of the northern cavalry, and the north is afraid of the slave steps. Ye He, the white sheep bone generation, said: I am afraid of the slave steps, and the slaves are afraid of my cavalry. We can resist each other with strength, and we can compete with each other with skills."
When the Qing soldiers fought, 50% to 60% of the main force were light-armored archers, most of whom were infantry or auxiliary soldiers. These people used arrows for long-distance combat and short weapons such as knives for close combat. In addition to these people, there are 40 to 50% heavy armored spearmen in the army, which are basically the elite horse armor and infantry in the army.
These people were equipped with both long and short weapons, but when fighting in formation, they all used spears and halberds. Their formation attack was difficult for the Ming army's tragic firearms to stop. In addition, due to lax training, their hand-to-hand combat abilities were far inferior to those of their opponents. Therefore, when the Qing soldiers dismounted and fought on foot, it was rare that they could not break through the Ming army's formation.
At this time, seeing the Ming army's front army arranged like this, Duduo shook his head. Not only was the opponent's army array weak, but besides firecrackers, they didn't even have artillery. In this way, the entire Ming army formation was the weakest among the former army. But this is fine, face to face, fight in an upright formation, and defeat the front troops of the Ming army in the field, which can greatly demoralize the Ming generals, and then take the opportunity to sweep the Ming army's formation! After today's battle, perhaps the Eight Banners army's invasion will not encounter resistance again.
Thinking of this, Duduo, the leader of the white flag, burst into laughter again. He turned to Abate beside him and said, "Brother Seven, I don't think Lu Xiangsheng can do this. He can't live up to his reputation."
Abatai did not respond to Duduo's words, but looked at the Ming army opposite with a thoughtful look in his eyes.
Seeing that Abate did not answer his words, Duduo snorted dissatisfiedly. At his order, the horn sounded, and waves of Qing troops came out.
Under Duduo's order, large groups of Qing troops came out and formed a dense formation in front of the formation. At the front are about 2,000 archers. In addition to the 500 infantrymen who are good at shooting, there are also about 1,500 auxiliary soldiers.
These auxiliary soldiers are also strong men from various places. They wear cotton armor. Although they are not as good as those infantry soldiers who wear soldier swords, ladder knives, shields on their backs, and wear cotton armor inlaid with grain, they have also practiced bows since childhood. The combat capability of horses can match that of ordinary soldiers of the Ming Army, or even be better.
Behind the two thousand archers were another thousand Qing soldiers wearing double-layered heavy armor. Most of these people were elite horse-armored and infantry soldiers from the banner, and all of them were armed with Eight Banners spears or tiger spears. After the archers shot down Liu Yan's troops, they began to attack in formation.
Finally came the heavy cavalry of 500 men. Not only did each soldier wear two layers of heavy armor, but each of them held a spear and followed behind these infantry. Finally, there were more than 200 Baya soldiers, all wearing mercury heavy armor, holding long iron-handled knives or spears, following behind on horseback.
Duduo took nearly 4,000 people into custody at one go, which shows his determination to break through the Ming army's formation head-on. However, except for the infantry who slowly walked away amidst the sound of golden drums, the cavalry were still wandering in front of their own formation. On the one hand, they followed the infantry and moved with cameras, and on the other hand, they also prevented the cavalry on both wings of the Ming army's formation from taking advantage of their own side. The Chinese army was empty and attacked.
The Qing infantry and cavalry were slowly approaching. In the wilderness outside Dingzhou City, in the howling cold wind, Liu Yan watched them coming quietly, frowning slightly, but full of fighting spirit in his heart.
The battle was about to come. Liu Yan slowly exhaled and looked at the soldiers beside him. They all gritted their teeth, but with a determined look in their eyes, they clenched the weapons in their hands. The new army of Xiahezhai has fought against the Tatar soldiers twice, and both returned with great victory. This shows that they have nothing to fear, and everyone comforts themselves in this way.
Lu Xiangsheng stood on Yuanrong's chariot and looked around at the silence. There was only the sound of everyone desperately inhaling and gasping. The Qing army's offensive was already obvious. Their main infantry was the front army attacking Liu Yan's tribe, but their cavalry The direction of the attack is unknown.
Lu Xiangsheng had fought with Qing soldiers and knew that their knights were very erratic and difficult to guard against. They might attack the front position or attack the flanks. He looked in the direction of Liu Yan's front army and saw that they were still silent and maintaining the solemnity of the military formation, so he couldn't help but nod. Looking at Yang Guozhu and Hu Dawei's troops on both wings, they have each dispatched hundreds or thousands of cavalry to wander around the two wings, hoping that they can protect Liu Yan's troops on both sides. Seeing that the soldiers were approaching densely, forming several waves of offensive formations, Lu Xiangsheng shouted fiercely: "Blow the drum, and order Liu Yan, the defense officer of Qianhu Station in front of Xiahe Village, to lead the front army soldiers to fight."
Almost at the same time, passionate drumbeats sounded in the formations of both sides, and Liu Yan shouted: "Forward!"
Immediately, thousands of Xiahezhai's new troops from Liu Yan's tribe marched in again in formation like a wall. Looking at the Qing soldiers on the opposite side, their dark banners were also coming over them. Behind the dense layers of archers in front, there are layers of spears, and dense white flags with red flags in each queue.
"go ahead!"
The two sides were getting closer and closer. In the sound of neat footsteps, the other side's armor and weapons, the fluttering red tassel flags, and even the twisted and ferocious expressions on the faces of the soldiers on both sides could be clearly seen.
"Stop!"
The drumbeat of the Chinese army stopped. Less than 200 steps away from the Qing army, Liu Yan ordered to stop. Immediately, the sound of the more than 3,700 soldiers of the Xiahezhai New Army's uniform footsteps stopped.
Some people died, but not completely...
