Liu Yan's side didn't capture many heads, and the same was true for Yang Guozhu and Hu Dawei's two wings.
Yang Guozhu's men chopped off more than thirty heads in total, while Hu Dawei's men only chopped twenty-five heads of Qing soldiers. They were all chopped off from the corpses of Qing soldiers left inside the earth wall. As for those outside the earth wall, There is no need to think about the corpses and wounded of the Qing army. The Qing army had already taken them all away under the cover of archers.
Indeed, when fighting in the field or defending a city, it is really difficult to capture the heads of the opposing soldiers. If it weren't for an irreversible defeat, the bodies and wounded of soldiers killed and injured on both sides would generally be snatched back by themselves. Except for those enemy corpses that cannot be retrieved, their heads will become the opponent's trophies.
Most of the Ming army defended the city and did not dare to pursue it in the field. In addition to the corpses of the Qing troops who attacked the city wall and the corpses within dozens of steps below the city, the remaining corpses and wounded soldiers were generally snatched back by the Qing troops themselves. , either cremated or transported back to his hometown. Those Qing soldiers who snatched the bodies of their own soldiers during the war were a great achievement in the Manchu military law. If they transported the corpses back to their hometowns, they could get half of the other party's property.
Although the new army of Xiahezhai achieved the most gains among the Ming army, Liu Yan was not happy. In just these few days of fighting, the casualties of his men had reached more than 300, and the death rate had reached one tenth. If this ratio were placed in other armies, it would be enough to make it impossible for the entire army to continue fighting.
In the hand-to-hand battle just now, more than 60 Xiahe Village new troops died under the opponent's javelins and spears in a short period of time, and dozens more were injured.
If the fierce fighting continues for a few more days, how many more soldiers will be lost in our army? The more than 3,700 people under Liu Yan's command are all elites who have been trained hard by him. Each one is a seed that will take root and sprout on the land of China in the future. Every person sacrificed at this time is a Irreparable loss!
What worries Liu Yan even more is whether the Ming army on both wings can hold on in the face of such a fierce and cruel battle. If they cannot withstand the collapse, the ten thousand people by the river...
Thinking of this, Liu Yan's face became a little ugly. The Qing army's will to fight this time far exceeded his imagination. Not only were there more troops than in the Battle of Julu in history, but Dorgon's determination to win this battle was also The size was beyond imagination, which surprised Liu Yan: Are these Tartars crazy?
After cleaning the battlefield, Lu Xiangsheng ordered all ministries to light fires and cook meals to reward the soldiers.
However, the generals gathered in Lu Xiangsheng's army tent all had gloomy faces and the atmosphere was dull.
The weather-beaten faces of Yang Guozhu and Hu Dawei were full of sorrow. After they counted the officers and soldiers of their own army, they were both shocked. From the fierce battle yesterday afternoon to now, among the two armies, Yang Guozhu's casualties have reached nearly 500, and Hu Dawei's casualties have also exceeded 400.
Although the number of casualties among the two armies was only a small half, about a hundred and dozens each, most of the remaining were hit by arrows and temporarily lost their combat effectiveness. However, it was freezing cold today, and any small wound could cost these people their lives. In the end, half of the injured soldiers may not survive.
The two of them each had about 2,000 soldiers. With such a high casualty rate, strictly speaking, their main barracks had been disabled. If it were replaced by another Ming army, or during a wild battle, The two Ming armies collapsed long ago and fled for their lives first.
After Yang Guozhu and Hu Dawei counted the number of people, they both added some people from the auxiliary soldiers to join the fighting team. However, most of the auxiliary soldiers were military households from the guard station. Their addition only further reduced the combat effectiveness of the army. However, the two of them had no choice but to do this for now.
Everyone present had their own concerns. General Zhang Yan of the Xuan Mansion, who had been located in Lu Xiangsheng's Central Military Headquarters, did not participate in the war. Of course, starting from tomorrow, he could no longer stay out of the matter. Yang Guozhu proposed that each of the two thousand men in his army should be assigned a part to help defend the left and right wings. Hu Dawei immediately agreed.
Liu Yan's troops were strictly guarding the front of the defense line and faced the greatest pressure. They must have been unable to separate their troops. He also had outstanding military exploits and his subordinates were brave and good at fighting. Naturally, no one dared to steal his troops.
Zhang Yan was a mere general who was not very impressive on weekdays. Naturally, he could not disobey the suggestions of the two commanders-in-chief.
Liu Yan observed Zhang Yan at this time and saw that he was still sitting majestically, quietly not knowing what he was thinking.
Suddenly Zhang Yan said: "Our army has been fighting for the fifth day. The enemy is outnumbered and we are outnumbered, and reinforcements are not coming. Supervisor, the two military gates, General Liu, why don't we break out from the Haoshui Bridge to the west? Then There are few enemies on the border, and with the bravery of our Xuan army, we can break out of the encirclement."
Before Lu Xiangsheng, Yang Guozhu and others could speak, Liu Yanji said loudly: "Supervisor, you must not do this! Our soldiers hold on to the camp with a strong spirit. If they retreat, their morale and fighting spirit will be lost, and tens of thousands of enemy cavalry will pursue them. If you don’t give up, the consequences will be disastrous!”
Zhang Yan was really dizzy. Instead of holding on to the walled city, this retreat and breakout would definitely be a replica of the Battle of Songshan, where the entire army fled for their lives.
Lu Xiangsheng, Yang Guozhu, and Hu Dawei have many cavalry in their army, so they may be able to escape quickly. There are many infantrymen in Zhang Yan's camp, and if they can escape with their lives, they will definitely not survive.
Moreover, once the whole army fled, they would definitely lose all their food, grass and baggage in panic. Even if Lu Xiangsheng, Yang Guozhu, Hu Dawei and others fled briefly, in this severe cold weather, when they were hungry and cold, the cavalry in their army would also be wiped out. Frozen to death, exhausted to death, starved to death. Only a few of the remaining soldiers survived.
This is also the sinister intention of Dorgon and others to surround Sanqueyi, so although there is Haoshui Bridge, they can retreat to the west of Julu. However, Liu Yan and others never dared to think about this idea. The only way out was to continue fighting to the end and let Dorgon and others retreat. Perhaps reinforcements could arrive and the siege could be lifted.
Take the initiative to evacuate without even thinking about it, that is a dead end!
Of course Lu Xiangsheng understood this truth, and he said sternly: "Although the slave thieves are powerful, our army may not have no hope of survival if it sticks to the camp. Although our army has suffered heavy losses, the slave thieves have suffered even greater damage. As General Liu said, Hold fast to the camp and deal maximum damage to the enemy. When reinforcements from the High Supervisor Army arrive, our army will attack from both inside and outside. The slaves and thieves will be wiped out with one blow, and our Ming Dynasty will no longer have to worry about trouble."
After speaking, Lu Xiangsheng looked around at the crowd and said sternly: "This is the time to sacrifice one's life to serve the country. All generals need to bravely kill the enemy. If anyone dares to say anything and retreats, I will ask Shang Fang's sword to execute him on the spot."
Zhang Yan was shocked and knelt on the ground, Nuonuo said yes.
After Lu Xiangsheng scolded them, he encouraged everyone. To be honest, he could only talk about the enemy's current situation of killing generals in front of the formation.
By the time of the Ming Dynasty, the situation of the nobles and the lowly military no longer existed, especially for a group of powerful generals and warlords. Those civil servants had long ago changed from giving random instructions to being groveling or even submissive. With Lu Xiangsheng's prestige in Xuanda, he had no choice but to encourage the generals to fight the enemy bravely and extinguish the idea of preserving their strength in their hearts.
Yang Guozhu and Hu Dawei are both veteran soldiers, and of course they understand the dangers of retreating and breaking through. The consequence of retreating is the annihilation of the entire army. Even if half of the troops are killed if they hold on, at least some of the seeds in the army can be retained. Which is more important can be known at a glance.
However, there is no way to go on like this. We have to hope to get up and dive. Everyone is talking about when Guan Ning's reinforcements will arrive.
Liu Yan listened quietly to everyone's discussion, but he was extremely angry in his heart. It had been five days, and he didn't believe that Gao Qiqian and others had not received the news asking for help. Are they still watching? In their hearts, it is so important for the party to be united and to oppose differences. Is it true that party struggle trumps all state affairs?
If the Ming Dynasty is dominated by such a scourge, then you have to think about the future, either to be independent or to control the government. Anyway, you cannot let such scourges as the Donglin Party or Gao Qiqian continue to dominate the government. Taking China into the abyss!
Now Xuanda and Shandong ministries are trapped alone. The most fear is that there is no news from the outside world. Even if Gao Qiqian and others make a gesture, it can also greatly boost the morale of the army. Is that eunuch Gao Qiqian not even willing to do this?
To the east of the Ming army's camp, the Qing army's densely packed tents stretched from the Zhangshui River to several miles in front of the camp.
In the seemingly endless sea of tent flags, in Dorgon's luxurious flaming golden-domed tent, the Qing generals who filled the tent were discussing matters. The banner owners of the Eight Banners Manchuria and the Eight Banners Mongolia were carrying out the casualties under their banners. Report the number of people.
Among the Qing troops who besieged the Ming camp in Julu, there were all the troops of the Eight Manchurian Zhengbai Banner, Zhenghong Banner, Xiangbai Banner, and Xianglan Banner. Du Du, the leader of the Eight Banners' Manchurian Red Banner, and Engetu, the leader of the Eight Mongolian Zhenghong Banner, stayed in Tongzhou to guard the retreat for the army. However, they have already dispatched some soldiers to escort several huge Hongyi cannons, and they will arrive soon.
In addition to these Eight Banners Manchu troops, there were also all the troops of the Eight Banners Mongolia Zhenghuang Banner, Xianghuang Banner, Zhengbai Banner, Xiangbai Banner, Zhenglan Banner, Xianglan Banner, and Xianghong Banner in the Qing camp. There are also the Mongolian three-banner army of the outer vassal vassal, and more than a dozen small tribes surrendered and attached to the Northeast and Mongolian Plateau.
In addition, there are more than 20,000 Aha servants. If these people are included, the number of Qing troops besieging Xuanda camp will be more than 74,000.
Attacking the Ming army camp today, Dorgon's Zhengbai Banner led the Mongolian Karaqin tribe, the Eight Banners Mongolian Zhengbai Banner, Xiangbai Banner, and some small tribes from the northeast who surrendered, which were later part of the Butha Eight Banners, plus the three Aha and other servants, who numbered more than a thousand, attacked the front of Liu Yan's defense.
Ji'erharang, the leader of the Xianglan Banner, led most of the soldiers of his own banner. The Mongolian Tutu of the outer vassal dynasty used the right eight banners Mongolia Zhenghuang Banner and Xianghuang Banner, some surrendered small tribes, and more than 4,000 Aha and other miscellaneous servants to attack Yang Guozhu's left wing.
Most of Yue Tuo's Zhenghong Banner led the outer vassal Mongolian territory on the special left wing, and the Eight Banners Mongolian Zhenglan Banner and Xianglan Banner, plus more than 4,000 Aha and other servants, attacked the right wing defended by Hu Dawei.
Duduo, the leader of the Eight Banners Manchuria White Banner, did not go to the battle. He led the troops to stay in the camp, supervising the bannermen and other servants to make equipment, and plundered grain, grass, and baggage everywhere.
"In today's battle, our army's warriors from all banners suffered 887 casualties, including 14 armored men and 128 bannermen..." This is Jierharang, the leader of the Xianglan Banner. report.
As General Yangwu, Yue Tuo was theoretically on an equal footing with Dorgon. Naturally, there was no need to report anything to Dorgon, but he also vented to everyone: "...the warriors of each banner suffered 753 casualties, including armored ones. There are one hundred and twenty-four people and ninety-four bannermen..."
Dorgon looked calm. After hearing the casualty figures of each banner, he felt relieved. Fortunately, the casualties of the Eight Banners Manchurian and Eight Banners Mongolian warriors were not large. This battle can continue.
Some people died, but not completely...
