The cavalry from the two towns withdrew one after another. After a simple inventory, it was found that Ma Ke's command lost more than 3,000 people, and Tang Tong's command also lost more than 1,000 people. The cavalry army of more than 13,000 was lost in just one charge. There were almost five thousand people, which can be said to be heavy casualties.
Tang Tong and Ma Ke were like mourning for their heirs. They were crying, fearing that the Qing cavalry from the opposite side would rush over. At this time, Miyun Town and Shanhaiguan Town had lost many soldiers and horses, and the people in the two towns were panicked. If there was a slight disturbance, it would be another rout.
Tang Tong and Ma Ke discussed for a while. Both of them were famous "escape generals", but this battle was related to the fate of the country. Hong Chengchou, Ma Shaoyu, and Zhang Ruoqi were all in the rear, so they retreated in defeat. He will definitely be severely punished, but if he continues to stick here, can he hold on?
Just when the two of them could neither defend nor retreat, suddenly a burst of smoke and dust rose from behind the hills, and several cavalrymen galloped towards them. They were the messengers of Hong Chengchou's central army formation.
After meeting the two generals, several messengers were shocked to see the miserable wind and rain in the second town. They also heard Ma Ke, the chief military officer of Shanhaiguan Town, crying that his army was bombarded by nearly a hundred red cannons, large and small, by slave thieves. , there were many casualties among his subordinates, and several messengers were even shocked.
The messengers looked around and saw that the soldiers and horses in Shanhaiguan Town and Miyun Town had indeed suffered heavy casualties. Wounded soldiers were still being transported to the back of the hill, so they couldn't help but believe it.
The leader said: "General Soldiers Yang and General Li led the army to attack Huangtuling. Their chariot camp army formation was also bombarded by a large number of artillery fire from the slave bandits, and there were also many casualties. General Soldier Liu of Qinglai Town came up with a clever plan to Sacks and baskets filled with soil are placed in front of the chariots and soldiers to defend against cannon fire."
"Yang Guozhu and other troops suffered heavy casualties?"
Tang Tong and Marco were immediately shocked, and then they were ecstatic. It seemed that they were not the only ones who lost their troops, and they would not be punished after returning.
The two of them heard what the messenger said: "When the lower official came, on the order of Governor Hong, he informed Master Zhang Dou of Songshan Fort's military preparations and asked him to lead the civilians to choose a suitable long vehicle and put sacks and earth baskets on it for emergency transportation. This place. We were afraid that the thieves would follow Huang Tuling’s strategy and hit the two generals with cannons, but we didn’t expect it to be a step too late.”
"Director Hong ordered that the two generals must strictly guard the west side of Songshan Fort and prevent the thieves and slaves from crossing to the east of Songshan Fort. Otherwise, military law will be enforced!"
"Just behind Xianguan, Zhang Bingbeiji led a large number of civilians to transport many earth-carriage vehicles. It is expected that with these earth-carriage vehicles, we no longer have to fear the red barbarian cannons of thieves and slaves!"
After hearing what the messenger said, Ma Ke and Tang Tong were filled with regret. Both of them had visited Liu Yan's defense arrangement at Hongluo Mountain. They both knew how to use sandbags and bamboo baskets to fill soil to prevent artillery. But this battle was frightened by the Qing army's artillery, and I didn't even think about it!
"If I had thought of this method earlier, the casualties would not have been so heavy!"
Marco roared angrily and threw the helmet in his hand to the ground. He didn't know who he was angry with at this time, but he was just cursing to himself.
Tang Tong also frowned and said angrily: "Okay! Now that it's like this, what else is there to say? Let's get the troops in order quickly!"
Several messengers were unhappy when they saw this. They were all close to Hong Chengchou, and they were complimented by everyone wherever they went. Although their official positions were not high, they could not see these chief military officers looking down on them so much.
Several people looked at each other and made up their minds that they must give eye drops to Ma Ke and Tang Tong after they return!
So several people turned around and left, got on their horses, and walked away.
At this time, Marco looked at the direction where the messengers were leaving with a straight face, and vaguely saw that behind the hills, next to his own camp, there were indeed a large number of vehicles pushing forward. It seemed that they were those that could defend against the Hongyi cannon. It's a dirt bike.
"When we divide the vehicles later, I will divide them more."
Ma Ke was secretly calculating in his heart, and Tang Tong on the side also narrowed his eyes slightly, not knowing what he was calculating.
At this time, Huang Taiji and others in Rufeng Mountain City were in a good mood. The battle to the west, as well as the battle on the Loess Ridge, were all seen by Huang Taiji and others. The muskets and artillery equipped by the Qing army were very powerful. The Ming army inflicted great damage to various departments, which made Huang Taiji very satisfied.
All the Manchu kings and ministers in the mountain city laughed happily, and Huang Taiji was so happy that he said: "Artillery is really a sharp weapon, and I, the Qing Dynasty, will definitely make more of it in the future!"
After some praise, Huang Taiji felt some regrets in his heart. Unfortunately, the Ming troops killed in these battles were not Liu Yan's Qinglai Town new army. Otherwise, under the bombardment of his own artillery, no matter how powerful Liu Yan's new army was, It is definitely no match for artillery, it will definitely cause heavy casualties!
However, as various departments of the Ming Army used a large number of earth-moving vehicles, although the Qing army's large number of artillery was still roaring, the results achieved plummeted. Even at this time, it can be described as negligible. As long as it was blocked by the earth-moving vehicles , the cannon cannot cause any damage.
Moreover, at this time, the soldiers of Xuanfu Town led by Yang Guozhu became more and more courageous as they fought, and had already penetrated the first line of defense in Huangtuling. The defenders there were beaten into a panic and retreated steadily.
Huang Taiji was furious when he saw this, and sent a message to Dorgon and others who were commanding Huangtu Ridge to hold the follow-up positions and wait for an opportunity to retake the first line of defense, otherwise they would be severely punished.
Just when Huang Taiji was angry, the scouts sent good news: Hauge and Jierhalang had led their troops to defeat the Ming Dynasty's general Bai Guang'en's troops, and were now besieging Wu Sangui's troops. The battle went smoothly unexpectedly.
The anger in Huang Taiji's heart dissipated a lot in an instant. Then he thought about the Ming Dynasty's Ma Ke Department and Tang Tong Department, which were in a state of panic under the attack of his own guns and cannons. Huang Taiji suddenly became thoughtful.
Previously, Huang Taiji was overwhelmed by the power of more than 200,000 Ming troops. He believed that these more than 200,000 Ming troops were elites, or at least soldiers who dared to fight.
However, as soon as the two sides fought, their respective details were exposed. The more than 200,000 Ming troops were not as powerful as Huang Taiji had imagined. There were only a few soldiers and horses that could really fight.
And now that the cavalry and elite infantry have been eliminated, there are also firearms, and the combat power is better than before. Under the ebb and flow, most of the original worries in Huang Taiji's heart instantly dissipated: "This land of Liaodong is still the same as before. The world of my Qing warriors!"
On the Loess Ridge, there were shouts everywhere. A large number of sword and shield soldiers and spearmen from Xuanfu Town poured out from behind the chariots, crawled in from the gaps in the village walls, and broke into the main wall of the Qing army.
On the main ridge, Dorgon, Duoduo and others looked at the battle situation at the bottom of the mountain. They could not help clenching their fists. How could their own defense line, which they regarded as impregnable, be invaded by Yang Guozhu's army so quickly?
Yang Guozhu also had a smile on his face at this time. He stood within the recommended Chinese defense line constructed with sandbags, holding up a telescope to observe the progress of his soldiers. He saw a steady stream of Xuanfu Town soldiers pouring into the wall, everywhere. They were all sounds of killing and shouting.
"I, the soldiers of Xuanfu Town, are also capable of fighting!"
Yang Guozhu felt happy. Although he was on good terms with Liu Yan, he would compare himself with Liu Yan in private. The strength of the new army in Qinglai Town was unmatched by Yang Guozhu, but now, the soldiers in Xuanfu Town were able to withstand the fierce artillery fire of the Qing army, rush down the mountain step by step, and then directly break through the first line of defense of the Qing army. Such bravery has already No longer under the new army of Qinglai Town!
"After this battle, our Xuanfu Town will also be one of the most powerful military towns in the Ming Dynasty!"
"General Yang's Xuanfu town troops have invaded Huangtu Ridge?"
In the Ming army's central formation, Hong Chengchou, Zhang Ruoqi, Ma Shaoyu and others eagerly held up telescopes and looked at the battle situation on the Loess Ridge. Everyone was extremely happy to see that the Xuanfu Town army was progressing smoothly.
The news spread, and the Chinese army's formation burst into cheers.
Liu Yan was also very happy. Another strong army appeared in the Ming Dynasty, which prevented him from being alone. This was a good thing. In addition, Yang Guozhu was a hero who fought against the Qing Dynasty in history, and he had a good relationship with him. Liu Yan was naturally happy for Yang Guozhu to make military exploits.
At this time, a large number of messengers rode between the Chinese army and the towns, bringing various news. Liu Yan was not far away from Hong Chengchou. Every time Hong Chengchou received news, he would inform Liu Yan.
At this time, soldiers and horses from various towns started fighting with the Qing army one after another.
The soldiers and horses of Datong Town led by Wang Pu were closest to the Chinese army's formation, guarding the northwest side of the Ming army attacking Shanshan. There, not far from Rufeng Mountain, the mountains were undulating and hilly. Wang Pu built a car camp and firmly blocked the attack of thousands of Qing cavalry. He even led the cavalry from the barracks to attack from time to time. It is said that he achieved quite a lot of gains.
This actually made Liu Yan look at Wang Pu with admiration. It seemed that Wang Pu, the "escaping general" in history, still had some wealth. When the war went well, he could at least play some role. However, once the war goes wrong or the war becomes critical, Wang Pu cannot be trusted. Although Liu Yan has a good relationship with him, he still has to follow human nature at critical moments. He will not risk the lives of tens of thousands of New Army soldiers. Leave it to someone like Wang Pu.
At the same time, Li Fuming, the chief military officer of Shanxi Town, led his troops to attack the left side of Huangtu Ridge. At first, like Yang Guozhu's troops, they suffered a lot of damage from the Qing army's Hongyi artillery bombardment. However, after using earth-moving vehicles, the Shanxi Town soldiers braved artillery fire and quickly approached. They are at the foot of the mountain.
The mountains over there are more steep, and Li Fuming's army also has a lot of muskets, but the strength is only 5,000, so the fight is quite difficult.
However, Yang Guozhu's troops on the right have already invaded. The first line of defense of the Qing army has actually existed in name only. The remaining Qing troops will collapse at any time. It is expected that Li Fuming's troops on the left will be able to invade soon.
A few miles southeast of the Chinese army's formation were the armies of Ningyuan Commander Wu Sangui and Jizhen Commander Bai Guangen. The two towns had a total of more than 30,000 troops. Although there were reports that a large group of Qing cavalry was approaching them, the two towns were not There are a large number of tanks and artillery, and the two generals are battle-hardened, so they are expected to be able to block it.
The latest news from Ma Ke and Tang Tong in the west of Songshan Fort is that there seems to be slave cavalry approaching them from the west. Even if the two of them can't get any benefits from fighting in the field, it is expected that there will be no problem if they stick to their position.
After Liu Yan learned about the situation, he breathed a sigh of relief. Although the Qing army was equipped with a large number of artillery, which caught the Ming army off guard, the overall progress of the war was still smooth. As long as the troops fought steadily, Huangtu Ridge could be won in this battle. , there is still no big problem in defeating the main force of the Qing army in front of them.
However, Hong Chengchou and Liu Yan were not happy for long. A shocking news came, which made everyone in the Chinese army dumbfounded.
The army of Bai Guangen, the commander-in-chief of Jizhen, was defeated by the Qing army. The 12,000-strong army suffered numerous casualties.
Hong Chengchou and Liu Yan were shocked. They never expected that the first army defeated by the Qing army was not "second-rate men" like Ma Ke and Tang Tong, but the famous Bai Guang'en tribe!
Before everyone could turn their heads, an even more shocking news came. Bai Guangen, the commander-in-chief of Jizhen, died in the rebellion.
Liu Yan frowned. In other words, only Wu Sangui's troops were supporting the east side of the army. If Wu Sangui could not hold back the Qing army, then the Qing army's cavalry could directly attack the Ming army's center from the east!
"It seems that there is still room for this battle!"
Some people died, but not completely...
