Chapter 418 Battle of Xuzhou IV
Hauge’s in-depth analysis is not unreasonable. At present, the Qing Dynasty’s land enclosure policy in the north has deeply hurt the interests of the northern gentry. Secretly, the dissatisfied people have begun to make some bad moves. If it weren’t for Ning Wanmei and Fan Wencheng The governance of these officials with Han origins has turned the north into a mess.
He Luohui finally understood the implication of Hauge. The battle in Xuzhou was basically related to the national destiny of the Qing Dynasty. He did not dare to make any mistakes. Once he failed in Xuzhou, he would really comply with the internal requirements of the Eight Banners and immediately withdraw from the customs. go.
Based on this, Hauge, who has nearly a million people, basically has to find ways to provide food locally. He Luohui nodded. It seems that robbing the people is a last resort, because there is no way to transport food and grass in the north. Transporting it down, and even mobilizing it from nearby Shandong, is not that fast.
"Report, King Su, a letter from Xuzhou."
Taking the official document from He Luohui, Hauge said after reading it: "It seems that my seventh uncle is much smarter than my second uncle. Look, he is planning to lure the main force of the Ming army to attack Xuzhou, and then let me send troops to join forces. Lao Liu's soldiers and horses serve as a bait for the Ming army."
He Luohui read the official document and then raised his head: "Is Prince Zheng setting off?"
Hauge nodded: "I have everything that Lao Liu has here, even more than him. What's more, Ming people are greedy by nature. As long as they promise benefits, even my own father will kill him, let alone his former father. Yes. The Ming army that surrendered in Shanxi and Gansu can now be used as a forward. They will first consume the firearms and ammunition of the Ming army. When their teachers are exhausted, our Manchurian cavalry can play its due role;
Someone is coming..."
...
"Your Majesty, Yunlong Mountain has been garrisoned, and Xiao County is still in the midst of a tense battle."
Chen Cao's brows have not relaxed once since the morning. The 8th Division did not advance rashly, but it fought too smoothly. The forward headquarters is now only ten miles away from Xuzhou City. This is a bit different from the double ditch defense of the Qing army from the beginning. consistent.
Xiao County, which was more than ten miles to the southwest, had not yet been captured, which made Chen Cao confused.
How difficult is this Xiao County to conquer?
The one responsible for the main attack on Xiao County was the 18th Brigade of the 6th Division Zhao Wenhui, while the one who defended Xiao County was Sun Degong himself who entered unknown when.
The 18th Brigade had been fighting in Xiao County for a whole day and night. The tug-of-war between the two sides ended with the 18th Brigade sending death squads to blow up the city wall.
In the evening, under the strict orders of Zhao Wenhui, the commander of the 18th Brigade Gao Xingchuan personally organized a 30-man suicide squad of engineers. Under the cover of two regiments, they successfully approached the Xiaoxian city wall and buried several explosive packets into the trench. In the corner of the good city wall, Xiao County's city wall was finally blown open.
At this moment, Sun Degong, who had been well prepared, ordered his men to hold on. The two sides fought repeatedly at the gap in the city wall. After suffering heavy casualties of one regiment killed and another regiment unable to be organized, Gao Xingchuan reluctantly ordered the withdrawal of troops to rest.
Zhao Wenhui arrived at the front line, scolded Xingxingchuan fiercely, then pushed the 6th Division's only twenty cannons to the opposite side of the gap in the city wall, and ordered the bombardment of Xiao County to begin.
The reason why Zhao Wenhui works so hard is because of Chen Cao's words: How difficult is it to fight Xiao County to stop a rifleman from moving forward?
Nearly two hundred rounds of artillery shells were poured into Xiaoxian City. The sky-high firelight and dust covered the entire surrounding area of Xiaoxian County, and because the sky was completely dark, it was impossible for human eyes to see normally in Xiaoxian County.
After the bombardment stopped, Gao Xingchuan personally led the soldiers of the 18th Brigade to attack Xiao County. Under the command of Zhao Wenhui, the 17th Brigade also launched an attack from the East Gate.
Suddenly, Xiao County flashed with fire in the haze, accompanied by the crackling of gunshots day and night, as lively as the New Year.
Early the next morning, Chen Cao, who had just woken up, finally received the news that Xiao County had been captured. He was in a good mood and praised Zhao Wenhui, so he ordered the main force of the Dingwu Army to advance to Xuzhou without waiting for the Shenwu Army.
Naturally, Sun Degong did not choose to defend Xiao County. His mission was indeed to "defend", but it was not a true defense. Abatai chose Wang Shi's strategy to dig a fatal hole for Chen Cao in Xuzhou. Naturally, he wanted to They are very similar, otherwise the play would be nondescript.
In Xuzhou City, Abatai was not worried about Chen Cao's strength at all. What he was worried about was whether Chen Cao would fall into the trap. But just now, he breathed a sigh of relief because he received a report from Sun Youguang outside the city that the Ming army The main force has already begun to take action and is expected to arrive in Xuzhou before this afternoon.
Wang Shi then said: "My lord, I am very happy. The Ming army has fallen into the trap. It seems that Chen Cao has despised us. As long as his main force takes action, it means that he himself will be among the Chinese army." .”
Abatai nodded: "It's good if he comes, but I'm afraid that if he doesn't come, then all the previous efforts will be wasted, and it will be the loss of General Sun's soldiers in vain."
Sun Degong hurriedly clasped his fists and said, "The general will not dare to do so. It is Degong's blessing to be able to serve the county king."
"Don't be modest. I know the battle in Xiao County well. After the war in Xuzhou is over, I still have the strength to protect you as an uncle."
Sun was overjoyed for his success and immediately gave him a thousand dollars: "I will thank you for your kindness."
"Come, go to the dock and see if King Zheng's troops have arrived?"
After receiving the order, Jierhalang went directly south to Xuzhou from Jinan, Shandong. He carried 1,500 Xianglan Banner troops as the main force, more than 20,000 Han Army Banner Firearms Troops, and nearly 300 artillery pieces of various types.
After receiving Hauge's order, he crossed Fengxian from Feiyundu, entered the Yellow River again, and entered Xuzhou by boat. He was lucky. The only two warships of Pang Zhifan's inland navy had just returned to escort the Shenwu heading north. Military troops, otherwise he would not have been allowed to successfully enter Xuzhou.
Naturally, Chen Cao didn't know about Ji'erharang's entry into Xuzhou. The war in Xuzhou was now so tense that he could sneeze completely, not to mention the Jin Yiwei and the spies from the East and West factories in Xuzhou City. They now wanted to pass on the information Sending him out of the city was impossible.
"Li Xiukuan's troops are standing still at Yunlong Mountain, threatening Xuzhou's left rear. Xiao County is now in my hands. Even if Liu Butang loses his hand on Dangshan Mountain, it will not pose a great threat to us. Han Xianchu and Zhao Wen will take care of us. Just station in Xiao County and Yonggu Mountain in batches."
Ten miles outside Xuzhou City, inside the Ming Army's central tent, Chen Cao was analyzing the current situation: "Everyone, now mobilize all the artillery of the Dingwu Army divisions to launch a fierce attack on the south city of Xuzhou. As long as the south wall is destroyed, This battle in Xuzhou is more than half over."
Huang Chunyao said: "Your Majesty, I thought we should fight steadily. Huang Taiji will definitely not confirm Abatai's destruction in Xuzhou. Once Xuzhou is lost, our army's entry into the north will be like opening the door and closing the door. But up to now, I still feel uncomfortable. OK, I just can’t tell where exactly.”
"It went so well."
Xu Fuyuan hit the nail on the head: "I always think that these battles went somewhat smoothly."
Huang Degong rarely spoke: "You two adults mean that it is difficult to fight against the slave Tatars? Not necessarily, the battles in the past few days were no joke. How much damage did Yan Chun's troops suffer? Ask him again have a look."
Yan Chun did not speak, but he himself suffered a real loss. The 8th Division now suffered more than half of its casualties, and the main forward force was replaced by Cao Shixiu's 2nd Division, otherwise he would not have been withdrawn.
Chen Cao thought for a while and then said: "Li Xiukuan is on the left rear of Xuzhou, Han Xianchu and Zhao Wenhui are on the southwest. They control the two general directions of Xuzhou, and Feng Zhongping and Liu Butang are still there in Dangshan. In other words, Xuzhou The plain is guarded by our troops in three directions, and Abatai has only one retreat: the Yellow River."
"Your Majesty, the two warships of the Inland River Navy have just gone south to escort them. I think they should be transferred back as soon as possible to cooperate with the main force in bombarding Xuzhou City. In addition to putting pressure on the enemy forces in the city, they can also prevent the reinforcements from the Qing army from coming. Coming from the Yellow River."
hiss...
Chen Cao took a deep breath. He really hadn't thought about this level. Although his troops controlled three directions of the Xuzhou Plain, there was still a gap in the Yellow River. The warships of the Inland River Navy were going to escort the Shenwu heading north. The army has gone, and now the Yellow River in Xuzhou is in a vacuum.
"Well, Zhao Xin, according to Huang Chunyao's wishes, immediately send someone south along the river and ask Pang Zhifan to transfer a warship back."
"yes."
"Now the main force of our army has arrived outside Xuzhou City, and we have to send troops. We don't have much food and grass, Yang Lianmaha."
"The end will be here."
"You will launch an attack on Xuzhou first. I want to see how Abatai's defense is."
"yes..."
The direct point of infantry siege is to use people to attract the opponent's firepower. When Yang Lianmaha ordered his two thousand households to launch a charge against Xuzhou City, what they encountered were only the usual defensive weapons of the Qing army defending the city, throwing spears. and intensive bows and arrows.
It was not until the two thousand-households rushed less than a hundred steps below the city that gunfire suddenly broke out on top of the city. After a burst of smoke, less than 300 foot soldiers escaped.
"Flintlock..."
Chen Cao put down his telescope and sneered: "It seems that the embassy and consulate in Shanghai need to be closely monitored. Let the infantry come down. Prepare the artillery."
As soon as Chen Cao finished speaking, bursts of rumbling sounds came from far and near. It was broad daylight, and there was only one such situation. The Qing army in Xuzhou City opened fire.
But the distance here is two and a half miles away.
"Protect the Emperor..."
"Protect the Emperor..."
"His Majesty..."
Chen Cao, who had suffered losses in Wujin back then, was frightened by the Red Yi Cannon. His previous intelligence was that there were cannons in Xuzhou, but there were no Red Yi Cannons weighing more than one thousand kilograms, so two and a half miles away was a safe distance, but Now, the black shell is obviously very close, and it is impossible to escape...
