In the early morning of the sixth day of June, the national adviser Khan received a request for help from Hexi.
At that time, the main force of Oirat was camping on the south bank of the Mangla River. The national adviser Khan stayed up almost all night. He first asked Tanma for information about the Marshal's Mansion army, and then sent someone to inform the Yangqu City garrison, ordering them to do everything possible to explore the siege of Durbo. The number of Han troops in the special department.
Then he spent the whole night planning the march routes, camp locations, retreat routes, water sources for the camps, and other matters of the coalition forces.
When the sky was about to get dark, more than 20,000 Heshuote, Torgut, and Huite tribes were sent. In addition to the Junggar tribe responsible for intercepting the Han army on the way back to Germany and Lin Danhan in Bajiao City, the Oirat coalition troops came out in full force. We rushed to the Yellow River ferry in three separate routes.
The camel's broad feet stepped across the Gobi desert, stirring up smoke and dust. Oirat's war drummers sat astride the camel's hump, playing impassioned melodies for the soldiers rushing to the battlefield.
However, the direction of the Oirat coalition's advance was not the Yangqu City ferry, but the three ferry crossings east of the Yellow River, from Yangqu City to Longyang Gorge.
In order to rescue Dalai Taiji, National Guard Khan made two preparations, and his actions depended on accurate intelligence from the front line.
If there are only four or five thousand troops besieging Dalai Taiji, they will all come out in full force to attack the Han army from Yangqu City; if the Han army besieging Dalai Taiji is large in number, the national advisor Khan will take advantage of the emptiness of the sea. , attack the new city directly.
He didn't know how to encircle Wei and rescue Zhao, but the military book only recorded what had happened. He knew the principle of attacking and rescuing the enemy despite having experienced hundreds of battles.
The Imperial Guard Khan did not want the battle to take place near Yangqu Ferry. Comparatively speaking, fighting on the sea was a better choice because Haibei County was connected to Subei. Even if the war was unfavorable, he could retreat to Subei and plunder Ganbian. Return to Tianshan.
On the evening of the sixth day of June, the Yangqu garrison who risked his life to get information rushed to the east of Hedong and reported to the national adviser Khan: "The Han army at the foot of the mountain is attacking the stronghold. There are muskets and horses to prevent them from getting closer. They can only hide in the mountain. They can see it from a distance. There are more than a thousand enemy soldiers stationed in the camp, and the sound of gunfire is extremely dense."
The sound of gunfire is extremely dense?
Imperial Master Khan narrowed his eyes and asked Tan Ma, "Are guns or arrows being fired on the mountain?"
"It's really hard to see...it seems like they're also firing guns."
The Imperial Preceptor Khan had no more questions to ask, so he waved his hand and ordered his men to take Tan Ma down to have a good meal, and then sent a message to all the ministries to prepare to cross the river tomorrow morning.
The gunfire was extremely heavy, which was not good news for him.
The Durbot pastoral land in Dalai Taiji was the closest to the Russians, and had the most conflicts with the Russians over the tribute tribute from the tribes in the forest. There were also many muskets.
But having a musket doesn't mean you can use it well.
The Junggar tribe was stronger and richer, and Batur Hutaiji was willing to use prisoners in the battle, and even hired a group of Huihui to teach the tribe how to use muskets. Therefore, among the four Oirat tribes, the Junggar tribe was the best at using muskets.
At this time, Dalai Taiji was located on a high ground, and it was more advantageous to use bows and arrows. Therefore, the national advisor Khan judged that they would shoot arrows first and then fire guns when guarding the high ground.
In fact, except for the Junggar tribe which has a professional musketeer team, the soldiers of the other three divisions carry muskets to make up for the lack of arrow reserves.
The combination of gunpowder and lead pellets is much lighter than arrows, and has stronger lethality. You can carry only a riding bow without an infantry bow, and you can carry more ammunition.
The two sides entered the stage of mutual fire. The national counselor Khan believed that Dalai Taiji was in danger, and Dulbert's troops might not be able to sustain his direct attack on the new city, so he decided to move the entire army to the other side and annihilate the besieging Han army at the foot of the mountain first.
However, this order had just been issued and before it was sent to all the subordinates, news came from the front line that the west city of Yangqu, which had resisted the Han army for a day and night, was declared to have been lost, and the Han army was capturing the pontoon bridge.
Not to mention that the National Preceptor Khan did not expect it, Liu Chengzong, who received the news almost at the same time, did not expect it either.
The person in charge of Yangqu Xicheng was Zhang Zhen, the chief soldier. He was a native bandit in northern Shaanxi. He had followed almost all the named leaders in northern Shaanxi. Finally, he demoted the chief soldier Yang Qi and changed his family on the battlefield.
The order given to him by the Chinese shogunate was a feint attack.
In view of his rich experience in defeats and excellent surrender record, Liu Shishi had little expectations for him.
Last night, the Bee Division attacked for a whole night, and two hundred muskets were used to shoot out sixty kilograms of gunpowder, which was almost heard. During the day, Ma Ke's 400 men surrounded them, allowing the Bee Division to rest for a day, and then replaced them at dusk.
Unexpectedly, just half an hour after going up, Liu Shizi received a good news that the Bee Tail Needle had captured Xicheng. He even suspected that he had heard it wrong.
It is hard to say that it is difficult or simple to capture the west city of Yangqu. After all, there are no decent city defenses, just three circles of low walls. But if you really want to be strong without the help of artillery, it is also a desperate job.
Liu Chengzong did not feel that he had any kindness to Fengweizhen that was worthy of his desperate efforts, nor did he think that Fengweizhen was a desperate person who accepted the feint attack mission.
Han Shipan, who was standing sideways next to him, said: "That Zhao Fuqian, does the commander remember him?"
"Zhao Fu... go and call Ma Xiang first."
Liu Chengzong read the name in his mind and nodded slowly: "What did he do?"
An old subordinate of Zhao Huanhui, a former subordinate of Liushujian in Yansui Town, was attacked by artillery fire during the battle at Nanqiao in Pozhuang, and his hands were broken. He picked up the severed hand and ordered his subordinates to move forward.
It's a pity that the soldiers under his command are not as strong-willed as him, and they would rather jump into the river than carry out the order.
Liu Chengzong was very impressed by this man. He was a ruthless character with a very tough character. After being hastily bandaged on the battlefield, he fought tenaciously against wound infection and smallpox, and struggled on the line of life and death for more than a month, he actually survived.
But one hand is missing, and he is currently the commander-in-chief of Bee Tail Needle.
"From the moment he received the order, he made a plan with Zhang Zhen. Last night, Zhang Zhen led people to harass, and he nailed two chariots from behind."
Liu Chengzong was very happy when he heard about the car, and said doubtfully: "Our Mongolian Lele car has a very thin plate, and the lead can be seen through as soon as it is hit."
"Leave a mezzanine layer, fill it with a layer of sand and pour water. It should be quite useful to block the lead." Han Shipan said and raised his eyebrows: "Today evening, we changed the defense. The two of them each led fifty daredevils and pushed the cart straight into the low ground. The wall was close to the enemy, and more than 300 people followed to cover up and kill them. The defenders were defeated and the west city of the ferry was captured within a moment."
However, after Han Shipan reported the situation, Yang Qi looked a little complicated: "But if this happens, the plan will change."
This was also an unprecedented experience for Yang Qi. Fengweizhen and Zhao Fuhuan were once his subordinates. When they served in the Guyuan Army, they had never overfulfilled their tasks like this.
"Hey! Then change."
Liu Chengzong laughed out loud, waved his hands and said: "They did a good job, isn't this just a feint attack? Now Oirat must think that the main force is on the west bank of Yangqu. If there is any problem, then the problem is that I don't know the soldiers." "
His original plan for the west city of Yangqu was to confront and attack, but if he did not capture it, the enemy would think that his troops were limited and his combat power was insufficient. When his army came to help, he would let Zhang Zhen and Ma Ke pretend to be defeated and retreat, leading the enemy into an encirclement. .
He did think so in his own mind. The heavy artillery of each battalion was forty miles away, but he didn't even transfer it to Bee Tail Needle, and he was not mentally prepared for Bee Tail Needle to capture Yangqu City.
So the change of plan was due to him.
But the words sounded different to Yang Qi's ears. This military officer who came from Governor Biaoying was still in the stage of getting to know the Marshal's Mansion, which made him feel that the Marshal's Mansion had too much command but not enough control.
It's funny to say that when Yang Qi was the commander-in-chief, he never had the opportunity to observe the strategy of the entire battlefield like he does now. This was basically the work of the governor and had nothing to do with the commander-in-chief. The commander-in-chief was responsible for tactical issues alone. The official is worried to death.
As the coach, Liu Chengzong's openness to take the initiative made him very comfortable. However, he had his own ideas about the military's mission, but he did not say it here. He just went back and took a small book to write down the problems.
He believed that in the military, generals should not be encouraged or condoned to take excessive actions. After all, war is an organized joint action. It can be fought by one army alone. He has suffered enough from the court that he cannot win the war.
Every army should act according to orders. It cannot do more or less. Only by executing orders appropriately can a grand strategy be formed.
Let everyone have their own place, not do their own thing.
"Commander, the horse handler is here."
Tangqi Commander Ma Xiang was dusty, his cloth-covered red armor had a few cuts with weapons, revealing the unpolished and rusty armor inside. He went into the tent and bowed down and said: "Ma Xiang, a low-ranking officer, is here to bow to you. handsome."
"There is no such trick in the army." When Liu Chengzong saw Ma Xiang, he waved to him to stand up and asked directly: "Tang Qi, how many of them can move?"
Ma Xiang had just stood up, and when he heard this, he almost prostrated himself in military salute. He steadied himself hard and said: "Come back to Commander-in-Chief, I am in charge of the two divisions. I have assigned twelve routes of Tangqi. There is only one route around Qingshan, and there is another route to guide Brigade Commander Yang. Shang." There are ten routes available.”
"Go out along the Yellow River from the north to the south. Wherever you can cross the river, you will find that the enemy is watching... don't fight them."
After Liu Chengzong finished speaking, he supported He Huchen's little horse with the backrest armrest, leaned back slightly and pondered for a moment, then raised his hand and drew a circle in front of him: "Lead them here."
"yes!"
Ma Xiang accepted the order and saluted and left the tent. Yang Qi asked: "The commander-in-chief still plans to fight here?"
"Oirat is bound to cross the river and capture the Western City now. His 40,000 troops cannot just crowd this pontoon bridge. They must cross the river from the north. Unless he does not save this army, the battlefield will not change. We only need to be prepared for it. It’s just a siege.”
Yang Qi asked: "What if it escapes into the sea?"
"Then let him escape."
Liu Chengzong laughed out loud. He wished that the national advisor Khan would lead his army into the sea.
The Qinghai Marshal's Mansion has a regular naval force. No one who enters the area around the lake can even think of surpassing him in maneuverability.
He raised a finger and waved it to Yang Qi, saying: "If you can fight, fight, if you can't fight, defend, if you can't defend, then leave. Even if we lose Qinghai, it won't be a big deal... If we annihilate the enemy, victory will still be ours. "
Yang Qi also suddenly realized that there were people and supplies in the imperial cities, so naturally no one could say anything about abandoning the land, but the Marshal's Mansion had almost nothing on the sea, and the people were all Mongolians. Two felt tents were placed on the Lele cart. The county wandered away.
There are only two county governments left, so there is nothing they can't give up.
However, although the battlefield has not changed, Liu Chengzong's deployment has changed.
He only has a thousand soldiers of Tangqi in his hand. To deal with the thousands of Dulbert troops, covering the battlefield is too childish. But to deal with the main force of Oirat, which is expected to have 35,000 or even 40,000 troops, it is obviously not enough. .
Then if the Chinese army stays here, there is a risk of being surrounded. Once the enemy discovers that the commander's tent is here during the siege, they will probably launch a fierce attack regardless of the cost.
Therefore, under the cover of night, Feng Yu from Caiguan's left camp led his troops to change defenses. Huben camp retreated forty miles to the northwest overnight to Caiguan's right camp and the baggage department, preparing to provide support to the battlefield.
At the same time, Tang Bing, who went to look for Yang Yao, also returned and brought back news from Yang Yao.
When Liu Chengzong received the order, Yang Yao's right brigade was fighting the remaining enemies in the Heka Grassland. He did not dare to neglect the order. He had already ordered Wei Qian'er's troops to withdraw from the battlefield and come over. At this time, they were burying pots a hundred miles away. We will have lunch and expect to arrive at Hekatan in the afternoon tomorrow.
Yang Yao and his general Gao Yingdeng need to check the situation after the break and arrive at Hekatan at the evening of the day after tomorrow at the latest.
A battle was getting closer and closer, and the atmosphere in Liu Chengzong's army became calm and depressing.
At times like this, the sergeants became more and more confused when they were idle, so Liu Shizi ordered the sergeants to modify the chariot. Even he himself packed up a chariot after dinner.
It was too much work to cover dozens of people on a cart. Liu Chengzong didn't have much wood at his location at this time, so he could only use local materials to arm the cart with sandbags.
In the past few years, he has acquired thousands of Lele vehicles from the Mongols. This kind of two-wheeled vehicle made by herdsmen has a simple structure and is very light. It can be used to transport things by hand. It is an indispensable means of transportation in the nomadic process.
However, it is a civilian vehicle after all, not a chariot, and has almost no defense against bows, arrows and lead.
Sandbags are the simplest way. Bee Tail Needle has tried the defensive effect of wet sand on lead. On this battlefield, almost all the deserts are sand dunes. After eating the rations, there are a lot of ration bags, which is very economical.
They used Lele carts to pile up sandbags slowly. Liu Chengzong even used his own musket to shoot at the sandbags. The heavy musket hit the sandbags and could penetrate nearly two feet. If a two-inch thick board was placed in front of it, it could only hit the sandbags. Wear half a foot.
If there was another layer of armor on the board, the lead would be almost unable to penetrate the board, and even if it penetrated, it would not be able to go far in the sand.
Moreover, wet sand has a better effect than dry sand, so they used the sergeants' whole sheepskin and cowhide sleeping pads to make a lot of water bags and filled them with water in the river.
As for their carrying guns, Liu Chengzong did not try them. As far as he knew, the smallest caliber cannon used by the Oirat Allied Forces was similar to carrying guns, but much shorter.
However, Liu Chengzong never expected that the first to start the war was not him or Feng Rui at the foot of Qingshan.
At noon the next day, Tang Ma eagerly returned to the Chinese army and brought back a panic report from Tang Qi commander Ma Xiang.
Just last night, five cavalry teams each with hundreds of riders laid pontoon bridges to cross the river at night, making a large-scale detour 120 miles from the north.
It was already this morning when Tangqi discovered them. Then they occupied a ten-mile width in five columns and drove westward at full speed. With a strength advantage close to that of a standard battalion, they easily broke through Tangqi's defense line and rushed to the side and rear of Liu Chengzong. The troops of Wei Qian'er who came to help suffered a fate.
When the entire Tangqi defense line was mobilized, the Oirat coalition forces laid pontoon bridges along the entire line, crossed the river in large numbers along the Yellow River, and pushed it all the way to the west.
Before the panicked Tang Qi finished speaking, Liu Chengzong, who was standing outside the tent, raised his hand calmly and stopped the military report.
The horn of the Chinese army camp had been blown, and the roaring orders of the generals could be heard everywhere, and the sergeants hurriedly formed their troops.
The panicked Yang Qi hurriedly came out of the military tent while holding the belt holding the sword, covering his helmet and tying it. Before he straightened up, his eyes were already looking straight to the east.
Amidst the thundering horseshoes in the distance, strong winds stirred up the vision of a vast expanse of whiteness in the east. Thick smoke, dust and sand swept towards the west. The blocked light was like a black cloud, casting a shadow on the earth.
In front of that shadow, Marshal Futangqi was like a small boat in a violent storm, exchanging fire and retreating in the flickering light. The galloping crowd was dark and getting closer and closer to the Chinese army.
Liu Chengzong sighed and fastened his helmet. He knew that this was an accidental collision.
The national adviser Khan's heart was really wild. He had already retreated forty miles, but he had not yet left the expected encirclement of Oirat, and he was still surrounded.
"Instruct all the troops to form a large formation and prepare to defend against the enemy."
－－－－－－Digression－－－－－
Good evening!
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