On the eighth day of March in the second year of Wu Ding, Da Qi troops landed, putting the Liaonan defense line in danger of collapse. The owner of the Xianglan Banner asked for help from Shenyang many times. Without waiting for the Qing emperor to send reinforcements, the Qi army launched a more violent offensive. arrival.
Under the cover of naval guns, the soldiers of the Qi army launched a series of attacks on the southern position of Lushun, firing three rounds of volleys of guns. The Qing army responded with a rain of arrows.
The range of the Qi army's flintlock rifles was far beyond that of the Qing army's infantry bows. However, the Qing army was entrenched in Laotieshan and occupied a favorable location. The Xianglan flag and Korean archers were condescending and swooped down to shoot.
Airlie realized that he could not escape death, so he made a desperate move and sent out seven or eight hundred infantry to go around the rear of the First Guards Corps, preparing to attack the Qi army from behind.
The Qi troops on the left and right stayed awake all night and immediately reported the Qing army's movements to their respective commanders.
Chen Xin and Pu Gang immediately led the Second Army and the Third Army of the Guards to cover up and kill from the left and right sides of Laotieshan. It may be that the roar of the Qi soldiers and the refraction of light on the armor at dusk broke the psychological defense of the Jurchens. It may be that the firepower of Kaiyuan infantry field runners with extremely high accuracy and rapid fire rate destroyed the Qing army's front line. In short, when Chen Xinpugang encircled them, the Qing army Xianglan Banner, which was still invincible six months ago, completely collapsed.
The Zhenyi armor soldiers who had just rushed to the foothills trail fled in all directions. Most of the two Niulu Qing troops were killed. Fortunately, night fell and the remaining warriors took advantage of the darkness to escape back to Laotieshan.
From then on, Lao Tieshan's Qing army no longer dared to attack easily.
On the 10th day of March, the Qi army besieged Lushun in three directions and captured Lushun. Airli, the leader of the Xianglan Banner, fled into Jinzhou.
The army rested for two days, and on the 13th, they continued to march towards Jinzhou.
The military status of Jinzhou is very important. The Lushun Peninsula is the throat of the Bohai Sea, and Jinzhou City is the gateway to the Port of Lushun.
"The land stretches diagonally from Jinzhou to the sea, shaped like a lotus leaf lying in the center of the waves. The corner of Jinzhou is also the base of the lotus. From Jinzhou to the southwest, it becomes narrower and narrower, reaching the extreme Nanguan Ridge, with a width of no more than six meters. Inside, there is a lotus stem, which is an important pass on the back road of Lushun. Beyond Nanguan Ridge and to the southwest, the terrain gradually expands, running from southwest to northeast, forming a triangle, with mountains and seas leaning on it, and winding roads, which is a natural shape." (Note 1)
At this time, the remnants of the Xianglan Banner stationed in Jinzhou City were already in turmoil. Airli was helpless and just asked each Niu to record the generals:
"As soon as the thieves come, place mines, explosives, and horses, and hold on. Don't fight lightly."
Is it too fanciful to hope that only relying on landmines, lightning strikes, etc. to stop the Qi army's attack?
On the 18th, the forwards of the Qi army began to build a bridge on the Dasha River in preparation for the attack on Jinzhou. Liu Zhaosun sent Chen Xin to lead the First Division of the Second Guards Army, and Pu Gang led the Engineers and Cavalry Division to advance first.
One is to search for the enemy's situation, and the other is to repair the roads and prepare for the 60,000 troops behind to march north to Shenyang.
On the 22nd, Emperor Wu Ding personally led the main force of the First Army to march from Piziwo to Jinzhou.
At this time, Fuzhou was in danger, and the defenders did not dare to rescue Jinzhou. The Qi army went from the fork in the road to the Fifty Mile Fort on Fuzhou Avenue to guard against the Qing army coming to aid from Fuzhou.
On the 25th, the First Pioneer Battalion of the First Army arrived at Liujiadian on the outskirts of Jinzhou and met the remnants of the Xianglan Banner.
The Qing army was already rushing to repair fortifications in Jinzhou, but the Qi army suddenly attacked and had to abandon the unfinished fortifications and flee north.
On the 26th, Chen Xin led the Second Guards Army to Liujiadian. He learned from Ye Bushu that the Qing army had built an artillery fort on the Shimenzi Highlands and that it was guarded by infantry on both sides, so he decided to launch a surprise attack with soldiers. .
At early noon, the Second Army launched an attack on the Xianglan Banner position.
Chen Xin ordered the first battalion of the Second Army to attack the Qing artillery position northwest of Daheshan Mountain, and the second battalion to attack from Jinzhou Avenue and its north.
The battalions of the Second Guards Army gradually advanced towards the Qing artillery forts. The last surviving remnants of the Xianglan Banner, more than 1,800 men, were unable to retreat at this time (the roads leading to Fuzhou and Shenyang were cut off by the Qi army). He had to fight to the death.
At midnight on the 26th, Chen Xin ordered the Second Army to concentrate all rockets and infantry artillery and cover and fire at the Qing artillery forts for half an hour.
The Jiannu who occupied the advantageous position hid in the tunnels between the mountains, and the shelling had very limited damage to them. When the Qi army's shelling ended, the Qing army immediately fired back violently with red-coated artillery generals. The archers shot down those who were attacking from high along the ridge line. The approaching Qi army's gunfire soldiers.
At this time, there were less than a thousand people left in the remnants of the stubbornly resisting Xilan Banner. Their master, Airli, had been burned to death by rockets. The Jianzhou people knew that Emperor Wu Ding would never let them go, so they had no choice but to continue to be trapped animals. fight.
The Qing army defended the dangerous area. After some archers finished shooting their bows and arrows, they smashed stones at the Qi soldiers who rushed up. Some Qing soldiers rolled into the Qi army holding gunpowder packets and died together with the Qi army.
The casualties of the Second Army suddenly increased. The chief officer Chen Xin came to the front line to supervise the battle. He was quickly shot in the shoulder by a stray arrow. After being hurriedly bandaged, he continued to direct the fierce attack.
The battle ended at dusk, and the Shimenzi Highlands were still in the hands of Xianglan Banner.
According to historical records of Qi State:
This battle is "like thunder and lightning, bullets hitting each other, smoke rising, fierce attacks, especially majestic. However, the slave thieves occupied natural danger and shot from high bases, while our army shot from low places. There was a huge difference in difficulty." , and lost the advantage of the location. So we stopped guarding on the left side and moved to camp between Jinzhou Avenue and Fuzhou Avenue. It was eight o'clock in the evening."
While the Second Guards Army was engaged in a fierce battle with Xianglan Banner, the main force of the First Army led by Emperor Wu Ding finally arrived near Guanjiadian in Jinzhou.
Francisco, Dongfang Zhu, the staff of the First Army and others all climbed to the top of the mountain and followed the emperor to learn about the battle situation. Liu Zhaosun detoured from Fuzhou Avenue to Qianjiazi and observed the defense configuration of the slaves along the way.
It was already dusk, and the sentry horses of the Second Army rushed over to report to the emperor the battle situation in Shimenzi Highlands. When he heard that the casualties of the Second Army had reached 300, Liu Zhaosun became furious:
"Where is Chen Xin! Deng Changxiong's main force turned into dough in his hands. Three to four thousand men can't defeat even two thousand Jiannu slaves. Go back and tell him that we can't capture Shimenzi tonight, so I will His head!”
Francisco saw Long Yan was furious and whispered from the side:
"Holy Emperor of Da Qi, with all due respect, the fortress built on this terrain is stronger than the strongest bastion in Europe. A frontal attack will probably be very difficult."
After Francisco experienced some "hardship" in Zhaoyuan, he gained a deeper understanding of life and the universe, and became more loyal to the emperor.
The missionary is now not only the high priest of Liu Zhaosun, but also the chief European affairs adviser to the emperor. Later, Qi's "Wood Emperor's Whip" plan was also written by Francis. (Note 2)
After the elimination of slave Korea, Emperor Wu Ding would soon have to deal with the European powers. Francisco traveled to various European countries in his early years and had good military qualities. It was a perfect person to understand his opponents through him. As the saying goes, only by knowing yourself and the enemy can you win every battle.
Liu Zhaosun did not express his anger at Francisco. He turned his gaze to the war-torn land of southern Liaoning, looked at the endless mountains in front of him, and suddenly said:
"The enemy is on Jinzhou Avenue, and the defense on Fuzhou Avenue is relatively weak. You can force the enemy's back."
Although Jinzhou Road is close to it and there are few Qing soldiers, its location is quite important. Jinzhou Street leads to Liujiadian and Shimenzi, that is, to and from the valley bottom, and there are many small mountains crossing it. It may be inconvenient for our troops to be controlled by the enemy. "
So Pu Gang was ordered to lead a detachment to confront the Qing soldiers near Shimenzi. The emperor personally led the first and second battalions of the First Guards to avoid the Qing soldiers' eyes, turned out of Fuzhou Road, and forced the Shimenzi defenders behind. The attack was launched that night.
Note:
1. Yao Xiguang's "A Brief Account of Eastern Military Affairs", see "The Sino-Japanese War" (1), page 34
2. God’s Whip Plan: The code name for the Eastern Qi Empire’s invasion of Europe during World War I. It took place in Tsarist Russia and Eastern Europe from June 22, 1630 to January 1639. The plan was drafted and guided by Francisco, the first instructor of the Qi Guards at the time, and was completed at the end of August 1629. Originally named "Xuan Zang Plan", it was later changed to "God's Whip" in January 1630.
