AD 1674, March 25, at dusk.
The 15,000 New Zealand Army officers and soldiers led by the local tycoon Zhu Hehao, with the First Division of the New Zealand Army as the main force, had arrived in the open area to the north of the Los Mochis Mountains in the morning.
Then, with battalions as units, they spread out at the foot of Los Mochis Mountain and formed two large horizontal formations, one behind the other, facing Los Mochis Mountain. After the formation was completed, everyone sat on the floor and waited for the meal! After lunch, continue to sit on the floor...
There were tens of thousands of people, except for a few skirmishers and light cavalry who were standing guard around the formation, and some skirmishers who went deep into the jungle-covered Los Mochis Mountains. They just sat quietly like this. No one was there. There were whispers, but no one got up and moved around casually.
This scene looks so weird!
But there is something even weirder. Opposite Los Mochis Mountain, about ten miles away from the southern slope of Los Mochis Mountain, there is another group of people who, like these Xinzhou troops, spread out their formation and then sat on the ground. Starting from early morning, I sat there until dusk...I felt drowsy from sitting there!
Of course, in the eyes of soldiers in the 17th century, this kind of scene was nothing at all. Because in the era of queuing to shoot, the era of phalanx, and the earlier era of cold weapons, the infantry participating in the battle usually relied on tight formations to fight.
The woods on the Los Mochis Mountains were so dense that the army could not pass through them in formation. They could only pass through several mountain forest paths that ran through the Los Mochis Mountains in columns of two or three people. In this way, they can easily be attacked by opponents who have formed a formation on the other side of the mountain forest.
It's just that Don Juan Jose didn't intend to catch the United States Army off guard south of the Los Mochis Mountains, otherwise his army would not have been positioned 10 miles away from the southern slope of the Los Mochis Mountains.
This is not because Don Juan Jose has any chivalrous spirit, but because he knows that if he keeps blocking the mountains and forests, the opponent will definitely not come over. He might as well dig a trench on the opposite side of Los Mochis Mountain to defend... .If the number of troops brought by Zhu Hehao exceeds 20,000, then Don Juan Jose can go up and dig trenches along the woods on the southern slope of Los Mochis Mountain. However, according to investigation, the number of troops brought by Zhu Hehao could not exceed 20,000.
And Don Juan Jose had as many as 35,000 troops... a full 15,000 more than Zhu Hehao!
And Don Juan Jose also has a quite powerful cavalry on hand!
The infantry of the New Spanish Legion is definitely not as good as the infantry of the local tycoon. The latter has absorbed a large number of "Old Guards" as its backbone, and the muskets used are all flintlock muskets. The pikemen in each company are all Equipped with a wooden handle grenade. Moreover, these infantry are particularly good at fighting at night and cooperating with artillery.
But the cavalry of the New Spanish Legion is quite powerful! They are all veterans brought from Europe by Don Juan Jose using their estates and knighthoods, and they are also equipped with Andalusian war horses. In comparison, the cavalry of the local tyrant king was far behind. They were just "black spearmen" doing chores and could only barely carry out group charges.
Moreover, the war horses they use are not as good as the ones they use. They are mainly fold-eared horses bred here in the New World. The impact of this kind of war horses is certainly better than that of Mongolian horses, but it is not as good as Andalusian horses.
In addition, Don Juan Jose must have more cavalry than his opponents.
Don Juan Jose's 35,000-strong army consisted of 6 infantry "battalions" (brigade-level units, about 4,500 men), 40 cavalry companies, 1 artillery battalion (equipped with 36 cannons), and 7 militia battalions. Composed of as many as 4,000 cavalry!
With such strong strength, of course Don Juan Jose wanted to let Zhu Hehao come over and beat him.
But it's almost dark, why doesn't Zhu Hehao come? If you don’t come, it’s time to have dinner. After dinner, it’s time to wash up and go to bed...
"Your Highness, it seems that the enemy wants to cross the Los Mochis Mountains after dark," Diego Don de Melo, the chief of staff of the New Spanish Legion, walked to Don Juan Jose at this time and whispered. , "Are we going to prepare for a night attack?"
"No," Don Juan Jose shook his head, "They are good at night fighting, and these damn Easterners are very good at it... We will return to the camp later, and then sleep in batches, be careful to watch out for them Come for a night attack.”
"As you command, Your Highness the Regent."
...
"Your Majesty, the skirmishers have searched repeatedly. There are no Spanish ambushes in the mountains and forests. It can be passed safely..."
Feng Xin of the First Division of the Xinzhou Army was reporting to Zhu Hehao on the division's skirmishing battalions searching the mountains.
"Of course there will be no ambush!" Zhu Hehao said with a smile, "Don Juan Jose must want to fight a grand battle, and then rely on his powerful cavalry to defeat us in the field!"
"That must be the case!" Feng Xin said, "Your Majesty, the cavalry of the New Spain Legion is indeed very strong, and it is Don Juan Jose's trump card."
"I know..." Zhu Hehao nodded, "Don Juan Jose has a trump card in his hand, that's why he fought with us near the Los Mochis Mountains, otherwise he would have run away long ago."
"Your Majesty, how should we defeat them?" Feng Xin asked, "Should we prepare for a night attack?"
"No need..." Zhu Hehao said with a smile, "Don Juan Jose must have been prepared in advance. He is a veteran in Europe, so he can't be that bad."
"Your Majesty, after we pass through the Los Mochis Mountains..."
"Set up camp first," Zhu Hehao said, "Work hard tonight and set up the stronghold!"
"What about tomorrow during the day?" Feng Xin asked, "Should we rely on the camp to conduct the battle?"
"No," Zhu Hehao shook his head, "We have to sleep! After a tiring night, of course we have to have a good rest...unless Don Juan Jose wants to attack the enemy."
"It's unlikely," Feng Xin said with a smile, "How can they gnaw down the hard fortress we built?"
The "Xinming Army" led by Zhu Cixiang started out by stacking sandbags. They have a proper "civilian system" and are unparalleled in the world in their ability to build strongholds and fight stupid battles.
Feng Xin paused and then asked: "Your Majesty, when will we have a decisive battle with the enemy?"
"Decisive battle?" Zhu Hehao smiled, "It seems there are more enemies than us, right?"
"Of course!" Feng Xin said, "According to a rough investigation (looking down from Los Mochis Mountain), their strength is likely to reach 30,000, which is more than previously expected!"
"Yeah," Zhu Hehao smiled, "15,000 versus 30,000... not sure!"
Feng Xin thought for a while, "If we don't separate our forces from King Jiaqing... we are sure to win!"
"Haha," Zhu Hehao smiled, "Have a good sleep during the day tomorrow and take action at night!"
Feng Xin became nervous, "Your Majesty, are you planning a night attack tomorrow night?"
"Use the black spearmen to feint attack," Zhu Hehao whispered, "the main force is marching urgently, let's fight with them! In addition, Don Juan Jose should not choose the battlefield for the decisive battle, it should be chosen by me. My plan Is such that......"
It turns out that Zhu Hehao's plan was to first pretend to be a long-term confrontation and build a stronghold. Then on the second night, the Black Lancers were sent to pretend to attack at night to attract the attention of the New Spanish Legion. The main force took the opportunity to slip out of the camp, go around the west side of the New Spanish Legion's camp, and then rush south along the coastline.
Don Juan Jose did not dare to let Zhu Hehao lead the army all the way south - although there is only a small port south of Los Mochis Mountains and until the southern part of Sinaloa Province, there are many roads along the The sea travels, so the local tyrant king's army can supply supplies through the beach.
So they can rush all the way along the coast to the port of Colima! If the 15,000 land troops and the fleet coming from the sea attack together, the 3,000 people in Colima Port will not be able to hold on for more than a few days.
Once the Port of Colima is lost, the United States can immediately transport tens of thousands more people by sea. Don Juan Jose may really have to consider defending Mexico City.
Therefore, Don Juan Jose will definitely be led by Zhu Hehao!
(End of chapter)
