Under the insurgents' charge at all costs, Liu Zian's first line of defense and Yang Shien's second line of defense were quickly broken through by them.
Although the officers and soldiers on the two defense lines fought desperately to block the attack, and no less than 400 enemy soldiers were intercepted, nearly fifty or sixty horsemen still rushed through the loopholes in the defense line.
Their target is the mortar position deployed on the top of the hill. They have spent so many elite cavalry. If they can capture this place in one fell swoop and kill all the gunners, they will get what they want.
The horses' hooves were flying, as fast as lightning. In addition, the hill was not high in the first place. It was just a relatively high slope. It was not difficult for the rebel horsemen to rush up in one go.
But their luck has run out. Although the target is only protected by a small number of horsemen, the blunderbuss in their hands is difficult to deal with. Moreover, there is no rain today. It has rained before, but the opponent was stationed in the city at that time and did not get wet at all. .
A bird gun without water in the barrel is not as powerful as a three-eyed gun, but it is still a terrifying firearm, especially within twenty steps. Even if it faces an enemy wearing iron armor, it is possible to kill the enemy with one shot.
As long as it is hit, even if it does not kill the person on the spot, the bullet will penetrate the armor and skin, penetrate into the muscles and even internal organs, causing severe physical damage to the person who was shot, causing him to directly lose his combat effectiveness.
The reason why the Ming army outside the Guan Dynasty suffered consecutive defeats against the Donglu in field battles was partly due to psychological fear, which prevented them from exerting their normal strength. On the other hand, Donglu horse soldiers are good at riding and shooting, which is indeed outstanding.
According to the request of a certain prince, all combatants without horses in the artillery camp were wearing heavy armor. This could ensure that even if the artillery position was attacked by the opponent, too many soldiers would not be lost.
This will cause the artillery's mobility to drop significantly, and the speed will be almost like crawling. However, unless the position is transferred, the artillery does not need mobility at all when holding the position. Ensuring sufficient protection is the primary consideration.
To kill heavily armored soldiers, in addition to attacking their faces with bows and arrows, the upper body with the strongest defense is usually dealt bludgeoning damage, while the lower body with relatively low defense is dealt chopping damage.
With the protection of heavy armor, the thieves' horse soldiers rushing over will not cause serious damage to their own soldiers. At most, they will break up the formation, and that's it. Only in this way can Ding Liang dare to form a formation to meet the enemy, otherwise he would have led everyone to run away towards the river. .
"The dog officers and soldiers must die!"
Zhang Jun took the lead and rushed to the front. When he saw his prey less than ten steps ahead, he immediately shouted angrily. Then he used his arms hard and slashed at the waiting gunners with his sword.
Even with men and horses, it is difficult to miss such a big target at such a close distance. The artillery battalion's requirements for individual soldiers are very simple, which is to shoot, stab and march with heavy loads. When firing mortars Everyone performs their duties and the division of labor is clear.
During battle, from officers to soldiers, life-saving armor must not be taken off or abandoned at will, and life-saving weapons must be in hand to defeat the enemy.
"Bah, bah, bah..."
The gunners can guess that this is a high-value target by looking at the bright armor and the tall horses. Whether it is an official army or a bandit army, the general's outfit is completely different from that of the soldiers, and they can tell it at a glance. .
In this way, everyone will be more interested in hunting him. They will fire immediately without waiting for the opponent's sword to fall. Since the matchlock gun has a delay of two or three seconds from ignition to shooting, the soldiers will light it in advance to ensure that they have A certain amount of shooting time.
The advantages and disadvantages of cold weapons and hot weapons are very obvious. If the weather is good, it is the first time to fire, and it will not be affected by the smoke blocking the sight. The unlucky party will definitely be the one holding the "iron piece".
"ah……"
Seeing the opponent's infantry aiming at him with a blunderbuss, they suddenly released a burst of white smoke accompanied by multiple blunderbuss sounds. Immediately, the horse under his crotch hissed, raised its two front hooves, raised its neck and fell backwards. Zhang Jun You'll know it's not good if you use it.
At this time, it was too late to dismount. His feet were still in the stirrups, making it difficult to pull them out quickly. He was also wearing heavy armor and had difficulty moving, so he could only fall to the ground in the direction of the horse's fall.
Only then did he feel a pain in his chest. When he touched it with his hand, he suddenly found a large amount of bright red blood on his palm. Zhang Junyong realized that he had been shot.
The heavy war horse was also shot. Although it struggled on the ground, it could not stand up, and it was still pressing on one of its owner's thighs, causing Zhang Jun to grin with his teeth in pain.
"...Ouch~! You beast! You're trying to trick me!"
Zhang Junyong, who was sweating like rain, had already thrown away his sword. Regardless of the severe pain coming from his chest, he tried to pull out his right leg from under the horse. He tried several times without success.
The soldiers who followed him and rushed up were also shot and fell to the ground. Some of them were lucky enough to be unharmed, so they got up and fought with the officers and soldiers in front of them, but they did not cause many casualties to the other party.
"Stab the traitor to death! Come on!"
The rules of close combat in the artillery battalion are to hit with a cannon five steps away, and to stab with a bayonet within five steps. As long as you use your whole body and run up, a foot-long bayonet can penetrate even the armor.
Ding Liang gave an order, and a squad of ten gunners lined up in a horizontal line, rushing side by side towards the three pawns who wanted to fight.
These thieves and horsemen are all Zhang Jun's personal soldiers. They are all fierce and evil-minded. Each of them has more than ten lives on his hands. Even without the horses, he still has to fight against the trapped beasts.
"Death to the dog officers and soldiers!"
When the three of them saw that the officers and soldiers had given up loading the blunderbuss and instead charged directly towards them with the blunderbuss, two of them held long-handled swords and one held a spear, intending to fight back on the spot. In terms of hand-to-hand combat, the officers and soldiers were far from being rebels. opponent.
"when!"
However, the tactics of the enemies they encountered were not consistent with their previous experience. The weapons used by the rebel soldiers had grown a lot, but they did not produce corresponding killing effects.
The broadsword and spear passed by, and all the moves were taken by the opponent, and the resistance was not inferior to those of them who like to kill.
"this……"
The most frightening thing is that after just one confrontation, the weapons used by the three of them were grabbed by each other, and they couldn't shake them off. They couldn't even use the second move, and they were dumbfounded.
There are many ways to attack more and less, but the most practical trick learned by the soldiers in the artillery battalion is to use two people to hold each other's long weapons, and the other person to hold a bird gun and stab the opponent's torso.
Seeing this kind of attack, the opponent must dodge, so that the weapon will be released, otherwise he will be stabbed directly by the artillery battalion soldiers. It is basically impossible to throw away the guy holding the weapon with just arm strength.
After dodging, the thieves lost their long weapons, and it became a real hand-to-hand combat. The bayonet-mounted blunderbuss was not at a disadvantage against the waist knife.
"Pfft~!"
The thief who had never encountered this kind of attack was unable to dodge, and was suddenly stabbed into the body by a bayonet. He tried to stop it with his hands, but it was too late. His eyes were wide open, and he could not believe that such a short dagger could be inserted so easily. Into his stomach.
During tests in the capital, under normal circumstances, even if the opponent is wearing a layer of armor and is lined with cowhide, and the soldier's running hand is used to assassinate him, the bayonet can break through the armor and allow the tip of the knife to penetrate a distance of more than an index finger.
As long as it can be pierced in the right spot, a penetration of this length can already cause serious damage to the internal organs of any enemy soldier. Even if it is not pierced correctly, it can bleed some blood on the enemy soldier and reduce the combat effectiveness.
"Pfft~!"
Seeing that he had succeeded, the artillery battalion soldier kicked the opponent's body away so that the bayonet could be pulled out. Before the opponent could lean back, he struck again.
The first blow only severely injured the opponent, but the second blow directly killed the opponent, piercing directly into the stomach, causing him to vomit blood and find it difficult to speak.
The soldier stretched out an arm and pointed at the other person inexplicably. His eyes were full of confusion and prayer, but he also knew that he was dying and his body began to feel cold. This is how many deceased people felt before they died. .
His other two companions also met the same fate. It was originally three against ten, and the opponent also adopted a very playful approach. They almost lost any possibility of winning in the first place.
However, compared to this move, the soldiers in the artillery camp have a more "fun" method, because a certain prince told everyone during training that any method that can kill and injure enemy soldiers is a good method, and anyone can use it regardless of high or low. .
For example, throwing dirt into the opponent's face is a method used by children to fight. It is a common technique in the artillery camp, and it does not delay the use of muskets and bayonets.
If a clod of soil is concentrated on the face of a thief, that person will definitely be unable to resist it. He must first turn his head and wait for it to slow down before striking. Although it may only last for a second, it is enough to determine the life or death of both parties.
What's even more insidious is that when throwing dirt, many artillery battalion soldiers shouted - "Look at hidden weapons"!
This forced many thieves to adopt evasive postures. Even if they were stunned for a moment, they would suffer heavy losses.
Of course, this three-way technique won't work if used too often, but if it is used suddenly once or twice, it is still very effective.
The thieves who were able to follow Dou Mingwang and Zhang Jun to break through the layers of resistance from the government and army were extremely brave, and could usually defeat one against three.
But facing the rough-skinned and thick-armored and insidious artillery battalion officers and soldiers, they couldn't use this ferocity at all, and they were repeatedly defeated in the fight.
A certain prince only gave the artillery battalion soldiers simple training, but it was very targeted, such as how to bombard targets, how to fend off enemies with muskets, how to stab, how to form formations, etc.
Individual tactics, two-person tactics, and squad tactics all have corresponding explicit regulations. Just follow the exercises. You may not be able to defeat the Donglu, but you can deal with the rogues head-on, especially if you have an advantage in strength. There is still a certain chance of winning. .
"The dog officers and soldiers... I and you... are not allowed to wear..."
Zhang Junyong, who was lying on the ground, never expected that this group of officers and soldiers who used fire guns would be so fierce in infantry battles, even powerful in defense, calm in times of danger, and well-organized in attack and defense. His soldiers around him were quickly surrounded and suppressed. All gone.
Zhang Junyong, who wanted to get away and kill the enemy, tried for a long time, but still couldn't break free. His strength was almost exhausted, so he could only curse the officers and soldiers angrily.
"This guy might be a general! He might be worth a lot of money! Don't stab your face! You'll have to check your face to receive the reward when you get back!"
After all the thieves around him were killed, a platoon leader alertly led everyone around him. He first kicked the opponent's weapon far away to prevent him from taking the opportunity to hurt himself, and then gave instructions to the guy in front of him. Evaluate it.
"Okay! Platoon leader! Just take a look!"
A soldier next to him said something flattering, and then did the opposite without using the bayonet. He raised the butt of his rifle and hit the target on the back of the head.
Zhang Junyong, who knew he was about to die, still wanted to continue cursing, but he suddenly felt pain and fainted. However, he was not carried away. The reason for this was that he was afraid that his prey would be rescued by his own soldiers.
This was a prey that a platoon of soldiers fought bloody hard and fought tooth and nail to capture. They were determined not to let it slip away under their noses. They might lose thousands of taels of silver. On average, each person would have dozens of taels of silver.
Even if the prey is temporarily unconscious, it must remain in "their own pot". The crowd will not let the nearly cooked duck fly away from their mouths. After returning to the city, they will point to this guy to exchange money so that everyone can The platoon soldiers were drinking and eating meat.
Platoon-level officers, including company-level officers, have not received bounty orders, and the entire battalion only has one battalion commander and two deputy battalion commanders.
But this does not mean that everyone will give up this way of making money. On the contrary, they will pay more attention to it. As long as the thief general with high-grade armor and mount is greeted, everyone will pay special attention to it.
Fighting is fighting, making money is making money, they are really two different things.
But sometimes, the two things can be done at the same time without delaying the main business of the war.
An artillery battalion has at least 80 horsemen to protect it. Since it is a defensive task, and the court is short of horses, the mounts under the crotch are not much better. They are basically pack horses that cannot run fast.
These guys with weak legs and feet are definitely not good enough to charge and kill, so they are transferred to the newly formed mortar unit. They serve as horse pawn mounts during wartime. If the number of livestock in the baggage unit is tight, they can also be used as cart pullers. workhorse.
They were a little shabby, but they were still horses, at least better than donkeys. Moreover, when the rebel horsemen rushed over, these colleagues in the artillery battalion were really useful. If two against one, they could block at least thirty or forty horsemen. .
Blocking does not mean killing, but it can also buy time for the gunners behind them to fire, preventing the infantry line from being instantly dispersed by the thieves.
This is equivalent to more than a hundred musketeers fighting only about one-third of one's own cavalry, and they are doing so from a high position, taking advantage of the terrain.
Although this favorable terrain is not very good, the opponent can use his horse and whip, and he can approach with a sword in one sprint...
After many layers of blocking, there were not many invading thieves. Ding Liang, who was nervous inside, felt a little relieved and commanded his soldiers to shoot.
Since the opposing sides were attacking in different directions and in different numbers, the officers and soldiers could only knock down less than a few pawns at a time.
This is also the fundamental reason why Ding Liang asked his subordinates to form a formation to face the enemy, but did not choose the "three-stage strike" tactic. If a row of bullets were fired, it is very likely that he would only achieve a few results.
The soldiers of an artillery company could only line up to meet the enemy, and counterattack according to the number of incoming enemies. After killing 70% to 80% of the rebel soldiers, their own position was scattered by the rebel horsemen.
After losing its formation, the artillery company used the squad as the basic combat unit for defense, and then it turned into a hand-to-hand battle between the rebel horsemen and the official gunners.
However, Dou Mingwang and Zhang Junyong did not expect that these officers and soldiers were well-trained and would not fall apart in a rush.
They attacked from both sides, and after fighting for a long time, they failed to destroy the fire gun position. Instead, they lost troops and generals.
The original target was a big lump, but now it has turned into several small lumps, but it is still very difficult to chew, and it is quickly consuming the few pawns.
