On October 28, 1666 AD, with the fire support provided by a large number of warships, Zhengzhou Ying's troops invaded the city of Valencia.
More than 500 of the defenders in the city were killed and wounded, and more than 300 were captured. The rest fled when Zheng's army broke through the city, planning to break out of the encirclement to the west, and then retreat inland with their families and Ping Min.
However, the trenches dug by Zheng Jun outside the city played a key role, causing the Spaniards to complain endlessly.
When facing a trench, if you think about people, you will definitely be unable to get past the horses. On the contrary, if you encounter a large number of horse pits, you will have to abandon your horses and walk on foot.
Zhengzhouying took advantage of the slowdown in the opponent's breakout speed and deployed troops to block the gap.
Although there were not many cavalry, only five hundred, Zhengzhou Ying deployed a hundred steam tanks in three directions.
These seemingly clumsy guys play a crucial role in positional warfare. The combat power of one tank is enough to replace fifty cavalry.
Behind each tank is at least one platoon of infantry, and each infantry battalion is equipped with a mixed artillery battery, including four bronze cannons, eight small Folang machines, and eight mortars.
Only a general Spanish phalanx of a thousand people would have the same level of heavy firepower.
In comparison, the Zheng Army's firepower is much higher than that of the Western Army, and its rate of fire is far superior to that of the opponent.
Even though the Western Army imitated a large number of mortars, the role of artillery cover was reduced to a minimum when breaking through.
The bronze cannon is a perfect combination of rate of fire, range, and weight. It is much better than the heavy and slow-firing cannons of the Western Army.
Less than half a mile out of the city, the Western Army that broke through suffered heavy casualties from the Zheng Army's artillery fire, followed by a dense rain of bullets.
After Zheng Jun downloaded and installed revolvers, his combat effectiveness increased five to six times without moving the soldiers.
It takes more time to load one bullet in a flintlock than it does to load six bullets in a revolver, and with the revolver, soldiers have more confidence in facing enemy cavalry.
You can shoot at a leisurely pace, and you no longer have to worry about shooting two batches before engaging in hand-to-hand combat. Therefore, the combat effectiveness of five or six times is still at least.
Once this kind of weapon is fired in a salvo, it will give the Western Army the feeling that the opponent does not need to reload ammunition?
Did you see it wrong?
What kind of Eastern magic is this?
The group of yellow-skinned monkeys just kept firing at their side, making the Western soldiers unable to raise their heads at all.
At most, the local Western Army could only participate in the battle to loot the Jiangnan area of the Ming Empire, and they never fought against the Ming Army's northern troops equipped with large numbers of revolvers.
This is the first time they have tasted the "wonderful taste" brought to them by this advanced weapon, and it is no exaggeration to describe it as painful.
No less than a thousand people were shot. Under the heavy firepower, the already nervous team immediately became confused and began to flee in three directions.
They could have chosen to break out in the middle of the night, especially when it was cloudy and visibility was at its lowest, which was very beneficial for running away.
But he never expected that the firepower of Zheng's naval gun would be so fierce, that it could destroy the city wall within half a month.
It is tantamount to say that this breakout was promoted by Zheng Jun, which led to the lack of preparations by Jun Min in the city. Everyone could only try their luck, hoping to escape and ascend to heaven.
The soldiers of the Zheng Army who were responsible for blocking the attack on the west side naturally could not let the prey they were about to obtain leave the hunting area in broad daylight.
The other party would rather break through than become his trophy, so this will just help you!
If it sounds good, it's blocking, if it sounds bad, it's just target shooting, and it's still a living target!
When breaking through, few Western troops would stand still, aim at the opponent and then fire.
What's more, the reloading speed of the flintlock gun is too slow. You can reload while running, and you may not be able to fire again after running a hundred steps.
Therefore, counterattacks are symbolic, and most of the time they rely on flesh and blood to forcefully break through the blockade.
The Western soldiers did have breastplates, but without additional shield protection, they still couldn't withstand Zheng's bullets.
Most Ping Minze didn't even have a wooden shield, and those with a quick mind could block one or two pots in front of them.
They thought the military could repel those nasty yellow-skinned monkeys and allow everyone to escape smoothly.
Unexpectedly, even his own soldiers were shot and killed one by one. Pingmin was immediately dumbfounded.
After everyone started to run away, the blocking area was more like a vegetable market than a battlefield.
"Ugh! Is this fighting or catching pigs?"
"That's almost it! What we caught is a white-skinned pig!"
"Hahahaha... It's the best! It's the best!"
If there was a Xiyi woman not far away, the Zheng army soldiers would not shoot her down directly, but rush to catch her alive.
If the other party is beautiful, you will be blessed in the future. On the contrary, you can sell it for money after playing with it.
If the target is a Western soldier, he is still unwilling to surrender and his legs will still keep flopping.
Then don't blame yourself for being rude. One person shoots first. If he can't hit, everyone will take turns to shoot.
More often than not, no one is willing to shoot, because catching a live Xiyi can exchange for at least five silver coins.
If he was shot or died directly, he wouldn't even be able to exchange for a piece of sesame.
After being shot these days, unless you receive prompt treatment, you will most likely die immediately.
Under the strict orders of Emperor Haojing, the Ming Dynasty Royal Division was heavily protected from the beginning to the end.
This is the simplest way to save your life on the battlefield, but because it is plate armor, it is much more breathable than cotton armor.
Since the new armor was introduced into the army, few people have suffered injuries to the torso, and most of them have been to the limbs.
In this case, even if an unlucky guy is injured, he will be disabled.
Besides, Emperor Haojing treated the disabled soldiers very well and paid out money and food on time. These unlucky men didn't have to worry about their livelihood at all.
This is also the fundamental reason why the Ming Dynasty King's Division has lost very few troops in direct battles over the years.
Coupled with good field rescue capabilities, during the Northern Expedition, almost every time more than fifty Donglu armored soldiers were eliminated, one of our own would be lost.
In the Iberian battlefield, Zheng Jun also inherited this fine tradition, especially since the local climate was very suitable for armored combat and would not feel sweltering.
The damage caused by the Xiyi soldiers to Zheng Jun was almost negligible. Injuries to the limbs were considered non-fatal injuries on the battlefield. Unless the aorta of the thigh was injured, most of them would be fine.
On the contrary, once the Western Army is hit by a bullet, especially if it penetrates the armor and penetrates the flesh, then it can only ask for good luck.
On the battlefield, there is no need to worry about the wounded who are not one's own. Zheng's soldiers are all chasing fast moving targets.
As long as the opponent runs fast, it means he is not injured, and you can exchange money after catching him.
Forget about the worthless old men and children, the key is those between the ages of twenty and forty.
These people are the main force in mining. If you catch one, you can have a big meal after going home.
It's just that the three thousand Zheng troops not only have to hold on to the defensive line, but also go to catch the pigs. This task is a bit overwhelming...
There were at least 70,000 to 80,000 Xiyi people who had escaped from the city. They were scattered everywhere, leaving the pilots on the airship stunned.
They couldn't go down to arrest people, so they could only see more Xiyi over there so that they could indicate the target to the ground personnel.
The previous discovery of Xiyi's breakout from the west was also reported by airship, otherwise Zheng Zhouying would not have responded so quickly.
The appearance of five hundred cavalry blocked the way of at least tens of thousands of Xiyi. Even if someone in the fleeing team opened fire, it would be of no avail.
Shooting can only cause greater chaos, causing your own people to be trampled by their companions while running around.
The Zheng Army cavalry did not kill a few people when they intercepted these Xiyi people. Instead, they trampled to death and injured thousands of them.
This is retribution. I think the people in Jiangnan were treated like this at the beginning, and now they deserve it.
"Master, please don't use the gun. I am a wise man!"
"ah???"
"Master, spare your life! I was robbed here by the Western Yi from the south of the Yangtze River!"
"Then why don't you come over quickly!"
"Yes Yes Yes!"
A man of Ming Dynasty who lived in the city and worked as a servant for Xi Yi saved his life by reporting his family name during the chaos.
If you don't shout and have no eyesight, you will have to consider yourself unlucky if you kill or wound someone.
Reasoning with each other during a melee?
That person is either born mentally retarded or acquired stupidity!
Although this Ming person has Western clothes and hairstyle, his appearance and accent are unmistakable.
Even if a small number of Westerners can speak Mandarin, their pronunciation level cannot reach the level of native people.
"Who is your last name? Where is your hometown?"
"My surname is Chen, my name is far away, my hometown is Zhenjiang, Jiangsu Province!"
"Haha, you have run very far now! You have even reached Xiyi's hometown!"
"The military master doesn't know something. I was forcibly plundered here by the Western Yi people back then. It was definitely not what I wanted. If I had known that Wang Shi would send troops to Xi Yi's hometown, I would have acted as an internal response!"
"Okay! Stop talking nice! Do you know the situation in the city?"
"Know a thing or two!"
"Mount your horse! Follow me to see my general!"
"Very good!"
Soon, Zheng Zhouying saw this guy named Chen Yuan. After searching him, he invited him to the big tent.
"My dear, Chen Yuan, I have met the general!"
"No need! It's rare to see me, the Ming Dynasty, here. It's your blessing and fate!"
"What the general said is absolutely true. I will tell you everything I know, and I will tell you everything!"
"Did you know you have family in the city?"
"Returning to the general, my family was tortured to death by the Western Barbarians when they were crossing the ocean. Now I am alone, as a slave of the Western Barbarians. If the general had not led the royal army here, I would have died in a foreign country in my lifetime. "
"Well, that means you are lucky enough to die here. Do you know the situation in the city?"
"I know something, General. There are about 3,000 garrison troops in and around the city. After the King's fleet appeared, they retreated into the city. They tried to break out to the west, but were intercepted by the General's troops in time."
"Can you speak the Spanish language? That Spanish?"
"I've learned a little bit, but it doesn't matter if I listen to it every day!"
"How does your Xiyi master treat you?"
"We will provide food and accommodation, but we will inevitably get beaten and scolded. But I can only be patient and cautious."
"Is there anyone in the city who has experienced a similar situation to you?"
"As far as I know, there should be dozens of them, but they all ran away when they broke through the encirclement just now, and I don't know their whereabouts!"
"Well! If I can find him, I will let you meet him and keep him company. When the king master destroys the Western Yi, he will send you home."
"I would like to thank you General for saving your life! I would like to serve as a guide and lead the way for the soldiers under General's command!"
"That's very good. Come here and get twenty silver coins, a bag of biscuits, and a bag of drinking water!"
"General, this is absolutely impossible. I..."
"This is your reward. I'll reward you first. If you don't do your job well, you won't be able to do it!"
"In this case, I will obey my orders and don't dare to disobey!"
Although the origin of this person cannot be found out for the time being, he is better than those Western Yi who pretend to surrender.
If we could find a dozen Ming people who had been plundered by the Western Yi and settled here, it would be much easier to search the city.
According to local parlance, Valencia can be regarded as a second-tier city in Spain.
Although it can't compare with Madrid and Barcelona, it can definitely be on an equal footing with Zaragoza, Seville, Murcia and other places.
After consuming so much ammunition, Zheng Zhouying would not be content unless hundreds of thousands of silver coins were recovered from the city.
If it cannot be found, either the correct place has not been found, or prisoners in the city must be used to pay for it.
If we capture 30,000 prisoners of appropriate age, we should be able to earn a net profit of 150,000 silver coins.
If we hit a few more places in the future, we should be able to bag half a million silver coins when we return.
Anyway, I will eventually leave this place, so there is no need to rebuild this city, but let my men scrape the land hard.
It is said that Zheng Guangying and others adopted a carpet sweep method in the Spanish territories in America.
In other words, every time a place is captured, after the soldiers enter the house, they will not leave even a blanket for Xi Yi.
Valencia is so big, there should be no problem converting the city's property into hundreds of thousands of silver coins.
Chen Yuan said before that there were too few, and Zheng Jun found twenty-two Ming people in Valencia and the suburbs.
They used to live in various places in the city and suburbs, and it was almost impossible to communicate with each other.
However, this is very beneficial to Zheng Jun, so that the place where they lived before can be searched.
Each Akito led a company to search the house. Even if their previous owners donated money and ran away, there should be many valuable items left behind.
Because the carriage's loading capacity is limited, unless there are more than a dozen at home, it is impossible to take away too many things.
Besides, when breaking out of an encirclement, carriages were the easiest target for Zheng Jun's artillery. The ones that were attacked on the battlefield were basically carriages that didn't choose their way.
Smart guys would carry gold, silver and jewelry and run away directly on horseback instead of driving away in a relatively slow carriage.
"Not bad! Xiyi can live in such a spacious house!"
"Master Jun, the master's room is inside!"
"Okay! Lead the way!"
Chen Yuan also wanted to bring the Ming Dynasty King Master to take revenge, but unfortunately the former master had already ran away.
Either he ran away, or he was beaten to death on the way.
The only thing left that can still recall the past is this house. I hope I can find something good, otherwise it will be in vain.
"Is this painting valuable?"
"Come back to Master, my previous master bought it for fifty silver coins!"
"Not bad! Come here, pick it off and take it away!"
"yes!"
For Zheng's officers and soldiers, they want anything as long as it's valuable.
From oil paintings to carpets, move them out first.
According to the above statement, even if it cannot be shipped back to the mainland, it can still be sold to the French!
