Nanguan Island is strategically located between Qingniwa and Jinzhouwei.
The occupation of Nanguan by the Tiger Flag ensures the safety of Lushun and can effectively block the slave thieves from the direction of Jinzhouwei, unless the slave bandit army bypasses Nanguan by boat.
The power of the sea is the slave's shortcoming.
And if the slaves of the Jinzhou Guard occupy Nanguan Island, it will open a channel to the west to Lushun.
"Speed up, we must arrive outside Nan Guan Island before the afternoon." Zhao Wu cheered for the team, anxious to rush to Nan Guan Island.
In addition to the soldiers of the Tiger Flag, there were also Ming Dynasty officers and soldiers captured from various islands.
Although these captive soldiers have joined the Tiger Flag, they may still be the same as the Ming army, and they are completely unable to march as quickly as the Tiger Flag soldiers.
If it weren't for the fact that Qingniwa Fort was captured with just a few shots and the officers and soldiers didn't put in much effort, Zhao Wu wouldn't have dared to take these officers and soldiers from the Ming Army to Nanguan Island.
"Yingzheng, this can't be done. These people from the Ming army are in poor health. If we take them with us, we may not be able to make it for dozens of miles." Wang Ju came to Zhao Wu and said.
Physical strength cannot be replenished in a day or two. The soldiers and servants in the Ming army usually have enough food and drink, so their physical fitness is naturally good, but ordinary Ming army soldiers do not have this treatment.
Usually I am hungry and full, and my body is severely depleted.
Even if these officers and soldiers of the Ming Dynasty had chosen to join the Tiger Flag, because they had only joined for such a short period of time, they were basically drifting at sea, giving their bodies no time to recover at all.
Therefore, the physical fitness of these Ming Dynasty officers and soldiers who joined the Tiger Flag did not improve much compared to before they joined the Tiger Flag.
Zhao Wu looked back at the Ming army officers and soldiers who were out of breath.
After only a few miles, these people were already so tired. If they continued walking, he doubted whether these people could keep up with the marching speed.
"Otherwise, let's divide our forces!" Wang Ju suggested.
Zhao Wu hesitated after hearing this.
The reason why these Ming officers and soldiers were brought in from the Ming army not long ago was to deal with the slaves of the Jinzhou Guard.
These Ming Dynasty officers and soldiers from Liaodong had a deep blood feud with the slave thieves, and when facing the slave thieves, they could add blood and courage out of thin air.
Even though Hu Ziqi has never suffered a loss in front of slave thieves, he has never underestimated slave thieves.
Bringing these Ming Dynasty officers and soldiers who have taken refuge is to increase their chances of winning when facing the slaves and thieves.
"Yingzheng, don't hesitate. If the slave thieves try to make Nanguan Island again, we have to hurry up. Once the slave thieves get there first, more people will die," Wang Ju said. .
Zhao Wu gritted his teeth and said: "Leave a squadron with the 1,000th officer and the artillery crew behind, and the others will speed up the march with me."
The 1,000-man regiment of the official army was a temporary training team formed by the Ming Dynasty officers and soldiers who had defected to the army.
Because these officers and soldiers had only been here for a short period of time and had not yet undergone complete training as tiger-character flag soldiers, they could only be considered temporary members of Zhao Wu's war camp.
As for the artillery crew, it was entirely because the artillery was moving slowly. Even if there were animals pulling the cannon, it would not be able to move faster. Bringing the artillery along with them would only slow down the marching speed.
Without the burden of the artillery crew and the 1,000-man regiment of the official army, the team led by Zhao Wu marched significantly faster.
For ordinary officers and soldiers of the Ming Dynasty, it is normal to finish the journey in one go and risk their lives. However, for the well-fed and strong soldiers of the Tiger Flag, dozens of miles are too long. Although the journey is tiring, my body is not unable to bear it.
"How far is Nanguan Island?" Zhao Wu asked again, looking at the two officers and soldiers leading the way who were almost paralyzed by exhaustion.
One of the officers and soldiers gasped and said, "No, it's not far. We'll be there in another seven or eight miles."
As he spoke, he pointed in a direction in front of him.
After traveling such a long way from Qingniwa, Zhao Wu and the soldiers of Tiger Flag could still hold on, but the two officers and soldiers leading the way were almost at their limit.
If he hadn't been dragged with a rope by the Tiger Flag soldiers on the way, he would have been killed on the way.
"Hold on, we'll be there soon." Zhao Wu walked over and patted the officers and soldiers on the shoulders, and continued to move forward.
Hearing this, both officers and soldiers looked bitter.
Their bodies had long been exhausted and they wished they could lie down on the ground immediately without moving. But surrounded by many tiger-character flag soldiers, they had no choice but to bite the bullet and continue on their way.
I want to finish the remaining miles, either fast or slow.
Zhao Wu and his soldiers were also tired after walking such a long way, and their marching speed was not as fast as when they just came out of Qingniwa.
But for the remaining few miles, if you grit your teeth, you can still reach Nanguan Island quickly.
As he got closer to Nanguan Island, Zhao Wu became cautious.
Nanguan Island was the front line of the Ming army's defense against the slave thieves, and opposite it was the Jinzhou Guard occupied by the slave thieves. As a third party force, he did not dare to be careless.
boom! boom! boom!
Just as Zhao Wu and his men were getting closer to Nanguan Island, they suddenly heard the roar of cannons.
"Stop!" Zhao Wu hurriedly asked the team to stop advancing.
He himself came to the two officers and soldiers and guides.
"Is the place where the gunfire came from Nanguan Island?" Zhao Wu asked one of the officers and soldiers guide.
The other party listened carefully and nodded immediately.
"Aren't your officers and soldiers in Nanguan training gunners?" Wang Ju, who caught up from behind, asked casually.
After hearing this, the officer's guide looked bitter and said: "The general is joking. The army's artillery will never fire randomly on our gunners. Every time they fire, they must be in danger."
"So Nanguan Island has been attacked by enemies?" Zhao Wu asked.
The officer and soldier guide nodded.
Wang Ju on the side looked at Zhao Wu and said: "Ying Zheng, it seems that someone is one step ahead of us and has already started to attack Nanguan Island."
"Hurry up and hurry up, but you'll still be one step behind the Jinzhou Guard's slaves." Zhao Wu sighed softly.
Without asking, he could already guess that it was the slave soldiers and horses of the Jinzhou Guard who attacked Nanguan Island.
Because apart from their tiger-character flag, the Ming army's opponents in the Nanguan area were only the slave soldiers and horses stationed in Jinzhou Guard.
Wang Ju said: "Listening to the sound of artillery fire in Nanguan Island, the slave bandits probably did not take Nanguan Island. We still have a chance. Yingzheng, please give the order!"
"Who do you want to hit?" Zhao Wu asked.
Wang Ju said: "Of course he is a slave thief."
"There's no rush in getting started." Zhao Wu said, "Everyone is tired after traveling such a long way. I'm sending an order to everyone to rest where they are and eat something to replenish their strength."
The messenger quickly issued the order.
More than a thousand people sat cross-legged on the ground, took out the dry food they carried, and started eating directly.
When the two officers, soldiers and guides saw that they could rest, they collapsed on the ground.
