Imperial Master of the Ming Dynasty

"How can anyone shoot like this?"

Several noble generals from the Military Observation Group of the Fifth Army Governor's Mansion looked at the barrage of artillery shells overhead and whispered.

They did not know much about the performance of the new bronze field artillery, and did not participate in the discussion of countermeasures last night. Therefore, they subconsciously believed that the performance of the new bronze field gun was not much different from that of the old artillery. After firing a shot, it would take a long time to reload.

And it stands to reason that they would first use the range advantage of the artillery to attack the enemy, and then let the muskets with a shorter range fire. Wouldn't it be ridiculous to reverse the order?

It's like letting the archers shoot arrows first, and then letting the cannons (trebuchets) hit rocks.

But Duke Zhu Neng kept observing the impact of the cannonballs, but fell into deep thought.

"This Imperial Master is a bit interesting."

Zhu Neng turned his head and looked at Jiang Xinghuo, who was motionless on the platform, and suddenly smiled.

"What does Duke Cheng Guo mean by this?"

"You haven't seen the indicators of the new artillery reported by the Inner Court War Bureau and the Ministry of Industry's Ordnance Bureau. These are highly confidential orders from His Majesty, so it's not surprising that you don't understand. But it's fine that you don't understand. Now It seems that even I don’t understand this ‘artillery straddle firing’ method, but I took it for granted before and thought it was just the same tactic as the artillery carriage.”

Zhu Neng simply raised his hand and pointed at the impact point of the artillery extending forward, and said, "What did you find?"

Naturally, these noble generals are not just for nothing. Even some of them, the second and third generation generals of Hongwu's founding fathers who have not fought many wars, have some discernment under their influence. After observing for a moment, they realize that I saw some clues.

"Huh? The impact point of the cannonball is arching forward, and it is hitting farther and farther. What kind of shooting method is this?"

"And the speed at which the artillery fires is wrong. Why don't the shells stop?"

Someone also silently calculated the firing frequency of the artillery. In about half a stick of incense (about 2.5 minutes), 5-6 artillery shells were fired (refer to the average rate of fire of cannons during the Thirty Years' War). Although the diameter of the artillery shells was not It is relatively large, but compared to the old artillery, the rate of fire is already amazing. For those stone mortars left by the Mongols in Nanjing, it is a question whether they can fire a second shot in the same time.

"No wonder we have to shoot closer. If we don't move closer, we can't extend the artillery fire! The front and rear parts of the White Lotus rebels are separated by dense shells!"

Someone exclaimed. When the smoke from the battlefield dispersed slightly and they saw the White Lotus rebels plowed into two sections by the artillery fire, the nobles of the Military Observation Group of the Fifth Army Governor's Mansion finally reacted.

Due to the small caliber and short barrel of the light bronze field gun, of course, the range is not that far. It is farther than the traditional counterweight trebuchet, but the range is not too exaggerated.

Therefore, the artillery position set up in the camp behind the earth platform is blocked by the earth platform, the middle camp, the camp wall, the sunken front camp and other distances in front. If the artillery is fired when the two armies are fighting, it will definitely not be able to extend the artillery fire!

Only when the White Lotus Sect drives the strong men in, is the best time to fire.

This distance had already been calibrated before the war, and the principle was the same as the artillery carriage's firing boundary calibration.

The tactics of large-scale artillery attack and defense originated at the turn of the Song Dynasty. The Song, Jin, Yuan and other dynasties were all experts, but they did not have the tactic of "cannonball extension", which fell to the observation generals of the Fifth Army Governor's Mansion. In his eyes, it naturally became the first of its kind for a national teacher.

The Royal Military Academy of the Ming Dynasty had just been established. Jiang Xinghuo served as the vice principal for a short time and started his trip to the south of the Yangtze River without making any achievements. Therefore, the noble military officials generally were not optimistic about the military capabilities of the national division.

It’s not incomprehensible if you think about it from someone else’s perspective. Would you accept someone who has never fought in a war teach you how to fight?

At this time, they all looked at Jiang Xinghuo, and their previous contempt for Jiang Xinghuo's lack of military knowledge was gone.

Regardless of whether the Imperial Master really understands it or is just fooling around, when this trick is used in actual combat, the effect is really immediate!

Cheng Guogong Zhu Neng simply said to the guards around him: "Take me to Liu Sheng to see the artillery position."

For Zhu Neng, there is no suspense in this war at all.

How difficult would it be for the Ming Dynasty's army to fight a counterinsurgency war? It's just a matter of whether or not you can win simply beautifully.

If Zhu Neng had come to take command, there wouldn't have been so many twists and turns at all. The army would have just pushed through.

And Jiang Xinghuo's unnecessary action was just to cherish the lives of the people who would work in the factory in the future, and to save them as much as possible. If not, why would he be demolishing the fortresses and launching artillery straddles? Directly after the artillery bombardment, the infantry lined up and killed, and then the cavalry followed and charged in one round and it was done.

In Zhu Neng's view, this style of fighting is equivalent to Jiang Xinghuo walking forward with a heavy load, or in other words, if he wants to catch mice on the floor of a house full of Jingdezhen porcelain bowls, he is really in trouble with himself, so it is far better to kill all the enemies at once. It was a happy ending.

However, since Jiang Xinghuo wanted to do this, Zhu Neng did not have the command authority granted by Emperor Yongle, but it was not easy to take over the army. He could only let it go and see how Jiang Xinghuo could ensure a complete victory and at the same time rescue the strong men who were taken as hostages.

At the moment, it seems that Jiang Xinghuo has done a pretty good job and has reversed some of Zhu Neng's prejudice against him.

Jiang Xinghuo, who was standing on the commander's platform in military uniform, naturally saw the small actions of the Military Observation Group of the Fifth Army Governor's Mansion, but did not take it seriously. However, when Zhu Neng left the platform, he still looked slightly sideways.

But that was all, Xuanjie continued to stare at the battlefield ahead.

Jiang Xinghuo certainly didn't need the accuracy of these relatively primitive bronze cannons, but being able to fire volleys, straddles, and extend the artillery fire according to the pre-calibrated firing range fully met his requirements.

All of this is naturally inseparable from the silent efforts of Liu Sheng, the artillery commander.

The ability to shoot these field bronze cannons so well was partly due to Jiang Xinghuo's theoretical guidance on artillery, but more importantly, it was due to the diligent study and hard training of Liu Sheng and his men.

"He is indeed a general who created China's first large-scale artillery force. After this battle, I should give Liu Sheng credit." Jiang Xinghuo thought silently.

Principal Jiang has no interest in micromanaging before the battle. When the battle got to this point, it was Ping Jiang Bo Chen Xuan who was constantly issuing orders to control the Ming army.

Jiang Xinghuo didn't intend to disturb him, so he turned to look at a Qianhu officer of the navy, who was also Chen Xuan's right-hand man.

"How about the water village?"

"Ready, Master National Preceptor, please forgive me for talking too much."

Such a Qianhu official naturally has the power to advise. He looked at the battlefield in the distance and hesitated for a moment, then asked again: "Really don't need to mobilize the navy soldiers to go ashore? I'm afraid the pressure on the frontal battlefield is a bit high. The crane wing formation The shortcomings are too obvious, the battle line is too long, and once it is broken through in sections, the entire army will collapse."

"Need not."

Jiang Xinghuo held the knife and shook his head. The long wind blew by, making the scarlet cloak rustle.

On the other side of the platform, Zhu Gaoxu, who was leading a majestic horse, was already leading 400 armored cavalry units of the Ming army in preparation for battle.

The war horses were treading restlessly on the spot, and the snorting sound of "Xi Lv Lv" brought up the white mist in the morning. The auxiliary soldiers were dressing the war horses with vest parts such as face curtains, chicken necks, and breastplates. As for the heaviest horse, Body armor must be put on only after receiving the order to attack, so as not to waste the energy of these war horses.

——————

The scene shifted to the frontal battlefield, where the White Lotus Sect's front troops were driving the strong men forward.

"Bang bang!" "Boom boom boom!"

The shells fell from the sky like meteors and hit the front line of the White Lotus Sect rebels. Those who were hit immediately exploded, along with countless wood chips, mud and rocks and other items flying everywhere.

The White Lotus rebel infantry who were originally lined up in a relatively neat formation outside the Ming army camp, some of the unlucky ones, instantly turned into piles of mangled corpses.

"Boom, boom, boom! Boom boom boom boom!!!"

Continuous artillery fire, the Ming army's shelling directly destroyed the morale of the enemy's front army. All this happened in such a short time that the White Lotus rebels had no time to react and were stunned by the shelling.

"The Ming army's artillery can only fire one round, don't be afraid, rush over!"

Moreover, this was just the beginning. The rebels in the front army continued to rush forward, following more than 8,000 strong men who stepped over the collapsed camp wall of the Ming army. However, only dozens of breaths passed, and dozens more followed. A "shooting star" flew over.

In the third and fourth rounds, the artillery fire began to gradually extend. Although the hit rate of the artillery was not high and there were no explosive shells, the solid bullets and subsequent ricochet damage alone caused hundreds of rebels to fall down, wailing all over the field, and it was too miserable to watch. .

Li Wuliu's eyes widened, his mouth opened wide, and he heard countless screams in his ears. Those rebels who charged more fiercely were smashed to pieces by the shells.

Fire and gunpowder smoke rose from the area behind Li Wuliu. The former soldiers of the White Lotus Sect who were only half a beat slower than him were blown away one after another. The blood mist filled the nose with the rich smell of blood, which was nauseating.

In the eyes of Li Wuliu, who looked back, the dark area behind him was like Shura Hell, and these "meteors" were soul-killing envoys. Wherever they passed, rivers of blood flowed!

"Damn it! How come the Ming army's artillery fires so fast!"

This situation caused the White Lotus rebels who wanted to speed up to catch up with the strong men in front to stop in their tracks.

And if you delay like this, you will miss something important!

The White Lotus Sect arranged for many soldiers to sneak into the ranks of the strong men, and also gave some of the strong men simple weapons, just to make the Ming army unclear who were the soldiers of the White Lotus Sect, so that they could take advantage of the chaos to launch an attack.

In fact, Jiang Xinghuo faced the night attack team in the county town so ruthlessly that he hesitated in Bai Tianyu's established strategy of using the common people as human shields to charge forward. Bai Tianyu was not convinced that this move would make Jiang Xinghuo succumb to the enemy. He was also not sure whether Jiang Xinghuo would direct the battle by himself. If any of these two points could not be achieved, then the team of strong men would only have the effect of consuming projectiles.

But Bai Tianyu had no choice. It was precisely because of the above concerns that if he didn't launch an attack while still having the advantage of troops, Bai Tianyu didn't know whether Jiang Xinghuo would choose to sit back and watch these people starve to death in the camp while he held on to the camp. Waiting for the arrival of reinforcements and supplies. If this is the case, then the White Lotus Sect's already low chance of winning will be reduced to a pitiful level. Therefore, Bai Tianyu must take the initiative to launch an attack and also attack the Ming army's camp.

Of course, no matter how the Ming army responded to Bai Tianyu's vicious plan, in his opinion, he would win.

It's like Qin Shihuang eating Sichuan peppercorns - winning!

But the Ming army's strange countermeasures now made Bai Tianyu, who was commanding the White Lotus rebels from behind, panic.

Yes, panic.

It completely exceeded his expectations. In Bai Tianyu's view, the Ming army either wasted bullets and delayed firepower by killing these strong men, thereby creating opportunities for his soldiers hidden in the strong men's team; Create massive chaos in the military camp.

But the Ming army took the initiative to destroy its own camp wall to invite you into the "Weng" city, and used intensive artillery fire to separate the young men from the White Lotus Sect's front troops who were driving them away. This kind of operation was something Bai Tianyu never dreamed of!

Of course Bai Tianyu knew that the Ming army's artillery fire rate was very fast, but due to the limitations of the times, he never imagined that the artillery group could actually use the "barrage advance" tactic!

Tian Tianyu watched as eight thousand men and the White Lotus priests mixed among them entered the Ming army's camp. However, his front army was cut off from the outside, but he had no time to give any command. How to command? The people from the front are pouring in, but the people behind can't keep up, which means that the signal troops can't get up either. As for the organization of the White Lotus Sect, no one reads the flags at all, and they are completely out of touch.

"Leader, what should I do?"

Tian Tianyu's heart sank a little bit. He suddenly felt that the eight thousand strong men he had driven away would never come back.

Bai Tianyu kept his expression and said with all his strength: "The brothers inside are all brave men. The walls in the Ming army camp are not high, so there is still a chance to break through the Ming army's defense!"

But even though he said so, Tian Yu no longer had high expectations for the White Lotus priests who were among the eight thousand strong men.

Tian Tianyu's eyes shifted to the troops beside him.

It has to be said that Bai Tianyu and the high-ranking generals of the White Lotus Sect are not stupid. Some of them participated in the war between Japan and the Northern and Southern Dynasties. Although their level can be derided as "village fighting", they still have basic campaign planning capabilities.

In their imagination, there are indeed several possibilities for the Ming army to avoid the strong men used as human shields. One of them is to spread the wings, which is also the current countermeasure of the Ming army.

And as the Qianhu official said, in fact, anyone with a little military knowledge knows that the Crane Wing Formation is not a perfect formation. This formation is easily broken by violence. It is like eating roast chicken. Tear the chicken wings directly.

The wings are the two wings of the Crane Wing Formation, and although seven thousand men and some soldiers have been given to them in vain, the advantage is that the Ming army, whether active or passive, has actually been divided into two parts: the left and right wings!

The four armies of the White Lotus Sect, left, right, center and back, seemed to be beaten from both sides, but in fact, the way to break the situation was also hidden inside.

The White Lotus rebels only need to concentrate their forces to attack any wing of the Ming army. Once the defensive capabilities and numerical superiority exceed the firepower delivery of the Ming army's artillery soldiers and they can withstand the battle, then the chance of winning will be greatly increased!

Next to Tian Tianyu, there was a "Guard Shield Army" that had gathered thousands of door panels, specially double-layered thickened them and nailed them, and wrapped them in wet quilts!

The regular army has its own methods, and these rebels also have their own homespun methods. Although the method is a bit crude, there is no doubt that the "double door panel + wet quilt" can withstand the bullets of the fire cannon to a large extent. of.

And in addition, Bai Tianyu also has a trump card in his hand, which is a very small cavalry unit with only about a hundred people. Well, if these ponies and mules can also be considered cavalry.

But although the riding tools are not very good, the quality of these cavalry is not bad, and there are even a dozen Japanese samurai participating in the battle.

In fact, in most people's minds, the Yuan Dynasty's cross-sea expedition to Japan pitted Mongolian light cavalry against Japanese infantry with samurai swords.

But in fact, the real battle was just the opposite. The Yuan Dynasty army, mainly composed of Korean and Southern Song infantry, faced off against Japanese samurai who rode ponies and carried large bows and spears for mounted shooting and charging.

Japanese samurai, in this era, really loved riding and shooting.

"Master, when will we let them come?"

"hold on."

Tian Tianyu looked at the isolated battlefield ahead and the tug-of-war on the two wings, and instead became calm.

The White Lotus Sect has a large number of soldiers and can afford to die, so he can continue to consume them, while Bai Tianyu is waiting for an opportunity, an opportunity that can defeat the Ming army's left and right wings in either direction.

Now the left and right wings of the Ming army maintain the front line by relying on the "three-stage attack" tactic, but as time goes by, the barrels of their guns will get hot, the people will get tired, and the gunpowder and lead bullets will be consumed. But the White Lotus Sect There are many more soldiers.

Therefore, Bai Tianyu believed that it was not the time for a decisive victory yet, and in order to prepare for today's battle, he hid a card.

Tian Tianyu looked at the Ming Army's water stronghold in the distance.

If the partial division led by Zhang Long of the Qinglong Gang can burn down the Ming army's water stronghold, and after landing, circle around and attack the Ming army from the side, then Bai Tianyu will use all his trump cards in one fell swoop to defeat any wing of the Ming army, and the battle will be won. The balance will tilt greatly in the direction of the White Lotus Sect.

——————

"Where are the reinforcements?!"

"Why don't the people behind you rush forward?"

In the front camp of the Ming army, the White Lotus priests hidden among the strong men fell into deep despair.

Obviously, they have realized that they are in trouble - the concave part of the Ming army's camp has formed a trap shape in the urn city, so that they can't even rush now.

These White Lotus priests who can be selected as the first warriors are naturally fierce and agile green forest heroes. Even in such a difficult situation, even if these strong men have all squatted on the ground like quails, they held their heads and squatted on the ground. Regardless of the risk of exposure, they still bravely used the hooks in their hands and the bamboo ladders and other props that the strong men were forced to carry as climbing tools to carry out the attack.

Although the Ming army's fortresses were built according to marching standards, it was not an insurmountable obstacle for these green forest heroes who could climb up and down the walls of wealthy families' courtyards.

Moreover, the main strength of the Ming army, out of 6,000, was 3,600 on the left and right wings outside the camp wall (1,800 on each side), 400 heavy armored cavalry, 300 artillery, and 800 The reserve team, totaling 1,500 troops, is currently standing by Jiang Xinghuo's side. Apart from this, there are only a few hundred people who can defend on the "concave" camp wall.

These hundreds of people did not have any hot weapons at hand, but they had to defend the long camp wall. Of course, it was long. Originally they only had to defend one side, but now they had to defend three sides. Naturally, their strength seemed a little weak.

This is why most of the Ming army generals, including Liu Sheng, did not think of putting these strong men as human shields into the camp last night.

If there is no "barrage blocking" from the powerful artillery group, Tian Tianyu's method will easily succeed as long as the backup can keep up.

But now the shells are falling like heavy rain for free. Relying on the pre-calibrated firing range, Bai Lian's front army is separated from the eight thousand strong men. The front and rear cannot join forces. The soldiers mixed in with the strong men alone can't do anything. It was impossible to attack the Ming army's fortress head-on.

Without hot weapons, the Ming army's cold weapons were not weak either.

In fact, the "concave" type camp is not without any benefits. At the very least, the Ming army's crossfire can be fully guaranteed.

At this time, no one cared about whether there would be accidental injuries. Anyway, most of the strong men were squatting on the ground with their heads in their hands. Those who dared to resist were enemies. These enemies were extremely harmful and had to be eliminated. If there were really a few unlucky ones who were killed If the arrow accidentally hits him, he can only accept his fate.

After all, the Ming army had actually saved the lives of the vast majority of the eight thousand people. The soldiers were in danger, and there was really nothing they could do if a dozen or dozens of people were accidentally injured.

"Free to shoot arrows!" A Ming army general wearing armor raised his sword high and shouted.

"Whizzing……"

Not too densely packed, but quite accurate, the arrows flew out instantly, drawing black lines in the air, pointing directly at the White Lotus rebel soldiers who dared to climb the camp with hooks and bamboo ladders.

Since these Ming army archers and crossbowmen were left on the camp wall, they were naturally accurate. Their accuracy was extremely high. They could shoot at these pseudo-fixed targets at close range (they could only move up and down on ropes or ladders). ), almost one out of every three arrows could hit the target and take away the life of a rebel soldier.

During this period, Pingjiang Bo Chen Xuan, who was in charge of the command, also mobilized part of the reserve team. Hundreds of Ming soldiers rushed up to the camp wall with spears and axes, and slashed at the White Lotus soldiers who dared to climb up. poke.

"Pfft, pfft!"

Blood splattered everywhere, and screams broke out one after another.

"Charge up! Be the first to claim the reward of one thousand guan!" The leader of the White Lotus Sect rebels, who was mixed in with the strong men, raised his sword high and shouted loudly.

There must be brave men under the heavy reward, and the other hidden White Lotus rebels immediately responded. They organized groups of people according to their respective gang affiliations and closeness, trying to resist the arrows that were shooting at them, risking their lives. The Ming army's long pole weapons were used to attack the camp wall and open up the situation.

After all, the Ming army's camp walls were really not that high, and they looked really full of hope.

However, although these green forest heroes in the White Lotus Sect rebels are brave and good at fighting, they lack basic protective equipment. Even a round shield is considered good, and the armor coverage rate is basically zero. Moreover, because these rebels are basically newly recruited, They all fought independently according to the groups before joining the group, and there was no unified command at all.

Due to the lack of sufficient equipment and perfect organization, the White Lotus rebels who attempted to ascend the base did not persist for long. They only charged a few waves and soon fell into despair and collapse.

"Retreat! Retreat quickly! Go back and ask the leader for instructions!" The leader of the White Lotus Sect rebels shouted at the top of his lungs.

Although they tried desperately to attack and get on the base, they faced the blows of crossbows on the walls of the Ming army camp and failed many times. If they continued, they would inevitably be destroyed.

Soon, these White Lotus Sect rebels hiding in the ranks of the strong men began to retreat backwards, trying to leave the battlefield and return to the rear to join the White Lotus Sect's front army.

It seems that they have a chance. After all, the artillery fire has extended forward (for the Ming army artillery) to the front of the "concave"-shaped camp. These White Lotus rebels who poured into the camp, after a slight detour, were separated from the artillery fire and the Ming army. It is possible to pass through the gap between the left and right wings.

Unfortunately, it's too late.

Just when they, the defeated remnants of the army, retreated to the scorched earth hit by the shells just now.

"put!"

The hundred households of the Ming army who were in charge of the twenty-four crossbows on the front camp wall shouted loudly.

"咻咻咻咻咻..."

Rows of arrows as thick as a child's arm, no, short spears are more appropriate to describe them. These short spears pierced the air and fired in the direction of the White Lotus rebels. In an instant, screams and wails resounded throughout the countryside. People kept being crucified on the spot.

In this era of alternating hot and cold weapons, the power of the bed crossbow is still huge. It penetrates the human body like a skewer of candied haws. It can often tie two or three White Lotus rebels together, or disembowel someone. It was nailed directly to the ground with huge inertia.

Intercepted by the crossbows on the wall of the Ming army camp, the defeated remnants of the army were about to be annihilated, and they ran out desperately.

"Stop them! Don't let the enemy escape!" Upon seeing this, the Ming army general at the top of the city hurriedly ordered.

The sound of rows of bowstrings being pulled was heard, and arrows poured out like raindrops, falling overwhelmingly on the backs of the rebels.

The crossbowmen, crossbowmen, and archers on the front of the camp wall temporarily gave up supporting the relatively stable left and right wing fronts, and began to strangle the defeated soldiers who had retreated from the Ming army's front camp.

"Puff puff puff~!"

Under the frightened eyes of the remnants of the White Lotus Religion, their companions fell to the ground one after another and died. In a short period of time, nearly a thousand White Lotus Religion soldiers who had infiltrated into the ranks of the strong men, there were still six or seven hundred people when they withdrew, and they were surrounded by After the arrows were fired, less than half of the people were left.

"It's over. It's over!" The leader of the White Lotus Sect, who was leading the team, couldn't help but tremble in his legs, his face full of shock, fear and confusion.

However, at this moment, almost invariably, the generals on both sides who were watching and commanding became nervous.

"Who gave the order to kill? He deserves to be killed!"

Chen Xuan, who was arranging the army, was furious. The remaining defeated soldiers of the White Lotus Sect were originally insignificant to the overall situation of the battlefield. He only needed to maintain the two wings of the Crane Wing Formation, and then appease the strong men who were driven into the camp, and then Throw out your cards, this battle will be a complete victory, a great victory!

And it was a perfect victory that not only saved the hostages but also killed all the gangsters!

However, with the greedy behavior of the Ming army generals at the top of the city, the long-distance projection of combat power originally used to support the two wings of the city suddenly became useless.

This is fatal!

The battlefield situation is changing rapidly, and the competition is who makes fewer mistakes. Although this mistake is small, if the opponent catches it, it will be fatal!

The Ming army will be forced to use its reserves in advance.

But this is just like playing cards between two parties. The person who throws out the big card first, if he can't make a move and loses his trump card, he will be connected to death!

The White Lotus Rear Army, Bai Tianyu, who was setting up a tent to observe the situation on the battlefield, was overjoyed.

The Ming army actually made a mistake on its own initiative, so he didn't have to wait for Zhang Long's troops of the Qinglong Gang to launch an attack in the direction of Shuizhai.

There is another consideration here, that is, whether the Ming army is divided into separate forces or not to defend the water stronghold, it is cost-effective for the White Lotus rebels who have more frontal forces.

The Ming army divided its troops, so there were fewer troops on the front battlefield; the Ming army did not divide its troops, so Zhang Long could easily succeed, and then landed in a roundabout way, sweeping the Ming army's rear and establishing a victory.

"No wait!"

Tian Tianyu made a prompt decision.

"Immediately ordered the heavy infantry to charge towards the Ming Army's gunnery line facing our left wing (the right wing from the Ming Army's perspective) to conduct frontal containment and cover the friendly forces' attack."

"Here!" The ordering soldier took the order and left.

Then, Tian Tianyu looked at a Japanese samurai riding a Mongolian pony next to him and said on the horse.

"The cavalry is preparing to attack."

This Japanese samurai wears Japanese armor, carries a big bow on his back, holds a spear in his hand, and hangs two uneven samurai swords on his waist. He is originally a very majestic dress, but with his short height and The Mongolian pony, which is no taller than a person, looks a bit funny.

However, at this moment, Bai Tianyu did not mean to despise the other party. Instead, he dismounted, solemnly bowed to the Japanese samurai at a ninety-degree angle, and said:

"Whether you can break the formation in one fell swoop is up to Ogasawara-dono!"

Ogasawara pulled down his visor and said solemnly.

"Please rest assured, sir, I will do my best!"

"Um!"

Tian Tianyu nodded, then got on his horse and continued to direct the battle.

At the same time, groups of armored subordinates have gathered towards Ogasawara from all sides. Among them are more than a dozen Japanese samurai, most of whom are Akito. They were recruited by Bai Tianyu and are among the few who know how to fight cavalry. .

Ogasawara nodded in response with a very solemn expression. At the same time, he drew his katana and pointed forward. He said in Chinese with a strong Japanese accent: "Get ready for battle!"

After hearing the words of the cavalry captain, the White Lotus Sect reluctantly pieced together a hundred cavalry, using Ogasawara as arrows, and formed several neat formations, ready to follow him and charge towards the Ming army's position at any time.

Originally, on the left-wing front, the White Lotus rebels did not continue to invest more troops, and the situation was not optimistic.

The masters and helmsmen of the White Lotus Church who were in charge of the command were all anxious. In their opinion, the Ming army's three-stage attack looked just like that, but the fire rope blunderbuss fired faster than the fire blunderbuss in Muying's era. Therefore, the Ming army The army's phalanx of firecrackers almost never stopped firing lead bullets.

Just when he was considering whether to ask the leader for reinforcements, Bai Tianyu's support arrived.

Hundreds of armored heavy infantry carrying simple oars and shields arrived on the left wing.

Although the White Lotus Sect is known as "heavy infantry", in fact, most of them only wear a layer of leather armor, and there are very few iron armors, let alone piercing armor and bright light armor.

Moreover, the "oar shield" in their hands is nothing more than a double-layered door panel and a wet quilt. Of course, the door panels are all made of wood, and it is not a good wood.

But even so, their momentum is enough to intimidate people.

This group of heavy infantry was like an invincible iron tower formation, standing in front of the White Lotus Sect's left-wing position.

Of course, these heavy infantry are not in the true sense. They are like berserkers like the Jinmen and Mongols who rush in and kill all directions. These heavy infantry are positioned as "defensive" heavy infantry and can only be said to be more advanced cannon fodder. .

However, even if it was just cannon fodder, it still blocked the lead bullets from the Ming army's right wing (the left wing of the White Lotus Sect), which was frantically suppressed, and greatly reduced the losses of the White Lotus Sect's left wing.

Seeing this, the leaders of the White Lotus Church who were originally hesitant immediately became excited: there is help!

The heavy infantry of the White Lotus Sect held up the huge door panel, while the rest of the soldiers huddled behind the heavy door panel and slowly advanced. The lead bullets hit the double door panel wrapped in wet quilts, which could cause damage at a distance of seventy steps. Penetrates, but the killing effect is not significant.

At the end of the strong crossbow, it is difficult to penetrate Lu's silk.

"Puff puff!"

Debris of cotton and wood were flying. As the distance got closer, more and more White Lotus heavy infantry were punched through the door panels, and the casualties were also increasing. However, these believers who had been brainwashed by Bai Tianyu showed an astonishing performance. of willpower.

They chanted "No birth mother, empty hometown", closed their eyes and rushed forward, blocking the dense firecrackers and lead bullets of the Ming army at the periphery.

At the same time, as the distance between the two sides got closer, the archers of the White Lotus Sect also gained more shooting distance, and a large number of arrows flew over to suppress the Ming army.

"Kill!"

Seeing that there were only the last thirty steps left to charge, a leader of the White Lotus Rebellion Hall who was born in the green forest suddenly became fierce. He roared, raised his knife and charged forward. Seeing this, the hundreds of White Lotus soldiers beside him also shouted. It was Aoao who followed up, trying to help the hall master overcome the interception of the Ming army's firepower.

However, as soon as they broke away from the protection of the big shield and rushed forward, they were hit head-on by the Ming army's gunners. For a moment, blood flashed, and corpses lay scattered on the ground.

The Ming army used an improved version of Jiang Xinghuo's "three-stage strike" tactic, which was considered a rudimentary tactic for line infantry. It was shooting in turns. It's not that it couldn't fire a salvo like in modern military movies. For example, the first row squatted low, and the second row The second row was the third row standing completely, but in the era of matchlocks and muskets, this tactic was not a good one. When shooting, it was easy to damage the collarbones of the soldiers in the rear row or the hands or arms of the soldiers in the second row.

Therefore, the most common method of fighting is still used, which is the row-by-row shooting method. However, due to the increased shooting speed of matchlocks, three rows of soldiers (actually six rows of soldiers changing formations) can basically Maintain the front line to provide a continuous barrage of firepower.

The leader of the White Lotus Church gritted his teeth and cursed angrily: "Your grandma's smart dog, I'm going to kill you all!"

"Whoosh whoosh..."

While he was talking, a lead bullet suddenly flew from the front.

"Be careful!" the brother beside him yelled in horror.

However, the reminder was still a little late.

"Bang!" The lead bullet exploded on the head of the White Lotus Church leader, a cloud of blood mist rose up, and then a bright red liquid spurted out from the head of the White Lotus Church rebel leader.

Zhu Yong put down the smoking matchgun in his hand and shook his head.

"Originally, the shot was aimed at the lower abdomen. Even after thirty steps, it was ridiculously crooked."

It was true that the gun shot was the first, but the reinforcements sent by the White Lotus Sect to the left wing were not all such reckless men. They relied on the oars and shields to resist. Although the oars and shields were basically broken by the end of the fight, they Still succeeded in shortening the distance to the Ming army's line to twenty steps.

The long-range projection on the camp wall is simply a drop in the bucket and does not help.

The more than 1,600 people on the right wing of the Ming army are in danger!

——————

On the commander's platform, due to the high cushions and good visibility, most people could see through the smoke of the battlefield that the White Lotus rebels were almost desperate to throw their troops into the right wing of the Ming army (the left wing of the White Lotus), and completed the distance As they approached, the Ming army's fire gunnery line was about to become unsustainable.

Yes, all or nothing! Although the quality of the White Lotus soldiers is not worth mentioning, at present, the opponent has used all the reserves that were originally in their hands, and nearly 8,000 people pounced on the right wing of the Ming army, which had less than 2,000 people!

Pingjiang Bo Chen Xuan, who was in charge of commanding the battlefield, looked at Zhu Gaoxu, who had been preparing for a long time, and the reserve team of 800 fire gun soldiers left by Jiang Xinghuo in the camp.

Jiang Xinghuo never interfered with Chen Xuan's command from beginning to end, but at this critical moment, which could even be said to determine whether it was a complete victory or not, Jiang Xinghuo had to ask for his opinion.

Yes, in Chen Xuan's view, with the quality of the Ming army, even if one wing is cut off, there is a high probability that they will not be defeated, but will pay a certain price in hand-to-hand combat to defeat these rebels.

After all, the opponent has thrown all its reserves up, and the Ming army still has four hundred households of heavy cavalry and eight hundred households of fire rifles, which is enough to defeat the opponent, but the victory will not be so beautiful.

"National Division?"

All the generals on the handsome stage looked at Jiang Xinghuo. At this moment, everyone's palms were almost sweating.

Tang Yin looked at the calm and unhurried Imperial Master of the Ming Dynasty. Just thinking about what kind of pressure he would face if he were in his shoes, he was already a little breathless.

But Jiang Xinghuo just raised his head and looked at the sky. Of course he was not in a daze, but looking at the flags of the hot air balloons in the sky.

"Uncle Ping Jiang, you can issue the order for a general attack, but my suggestion is to wait for another ten seconds or so. If the Eagle Guard has information, it will be safer." Jiang Xinghuo said.

On the handsome stage, there was a dead silence.

This short time has passed so long now.

Until Chen Xuan couldn't help but give the order, the hot air balloon overlooking the battlefield finally slid down along the traction rope, and a bag contained a timely drawing of the battlefield diagram, and also gave a semaphore.

Across the huge battlefield, the hot air balloon relied on its height advantage to capture an important piece of information that the ground commander could not see.

——The only small-scale cavalry of the White Lotus Sect has been dispatched, and is trying to use detours to outflank the Ming army's right wing, which has become extremely weak due to the overstretched battle line.

Jiang Xinghuo and Chen Xuan looked at each other and smiled, and Chen Xuan pulled Jiang Xinghuo to him in tacit understanding.

Jiang Xinghuo did not hesitate and pulled out the long knife in his hand.

"Generals, listen to the order, break the formation and kill the thieves!"

"The general is mighty!"

"The Ming army is victorious!"

As soon as the words fell, a roar like a mountain roar and a tsunami sounded. Seeing the friendly forces fighting on the front line, the two reserve teams of the Ming Army, which had been suppressed for a long time, finally got the opportunity and began to act quickly like wild beasts emerging from their cages.

The reserves of the Ming Army were like a tide, rushing from the commander's platform to the right side of the Ming Army's camp.

——————

On the battlefield on the right wing of the Ming Army, the Ming Army's gunners, whose lines were extremely long, had reached their darkest moment.

The enemies all over the mountains and plains were like endless ants, swarming towards them in a dark mass.

The distance was no longer enough for them to continue firing lead bullets. They could only mount their blunderbuss and form a tight queue. With the assistance of the sword and shield men on both sides of each square formation who were responsible for holding down and protecting the formation, they started melee combat with the enemy.

Of course, hand-to-hand combat does not mean the defeat of the Ming army.

Quite the opposite!

They are the Ming army, the invincible Ming army!

Even without the long-range strike capability of the Fire Gun, in terms of fighting will, tactical coordination, and hand-to-hand combat skills and tactics, they are still far stronger than the improvised rebels on the opposite side!

"Kill!"

With a deafening roar, the two sides intertwined.

Blood splashed out from the bodies of soldiers on both sides and scattered all over the ground, making the already cruel battlefield even more bloody and terrifying...

"Pfft——"

Accompanied by the muffled sound of sharp weapons piercing the skin, several gunmen at the front of the Ming army's right wing phalanx fell.

Looking at his fallen brother, Xiaoqi, the leader, shouted: "Thrust!"

Hearing this, the other fire gun soldiers raised their fire guns one after another. The gun blades formed a steel forest that shone with cold light. They followed the commander and formed a neat formation to attack the enemy.

Facts have proved that even if the distance is reduced to hand-to-hand combat, and even if the strength of the troops is very different, under the Ming army's meticulous organization and fierce offensive, the rebels on the opposite side still cannot stop it.

It was clear that fewer people were beating more people, but one after another the rebels fell in a pool of blood.

Often, to kill a Ming soldier, the White Lotus rebels would have to pay the price of eighty, nine or even ten people.

This is the final result brought about by the combination of differences in armor, training, discipline, physical fitness, skills and many other factors.

The entire land seemed to be dyed red with blood, and the thick blood almost gathered into a stream, winding along the battle line.

Tragic, too tragic.

Even the air seemed to be filled with a strong smell of blood.

At this time, just as the right wing of the Ming army withstood the pressure by relying on hand-to-hand combat, the left wing of the Ming army also began to switch from defense to offense to support the friendly forces because the enemy's main attack direction was determined.

There was a rapid sound of horse hoofbeats, and several officials from the Ming Army looked back at the sound.

I saw smoke billowing in the distance, and more than a hundred horses galloping towards them. On the horses were cavalry wearing armor and carrying bows at their waists.

The leader was short in stature but extremely strong. He wore a round helmet and silver-gray mail. He wore a golden gong on his chest as a breastplate. He took out a big bow and raised his hand, but his aim was extremely high. , directly shot a Ming soldier Baihu.

After seeing a good start, Ogasawara held a spear in his hand, raised one arm above his head, and shouted:

"Onboard——"

The dozen or so Japanese samurai behind them also began to beat the horses vigorously, and then started to scream wildly. The people in the White Lotus Sect behind were also greatly encouraged.

The spears and sabers in their hands bent one after another as the pony accelerated, and were held between their wrists and elbows to form the most stable force arm.

These people quietly and extremely patiently bypassed most of the battlefield and returned to the side and rear of the Ming army's right wing. Like a dangerous snake, they lurked in the grass for a long time, finally waiting for an enemy to relax their vigilance and attack. There was no chance of a fatal blow, so he pounced forward with a message in his mouth!

In fact, it was precisely because the battle line was extremely tight that half of the scout cavalry on the right wing of the Ming army had to be sent into the battle line to act as an obstacle, while the remaining half was scattered throughout the long battle line, and even served as Due to the role of the communication troops, there was no time to assemble for a counterattack!

Looking at the cavalry getting closer and closer, the commanders of the Ming army's right wing looked extremely ugly.

They all know how much harm this cavalry, which is nothing at all in normal times, can cause at this time!

The timing these guys found was terrible. Once they rushed into the battle group, the Ming army under their control would be attacked from both front and back, and they would definitely not be able to hold on for long!

but……

It's too late to retreat now.

Seeing the White Lotus cavalry rushing from behind the Ming army, the rebels' cheers resounded through the sky, and their morale also skyrocketed with the arrival of these people.

The formation that had been scattered by the Ming army reorganized and became more and more stable, gradually forcing the counter-charging Ming army back and pushing it much closer.

Just when everyone thought that the balance of victory began to tilt towards the White Lotus rebels, and even Bai Tianyu's face showed a long-lost smile, suddenly, the earth began to tremble.

The camp gate behind the right wing of the Ming army opened wide, and hundreds of heavily armored cavalry appeared on the battlefield in neat lines.

The cavalry came suddenly like thunder.

PS: [Important reminder (there is no charge for this content)] Chapters 316 to 356 are about the rectification of officialdom and the suppression of rebellions in Jiangnan. They do not contain any theoretical knowledge. They are all practical content. If you are not interested, you can jump directly to Chapter 366. "Class" will contain theoretical knowledge content from now on.