Saving the Ming Dynasty: I can exchange bodies with Chongzhen

Chapter 107: Early General Offensive
"Is it... is it the Ming army?"

When Beile Dudu saw the Ming army opposite, the heaven and earth suddenly shook.

"Boom boom boom~~"

Accompanied by loud noises, huge artillery shells whizzed towards the Qing soldiers.

The Yongwei Camp and the Jing Camp were still three miles away from here, but the artillery shells hit them directly, knocking over countless Qing cavalry.

"Boom boom boom..."

Another round of volleys, the sound of artillery rolled like thunder and plowed the ground, shooting into the most densely packed camp of the Qing Dynasty.

Du Du was so frightened that he looked at the familiar scene and suddenly realized, "It's them, it's definitely them..."

The same dense artillery, the same tricolor cavalry, needless to say there must be musketeers.

He jumped off his horse, lay on the ground, and shouted to his guards: "Quick, blow the horn, retreat!"

"My Lord, Prince Rui ordered us to hold out here for at least two days and two nights. It's only been one day... Prince Rui will blame us then."

Dudu slapped him in the face, "Are you the Beile or am I the Beile?"

"withdraw!"

The soldier could only blow the horn. The Manchu Tartars' horn sounded wailing, interweaving with the fire of hundreds of cannons.

……

The Tianxiong Army led by Lu Xiangsheng had already fallen into a desperate situation, when they were suddenly deafened by the roar of hundreds of artillery shells. Lu Xiangsheng's horse was also startled and almost thrown off.

"Oh my god, is this how the Yongwei Camp and the Jing Camp fight?" One of Lu Xiangsheng's cousins ​​opened his mouth so wide that a mouth as big as his fist could fit in.

At this time, the Tianxiong Army could no longer express the shock in their hearts in words.

Even Lu Xiangsheng couldn't help but twitch his mouth, "I only heard from Your Majesty that the Yongwei Battalion, the Beijing Battalion, and the White Spear Soldiers won the battle, but I didn't expect them to be so fierce..."

It seemed as if the artillery fire in the distance never stopped. As soon as one round of artillery fire was completed, another round would soon follow.

“Boom! Boom!…”

In a very short period of time, hundreds of artillery shells poured into the Tatar cavalry, and wherever they passed, both men and horses were torn to pieces.

The Tianxiong Army was closest to the Manchu Tartars, so they saw it most clearly.

They watched helplessly as the Tartars, who had been so ferocious and terrifying just a moment ago, were smashed to pieces like a candied haws stick, with broken hands, legs, and heads lying on the ground...it was a horrible sight.

"Oh my god, so cruel?"

"Wow……"

Even among the battle-hardened Tianxiong Army, some people could not help but want to vomit.

……

"fire!"

The captain of the artillery battalion who was in charge of issuing the signal waved the signal flag vigorously and shouted.

As a round of shells was fired, a soldier immediately stepped forward and pulled open the breech. A soldier cleaned the barrel with a wool brush, and then another soldier held the shell and put it into the barrel.

The gunner in charge of firing checked the flintlock and prepared to fire again.

With the experience of participating in two battles, all their actions were faster and more professional than before, and they completed all preparations within a dozen seconds.

"Put it on again..."

Solid shells fell among the Qing troops, and clouds of blood mist immediately rose up.

Dust, blood, mud, minced flesh, broken limbs, and the painful wails of the Tartars rolled around.

Thanks to the powerful intelligence capabilities of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, Cao Huachun received the information as soon as the Xuanda troops and the Tatars fought, and mobilized 20,000 troops to the north to support Lu Xiangsheng.

Huang Degong looked at the Manchu Tartars who were thrown to the ground, bared his teeth and cursed: "Fuck you!"

Although he cursed, his eyes were fixed on the shells on the ground, because he knew that once the shells on the ground were used up, it would be his turn to take the field.

"Retreat, retreat quickly!"

The Manchu nobleman Dudu felt the sense of terror again at this moment. How could he muster the will to resist? He turned around, rode his horse and roared.

The cavalry under his command also had experience of fighting with the Yongwei Camp and the Jing Camp, so when they heard the horn, they urged their horses to flee in the southeast direction.

Just now, they were so majestic and arrogant when they fought against Xuanda’s army.

Now he is as desperate as a stray dog, how miserable he is.

"Beep beep..."

The horns of the Ming army sounded almost at the same time, and the cavalry of the Yongwei Camp and the Jing Camp instantly moved and began to chase the Tartars.

Lu Xiangsheng also came to his senses at this time. Looking at the Tartars fleeing, he realized what he should do now and immediately ordered the Tianxiong Army to pursue them.

"Tianxiong Army, follow me and kill to avenge our dead brothers!"

"Roar~" Although only the old, weak and sick were left in the Tianxiong Army, their actions were not vague at all. They rode their horses and charged towards the Tartars with guns in hand.

Howling, they charged forward without regard for their lives like a torrent of beasts.

……

Cao Huachun looked at the changes on the battlefield through a telescope and murmured, "Lu Xiangsheng is still good. It's just that Shanxi and Datong were the first to collapse. Otherwise, this battle would not have turned out like this."

"Wang Pu, the general of Datong?" Li Banghua frowned. "Commander-in-chief, His Majesty told us to pay attention to the troops in the direction of Datong. What do you mean?"

Cao Huachun shook his head. "Don't worry about him for now. Let's finish the battle first."

Before coming, the emperor had contacted them and asked them to be careful of the troops coming from Datong and Shanxi. The Embroidered Uniform Guard found handwritten letters between the Fan family and the generals of Shanxi and Datong from several major merchants in Shanxi.

Moreover, there is an unclear relationship between Shanxi General Wang Pu and the Shanxi Wang family. Although he is not among the nine clans, he is relatively close.

"Let the white-pole soldiers go forward and clean up the battlefield."

Qin Liangyu nodded and issued orders to the Beijing camp with the command flag.

The main forces in this battle were the Yongwei Camp and the Jing Camp, so the matters of cleaning up the battlefield were naturally left to the Yongwei Camp and the Jing Camp. As for the Baigan Soldiers, most of their main forces were distributed in an area more than ten miles to the south to prevent the Qing troops from coming to support them.

The soldiers from the Yongwei Camp and the Jing Camp entered the battlefield like a pack of wolves, lifted up the heads of the Tartars and beheaded them.

These Tatars were the fruits of the artillery and musketeer troops’ battles. All the soldiers from the three camps had a share, so no one was fighting for them. They could just chop them up with their eyes closed.

In the distance, Huang Degong, Sun Yingyuan, Ma Xianglin, Zhang Shize and others almost all stopped chasing at the same time.

They killed more than 800 Tatars and then ordered their troops to return.

Apart from the Tatars' heads, what they valued most were the Tatars' war horses. The average Tatar had two or even three horses.

Thanks to the open location, after this battle, although most of the Tatars escaped, many war horses remained.

Ten miles!

Just chase him for ten miles.

They were satisfied, but one person was not satisfied.

Lu Xiangsheng.

He looked at the Tartar going away, clenched his fingers, and couldn't help cursing: "Why did you give up like this?"

"Just let them get away?"

Sun Yingyuan smiled and shook his head, "You should save this for the commander-in-chief."

"Yes, the commander really dared to kill us for violating military orders." Huang Degong grinned and said, "You and the commander suggest fifteen miles. Next time, let us chase for fifteen miles." Zhang Shize, the last Duke of Ying, grew up in a noble family. At this moment, he also came over and said, "Governor Lu, you are so honorable. Please help me say a few words to His Majesty. We are grateful to your ancestors for eight generations."

"..." Lu Xiangsheng looked at the generals in front of him speechlessly, the corners of his mouth twitching.

It turns out that it was His Majesty who ordered the ten-mile chase. I'd better forget it then.

……

In the past, only civil officials were qualified to take on the important task of supervising the army.

Before this, Lu Xiangsheng felt very uncomfortable with the fact that Cao Huachun, a eunuch, was the commander-in-chief.

"Commander Cao!"

When Lu Xiangsheng saw Cao Huachun again, he finally called him "Commander-in-Chief".

Because if Cao Huachun had not come to his rescue, he and his Tianxiong Army would probably have been completely destroyed in this rural area.

"Governor Lu, please stand up quickly."

Lu Xiangsheng was unmoved, and said with a folded hand: "Your Majesty's order has already arrived. Once we make contact, everything will be based on the commander."

Cao Huachun took a deep breath and said, "Your Majesty has considered everything carefully. Where are the troops from Ji and Liao now?"

"I asked them to set up an ambush with Miyun's troops 20 miles to the east to prevent the Tatars from retreating northwards, but we didn't expect to run into the main force of the Qing Tatar cavalry."

Cao Huachun nodded and said, "The troops from Shandong, Denglai, and Baoding in the south have also arrived at their designated positions. The next step is the main event."

Joint operations were much more difficult than commanding the Yongwei Battalion, the Beijing Battalion, and the White Spear Soldiers.

After several battles, the three camps had already become as flexible as arms and could attack wherever they were directed.

But if other troops are added, they may not be as invincible as the three major camps.

Just look at Lu Xiangsheng and you will know. He commanded his Tianxiong Army, which was as sharp as a knife. Even when surrounded by the Manchu Tartars, it still had great combat effectiveness.

However, the troops of Datong and Shanxi collapsed at the first touch. Not only did they fail to help, but they were dragged down by them.

"Come on, get the two deputy generals from Shanxi and Datong to come over here."

When cleaning up the battlefield, in addition to the Tartars, two escaped generals were also captured. They were the two deputy generals leading the troops from Shanxi and Datong.

"Sir, please spare my life!"

"Governor Lu, you have seen that the Tartars are fierce and we have to fight them..."

Unfortunately, before they could finish their words, they suddenly stopped talking with a "puff".

The neck of Xue Decai, deputy general of Datong, was cut open for most of it. They covered their necks with their hands, but they couldn't cover the wound. Blood spurted out from the arteries, poured into the trachea, was sucked into the lungs, and then choked out, causing blood foam to spew out of their mouths.

"puff!"

With another blow, Xing Guangguo, deputy general of Shanxi, was also chopped off the neck by Lu Xiangsheng.

"Those who defect in the face of battle deserve death!" Lu Xiangsheng wiped the blood off his face and said hatefully.

What he hated most were those people who shouted loudly before the battle but became cowardly when they actually got on the battlefield.

"Governor Lu is mighty!"

"Governor Lu is mighty!"

"..."

The people who shouted the loudest came from the Yongwei Camp and the Jing Camp.

Huang Degong, Sun Yingyuan, Ma Xianglin and others were also extremely satisfied with this. They all came over and pulled Lu Xiangsheng, "Governor Lu, let's go and try the food of our three camps."

Zhang Shize also stood up and shouted: "Brothers of the Tianxiong Army, stay too."

The soldiers from the three surrounding camps also laughed. If the Tianxiong Army had not held back the Tartars, it would have been difficult for them to catch up with the Tartars in this battle.

So the Tianxiong Army deserves some credit.

As for the soldiers from the two border towns of Datong and Shanxi, they were all deserters. They wanted nothing more than to escape death. It was good enough that they were not killed.

This is the Ming army’s chain of contempt. If you are strong in combat, I will submit to you.

……

On the way to the central army kitchen, Lu Xiangsheng saw the bags carried by the soldiers from the three camps. The bags were full of things. Needless to say, they must be the heads of the Tartars.

He couldn't help but ask: "Aren't you afraid of the Tartars?"

"Why should I be afraid of them? Aren't they just carrying a head on their shoulders?" A new soldier from the Beijing camp laughed and said, "I have participated in two battles and chopped off two heads."

"You will be promoted three levels and awarded 40 taels of silver."

The soldiers beside him also laughed. "Don't be afraid of you laughing at me, Governor. At the beginning, I was also afraid. I heard that the Tartars were very powerful. But when I really got to the battlefield, I found that the Tartars were just like that. After a few rounds of artillery fire, I was scared."

"If the musketeers fire a few more rounds, they will be like donkey bladders, deflated in an instant..."

"Haha~~"

A guy who looked a bit wretched said, "I am already thirty and still haven't married. This time I killed three Tartars, not only was I promoted to a minor flag officer, but I also got sixty taels of silver. When I return, I must marry Widow Wang."

"You're just thinking about Widow Wang, right?"

"What do you know? Widow Wang has given birth to a child. Her big butt and round waist prove that she can give birth to a child. At my age now, it's not easy to marry a virgin girl. If I marry her and she can't give birth to a child, wouldn't the money I have earned through life and death be wasted?"

"Hey, you are quite calculating."

The soldiers burst into laughter again.

Lu Xiangsheng looked at the soldiers of the three camps, feeling a little dazed.

If the artillery and muskets were the previous evidence of their combat power, then the soldiers' bellicosity and courage to fight moved him even more.

When I entered the central army's kitchen, I was shocked to find that they didn't cook on the ground, but had a special... dining car.

That’s right, the dining car.

The Military Equipment Department made several dining cars for the three major camps to use, and asked them to give suggestions so that they could continue to make changes.

If the soldiers and horses are not moving, the grain and grass will go first.

"Is this coal?"

There are two big pots on top and coal burning underneath, but no black smoke is seen.

The coals are not extinguished. When needed, open the vents and the fire will burn vigorously. But when not needed, cover the vents and the fire will immediately subside.

There were two horse-drawn carts behind, pulling coal.

It can ensure that the stove will not go out, and you can light a fire and cook at any time, which greatly reduces the preparation time for meals.

"Don't be jealous." Cao Huachun came over and said with a smile, "It's just a trial production now. After a few days, it will be promoted on a large scale. By then, Xuanda should be able to use it too."

"Give Governor Lu a bowl. Come, try our central army's big pot rice."

"Lord Lu, you are here too?" Miyun Governor Wu Aheng and two deputy generals of Ji Liao also arrived.

They came all the way here, and they were all shocked beyond words. "General Cao... won another battle?"

"According to the Jinyiwei, Huang Taiji sent Haoge to lead 30,000 cavalry to support us from the north, so we have to launch a general attack in advance!"

The soldiers gathered together and were about to attack one family.

Cao Huachun directly called several governors nearby, and the Jinyiwei were responsible for delivering messages to the rest.

(End of this chapter)