Crazy at the end of the Ming Dynasty

When dozens of dirt roads were laid on the Huiji River, the soldiers of the Runing Army began to cross the river in order.But the total number of people crossing the river was not many, only more than 3000 people. They formed three thousand-man square teams to cover the large troops crossing the river.However, the Peasant Army did not find out that the number of gunners in the three thousand-man square teams exceeded [-]%. It was obvious that these were four thousand-man square teams that had strengthened their long-range firepower.

However, the Runing Army seemed to have insufficient firepower, and then they drove dozens of artillery vehicles and swarms of chariots across the river.The Runing Army placed artillery carts and swarms of chariots on both sides and in the gaps between the three thousand-man squares to strengthen firepower and guard against the cavalry of the Peasant Army.

"How did Butcher Wu train his soldiers? It's very difficult for cavalry to rush in in such a formation!" Tian Jianxiu couldn't help sighing when he saw the well-organized formation of the Runing Army.

"No matter what, I have to rush again and say it again. Hey!" He Yaoqi also sighed.

Then He Yaoqi summoned the leader of the cavalry and ordered: "Lead a thousand people to charge, don't force it. If it works, other people will go forward and smash the official dog who crossed the river. If you can't go in, then go ahead. Retreat to the back. Be careful! Don't cause too many casualties."

"Yes!"

……

Half an hour later, He Yaoqi looked at the corpses of more than 300 men and horses in front of the Runing army, his face was quite ugly.He frowned, and sighed again: "Hey! Let the cavalry retreat! Step forward, get behind the earthen wall, and get ready to fight!"

Seeing that the cavalry of the Peasant Army retreated, the Runing Army accelerated the speed of crossing the river.However, the first to cross the river is still dominated by chariots.Soon, four or five formations consisting of three gun carriages and seven chariots began to charge forward under the lead of the horses.

These chariot groups drove a hundred paces away from the peasant army's earthen wall and stopped advancing.They all lined up and began to bombard the earthen wall with the one-pound cannon they had been carrying.Of course, such a small-power artillery can't break down those earthen walls.But it can also cause some damage to the earth wall, and the peasant army soldiers hiding behind the earth wall also suffered some casualties.

Encountered such a passive beating, the peasant army behind the earth wall must not be able to bear it.The artillery they erected behind the earthen wall also started firing, and the firecrackers, bows and arrows also flew towards the chariots in unison.

The artillery of the Peasant Army is filled with shotguns.The artillery brought by He Yaoqi and Tian Jianxiu this time did not have heavy artillery, and those heavy artillery were all set up in Kaifeng City.

At that time, there were two types of artillery used by the Ming army: one was the use of heavy artillery, which was generally used in tough battles; the other was small artillery, which was basically used in field battles.

And because the guns at that time had a short range, they fired solid bullets.It is even more inconvenient to move, so in the long-term battle with the Mongolian cavalry, the Ming army found that the shooting effect of solid bullets was not good.On the contrary, it is shotgun, which can exert great power in close combat.Therefore, in the Ming army, there is a jingle in the description of the power of artillery-melee combat is a god, and long-distance combat is a bastard.So the Ming army used small artillery.They are all loaded with shotguns and wait for the enemy to approach before firing.

And this tactic was obviously inherited by the Qing army and the peasant army.So although there is artillery counterattack.But those shotguns and muskets and bows.None of them could harm the Runing army chariot a hundred paces away.

Seeing that the long-range firepower of the Peasant Army was not threatening, the chariots of the Runing Army started to move forward again, and stopped firing again when they reached about eighty paces.However, the Peasant Army did not notice that the earth wall that the Runing Army shot this time was not in the original position, and they deliberately shot at places that they did not hit before.

"Stop, stop, stop!"

The officers directing the artillery, muskets, and bows of the Peasant Army roared loudly.They punched and kicked those soldiers.He also yelled loudly: "There is no order, who told you to shoot? The firecrackers, bows and arrows all stop, and the artillery is loaded with solid ammunition. Destroy those carts!"

However, the artillery and gunner skills of the Peasant Army are indeed backward.After they opened fire, the artillery vehicles of the Runing Army fired two or three rounds.But this time the peasant army's shooting had an effect. Two chariots were broken up one after another, and the horses of several chariots were killed one after another.Although the results of the battle were not great, the chariots of the Runing army also began to retreat. Some of them packed up the dead and wounded comrades, some cut off the reins and pushed the chariots with manpower, and gradually retreated to the main formation. .

He Yaoqi and Tian Jianxiu both heaved a sigh of relief when they saw the Runing Army chariot being driven back.Tian Jianxiu went on to say: "Old He! Next time Butcher Wu's cart comes up again, let's use the cavalry to charge. It would be good to overturn a few carts."

But He Yaoqi shook his head, and said: "By the time our cavalry went out, Butcher Wu and the others had already retreated. Why not save it as a trump card. Besides, the firearms behind them are so close to the cart , the cavalry will not fare well when they go out.”

"Then what should we do? Are we being suppressed and beaten by them?" Tian Jianxiu asked again.

"That's all I have to do, and it's ugly and popular. With the wall as cover, the casualties of the sons and daughters are actually not that big. Besides, the cart is also heavy, and it can't pass the ditches and earthen walls. Wait for Butcher Wu's soldiers to fill the ditches, When attacking the wall, our troops can show their power."

Hearing what He Yaoqi said, Tian Jianxiu also nodded in agreement.But no one in the Peasant Army found out that a group of officers from the Runing Army were hiding in the main formation, recording the firepower points behind the earthen walls.

Soon, the officer who synthesized the recorded data sent the sketch to the artillery commander, and the artillery commander commanded the artillery team to divide into two groups. One group of three-pound artillery crossed the river, and the other group of six-pound artillery was dragged to the river. The riverside on the south bank was set up, and with the sound of the commander's trumpet, all the artillery loaded with shells were fired towards the artillery fire point of the first peasant army.

"Boom boom boom!" Thirty rounds of large and small artillery shells flew towards the firepower point, immediately blasting a hole in the earth wall there, and blasting a cannon behind the earth wall.Then, the artillery that hit the target stepped up to reload the ammunition, and the shooting deviation began to aim and correct. With the second round of shelling, two more artillery pieces of the Peasant Army were damaged.

After another round of shelling, seeing that this firepower point had been pulled out, all the artillery began to turn their muzzles, ready to pull out the second firepower point of the Peasant Army...

The Peasant Army was not to be outdone, and began to fight back, but their artillery range was far inferior to that of the Runing Army, and they were only passively beaten.Seeing that it was difficult to resist, the gunners of the Peasant Army could only withstand the artillery fire and struggled to drag their artillery away from the earthen wall. (To be continued..)