Back to the end of the Ming Dynasty when the emperor

Chapter 493 Forced to cross the Yellow River (3)

Under the command of He Zhaoxiong, the Iron-armed Canglong, [-] warriors boarded [-] small warships one after another. Of course, some of the small boats still had some tools they needed, such as awls and chisels.

There are six people on each warship, one in charge, one at the helm, and two sailors on each side of the other four, but all six of them are military combatants.

He Zhaoxiong, Li Quan and Liu Liuchunhong boarded a slightly larger command ship.

Their [-] small warships had special missions, and Zhu Yousong gave them two hours, or four hours.

Four hours later, a large number of soldiers of the Ming army in the second echelon formed a mixed formation consisting of sailors and cavalry on the shore, that is, the real crossing of the Yellow River began!

Two hundred small warships lined up in the shape of wild goose wings and rushed towards the opposite bank.The four sailors on each boat rowed desperately, the water hit the sides of the boat, and the boat pressed the water waves, and drove towards the other side of the river.

Zhu Yousong immediately rode to the bank of the river, watching the two hundred small warships gradually go away and become smaller.

"Start to board the ship!" Zhu Yousong gave an order, and the 1000 navy had prepared more than 300 large and small warships, including more than 4 large troop carriers. In addition to the 300 navy, Zhu Yousong had [-] people were sent on these more than [-] large ships.

That is to say, Zhu Yousong crossed the Yellow River this time, except for more than 1000 death squads, the Ming army dispatched a total of 10 horses, including [-] sailors, [-] infantry and cavalry.

Half an hour later, all 10 people boarded the ship.

Later, Zhu Yousong boarded a large command ship with his men and horses, and Ma Jinhua, He Xuanjiao, Huiying, Huimei, Zhang Nai and Xiaoliu followed closely.

There were also 100 Musketeers battalion commanded by Zhao Fu on the big ship, and more than [-] elites from Jin Yiwei, plus the accompanying sailors and armored soldiers, there will be more than a thousand soldiers escorting the big ship.

There are more than 4 horses on the river bank, including thousands of sailors, and more than 300 large and small warships. The main task of these 4 people is to guard the camp of the Ming army and take care of Zhu Yousong and the others, in case of emergency. one.

Zhu Yousong's men and horses had just boarded the big ship when suddenly there was a rumbling sound of artillery from the other side of the river.

Zhu Yousong knew that the 1000 small warships in the first echelon, more than [-] death squads and the Dashun Army had already received fire.

Zhu Yousong delivered an order that all ships should leave in two hours.

His eyes turned temporarily to the two hundred small warships commanded by He Zhaoxiong.

They didn't know how long it took them to charge forward on the turbulent river, and they could vaguely see the ships of the Dashun Army on the other side of the river.

"Change clothes!"

He Zhaoxiong gave an order, and more than 1200 warriors, including Li Quan and Liu Chunhong, all took off their outer armor and put them on the boat, revealing all sailor uniforms. Another knife or a sword, all ready.

On the other side of the river, the warships of the company and battalion of the Dashun Army could be seen more clearly.

He Zhaoxiong sent an order to speed up and be vigilant.

At this time, He Zhaoxiong and the others were only about four miles away from the other bank of the Yellow River, and the Dashun Army on the south bank of the Yellow River had already noticed them.

Li Zicheng, Niu Jinxing and Song Xiance also watched this group of small warships.

The tens of thousands of Dashun troops on the shore were all assembled on standby, all the sailors were on the warships, and more than 40 cannons had already aimed at the small warships in the middle of the river. Li Zicheng brought Niu Jinxing and Song Xiance to the scene to command.

"Your Majesty, shall you fire the cannon?" He had already entered the range of the cannon, and this was the second time that Wang Shun, the commander of the artillery battalion under Li Zicheng, had asked for an order.

Li Zicheng wanted to bring the enemy closer so as not to waste ammunition.In addition, he wondered why Zhu Yousong only sent some small boats. Obviously, this was a tentative crossing of the Yellow River. Could it be that he wanted to test our firepower?Or a feint attack to consume our ammunition, wait until our ammunition is almost exhausted, and then they launch a storm?

Therefore, Li Zicheng did not give the order for a long time. He watched the movement of the river with a single-tube telescope from a high place.

This advanced gadget was captured by the enemy in battle, and it can clearly see the situation within a few miles.

He had a panoramic view of the [-] small warships in the river and the thousand or so people on board.

There was no artillery fire on board, not even bows and arrows. These people only had swords in their hands. This group of sailors obviously came to be beaten?

Isn't it a joke that so few people want to cross the Yellow River by force?You underestimated me, Li Zicheng. A cannon shot could sink them all. Why did they come to die?
Li Zicheng felt that it was not that simple. After discussing with Niu Jinxing and Song Xiance, he believed that these small warships must have a specific purpose, and they should not be allowed to approach the river bank and navy warships.

By visual inspection, it was only three miles away from them.

"Fire, aim carefully, and don't waste ammunition!" Li Ziguo ordered decisively.

After Wang Shun got the order, he sent an order to the soldiers of the artillery battalion, and only ordered twenty of the cannons to fire.

"Boom, boom, boom, boom, boom—"

The roar of the twenty cannons was absolutely earth-shattering in that era. The shells flew out of the barrels and flew accurately towards the small boats.

Some fell on the boat and exploded, and the boat and the Ming soldiers on board turned into a ball of fire and flew into the sky.

Some fell into the river between the two small boats, which caused waves several meters high and overturned both small boats. The Ming soldiers on board were blown up and fell into the river.

The general of the Dashun army on the shore saw this scene, and felt that there was a breath of anger in his chest. Since crossing the river and starting a war with the army commanded by Zhu Yousong himself, they have lost all battles these days, and they have held their breath for too long. .The soldiers of the Dashun Army Artillery Battalion were even more pleased.

Twenty red-clothed cannons roared for more than ten minutes. The artillery fire and the smoke and water dispersed. The small warships on the water were all destroyed and sunk. The warships turned into broken boards and floated in the river. Only a few The warship was hit and turned over, mouth down and bottom up, drifting with the current.

Li Zicheng borrowed a single-tube telescope to see this scene clearly.

What the rest of the Dashun Army soldiers could see with their naked eyes was that all the more than 200 warships of the Ming Army in the river were blown up and disappeared.

"Your Majesty, according to your order, all the enemy ships were sunk, and we only used less than [-]% of the ammunition." Wang Shun, the commander of the artillery battalion, reported excitedly.

Although Li Zicheng felt comforted in his heart, he still didn't put down his long binoculars.

Did these 1000 small warships and more than [-] generals of the Ming Dynasty disappear like this?This is definitely not Zhu Yousong's style.

Li Zicheng was still staring at the vast river, but there was nothing unusual on the river except for a few upturned boats and countless pieces of wood from the wrecked boats, which were quickly swept away by the surging water of the Yellow River. .

What is the meaning of this stupid gentleman?Li Zicheng was puzzled. After several defeats in a row, this outstanding general of the peasant army, who was legendary by later generations, no longer dared to underestimate Zhu Yousong, a peerless and rare opponent.

Through the single-tube telescope, on the other side of the vast Yellow River, the navy and warships of the Ming army remained silent, which made Li Zicheng and others even more puzzled.

(End of this chapter)