Guide to traveling through the Northern Song Dynasty

There is a Lujiao Town by Dongting Lake, seventy or eighty miles southwest of Yueyang.

Going south from Lujiao Town for more than thirty miles, there are nearly 200 large and small pottery workshops. Not counting laborers such as transporters, there were four to five thousand craftsmen directly involved in pottery making.

This is the largest handicraft industry base in the Dongting Lake area.

At the same time, Lujiao Town also strangled the throat from Dongting Lake to the Xiangjiang River!

The water between the two "antlers" is also a natural and excellent military port, and one-fifth of Zhong Xiang's navy is stationed here.

Since last year, "antler pottery" cannot be shipped out of the country and can only be sold within Hunan.

The same goes for other commodities, which were all embargoed by the Ming Dynasty, which dealt a heavy blow to the Puppet-Chu economy.

More than half of the nearly two hundred pottery workshops in Lujiao Town immediately stopped working, and the unemployed craftsmen were recruited into the army by Zhong Xiang.

This army was called the "Antlers Army". Although it only had a full strength of 3,000 people, its combat effectiveness was extremely terrifying. They were brainwashed by religion by Prime Minister Zhong, and at the same time they resented the Ming Dynasty's embargo, which made them unemployed and difficult to make ends meet, so they fought without their lives.

Bai Qi stood on the deck of the warship, observing Qingcao Lake south of Lujiao Town from Dongting Lake.

In the field of view of the telescope, the color of the lake water is obviously different.

The lake there is very shallow, and the water level drops in winter and spring, often exposing the grass at the bottom of the lake.

"There is not a spoonful of water on the ground, yet there is a lake named after it," Bai Qi recited Jiang Zhiqi's poem and sighed, "If the navy wants to attack, it will have to rain twice more."

Yingxuan said: "If there is an old helmsman to lead the way, the warship can still pass. But the draft cannot be too deep, otherwise the old helmsman will not be able to guarantee safety."

Yingxuan, the fake Holy Duke of Chu, said when he took refuge with Ju Ming that he would not participate in the war against Zhong Xiang.

He has been building warships for the past two years and is also responsible for training marines.

Now he took the initiative to ask for help, hoping to end this mess as soon as possible. As long as Ming Dynasty wins two games, Yingxuan will personally come forward to persuade them to surrender and try to save the lives of some old friends.

Bai Qi looked at Lujiao Town and said: "I hope Lujiao Village can surrender, otherwise it will have to rain, or simply send troops to attack from the land."

The guard of Lujiao Village was named Zhou Lun. Historically, although he surrendered to Yue Fei, he surrendered only after he was forced into desperation.

Without a good fight, this person will never surrender.

Yingxuan said: "Zhou Lun's hometown is in Dingzhou, and he joined Prime Minister Zhong's Manichaeism very early. He is Prime Minister Zhong's favorite general, how can he be persuaded to surrender so easily?"

As soon as he finished speaking, he saw a small boat in the distance, coming quickly from the direction of Lujiao Town.

The boat returned to Bai Qi's ship. A sergeant was dragged up by a rope and reported the news: "The thief general Zhou Lun learned that I was sent by the British general to persuade him to surrender, so he did not make trouble. He just... just asked me to come back to deliver a message... …”

Bai Qi asked: "What did he say?"

The sergeant lowered his head and said, "He yelled at General Ying that he was a thief who betrayed his master. He also said... He also told General Ying to wash his neck and die."

Yingxuan shook his head and smiled bitterly.

The territory newly occupied by the Ming Dynasty last year was full of Prime Minister Zhong's meticulous work, and it was impossible to conceal the mobilization of troops and materials.

Prime Minister Zhong Yi, who stayed in Changsha, quickly gathered his troops and went north, dividing his troops to station in Dingzhou (Changde), Chenyang, Yuanjiang, Xiangyin and other cities. Then he personally led the elite troops of the puppet Chu to quickly support Lujiao Village by land and water.

Wang Yuan also led tens of thousands of troops to fight here by land, and camped more than ten miles away from Lujiao Village (later northwest of Yueyang County).

"Boom!"

The beginning of the fifth lunar month.

It finally rained heavily in Dongting Lake, and the water rose little by little. Qingcao Lake was able to allow large warships to pass.

Having suffered from the rainy weather in the south in the past, gunpowder is now more carefully preserved.

Where the powder barrel is stored, first lay a layer of straw and then a layer of lime. When the lime becomes slightly damp, the straw and lime are immediately replaced.

Moreover, all the gunpowder prepared this time was placed in the cabin, so that it would not be exposed to the rain while traveling overland.

After days of heavy rain, it finally cleared up.

Zhong Yi looked at the rising water level of Qingcao Lake and couldn't help but think of last year's water war, feeling worried and anxious.

Zhou Lun suggested: "Prime Minister, the pirates have powerful firearms and it is difficult to win a water battle. Once our navy is defeated, the pirate warships will definitely bombard the water stronghold. It is better to take the initiative to go north and fight with the pirates stationed at Dongting Lake. Military decisive battle!"

Zhong Yi shook his head and said: "The bandit army is brave and they may not be able to win easily. If there is a slight mistake, Lujiao Village will fall."

Liu Heng, the Puppet Chu general, said: "After careful analysis of the news sent back, the elite of the bandit army have been taken away, and all they got in exchange are the Xiang troops of the Song Dynasty. What are the Xiang troops afraid of? Just attack them!"

"Where is the Xiang army, that is the new army reorganized by the Zhu thieves!" Zhong Yi was hesitant and deeply fearful of the Ming army. The big defeat two years ago had already left a psychological shadow on him.

Wang Yuan led tens of thousands of troops and camped more than ten miles away from Lujiao Village, waiting for the navy to come and cooperate, because most of them were new troops.

Most of the new troops were from Huainan, either bandits or Xiang soldiers running transportation.

Although when Fang Mengqing captured Huainan, they fought for more than half a year. But these were all smooth battles, and officials of the Song Dynasty always looked at the wind and surrendered. After reorganization, they went south to seize Zhejiang, still fighting a smooth battle.

This kind of troops, even if they have been trained for a long time, are directly used to fight tens of thousands of people in a battle, and the opponent is Zhong Xiang's elite. Wang Yuan really has no confidence in his heart.

Zhong Yi was unsure, so the two sides confronted each other.

The Puppet Chu general Gao Lei was impatient: "If we fight, we dare not send troops, and if we defend, we will be bombarded by warships. So why should we defend Lujiao Stronghold? It is better to abandon the stronghold and retreat to Xiangyin. The city is high and the pond is deep. We can definitely hold it!"

Zhong Yi said: "Lujiao Town is located in a strategic area, so we set up a water village. How can we give up so easily?"

"I don't dare to fight even if I fight, and I don't want to give up even if I give up. Sooner or later, I will lose the battle!" Gao Leili said bluntly, not wanting to save face for Zhong Yi.

To be honest, none of the generals like Puppet Chu were very convinced of Zhong Yi.

A man with relatively mediocre talents not only became king but also became prime minister just because he was the younger brother of Prime Minister Zhong. The internal affairs are not very good, but in the military, he still has to be the commander-in-chief.

Zhong Yi said: "Your Majesty will be back soon."

As soon as these words came out, the generals stopped talking.

When Zhong Xiangqin arrives, they will have a backbone and will definitely take the initiative.

"Dang-dang-dang!"

"The Thieving Navy Master is here!"

Zhong Yi stood up suddenly, and the generals followed him out to check the situation.

However, they saw an overwhelming number of warships coming from the north, and the Puppet Chu navy also left the port to make arrangements in the south.

The two sides are not at the same level at all, especially after the water battle last year, the strength of the Ming Navy was more than twice that of the Puppet Chu Navy.

Moreover, the ship is strong and the guns are sharp!

The Pseudo-Chu navy did not dare to attack directly. Instead, they guarded the area where the Xiangjiang River merged into Dongting Lake, trying to use the complex terrain of Qingcao Lake to launch a defensive counterattack.

At this moment, the leader of the Puppet Chu navy is Leide Jin, and his deputy is Yang Yao.

On the side of the Ming Dynasty Navy, the commander was Pang Dingzi, the deputy commander was Qiu Shanshui, and Yingxuan voluntarily gave up command. (Pang Dingzi and Qiu Shanshui were both salt lords who took refuge with Li Bao in Bazhou.)

"Boom boom boom!"

When the distance between the two sides was one mile, the Ming Navy opened fire.

Only a dozen warships were equipped with artillery. These warships used artillery to clear the way and moved forward while firing. It was completely unreasonable.

The rest of the warships followed the gunboat, preparing for the next close battle.

"It's like this again, bullying us because we don't have firearms!" Yang Yao stood on the bow of the boat, with nowhere to vent his evil fire.

The only advantage of the Pseudo-Chu navy is that it occupies a favorable location and has smooth sailing. In the era of cold weapons, these would have been enough to turn the tide of the war, but how to fight a unilateral artillery bombardment?

As the commander-in-chief of the Chu army's navy, Reid was also feeling uncomfortable: "Give me the order and prepare for a fire attack."

The terrain at the mouth of the Xiangjiang River is more complex. Not only are there islands, but there are also reeds that hide thousands of small boats filled with firewood.

As long as the Ming navy dares to come over, more than a thousand fire ships will follow the wind and the current.

However, after the Daming Navy approached Lujiao Village, they began to slowly stop advancing. The dozen or so gunboats at the front all turned around and fired wildly at Lujiao Water Village.

Although Yingxuan did not participate in the command, he also helped in the planning. After all, he was a water bandit in Dongting Lake.

Regarding this battle, Yingxuan only said one sentence from beginning to end: "Don't sail into the Xiangjiang Estuary."

Seeing that his water stronghold was being bombarded continuously and the enemy troops were not trapped, Yang Yao said anxiously: "Go and tell General Lei that I want to go out to lure the enemy!"

A small boat sailed towards Lei Jin's ship. Lei Jin thought briefly and said, "Go back and tell Yang Yao to be careful and bring fifteen boats over to lure the enemy."

Soon, Yang Yao personally led fifteen warships, leaving the mouth of the Xiangjiang River and resolutely heading towards the Ming Dynasty Navy.

Yingxuan put down the telescope and said to Pang Dingzi: "The enemy is here to lure you."

More than a dozen gunboats turned and aimed at Yang Yao's warship.

The two sides were getting closer and closer. One of the fifteen warships brought by Yang Yao was sunk halfway, and two more were hit by bombs and were not sunk for the time being.

Seeing the enemy warships approaching, Yang Yao shouted: "Get back!"

The flag waved, and the Chu army's warships began to retreat.

As soon as Yang Yao withdrew, the Ming Navy also stopped and did not pursue them at all, but continued to bombard Lujiao Water Village.

Lujiao Water Village was reinforced last year. The buildings on the water are made of wood, but a rammed earth castle was built on the shore. Moreover, twin castles were built on the two "antlers", which could communicate with each other through small warships.

The first step in the battle plan of the Ming Dynasty Navy was to demolish the buildings on the water, and the second step was to demolish the rammed earth castle.

Zhong Yi lay down behind the female wall of the castle, feeling the vibration of the artillery bombardment of the wall. He knew that he should leave a small number of troops to guard the castle, while the main force went north to fight Wang Yuan. If he just defended here blindly, he would be defeated sooner or later. It would be better for the whole army to retreat to Xiangyin.

But Zhong Yi had no confidence in his commanding ability and was afraid that the entire army would be annihilated in the decisive battle.

Moreover, the strategic location of Lujiao Village is too important. Once Dachu loses this place, he will never step foot into Dongting Lake again. Zhong Yi cannot bear the consequences of losing Lujiao Village.

Zhong Yi only has one idea left now, which is to continue stalling for time until Zhong Xiang comes here in person to direct the battle.

"Prime Minister, Lord Lei Hou is out!"

The shouts of the soldiers shocked Zhong Yi and stood up quickly, risking being bombarded and looking outside.

However, Yang Yao failed to lure the enemy, and Lei Jin did not want to sit idly by. The two of them actually led the Chu Navy out of the Xiangjiang River Estuary, hoping to engage in a decisive battle with the Ming Navy, which was twice their size and had artillery.

There were more than a thousand sailors and fishermen, rowing boats filled with firewood, following the warships out of the Xiangjiang River.

"Hurry up and wave the flag to make them withdraw to the Xiangjiang River!" Zhong Yi shouted in shock.