When the light returned again, the two of them were already inside the city, and the scene in their field of vision had changed.
On the streets, dead prisoners and horses could be seen everywhere, as well as the remains of fallen soldiers of the Dongjiang Army. But in terms of number, it was obvious that there were more enemies.
The battle is not completely over yet, and the work of cleaning up the battlefield will begin later, and a mess is inevitable.
But from these scenes, we can see the discipline of various departments of the Dongjiang Army and the role of the military regulations and laws that have been implemented for nearly a year.
Those who did not seize the heads will be useless and will be punished; those who did not rummage through the loot will definitely have scattered silver coins or other property on the corpses.
Mao Wenlong reined in his horse and stared at the body of a Dongjiang Army soldier. The smile on his face disappeared and was replaced by sadness.
He was a very young warrior. His iron mask fell to one side and his head was tilted. He could see that he had a beard, but it was neither thick nor hard.
He still held the musket in his hand, and the bayonet was still inside the body of a Jianlu. Jianlu's scimitar struck him on the shoulder and neck, and it was deeply dug.
Guo Dajing jumped off his horse, stretched out his hand to wipe the martyr's wide eyes, picked up the body without fear of blood stains, and placed it in the open space next to him.
The generals who were still excited at first calmed down and looked serious as they watched Guo Dajing carefully tidy up the appearance of the martyr.
This is respect for the deceased who fought bravely and sacrificed their lives for the country, regardless of their position or whether they are rich or poor.
Guo Dajing was not just showing off. Everyone knew that he had spent tens of thousands of dollars to ask the government to build a martyrs cemetery in Nanguan.
"We're not going any further." When Guo Dajing returned to the horse, Mao Wenlong suddenly said in a deep voice, "Just wait here for a while!"
The gunfire has completely stopped, which means the battle is completely over.
He just walked around the city casually. Seeing Guo Dajing's actions, Mao Wenlong suddenly lost interest. In other words, he didn't want to see the martyrs of the Dongjiang Army again.
Seeing it with your own eyes and looking at the number of casualties in the report are completely different feelings.
Mao Wenlong and Guo Dajing knew in their hearts that their grief would soon disappear and they would return to the war that was far from over.
This is the age of the damn war, damn the chaos of war. And dying on the battlefield is more meaningful and more worthy of remembrance and commemoration than dying of hunger and cold.
Because of this, no matter what the martyrs' origins were, no matter their names were elegant or vulgar, Guo Dajing was prepared to let their names be inscribed on monuments and recorded in history for future generations to pay homage to.
This year it is Nanguan Cemetery, next year it may be Lushun or Dalian. In Liaodong, where the martyrs fought, Guo Dajing will leave their mark so that future generations will not dare to forget it.
The atmosphere became much duller. Mao Wenlong reined up his horse and walked along the city, accompanied by the generals behind him, and came to the place where the city wall collapsed.
"The power of tunnel blasting is so powerful." Mao Wenlong looked at the ruins and exclaimed.
Guo Dajing observed the scene carefully and said: "If there is more gunpowder, the blasting effect will be more impressive. Although there are restrictions on its use and digging tunnels is more time-consuming, it is still a good way to reduce casualties."
Mao Wenlong shook his head and said: "It only takes six or seven hours. If we attack the city according to the normal method, I don't know how many casualties there will be. If conditions do not allow it, then use Hongyi cannon. A strong city can be relied on, but it may not happen in the future!"
"
"Blasting a city with artillery is indeed the most practical way to destroy a city. There are almost no restrictions." Guo Dajing jumped off his horse and kicked away a few pieces of earth and rocks with his feet, revealing the face of a prisoner buried underneath.
"Looks like a slave chief." Shang Kexi came over, pulled it with a sheathed sword, and picked up a helmet that was different from ordinary Jianlu.
Guo Dajing smiled and said: "Whether you are an officer or a soldier, is it still the same if you are buried in the soil?"
The generals dismounted one after another and rummaged through the ruins, and the atmosphere became lively. They were either greedy for money, or they were just happy, playing like children.
"Commander!" Mao Chenglu unexpectedly dug out a sheathed scimitar and happily presented it to Mao Wenlong like a treasure.
Although it was covered in dust, it could still be seen that it was a good knife. The decoration on the scabbard showed that the owner had an unusual identity.
Mao Wenlong laughed loudly and said: "I really buried a slave chief. Tuying has done a good thing, let this beast be buried in peace!"
Mao Chenglu chuckled, pulled out his scimitar, played with it casually, and said: "This guy died a coward without even pulling out the knife."
Guo Dajing suddenly shouted, holding a small ingot in his hand, which turned out to be made of gold.
"I'm getting rich, I'm getting rich." Guo Dajing smiled so hard that his eyes narrowed, and he said loudly: "I have the money to treat you all to drinks, so I don't have to worry about it now."
"I can't use it for one meal." Mao Wenlong laughed and joked: "I have to buy two drinks."
"Yes, General Guo still wants to secretly save money for his private life?" Mao Chenglu came up and looked at the little ingot carefully, and said with a smile: "This is almost five taels, and it's not much to ask for it twice."
Guo Dajing hurriedly put away the little ingot, as if he was afraid that others would snatch it, and said with a smile: "Twice is just two times. With my belly, I can eat most of it."
The generals laughed and teased each other. No one cared about how many times they drank. Everyone knew that Guo Dajing was very rich and could make money, so they would not take these few taels of gold seriously.
Mao Wenlong looked at them with a smile. These were all his subordinates, and he felt sincerely gratified to have such a harmonious relationship.
This is a sincerely united group, a prosperous Dongjiang Town, and a fighting team that has seen the hope of pacifying Liao and wiping out the rebels.
………………
More than twenty miles northwest of Zhenjiang Fort, there is Hulu Ridge.
The battle started almost at the same time as the attack on Zhenjiang Fort. The two thousand Jianlu cavalry who came for reinforcements from Fengcheng ran into an ambush circle with a radius of several miles set up by the Dongjiang Army.
This is not a very narrow road, but a relatively open valley with a limited area. Because of this, Jianlu was ambushed in this place that did not look like an ambush.
Two battalions of infantry from the rear alliance, plus two thousand troops from the special operations battalion, a pocket of eight thousand soldiers, plus dozens of mortars, the fate of the two thousand captives was already sealed.
Blocked in front and behind, flanked on the left and right, the Dongjiang Army advanced steadily, with the spearmen in front and the musketeers in the back. Relying on their superior strength and firepower, they leisurely killed, wounded and weakened the Jianlu.
Jianlu rushed left and right, but was either blocked by spearmen, or stopped at a roadblock, and was fired upon by the musketeers behind them.
The more people fought, the fewer and fewer people fought, and the wear and tear on the horses continued.
Under the attack of the Dongjiang Army who occupied favorable terrain and slowly compressed, the Jianlu were like wild dogs locked in a cage and dying. After the final crazy counterattack failed, the outcome of destruction could not be changed.
When Liu Qishi led his flying cavalry to the battlefield, the ambush troops had already begun to clean up, leaving him with a wasted trip.
"General Lao Liu has come to support us. Thank you very much." Li Jiucheng went up to greet us and said hello warmly, "I think Zhenjiang Fort has been breached."
Liu Qishi's official position was one level lower than that of Li Jiucheng, and people's enthusiasm was because he was Guo Dajing's sworn brother.
He knew very well, so he dismounted and returned the gift, "Zhenjiang Fort has been captured. A certain family didn't expect General Li to be so clean here, and they still want to take advantage of it and take advantage!"
Li Jiucheng pointed to the distant horses, which were gathering horses, and said with a smile: "Those are for the Flying Cavalry Camp. General Liu, please don't be so polite."
Liu Qishi grinned and nodded, saying: "Thank you, General Li. Since nothing happens, I will lead the team back and report to the commander in time."
"Thank you, General Liu." Li Jiucheng thanked him and said, "Please report to Commander Mao that the two thousand enemy cavalry have been wiped out by our troops. After cleaning the battlefield, we will return to Zhenjiang Fort immediately."
"Okay!" Liu Qishi got on his horse and galloped away like a whirlwind with hundreds of flying horses.
Li Jiucheng watched the flying cavalry gallop away with a hint of envy.
Guo Dajing's investment in the Flying Cavalry Battalion is obvious to all. A set of equipment such as war horses and armor can cost dozens of taels of silver. This does not include the consumption of horse chews by ordinary people.
"Sir." An officer was a little reluctant and asked for instructions: "There are hundreds of war horses. Let's keep some and no one will say anything, right?"
Li Jiucheng turned around and glared at the officer, and said: "Isn't the credit for conquering Zhenjiang Fort and ambushing Jianlu great enough? Do you think other troops besides our rear alliance can't do it?"
After a pause, he softened his tone and said, "This is recommended by General Guo and promoted by Commander Mao. It was agreed before the war that all the captured war horses would be given to the Flying Cavalry Battalion. If we secretly detain them, our reputation and credibility would be ruined."
.From now on, there will be fewer opportunities to make meritorious deeds."
The officer chuckled twice and said in disbelief: "My lord, the lesson is that you are too short-sighted. There is no need to make people laugh at you just for the sake of a few horses."
Li Jiucheng slightly nodded his head and said: "With this great victory, there is basically no problem for General Guo to be promoted to deputy general. Marshal Mao will be in charge, Deputy Marshal Chen will be in charge of government affairs, and General Guo will be in charge of military affairs. The personnel arrangements are almost the same. We have made good friends with General Guo.
As long as there are advantages and no disadvantages.”
"General Guo is relatively easy to talk to and has a good temper." the officer commented casually.
Li Jiucheng clicked, opened his mouth, and closed it again.
Since Guo Dajing joined the army, his promotion speed was shocking, but also impressive. Li Jiucheng knew better, and it is not an exaggeration to say that Guo Dajing fought for his future with his life.
Just like that, killing the enemy fiercely and cruelly! And he has a good temper? Well, it depends on who is right. If you offend this guy, I guess the emperor will not take it seriously.
………………
The emperor?! Of course he doesn't care about it in Guo Dajing's eyes. Sooner or later he will overturn the throne and lead the Ming Dynasty to stand on top of the world.
It was another bright morning. After Guo Dajing got up, he had breakfast and dinner with the officers and soldiers, then packed up and prepared to go to the river and take a boat to leave.
Yesterday afternoon, nearly half of the troops were evacuated, as well as more than a thousand captured war horses, and Mao Wenlong also returned to Pidao first.
It is more dangerous to sail at night, and there are at most a thousand enemies left in Fengcheng, so there is no need to worry. When the main force of the Liaoshen captives arrived after receiving the news, they could only receive rotten corpses.
Therefore, after dawn today, Pidao will send another ship to complete the transfer on the riverside.
Special Operations Battalion officers Lu Zhonggui and Wang Qian came to say goodbye, bowed and saluted: "My lord, I will leave after this."
Half of the supplies in Zhenjiang Fort were given to the special operations battalion, and more than a hundred horses were needed to transport them away. From now on, they will be active in this area, and if they want to get support, it may not be so timely.
But fortunately, Zhenjiang Fort was captured and Fengcheng Jianlu suffered heavy losses. If nothing else happens, Jianlu may shrink the defense line and temporarily abandon Zhenjiang Fort.
This also means that the special operations battalion can gain valuable time to establish a solid base, build fortifications in dangerous places, and establish a firm foothold in Liaodong.
Guo Dajing laughed, trying to make the atmosphere more relaxed, and said: "I have sent you off once, and this is the second time!"
The two officers laughed, and the king bowed and said: "I hope you can send me more, but I know this is a luxury."
Guo Dajing nodded helplessly and said: "You may be fighting alone in the future, so you must be careful. Again, only by protecting yourself can you better attack the enemy."
It does not require the special operations battalion to fight a big battle or achieve great results. It is enough to establish a basis and drive down nails to act as a check.
"Don't worry, sir."
Wang Qian and Lu Zhonggui bowed again and were escorted to the city gate by Guo Dajing. After walking far away, they mounted their horses and led the troops away gradually.
I don’t know when we will meet next time. Maybe we will never see each other again.
Guo Dajing felt a little sad and shook his head vigorously to get rid of this bad thought.
"General Guo." Shen Qizhong and Shen Shuoqing came closer and bowed their hands in greeting.
Guo Dajing returned the gift with a smile and said: "The ship to send Brother Shen has been arranged, and there are more than a hundred Korean martyrs. Please bring Guo's greetings to Mr. Shen and Mr. Lin."
Shen Qizhong nodded repeatedly and said: "When I go back next time, I will definitely inform my brother about the intentions of Marshal Mao and General Guo. Ming Dynasty and North Korea are countries of monarchs and ministers. I hope we can work together to renew the friendship between the two countries."
Korea and the Ming Dynasty were an alliance between father and son, monarch and ministers. Under the pressure of Jianlu, they entered into a brotherly alliance, but their relationship was far from the best.
Of course, things in name are far less important than reality. At least, in Guo Dajing's view, he is not very attached to this kind of status.
Guo Dajing smiled slightly and said: "I have one more message for Mr. Shen, power comes from the barrel of a gun."
Shen Qizhong was stunned for a moment, pondered for a long time, seemed to have some understanding, and said with his hands in hand: "Thank you, General Guo, for your kind words."
Guo Dajing waved his hand, looked at Shen Shuoqing, and said: "Military life is both difficult and dangerous. If you are now..."
Shen Shuoqing bowed and said firmly: "I am willing to follow the general through fire and water, even to the death."
Guo Dajing reached out to help him, patted Shen Shuoqing's shoulder, nodded to express his appreciation and relief, but there was no need to say any more.
At this time, all the ministries in the city had made preparations and drove out of Zhenjiang Fort one after another, heading towards Ma Shi Island along the main road.
The war lasted only a short time, not as long as traveling by sea ship, but it resulted in a great victory.