This judgment is normal, because Jianlu had expected this, and the enemy in front of them only had a few thousand troops, so they were not trying to defend desperately.
Despite this, the tentative attack was still thwarted, allowing Amin and other slave chiefs to once again experience the powerful firepower of the Dongjiang Army.
For Jilhalang and Dudu, this level of artillery bombardment was not as intensive as what they had experienced. In other words, they would be subject to more intense bombardment in the future.
"Send a group of troops to take a detour and get behind the enemy. Attack from both sides to break the enemy's blockade. At the same time, surround us with two wings and then attack from the front. What do you think?"
As the coach, Amin only asked symbolically, and the arrangements were quite satisfactory, without any surprising tricks.
Dudu and Jilhalang had no objections. Faced with this kind of interception and obstruction, the methods that could be adopted were indeed limited.
The two thousand Jianlu were divided into two groups and outflanked the mountains and forests on the left and right sides of the road. Two thousand Mongolian soldiers and Han troops, under the cover of the carriages, launched another attack.
Like a forest of spears, countless sharp logs about half a man's height pointed forward on the road. Their bottoms were buried in the soil, and they were watered and frozen. They stretched for dozens of meters, forming an insurmountable obstacle.
Apart from using a sharp ax to chop wood like wood, it is quite difficult to break through such a roadblock. The truck cannot rush forward like a tank, and can only stop helplessly in front of the obstacle.
Soldiers in heavy armor rushed out from behind the carriage, swung their axes, and struck the sharp wooden stakes hard, trying to break a passage through them.
The heavy muskets roared and fired heavy lead bullets at the enemy. Behind the cart, dense arrows flew into the air, arced, passed over dozens of meters of obstacles, and flew towards the defending Dongjiang Army.
After a muffled sound, more than twenty artillery shells flew through the air and crashed down. A few seconds later, there were explosions one after another in front and behind the carriage, and the loud noise suppressed the screams and wails that kept ringing.
There were explosive bombs, deflagration bombs, and several balls of flames splashed on the carts and continued to burn. Some enemies were splashed with sticky burning substances, screaming and running around, or writhing and rolling on the ground.
The heavy lead bullet ignored the protection of the heavy armor and hit an enemy in the chest. The powerful impact actually knocked the enemy off the ground and fell.
Large mouthfuls of blood poured out of the enemy's mouth. He was speechless and lay on the ground making a squealing sound. His eyes gradually became dull, and only his hands and feet were twitching.
The head of an enemy wielding an ax suddenly exploded. It was unclear whether it was broken into pieces or simply knocked away. Blood spurted out in all directions like a fountain. The headless corpse spun around twice before falling with a thud.
Go down.
Enemies kept falling in a bloody mess, but the progress of clearing obstacles was maddeningly slow.
"Such a defense can be set up in half a day, right?" Jierhalang, who was behind the formation, said in a deep voice: "I seem to understand why the enemy doesn't defend Fengcheng."
Du Du nodded. Although he didn't say a word, his expression and actions showed that he understood.
Amin snorted and said nothing, but his face became even more gloomy.
Holding Fengcheng will not prevent the enemy from passing around the city along the main road. If you set up defenses on the main road, you must take into account the surrounding terrain, and Fengcheng is not very important.
Just like now, the main road guarded by the Dongjiang Army is surrounded by mountains and forests on both sides. It is not easy to outflank and detour. However, when they are concentrated on the main road, Jianlu Kong has superior troops, but it is difficult to use them.
Moreover, the Dongjiang Army's defenses were not complicated. In addition to roadblocks, the frontal blocking troops were simple parapets built with large shields and wood, which effectively reduced the damage caused by bows and arrows.
It was such a simple fortification that could be constructed quickly with the help of winter temperatures. However, relying on the favorable terrain on a relatively narrow road, it surprised the Jianlu.
They were not afraid of this line of defense, but that the Dongjiang Army was likely to have more blockades behind them. It would take a long time to build a fortification, and 1,800 people would be killed or injured, and the captives would soon be exhausted.
Fortunately, in addition to the main roads, there are also small roads, which can also be used in roundabout ways, so that Jianlu will not feel desperate.
It is said that this campaign has just begun and there are no results. Jianlu already feels a headache, which is really unacceptable.
But no matter what, the battle must continue and cannot be given up halfway.
After finally mobilizing the people and horses, and finally squeezing out the food and supplies, if they don't meet a standard that can be explained, how can they return empty-handed?
They had to fight hard to reach the Yalu River. Amin and other slave chiefs had their own goals in mind. What's more, the casualties were not the Jianzhou warriors.
"Presumably Zhenjiang Fort will also be abandoned, right?" Du Du narrowed his eyes and guessed: "The enemy is focusing on blocking, and they must want to force our army to retreat in spite of difficulties."
Ji'erharang pondered for a moment and said: "It's very possible. The enemy in Liaodong doesn't have many troops. What we need to worry about is southern Liaoning. But our army can fight quickly and withdraw quickly, so there should be no danger."
Regarding the mobility speed and total strength of the Dongjiang Army, Jianlu still had misjudgments, mainly due to the rapid expansion of the special operations battalion and flying cavalry battalion, as well as the accelerated advancement of mules and horses.
Although the special operations battalion is called a battalion, it has been expanded by drawing elites from various associations, and has exceeded the strength of the first association, reaching more than 10,000 people.
Moreover, with the addition of North Korean volunteers, the number of combatable soldiers in the special operations battalion has reached 12,000 to 3,000.
After the victory of Zunhua this year, the Feiqi Battalion suddenly expanded from nine thousand to fourteen to five thousand through the horse market, the support of the imperial court, and the annexation of Liao Town's troops.
Regarding the military strength of North Korea, Jianlu also underestimated its development in recent years. With Guo Dajing's strong support, North Korea's Ping'an North Road gathered 15,000 people who were the most well-equipped and capable of fighting.
Even if Lin Qingye cannot transfer all his troops to Uiju, the North Korean army can still have 12,000 troops to participate in the battle. Together with the two battalions of Zuoxie in Pido, the total strength is 17,800 troops.
Although the outcome of the war depends not only on the number of troops, but also on the strength of the combat power. However, the North Korean army lacks field combat capabilities and can rely on its superior firepower and solid defense to compete with Jianlu.
These factors determined that Jianlu's launch was already destined to fail, just because of the size of the losses.
The frontal battle continued. The Dongjiang Army took advantage of the range of artillery and the armor-piercing power of heavy muskets to continuously increase casualties to the enemy.
The Jianlu troops on both sides made a roundabout way through the snow and forest, but were also violently attacked by the Dongjiang Army officers who were waiting in advance.
Han Zhong was completely covered in snow camouflage clothes, leading his men to quietly and covertly lurk among the mountains, forests and snow hills.
The special operations battalion is elite, but there are still elites among the elites, so Han Zhong and others are the special operations team in the special operations battalion.
The snow camouflage clothing has been upgraded this year. It is no longer pure white fabric, but has some gray and black shapes printed on white. In the experiment, it was more concealable.
Hundreds of crossbows are also painted in camouflage colors, and even the shafts of the crossbow arrows are white, with cold and sharp arrows pointing forward.
The shadowy figures have appeared, they are the Jianlu who are outflanking them. Obviously, based on the disguise alone, they are already far behind.
In the eyes of the special forces soldiers who were well camouflaged, these prisoners were as obvious as living targets. They waded through the thick snow and came slowly like clumsy bears.
Han Zhong's iron face has been dyed white, and the expression on his face cannot be seen clearly. He can only notice that his head is slightly lowered and he is aiming at the enemy through Wangshan.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh... The crossbow arrows are silent, and the white arrow shaft is extremely inconspicuous, shooting at the enemy from different angles and distances like lightning.
Ah, ah, ah! Exclamations and screams could not be stopped. Jianlu, who was caught off guard, was hit by crossbow arrows one after another, and fell to the ground amid the spray of blood.
The crossbow arrows seemed to be fired from all directions, from between trees and snow hills. Jianlu did not see many enemies, but instead became more panicked and at a loss.
The Jianlu officers shouted loudly, organized shields in front to block the attack, and archers from behind counterattacked, continuing to move forward.
There were scattered footprints in the snow dozens of meters ahead, which indicated enemy activity. Jianlu became more and more cautious while firing arrows at the visible figures.
Any fortification can reduce the damage and even save your life.
In the dictionary of special forces, this sentence should be said by Guo Shuai. Even their commanders and even the elites of the special forces were trained by Guo Shuai himself.
There are not only hidden fortifications, but also hidden movement routes. The soldiers of the special forces are moving quietly and looking for the right opportunity to shoot crossbows at Jianlu.
The shield can only protect the vital points, but it cannot block the entire body. The crossbows of the special forces shoot hard and accurately, and from time to time, prisoners are hit by arrows and fall down.
Boom! A concealed Fran machine gun sprayed dense lead bullets at Jianlu at a distance of about fifty meters, causing a gap in Jianlu's shield protection. Immediately, dozens of crossbow arrows rushed in.
.
The cooperation of the special forces and their ability to seize fighter opportunities are obviously extremely high, far beyond those of ordinary Dongjiang Army soldiers.
While fighting and retreating, the special forces and Jianlu began to circle around in the woods. At this time, this environment could give full play to the advantages of the special forces' well-trained and well-equipped troops.
Boom! A tripwire mine exploded, and shrapnel flew across the sky as black smoke rose, knocking several prisoners to the ground.
There was a flash of fire, and a heavy musket looked at the right moment and sprayed out heavy lead bullets, which hit the shield and knocked the prisoner to the ground, almost breaking his arm.
Before the prisoner could get up with all his strength, two crossbow arrows arrived silently and shot into his thighs and lower abdomen. He screamed and fell to the ground again, twisting and rolling in pain, dyeing a large area of the snow under him red.
.
Trees blocked the line of sight, and the snow underfoot made it difficult to move. Jianlu, whose movement and line of sight were obstructed, were at a disadvantage in their camouflage and concealment. They continued to pay casualties under the attacks of the special forces.
Landmines, heavy muskets, and crossbows made the Jianlu unable to defend themselves, and they focused on one thing but not the other. The disadvantages of bows and arrows against crossbows were also exposed. The limitations of the shooting posture made them more exposed and vulnerable to attack.
Boom, boom! The mine roared again, black smoke wrapped in snow and dust rose into the sky, and shrapnel and air waves overturned several prisoners.
Han Zhong squinted his eyes and gently pulled the trigger. The white crossbow arrow passed through the gap between two trees and hit a shield-wielding prisoner in the face.
Quickly loading the arrow, Han Zhong lay down in the snow pit and stared at Jianlu looming ahead among the trees.
He can operate the crossbow and shoot enemies in various postures such as lying down, standing, or squatting. However, Jianlu's archers can only use one posture, and that is standing.
The heavy muskets were firing continuously, and the silent crossbows were also firing from time to time. The effect of the mutual cooperation was quite good, and it also made up for their respective shortcomings.
Heavy muskets have a long range and are sharp at breaking armor, but their shooting speed is slow; crossbows are silent and highly concealable, but have short range and weak lethality.
A prisoner was hit by a lead bullet again. His body was spinning and he fell to the ground. The shield in his hand also showed flaws, and two crossbow arrows rushed over to shoot him.
A prisoner's leg was suddenly hit by a crossbow arrow. He staggered and knelt on the ground. A lead bullet shot quickly and penetrated his armor and stomach.
The enemy and we were fighting in the woods, and both were paying casualties, but the skills and tactics of the special forces were obviously superior, and the casualties were smaller.
While fighting and retreating, the special forces retreated to their own army's position after killing and injuring hundreds of captives. Relying on the position, thousands of soldiers were ready, with black muzzles and gun muzzles pointing forward.
………………
Uiju.
The North Korean army, which had received early warning, was ready. Cui Xiaoyi led the troops and was driving out of the city towards the camps that had been set up around it.
A large number of people stood in the cold wind, watching and waiting quietly. They were all residents of nearby villages and towns, dragging their families and belongings with them, and came to the city to take refuge.
Cui Xiao had no expression on his face, but his mood was hard to calm down. After all, it was his lack of strength and his inability to defend against the enemy that made the people suffer.
The Jianlu may not be able to steal anything, but it is inevitable that their houses will be burned and their heavy household items will be destroyed.
"Sir." Several riders galloped over and handed Cui Xiaoyi a letter.
Cui Xiaoyi started to watch. It was urgent information sent by the special operations battalion. Notifying Cui Xiaoyi, the special operations battalion would intercept at all levels along the way, which should delay the situation for two days.
In other words, North Korea still has three or four days to prepare, which should be able to do a lot.
Intercepting in layers was a good tactic. Cui Xiaoyi sent away the riders and led his troops to continue heading east.
The preparations and deployment of Ping'an North Road have been carried out in advance, and they will no longer be caught off guard when Ding Mao was indiscriminate. Cui Xiaoyi is also confident that he can lead the army to teach Jian the bloody lesson and avenge his previous shame.
Another messenger arrived. It was that two battalions of the Dongjiang Army led by Liu Xingzhi had landed at Tieshan and were advancing towards Xuanchuan and Pukou.
Cui Xiaoyi was refreshed. In three or four days, the Dongjiang friendly forces would surely arrive and block another way for Jianlu to invade the DPRK.
If this battle is won, Jianlu will no longer have the power to invade, and will have no choice but to retreat and count the days until death!
Not only that, Cui Xiaoyi also looked forward to helping the Dongjiang Army, contributing to the destruction of the Jianlu, and repaying Guo Shuai for his support.