When the Dongjiang Army's naval reconnaissance ship appeared around Liaoyang, to be precise near Huangniwa and Chang'an Fort, the police posts built on the shore immediately sounded the alarm.
Although the Dongjiang Navy's participation in the war had been expected, Jianlu still underestimated the Dongjiang Navy's carrying capacity and the total strength of the Liaonan main force.
Subsequently, the Dongjiang Navy appeared at the fork of the Daliao River in a mighty manner. If it went north to the Hun River, it could attack Shenyang. If it went east to the Taizi River, it could appear north of Liaoyang City, potentially cutting off Liaoyang City's retreat.
Moreover, if you continue eastward along the Taizi River, you can even reach Benxi and enter Jianzhou.
For Jianlu, who did not have a navy, how to prevent the Dongjiang Army's navy from interfering was a very headache.
Especially after the Dongjiang Navy was equipped with mortars and Hongyi cannons, it became even more difficult for Jianlu to control the water with land and cavalry.
After receiving the urgent military information, Azig immediately led more than 10,000 elite cavalry from the station in northwest Liaoyang and rushed to Chang'an Fort.
For Jianlu, forcing the infantry carried by the Dongjiang Navy to be unable to land easily, or waiting for the infantry to land before waiting for an opportunity to launch a violent attack, were two strategies to defeat the enemy.
In addition, Jianlu also set up obstacles and positions in the narrow parts of the river. While hindering the movement of ships, they also wanted to attack with rockets. However, they were not sure how effective they would be.
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A few years ago, before Guo Dajing joined the Dongjiang Army, Mao Wenlong also carried out naval raids inland at Piaozihe.
But at that time, there was a huge gap in combat power between the two sides, and Jianlu was not afraid. After letting the Dongjiang Army's infantry land, they attacked and fought, causing considerable losses to the Dongjiang Army.
Nowadays, the weapons and equipment of the Dongjiang Navy are able to keep the captives away for two to three miles and provide fire cover for the infantry landing.
"Chang'an Fort is located in the northwest of Liaoyang, more than fifty miles away from Liaoyang."
Zhang Tao pointed at the map and introduced the situation to Mao Chenglu, Li Weiluan and other generals, "The navy directly enters the Taizi River, which can cut off the connection between Liaoning and Shenyang, but the water conditions are unpredictable, and there are Jianlu elite cavalry watching, so the danger is greatly increased.
"
Looking up at the generals, Zhang Tao continued: "If water and land advance simultaneously and respond to each other, I think it is the best strategy."
Mao Chenglu and Li Weiluan looked at each other and nodded in agreement to express their agreement.
Firstly, we have to consider the difficulty of the navy, and secondly, the infantry on the ship always feels awkward and cannot be used.
"General Mao, it is better for the soldiers of the two associations to gather in one place, and it is more secure to advance along the river." Li Weiluan and Guo Dajing have similar personalities, and they are also more cautious.
Mao Chenglu hesitated for a moment, then nodded repeatedly and said: "Jianlu's mobile corps has 20,000, and we also have 20,000. We can't rely on foot soldiers and cavalry, even with the help of naval artillery fire."
Zhang Tao chuckled and said: "Grain and ammunition supplies can be loaded on ships to reduce the burden on the infantry. The vacated ships can then return to Niuzhuang and load supplies again."
Water transportation is also the key to Pingliao, not only in Liaoyang, but also as far as Shenyang and even further as the land army advances.
Although all military and civilian ships and sailors have been mobilized, hundreds of ships can still be liberated as quickly as possible by unloading 20,000 officers, soldiers and weapons and equipment.
Zhang Tao was still thinking about the main regiment under Liaoyang City. Of course, he didn't know that in addition to the army supplies and constant land transportation, Guo Dajing also had space to store goods, which was also full of grain and ammunition, which could support the army for several days.
"Now that we have made a plan, we will land as soon as possible, fight with the Jianlu, and move closer to Liaoyang!" Mao Chenglu cupped his hands and said, "The landing site will be selected by General Zhang."
Zhang Tao returned the salute and said: "In that case, Zhang is welcome. The landing site is more than ten miles west of Chang'an Fort. The nearly two miles of coast are relatively flat and solid, the water flow is slow, and the ships are easy to maneuver.
"
The three of them had decided on a plan. While preparing for the landing, they would send a ship back, disembark at Changding Fort, go to Anshan, and rush to send intelligence by land.
If the infantry can advance smoothly with the navy and enter the Liaoyang area along the Taizi River, or even directly outside the city, the connection with the main army will be much faster.
"Sir, the enemy's fleet is boundless, almost as many as a thousand ships." A Jianlu sentry galloped to Karta and bowed to report, with a look of fear on his face.
Karta forced himself to be calm on his face, but his heart was filled with awe-inspiring fear. He did not expect that the Dongjiang Navy would have such a huge fleet, which was completely beyond the slave chief's estimation.
"Go and inquire more." Karta waved his hand and dismissed the sentry, frowning, looking at the fleet of boats on the river in the distance that could not be seen at a glance.
He only had two thousand cavalry in his hands, responsible for monitoring along the river and harassing and containing the enemy when they tried to land.
But at this time, his confidence dropped to the extreme and he did not think he could complete the task.
The fleet stretched for several miles, and requiring the two thousand cavalry to closely monitor and react quickly was obviously beyond the capabilities of him and his troops.
"Report, enemy ships are approaching the shore."
"Report, enemy ships are approaching the shore and seem to be landing."
"Report..."
Several sentinel cavalry came to report one after another, so Karta was unable to judge which one was true for a while, so he had to divide the cavalry into four teams and go to various locations where the enemy might land.
"I wonder when the reinforcements will arrive?" Karta glanced south, eagerly waiting for the mobile corps brigade to arrive to help in the battle.
Dozens of warships in the river suddenly turned around and rushed towards the river bank. The movement forced Jianlu to divide his troops. This was the real landing operation.
Boom, boom, boom... More than a dozen mortars suddenly opened fire on the ship, smashing the shells into the Jianlu cavalry patrolling the shore.
The shells fell one after another, and exploded one after another. Fires appeared and smoke rose.
Although it did not cause much damage to the hundreds of Jianlu cavalry, the horses were frightened and neighed and jumped around. The Jianlu were also frightened and ran away, which seemed a bit chaotic.
More than thirty flat-bottomed landing boats rushed onto the river beach at extremely fast speeds. Five to six hundred musketeers shouted and jumped off the boats, stepping on the knee-deep river water and running ashore.
Nearly a hundred artillerymen followed. They carried more than a dozen Fran machine guns weighing more than 200 kilograms and carried loaded muskets on their backs. They came ashore after the musketeers.
More mortars roared, and dozens of shells flew through the air, hitting the formation of prisoners who had not yet finished adjusting.
Time is precious, and any delay will make the rapidly changing battlefield out of control. Several hundred Jianlu cavalry finally adjusted amid the constant bombing, only to find that the fighter plane seemed to have been lost.
More than twenty Fran cannons were in the middle, and two small infantry battle formations had been deployed, about a hundred meters away from the shore. In the river, another group of warships were speeding towards the river bank.
"Kill, charge!" Jianlu fired a loud arrow into the air. Under the supervision of his commander, he shouted and galloped towards the enemies who had landed on the beach.
"Fire!" The command was accompanied by a sharp whistle, and the Fran machine gun took the lead in roaring, spraying thousands of pellets at the galloping enemy cavalry.
"Fire!" The command knife was suddenly swung down, and gunshots like exploding beans resounded throughout the battlefield.
Lead bullets rained down on the soldiers and horses, spurting out bloody flowers. Amidst the shouts and neighs of the men and horses, the horses continued to fall, and the wounded screamed and howled.
A canopy of arrows missed and caused casualties to the Dongjiang Army.
Boom, boom, boom... the Franchise roared again, and the artillerymen replaced their muskets as quickly as possible and bombarded the enemy fiercely.
Dozens of mortar shells flew through the air again, and a moment after they landed, they burst into flames, shooting deadly shrapnel in all directions.
Artillery, muskets versus bows and arrows cost both the enemy and us casualties, but the Dongjiang Army's three-dimensional firepower was fast and powerful, and it was no surprise that they had the upper hand.
More and more war horses fell on the charging road, hindering the subsequent charge of Jianlu. The Jianlu who were not dead or injured after falling from their horses were still showing off their bravery, either drawing bows and arrows, or coming forward with swords.
The musketeers lined up one after another, using the forward shooting method to make more space for the follow-up troops to follow up.
The Franco machine had fired three times in a row, causing great damage to Jianlu's men and horses.
More importantly, the dense shells slowed down the impact speed of the Jianlu cavalry, so that very few Jianlu cavalry could rush forward.
The battle formation formed by three rows of musketeers is, to be precise, more like an infantry battle line. The wide front is more conducive to the use of firepower.
Finally, the enemy and we finally started a contact battle, but in terms of numbers, the Dongjiang Army had the advantage, and the Jianlu cavalry also lost their impact speed and strength under the fierce blow.
The bow of the boat hit the beach hard, with a sudden crash. Zhao Shitou just shook his body and regained his balance. He roared loudly, led his soldiers to jump out of the boat, waded through the river, and ran to the beach quickly.
The layout of the landing operation is certain, and the first batch of landing troops are elite soldiers who dare to fight. Even if the enemy is temporarily outnumbered, even if it is infantry versus cavalry, we will charge forward fearlessly.
Zhao Shitou rushed forward first, followed by his comrades who were also shouting, and entered the battlefield from the artillery position in the middle.
After a pause, Zhao Shitou and his comrades raised their muskets and fired long-prepared lead bullets at the enemy in front.
White smoke rose, making the vision blur into a lake, but it quickly dissipated. A row of comrades crossed them, strode forward, and then under the command of the officer, they raised their guns and fired.
A team of three hundred people, each with fifty or sixty people, like monsters breathing fire, rolled forward and fired rows of lead bullets at the enemy. The gunfire continued as if it never stopped.
Baling suddenly fell off his horse, and a heavy lead bullet hit the horse's head. Blood and flesh flew out, splashing all over his head and face.
After getting up from the ground with great effort and embarrassment, Karta drew out his scimitar and, together with the other fallen prisoners, howled and charged forward.
Holding the enemy back will not allow them to expand into larger land and establish a solid bridgehead.
Baling knew that with his small number of troops, he could no longer drive the enemy down the river in the face of the enemy's fierce firepower. But he also knew in his heart that he must fight tooth and nail to buy time for the reinforcements.
Bright spots on the opposite side came one after another, white smoke rose again, and flowers of blood bloomed on Jianlu's body. The enemy landed another group of troops, and the density of muskets suddenly increased.
The sky darkened, and dozens of artillery shells volleyed down again. A few seconds later, explosions occurred one after another, and black smoke columns rose up among the group of prisoners and on the road they passed.
Baling's ears were ringing, and he could no longer hear the screams of the wounded soldiers or the neighing of the war horses. A cannonball exploded ten meters away from him, and the flying stones hit him.
On the helmet.
Fortunately, Baling was not injured. He staggered a few steps, escaped the impact of the air wave, and continued to move forward.
Melee combat has begun in the front. The Dongjiang Army's musketeers used bayonets to fight fiercely with the Jianlu who rushed up desperately.
When it comes to individual combat capabilities, Jianlu may still have the upper hand. But in terms of troop strength, after shelling and gunfire, there are very few Jianlu who can rush forward.
Several bayonets, or even a dozen, were stabbing Jianlu in front of him. No matter how superb his martial arts skills were, they could not withstand the collective fighting power.
Baling roared filial piety, vented all his depression, raised his scimitar, and killed the enemy.
In the exchange of swords and guns, Baling felt the strength of his opponent. He grinned and stared at his opponent fiercely. It was a face that should be young, but with vicissitudes of life.
Zhao Shitou drew his machete and stabbed the enemy. Baling waved his sword to parry, and two more bayonets stabbed at him from the left and right.
Baling jumped left and right and took two steps back to avoid the bayonet thrust.
But before he could swing his knife to fight back, a gunshot rang out, filling the air with white smoke. Someone didn't know who fired the gun, but it hit him in the chest at a distance of only a few feet.
Balingda stared and his movements froze. Two bayonets stabbed him, giving him a fatal blow. With unwillingness and resentment, he fell down.
Zhao Shitou drew out his blood-stained bayonet. He was not particularly excited about killing a high-ranking Jianlu official. His comrades in front and behind him were still shouting for fight, so he roared loudly again, raised his bayonet and charged forward.
Another batch of landing ships docked, bringing the number of landing troops to 1,400 to 500, and more than 30 Fran cannons were brought ashore.
Adequate preparation before the war played a huge role at this time. The specially designed landing ship was fast and easy to disembark, laying a good foundation for the victory of the landing battle.
By the time Karta led each team of cavalry to the battlefield, the fierce battle was coming to an end. Most of the Dongjiang Army soldiers broke away from the battle and took up their posture under the command of the officers.
Looking at the messy battlefield and the Dongjiang Army waiting in full formation, the black muzzles and muzzles of the guns made Karta immediately hesitate.
Should we use the few troops at hand to launch a desperate attack and try to drive the enemy into the river, or should we maintain a surveillance posture and wait for reinforcements to arrive?
Before Karta could make a decision, a dozen gunboats near the shore suddenly opened fire with all their strength, hitting dozens of cannonballs at the Jianlu cavalry two miles away.
The one after another explosions caught Jianlu off guard, and he fell into chaos with people shouting and horses neighing. This rapid fire attack also made Karta no longer be entangled, and led his troops to retreat to a safe distance.