Chapter 153 Build a strong fortress and fight a dull battle?
The cold wind in winter is so cold and strong that the already frozen solid wilderness has been repeatedly trampled by war horses until it becomes soft and soft. A thick layer of floating soil is blown and rolled by the cold wind from time to time.
Ten miles northeast of Julu, in the wilderness to the west of Wangjuzhuang, I saw groups of Ming soldiers picking up corpses scattered on the ground. My own men picked them up and placed them on the backs of their horses.
If it was the Qing army, they would cut off the head and tie the money-rat tail-like braid with a hemp rope. Dozens of heads were already tied on the hemp rope.
From time to time, miserable screams could be heard in the wilderness, which were the last desperate cries of those Qing soldiers who were not yet dead.
They also tied up the dead horses with ropes. Under the horses' bodies were tied armors pulled from the corpses of the Qing soldiers. The two of them grabbed the rope ends and rode their horses to drag them back, preparing to drag them back later.
In the camp, it was used as military food.
In the distance, there are groups of Ming army knights galloping back and forth, gathering up the scattered horses.
The cold wind was biting, and many soldiers' hands were bruised and swollen from the cold. Their lips and faces were also swollen from the cold, but they were enthusiastic, and bursts of cheers came from time to time.
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On the high hill where Hauge was just now, Lu Xiangsheng, dressed in linen and filial piety, was riding his beloved Wumingji, standing and looking around.
Zhang Cheng and other Xuanda generals gathered around him. Everyone's faces were full of exhaustion, but they were full of excitement despite their exhaustion.
Hu Dawei said excitedly: "Master Governor, it's really enjoyable to kill over a thousand Tatars in two battles."
"Haha, depending on how many ways he came, I only went one way. Today we will feed him the old slave's fighting skills." Yang Guozhu was also very excited.
Lu Xiangsheng's face was solemn and he said in a deep voice: "Although it is a great victory, our soldiers also suffered heavy casualties. Fortunately, many war horses were captured. The injured soldiers must be taken care of properly and escorted back to the camp."
Zhang Cheng interjected: "My soldiers have suffered many casualties, and most of them are arrow wounds and knife wounds. As long as they are taken good care of, they will not be fatal. However, the Tatars have been injured quite a lot by our army's cannons and artillery. Even if they escape, they will not be killed."
Most of them are hopeless.”
All the generals nodded, and Zhang Cheng added: "This time there are many injured horses and dead horses, so we have to transport them back. The soldiers will also have a good meal of meat to replenish their physical strength."
Lu Xiangsheng nodded in agreement. He thought for a while and then said: "General Tiger, you lead the troops back first and ask Zhang Yan to order people to boil more hot water and prepare stew. The whole army will be well fed tonight and we will fight against the Tartars tomorrow."
prisoner."
After Hu Dawei left, Lu Xiangsheng gave another order: "Jiang Mingwu will lead the army to open the way, and General Yang will be responsible for breaking up the rear. Zhang Cheng, Chen An, you two, disperse all the cavalry under your command and strengthen sentry inspection. A quarter of an hour later, the army will rise and return."
camp."
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Julu, Jiazhuang.
After Lu Xiangsheng ordered the infantry of each battalion to step up the construction of the forts, he left Xuanzhen General Zhang Yan to take charge of the camp defense construction. He personally led the elite cavalry of each battalion to meet the Qing army rushing towards Julu.
Zhang Yan knew that whether the camp was strong or not was related to the life and death of the entire army, so he did not dare to neglect it. After Lu Xiangsheng led the cavalry out of the camp, he ordered all the soldiers to work together to build the camp defense.
He assigned the camp locations to the generals of each battalion, and delineated the low walls and trenches required for defense. The sergeants then dug trenches and took soil to build walls according to their respective divisions of labor and cooperation with each other.
There are also specialized sergeants who drive carts between the camp and the Haoshui River. Truckloads of large ice blocks are constantly transported into the camp, which are melted and used to water the earth walls. The excess is stored in a
into a large wooden barrel for emergencies.
Jiazhuang is easier to work on. Most of the village walls are intact and only need to be heightened and reinforced. The amount of work is not too large, so only a few hundred infantrymen in Lu Xiangsheng's Supervisor Biao camp are busy.
Zhang Yan's infantry headquarters was divided into two, helping Yang Guozhu and Hu Dawei's troops build forts, while Jiang Mingwu's subordinates were arranged to haul ice and cold water back and forth.
The courtyards of the houses in Jiazhuang were all demolished, except for one larger one that was reserved for the Chinese army's tent and two relatively intact ones that were used to store gunpowder and other key military supplies.
The dismantled large logs, beams, bricks and tiles, and remaining walls were used to build the fort. Using these as the skeleton, they were covered with sand and soil, and finally watered with cold water. A thin layer of hard ice was frozen on the outside to make it strong and indestructible.
, it was extremely slippery and impossible to climb.
A hundred or so steps outside the three camps, some deeper trenches should be dug first, and then rows of trenches should be dug every few dozen steps. These do not need to be very deep, but they must be wide and wide.
Make it impossible for slaves and thieves to cross easily.
The excavated soil was used to strengthen the fort, build walls, and build low walls to protect the gunners. Just as Zhang Cheng suggested, the earth walls were piled half a person high to protect our gunners.
Archers can just shoot.
Throughout the camp, the infantrymen of each battalion were busy in a tense and orderly manner. Everyone knew that the camp defenses built at this time were to defend against the upcoming attack by the Tatars. They were for life-saving purposes, so they did not dare to be lazy.
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The cold wind in the northern winter was extremely biting. The soldiers' hands were all blue, red and swollen from the cold, and their faces were also torn with small cuts by the cold wind.
All the trees along the Haoshui River were cut down, and even the trees within a few miles around Jiazhuang were cut down. They were dragged back by mules and horses, and the remaining trees were chopped into sections for building camps.
Fires were lit everywhere inside and outside the camp, and large pots were placed on them, with hot water boiling in them. This was to provide a place for the soldiers to warm themselves up.
The second reason is to bake the frozen ground, so these fires are constantly changing their positions. As the fires are gradually moved into the camp, it also means that all the trenches have been dug.
Although the weather was very bad, the sergeants still worked enthusiastically. Even if their hands were cracked by the cold and turned purple from the cold, they were still working hard.
Even Zhang Yan personally picked up a pickaxe and worked hard to chop on the hard ground. Under his encouragement, the morale of the whole army was high. Finally, they completed digging the trench before dark, and the wall was basically completed, except for some key points.
The parts still need to be repaired and reinforced.
It's like a huge city was built on the ground, with three camps standing in rows in the wilderness. Between each camp, chest-high earth walls were built. This was unplanned.
An extra chest-high earth wall was built between Yang Guozhu and Hu Dawei's camp and Jiazhuang. Only near Jiazhuang, there was a gap several feet wide, which was convenient for cavalry to attack.
This earthen wall can be defended or not. Anyway, the Qing army has no use for it. Moreover, if the Qing army breaks through from here, there will only be one opening for easy entry and exit, which is not conducive to the movement of their large armies.
There are some gun positions reserved on the walls of each camp. Outside the camp gates, there are three or five cannons in groups, blocking the camp gates.
Normally, the army could stand on the wall of the village, or go outside the camp and set up formations behind the earthen walls. The spaces left between the earthen walls were places for placing artillery pieces.
Once the cavalry attacks, they only need to move the artillery to both sides, which is convenient and quick.