Forty miles east of Liaoyang, Dai Shan led his army to quickly return for reinforcements, but it was still a step too late.
After receiving the news of the fall of Weining Camp, Daishan sat in the camp in a daze, full of resentment, all blamed on Dorgon.
If too many troops had not been deployed to fight in Hebei, how could the mountainous areas of southern Liaoning have been lost one after another? No one was willing to send troops to Hebei. Only Hauge said he wanted to fight, and that bastard Dorgon actually agreed.
Dorgon and Hauge both want to fight, how can other Manchu nobles stop them?
The strategic location of Weining Camp is extremely important. To the west, you can directly attack Liaoyang, and to the north, you can directly attack Shenyang. And Shenyang and Liaoyang are both the core of Manchu rule!
Next, Daishan didn't know which way Lu Xiangsheng would march, so he could only divide his troops into two. One was to defend Shenyang, and the other was to defend Liaoyang. At the same time, he sent a message to Dorgon, asking Dorgon to lead him quickly. When the troops come back, don't waste time with the main force of Datong Army in Yaozhou.
Yaozhou was Dashiqiao City hundreds of years later. That city was built by the Manchu Qing Dynasty to confront the Ming Army in southern Liaoning in order to cut off the connection between the Ming Army in southern Liaoning and western Liaoning.
It has little value in itself. At this critical moment, when you should give up, you have to give up...
Daishan sent someone to Yaozhou to report the news. Dorgon also fell into a long silence after receiving the news.
What happened to my Qing Dynasty?
Lu Xiangsheng only had a partial division in his hands, and he had to transport grain from North Korea. The grain roads were all difficult to walk through mountains and valleys. As long as the defenders of Weining Camp held on for another month or two, Lu Xiangsheng would inevitably be in a food shortage dilemma.
Why can't I hold it? It stands to reason that I can definitely hold it!
"Prince Regent, withdraw your troops."
A meeting of the Manchu nobles was held and they unanimously agreed to withdraw their troops and go back to defend Liaoyang and Shenyang. Dorgon could no longer act on his own will.
Dorgon said: "We have to wait for the rainy season. To retreat now is to court death!"
The rainy season in Northeast China is in June and July of the lunar calendar.
When Cao Cao conquered Wuwan, it was the rainy season in western Liaoning. The two grain transport canals were muddy along the coast, making it impossible to march and fight. In the end, he had no choice but to take Guo Jia's suggestion and abandon the baggage and take the Lulong Ancient Road, risking huge risks. The risk is to engage in long-distance raids.
Yuan Shao's two sons, as well as the Wuwan leaders, did not expect that Cao Cao would send troops during the rainy season, and they were completely defeated by Cao Cao.
When fighting in the Northeast, you must pay attention to the weather.
One of the reasons why the Ming army was defeated in the Battle of Sarhu was that they ignored the weather.
It was said that it was a four-pronged army encirclement and suppression, but the troops were sent out in the second month of the lunar calendar. Some places were still covered with ice and snow, and there were even several snowfalls in succession. Under the heavy snow, the Tatars set up obstacles in the mountains, causing the four-pronged army of the Ming Army to Some marched fast and some marched slowly. Nurhaci concentrated his troops and defeated them one by one.
Of course the frontline generals of the Ming Dynasty knew that this would not work, but they could not bear the constant urging of the civilian officials.
Officials such as Fang Congzhe, Huang Jiashan, Zhao Xingbang, etc. kept urging and urging, saying that if they did not send troops, food and pay would not be able to sustain the war. Military pay was higher, and finishing the war early would save a lot of military expenses.
In desperation, Yang Hao forced himself to send troops. It was strange that he could not be defeated in such a stupid battle, which made Nurhaci famous for winning with less.
Nurhaci took advantage of the snowy season, and Nurhaci also took advantage of the rainy season.
In the forty-seventh year of Wanli, Nurhaci made a sneak attack on Kaiyuan. All the nobles of Houjin expressed their opposition because the rainy season had come and there was no way to march. Nurhachi defied all opinions and imitated Cao Cao, who did not bring any baggage but only some carriages and braved the rain. When they reached Kaiyuan, the Ming army was scattered everywhere outside the city, and there was no time to return to the city to assemble.
As a result, Kaiyuan fell and Tieling fell.
The combat policy proposed by Dorgon was to fight the Datong Army during the rainy season.
Although after being exposed to rain, the bow strings of the Eight Banners soldiers will become soft, and the arrow feathers will shrink when exposed to water, affecting the hit rate. However, the bows and arrows can still be shot, but the Datong Army's artillery cannot fire, and the Datong Army's firecrackers cannot fire either.
In the original offensive and defensive battle of Gaizhou, the Manchu and Qing Dynasties lost too many artillery. In addition, the Datong court strictly prohibited the transportation of gunpowder to the north. The Manchu and Qing Dynasties were unable to enter the customs to purchase gunpowder, and the Manchu and Qing Dynasty's firearms troops had been greatly reduced.
If Dorgon wanted to win the battle, he could only do so during the rainy season. This was the reason why he had been wasting his time.
Now that Weining Camp has fallen, even if Dorgon withdraws his troops, he will have to wait for the rainy season. At that time, the baggage will be transported into Yaozhou City, and the main force of the Manchu Qing Dynasty will withdraw lightly, and by the way, it will induce the Datong Army to fight in rainy days.
…
Li Zheng looked at the rough sand table, planted the flag of the Datong Army at the Weining Camp, and said: "As late as a month, as early as half a month, the rainy season in Liaodong is coming. This Dorgon will definitely not be able to use up enough food.
Us, but he has been wasting his time with us. I see, he is just waiting for the rainy season to come!"
"Just in time, let's fight with real swords and guns!" Hu Dinggui said.
The Datong army huddled in the camp and did not fight, and Dorgon also huddled in the camp and did not fight. Especially after Daishan led his army to leave, Dorgon had fewer troops, so he continued to strengthen the defensive camp.
Xiao Zongxian said: "Fortunately, we were prepared for it. A lot of long guns were shipped last year. A total of 8,000 standard long guns were originally intended to expand the armed peasant soldiers, but now they are all replaced by fire gun soldiers. Even if the fire gun soldiers are equipped with bayonets, they will not
It’s definitely not as useful as a spear.”
The flintlock muskets of the Datong Army may still be usable on rainy days, but most likely they will not fire on heavy rainy days.
Li Zheng said with a smile: "We brought the spears from Gaizhou and sent them all down to practice. After getting the muskets, the musketeers only practiced bayonets. I am afraid that the spear skills are all rusty."
This year's rainy season came a bit late, with only sporadic rains in the past half month.
Eight thousand spears were transported to the camp outside Yaozhou City, which was only enough for two divisions of firecrackers to re-equip.
The gun soldiers took turns to practice formations. Most of them were peasant soldiers. The peasant soldiers were trained in the spear formation. Now when they pick up the spear, they immediately recall the past years.
By mid-June, there were more and more rainy days, but there were no heavy rainstorms yet.
Dorgon began to transfer supplies to Yaozhou City, transporting all the baggage that could not be taken away during the rainy season into Yaozhou City for storage. This was also the reason why he was delaying time. Once the rainy season entered, Yaozhou City was basically safe, and the Datong Army could not enter.
of.
Li Zheng, on his side, also began to cross the river and set up camp, getting closer to the main force of the Manchu Qing Dynasty.
Both sides had the same plan, waiting for a heavy rain to start the battle. Artillery, muskets, and bows and arrows could not be used. They fought each other with cold weapons. They both felt that they would definitely win.
What's more, the Datong Army also has a secret weapon, which is a leather case for the flintlock gun. To be precise, it is more like a leather box.
Use a leather box to wrap key parts to prevent direct rainwater. Apply a layer of beeswax to the gap between the barrel and the gun body to prevent rainwater from flowing into the medicine tank from the gap. (Europe and the United States also have this kind of equipment in modern times, called "
Cow’sKnee”.)
With this thing, you can fire a shot in heavy rain, and you will definitely get wet when reloading.
At the critical moment, one shot is enough!
"Boom!"
The rainstorm finally came, but because it was raining so hard, no fighting broke out.
The next day, it turned into light rain.
Dorgon ordered the entire army to leave camp. As long as the Datong army did not move, he immediately took the opportunity to retreat in the rain. The cavalry could not catch up because the road was muddy and difficult to travel, so they could only walk with their horses.
"Firegun soldiers, fill up all the ammunition!"
Everyone, including the dragoons, loaded ammunition in the tent, carefully smeared the gaps with beeswax, and then carefully wrapped it with a leather case.
The gunpowder is properly stored and has not been affected by moisture. However, after filling the gunpowder tank, it is best to fire it quickly. The air in this rainy season is relatively humid.
The eight thousand spears will be held by the melee soldiers for the time being until they finish firing a shot.
The gallant cavalry in Liaodong have been expanded into cavalry divisions, and all have practiced charging across the wall. However, this battle is destined to be useless. The cavalry has to be converted into infantry, and it is impossible to charge on the muddy ground.
Combined, there are nearly 90,000 people from both sides.
They lined up slowly in the drizzle of light rain and stepped on the muddy water.
For the Eight Banners Army, this was a fateful battle. Once defeated, Liaodong would be in danger, so they put aside their conflicts and gathered their strength to fight in a bloody battle.
After forming the formation, the two sides did not rush to attack, but let the civilians build a high platform.
Just fill the sacks with mud and build them up to two or three meters high. With the help of a telescope, the coach can barely see the whole battlefield clearly.
The Eight Banners Army not only gave up their bows and arrows, but also their carts, which were too slow in the mud. Anyway, the firearms of the Datong Army couldn't be used, so there was no need for the carts.
The cotton armor of both sides was soaked, and the weight increased greatly, making it more difficult to move in the mud.
Dorgon wanted to compete with the Datong Army in terms of willpower. He believed that the Eight Banners Warriors would definitely win. This was the only chance of victory. The weapons of the Datong Army were too powerful, and the Eight Banners Army could only fight to the death like this.
The three divisions of firecrackers and the three divisions of dragoons were carefully arrayed at this moment, trying to keep the firecrackers as flat as possible.
There were nearly 20,000 flintlock muskets, all loaded and loaded. They had only one chance to shoot in the rain.
The decisive shot will determine the victory, and the Eight Banners soldiers will be beaten defenseless.
In the Manchu and Qing Dynasties, even flintlock muskets were not installed, so it was naturally unexpected that there was a waterproof device. Because this kind of waterproof device can only be equipped with flintlock muskets, and matchlock guns are completely ineffective.
Wu Sangui now abandoned his horse and fought on foot, leading his team forward slowly.
Wu Sangui did not dare to surrender or defect because the Wu family and his ancestral family were the largest traitor families in Liaodong, and he knew the Datong court's policy towards traitors.
However, Wu Sangui's soldiers were ready to flee at any moment.
The Tatars are fighting against the Datong Army, but what the hell are they doing with the Han troops? Just fight for a show, there is no need to lose your life. Once the main force of the Tatars collapses, all the Han people who have been incorporated into the Eight Banners Army in recent years will be killed.
Kneel down and ask for surrender.
Of course, the highly experienced Eight Banners of the Han Army would probably have to really fight hard, because they really regarded themselves as the Eight Banners Army.
"Boom!"
A few thunders sounded, and the rain became heavier, no longer a drizzle.
The flags from both sides were sent out, and the center and wings began to advance.
The Datong army walked very slowly, marching in formation in the mud, fearing that their feet would slip and fall. The fire gun soldiers were holding the winning treasure in their hands.
