In the Qianqing Palace in Nanjing, Zhu Hengjia held a military meeting in front of the map.
"My lords, Burma is very mountainous. It will take too long to attack one city after another. The Crown Prince told me that our army was fighting fiercely with the Burmese army near Malay City. I intend to send the navy to attack from the north and south and capture it quickly. How about Myanmar?"
"Your Majesty, if you want to conquer Burma by sea, you have to cross the vast sea and replenish supplies through Annam, Champa, and Siam ports. Not to mention that it takes time to negotiate with these vassal states. The cost of sea transportation is huge. Now the national treasury is empty. I really can’t afford such a huge expedition." Chief Assistant Guan Shouzhen spoke first.
"Your Majesty, the capital of Myanmar, Awa, is located in the Awa Mountains in the north. It is still a long way from the sea. Even if our navy lands from Dagon (Yangon), we will still have to go through a bloody battle on land before we can conquer Yidu. The sea is vast and unpredictable. Please think twice," Yu Chaoxiang, Minister of War, also advised.
It is said that "listen to others' advice and have enough to eat". With so many important ministers opposed to the cross-sea expedition, we should give up the idea. But the older he got, the more stubborn his character became. Emperor Guangwu could not listen to other people's opinions and insisted on ordering the navy to go to war. .The national treasury is short of silver, so let me squeeze it out. If we really can’t squeeze it out, then we can make the scale smaller rather than bigger. We can still make up the naval military expenditure of 10,000 people.
His Majesty the Emperor decided to organize a small fleet of 10,000 men, led by Pingyi Marquis Zhou Hezhi. The reason why he appointed Zhou Hezhi as commander was because he was a great pirate and had rich sailing experience, and because his title was "Pingyihou" is a good omen, Emperor Guangwu believes in this.
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"Our army and the Burmese barbarians fought fiercely in the Malay City. They repeatedly attacked and defended for several months, and it was difficult to determine the outcome. They fought hand to hand, fighting to the death, fighting to the death, and blood and flesh were flying everywhere. In a lifetime of hundreds of battles, it has never been as miserable as fighting against each other?? "(Shi Qiwen: "Ping Mian Lu")
The Battle of Malay Town was fought fiercely, with more than 60,000 Ming troops and 100,000 Burmese troops engaged in a desperate struggle. The Ming army had superior equipment and combat power, while the Burmese army had a numerical advantage.
First, the Ming army attacked the Burmese army. Mangbai set up more than a hundred strongholds outside the Malay City, with deep ditches and high walls, and stood ready. Although the Ming army had the advantage of firearms, they could not break through the Burmese fortresses. Wave after wave of attacks were carried out. Fight back, leaving waves of corpses behind.
Seeing that the strong attack was ineffective, Shi Qiwen turned to attack and defended. Relying on the city, he set up a stronghold in front of the Malay City. He and the city were the horns of each other, patiently looking for the Burmese army's flaws.
The war then entered a state of Burma attacking and defending.
Wu Lula wiped the sweat from his forehead with his sleeve, which turned out to be red. He licked his thirsty lips, picked up the water bag, and took a big sip. After fighting fiercely all morning, he felt dry and thirsty.
The trenches in front of them were finally filled in. The Ming army dug ten trenches in front of the camp. For five days, in order to fill in these trenches, their own men suffered casualties of 3,000 people.
"Drive, drive, drive!"
A horse galloped in front of me, and it turned out to be the Burmese king Mangbai. "Wulula, has the trench been filled in?"
"Your Majesty, our army has filled in all the trenches. But the casualties are too high."
"How can there be no casualties in a war? We must take advantage of the fact that the Ming army has lost its energy and quickly pull out the stronghold." Mang Bai said loudly, "Wulula, I want you to be a sharp arrow that shoots at the enemy and destroys the Ming army's fortress.
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"Don't worry, Your Majesty, the general will definitely fulfill his mission."
The tribes of Wu Lu La, Bing Chui, Meng Shao and others rushed towards the Ming army camp like locusts.
"Order the artillery battalion to bombard me hard," Shi Qiwen roared.
The artillery fire roared, the smoke filled the air, and the clouds covered the sun. It was terrible to see. Countless Burmese warriors had lost their arms and limbs. Wu Lula suddenly had the illusion that today's sun was blood red.
Groups of Burmese soldiers set up ladders and pushed carts through the blind spot of the cannons, heading towards the camp. Farther away, there were dozens of tall carts. Burmese archers stood on the carts and headed toward the camp.
Shoot arrows to cover the infantry attacking the stronghold.
"Boom~boom~boom~" The Ming army's muskets were shooting.
"Whoosh~whoosh~whoosh~" The crossbows of the Burmese army are hunting.
The Wuyangyang Burmese army rushed to the Ming army's camp, and the brutal attack on the camp began.
A Ming soldier's left arm was cut off, but he was still killed with his right arm; a Burmese soldier was shot through the head by a bullet as soon as he rushed to the wall. One after another, soldiers fell from the ladder like dumplings, and kept falling.
There are soldiers swarming up the ladder. The camp made of earth and rocks is full of swords and swords. There are no magical skills in martial arts novels, but only real swords and guns. If you don’t kill the enemy, the enemy will kill you.
In the Ming army's tent, Zhu Ruoji was discussing the military situation with Shi Qiwen and Li Dingguo. General Zhao Desheng stumbled in, "General, the Burmese attacked our camp regardless of casualties. The casualties of the soldiers were too great. The general requested to withdraw.
Go to the city, rely on the fortified city, and consume the enemy."
Zhu Ruoji stared at Shi Qiwen with questioning eyes.
Shi Qiwen shook his head, "Absolutely not. The camp and the city are horns of each other. They can attack and defend. If we abandon the camp and enter the city, we will be trapped in the isolated city. Our army will be in danger!"
Suddenly he glared at Zhao Desheng and cursed: "Thank you for having the nerve to call me Zhao Desheng. When the Burmese barbarians came, you were scared to death. Are you still a man? Are the eggs you laid still there? Return to the wall immediately and hold on.
When they are all gone, you go up on your own; when you die in battle, I fill in. Anyone who dares to take a step back will be killed!"
Being stimulated, Zhao Desheng's face turned red and scary. He glared at Shi Qiwen angrily, gave a military salute, and returned to the wall.
The narrow wall was littered with corpses, and both sides were furious. There were soldiers who were seriously wounded and rolled down the wall with their enemies in their arms.
Zhao Desheng picked up the Yanling knife and chopped down a Burmese soldier viciously. While doing so, he cursed, "Damn, you actually said we have no eggs."
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Dagon (Yangon), the name comes from Sanskrit, meaning "Three Hills Village". Legend has it that there were three hills here in ancient times.
This city is located in south-central Myanmar, on the east side of the Irrawaddy Delta, on the left bank of the Yangon River, and adjacent to Motama Bay on the Andaman Sea to the south. In later generations, it was the largest port in Myanmar, Yangon Port, and was also a world-famous rice town.
.However, in this era, the Yangon Port has not yet been built, and Myanmar’s merchant ships are mainly in the Mawlamyine Port east of Dagon. There are only a dozen small fishing boats parked in twos and threes on the pier of Madaban Port in Dagon.
Several Burmese soldiers feebly patrolled the beach.
Suddenly, a veteran screamed: "Ships! So many ships! No, the sun and moon flag! They are from the Ming Dynasty!"
"Enemy attack~enemy~"
Before the veteran could light the smoke, he was blasted into the sky by a shell.
On the sea, there are more than a hundred warships lined up densely. On the largest ship, a sun and moon flag, there is also a "Zhou" flag hanging next to it.
Zhou Hezhi, the Marquis of Pingyi, stood majestically under the banner, stroking his long beard with his hands and looking directly at the square.
General Liu Guoxuan asked: "Commander, why didn't you land at Moulmein Port and come to Madaban Port instead?"
Zhou Hezhi was happy, "You don't know, I was a pirate, no, when I was a maritime merchant, I came to this area to make a living, and I know the sea conditions here clearly. Moulmein Port is tightly guarded, and there is also a Burmese army."
It is difficult for the army and navy to land. Here, it is easy to capture."