In Puzikou Town, Jiangpu County, gongs and drums were beating on the south wall, and many figures were running around on top of the wall.
There were some swollen corpses floating in the water outside the city wall. As the river undulated and flowed by, further away on the river, a line of boat shadows was approaching towards Puzikou Ferry.
Puzikou Town is located across the river from Nanjing. It was originally the seat of Jiangpu County. During the Hongzhi period, the Yangtze River moved northward and destroyed the south wall, so it was renamed Puzikou town. Later, during the Wanli period, the south wall was rebuilt by 899 feet and four more were built.
The gate, an urn, seven enemy towers, and nine water holes formed a complete city wall system.
The city of this town starts from the foot of Dingshan Mountain in the west, crosses Puzi Mountain, and reaches Jinwang Mountain in the east, standing along the river.
The nearest ferry from Jiangbei to Nanjing is here. It is known as the Huai River and controls the Huai River. Under the ideological system of administrative divisions in the Ming Dynasty, it was placed under the jurisdiction of Yingtian Prefecture in the south of the Yangtze River, thereby strengthening Nanjing's control over the Jiangbei area.
Because of its important strategic role, the Ming Dynasty set up five guard posts here: Yingtian Guard, Longhu Guard, Wude Guard, Henghai Guard, and Heyang Guard, with a strength of more than 20,000. After the decline of the guard posts, Pukou was set up.
The battalion commanded the guard post to strengthen defense.
Although the military establishment seems to be very strong, there has been no fighting in the Nanjing area for a long time. Facing the hundreds of thousands of rogue bandits outside the city wall, Puzikou's strong military strength on paper can only retreat inside the city.
Zhang Xianzhong and other battalions arrived at Jiangpu County from Quanjiao on December 28. Since Puzikou was surrounded by mountains, rivers and rivers, it was very difficult to attack, so they besieged Jiangpu County.
Puzikou Town has excellent geographical conditions and strong defenses. However, the corruption of the military system makes them unable to rescue Jiangpu County, which is twenty miles away.
When the rogues attacked Quanjiao, Puzikou was under martial law. Later, Jiangnan soldiers and horses crossed the river one after another to strengthen the defenses of Puzikou and Jiangpu. After the rogues surrounded Jiangpu, they deployed camps outside Puzikou and used rangers to control the official road during the day.
Cut off the support route from Jiangpu to the west,
At this time, the water boats coming from the upper reaches were more likely to be officers and soldiers, because they had never heard of rogue pirates having boats. More and more people boarded the south wall of Puzikou to observe the movements of the fleet. They were excited and excited.
I'm a little uneasy, because I still don't know who they are.
In the vast plains between Puzikou Town and Jiangpu County, some rogue horsemen rushed to the shore to observe the fleet, and horsemen who reported news were constantly galloping towards the camps around Jiangpu County.
The little kid was standing by the river, observing the huge fleet. Today, his commander was responsible for guarding Puzikou. The little kid crossed the Puzikou River directly and moved around the city wall. He knew that the city gate would not open normally.
The city wall also restricted the defenders, so it was safe for him to move around. There were many large households near the city, and it was far from the camp. In his free time, he could find a lot of good things in those large courtyards.
It was originally a leisurely job, and you could return to camp after a while, but the appearance of this fleet suddenly made the situation tense. The little boy rushed to the riverside and began to carefully observe the fleet.
As a northerner, although he had seen canal boats before, this was the first time he saw such a large fleet. The canal boats with high Chinese-style hard sails were in groups, moving down the river, which was quite majestic.
potential.
Some of the horsemen around were shouting and looking very nervous. Many people hurriedly retreated north, fearing that the city would open the Wanfeng Gate and block the bridge.
The packhorse under him was also a little uneasy. The little boy knew that this horse could not be compared with the war horse, but he did not think that the soldiers and horses brought by the ship would allow him to escape. Although the ship was a bit scary, it would never make it to the shore. If the officers and soldiers
It can't be defeated if it lands too much, and the infantry will never be able to catch up with the pack horses, and it is not yet known whether it is actually loaded with officers and soldiers.
So he stood on the river bank with peace of mind and patiently observed this strange fleet.
The fleet gradually broke away from the mainstream of the river and sailed towards Puzikou Ferry, getting closer and closer to the river bank. The little boy had excellent eyesight and could see various flags hanging on the boats. The first two boats were people in short clothes, holding
The weapons were a bit confused, and the deck of the third ship was full of swaying long hair, and people were wearing black armor. Someone on the deck also saw him, shouting and cursing in this direction, but it was too far to hear clearly.
"The third ship is the servants, there are about twenty people in each ship." Based on his years of experience, Xiaowazi assigned roles to this team and confirmed that there must be soldiers on board.
After the second ship approached, there were still black armors on the deck, as did the five ships that followed, and the little boy's relaxed expression disappeared.
"There are hundreds of servants, whose general soldier is here?" The little boy thought for a moment, and it seemed that none of the frontier troops he had seen in his memory were on boats. The servants had armor, but they must be riding horses. This boat
The soldiers must be soldiers and horses from somewhere south of the Yangtze River, and definitely not from the north.
The first ship was approaching the dock, and this group of officers and soldiers would start to disembark at any time. The little boy scanned the surroundings and found that the other cavalry soldiers had already run away. The fleet was spreading across the river, but the end could not be seen.
The little boy reined in the packhorse and continued to stay where he was, carefully watching the following ships. He also took time to pay attention to the dock to see if the ships in front began to release soldiers.
When the fifteenth ship passed in front of him, the little boy had already counted close to three hundred servants. The first ship had set up a springboard, and the infantrymen on top stepped on the springboard and climbed the steps.
His mouth was a little dry, and his eyes were switching back and forth between the river and the pier. At this time, all the soldiers and horses were on the river, and the other horsemen had run away. The little boy thought it was an opportunity. He was the horseman closest to the pier. If he could
If you bring back accurate military information to the Eighth Master, you can expect to be promoted to the team leader.
He only saw part of the fleet now, with about twenty to thirty officers and men on each ship. What he needed now was to see the entire fleet, count the approximate number, and see the general's flag.
Red shorts appeared on the east pier. When the officers and soldiers came ashore, they rushed towards the little boy's place. They were running very fast. They were the unarmored soldiers from the two ships in front. I originally heard that the troops in Jiangnan were not as good as the frontier troops. Now judging from the equipment,
, not weaker than the frontier troops, and with high fighting spirit, but without horses.
The little boy's palms were full of sweat, and he looked back to the north. Not only did he have to worry about the landing officers and soldiers, but he also had to worry about the officers and soldiers in the city opening the Wanfeng Gate and blocking the two bridges over the Puzikou River. He would be
A turtle in a urn.
In the cold winter, the little boy's forehead was already covered with beads of sweat. He closed his eyes to calm his mind, then opened his eyes to estimate the distance between the officers and soldiers at the dock. He could stay for a while, and continued to look towards the west side of the river.
The fleet is still coming in an endless stream, and they are widely spaced. The furthest boat is a small black spot on the river, and the further back can no longer be seen clearly. The number may be too late to count.
His eyes kept scanning the fleet, and soon he saw a distinctive red flag hanging on one of the ships.
"General's flag!" The little kid looked there attentively. The red flag was fluttering in the river wind, and ripples kept flowing on the flag. There seemed to be six characters on it. The little kid couldn't read, but he knew that the officers and soldiers recognized the flag.
The length of the flagpole and the flag are different. He hopes to see the length of the flag closer, so that he can know whether the opponent is the commander-in-chief or the deputy-general.
There was a howling sound on the east side, and the little boy looked back nervously. The group of officers and soldiers who had landed were already a hundred steps away, and they could even see their weapons clearly.
"Look again." The little boy resisted the urge to leave and looked at the ship with the flag.
The red flag fluctuated again, and the little boy suddenly squinted his eyes. He clearly saw a rare word that he could recognize.
When the Eighth Master celebrated his birthday last year, the word "Celebration" was hung in many places. This word was a bit complicated, but the little kid just remembered this one, and it seemed that it was indeed the word "Celebration" on the flag.
"Qing... from Chongqing?" The little boy was distracted, and there were two sudden crashes from there.
A black shadow passed in front of his eyes, and the little boy woke up suddenly. He didn't care to look at the length of the flagpole anymore, and turned his head to pull the horse's head east. Taking advantage of this little free time, he looked behind the flag and saw that he saw the deck.
There are also horses.
Shipping cavalry was something that the little boy had never dreamed of at this time. It seemed that these officers and soldiers were indeed a bit strange. He counted more than fifty ships, and now there were cavalry. This information was enough for the Eighth Master to praise him.
.
The officers and soldiers who had landed were already within fifty steps, and the ferocious faces of the soldiers could be seen. The little kid whipped the horse's butt and galloped towards the Yinding Bridge in the north.
…
On the bow of the ship with the red flag of Anqing garrison hanging, Pang Yu held a telescope with both hands. In the lens was a lone rogue horse soldier with a red turban on his head. He was a little thin and had just left on horseback. The marines were already far away from him.
It was very close, but the arrows fired by several archers missed.
The marines in the telescope were not in formation, but their momentum was like a rainbow. This was the first time for Pang Yu to watch them fight live. He was very satisfied with the performance of this new team. They looked more aggressive than the army camp, but their tactics and skills did need to be improved.
.
Pang Yu turned his telescope to Puzikou. There were many majestic enemy towers in the city. The tall central enemy tower stood majestically on the top of Puzi Mountain. The city walls were covered with hanging chains and lanterns. The official flags on the towers were still there. The landing site was safe.
The cannons docking on the dock are disgorging groups of soldiers. Soldiers in red clothes and black armor will gather on the dock and move west along the avenue.
He was somewhat glad that he had chosen a safe plan. When he passed the Bazigou Ferry, he used a telescope to look at it. The pier there was narrow and there was no protection from the city, so it would not be so smooth.
Puzikou Ferry Pier has a wide view and is enough to berth all the ships this time. There are no common reeds around the pier, but a 750-foot stone waterproof embankment, which can also be used to temporarily gather people and horses.
Only then did Pang Yu complete the first step, sending troops from Anqing to Jiangpu. The next step was rescue.
The color of the boats moored at the pier was still a bit confusing, but it was better than Dangtu, and the soldiers landed faster than Dangtu. Pang Yu thought that the assembly time was shortened a lot.
The boat swayed slightly and landed on the shore. Pang Yu grabbed Pang Ding in front of the gangplank and whispered, "Remember to take care of me, young master."
Pang Ding nodded affirmatively, Pang Yu took a breath and walked onto the gangplank. The sailor untied the flagpole on the boat shed. The Guards took the red flag and followed Pang Yu up the steps.
There were thunderous cheers on the Puzikou city wall. Some of the common people were literate, so at least they were sure that those who came were officers and soldiers, and there were quite a few of them.
The first to land were Yao Dongshan's First Division and the First Division of the Second Division. Yao Dongshan and Wang Zenglu had already landed.
When Pang Yu came to Yao Dongshan, he didn't even say hello. He directly asked him, "Are all the subordinates here?"
"One flag corps is missing, but it doesn't matter, the first division will fight as usual."
Pang Yu pointed in the northwest direction, "The rogue bandits haven't recovered yet, let's push westward. The first division set off immediately to control the west bridge end of Yinding Bridge (Note 1), brought hoes and shovels, and dug out a camping trench before dark.
"
…
Note 1: Kangxi's "Jiangpu County Chronicle": Yinding Bridge is fifteen miles east of the county seat, between Jiangpu and Puzikou.