According to detailed reports, more than 4,000 Qin Yousheng's troops had abandoned their garrison in Lizhou and moved south to Changde. Several groups of troops were urgently mobilized into Changde. Together with the garrison deployed by the prefect Zhao Min in Fucheng and other places, the local area has now assembled.
There are more than 10,000 officers and soldiers. Judging from this, Wuchang may have smelled the smell of the Battle of Changde, and Zhang Ning's raid plan failed; but he still planned to attack and capture this place.
Perhaps he had good vision in planning this battle, but he lacked imagination, because the nearest big city to Chenzhou is Changde Mansion, so it is not difficult for anyone to think of it.
I didn’t have time to elaborate on my feelings of separation with Mrs. Yao and my younger sister. Even the emotion of separation seems to be a luxury for poets. Throughout the ages, many literati have written war poems, but for those who have personally experienced the battle, it is actually very boring and stressful.
Victory or defeat, life or death, that's it. Zhang Ning dispatched most of the Yongding Battalion troops and horses, determined to capture Changde Mansion; he seemed to be giving all his strength in every big battle.
Changde Mansion is an important town in central Huguang. Not only does it have high walls and strong walls, but also nearby towns on the periphery also play a supporting role. To the southwest of the main city are Wuling, Taoyuan City, and Longyang City to the southeast. To attack the main city, it is actually best to attack from the north.
Okay, so Changde is on the protrusion, and it is difficult for the surrounding fortifications to effectively threaten the siege troops. But Zhang Ning's troops came from Chenzhou, so they could only attack from the southwest with Gaodu as the starting point.
He decided to bypass the two cities of Wuling and Taoyuan and directly attack the main city. This was indeed risky, but if he spent his time in constant siege, he might wait for more reinforcements from the army, which was also a risk.
They left Gaodu a few days ago and marched to Wuling County. Before dawn, the main force broke out and advanced from the north of Wuling City to the east, while the city not far from the flank was still in the hands of the official army. The Suzaku Army forwards had moved ahead earlier.
In the early morning of late summer and early autumn, a thick fog actually fell on the wilderness. There were many rice fields on the roadside, and the air was very humid. But when the sun rose to disperse the fog, the situation should get better.
Zhang Ning was riding a horse to accompany the army. His vision was unclear in the fog, and he could only see countless figures walking through the rice fields. The slow "clatter" of horse hooves, and the occasional neighing of horses and people could be heard in the footsteps.
Coughing, few people spoke. The earth seemed to be in chaos at the beginning of Pangu. People were in a better mood and a little nervous, because everyone knew that there was a city controlled by the army not far away, and there was a risk of being raided by soldiers and horses in the city. But leaving
It was very quiet for a long time, and there were no attacks from officers or soldiers.
Walking in the fog is like a groping life, which makes people think wildly. No matter how hard you try, you can't see the way forward clearly.
When the sun rose, Zhang Chengzong, who served as the forward sentry officer Qian Zong, sent someone back to report the situation. The government and army had two camps to the west of Changde City, with a large number of soldiers and horses stationed there. To the north, there was a group of troops in the south of the mountain bordering Yuezhou.
The number of cavalry is unknown; Zhang Ning estimated that there would be a considerable number of officers and soldiers in Wuling County, and it was impossible for their general to fail to see the threat Wuling County posed to the Suzaku Army's flanks.
Judging from what we know, the officers and soldiers do not intend to rely on the fortified city to defend, but to adopt a deployment of active defense and attempt to counterattack. There is nothing magical about this layout, but it should be correct; the defenders are not obviously weak in strength.
, there is no point in staying in a city with no room for development. It is unclear whether Huguang Commander-in-Chief Xue Lu was in Changde to personally attend this battle.
Since we were here to attack the city, we should show momentum in the first battle instead of shrinking back. Zhang Ning ordered the march to continue and actively entered the "encirclement" situation of the official army: the official army had two camps in the south, west and north of the city, and cavalry was deployed in the north.
, the soldiers and horses of Wuling County in the southwest can rely on the city to attack at any time, which is actually a pocket formation.
However, the strength of both sides is equal. When Zhang Ning entered the middle of the encirclement, he had an advantage by joining forces. Therefore, where the strength lies, if you gain some advantages, you will lose something.
The journey from the north of Wuling County to Changde City was very short. However, the Suzaku Army carried dozens of mortars and baggage and marched slowly. They did not reach a place five miles away from the city until the afternoon. The army remained stationary for more than half a day.
, there was no movement in the two camps in the north and south.
Zhang Ning ignored the officers and soldiers and continued to approach the west gate of Changde. He first drained the water in a few rice fields, then chose higher dry land to set up camp and built waist walls and fences. The next day, he ordered trenches to be dug and traps laid outside the city.
Wooden piles were used to block the defenders in the city from finding an opportunity to attack; other soldiers built a mortar position one mile outside the city gate. They planned to block the defenders in the city first and bombard them with artillery for a few days.
There are some bronze cannons and bowl-mouth blunderbuss deployed in Changde City, but the range is very short. If they just stay on the city wall, they can only watch the Suzaku Army bombard them without any solution.
…
At this time, Xue Lu, who was in Changde City, was very angry. He was not angry at anything else, because the rebels were so arrogant that they ignored the threat of heavy troops on both sides and went straight to the city. This violated the common sense of battle formation and was against the enemy.
He was extremely contemptuous. As reinforcements arrived one after another from Changde Prefecture, the total strength of the Suzaku Army exceeded that of the attacking Suzaku Army. At this time, many generals suggested that the officers and soldiers attack from the flanks and rear flanks and take the initiative to attack.
But even though Xue Lu was angry, he still calmed down and decided to wait. Changde City was stronger than other local cities and would not be captured after a few days of bombardment... Xue Lu only had one thing to wait for: Next
rain.
It is the turn of summer and autumn, and there is a lot of rain in the southwest. Looking at the weather, it may rain soon. As long as it rains, firearms cannot be used. Avoiding the enemy's strengths is the best time to attack.
Good timing. Xue Lu has already sent a letter to Yu Qian about his plan, and Yu Qian also agrees with his idea, so there is no need to act rashly for the time being.
Bows and crossbows are almost impossible to use when it rains. Bow strings made of silk and beef tendon are easily damaged and scrapped when it rains. Bows and crossbows are not cheap to make. The Ming Dynasty was not rich enough to be so wasteful; not to mention that bow strings are used when it rains.
Moisture weakens the elasticity, and the arrow feathers are also damp, and the lethality itself is greatly weakened, which is of little significance against the armored army. Generally speaking, when it rains, the two sides seem to be equal in terms of weapons, but the Suzaku Army's firearms originally have an advantage
, so it is beneficial to Xue Lu.
Within two days, the sound of cannons began to roar outside the city. The thunderous noise started early in the morning and stopped late at night.
In just one day, almost all the copper cannons and other firearms placed on the city walls were destroyed. The wall stacks were seriously damaged, some of the walls collapsed, and large areas of the outer bricks fell off. The defenders on the walls suffered many casualties.
Lu had no choice but to order the main troops to be transferred inside the city wall, but some stone bullets still hit the camp randomly and caused casualties. Some more artillery shells fell into the city, causing many houses to collapse and civilian casualties. Changde Mansion was located in the hinterland for many years and had a dense population.
As long as a shell falls in, it will always cause casualties. For a while, people in the city were panicked and uneasy.
During Xue Lu's military career, he had the experience of leading troops to suppress the rebellion of the minority people. In this kind of counter-insurgency war, the army had excellent armor and long-range advantages, and in terms of equipment and technology, it was able to suppress the rebellion of the minority people. But this time it was not the case.
Xue Lu felt very unaccustomed to it, and it turned out to be the other way around.
In fact, he personally felt the suffocation of being hit by superior firearms. In the future, he must write to the emperor and insist on the idea of making hand-held firearms.
In fact, not only Xue Lu was puzzled, but Lu Qianshi of Jinyiwei had always been puzzled. How did a group of rebels possess superior firearms?