Volume 1: Birth! Seven time travelers Chapter 173: Fateful Sarhu (Part 3)
"Father Khan, what does the southern barbarians mean by this formation?"
"Hmm..." After looking at the opponent's formation for a while, Nurhaci pondered for a while and said, "It seems that Yang Hao on the opposite side is very timid. Strange, isn't it said that this guy usually acts in a completely military style and is very fierce? Why is he setting up a formation for defense instead of attack?"
Compared with the Ming Dynasty's 100,000-strong army which came from multiple military towns and had different proportions of firearms and horses, the Jurchens' organization was much simpler and more unified.
The Eight Banners were only formed last year. Nurhaci personally led the Plain Yellow, Bordered Yellow and Plain White banners, and the great prince Chu Ying led the Bordered White banner. Then it was Daishan who led the Plain Red banner, Huang Taiji who led the Bordered Red banner, Manggurtai who led the Plain Blue banner, and Amin who led the Bordered Blue banner.
Below the banner master, in pure theory, there are five Jiala Ezhen, and below Jiala, there are five Niulu Ezhen. Each Niulu can provide 300 combat soldiers when fully staffed. In this way, the entire Eight Banners has 60,000 combat soldiers.
Of course, this was an absolute life-and-death battle for the new Jin regime. So Nurhaci conducted a thorough internal mobilization, and this time he brought a total of 65,000 people.
"Pass the order down. Chu Ying will line up on the hill on the left (the right side of the Ming army). Amin and Manggurtai will lead the two blue flags to line up on the river. Daishan, you and Huang Taiji will line up on the right."
“Scum!”
Zhu Youdong's troops formed their battle array at around 9:00 a.m., while Nurhaci's troops entered the battlefield at around 9:20 a.m., and formed their battle array as they entered. At 9:50 a.m., the Jurchen troops formed their battle array about three miles away from Ma Lin's troops, who were at the forefront of the Ming army.
After both sides finished lining up, according to the characteristics of this era, naturally, their warriors rode their horses to the front of the other side to provoke. Warming up before the war, in this regard, the Malin tribe obviously suffered a little. At least, in the confrontation between the seven or eight cavalrymen on both sides, the Ming army was killed by the other side, while only three people fell on the Jurchen side. Such a huge difference in the results made the cheers of the Jurchen side overwhelm the cheers of the Ming army, and their morale also rose steadily.
"Your Highness, we can't wait any longer." Zhu Youdong was experienced in military affairs. Strategically, he didn't want Yang Hao to interfere, but tactically, he still let Yang Hao sit next to him.
"Okay! Then let's attack first." Patting his cheeks that had become somewhat stiff due to nervousness and cold, Zhu Youdong picked up a flintlock rifle beside him and personally loaded it with a signal flare made by Fangshan Laboratory using magnesium powder, aluminum powder, rosin and other materials instead of gunpowder, and then handed it to Yang Hao: "Please give the first order of this battle, Yang Jinglue."
"Yes, sir!" Yang Hao responded loudly, then swiftly walked out from under the Nine Dragon Umbrella, and with a bang, he fired the red flare into the sky.
"Father, His Highness's order has arrived."
"Well, all right. Send a message to the two guerrillas Pan and Gong in front. Use the chariots as support and advance slowly."
"Yes." The young figure quickly passed on the order and then ran back quickly: "Father, I beg to go to the front like my elder brother!"
"No!" After saying this in a decisive tone, Marin did not explain, but took out a telescope and began to look forward nervously.
Facing the Malin army head-on were the leaders of the two blue flags, a pair of strange cousins: Amin and Manggurtai. One of them witnessed his father being killed by Nurhaci and remained indifferent. The other killed his own mother with his own hands (this has not happened yet in this plane).
Therefore, the personalities of these two people, at least for now, are very similar.
"Mang Gurtai, I will go first, you wait for an opportunity to flank from the right side."
"Well, the southern barbarians' firearms only make a noise, so you don't have to be afraid, my men."
"Hahaha, got it." After saying this, Amin immediately began to give orders: "Tunqika, lead your Niulu forward and shoot to stop the enemy's formation."
At this time, the Ming army was led by Ma Lin's eldest son Ma Ran, a young general in his twenties, who was very heroic. The Liaodong scholars who were on good terms with Ma Lin all said that this child had the legacy of his grandfather Ma Fang.
Because of such praise, the boy felt very good about himself. In this battle , Ma Lin sighed because Zhu Youdong arranged him to the front line. But Ma Ran was very excited. Under his repeated and strong request, Ma Lin had to put him on the front line.
"Major General, please slow down. We are a tank convoy and we can't go any faster."
"Uncle Gong, there is no such thing as a major general on the battlefield. You are the superior officer, and I will obey you."
"Hahaha, the young general was able to speak calmly even in such a big battle. He is truly a great general."
Before the two of them finished their chat, they heard a series of whizzing sounds. Naturally, it was the arrows from the other side. The two of them quickly moved to the back of the chariot to avoid them. Gong Niansui gave the order at the same time: "Light up the magic arrows and kill the Jiannu!"
The principle of the so-called divine arrow is somewhat similar to that of later rocket launchers, which are to ignite one arrow and then ignite the subsequent arrows (shells) one after another and automatically fire. Because of the advantage of being able to fire and forget, this type of device accounts for a very high proportion in Marin's troops.
Following Gong Niansui's order, the hundreds of Ming soldiers at the front pulled back the thick curtain covering the chariots and quickly ignited fifty magic arrows. In a flash, each magic arrow fired all thirty-two seven-foot-long arrows in the arrow box.
Once the divine arrow was launched, the noise it made was huge. The sound of a bow and arrow powered by gunpowder was also much louder than a bow and arrow pulled by human power. But Gong Niansui still carefully searched for the sound made by the arrow shot from the opposite side.
After hearing a series of whooshing sounds, followed by a few "puffs" of arrows hitting flesh, and then a large number of clanging sounds, Gong Nian knew that the enemy's arrow attacks had all ended. Then he quickly stood up from under the chariot: "Order! Gunners move forward and fire three rounds of shots from the chariot. Spearmen move forward and defend from the chariot. Horsemen draw their swords and prepare for close combat!"
The generals on the Ming army side quickly gave orders, and Amin on the opposite side was also not vague. When dozens of archers in the front of his side were killed by the Ming army's rockets, he did not even frown: "Pass the order, archers continue to shoot on the spot, white armor soldiers come up and lead everyone to charge forward!"
The commanders of both sides gave orders one after another, and the battlefield, which was quiet at first, at least along the river, suddenly became lively.
When Zhu Youdong went north this time, he only changed the clothes and cotton armor for the soldiers in the military towns, but did not change the firearms: on the one hand, the production capacity was insufficient, and on the other hand, although the flintlock rifle was very friendly to the soldiers, it did not take too long to train. But at least this time, the emperor in the rear and the enemy in front left him with not enough time.
Therefore, he did not replace the hot weapons of the Ming army in other military garrisons: Just fight as hard as you can in the way you are most accustomed to.
But because of this, the soldiers of Kaiyuan Guard in Liaozhen did not dare to load enough ammunition into the bird guns produced by the Ministry of Works of the Ming Dynasty as required: God knows whether these bird guns will explode?
Because of this, although the Ming army's position was covered with smoke and the smell of gunpowder was extremely strong, the casualties caused by the three rounds of bird guns were not as great as the casualties caused by the hundreds of magic arrows at the beginning, and the delay to the speed of the Jurchen soldiers was also minimal.
"Huff huff huff huff~~~" A sturdy Jurchen man wearing two layers of cotton armor, holding a leather-covered wooden shield in his left hand and a big knife in his right hand, was the first to arrive at the forefront of the Ming army's chariots.
The Ming army spearmen who had been waiting in formation here for a long time rushed to thrust their spears at the Jurchen white-armored soldier who had to slow down because of the obstruction of the chariot.
"Hmph!" The white-armored soldier quickly raised the shield in his left hand, but did not stop completely. Instead, he exerted force behind the shield. While blocking two or three spear heads, a counter-thrust force pushed the two or three Ming army spearmen who were stabbing across the chariot back a step.
But that was it. He was the first to charge, and he blocked the spears in front of him, but more spears came at him from both sides. In an instant, he was stabbed by at least five spears. After the spears were pulled out, a large amount of blood spurted out, quickly soaking his armor. And this brave soldier fell down.
However, the consequence of seven or eight spearmen besieging and beating up one white-armored soldier was that the battle line became loose.
Taking advantage of this gap, the subsequent Jurchen soldiers came in like a tide. After paying a certain price of casualties, the Jurchen soldiers broke through the chariot, which had become a dead thing because of all the divine arrows shot. They began to engage in direct hand-to-hand combat with the Ming army soldiers!
