Volume 1: The Wind Rises in Tumubao Chapter 7: Encounter
In the Ming army formation, Zhu Qizhen also saw the aggressive Mongolian cavalry.
Zhang Fu hurried forward and said, "Your Majesty, please go back to the rear to supervise the battle. I will leave this to you, my old minister!"
Zhu Qizhen resolutely said: "I am the commander-in-chief. A great battle is imminent. How can a commander-in-chief retreat in the face of a fierce battle?"
"But, Your Majesty..."
"I have made up my mind, no need to say more!" Zhu Qizhen raised his hand and began to give orders, "Taining Hou Chen Ying!"
"I am here!"
Chen Ying dismounted from his horse, knelt on one knee, and waited for orders.
"The artillery of the Shenji Camp moves forward and prepares for battle!"
Chen Ying took the red flag and said respectfully, "I obey your order!"
"Listen carefully!" Zhu Qizhen said solemnly, "My orders will be conveyed through flag signals. You must not make decisions on your own when commanding at the front line. If you disobey, you will be beheaded!"
Chen Ying's heart trembled, and he saluted and said, "Please rest assured, Your Majesty, I will definitely fulfill my mission!"
After saying this, he turned around, mounted his horse and galloped towards the Shenji Camp.
Zhu Qizhen shouted again: "Duke of Ying, Zhang Fu; Earl of Pingxiang, Chen Huai; Earl of Xiangcheng, Li Zhen; Earl of Suian, Chen Xun; Earl of Xiuwu, Shen Rong!"
The five men stepped forward , with Zhang Fu at the head, and said in unison: "I am here!"
Zhu Qizhen ordered: "Duke Zhang Fu of England will lead the five army camps and the central army, Chen Huai will lead the left patrol army, Li Zhen will lead the right patrol army, Chen Xun will lead the left armies, and Shen Rong will lead the right armies. Prepare to meet the enemy!"
"I obey your order!"
The five men each took the command flag, and Zhu Qizhen said, "You too, follow my flag signals. If anyone dares not to follow my command, regardless of success or failure, he will be sentenced to death!"
Zhang Fu looked at Zhu Qizhen meaningfully. He had an illusion that for some reason, the emperor he met today seemed like a different person.
He acts decisively and swiftly, and can remain calm even when a war is about to break out.
It seemed... this young emperor grew up overnight.
Especially the majesty he exuded when he issued the military order just now. Over the years, I have only seen it in Emperor Taizong.
The generals felt the same way. Along the way, the eunuch Wang Zhen was worried that the military officers in power would steal his limelight, so he tried every means to suppress them. Everyone had been miserable for a long time, and today the emperor personally assigned tasks, and they were suddenly trembling in spirits, as if the resentment accumulated along the way finally had a chance to be vented.
Zhang Fu is over seventy years old this year. He should have been enjoying his retirement at home and enjoying the life of his children and grandchildren. But when he heard that the emperor was going to lead the army in person, he put on his armor and went into battle without a second thought.
But he never expected that he, a senior official of four dynasties and a Duke with great military achievements, would be controlled by a eunuch. If Emperor Taizong knew about this, I wonder what he would think...
The long-awaited war has finally arrived. Today, we must kill to our heart's content and vent our anger along the way!
Military orders were passed down one by one, and the Ming army began to shrink. The rattan shield bearers moved forward to form the first line of defense, and the cannons of the Shenji Camp were also pushed to the front of the formation.
Seeing the Mongolian cavalry coming fiercely, the soldiers in the formation couldn't help but feel frightened, and some of them quietly took a few steps back.
Perhaps, this is just a subconscious behavior. After all, this is a war and people will die.
In the face of death, no one dares to say that they are fearless. Survival is human instinct.
But timidity is contagious.
As soon as one person starts to back down, there will be a second, a third...
This small move was noticed by Zhu Qizhen, who frowned and ordered, "Fan Zhong!"
"I will be here!"
Fan Zhong always followed behind Zhu Qizhen, guarding the emperor of the Ming Dynasty and the large dragon flag above his head.
"Pass the order down, Jinyiwei will step forward to supervise the battle. From now on, anyone who retreats will be killed!"
"I will obey your order!"
A total of 300 Jinyiwei accompanied the emperor on this expedition. After receiving the order, they all took up their swords and went into battle, standing behind the soldiers to act as military supervisors.
With the Jinyiwei supervising the battle, the soldiers at the front stopped retreating, tightly grasped their weapons, and prepared for battle.
The Mongolian cavalry marched very quickly, and in a blink of an eye, the two armies were less than 500 steps apart.
Five hundred steps, which is about seven or eight hundred meters, is a distance that is already within the range of artillery.
Taining Marquis Chen Ying stood in front of the formation, constantly estimating the enemy's distance, ready to give the order to open fire at any time.
The twelve large cannons were ready, but there was no sign of attack from the central army.
"My Lord, are you still not going to fire?"
The officers behind him could no longer bear it. The Wala cavalry were extremely fast and would arrive in a flash. If they did not open fire, the enemy would be right under their noses.
Chen Ying looked anxiously in the direction of the central army and shook his head helplessly, "Wait a little longer!"
"My Lord, we can't wait any longer. If we wait any longer, the artillery will be useless!"
"Why can't we wait?" Chen Ying also lost his temper and said with a sullen face, "The emperor hasn't given the order yet, keep waiting!"
Four hundred steps...
Three hundred steps...
Angkotu knew that he would soon be under a round of artillery fire.
If they were hit by the Ming army's artillery during a full-scale charge, they would be in danger of death. However, the loading speed of the artillery was extremely slow, and facing the high-speed cavalry, they would have no chance after firing once.
Two hundred and fifty steps...
This distance was already within the range of the artillery, but the Ming army had not yet launched an attack, which surprised him greatly.
It seems that the Ming army was really scared and is probably ready to run away now!
"The Ming army's artillery is not working. The little emperor is right in front of us. Follow me!"
The cavalry behind them roared excitedly. In their eyes, these Ming troops were equivalent to mobile military merits that were within their reach.
The autumn wind blew towards him, causing pain on his face, but this feeling gave Angkorto a long-lost sense of refreshment.
He spurred his horse into a gallop, and eight thousand cavalrymen followed closely behind him like a shadow. The huge cavalry formation gradually dispersed, and the horseshoes collided with the ground, making clanging sounds, as if carrying the power to crush everything.
Two hundred steps...
One hundred and fifty steps...
Converted into meters, it is about two or three hundred meters, which is very close. The galloping war horses raise a large amount of dust, which has a strong visual impact.
Behind Zhu Qizhen, Fan Zhong looked very anxious. At this moment, regardless of the suspicion of usurping power, he stepped forward and asked, "Your Majesty, why don't you give the order yet?"
Zhu Qizhen, however, looked calm and said, "If we attack now, what if they see that the situation is not good and turn around and run away?"
Fan Zhong was stunned for a moment. Wouldn’t it be better to just beat the guy away?
Zhu Qizhen stared straight ahead and spoke slowly.
"I will annihilate this cavalry!"
Fan Zhong was greatly shocked. At this moment, the emperor was actually thinking about how to cut off the other party's retreat!
This is too bold!
"Your Majesty, the enemy has sent out an elite force. I would like to suggest that we should advance slowly, use artillery to consume their forces first, and then..."
Zhu Qizhen raised his hand and interrupted Fan Zhong's advice.
"I've given up my baggage and supplies just to fight them to the death! I want to let them know that the Ming army is not to be trifled with!"
Fan Zhong's expression froze and he swallowed the rest of his words.
One hundred steps...
Arrows began to shoot from the Wala camp, but they were all blocked by the Ming army's rattan shield bearers.
Eighty steps...
More and more arrows flew towards them, and some of them were so powerful that they penetrated the rattan shields. The Ming army began to suffer casualties.
Fifty steps...
Finally, when Chen Ying was about to collapse, he saw the command flag of the central army.
"Fire! "
He was so anxious that his voice became hoarse, and he quickly ordered to open fire.
At this time, the leading cavalry in the Wala formation was less than a hundred meters away from the position, and could even see the white breath coming out of the mouths of the enemy horses.
The gunner's arms were stiff, and he immediately fired the gun after hearing the order.
The fuse made a hissing sound, followed by an earth-shaking roar.
boom!
boom!
boom!
The cannon spewed out flames and fired the shells in the chamber, hitting the middle of the Wala cavalry team.
In this era, artillery shells are solid, but the power of throwing a large iron lump at such a long distance cannot be underestimated.
Angkotu was leading his troops to charge, and seeing that the Ming army was approaching, finally, the long-awaited sound of artillery fire was heard.
He was startled at first, and then he saw countless shells flying over his head and towards the rear.
what's the situation?
Even though he was a veteran of the battlefield, he couldn't understand why the Ming army's artillery arrived so late.
Moreover, he actually attacked from the back!
Now, the most threatening artillery in the Ming army formation was unable to stop the charge from the front. The only explanation was that the enemy's mentality had become chaotic and they had completely lost their order, so they missed the best opportunity to fire.
Thinking of this, Angkotu's eyes lit up. He was only fifty steps away from the front line of the Ming army. He could take them down in a breath.
"The southerners have lost their composure. Follow me and charge!"
At this moment, changes suddenly occurred in the front line of the Ming army.
The rattan shield bearers retreated, while teams of musketeers walked to the front of the formation, knelt on one knee, and raised their muskets in front of them.
