I want to be emperor

Chapter 570
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Facing the army of the Great Chu Empire coming from all directions, the Dongyao people could not resist at all.

Not to mention the remnants of the Dongyao people now, even at the peak of the Dongyao people last year, it was impossible to block such a large-scale offensive of the Chu army.

You must know that this year the Chu army has invested more troops in the Northeast than last year in terms of both quantity and quality.

In terms of cavalry, the independent cavalry invested in the Liaodong area last year only had more than 1 cavalry.

But this year, only in the northeast region, the Chu army has invested three cavalry corps.

This is not counting the large number of divisional cavalry. Compared with last year, the strength of these divisional cavalry has also greatly increased. Last year, the divisional cavalry regiments that participated in the war in the Northeast, except for the two special guard cavalry regiments However, the other cavalry regiments belonging to the division are actually very average in strength, and the quality of the horses and cavalry they are attached to is slightly inferior.

And after a year of replenishment, especially after obtaining a large number of war horses from the Mongolian region and capturing a large number of war horses from the Dongcap, these divisional cavalry also changed their shotguns. All divisional cavalry regiments participating in the war in the Northeast were basically Made it full.

Each division's cavalry regiment has four large-scale cavalry posts, and an additional two-and-a-half catty cavalry post.

The cavalry of these divisions are also close to today's hussars in terms of weapons and equipment and even tactics. Although they still mainly fight in line with horses, after hard training, they can more or less line up and charge with sabers.

According to the plan of the cavalry director of the Great Chu Empire, the cavalry units of the Great Chu Empire Army in the future will only have two types of cavalry units, one is heavy cavalry, equipped with heavy breastplates for cavalry, tall horses, and hollow lances as the main weapon , Supplemented by a saber, is a typical heavy cavalry, mainly used to fight against the charge.

There is another kind of light cavalry, these light cavalry, these light cavalry are equipped with light breastplates, ordinary Mongolian horses, and their weapons are cavalry muskets and sabers.

The hussars in the Chu army now belong to this kind of cavalry. It doesn't mean that the hussars in the Chu army can only charge immediately, they can also dismount and form a line.

The cavalry regiments belonging to these divisions are basically training and reorganizing in this direction, and their performance in the Northeast operations is also considered good.

These divisional cavalry, together with the independent cavalry, enabled the Chu army to occupy the superiority in cavalry for the first time in this year's Northeast battlefield, and it was still a huge advantage in strength.

In terms of the comparison of the cavalry strength of the two sides, one increase and one decrease, the comparison of the cavalry between the two sides is almost reversed.

Under such circumstances, the Dongbang people could not even compete with the Chu army in cavalry maneuvers.

Not to mention the infantry and artillery, in the Northeast, the artillery of the Chu army beat all disobedient... Dongyao people couldn't stop them last year, let alone now.

As for the infantry, the infantry in the Chu army are now reduced to artillery protection and logistics escorts on the northeast battlefield...they have nothing to do with the front-line battlefield.

You have to know that the hundreds of thousands of troops invested by the Chu army in the Northeast region are larger than the population of the Dongyao People's Headquarters...

With such a huge force, the only frontal battles were basically settled by the cavalry in front. When the infantry came up, they could only attack small towns where there were not many Dongbang people.

Under such a fierce offensive by the Chu army, the Dongyao people led by Hauge were naturally unwilling to be completely wiped out. They thought of many ways, through scattered attacks and various ambushes, and caused some casualties to the Chu army before and after, but they could not be reversed at all. The situation on the battlefield.

One and a half months after the start of the war, Hauge was forced to retreat northward with the remaining 2 main forces covering a population of more than 20.

However, the reason why the Chu army sent the First Cavalry Army and the Third Cavalry Army to play left uppercuts and engage in strategic encirclement was to prevent the large-scale escape of the Dongren people as they did in the Liaodong area before.

This allowed Hao Ge to bring these two 10,000+ people to run, and then the Chu army might have to reorganize a large-scale offensive later.

And as the battlefield gradually extends northward, the Chu army's logistical supply pressure will also increase, and military expenditure will also increase.

Under such circumstances, it is impossible for the Chu army to let the captives flee on a large scale.

On July 10,000th, the Third Cavalry Army of the Chu Army caught up with Hauge's troops. Hauge had no choice but to leave behind 2+ old and weak people, and quickly broke through to the north with only [-] troops.

The Third Cavalry Army is in hot pursuit!
Soon after, the nearby First Cavalry Army also followed.

A full [-] cavalrymen chased Haug and the others all the way north, and kept trying to take a bite.

Under such circumstances, Hauge's troops are getting smaller and smaller.
On July [-], Hauge's troops fled to the south bank of the Songhua River, but when they wanted to build a pontoon bridge to cross the river, the cavalry of the Chu Army behind them chased them up again.

In a panic, Hauge's troops could only continue fleeing eastward!

However, the next day, they found Chu cavalry ahead!
It was the First Cavalry Corps of the Chu Army, and they went directly to the front.

Hauge, who looked tired, looked around on his horse, his face full of despair!
To the north is the rolling water of the Songhua River!

To the east are more than ten thousand cavalry of the Chu army blocking the way, and there are more than ten thousand cavalry of the Chu army coming behind!

At this moment, he has nowhere to escape!
He couldn't even stand still, because the number of troops around Hauge was less than [-], and he was short of men and horses, and even food was insufficient.

Hauge had no other options at all, he could only bite the bullet and forcefully break through, otherwise, he would be caught up by the main cavalry of the Chu Army behind him if he stayed for half a day.

This battle was a tragic and tragic one for the Dongbang people!

Under the bombardment of dozens of cavalry cannons of the Chu Army's cavalry division, they attacked the Chu Army's cavalry formation over and over again, trying to open the gap.

But their efforts were in vain.

Not to mention that flesh and blood can't fight against guns, even if the equipment of both sides is at the same level, the Dongbang people are still at an absolute disadvantage in terms of strength.

On July [-]th of the eighth year of Chengshun, the last main force of the Dongyao people was wiped out by the Chu army. On the banks of the Songhua River, the Dongyao Puppet Emperor Hauge died in battle. Most of them were beheaded or drowned in despair.

Only a very small number of people jumped into the Songhua River when the army was defeated, and then swam across the river to escape, and these people were only a few hundred people.

From this day on, the captive puppet Qing regime has declared its official demise.

Even in the vast Northeast region, there are still many Dongbang people who are fleeing or resisting, but this can no longer change the fact that the Dongbang people are completely finished.

There is not even an organized remnant of more than a thousand people in the East, and all the cities and even the villages they occupy have been swept and captured by the Chu army one by one.

There are only a few people left to hide in the mountains and forests to survive or flee all the way north!

After annihilating the last main force of the Dongbang people, the Third Group Army broke up into pieces and began to carry out a dragnet-like campaign against the huge Northeast region, searching for and killing the remnants of the Dongbang people. Build a fortress in the place.

This kind of combat operation of reclamation and suppression is expected to continue for a long time, and it is possible for several years.

They want to completely turn the vast northeast region into the actual control area of ​​the Great Chu Empire, instead of just maintaining a little military control over these places and maintaining suzerainty through canonization as in the previous Ming Dynasty.

The Great Chu Empire wants to turn this area into the actual control area of ​​the empire, even the hinterland!
Therefore, the Army's campaign against the Northeast was not only limited to the remnants of the Dongcap, but also included other messy barbarians.

If these barbarians are not wiped out, how can the empire rest assured that a large number of people will be relocated to these places in the future.

And without the people, how to actually control these places and establish effective rule?

In Jinling in September, Luo Zhixue also received good news from the Third Army.

"It's even smoother than expected. The main battle can be ended in August, which shows that the soldiers of the Third Army have worked hard!"

Xu Zhixian on the side said: "That's right, just a few months, let alone fighting, even if there is no need to fight, it will take a long time to march directly."

"In order to maintain the speed of march, the soldiers on the front line strive to end the main battle before the temperature in the north cools down, and complete part of the early stage clearing operations, but they don't take a break at all, which makes the soldiers very tired."

"Even mules and horses were exhausted and more than 2 horses collapsed."

After hearing this, Luo Zhixue nodded slightly: "It's normal for mules and horses to be unable to sustain this kind of high-intensity combat. However, the Northeast is vast and sparsely populated. The follow-up troops can't do without mules and horses. If there is a loss, it must be replenished in time."

Xu Zhixian said: "Don't worry, Your Majesty, there will not be any large-scale wars in the Northeast region now, and the required troops will not be too many. The follow-up local garrison and suppression operations can be mainly based on the local garrison headquarters, and the field army can rest for a while. Second, if there is no large-scale war, the demand for mules and horses will not be too great."

Luo Zhixue said: "When the situation in the Northeast has stabilized, the General Staff will formulate a plan to gradually transfer some of the main forces in the Northeast, especially the cavalry, to Mongolia and the Western Front!"

"Nowadays, several tribes in the western part of Monan are still unwilling to surrender, Mobei Mongolia is also restless, and Moxi is even bolder and dares to spy on the snowy area and the border area. There must be a war in the above-mentioned places, and the staff must prepare a strategy in advance. Planning, you can't wait for someone to call you before dispatching troops in a hurry!"

When Xu Zhixian heard this, his face was overjoyed: "The minister complies with the order, and when I turn back, I will gather with my colleagues to formulate corresponding plans!"

Xu Zhixian was very happy with Luo Zhixue's instructions. Now what is the military, especially the army, most worried about?
It's not a foreign enemy, but after the battle, the horse will be released to Nanshan, and even the rabbit will die!
Although Luo Zhixue had never done this before, he had always treated heroes well, even those bandit generals in the Funiu Mountain period, eventually they would be able to lose their official positions or even titles to enjoy the glory and wealth.

However, even if it is not cooked by rabbits and dogs, the military is still worried about disarmament without the foreign enemy of the Dongyao people!
This kind of worry is not in vain. You must know that last year, the high-level officials of the empire have already decided to cut military expenditures in the eighth year of Chengshun, from 500 million taels in the seventh year of Chengshun to 4000 million taels.

And now that the Dongyao people have finished fighting, you can use your toes to know that military expenditure will definitely drop next year.

The simple decrease in military expenditure is not bad. The army has long been prepared for this. After all, it is impossible for the empire to maintain such a high military expenditure.

The military expenditure of more than 4000 million taels a year is a terrifying figure.

After all, the eight-year financial revenue budget of the Great Chu Empire's Chengshun was only more than 8000 million taels.

Military expenditure accounts for more than half of fiscal revenue, which is abnormal for a normal country.

After all, in addition to raising soldiers, a country also needs to spend a considerable amount of money to maintain the operation of administrative agencies, as well as education, support for industry and commerce, agriculture, flood control and disaster relief, etc. all need money.

And the military expenditure is so high that it must be reduced.

In this regard, the military, especially the army, has been prepared for a long time. A few years ago, it has started to cultivate everywhere, raising chickens, ducks, pigs, etc., and strives to be self-sufficient in military rations.

The Third Army was fighting in the Northeast, and it was still reclamation during the intervals...

But I am afraid that in addition to reducing military expenditures, large-scale disarmament will be required, which is terrible.

Because there are enough troops to have enough establishments, and sufficient establishments to have enough senior generals.

It can't be only 10,000+ troops, just get tens of thousands of officers...

Once the army is disarmed, the positions of officers will inevitably be reduced. At that time, many people, from lieutenants to generals, may have to retire from active service.

He is doing well as a general, so you transfer him to the reserve... This will naturally cause worry and even dissatisfaction.

Now Luo Zhixue is saying that a war is necessary in the northwest, which means that there will be wars in the future. Since there are wars to be fought, there will naturally be no large-scale disarmament.

These generals don't have to worry too much about being asked to retire from active service on a large scale!

Seeing the happy look on Xu Zhixian's face, Luo Zhixue naturally knew what he was thinking in his heart, he was a smart person, and everyone knew the word "too dead dog".

Luo Zhixue knew it, and so did the generals under him.

Even if it was for the stability of the situation, Luo Zhixue couldn't say that he would drive out a group of founding generals and let them go home to farm when they had just killed the Dongyao people.

These people, even Luo Zhixue, who is not capable enough, will make proper arrangements, so as not to chill people's hearts.

As for disarmament, that's for sure, because the Chu army's strength is huge now!

Just this summer when they fought against the Dongren and Mongols, more than 40 troops were mobilized.

This is only the first-line troops participating in the Northeast and Monan Mongolian operations, not counting the large number of troops stationed in the northern region and the troops stationed in the Central Plains, South, and Southwest.

Not counting the Guards and Navy either.

The size of the army of the Great Chu Empire is divided into three parts, the army, navy, and guards!

The guards are very simple. Currently there are only three infantry divisions, several independent cavalry regiments, artillery regiments, and a guard regiment stationed in the imperial palace to disperse and protect other official institutions of Jinling City, as well as dispatched to the imperial ministers as security personnel. Military, but actually more akin to a garrison regiment of armed patrols.

The total strength of the Guards is more than 6. Except for the garrison regiment, these Guards are all troops on combat readiness. They are all first-class divisions and fully staffed.

The navy has many ships but not many personnel. The current total force is only 8, of which more than 3 are marines, coastal defense fortresses, and naval base garrisons.

The real big head is the army.

The army has first-class divisions and second-class divisions, and the cavalry corps, field artillery, and heavy artillery units also belong to the first-class division sequence.The amount added up is quite considerable.

At present, there are 27 first-class divisions in the army, which are basically full of personnel. The number of personnel is about 35. The equipment is not too complete. After all, most of the military expenditure of the Chu army in the past few years was actually spent on the war between the north and the captives. Here, with the sound of the cannon, ten thousand taels of gold, and so much military expenditure in the north, the troops stationed in various places in the south, even the first-class divisions, have to be in the back row.

The number of cavalry divisions has reached 13, most of which are fully staffed, and some are missing. In addition to the four cavalry regiments under their jurisdiction, these cavalry divisions are also equipped with divisional units of cavalry divisions such as cavalry artillery units and cavalry transport units. About 13 people, but the number of mules and horses attached to them is extremely large. For the 30 cavalry alone, more than [-] mules and horses were assigned.

The cost of mules and horses is much higher than that of people, so the actual cost of these 13 cavalry divisions and 27 cavalry is more than that of [-] first-class infantry divisions!

Second-class divisions have a very large number of division-level designations, which have reached more than 90 at present. They are scattered and deployed in various places, and quite a few of them participated in the war in the north. , the medium number is seven or eight thousand, and there are more than 6000. For example, the few second-class divisions that cooperated with the main force in Liaodong seem to have the designation of the second-class division, but in fact their strength and the artillery they are equipped with are no match. How much less are the first-class teachers.

The total strength of these second-class divisions adds up to 60 people.

In addition, the army, navy, and guards have personnel directly under the headquarters of various institutions in Gyeonggi institutions, military academies, armies, corps, and provincial garrison headquarters, and recruit training camps in various places.

Calculated in this way, the total strength of the three armies of the Great Chu Empire exceeds 130 million.

For the Great Chu Empire, which has not had any large-scale wars yet and is still in the early stages of industrial development, this force is a bit small.

Moreover, more than half of these troops are second-class divisions with poor combat effectiveness and poor equipment.

Luo Zhixue is already preparing to reorganize the existing troops, and the focus of reorganization is the second-class division.

First-class divisions and cavalry divisions do not need to be changed for the time being. They are the core combat power of the empire, and they are indispensable no matter whether it is internal repression or foreign wars.

However, from the perspective of controlling military expenditure, it is still necessary to change some first-class divisions without combat readiness from combat readiness to standing state, so as to reduce the number of auxiliary troops and reduce expenses.

And the second-class teacher is the focus of rectification!

At present, the second-class divisions in the Great Chu Empire have a large number of people and a lot of personnel costs, but their equipment is relatively poor, resulting in a relatively low combat effectiveness.

Among these second-class divisions, except for a very small number of second-class divisions that fight with the main force on the northern front, most of the second-class divisions are still equipped with matchlock guns, spears, old-fashioned cotton iron armor, and there are not many artillery pieces. Some iron cast artillery captured from the Ming army in the early years.

Let alone other things, at least the matchlock guns should be changed to flintlock guns. After the flintlock guns are replaced, they can be changed to the same organization as the first-class division, and they can better cooperate with the first-class division.

The production of flintlock guns has already increased. At the same time, due to continuous production, the production cost has been diluted. At the same time, the process has continued to improve, especially the spring production process of core components has achieved a relatively large breakthrough, and the cost has dropped significantly.

At present, the ex-factory price of a two-year-type A-[-] type flintlock gun with the latest signal has been lowered to eight taels of silver per piece, which has directly dropped by half compared to the previous price.

And as most first-class divisions have been equipped with flintlock guns one after another, the subsequent production capacity of flintlock guns can also be used to change equipment for second-class divisions.

For this reason, in mid-September, Luo Zhixue convened a group of senior generals from the Military Affairs Academy to discuss the reorganization of the second-class division.

At the meeting, Luo Zhixue did not talk much like the usual imperial meeting, but just listened to the debates of the courtiers, but expounded his thoughts and opinions at the beginning.

"The reorganization of the second-class division focuses on changing the flintlock guns and changing the organization to the same as that of the first-class division."

"It is necessary to clarify the mission of the second-class division. The mission of the second-class division is to garrison the local area, protect the environment and the people, and resist foreign enemies. When necessary, supplement soldiers, mules, horses, and equipment to cooperate with the first-class division to implement mobile operations."

"The local garrison of the second-class division should comprehensively consider the various conditions of the garrison area. Places with a larger population, places with important strategic positions, and places with local turmoil should be arranged more. But with a small population, the strategic location is not important. In peaceful places, less arrangements can be made.”

"In principle, the designations of the divisions of the second-class divisions will not be revoked for the time being. At that time, the number of personnel in each division will be appropriately increased or decreased!"

"It is necessary to control the number of troops and reduce expenditures, but also to ensure that the combat effectiveness does not decrease but increases!"

"The task is heavy, but I still hope that you will put all your energy into doing it well!"

Luo Zhixue was the first to state his position, and the others were general opinions, except that the number was not revoked, which was rather special.

As for the fact that the designation is not revoked, it has nothing to do with disarmament. Not revoking the designation does not mean that the troops will not be reduced...

The strength of the second-class division is very humane. A second-class division has a strength of 5000 or [-], and a second-class division has [-] troops.

These second-class divisions were originally used to accommodate generals and officers who were lacking in ability in the early days, and they could not be arranged without so many staffs. According to Luo Zhixue's plan, let them work in the second-class divisions for a few years for a transition, and then normally retire from active duty and transfer to Reserve, so as not to cause turmoil in the hearts of the people.

When this group of people is almost retired, then we can reduce the numbers of second-class divisions through mergers, downsizing, etc. There are too many numbers of more than [-] second-class divisions, so we have to cut down [-] to [-] second-class divisions. Just wait for the teacher's number.

Luo Zhixue finalized the general direction, and the Military Affairs Council soon came up with a detailed plan for the reorganization of the second-class divisions, preparing to gradually reorganize the second-class divisions.

The reorganized second-class division will maintain the same theoretical establishment as the first-class division, but in actual establishment, it will adopt a downsizing, retaining only part of the infantry and the backbone of technical arms and a small number of mules and horses.

In order to achieve the purpose of reducing part of the troops while increasing combat effectiveness.

(End of this chapter)