Chongzhen Daming: Starting from Coal Mountain

Chapter 654 Preparations before the war
Ming army camp, military discussion continues.

After determining the preset battlefield, the next thing to discuss is the formation of troops before the war.

For the era of cold weapons, as long as the battlefield is wide enough, it is completely possible to deploy troops after the two sides encounter each other, but not in the age of firearms.

In the age of firearms, most of the time both sides have to seize the terrain.

The side that seizes favorable terrain in advance will be able to take advantage.

It is a pity that the area around the Bali Bridge is an open area without cover and there is no favorable location to use.

Having said that, there is no way to do any preparatory work. At least you can build artillery positions in advance, or even dig a few trenches, and then use the trenches to reduce your own casualties.

If time is sufficient, a series of minefields can also be arranged.

In this regard, the Ming army has undoubtedly taken the lead compared to Jiannu.

Because the Ming army had mastered the departure time of Jiannu in advance, and selected the preset battlefield in advance according to the departure time and marching speed of Jiannu, so it could be arranged on the preset battlefield.

Before that, Xu Yingwei gave the first order to the scout cavalry.

At any cost, Jiannu Yebushou was expelled to the area east of Baliqiao.

Zhu Cijiong immediately led two thousand cavalry to attack, and began to frantically hunt and kill Jiannu within a radius of more than ten miles between Pingjin Gate and Bali Bridge. The Jiannu in the area were hunted and killed at night.

The military discussion continued.

Yan Yingyuan pointed to the map and said: "The right side of the battlefield is the Tonghui River. Our army can line up next to the Tonghui River. Therefore, the right wing does not need cavalry protection. The cavalry town can be deployed to the left wing of the battlefield. When the two sides engage in battle, the left wing can be protected. , after the defeat of the Jiannu, you can pursue and expand the results of the battle."

Jiang Tianyi immediately asked everyone, "Do you have any objections?"

Seeing that no one raised any objections, Jiang Tianyi picked up a cavalry puppet and placed it on the left wing of the battlefield.

Xu Yingwei went on to say: "The terrain around the Bali Bridge is wide enough to give full play to the advantages of firepower. Therefore, it is best for our army to line up seven infantry towns and one cavalry town from south to north."

"Among them, the 1st, 3rd, and 4th towns were each arranged in a hollow phalanx, located on the right wing of the battlefield."

"Among them, the 5th and 6th towns are each arranged in a hollow square, and the cavalry towns are located on the left side of the battlefield."

“第1、第3、第4、第5、第6镇之炮兵阵地皆设于本镇空心方阵内。”

"The 7th and 8th towns are arranged in a large hollow phalanx, and the 7th and 8th brigades of the field artillery, the artillery brigade, the air force and the Chinese army are all deployed in this phalanx."

The 1st to 6th towns of the Ming Dynasty New Army were each equipped with a field artillery brigade and a mountain artillery brigade, but the newly created 7th and 8th towns only had field artillery brigades, not mountain artillery brigades.

The reason is simple, there are not enough 2.5-inch mountain guns.

Jiang Tianyi asked everyone again: "Do you have any objections?"

"No objection." Yan Yingyuan shook his head and said, "This is the best choice."

Immediately, Jiang Tian picked up more than a dozen war chess figures and lined them up on the map.

Lu Xiangtong said again: "A trench about five feet deep must be dug in front of the hollow phalanxes listed in each town. The Battle of Hunhe has fully proved that trenches can effectively reduce infantry casualties."

"Totally agree." Yan Yingyuan continued, "The large hollow phalanxes listed in the 7th and 8th towns not only need to dig trenches in front, but also need to dig trenches behind them, because we also need to beware of raids from Jiannu in Beijing. If the slaves in the city make a surprise attack, they will definitely take our army directly, so trenches must be dug in front of and behind the central phalanx."

Jiang Tianyi immediately placed small wooden sticks on the map to serve as temporary trenches.

Huaxia added: "If there is enough time, it is necessary to lay mines in front of the trenches."

"It's not just the mines that need to be laid in front of the trenches." Wang Jiaqin went on to say, "The gaps between the phalanxes of the towns also need to be planted. If I'm not wrong, most of the Jiannu will send cavalry to attack the infantry at the same time as the infantry. The gaps between the phalanxes of the towns launched an attack to disrupt our line of defense."

Jiang Tianyi hurriedly placed mines on the map again.

Under the discussions of all the scholars, the formation was quickly arranged.

Chongzhen has never experienced large-scale battles in the era of flintlock guns. I don’t know whether the array discussed by Yan Yingyuan and Xu Yingwei is good or not, but from the point of view of giving full play to the superiority of firepower, there is no problem, and it can be effective if it takes defense into account. Defend against attacks from the front, as well as surprise attacks from the rear.

Seeing that Chongzhen had no objection, Xu Yingwei said, "Then prepare separately."

As a result, the chief towns of each infantry town and Hu Guozhu immediately returned to their respective stations.

Soon, the Ming army of the Pingjin Gate Camp began to move. The artillerymen of the Field Artillery Brigade were busy putting horses on the cannons, and the artillerymen of the Mountain Artillery Brigade were busy disassembling the cannons into parts and putting them on the pack horses. The heavy soldiers in the army are busy packing all kinds of military supplies into trucks. Fortunately, the Ming army has achieved standardization, so the workload is not too big.

……

However, Jiannu's training in bravery was much more busy.

Due to the lack of population in the north, Sony's army has not been able to recruit enough civilians, so Lian Yong can only be asked to undertake the task of transporting military supplies, which can make Lian Yong very busy.

However, after all, Sony is a seasoned veteran of the battlefield.

So generally speaking, Jiannu and Yong are busy but not chaotic.

But Sony himself may not have time to sleep tonight.

Gabra, who just turned 17, also went out with the army and practiced with Sony.

After all, it was his own son. Gabra felt sorry for his father and said, "Ama, why don't you go and rest for a while?"

"Silly son, there is no time for Ama to sleep." Sonny smiled wryly. "Tomorrow will be a decisive battle with the Ming army. Tonight, Ama must make all preparations, otherwise you will suffer a big loss on the battlefield."

Compared with military supplies, Sony is actually more worried about the morale of the old generals of the two white flags and the demoted generals of the Han people.

The impact of Dorgon's sudden death on Sony's army is self-evident. Not only the old generals of the two white flags such as He Luohui, Shi Tu, and Wa Xing'a became panicked, but also the former generals such as Kong Youde, Geng Zhongming, and Shang Kexi. The general who surrendered in the Ming Dynasty also began to have doubts about the fate and future of the Qing Dynasty, so the morale of the Qing soldiers is not high now.

Sony is thinking hard, how to boost the morale of the Qing soldiers?
Gabra said worriedly: "But Ama, you haven't had a good rest for several days. If you don't sleep tonight, my son is worried that you will not be able to hold on tomorrow."

"Your Mama is not so weak." Sonny snorted, "Back then, you Mama stayed awake for three days and nights in Zhengjie Fan, drove hundreds of miles, and followed Lao Khan to attack Jiefan, Dongkui and other tribes. "

While the father and son were talking, a messenger rushed over.

After reading the letter, Sony's hanging heart fell back into his stomach.

"Your majesty is wise." Sonny sighed, "This time our Qing army will surely win."

Shi Ambra asked curiously: "Ama, is this the emperor's will? What did it say?"

"You don't need to ask more questions." Sonny said, "Go to the Lianghuangqi station immediately and invite He Luohui, Shi Tu and others, and you say that the general has something important to discuss with you."

"Hey!" Gabra hurried away.

Soon, He Luohui, Shi Tu, Wa Xing'a, Mang Tu and other two old generals of the White Banner came to the General's Xingyuan.

"I tell you a very good news." Soni handed Fulin's imperial decree to He Luohui, and said, "Not long ago, the emperor worshiped the regent with the imperial examination ceremony, and posthumously bestowed on the regent the title of Emperor Cheng Zongyi."

"The general is serious?" Wa Xing'a, Shi Tu, Mang Tu and other generals changed their expressions instantly.

Since the establishment of Huangtaiji, Jiannu began to implement the etiquette system of the Han family, so generals like Shitu, Wa Xing'a, and Mangtu all knew the meaning of posthumous posthumous titles and temple names.

Emperor Yi is undoubtedly a beautiful posthumous title, and as for Chengzong's temple name, it is a great affirmation of Dorgon.

"What the general said is true." He Luohui handed the imperial decree to the stone map next to him, and said, "Now the emperor has inherited the Zhengbai Banner and Xiangbai Banner, and has become the master of us slaves."

"So what else do you have to worry about?" Sonny said with a smile, "You are already the same as the two yellow flags. The emperor will not treat you slaves badly if he treats anyone badly, right?"

Va Xing'a, Mang Tu and other two old generals of the White Banner suddenly looked up.

Ever since, the morale of these two white flag veterans is recovering at a speed visible to the naked eye.

He Luohui and other two old generals of the two white flags were sent away, and Sony summoned Kong Youde and other former Ming generals to the general Xingyuan.

For the old generals of the two white flags such as He Luohui, Shi Tu, and Wa Xing'a, Sony could only use gentle means to appease them, but for surrendered generals such as Kong Youde and Shang Kexi, Sony decided to use iron-blooded means.

After Kong Youde and the others had all arrived, Soni shouted sharply: "Bring them up!"

When even the Baya soldiers of the Zhenghuang Banner escorted a general of the Eight Banners Han Army to the Xingyuan Hall, they bent the leg of the Han Army General and forced him to kneel in the Xingyuan Hall.

After seeing the general's face clearly, Kong Youde and others couldn't help being surprised.

It turned out to be the third-class Merle Zhangjing and Sun Degong of the Zhengbai Banner Han Army?
Sun Degong was originally a guerrilla from the former Ming Dynasty. He surrendered to the Qing Dynasty in the Battle of Xipingbao. Tian Cong was awarded the third-class Meilezhangjing in eight years. His qualifications in the Eight Banners Han Army are older than Kong Youde and the others.

"Sun Degong, are you convicted?" Sony snapped.

Sun Degong was so frightened that he kowtowed repeatedly: "General, please forgive me, please forgive me."

"Other crimes can be forgiven, but the crime of collaborating with the enemy will definitely not be forgiven." Sonny said sharply, "Push it out and chop it!"

The two Ba Yala immediately pushed Sun Degong out of the gate, and after a while, they brought up Sun Degong's head, only to see Sun Degong's eyes wide open, with a look of death on his face.

Kong Youde and other surrendered generals were frightened for a moment, their faces turned ashen.

(End of this chapter)