The wind rises at the end of the Ming Dynasty

Chapter 2
Outside Qiutou Town, scars were everywhere, and the air was filled with a strong smell of blood.

The low town wall was damaged in many places, corpses were everywhere inside and outside the town, and the sea of ​​flames was all over the place.
In the river that was about to dry up outside the town, there were corpses decomposing one after another, including men, women and children. They were dressed in ragged clothes and barely covered their bodies.

Qiutou Town has actually become history not long ago.

The strong wind blew, blowing countless fiery red banners above the official road.

"Qiutou Town..."

Not far away, Qiutou Town has become a sea of ​​flames, and the coldness in Chen Wang's heart is getting worse.

The strong and disgusting smell of rancidity and blood mixed together in the air, and everyone who smelled the smell couldn't help but cover their mouths and noses.

Qiutou Town was breached so easily, but it was just a trick to lure the enemy to go deeper.

From Qiutou Town all the way to the north, the terrain on both sides is gradually rising, the front is the mountainous area, the ambushes of the bandits should be not far in front, hidden between the mountains and valleys, those places are the best places to set up an ambush land.

Chen Wang didn't immediately stand up and warn.

He wanted to find the most appropriate time, a time when Cao Wenzhao could firmly remember his name.

Most of the servants were taken away by Cao Bianjiao, and now Cao Wenzhao is only surrounded by them, more than a hundred old soldiers who followed from Liaodong. Not far ahead.

No one knows that there are tens of thousands of ambushes ahead, and the thieves are already waiting with their nets.

Chen Wang let out a breath of foul breath slowly, he remembered the records in Ming history clearly.

"The thieves are encircled by tens of thousands of riders, and the arrows and hedgehogs gather."

"The thieves didn't know it was a civil edict. Some soldiers were in a hurry and shouted: "General, save me!"

"The thieves are happy, and the siege is getting more urgent. Wen Zhao jumped left and right, killed dozens of people with his hands, and fought for miles."

"Exhausted, he drew his sword and killed himself. More than [-] people died under guerrilla safety."

Cao Wenzhao was killed for two reasons, one was a surprise attack, and the other was because his identity was exposed, and finally he was surrounded by an army of thieves. After fighting for several miles, he was exhausted and committed suicide. and die.

To seek wealth and insurance, sometimes you have to work hard, and you must work hard.

As a servant, he can indeed obtain the best weapons, get enough food and salary, and enjoy the best treatment, but it also blocks the normal way of promotion.

Those who have the ability to command and lead troops will indeed be released as officers, but the original body is only brave and has a rather withdrawn personality.

Therefore, although he has killed many enemies, he has always been just a personal guard, and now Chen Wang wants to change this image.

If Cao Wenzhao can be rescued under the siege, then he will enter Cao Wenzhao's eyes and leave a deep impression in his heart. At that time, he will never be just an ordinary personal guard.

……

Under the big banner, Cao Wenzhao tightly grasped the rein in his hand, his knuckles turned white due to the force.

He clenched his teeth, trying to suppress his emotions as much as possible.

The raging fire reflected on the mountain tattoo armor and battle robe on his body, and the anger kept churning in his heart.

Looking at Qiutou Town, which has been turned into a sea of ​​flames.

In the Battle of Ranmachuan, Liu Honglie, the forward Chinese army, was captured. Ai Wannian and Liu Guozhen lost their strength in the battle and were killed. Only Liu Chenggong and Wang Ximing returned with serious injuries. Only a few hundred of the [-] soldiers and horses survived. escape,
Ai Wannian has known him for many years, but now he is on the battlefield of fate, and his soul has returned to Jiuquan.

The Tartars in the north are becoming more and more rampant, and the situation can be said to have collapsed.

Lin Dan Khan of Mongolia died in Qinghai, and now the entire Monan Mongolia has been annexed by the Jurchen, and the already powerful Jurchen is now gaining power again.

Now the northern frontier is relatively peaceful for the time being, but it is foreseeable that once the Jurchens go south again, there will be another bloody storm.

There are worries inside and troubles outside,

The inland war must not be delayed any longer, otherwise once the Jian captives go south, they will be attacked from both sides.

Tartars, bandits, and famines all followed.

Every pile is a disaster.

When will the world be peaceful?
Cao Wenzhao looked back at the soldiers behind him. The servants were still full of energy, but the infantry who followed him all the way to the battle were all haggard and lethargic.

This march was really a helpless move. Counties such as Yingzhou, Shouzhou, Bozhou, and Huoqiu in Fengyang Prefecture fell, and counties such as Wuwei Prefecture and Chaoxian County in Lujiang Prefecture also fell.

With the fall of many counties and the destruction of the Fengyang Emperor's Mausoleum, the emperor was furious. He announced that there were 100 officers and soldiers in the frontier and abdomen. After clearing up, they have nothing to do as generals, they can only act according to the imperial edict.

In front of him, the messenger carrying the command flag reported to him the battle report of Qiutou Town.

His nephew Cao Bianjiao had led the vanguard cavalry in pursuit, and there were less than 3000 rogues guarding Qiutou Town. It was seen that his banner was a part of the general Li Zicheng's command.

"Didn't I ask you to stop him! With my general order, you are tougher, how dare he not listen?!"

Cao Wenzhao looked cold, frowned, and reprimanded the generals who stayed outside Qiutou Town to respond.

Cao Bianjiao is his nephew, and he has been close to him since he was a child. He knows Cao Bianjiao very well, and his personality is hot, like a powder keg.

If you are brave, you are brave, but you still lack some overall concept.

As a striker this time, he urged him not to chase the enemy too far, but it seems that none of these words were listened to.

The generals he sent to supervise were also timid, and they couldn't stop Cao Bianjiao at all.

"Let the rider gallop, send a message to the forward, and tell him to stop immediately!"

Cao Wenzhao waved his horsewhip and issued another military order.

Cao Bianjiao only brought more than [-] cavalry under his command. He was worried that his pursuit would be too deep and he would be surrounded by bandits. He had to lead the army to meet them.

I don't know how many thieves broke into Qingyang Mansion. According to the news, there are thousands of people, and others say tens of thousands.

If there were tens of thousands of bandits in the enemy army around Zhenning, it would be a near-death situation for such light soldiers to rush in and be surrounded in the center.

"Order, the whole army is in armor!"

The command flag waved, the horseshoes sounded sharply, and the cavalry who delivered the order flew past both sides of the formation, conveying the military order loudly.

"The whole army is in armor!"

"Ugh——"

In the next moment, the sound of the low-pitched horn sounded slowly over the official road, reaching the ears of the soldiers of the Ming army.

"Armor!"

Standing at the side of the team, wearing a red hat on his head and holding a Yanling sword, the Ming army officer immediately repeated the military order loudly after hearing the sound of the horn and the sound of the order.

"Armor!"

For a moment, the sound of shouting and wearing armor resounded through the entire official road.

When the army marches, there are scouts to scout and the front team to explore the way, so they generally march without armor.

Only the scouts will march in armor on the road of marching, and the scouts will take turns to attack, and there will be a replacement after a while.

Armor and equipment can easily reach tens of catties. According to the records in "Wu Bian", according to the standards of the elite Nine Frontier Ming Army as an example, a suit of armor and equipment can even reach ninety catties.Wearing armor and marching, I am afraid that they will all be exhausted within a short time, let alone meet the enemy.

Wearing armor is cumbersome, but there are rules and regulations for wearing armor in battle, and everyone helps each other put on armor and organize military equipment according to the rules.

Chen Wang tightened the leather belt around his waist, fastened the high-bowl six-petal iron helmet with the red flag on his head, straightened it, and fixed it firmly.

On the battlefield, any slack will cost people's lives, and there is no room for the slightest slack in checking the military equipment.

The armor and armor on his body weighed more than sixty catties, not as heavy as it was recorded in "Wu Bian".

After confirming that there were no leaks, Chen Wang stepped on one side of the saddle, and with a slight force, he left the ground and sat firmly on the saddle.

Because it is possible to fight at any time, in order to save horsepower, all the servants lead the horses. Only the part of the guards who guard Cao Wenzhao have a transfer horse, and they ride on horses.

When the news of the striker's battle came, the guards who had been guarding Cao Wenzhao, who had been riding all the time, also put on their armor and changed to horses.

Chen Wang's face sank like water, and he put his hand on the saber at his waist. The cold texture came from his fingertips, which gradually calmed down his messy thoughts.

Only when he was holding a knife and gun in his hand, would Chen Wang feel a little bit of security, and feel that he could truly control his life.

The rim of the iron helmet blocked the slanting sunlight, allowing Chen Wang to see the situation in front of him.

The war horses were digging the soil around their feet restlessly with their hooves, the sound of snorting was everywhere, and the sound of horse bells was clear. A group of Ming army soldiers in red armor were ready to go.

The red banner fluttered in the strong wind, the bright red helmet flag shone in the sun, and endless chilling aura rose slowly from the army formation.

Chen Wang's heart was cold, and the hand holding the rein trembled uncontrollably.

Although he has long been used to battle formations, not only in his memory, after he came to this world, he has personally experienced more than a dozen formations in just two months.

Fear is instinct, it is the instinct of people in the face of death.

The purpose of military training is to overcome the fear in human nature, and use discipline, battle formation, equipment, skills and collective strength to strengthen confidence and overcome fear.

The fear in his heart did not affect him too much.

The memories of the battle formation engraved in his bones and blood quickly dispelled the fear in his heart.

Among the military ranks, there is a strict hierarchy.

Orders are like mountains and cannot be disobeyed.

"Ugh——"

The horn sounded again, this time it was not the armored horn, but the marching horn.

"Fast forward!"

The flag waved, and the military academy shouted orders loudly.

On the official road, a group of Ming soldiers are ready to go, and they have all completed their armor.

Amidst the sound of advancing one after another, they raised their indifferent faces, moved their tired legs, and walked forward in silence.

Chen Wang turned his head slightly to look at the army marching side by side.

Beside him are a group of guard cavalry with full armor and awe-inspiring murderous look.

Behind them are teams of infantry in neat armor and carrying spears on their shoulders.

On the official road, the sound of armor colliding, footsteps, and horseshoes all gathered together, as loud as a surging river.

"History of Ming Dynasty Biography Volume 150 Six":
"According to the danger, the bandits fought against the enemy with thousands of horses. They turned into a dragon and shouted into the battle. All the armies advanced together, but the bandits were defeated. Changed to be brave and crowned the three armies. The names of generals Cao and Cao were heard among the bandits, and they were all frightened."

　"Wu Bian" "The frontier army worked hard. The armor, skirts, and arm coverings of the sergeants on each side weighed 45 catties in total, the helmet and brain weighed seven catties, and the neck guard and heart guard weighed five catties. The bow and quiver weighs ten catties, the waist knife weighs three and a half catties, the caltrop bones weigh three and a half catties, the quiver weighs one catty, and the war hooks together with the cotton leather and clothes are eight catties, totaling 88 and a half catties."

　　
　
(End of this chapter)