Mengshan Army

After discussing the matter overnight, the leaders decided that the fourth leader, Zhou Huanan, would lead the second and fourth teams to build fortifications in the Louzi area to fight.At the same time, Sun Deming led the auxiliary troops to build a second blocking line at Tianmen, which was less than two miles away.But Long Qian didn't hear the news of the whole army's breakout.

After breakfast, the [-]nd and [-]th teams gathered in the square in front of Guangming Temple. The leader, Sun Dewang, personally trained the brothers of the [-]nd and [-]th teams, which boosted their morale, and Zhou Huanan led the team to set off.

Half an hour later, the auxiliary soldiers gathered in a mess, took tools, and followed Sun Deming on horseback to Tianmen.

Long Qian's eighth team has no mission for the time being and is still in the process of rest.In the battle of Zhangjiazhai, 17 people were killed and 27 were injured in the eight teams.Four more of the wounded died after returning to the mountain.Now the eighth team has less than 100 capable soldiers.However, the condition of weapons has been improved. Because of the seizure, Team Eight now owns 76 long guns of various colors, with an average of 45 rounds of bullets per gun.Once the war started, the Shanzhai stopped taking back the captured bullets.

Considering that his eighth team would definitely be involved in the following defensive battle, Long Qian gathered the eighth team in the mountainous area south of Tuuduo Village, explained the essentials of the blockade drill, and personally dug a single-soldier anti-gun hole to demonstrate to the soldiers.Considering that almost none of the officers and soldiers of the eighth team had experienced the power of artillery, Long Qian tore out the cotton from the old padded jacket and twisted it into earplugs, so as not to panic and lose order amidst the deafening noise of the shell explosion.Some small tricks, such as opening your mouth to relieve the pressure on the eardrums when the enemy artillery bombarded them, were patiently taught to the soldiers.

Although the terrain of Tianmen and Louzi is steep, most of them are rocky, so it is unrealistic to dig all the blast holes.Long Qian considered that once his troops were pulled up, he decided to adopt the tactical principle of "strength in front and heavy in back, and heavy in front and light in firepower". Quickly reach a powerful counterattack.Therefore, all rifles are equipped for soldiers with good marksmanship and firm will.And repeatedly emphasized the essentials of counterattack, emphasizing the importance of hand-to-hand combat during counterattack.Anyway, said everything that came to mind.As for those silver taels and flower tickets, Long Qian put them all away. At this time, no one is allowed to go to Jizhai to seek pleasure. The silver will be distributed after the war is over.

The Eighth Team of the Battle of Zhangjiazhai seized more than a dozen hand-thrown bombs, and Long Qian decided to use these grenades himself in order to maximize their effectiveness.

Long Qian's rehearsal lasted all morning, and then brought Team Eight back to the barracks.Long Qian noticed that his soldiers were in a stable mood, even talking and laughing during lunch.The Battle of Zhangjiazhai further consolidated Long Qian's prestige in the team, the small captains and the chiefs completely trusted their captains.

Long Qian didn't rest after lunch, and went to Guangming Temple to visit the wounded soldiers in his team.Fierce gunshots were heard from the northwest, marking the official start of the Louzi blockade.Long Qian, who had seen the number of wounds, immediately rushed back to Duduo village with his guard Jiang Yun. He heard a dull loud noise on the way, which made Jiang Yun scream in fright, and squatted on the ground with his head in his arms.

"It's a cannon." Long Qian listened attentively, "It's okay, it's far away from here. They're bombarding the building."

"My god, it's such a loud voice." Jiang Yun was still terrified after being pulled up by Long Qian.

"The sound is not scary, what's scary is its lethality." Long Qian stared in the direction of Louzi, and began to worry about Zhou Huanan's No. [-] and No. [-] teams.

In the middle of the afternoon, Long Qian was called to the old camp of Guangming Temple. He learned that the front line of Louzi had been breached, the captain of the fourth team was killed, and the second and fourth teams were completely disintegrated under the fierce bombardment of the government artillery. Sun Deming of the fortification led the seven teams to fight back desperately, and drove the officers and soldiers who had entered the Louzi position down the mountain, but then succumbed to the fierce artillery fire again.In desperation, Sun Deming and Zhou Huanan had abandoned the dilapidated position of Louzi and retreated to defend Tianmen.

The sun had set early, and the officers and soldiers stopped after occupying the front line of Louzi.Because of the absolute superiority in firepower, the officers and soldiers will no longer fight night battles.

The Louzi position held by two troops only lasted for an hour and a half.

Because Sun Deming rushed to the Louzi position when the battle started, he witnessed the power of the army's artillery with his own eyes. With his testimony, Sun Dewang did not blame Zhou Huanan for his retreat, but called the captains to discuss the suddenly tense situation.

"Tianmen is more dangerous than Louzi. The cannons of the officers and soldiers are not easy to move. They have to attack all the way. As long as we are not afraid of death, the officers and soldiers will not be able to break through the danger of Tianmen." Liu Yucai said loudly.

The meeting had always been in the main hall of Guangming Temple, the candles had not been lit yet, and the light in the hall was very poor. Long Qian stood by the door and looked at the big leader sitting on the main seat, feeling that Sun Dewang seemed to have aged a lot within a day.

"Shameless dog, if you have the ability to fight with real swords and guns!" Sun Deming's head was wrapped in a white cloth, and he probably suffered some head injuries.

"Don't talk about those things that are useless, they are useless!" Sun Dewang's voice was gloomy, "Third brother, how long do you think we can support if the officers and soldiers drag in the cannons?"

"Those cannons must be destroyed, I will lead people to kill them tonight!" Sun Deming said bitterly.Not long ago, the scene of the landslide-like explosion in the Louzi position seemed to be still in front of our eyes, and the bones of several brothers were all gone in one shot.

"The officers and soldiers must be prepared tonight." Liu Yucai pondered, "I'm afraid it will not be easy to sneak attack."

"That can't just sit and wait!" Sun Deming made up his mind, "I will lead the five teams to attack in three shifts, and catch them by surprise."

Sun Dewang didn't object, and under the candlelight, his face was cloudy and uncertain.He didn't say what he thought, and he was already regretting it to death. He would have liked to have withdrawn from Mount Meng earlier. Yimeng is [-] miles away, the space is very large, and there are thousands of soldiers in hand. Can't we go there?Now being targeted by the government army, it is not so easy to withdraw.

"That's fine, third child, pay attention to your safety. If you can't do it, you can withdraw and don't fight hard. Keep the green hills, so you don't have to worry about running out of firewood." Sun Dewang warned.

At this moment, unitary time has passed, and the leaders have made plans and dispersed.Sun Dewang left behind his younger brother Sun Deming and expressed his true thoughts.Since the officers and soldiers are gathered on the West Road, there is only one result in reckless fighting. It is not easy for us to accumulate this capital. Be sharp, wait for them to withdraw and see the situation before coming back.

Sun Deming was full of toughness in front of the others, but the two battles between Zhangjiazhai and Louzi had wiped out his arrogance, and he never dared to underestimate the combat effectiveness of this group of elite officers and soldiers. If the threat of cannons cannot be destroyed, It will be a matter of time before Tianmen falls. In his opinion, his elder brother's decision is right, so he said, "That's good. I think the second child will be placed in Tianmen. Even if we withdraw, someone will break up."

"So you are right to propose a night attack tonight. Don't leave the second child with the feeling that our brothers preserve their strength and let them fight the government and the army. But be careful, guns don't have eyes. I will let Nong Mengfu Get ready to evacuate. You go."

Not to mention that Sun Deming assembled the fifth team to attack the government troops occupying the building at night, Sun Dewang immediately sent his guard captain Qiu Zhicheng to find Nong Mengfu.

"Fifth, I'm afraid we have to avoid the limelight this time. Don't make any noise. I'll hand over Qiu Zhi to you. Make preparations quickly. Only bring important things. For the rest, you can share them with the subordinates. You can't. Those who share will be burned. They will never be kept by the officers and soldiers. Be careful not to spread rumors. Once the hearts of the people are scattered, things will be troublesome." Sun Deming confessed.

Qiu Zhicheng's cavalry guards consisted of a hundred soldiers, all of whom were Sun Dewang's most confidantes. They were well equipped and skilled with marksmanship.This is also the characteristic of the army under China's thousands of years of feudal system. Generals always like to raise private soldiers who are absolutely loyal to themselves.

This side began to secretly prepare for the evacuation of the cottage, while Sun Deming assembled the fifth team that had not been used since the opening, and launched a sneak attack on the government troops occupying the front line of Louzi.Sun Deming's purpose was to destroy the cannons that the officers and soldiers posed a huge threat to the cottage, so he collected all the gunpowder in the cottage and handed it over to the fifth team.The fifth team stayed on standby until midnight, and then set out from the old camp to touch the building through Tianmen.On the way down from Tianmen, artillery shells had been dropped during the day, and the burnt trees still exuded a burnt smell, which increased the tension of the soldiers.The scene of the fierce battle during the day has spread throughout the mountain. The second and fourth teams suffered heavy casualties and still failed to hold the building, which made the soldiers of the fifth team more worried about tonight's attack.

The mountain road is winding, and hundreds of people are crowded on the mountain road. I don’t know who is too nervous. The rifle went off when it knocked on the rock. In the silent night, the gunfire was heard far away.Sun Deming, who was adjourned, cursed, "Who escaped? I cut him off!" At this time, it was less than [-] steps away from the building, and there was still a big turn to be made, but the gunshots from the hillside at the turn suppressed Sun Deming. scold.Immediately, someone in the team was shot and screamed sharply. The bandits in front immediately crawled and fell on the mountain road, and some people began to fight back blindly.

The sneak attack, which was not considered elaborate, just went to waste.

At the corner of the road was a guard post set up by the officers and soldiers. It was originally only used as a guard post to buy time for the main position. Two quick guns suppressed a [-]-man troop on the mountain road and could not move.

Seeing that the sneak attack had failed, and his brother's decision to withdraw from Mount Meng just now, Sun Deming's fighting spirit was premature.

So far, the contest between the bandits in Mengshanzhai and the Wuwei Youjun has been decided. Thousands of mobs can still fight against the corrupt green battalion soldiers, but they have been trained for several years at the small station. The new army of the imperial court equipped with modern weapons is by no means an opponent.For example, tonight's sneak attack is not without merit from a strategic point of view, but tactically it is out of order.First of all, there is a problem with the selection of troops. In a war, the number of people to attack must be determined according to the situation. Not all tasks are carried out with a complete establishment.The second is the choice of route, which must be taken by surprise. If you select the elite, give up the road and cross the mountains, and launch an attack from a direction that the officers and soldiers did not expect, there may be some success.Then there is reconnaissance. From ancient times to the present, scouts are indispensable on the battlefield.Sun Deming attacked rashly without even knowing the position of the enemy's cannon. Failure was inevitable.

That night, several leaders gathered together to discuss again, and unanimously passed the decision to withdraw from the cottage to avoid the enemy's sharp edge.Because thousands of people, especially the female relatives of the old camp, needed time to sort out their luggage, it was decided that Liu Yucai would personally command the Tianmen defense battle tomorrow, buying at least one day for the old camp to retreat.

The retreat time is scheduled for the early hours of tomorrow.

Several leaders studied the retreat route and decided to go down the mountain from the east road. Although that road is not as easy as the west road, it can also pass cars and horses, and it is more familiar.The order of the breakout was Sun Deming led the seventh and fifth teams as forwards, followed by the cavalry, followed by the old battalion guards to protect the old battalion family, and then followed by the first, second, third, and fourth troops that suffered heavy casualties , Withdrew with the wounded.The sixth team remained intact and Long Qian's relatively complete eighth team was in charge of blocking. The order was the sixth team in the morning and the eighth team in the afternoon.The eighth team must persist until midnight tomorrow night before evacuating.