Late Yuan Dynasty: I am the true emperor

Chapter 293: Battle of Xiaomaoshan (Part )
The next morning, the Shengwu Army did not need to march any further, but stayed in Hengshan to continue strengthening the camp. However, the Yuan Army began to break camp and march westward towards Wuxiang Mountain.

Lu Jin sent out cavalry early in the morning, preparing to capture a few live people to interrogate the situation of the Yuan army.

Meanwhile, in the Hengshan camp, Zhang Desheng, Yu Tonghai and others were also arranging for the auxiliary battalion to build equipment. The auxiliary battalion of the Shengwu Army was equipped with a large number of four-wheeled carriages, and each carriage was equipped with three spare wheels, two large and one small. By taking down these wheels, inserting an axle in the middle, and cutting some branches and laying them on top, a simple carriage could be made.

This type of cart is simple to make and can be used as temporary equipment. It can be thrown away after use and the wheels can be recycled. It is obvious that Yu Tonghai and Zhang Desheng want to copy the tactics used against Kang Maocai last year.

When Lu Jin saw it, he frowned and asked, "Why are you making this?"

Yu Tonghai said immediately, "Make a cart. We can push the cart to the enemy like we did last year when we fought Kang Maocai. Although we don't have as many archers as before, we have grenades. We can rush to 20 steps and hide behind the cart to throw grenades. The effect will probably be better."

Hearing this, Lu Jin immediately grabbed his hand, pulled it in front of him, looked into his eyes and asked, "Tong Hai, are you panicking?"

Yu Tonghai's eyes wandered for a moment, and he quickly said firmly, "Marshal, I'm not afraid!"

Lu Jin patted his arm, "I know you are not afraid. You may be excited or nervous, but anyway, your current condition is not right. Wake up. We are now 20,000 to 30,000 against 100,000. Can we still use the tactics we used against Kang Maocai before?"

Yu Tonghai suddenly fell silent, with a look of confusion and helplessness in his eyes.

This battle was too sudden for the generals of the Shengwu Army. They had previously fought against Kang Maocai with over 10,000 troops, the Anqing Yuan army with over 20,000 troops, and Dangtu Nahachu with 30,000 troops. But this time they suddenly had to face an enemy army of 100,000. It would be a lie to say that they were not afraid or nervous at all.

Not to mention them, even Lu Jin himself was nervous, but there was nothing he could do. He was the commander-in-chief of the army and could only force himself to remain calm so that he could give his soldiers the confidence to win.

One hundred thousand people! If they were lined up, you couldn't see the end of them. With so many people, you would tremble even if you just stood there, not to mention fighting.

Perhaps if the forces were equal in strength, these young generals would not be afraid of any opponent, but now that the enemy's strength is obviously three times theirs, it is impossible for them to pretend not to see it.

Seeing Yu Tonghai's confused look, Lu Jin hurriedly said, "Go and call Yang Jing, Zhang Desheng, Zhu Shou, and Zhang Wen over to my tent, and let's discuss how to fight this battle."

"Okay, I'll go right away."

Watching Yu Tonghai's departing figure, Lu Jin shook his head secretly. It is said that generals need to be tempered and grow, and so does he.

"Marshal, you are looking for us."

"Well, tell me about this battle."

After a while, several people came to the central military tent. This group of young generals, whose average age was only 21 or 22, all had serious expressions on their faces.

Lu Jin looked at them and said, "We have received the news that the Yuan army in Lishui is on the march and heading towards us. At most in two days, the enemy and us will meet. We have been striving to fight the enemy in the field. Now the enemy is here. Tell me, what do you think?

"The enemy has a force of 100,000, and ours, if we only count the soldiers who can charge into battle, may only be a little over 20,000. What tactics do you think the Yuan army will use, and how should our army respond?"

The five people looked at each other and thought for a while. In the end, Yang Jing spoke first.

"The enemy has many troops, and it is difficult to deploy them all in the front. If we arrange them in a wide horizontal formation, it will only cause the two wings to be too far away and difficult to engage our army. Not only will it waste troops, but it will also make the formation too thin.

"If I were the commander of the Yuan army, with 100,000 soldiers under my command, and the enemy only had 30,000, I would definitely seek to actively attack in open terrain, preferably with two rows of horizontal formations in front to fight against the enemy's elite, and then send a large force to attack from the flanks and rear of the enemy. The enemy's strength is only 30% of mine, and under my multi-faceted attack, they will inevitably focus on the front and not the rear. Once the enemy's flank is broken, the outcome will be determined."

Upon hearing this, Yu Tonghai immediately said, "Isn't this the method we used to defeat Kang Maocai? Are you using it on us?"

Yang Jing immediately explained, "The reason why the Marshal used this method to fight Kang Maocai last time is because it is easy to use. Besides, if I were the commander of the Yuan army and had a clear advantage in terms of military strength, this method would be most beneficial to me. Why can't I use it?

"Also, the Mongolian Tartars' best tactic is flanking maneuvers. The reason why the Song Dynasty fell was because the Tartars took a detour from Tibet to Dali, cut off their retreat, and flanked them from behind."

Zhang Desheng shook his head after hearing this. "The Yuan army would indeed fight like this, but I think it's unlikely that they would do so at the beginning."

"Why?" Yang Jing asked.

Zhang Desheng immediately placed stones on the sand table to simulate a military formation, and then explained, "According to General Yang, this is what is often called a 'mu' formation in military books, or a 'concave' formation. The two wings advance, and the central army follows, directly surrounding the enemy formation, and then attacking from three sides. The 'ten ways to surround it' in Sun Tzu's Art of War is also based on this principle. This method is very useful for the side with more soldiers to deal with the side with fewer soldiers.

"But the Yuan army can't do this right away, because our cavalry has the advantage. If Ye Sheng leads 5,000 cavalry to patrol the periphery, and the Yuan army dares to deploy this formation, they will be courting death. The 5,000 cavalry can directly go around and charge at his center or wings, and attack from the front and back with our main formation, and defeat one of his left or right wings."

Yang Jing frowned, but couldn't help but nodded in agreement, "What you said makes sense. How do you think the Yuan army will set up their battle formation?"

Zhang Desheng said immediately, "The Yuan army has many soldiers and is not far from the city. Even if the decisive battle is at Xiaomaoshan, they are only 20 miles away from Lishui County in the rear, so it is convenient to transport food. Our army is alone and deep in the city, 70 or 80 miles away from Dangtu. We can't transport food by land as well as the enemy. The longer the food route, the more likely it is to have accidents.

"So the enemy has the advantage in terms of distance, and they have so many soldiers, so the soldiers should also have the advantage psychologically. Therefore, there is no need for them to be so anxious. As long as they advance steadily and do not reveal any flaws, we are the ones who should be anxious."

Several people nodded when they heard this, and Zhang Desheng continued, "So I tend to think that the Yuan army's fighting style is more conservative. Anyway, they have more soldiers, so they can just arrange the commonly used square formation, divided into five armies in front, middle, back, left and right, and respond to changes with the same approach. Let's see how we respond when the time comes.

“If we attack from the two wings or the rear, he can always mobilize troops from the center to support the four directions, and then mobilize troops from other directions to launch a counterattack against us. Moreover, this formation can be used for both offense and defense. Even if the 5,000 cavalry are on the side, it will be difficult to break through the enemy’s infantry formation.

"Our cavalry is a brave cavalry, with only men wearing armor but no horse armor, so they can't charge into this large formation of infantry with bows and crossbows."

The generals present could not help but nod their heads, thinking that what Zhang Desheng said made sense. Yu Tonghai frowned and said, "So, doesn't that mean we can't win no matter how hard we fight?"

Everyone frowned when they heard this. Zhang Desheng could think of a countermeasure for the Yuan army, but he didn't know how to defeat the enemy's 100,000-strong army with both offensive and defensive capabilities with only 30,000 or even 20,000 men.

Among all the people present, Zhang Wen and Zhu Shou were also qualified to speak. They were fortunate enough to participate in the battle against Kang Maocai outside Chao County. At that time, they used chariots to cover their approach to the enemy's flank and shot arrows at close range to disrupt the enemy's formation. Then the spearmen took advantage of the chaos to rush in and tear open the enemy's right wing first. After that, the cavalry rushed in and attacked the center army. Then they won. The rest was just prisoners everywhere.

The situation this time seems to be similar to the last time, but the enemy's force is too large, which will cause variables. The same tactics may not be effective against enemies of different sizes.

Zhang Wen said immediately, "Jiangnan is the home ground of the Yuan army, and we are the away ground. They should have more intelligence than us. The enemy must know that our 30,000 men are all in armor. Moreover, there is no need for spies to get this information. Scouts can see it directly."

Everyone nodded, and Zhang Wen continued, "Knowing that we are all armored soldiers, the enemy wants to stop us in the front. I tend to think that they will definitely deploy more troops in the front. In comparison, the flanks and rear are definitely not as 'thick' as the front. So we should still target the enemy's flanks and rear, focus on holding the front, and concentrate our elite forces to raid the flanks and rear."

Zhu Shou also said, "You can also hide an elite force as a surprise force, and suddenly rush into the battlefield at the critical moment of the battle and attack the enemy from the weak point."

After everyone finished speaking, they all looked at Lu Jin, who shook his head and said, "Judging from the reaction of the Yuan army these days, the leader of the Yuan army may not be Chen Zhaoxian. I humiliated his father like that, how could he endure it and still march forward steadily? In addition, the scouts reported a few days ago that a cavalry had arrived from the south. It is very likely that the Yuan army that was chasing Xu Song has returned.

"There should be another senior official from the Yuan court here, maybe Dong Tuanxiao, or some provincial governor of Jiangsu and Zhejiang. We can't be sure yet. I have asked Ye Sheng to capture the prisoners for interrogation. But no matter what, the one commanding the Yuan army must be a shrewd commander.

"Between Hengshan and Wuxiang Mountain, there is no place to hide soldiers except Xiaomao Mountain and that stretch of hills. Do you think that the Yuan army commander, who is so smart, would not scout the battlefield in advance? Don't forget, they also have about 3,000 cavalry."

Everyone shook their heads. The so-called "evaluate the enemy's strengths" means that we must never treat the enemy as fools. It is impossible for the enemy to do everything according to one's wishes.

Lu Jin continued, "Secondly, even if the enemy didn't search the battlefield and really asked you to hide a troop, how many would you hide?
"We only have two Guards Brigades, three Infantry Regiments, and one Cavalry Regiment. How many are you hiding? One regiment? Two regiments? If we hide all the infantry, there will only be two Guards Brigades left. How can we fight this battle?
"Besides, the enemy has 100,000 troops, divided into five armies, front, middle, back, left, and right. Each direction has 20,000 troops. I will lead the rest of the main force to fight against the enemy in two or three directions. Can you guarantee that the one or two regiments you have hidden can definitely defeat the enemy in one direction? Using 4,000 to fight 20,000? Moreover, the enemy will most likely send troops from other directions to provide continuous support."

Everyone shook their heads when they heard this, as the disadvantage in military strength was always an obstacle that could not be avoided.

Zhang Desheng said helplessly, "Then how can we fight this battle? If the whole army huddles together, the enemy can attack our flanks and rear by relying on their large numbers. If we divide our troops to actively attack the enemy's flanks and rear, we will have too few troops to go around them, and they will probably be pushed back by relying on their large numbers. Isn't this a situation where we can neither fight nor defend, and we are stuck in two directions?"

Everyone couldn't help but look at Lu Jin again, and Lu Jin immediately said.

"The enemy has more soldiers and we have fewer. This is an objective fact. Our entire army combined is only enough to counter the enemy's large formation.

"We have three infantry regiments, two guards brigades, and one cavalry regiment, a total of 33,000 people, but there are also many auxiliary troops among them. The number of people who can actually fight in the battlefield is less than 30,000.

"Subtract the cavalry regiment, and there are still 28,000. Subtract the four chariot battalions of the Royal Guards Brigade, and there are still 24,000. Subtract the two artillery battalions, and there are still 22,000. Subtract your auxiliary battalion, and the rest are all the assault forces that can go into battle and fight the enemy. At most, there are only about 20,000 people."

Everyone couldn't help but frown deeply when they heard this.

Lu Jin also spread his hands and said.

"So we actually have no choice but to concentrate our forces to attack one side of the enemy. And, we must only attack the strongest side of the enemy!
"Among the 100,000 enemy troops, there are only 10,000 or 20,000 armored soldiers. These soldiers will definitely confront us head-on. If we want to fight, we should fight the 20,000 strongest armored soldiers. As long as we defeat them, the other unarmored Yuan soldiers will be nothing more than lambs to be slaughtered.

"As long as we defeat these 20,000 armored soldiers, even if we cannot wipe out the 100,000-man army in this battle, those unarmored Yuan soldiers who escaped will be terrified when they see us in the future. Let them be terrified when they hear the name of the Shengwu Army!

"The purpose of attacking Dangtu and Caishiji is to find a foothold in Jiangnan. In this battle, we must make our Shengwu Army famous and powerful, so that the Yuan army in Jiangnan will tremble when they see us in the future. This is a battle for us to establish our prestige in Jiangnan!"

After hearing what Lu Jin said, everyone regained some confidence. Yang Jing asked again, "Then how should we deploy the troops? Should we also divide them into five armies: front, middle, back, left, and right? Should we respond accordingly based on the enemy's reaction?"

"No, we don't have two wings, nor do we need a center or a rear army. Our entire army is composed of assault troops! We want to tear open the enemy's formation from the front and defeat them from the front with our unmatched combat power!"

"Full-scale assault?!"

"No flanks and rear troops? What should we do if the enemy makes a detour?" This time even Bian Yuanheng, who had been silent, exclaimed in surprise.

Lu Jin nodded, "We will still use the old tactics to deal with Kang Maocai, but this time we will change the direction. We will first tear open the enemy formation from the front, and then send an elite force to charge directly into the enemy's center, kill the general and seize the flag, defeat the enemy's center, and then chase the defeated soldiers of the center to attack the enemy's rear formation and kill through the enemy formation!"

Everyone frowned, "That's not going to be easy."

Lu Jin added, "Our use of troops should be like this. The musketeers of the Imperial Guards Brigade are long-range strike troops. Although their muskets are equipped with bayonets and can play a certain role as short spears, they are definitely not as good as the long spears in real battle formations. We should try our best to make use of the long-range advantage.

"Although our firearms don't have the long range of bows and arrows, they are powerful enough to penetrate the enemy's armor from a long distance. The eight firearm battalions should be placed in the front to kill a large number of enemy soldiers and weaken the enemy's combat effectiveness.

"Then, among your three infantry regiments, you must select one to attack the enemy's central army formation. The rest of the main force will escort you in. Who among you three will go?"

Before Yang Jing and Yu Tonghai could think about it, Zhang Desheng immediately said, "Marshal, let me go. General Yang's Fourth Regiment and Brother Tonghai's Ninth Regiment have just been expanded and recruited some new soldiers. Wu Fu and Hua Yunlong have been transferred away, and the newly promoted battalion officers may not be able to cooperate well.

"My 17th Regiment has been training for half a year since its formation, but we have never fought such a tough battle. Let me fight this time. The Marshal should give our 17th Regiment a chance!"

Lu Jin thought for two seconds and nodded immediately, "Okay, after the enemy troops have deployed their troops, we will place the four chariot camps of the Imperial Guards in the front."

"Car camp?" Everyone couldn't help but wonder again.

Lu Jin nodded, "Yes, the chariot camp, listen to me first. After the chariot camp is deployed in front of the enemy, it will form a temporary defense line, leaving gaps between each car, so that the two artillery battalions can be sandwiched in the gaps of the chariot camp to form the first echelon.

"Then place the eight musket battalions of the Royal Guards Brigade in the second echelon, and your three regiments in the third echelon. Ye Sheng's cavalry regiment will be divided into two parts, each with two cavalry battalions, to cover the two wings of the formation.

“During a battle, the artillery battalion in the first echelon will fire a round of artillery fire first, using its range advantage to cause heavy casualties to the enemy, and then proceed to the second phase depending on the effectiveness of the artillery fire.

"Then the chariot camp and the artillery camp will stay where they are, and the musketeers will move out from the gaps in the chariot camp and advance towards the enemy's formation, firing in sequence as they move until they reach the front of the enemy.

“While the musketeers are advancing, your three regiments will follow behind them, and the chariot battalion will cover the artillery battalion and follow them forward, so that the chariot battalion will go from the front row to the back row.

"After the musketeers engage the enemy head-on, push up the short-barreled howitzers and blast a gap in the enemy's front. Then, your two infantry regiments will rush forward.

"Yang Jing's 4th Regiment and 1st Brigade of Musketeers attacked the left wing through the gap in the front of the Yuan army, defeated the enemy, and then chased the fleeing soldiers of the front of the Yuan army to attack their right wing; Tong Hai's 9th Regiment and 2nd Brigade of Musketeers attacked the right wing through the gap, chasing the fleeing soldiers to attack the enemy's left wing.

"Tear open the enemy's chest with your bare hands, just like you're disemboweling them, to create a breakthrough for the assault troops!
"Zhang Desheng will lead the assault group in the center, hiding under the protection of the army on all sides. Once a breakthrough is made, you will lead the 17th Regiment to charge in fiercely.

"But your 17th Regiment still has too few troops. I will give you more troops and assign both of the Imperial Guard's trap camps to you for command and assign them to your Central Assault Group. The Imperial Guard Cavalry Battalion of Zhang Wen's Imperial Guard Second Brigade will also be under your command.

"The artillery battalion has two companies of short-barreled howitzers. These guns have a short range of only a little over a mile, so they are useless in the first round of bombardment. The two companies have a total of 32 howitzers, all loaded with shotgun shells and grenades. They will also be assigned to your assault group. Fire a round of howitzers before charging, and then charge forward with the trap camp. After breaking through the enemy formation, continue to use the cavalry to break through. I don't believe that we can't break through the enemy's central army formation.

"When you break through the enemy's central army formation, you must chop down the enemy's central army banner as soon as possible. As soon as the banner falls, you on the left and right wings should immediately shout 'the enemy general is dead' and start to persuade the enemy to surrender while they are fleeing. Let the enemy give up resistance as soon as possible and speed up the enemy's defeat.

"As for Ye Sheng's cavalry regiment, they will be responsible for chasing down the fleeing enemy soldiers and capturing them if possible. If there are still fleeing soldiers gathered in groups, even if they cannot be captured, they must be dispersed and not allowed to gather together to form an organized resistance.

"After this battle, Jiangnan will be ours! The Yuan army in Jiangnan will be terrified if they mention us again in the future!"

(End of this chapter)