The Qing Dynasty

Chapter 431: Definitely Win

Although there were less than ten large-caliber artillery pieces conducting the bombardment, the shock it gave to the coalition forces was extremely strong.

Not only were these cannons, with a caliber of over 100 mm, extremely powerful in themselves, but the retreating Allied forces were also worried about being subjected to another fierce and intensive artillery bombardment from the vanguard. The troops were in chaos, with some even losing their organization and beginning to run around all over the mountains and fields.

The chaos among the retreating coalition forces also caused chaos among the coalition forces that were preparing to launch a diversionary attack on the vanguard's ambush positions. They were also worried about being subjected to intensive and fierce artillery bombardment again.

Many soldiers began to withdraw from the attacking forces and joined the fleeing officers and soldiers, ignoring the officers' obstruction. Some officers even led their entire troops to join the fleeing army.

Such a scene made Teng Yuzao very excited.

Because he knew very well that due to the Schneider artillery of the battalion with a terrifying firing rate, the artillery brigade's artillery shells should have been used up. It was estimated that only the nine large-caliber artillery and mortar battalions had some shells, but certainly not many.

Even if we give him the chance now, he will no longer be able to cover the coalition forces with artillery fire.

But now the coalition forces were in complete chaos, so he was sure to win. It could be said now that this ambush ended with his complete victory.

The reason that made Teng Yuzhao sure that he had won another great victory was that until now, he had not received any news of the attack launched by the 30,000 coalition forces on the east bank of the Juma River.
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The next day at noon, after lunch, Yi County.

Although tens of thousands of vanguard officers and soldiers had already been stationed in Yi County last night, now inside and outside the city of Yi County, officers and soldiers of the vanguard army in very impressive uniforms could be seen on duty and patrolling everywhere. There were even soldiers wearing armbands with the word "Military Police" in big red letters on their arms who lined up for patrols from time to time.

The order inside and outside the city was good. Not only was there no news of any house being robbed by officers and soldiers, but on the contrary, there were reports that the vanguard officers and soldiers fighting against the foreigners never forced anyone to buy anything. They always paid according to the merchants' prices, and all in cash.

The good military discipline of the vanguard army completely dispelled the concerns of the people of Yi County, which made the people inside and outside Yi County gradually bolder. After half a day, the merchants had already opened their shops and started business, and people outside the city also came into the city carrying baskets loaded with vegetables and firewood to sell.

Not only were there groups of soldiers buying daily necessities on the street, but there were also firemen pushing a long line of flatbed carts purchasing food and oil, salt and seasonings along the street. As long as the price was reasonable, these firemen would immediately take out a lot of silver to buy the goods, so that the stocks of many merchants had been bought out by them.

Especially the meat in several butcher shops in the city, all kinds of meat were swept away by them, and they also asked the merchants to rush to the surrounding villages and towns to buy pigs and sheep as soon as possible. As long as they were brought back, they would buy them all.

In particular, when the merchants in Yi County heard that the vanguard army had just won two battles in Lai Shui, thus saving them from the disaster of war, some merchants and wealthy families had already contacted each other and prepared to contribute some money to reward the troops, even without the Yi County magistrate stepping in.

The idle people inside and outside the city, especially the children, have gone to the city in groups to watch the vanguard army seize a large number of guns and thousands of foreign horses.

Even some injured horses will be sold on the spot, and the price is naturally much cheaper.

Some wealthy families naturally like to buy tall and majestic foreign horses, while some small vendors prefer to buy ponies that are not much bigger than donkeys, which are much better for carrying goods than donkeys.

Of course, the price is also extremely cheap, for example, it is enough to buy a complete pony, and it is even less than the price of a donkey.

This prompted some powerful and quick-witted merchants to start buying enthusiastically. They often bought more than a dozen or even dozens of horses at a time, preparing to sell them in distant towns and villages, especially in the Taihang Mountains.

In the mountainous areas, these cheap ponies are very convenient for transporting goods or people. After seeing the delicious meals of the Vanguard Army and learning about the salary of the Vanguard Army, many young people asked around whether the Vanguard Army was recruiting soldiers.

Amid the joyous atmosphere inside and outside the city, only the Yi County government office seemed a little out of place.

Not only is the security here tight, with soldiers armed with live ammunition standing on the stone steps, the officers and soldiers entering and leaving the gate do not make loud noises.

In accordance with Teng Yuzhao's practice of not disturbing the people excessively as much as possible, the headquarters of the vanguard army was still set up in the county government office.

After the ambush yesterday, they were busy in the hills and mountains, hunting down the few remaining enemies who had escaped, cleaning up the battlefield, confiscating property, weapons and ammunition, and even burying the bodies of more than 50,000 Japanese and Russian troops. They were busy until the evening.

The 30,000 coalition forces originally stationed on the east bank of the Juma River had already set out after hearing the artillery fire that blocked the Russian army, apparently preparing to support the pursuing coalition forces. This made Li Jinyu very nervous for a while, and he was even ready to order the stone bridge to be blown up.

However, the blocking battle ended very quickly. The coalition forces that arrived at the river had not even finished deploying their artillery when the sound of artillery began to move from west to east. This clearly meant that the coalition forces had been defeated, or at least had taken the initiative to retreat. The 30,000 coalition forces were so frightened that they hurriedly retreated back to the camp.
After the ambush was completely over, Li Jinyu sent an urgent battle report. It should be the scouts sent by the coalition forces on the east bank of the Juma River who discovered that the 50,000 coalition forces had been wiped out. Probably because they were worried that Teng Yuzhao would continue to attack them, the coalition forces on the east bank had quickly withdrawn before it got dark.

Li Jinyu asked Teng Yuzao whether he needed him to stop the 30,000 coalition forces, or at least delay some of them.

Although it was unclear whether the 30,000 coalition forces would retreat towards Zhuozhou or Baoding, Teng Yuzhao believed that it was no longer important.

Teng Yuzhao was not even worried that the 30,000 trained troops and the 60,000 foreign devils on the east bank of the Juma River would come to cause trouble for him again after they joined forces.

Teng Yuzao decisively rejected Li Jinyu's request.

The vanguard army had fought two major battles in a row, suffering heavy casualties and having almost used up all of their artillery shells, making it impossible for them to continue fighting.

Although he could no longer carry out continuous combat, Teng Yuzhao now had his hands and feet freed up. Without any worries, he could deal with the coalition forces more freely.

The intercepted weapons, ammunition and a large amount of military supplies have all been sent away, and even the seriously wounded have been sent to Luzhou. Now he only has tens of thousands of seized guns and ammunition in his hands, which makes it convenient for him to move around without much burden.

Moreover, depending on the situation, it will be decided whether these captured weapons and ammunition should be immediately transported away or taken to Luzhou with the main force. Both options can be implemented immediately.

Even at this time, if the coalition forces wanted to take revenge on him while he had not replenished his troops in time, he could retreat safely into the mountains.

Teng Yuzhao believed that the foreigners would never dare to chase into the mountains without adequate preparation.

Therefore, he and his vanguard main force are now absolutely safe.

Despite this, for the sake of greater safety, Teng Yuzhao still ignored the extremely tired troops and ordered all troops overnight to rush to Yi County, a county town that was close to the mountains and far away from the Juma River.

(End of this chapter)