Strategy for the Revitalization of the Late Ming Dynasty

Chapter 168: The Qing Army's Defeat
The armored infantry of the Ming and Qing armies fought fiercely in front of the battle line, and the outcome was difficult to determine. Zhunta stared at the battlefield intently, and he was also waiting for Zhu Cilang's action, but he never waited.

Like Zhu Cilang, he wanted to wait for the other side to reveal a flaw, but the Ming army had sufficient manpower and greater room for maneuver on the battlefield, while the core Eight Banners of the Qing army were already stretched to the limit.

At this time, the large group of soldiers left behind in the rear of the Ming army still did not move. Zhunta looked at the helmets and flags that kept falling in front of the two armies, and was worried that the Eight Banners soldiers under Bahana's command would suffer too many casualties. After a fierce ideological struggle in his mind, he could no longer bear it.

Rumbling thunder soon sounded, and a huge cavalry team rushed out from the central formation of the Qing army, raising billowing smoke and dust in the wilderness.

Zhunta led the last of the Eight Banners, which was also the last army in the Qing army with tactical offensive capabilities!
Bahana and Wang Guangtai quickly noticed the movement in the rear. They turned their heads and saw Zhunta's recognition flag.

When Wang Guangtai saw this, he felt relieved almost immediately. With Zhunta leading this army of more than 3,000 armored soldiers, the outcome of this battle should be decided soon.

Although he had a new respect for the Ming army in front of him and even felt fear for it, he still felt that as long as the Manchu cavalry took action, everything would be fine.

The same was true for Bahana. He just looked at the battle situation in front of him and realized that he had lost his confidence since some time ago.

Junta galloped through the cavalry, the cold north wind whistling through them, rustling the countless flags fluttering in the wind. Soon, the brutal and bloody battlefield unfolded before him, but it didn't move him in the slightest.

Zhao Zhengdong, Gu Defu, and countless other soldiers from the central army who were preparing to go into battle behind the formation, looked at the Qing cavalry group in the center of the battlefield, which was as tall as a black tide, especially the helmets on the horses' backs that were rising and falling and constantly surging, and they couldn't help feeling uneasy.

However, at this time, no one in the formation was afraid and retreated. They were the most elite troops left by Zhu Cilang in the formation, ready for a decisive battle. It was obvious that the Qing army now wanted to take advantage of the battle between the two armies and attack directly from the center, using the powerful mobility of the cavalry to carry out a surprise raid.

The central army in front of the palace that remained in the formation had already made preparations at this moment. More than 1,400 musketeers and more than 3,000 spearmen were on full alert.

A volley of muskets had considerable lethality against cavalry, and a long spear formation could also restrain cavalry. The combined strength of two elite battalions was sufficient to stop a Qing cavalry attack of this magnitude.

While riding his horse, Junta observed the Ming army's formation. When he decided to send troops, he had already confirmed with both wings that the Ming army's cavalry had been firmly tied down, and the Ming emperor's terrifying cavalry formation could never be sent out.

In this battle, the only Qing army that could really fight on the battlefield was the Eight Banners Army. Wang Guangtai's Green Camp Army might have been useful elsewhere, but because of the misjudgment of Junta and Bahana, their troops had already suffered heavy losses.

This means that Junta has no choice but to take out his last troops and take a gamble. Otherwise, if he continues to consume the troops, he will definitely lose!
But unfortunately, he lost the bet!

Part of Zhu Cilang's Tianqi Army, which was originally deployed on both wings, has begun to assemble. Two thousand headquarters and 1,500 cavalrymen are preparing to make a detour when the Qing army is attacking in full force.

The two battalions of the central army in front of the palace, and the two thousand headquarters of the Tianqi Army, more than 6,000 of the most elite troops of the Ming army, were the surprise that Zhu Cilang left for Zhunta.

In this battle, Zhu Cilang assembled an army of more than 25,000. The gap in military strength between the two sides was huge, which was enough to make up for the gap in combat power. At the same time, it also enabled Zhu Cilang to deliver a powerful blow when the Qing army made mistakes.

However, the Qing army was short of manpower and had to make some choices, and loopholes were inevitable in the process!
Just as the front of the Qing cavalry group entered a position three hundred steps away from the Ming army's main formation, Zhunta vaguely felt a vibration coming from the side.

He immediately felt something was wrong, but when he turned his head, he couldn't tell what was going on. He only knew that a fierce battle seemed to have broken out between the cavalry on both wings of the battlefield.

By the time Zhunta could see clearly, the cavalry group he led had already entered a position less than 200 steps away from the front of the Ming army. The Ming army formation, which had originally looked empty because of the large number of troops deployed and the cavalry had been tied down, had actually regained its previous majestic appearance.

Meanwhile, to the north of the battlefield, a powerful Ming cavalry unit had successfully bypassed the enemy and was beginning to form up. They formed into three formations, and the dense mass of horse heads and the countless red tassels on them danced like waves across the wilderness, giving Junta a chill.

At this point, how could he not understand that this was clearly a trap set by the Ming Emperor? This Ming army was probably willing to trade his life for his, so as to block the cavalry led by him in front of the formation, and then the Ming cavalry would use their best cavalry formation to go around to the flank and cut his cavalry in half.

But now, the cavalry has sped up, and he is getting closer and closer to the Ming army phalanx in front of him. It is impossible for him to command such a large cavalry group to turn at this time, otherwise even if he succeeds, his flank will be completely exposed.

Not only that, Junta now has no choice but to lead his cavalry in a final fight to break through the Ming army's formation. In fact, the current situation does not allow him to hesitate for a moment!
Junta was riding on a horse, and the warhorse under his crotch was still charging forward at an increasingly faster speed. He turned his head to look ahead and saw that the vanguard cavalry was almost within a hundred steps of the enemy formation.

Then, Junta took a deep breath, and then, as if to encourage himself, he shouted, "Kill!"

The Eight Banners horsemen in the cavalry group, accompanied by the blaring military bugles, also howled and shouted:

"Kill, kill, kill—"

However, this could not change the situation on the battlefield. The musketeers in front of the central army in front of the palace had already completed their deployment, and the phalanxes of turtledove-foot guns on both wings were even prepared to attack cavalry.

On the battlefield, the vanguard of the Qing cavalry galloping out from the middle quickly rushed to a place a hundred steps away from the central army in front of the palace, and then began to draw bows and arrows on horseback, shooting arrows at the large formation of the central army in front of the palace, trying to cause chaos in the latter.

However, although most of these arrows hit the central army formation in front of the palace, in the end only about twenty armored soldiers and musketeers were injured, and most of them were only slightly injured.

As the Qing cavalry group came within a hundred steps, amid the rumbling sound of horses' hooves, a burst of musketry fire came from the Ming army's line.

"Bang! Bang! Bang -"

In the orange-red flames, hundreds of Qing cavalrymen fell in the front row in an instant. The Eight Banners vests on their horses screamed and fell off their horses. The cavalrymen and horses that were shot spurted out columns of blood and wailed continuously. The front of the originally dense cavalry group had become uneven, and its attack capability was sharply reduced.

But the Ming army's volleys did not stop. The third row of musketeers soon launched a round of intensive volleys. Dozens of cavalrymen in the front row of the Qing army fell down one after another. In the blink of an eye, they were trampled into meat paste by the hooves of the horses that followed. Some war horses were frightened and began to jump in panic, unwilling to continue charging forward.

Although the speed of the Qing cavalry began to slow down due to casualties from the musket fire, the distance between the two armies was soon less than fifty steps. The Ming musketeers did not launch a new round of volleys and began to shrink and retreat.

Faced with such an attack, the soldiers in the central army in front of the palace did not retreat at all. The war drums in the formation boomed, and under the roars of officers at all levels, the long spears in the square formation were instantly lowered, with the tips of the spears pointing in the direction of the Qing cavalry, ready to fight at any time.

In a flash, the fierce Qing cavalry quickly arrived, and the Eight Banners soldiers waved their sharp spears and swords on horseback, slashing at the Ming soldiers in front of them.

They kept throwing short axes and iron bone balls at the central army in front of the palace from their horseback. These heavy weapons, which were smashed by the speed of the horses, caused considerable damage to the armored soldiers in the central army in front of the palace.

The soldiers in the central army in front of the palace raised their spears and thrust them forward towards the cavalrymen who were charging in front of them. The shouts and screams of the battle between infantry and cavalry merged into one.

Those so-called Eight Banners horsemen were also very scared when facing the strict long spear phalanx, but at this time, they had to bite the bullet and continue to charge, otherwise the Ming cavalry formation that would soon attack from the flank would cut them in half.

In other words, they could only win the battle if they broke through the spear phalanx in front of the palace.

The dove-foot gun phalanxes on both wings of the central army formation in front of the palace quickly counterattacked. A fierce burst of musketry fire quickly broke out. They quickly rotated their firing and gave continuous fire attacks to the Qing cavalry rushing in the front row.

These heavy musketeers, the most elite among the palace's front troops, were usually trained more rigorously than the light musketers who used bird guns. The coordination between the front and back rows was smooth and there was almost no confusion.

Of course, the array of turtledove-foot guns was not dense, which was not compensated by the lead bullets weighing more than one or two ounces and with terrifying power. Moreover, the smoke it produced was very large, and the musketeers in the phalanx who were firing in unison were quickly disturbed.

The musketeers on both wings of the formation fired the last round of volleys, and dozens of Qing cavalry fell on both wings, making it impossible for them to harass the flanks. This meant that the Ming army's formation was not harassed due to the lack of cavalry cover.

Many horses at the rear of the Qing cavalry were frightened, and then they saw the dense, coldly flashing spears in front of them, and they were completely out of control, causing the Qing cavalry to become even more chaotic.

"Kill, kill, kill—"

The soldiers in the central army in front of the palace fought with increasing courage, their sharp spears stabbing and piercing with a cold light as they charged towards the Qing cavalry. Streams of blood shot out between the thrusts of their spears, and the sparse sound of musketry could be heard from both wings.
As these more than 3,000 soldiers of the central army in front of the palace withstood the sudden charge of the Qing cavalry, Zhunta's last hope was shattered.

He had originally hoped that his cavalry could directly break through the Ming army's infantry formation and avoid the Ming army's cavalry's attack, but now it seems that it is impossible!
After all, in his subconscious, the Ming imperial infantry had no chance of successfully resisting the Eight Banners' cavalry's swift attack. To resist head-on was like trying to stop a chariot with a mantis arm, overestimating his own strength. But now, with the Qing cavalry abruptly stopped by the Ming infantry formation, he was powerless to turn the tide. Meanwhile, the Heavenly Cavalry, poised for attack, had already begun to accelerate, entering the final 300 steps.

“Woo, woo, woo~~~”

The charge trumpet sounded, and under the command of Lin Changfeng, the cavalry of the Tianqi Army gradually accelerated, and the rumbling sound of horse hooves was deafening.

After Lin Changfeng led his troops into the northern battlefield, he quickly formed a square formation in the wilderness. Seeing this, some scattered Qing cavalry on the flanks of the battlefield wanted to take the opportunity to launch a sneak attack, but were quickly repelled. Those Eight Banners cavalry who were originally on their way turned around when they saw that there was no advantage to be gained.

Lin Changfeng held the flag himself, and the cavalry under his command attacked with great swiftness. They rushed from the flank of the Qing cavalry group, and with unstoppable momentum, they directly penetrated the waist of the Qing cavalry group that was blocked by the central infantry formation in front of the palace.

For a moment, the rumbling sound of countless cavalrymen trampling on the ground, the collision and friction of horses and armor, the sound of heavy objects falling to the ground, as well as the endless shouts and cries of killing, and the neighing of horses mixed together and echoed in the wilderness east of Jingzhou.

The cavalry of the Tianqi Army charged and attacked fiercely all the way. Two cavalry phalanxes and six battle lines, layer after layer, passed through one after another like a sieve.

These Ming cavalrymen who attacked from the side did not even encounter any decent counterattack. They killed all the Qing cavalrymen trapped in the formation like cutting melons and vegetables. In just a blink of an eye, the originally huge group of Qing cavalrymen was cut in half.

In this situation, only those cavalrymen in the front and rear flanks, or those with quick reactions, were able to react and escape by chance.

However, those cavalrymen who escaped from the Qing cavalry group were already worthless on the battlefield. The Tianqi Army had no interest in them at all. The cavalry line of the third formation swept across and fiercely pursued those Qing cavalrymen who had managed to escape.

The ground was rumbling and shaking. In this earth-shaking cavalry attack, the sounds of the cavalry charging and the neighing of the war horses became louder and louder, spreading to both sides.

Three thousand Eight Banners cavalrymen were swept by the fierce Ming cavalry in the blink of an eye. The cavalry helmets on their waists fell down one after another and they were instantly submerged in the formation.

The Ming army's cavalry formation also fell into chaos after the previous charge. Many cavalrymen were intercepted in the formation by the Eight Banners vests during the charge. Sharp spears, swords, heavy axes and maces were constantly waving.

The thousands of Eight Banners cavalrymen rushing towards them from the rear were also a flank attack on the Tianqi Army. However, due to the recent chaos, their formation was not tight and their damage was not great.

In this fierce attack, countless war horses jumped in panic on the battlefield. The Tianqi cavalry trapped in the formation immediately engaged in a melee with the Qing cavalry they encountered on the battlefield. The shouts of killing shook the earth, and the battlefield was trampled by horses' hooves, with corpses everywhere and blood flowing like a river.

Many cavalrymen, unable to control the irritated horses beneath their crotches, were spinning in circles. Those cavalrymen who had dispersed after the charge, or who had rushed to the east of the battlefield in formation, were regrouping. Under the command of their respective officers, they roared and charged into the Qing infantry formations on the southern battlefield.

Zhunta looked at the tragic battlefield, feeling terrified and stunned. He had only heard about the ferocity of the Ming army's cavalry formation, but he had never imagined that the Ming army's cavalry formation was so strong!

As soon as he observed the movement of a large group of Ming cavalry in the north, he realized that the situation was not good and felt uneasy.

But at that time, he had no choice. After all, he had just faced not only the Ming cavalry, but also the infantry phalanx he was about to charge, as well as the terrifying musket fire for the cavalry.

If it was just the Ming army's cavalry formation, perhaps the outcome would be hard to predict, and Zhunta could have escaped the battlefield with the Eight Banners horsemen and then blocked the counterattack. But the actual situation was obviously not like that. The coordinated efforts of the Ming army's infantry and cavalry left him with no way to escape!
On the battlefield, the cavalry of the Ming and Qing armies were still fighting, and at the same time they were attacking each other's infantry formations. Tens of thousands of horse hooves trampled on the ground, making a thunderous roar. The entire battlefield was now in chaos.

Chang Denggui quickly rode his horse to the central army's observation tower. Zhu Cilang raised his telescope to take a look at the battle situation, then said to the other party in a firm tone:
"The Qing army has been defeated. Chang Denggui, you must immediately lead a detachment of troops and march north to encircle the fleeing Qing troops. Make sure to annihilate those Tartar cavalry!"

Upon hearing this, Chang Denggui was so excited that he immediately clasped his hands and responded: "I will definitely fulfill your mission!"

Now the entire formation of the Qing army has loosened and collapse is imminent, but the Eight Banners Army is mainly composed of cavalry, and it is easy for them to escape on such a plain. The task given to him by Zhu Cilang is not easy.

But at the same time, now is also a rare opportunity to completely wipe out the Eight Banners Army, and the opportunity is fleeting. If he can seize it, it will be a great achievement!
"Pass on my military order, all troops attack!"

While Chang Denggui retreated and led his troops to attack, Zhu Cilang, on the central army's lookout tower, immediately ordered the flag bearers and drummers to issue orders for a full-scale attack.

The current battle situation is actually very clear to the Ming army. The defeat of the Qing army is irreversible, but whether the Eight Banners Army can be completely wiped out, or even most of it, depends on whether Chang Denggui can bypass the north and stop the Qing army's fleeing soldiers.

On the other side, Chen Fu's eyes were fixed on the battlefield in the northwest direction. The two battalions of the central army in front of the palace, with more than 5,000 soldiers and horses, blocked the charge of thousands of Eight Banners cavalry, causing the latter to be defeated under the charge of the cavalry formation.

When he saw the Tianqi Army break through the Qing cavalry group, he knew that the opportunity for battle had come, but he was still waiting for Zhu Cilang's military order.

"Woo, woo, woo~~"

As the military order came from the central army lookout tower, the loud charge horn suddenly sounded, and the Ming army rushed out with shouts of "Ten Thousand Victories". The entire line was like a swift tide, sweeping across the wilderness with unstoppable momentum.

Chen Fu's flag also moved quickly. The morale of the soldiers of the left army in front of the palace gradually reached a climax amid the shouts of fighting. They waved their weapons and quickly engulfed the defeated Qing army that was attacked by the Tianqi Army.

In the wilderness, countless helmets swayed up and down as the armored soldiers ran. The smell of blood in the air became heavier, and the shouting and howling became louder. The Ming army soldiers looked at the Qing army who were fleeing with their backs to them, and their spirits became excited.

Bahana and Wang Guangtai looked at the sudden situation before them and fled the battlefield with their personal guards. They were completely dominated by fear at this time, even the leader of Bayala who was beside Bahana was the same.

This is a crushing defeat!
At this time, Zhunta had been forced to flee the battlefield by dozens of guards. As a veteran on the battlefield, he quickly regained his direction amidst the turbulence of his horse. He turned his head to look to the southeast, and saw countless Qing infantry and cavalry fleeing in the chaos.

However, because these soldiers failed to achieve the expected victory, they were stuck in the quagmire of the battlefield and could not get out at all. At this time, wanting to escape was a luxury.

Junta originally wanted to find Bahana's recognition flag, but after scanning the battlefield, he saw nothing - the battlefield was in chaos at this time, and Bahana's recognition flag might have been lost.

Of course, Junta actually knew that for a delicate young general like Bahana, there was actually another possibility, but he just didn't want to think about it!

"Bang! Bang! Bang!!!"

There was a burst of not-too-fierce musketry fire on the battlefield. The musketeers who rushed out from the rear and flanks raised their muskets and fired at the Qing cavalry who were scattered and fleeing in disorder, and soon shot down dozens of them.

At this time, many Qing cavalry rushed directly towards the flanks of the Ming army's infantry formation in panic. They waved their sharp swords and knocked the soldiers on the flanks of the infantry formation to the ground, making their last dying struggle.

However, at this time, there were shouts and gunshots everywhere, and Junta could no longer tell where the gunshots came from.

Under the all-out charge of the Ming army, the Qing army was powerless to resist. This counterattack had no effect on the battle situation. Thousands of defeated soldiers began to flee in two directions, west and north, including Junta.

However, he soon saw Chang Denggui, who had come back to the north and was holding the flag on the battlefield, and was startled for a moment before suddenly drawing his sword and shouting to Bayala beside him:
"Warriors of the Qing Dynasty, follow me and charge forward, break the Ming army's formation, kill these southern soldiers, and return to Xiangyang!"

Upon receiving the order, the Bayaras charged forward on their horses without any hesitation. Behind them, the fleeing Eight Banners cavalrymen continued to gather and soon formed a new small cavalry group.

Zhu Cilang was holding a telescope on the watchtower, observing the blockade in the north. He soon saw a Qing army of more than a hundred cavalrymen rushing directly towards the flag with the word "Chang". Amid the rumbling sound of horse hooves and billowing smoke and dust, a battle was about to break out.

Soon, in the wilderness north of the battlefield, fierce shouts and cries of killing suddenly broke out, and a fierce battle broke out between the two cavalry units of Ming and Qing dynasties. Chang Denggui also led the cavalry towards Zhunta.

Zhunta wanted to kill Chang Denggui in battle and carve out a bloody path, while Chang Denggui wanted to destroy this Qing cavalry and all the Qing troops. This time, he had a clear advantage in terms of manpower.

After a burst of rumbling horse hooves, the Ming and Qing armies soon engaged in combat in the wilderness north of the battlefield. The two ferocious cavalry forces quickly crossed each other, their weapons clashing, and dozens of people on both sides fell quickly as they slashed and hacked.

(End of this chapter)