Strategy for the Revitalization of the Late Ming Dynasty

Chapter 257 The Qing Army’s Performance Was Too Weird
Amid the roar of battle, the forests on both sides of the valley also began to burn with flames.

Chen Fu knew that occupying these strategic heights would provide a vital advantage in attacking the Qing army in the valley.

Therefore, he decisively ordered his troops to advance into the mountains and forests, hoping to take the initiative and seize the initiative.

However, Ajige also realized this and took quick action, dispatching elite troops to guard the mountain roads to prevent the Ming army from occupying these important places.

Although the Qing troops in the valley were fake elite troops, those sent to guard the mountain roads were genuine Red Banner troops.

These new Eight Banners soldiers not only had outstanding individual combat capabilities, but also demonstrated strong adaptability in mountain warfare.

Many of them had just been transformed from tribal soldiers into Eight Banners soldiers. Their innate fighting instincts and rich practical experience made it difficult for the flanking troops sent by Chen Fu to move forward in the dense forests on the mountain roads.

The two armies engaged in a fierce and bloody battle on the edge of a narrow mountain road. The complex terrain, steep mountain roads, and dense forests posed great trouble to the Ming army, preventing them from effectively gathering heavy troops.

In such a combat environment, the Qing army gained the upper hand by virtue of its natural combat advantages.

Although the Ming army was large in number, it suffered heavy casualties when facing these enemies who were good at mountain warfare.

However, Chen Fu knew very well that he had to capture these strategic heights, otherwise, if the battle situation in the valley changed, the main force of the Ming army would likely be passive or even suffer a fatal blow.

The continuous battle reports made Chen Fu realize that the Qing army's deployment was more complicated than he had expected.

He began to realize that the outcome of this battle did not depend solely on the number of people, but more on the control of the situation and the speed of response.

In the valley, the Ming army's offensive was like a surging river, continuously pouring towards the Qing army's positions.

The soldiers ran hard, and the sound of armor rubbing against each other, the clanging of weapons, and the crackling of muskets, mixed with the soldiers' shouts and screams, formed a heart-stirring symphony on the battlefield.

After less than an hour of fierce fighting, the Qing army's defense line gradually collapsed and defeat was inevitable.

Ajige and Jin Li realized that the situation was not good and immediately took action. Thousands of elite cavalry who were originally preparing to leave the battlefield were forced to stay and try to contain the Ming army's attack to slow down their offensive.

Even experienced commanders such as Chen Fu and Lin Changfeng could see the problems in the Qing army's retreat.

They prayed secretly in their hearts, hoping that the Ming army's offensive would continue to advance and break through the Qing army's encirclement in one fell swoop.

However, Ajige was not willing to accept defeat, and he immediately sent more troops.

He ordered a core group of armored soldiers and a thousand musketeers to guard the eastern exit of the valley, and sent an additional thousand armored soldiers on each side of the mountain pass in an attempt to strengthen the defense to prevent further attacks by the Ming army.

At the same time, Jin Li also quietly commanded his troops to make small-scale maneuvers. Under the cover of fierce fighting in front, he gradually pushed the ambush circle forward, trying to create conditions for the upcoming counterattack.

However, despite the cover and containment of more than 10,000 Qing troops, the defense line of these baoyi soldiers gradually collapsed in the face of the fierce offensive of the Ming army.

Although they managed to withstand the Ming army's attack with their solid military formation in the early stage, as the battle continued, a serious stampede occurred in the Qing army's line.

Rows of soldiers fell one after another under the fierce attack of the Ming army, and the screams that came one after another were shocking.

Although the mountains of corpses slowed down the Ming army's offensive to a certain extent, the chaotic situation on the front line still could not be effectively controlled.

The continuous charges made the Ming army's front formation increasingly chaotic. The soldiers were huddled together in the narrow terrain, the cold light of their swords flashed constantly, and blood splashed like raindrops.

At this time, Ajige had left the front line under the escort of dozens of personal guards. He rode on his horse and looked back at the scene on the battlefield.

The Qing army line on the skyline was retreating rapidly, the flags of the two armies were intertwined, and the scene was chaotic.

It was obvious that the troops on both sides had lost their command to a certain extent, especially the Qing army, whose heavy losses had thrown them into complete chaos.

Under such circumstances, even the soldiers responsible for supervising the battle had already abandoned their duties, and the entire Qing army's position was filled with corpses.

The situation on the battlefield has reached the most critical moment. Chen Fu looked at the situation in front of him and knew that this was the time to decide the victory.

Although he was facing an extremely fierce enemy, he believed that as long as he could seize the opportunity, he could turn the tide in one fell swoop.

Amid the deafening shouts of the Ming army, the fighting spirit became increasingly high. Soldiers poured into the battlefield like a tide, and the vanguard quickly approached the mountains where Ajige had sent additional troops to defend.

This strategic location was the first line of defense in the ambush circle carefully arranged by Ajige and Jin Li. If they could hold this place, the Ming army's offensive would be greatly weakened.

However, if the Ming army successfully broke through this mountain, Ajige and Jin Li's ambush circle would be fully exposed, and the Qing army's overall plan would be in danger.

On the surface, this stronghold of Ajige and Jin Li seemed to be a blocking position, which was intended to prevent the Qing army from being pursued and annihilated by the Ming army after its defeat.

In fact, this stronghold was more of a bait, the purpose of which was to lead the Ming army commander to mistakenly believe that the Qing army's purpose was only to preserve its strength, and then induce the Ming army to relax its vigilance and fall into the encirclement of the Qing army.

This small hill, which is not very high but quite wide, relies on the dense forests at the foot of the high mountains on both sides and spans almost a quarter of the entire valley.

The Qing army built simple but strong fortifications on the edge of the mountain. Although these fortifications seemed simple, they were sufficient to deal with the unprepared Ming army.

The Ming army was not well prepared for the attack and could only charge forward hastily.

On the Qing army's position, an officer stared at the Ming army that was surging in front of him like a tide, and quickly calculated the distance between the two sides in his mind.

He knew that the Ming army soldiers were now full of fighting spirit because of their previous victories and were charging forward almost fearlessly.

However, he also knew that the firepower of the Qing army was not something that the Ming army could easily withstand.

As the front row of the Ming army gradually approached to a distance of seventy steps, the officer finally waved his hand decisively and gave the order.

The bugle call on the Qing army position sounded instantly, and then hundreds of Rumi guns and more than a dozen four-pound cannons issued a deafening roar at the same time.

Flames lit up in front of the position, and white smoke quickly spread to the edge of the mountain, shrouding the entire battlefield in smoke.

Hundreds of Ming soldiers rushing at the front were instantly knocked down by firepower. With shrill screams, dozens of weapons were thrown into the air and then fell heavily back to the ground.

However, despite the heavy losses suffered by the front-line soldiers, the Ming army in the rear did not stop.

The noise and sounds of fighting coming from all over the battlefield had already made them fall into the frenzy of battle. The casualties in the front seemed to be ignored by them, and the soldiers still charged forward recklessly.

Upon seeing this, the Qing army officers immediately ordered their troops to fire a second round of volleys.

This time, the volleys of muskets and four-pound cannons were more dense and accurate, and the Ming army suffered a heavy blow again. The originally unstoppable offensive finally came to an abrupt halt in the face of the sudden increase in casualties.

At this moment, the ground in front of the mountain was covered with the corpses of Ming soldiers, blood flowed like a river, and the scene was extremely tragic.

Although the Ming army had a numerical advantage, they found it difficult to deploy their forces in the narrow valley, and this terrain disadvantage made them extremely vulnerable when facing the Qing army's firepower. With the assistance of missionaries stranded in Beijing, the Qing army had achieved a very high level of craftsmanship in the manufacture of firearms.

At such a distance, the lead bullets from the imitation Rumi gun ignored the shields and armor of the Ming soldiers and penetrated their protection almost unhindered, making these brave soldiers as fragile as paper in the face of enemy firepower.

At this moment, on the mountainside more than ten miles away, Chen Fu was observing the changes in the battle situation ahead through the "clairvoyance" in his hand.

Through the lens, he saw the heavy losses suffered by the Ming army in front of the mountains, and a sense of unease arose in his heart.

He realized that the Qing army's defense was more tenacious than expected, and the current battle situation might not be as smooth as he had originally imagined.

Chen Fu pondered for a moment, his thoughts racing like lightning.

He knew that the current situation did not allow him to have any hesitation.

As a seasoned general, he knew that every decision on the battlefield could affect the course of the entire battle.

Should we continue to launch a fierce attack, or temporarily withdraw our forces and wait for an opportunity?

These thoughts kept flashing through his mind, but he knew that any delay at this moment might make the situation worse.

Chen Fu took a deep breath and finally decided to adjust his tactics.

He immediately ordered his troops to suspend the offensive, reorganize their formation, and prepare to adopt a more cautious strategy in the next wave of attack.

He understood that the Qing army before him was not an easy opponent to deal with, and that relying solely on numerical advantage was far from enough to win the battle.

At the same time, Ajige was also calmly observing the development of the battle on the mountain.

He knew clearly that although the Ming army's offensive had been temporarily curbed, it did not mean that they would give up easily.

On the battlefield, a single mistake could lead to total defeat.

Therefore, he had to go all out to ensure that the Qing army could maintain its advantage in the next battle.

As time went on, the tension on the battlefield grew.

The generals of both sides were competing secretly, deploying their troops and preparing to decide the outcome in the next round of confrontation.

The fierce offensive launched by the Qing army on the mountains on the north and south sides was beyond Chen Fu's expectations.

This was in stark contrast to the performance of the Qing troops in the valley, and even made him wonder whether these Qing troops in front of him belonged to the same team.

What confused him even more was that Ajige had deployed at least two thousand elite soldiers in the mountains, which effectively restrained the pursuing Ming army.

The combat effectiveness demonstrated by these Qing soldiers should not be underestimated, and their combat effectiveness is in no way inferior to that of the elite Ming army.

This strange situation made Chen Fu fall into thought:

Was it that his ambush tactics had reached such perfection that he caught the Qing army off guard, causing the enemy troops in the valley to abandon their armor and flee in panic?

Or was this simply a trap carefully planned by the Qing army?

However, doubts also set in. Although the Qing troops in the valley had obvious differences in combat effectiveness, at least half of them were elite troops.

More importantly, the Qing army had distributed its forces among the mountains on the north and south sides, the middle mountains and the valleys, with a total force of nearly 30,000.

Considering these factors, it is impossible that Ajige has hidden more ambushes.

Chen Fu did not have a God's perspective at the moment. He could only rely on the intelligence he had at hand and years of battlefield experience to judge the situation.

In his judgment, Jin Li's troops could not appear in Jinan, just as Duoduo could not suddenly appear in Nanyang City.

Therefore, he concluded that the current situation should be inclined towards victory for the Ming army, but Ajige had a trick up his sleeve and was trying to thwart the Ming army's pursuit.

However, this feeling of victory did not make Chen Fu feel at ease.

His intuition from years of experience on the battlefield told him that the situation before him was not simple.

Therefore, he kept weighing in his mind whether to pursue immediately or to first eliminate the Qing troops on both sides and in the mountains in the middle.

"Lin Changfeng, what do you think?" Chen Fu felt that the situation was unusual, and his intuition made it difficult for him to make a decision, so he asked the confidant beside him.

Lin Changfeng also fell into deep thought. He also noticed the abnormality in the Qing army's actions.

But he is more inclined to believe that this is because the Qing army has insufficient manpower and has recruited many young and poorly trained soldiers, resulting in a gap in combat effectiveness.

"You can't figure it out either? Or you can't see it?" Seeing that Lin Changfeng didn't answer immediately, Chen Fu asked again, with a hint of anxiety in his eyes.

"Admiral Chen, I think we can order the army to continue the pursuit, but the mountains on both sides must be captured at the same time.

As for the mountains in the middle, we can send a battalion of soldiers to surround them and serve as a reserve force, surrounding them without attacking.

Lin Changfeng finally made a decision.

"The Heavenly Cavalry can be dispatched to make up for the lack of pursuit forces, but the Tianwei Left Battalion in the central army should remain in reserve and wait for orders to enter combat."

After listening to Lin Changfeng's suggestion, Chen Fu did not express his opinion immediately. Instead, he raised the "Clairvoyance" in his hand again and quickly turned his gaze to the battlefield in the valley.

Through his "clairvoyance", he saw that the Qing army's formation was slightly chaotic, but they had not completely lost their combat effectiveness.

He realized that the enemy army in front of him was not completely powerless to resist, but was just disrupted by the sudden attack.

Chen Fu knew very well that although pursuing the enemy could quickly expand the results of victory, if handled improperly, he might be bitten back by the enemy.

He frowned, thought for a moment and finally made a decision:
"Order the entire army to proceed according to the plan. Cavalry will slow down the vanguard, and infantry will accelerate their advance. The mountains on both sides must be captured! Encircle the middle mountain without attacking it, and maintain vigilance."

As the order was issued, the Ming army adjusted its offensive again.

Chen Fu understood that there was no room for slackness at this moment, and every step on the battlefield had to be cautious and decisive.

His gaze returned to the "Clairvoyance" again, knowing that the outcome of this battle was hanging by a thread and no mistakes could be made.

(End of this chapter)