Strategy for the Revitalization of the Late Ming Dynasty

Chapter 94: Shattering the Myth of the Qing Army's Invincibility

Amid the rumbling sound of cannons, Zhu Cilang immediately gave an order, and the dragon flag that had been put away was quickly raised again. This time it was raised higher than ever before, and the entire Fengyang City could see it.

The Qing army's artillery had a limited range, and most of them could not shoot that far. At such a distance, it was impossible for the cannons of that era to aim. Even if Zhu Cilang stood directly under the dragon flag, he would not be in any danger.

But such naked provocation is telling Duoduo and a group of Qing generals - I, Zhu Cilang, the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty, am waiting for you here!

This was undoubtedly a great boost to the morale of the Ming army, and it would make Duoduo embarrassed and continue to consume military strength in the siege!
Faced with the sudden artillery shells fired by the Qing army, the soldiers on the two outer earth walls were originally a little panicked, but when they saw the dragon flag raised on the city wall fluttering in the wind, they felt as if they had taken a reassurance pill.

They shouted to assemble and take up positions. The four walls inside and outside Fengyang City, and tens of thousands of soldiers and civilians, suddenly became excited and cheered. Those who didn't know thought that the Ming army had repelled the Qing army and won a great victory.

Zhu Cilang's prestige in the army is getting higher and higher with such domineering actions again and again!
Soon, the armored soldiers who were resting behind the earth wall heard the assembly drums and stood up and lined up, ready to climb the wall through the slope at the rear after the Qing army's first round of volleys. The artillerymen loaded ammunition behind the shelter of the watchtower, waiting for the Qing army's shield cart formation.

On the land filled with smoke and thunderous cannon fire, Zhu Cilang saw tens of thousands of Qing troops covering the ground. Behind the shield car line, there were clouds of soldiers and armor, while inside the shield car line, there were ragged civilians swarming like ants.

This was the first time that the main force of the Qing army attacked the city, and it was also the first time that Zhu Cilang faced hundreds of thousands of Qing troops. Although he was very confident that he could achieve the final victory, he still couldn't help feeling a little inexplicably nervous at this time.

And in such a grand confrontation, he was not the only one who was nervous.

"Boom, boom, boom--"

At the Qing army's artillery position, thirty-seven red cannons began firing again. The orange-red flames flashed in the thick smoke, and stone bullets weighing more than ten pounds whizzed through the air and hit the outermost earth wall on the south side of Fengyang City with white smoke.

Most of the 37 stone bullets that came whistling hit the earth wall, and flowers of earth suddenly exploded on the wall. Several breastworks were smashed open, bringing up bursts of gray and yellow smoke and dust. Several iron bullets hit the trench outside the earth wall, and several water columns splashed up, even higher than the earth wall.

Not only that, three of the stone bullets flew over the earth wall and hit the trench between the two earth walls, also bringing up three huge water columns.

Along with the sound of heavy objects hitting each other, the place where the shells hit suddenly shook violently, dust flew everywhere, and there was even the sound of broken mud collapsing, and water splashed in the wide trench.

After several rounds of volleys, many parts of the earth wall had loosened, and screams of many Ming soldiers were heard from the wall. Several armored soldiers hiding behind the parapet were hit in the face by flying debris and fell to the ground, rolling in pain.

At the same time, driven by the Qing army's armored soldiers, especially the Baoyi soldiers, rows of shield carts were pushed out by thousands of half-naked civilians.

The land in front of them, which should have been flat and unobstructed, was now full of gullies. Behind those potholes were three winding horse-blocking ditches, each more than three feet high and more than ten feet wide.

There were countless traps in front and behind the Lanma Ditch, and many Qing army scouts had died in them. These had to be filled before the Qing army officially attacked the city, otherwise the shield carts would not be able to advance safely.

But for the Qing army attacking the city, the most terrifying thing was that these places were all on the earth wall and within the range of the artillery attacks of the Ming army stationed there.

Not only that, next to the tall and thick earth wall, there was a deep trench more than two meters wide, which was not only filled with sharp wood and caltrops, but also with accumulated water of unknown depth.

The Qing army had no idea how powerful the defensive fortifications were until they paid the lives of countless civilians and soldiers and passed through those pits and horse-blocking ditches.

On the battlefield, the most terrifying thing is the unpredictable thing that constantly devours lives.

The wall, more than ten feet high, looked like a sawtooth from the outside. On the breastwork and the battlement at the top, there were hundreds of French cannons, general cannons, and more than a dozen red cannons. The earthen wall exposed the impregnable and indestructible defense of Fengyang City to the Qing army.

This was just what the Qing army observed from the outside, without an absolute commanding height, relying only on temporary earthen platforms and wooden buildings. In fact, many places were not seen clearly enough.

They only knew that behind the two earth walls was the Fengyang city wall with a wide moat, but they did not know that there was a wide trench between the outer city of Fengyang and the two outermost earth walls. Thousands of elite soldiers were also stationed on the second earth wall.

In other words, when the Qing army spent countless lives to barely break through the outer earth wall, they would still face the second earth wall and the outer city of Fengyang from above. The narrow passages and countless trenches and potholes between the two earth walls would make it impossible for the Qing army to take advantage of its military strength.

Even if Duoduo spared no expense and finally conquered the two earth walls, he still needed to bite down on the inner and outer walls of Fengyang City. The walls there were higher and more solid, and they were all within the range of the city wall artillery.

These city walls have all been renovated, and each layer of fortifications is independent and self-contained. Zhu Cilang's confidence largely comes from this huge and solid fortification.

This is the power of the bastion-like fortifications in Fengyang City. By the time the Qing army really succeeded in breaking through these defensive fortifications, they had already been severely damaged.

By that time, the Qing army would not be able to capture Fengyang, continue southward, and conquer the entire Jiangnan region. Even a decisive battle with the main force of the Ming army led by Zhu Cilang would probably be beyond their ability.

In other words, this is not a problem that can be solved by the military technology of this era. Even in the First World War of the 20th century, such defensive fortifications would be difficult for the attacking side to solve and would have to be paid with human lives.

After another half hour of earth-shaking, lightning and thunder, the Qing army's artillery positions and the walls of Fengyang City were shrouded in thick smoke and dust, and were completely invisible.

The Qing army's artillery also dealt a heavy blow to the Ming army on the city wall. Soil kept exploding on the city wall, and bricks and stones shattered by the shells fell into the moat.

As soon as the artillery fire stopped, more than 300 Qing army shield carts that were on high alert in the south of Fengyang City, pushed by thousands of civilians, began to rush towards the city walls of Hongwu Gate and Nanyou Jiadi Gate.

These laborers were divided into two groups. One group was used to push the shield carts, and the other group was in front and behind the shield carts, braving the artillery fire of the Ming army on the earth wall, holding tools and filling the pits and ditches dug by the Ming army.

Shen Zhizhong waved the knife in his hand and shouted "Push faster, push faster", kicking and kicking the civilians who fell behind. The other bond soldiers and Eight Banners soldiers beside him had already started to hack and kill the civilians who fell to the ground, forcing the others to speed up. Screams came from the mouths of the fallen civilians.

By the time the Qing army's shield carts advanced to about two miles away from the earth wall, the Ming army on the wall had already set up their artillery. Continuous explosions erupted on the earth wall, and dozens of flames flashed in turn in the gray-yellow smoke. Black shells whizzed through the thick wall of smoke and flew out.

Although the Ming army on the city wall had just been subjected to heavy artillery fire, they suffered few casualties due to the protection of solid fortifications and scientific deployment.

After all, the artillery of this era were all solid bullets, and the noise was far greater than the actual effect. The Ming army's city defense strategy had been practiced many times before, and they were led by experienced veterans. They knew very well where to hide and how to hide to ensure their own safety. A mere few hundred artillery shells could not hurt the defense of the army.

In the first round of artillery fire from the Ming army, most of the shells slammed into the Qing army's shield cart formation. Nearly ten shield carts were directly hit by the shells. The huge impact force shattered the wooden boards, and even the frames made of wooden strips fell apart.

These shield carts were all hastily built by the Qing army, forced by their own artisans, and many of them were not very sturdy. Now, within a distance of less than two miles, they were quickly shattered by the bombardment of indestructible iron bullets.

More shells flew over the shield carts and hit them directly. The civilians who had no protection on their bodies were hit hard and their flesh and blood flew everywhere. They screamed in pain. Some shells even made a bloody path and threw countless broken limbs into the air.

Dozens of corpses hit by artillery shells soon appeared on the ground, and some were rolling on the ground in pain with their faces hit by flying wood and stones. Many civilians pushing shield carts screamed when they saw such a tragic scene, and some were even so frightened that they turned around and ran away.

But the Qing army behind them were well prepared. Those civilians who wanted to escape or were even scared to stop were immediately killed on the ground by the baoyi soldiers behind them who swung their swords, picked up their guns, and shot them with three arrows.

Under the pressure of the Baoyi soldiers, the Qing army's shield car phalanx paused for a moment, then immediately accelerated its advance. Thousands of civilians continued to fill the earth pits under the threat of artillery shells.

The shield carts advanced rapidly with the sound of squeaking friction and dense footsteps. Behind the square formation of shield carts, the Qing army armored soldiers and baoyi soldiers who were holding the formation raised their muskets and bows and arrows.

These Qing troops supervising the battle were all veterans who had been on the battlefield for a long time. They knew very well that if they stopped, they would not only die but would also be bombarded with more artillery fire. Only by passing through the area covered by artillery on the top of the city could they have a chance to survive.

Atop the earthen wall, the Ming army, braced for battle, continued their bombardment. Over a dozen red-coated cannons, large and small, fired shells weighing from a few to over ten kilograms at a rate of one round every two minutes, often destroying a shield cart with a single shot. As the Qing army continued to close in, the dozens of French cannons fired shells weighing from a few taels to several kilograms at a rate of four or five rounds per minute. With immense firepower, they swept across the entire front of the Qing army, continuously blasting away the civilians filling the pits.

Amidst the deafening sound of explosions, thousands of artillery shells of various sizes flashed through the air, and then slammed into the shield cart formation with a "bang bang bang". The densely fired artillery shells directly knocked groups of civilians to the ground in front of the shield carts, like a gust of wind sweeping through a wheat field.

But what was unexpected was that under such a fierce attack, the Qing army's shield carts were still advancing. After a slight pause, some of the shield carts continued to rush forward. The Qing soldiers who were supervising the battle held up their swords, guns, bows and crossbows and shouted loudly. No one dared to escape at this time.

However, with the continued attacks of the Ming army, the advance speed of the Qing army's shield cart phalanx soon began to slow down and became fragmented. Some civilians hid behind the damaged shield carts and used them as cover to fill the holes. They did not dare to stop at all, for fear that they would be killed by the soldiers behind them.

Chang Denggui commanded the battle and issued military orders on the watchtower of the second earth wall. At first, he waved the flags, but when the thick smoke made it difficult to see clearly, he changed to the sound of drums and trumpets.

However, faced with such a devastating blow, the Qing army did not retreat, and even sent more troops. Their determination was so strong that the war intensified.

After Chang Denggui received the report, the pressure in his heart increased rapidly. The artillery on the first earth wall had already fired several volleys and would soon be unable to continue bombarding due to overheating. The muskets alone could not stop the Qing army's shield carts.

But when he turned his head and saw the flying dragon flag behind him, he immediately suppressed the uneasiness in his heart, and then ordered to send more people to move the artillery on the second earth wall as quickly as possible.

"Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh"

"Boom, boom, boom——"

Hundreds of artillery shells flew out from the earth wall, whizzing across the low trajectory, and then heavily slammed into the Qing army's shield cart line, which was on its last breath, and many even hit the shield carts.

After these shells hit heavily, countless smoke and wood chips bounced up and scattered around, immediately causing a second unexpected and more serious blow to the civilians around the shield carts, causing waves of shrill wails and screams.

This was an attack with greater lethality than artillery shells. Although it would not be directly fatal, the civilians who had no armor protection, were covered with wood debris and bleeding profusely, and would soon die in pain. They would not receive any treatment from the Qing army.

Amid the rumbling artillery bombardment, the siege troops composed of civilians, bondservants, and armored soldiers had already pushed shield carts, trench bridge carts, and some even carried ladders, and rushed to a place less than 300 steps away from the outer trench.

On top of the city wall, the Ming army's artillery was still firing continuously, but only the muzzle-type guns were left. The French cannons with extremely fast heat dissipation were still working, while the other cannons were basically dissipating heat.

At this time, the yellow smoke generated by the Qing army's previous artillery bombardment had mixed with the white smoke spreading from the artillery platform. The southern city wall of Fengyang City was shrouded in thick smoke, making it impossible for the Qing army to figure out the situation of the Ming army.

In the fierce bombardment just now, most of the Qing army's shield carts and siege equipment were shattered during the advance, or fell into pits, and the Qing army's baoyi soldiers and armored soldiers had lost nearly a hundred people at this time.

But even so, the retreat horn had not yet sounded, and the civilians who were captured by the Qing army and forced forward with knives could only close their eyes and continue to advance.

The Ming army's artillery bombardment was so fierce, and they were completely untrained and lacked battlefield experience. The entire offensive line was in chaos and almost came to a standstill in some places.

The siege lasted for more than an hour, with artillery fire from both sides accounting for half of the time. In the end, only a small number of Qing troops broke through the holes outside the earthen wall and trench, but they were immediately hit hard by the Ming army musketeers lurking behind the horse-blocking ditch.

This place is very close to the earth wall and is no longer threatened by artillery fire, but Chang Denggui had already sent troops to lurk out of the city. The Ming army's musketeers were based on flag teams, and the power of their volleys was also considerable. These rushing civilians and Qing troops had no shield carts to protect them and had nowhere to hide.

Some Qing army armored soldiers and baoyi soldiers leaned against the earth wall and continuously shot arrows at the Ming army musketeers who showed their heads, but with little effect. They were soon killed by the dense musket fire. After the civilian laborers were temporarily out of control, they all fell to the ground.

The Eight Banners armored soldiers and Baoyi soldiers who were originally holding the line rushed forward when they saw this. They were afraid of the cannons, but not the Ming army. Moreover, they were so angry that they did not set out during the previous advance. Now they tried to reverse the situation through close combat.

But the troops sent by Chang Denggui were all elite soldiers from the Palace Army and the Beijing Camp. As soon as they rushed forward, they were knocked down by arrows and muskets and rolled into the ravine. The same happened to the civilians who were driven forward. Dense corpses soon covered the ground and piled up into a small hill.

Shen Zhizhong was hiding behind a shield cart that was stuck in a pit, and was driving the civilians around him forward. He originally wanted to rush into the ditch and chop off a few heads, but now that he had witnessed the power of the Ming army's muskets, the only thing left in his mind was how to retreat.

At his feet, corpses were piled up layer upon layer, and his shoes were covered with sticky blood. These civilians died in all kinds of ways. Some were blown to pieces by shells, with their internal organs spilling all over the ground. Some were stabbed to death by wood chips and gravel, with their faces disfigured. Some were hacked to death or shot to death by the Baoyi soldiers and the Eight Banners soldiers. Some were shot to death by the Ming army with muskets, with several holes in their bodies.
On the battlefield full of gunfire, human life is so cheap that it only takes a piece of wood to kill a person.

After a long while, amid the tragic wails and musket fire, the sound of a bugle call finally rang out from the rear of the Qing army. When Shen Zhizhong heard it, he shuddered and rushed back to the rear without looking back.

At this moment, he no longer dared to have any thoughts of despising the Ming army, let alone thinking about gold and silver. His mind was blank. He was only afraid that he would not run fast enough and would be caught up by the Ming army, and lose his life here.

On the Qing army's front, the soldiers and horses that were originally surging forward instantly followed the large flag of Jiala commanding the battle and retreated like a tide.

On the top of the wall, Chang Denggui immediately issued a new order. A burst of war drums sounded, and the Ming army that was originally firing in the Lanma ditch rushed out shouting, chasing the Qing army that was retreating in a panic.

This directly accelerated the latter's defeat. Even some Qing soldiers, after seeing the tragic death of their comrades, completely lost their initial arrogance and retreated regardless of everything.

At the same time, three teams of cavalry and more than a dozen teams of soldiers suddenly emerged from the passage of the earth wall. They were the Tianqi Battalion and the standard battalion under Chen Fu. The former was responsible for guarding the battlefield and defending against the Qing army's surprise attack, while the latter was responsible for cleaning the battlefield.

As the Ming army's final attack on the earth wall ended, the Qing army's shield carts in the first round of attack were basically exhausted. The remaining armored soldiers and baoyi soldiers quickly withdrew from the battlefield, regardless of the civilians rolling on the ground and wailing, desperately begging for help. They even killed the wounded on the ground without hesitation on their way back.

"Your Majesty, the Qing army was defeated in less than two hours. The casualties are estimated to be two to three thousand, but there are probably not many real armored soldiers or baoyi soldiers!"

After Chang Denggui confirmed that the Qing army had retreated, he immediately rushed to the city wall where Zhu Cilang was. His words and expression were very excited. This was the first time he faced the main force of the Qing army.

"Clean up the battlefield and don't withdraw the artillery yet. The Qing army will soon return. We must make Duoduo suffer again."

Zhu Cilang nodded, his expression very calm, and even reminded Chang Denggui: "This small number of troops shows that Duoduo has not yet made a real contribution!"

"If the Qing army comes again, we will kill them again and see how many men and horses they can lose!" Chen Fu also spoke immediately, he was also excited.

"Once the Qing army has filled those holes and horse-blocking ditches and attacked outside the earth wall, they should send out most of their armored troops to fight. At that time, I will definitely kill them all and bite off a piece of Duoduo's flesh to let him know how powerful the Ming Dynasty is." Chang Denggui bowed.

"Hahaha, good!" Zhu Cilang laughed, then turned and looked at the battlefield where the white smoke was gradually dissipating and the shouting and killing sounds were fading, and said:
"You have no fear of the Qing army, which is rare, and right. The Tartars are indeed powerful, but they are also human. In the face of artillery shells, they are just flesh and blood, and have weaknesses. Breaking through the enemy lines is not their forte.

Xuzhou is just a place with a strong army, and they are helpless against it with hundreds of thousands of troops. Fengyang has me, and there are tens of thousands of troops from the Palace Army, the Beijing Camp, and the Fengyang Standard Camp. Duoduo will definitely not be able to break through.

I want to use this battle of Fengyang to shatter the myth of the Qing army's invincibility before the eyes of the world. The so-called Eight Banners, with their ten thousand men, are invincible. To me, it's a joke! Only when we, the monarch and his subjects, are united and determined, can we truly be invincible!"

Chang Denggui, Chen Fu and others were stunned for a moment when they heard the words. After they came to their senses, they felt relieved. Facing the main force of the Qing army outside the city, they were actually very nervous and afraid of failure again. But seeing the emperor's magnanimity, they were all instantly filled with confidence.

The Qing army had indeed been invincible before and had defeated the Ming Dynasty countless times, but this time when it marched south, it suffered a setback in Xuzhou, and its vanguard was completely wiped out in Jiangbei. In the confrontations a few days ago, it did not gain any advantage at all.

These things all prove without exception that they are capable of competing with the Qing army and even launching a desperate counterattack!
Soon, the smoke of the battlefield dissipated, and the soldiers who were cleaning up the battlefield quickly withdrew. They had just seen the Qing army retreating in a hurry and in a mess, and they had also seen the densely packed broken shield carts and corpses covering the ground. Now, seeing the dragon flag flying in the wind, they immediately burst into thunderous cheers.

The first battle was a victory. The broken shield carts and dense corpses on the ground witnessed their glorious victory. The shouts of victory then surged like a tide!

(End of this chapter)