Wind Rises in North America 1625

Chapter 401 Haidong (Part 3)

Heshuotu, the Gushan Ejen of the Zhenghong Banner, wiped the sweat from his forehead. The lining of his armor was already soaked through, sticking to his back and making him very uncomfortable.

But he paid no heed to this, holding up a monocular telescope, his eyes slightly narrowed behind the lens, carefully observing the fortress that stood abruptly in the valley in the distance.

"Master, this...this is not a village at all!" The voice of Takshan, the chieftain of the Plain Red Banner, was filled with disbelief. "This is clearly a city or fortress!"

Heshuo Tu did not respond, but slowly moved the telescope to take in the fortifications of the fortress.

The town is not large, only about 300 meters square. The city wall is about 10 to 12 feet high, built with huge timbers and attached with a lot of rammed earth and stones (cement). The top is equipped with wooden parapets, and the four corners are built of brick and stone corner towers that protrude from the city wall.

Most alarmingly, on the north city wall stood a gun emplacement with two dark cannons mounted prominently, their muzzles pointing directly in their direction.

“That cannon…” Heshuo Tu’s Adam’s apple bobbed, “Judging from its design, it looks like a ‘new barbarian cannon,’ but it seems to be lighter.”

"Hmm, there are still many... muskets!" Taksin frowned, a look of worry on his face, as he looked at the heavily armed guards on the city wall.

Seven days ago, although they captured the small village on the west bank of the lake and annihilated its troops, they also suffered considerable casualties.

Sixteen men were killed in action and eighteen were wounded. In the following days, seven more bannermen and bondservants who were hit by muskets died, and the remaining wounded were also in bad condition, resulting in a loss of up to 10% of the entire force.

This infuriated the Qing army, but also secretly alarmed them.

This dilapidated village, with only about twenty people in total, inflicted such heavy casualties on them with just a dozen or so muskets and a simple wooden fence.

If it weren't for an absolute numerical advantage, the outcome would have been uncertain.

Moreover, the exchange ratio in this battle was almost one to one, which is unacceptable!
They not only dared to resist, but also killed and wounded so many of our people; they deserve a severe reprisal.

Out of rage, the Qing army brutally massacred the remaining dozen or so defenders after storming the wooden fortress.

If it weren't for the fact that Heshuo Tu, who was leading the group, wanted to keep a few prisoners to interrogate them, the bloodthirsty Eight Banner soldiers would have almost slaughtered them all.

“Master, those prisoners weren’t lying.” Takshan leaned forward and lowered his voice. “This fortress is more than ten times larger than that dilapidated village called Haixi. I estimate the garrison is no less than two hundred men… This won’t be easy to attack!”

Heshuo Tu put away the binoculars, wrapped them in silk cloth, tucked them into his bosom, and then gently patted them.

Over the years, through frequent battles with the Ming army in Liaonan Town and Dongjiang Town, the Qing army successively captured more than ten of these monocular telescopes that could see into the distance. They were of positive significance for battlefield observation and enemy reconnaissance, and were always treasured and not easily allowed to be used by ordinary generals like him.

If it weren't for the fact that the Emperor paid close attention to the changes that had occurred in the Ussuri and Heishui regions and had ordered him to lead two Niru (military units) to patrol the area and investigate the specific situation, he would never have entrusted such a treasure to him.

It is said that these monocular telescopes were made by that Xinzhou man who was determined to oppose our Great Qing Dynasty; he was truly skilled.

In addition to telescopes, the people of Xinzhou also provided the Ming army with a large number of firearms, especially powerful cannons, which made the Eight Banners of the Qing Dynasty very wary when facing the Ming army's fortified cities.

Several months ago, Huang Long led his troops to launch a surprise attack on Haizhou, but was unexpectedly caught by several hundred armored cavalry of our Great Qing. Prince Yu, Dorgon, who was stationed in Liaoyang, made a decisive decision and led five thousand infantry and cavalry to rush over.

After a fierce battle, Huang Long was finally killed at Haizhou, and more than 4,000 Ming soldiers were annihilated. Then, taking advantage of the momentum, they launched a fierce attack on southern Liaoning, capturing several fortified strongholds and forcing the Ming army to retreat to the two coastal fortresses of Lushun and Yongning, where they struggled to hold on.

In this battle, besides killing our old rival Huanglong and severely damaging Liaonan Town, the greatest gain for the Qing Dynasty was the capture of dozens of "New Barbarian Cannons," which immediately elevated the quantity and quality of the Qing Dynasty's firearms to a new level. The New Barbarian Cannons were well-made, reliable, and their power was in no way inferior to the previously captured Red-Clothed Cannons. After being supplied in large quantities to the Ming army, they gradually became a formidable challenge for the Qing Eight Banners.

Now, these Xinzhou people have actually extended their reach into the Haidong region, posing a hidden and fatal threat to the rear of our Great Qing.

Where did they come from?
"Takshan, do you think we can fight?" Heshuo Tu turned to look at his deputy.

"I can't fight!"

Although Takshan had a fierce face and a rough appearance, with a knife scar on his left cheek that stretched from his brow bone to his chin, making him look quite menacing, he was a very meticulous military commander. More than ten years of battlefield experience allowed him to make a conclusion immediately after a brief observation of the fortress in front of him.

"Even if we brought in three thousand men, let alone three hundred, we might not be able to break through this fortress." He spat and said gruffly, "So, let's not even think about testing their strength, let's just retreat."

"Jiala, are we retreating already?" Niru Ejen Erhe looked at him in surprise, a hint of reluctance on his face. "This city looks well-defended, with cannons on the walls, but the defenders may not be able to withstand our assault. We can launch a surprise attack at night. Once we climb into the city, the defenders will surely be terrified and can only let us kill them."

"They might be so scared that they'll collapse and run away one by one, not daring to fight us face to face. Just like those Ming soldiers and Koreans, they're all just for show, only good at hiding on the city walls and firing their guns."

“Even if they only know how to hide on the city wall and fire their guns, they can still easily kill you on the spot!” Takshan said coldly. “If you want to try, you can ask your master for permission.”

“Master…” Erhe turned to look at Heshuotu, looking eager to try.

“Takshan is right, we can’t take this city!” Heshuo Tu said indifferently, “Let’s prepare to retreat! With those prisoners, we can give an explanation to the Emperor.”

“We can bring troops from Ningguta,” Erhe muttered. “There are a lot of crops outside the city. We can set them on fire or trample them with our horses. That will surely force them to come out of the city to fight. Once they’re in the open, we can deal with them however we want.”

"Deploy troops?" Takshan sneered. "Ningguta is a thousand miles away. By the time reinforcements arrive, it will be too late."

As he spoke, he pointed to the city wall in the distance: "See those flags? Red background with yellow five-pointed stars, and a few flags embroidered with crossed swords. This is no ordinary village or fortress; it's a proper military stronghold."

“Let’s go.” Heshuotu ignored Erhe and turned to walk towards the temporary camp behind them. “We came here not to eliminate these New Continent people’s military strongholds one by one, but to report to the Emperor in detail what we have seen and heard.”

"That's the situation in the Ussuri and Great Lakes regions, so what's the situation in the Blackwater region? We need to hurry over there and check it out to find out exactly what's going on!"

"Master, could it be that the New Continent people also infiltrated the Blackwater area?" Takshan suddenly thought of something and immediately blurted out.

"Huh?..." Upon hearing this, Heshuo Tu paused, then turned sharply to look at him. "The Xinzhou people have reached the Blackwater region?"

“What if?” Takshan licked his lips, glancing at the fortified village again. “If the New Continent people can appear here, they might just sneak into the Blackwater. I’ve heard that the Blackwater River seems to flow directly to the sea, and those New Continent people are skilled at boating. Maybe…”

“If that’s the case, then we’re in big trouble!” Heshuotu followed Takshan’s gaze and looked at the fortress in the distance, muttering to himself.

"What trouble?" Erhe interrupted dismissively, "We'll just send a large army over to wipe out these Xinzhou people, and then burn their fortified villages to the ground. That'll solve everything, and all will be well!"

"Idiot!" Heshuo Tu glanced at him, then turned and left.

"Hmph, use your brain!" Taksin snorted coldly and followed Heshuotu toward the temporary camp.
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(End of this chapter)