There is no such thing as the Kangxi and Qianlong eras

Chapter 445 Night Battle Erupts
The three Han soldiers who were shot and fell were quickly dragged away; the Han army had underestimated the enemy!
This is to be expected. The Han army had mostly fought in the south, and the Qing army they fought against was mostly from the south. They were not even proficient in using the Nine-in-Ten Linked Formation.

When they encountered the Han army, they either fled or surrendered; they hardly ever fought any real, hard-fought battles.

In addition, the Han army that besieged Xuzhou was the main force of the First and Fifth Divisions joining forces. Their past record against the Qing army was not outstanding, but rather quite impressive.

In their eyes, the Qing army was basically synonymous with utterly incompetent, and they never imagined that such a weak Qing army could actually launch a surprise attack on them.

This is fucking bizarre!
Not only were the Han army's vanguard somewhat confused, but the Eight Banners musket battalion lying in ambush on the steep slope were equally puzzled.

As expected of ordinary bandits, the Southern army was hit by a hail of bullets, and even though it was late at night, they did not collapse immediately. Instead, they even tried to charge forward again.
Below the steep slope, Han soldiers, holding torches, numbering about a hundred, appeared to be preparing to continue their charge.

Haha, the Southern Army is still a bandit after all. Even though they boldly and presumptuously established a state, they still can't change their bandit nature.

They dared to charge forward even when faced with muskets; they were truly courting death!
They quickly loaded gunpowder and bullets into the muskets, then raised them to aim at the Han army torches below.

Without the extra step of lighting the matchlock, these Eight Banner musketeers all used flintlock muskets, instead of the matchlock muskets commonly used by the Qing army.

When Emperor Qianlong was still alive, he heard that the Han army had powerful firearms, so he ordered Heshen to purchase and build a new type of firearms battalion.

Before this new-style firearms battalion could even make its official debut, Emperor Qianlong was gone, and then Heshen was gone too.

Then it fell into the hands of Jiaqing. Jiaqing was not as particular as the old dog Qianlong. Since the new firearms battalion had combat power, he decisively took it out and used it.

It was thanks to this new firearms battalion, coupled with the strength of the Solon army, that Yinghe was able to defeat the White Lotus rebels, who were equipped with firearms provided by the Han army, on the Henan battlefield.

The technological advantage in weaponry had already given Yinghe's Eight Banners army a taste of victory. These new firearms, which didn't require a matchlock and could be used in rain or darkness, were incredibly easy to use!
As the torches slowly approached from below the steep slope, the Eight Banners musketeers who had been lying in ambush above the slope had all prepared their muskets.

Closer...closer...that's enough, fire!

"Bang bang bang!"

One volley of gunfire followed by a second and a third.

"Bang bang bang!"

"Bang bang bang!"

The Qing army also used a three-stage attack to increase the density of firepower.

After three volleys of fire, no matter how fierce the Han army was, their flesh and blood would definitely be riddled with bullets... Holy crap, what kind of sorcery is this?
The Han soldiers in the front row were clearly under heavy fire, and the Qing army even used a three-stage attack. Even if they were limited by the terrain, at least a lot of them should have fallen.
How come none of them fell?

Of course they wouldn't fall. As a melee weapon army, spearmen were mainly equipped with stab-proof vests and double-layered leather armor. Musketeers, on the other hand, did not wear stab-proof vests, but were uniformly equipped with bulletproof vests and double-layered leather armor.

Although the Han army's bulletproof vests only protected the chest and abdomen, that was sufficient. Unless one was extremely unlucky and a stray bullet hit their head or limbs, the Qing army's flintlock muskets and matchlock muskets were virtually indistinguishable.

If the Han army can't be defeated, then the Qing army will suffer greatly.

The Han army had just been defeated three times by the Qing army and was still fuming.

"Raise your guns!"

"shooting!"

"Bang bang bang!"

At a single command, fire was initiated without aiming.

There was nothing they could do; the Qing army couldn't see it, and neither could the Han army.

"Bang bang bang!"

"Bang bang bang!"

The Han army launched a three-stage attack, and the Qing soldiers on the slope had no time to dodge or find cover, so a row of them fell on the spot.

Good heavens, this has terrified the Qing army again!

This time, let's not talk about sorcery, but how come the Han army's muskets are so powerful?
It should be noted that these Qing musketeers were all Eight Banner soldiers, and they wore cotton armor that only the Eight Banners could wear.

The greatest advantage of cotton armor is not protection against swords and spears, but protection against firearms.

A standard matchlock musket, even one of slightly inferior quality, might not even be able to penetrate cotton armor. Even if a flintlock musket is more powerful and cotton armor can't withstand it, it can still provide some protection, weakening the bullet's power and preventing an instant death upon impact.

However, the current situation is that after the Han army launched three attacks, the Qing army has lost at least a dozen men.

This was due to the steep and narrow slope, and the fact that it was dark and impossible to aim completely.

"Fire! Keep firing!"

The Qing army officers reacted quickly; although somewhat surprised, they immediately issued a counterattack order.

Soon, many more Qing soldiers came forward, all carrying flintlock muskets, and then fired indiscriminately at the Han soldiers below the slope.

“Bang bang bang!

"Bang bang bang!"

As the two sides exchanged fire with their muskets, two Han soldiers finally fell, while the Qing army suffered nearly thirty casualties.

2比30，不对，算上前面的0比20，实际战损该是2比50。

This is an incredibly terrifying casualty ratio. It can't compare to the outrageous Qi Jiguang's army at its peak, but in the context of contemporary China, it's already overwhelming.

The Qing army finally realized that things were not going well. The Han army's firearms were too powerful, far superior to their new firearms.

How is this still playing?
The Qing army immediately ordered the firearms battalion to retreat, and then switched to rattan shield bearers and spearmen who charged down in a crisscross pattern.

"kill!"

"Kill all these Nikan barbarians!"

The Qing troops shouted and charged down the steep slope, but it was no use. They were prepared to kill the Han army's firearms troops with a flurry of punches, but it was not that easy.
The Qing army withdrew its artillery battalion and then sent its Manchu bannermen, armed only with cold weapons, to charge, intending to break through the Han army's lines in one fell swoop. This was a common tactic used by the Qing army: muskets and cannons would clear the way first and bombard the enemy, and after that, the cavalry would advance first, followed by the infantry, to break up the enemy's already chaotic formation caused by the artillery fire.

Unfortunately, this was a steep slope, and they were facing the Han army. The Qing cavalry was useless, and the Han army showed no signs of chaos.

Instead, upon seeing the Qing troops running down, they immediately followed suit and retreated, loading their rifled guns with bullets and powder as they retreated.

"Bang bang bang!"

They retreated halfway and then opened fire on the Qing soldiers.

The rattan shield, which was said to be able to stop matchlock bullets, was pierced through directly, and the bullet continued its momentum, penetrating the cotton armor.

Several more Qing soldiers with rattan shields fell.

"Where are the rockets? Get them! Blow them up!"

Rockets have now become standard military weapons in the Han army. Although the number is still small, all armies are rapidly mass-producing and equipping them.

"Dudududuwuwuwuwu~~~~"

As soon as the bugle sounded, the Han army's riflemen immediately dispersed.

"Light it, fire!"

More than ten rockets were fired upwards along the steep slope.

The Qing army first heard the "whoosh" of the Han army lighting fires, and then more than a dozen fire dragons flew towards their side.

Although they tried to dodge immediately, it was too dark, and in their haste to avoid it, several people accidentally bumped into each other.

"Bang bang bang!"

A rocket hit its target and exploded violently.

Its explosion triggered the detonation of other rockets, with more than a dozen rockets exploding together, creating a spectacular scene.

The huge sparks from the secondary explosion illuminated the steep slope, allowing the Qing troops on the slope and the Han troops below to see clearly.

Then came large shards of mangled limbs and broken arms, flying around in the flames, some even emitting a meaty aroma.

The Qing troops coming down the slope were wiped out by rockets.

Those who weren't killed by the explosion suffered severe internal injuries from the aftershocks, and several were even thrown off the steep slope.

The Han army was too lazy to finish off the enemy soldiers, so they charged forward with rockets in hand.

"Light it, fire!"

More than ten rockets were fired at it.

The Qing army was shocked; the fire dragon they had just seen had killed many of their men.

Come again now!

"Run! These Nikan barbarians are using sorcery!"

"Bang bang bang!"

Before the words were even finished, and before they could even run, more than a dozen rockets exploded, instantly blasting the Qing troops on the slope to smithereens.
The Qing army's so-called new-style firearms battalion was completely helpless against the Han army's rockets, these shameless and rogue firearms.

The Han army's rockets had almost no drawbacks, except that their range was not long enough, they were easy to expose, and they could not be used for attacking cities. However, if they were used to kill Tartars by exploding, they were almost without any disadvantages.

Seeing that they had no way to escape, the Qing army tried to organize a counterattack.

"Raise your guns and fire!"

"boom!"

One shot... and the barrel went silent?
"Bang! Bang! Smash!"

More than ten flintlock muskets suddenly exploded while being fired.

This time it wasn't some kind of sorcery; it was simply that this so-called new-style firearms battalion's list of "advanced firearms" was nominally purchased from foreign vassal states.

In reality, however, it was all handmade by domestic craftsmen arranged by Heshen, who simply changed the skin and made a fortune.

These hand-made flintlock guns were rushed out of production, so while their quality wasn't entirely unreliable, it was certainly not guaranteed at all.

As mentioned earlier, the loss rate of firearms manufactured by the Manchu Qing dynasty could be as high as 20%.

Including newly cast firearms, if it were in the late Qing Dynasty, it could have reached a terrifying one-third.

Moreover, these flintlock muskets had been used by them on the Henan battlefield for almost half a year, and the fact that they had lasted until now without exploding shows that they were of very good quality.

The misfire of the muskets became the final straw that broke the camel's back for these Qing soldiers.

None of the Eight Banners musketeers dared to continue guarding the steep slope; they all fled frantically down the city walls.

Some simply leaped up and jumped down the steep slope, not afraid of breaking their legs.

The steep slope descended into chaos, and the Han army's vanguard commander quickly seized the opportunity: "Hahaha, men, charge up! Take this slope and achieve the great feat of capturing the city!"

"Kill the Qing dogs, kill the Tartars!"

"Kill the Qing dogs, kill the Tartars!"

……

(End of this chapter)