You can't only love the Qing Dynasty when you're eating the fruits of others' labor.

Chapter 305 The Hawks Are Here~
April 15th, the twelfth year of the Shunzhi reign.

Wang Fuchen, a fierce general under Wu Sangui, led 6000 infantrymen, 1000 cavalrymen, and 5 cannons from Liling, Hunan, and captured Luxi Town, Pingxiang County, Yuanzhou Prefecture, Jiangxi.

Wang Fuchen, a native of Datong, Shanxi, was nicknamed "Little Lü Bu" and "Western Route Horse Hawk".

As the saying goes, a person's given name may be wrong, but their nickname will never be wrong.

Those who dare to call themselves "Little Lü Bu" are, firstly, exceptionally brave, and secondly, repeatedly betray their masters.

Zhuobutai held firm in Pingxiang County, refusing to come out.

The long Luoxiao Mountains separate Hunan and Jiangxi provinces, allowing small groups of migrants to cross the mountains, but large groups of people could never do so.

The route from Liling to Pingxiang is the only road between Hunan and Jiangxi provinces that can accommodate large groups of people. It is also an official post road with a history of over a thousand years, and most of the route can be traveled by both land and water.

Therefore, Pingxiang County is a strategic location that military strategists must fight over!

……

Since Zhuo Butai, the governor of Hunan, was demoted to the commander-in-chief of Yuanzhou, he has been busy reinforcing the defenses of Pingxiang. He has ordered soldiers and laborers to dig three trenches and two fortified villages outside the city.

They continued to reinforce the barricades, build up sandbags, and add arrow shields.

Upon learning of the fall of Luxi County, Zhuobutai once again went out of the city to inspect the defensive fortifications.

Suddenly, the Manchurian officer Hahamu ran over.

"Report! The Governor of Jiangxi has sent two bronze cannons, 500 matchlock guns, and 30,000 catties of gunpowder."

"Receive it immediately and distribute it."

"Whoo."

Half an hour later~
Zhuobutai returned to the city wall and gazed into the distance.

Haha Mu walked over and looked around to make sure no one was there.

"Governor~"

"I am no longer the governor."

"The imperial court is going too far. It's not worth it for us to risk our lives for it."

"Haha, you want to ask me if I should consider surrendering to Wu Sangui, right?"

Haha remained silent, head bowed.

Zhuobutai looked at the scouts peering into the distance and said with a wry smile:
“We have worked together for more than ten years, and I have no need to hide anything from you. Jiang Qingyun is a complete bastard. But I have no choice. Wu Sangui is fighting under the banner of overthrowing the Qing and restoring the Ming. He urgently needs to cut off the head of a Manchu official to prove to the world. I would rather die in battle than surrender and be beheaded.”

Haha was so angry that he plopped down on the ammunition box, holding his head in silence.

"Looking around, I am surrounded by enemies. Jiang Qingyun, Wu Sangui, and Suleda, they all want me dead. And now I can only choose one way to die: to die in battle."

“Governor, why don’t we abandon Pingxiang, clear the way, and go into the Luoxiao Mountains to become outlaws?”

Zhuobutai shook his head~
……

The next day it rained, and the moat outside the city was filled with rainwater, much to the delight of the defending soldiers.

The following days passed peacefully.

The day after tomorrow, sunlight shines on the slightly damp city walls, flags flutter in the strong wind, and the desolate sound of bull horns pierces the sky.

Wu Jun's artillerymen collectively burned incense and knelt down to offer sacrifices to their cannons!
May the God of Cannons be pleased~
Sparks flew along the fuse at the breech, hissing as they entered the barrel, igniting the gunpowder. The immense chemical energy propelled the 3-pound solid shot out of the barrel.

The city wall bricks shattered after being hit, revealing the rammed earth that had accumulated over the years.

Wang Fuchen rode a yellow horse, his sword pointing at the city wall.

“Tell the brothers that after the city falls, do not sheath your swords for two days and two nights.”

"attack!"

"Kill~"

Wu Jun, like a pack of wolves, cheered as he charged toward Pingxiang County.

At the very front are 70 shield vehicles.

Behind them were more than 400 wheelbarrows filled with mud.

Behind them were a large number of archers carrying double quivers.

Behind them were ordinary infantrymen carrying siege ladders.

Behind them came a large number of fierce swordsmen and shieldmen.

Finally, there were twenty battering rams.

……

On the city wall.

Zhuobutai lowered his binoculars and said angrily, "The Wu army has learned all the fighting methods of my Manchu soldiers. Now, they're turning against us!"

No one cared about his resentment.

The next moment, both sides opened fire with gunfire.

Bullets and arrows struck the tilted shield of the shield cart with a loud thud, unable to penetrate the hard wooden planks that were up to 5 inches thick.

Occasionally, a solid shell would hit, and the shield vehicle would immediately shatter into pieces, resulting in the destruction of the vehicle and the death of the crew. The gap would then be filled by the shield vehicles in the rear, and the shield formation would continue to advance.

Behind the crenellations, the arquebusiers nervously loaded their guns and then rushed to the crenellations to fire. The archers frequently drew their bows and launched their arrows at a 45-degree angle into the air.

The shield vehicle stopped in front of the trench.

A sergeant brandished his sword and roared, "Fill the trench! Charge! Charge!"

The auxiliary soldiers quickly pushed the wheelbarrows over the shield carts, dumping them, along with the soldiers, into the trench.

Water splashed everywhere in the ditch, which was 15 feet wide and half a foot deep, and overflowed.

Arrows fell like locusts.

Wu Jun's auxiliary soldiers screamed and fell down, splashing water everywhere.

……

At the crenellation, Zhuobutai, holding his shield, peeked out twice before pulling back in.

The first trench has been breached.

Wu Jun's auxiliary soldiers, wielding large axes, fought valiantly to destroy the first fortified village. Due to the rain, the village's strength had been greatly reduced.

"Don't panic, shoot the rebels."

However, the good days for the defenders were coming to an end.

Wu's archers moved into position, and after a sickening twang of bowstrings, a dense rain of arrows soared into the air and then fell from the sky.

The veteran knew to crouch behind the battlements, raise his shield to protect his head, and curl up his body as much as possible to reduce the area exposed to arrows.

The new recruits and militia members were unaware of this.

Screams echoed from the city wall as the iron arrows struck the bricks, even sparking.

Fortunately, the two bronze breech-loading cannons retaliated in time.

"put."

"Put it in again."

The breech-loading cannon had a very high rate of fire, and the gunners were highly skilled, only needing to constantly change the propellant chamber.

Five consecutive rounds of shrapnel bombardment inflicted heavy casualties on the archers below the city. The Franco cannons dared not continue firing, instead frantically cooling down.

Wu Jun filled in the second trench and split open the second deer camp.

The third trench is in grave danger.

Both sides were giving it their all, and the battle reached its most intense and deadlocked stage.

……

Wu Jun finally erected 30 crude siege ladders on the city wall, and the swordsmen and shieldmen climbed up fearlessly.

Boulder and logs kept crashing down from above.
Even more frightening, the defenders dumped grease outside.

A torch was thrown down.
Flames shot into the air instantly.

One ladder after another collapsed in the flames, and soldiers rolled and screamed in agony in the fire.

Death feasted.

The sickle was swung left and right.

Human life has never been so cheap.

The lives that my parents raised for more than ten years are worth nothing more than an arrow or a stone on the battlefield.

……

Wang Fuchen was furious.

"Guard Battalion".

"exist."

"Bring out my great banner, the hawk, and follow me!"

Having said that, he took the lead.

The guard battalion, also composed of outlaws, carried knives and shields and ran to catch up.

Wang Fuchen spurred his horse on at full gallop, encountering routed soldiers along the way. He cut them down with a single stroke, showing no mercy. The routed soldiers silently turned back, picked up their weapons, and attacked again.

On the city wall.

Haha Mu stared at the banner, his expression changing drastically: "Horse Hawk?"

The Goshha who had followed from the capital all changed color, their faces filled with fear.

When Wang Fuchen was under Jiang Xiang's command, he once defeated Ajige in a direct confrontation. Later, he surrendered to Ajige and was taken back to the capital and imprisoned in the Xin Zhe Ku (a place for slaves). He was later incorporated into the Plain White Banner of the Han Army.

At that time, Manchu bannermen in the capital were eager to befriend Ma Yaozi, all praising his bravery, saying that even the bravest Manchu warriors could not defeat him.

A person's name, the bark of a tree.

Ma Yaozi's bravery was collectively certified by the Japanese soldiers.

(End of this chapter)