The Ming Dynasty: Starting with the border troops, it was overthrown and the Qing Dynasty was destro

Chapter 141 Army Mobilization
The lingering heat of late summer still lingers, with the afternoon sun scorching the Fenhe River Valley, and the air thick with an oppressive heat.

However, even before the sweltering heat had completely subsided, the main force of the government troops in Shanxi had already begun to quietly mobilize.

Scouts moved back and forth, military orders were relayed, and teams began to assemble in their designated areas under the cool evening air or the cover of darkness.

The two previous battles in the Lüliang Mountains resulted in heavy losses and a loss of face for the government troops.

Meanwhile, the various prefectures and counties located in the Fenhe Plain were constantly seeking assistance.

Hong Chengchou, the newly appointed Governor-General of the Three Border Regions of Shaanxi, demonstrated his determination to quell the bandits from the very beginning of his tenure.

He first transferred You Shilu and Cao Wenzhao's troops back to Shaanxi Province, intending to concentrate his forces to first eliminate the bandits in the heart of Shaanxi.

But this does not mean that Hong Chengchou gave up Shanxi.

While deploying troops in Shaanxi, he also drew some men from his limited mobile forces to reinforce the Shanxi battlefield.

A number of generals with decent performance, including Deputy Commander-in-Chief Zhang Yingchang, Lieutenant General Ai Wannian, and Guerrilla General Meng Ruhu, were successively sent to Shanxi to assist the Shanxi government in suppressing bandits.

Of course, Hong Chengchou could not go to Shanxi. He had to suppress the bandits in his own territory first, and the number of troops he could send to Shanxi was very limited.

The two high-ranking officials of the imperial court were actually in charge of overseeing the overall suppression of bandits in Shanxi.

Zhang Zongheng, the governor-general of Xuanfu and Datong, a high-ranking official in charge of military affairs in the three towns of Xuanfu, Datong and Shanxi, has now personally moved to Pingyang Prefecture.

He commanded his generals Bai An, Hu Dawei, He Renlong, Deng Yang, and 8,000 soldiers to be responsible for the pursuit and suppression in 41 prefectures and counties in southern and southeastern Shanxi.
The governor of Shanxi, Song Tongyin, led a group of generals including Zhang Yingchang, Gou Fuwei, Shi Ji, Po Ximu, and Ai Wannian, and commanded about 7,000 troops to garrison the city of Fenzhou.

These two high-ranking officials were completely overwhelmed by the various bandits that were now scattered throughout Shanxi, feeling utterly helpless.

According to intelligence gathered from all parties:

Countless small groups of bandits roamed the mountains and countryside.

Those with names and surnames, such as Zhang Xianzhong, Lao Huihui, and Sweeping King, mainly operated in the mountainous areas of Xizhou, Puxian, and Daning in the west.

Meanwhile, Scorpion Block, Hun Tianwang, and others are entrenched in the Taihang Mountains to the east, showing signs of infiltrating northward into Zhili.

The two forces that they feared most, Shangshanhu and Wang Jiayin, went to Pingyang Prefecture and the areas of Zezhou and Yangcheng respectively.

Song Tongyin and Zhang Zongheng deduced that the two bandit leaders' purpose in heading south was most likely to cross the Yellow River and enter Henan.

If these two were allowed to cross the Yellow River and enter the flat, undefended Central Plains, the consequences would be unimaginable.

The Central Plains region has enjoyed peace for a long time, and the local garrison troops have long been corrupt and decadent. If these two notorious bandits were allowed to enter Henan, it would likely shake the very foundation of the imperial court's rule.

After some discussion, Song Tongyin and Zhang Zongheng decided to ignore the others for now and instead firmly guard the natural barrier of the Yellow River to prevent the bandits from crossing.

The war must be contained within Shanxi Province. After Hong Chengchou pacifies Shaanxi, a large army can be dispatched to encircle and suppress the bandits in Shanxi.

Adhering to the principle of one person dealing with one person, the two high-ranking officials quickly devised a division of labor:

Song Tongyin led 7,000 troops, detouring through Qinzhou and Lu'an Prefecture, closely following behind Wang Jiayin's army to monitor its movements.

Once it was discovered that Wang Jiayin intended to cross the river, a fatal blow was dealt to him as he attempted to cross.

Zhang Zongheng, on the other hand, took command of Pingyang Prefecture, mobilizing troops and deploying defenses along the way, determined to stop the tiger from heading south.

His strategy was to rely on the city walls, launch layered attacks, and constantly harass the enemy troops, preventing them from bypassing the city and heading south.

If the enemy soldiers dare to bypass the city and continue south, we can attack them from both sides and annihilate them.

Based on this idea, Zhang Zongheng first dispatched two thousand guards from Fenzhou Garrison to garrison Lingshi County and Fenxi County to the west to strengthen the city's defenses.

Subsequently, he dispatched the fierce general Hu Dawei with 1,500 elite Qin soldiers to Fenxi County to serve as a mobile force, ready to support Lingshi County at any time.

The others were scattered in places like Huozhou, Zhaocheng, and Hongdong, holding strategic passes and blocking the enemy troops at various levels.

It must be said that Zhang Zongheng's defenses were indeed impeccable.

Unfortunately, a traitor emerged from the team.

Upon learning of Zhang Zongheng's defensive deployment, the newly appointed military commander Deng Yang immediately dispatched scouts who traveled day and night to deliver the news to Jiang Han.

It has to be said that planting Deng Yang within the government army was Jiang Han's most brilliant move.

With Deng Yang acting as an "insider" to pass on information, Zhang Zongheng's troop deployment and strategic intentions were laid bare before Jiang Han, as if he had a god's-eye view.

With the enemy in the open and us in the dark, we can take advantage of Hong Chengchou's inability to make a move and annihilate him one by one.

Therefore, Jiang Han set his sights on Hu Dawei's unit, consisting of 1,500 Qin soldiers and 2,000 guards, which could serve as an appetizer.

These people are holding the city, and it would take too much time to attack and capture the city one by one. We should either besiege the city and attack the reinforcements, or lure them out of the city.

Outside Lingshi County, near the official road dozens of miles to the south, a special "military drill" was about to begin. Jiang Han reined in his horse and stood on a gentle slope, calmly watching the military formation slowly unfolding on the plains ahead.

This force was not Jiang Han's own troops, but rather eight hundred new recruits selected by four leaders: Li Zicheng, Liu Guoneng, Zhang Tianlin, and Li Jinwang.

This group practiced by the Xiaohe River for three whole months, repeatedly rehearsing basic formations, combat skills, and even simple tactical coordination.

However, no matter how skilled one is on the training ground, it is ultimately just empty talk.

Only by truly experiencing the baptism of blood and fire on the battlefield can these farmers, who have only recently put down their hoes, transform into qualified soldiers.

Jiang Han needed a moderately sized and controlled-intensity real-world combat exercise to "sharpen" these new recruits and test the results of their training over the past period.

Moreover, these new recruits look rather weak, so they'd be perfect bait to lure out the city's garrison.

If the government troops hold their ground and do not come out, then the only option is to besiege the point and attack the reinforcements.

With this in mind, Jiang Han summoned the four leaders to his side to discuss the battle plan.

After a brief discussion, everyone unanimously decided that Li Zicheng would lead the eight hundred new recruits to make a feigned attack on Lingshi County to lure the defending troops into battle.

Jiang Han personally led his main force to hold the line five miles behind, ready to provide support at any time.

The order was quickly passed on.

At the shouts of their respective officers and platoon leaders, the eight hundred new recruits began to assemble and advance in formation.

Li Zicheng led two hundred cavalrymen to protect the rear of the army formation, waiting for the opportune moment to act.

In the center of the army formation were six hundred infantrymen, who followed their usual drill formation. Swordsmen and shieldmen led the way, followed closely by spearmen, while archers and musketeers were in the center of the formation, ready to fire at any moment.

As the ranks marched, the recruits' steps were still somewhat scattered, and their formation changes were a little clumsy.

But compared to three months ago, when they swarmed together like ants, it was a world of difference; at least they looked somewhat like an army.

As a result, Shao Yong's evaluation of these eight hundred people improved considerably.

At the very beginning, Shao Yong had boasted that he only needed fifty riders to overwhelm these eight hundred men;
Looking back now, all Shao Yong can say is that he was able to remain undefeated with a hundred cavalrymen.

For a group of new recruits, this is quite a high evaluation.

Meanwhile, in Lingshi County.

When the garrison commander Huang Wenjun received the alarm that "a large band of bandits is attacking," he was so frightened that he almost wet his pants.

His first reaction was to close the city gates tightly, and he immediately dispatched a fast horse to Fenxi County to ask General Hu Dawei for help.

But when he personally climbed the city wall and saw the enemy soldiers outside the city, his fear immediately vanished, replaced by extreme contempt.

On the official road outside the city, the bandit army advancing slowly numbered no more than seven or eight hundred, and their banners were a motley collection.

The banners with names like "Chuang," "Liu," "Li," and "Zhang" were so chaotic that an uninformed person might think there were thousands of soldiers.

Although their armor and weapons looked decent, their clumsy coordination during the march was full of flaws in Huang Wenjun's eyes.

"This is what they call the main force of the great bandits?"

Huang Wenjun pointed at the troops outside the city and burst into laughter at the centurions and clerks beside him.

"I thought some kind of superhuman with three heads and six arms had arrived."

"So after all this, it's just a rabble of new recruits?"

"They're not even as good as my garrison soldiers!"

Huang Wenjun spoke with some confidence, because Pingyang Guard was not subject to the control and management of the Prince's Mansion like Fenzhou Guard.

The Pingyang Guard has a standing council of more than 5,500 members, and it maintains a certain level of combat capability on a regular basis.

Although more than a thousand people only exist on paper, there are actually at least four thousand people.

More than two thousand of them were personally led by the commander to the Daning area to guard against bandits such as Zhang Xianzhong. It is said that they defeated the bandits so badly that they dared not cross the line and could only wander back and forth in the Lüliang Mountains.

Huang Wenjun was initially worried that the enemy's elite troops that had defeated the Guan Ning army would arrive, but he never expected that they would be such a bunch of scoundrels!
It seems the rumors were indeed unreliable!
Contempt quickly turned into greed for credit.

If we can wipe out this band of rebels, it will be a great military achievement.

Thinking of this, Huang Wenjun's courage surged, and he waved his hand:
"Pass on my order! Open the gates and attack!"

"Wipe out this band of rebels in one fell swoop!"

(End of this chapter)