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

Chapter 167 Postwar Statistics
As night gradually faded, a pale dawn appeared on the eastern horizon.

This unexpected encounter ended in a hasty retreat of the government troops.

But for the rebels, this was by no means a victory to celebrate; it was a Pyrrhic victory.

Inside the central command tent, an overwhelming, pungent smell of blood mixed with the scent of herbs filled the air, both acrid and oppressive.

Dong Erzhu, Shao Yong, Li Laowai, and the others sat together dejectedly, like defeated roosters.

Clerk Zhao Sheng, holding a list of casualties, reported the battle results to the crowd in a hoarse voice:

"According to the surrendered soldiers, the government troops in this battle numbered about three thousand, and the commander-in-chief was Ai Wannian, the deputy commander of Shenmu."

"After taking stock of the battlefield, the preliminary estimate is that the government troops suffered about two thousand casualties. In addition, the surrendered soldiers also identified the corpses of several enemy generals, namely guerrilla commander Qiao Hong and Ai Wannian's personal guard captain Ai Hui."

"It can be said that nearly half of the three thousand government troops led by Ai Wannian were annihilated."

"However, our army still suffered considerable casualties."

Zhao Sheng changed the subject,
"According to statistics, our army suffered 631 dead, 43 seriously wounded, and 85 slightly wounded in this battle."

With each number Zhao Sheng read out, the hearts of everyone in the tent sank a little deeper.

Six hundred and thirty-one brothers were gone just like that; that was almost the entire force of a division.

Jiang Han's troops currently number only about four thousand, divided into five divisions, each with about eight hundred people.

This was their most devastating battle since they started their rebellion; it was a devastating blow.

The most devastating casualties were suffered by the government troops in their first surprise attack.

At that time, more than half of the people were crowded at the mouth of the valley. When the government troops bombarded them with cannons, many people were caught off guard and did not even have time to draw their swords before their heads were blown off by the cannon fire, or they were smashed into mincemeat by the rolling rocks.

Some people panicked and tried to rush out, but those in front couldn't get out while those behind surged forward desperately. In the ensuing chaos, they were trampled to death by their own people.

Shao Yong's face was the most grim. His elite vanguard was the army's prized possession, and it had suffered heavy casualties.

In order to destroy the government troops' artillery position, they charged forward without wearing armor, braving a hail of arrows and lead bullets.

Although they eventually managed to hold off the government troops, they suffered nearly two hundred casualties, and almost all the surviving soldiers were wounded.

Hearing this series of cold numbers, everyone looked at each other, their eyes filled with lingering fear and self-blame.

Especially Dong Erzhu, when he recalls the fierce battle of last night, he feels cold sweat pouring down his back.

He felt a wave of fear. If he had really been killed by Ai Wannian back then, these more than 10,000 people would have scattered like birds and beasts in an instant, leaving them to be slaughtered.

"Oh shit."

Old Li spat fiercely, his voice hoarse.

"This battle was incredibly frustrating!"

No one spoke up, but everyone knew that the reason this battle had turned out this way was ultimately their own fault.

Everyone's attention was focused on dealing with the traitor Xu Kebian, and they all thought that the main force of the government army was still far away, so they relaxed their vigilance, which allowed the loophole to be exploited.

If the commander-in-chief finds out about this, how will he explain it?

After a long silence, Dong Erzhu slowly stood up, his face filled with remorse:

"This night attack by government troops is entirely my fault."

"Once I see the commander-in-chief, I will take full responsibility for all the crimes."

He looked around, his voice not loud, but it carried an undeniable authority.

"But now is not the time to talk about these things." "The commander-in-chief is still on the other side of the river, waiting for us to lead our troops back to reinforce him."

"Shao Yong, immediately detach two squads from the army, don't worry about anything else, go to Maojindu immediately and meet up with the commander-in-chief."

"We'll arrive shortly with the wounded!"

Dong Erzhu knew very well that if the troops were lost, they could be rebuilt, and if the food was gone, it could be seized again.

But if something happens to Jiang Han, then their entire team will be finished.

At this very moment, on the south bank of the Yellow River.

Jiang Han was squinting as he sized up a government army troop not far away.

Behind him, hundreds of elite troops had already formed ranks, each with their swords drawn and arrows nocked, guarding the pontoon bridge behind them.

The river wind blew fiercely, making the flags flutter loudly.

On the opposite side, in the government army camp, Shi Jiyan, the prefect of Shanzhou, was still completely blank in his mind.

Damn it, when I woke up, a pontoon bridge had suddenly appeared on the Yellow River outside the city.
According to historical records, he was a native of Dangtu, a Juren (a successful candidate in the provincial civil service examination), and rose from the position of magistrate of Changsha County to the position of prefect of Shanzhou.

Although he was a civil official, he was quite courageous and knowledgeable about military affairs.

In recent years, bandits have been rampant in Shanzhou, and the local Hongnong Guard has long been in disarray and unusable.

Upon seeing this, Shi Ji said that he simply used his own money to recruit a group of local militia, and even invited martial monks from Shaoshi Mountain to train them and protect the local people.

Based on this action alone, Shi Jiyan can be considered a responsible and capable local official.

But the militia he trained were only really useful against small groups of bandits.

The bandits in front of us were well-disciplined and exuded a murderous aura; they were clearly battle-hardened elites, not even in the same league.

The Records of the Grand Historian states that after observing for a long time, he saw that the number of rebel soldiers did not seem to be large, and a glimmer of hope rekindled in his heart.

He immediately led his men and rushed to Hongnongwei, where they found Commander Zhang Chen.

They hoped he could immediately send troops to drive away the bandits before they could establish a firm foothold and dismantle the pontoon bridge.

But Zhang Chen was stunned when he heard that.

Although his Hongnong Guard had a rated strength of 5,600 men, now only a little over 900 remain.

Many of them can't even hold a hoe properly, and now you want me to lead this group of people to fight against those ravenous bandits?
Isn't this courting death?

So Zhang Chen immediately "fell ill," clutching his head and groaning, saying that he had caught a cold the day before and had a splitting headache, making it impossible for him to lead the troops.

Upon hearing this, Shi Jiyan was so angry that he almost drew his sword to kill Zhang Chen, but Zhang Chen slipped away and ran back to his house, where he stayed inside.

Zhang Chen made up his mind that he would not leave the city unless the enemy soldiers attacked!
Did the bandits want to cross the river?
Then let him live his life!

Anyway, the imperial court has already sent fierce border generals to suppress the bandits. If they fail to suppress the bandits, that's their problem. What does it have to do with me, a garrison commander?

When the matter is investigated, we can say that our forces are limited, sufficient to defend the city but insufficient to fight.

Left with no other choice, Shi Jiyan could only send men on horseback to search for Zuo Liangyu's whereabouts downstream.

On the other hand, he gritted his teeth and led the several hundred local militia he had trained and some guards to watch Jiang Han's troops from a distance.

The Records of the Grand Historian states that he couldn't win, nor dared to, but he had to put on a show.

No matter what, he absolutely could not let these bandits cross the Yellow River so easily under his nose!
(End of this chapter)