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

Chapter 168 Battle for the Floating Bridge

What Shi Jiyan didn't know was that the General Zuo, whom he was eagerly awaiting, was busy "making extra money" at the moment.

Zuo Liangyu led his Changping soldiers and turned a nearby small village upside down.

He sat leisurely in the courtyard of a wealthy man's house in the village, watching his soldiers kick open door after door and carry out all the valuables inside.

In his opinion, this trip was a dream come true.

In any case, Cao Wenzhao had already set up an ambush on the other side of the Yellow River, and our side was just waving flags and shouting, and could not gain any military merit.

Now, while we're at it, we'll plunder two villages as compensation.

Zuo Liangyu is a skilled fighter, but he has always had a habit of plundering.

Back in Liaodong, he was dismissed from his post and nearly beheaded by Yuan Chonghuan for leading his servants in a mutiny and looting.

Later, thanks to the promotion of Hou Xun, the Minister of Revenue, he was reinstated and rose all the way to the position of Deputy Commander-in-Chief.

"General! General! Prefect Shi Jiyan of Shanzhou has sent an urgent report!"

Zuo Liangyu was humming a little tune when suddenly, a personal guard came tumbling and crawling into the courtyard.
"The rebels launched a surprise attack on Maojindu under cover of night and have already set up a pontoon bridge to guide the army across the river."

"Prefect Xu has ordered us to immediately send troops back to reinforce!"

Zuo Liangyu's smile froze instantly, followed by a look of utter shock:
"Damn it! This is bad!"

He abruptly stood up and roared at the soldiers still looting in the courtyard:
"Stop looting! Get back here! All troops assemble, head to Maojindu!"

When Zuo Liangyu rushed to Maojindu with his troops, the scene before him chilled him to the bone.

The more than 500 soldiers he left behind before he left are nowhere to be seen now, only the bandits are swaggering around the ferry.

The camp was burned to the ground, leaving only charred wooden stakes standing in the same spot.

Zuo Liangyu couldn't understand it at all. Did these bandits have wings?!
How did they manage to cross the river so quietly and even burn down their own camp?

With this in mind, Zuo Liangyu felt somewhat apprehensive and dared not launch an attack immediately.

He immediately sent someone to contact Shi Jiyan, who lived nearby, to find out the situation before making any plans.

After discussing it, the two agreed that they could not wait any longer. If the main force of the bandits came to reinforce them, then they would really be unable to stop them!
"Shi Zhizhou,"

Zuo Liangyu waved his hand casually, spittle flying everywhere.
"All your local militia and guards are good for is waving flags and shouting slogans."

"In that case, you take your men and guard the enemy's flank, beat the drums to cheer them on, and make a big commotion to attract the enemy's attention as much as possible!"

"I will personally lead the main force to attack from the front and try to crush these bandits at the ferry in one fell swoop."

Zuo Liangyu himself was from Guan Ning and considered himself superior to others. He not only looked down on Shi Jiyan's local militia and guards, but also on Jiang Han's few hundred bandits.

In General Zuo's eyes, who else in the entire Ming Dynasty, besides the Guan Ning Army, could be considered a strong army?
Although Shi Jiyan found these words harsh, he also knew that the small number of miscellaneous troops under his command were not worth relying on.

It was already quite generous of him to be able to help with a feint attack, so he readily agreed and left to carry out the order.

Soon, drums thundered all around Maojindu, and two government troops launched an attack on Jiang Han at the ferry crossing, one in front and one behind.

Although Jiang Han had fewer than 800 men under his command, he dared not leave the vicinity of the ferry and could only passively defend.

There was no other way; the pontoon bridge he had painstakingly built was right behind him, and Jiang Han had to lead his men to guard it no matter what.

On the other side, Shi Jiyan led his local militia and guards, waving flags and beating drums, shouting "Kill the traitors!" all the way, creating a great spectacle.

But Jiang Han only glanced at them from afar and concluded that the group was just making a feint.

The reason is simple: this group was scattered, carrying all sorts of weapons, and their pace was barely faster than a tortoise's.

The Records of the Grand Historian states that he really wanted to lead his troops to charge forward and fight the enemy soldiers in a real battle.

Unfortunately, the soldiers were of poor quality. Many in the ranks were pale and their legs were trembling. They refused to go forward to engage the enemy and only dared to fire a few weak and ineffective arrows from a distance.

Shi Jiyan sighed. There was nothing he could do; the greatest contribution he could make was to pull these people out of the city to make up the numbers.

Jiang Han stood on a gentle slope, looking down at the chaotic government troops on the left flank, a cold smile playing on his lips.

He deliberately chose his position in front of the ferry crossing. The slope was not steep, but it was enough to slow down the enemy's advance and also provide a wider field of vision.

Jiang Han divided his troops into two parts, one of which consisted of about two hundred men and was responsible for keeping an eye on the local militia led by Shi Jiyan.
Meanwhile, another group of six hundred men kept their eyes fixed on the direction of Zuo Liangyu's army.

Boom!Boom!Boom!
As the heavy drumbeats of the main force sounded, Zuo Liangyu personally led his more than 1,500 Changping soldiers, gradually pressing forward.

Although these soldiers were undisciplined, they had fought against the Eastern barbarians alongside Zuo Liangyu and possessed some skill; they all appeared fearless and undaunted.

There were no fortified camps in front of Jiang Han's army; only a few chevaux-de-frise and two trenches were sparsely erected.

The trench was a trap he had meticulously set.

The trench was filled with caltrops and sharpened bamboo poles, waiting for the soldiers to arrive.

Zuo Liangyu's vanguard, shielded by a long shield, charged straight up the gentle slope in one go.

But as soon as they reached the top of the slope, they suddenly discovered that there were two trenches, each half a person deep, filled with barbed wire.

Ah!
The soldiers in the front row couldn't stop themselves and screamed as they stepped on it, their soles pierced through on the spot, and they rolled on the ground.

Those were lucky; some unlucky ones had their thighs pierced by sharp bamboo poles, half their bodies stuck in the trench, unable to move, only able to let out cries of pain.

The vanguard's offensive was momentarily halted, and the government troops rushing up from behind were blocked, their formation directly disrupted.

"Hold your ground! Charge forward!"

Seeing that the situation was not good, Zuo Liangyu's subordinates immediately led their troops forward and commanded the Changping soldiers to continue their charge.

Relying on their superior numbers, the officers and soldiers trampled over their comrades' bodies, enduring the excruciating pain in their feet, and finally broke through this death zone, surging towards the enemy soldiers.

"put!"

Seeing this, Jiang Han gave an order, and a hail of arrows and lead bullets rained down on the government troops.

The shield bearers in the front row had just crossed the trench and hadn't even had time to react before they were shot dead on the spot.

The rain of arrows came wave after wave, like the scythe of death, relentlessly reaping the lives of the officers and soldiers.

The officers and soldiers were crowded around the front and back of the trench, unable to charge forward or retreat, and became easy targets.

Upon seeing this, Feng Chengxuan, the captain of Jiang Han's personal guards, immediately led a squad of soldiers, set up their spears, and charged straight towards the government troops in front of them.

Seeing the enemy soldiers charging back with their guns, the government troops had no time to parry and were immediately pierced through the body and sent flying.

Those in front were stabbed to death by spears, and those behind were shot down by arrows; screams and wails filled the air. Zuo Liangyu watched from behind, his eyelids twitching, his heart burning with rage.

Damn it! These guys are really something. I underestimated these bandits.

"Sound the retreat! Sound the retreat! Quickly!"

Zuo Liangyu was a seasoned veteran. Seeing that he couldn't gain any advantage and that continuing the fight would only deplete his own resources, he immediately issued a retreat order.

"Dangdangdang..."

With a piercing gong sound, Zuo Liangyu's first charge was easily stopped.

Feeling embarrassed, Zuo Liangyu rolled his eyes and came up with a wicked plan.

He summoned Shi Jiyan and instructed him to use the pretext of opening granaries to gather starving people and beggars in Shanzhou City. He then sent troops to gather refugees from nearby areas.

When the news spread, starving people from the vicinity of Shanzhou rushed to the military camp with their families.

In less than an hour, Zuo Liangyu had easily assembled a team of over a thousand people.

However, what greeted them was not hot porridge and noodles, but gleaming swords and spears and pairs of cold eyes.

When they learned that the so-called "opening of granaries and distribution of grain" had turned into "charging into battle and filling the lines," their hope instantly turned into despair.

The crowd erupted in chaos, with cries and pleas for mercy filling the air, and many people immediately turned and ran away.

Zuo Liangyu had anticipated this, and waved his hand coldly.

The waiting supervisory team rushed into the crowd and easily caught all the fleeing starving people, just like picking up chicks. Then, in front of everyone, they executed them one by one.

One bloody head after another fell to the ground, instantly silencing all sound.

Seeing this, Zuo Liangyu nodded in satisfaction:
"Listen up, if you can fill in the trench, I'll let you retreat!"

"At that time, everyone will have white flour buns to eat!"

For these starving people, this promise was like a powerful medicine, allowing them to temporarily forget their fear.

Thousands of starving people carried simple sandbags and bundles of straw, rushing towards Jiang Han's position.

Despite the enemy soldiers' swords and spears, the starving people managed to fill in both trenches on the hilltop in less than half an hour!
The mission was accomplished, and the surviving starving beggars turned around with joy, ready to go back and collect their white flour buns.

But what awaited them was the gleaming blade of the supervisory team.

"Hmph, white flour buns."

"My own soldiers don't even have enough to eat, how dare you lowly commoners eat?"

In years of famine, everything is valuable except human life.

Zuo Liangyu had already made up his mind. Since the trenches had already been filled in, he might as well let these starving people work harder and try to consume more of the bandits' arrows and ammunition.

Seeing this, Jiang Han, who was not far away, frowned.

He didn't have many men to begin with, and now he was at a loss as to what to do with the group of starving people who were being driven forward.

Jiang Han didn't feel sorry for these starving beggars.

What pained him was his limited supply of arrows and ammunition.

These are all meant to deal with Zuo Liangyu's main force; they can't be wasted on this bunch of cannon fodder.

Left with no other choice, Jiang Han had to order his men to set up long spears and hold back the onslaught of the starving people.

A steady stream of people surged forward.

The person at the front was pierced by the spear tip and fell down screaming.

Under pressure from the supervising team, those behind had no choice but to step over the warm corpses of their comrades and continue forward.

The helpless starving people cried out and begged, but to no avail. They were doomed whether they went forward or backward. Many simply closed their eyes and ran headlong into the spears in front of them, hoping for a quick death.

As more and more starving people surged in, Jiang Han's army became increasingly vulnerable.

Seeing this from behind, Zuo Liangyu revealed a smug grin.

He was ready, just waiting for the enemy's defenses to be breached before leading his troops in to completely annihilate them.

But at this moment, a sudden change occurred!

A series of deep, thunderous hoofbeats came from the opposite bank of the Yellow River, growing louder as they approached.

The crowd looked in the direction of the sound and saw that on the opposite bank of the Yellow River, billowing dust had risen up at some unknown time.

Amidst the dust and smoke, two cavalry units galloped towards the pontoon bridge over the river.

This sudden turn of events stunned everyone on the battlefield, who all stared intently at the cavalry on the opposite bank.

Both sides wanted to see clearly whose reinforcements were these.
Jiang Han's heart was in his throat.

Could it be that Cao Wenzhao's Guan Ning cavalry has returned?
If that's really the case, then today is a dead end.

He hurriedly pulled out his telescope from his pocket, held it up to his eyes, and looked towards the opposite bank.

Jiang Han's hands trembled involuntarily, causing him to be unable to see who the person was for a long time.

But soon, as the distance closed, a large tiger-shaped flag fluttered in the wind and came into his view.

It's not the banner of the government troops!
It's Shao Yong!
The huge weight lifted from Jiang Han's heart, and he immediately began issuing commands in a hoarse voice:

"Make way! Make way for the cavalry!"

As Jiang Han continued to wave his hand, the crowd blocking the pontoon bridge spontaneously dispersed to both sides, making way for the cavalry.

Almost simultaneously, the two elite cavalrymen had already rushed onto the pontoon bridge.

Leading the charge, Shao Yong charged ahead without a word, crashing headlong into Zuo Liangyu's army formation along the path.

Caught off guard, the Changping soldiers were thrown into disarray, their formation thrown into chaos.

Shao Yong led his cavalry, like a red-hot iron cone, directly piercing through the enemy formation.

Seeing that the situation was not good, Zuo Liangyu immediately turned his horse around and fled with his personal guards.
"Withdraw! Quickly withdraw!"

　4 points
　　As I type, I see paradise!
　　
　
(End of this chapter)