Sweep Yuan

Chapter 241 A Two-Pronged Approach to Catch a Big Fish

The Longwo naval base was indeed located within the Jiajiang River, but not at the mouth of the Qinhuai River, but rather in a small harbor directly opposite the tail of the island in the middle of the river (near the later Treasure Ship Ruins Park). Here, the river current was gentle, and reeds grew densely on both banks, making it suitable for hiding troops and easy to spot enemy movements.

If the goal was to quickly enter the Qinhuai River to support the garrison of Jiangning City, then establishing a water fortress here was naturally less convenient than setting up one at the mouth of the Qinhuai River. The Yuan navy had its reasons for choosing this location.

In the Battle of Caoguzhou, Zuo Danashili, the commander of the Longwo Navy, along with his flagship, was captured by the Liao Yong'an brothers, causing the battle, which was progressing smoothly, to suddenly fail. At that time, some mid-level officers of the Longwo Navy were still eager to defeat the Red Flag Battalion Navy and get revenge.

Subsequently, the Yuan army's scout ships repeatedly conducted reconnaissance. By observing the number of sails of the Red Flag Battalion's navy and cross-referencing the data, they concluded that the Red Flag Battalion's navy was larger than their own (mistakenly regarding troop transport fishing boats as warships).

In the Battle of Caoguzhou, the strong attacked the weak, yet still suffered a defeat that was shrouded in mystery. The enemy's navy was much larger than their own, so how could they possibly win?
This misjudgment cast a shadow over the Yuan army, making them dare not provoke the Red Flag Battalion's navy again.

Even after retreating to Jiangning and receiving some additional warships, the Jiajiang Navy (which had been relocated and had additional warships, so it should no longer be called the Longwo Navy) remained holed up in the water fortress, acting as a "survival fleet" and staying put all day long.

This area already had favorable hydrological conditions, allowing for the timely repair of damaged warships. Furthermore, the northwest side of the river was sheltered by islands and submerged islets, forming a natural barrier.

The advantage of choosing this location to establish a camp, besides its concealed location, is that once the enemy is detected in advance, the camp can be quickly retreated. After all, the entire tactical basis of a navy is its warships. As long as the fleet is still there, even if it is moved to a more distant location, it can still threaten the enemy.

On the Red Flag Battalion's side, although Xu Da had already scouted out the location of the newly established water fortress of the Longwo Navy, he was well-versed in military strategy and dared not make any rash moves for fear of alerting the enemy and scaring them away.

In his petition to Shishan, Xu Da stated the following:

“The enemy’s stronghold is in an excellent position, and they can use the beacon towers along the river to detect our movements in advance. If our troops rush to attack and scare the enemy away, we will be in a very passive position with defenses along the entire river embankment. It would be better to hold back for now and wait for them to relax their guard before annihilating them in one fell swoop.”

The two sides maintained peace for several days in this strange standoff.

On the river, the sentry boats of both sides could often be seen facing each other from afar, yet they tacitly maintained their distance, as if they had reached some kind of unspoken ceasefire agreement.

But beneath the calm surface, the balance of power had already shifted.

Chang Yuchun led his troops into Jiqing Road and successively destroyed strongholds in Jiangning Town, Banqiao Town and other places. The Jiajiang Navy lost the warning signal of the beacon towers along the river and could only build simple beacon towers on the islands in the middle of the river to monitor the actions of the Red Flag Battalion Navy.

Today, Shi Shan personally led the Red Flag Battalion to the walls of Jiangning City, where the garrison urgently requested reinforcements. Due to their duties, the Jiajiang Naval Force could only deploy a number of small and medium-sized warships to block the Qinhuai River and prevent the Red Flag Battalion from secretly crossing the river on rafts or other makeshift means of transport.

The remaining warships were mostly large, lacking escort from medium and small warships, and dared not leave the stronghold to fight. Although the vast water stronghold was filled with warships, it exuded a heavy, deathly atmosphere.

Fortunately, it was already late, and after confirming that no movement of the Red Flag Battalion's navy had been detected upstream, the Jiajiang Navy rested early—a major battle was about to begin, and they needed to conserve their energy to deal with a more complex battle situation (so they could escape faster if they were defeated).

However, the Red Flag Battalion had already stormed into the city of Jiangning. The lower-ranking Yuan soldiers, unaware of the true situation, were exhausted from their daily toil and poor diet, and could fall asleep as soon as they lay down. But the high-ranking officers of the navy, who understood the actual battle situation, could not possibly sleep.

The night was as still as water, and the river breeze, carrying the scent of the tide, swept across the water village.

In a makeshift barracks converted from the former shipyard workers' shed, the flickering oil lamp illuminated three sorrowful figures. They sat around a simple wooden table, on which sat a jar of murky wine and several rough earthenware bowls.

"Where has Bu Yanpingzhang's army gone?"

The first to speak was a bearded military officer. He took a big gulp of wine, which smeared all over his beard, and, emboldened by the alcohol, he grumbled:

"Our own Jiangzhe province is already on fire, yet we're only focused on putting out other people's fires. What if the fire in Qizhou Road isn't extinguished, but this one just gets bigger and bigger? Alas! These past few years have been truly difficult for the Great Yuan!"

His voice was hoarse, tinged with drunken complaints and a hint of helplessness.

Regardless of the fact that Buyan Temur has already entered Qizhou Road and is locked in a fierce battle with the main force of the Xu Song regime, he dares not retreat. Even if he dared to retreat, he probably wouldn't have received news of the fall of Dangtu yet.

By the time the frontline troops receive definite news, and after dealing with the situation in Qizhou Road, they won't be able to return to Jiangzhe Province. The bearded man's grumbling was rather crude, but the flushed-faced man opposite him, who was flushed from drinking, chimed in:

"Jiangning has high city walls and can rely on Zhongshan Mountain, Qinhuai River and Xuanwu Lake. How can the Red Flag rebels easily capture this place without besieging it for a year or two? By then, Bu Yanpingzhang will have already wiped out the rebel army in Qizhou and returned to his camp. It will be perfect for a coordinated attack from within and without against the Red Flag rebels!"

The red-faced man, however, was full of confidence in the local government troops. He spoke with great enthusiasm, as if he could already see the dawn of victory. But his shifty eyes betrayed his inner unease.

Seeing that someone was arguing, the bearded man perked up and chimed in:

"Jiangning City is difficult to attack, but the garrison is small, and it will inevitably fall if it is defended for too long. There are quite a few bandits in Qizhou Road, so why wasn't it the Red Flag Bandits who broke through Jiangning? Bu Yanpingzhang is still working hard to suppress bandits in Qizhou Road."

His words were tinged with obvious anxiety, and his fingers tapped unconsciously on the table, making a dull sound.

"Alright, alright! All your arguing won't decide when Master Pingzhang will return to his camp."

The red-faced man was about to argue with him when he was stopped by another man with a terrifying arrow scar on his forearm.

The scarred man filled their cups with wine and said:
"Besides, whether Jiangning City can be defended or not is a matter for the higher-ups to worry about. We poor folks who risk our lives on the water do whatever we're told. Instead of wasting our time, we should be thinking about how to deal with the Red Flag Pirates' navy next time. Come on, let's drink, let's drink!"

His voice was rather calm, but the slight trembling of his wrist when he poured wine for the two of them betrayed the turmoil in his heart.

When the Red Flag Battalion Navy was mentioned, the bearded man and the red-faced man became even more depressed. They picked up their wine cups and downed them in one gulp.

These brutes only care about money; as long as the reward offered is high enough, they aren't actually that afraid of death.

For example, in the Battle of Caoguzhou, they charged left and right with their warships, and it seemed that they were about to scatter the vanguard of the Red Flag Camp navy. However, Zuo Danashili was captured, and the situation of the battle suddenly took a turn for the worse. The deputy general led the way to escape, and who else would dare to be truly loyal to the court?

Just as he put down his wine cup, the scarred man refilled the cups of the three men, changing the subject and saying:

"If you ask me, instead of waiting for Bu Yanpingzhang to return with his troops, we should hope that the court will send Fang Guozhen to assist in the defense—what is that guy's official position now?"

"Hmph! Relying on those pirates? We'd be better off relying on ourselves!"

Mentioning Fang Guozhen, the bearded man snorted coldly, his face full of disdain:
"Two years ago, the Red Turban Rebellion broke out in Xuzhou. If the court hadn't wanted to send that scoundrel Fang Guozhen to suppress the rebels, how could such a commotion have occurred in Liujiagang? Later, in order to eliminate Fang Guozhen, a top scholar and a councilor died. The court suffered such a great loss, how could it dare to touch that plague god?"

His words were full of sarcasm, yet also tinged with sadness—the once invincible Yuan Dynasty now had to rely on a pirate.

If the imperial court still enjoys prestige, even if horses are allowed to graze freely, the world will still be at peace.

However, once the Yuan army's "invincible" status was exposed, the court's prestige was ruined, and it was unable to suppress various conflicts within its vast territory. Soon, war broke out everywhere, and it couldn't even control a single pirate.

A few years ago, even if the Red Flag Battalion had captured the entire Jiqing Road, the imperial court could have easily mobilized a million-strong army to pacify Shishan and sweep away all the rebels with just one imperial edict.

Now, they can only rely on the more than 10,000 naval and land troops inside and outside Jiangning City to hold on (the local militia outside the city are just cannon fodder with questionable loyalty; although they have some fighting power, they cannot be relied on when it comes to fighting a real battle).

The three men toasted each other, their intoxication growing stronger, unaware that danger was quietly approaching.

Outside the barracks, the river wind picked up, making the sail ropes whistle and groan, as if playing a prelude to the impending slaughter.

Humans are, after all, land creatures. Later warships had more sophisticated facilities and better living conditions, so naval officers and soldiers could not live on warships for long periods of time. Whenever conditions allowed, they would return to shore to rest.

The Jiajiang naval camp was located on this sturdy river embankment, which offered a relatively wide view and facilitated defense. It was also equipped with both land and water gates.

However, the fatigue of the past few days made the online army lower their guard.

The sentry on the watchtower leaned against a pillar, his head nodding off. The patrols in the village were also far less vigilant than usual, their footsteps disorderly, clearly indicating their exhaustion.

So much so that in the darkness, a cavalry unit, its riders gagged and horses with their hooves wrapped, quietly approached the camp. It wasn't until they were less than ten paces from the gate that a sentry on the watchtower suddenly woke up and spotted them.

"What--"

Before the sentry could finish speaking, an arrow pierced the air and accurately struck the sentry in the throat. He futilely grasped at the arrow shaft with both hands, let out a muffled whimper, and fell from the watchtower, crashing heavily to the ground.

The archer was Feng Guosheng, who was leading the way. His arrow was accurate and decisive, but the sound of the sentry falling still alerted the sentries in another watchtower.

There was a campfire at the camp gate, but it was pitch black on the arrow tower. This man was even bolder and lay down on the floorboards to sleep, which is how he was not discovered by Feng Guosheng and the others. When he woke up, he was still a little dazed and didn't understand what had happened.

"Break the door!"

At Feng Guosheng's command, four elite cavalrymen darted out like cheetahs, used grappling hooks to scale the gate, and nimbly leaped inside.

"Clang! Enemy attack!" The bewildered sentry finally came to his senses and frantically grabbed a gong, striking it to warn others. This immediately drew a hail of arrows from Feng Guosheng and his men, and the warning cries stopped abruptly, but they still sounded very abrupt in the night and carried far.

But it was too late. With a creak, the heavy gate was opened from the inside. The four barricades outside the gate were quickly moved aside by the elite cavalry soldiers, clearing the way.

Feng Guosheng mounted his horse, pointed his spear forward, and roared:
"Mount up, charge into the camp!"

The roar was like a thunderclap, exploding in the night sky. The cavalry behind him echoed in unison, their battle cries shaking the heavens and the earth.

Inside the camp, a Yuan soldier, a light sleeper, got up at the sound of the noise, hastily put on his robe, and just as he rubbed his sleepy eyes and stepped out of his tent, he saw a rider charging towards him like a whirlwind, the rider's lance gleaming coldly in the firelight.

Before the Yuan soldier could even raise his sword to parry, the spear tip had already pierced his chest. The man stared in disbelief at the spear tip protruding from his chest, blood gurgling from his throat, before slowly collapsing to the ground.

Because the navy had to fight on rocking ships, they mostly used short weapons and rarely wore iron armor, making them inherently weak at blocking cavalry charges. In the darkness, many Yuan soldiers groggily got out of bed, grabbed short swords and spears, and crawled out of their tents only to find enemy cavalry charging towards them.

In a moment of desperation, a young Yuan soldier instinctively tried to block with his short spear, but how could he possibly block a long spear when the opponent was on horseback?
The spear easily deflected his short spear and plunged into his throat. The Yuan soldier made a strange "hoarse" sound in his throat, gripped the spear shaft with both hands, his eyes filled with terror and resentment, and slowly collapsed to the ground.

"what!"

Amid screams, the Yuan soldier who had "bravely faced the enemy" was stabbed to the ground by an enemy cavalryman. The rest turned and fled in terror, but their vulnerable backs were exposed to the enemy, and they were either stabbed down or trampled to death by warhorses.

One of the Yuan soldiers had barely run a few steps when he was struck by a galloping warhorse, the sound of bones shattering clearly audible. He rolled on the ground, letting out a piercing wail, but was quickly trampled over by the hooves of subsequent horses, ending his suffering.

With the advantage of being well-prepared and possessing superior weaponry and warhorses, this was no longer a battle, but a one-sided, bloody massacre.

In the firelight, the cavalrymen resembled demons from hell, leaving a trail of blood and gore in their wake. Screams, the clash of weapons, and the neighing of warhorses mingled together, creating a chilling spectacle in the darkness.

Hiding in their tents and not coming out wasn't an option either. Jiajiang Water Fortress was hastily built after the defeat at the Battle of Caogu, and only a few high-ranking generals could live in sturdy brick and stone barracks. Most of the rest just made do with makeshift shacks.

These makeshift "barracks" had extremely poor fire resistance and were quickly set ablaze by the campfire lit by the cavalry's spears, resulting in another round of screams.

In fact, after Feng Guosheng led his men into the enemy camp, he led more than a hundred elite troops straight to the central camp of the Jiajiang Navy. With his sharp eyes, he accurately identified the direction in the chaos, and no one could stop him when his spear pointed.

The remaining soldiers dispersed into squads and platoons, killing and setting fires to create and expand chaos, and launching attacks on any Yuan troops who dared to defend with their weapons.

"Quickly form ranks, use bows and crossbows, and shoot these bandits to death!" In the chaos, a Yuan general finally came up with the "correct" solution.

This admiral, who had recently transferred from the land forces to the navy, stood on a high platform and shouted at the top of his lungs. But he had clearly forgotten that the navy lacked the training and equipment to form ranks against cavalry, and his shout served no purpose other than revealing his identity and position.

Hearing the sound, Feng Guosheng looked over, sneered, drew his bow, nocked an arrow, and executed the move in one swift motion. With a "whoosh," the Yuan general fell to the ground, an arrow lodged in his face. His cries ceased abruptly, and his body tumbled off the platform, causing even greater panic among the surrounding Yuan soldiers.

The village was soon engulfed in flames, filled with screams of agony. Faced with the sudden attack, the Yuan army was utterly powerless to resist. The firelight illuminated terrified faces; some hadn't even fully regained consciousness before being forever plunged into their nightmares.

But the navy is different from the land forces. Many men's first reaction after waking up was not to fight the enemy cavalry, but to rush onto the ship. The warship was their ultimate weapon and combat platform. Only by climbing onto the familiar warship could they have any hope of escaping and fighting back.

In the chaos, many people ran wildly toward the dock.

Unfortunately, Feng Guosheng risked falling off his horse in the dark to launch a night attack, so how could he let these Yuan soldiers succeed so easily?
Two cavalry units had already blocked the main road to the dock, repeatedly charging in with spears like a forest and arrows like a rainstorm. Large numbers of Yuan soldiers fell on their way to the dock, their blood staining the road leading to the river.

However, a small number of people, taking advantage of the cover of night and their familiarity with the terrain, managed to sneak onto the warship.

The three generals who had been drinking together in the makeshift barracks reacted faster; the scarred man was the first to hear the commotion and jumped to his feet.
"Something's wrong! Something terrible has happened!"

He flung open the window and saw flames raging throughout the camp, with shouts of battle growing louder as they approached. His expression immediately changed drastically.

"Enemy attack! Retreat!"

The three men didn't bother to return to their tents to put on their leather armor; they just grabbed their waist knives and rushed out of the camp.

Outside, chaos reigned, with crowds of people running and cavalry galloping everywhere. A stray arrow grazed the red-faced man's cheek, leaving a trail of blood, but he was oblivious to it due to tension and the effects of alcohol, and only cared about running towards the dock with his two companions.

"Go to the patrol boat! Hurry to the patrol boat!"

The bearded man shouted hoarsely, brandishing his saber to deflect an arrow that seemed to have come from nowhere. They dared not confront the ferocious enemy cavalry, and using their familiarity with the terrain, they weaved left and right, avoiding the main battleground, and fled straight to a warship on guard duty.

"Get out of here! Evacuate!"

The scarred man roared at the sailors on duty who were still in a daze. The Yuan soldiers on duty were all terrified by the horrific scene on the shore; their minds went blank. One of the junior officers asked tremblingly:
"General, what has happened?"

"Damn it, what are you spacing out for!"

The bearded general stepped forward and slapped the guard chief across the face, reeking of alcohol, and cursed:
"Escape downstream, to Zhenjiang, to Jiangyin, to Songjiang, anywhere is fine, don't stay here to wait to die!" His voice became sharp with fear and anxiety, and the muscles on his face were twisted, making him look particularly ferocious in the firelight.

Since the Red Flag Battalion launched its large-scale crossing of the Yangtze River, the navy had not yet had a proper battle with the main force of the Red Flag Battalion's navy, and had already suffered defeats, losing many men and generals. They were no longer able to confront the enemy head-on, and their top priority was to preserve their warships.

Unlike land forces, naval forces are relatively easy to recruit if the quality of soldiers is not a major concern. However, building warships is a lengthy process that requires money, timber, and qualified craftsmen. Not everyone can build warships, nor can they be built immediately once the necessary conditions are met.

Warships are essential for a navy; without warships, no amount of navy can hold out.

These men, as veterans of the military, understood this principle all too well.

The naval officers and soldiers who hastily fled to other warships had similar ideas. Seeing that the situation was out of control, they prepared to escape by ship. However, in the darkness, many were at a loss in their panic.

Some people forgot to weigh anchor and rowed frantically, only to find that the boats couldn't move; some people raised the sails blindly without checking the wind direction, resulting in the sails not being able to withstand the wind and making loud "slapping" noises; and some boats tried to leave the port without untying the mooring lines, causing the mooring bollards to break and wood chips to fly everywhere.

Amidst the chaos, many warships huddled together, bumping and jostling for a while before slowly finding their rhythm and beginning to leave port.

Fortunately, Feng Guosheng's troops aimed to kill the Yuan soldiers on the shore, and because they were not familiar with the water, they dared not let their valuable cavalry board the ships to fight the enemy; otherwise, these Yuan soldiers would not have been able to escape.

But large ships are not like warhorses; ship handling is a highly specialized and technical job, and it's not something that just a few people can master. Because there was a general shortage of sailors on board, many people were just messing around in positions they weren't familiar with.

Some boats had their sails fully unfurled but forgot to adjust the angle, causing them to spin in the middle of the river; some helmsmen were unfamiliar with the waterways, causing their boats to scrape against the shallows with a sickening screeching sound; and some boats even collided with other boats, eliciting a chorus of curses.

In the chaos, none of the Yuan soldiers on the shore or on the ships noticed that the beacon towers on the island in the middle of the river had already been lit.

Even if someone spotted the fire on the tip of the river island in the chaos, compared to the ubiquitous fires, screams, and charging, slaughtering cavalry in the camp, this commotion would not attract his attention at all.

The warship carrying Big Beard and his men was a garrison ship, so it had a fairly full crew. Scarface personally steered the ship, Redface directed the raising of the sails, while Big Beard and a few soldiers stood guard at the bow. There were no major incidents.

The guard ships were the first to leave the water fortress, and soon they had left their chaotic comrades far behind.

Standing on the stern deck, watching the water fortress gradually disappear into the distance, the three couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief. Flames soared into the sky from the fortress, and screams and sounds of fighting could still be faintly heard.

The red-faced man wiped the cold sweat from his forehead and said with lingering fear:

"We finally escaped!"

The bearded man slammed his fist on the gunwale and said angrily:
"What a shame! What a shame!"

Just as they were about to break through the narrow tributary and enter the wider main channel of the Yangtze River, a refreshing river breeze swept over them. Everyone had barely breathed a sigh of relief when the lookout on the mast at the bow suddenly pointed to the river not far away and exclaimed:

"Enemy—enemy attack!"

On the dark river, countless warships raised their sails and lit their lanterns. Led by small boats, they had already rounded the end of the river island and blocked the retreat of the fleeing Yuan army ships.

The lights, as numerous as stars, illuminated the billowing sails, creating a menacing atmosphere. On the lead ship, a red flag fluttered in the wind, its brilliance particularly striking under the lights.

"The Red Flag Bandit Camp is the Red Flag Battalion's navy."

The scarred man's knuckles were white, and his voice was hoarse. In the end, they still couldn't escape this inescapable net.

(End of this chapter)