Late Ming Dynasty: Special Forces in 1645

Zhang Xiyan had little confidence in the restoration army's expedition. He didn't understand firepower configuration or the impact of an army's training and organization on its combat effectiveness. He only knew that the troop strength was four thousand to twenty thousand, and that victory was unlikely no matter what.

Zhang Xiyan's opinion is not important; his role is to manage administration and logistics, so it's normal that he doesn't know anything about soldiers.

It wasn't until observer Yan Huidong took out the tablet computer and Zhang Xiyan stared blankly at the screen that he realized the rumors about the generals of the Restoration Army might not be false.

Zhang Xiyan: Could it be that Commander-in-Chief Li and the other commanders are truly divinely appointed, as rumored?

Li Chengming observed Zhang Xiyan's reaction, smiled, and remained silent. Since he considered him one of his own, he would eventually let him know about these modern technologies, which would further increase Zhang's confidence and loyalty to the Restoration Army. This was a good thing.

Yan Huidong pointed to the tablet computer and said, "Zheng Jun's garrison in Ehu Town is located here. To the north is the Xinjiang River, to the south is the Fenshuiguan garrison, and to the west is the Qianshan River. Only after crossing the Qianshan River can you reach Qianshan County!"

Our only viable attack point is to the east, where farmland, fishponds, and swamps lie!

Correspondent Zhou Lei asked, "So, if we launch an attack from the east, the terrain will be unfavorable to the attacking side?"

Yan Huidong nodded: "There are Zheng's troops stationed to the west and south, and the Xinjiang River to the north is wide and swift. Most importantly, there are Zheng's warships patrolling the river, blocking it. It will be very difficult for us to cross."

Xinzhou is upstream, and Qianshan is downstream. If Qianshan's warships want to attack Xinzhou, they will easily be intercepted in the narrow passages. However, it will not be easy for Xinzhou's army to cross the river downstream.

Li Chengming looked at the terrain and topography to the east captured by the drone and fell into deep thought.

Perhaps to guard against a surprise attack by the Restoration Army, the three Hongyi cannons of the garrison in Ehu Town were moved to the east, and two more were moved to the north.

Attacking from the east is difficult because the only paths between the farmland, fishponds, and swamps are blocked, which makes the attack less effective and also makes the area vulnerable to muskets and artillery fire.

Of course, they could wade through the farmland, but the farmland was rice paddies, and at this time of year the water was deep and the mud was mushy. The rice paddies would greatly slow down the Xingfu Army's advance, and the cannons could not be transported there, which would be a great disadvantage when facing the enemy's muskets and artillery!

Li Chengming's eyes flickered for a moment, then he said, "We'll circle around to the south and cut in between Ehu Town and Fenshui Pass. There's a paved official road there, so we can attack Ehu Town from south to north!"

Hearing Li Chengming's suggestion, everyone was delighted: That's right, there is an official road in the south that leads directly to Ehu Town. Although there are many Zheng army outposts in the middle, the Xingfu Army has drones, so it is not difficult to silently eliminate all the Zheng army's outposts!

The difficulty lies in quickly capturing Ehu Town. Otherwise, when the troops are dispatched from Fenshui Pass, the Xingfu Army will easily find itself in a situation where it is attacked from both sides. At that time, it will be difficult to escape without suffering heavy losses.

Liang Zicheng said, "Based on comprehensive analysis, the most suitable direction for attack is indeed the south. As long as we can completely capture Ehu Town within an hour, even if Fenshuiguan sends troops, we can wait in ambush and easily defeat the reinforcements! I agree with the captain's suggestion!"

Yan Huidong said, "I also agree to launch an attack from the south!"

He Mingqiu, Song Yourong, Huang Longkun, and Zhou Lei all expressed their agreement, saying, "I agree too!"

After finalizing the tactic of attacking from the south, Li Chengming wanted to first determine the commander-in-chief for this campaign.

Li Chengming said, "Let's move on to the next topic: who is willing to take on this mission and lead troops to capture Qianshan County?"

Li Chengming looked at the crowd, only to find that the other assault team members were also looking at him.

Li Chengming turned to Liang Zicheng, who quickly said, "The captain is the most suitable leader for this mission. I vote for the captain!"

The other assault team members chimed in, "I'll vote for the captain too!"

Li Chengming said somewhat helplessly, "Can't you all take responsibility?"

Liang Zicheng laughed and said, "Captain, this mission is not as simple as capturing a city or a stronghold. It involves the coordinated operations of artillery, musketeers, archers, and cavalry, as well as the defense and capture of multiple targets. In short, it requires the coordination of multiple types of troops. Moreover, the enemy situation is complex, and the command difficulty is unprecedented. Apart from you, Captain, we really don't have the ability to take on this mission."

Yan Huidong said, "Captain, you know me. I'm better suited for reconnaissance than commanding operations."

He Mingqiu said with a grin, "Captain, you didn't let me be the commander-in-chief when we attacked Yushan. Do you think it's suitable for me to take command this time?"

Huang Longkun said, "Captain, I can assist in the battle, but I won't submit to anyone else except you in commanding this campaign. Even if you put me in command, I won't accept it!"

Li Chengming nodded: "Alright, judging from your attitudes, then I'm definitely the commander-in-chief of this battle?"

The other assault team members nodded.

"Alright!" Li Chengming thought it over carefully. This operation was indeed the most complex one yet. Apart from himself, perhaps no one else really had the ability to command it, so he stopped worrying about it.

Li Chengming said, "Yan Huidong, He Mingqiu, and Zhou Lei, come with me on this expedition. The rest of you will stay and hold Xinzhou! Prefect Zhang, please prepare three days' worth of provisions. We will set off at 2:00 AM the day after tomorrow!"

The Restoration Army has always set out at dawn and launched its attack in the morning. This practice may have been established when they attacked Jingmen City. Later, when they felt the time was right, they continued to follow this practice.

The next day, the Restoration Army continued its drills as usual, showing no signs of going into battle.

It's important to know that Xinzhou City is a bustling place with people coming and going, and it's inevitable that there are spies from various factions, including those from Zheng's army.

Although the camps and training grounds of the Restoration Army outside the city were designated as military restricted areas, and unauthorized personnel were not allowed to enter, if the Restoration Army made too much noise, it would inevitably attract the attention of those with ulterior motives.

If the news of the Xingfu Army's expedition is learned by the Zheng army in advance, allowing them to prepare, then the difficulty of taking Ehu Town by surprise will increase significantly.

After nightfall, as was customary, officers of the Restoration Army were to attend classes at the Military Academy. Only after the classes were over did Li Chengming announce the news of the expedition to the early morning of the next day and assign tasks to each officer according to the prepared battle plan.

Li Chengming instructed the officers to supervise each other, and that no one was allowed to leave the camp after returning to it. They were to rest early, get up at midnight to cook, and then assemble to set off!

Everything was proceeding smoothly under Li Chengming's arrangement.

At two o'clock in the morning, everything was ready, and Li Chengming led four thousand Xingfu Army soldiers to break camp and head south.

Even the other thousand soldiers who remained behind were not alerted.

During this period, Li Chengming had been training the Xingfu Army in night marches so that they could maintain marching efficiency even when faced with special missions like this one day.

The Xingfu Army was disciplined and no one spoke during the march. To conceal their movements, only one torch was allocated to each company of over a hundred soldiers. Even with the faint light, the Xingfu Army's ranks remained perfectly orderly.

Before sunrise, the Restoration Army had already arrived at the outskirts of Ehu Town.

Yan Huidong deployed a drone to observe and search for every outpost of Zheng Jun in the vicinity. Then, He Mingqiu and Zhou Lei, each armed with a silenced pistol, led their team to eliminate the outposts one by one.

Zheng Jun's sentries, both visible and hidden, were all eliminated in the infrared scanner's field of vision.

After successfully clearing Zheng Jun's outposts, the Xingfu Army successfully cut in from two kilometers south of Zheng Jun's garrison and headed north along the official road.

The army's advance is aimed directly at Zheng's forces in Ehu Town!