Late Ming Dynasty: Special Forces in 1645

Since the start of the war with the Restoration Army, Jin Shenghuan has suffered defeat after defeat and has not gained any advantage.

Not only were their firearms inferior to the Xingfu Army's, but their close combat skills were also far inferior. Moreover, it was as if the Xingfu Army was watching every move the Jin army made, and every attack by the Jin army was precisely countered by the Xingfu Army.

Jin Shenghuan was helpless except for impotent rage.

In this attack, the Jin army lost more than 3,000 soldiers.

Jin Shenghuan faced a difficult choice: retreat, and the attack on Ehu Town would become a joke; if he didn't retreat, he wouldn't be able to launch another large-scale attack within three to five days.

After much discussion, Jin Shenghuan, Wang Deren, and their advisors decided to besiege the area without attacking, and to deal with Wang Tizhong's former subordinates first.

Jin Shenghuan blamed the failure of the attack on Wang Tizhong's old troops, and became increasingly displeased with them. He wished he could immediately kill all the officers and soldiers of Wang Tizhong's old troops and then incorporate the soldiers into his own forces.

......

In Xinzhou City, Li Chengming has already assembled three thousand troops, preparing to march on Ehu Town and Qianshan City.

Before dawn the next day, Li Chengming led 3,000 Xingfu Army soldiers toward Ehu Town, carrying ten new cannons and more than two hundred new muskets.

In addition, there was a cavalry force that had truly developed combat effectiveness!

Of the three thousand soldiers in the Restoration Army, half were veterans who had participated in many battles, and the other half were new recruits who had been training for more than a month.

The new recruits were all from the lower classes of Xinzhou Prefecture. They were beneficiaries of the new policies, so although it was their first time going to war, their morale was high and they were not afraid of the upcoming war.

Li Chengming's restoration army arrived at the outskirts of Ezhenhu Town at noon.

This time, Li Chengming did not conceal his whereabouts and arrived at Ehu Town right under Jin Shenghuan's nose, where he set up camp to the south of the town's garrison.

The two restoration armies led by Li Chengming and He Mingqiu were only two kilometers apart.

Li Chengming's three thousand-strong restoration army calmly rested, set up camp, lit fires to cook, and ate lunch, as if they were on a normal march, as if they had not noticed the Jin army, or rather, did not take the Jin army seriously!

As expected, Jin Shenghuan noticed Li Chengming's actions and was furious. He said, "This bandit army in Xinzhou City is so arrogant! Gather your forces immediately and let me deal with them!"

Jin Shenghuan's anger was not without reason. Even though he had suffered a great loss at the hands of the Xingfu Army before, the Xingfu Army had always been on the defensive. Jin Shenghuan did not believe that the Xingfu Army had the strength to fight a mobile war against the Jin army.

The Restoration Army has far too few troops!

It is not uncommon for a smaller force to win a battle in a defensive city, but those who can win a battle with a smaller force in mobile warfare are all renowned generals and soldiers!

At this moment, Wang Deren said, "General, my men are in a very bad mood. If I force them to fight the Restoration Army..."

Jin Shenghuan's face was gloomy as he slowly said, "Several times we forced them to lead the charge. Although they were unwilling to risk their lives, they did suffer heavy casualties."

Wang Deren nodded and said, "If we force them to charge into battle again, I'm afraid... they might defect on the front lines!"

Jin Shenghuan nodded solemnly and said, "Then let's consolidate our forces and see how things go. With only three thousand troops, their Restoration Army wouldn't dare to launch a preemptive strike. You should deal with Wang Tizhong's old troops according to our agreed plan, and do it as quickly as possible!"

Wang Deren replied, "This subordinate obeys!"

After Wang Deren left, his tense expression remained unchanged. He had mixed feelings of love and hate towards Wang Tizhong's former troops. He loved this army because it was his greatest asset, and Jin Shenghuan always gave him face because he controlled this army.

What Wang Deren resented was that Wang Tizhong's former subordinates were only superficially on his side, and that this had developed to the point of being widely known.

If Jin Shenghuan were to completely absorb Wang Tizhong's former subordinates, how should Wang Deren deal with them in the future?

Without his support, would Jin Shenghuan still respect him as before?

After much hesitation and deliberation, Wang Deren sighed deeply. He had no choice; once he was on Jin Shenghuan's pirate ship, there was no turning back.

Li Chengming's side had also been keeping a close eye on the Jin army's every move.

Although it was believed that the Jin army had just suffered a defeat and dared not make any rash moves against the Xingfu Army, military campaigns should not be taken lightly, so necessary reconnaissance and defense were still necessary.

Before the great battle, it was necessary for the Xingfu Army to stop and rest, eat and drink their fill, and conserve their strength after marching dozens of kilometers.

Indeed, once the Xingfu Army had eaten and drunk their fill and recovered their strength, Li Chengming planned to launch an attack on the Jin army.

This battle has dragged on for far too long. Although the Restoration Army has a small force, it has made considerable preparations for this battle.

For over a month, the steel mill in Xinzhou City has been working day and night to produce thirty new cannons, nearly a thousand new muskets, and countless bullets and shells.

Moreover, a great deal of money was spent on purchasing lead, copper, and saltpeter.

Thousands of craftsmen, operators, and prisoners worked in three shifts, putting in countless hours of hard work, to manufacture these firearms.

In short, once everything was ready, Li Chengming didn't want to waste any more time and planned to eliminate the Jin army in one fell swoop right now.

Li Chengming led 3,000 Xingfu soldiers to assemble and march towards the Jin army camp in battle formation.

The garrison in Ehu Town also amassed two thousand troops, preparing to leave their fortifications and launch a proactive attack on the Jin army.

Jin Shenghuan was greatly alarmed to see the Xingfu Army launching an attack on him, and quickly gathered his forces to deal with the attack.

The Restoration Army made no attempt to conceal its offensive intentions.

The Jin army also had ample time to prepare for battle.

As the two armies drew near, the Xingfu Army pushed its artillery to the front and then deployed all its cannons. The Jin army, already prepared, quickly ordered its central army to disperse, intending to flank the Xingfu Army from both sides.

However, what the Jin army did not expect was that the new cannons could turn their muzzles very quickly, and the reloading speed after firing was even faster.

This was not the first time the Jin army had faced new cannons, but they had never found a way to break through them and could only rely on human sacrifice to push through the firepower blockade of the new cannons.

Fortunately, this was a mobile warfare situation, and the Jin army, with its numerical superiority, was able to quickly disperse its troops, preventing large numbers from being bombarded by artillery.

Although the Jin army suffered far fewer casualties under the bombardment of the new cannons than in the siege battle, after breaking through the cannon fire blockade, they faced the more agile musketeers and spearmen of the Restoration Army!

The Jin army intended to break through the artillery blockade as before, and then have archers fire a large number of arrows at the artillery positions to suppress the artillery and make it difficult for the new cannons to fire. However, this time the Jin army's archers were facing the musketeers of the Xingfu Army!

The musketeers employed a volley-fire tactic, unleashing barrages of bullets that effectively suppressed the Jin army's archers.

The artillerymen quickly loaded the new cannons with grapeshot and then bombarded the Jin archers.

A barrage of cannon fire, combined with musket fire, quickly wiped out more than half of the Jin army's archers!

The Jin army's archers were routed, and the archers who posed the greatest threat to the Restoration Army were no longer capable of fighting.

With the archers no longer a threat, the Restoration Army's artillery aimed their cannons at the charging Jin infantry, and with each shot, a large number of them died.

The musketeers were equally formidable; under the relentless firing of their muskets, they managed to clear a clearing over a hundred meters wide, where countless Jin soldiers lay dead.

The Jin army's manpower was quickly wiped out by the Xingfu Army's firearms!