Late Ming Dynasty: Starting with the overthrow of the county magistrate, a rebellion was launched to

The military formations shifted constantly under Li Dingguo's command, resembling a series of exquisitely crafted machines.

At this moment, Li Dingguo reined in his horse and stood on the ridge of Qingcaopo. After the formation was completed, his three thousand veteran soldiers were arranged in a wedge formation in front, with eight red-coated small cannons placed on the left and right flanks. Finally, twelve thousand refugee soldiers were lined up in the rear to cover the formation.

Li Dingguo subconsciously touched the arrow wound on his shoulder, but then stared intently at the official road in the northwest.

"Zhang Da, you thief, I'll definitely repay you for that arrow!"

"General, the Ming vanguard has already passed Sanliting. Dust and smoke fill the road. Judging from the banners, Zhang Da is definitely leading the main force!" The scout tumbled off his horse and reported the news to Li Dingguo.

Li Dingguo sneered upon hearing this, then slowly drew his sword. Although the sword had been nicked several times during the battle, it still retained its sharpness, the blade reflecting the glow of the setting sun.

The defeat at Huaqiao Pass had dampened morale considerably. If Zhang Da were to press them further under the city walls and launch a pincer attack, losing their reputation and face would be a minor matter; the real danger might be that this elite force, painstakingly trained and brought out of Sichuan, would lose all its fighting spirit forever.

Therefore, Li Dingguo had to engage in open battle and had to go forward to fight Zhang Da.

……

……

At the same moment, Zhang Daye, with the support of his personal guards, managed to sit steadily on his horse.

As the saying goes, it takes a hundred days to recover from a broken bone. His fractured arms were still not healed, and the constant jolting while riding the army made the pain feel like needles pricking him. Of course, this was only physical pain; the real agony came when Zhang Da looked at the Great Western army's well-prepared formation on the hillside ahead.

Of their 12,000-plus troops, only slightly over 2,700 were truly capable elite soldiers; the remaining 70% were newly recruited ragtag groups of refugees. They possessed only seven cannons, less than half their usual number of arrows, and after days of continuous marches, the soldiers were generally exhausted and dehydrated…

On the other side were the most ferocious veteran soldiers of the Great Western Army, personally led by Li Dingguo.

Let alone those in the army who are well-versed in military strategy, even an illiterate old farmer would know who has a better chance of winning...

"Brother, I saw that Li Dingguo positioned his cannons on both flanks, deliberately luring us to attack the central army first."

Zhou Wenqu had clearly noticed this from the scout's words, so he leaned over the saddle and whispered, "Although his central army is strong, he deliberately left gaps, just so we could rush in and then flank them from both sides."

Zhang Da squinted and looked over, and sure enough, it was so.

The central army of the Great Western Army appeared densely packed, yet it left a shallow "groove," clearly intending to form an ambush. The refugee army appeared scattered, but in reality, it was layered in front and behind; once the central army engaged, the two flanks would immediately encircle them.

It wasn't particularly brilliant, just a classic tactic.

This should also be Li Dingguo's most proficient tactic: using elite troops to lure the enemy, then using light troops to encircle and crush the command structure in a short period of time.

"Li Dingguo is still too young; he actually wanted to swallow us whole."

Zhang Da clearly forgot that he was the same age as him, and just smiled, then his face stiffened and he said coldly, "Pass on the order—the artillery will not fire at the center. In the first salvo, bombard their left flank artillery positions!"

Zhou Wenqu was stunned again, quite puzzled.

"Big Brother, why are you bombarding his gun emplacements? He only has two guns on his left flank, it's not very effective..."

"It doesn't have much practical significance. I just wanted to tell that bastard Li Dingguo that I'm not going to be the central army commander."

Zhang Da lowered his voice to a whisper, "I don't want to surround him, I don't want to go around him, and I definitely don't want to go into his pockets—I want to take his teeth out first!"

Before long, the Ming army adjusted the angle of its seven red-coated cannons, and the muzzles were all pointed at the left flank of the Great Western Army.

Li Dingguo, who was on the slope, saw everything clearly and was somewhat surprised. Then, a slight smile appeared on his lips.

"Oh? Instead of charging the central army, you're going to attack my artillery positions first?" Li Dingguo muttered to himself. "That's cautious. But you've come all this way, abandoning your heavy artillery. I don't believe your shells can withstand such a waste. Heh, once your guns fall silent, I'll just charge straight into the enemy lines."

He then raised his hand to signal the artillery on the left flank.

"Move forward ten paces and exchange fire with the Ming army."

Boom! Boom! Boom!

The artillery of both sides spewed fire almost simultaneously.

Because the two cannons of the Great Western Army deviated, the iron balls hit the Ming army's vanguard, and two soldiers had their legs broken on the spot, screaming and rolling around.

The Ming army fired seven cannons simultaneously, half of which accurately hit the left flank artillery positions of the Western Army. Bluestone shattered, wooden frames broke, and a small red-coated cannon was blown over, with the gunner's limbs scattering several meters away.

"Good! Good! Good!" A low shout erupted from the Ming army ranks.

Li Dingguo clearly didn't care about this loss. Before they could catch their breath, he sneered again and pointed his knife forward.

"Right-flank artillery, advance! Archers, push forward!"

The six cannons on the right flank of the Great Western Army suddenly pushed forward, getting closer; two thousand archers on both sides quickly stepped forward, drew their bows and nocked their arrows, directly entering the effective firing range.

"put!"

Arrows rained down from the sky, a dark mass falling to the ground.

Once again, the Ming army's front-line soldiers suffered casualties. Lacking shields, they fell in droves, their cries of agony filling the air. Upon witnessing this scene, the newly formed peasant army turned pale and involuntarily retreated.

"Hold on! All of you, hold on tight! Anyone who retreats will be executed!"

Li Dan, who was in the army, could only take up his sword to supervise the battle. He killed two deserters on the spot before the troops could barely be stabilized.

Zhang Da frowned deeply. He was very displeased with these refugees—if the fighting continued like this, if they kept exchanging fire, the refugee army would surely collapse first.

"Zhang Wen!" he commanded in a low voice.

"Your subordinate is here!" Zhang Wen said, holding a gun in one hand, his armor still stained with the blood of Huaqiao Pass.

"You shall lead four hundred cavalrymen, neither from the left nor the right, but slowly advance from the foot of the slope in the shallow grass, making the appearance of charging into battle, but do not actually fight."

After Zhang Da finished speaking, he reached out and called him back, then instructed, "Take three steps, stop one step, raise a cloud of dust, the more chaotic the better."

Zhang Wen was taken aback.

"False rush?"

"That's right." Zhang Da's eyes were cold and sharp. "Li Dingguo wants to force me into a decisive battle right now. If you charge in, he will definitely think that I'm going all in and will immediately send in the elite troops of the central army. Once he makes a move and reveals a weakness, I'll see if there's a way to break the deadlock."

"clear!"

Zhang Wen accepted the order, and four hundred cavalrymen slowly stepped out of formation, their hooves kicking up dust as they slowly approached the central army of the Great Western Army.

Li Dingguo, who was on the slope, saw this clearly, and his pupils contracted slightly.

"Finally couldn't hold back anymore?" He sounded excited. "Zhang Da, you've finally gotten impatient."

Li Dingguo immediately ordered, "The central army should advance ten paces, with longswords arrayed! The refugee troops on both flanks should converge towards the center, and once the Ming cavalry enters the slope, they should be completely surrounded!"

At this moment, the three thousand veteran soldiers of the Great Western Army's central camp, upon receiving the order, stepped forward in unison, causing the ground to tremble slightly...

Seeing the enemy's response, Zhang Da suddenly looked up and shouted sharply.

"Zhou Wenqu! Two thousand men on the left wing, feigning an attack on the right! Shout, wave flags, run wildly, make it look like a general offensive!"

"yes!"

Zhou Wenqu immediately waved his flag, and two thousand Ming soldiers on the left wing shouted in unison, brandishing their swords and charging wildly, raising dust and creating a powerful momentum as they rushed straight towards the right wing of the Great Western Army.

Upon seeing this, Li Dingguo immediately made the most likely judgment.

The Ming army commander-in-chief planned to lure the central army with cavalry, while using the left flank to launch a strong attack on our right flank artillery, thus breaking through the defensive line.

"Hmph, childish tricks."

He immediately adjusted his strategy: "The right-wing refugee army must fight to the death! Continue bombarding the Ming army's left flank with artillery! The central army will remain stationary and wait for their cavalry charge!"

This adjustment played right into Zhang Da's scheme.

Li Dingguo focused his attention on the right flank and the Ming cavalry, while the central army remained in its "pocket formation," which resulted in the forces on both flanks being tied down.

Just then, Zhang Dalian took three deep breaths, his face flushed, whether from excitement or nervousness, he sternly issued the most crucial order.

"All elite troops—two thousand seven hundred men—follow me through the central gap! Don't attack the cavalry, don't attack the flanks, go straight for Li Dingguo's command flag, and kill that bastard!"