Chapter 1147
Midnight Sneak Attack
Chapter 1147 Midnight Sneak Attack
Gao Qiaonan was on a high slope about half a mile away from the temporary camp of the Ming army. He used binoculars to confirm that several riders had left the main force and headed northwest separately.He could roughly guess that the purpose of the other commander's doing this was to report the police to Dengzhou City and ask for help, but these riders of the Ming Army obviously did not take the same route, and it would be too difficult to intercept them all.
This mountainous area has a radius of tens of miles, and it is a little easier to guess the marching route of the large army. After all, there are still a lot of luggage and wounded in the army, and there are certain requirements for the passage conditions.But there were too many routes for these cavalrymen acting alone, not to mention that there were only two hundred people around Gao Qiaonan, even if there were ten times more people, it might not be able to block all the mountain roads leading to Dengzhou City.However, Gao Qiaonan had no cavalry under his command, and it was not practical to catch up with the opponent's horseback riding. Therefore, he did not order to pursue the Ming army's cavalry, but stepped up to complete the control of the area near the Ming army's temporary position.
Twilight was approaching, Gao Qiaonan knew that the opponent was unlikely to choose to march overnight after continuous fighting, so most of the Ming army would camp here for one night, and set off after dawn.And for him, this means that there is a whole night to make a fuss and slowly clean up the Ming army.
Gao Qiaonan estimates that it is about [-] or [-] miles away from Dengzhou, and the mountainous area accounts for about half of it. After leaving the mountainous area, it will be difficult for the special warfare battalion to attack the Ming army in the same way as before.As for whether the friendly troops outside the mountainous area can rush ahead to block the Ming army's way out of the mountain, Gao Qiaonan is not at all sure. After all, it is too close to Dengzhou, and overly ostentatious actions are likely to deepen the relationship with the Dengzhou government. Misunderstanding, and this is not the result Haihan wanted.
Tomorrow, there is less than forty miles of mountain road left for the special operations battalion to operate.Takahashi Minami believes that after reflecting on today's setbacks, the opposing commander will probably not advance cautiously and slowly tomorrow.The longer they stay in the mountains and forests, the more attacks they will suffer. Under the current circumstances, the best way to escape should be to rush out of the mountains and leave this inconvenient environment for defense and counterattack as soon as possible.
If the opponent chooses such a coping strategy, it will definitely be impossible for Gao Qiaonan's team to intercept the Ming army. It is best to hurt the owner.After a brief discussion with several officers under his command, Takahashinan decided not to wait until the next day, and to strike overnight, taking advantage of the exhaustion of the Ming army physically and mentally, before recovering its physical strength, to give the Ming army a fatal blow.
At midnight, Gao Qiaonan personally led the team to touch the secret sentries outside the Ming army camp.These dark sentries were observed by the Haihan army with telescopes when they were deployed before dark, so instead of serving as an early warning in the dark night, they became living targets.
In fact, the locations of these secret whistles were carefully selected. They were all on the branches of trees several meters high.However, Takahashinan had his own trick to deal with this kind of hidden whistle from high places. He sent several people to slowly approach its position from different directions. After approaching within ten meters, one of them made a noise to attract his attention, and the others The people directly used crossbow arrows to shoot at the secret sentry.
This method of feeling the whistle was taught by Qian Tiandun before, and it has been kept as a compulsory subject of the special warfare battalion until now. Most soldiers in the same squad have trained this routine together, and they can cooperate without temporary drills.After solving the two hidden posts, the route to the Ming army camp from the south was opened.
Because it was a night attack, Takahashi Minami was also worried that if the scene was too chaotic after the battle started, he would accidentally injure his own people, so he simply gathered his subordinates together and prepared to launch an offensive from the same direction.In this way, in the dark night, they will not be confused, and it will be convenient for Takahashi Minami to command in unison.
Gao Qiaonan did not intend to fight with the Ming army. This time, his desired effect was to defeat the Ming army in the shortest possible time, so all members used rifles to fight.However, everyone has also mounted bayonets in advance and is ready for hand-to-hand combat.
Guo Xingning has been feeling inexplicable anxiety since dark, obviously the Haihan people have stopped attacking, but he always feels that something is wrong.Guo Xingning thought that it was unlikely that the Haihan people would withdraw their troops suddenly when the battle was going smoothly. Maybe they were hiding in the dark and plotting some other conspiracy. He called his officers to discuss the marching route for the next day, and went back and forth several times. Battalion returned to the tent to rest.
After this day's tossing, although Guo Xingning did not fight in person, he was already exhausted, and fell asleep in a daze as soon as his head touched the pillow.I don't know how long I slept, but suddenly I heard the sound of firecrackers shooting outside the tent in my sleep.
Guo Xingning sat up in shock and heard someone outside the tent exclaiming. He knew it might be a night attack from the Haihan people, so he quickly got up.Because he was worried about something happening at night, he didn't take off his clothes, shoes and socks when he fell asleep. At this time, he grabbed his saber and hurried out of the tent, just in time to bump into an officer who came to report.
Guo Xingning asked anxiously, "But the enemy attacked the camp?"
The officer replied: "My lord, the enemy army came in from the south, and all the weapons they used were firecrackers. Brothers were unprepared, and many people have been killed or injured!"
Guo Xingning yelled angrily, "Didn't the sentry in the south give warning?"
The officer said anxiously: "I don't know why there is no news from the secret post outside the camp. When the enemy is found, they have already entered the camp! Now it is a battle or a retreat, please give me an order!"
This Ming army temporarily camped in the mountains and forests, and there was no time to build any fortifications. They just deployed some secret sentries at a certain distance outside the camp, leaving room for response after warning.After the secret sentry was touched by the Haihan army, only the sentries on duty at the edge of the camp were left, but when these sentries warned, the Haihan army had already rushed to the front, and they were knocked down by random guns as soon as the gong was sounded.And the sleeping Ming army in the camp woke up without knowing it, and it was difficult to organize immediately to launch a defensive counterattack.
Guo Xingning saw that the routs kept fleeing from the camp in the south, and knew that it was almost impossible to gather the routs in this dark night, not to mention that they were being ravaged by the Haihan army over and over again throughout the day today. The soldiers under his command had long since lost the sense of resistance, and even if they could be gathered together, it would be difficult for them to continue fighting the Haihan people in the current situation.
Before Guo Xingning could make a final decision, a group of his personal soldiers had rushed over, carried him onto the horse no matter what happened, and then led the horse and quickly retreated to the north with the rout soldiers.These people were not only worried about Guo Xingning's personal safety, but part of the reason was that they were afraid that if their master had a headache for a while, if he wanted to order a decisive battle with the Haihan people, all his followers would be trapped here and buried with him.
Guo Xingning knew that the general situation was over, and he did not express any objection to the arrangement of the soldiers. Now, what else can he do besides fleeing for his life?If he really fought for his life with the Haihan people in this place, he would die in battle. If he was captured alive by the Haihan people and threatened the Dengzhou government with his own life, wouldn't it be a great shame and shame.Whether public or private, Guo Xingning had to save his own life, so he fled back to Dengzhou City first.
The continuous gunshots from the south drove the Ming army to flee northward in the dark like a talisman. Some people fled into the woods in a panic and quickly separated from the team, losing their way forward.There are also people who are physically exhausted and fall to the ground after running.
Guo Xingning's luck was not much better, because he was worried that he would attract pursuers, and he didn't dare to light a torch to light the road. In the end, he escaped for more than a mile, and his horse's hoof stepped into a pit and broke his leg.The distraught Guo Xingning also fell off his horse, but fortunately, he was followed by his own soldiers, but he was not injured, but the horse that had been with him for several years could not be taken away.
At that moment, the soldiers changed Guo Xingning's horse and continued to move forward, but he stumbled in the exact same way after not running very far. It was really bad luck.Now that there was no spare horse by his side, Guo Xingning could only choose to escape on foot with his men.
The raid launched by the Haihan army at night was very smooth, even exceeding Gao Qiaonan's expectations. He originally thought that the Ming army would resist symbolically, but after the battle, he found that the opponent had no intention of fighting at all. It was the decision to flee when the enemy was found to be attacking.
Takahashi Nan was still afraid of being cheated, so he didn't dare to let go to pursue him. He still commanded the troops to open the way with musket formations and advance layer by layer. It wasn't until the Ming army camp was wiped out that he realized that the opponent had not set up any ambushes inside or outside the camp. , but really just ran away regardless.Takahashi Nanda felt regretful, and hurriedly led his troops to continue the pursuit.However, they have an advantage in playing the role of chasing soldiers, that is, they don’t have to worry about exposing their whereabouts, and they can light torches to illuminate the way forward, which will be slightly faster than the Ming army fleeing in the dark.
But in the dark night, there was no way to find out which direction the enemy general was fleeing to. Gao Qiaonan could only judge the retreat direction of the main force of the Ming army from the various weapons and supplies discarded by the defeated soldiers, and then headed in this direction. chase down.As for whether he can catch up with the enemy's main general, it can only depend on luck.
The two groups were one in front and the other in the back, separated by less than a mile. Those who were fleeing in front could see the torches of the chasing soldiers as long as they turned their heads, and they didn't dare to stop at all, and the Haihan army behind them refused to let it go. That's it. Reluctantly falling behind and chasing after.
After fleeing for almost two hours, a small river more than five feet wide appeared in front of the exhausted Ming army. In the dark night, they didn't know how deep and urgent the water was. At first, the few people who jumped down in a panic did not seem to swim to the other side. It disappeared into the river, and those who followed did not dare to follow into the water, so they could only wait for the officer's order.But Guo Xingning was not worried but happy when he heard the news. He remembered that there was such a small river on the way back to Dengzhou from the current escape route. As long as you walk along the river bank to the west downstream, there are many villages there. There will be a bridge to cross the river.
Sure enough, after the Ming army marched down the river bank for about two miles, they found a stone bridge across the river. Everyone was overjoyed and hurriedly set foot on this escape route.Guo Xingning was also relieved, because according to the signs on the map, after crossing this river, there would be plains to the north, and the distance to Dengzhou City was less than [-] miles away, so he could try to warn the Ming army stationed nearby for help. .
Gaoqiaonan led his army to pursue here only a moment later, but the Ming army had already crossed the river and set off towards Dengzhou City. If the pursuit continued, the risk would be greater than fighting in the mountains. .Although Gao Qiaonan was not reconciled, he also knew that he could no longer pursue rashly at this time and this place, so he could only withdraw his troops resentfully.
Of course, this half-day and one-night battle was not fruitless. In addition to killing and wounding over a hundred Ming soldiers, they also captured about seventy or eighty prisoners of war during the pursuit, and most of them collapsed due to exhaustion on the way to escape.There were also a small number of captives who consciously escaped and surrendered from the mountains to save their lives.
Most of the flags, weapons, and supplies of this Ming army had been discarded during the escape. Gao Qiaonan asked his soldiers to collect all the useful items first when he returned the same way.Especially the various banners representing the troops and commanders of the Ming army. These things are proofs to ask for credit back to the headquarters.
Fearing that the superiors at the mining area would be waiting impatiently, Gao Qiaonan ordered his men to ride back to the mining area to report the news on the two horses they had seized on the way.This fight in the mountains and forests failed to trap the Ming army in the mountains due to the limited number of troops under Gao Qiaonan's command. Although there were quite a few gains, the opponent escaped in the end.
In order to launch a night attack last night, Takahashi Nan and his men did not rest almost all night. In order to save energy on the return journey, they stopped rushing so much.After walking for a full day, they stopped and rested five or six times on the way. They did not return to the mining area until evening and reported to Morgan and Chen Yixin.
Regarding the not-so-satisfactory results this time, Morgan and Chen Yixin did not blame Gao Qiaonan for his poor command. In fact, to get to the bottom of it, there were some mistakes in the deployment before the battle.If the army troops deployed near Guxian Town were transferred to the command of Gaoqiaonan, and only the cavalry battalion was left to harass the Ming army when they came, perhaps the Ming army who fled into the mountains would have no luck.Or make some noise in the forest on the flank of the battlefield in advance, so that the Ming army dare not withdraw from this direction, but choose to return directly to the original road, then concentrate the troops to Guxian Town to block the Ming army, and then A back-and-forth attack with the troops in the mining area will inevitably be better than the night-time pursuit of the Battle Camp.
But things have reached this point, and the next thing to consider may be to speculate on how the opponent will react, and how to deal with it.
(End of this chapter)
Gao Qiaonan was on a high slope about half a mile away from the temporary camp of the Ming army. He used binoculars to confirm that several riders had left the main force and headed northwest separately.He could roughly guess that the purpose of the other commander's doing this was to report the police to Dengzhou City and ask for help, but these riders of the Ming Army obviously did not take the same route, and it would be too difficult to intercept them all.
This mountainous area has a radius of tens of miles, and it is a little easier to guess the marching route of the large army. After all, there are still a lot of luggage and wounded in the army, and there are certain requirements for the passage conditions.But there were too many routes for these cavalrymen acting alone, not to mention that there were only two hundred people around Gao Qiaonan, even if there were ten times more people, it might not be able to block all the mountain roads leading to Dengzhou City.However, Gao Qiaonan had no cavalry under his command, and it was not practical to catch up with the opponent's horseback riding. Therefore, he did not order to pursue the Ming army's cavalry, but stepped up to complete the control of the area near the Ming army's temporary position.
Twilight was approaching, Gao Qiaonan knew that the opponent was unlikely to choose to march overnight after continuous fighting, so most of the Ming army would camp here for one night, and set off after dawn.And for him, this means that there is a whole night to make a fuss and slowly clean up the Ming army.
Gao Qiaonan estimates that it is about [-] or [-] miles away from Dengzhou, and the mountainous area accounts for about half of it. After leaving the mountainous area, it will be difficult for the special warfare battalion to attack the Ming army in the same way as before.As for whether the friendly troops outside the mountainous area can rush ahead to block the Ming army's way out of the mountain, Gao Qiaonan is not at all sure. After all, it is too close to Dengzhou, and overly ostentatious actions are likely to deepen the relationship with the Dengzhou government. Misunderstanding, and this is not the result Haihan wanted.
Tomorrow, there is less than forty miles of mountain road left for the special operations battalion to operate.Takahashi Minami believes that after reflecting on today's setbacks, the opposing commander will probably not advance cautiously and slowly tomorrow.The longer they stay in the mountains and forests, the more attacks they will suffer. Under the current circumstances, the best way to escape should be to rush out of the mountains and leave this inconvenient environment for defense and counterattack as soon as possible.
If the opponent chooses such a coping strategy, it will definitely be impossible for Gao Qiaonan's team to intercept the Ming army. It is best to hurt the owner.After a brief discussion with several officers under his command, Takahashinan decided not to wait until the next day, and to strike overnight, taking advantage of the exhaustion of the Ming army physically and mentally, before recovering its physical strength, to give the Ming army a fatal blow.
At midnight, Gao Qiaonan personally led the team to touch the secret sentries outside the Ming army camp.These dark sentries were observed by the Haihan army with telescopes when they were deployed before dark, so instead of serving as an early warning in the dark night, they became living targets.
In fact, the locations of these secret whistles were carefully selected. They were all on the branches of trees several meters high.However, Takahashinan had his own trick to deal with this kind of hidden whistle from high places. He sent several people to slowly approach its position from different directions. After approaching within ten meters, one of them made a noise to attract his attention, and the others The people directly used crossbow arrows to shoot at the secret sentry.
This method of feeling the whistle was taught by Qian Tiandun before, and it has been kept as a compulsory subject of the special warfare battalion until now. Most soldiers in the same squad have trained this routine together, and they can cooperate without temporary drills.After solving the two hidden posts, the route to the Ming army camp from the south was opened.
Because it was a night attack, Takahashi Minami was also worried that if the scene was too chaotic after the battle started, he would accidentally injure his own people, so he simply gathered his subordinates together and prepared to launch an offensive from the same direction.In this way, in the dark night, they will not be confused, and it will be convenient for Takahashi Minami to command in unison.
Gao Qiaonan did not intend to fight with the Ming army. This time, his desired effect was to defeat the Ming army in the shortest possible time, so all members used rifles to fight.However, everyone has also mounted bayonets in advance and is ready for hand-to-hand combat.
Guo Xingning has been feeling inexplicable anxiety since dark, obviously the Haihan people have stopped attacking, but he always feels that something is wrong.Guo Xingning thought that it was unlikely that the Haihan people would withdraw their troops suddenly when the battle was going smoothly. Maybe they were hiding in the dark and plotting some other conspiracy. He called his officers to discuss the marching route for the next day, and went back and forth several times. Battalion returned to the tent to rest.
After this day's tossing, although Guo Xingning did not fight in person, he was already exhausted, and fell asleep in a daze as soon as his head touched the pillow.I don't know how long I slept, but suddenly I heard the sound of firecrackers shooting outside the tent in my sleep.
Guo Xingning sat up in shock and heard someone outside the tent exclaiming. He knew it might be a night attack from the Haihan people, so he quickly got up.Because he was worried about something happening at night, he didn't take off his clothes, shoes and socks when he fell asleep. At this time, he grabbed his saber and hurried out of the tent, just in time to bump into an officer who came to report.
Guo Xingning asked anxiously, "But the enemy attacked the camp?"
The officer replied: "My lord, the enemy army came in from the south, and all the weapons they used were firecrackers. Brothers were unprepared, and many people have been killed or injured!"
Guo Xingning yelled angrily, "Didn't the sentry in the south give warning?"
The officer said anxiously: "I don't know why there is no news from the secret post outside the camp. When the enemy is found, they have already entered the camp! Now it is a battle or a retreat, please give me an order!"
This Ming army temporarily camped in the mountains and forests, and there was no time to build any fortifications. They just deployed some secret sentries at a certain distance outside the camp, leaving room for response after warning.After the secret sentry was touched by the Haihan army, only the sentries on duty at the edge of the camp were left, but when these sentries warned, the Haihan army had already rushed to the front, and they were knocked down by random guns as soon as the gong was sounded.And the sleeping Ming army in the camp woke up without knowing it, and it was difficult to organize immediately to launch a defensive counterattack.
Guo Xingning saw that the routs kept fleeing from the camp in the south, and knew that it was almost impossible to gather the routs in this dark night, not to mention that they were being ravaged by the Haihan army over and over again throughout the day today. The soldiers under his command had long since lost the sense of resistance, and even if they could be gathered together, it would be difficult for them to continue fighting the Haihan people in the current situation.
Before Guo Xingning could make a final decision, a group of his personal soldiers had rushed over, carried him onto the horse no matter what happened, and then led the horse and quickly retreated to the north with the rout soldiers.These people were not only worried about Guo Xingning's personal safety, but part of the reason was that they were afraid that if their master had a headache for a while, if he wanted to order a decisive battle with the Haihan people, all his followers would be trapped here and buried with him.
Guo Xingning knew that the general situation was over, and he did not express any objection to the arrangement of the soldiers. Now, what else can he do besides fleeing for his life?If he really fought for his life with the Haihan people in this place, he would die in battle. If he was captured alive by the Haihan people and threatened the Dengzhou government with his own life, wouldn't it be a great shame and shame.Whether public or private, Guo Xingning had to save his own life, so he fled back to Dengzhou City first.
The continuous gunshots from the south drove the Ming army to flee northward in the dark like a talisman. Some people fled into the woods in a panic and quickly separated from the team, losing their way forward.There are also people who are physically exhausted and fall to the ground after running.
Guo Xingning's luck was not much better, because he was worried that he would attract pursuers, and he didn't dare to light a torch to light the road. In the end, he escaped for more than a mile, and his horse's hoof stepped into a pit and broke his leg.The distraught Guo Xingning also fell off his horse, but fortunately, he was followed by his own soldiers, but he was not injured, but the horse that had been with him for several years could not be taken away.
At that moment, the soldiers changed Guo Xingning's horse and continued to move forward, but he stumbled in the exact same way after not running very far. It was really bad luck.Now that there was no spare horse by his side, Guo Xingning could only choose to escape on foot with his men.
The raid launched by the Haihan army at night was very smooth, even exceeding Gao Qiaonan's expectations. He originally thought that the Ming army would resist symbolically, but after the battle, he found that the opponent had no intention of fighting at all. It was the decision to flee when the enemy was found to be attacking.
Takahashi Nan was still afraid of being cheated, so he didn't dare to let go to pursue him. He still commanded the troops to open the way with musket formations and advance layer by layer. It wasn't until the Ming army camp was wiped out that he realized that the opponent had not set up any ambushes inside or outside the camp. , but really just ran away regardless.Takahashi Nanda felt regretful, and hurriedly led his troops to continue the pursuit.However, they have an advantage in playing the role of chasing soldiers, that is, they don’t have to worry about exposing their whereabouts, and they can light torches to illuminate the way forward, which will be slightly faster than the Ming army fleeing in the dark.
But in the dark night, there was no way to find out which direction the enemy general was fleeing to. Gao Qiaonan could only judge the retreat direction of the main force of the Ming army from the various weapons and supplies discarded by the defeated soldiers, and then headed in this direction. chase down.As for whether he can catch up with the enemy's main general, it can only depend on luck.
The two groups were one in front and the other in the back, separated by less than a mile. Those who were fleeing in front could see the torches of the chasing soldiers as long as they turned their heads, and they didn't dare to stop at all, and the Haihan army behind them refused to let it go. That's it. Reluctantly falling behind and chasing after.
After fleeing for almost two hours, a small river more than five feet wide appeared in front of the exhausted Ming army. In the dark night, they didn't know how deep and urgent the water was. At first, the few people who jumped down in a panic did not seem to swim to the other side. It disappeared into the river, and those who followed did not dare to follow into the water, so they could only wait for the officer's order.But Guo Xingning was not worried but happy when he heard the news. He remembered that there was such a small river on the way back to Dengzhou from the current escape route. As long as you walk along the river bank to the west downstream, there are many villages there. There will be a bridge to cross the river.
Sure enough, after the Ming army marched down the river bank for about two miles, they found a stone bridge across the river. Everyone was overjoyed and hurriedly set foot on this escape route.Guo Xingning was also relieved, because according to the signs on the map, after crossing this river, there would be plains to the north, and the distance to Dengzhou City was less than [-] miles away, so he could try to warn the Ming army stationed nearby for help. .
Gaoqiaonan led his army to pursue here only a moment later, but the Ming army had already crossed the river and set off towards Dengzhou City. If the pursuit continued, the risk would be greater than fighting in the mountains. .Although Gao Qiaonan was not reconciled, he also knew that he could no longer pursue rashly at this time and this place, so he could only withdraw his troops resentfully.
Of course, this half-day and one-night battle was not fruitless. In addition to killing and wounding over a hundred Ming soldiers, they also captured about seventy or eighty prisoners of war during the pursuit, and most of them collapsed due to exhaustion on the way to escape.There were also a small number of captives who consciously escaped and surrendered from the mountains to save their lives.
Most of the flags, weapons, and supplies of this Ming army had been discarded during the escape. Gao Qiaonan asked his soldiers to collect all the useful items first when he returned the same way.Especially the various banners representing the troops and commanders of the Ming army. These things are proofs to ask for credit back to the headquarters.
Fearing that the superiors at the mining area would be waiting impatiently, Gao Qiaonan ordered his men to ride back to the mining area to report the news on the two horses they had seized on the way.This fight in the mountains and forests failed to trap the Ming army in the mountains due to the limited number of troops under Gao Qiaonan's command. Although there were quite a few gains, the opponent escaped in the end.
In order to launch a night attack last night, Takahashi Nan and his men did not rest almost all night. In order to save energy on the return journey, they stopped rushing so much.After walking for a full day, they stopped and rested five or six times on the way. They did not return to the mining area until evening and reported to Morgan and Chen Yixin.
Regarding the not-so-satisfactory results this time, Morgan and Chen Yixin did not blame Gao Qiaonan for his poor command. In fact, to get to the bottom of it, there were some mistakes in the deployment before the battle.If the army troops deployed near Guxian Town were transferred to the command of Gaoqiaonan, and only the cavalry battalion was left to harass the Ming army when they came, perhaps the Ming army who fled into the mountains would have no luck.Or make some noise in the forest on the flank of the battlefield in advance, so that the Ming army dare not withdraw from this direction, but choose to return directly to the original road, then concentrate the troops to Guxian Town to block the Ming army, and then A back-and-forth attack with the troops in the mining area will inevitably be better than the night-time pursuit of the Battle Camp.
But things have reached this point, and the next thing to consider may be to speculate on how the opponent will react, and how to deal with it.
(End of this chapter)