Chapter 686 Attacking Heishandong
According to the situation reported by the prisoner, in addition to Heishandong, there were also two or three small Lidong in the nearby area who took orders from Zhao Ye. The total population was as many as three to four thousand, and young people accounted for about 30% of this number. half. However, the products of these caves are not rich. Just like the Fushan Cave that Haihan attracted when he first landed in Sanya, they are still at the level of slash-and-burn farming, and their grain output is only adequate. At present, there are still thousands of escaped prisoners in Shilu Mining Area, and it takes a lot of food to feed these people. Zhao Ye originally planned to obtain supplies here after capturing Shilu, but after this plan failed, the survival of the fugitives became an unavoidable problem.
After Qiao Zhiya listened carefully, he considered and said: "In other words, if these people follow Zhao Ye back to the Black Mountain Cave, the local area is likely to suffer from food shortages due to the sudden increase of thousands of mouths?"< br>
"According to the information available to the Ministry of Security, there is no record of large quantities of grain being transported to the Qiongzhong Mountains for sale in the past three or four months. Unless they store enough grain, the sudden increase of nearly 30% of outsiders will be enough to eat them in a short period of time. Destroy them." Lin Nan responded.
After Haihan achieved control over the main towns on Hainan Island, he included the bulk trading of salt, iron and grain into the scope of monitoring, so that he could regulate the supply and sales of these consumer goods related to people's livelihood when necessary. There is no corresponding record from the Ministry of Security, which means that the planners probably did not think too much about the consequences of the failure of the riot beforehand - of course, it is possible that they have already considered this, but given Li Dong's conditions, they cannot afford to purchase large quantities of grain. The required funds, or fear that such a move would attract Haihan's attention, were not implemented in the end.
Qiao Zhiya was silent for a moment, shook his head and said: "The executive committee probably won't have the patience to wait for two or three months before taking action. It may not be possible to wait for them to collapse on their own. You continue."
Lin Nan continued: "As for the location of Black Mountain Cave, according to the prisoners' confessions and the military map, the location is about eighty or ninety miles east of Shilu. The march will take two to three days."
This distance is actually not that far for marching and fighting, but considering that this distance is all mountainous and dense forests, large-scale military operations will indeed have certain difficulties in terms of supply and command.
Hearing this, Qiao Zhiya frowned and said, "Are there any villages or other places where we can stay?"
"No!" Lin Nan responded: "The nearest Limiao village that we have contact with is a hundred miles southeast of Heishandong, and it is even closer to Sanya."
"Then we can only do it forcefully." Qiao Zhiya was slightly disappointed. For a combat target that takes two days to travel, if there are villages and other places along the way, it can be used as a ready-made transit supply station, greatly reducing the pressure on logistical supplies.
However, Lin Nan was not from the military, and he was not very experienced in marching and fighting, so all he could do was provide intelligence, and the specific combat plan had to be formulated and implemented by Qiao Zhiya and the military personnel.
Although the environmental conditions were somewhat unfavorable, there were no conditions for soldiers to perform their missions. Qiao Zhiya quickly adjusted his mood and asked Li Qingyang: "Have you sorted out the physical characteristics of Zhao Ye?"
Li Qingyang bowed and responded: "I have already grasped this person's height and appearance. To ensure nothing is missed, I am willing to accompany the army into the mountains to search for this person!"
Qiao Zhiya gave Li Qingyang a meaningful look, a little suspicious of his true purpose. The order from the Ministry of Security did not arrange for them to accompany the army into the mountains. Li Qingyang took the initiative to volunteer, which inevitably made people wonder if he wanted to take credit for it. However, Li Qingyang himself seemed very calm and continued: "I am worried that Zhao Yeliu has some back-ups, or that there are still other parties on the island, so he must be interrogated as soon as possible after he is captured."< br>
There is some truth in Li Qingyang's words. Only people from Jin Yiwei can better grasp the rules of conduct of their colleagues. The reason why the Executive Committee responded so quickly this time is that it hopes to completely resolve this matter and not allow any more mistakes. It wouldn't be a problem if he had Li Qingyang with him. Qiao Zhiya nodded immediately and agreed to Li Qingyang's request.
In the next few days, various supplies, mules, horses, and people from all walks of life arrived in Changhua one after another, and then took a train to the Shilu Mining Area. The size of the troops assembled here is close to 2,000, and there are also hundreds of militiamen responsible for logistics. Considering the special environment of this battle, the military did not recruit ordinary civilians as it did in the past, but directly transferred a group of militiamen. Reserve militiamen came over to take charge of the baggage.
On September 25, Qiao Zhiya led the Annan Second Battalion, which had been adapted to Shilu for a week, to set off eastward into the mountains. Along with him, he was accompanied by the auxiliary Li Miao Company and the baggage mules and horses brigade that followed. This time, a total of more than 300 mules and horses were organized to transport baggage. A total of 275 mules and horses were organized in Danzhou and the Yinggehai Saltworks in the south, and were sent to Changhua by cargo ship and then to the Shilu Mining Area by train. The commotion was so big that even the mule and horse markets in Sanya and Qiongzhou Fucheng experienced price fluctuations. Fortunately, the target to be dealt with was located in the Qiongzhong Mountain Area, where there was little information. Otherwise, the news would have leaked out before the militia took action.
For Qiao Zhiya, only one week to get used to this team is too short. Fortunately, except for the content of daily training and the combat methods that this unit is good at, it is somewhat different from the local militia. The other establishments, command systems, etc. are of the same origin, so taking over the command is relatively smooth. Moreover, the acting battalion commander Ruan Xiangqian, who was born in Annan, did not slack off due to the change of his immediate boss, and still carried out every instruction issued by Qiao Zhiya extremely well.
Qiao Zhiya was also very pleased to find that the ability of this militia group to adapt to the mountain environment was indeed significantly better than that of their colleagues trained on Hainan Island. The militia troops previously stationed in Shilu would also organize mountain training at least once a month, but the marching speed alone was more than one step slower than the Annan militia. Qiao Zhiya even thought that if the first batch of troops that entered the mountain to pursue them that day were the Annan militia, the ambush in Heishandong might not be able to retain them.
Leading the way were three Montenegrin people who were arrested during the riot. After receiving the promise that they could save their lives, they chose to reveal the truth and assist Haihan in capturing Zhao Ye. Of course, even if they can save their lives, it is unlikely that they will ever be free again, and they will probably have to spend the rest of their lives in hard labor camps. In addition, it will be difficult for their homes to be preserved during this operation to suppress bandits in the mountains, but no one will take the initiative to tell them this. The three prisoners were escorted separately. The purpose of this was to prevent them from colluding with each other on the way and to verify whether the directions they pointed were consistent, thereby more appropriately ensuring the safety of the troops. However, the thugs who escaped from the Shilu Mining Area probably took this route, leaving obvious traces everywhere along the way. From this, Qiao Zhiya could infer that the situation at that time must have been chaotic, and Zhao Ye, the organizer of the organization, could not effectively direct these thugs to hide their whereabouts, so that their direction of travel was almost completely exposed to the Haihan Militia. under the field of vision.
Fortunately, apart from the slightly rugged terrain, there were no particularly difficult natural dangers along the way. Two days later, the leading troops responsible for reconnaissance and exploration had arrived at the sphere of influence of Black Mountain Cave.
Heishandong is located on a mountain plain in the Qiongzhong Mountains. The natural environment here is far superior to Fushandong in Tiandu and Shizidong in Shilu. Heishandong also cultivates more cultivated land here. Thousands of acres. The north of the plain is where the Songtao Reservoir on Hainan Island was later located, and is rich in water conservancy resources. Although the farming methods of these Li people are still very primitive, with such superior natural conditions, the food they can grow is definitely better than those in Li Dong that are really located on the mountains.
"No wonder these guys dare to make such a big fuss. It seems they are not very short of food!" Qiao Zhiya stood on a high place and used a telescope to observe the intertwined plains below the mountain: "If we really plan to wait for them to run out of food, then How long will it take? ”
The person Qiao Zhiya asked was Li Qingyang who was standing next to him, and his face was slightly embarrassed at this time. The inference of lack of food was made by him and Lin Nan after interrogating the prisoner, but it was obviously slightly different from the actual situation. But this did not faze Li Qingyang. He took half a step forward, bowed and responded: "Fortunately, the leader is wise and made accurate judgments. He was not misled by the wrong information provided by his humble position. I am very lucky!"
Qiao Zhiya smiled and said no more. Since Li Qingyang accepted this responsibility, he had achieved his purpose of raising points. Speaking of which, Li Qingyang was neither a local cadre nor a member of the military. Qiao Zhiya had no direct jurisdiction. He found too many faults and there was no need to offend the Ministry of Security later.
Qiao Zhiya ordered the troops to rest in place for two hours, and then marched towards the plain area. Taking advantage of this time, Qiao Zhiya asked the transport militia to cut down a lot of bamboo wood in the mountain forest and began to make the ladders needed to attack the village wall. When they were about five or six miles away from Heishandong Village, the team was finally discovered by the opponent. However, Qiao Zhiya had no intention of hiding his tracks and continued to march forward until he was still about one mile away from Heishandong Village. , only when the village gate could be seen, he ordered to stop.
"Tell your cave master and the people in the village to hand over the mastermind and all the prisoners who escaped here, and the people in Heishan Cave can save their lives. But I will only give you one hour to make a decision..." Qiao Zhiya raised his hand. Looking at the time: "The timer starts from now on. When the time is up, we will directly attack the stronghold. All those who resist will be regarded as a group of thugs. Okay, you go!"
Qiao Zhiya decided to be polite before fighting, and let a prisoner go back to convey Haihan's final warning. Of course, he did not forget to take advantage of this time to deploy some men to several roads around the village to prevent Zhao Ye from escaping again.
Heishandong's reaction was faster than he expected. About forty minutes later, a long bamboo pole stretched out from the gate of the village, and it seemed to be carrying something on it. Qiao Zhiya used a telescope to confirm and found that it was a human head. Although he couldn't see the face clearly, Qiao Zhiya could probably guess whose head it was. It was obvious that the prisoner's persuasion had no effect. Regardless of whether it was the master of Heishan Cave or Zhao Ye who chopped off his head, it seemed that the people in the village did not intend to surrender to Haihan.
"Get ready to fight!" Qiao Zhiya gave an order to Ruan Qianqian: "All those who resist will be resolutely attacked!"
"Yes!" Ruan Qianqian responded loudly. He understood very well what Qiao Zhiya meant by "fighting resolutely". In simple terms, it meant fighting to death.
In the weapons configuration of the Annan militia troops, each battalion has six to eight small-caliber artillery pieces, which can fire 3-pound shells or close-range shotguns. However, due to transportation problems, the troops entering the mountain this time only carried two small cannons. However, the performance of these two cannons was better than the models they used in the past. They were no longer the oldest cast iron cannons, but Bronze cannons that fire more frequently.
Since the opponent did not have any powerful long-range weapons, the militia army advanced unhurriedly to about two hundred meters outside the gate of the village, then stopped and began to set up artillery positions and at the same time build a fire line command post. The Li people in the village probably already knew the power of their opponent's firearms. They did not stupidly open the door and rush out to kill them. Instead, they chose to remain silent and not show their heads. They planned to rely on the stone walls to resist the offensive of the militia army. .
Qiao Zhiya asked the soldiers who understood Li language to shout with iron trumpets, but the response they received was only a few arrows shot from the wall. Seeing that the opponent's attitude was clear and his own positions were set up, Qiao Zhiya ordered the attack on Heishandong.
Two cannon shots opened the prelude to the battle. The shots were accurate. Both rounds directly hit the village gate. However, the gate's protection was not bad. Apart from causing the shells to splash a pile of sawdust, there was no damage. Obtain obvious results.
"Oh, the caliber is too small and the power is not enough!" Qiao Zhiya shook his head helplessly: "If there were a 12-pounder cannon, only one at this distance could blast through this wooden door!"
Of course, this can only be said. A twelve-pounder cannon is at least six or seven times heavier than a three-pounder cannon. Taking into account the shells and gunpowder required for launch, the increased baggage weight is almost ten times, and it is also difficult to transport. It is also much larger. A three-pounder can be carried by a pack horse, but a twelve-pounder must be transported on a wheeled device. There is simply no way to transport it from Shilu to the battlefield in a short time. Therefore, the only artillery that can be used here is the relatively lightweight three-pounder.
(End of chapter)