Chapter 1819 The battle situation is tense
After being repeatedly squeezed by Haehan many times, to be honest, the North Korean treasury does not have much oil and water so far. The gold in stock has long been less than a thousand taels. Part of the military expenses previously given to Haehan was Kim Sang-heon. Some wealthy businessmen and landowners who called on the south to support the war faction pieced together a piece of cake. Now that he has to get another thousand taels of gold to save the war, Kim Sang-hyun certainly doesn't expect to get a few cents out of the national treasury. He will probably have to rely on his old face to beg for help from the public.
Even though Kim Sang-hyun holds a high and influential position in North Korea's officialdom, when it comes to such a practical situation as spending large sums of money, he still has to spend a lot of effort to raise a thousand taels of gold. But if the war situation continues to be defeated like this, I am afraid that the financial backers in the south will not be able to hold on for too long - if they can't defeat the Qing army despite spending a lot of money, then why not just surrender and give the money to the Qing army? At least that way It can also reduce the amount of hatred and keep the whole family safe.
Jin Sangxian gritted his teeth and replied: "I can try to raise military expenses, but the Qing army's offensive must be effectively slowed down. Otherwise, the hearts of the people in the country will fluctuate, and it will be difficult for me to persuade His Majesty to continue to take a tough stance against the Qing Dynasty. The difficulty is , I hope General Qian will forgive me!”
Kim Sang-hyun really didn't mean to complain. The main war faction he led was not having an easy time nowadays. Since the Haihan fleet withdrew from the Yalu River, the Korean army had almost no victories. Since the battle with the Qing army, it had retreated hundreds of miles. And looking at the current situation, we have to continue to shrink the defense zone southward. This is naturally not a situation that the government and the opposition are happy to see. The other faction in the officialdom, which advocated negotiating peace with the Qing Dynasty and protecting the country, had originally ceased its activities with the arrival of the Haihan Army, but now it has started to make noise again, trying to leverage the status of Kim Sang-heon's faction in North Korean officialdom.
Although King Yi Zhu had great trust in Kim Sang-hun and even paid a lot of money to ask Haihan to send troops, what Haihan did now is actually equivalent to defeating North Korea, and North Korea's own army was completely unable to withstand the Qing offensive. . As the leader of the war faction, he has been away from the capital for a long time. Under the constant persuasion of the peace faction officials, the king's will may not remain as firm as before. At this time, it is really necessary to change the direction of the war, and at least let the king see a glimmer of hope so that the cooperative relationship between the two parties can continue.
Why didn't Qian Tiandun understand what the other party meant? One of the purposes of the Haihan Fleet's withdrawal from the Yalu River and the release of the Qing army into the DPRK was to make the Korean monarchs and ministers realize that they could only rely on external forces to complete the cause of resisting the Qing Dynasty. Now it seems that the effect is quite good, and the new Datong Jiang base also needs more construction time to complete the most important defense line and dock projects. Then it is time to take action to block the Qing army heading south. Of course, the money that should be collected still needs to be collected. Even if it is a credit account, the funds must be raised first.
"Master Jin, I understand your difficulties. Let's do this. We will arrange an armed fleet to enter the Daning River Basin as soon as possible to prevent the Qing army from crossing the river to attack Anzhou City. But the required military expenditure and material support also hope Your country can arrive in time. After all, you have to ask other countries to send troops to fight. Only when the conditions are laid out will they be willing to fight. Is this true, Mr. Jin said? "
"Yes, yes, General Qian, everything you said is right!" Kim Sangxian didn't seem to be perfunctory after hearing Qian Tiandun's words, so he immediately responded first. Only after resolving the current crisis can he secure his position. Even though he was cheated by Haihan once before, he still firmly believes that Haihan Army is the real savior of North Korea.
After seeing off Jin Sangxian, Qian Tiandun personally used the radio to contact Wang Tom who was far away on the Liaodong coast, explained to him the progress of the Qing army in North Korea and Jin Sangxian's situation, and informed him of his plans.
As soon as Xu Yuzhuo fell asleep, his subordinates came to inform him that Wang Tom invited him to discuss matters. Xu Yuzhuo knew that Wang Tom was a very pragmatic person, and he must have something serious to discuss with him at this point where he should be sleeping. He quickly got up and took the transportation boat to the flagship where Wang Tom was.
"I know that General Xu has been waiting for the opportunity to fight. Now I need a fleet to go to the Daning River in North Korea, block the Qing army's route across the river, and hold on there for more than ten days. General Xu, are you willing to take this Mission? ”
Wang Tom explained the situation to Xu Yuzhuo straight to the point and observed his reaction without leaving any trace. If Xu Yuzhuo hesitates to refuse, then Wang Tom may call Xi Mang and Zheng Ting again for advice to see who has the strongest desire to fight, and then consider the allocation of combat tasks.
Xu Yuzhuo thought about it for a moment and then decisively agreed: "I would like to lead the army there!"
"Okay! Then make some arrangements and set off as soon as possible. I will ask the North Korean side to arrange a guide who is familiar with the local area to meet you near the mouth of the Daning River." Wang Tom paused and then warned: "Remember, at least block the The Qing army will wait for ten days, the longer it takes, the better! After a few more sweeps in Liaodong, the coalition fleet will return to Korea. Then we will attack in multiple directions. Let’s see how long the Qing army can hold out!”
Xu Yuzhuo was completely sleepless. After returning to his ship, he immediately informed his subordinates that all ships were ready to set off. Although the scale of the Fujian Navy's fleet going north this time is not large, its combat effectiveness is actually quite impressive. Not only is it equipped with several warships produced by Haihan, but most of the sailors on board are veterans with rich experience in maritime combat. To deal with the Qing army, which has basically zero armament on the water, there is actually not much risk - at least Xu Yuzhuo currently holds this view.
From the current position of the Fujian Navy to the mouth of the Daning River in North Korea, the straight-line distance is only one hundred nautical miles. It can be reached in a day and a night at full speed, and it is fully capable of being ahead of the Qing army.
However, when Xu Yuzhuo led his troops to the destination and received the guides prepared by North Korea, they realized that the geographical conditions here were indeed very suitable for the tactics mentioned by Wang Tom.
In fact, there is not only one water vein between Dingzhou and Anzhou, but also the Qingchuan River. These two rivers share the same outlet to the sea. The location of Anzhou City is actually on the southeast side of the Qingchuan River. This means that there are actually two natural chasms in front of the Qing army. They need to cross two rivers before they can launch a direct attack on Anzhou City. .
According to the guide, the warships of the Fujian Navy were navigable within fifty or sixty miles of the two rivers, which gave Xu Yuzhuo a very large space for movement. Coupled with the experience accumulated from traveling up and down the Yalu River some time ago, Xu Yuzhuo believes that he is fully capable of exceeding the tasks assigned by Wang Tom.
One day after the Fujian Navy entered the Daning River, the Qing Army's Pioneer Battalion also arrived at the riverside. But they explored for twenty miles upstream and downstream, but could not find even a small fishing boat, because the Fujian Navy had already rushed ahead to collect all the fishing boats that could be found on the river. Even the fishing villages along the river knew how to sail a boat. All the fishermen also moved to the other side of the Daning River. Such measures were indeed very effective for the Qing army, which basically had no naval establishment. When they could not obtain ships to cross the river, the Qing army could only resort to the next best thing, felling trees and building rafts, trying to use primitive vehicles to cross the river. Cross the Daning River. But after they spent a day building dozens of rafts, they discovered that a row of warships bearing the banner of the Ming Army appeared on the river. Officers who had spent time in Jiulian City quickly identified that these Ming warships seemed to have participated in the Haihan Fleet's blockade of the Yalu River.
Seeing the enemy warships cruising on the river, the raft was naturally unable to be launched into the water to die. The Pioneer Battalion had no choice but to give up the idea of quickly crossing the Daning River and began to think about how to get this eyesore of the Ming Dynasty fleet away from here.
The safest approach is of course to go upstream and find another crossing point. After all, the number of warships in the Ming fleet is limited, and the length of the river that can truly effectively blockade is also limited. As long as the Qing army has the patience to expand its formation, they will eventually be able to cross the river. Able to find a safe place to cross the river.
But the disadvantages of this are also obvious. In order to avoid the Ming fleet, they could only try to go around from the upper reaches. However, according to the information the Qing army obtained from the local population, the Daning River was more than 40 miles upstream. It has entered a mountainous area, and there are even huge lakes in between. It is not until nearly a hundred miles upstream that there is terrain that is more suitable for crossing the river and cannot be reached by Ming army warships.
If it was just a pioneer camp, it would be a detour, and it would only delay the trip for two days at most. But if the main force of the subsequent Qing army had to make such a large circle to cross the river, the delay might be more than two or three days. To get to the upstream crossing point, one needs to pass through a mountainous area covering an area of nearly 100 square kilometers. This path alone basically eliminates the possibility of the army taking a detour.
"How come there is another Ming army coming out!" Huang Taiji, who had already arrived in Dingzhou, was furious after hearing the news. Before the army set off from Jiulian City, it was blocked by the Haihan fleet for more than half a month. Unexpectedly, This scene happened again in North Korea. And judging from the reports from the front, it may not be easy to break through the Ming army's water blockade.
The Qing army's record against the Ming army has always been more wins than losses, and the psychological advantage is quite sufficient. However, the so-called victory results are basically the results of battles on land, and the record of battles with the Ming Navy is not so impressive. When the Ming army in Dongjiang Town was still stationed in Pidao, they relied on a navy composed of a group of remnants to deal with the Hou Jin army at that time for several years. If Shang Kexi hadn't rebelled and defected to Houjin, the Ming army in Dongjiang Town would have had even greater advantages at sea.
The Ming fleet that came to Korea this time to fight obviously had the support of Haihan. According to the intelligence possessed by the Qing army, this fleet was most likely the Fujian Navy from the south, and its commander Xu Xinsu was also the only local warlord among the coastal provinces of the Ming Dynasty who had close contacts with Haihan early on.
Fortunately, it seems that no trace of the Haihan fleet has been found in the Daning River basin. This means that the Haihan people have not yet directly participated in this interception operation. Of course, if the Qing army is blocked by the Daning River for too long, the Haihan army may break out at any time. Huang Taiji does not dare to be patient and wait for the Ming army in this place. He must try to do it as soon as possible. Just break through this natural chasm.
Huang Taiji himself couldn't think of any effective way, otherwise he wouldn't have been stuck in Jiulian City for so long. He could only convey the order to his generals and ask them to break through the Ming army's defense line as soon as possible. Cross the Daning River.
The effect that this vague military order could achieve was that the Qing army's cross-river troops assembled by the river attracted artillery fire from the Fujian Navy. Although the Qing army also used its own artillery to fight back, it failed to cause much damage to the Ming army's warships on the river. On the contrary, many people were injured by the Ming army's artillery.
In addition to confronting the Ming fleet troops on the river bank, the Qing army also decisively took advantage of the opportunity to attract the Ming army's firepower and dispatched more than 3,000 troops upstream to try to cross the river from multiple places at the same time.
Xu Yuzhuo was actually aware of this trend of the Qing army. However, due to limited troops, he could only send a small number of warships to the upper reaches of the river to expel the small group of Qing troops who tried to cross the river. However, there were omissions in the process and the Qing army took advantage of it. It's inevitable. Fortunately, he had already contacted the North Korean garrison in Anzhou through his guide, and asked them to send 2,000 troops to the delta area between the Daning River and the Qingchuan River, specifically responsible for killing the small groups that slipped through the net. Qing army troops.
But even with superior strength, the Koreans' performance was still frightening, and there were even ridiculous scenes of hundreds of troops being chased by twenty or thirty Qing infantry. Xu Yuzhuo had communicated his intention clearly to the Anzhou garrison through an intermediary. If the garrison failed to live up to expectations and could not cooperate well with the battle, it would be able to hold off the Qing army for about ten days at most. But if the garrison could cooperate tacitly with the fleet, , then it is completely possible to cause some trouble for the Qing army in this area, or even give them a little taste of pain, and Anzhou may not be in danger.
Xu Yuzhuo saw very clearly that if the Koreans themselves were unwilling to resist the invasion of foreign enemies, then even if they handed over their entire fleet here, they would not be able to stop the Qing army from moving south. How the Anju interception battle will turn out depends to a certain extent on the performance of the North Korean army.
After two days of fighting, the Koreans seemed to realize that they could fight the Qing army with their natural dangers, so they began to send more troops to the delta area, and even assembled a team of 500 archers. The troops formed by hand went to the relatively narrow place on the river to defend the Qing army from crossing the river.
With the direct participation of the Korean army, it became increasingly difficult for the Qing army to cross the river. They had to continue to look for new crossing points upstream and use more dispersed crossing points to project troops to the other side of the Daning River. The efficiency of this method of combat is undoubtedly quite low. It is basically difficult for Qing soldiers who rely on rafts to land scatteredly to gather into a small force of more than a hundred people.
(End of chapter)