Chapter 1834: Hard to come, even harder to come back
Huang Taiji was not afraid that the Qing army would suffer casualties in the battle. After all, no one would die in a battle. Troops with real combat effectiveness are often brave and fearless of death. Moreover, in a confrontation with an opponent like Haihan, a large number of casualties would definitely be unavoidable. But if after thousands of soldiers died, let alone see the dawn of victory, or even the hope of changing the situation of the war, then it might be a different matter.
The Qing army is currently in such a predicament. The troops that are constantly pouring into the battlefield have disappeared in the roar of guns and artillery, and they still cannot achieve the combat goal of close combat with the Haihan army. At the current fighting distance, the Qing army could only suffer a one-sided massacre without even a chance to counterattack.
The essence of the Qing army's combat thinking is to exchange human lives for the advancement of the front line, and shorten the combat distance to face-to-face fighting before a real chance of victory will appear. However, this tactical thinking has long been seen through by the commander of the Haihan Army and modified. Taking advantage of it, a special battlefield like this was set up, allowing the Qing army to misjudge the situation and believe that they could rely on their superior strength to break through the Haihan position.
Of course, the thousands of casualties have not shaken the fundamental strength of the Qing army, but continuing to fight a war of attrition with no hope of victory is no longer part of the Qing army's plan for this expedition to North Korea. Huang Taiji hesitated for a moment after receiving the report from the front line, and finally ordered Ming Jin to withdraw his troops.
This round of fighting was much shorter than the previous battle, and the Qing army's casualties were nearly half less than last time. The Haihan generals originally expected that the Qing army would have to pay the price of tens of thousands of casualties. They will consider calling it quits, but this moment will obviously come sooner than they expected. Qian Tiandun was also a little surprised by this. He even suspected that this was done deliberately by the Qing army, hoping to lure the Han army into pursuit and then fight back.
"Withdrawal? The enemy is withdrawing now?" Jin Sangxian shivered and held on to the guardrail of the watchtower. He couldn't believe his eyes. Why did the Qing army suddenly withdraw its troops when the battle was still in full swing? Of course he hopes that the Qing army can evacuate his country as soon as possible, but he also hopes that the Haihan army can inflict heavy losses on the Qing army in the battle as they promised. Today's battle situation is not even as fierce as the last round, which makes Yixin want to Watching the fun, Kim Sang-hyun couldn't help but feel a little disappointed.
"It seems they were killed too hard!" Qian Tiandun could only use this as an explanation for the Qing army's withdrawal from the battlefield. However, he was not dissatisfied with Gao Qiaonan's on-the-spot command. Once the defense line was breached by the Qing army, the base would be destroyed. Thousands of coalition troops and nearly 10,000 refugees must have suffered heavy casualties. In this kind of life-and-death situation, there is no room for any oversights. Takahashi Minami's arrangement is actually a very safe approach.
Of course, even though the Qing army withdrew from the battlefield, they did not necessarily have to retreat all the way to Liaodong. They might rest for two or three days before launching the next round of offensive. But Qian Tiandun could already feel from the Qing army's active retreat that the opponent's fighting spirit was waning bit by bit. Perhaps after this battle was over, the opponent would be ready to pack up and go home.
"I think the naval forces can be assembled and ready to go." Wang Tom, who watched the whole battle, was more direct. He believed that the Qing army took the initiative to withdraw its troops before tens of thousands of people entered the battlefield, which fully demonstrated the command. official's attitude. The Qing army is likely to choose to withdraw its troops from North Korea next, which means it is the navy's turn to take action.
Qian Tiandun had no objection to this, but he still requested that the three fleets of Annan, Portugal and Fujian Navy should continue to be stationed in the Datong River to prevent the Qing army from secretly crossing Chencang.
The current situation is far from the defeat of the Qing army that Haihan expected. Although the Qing army lost thousands of people on the banks of the Datong River, most of its main force structures were retained, and no senior generals were defeated in the battle. There are no losses, so the situation of the entire army is relatively stable, and even if the troops withdraw, it is unlikely that chaos and loss of control will occur.
In this case, the army did not dare to leave its position rashly to pursue the Qing army. On the contrary, it was safer for the navy to go around to the north and use the river environment to intercept. Moreover, compared with the position on the bank of the Datong River that took more than two months to build, the navy's combat environment faced fewer risks, and it was far easier to intercept the Qing army than the army.
So while the Qing army withdrew its troops and returned to camp, Wang Tom issued an order for all naval personnel, including the Marines, to assemble in the dock area and prepare to set off. The dozen Haihan warships that were still patrolling the upper reaches of the Datong River had to rush back to the base immediately after receiving the order to join the operation to go north and outflank the Qing army's retreat.
There was no movement at the Qing army camp that day, and there was no major reaction to the Haihan reconnaissance cavalry that began to appear sporadically nearby. But the more calm it became, the more Haihan believed that the Qing army was planning to retreat.
The actual situation was exactly the same. After the Qing army withdrew its troops and returned to camp, Huang Taiji summoned the generals to announce his decision to give up the war with Haihan and withdraw his army into the country.
This can be said to be a rare situation in the Qing army's foreign military operations in recent years. Although the war against the Ming Dynasty often ended with the Qing army retreating on its own, it was usually because the Qing army had plundered enough people, money and food in the Ming Dynasty. Leaving in a swaggering manner with the spoils of war is completely different from leaving in disgrace after a defeat.
Of course, if the Haihan people had not appeared on the Korean battlefield at an untimely time, the Qing army's victory would have continued without any suspense, and North Korea would have become another victim of the fall under the iron heel of the Qing army.
They retreated if they couldn't defeat them. The Qing army didn't have any special resistance to this. At most, they were a little discouraged by such a complete defeat. On the contrary, many troops who had not been put into the battlefield were secretly grateful that they could return home alive without having to risk their lives fighting the Haihan Army.
"Evacuate overnight to avoid long nights and dreams!" Huang Taiji was very decisive after making up his mind, not wanting to leave the Haihan Army a chance to pursue them one after another.
But in fact, the operational efficiency of the Qing army still could not meet his requirements. Tens of thousands of people had to assemble and set off at night, and they could not make too much noise to avoid disturbing their opponents. This was a problem for the Qing army who belonged to different tribes. It's not an easy task. The only troops that could actually evacuate overnight were a few Niulu who served as the vanguard battalion. The rest of the large forces basically set off from the camp after the sky became dark. It was basically impossible to hide this movement from the opponent.
When Qian Tiandun woke up in the morning, he received the latest report on the Qing army's movements. At this time, Wang Tom had already gone to the dock and was preparing to lead the fleet to set off. Although the navy's warships have not yet been assembled in place, Wang Tom can no longer wait. If he does not seize the time to set off, the best fighter plane may be delayed. Gao Qiaonan was already waiting outside Qian Tiandun's residence, waiting for his instructions on whether to lead his army to pursue the retreating Qing army. For the Independent Regiment, the mission to North Korea took several months, but it was only in the past few days that it was their turn to go into battle. Although they killed a lot of enemies, it was just two battles. , of course, cannot satisfy the independent group who are eager to fight.
Qian Tiandun shook his head slightly and said: "Don't worry, the Qing army is not in chaos yet, and the risk of pursuit is too great. Wait a little longer, and when the Qing army is stopped by the naval fleet in the north and cannot return, then we can go over and chase them away. One trip.”
After Qian Tiandun finished speaking, he saw that Gao Qiaonan did not take the order and leave immediately. He knew that he probably still had some ideas, so he immediately smiled and said: "Let the scout cavalry keep a closer eye, and send two infantry companies to hang behind, pay attention to maintain safety." distance, don’t let the Qing army counterattack!”
Gao Qiaonan has followed Qian Tiandun for many years, and he can roughly understand his boss's intentions after receiving orders. The reconnaissance cavalry is responsible for approaching the Qing army to monitor the movements of the Qing army, while the infantry company hanging behind is responsible for waiting for opportunities to clean up the scattered Qing soldiers who have fallen behind - this is most likely the Qing army deliberately leaving behind to monitor the Haihan army. Moving people.
The Haihan Army's reconnaissance operations are never one-way. While collecting military information and monitoring the enemy's movements, they must also try to block the enemy's reconnaissance operations against themselves. If the independent regiment wants to leave its position and launch an active pursuit of an enemy whose strength is more than ten times its own, it must not let the enemy know its own movements in advance. Otherwise, if the Qing army mobilizes tens of thousands of cavalry, It's enough to make the independent regiment fighting in the field drink a pot. What's worse is that the Qing cavalry took advantage of their mobility and directly bypassed the independent regiment to attack the Datong River base. Not only would all their previous efforts be wasted, but it would also give the Qing army a chance to turn the entire battle around.
As the commander-in-chief of the army in the Korean battlefield, Qian Tiandun naturally could not let his troops make such low-level mistakes. Therefore, although he was reassured about Gao Qiaonan's military qualities, he still gave a few extra words of advice to let Gao Qiaonan Be careful with the retreating Qing troops.
Although the frontal battlefield confrontation between the two armies seems to have come to an end, for the scouts, their battlefield is located outside the Datong River position. The scouts in the independent regiment are basically selected and trained by Qian Tiandun himself. In addition to basic training subjects, they are also specially sent to cavalry, artillery, sniper, navy and other arms to receive a variety of training to ensure that They have the ability to collect necessary military information for other arms, and can be said to be the elite of the independent regiment.
And its individual equipment is almost at the top level in the army. The mounts are specially supplied by the war horse base on Hainan Island. The rifles, pistols, sabers and telescopes are all special models customized in small batches. All kinds of backpacks and field supplies are also available. It was designed and built by Qian Tiandun himself. All the equipment was not for sale, and its actual value was difficult to simply calculate using currency.
From the snow-capped dense forests of Liaodong to the year-round hot islands of the South China Sea, they were all the activities of the independent regiment's scouts. Their ability to adapt to the environment is probably unparalleled in the entire Haihan Army. Such an elite group, whether Qian Tiandun or Gao Qiaonan, had great trust in their abilities, so they dared to give them the task of approaching and monitoring the Qing army.
Of course, it is said to be close surveillance, but considering that there are a large number of roving activities outside the large Qing army, the limited number of scouts must first ensure their own safety. In fact, they still maintain at least five points of contact with the Qing army. A distance of six miles. Fortunately, each of them is equipped with a telescope, so this distance will not cause much obstacle to their reconnaissance.
As for those Qing army rangers who try to get close to them, the scouts will not take the initiative to fight with them because of their excellent equipment. They know very well that their mission is to detect the enemy's situation, not to capture the enemy's head. When they sense that an enemy rider is approaching, they will take the initiative to distance themselves and move closer to their companions. If a group of enemy cavalry leaves the main force and wants to drive them away, the scouts will choose to lead them to the rear - there are infantry units hanging behind ready to meet them a few miles away.
The Qing army was not surprised by the Haihan reconnaissance cavalry following them. This was a strategy that any opponent would adopt, even if it was the Korean army that had been beaten by itself and was unable to fight back. As the Qing army moved south, There have always been scouts operating nearby, but no Haihan people have gotten so close.
The rangers responsible for monitoring the enemy's movements on the periphery will report the military situation to the Chinese army where Huang Taiji is located every hour. Huang Taiji is actually somewhat ambivalent about whether the Haihan Army will pursue pursuit actions. On the one hand, he certainly does not want to withdraw. After the action was bitten by the Haihan Army, the march speed was slowed down, which caused more trouble. On the other hand, he felt that the Haihan Army might choose to go out in full force in pursuit of greater results. In that case, the Qing army would still You can have the opportunity to take a detour to find a camp and destroy its stronghold to change the direction of the war.
However, after the army set off and marched for dozens of miles, Huang Taiji still had no news that Haihan's army was pursuing him. He felt a huge sigh of relief and was slightly disappointed.
At this time, the Haihan Navy fleet had sailed out of the Datong River Estuary and headed north at full speed. In order to ensure that he could reach the scheduled combat location ahead of the main force of the Qing army, Wang Tom even ordered several large-tonnage warships in the fleet to turn on the steam power systems on the ships and rush to the local area ahead of the large forces.
Although the main force of the Qing army had moved south, a small number of soldiers and horses were stationed in various conquered towns along the way, and Koreans were recruited locally to build ships and rafts day and night. The Qing army did not intend to rely on these improvised vehicles to compete with the Haihan fleet, but to solve the problem of insufficient logistics capacity. Of course, these vehicles will also play a great role when the Qing army withdraws its troops into the country.
Prior to this, Haihan deliberately gave control of several rivers in the north to the Qing army in order to allow them to move south confidently and boldly. If it were not for the feelings of the Koreans, Haihan might even have put the Qing army all the way to the Han River and launched a counterattack. For Haihan, the naval fleet can regain control of these rivers at any time. If the Qing army crosses one more water vein when it invades, it will pay countless more casualties when it retreats.
(End of chapter)