After the artillery troops targeted Yong'an Fort for two more rounds of intensive bombardment, it seemed to be completely quiet inside. The infantry unit that received the order started again and slowly advanced towards the gap opened on its east side.
If he hadn't considered saving ammunition, Sun Zhen would have wanted the artillery to level Yong'an Fort directly. But the fortress group here is too dense, and there is Shanhaiguan in the distance to fight, so we can't consume too many shells as soon as we come up.
Although the two smaller fortresses on the side and rear of Yong'an Fort tried to send troops for reinforcements, they were frustrated by the Haihan cavalry wandering on the flanks of the battlefield.
These cavalry are all equipped with short-bodied but powerful seven-shot rifles. They not only move fast but also have strong firepower, making them far more difficult to deal with than the Haihan infantry. Not far after the reinforcements here left the fortress, the Haihan cavalry came up to them and opened fire on them from dozens of feet away.
Although the Ming army also had bows, arrows and muskets, their range and accuracy could not be compared with the weapons of the Haihan army. Rather than counterattack, it was more appropriate to embolden themselves.
When they rushed to a closer place with rifle fire, the Haihan cavalry took the initiative to withdraw a certain distance and continued to use the range advantage of their weapons to suppress the Ming army.
After being beaten like a kite by the Haihan cavalry for two rounds, these Ming troops realized that a forceful charge was not an option. With their small strength, even if they finally rushed into Yong'an Fort, there would not be many people left. So after leaving more than twenty corpses behind, they withdrew in disgrace.
At this time, the vanguard troops also successfully entered Yong'an Fort. Although there were still a few survivors inside, they could no longer organize a decent resistance.
The Haihan Army would not show any mercy to those defenders who were still trying to resist. The orders they received were to resolve the battle as quickly as possible without considering the casualties of their opponents.
A dozen prisoners who were lucky enough to escape were quickly escorted to the rear and handed over to the Military Intelligence Bureau. These prisoners of war will be interrogated immediately, and if they provide useful information, their lives will most likely be saved.
Sun Zhen raised his wrist and looked at his watch. It took about an hour and a half to conquer Yong'an Fort. To him, this performance could only be regarded as satisfactory, not particularly outstanding.
However, considering that his troops had not fought a battle of this intensity for almost three years and needed some time to re-adapt to the battlefield, Sun Zhen felt that such results were acceptable.
The two small fortresses on the side and rear of Yong'an Fort are slightly less solid and have less garrison strength. However, the defenders still did not choose to evacuate. It seemed that they planned to hold on to the end.
The combat effectiveness of the Ming Dynasty's frontier army is actually not bad, but the problem is that most of its elite have been defeated by the Haihan Army a few years ago. Nowadays, the newly trained soldiers have a will, but they don't have much combat experience. They also lack the means to respond flexibly when facing the Haihan Army's offensive.
Such a small fortress group can indeed slow down the advancement of the Haihan Army, but it is difficult to cause heavy casualties to the Haihan Army. It just consumes more ammunition.
The Haihan Army still used the same offensive mode, using artillery to blast open the protective walls of the two small fortresses, and then allowed the infantry to gradually advance, while the cavalry provided cover on the periphery.
This time the Ming army no longer defended like Yong'an Fort. Seeing that the frontal defense line was broken and could no longer stop the Haihan army from attacking, the Ming army that could still move gave up their position and fled to the rear.
Sun Zhen's combat headquarters also moved forward and entered Yong'an Fort.
The place was in ruins, and there was hardly a well-preserved house in the fort. The engineers could only clear out a space among the ruins and set up a canopy tent to serve as the headquarters' office space. Sun Zhen didn't care about the rough environment. After the radio station was moved, he asked the communications troops to immediately set up the antenna and send a message to Chen Yixin to inform him of the latest developments here.
On the other side of the Bohai Bay, the situation of Sun Bing, commander of the Fifth Lu Division, was much easier than that of his colleagues.
There were only about two thousand Ming troops in Qingzhou, and the first few people who rushed to Shouguang County to fight were only a few hundred. Among them, only five cavalry were more mobile and could barely deal with the Haihan army. About one-third.
With such a small amount of troops mobilized by the Ming army, it was obviously impossible to stop the Haihan army from crossing the state and county and heading north.
After several useless attempts, the Ming army saw that they could not stop it, so they could only retreat two miles away to follow the Haihan army. This is not so much waiting for the opportunity to launch an attack, but more like escorting the Haihan army on the flanks to cross the border.
This behavior is not difficult to understand. Qingzhou must have received an order to stop the Haihan Army, but the generals leading the troops must have scruples. If they ignore it and fight hard, the local garrison may not be able to escape the result of annihilation.
In today's world, if you can have thousands of troops under your command, that is the capital to settle down and live in peace. After all, you are also a prince. If the family fortune is wiped out, the imperial court will not be able to find the money to reorganize a new army and hand it over to Qingzhou.
Besides, the location of Qingzhou was originally stuck on the dividing line between the control areas of the two countries, but there was no natural barrier to defend, so the Haihan Army would come over for a walk from time to time in the name of training. Qingzhou still belongs to the Ming Dynasty today, but it may become difficult to say in a few days. Offending Haihan is tantamount to cutting off one's own future.
Anyway, the Haihan Army had already sent news through secret channels. This time they were just passing through the border and would not attack the city of Qingzhou. Instead of fighting head-on with the Haihan Army, it would be better to just show off and report back to the court that after several days of hard fighting, the enemy troops had been driven out of Qingzhou and that would be it.
If we keep the troops we have, if things go wrong over time, we can at least have the capital to negotiate terms with Haihan.
As for the task of stopping the Haihan Army from moving north, Qingzhou couldn't stop it anyway. Whoever can stop it should do it. This credit must not be snatched away.
Sun Bing had already anticipated the reaction of the Qingzhou Ming Army. He only ordered to be on guard and had no plans to divide his troops to drive away these scattered Ming troops. Everyone had a tacit understanding and cooperated with each other to complete the scene.
He led his troops northward, and there were no key passes like Shanhaiguan to attack on the way, so there was no need to get too entangled with the Ming army stationed along the way.
Of course, if any Ming army was not afraid of death and insisted on rushing up to block the road, Sun Bing would not refuse to get more military exploits.
Sun Bing believes that the real battle may occur after leaving Qingzhou and entering the Jinan Prefecture.
The Yellow River that crosses Jinan Prefecture is one of the few natural dangers that the Ming army can defend. Once Sun Bing and his troops cross the Yellow River in Jinan Prefecture, there will be a vast plain ahead into Hebei, and there will be no dangerous ground to defend. If the Ming army planned to put up a decent resistance, they would definitely deploy defenses along the Yellow River.