When the Ming army realized that the Haihan army had been prepared for this dawn battle, a large number of the cavalry rushing into the formation had fallen under the shelling. On the battlefield outside the camp, people were on their backs and their horses were in chaos.
However, the commander of the Ming army was also very decisive. When he saw that the situation was not good, he knew that this offensive would never be successful, and immediately ordered Ming Jin to withdraw his troops and get his troops out of the battle as soon as possible.
Sun Zhen was concerned about the large number of Ming cavalry, fearing that the opponent was deliberately showing weakness, so he did not order a pursuit out of the camp. He took the time to replenish ammunition for the artillery positions outside the camp and waited for the opponent's next reaction. But after waiting for a long time, the Ming army did not launch a second round of offensive, but quietly retreated.
In this short confrontation, the Haihan Army, as the defender, suffered no casualties, which was a pretty good result for Sun Zhen. In the current combat environment, there is no need to take risks to expand the results.
Of course, the most fundamental reason was that he was worried that the current fatigue of the Sixth Lu Division was not suitable for dealing with the Ming Army's cavalry units in the wild battlefield.
And although the Ming army retreated, it did not mean that their harassment war would stop. Perhaps another Ming army would come back in a few hours, and the Sixth Division must seize this precious time to rest and recuperate.
At least until the problem of medical shortage is solved, Sun Zhen should try his best to avoid allowing the troops to carry out high-intensity combat missions.
However, the Sixth Army Division's predicament did not last long. That afternoon, a naval infantry battalion from the Northern Fleet arrived at the Sixth Army Division's camp in the north of Tongzhou.
At the same time, escorted by the Haibu Battalion, there was also a batch of ammunition and medical supplies that the Sixth Army Division was in urgent need of.
Chen Yixin also knew that the Sixth Lu Division had suffered a series of fierce battles recently, and its combat effectiveness had declined significantly. The Ming Army's high-frequency raids and harassment battles had made it even more difficult to deal with. If it did not adjust in time, the northern front in charge of the Sixth Lu Division would be in danger. There is a possibility of collapse.
Although the combat power of the Haibu Battalion is not as powerful as that of the Marine Corps, it can also perform general combat missions. Especially for defensive tasks such as guarding positions and strongholds, the capabilities of the Haibu Battalion are not inferior to those of ordinary army units.
Moreover, the Haibu Battalion is not a lightly armed force. This time it brought eight small-caliber field guns, which was enough to build a separate fire barrier outside the camp.
Their arrival indeed solved an urgent need for Sun Zhen. Now that there is an extra battalion of rotatable troops, it will be relatively easier to deal with the Ming army's harassment battle.
Currently on the North China battlefield, although the Haihan Army has the upper hand, the pace of advancing the front has inevitably slowed down under the repeated attacks of more than 100,000 Ming troops regardless of the cost.
Moreover, as the front line gets farther and farther from the coast, the manpower and resources required to maintain logistical supplies also rise sharply. Just to prevent the Ming army from sneak attacks on the supply fleet, as many as 3,000 patrol teams were deployed along the transportation line.
At the same time, the number of second-line troops and militia groups deployed in various large and small cities in the newly occupied area has reached nearly 10,000. At least two-thirds of the militias on the Shandong and Liaodong peninsulas have been deployed into North China.
Yongshun Town on the Tonghui River in Tongzhou has now become the frontline command center and material distribution center of the Haihan Army.
Forty miles to the west from here is Chaoyang Gate in the east of Beijing. Forty miles to the north was the northern front established by the Sixth Division of the Lu Group between the Chaobai River and the Wenyu River. Langfang, eighty miles away in the south, is where the Fifth Lu Division is currently located.
The battle line against the capital has basically taken shape. The only problem is that the troops Chen Yixin can command are limited, and it is still somewhat stretched to deal with such a large geographical area. "It would be great if Boss Qian was still here!"
At this time, Chen Yixin couldn't help but think of Qian Tiandun, who had gone south to develop.
If Qian Tiandun is still in the north, he can at least help Chen Yixin share half of the pressure. Moreover, the combat effectiveness of the elite armed force under him is far beyond that of ordinary troops. If it can be put into the battlefield at this time, the Ming army will be defeated quickly. It will definitely be faster.
However, Qian Tiandun was thousands of miles away at the moment. Without the order of the Executive Committee, it was absolutely impossible for him to lead his troops back to the Northern Region.
Chen Yixin realized that it was easy to defeat the Ming army with the northern region's own armed forces alone, but to capture cities and achieve long-term occupation of vast areas, the existing force size was still obviously insufficient. In fact, It was somewhat beyond the expectations before the war.
However, Chen Yixin was really unwilling to submit a report to the Executive Committee to apply for the deployment of troops from the south for support. He had been preparing for this war for many years, spending countless energy and resources during this period. Except for Qian Tiandun, he did not want to share this huge credit with anyone.
Although the situation is a bit difficult now, it is still far from the upper limit of the Northern Region. If necessary, Chen Yixin can order further mobilization of the areas under his control, mobilize veterans to return to the army, and form a supplementary force of at least one division.
Of course, the consequences of this cannot be ignored. Many veterans hold various positions in local governments. If these people are transferred back to the army, the local area will inevitably be affected to varying degrees. Some local governments may even fall into a state of temporary paralysis. .
Chen Yixin would not use such a big move unless it was absolutely necessary.
However, there is also a lot of good news that has been delivered to Chen Yixin in the past two days. The Ming army has to maintain such a large combat force in Shuntian Mansion, and its logistical pressure is much greater than that of Haihan. There is intelligence that there are many Ming army supplies Supplies have been cut off, and even the population has begun to be plundered to maintain demand.
As the commander-in-chief of the army, Chen Yixin is well aware of the impact of logistical supplies on combat effectiveness. Once supplies are interrupted for a long time, the morale of the troops will also be hit. And these Ming army troops who lack supplies are the next best targets.
In the next few days, the Haihan army, which had completed a short rest, launched multiple attacks on multiple Ming armies stationed outside the capital.
Sure enough, several of the Ming armies quickly collapsed after the two armies came into contact, and they were obviously not ready for battle.
The troops led by Chen Yixin defeated the three Ming army garrison points in Guanzhuang, Ximazhuang and Balizhuang within two days. At least 20,000 Ming troops were completely defeated in the battle, and as many as three of them were captured. More than a thousand people.
Chen Yixin had to pause his advance and escort the prisoners to the rear in batches. At the same time, he extended the original supply line from the canal next to Yongshun Town to Balizhuang thirty miles away.
Chen Yixin stood on the roof of Balizhuang and looked west with a telescope. In his field of vision, he could clearly see the tower of Chaoyang Gate on the east side of the capital.