Filling the River

Prince Tu Xietu said again: "Master, the barbarians of the Southern Ming Dynasty are building a floating bridge on the Han River."

"Build a floating bridge?" Dorgon's heart jumped and he pondered, "The Han River is shallow, and the cavalry can pass by horses, and infantry can also hike. The Ming army built a floating bridge to allow the baggage team and artillery team to cross the river. Wang Pu even brought the baggage team and artillery team. It seemed that he was determined to go north to Jining..."

Prince Tuxetu asked, "Master, should you send troops to harass and destroy the floating bridge?"

"Damage the floating bridge? Why do we need to destroy the floating bridge? Only fools will destroy the floating bridge!" Dorgon raised his hand suddenly and shouted, "Precaution your tribe members, don't act rashly at this time, let the Ming army cross the north of the Han River first."

A cold smile suddenly flashed through Dorgon's eyes.

As long as the Ming army crosses the Han River and sends Mongolian cavalry to destroy the floating bridge, the Ming army will become a turtle in the jar. Even if Wang Pu can join the defenders in Jining City? Without the canal waterway, the Ming army's food, supplies, weapons and ammunition cannot be supplied, and they are a completely lonely army.

Want to break through? The roads were destroyed, the bridges were destroyed, the canals were blocked, and the Ming army had a baggage team and artillery team to drag down. How could they break through?

Throwing down the baggage and artillery team to break through with light equipment? How many days can I last with the ammunition and dry food carried by the individual soldiers? I am afraid that before the Ming army fled back to Huai'an, the Mongolian cavalry would catch up with them and shoot them one by one on the way to escape.

Stick to Jining? How long can the Ming army last?

Even if the Ming army brought enough food, supplies and ammunition to the expedition this time, how long can it last? Half a year or a year?

This time, the Eight Banners Army and the Mongolian cavalry brought enough food and grass, which was enough to support more than a year. The Eight Banners Army could still plunder the Shandong Han people to farm for them, and they would not have to worry about food and grass supply. What's more, as long as Wang Pu was defeated, the Eight Banners Army could lead their troops to Jiangnan. As long as they went down to Jiangnan, would they be afraid that they would not be able to raise food and grass?

Reinforcements? In addition to Wang Pu, are there any military generals who can fight in Nanming? In addition to Wang Pu's army, is there any army that can be fought in Nanming?

Except for Wang Pu, Dorgon never took any other Ming army generals seriously. In Dorgon's view, as long as he trapped Wang Pu, it would be like trapping the entire Ming Dynasty's life gate. Once Wang Pu was defeated, the Ming Dynasty would be over.

The only thing Dorgon was confused was that Wang Pu knew that going north to Jining was a dead end, but why did he still have the will to break in? Could it be that Wang Pu had any conspiracy? Or did Wang Pu have any strange plans or to make the Ming army turn defeat into victory? But no matter what conspiracy Wang Pu had, such a god-given opportunity, Dorgon would never miss it.

Hanzhuang, Wu Temple.

It was dim and the guards were busy packing all kinds of items from the command center and loading them. Amid the chaotic footsteps, Wang Pu, the governor of the five provinces of the Ming Dynasty, appeared at the gate surrounded by Liu Rushi, Liu Qingyan, Kou Baimen, Nengniang, Lu Liu and more than a dozen staff officers from the command center. The busy guards quickly stood at the attention and saluted.

Wang Pu looked up at the eastern sky and asked, "Has the floating bridge been reinforced?"

Military Secretary Liu Rushi quickly stepped forward and responded: "Marty, after all the soldiers of the Third Battalion of the Purchase, the two floating bridges have been reinforced, and the Purchase and Boats can cross the river smoothly."

"Well, Zheng Chenggong did a good job." Wang Pu nodded slightly and asked again, "Where is Jiannu, is there any movement?"

"No." Liu Rushi shook his head and said, "The reconnaissance team reported that Jiannu and the Tartar cavalry had been stationed in Shagouji 50 miles away last night, without any abnormal movement."

"Hmph." Wang Pu sneered silently, "Dorgon's purpose is very clear. He is deliberately letting us cross the Han River and then copying our way back. Look, as soon as we left Hanzhuang, he will send Tartar cavalry to burn the floating bridge."

A staff officer shouted: "Mr. Marquis, I am willing to lead a brigade to guard the pontoon bridge and ensure the retreat of the army."

"Leave a brigade to guard the floating bridge?" Wang Pu frowned and asked, "Do you think a brigade can be defended?"

The staff officer blushed and replied, "No."

Wang Pu said: "Since you know you can't defend it, why do you still have to keep your troops? Wouldn't you send your brothers to the tiger's mouth?"

After saying that, Wang Pu turned his eyes to all the staff officers of the army and shouted: "You all remember that war requires courage, but you can't do it recklessly! It is called stupidity rather than bravery to go forward even though you know you will die. What our Central Army needs is a brave and knowledgeable warrior, not a brainless idiot."

"yes."

Including the staff who volunteered just now, more than a dozen staff officers in the command line responded.

Shagou gathered, Dorgon headed.

Prince Tu Xietu hurried into the hall, knelt on the ground and saluted Dorgon, and then replied: "Master, I just found a horse and gave a reward. Wang Pu has already taken the Ming army to leave Hanzhuang and is heading towards Shagouji."

"Oh?" Dorgon put down his fat lamb legs that had been gnawed halfway and asked in a voice, "Does there any Ming army left behind in Hanzhuang?"

Prince Tuxetu shook his head and said, "No."

"Okay." Dorgon slapped his hand on the desk and stood up. "Send two thousand cavalry to Hanzhuang immediately and burn the floating bridge!"

"twitter."

Prince Tuxetu responded and took the order.

"The good show has begun, haha." When Prince Tu Xietu walked away, Dorgon shook his head and said, "Hasa Lian, you bring five hundred elite soldiers to dig the two stone arch bridges built on the Shagou River, and then destroy the official roads in the Shagouji area, and try to dig as much as possible."

"Why?" Sahalian said in confusion, "If we destroy the stone arch bridge and the official road, will we even affect our march?"

"What do you know?" Dorgon said coldly, "Without the bridge and official road, the actions of our Qing army will be affected to a certain extent, but the Ming army will be affected even more. The heavy baggage vehicles and artillery vehicles of the Ming army will be difficult to move forward. Hehe, I want Wang Pu and the Ming army to fall into a dilemma."

"Advance and retreat?" Sahalian said in confusion, "The master is not going to let Wang Pu go to Jining?"

"Idiot!" Dorgon frowned and cursed, "Can you be more brainy? If you can separate and surround Wang Pu's main force of the Ming army and Jining defenders, then why should you let Wang Pu go to Jining? Only when the division and surround are difficult to achieve, we can only retreat and let Wang Pu enter Jining second, and then concentrate our troops to siege the city."

"Zha." Sahalian suddenly said, "I understand."

"Go."

Dorgon waved his hand, and Sahalian also took the order and left.

Ten miles north of Hanzhuang, a small village.

Dad Li was taking people to pour a light green medicine into the well at the entrance of the village. Wang Pu, who was standing next to watch, couldn't help but ask, "Dad, what medicine is this?"

Dad Li said: "This is a medicine prepared by the old man, which can make the war horses of the Tartar soldiers sick."

"I'm sick?" Wang Pu said sternly, "Horse plague?"

"No, no." Dad Li shook his head and said, "It is not that easy to make the Tartar cavalry's war horses get horse plague. This medicine can only greatly reduce the appetite of the Tartar cavalry's war horses and do not like forage. Over time, the Tartars' war horses will get sick. Only when the Tartars' war horses get sick can there be a possibility of inducing horse plague."

Wang Pu nodded repeatedly. The reason for what Mr. Li said was the same as influenza. Among young and middle-aged people with strong immune abilities, influenza is difficult to spread on a large scale. Only among elderly people with weak constitutions, children and patients can influenza have a possibility of a large-scale outbreak.

"Dad, is this medicine harmful to people?"

"Yes, but the medicinal properties will disappear in half a month. When the war is over, the people will return to the village, and the water in the well can be drunk with confidence."

"That's good, otherwise it would be unprofitable if the war horses of the Tartar soldiers had not poisoned their own people."

As he was speaking, Lu Liu came quickly and shouted: "Marty, the Tartar cavalry has indeed gone to Hanzhuang."

Wang Pu said calmly: "How many Tartar cavalry are there?"

Lu Liudao: "At least two thousand cavalry."

Wang Pu said: "Has the floating bridge been burned?"

"Burn." Lu Liudao, "both pontoon bridges were burned by the Tartar cavalry."

As soon as Lu Liu finished speaking, another guard ran up panting and gasped, saying, "Marty, the Tartar cavalry has arrived... and has arrived five miles away."

Lu Liu looked around and said nervously: "Mr. Marquis, it is not advisable to stay here for a long time. Let's go quickly."

The main force of the Central Army was almost ten miles away. At this time, only the guard led by Lu Liu remained beside Wang Pu. Although the guard was equipped with the latest breech rifle developed by the Nanjing Arsenal, there was only one brigade after all, and he had to protect Wang Pu, Dad Li and his accompanying commanders. Once surrounded by Tartar soldiers, the consequences would be unimaginable.

"What are you doing?" Wang Pu frowned, "The Tartar cavalry dare not catch up."

Just as he was talking, Mr. Li's men had poured all two buckets of medicine into the well. Mr. Li used a bamboo pole to stir the medicine evenly until there was no trace on the surface. Then he said to Wang Pu: "Mr. Marquis, you can leave now."

Wang Pu then turned to Lu Liu and shouted: "Get away."

After Wang Pu left with the guard for half an hour, Prince Tu Xietu sent a team of Tartar cavalry to investigate repeatedly and confirmed that there was no Ming army ambush in the village, so he dared to lead a large group of Tartar cavalry to the entrance of the village carefully. The head of the household who entered the village to investigate quickly left the village to greet him.

Tu Xietuhan said: "Yanbahai, are there any Nanming barbarians in the village?"

"No." Yanbahai shook his head, "not even a ghost."

Tu Xietuhan then breathed a sigh of relief and turned over and dismounted. A personal soldier had already stepped forward to lead his mount. Tu Xietuhan sat under the big tree at the entrance of the village and shouted: "Send the order and send a ranger to guard against the sudden attack of the Nanming barbarians. The rest of the team dismounted and rested."

"twitter."

There were already commanders who passed on Tushetuhan's orders. Several teams of rangers were separated from the brigade of cavalry and rode their horses out of the village. The rest of the brigade of Tartar cavalry turned over and dismounted. The slaves responsible for feeding the horses had already brought the Tartar cavalry's war horses together, and they found wooden barrels from the village to fetch water and drink horses.

"You." Tushetuhan summoned an attendant and ordered, "Calend on a fast horse and go to the Regent, and we said that the two floating bridges on the Han River have been burned by us, and the official road has been dug out of shape. In addition, the barbarians of the Southern Ming Dynasty have passed twenty miles north of Hanzhuang and less than thirty miles from Shagouji."

"twitter."

The attendant agreed to take the order.

At noon, the main force of the Central Army advanced to the south bank of Shagou River.

Although Jiannu dug many gullies on the official road, this obstacle was nothing in front of the well-trained Central Army baggage troops. The speed of the Central Army was not even affected at all along the way, but the army had to stop when it arrived at the banks of Shagou River.

The Shagou River is not a big river, and the maximum width of the river is only about twenty meters. There were originally two stone arch bridges on the river, located in the middle of Shagou Town and the east end of the town. However, now these two stone arch bridges have been demolished by Jiannu, and hundreds of private houses in Shagou Town were also burned by Jiannu.

When Wang Pu arrived by the river, Zheng Chenggong was frowning and thinking about the strategy of crossing the river.

Seeing the thousands of baggage trucks of the Central Army, nearly 20,000 artillery trucks and nearly 20,000 officers and soldiers crowded around the river, Wang Pu couldn't help but frown and asked, "What's going on? Why don't you cross the river quickly?"

Zheng Chenggong smiled bitterly and said, "Marty, the bridge has been destroyed and cannot cross the river."

Wang Pu frowned and said, "Why not build a floating bridge?"

Zheng Chenggong said: "All the houses in Shagouji Town have been burned by Jiannu. There are no forests within a radius of twenty miles, and there is no way to build a floating bridge without wood."

Wang Pu's face changed slightly and he said in a cold voice: "Is there any other way?"

Zheng Chenggong nodded and said, "Yes."

Wang Pu asked, "What's the solution?"

Zheng Chenggong said: "I just visited the nearby area and found that the terrain of Shagouji Town is high in the middle and is low in the surroundings, and the whole is triangular. The vehicles and horses of the Central Army can first be stationed on the ruins of Shagouji Town, dig a hole at the east end of the town, and lead the Shagou River to the south, and then fill the original riverbed, so that the army and the baggage vehicles can cross the river smoothly."

If you can really dig a hole on the river embankment at the east end of Shagouji Town and let Shagou River change the river channel first, it is indeed not difficult to fill a small river less than 20 meters wide, and at most one day is enough.

Wang Pu glanced at Zheng Chenggong in surprise, thinking that this is really awesome for the younger generation. It is indeed commendable that this guy could think of this in such a short time that this is not a solution. Wang Pu classified Zheng Chenggong as a younger generation in his heart, but he didn't know that his own physiological age was only twenty-eight years old.

Zheng Chenggong didn't know what Wang Pu was thinking. He thought that Wang Pu was dissatisfied with his suggestion and whispered: "Marty, although this method requires a day to be delayed, it is the fastest way that Bei Yi can think of. However, it may not take less time to build a floating bridge from twenty miles away than to fill a river, let alone be attacked by the Tartar cavalry."
Chapter completed!