Southern Ming Rebel Army

Chapter 326: Approaching Wuchang (3)

Inside Wuchang City.

Leng Sengji said to Haoge worriedly: "Your Highness, the Meng thieves have already marched into Wuchang. Their army is very strong, and they have the navy to help them. If our army is trapped in Wuchang, we can only rely on the Yintu army to come to our aid. Otherwise, we will lose if we hold on for too long!"

Haoge touched his forehead in annoyance and said, "Prince Zheng doesn't know the situation and just said to defend Wuchang to the death. This really makes it difficult for me."

Aobai also spoke up, "Your Highness, Meng Jun is marching from Ezhou to Wuchang. We must make plans early on whether to fight or retreat. If we want to retreat, we must immediately reorganize our troops and withdraw to the north bank. If we want to fight, we must decide whether to fight in the field or defend the city. If we want to defend the city, we must immediately ask Luo Xiujin, the governor of Huguang, to arrange all matters related to defending the city."

After hearing what Aobai said, Turge said in a deep voice: "Your Highness, the Meng bandits have several times more troops than ours. No matter how hard we try to defend the battlefield, our chances of winning are slim. No matter how many civilians we recruit, we can't defend Wuchang. In my opinion, it is better to evacuate Wuchang directly."

Before Haoge could speak, Leng Sengji said, "If Baiyintu comes to help, and we attack from both inside and outside, we still have a chance of winning, but we still have to gamble."

The generals argued endlessly, and Haoge was annoyed. He sat at the table and said impatiently: "What are you arguing about? Didn't Dorgon let Duoduo be the commander-in-chief? I will go and ask him what his plan is now."

After saying that, Haoge stood up and walked out the door without looking back.

Leng Sengji looked at Haoge's back and said to the two people around him: "If Baiyintu comes to help, we may not be defeated."

Turge shook his head and whispered, "The chances of winning are slim. There are still Western bandits behind Baiyintu. And if...if they lose again, then Meng will send a small army north, and the court will not be able to spare troops to stop them. The court can no longer afford to lose!"

Leng Sengji sighed upon hearing this, and said with a complicated expression: "The Qing Dynasty unified the country two years ago, and it was obvious, but why has it come to such a difficult situation now?"

"Prince Yu underestimated the enemy. If he had ignored the Western bandits in this battle and sent his entire army to attack the Meng bandits, the situation might have been very different." Aobai said in a deep voice.

Just as Hauge's subordinates were discussing, Hauge came to Duoduo's mansion. Duoduo was still bedridden at this time. Seeing Hauge coming, he forced himself to sit up.

When Haoge saw Duoduo's haggard face, fleshless cheeks and lifeless eyes, he couldn't help but sigh in his heart. Although they were diametrically opposed in political positions, the consequences of defeat would ultimately be borne by the Qing Dynasty.

But he had come to see Duoduo for a serious matter. Haoge looked serious and said to Duoduo directly, "The Meng thieves have already sent out their troops. Ezhou is within reach. We must decide whether to fight or retreat immediately!"

Duoduo said slowly and firmly in a hoarse voice: "The Qing Dynasty can no longer conquer the world with one battle. It is useless to defend Wuchang to the death. It will only cost the lives of the Eight Banners soldiers. Retreat."

"Then the order of Prince Zheng..."

"Prince Zheng has not arrived yet. I am still the commander-in-chief of the army and I will be responsible for everything." Duoduo looked up at Haoge and said in an unquestionable tone.

Haoge was delighted when he heard this. Withdrawal was exactly what he wanted. Moreover, the decision to withdraw was made by Duoduo and had nothing to do with him. He immediately responded, "Okay, then I will reorganize the troops and withdraw from Wuchang today."

…………

After the decisive battle, Duoduo fled, and the Qing army artillery ran in a hurry, leaving these twelve red cannons intact on the battlefield, which made Zhou army artillery general Tang Erhe smile happily.

However, when following the army northward, Tang Erhe felt a mixture of love and hate for the heavy red cannon. He loved it because it was indeed powerful and had a long range, making it undoubtedly a great weapon for sieges. But he hated it because it was too heavy, and transporting it was a real problem. No wonder, regardless of the Ming or Qing dynasties, the red cannon was used either for defending cities or for sieges.

The weight of the Red Cannon was almost twice that of the cannons built by the Zhou army, and it was extremely difficult to transport. Horses pulled it and people pushed it, moving forward step by step with difficulty.

Tang Erhe looked at the heavy cannon and couldn't help but shook his head and sighed to the guards beside him: "Although this cannon is good, it is too difficult to transport. It is okay to transport it from Ezhou to Wuchang, but if it is a long journey, it will be unbearable to transport such a heavy cannon."

Just as he finished speaking, another red cannon fell into a pit in front of him, the horses neighed non-stop, and the laborers called out for help. Seeing this, Tang Erhe was no longer able to complain. He didn't know how many times he had experienced this situation.

The Zhou army marched all the way from Ezhou to Wuchang in a mighty force. On the official roads, in the fields, and all over the mountains, the army marched with their heads down and moved rapidly towards Wuchang.

"Urgent report..."

A team of scouts ran along the side of the official road, against the crowd, and came to Meng Jun, reporting in a hurry: "Report! King, a large group of Qing troops have left Wuchang City and are heading towards the river."

Upon hearing this, Meng Jun immediately asked, "How many Qing troops are there? Are they heading towards the river? Are there any signs of them crossing the river?"

"Reporting to the king, I saw from afar that the Qing army was densely packed. I couldn't tell the exact number, but it should be no less than 20,000. There were boats on the river, but the Qing army had not yet boarded. When the Qing army discovered me and others, they immediately sent cavalry to drive us away."

Meng Jun frowned, flicked the whip twice, then raised his brows and quickly ordered Shen Congwen: "Draft an order, order Huang Cheng to lead the cavalry immediately, attack first, stop the Qing army from withdrawing, and let them decide on their own! Draft another military order, ask Chen Yaoce, the navy of the Zheng army, to lead the warships to Wuchang to stop the Qing army's troop transport ships."

Upon hearing this, Shen Congwen quickly wrote down Meng Jun's transfer order on the document. When Meng Jun saw that there was nothing wrong with it, he immediately stamped his own title of King.

When Meng Jun received the news that the Qing army had left Wuchang, he knew that Duoduo wanted to escape. If they were defending the city, the Qing army should have stepped up the defense of the city instead of leaving the city. At this time, even if Haoge was arrogant, he would not dare to fight a field battle with Zhou's army. Therefore, Duoduo's actions at this time must have been a preparation to evacuate Wuchang.

Meng Jun ordered Huang Cheng and the navy to attack with the intention of never letting go of any Qing army that could be destroyed. The greater the loss of Qing army's strength, the easier it would be for the army to march north in the future.

As the messenger left, Meng Jun looked at the army that was crowded with people and whispered, "I hope we can make it in time."

The military order was quickly delivered to Huang Cheng and Chen Yaoce. Needless to say, Huang Cheng immediately mounted his warhorse and led his troops to gallop out.

When Chen Yaoce received the order, he hesitated for a moment, then narrowed his eyes and said in a deep voice: "Advance at full speed, and the entire army will reach Wuchang!"

Upon hearing this, the deputy general whispered, "General Chen, the Tartars have set up river defense cannons outside Wuchang City. If the entire army moves, there will be losses."

Chen Yaoce waved his hand, clenched his fist, and said in a firm tone: "Our army came from the north. The infantry fought a bloody battle and broke through Ezhou and defeated Duoduo. The navy came here in a mighty force without any bloody battle. In this final battle, how can our navy fall behind? Don't say more. Even if I can't keep Duoduo this time, I will bite off a piece of the Tartar meat!"