Chapter 377: Bombard with Cannons, Charge with Cavalry

Over these two days, the Shunxiang Army had left Liu Fangliang with the impression of an upright, overwhelming strength that seemed capable of crushing everything. Although only three thousand of them had been deployed to bolster Chen Yongfu's formation, those three thousand alone exerted immense pressure on Liu Fangliang. He kept pondering: even if he truly lured the government troops into taking the bait and then wheeled around for a counterstrike, what would happen?

The result of his calculations was disheartening. With the Shunxiang Army's outstanding combat power, they could completely reverse the situation against his own side, leaving no advantage to be gained. It would be just like that day when over ten thousand of his men ambushed and surrounded the Shunxiang Army's vanguard, only to be routed in defeat.

An army like this — orderly, uniform, cold, mechanical, seemingly devoid of joy, anger, sorrow, or pleasure — truly left one at a loss as to where to begin an attack.

After pondering for a long while, Liu Fangliang could only heave a long sigh. He was a seasoned veteran of many battles, yet against the Shunxiang Army, he was completely baffled. How could such a strange army have appeared in the Great Ming?

Abruptly, Li Guo gritted his teeth: "Brother Liu, tomorrow we fight another round. We'll use those tens of thousands of infantry as bait, while our cavalry lies in ambush. Once they've pursued for over ten li, our cavalry will charge back. I refuse to believe those government troops won't fall for it."

Liu Fangliang shook his head: "Difficult... Chen Yongfu might fall for it, but that Wang Dou is hard to fool. Even if they take the bait and our cavalry charges back, with both sides tangled in melee, victory is far from certain. And if we fail, our very foundation will be squandered."

Liu Fangliang saw it very clearly. Setting aside the Shunxiang Army's infantry, even the three thousand Shunxiang cavalry that had been holding the formation these past two days were considerably superior to his own horse troops. Every time they moved, his own cavalry had no choice but to shrink back into the formation — the gap between the two sides was simply too great. Whether they would fall into an ambush was hard to say, and even if they did, whether they could be defeated was equally uncertain — after all, the lesson of past failures was right before their eyes.

And the old camp and the cavalry were their foundation; Liu Fangliang was unwilling to stake everything on a single throw.

A cold gleam flickered in his eyes: "Indeed, Brother Li is also right. Tomorrow we should fight another round. I reckon that Wang Dou won't be able to hold back from making his move. Tomorrow, we'll use the lives of tens of thousands of starving soldiers to see just how the Shunxiang Army fights. Once we've seen clearly, we leave — and abandon all the infantry."

The twenty-third day of the eleventh month of the thirteenth year of the Chongzhen reign.

"The Chuang bandits have come out in full force."

The dense fog had already dispersed, leaving only the biting wind still gusting in fits. As the morning sun rose, through the telescope one could see the vast, mighty mass of troops and banners advancing in formation from the opposite side. Those banners all bore a large character "Chuang," and beneath them, layer upon dense layer of Chuang Army soldiers, their heads wrapped in red scarves, their dense thicket of long spears seeming to pierce the very clouds.

How many had come — twenty thousand, thirty thousand, or forty thousand? By Wang Dou's estimate, it should be over thirty thousand. Reckoning the bandits gathered in Ruzhou, nearly all of them had come; this could be considered a full-scale sortie.

"The roving bandits have such an imposing presence."

Beside Wang Dou, Qian Zuozheng, the Department Magistrate of Ruzhou, drew in a cold breath. The government troops sortied numbered less than ten thousand, while the roving bandits outnumbered their own side several times over — the enemy was many, and they were few.

In days past, the current number of government troops would certainly have been considered large, for often a few hundred or a few thousand could rout tens of thousands of roving bandits. But that contrast had already become a thing of the past, degenerating to the point where the government troops of the various prefectures in Henan dared not fight in the open field — a fact that could not help but worry Qian Zuozheng.

Today he had also come along to observe the battle, positioned alongside Wang Dou and the others at the central army location. Beside him, Wang Dou held a telescope and stared straight ahead into the distance, as did Chen Yongfu, who was also holding a telescope and peering toward the bandit side with an air of great relish — much to Qian Zuozheng's envy. A telescope was a fine thing; he had only looked through it for a short while before the impatient Chen Yongfu had snatched it back.

But by now, even the naked eye could clearly make out the approaching mass of the bandit army. Watching their vast, seemingly boundless host of men and horses, Qian Zuozheng exhaled deeply. Only the Shunxiang Army, arrayed in strict readiness within their own formation, could steady his nerves.

It seemed an ocean of red armor. Beneath banner after banner bearing the character "Wang," long spears and firelocks stood like a forest. Those solemnly arrayed Shunxiang troops gave Qian Zuozheng immense reassurance. Their three Company Commanders' worth of infantry were deployed at the vanguard position, while three Company Commanders' worth of cavalry were arrayed on the left and right wings. With them guarding the vanguard and the flanks, both Qian Zuozheng and Chen Yongfu felt completely at ease. This was the psychological assurance that battle-hardened elite troops imparted.

This battle was Chen Yongfu's turn to observe. He led his own vanguard battalion and positioned it at the central army location, impatient to see just how the Shunxiang Army fought.

The Chuang Army pressed closer and closer, from four li to three li, to two li. The Shunxiang Army's night scouts continuously reported the military intelligence they had gathered, estimating the enemy's numbers, the commanders of each camp, and so on. After the Shunxiang Army and the vanguard battalion had left camp to give battle this morning, Liu Fangliang and Li Guo, having scouted the news of the government troops' sortie, had also hurriedly led their forces out.

When two armies meet in battle, suitable terrain is required. If pressed too close by the government troops, it might become difficult to anchor the formation with firepower and impossible to deploy a proper battle array — and without formation, defeat would be certain. Therefore, upon hearing the news of the government troops' sortie, Liu Fangliang and the others had immediately come out to fight as well. For them, there was no reason to stubbornly defend their encampment, since they were the ones who had come to attack Ruzhou.

After both sides had left camp and formed their arrays, an extensive round of scouting and probing was naturally unavoidable, with the mounted scouts and night scouts of each side serving as the best probing forces. But it was clearly evident that the Chuang Army side had already thrown caution to the wind; their cavalry and old camp troops constantly emerged, and especially their old camp troops — many of whom were of fairly good elite quality — so the government side did not press too close either.

The formations of both sides slowly converged. The surrounding area was a flat expanse, covered in dry, level yellow earth, offering no terrain advantage to rely upon. The final battle would still come down to the combat strength of each side.

Through the telescope, Wang Dou saw the Chuang Army halt one li in front of his own army's formation. Although Chen Yongfu had not used cannons during his sorties these past few days, Wang Dou reckoned that they were actually afraid of the government troops possessing artillery.

However, based on the Chuang Army's experience, the government troops' No. 1 Great General Cannon had a maximum range of barely one li, firing a ball weighing two to three jin — at that range, both power and accuracy were greatly diminished. Moreover, such Great General Cannons were few; most were No. 3 or No. 4 Folangji cannons weighing under a thousand jin, firing balls of three taels to one jin, with a range of less than one li.

Thus, according to the Chuang Army's experience, a position one li from the government troops was safe for their main formation, and so they now formed their array accordingly.

Wang Dou gave a cold laugh. One li — very well. In front of his vanguard formation, Zhao Xuan's Artillery Company Commander unit had ten red-barbarian cannons deployed. Not to mention the two red-barbarian six-pounder cannons, even the eight red-barbarian three-pounder cannons each had a range of nearly two li.

The Shunxiang Army's intelligence screening was well executed. Wang Dou estimated that even if the Chuang Army knew the Shunxiang Army had brought cannons, they would only assume them to be Folangji cannons, never expecting red-barbarian cannons. And in Henan and other places, apart from Kaifeng City and Luoyang City, none of the other prefectures possessed red-barbarian cannons. Even the red-barbarian cannons in Kaifeng and Luoyang were extremely cumbersome and used solely for city defense.

It was precisely this intelligence gap that could deliver an extremely severe blow to the Chuang Army.

He lowered the telescope and barked: "Prepare for battle!"

"Prepare for battle!"

The central army officers relayed the order.

"Ha!"

A tidal wave of answering shouts arose. Not only did all the Shunxiang troops raise their firearms in dense, layered ranks, but even Chen Yongfu's vanguard battalion in the central army division raised their spears and halberds like a forest.

"Acknowledge the banners."

"Dong, dong, dong!"

The war drums sounded. As the various banners of the central army were raised, the flags of the front, rear, left, and right armies all waved in response.

The banner signals in the Ming army were largely similar, yet each had its own detailed distinctions. The Shunxiang Army's method of raising banners largely followed the flag commands of Qi's Army. Raising the red banner meant the vanguard was on standby. Raising the black banner, the rear army on standby. Raising the blue banner, the left wing on standby. Raising the white banner, the right wing on standby. Raising the yellow banner, the central army on standby. Raising all five banners together meant the entire army was on standby; wherever the general's banner pointed, the entire army moved in that direction.

Amidst the continuous waving of the central army's banners, the cheers within the Ming army's formation rose wave upon wave.

Qian Zuozheng stroked his beard and smiled. The morale of the government troops was excellent — truly excellent.

"Test the cannons."

Twenty paces ahead of the vanguard, Zhao Xuan, hands clasped behind his back, had been observing the bandit side through a telescope for a long while. Then, with a grim face, he issued the command.

"Test the cannons."

"Test the cannons."

The voices of the various cannon commanders rang out one after another.

The observation officer of the Artillery Company Commander unit had a cannon-scope set up in front of him. As a stream of technical terms poured from his mouth, the metallic sounds of each cannon's angle being continuously adjusted emerged, and the ten black, gaping muzzles of the red-barbarian cannons were aimed toward the Chuang Army's side.

"Defeat the government troops, storm Ruzhou."

Seeing wave after wave of shouts erupt from the government troops' side, the Chuang soldiers' side was not willing to be outdone, though they lacked the skill to wave banners in response. Understanding banner and drum commands was an ability that even many of the Great Ming's own government troops had already lost, let alone the majority of the Chuang Army soldiers here, who had undergone no training.

But Liu Fangliang and the others had their own methods to bolster the army's morale. As shouts rang out from the central army position, the cry of "Kill the government troops, storm Ruzhou" spread out, and the shouts of tens of thousands of Chuang Army soldiers finally merged into one. With their overwhelming numbers, it seemed as if the entire flat plain echoed with their roar.

"Kill the government troops!"

A shrill voice within the Chuang Army bellowed.

"Huo!"

"Storm Ruzhou!"

"Huo!"

Countless gaunt, sallow-faced starving soldiers with red scarves wrapped around their heads fanatically raised their long spears in response. They had already been granted permission: if they defeated the government troops and stormed Ruzhou, they would be allowed three days of unrestrained activity within the city.

Ruzhou had always been prosperous, its city size comparable to Luoyang. If they breached the city, not only would everyone eat and drink their fill, they would also obtain a vast amount of dazzling wealth, women, and children — how could this not stir the hearts of these starving soldiers?

The cheers of the Chuang Army seemed to shake the heavens and split the earth. With their shouts, waves of long spears rose like a forest sea in the distance, and the tide of red scarves seemed to undulate beneath the sunlight. The imposing might of the roving bandits made Qian Zuozheng's heart flutter with renewed unease. Chen Yongfu also clenched his jaw, his face like iron.

Only Wang Dou sneered coldly and looked toward the artillery Company Commander position in the front army.

"Fire!"

The various artillery pieces had already finished adjusting. With a great shout from Zhao Xuan, a six-pounder red-barbarian cannon shuddered violently, its muzzle spewing fierce flames, and thick smoke billowed up. The immense recoil forced the two-wheeled gun carriage back a large step. Amid the deafening roar of the cannon, a round iron ball weighing over five jin hurtled viciously into the Chuang army formation.

The tidal wave of cheers stopped abruptly. Every soldier in the Chuang army stared at the direction from which this cannonball was flying.

Like wind blowing through wheat stalks, a great wave of commotion arose in the Chuang army formation around the area where the cannonball would land. The Chuang soldiers who felt the cannonball would fall on their heads ran for their lives, regardless of whether they were officers or common soldiers.

This cannonball smashed into the famine-recruit formation at the very front of the Chuang army. Although the soldiers at the point of impact scattered like the tide, cannonballs can run and leap, especially on this dry, hard ground.

This cannonball bounced and bounded, hurtling forward for dozens of paces. It took off one man's head, two men's arms, and the thighs and calves of many others, carving a bloody path as it careened wildly for a long while before finally stopping, leaving behind patches of fresh blood and a chorus of miserable, piercing wails.

Looking at the gruesome state of those beside them, waves of unrest rippled through the famine-recruit ranks. Many men turned ashen-faced and ran about like headless flies. With just a single cannonball, all the morale and fighting spirit of these famine recruits had already been lost.

Liu Fangliang saw this clearly, and his face could not help but turn pale. "The Ming army has artillery, and it can fire this far?"

Before he could recover his senses, the sound that sent the souls of all Chuang army soldiers flying from their bodies came again. This time it was not a single cannon blast, but many. The shriek of cannonballs rang out as over fifty iron balls of various sizes came hurtling down again, smashing into the Chuang army's famine-recruit ranks, rolling and crashing everywhere, striking those Chuang soldiers until they wailed for their parents, merely running wildly in all directions.

The front army formation was already formation no more; it had practically collapsed, and no amount of shouting by the officers was of any use. Li Guo's face was ashen. He muttered, "Brother Liu, what do we do?"

Liu Fangliang's face was livid. He gritted his teeth and said nothing.

Only a short while later, another wave of cannonballs arrived. Dozens of iron balls of various sizes smashed into the infantry formation within the Chuang army. These foot soldiers fared no better than the famine recruits, watching the men beside them explode into flying flesh and blood, limbs severed. Violent unrest rippled through them too, and the officers' desperate efforts to suppress it were of little use.

Again came the thunderous roar of artillery, and another wave of cannonballs howled in, this time smashing into the central army position where Liu Fangliang and the others were, the dense concentration of the Chuang army's cavalry and veteran camp warhorses.

Yet just like the common soldiers and the famine recruits, those veteran camp warriors, considered battle-hardened through a hundred fights, could not withstand the power of the cannonballs either. Mounted on their horses, they were struck down with shattered bones, maimed or killed for nothing. Many horses were also hit by the cannonballs, shrieking in agony and neighing, leaping and crashing wildly everywhere.

Liu Fangliang and Li Guo stared blankly. Not to mention the cavalry, these veteran camp soldiers could be said to be the elite of the elite within the Chuang army. Many had nearly ten years of battlefield combat experience. Even the death or injury of one would pain the heart of every Chuang general. Yet now, one after another, they were being lost for nothing like this.

The Ming army's artillery seemed to blanket the entire Chuang army position; not a single place was safe. Right beside Liu Fangliang, a personal guard was struck by a cannonball, his right arm carried away. A mist of blood sprayed from his severed limb. The guard, his face pale, sat upright on his horse for a moment, then stiffly toppled off.

Another wave of cannonballs howled over, smashing into the central army position where Liu Fangliang and the others were. The crack and snap of shattering bones rang out, men shouting, horses neighing. In the dense formation, every salvo of over fifty iron balls of various sizes inflicted at least a hundred casualties on the cavalry and veteran camp of Liu Fangliang and his men.

Looking at the chaotic army formation around him, Liu Fangliang suddenly jolted awake. He was about to speak when a sudden shout erupted from the front. With a roar, the entire front army collapsed. Then that tidal wave of collapsing chaos spread to the infantry formation, and then to the central army.

Liu Fangliang looked over in shock and fear. The sound of hoofbeats was like thunder. From the Ming army's left wing, who knew how many cavalrymen charged out, rolling straight toward his front army position.

Then the earth trembled, and the tidal sound of hoofbeats rose. From both the left and right wings of the Ming army, dense masses of cavalry charged out again, sweeping in from both sides toward his central army position. Then the sound of war drums rose from that side, and countless infantrymen, maintaining their battle formations, charged forward behind the assaulting cavalry.

The tens of thousands of Chuang troops had already scattered in rout. Everywhere were soldiers shouting and fleeing for their lives. Liu Fangliang's face was the color of dead ashes. He only thought in his heart: "Defeated just like this?"

The situation before his eyes allowed him no time for further thought. Together with Li Guo, he took the remaining veteran camp soldiers who had not yet scattered and fled in panic toward the rear of the formation. They spurred their horses to full speed and never looked back.

Watching the Shunxiang army cavalry sweep forward a thousand li, unstoppable, and the Shunxiang army infantry advance in formation, before them countless Chuang army soldiers fled like wolves and bolted like boars, none daring to stop a single step. Chen Yongfu, Department Magistrate Qian Zuozheng, and the others could not close their mouths. The roving bandits were defeated just like that? The tens of thousands of roving bandits besieging Ruzhou had vanished like smoke just like that?

Chen Yongfu gazed at Wang Dou beside him for a long time, muttering something unintelligible under his breath. He also passed down an order: "Vanguard Battalion, full army pursuit."