The three among them, Wang Rulong and Chen Ziluan, were both of the Yongyi background, leading elite Yiwu soldiers. Only Hu Shouren was from the military household, leading the elite of the official army.
Having followed Qi Jiguang for many years, how could they not know that this move was a desperate gamble? But circumstances were stronger than men, what could be done? Based on past experience, even hesitating for a day would be attacked by the Yan family, saying things like 'fearing the enemy and not advancing,' 'turning pale at the mere mention of tigers.' Therefore, leaving Qingpu was necessary, brooks no delay.
But after coming out? There were only two paths to choose from: one was to directly attack the besieged Japanese pirates, and the other was to take a detour, starting from a weak point, to cooperate with Zhu Mo. Comparing the two, a detour was naturally better. However, there was only one road for the detour, and that was Zhujiajiao. This was because east of Huating, there were still Japanese pirate fleets, and the defenders could land at any time. As for Zhujiajiao, there was at least some element of surprise, and no worries about the rear.
But arriving at Zhujiajiao also presented great danger—
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If the Japanese pirates were skillful in warfare and set up camp on the southeast bank of Dianshan Lake, or even built fortifications, then our army advancing south along the Mao River might be surrounded. If Zhu Mo had not attacked the south of Huating at that time, this encirclement would be unsolvable.
All four had heard of Zhu Mo, but this young man was after all young. For such a major event, how could they rashly believe him? Moreover, that legendary firearms camp, the four of them had never seen it in real combat, how could they blindly believe it?
At this time,
Since the commander-in-chief had asked, the three naturally could not remain silent.
Hu Shouren said, "Commander, we are cast into a land of death to find life. We have no other choice! No matter who fights this battle, they can only fight it this way!"
Wang Rulong, the most famous fierce general in Qi Family Army, also said at this time, "Yes, Commander, it's death sooner or later, might as well get it over with quickly!"
Chen Ziluan, usually more steady, expressed his concern, "Commander, Zhu Mo is stationed in Pinghu, and Yu Dayou is cautious. Will this miss the opportunity? Once the Japanese pirates complete their deployment in the Xinbin and Xiangyang River areas, this battle will be impossible to fight, and Huating will be lost."
Qi Jiguang sighed:
"This is precisely what I worry about... If Zhu Mo can truly see through the situation, he should be heading north towards the Fengjing area by now. If he can hold back the main force of the Japanese pirates, and we push straight through the Mao River, we can attack the camp outside the west gate of Huating. At most two hours, if the defenders are also bold enough to sally forth and attack from the flank, this siege will be lifted..."
The three naturally understood this situation clearly, but the reason this battle was unfightable lay in the fact that neither of the two crucial points involved their own people. The Huating county magistrate Ni Guangjian was a pure scholar, far inferior to Liu Cunyi of Pinghu. The Yongyi were mostly household retainers and indentured servants, facing pressure for the first time in battle, it would be good if they didn't cause chaos, let alone have the ability to counterattack?
But thoughts were thoughts, time was slipping away. It was already broad daylight. If they didn't set off now and the Japanese pirates completed their deployment, they could return directly to Qingpu.
A hint of gloom flashed across Qi Jiguang's face, and he said sternly, "Strike camp!"
In less than the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, 4,500 men had marched south and soon reached the tributaries of the Mao River.
...
At the same time,
Zhu Mo was also approaching Fengjing.
Ascending a low hill covered with small trees, a stone tablet prominently displayed the characters "Sanjiao Fen" (Triangle Tomb). Zhu Mo paused for a moment, feeling it was very inauspicious. However, on the small mound here, the fortifications built by the Japanese pirates were already visible to the naked eye.
The camp was outside the town, formed along a stretch of low hills. The camp was divided into three layers, with about twenty meters between each layer. The materials used appeared to be mostly door panels, indicating they were seized from the residents of the town. Those working on them did not look like soldiers; clearly, they were civilians temporarily rounded up from the town or surrounding villages.
Unexpectedly, he also saw two to three hundred soldiers in strange attire, all carrying firearms on their backs. Forty to fifty cannons were also mounted, relying on the fortifications.
"Damn it, Portuguese...?" Zhu Mo muttered to himself, spitting. Finally, he understood why the Japanese pirates were so audacious! It turned out they had found helpers and set up an ambush on the necessary route, intending to use the fortifications to gradually wear down the effectiveness of his musketeers and artillery.
In this case,
The Japanese pirates had no secret weapons, they simply wanted to use the complex low hills to create a prolonged stalemate, thereby buying time for Qi Jiguang to gather forces for a decisive battle. With a clearer understanding, Zhu Mo immediately turned back to camp. kuAiδugg
...
Zhu Mo felt very uncomfortable thinking of the misty and cold Sanjiao Fen. He thought that this battle was fundamentally a political and psychological war. The entire rhythm should be iron-blooded and brutal, so as to awe the entire alliance of sea bandits. If he had harbored any侥幸 (jiǎo xìng -侥幸 - luck, good fortune) just now, then his attitude had completely changed.
Seeing his gloomy expression, Zheng Qin couldn't help but ask, "Scholar Zhu, this? Since the Japanese pirates have already fortified Fengjing, should we attack head-on, or take a detour?"
Zhu Mo snorted. He thought of the Japanese pirates cruelly driving civilian labor like cattle, and the encountered hills being very inauspicious. This was Heaven's warning to him to change his attitude. He immediately became calm in his anger and said in a measured tone:
"We are not attacking Fengjing anymore... We cannot let the Japanese pirates lead us by the nose... We will directly attack the Japanese pirate camps outside Huating. We will dismantle them one by one. There's no need to be fast! Instead, we should be slow, dismantling them slowly, chipping away at them... They want to make a big deal out of the Japanese pirates, we will do the opposite, and take three to five months to do it!"
Zheng Qin, after half a year of training, had also grown quickly. He asked doubtfully, "But if General Qi really comes down from Dianshan Lake to attack the west gate, won't they be surrounded by the Japanese pirates?"
Zhu Mo now saw through the situation, and smiled calmly, "No matter where we attack, it is still 'surrounding Wei to rescue Zhao' (a stratagem of attacking a place to relieve another place), there will be no problem!"
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He knew very well that the Japanese pirates feared his firearms, which was why they used fortifications and cover to neutralize their effectiveness. By doing so, it inadvertently revealed that the Japanese pirates' state of mind was actually more fragile than their own. This action was already a very passive defense, with the sole purpose of buying time. It could be seen that as long as his 'iron bodhisattva' fired a shot, their souls would fly away!
And this shot must be sudden. There was no need to get entangled with them on a pre-arranged battlefield. It was a violent crushing, even a mindless crushing, which would make the enemy even more terrified.
He smiled and said to Zheng Qin, "Tell Yin Xiaohu to bring five thousand Yongyi out as well, to train behind us. The army will set off immediately and march north!"
"Yes, sir!"
Zhu Mo then summoned the ten young men serving as his personal guards and had them divide into three teams. They were to immediately go to Hangzhou: one team to report to Zhang Juzheng at the Ciren Ci, one team to Guanyin Temple, and the third team to the Governor's Yamen. He commanded:
"Tell them to proceed as per the established plan."