Chapter 331 A rising star in the army, unique so far
"Yes, the fleet of the Western Route Army led by Cao Yongxiang has more than doubled in size."
"That's great. Our logistics department's material transportation problem and the soldiers' rapid transfer on the treasure ship can now be solved at the same time."
Li Dingguo, with the core generals of the Suzaku Legion and the Black Tortoise First Battalion, stood on the large dock outside the east city of Suide Prefecture, looked at the huge fleet approaching rapidly in front of them, and nodded.
In this big world, there are huge rivers and lakes everywhere that cannot be crossed by human power. If you don't have a strong navy and enough treasure ships of various levels, it would be a joke to want to carry out a rapid siege.
Why are people like Gao Yingxiang, Zhang Xianzhong, Luo Rucai, Li Zicheng and others trapped by government troops in the border area between Shanxi Province, Henan Province and Northern Zhili?
The main reason was that he did not have enough treasure ships to use.
They had suffered a great loss at the hands of Hong Chengchou's army, and now they would not stay in one place for long. They were moving their troops almost every day and were exhausted.
Even so, they are unable to escape the siege of the government troops led by Lu Xiangsheng, and they spend every day in fear.
In the places where these rebel armies are causing trouble, the treasure ships of various forces will not enter at all. Even if they want to seize some treasure ships for use, it is impossible.
It is conceivable that these rebel forces led by Gao Yingxiang will not be able to settle down and grow stronger for a long time in the future.
In the history of Li Dingguo's previous life, if it were not for Huang Taiji, who would lead the Later Jin Tatars to invade the Ming Dynasty in time when these rebel armies were about to be wiped out by the government troops, forcing the Ming court to withdraw the troops that were suppressing the bandits to support the capital. The grass on the graves of these rebel soldiers would have grown very tall long ago.
This is also the strength of Huang Taiji. He deliberately used this method to constantly cause the Ming Dynasty to bleed, suffer heavy blows time and time again, and finally collapse.
The big Shanxi merchants made great contributions to this.
It was because they provided Huang Taiji with real-time intelligence on the various rebel forces within the Great Wall in a timely manner that Huang Taiji was able to make accurate judgments time and time again, causing the internal and external troubles of the Ming Dynasty to intensify and never subside.
Li Dingguo, who had a full understanding of this, would naturally not make such a common-sense mistake.
Before the troops entered the pass, a strategy had already been decided to focus on the development and expansion of the Xuanwu Camp navy.
This common-sense problem can only be solved quickly by allowing the three combat battalions of the Xuanwu Legion to expand rapidly through the method of fighting to support fighting.
Coming from the Earth in the 21st century in his previous life, he knew very well the importance of water forces.
The current development of the situation proves the sharpness of his vision.
For this reason, at the beginning of the army's entry into the pass, he ordered the military to promptly dispatch 100,000 new recruits to sail south, so that after the Xuanwu Corps obtained more and more treasure ships of various levels, the three major camps of the Xuanwu Corps could be quickly expanded and the large number of captured treasure ships could be used in a timely manner.
"We are here to see the great commander!"...
As soon as the large fleet of the Western Army Corps approached the pier and stopped, more than a dozen figures jumped down from the flagship of the top-grade treasure ship, landed in front of Li Dingguo, and saluted him in unison.
"Excuse me."
Li Dingguo waved his hands at the Qi Refining Realm generals and said, "This time, your Western Army has successfully completed the first wave of missions in the first round. Thank you for your hard work."
"Cao Yongxiang, tell the soldiers to rest in Suide Prefecture for a day. Tomorrow at noon, our two armies will set out again, divided into nine groups, and launch a new round of swift sweeping operations towards the south!"
"We will strive to capture the entire northern region of Qin within the next two months!"
"Huang Lan, Huang Zhanglong!"
He looked at the two commanders of the Xuanwu Army's combat battalions and ordered, "You two naval battalions will have a heavy task ahead!"
"You must also divide your naval battalions into several groups, led by Qi Refining Realm generals, to completely block the Wuding River and all the Yellow River basins north of the Wuding River outlet. At the same time, you must also assist the rapid transfer of various army combat battalions!"
"You must work closely with the logistics department to provide sufficient military supplies for each main combat corps!"
"Now, each of your two camps has 50,000 soldiers. Today, all treasure ships will be redistributed according to their grades. Each camp will have half of the treasure ships!"
"After the soldiers have finished lunch, execute this immediately!"
"In a month at most, Wan'er, Liang Hetang, Pan Jinghua, and the Qilin Corps and the Black Tortoise Third Battalion will complete the mission of capturing the northeastern corner of Qin. After connecting with the garrison corps sent by the Military Intelligence Department, they will go south along the Yellow River to join us."
"That is when our army will fully capture all the towns and fortresses along the Yellow River from Wuding River estuary to Tongguan in the south!"
"Once our army completes this round of strategic goals, it means that our Fuxing Army has completely established a foothold in the interior of the country. We no longer have to worry about being besieged from multiple directions by the government troops, and our army will no longer be unable to cope with the situation."
Li Dingguo always kept a clear head.
He would not think that he could sit back and relax just because the Restoration Army was currently advancing with unstoppable force and conquering cities smoothly.
In fact, the reason why his campaign of entering the pass was so successful was entirely because it caught the enemy by surprise and created a time difference.
The Qin government of the Ming Dynasty never imagined that the Fuxing Army would have the courage to suddenly enter the pass, nor did they expect that the strength of this rebel army would be so strong.
Without any preparation, how could the military towns in various places, which were already in a state of disarray, withstand such a fierce attack from the Fuxing Army?
Under such circumstances, it was inevitable that the Fusion Army would advance all the way and achieve huge results in the first round.
But in general, the foundation of the Ming Dynasty is still there, and its comprehensive strength and war potential are far superior to those of the current Fuxing Army.
If the court had not been so intense in its factional strife, simply mobilizing all the elite officers and soldiers from the three northwestern provinces in a timely manner, paying them enough military pay, and appointing Hong Chengchou or Lu Xiangsheng as commanders to lead the army to engage in a major showdown with the Fuxing Army would have been enough to give Li Dingguo and his Fuxing Army a hard time.
In this great world, the population of the Ming Dynasty is as high as one or two billion, with a long historical heritage and unfathomable war potential!
It is a pity that the court officials and the royal family were too short-sighted. Otherwise, once the potential of the Ming Dynasty was stimulated, it would be enough to conquer the entire Eastern world.
"Yes! Commander-in-Chief!"...
All the generals present received the order in unison.
Li Dingguo's words are final in the Fuxing Army. Whatever he has decided is an official military order and everyone must accept it unconditionally.
Everyone then dispersed and started busying themselves around.
The scale of the Renaissance Army is now very large, and all matters, big and small, need to be arranged properly.
Fortunately, all the soldiers of the Renaissance Army are warriors with execution capabilities far exceeding those of ordinary people. It is not difficult for them to execute military orders quickly, and the speed is extremely fast.
The busiest were the First and Second Battalions of the Xuanwu Legion, which had just been reorganized. They needed to redistribute the treasure ships, equip each treasure ship with Qi Refining Realm generals, and re-register the soldiers.
Even the logistics departments need to update the identities of the reorganized soldiers and change the information of all the soldiers' magical identity tokens.
With the Human Emperor Cauldron's ability to refine magical instruments of all levels in large quantities, Li Dingguo refined a mid-grade magical instrument identity token for all the warriors in the army before the army entered the pass.
This mid-grade magic weapon token was inspired by the functions of mobile phones in the previous life. It can be easily operated using mental power, and can record the identity information and military merits of soldiers.
It can be said that it integrates the functions of previous life's ID card, bank card, etc., which is very convenient and fast.
However, only the logistics department and the military have the authority to operate this kind of mid-grade magic weapon identity card, which is equipped with a corresponding card reader and uses mental power to enter various information into the identity card. The soldiers do not have the card reader in their hands, so they can only hold it but cannot operate it themselves.
The card reader and identity token that have been encrypted by Renhuangding cannot be changed by people without permission, and they cannot be cracked at all.
The power of an innate divine weapon is beyond the imagination of ordinary practitioners, especially an innate divine weapon like the Human Emperor Cauldron that has nine seals.
With the popularization of special mid-grade magic weapon identity tokens, the management of the Renaissance Army will be so simple and easy, saving the huge workload of the military and logistics departments, and becoming simple, clear, convenient and fast.
This can also provide great help to the Military Intelligence Department and the Ministry of Internal Affairs in clearing out enemy spies who have infiltrated the jurisdiction of the Renaissance Army.
As for the large number of ordinary people, they were also equipped with low-grade magic weapon identity tokens.
They themselves have no mental power, so it doesn't matter if they check the information therein, since they don't have the authority to operate anyway.
If you want to check your information, you can go to the logistics department office and borrow a card reader to check it at any time to know the details. The Fuxing Army has a huge logistics department composed of more than 100,000 low-level warriors. Every three months, the identity information of all soldiers and civilians must be updated in real time to ensure that there are no mistakes.
Once you discover that the information recorded in your magic weapon identity token is incorrect, you can go to the logistics department at any time to report the change and you can also receive rewards, and the relevant managers will be held accountable.
In a nutshell, it is impossible to cheat and act recklessly in the Renaissance Army.
Not to mention that there is comprehensive supervision by the internal affairs department, which will make you pay an unbearable price.
……
"General Wan'er, Fugu City and Baode Prefecture are ahead!"
Pan Jinghua stood at the bow of the Xuanwu Third Battalion's flagship ship, the Great Treasure Ship, and pointed forward to report to Wan'er, "These two riverside fortress towns are located on the east and west banks of the Yellow River, facing each other across the river."
"Among them, Baode Prefecture City is the largest prefecture city in the northern Yellow River basin in Guannei during the Ming Dynasty and is under the jurisdiction of the Shanxi Province."
"Our intelligence department has used spirit pigeons to send back detailed military intelligence reports."
He looked relaxed, and had enough confidence in the upcoming battle. "There are many treasure ships parked at the big dock in Baodezhou, and they have not left in advance."
"It's not that the owners of these treasure ships don't want to leave, but they have no way to retreat."
"After our army captured the important town of Shenmu, Liu Zhiqing proposed that we send out an elite cavalry brigade of 10,000 people to raid Fugu City along a straight land route and capture this important riverside town in the northern part of the Yellow River in one fell swoop."
"The most important thing is to catch the enemy off guard, seize all the treasure ships of all sizes on the Fugu City Pier, and then immediately form a temporary large fleet to head to the river section north of Baode Prefecture to block the retreat of those treasure ships of all sizes in Baode Prefecture."
"Half a month ago, Liu Zhiqing, who was in charge of this round of long-distance raid, used spirit pigeons to get in touch with our main army and reported that they had successfully captured the defenseless Fugu City."
"This time, their action not only easily captured Fugu City, which was guarded by only a thousand soldiers, but also took control of this vital riverside fortress city in the northern basin of the Yellow River. They also intercepted more than 20 treasure ships of various sizes."
"I have to say that Liu Zhiqing, a genius whose talent is comparable to that of Hongmei's chief steward, has grown up too fast."
"He easily made up for what neither of us had expected, and reaped huge results. He also laid a perfect foundation for our army to capture Baode Prefecture."
Pan Jinghua was also impressed by Liu Zhiqing, who grew up rapidly during the war.
It was precisely because of Liu Zhiqing that their Northern Army's sweeping operation went so smoothly.
For example, in the Battle of Shenmu, Liu Zhiqing proposed to Wan'er and Pan Jinghua that he would lead a dozen Qi Refining Realm generals and sneak into the city in disguise.
When the army arrived at Shenmu City, they cooperated inside and outside the city, captured the South Gate in one fell swoop, and let their own army coming from the south directly into the city.
In just half a day, the important town of Shenmu, which covered an area of hundreds of miles, was easily captured, and the people in this frontier city were not affected by any war.
This kind of delicate thought is exactly what Wan'er and Pan Jinghua lack.
There was no doubt about the victory of this battle, but under Liu Zhiqing's operation, our side won too easily.
And they achieved the greatest results, winning a complete victory without causing any harm to ordinary people in the city.
Immediately afterwards, Liu Zhiqing proposed to personally lead a troop of 10,000 elite cavalrymen, take a shortcut and head straight to Fugu City on the eastern bank of the Yellow River, and once again easily won a complete victory!
This kind of scheming and tactics are unique in the Renaissance Army so far!
Wan'er has decided to personally ask Li Dingguo for credit for Liu Zhiqing, a rising star in the Fuxing Army.
It is really a waste of talent for such a talented general to now serve as the deputy commander of the third battalion of the Xuanwu Legion.
With Liu Zhiqing's current ability, he is more than capable of commanding a battalion of soldiers in the main combat corps.
"Pan Jinghua, should we go directly to capture Baodezhou City now, or should we first meet up with Liu Zhiqing who is in Fugu City?"
Wan'er thought about it and then asked Pan Jinghua.
In terms of military strategy, although Wan'er is qualified, she is not outstanding and can only be regarded as a mediocre commander.
But these shortcomings are enough to be covered up by her own powerful fighting ability. At least she can easily deal with ordinary government troops.
"General Wan'er."
Pan Jinghua quickly reported, "Liu Zhiqing has already thought about this problem for us."
"He grasped the movement direction of our army in time yesterday and calculated the exact time when our main army and the large fleet would arrive."
"If nothing unexpected happens, the fleet led by Liu Zhiqing and the thousands of elite cavalry troops who have been freed up will soon join our large fleet."
As soon as he finished speaking, a large fleet consisting of more than 20 large and small treasure ships appeared from the vast surface of the Yellow River ahead and headed towards them rapidly.
Liu Zhiqing, this monstrous genius general, even calculated the time for his arrival to join up with his main army to the exact minute!
What made Wan'er even more delighted was that there was actually a top-quality treasure ship in Liu Zhiqing's fleet!
This guy didn't report any specific military achievements before, probably because he wanted to give Wan'er a surprise!
The two large fleets were moving in opposite directions at a very fast speed and soon met up.
"Whoosh!"
A figure jumped up from the big treasure ship that had just adjusted its course, flew into the air, and then landed lightly in front of Wan'er and Pan Jinghua.
"Greetings, General Wan'er. Liu Zhiqing leads the soldiers to report in!"
As soon as Liu Zhiqing came in front of Wan'er, he saluted her and reported loudly.
"No gift."
Wan'er nodded and said, "Liu Zhiqing, I didn't expect that you led a cavalry of 10,000 elite soldiers this time, not only easily completing the task of capturing Fugu City, but also obtaining a top-grade treasure ship."
"That's good. Our army heading north now has two top-quality treasure ships. Our future water combat capabilities will undoubtedly increase by more than 50%."
In Wan'er's eyes, whose vision is getting higher and higher, only the top-grade treasure ship is worthy of a glance.
As for those low- and medium-quality treasure ships, she just treated them as making up the numbers.
When she was on Lingshan Island, she served as the commander of the navy, with five top-grade treasure ships and more than twenty high-grade treasure ships under her command, which had already broadened her horizons.
The naughty little girl in the past now has a vision that exceeds that of almost all the generals of the Restoration Army. She has broadened her horizons.
"hey-hey……"
Liu Zhiqing, who originally wanted to give Wan'er a surprise, was a little shocked when he heard this and touched his big head with his hand.
"Okay, Liu Zhiqing, now that our two armies have joined forces, you, Pan Jinghua, Liang Hetang, and Liang Qingduo, go and command the soldiers immediately and prepare for battle!"
"Once the large fleet arrives outside the city of Baodezhou, immediately launch a wave of psychic cannon fire to break through the city defense formation!"
"The most important thing about this battle is that the Xuanwu Third Battalion must control the large dock outside the city as quickly as possible and not let any of the treasure ships escape!"
"The intelligence has already said that there are more than 30 treasure ships of various levels at the large dock outside Baodezhou City, including a top-grade treasure ship of the Fan family. We must seize it intact!"
Wan'er's current style can be described as swift and decisive, and she immediately issued a combat order.
"Yes! General Wan'er!"...
All the senior generals on the scene received the order in unison, then immediately dispersed, flew towards the large treasure ships, and began intensive pre-war preparations.
(End of this chapter)
