"The peaks are bounded by the sky, and there is no way for flying birds." The road in Guizhou is difficult to travel, which must have brought a lot of shock to Wang Yangming who was demoted here.

For thousands of years, from the opening of the "Five Feet Road" in the Qin Dynasty to the "Southwestern Barbarians" in the Han Dynasty, "the sky is never clear for three days, and the land is never three miles flat", which vividly illustrates the geographical characteristics of Guizhou, and is no less important than the Shu Road.

degree of difficulty.

Tens of thousands of troops meandering like a long dragon, moving forward slowly, it was Wu Sangui's army that conquered Shuixi.

After receiving the order from the Qing court, Wu Sangui led his army on an expedition from Kunming to Bijie, via Miluo, and returned to his clan. He wanted to go directly to Guoyongdi City (in Zhijin County), Ankun's home base.

During this expedition, the Wu army carried a lot of artillery, as well as ammunition, food and grass, and a lot of baggage, and their marching speed was quite slow.

However, in Wusa (now Weining, Hezhang and Shuicheng counties in northwest Guizhou), An Zhongsheng had sent heavy troops to guard the natural dangers of crossing the river. Wu soldiers had no boats and could not break through, so they had to detour to Shuicheng (now the Fa'er area).

Enter Shuixi.

"An Kun is really tolerant, and he hasn't raised his flag to start an uprising yet." Liu Anbang, the commander-in-chief, sneered with a bit of disdain: "Destruction is imminent, but you still think you can survive by chance?"

Wu Sangui smiled faintly, and the scar on the bridge of his nose also twisted a little, and said slowly: "He also imagined that other chieftains could raise troops to help, but he didn't know that those grassroots would dare to offend our army and cause trouble for themselves?"
p>

Regarding the destruction of Shuixi, Wu Sangui was very confident. In addition to mobilizing Li Benshen's troops in Guizhou, he also sent Wu Guogui, the commander-in-chief, and Shen Yingshi, the commander-in-chief, to lead Li Liangdong and other generals to garrison Dafang (Guizhou Dafang) to stop the attack.

Shuixi has been completely besieged, and An Kun is already a fish in the net. No matter how he flutters, it is just a few more breaths.

Other chieftains acted according to the prevailing situation and might rebel and attack when the Qing army was defeated. But in Wu Sangui's view, that would not happen.

The equipment is well-equipped, the artillery is sharp, and the soldiers are battle-hardened and well-trained. How can a mere local soldier resist them?

At this moment, a rider came up from behind and presented an urgent message from Yunnan.

Wu Sangui opened it and read it, with a gloomy expression on his face. After pondering for a while, he said to the messenger: "Go back and tell Mr. Fang that I already know."

The messenger took the order and left, and Wu Sangui showed a faint smile and said: "The pseudo-clan is still tossing on the Yangtze River, but it has some ability. It has even reached the Nanjing river from Jiujiang and Anqing."

Liu Anbang, the commander-in-chief, was surprised and said: "When we raised the army, I heard that the pseudo-clan was still in Wuchang. In such a short period of time, it actually reached Nanjing. It is really unbelievable."

"Liang Huafeng, the admiral of the south of the Yangtze River, led the navy to underestimate the enemy in the wave battle, but was defeated by the bandits in one fell swoop. The Yangtze River can no longer stop the bandits. However, it can defeat a heavy city. This beast cannot be underestimated."

Wu Sangui first praised and then demoted, with a hint of scorn on his face as he said: "But judging from his rapid attack and aggressiveness, I predict that he will eventually be defeated."

Liu Anbang was very sensible and quickly picked up the conversation and asked: "Why do you see it?"

Wu Sangui chuckled and said: "Anyone who achieves great things must first solidify the foundation. The thieves have just occupied eastern Sichuan for a few months, and the foundation is like reeds on the wall. Although the attack on Huguang is a clever move, it can rob the population and materials."

"But if you don't know how to advance or retreat, you don't know how to stop when things are good, your strength has been exhausted, and your true and false are exposed, don't you know the truth about the waxing and waning of the moon?"

"Speaking of which, I am still too young and too impatient. So what if we capture Nanjing, can we still hold it for a long time, build a capital and become emperor?"

"The beautiful land in the south of the Yangtze River, the imperial state of Jinling. Young people, don't you know that you are born in sorrow and die in peace and happiness?"

Liu Anbang nodded repeatedly, with an expression of admiration on his face, and praised: "Your Majesty is aware of the slightest hint, and it makes you suddenly realize. Although the pseudo-clan has some abilities, compared with the Prince, they are as different as clouds of mud.

”

Wu Sangui stroked his beard proudly, pretending to be humble and said: "Even so, you must be cautious if you want to defeat the bandits."

Liu Anbang asked doubtfully: "Your Majesty, does the court want our army to destroy the bandits alone?"

Wu Sangui smiled slightly and said: "Even if the king wants to bear the responsibility alone, the court will not agree. Do you think that if the bandits know that they are defeated, won't they flee to other places? If they leave Sichuan, our army will still pursue them.

?"

Liu Anbang suddenly realized it, his eyes lit up, and he said: "If this is really the case, it would be exactly what the prince wants."

Wu Sangui laughed and said: "So, the imperial court has decided on a three-party campaign. Gansu and Shaanxi green camps are in the north, Zhili, Shandong green camps are in the east, and then the Fujian and Zhejiang naval forces are deployed into the Yangtze River. The dragnet must be wiped out in one fell swoop."<

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Liu Anbang thought for a while and said: "I'm afraid it will take several months of preparation to complete the deployment of the three-party suppression campaign, right?"

"At least half a year." Wu Sangui said: "After our army has wiped out Shuixi, we can still have time to rest and recuperate, and then listen to the imperial decree. Let all parties make an appointment to march in!"

The Qing court was furious, but calmed down, knowing that launching an attack hastily would risk repeating the mistake of being defeated one by one.

The three-party campaign means to be fully prepared and attack from three sides to eliminate the Ming army in Sichuan and prevent it from having the opportunity to flee elsewhere and cause harm to the place.

Wu Sangui also saw through the profound meaning of the imperial court's deployment, which included the intention to restrict his continued expansion of territory.

For him, having the land of the three provinces of Yunnan, Guizhou, and Sichuan, and a proper king of the southwest is already enough for him, and he doesn’t ask for anything more.

………………

Shuicheng Azatun.

After Wu Sangui led his army to detour to Shuicheng and enter Shuixi territory, he defeated the Shuixi troops in Guiji and Miluo and advanced to Azatun.

An Kun personally took charge of Azatun and sent generals Awu Fasha and Chagana to fight one after another, but they were defeated one after another, so he had to stick to Azatun and no longer fight.

At this time, the chieftain of Wusa (Weining) responded to An Kun and stormed the Weining Acropolis. Wu Sangui sent General Ma Bao to lead his army to destroy Yancang (southeast of Weining) to relieve the danger of Wusa.

At the same time, Wu Sangui commanded the troops and sent General Wang Hong to lead 2,000 soldiers to attack Azatun.

Facing the native soldiers, the Wu army was at a great advantage in terms of weapons and equipment. Artillery bombardment could destroy strongholds and injure people; its excellent armor made it difficult for the native soldiers' bows and arrows to damage them.

To put it bluntly, in a head-on confrontation, the local soldiers are basically no match. Although they are brave and have the advantage of strength, they cannot resist the well-trained and battle-hardened Wu army.

"After several defeats, An Kun and others should wake up. This will be of great benefit to future battles." Liu Xiang had already set up a defensive position and politely asked Pi Xiong to leave, "As King Qianyang

Military advisors should always be by An Kun's side to be wary of villains causing mischief."

Pixiong nodded, not showing off, and said: "Don't worry, as long as we win, our waist will be stronger and our words will have more weight."

"With just two thousand Qing troops, they will definitely be defeated." Liu Xiang was full of confidence. Looking at the defense system mainly consisting of trench parapets and supplemented by bamboo stick arrays, he smiled and said: "This was designed by His Highness himself. It is the most suitable

Defense."

Pi Xiong nodded repeatedly, praised him, and then turned around and left.

The defense system was indeed designed by Huang Li. It showed its power during the battle at Maolu Mountain, and the attacking Qing army suffered heavy casualties.

Moving to Shuixi, Huang Li made some improvements and adjustments based on what he learned about the actual situation of the Yi people. Mainly because of the lack of muskets, Liu Xiang asked for hundreds of crossbows from An Kun.

The crossbow has been passed down from generation to generation among ethnic minorities such as the Yi, Lisu, and Miao people, and is widely used. It is not only a weapon to resist foreign enemies, but also a tool to obtain prey.

The crossbow arrows used by the Yi and Miao people are often grooved, which is their habit when fighting and hunting. The grooves often contain deadly poison.

The crossbow fires silently and is very concealed. Once a person or bird or animal is hit by the arrow, he will be injured and poisoned at the same time. It is often called "blood sealing the throat".

The key is that the crossbow is easy to operate and can be charged in advance. Although the firing rate is not faster than that of bows and arrows, the training period is extremely short and the requirements for soldiers are very low.

Moreover, both crossbows and muskets can take advantage of the fortifications of the trench parapets, allowing them to stand, lie down, and squat, and their shooting postures are relatively free. Unlike bows and arrows, if you want to shoot directly at the enemy, you need to expose most of your body, and the range of movement is large.

"Ms. Zhang, the battle is about to begin. Please stay away for now." Liu Xiang inspected the position and suddenly discovered that Zhang Yaoer was still behind with a dozen women.

Zhang Yaoer hurriedly explained: "Liu Zunshi, these are orphan girls who have been adopted by me and have been my sisters for many years. They are both Han and Yi. They all learned simple bandaging and treatment in the past when they were displaced."

Liu Xiang knows this. Speaking of it, these can be regarded as Pi Xiong's subordinates. They have experienced wars together and are hiding in Yangbaoshan together.

"It's safer to stay far away." Liu Xiang pointed to the earthen bag in the distance and said, "It can block the shells. You hide behind it and wait until the battle is over before coming up to treat the wounded."

Seeing that they were not chased away, Zhang Yaoer nodded with a smile and left with a dozen women.

"His Royal Highness did mention the establishment of a women's rescue team, but I didn't expect that this one would take the lead." Liu Xiang shrugged and looked away from Zhang Yao'er's back.

Dozens of rifles are arranged on the two wings slightly behind the defensive line. According to Huang Li, this is called crossfire and can increase the hit rate of lead bullets.

Guns and crossbows were arranged in the middle, as well as dozens of wooden cannons with dark muzzles, and hundreds of spearmen ready for close combat.

The scattered mounds of earth on the position can effectively withstand the bounce of solid artillery shells and weaken the power of artillery bombardment. Behind the artillery fort, there are more than a dozen trebuchets. Whether it is thunder or stones, they can pass over bamboo sticks.

formation to attack the Qing army.

Liu Xiang looked at the Qing army ready to attack at the bottom of the mountain, reached out and patted the wooden cannon, and seemed to see the tragic situation of Qing army corpses strewn in the field, with a sneer on his face.

"Artillery bombardment, heavy armored troops as the main attack, and archers as cover, it only takes these two moments. Let you see the power of our army's three-dimensional defense."
Chapter completed!