Chapter 343 Crossing the River

Shi Kefa took a few steps back, dazzled and almost fell down. He shouted: "The rebels have crossed the river, the rebels have crossed the river, the situation is over, the situation is over!"

Zan Hua's face was also livid. When he saw this, he quickly supported Shi Kefa and said: "Don't be alarmed, the cabinet. Although the rebels have crossed the river, they did not attack Jiangning and counterattacked Longtan. This shows that the rebels crossing the river do not have many troops. There is still hope for recovery. room!"

He then said anxiously: "For the current plan, the key to rescuing Longtan Fang quickly is key. As long as the Fujian Navy is preserved, the Yangtze River will not be lost. If the Yangtze River is not lost, most of the rebel troops will not be able to cross the river. With only a weak force, Although it is tyrannical, it may not be impossible to defeat.”

When Shi Kefa heard this, he quickly calmed down his panic and said: "Yes, yes, it's important to rescue the navy!"

Then he drank: "Someone is coming! Someone is coming!"

"Gather troops! Send troops to Longtan!"

He added: "Hurry up and report to Jiangning with my name card and ask Wei Guogong to organize the army and prepare for war at any time!"

At this moment, a violent earthquake came from the distant river bank, the sound was like thunder. In an instant, there was silence at the head of Dashengguan City.

Shi Kefa trembled and said: "Water Village... It's Water Village!"

He shouted: "Come here, go to the water village to check!"

The Jiangning Water Village is different from Longtan and Dantu. The Water Village here is not a soldier of the Fujian Navy, but the Navy of Yingtian Mansion itself - that is, the Dongting Navy in the early Ming Dynasty. But now, it has long been abolished.

Just like the Denglai Navy, there are only ten thousand people left in the Dongting Navy and no more than a hundred warships, all of which are dilapidated and old and weak. Even though they knew that a powerful enemy was approaching, Jiangning's group of old officials did not reorganize the Dongting Navy.

One is that there is not enough money and food, or the old ministers themselves have money and food, but the small court of Hongguang Puppet Emperor does not have money and food. Second, the time is too short, and there is nothing you can do if you procrastinate.

However, the small court of the Hongguang Puppet Emperor trusted the Dongting Navy and used it to guard the Jiangning Water Village instead of Zheng Zhilong. Gein really couldn't trust Zheng Zhilong absolutely.

Jiangning Water Village is located on the riverside outside Dasheng Pass. It is a strategic location that blocks the water surface of the Yangtze River in Jiangning.

Zhou Li's troops were well prepared for the battle. At about the right moment, they received news that Zheng Wu's navy and two generals who had crossed the river were attacking Longtan. Zhou Li did not hesitate and immediately launched a battle across the river!

The two main force of the Jiangnan War Zone, stationed on the riverside outside Jiangpu, totaled 24,000 soldiers and horses. Under Zhou Li's military order, they began to cross the river.

Many ships had been collected early, and there were twenty warships sent by Zheng Wu's navy after the attack on Longtan. They could transport two general-level troops of 6,000 men at a time.

In the pre-dawn night, shrouded in light water vapor, twenty naval warships, large and small ferries, and fishing boats, carrying the first batch of 6,000 elite soldiers and hundreds of squatting cannons, headed towards the Jiangning River. The villagers ran away to kill him.

Zhou Li personally served as the vanguard and stood on the deck of the warship. Soon, Jiangning Water Village was in sight.

"According to the information obtained by the black-clothed guards, the former Dongting Navy is guarding Jiangning Water Village. There are about 12,000 people and hundreds of broken warships. However, the defense facilities of the water village are extremely complete. In the water On the river outside the stronghold, there are many obstacles such as iron ropes and dragon pillars. Large ships cannot pass through, and only small boats can attack." Zhou Li said calmly: "There are also forts on both sides of the water stronghold, with nearly a hundred artillery pieces, large and small, and the firepower is quite large."

A general of the navy heard this and said: "Captain Zhou, the brothers of the Black Guards made great efforts in the previous attack on Dantu. This Jiangning Water Village must be exactly the same?"

Zhou Li shook his head: "Jiangning Water Village is not Dantu Water Village. The Fujian Navy has just arrived. As supplies and supplies come and go, there are many people, so the black-clothed guards can easily sneak in. But Jiangning Water Village is not like that. It has long been established, and the black It is difficult for the guards to get in. The commander-in-chief of the Dongting Navy is also a fool. He only listened to Shi Kefa's orders and failed to say surrender. Instead, he alerted the snake and made him extremely vigilant. Therefore, Dan's story cannot be repeated here. "

Upon hearing this, the navy general couldn't help but said: "In this case, we must attack by force."

Zhou Li smiled and said: "We must attack here by force. Your Majesty has said that if it is not necessary, it is best not to damage the ancient capital of Jiangning. Just like the capital. I can't advance too fast in my attack here. I have to destroy all the people in Jiangning city." I'll lure all the soldiers out and catch them all in one fell swoop, lest the time comes to attack Jiangning and ruin Jiangning's feng shui."

The navy general couldn't help but smile and said: "It seems that the governor has already made a plan."

"This is natural." Zhou Li said with a smile: "Once Jiangning's old soldier leaves the city, I will tell him not to return to the city."

After the fleet crossing the river arrived at the river outside the Jiangning Shuizhai Bay, its speed slowed down sharply. The big ship did not enter, but ferries and fishing boats passed over the big ship one after another, like dense schools of fish, and rushed towards the water village. The small and exquisite squatting tiger cannon then showed its power.

After entering the firing range, the artillerymen on the boat first launched artillery attacks on the forts on both sides of Jiangning Water Village according to the combat plan.

It was this first round of shelling that shattered Shi Kefa's remaining illusions.

At the Great Victory Pass, Shi Kefa looked at the embarrassed messenger soldiers whose faces were covered with gunpowder smoke and almost fell off the city wall.

"The rebels are attacking in large numbers and have arrived outside the water stronghold!"

...

"What?!"

Xu Wenjue was thirty years old and quite wealthy. Emergency news came from outside the city. He got up from the hot bed with a sullen face. Before he could scold him, he was shocked.

"The Xia thieves are attacking?!"

He grabbed the soldier who was delivering the message and shouted, "Tell me what's going on!"

The soldier's face turned red and he said: "My lord, the rebels from Jiangpu have crossed the river in large numbers. Shige ordered me to report urgently and asked my lord to send troops quickly to rescue Longtan!"

Xu Wenjue threw away his soldiers and took a deep breath: "What is the situation in Longtan?"

The soldiers said: "Before the Jiangpu rebels crossed the river, there was an urgent report from Longtan for help. The rebel soldiers and horses had already crossed the river and were attacking Longtan. The government originally sent troops to rescue, but the Jiangpu rebels suddenly crossed the river to attack Jiangning Water Village. . The Ministry of History said: The Fujian Navy cannot afford to make any mistakes, please rescue Longtan. Once the Fujian Navy is defeated, there will be no natural chasm in the Yangtze River, and the situation will end!"

Xu Wenjue heard this and said, "You go down first and wait for news about me."

Then he shouted: "Someone is coming!"

"I am sending an order from the Duke of our country to the Commander-in-Chief of the Five Armies to quickly prepare for war. I also hold a post in my name and invite all the adults in the court to come to my house to discuss decisions!"

In a moment, Jiangning was in a state of panic.

Not long after, Ruan Dacheng, Zhang Shenyan, Lu Daqi and other former officials of the puppet emperor's small court rushed to the Duke of Wei's mansion.

"What happened? The Duke actually ordered me to wait for the night to come?! The soldiers and horses in the city are moving. Is there something big going on?!"

Ruan Dacheng asked immediately.

Xu Wenjue had no time to make excuses with him and said directly: "The traitors are attacking in a big way!"

He said: "Everyone, an urgent report has been sent from Dasheng Pass. At Mao Shi, the Jiangpu rebels on the other side crossed the river in large numbers, and Jiangning Water Village was already engaged in a fierce battle. There were also rebel enemy troops crossing the river and attacking Longtan at Yinshi. Longtan Zheng Zhilong sent People asked the Ministry of History for help."