From a technical point of view, the technology of the mortar is simpler than that of the Han-style rifle. All the high-precision technology of mortars is actually on artillery shells. The barrel, gun carriage, and bottom plate are all without technical content. At the same time, the cost of mortars has been reduced to a minimum. Therefore, the mortar can basically be finalized and can be mass-produced. The rest is to improve the quality of the shells as much as possible, and increase the range and power as much as possible.

By the middle of next year, there will be no problem at all in equipping the entire army with 1,000 mortars. If necessary, there is a possibility that this number will continue to increase. It is conceivable that in the near future, the various units of the White Army will be equipped with a large number of mortars. Whether it's offensive or defensive, it's a powerful weapon. Especially in the battles in the Western Regions, mortars will shine. To the west of the Yarkand Kingdom, it is all mountainous, and mortars are the most suitable for exerting their power.

"My lord, can we get a little bit of the vulture cavalry?" Zhang Yi was immediately moved.

The battle of Yangguan Fort fully proved that this kind of light and flexible artillery is simple and practical, and powerful enough to be used even by cavalry. When dozens of mortars are concentrated, they can exert great power and can plunge thousands or even tens of thousands of enemies into chaos. If the number of mortars exceeds a hundred, then even more ...... Xu Xingxia nodded and said quietly: "The Eagle Cavalry can be equipped. ”

Liu Chuang also came to join in the fun, and said happily: "Then we can't miss the cavalry." ”

Xu Xingxia shook his head and said casually: "The chasers are guard troops, what do you want mortars for?" Do you want to rush to the front again? ”

Liu Chuang had no choice but to shut up, and then smiled innocently.

He really enjoyed it today, and the original aggrieved mood has been completely released, and the competition for mortars is not so strong. Also, the chasers are guard troops, and they follow Xu Xingxia everywhere, what are they doing with mortars? Even if Xu Xingxia wants to rush to the front line, there will be other troops to cooperate. The chasers can't steal all the limelight, that will attract jealousy.

After laughing for a while, Zhang Yi restrained his smile and asked seriously: "My lord, if Nurhachi is unwilling to evacuate Liaoyang, should we launch the Liaoyang Battle as soon as possible?" Drive them all back to Hetuala? ”

Xu Xingxia nodded and said, "What do you mean?" ”

Liu Chuang said without thinking: "Of course, it's to go back to their lair." ”

Zhang Yi said thoughtfully: "On the contrary, I think it may be better to let them continue to stay in Liaoyang." If they retract back to Hetuara all at once, we will be in trouble if we want to completely eliminate them in the future. All around Hetuara are deep mountains and old forests, and Jianyu is very familiar with the terrain there. That's their home. They are fighting on their own doorstep, and not to mention morale or anything, there are many other favorable conditions. ”

"If Jianyu uses the deep mountains and old forests to confront us for a long time, we want to solve the battle in a short time, but I'm afraid it will be impossible. None of our troops seem to have any experience in forest warfare. The vast forest sea is our natural enemy! We who are not familiar with the place, if we encounter Jianyu in the deep mountains and old forests, we are afraid that the firearms in our hands will not have much advantage. You may not even be able to find out where your enemies are. ”

"Fighting in Hetuala, there is also a very serious problem, which is the logistics of transportation. Our firearms consume so much ammunition that if we don't transport them by water, we can't transport them by boat, and we can't use them. How much ammunition can we carry as a fighter? And for how long? The logistical transport lines are too long and vulnerable to attacks by the captives. In the event that the logistics troops are ambushed and the weapons and ammunition are snatched, we will lose a lot. ”

"On the contrary, if we can still find a way to concentrate the main forces of Jianyu near Liaoyang as much as possible after the battle of Yangguanbao, and encircle and annihilate them in one fell swoop, it will be very beneficial for future battles. Fighting a war of annihilation near Liaoyang, we have too many favorable conditions. Whether it is the logistics of transportation, or the reservists, it is almost perfect. ”

"Fighting in the Liaoyang area, it would be better if we could attract some of the Horqin Mongols to the Liaoyang area. The Mongols also hated it. If they don't gather together and fight you face to face, but sporadically attack you day and night, you really don't have much to do with them, you can only waste time until they are all killed. The question is, the Horqin grassland is so big, how long will we have to spend it? ”

Xu Xingxia nodded, looked at Zhang Yi appreciatively, and said with a smile: "Okay, yes, the commander of our vulture cavalry army is really not simple, and the analysis is right." That's right, we really want to keep Nurhachi in the Liaoyang region as much as possible, and don't let him withdraw to Hetuala. It is much better to annihilate the last main force of the Dajin army in the Liaoyang region than to exile them back to Hetuala. To do this, we have to think of a way to show weakness. Nurhachi couldn't be frightened all at once, and ran back desperately. ”

Liu Chuang was stunned and said, "However, Nurhachi has already broken his guts. ”

Xu Xingxia said quietly: "Then think of a way to reload the courage for him, so that he feels that he still has a chance to turn the tide without falling." ”

Liu Chuang was stunned again, looking at Xu Xingxia and Zhang Yi suspiciously. Give the guts to Nurhachi and put them back on? What does that mean? With his intellect, it is indeed incomprehensible. He was looking forward to Xu Xingxia's explanation. It's a pity that Xu Xingxia has never explained. Liu Chuang had no choice but to hold this question in his mind.

…… At this time, the mortar battalion commanded by Yun Qifeng had completely stopped firing. All the Dajin army and the Mongols have gone beyond the range of mortars, and no matter how much they extend the firing angle, they can no longer effectively damage the enemy. Without the sound of mortar explosions, the entire battlefield suddenly became quiet. The breeze blew, the smoke gradually blew away, and Xu Xingxia and the others finally began to breathe in the fresh air with the smell of seawater.

Maybe it was because it was too noisy and noisy before, which broke everyone's ears, and after the battlefield fell silent, the fortune felt abnormal. A lot of people don't get used to it. Liu Chuang, who is very exaggerated, also subconsciously dug his ear holes, obviously testing his ears and hearing normally. There are also many fighters, who are picking their nostrils, and as a result, the things that are pulled out of it are all black and yellow, and they are obviously dirty.

In the history of the white-clothed army's conquest, the battle of Yangguanbao was actually nothing. The combined strength of the Dajin army and the Mongols was actually not as much as the combined strength of Mo Yuegen and Lin Dan Khan. Their offensive was not as fierce as Mo Yuegen and Lin Dan Khan. On the side of the white-clothed army, there are also fortifications to rely on. However, the comparison of the forces of the two sides participating in the war is the most disparity. Even when the white-clothed army was at its strongest, the ratio of forces between the two sides was close to ten to one. In other words, a soldier in white has to face at least ten or more enemies.

Such a ratio of battles, if it had been before, would have been almost unimaginable. In the past, even if Xu Xingxia was trusted, he didn't dare to expect that a white-clothed musketeer could deal with more than ten enemies. The proportions are too disparity. On the whole, a white-clad musketeer armed with a moon gun can deal with three enemies, which is already quite remarkable.

However, the emergence of Han-style rifles, grenades, and mortars has made such a possibility a reality. In the battle of Yangguanbao, the most assault experience summed up by the white-clothed army was to give full play to the power of firearms. In the face of such a frenzied firepower, no matter how powerful the enemy is, he is the target of extermination, and there is no exception.

At present, the losses of Jianyu have not been counted. Xu Xingxia estimates that this number will definitely not be small. The military strength of the Dajin Kingdom should have lost at least forty percent or more. Even, it is possible to exceed half. Such a huge loss cannot be made up for in the short term. In the future battles, Jianyu will definitely get weaker and weaker.

After the battle of Yangguanbao, there should be no large-scale battles in the Liaodong region. Nurhachi is not a fool, he will not choose to continue to fight with the white-clothed army. As for what kind of fighting style he will choose, it is not yet known. However, the purpose of the white-clothed army was to strand him in the Liaoyang area as much as possible, and then surround him and annihilate him in one fell swoop.

However, it is not easy to do this. In fact, he and Zhang Yi only thought of this strategy, but they did not think of a concrete and feasible implementation plan. The current Nurhachi, even if he is not frightened, is estimated to be a frightened bird. If you notice that something is wrong, you will definitely retract back to Hetuara immediately. It's not easy to keep him behind.

"Report to your Excellency! Top secret information from the Lion Cavalry! Suddenly, an officer of the chaser arrived in a hurry and sent Xu Xingxia a top-secret piece of information.

Xu Xingxia opened the top-secret information and reviewed it carefully, the look on his face was a little gloomy. The content in the intelligence is actually very simple, that is, the Yarkand Kingdom, uniting the three queens of the Western Regions, well, now it is the two queens, together on the eastern front of the Yarkand Kingdom, concentrating a large number of troops, trying to drive the white-clothed army out of the Hamiwei region.

Of course, the point of intelligence is not this. The actions of the Yarkand Kingdom were all expected by the white-clothed army. The focus of the intelligence was that within the multinational coalition organized by the Yarkand Kingdom, there were also troops from the distant Ottoman Empire. After Gao Yigong's repeated confirmation, the Ottoman Empire was indeed meddling in the military of the Yarkand Kingdom.

(To be continued)