Chapter 589

Episode 589: Hwangryongrak (黃龍落) (4)

In the battle of crossing the Daerung River, the Joseon Army cavalry lasted for two days.

The vanguard of the Ming army numbered about 180,000, of which only 500 were artillerymen, and the rest were infantry armed with classic spears and swords and bows. On the other hand, the Joseon Army’s cavalry only had an artillery force of 4,000 that used large-arms and shotgun cannons.

In front of the Joseon army’s cavalry, which relied on the overwhelmingly advantageous artillery forces and iron nets, the Ming army’s vanguard had to suffer severe damage.

“Now let’s move slowly. “It seems that the iron rail network is now at its limit, and the supplies we have are becoming scarce.”

“I can hold on a little longer.”

“I’ll buy it back. Enemies armed with spears and swords are coming. “I can hold on a little longer.”

Lee Jing-ok, who was observing the war situation, decided to withdraw, but there were many commanders who still had regrets.

However, Lee Jing-ok rejected their opinions.

“No, with the supplies we have left, we can only do self-defense. “Now is the time to get out.”

“Yes....”

“And if they give up because they are so discouraged in the fighting, we will be in trouble. “Shouldn’t we keep up the momentum to catch up?”

“yes.”

The commanders nodded as if they understood Lee Jing-ok’s explanation.

* * *

“The state of security is a mess.”

Ming army camp opposite the Daling River.

The Ming leader, who was inspecting the state of the camp, shook his head and muttered.

The situation inside the camp was a mess. The faces of the soldiers who stood up in shock upon seeing their leader were full of fatigue.

“I’m sorry! “I will hold the soldiers strictly accountable!”

The unit commander who was following the vanguard urgently bowed his head, but the vanguard raised his hand to stop him.

“That’s it. It’s no wonder I’m tired. “It’s okay if we keep our guard up now.”

The leader of the vanguard answered briefly and lightly patted the shoulders of the soldiers who were just looking at him.

“It may be hard, but just work a little harder.”

“yes!”

After a while, the vanguard left and the soldiers all let out a long sigh.

“Whoa~.”

The vanguard, who continued to look around the camp, arrived at a place where wounded soldiers were gathered and receiving treatment.

“What is the situation?”

“There is a shortage of medicinal ingredients.”

“I sent a letter asking for supplies to be delivered as quickly as possible. “Do your best.”

“I will do my best.”

After circling the camp and returning to his camp, the leader took off his helmet and sat down.

“Whoa~.”

The leader placed his hand on his forehead with a long sigh and muttered with a frown on his face.

“The losses are too great... The loss of troops is also great, but the problem is that the material consumption exceeded expectations.”

* * *

On the way to Daling River, we had to stop for at least a day for each battle. What this meant was that there was an unexpected consumption of materials. Even if they stopped, the soldiers had to eat and the soldiers who died or were injured in battle had to be picked up.

The problem was that due to this unplanned stoppage, the supplies brought by the vanguard army were greatly reduced. The amount of supplies consumed by the 180,000 vanguard troops per day was enormous, and supplies were quickly exhausted due to unscheduled consumption. In the end, the last few days of the 20-day delay were caused by the inability to move while waiting for supplies.

After an arduous chase, when they caught up with the Joseon cavalry at Daereung River, the vanguard struck his palm with his fist.

“In the end, it was just a matter of buying time!”

In the Joseon army camp visible across the Daereung River, only the Joseon army cavalry was stationed. However, the scale of the fortified camp was large enough to contain only the Joseon army cavalry. This meant that a large Joseon army was stationed here.

“The entire Joseon army fled!”

“Those damned cavalry units are just to buy time!”

“Let’s defeat them as quickly as possible and catch up with the fleeing Joseon army!”

“Wow!”

The soldiers, who regained their energy from the rumors circulating within the camp and the commanders’ explanations, gave loud cheers and prepared to cross the river.

And in the two days of fighting that followed, the vanguard army suffered serious losses.

It was the result of a collaboration between wire mesh, bigyeokjincheonroe, and shotgun shells.

This was similar not only to soldiers but also to executives.

“We must begin the chase immediately!”

“I’m getting it back! “As soon as the enemy shows his back, we must chase after him!”

Despite the commanders’ cries to chase after the Joseon army right now, the vanguard maintained his cool.

“I sent out cavalrymen who were good at tracking and told them to follow the traces of the Joseon army. “It’s not too late to move when they come back.”

“General! War is gaining momentum! “You can’t afford to fail now that your momentum is up!”

The commanders, who until yesterday were very intimidated and only watched the vanguard’s thoughts, were now putting pressure on the vanguard.

“Are you saying we want to find out where the Joseon bastards have gone and chase them down?”

“....”

The commanders fell silent at the vanguard’s point. The vanguard looked at them with a pitiful expression and made a decision.

“Take a rest today. “It is not too late to move when the cavalrymen in pursuit return.”

“yes.”

* * *

The next day, the cavalrymen who had gone in pursuit returned and reported.

“The traces of the Joseon soldiers...”

The cavalry commander drew an imaginary line with his finger on the map.

“Hmm... It’s a bit of a oscillation as expected.”

After confirming the direction in which the Joseon army was retreating, the vanguard stroked his beard and looked back at the commander.

“It has been confirmed that the Joseon army is retreating to Liaodong Province. I’m trying to take a detour north from here. “If we continue to follow the route the Joseon army is taking now, there is a high risk of being ambushed.”

“I think it would be a good idea to keep track of it. Even if the Joseon military were to sell a trap, it would be very similar to what they have experienced so far. “I can tolerate that much.”

“I’ll buy it back. “The Korean soldiers fled as soon as they heard we were coming.”

“Rather, if you choose a detour, it will give the Joseon army time to strengthen its defenses. “We need to track it down right away!”

“If we take a detour like this, the soldiers’ morale may drop!”

“I’m getting it back! “You can’t miss this moment when the soldiers’ morale has risen!”

The commanders who gained momentum all insisted on tracking down and annihilating the Joseon army. The commander’s response made the vanguard look thoughtful.

‘It is certain that the Joseon army will dig a trap and wait. But what these people say has a point. The morale of the soldiers, who had hit rock bottom due to the previous battles, is skyrocketing. And if you bypass it, you can avoid the trap, but it will give the Koreans time to strengthen their defenses. That’s how I feel, but I still want to take a detour...’

The vanguard slightly shook his head as he looked at the commanders with blood vessels forming on their necks in front of him.

‘Then they won’t listen properly...’

“Hmm... what should I do with this?”

As the vanguard could not easily come to a conclusion, the commanders once again put pressure on the vanguard.

“General! “We must pursue and annihilate it, not bypass it!”

“I’m getting it back!”

“We can’t afford to give the Koreans time!”

One of the commanders who put so much pressure on him pointed out the biggest problem.

“General, now is the time when merit is needed.”

The vanguard’s face hardened at the commander’s words.

‘Right! Considering the damage suffered in the battle so far, it is certain that he will be reprimanded! What if the Joseon army is properly dragged down here? You don’t even have to win! All you have to do is catch the feet of the fleeing Joseon soldiers!’

The vanguard who thought that far accepted the commanders’ proposal.

“Get a good rest until today, and starting tomorrow, we will do our best to chase down the Joseon army!”

“yes! “I follow your orders!”

The commanders responded with loud voices to the vanguard’s decision.

“Then, go back to your respective seats and get ready!”

“yes!”

The vanguard, who dismissed the commanders, quickly took out paper, pencil and ink and began to write a general plan.

-The Joseon army, frightened by the majesty of Cheonbyeong, fled after offering only weak resistance.

-We will capture and pursue traces of the escaped Joseon troops, so we hope that the main unit will join us as soon as possible. In order to deal with the Joseon army’s artillery and riflemen, the main unit’s artillerymen and riflemen must be present.

The vanguard muttered softly as he sent this hastily written general message.

“If you do this, you can avoid getting angry if something goes wrong later.”

If something went wrong and he was reprimanded, he was the leader who made up an excuse to say that the main unit failed to do the job in a timely manner.