Chapter 756: A bad start! (Thanks to the book friend Lao Wang next door for the reward!)
Jinzhong, Pingyun City

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

Under the cover of thirty red cannons, tens of thousands of Fengwu Army soldiers once again launched an attack on the county town that had been captured by the Imperial Army three months ago...
Facing the attack of the Fengwu Army, the imperial guards guarding the city also used the Zhengdong cannons in their hands to fight back. Although the power and number of their artillery were not as strong as those of the Fengwu Army, they still caused considerable casualties to the Fengwu Army by standing on the city wall and looking down from above.

At the same time, in the watchtower of the camp, Lin Huaiwu, who was in charge of the Yunbing counterattack, was observing the progress of the Fengwu Army's offensive with a monocular telescope with a serious expression.

Five days ago, under the leadership of Lin Huaiwu, the Second Army and the Third Division of the Fengwu Army, which were responsible for carrying out the Yunbing counterattack mission, re-determined the counterattack plan based on the current new situation.

After finalizing the plan, Lin Huaiwu couldn't wait to send troops to counterattack. Although he had Xun Ke's warning before sending troops, Lin Huaiwu was still confident in this battle. He felt that the strength of both sides was almost equal in this battle, but in terms of artillery and cavalry, the Fengwu Army still had a considerable advantage.

Therefore, as long as we advance steadily and give full play to the advantages of the Fengwu Army, then even if this battle is not an overwhelming victory, victory will be certain and there will be no surprises!

In terms of past achievements in the Fengwu Army, although Lin Huaiwu was not as dazzling as Yuan Song and Guo Zhiping, his cautious and steady style of fighting still won him the trust of Ye Mingsheng, who appointed him as the supreme commander of the Yunbing counterattack to help the Fengwu Army regain the five counties...

However, although Lin Huaiwu fought cautiously and steadily, trying not to give Wang Muzhi any chance to take advantage of him, what he never expected was that Wang Muzhi would do everything to the extreme in order to win the battle!

First of all, Wang Muzhi ordered the withdrawal of all troops from Wankang County, Pingrong County, and Lingyuan County. At the same time, he also looted all the edible food in the city, leaving not a single grain of rice for the Fengwu Army.

This also resulted in the Fengwu Army having 70,000 to 80,000 extra mouths to feed when it took over the three counties. The logistical pressure rose sharply. Some teams that were originally supposed to transport firearms and ammunition were now transporting food. The food and fodder that could support a month of war was only enough for half a month.

This was also the effect Wang Muzhi wanted to see. Next, Wang Muzhi changed his previous hard-line tactical style and began to use soft tactics. He ordered thousands of cavalrymen under his command to be divided into seven or eight teams of hundreds of people, and to bypass and harass the weak supply lines of the Fengwu Army.

The task Wang Muzhi gave to his cavalry was to focus on harassment, not to engage in head-on confrontation with the Fengwu Army, and to do everything possible to prevent the Fengwu Army's logistical supplies from reaching the front line smoothly.

Although Lin Huaiwu also understood the importance of logistics and equipped the logistics troops with sufficient protection, he was still caught off guard by Wang Muzhi’s new tactics. Almost half of the logistics supplies transported from Jinzhong were destroyed.······························
At this time, Lin Huaiwu looked at the soldiers of the Second Army under his command, who bravely rushed up the city wall several times, but were ultimately defeated and driven down by the enemy. In desperation, he punched the watchtower heavily, and a look of regret and sorrow appeared on his face.

Although he had long realized that the enemy had chosen Pingyun County and Dagu County as their main battlefields and must have made thorough preparations, Lin Huaiwu was still surprised by the hardness and tenacity of their defense. In the past few days, the Second Army's artillery had fired at least a thousand shells at Pingyun County, and even at one point collapsed a section of the city wall.

However, the defenders in the city never gave up, and even mobilized the people to repair the city walls at night, while attacking the artillery positions of the Fengwu Army. Although their night attack ended with thousands of corpses under Lin Huaiwu's steady deployment, it also made the Fengwu Army restless for a whole night.

After the Fengwu Army retreated, Ye Tao, covered in gunpowder, came to Lin Huaiwu and asked:
"Commander, I will lead my men to charge again in a moment! This time we will definitely defeat them!"

The battle in Dagu County brought Ye Tao into Ye Mingsheng's sight, and this also put Ye Tao on the fast track to promotion. When the Eighth Division was formed at the beginning of the year, Ye Mingsheng transferred him to serve as the deputy general of the Eighth Division to assist Xun Ke in his work.

After Xun Ke was transferred to the Third Division, Ye Tao also became the acting general of the Eighth Division. As long as he achieved some results, he could naturally take over the position of general...
Seeing Ye Tao's unwillingness to admit defeat, although Lin Huaiwu felt very sorry in his heart, he shook his head and rejected Ye Tao's proposal. He stood on the watchtower and watched the entire offensive. Although the Fengwu Army attacked the city wall several times and fought with the enemy on the city wall for nearly an incense stick of time before being driven down by the enemy.

However, the enemy's reaction was still very methodical, and they were not at the end of their strength. Moreover, after the siege just now, Lin Huaiwu knew that the soldiers had suffered heavy casualties and were very tired. Continuing the siege at this time would not achieve much better results except increasing casualties!
Lin Huaiwu hesitated for a moment and ordered:

"We have been attacking for three days. Let's let the soldiers rest for the rest of the day! Tell the artillery to adjust the coordinates and fire at the weak points around the city wall. I want to see who can repair it faster, or I can blow it up faster!"

"Yes!"

Hearing Lin Huaiwu's order, Ye Tao responded subconsciously, but after he finished speaking, he remembered something and introduced it to Lin Huaiwu:

"Commander-in-chief, the artillery only has a basic number of shells left!"

After hearing this, Lin Huaiwu frowned slightly and asked:
"Didn't we just deliver a batch of ammunition last night? How come there is only a basic amount left now?"

Ye Tao said helplessly:
"The ammunition delivered last night was harassed by the enemy cavalry. Although the soldiers in charge of protection repelled the enemy cavalry, only 500 shells were left out of 2,000..."

Listening to Ye Tao's words, Lin Huaiwu also felt very troubled. Although Yuan Song had pointed out this problem at the beginning of the year, Ye Mingsheng also issued it as a document, requiring the Fengwu Army not to rely too much on firearms. Even if they did not have the advantage of firearms, they could still fight and win!

However, firearms are so easy to use that they can not only defeat the enemy better, but also greatly reduce our own casualties. Therefore, all units of the Fengwu Army are now suffering from a fear of insufficient firepower and are demanding more artillery and muskets. At one point, they even brought a lawsuit to Ye Mingsheng because of the problem of equipment batches.

These firearms can naturally exert great power when the logistics supply is smooth. However, under the current situation of poor logistics supply, the ammunition for the firearms cannot be adequately supplied, and the power of these firearms will undoubtedly be greatly reduced. If this situation cannot be resolved, I am afraid that it will not be long before the firearms in their hands will become fire sticks!
Lin Huaiwu also realized the seriousness of the situation at this time. He thought quickly for a moment and then ordered: "In this case, let's suspend the bombardment. Let all units save ammunition and avoid unnecessary consumption. Use the steel where it is needed most! Also, let General Xun come to see me!"

"Yes!"

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Yijing, Governor's Mansion

In the study, Ye Mingsheng was sitting on a chair with his eyes closed, while Huo San bowed and introduced in front of him:
"Reporting to the commander-in-chief, we can confirm that most of our army's firearms that appeared on the battlefield of Gongdu came from the Ershunshan warehouse!"

"We found 1,000 Weiyuan guns, 300 Polu guns, and 30 tiger squat cannons in Ye Sanwu's manor, as well as 50 boxes of grenades. In addition to these firearms, we also confiscated 30,000 taels of silver in cash and 50,000 taels of silver worth of various goods in the manor and Ye Sanwu's home, as well as illegal land deeds covering up to 1,000 acres."

"At present, we can confirm that the masterminds of this arms smuggling case are Ye Sanwu, Ershunshan Warehouse Supervisor Wang Beitao, and Liaoyang Censor Zhao Lin!"

"Wang Beitao took advantage of his position to mark a large number of firearms that were still usable as unusable in the files. He then pretended to destroy these firearms, but actually secretly handed them over to Ye Sanwu. Ye Sanwu used his status as an elder of the Ye clan to disguise these firearms as goods from his business and secretly sold them to the grassland and the palace!"

“As for Liaoyang Censor Zhao Lin, he used his status as Censor to provide protection for this illegal transaction and smoothed the way for them to ensure the safe transportation of these firearms! In addition to these three masterminds, there are dozens of their followers in the First Manufacturing Bureau, Liaoyang Censor, and the Ye family…”

After Huo San finished speaking, he quietly raised his head, trying to observe Ye Mingsheng's expression in a very covert way. However, to his disappointment, Ye Mingsheng's expression was still very calm at this moment, as if what he had just talked about was not the case of arms smuggling and corruption that made Ye Mingsheng most angry, but a very ordinary little thing.

But the more this happened, the more frightened Huo San felt. He could feel that this was the last calm before the storm. This incident would definitely involve many people. He didn't know how many people would be beheaded at this time, and how many people's fate would be changed because of this incident!

Just when Huo San was becoming more and more uneasy, Ye Mingsheng opened his eyes and asked calmly:
"How many firearms did the three of them sell?"

Facing Ye Mingsheng's question, Huo San did not hesitate and said immediately:
"Reporting to the commander-in-chief, according to our investigation up to the time of the incident, they sold a total of about 5,000 muskets of various types, about 100 tiger squat cannons, and about 300 boxes of grenades. Our coordination office is continuing to investigate the specific amount and whereabouts, and we will get a detailed report in a few days!"

"Have these three people escorted Yi Jing?" Ye Mingsheng asked again:

Huo San hesitated for a moment before saying:
“Reporting to the commander, our Coordination Office was searching Ye Sanwu’s manor. Ye Sanwu and his servants resisted stubbornly and were killed on the spot. Wang Beitao tried to escape by boat after hearing the news, but he drowned while being chased and his body has been found. As for Zhao Lin, he committed suicide out of fear of punishment when we went to his house to arrest him…”

Upon hearing that the three masterminds were all dead from Huo San's mouth, Ye Mingsheng couldn't help but narrow his eyes. The next second he said calmly:
"Huo San, does this matter have anything to do with you?"

As soon as these words came out, Huo San's heart was suddenly shaken. The next second, he knelt on the ground without hesitation and kowtowed to Ye Mingsheng. He kowtowed seven or eight times in a row, until his forehead was bloody. Huo San said sincerely:
"Marshal, under your care over the years, I, Huo San, have made a lot of money and married several wives and concubines. How could I, Huo San, give up my good life to do something that could get me killed!"

"Marshal, before I met you, I was just a street thug, fighting with people every day. I might have died in that stinking ditch one day. It's because of you that I am where I am today. You are my second parent. Even if I die, I can't repay your kindness. How could I do such a heartless thing behind your back?"

"Marshal, if this matter is really related to me, Huo San, I will die without a burial place in this life!"

Looking at Huo San who was swearing to him, Ye Mingsheng looked at him deeply before saying:
"Get up, I believe in your loyalty, Huo San..."

Hearing Ye Mingsheng say this, Huo San heaved a sigh of relief and stood up and said:

"Thank you for your grace, Marshal!"

However, just when he thought the matter was over, Ye Mingsheng's voice came to his ears.

"Huo Sanni is the director of the Coordination Office, so I'll give you seven days to catch the evildoer in the Coordination Office. Don't let me do it myself!"

As soon as these words came out, Huo San's mind seemed to be struck by a bolt of thunder. Just when he was about to say something, Ye Mingsheng had no intention of listening to his explanation and simply waved his hand and asked him to leave his study.

Just two hours before Huo San's report, Ye Mingsheng received an interim report from the Internal Security Department on the matter. This report directly pointed out that there was a problem with the Coordination Office in this matter!

To be honest, even without the internal security report, Ye Mingsheng could still feel a sense of heroic self-sacrifice when he heard Huo San’s narration that all three masterminds were dead. Moreover, with such a big conspiracy among the three, if you said that the Coordination Office had not heard any news about it, Ye Mingsheng would not believe it at all...

(End of this chapter)