Chapter Forty-Three: The Battle for Chengdu

Qin Liangyu ordered the drums to sound the retreat and began clearing the battlefield. The White Lance Soldiers, encountering any wounded enemy, would swiftly behead them, while the Imperial Guards simply used their bayonets to kill the injured without taking heads. The Guard’s manual strictly stipulated that only the logistics troops and camp followers were permitted to collect enemy heads after a battle; regular soldiers were forbidden to do so, and violations were severely punished, erasing any merit gained.

While the battlefield was being cleared, some soldiers began to set up camp. Since they would resume the attack the following day, only a simple camp was erected. The provincial troops, having marched and fought all day, settled down early once their tasks were finished. After inspecting the camp’s defenses with Lu Qin and Qin Yiming, Qin Liangyu entered the command tent to discuss plans for the next day.

Qin Liangyu began, “General Lu, your men’s firearms are formidable and your ranks are well ordered. Truly, you command a rare and elite force.” The casualty report had come in: the Imperial Guards had lost just over a hundred men, but the White Lance Soldiers had lost more than two hundred dead. However, the enemy suffered over four thousand killed or captured—a staggering exchange that left nothing more to be said.

Lu Qin replied, “Last time at Xindu, we held the defense while the enemy’s numbers were small and their assaults lacked force, so our victory was resounding. This time, the enemy broke our formation and we had to fight them hand-to-hand, so our losses were heavier. His Majesty has said that positional warfare is best for us; in mobile engagements, our combat effectiveness diminishes. General Qin, your White Lance Soldiers are the true elite—such light casualties and so many enemy felled in close combat. My Imperial Guards are put to shame.”

Qin Liangyu gave a wry smile. “We had no choice; our armor and firearms are inferior to the Guards’. All we could do was fight to the death.”

Lu Qin fell silent, unable to respond. Qin Liangyu quickly composed herself and began to lay out the next day’s plan. “We are few in number, so tomorrow we must commit our whole force. General Lu, you will lead the Imperial Guards with my White Lance Soldiers at the front; Yiming will command the cavalry as the reserve. We will attack only the north gate and strive to take it. As for the formation, I propose this adjustment for tomorrow…”

The next morning, after breakfast, the troops set out. An hour later, they arrived outside the city of CD. Qin Liangyu deployed the forces: four ranks of White Lance Soldiers in front, four ranks of Imperial Guard infantry behind, with the cavalry following about four hundred paces to the rear—an unmistakably offensive formation.

After a short rest, Qin Liangyu gave her pre-battle address: “Before you stands the rebel army of She Chongming, besieged in CD. The glory is before your eyes—whether you seize this chance for merit is up to you. When this revolt is quelled, the rewards from the court will not be meager. If you wish to win a good future for your children, now is the time.”

The White Lance Soldiers were brimming with fighting spirit, and the Imperial Guards raised their muskets, eager for battle. When the speech ended, Qin Liangyu withdrew to the rear, and the troops advanced toward the enemy, who lay a mile ahead.

After yesterday’s failed attack, She Yin, to lessen his blame, had wildly exaggerated the strength and numbers of Qin Liangyu’s force. Thus, She Chongming himself now guarded the north gate. Upon seeing the enemy was only about five thousand strong, he cast a furious glare at She Yin, who hurriedly said, “Their firearms truly are formidable. It’s best to wait for them to attack.”

This wise suggestion was immediately dismissed by She Chongming. “Over a hundred thousand men against five thousand, and you want to stand on the defensive? Has one defeat destroyed your courage? I’m deeply disappointed in you. Attack—attack swiftly! Give them no chance to breathe!”

Seeing the enemy prepare for an assault, Qin Liangyu ordered a halt and had the Imperial Guards move up, interspersed with the White Lance Soldiers. Lu Qin relayed the command: “White Lance Soldiers, cover the Imperial Guards. Maintain your formation—no one is to leave the ranks to attack.”

Again, a dense assault began. When the enemy was thirty paces from the front line, the drums sounded. The first two ranks of Imperial Guards fired their muskets, a white cloud enveloping the field. Then, the rear two ranks rotated forward while the front ranks reloaded behind them.

As the smoke cleared, the enemy charged forward, heedless of their fallen comrades. When they reached the line, another drumbeat sounded, the crisp crack of muskets felling most of the enemy in front. Those who survived were easily dispatched by the White Lance Soldiers.

The day’s battle unfolded much like the previous one, but now the infantry had more time to reload, and all close combat was absorbed by the White Lance Soldiers. Lu Qin felt this cooperation was superior and resolved to recommend it to the Emperor upon his return.

She Chongming, growing desperate, urged his men on, packing them closer together. This only increased the Guards’ killing efficiency. Yet with only two thousand muskets, as the enemy massed in even greater numbers, the pressure shifted to the White Lance Soldiers, who soon began to show signs of exhaustion.

Qin Liangyu ordered the bamboo flute to be played. The White Lance Soldiers broke away from the mixed formation and surged forward. Lu Qin seized the opportunity to change his infantry into a six-rank formation, implementing three-stage volley fire.

This maneuver briefly reduced the pressure on the infantry but increased casualties among the White Lance Soldiers, who were now buying time for the musketeers with their lives.

The flute sounded again, its melody changing. The White Lance Soldiers began hacking their way along both flanks, while the enemy center pressed toward the infantry. Lu Qin gave orders for three-stage volley fire when the enemy was fifty paces away: the first and second ranks fired, then fell back; the third and fourth ranks advanced and fired, then retreated to the rear; the fifth and sixth ranks moved forward and fired, then rotated back. All the while, the front ranks reloaded, ensuring a constant hail of bullets. The enemy could not break through to the Guards.

Each volley unleashed over six hundred bullets. Against such dense ranks, even with only half hitting and half inflicting disabling wounds, that meant over a hundred and fifty men struck down per volley. Four to five volleys could be fired in a minute, leaving the enemy with no hope of breaking through. Lu Qin grew ever more impressed with the Emperor’s doctrine: properly deployed, musket infantry could hold back vastly superior numbers unaided, without needing pikemen for cover. His previous belief that the White Lance Soldiers’ cooperation would enhance combat effectiveness had been thoroughly disproved.

The flute sounded once more. The White Lance Soldiers now withdrew, pulling back along the wings to take up positions on either side of the infantry, never mingling with the musketeers again.

At last, the enemy’s will broke. Some began to falter, unwilling to charge into certain death. As one hesitated, others followed, and the offensive slackened, only increasing their casualties. Soon, the front ranks began to fall back, and the rout spread rapidly. She Chongming’s execution squads, at first killing deserters, were themselves cut down by the panicked mob. Within moments, scattered retreat turned to utter, overwhelming rout.