Facing the frontal attack of more than 5,000 Japanese troops, Luo Shanghai was quite calm. The Japanese troops also knew that the Ming Army had sharp firearms and a large number of cannons. Therefore, they pushed a rather tall and thick shield car forward slowly. All the infantrymen hid behind the shield car and followed. They did not try to be fast. It could be seen that they had a lot of experience in fighting with firearms. It was similar to the tactics of the Japanese troops that Luo Shanghai had encountered in the mountainous area of Bitianguan.
The tactics of the Ming Army against the Japanese troops were actually very simple. It was to use one's strength to defeat ten. If you had the shield car and cannons, I would use the big cannons. Round after round of bombardment. First, I would use solid bullets to get rid of your shield car, then I would use explosive bullets to deal with your army formation. When you got close, I would change to canister bullets and shoot with the musket.
When Luo Shanghai had set up camp in the military camp, he had prepared enough bunkers for the infantrymen. The soldiers could safely hide behind the bunkers and shoot with guns and cannons. Moreover, the range of the Japanese troops' firearms was far inferior to the cannons of the Ming Army. The Ming Army could completely intercept them from a distance, making it impossible for them to rush to close range. They did not even have the chance to shoot.
However, Luo Shanghai had also observed that the Japanese troops had some cannons. It was just that there were not enough of them to pose a threat to the Ming Army. However, if they really opened fire, the Ming Army might suffer a lot of casualties. It was not clear about the range of the Japanese troops' cannons, but it could be said that the Ming Army still had enough advantages and confidence in this aspect of cannons. In terms of numbers, the Japanese troops could not be compared with the Ming Army. This was the full embodiment of national strength.
The Japanese troops approached slowly. Luo Shanghai stared coldly at the troops that had not fought yet. Thinking about the Japanese troops that he had fought before, he felt that they belonged to two different camps. If the Tokugawa army was really stronger than the Ming Army, they would not have waited for the Ming Army to wipe out most of the Tokugawa army before they rebelled and seized power. They must have been defeated by them before, so they surrendered obediently. Therefore, the Ming Army that wiped out 150,000 Japanese troops would not be any weaker than this troop.
However, they did not have enough men, only 3,000. Facing tens of thousands of Japanese pirates, they were still a little worried. More than a hundred cannons were Luo Shanghai's biggest reliance. The Southern troops had the highest rate of firearms, almost achieving a firearms ratio of 60%. Relatively speaking, the field troops were not enough. Luo Shanghai only had less than a thousand field sword and shield troops. This was achieved for advancing with light equipment. They did not expect to encounter the main force of the Tokugawa Ieyasu.
The cannons were divided into three rows. The first row was solid cannons, the second row was explosive cannons, and the third row was shotgun cannons. The Ming Army was quite familiar with the tactics of cannons and was very good at using cannons to deal with the Japanese troops. Therefore, even when they saw so many Japanese troops, the cannoneers of the Ming Army were not afraid at all.
They were getting closer, closer, closer …
"Fire!"
Luo Shanghai ordered decisively.
"Light the fire! Fire!! Fire!! "
"Boom, boom, boom, boom, boom —"
The cannons of the Ming Army began to roar. The solid cannons carried an astonishing high temperature and speed towards the Japanese troops. The cannons hit the Japanese troops fiercely. Some hit the shield cars, instantly penetrating them and destroying them. Some were not accurate enough and smashed into the Japanese troops. Once they hit the ground, they set off a wave of air and instantly overturned a large group of Japanese troops. Some unlucky ones were directly smashed to death. Those who were slightly luckier could still get up after being overturned, but they still had lingering fear in their hearts.
The first round of firing allowed the cannoneers of the Ming Army to roughly grasp the position and angle of the Japanese troops. The next step was to reload the cannons and focus on bombarding the shield cars of the Japanese troops.
Honda Tadakatsu was at the rear of the Japanese troops and had not been affected. However, when he saw that the Ming Army had so many cannons and that the cannons were very powerful, he could not help but swallow his saliva. He turned around to look at Tokugawa Ieyasu's own troops. When he saw that there was no movement, he braced himself and continued to give the order to attack. When the second wave of cannons from the Ming Army arrived, Honda Tadakatsu realized that 80% of the shield cars in front of the Ming Army had been hit by the cannons of the Ming Army. The damage rate had reached 60%, which clearly exceeded his expectations.
The power of the cannons of the Ming Army and the proficiency of the cannoneers were far beyond what he had imagined.
Tokugawa Ieyasu, who was observing the situation at the frontline from the top of the hill at the rear, instantly came to this conclusion. When he saw that the cannons of the Ming Army had destroyed his shield cars, even though he was mentally prepared, he was still a little hesitant and worried. Without the cover of the shield cars, his troops would be exposed to the firepower of the Ming Army. This was definitely not a good thing for him. The firearms of the Ming Army were very sharp, and the cannons were especially powerful. Without the cover of the shield cars, wouldn't his troops be sent to their deaths?
Unfortunately, his prediction was very accurate. As soon as Luo Shangzhi saw that the solid shells had achieved good results, he immediately ordered the second team of explosive shells to step forward, load, ignite, and fire. With a round of bombardment, the Japanese army was directly bombarded into pieces, and the dead and wounded were scattered all over the ground.
These were not solid shells, they were explosive shells. Once a shell exploded, the lead shrapnel would scatter in all directions. Those who came into contact with it would die, and those who came into contact with it would be severely injured. Some would be blown into pieces, some would even have their arms or legs broken. In any case, when a shell exploded, it would always set off a storm of carnage. Honda Tadakatsu was at the very back of the formation. Before he could even face Shang Ming's army, a lead shell came flying out of nowhere and pierced through the head of his mount. The warhorse that had been following him for a long time had its head blown to smithereens, and red and white matter splattered all over Honda Tadakatsu's face. Honda Tadakatsu immediately collapsed onto the battlefield, causing chaos.
The cannons of the Ming Army continued to bombard without stopping. The cannons that fired the solid shells went back to reload and then returned to fire. Round after round, the Japanese troops were completely unable to maintain their formation, let alone move forward. In less than ten minutes, the elite troops could no longer move forward and retreated. The Ming Army did not even use the shotguns and shotguns.
The first battle ended in a complete victory for the Ming Army. About four to five hundred Japanese soldiers were killed, and many more were injured or disabled. The battle horse of the main general, Honda Tadakatsu, was blown to death. The morale of the Japanese troops was shaken. Seeing that the situation was not good, Tokugawa Ieyasu immediately ordered Honda Tadakatsu's team to withdraw. He realized that he had indeed underestimated the combat effectiveness and firepower of the Ming Army. This Ming Army, which had fewer people than him, actually had such a high ratio of cannons. How many cannons did the Ming Army have?
Cannons were a very reliable, terrifying, and expensive luxury weapon in Japan. Generally, only the most powerful armies could be equipped with a few cannons, and the use of cannons on the battlefield was not high. The tactics of using cannons were also very outdated. Therefore, in the face of such a sharp attack by the Ming Army, they basically had no power to fight back.
At this time, Tokugawa Ieyasu vaguely felt that he could understand why the 150,000 soldiers of the Toyotomi Army were defeated so badly in North Korea.
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