The three forts in Fushan, Langshan and Jingjiang are located in the mouth of the Yangtze River, west of Chongming, forming a pocket.

Langshan on the north bank and Fushan on the south bank seem to be the entrance of the bag, while Jingjiang is the bottom of the bag.

The Jingjiang Fort is located in the middle of the river. The fort can control the entire river surface. Fushan is on the south bank of the Yangtze River and can only control the river surface south of the central channel.

Zhao Ming heard that a Qing army rushed straight to the Fushan Fortress and knew that he had entered the Yangtze River, which really attracted the attention of Mandahai.

However, Zhao Ming also knew that once the Qing army shifted its attention from Hangzhou to him, the Donghai Town Navy would inevitably usher in a fierce battle.

Hangzhou City is difficult to attack. Even though Zhao Ming attracted Mandahai's attention, making Mandahai have no time to pay attention to Hangzhou, whether Hangzhou can be taken down is still a question.

Therefore, Zhao Ming entered the Yangtze River and did not take away the army of Donghai Town under the city of Hangzhou. He only led the navy to meet with Wang Deshun on Chongming Island, and then broke into the Yangtze River, with a total force of only 10,000 people.

"Does the Qing army have other movements besides rushing towards the Fushan Fort?" Zhao Ming asked in a deep voice.

The scout hurriedly replied: "Report to the general, except for the enemy who rushed towards Fushan, no movements of the Qing army have been discovered yet."

Wang Deshun said in a deep voice: "Master General, the Qing army must have tried to block the navy's retreat!"

Zhao Ming nodded slightly, "I ordered the Fushan Fort to stay, and then ordered the Langshan Fort on the North Bank to pay attention to the movements of the enemy in Yangzhou."

The Qing army could not blockade the Fushan Fort just by recapturing the Fushan Fortress, and had to seize the Langshan Fortress on the North Bank at the same time.

"Here!" Wang Deshun held his fists and took the order, but then reminded him: "Master General, if the Qing army intends to regain the fort and block our retreat, will the navy be too dangerous in the river? If the Qing army regains the fort and sets up artillery along the river to bombard warships, we will have no way to avoid it and will inevitably be quite passive."

After all, Zhao Ming's navy was not an iron-clad ship. After all, the wooden ship was shot, and there was a hole in the hull.

According to investigations by the Tiandihui, the Qing army had worked hard on the river defense for several years, and did not build turrets, cast a large number of artillery, and also trained an inland water naval division.

The safest way now is to temporarily withdraw Chongming, but in this way, it is obvious that it cannot drag Mandahai.

If the Qing army in Jiangnan could not be restrained, Zhu Yihai would obviously be unable to conquer Hangzhou and could not conquer Hangzhou, and would not be able to shake the strategy of the four provinces to attack Hunan.

At this time, Zhao Ming not only could not retreat, but even needed to continue moving forward, at least threatening Zhenjiang and cutting off the canal transportation in order to drag a large number of Qing troops to the south of the Yangtze River.

Zhao Ming waved his hand and said in a deep voice: "We cannot retreat at this time, and the fleet must continue to approach Zhenjiang."

Zhao Ming's situation is indeed very passive at this time. If he withdraws at this time, he can avoid a fierce battle and preserve the strength of the navy. However, in this way, Hangzhou will definitely not be able to fight. If he continues to move forward, he will face a bloody battle and even risk a big defeat.

In the face of the overall situation, Zhao Ming chose the latter. After a simple sacrifice in Jiangyin, the fleet did not withdraw from the Yangtze River, but continued to sail forward.

The next day, the scouts reported that when the Qing army attacked the Fushan Fort, there was also a Qing army in Jiangbei who rushed towards the Langshan Fort.

At the same time, a large number of Qing troops gathered towards Zhenjiang and the south bank of the Yangtze River.

On October 5, Zhao Ming took the Zhenhai ship, led 6,000 naval troops and 60 warships, and continued to sail westward.

In front of the big ship, the rowing clutches opened their eyes for the army.

For a moment, I saw huge warships on the river, like moving mountains, swaying sails covering the river.

On the Ming army's flagship, Zhao Ming sat proudly on the deck of the helm, holding a sword in one hand, and the soldiers behind him stood with a knife in a majestic manner.

On the side of the ship were full of Ming soldiers standing straight with muskets in hand. Ming flags were flying on the masts, and the fleet rushed to Zhenjiang in a mighty manner.

"Master, twenty miles ahead, there is a sandbank on the river, which is Yangzhong. To the west of Yangzhong is Dantu, and then Zhenjiang City." Wang Deshun introduced.

Zhao Ming was very familiar with the terrain along the Yangtze River. He nodded slightly, "Is there a fort in Yangzhong? Zhenjiang is a canal transport node, allowing me to approach Zhenjiang, Mandahai, and Fan Wencheng was disgraced. Will Mandahai stop him in Yangzhong?"

"Report to the commander, there is indeed a fort in Yangzhong! As for whether Mandahai will block Yangzhong, it is still necessary to investigate the scouts?" Wang Deshun said.

At this moment, a small boat came quickly and approached the big boat. A scout hurriedly boarded the Zhenhai, ran up in a hurry, and knelt on one knee, "Report! Grandmaster, more than ten miles ahead, on both sides of Yangzhongshazhou, a large number of enemy ships were found."

Zhao Ming stood up, and the Qing army was indeed intercepting Yangzhong. He did not expect the Ming army to approach Zhenjiang and threaten the Qing Dynasty's water transportation.

Zhao Ming was silent for a moment, and the generals all looked at him. After a moment, Zhao Ming said loudly: "Come here!"

Yangzhong Shazhou is located in the center of the Yangtze River. The sandzhou separates the river water and forms two waterways in the north and south.

At this time, on the sandbank, there were many flags, Qing soldiers wearing jackets and hats, busy stacking mud bags and strengthening the fort.

On the fortress built by sandbags and stones, a dark red-clothed cannon aimed at the surface of the river.

Behind the fort, on the back of the sandbank, hundreds of Qing warships descended from the ship sails and moored on the riverside. There were many soldiers on the deck. The red-clothed cannons on the bow of the ship were uncovered. The gunners were carrying gunpowder and shells to prepare before the war.

On the bank of the Yangtze River south of the Shazhou in Yangzhong, many Qing troops were busy setting up artillery, waiting for the arrival of the Ming Navy.

The Manda Sea was not on the sandbank, nor on the warship of the Jiang Waterproof Division. As the Prince of Manchuria, he could not take risks. For him, the sandbank and warship were not safe. He was still standing on the south bank on horseback and could pull out his horse and evacuate at any time, which made him feel a little safe.

"Prince, there are forts on the Yangzhong Shazhou, there are naval troops on the north and south channel, and the army on the south bank also built artillery formations. If Zhao Zamao led the fleet to come, he would be bombarded by the Yangzhong Fort, naval troops, and the south bank artillery formation. The Qing Dynasty would definitely be able to defeat Zhao Zamao!" Liu Liangzuo introduced to Mandahai.

There were very few naval generals in the Qing army. After the last battle of Taihu Lake, the Qing Dynasty formed the Taihu Navy, and Liu Liangzuo's troops were converted into a navy and trained in the Yangtze River and Taihu Lake for three years.

This battle can be said to be the first time that Liu Liangzuo's troops, as a navy, fought with the navy of Donghai Town with real swords and spears.

Mandahai nodded slightly, "Zhao Zamao is loyal and righteous. If it were not forced by the situation this time, he would not have risked entering the Yangtze River. But since he has come and given this opportunity, I have to cherish it and destroy him!"
Chapter completed!