This time Qi Jiguang led five thousand cavalry. This was the land price given by Ding Rukui after repeatedly weighing Yan Song's orders and Jiajing's hints.
According to Yan Song's order, it must be that the fewer soldiers the better, the older the better, and it is best for everyone to be on a walking stick.
Of course, Yan Song definitely can't say that this is to make Xiao Feng easier to kill. He also has a high-sounding reason - the world is huge, the safety of the capital is the greatest, and the safety of Long live the first! No one can refute this. Anyone who dares to refute is intent on treason!
However, Jiajing specifically hinted to Ding Rukui that the purpose of this battle was to rush for reinforcements. The number of people could be slightly smaller, but the speed must be fast. The implication is that if you run fast when you go there, you will definitely run fast if you have to run back.
Ding Rukui deeply understood the spirit of the two leaders, and after repeated weighing, he gave a price of five thousand cavalry, which he believed would satisfy both parties.
In terms of quantity, Yan Song is satisfied. Judging from the intelligence, the Tatars spent a lot of money this time and dispatched at least 50,000 troops!
If they meet head-on, based on the combat power of the Ming Dynasty cavalry and the Tatar cavalry, these five thousand cavalry will basically be wiped out.
What's more, no matter how small the number of people is, it's really outrageous. Jiajing has to be able to see through it. So Yan Song acquiesced to this arrangement.
But Ding Rukui had tampered with the quality. These five thousand cavalry were real elite troops with strong men and strong horses, which absolutely met Jiajing's requirements.
If you can't fight, you can run. If you can't fight, you can't escape. As long as Qi Jiguang and Xiao Feng don't fight to the death, there is absolutely no problem in escaping when the situation is bad.
There is no problem with supplies. The grain and grass carts are equipped with the fastest wheels, so keeping up with the large troops is not a big problem.
If he is really defeated, no one will want him anymore. In wars, throwing food, grass and baggage to the enemy and letting them grab it has always been the only way to escape.
Having said that, Ding Rukui is the Minister of War after all. Every victory is his achievement, and every defeat is his stain. So he didn't just think according to the ideas of the two leaders.
He calculated over and over again that although the support army was not large, it would not be ineffective if Qi Jiguang commanded it properly. At least it was possible to harass and slow down the Tatar advance!
After all, there are other passes along the road, and there are defenders inside. The main task of this reinforcement force is mobile rescue, and it does not necessarily have to face the enemy head-on.
But Ding Rukui had never expected that the enemy would know the whereabouts of this cavalry team, and Qi Jiguang also did not expect it.
Who would believe that the person they desperately protect is the person who stabs them in the back?
Therefore, after entering Miyun, Qi Jiguang was almost made dumplings by Tatars. A cavalry force of ten thousand people ambushed on the line between Miyun City and Gubeikou, preparing to wipe out all the supporting troops.
The reason why only 10,000 troops were used was partly due to Ananda Khan's absolute confidence that 10,000 Tatar cavalry was more than enough to deal with 5,000 Ming Dynasty cavalry.
On the other hand, it is due to economic issues. Anda Khan had just conquered Gubeikou and was looting the surrounding towns and villages.
Looting requires manpower. Gubeikou was only breached, not completely occupied, and the Ming Dynasty defenders were not completely wiped out.
It was these two factors that made this siege operation a failure. The extremely alert Qi Jiguang accurately judged that there might be an ambush through the abnormal behavior of birds in the mountains and forests, so he quickly ordered a retreat.
If the Tatars had 20,000 cavalry, they could attack Qi Jiguang from all directions and forcibly surround him. But they only had 10,000 cavalry, so they could only form a semi-encirclement pursuit.
Qi Jiguang stayed calm in the face of danger and ordered two thousand-man troops to occupy the hillsides on both sides first, firing muskets and arrows at the opponent's pursuit arrows as if they were free.
The area between Gubeikou and Miyun City is mountainous, not plain, so Qi Jiguang's tactics worked wonders. The three hundred or so Tatar cavalry who rushed at the front fell to the ground together with their horses, blocking the mountain road which was not spacious.
If it were on a plain, the cavalry would only need to pick up the reins, circle around a little and rush over without having to take a breath. But on this mountain road, there are either hillsides or valleys on both sides of the road.
Running around the hillside is slower, and the trees will greatly reduce the speed of the cavalry; running around the valley is faster, and you will die quickly.
So when the Tatars finally cleared the road, they discovered that they couldn't even see the other party's taillights. Even the two thousand cavalrymen who had stayed behind on the hillside had almost disappeared.
This is Ding Rukui's credit. These horses run so fast!
But even so, Qi Jiguang was still bitten hard. It took time for the rear team to change into the front team. About 300 cavalrymen were shot by the opponent.
In this battle, neither side took advantage, but in terms of the number of people, Qi Jiguang obviously couldn't afford the gamble.
Therefore, after retreating not far in front of Miyun City, Qi Jiguang ordered to set up camp for repairs. This distance is very particular.
If the enemy is chasing after them, they can be lured to the city walls and assisted by the city defense's bows, arrows and cannons. As for why he didn't retreat directly into Miyun City, it was Qi Jiguang's experience in leading troops.
The cavalry is fighting in the field, and they need to be brave. Once they enter the city, the troops and horses will easily lose their energy. Especially the battle we just fought didn't last long, and it was far from the point where we were exhausted.
However, Qi Jiguang ordered most of the grain and grass to be sent to Miyun City, and also asked Xiao Feng to follow the grain and grass into the city.
Xiao Feng looked at him sideways: "What's the matter, General Qi, do you think I'm a burden?"
Qi Jiguang waved his hands repeatedly: "It's nothing. It's just facing the enemy. It's not your strength. Your strength lies in strategy, not tactics. In Miyun City, you can calm down and think, and you can also help defend the city."
Xiao Feng looked at him with a smile and said nothing until he saw that Qi Jiguang was a little unable to resist.
"Okay, okay, let me tell you, when I went to the Ministry of War to collect the military talisman, Master Ding told me that the long live secret decree asked me to ensure your safe return no matter what.
My good brother, please let me save my worries and go to the city. Let Zhang Wuxin follow you. By the way, where is Zhang Wuxin? I didn't see him after the successful breakout just now. Could it be that he ran away? "
Xiao Feng flicked off his fan. He was becoming more and more proficient in this action, and Zhang Yunqing could see the little stars in his eyes every time.
"I asked him to take care of something, so you don't have to worry about it. He came to compensate me anyway. He is not your sergeant, and it is not a violation.
Let me ask you, don't you think it's weird to be ambushed this time? "
Qi Jiguang's face became heavy. He had already thought of it, but he just didn't want to tell Xiao Feng. This was also the reason why he insisted on letting Xiao Feng enter Miyun City.
Although these five thousand troops were selected by Ding Rukui, they were still an organized formation, and it would be too easy for people from the strict party to sneak into them.
This is not the case in Miyun City. The guard, Lin Tong, was born in the army and was already a general soldier. He was sent to Miyun because he offended the strict party.
Miyun is not far or close to the capital. It is said to be at the foot of the emperor, but it is surrounded by high mountains and dense forests and sparsely populated areas. It is said that the sky is high and the emperor is far away, but yet it is approaching day and night, and is always being watched.
With Gubeikou in front, it can’t be considered a front line; behind there are Changping and Tongxian, so it can’t be considered a suburb. In fact, even if you can’t eat in the capital, you can’t make war fortune. No one knows if you do well, and everyone knows if you don’t. The place.
Therefore, in Miyun City, Lin Tong was definitely not a member of the Yan Party and would not harm Xiao Feng. Even if someone from the strict party sneaks in, they can only rely on assassination, which is much safer than being in the army.
Xiao Feng's own kung fu is already very good, and with Zhang Wuxin following him, who can assassinate him?
As for not wanting to tell Xiao Feng this, firstly, he was afraid that Xiao Feng would feel guilty. After all, he was the one who provoked Yan Dang. Now Yan Dang wanted to kill Xiao Feng even if he betrayed the Ming Dynasty's army. From the side, he was forced by Xiao Feng. If Qi Jiguang died in battle with the army, he would be considered dead at the hands of Xiao Feng.
Second, he was afraid that Xiao Feng would get angry and refused to enter the city. Qi Jiguang knew very well that Xiao Feng was soft on the outside and strong on the inside. He always looked smiling, but in fact his bones were harder than anyone else's.
At least Qi Jiguang believed that he would not dare to offend Yan Dang like this. In the circle of friends, I am afraid that only Shen Lian has this potential. The rest, such as Hu Zongxian, Yu Dayou, and Zhan Yu, are probably similar to me and belong to the players cursed by the circle.
Seeing Xiao Feng's revelation at this time, Qi Jiguang stopped hiding it and spoke out his speculation readily.
"Of course it is possible to use troops to set up an ambush and anticipate the enemy first, but today's ambush was too clever.
I estimate that the enemy knows not only our army's route of action, but also the specific number of our army, and even the time of our army's action.
There was no dew on the bodies of those ambush soldiers, which meant that they arrived at the right time and set up an ambush at the right time!
This is not a question of using troops. There must be spies within our army. And after much thought, I can only do such a thing of betraying the army because of you.
So you'd better enter Miyun City. Maybe once you enter the city, the spies will lose the motivation to betray us. "
Of course the last sentence was a joke, but Xiao Feng did not laugh, but shook his fan and looked at the military camp outside.
"You can't let them lose motivation, otherwise how are you going to catch these spies?"
Some people died, but not completely...
