"Did our people see this with our own eyes? Where is Dorgon now?"
Zhu Yuanzhang asked in surprise when he heard the news about Zhao Erhu.
Zhao Erhu nodded and said: "Our brothers from the Eighteenth Cavalry saw it with our own eyes, so it shouldn't be wrong."
"However, although Dorgon has retreated, he has not been far away. He is currently resting in the Shihekou area!"
Zhu Yuanzhang frowned and said: "Dorgon has not been defeated, and Datong has not decided the winner. He should not withdraw his troops at this moment!"
Upon hearing this, Zhao Erhu bowed and said: "Your Majesty, when I was ordered to take Hong Chengchou to Shanhaiguan to be skinned alive the day before yesterday, I asked two brothers of the Eighteenth Cavalry to quietly leave the city to monitor the movements of the Jurchens."
"According to their information, the people of the Eight Banners of the Han Dynasty lost their fighting spirit after seeing Hong Chengchou being skinned alive. However, they were forced to hold on due to Dorgon's power. However, many soldiers escaped secretly at night."
"In addition, I heard that the war in the Jurchen territory is tense. Azig has sent two letters asking for help. Perhaps it is for this reason that Dorgon will withdraw his troops!"
Zhu Yuanzhang pondered: "If it was because of the war in the Jurchen territory, Dorgon should have returned to the army immediately instead of resting in the Shihekou area. This should not be the reason."
Zhang Huangyan on the side heard this and whispered: "Is Dorgon waiting for Hauge from Datong?"
Zhu Yuanzhang shook his head and said: "If Dorgon wants to wait for Hauge, then he should not retreat at this moment."
"Because Hauge should be unable to capture Datong at this time. If Dorgon retreats early, Hauge will definitely return and blame him. With Dorgon's ability, he will never do it. Such a stupid thing!"
As he spoke, he looked at Zhao Erhu and said, "Is there any news from Datong?"
Zhao Erhu shook his head and said: "There is no news yet, but there are rumors that Ping Xihou has defeated Hauge, but the Jinyiwei has not received the news, and we don't know whether it is true or not!"
Zhu Yuanzhang said: "If Hauge is defeated, Wu Mengming will definitely send the news as soon as possible. There will definitely be no situation where there are already rumors and we haven't received the news yet."
"Dorgon's retreat may have been a ploy to lure the enemy. Wu Sangui didn't pursue it, right?"
Zhao Erhu shook his head and said: "No, because you have issued an imperial edict before and are not allowed to send troops to pursue, so none of the soldiers and horses in Shanhaiguan have left the customs!"
Zhu Yuanzhang nodded and said: "Okay, you pay close attention to Dorgon's movements, and also send people to find out the news in Datong. Pay special attention to Thief Li's situation. We are worried that he will take the opportunity to move eastward!"
Zhao Erhu originally had a look of joy on his face, but after listening to Zhu Yuanzhang's words, he walked out with a solemn look on his face.
After Zhu Yuanzhang waited for Zhao Erhu to leave, he chatted with Zhang and Huang as usual.
Although Zhang Huangyan had seen Zhu Yuanzhang's intention, he was already restrained by the other party's intelligence and did not dare to remind him hastily to avoid arousing suspicion.
At the same time, he also thought that the Zheng family's strong soldiers and horses were indeed a hidden danger to the Ming Dynasty, so he only tried to backtrack for Huang Ting when he accidentally said some offensive words.
When Zhu Yuanzhang saw this, he recognized him even more.
About half an hour later, Zhao Erhu came in again with an excited face and reported: "Your Majesty, the Marquis of Pingxi defeated Hauge in Datong, and the rebels who attacked Datong have also returned to Shaanxi."
When Zhu Yuanzhang heard this, he was a little surprised and said: "Ping Xihou defeated Hauge? Is the news reliable?"
Zhao Erhu nodded excitedly and said: "Your Majesty, don't worry, the news was sent by Commander Wu, and it is absolutely reliable."
Zhu Yuanzhang had been worried about the battle situation in Datong. Now he couldn't help but feel overjoyed when he heard that not only Hauge was defeated, but also Li Zicheng also retreated.
After he forced himself to calm down, he said calmly: "Hauge has many soldiers and horses. Why did Ping Xihou suddenly defeat him? Do you know what happened specifically?"
Zhao Erhu said with a smile: "According to the report, after the last battle, the two sides entered a stalemate stage. Unexpectedly, the plague plan laid out by Lord Shen previously worked..."
It turned out that when Shen Zhanran and Wu Youxing were treating the plague in Shanxi, they found that some patients would relapse after a few days after recovery, and the disease spread very quickly.
Fortunately, the mortality rate of these people is not high, but the period of weakness is longer.
After analysis, they found that the decoction only suppressed the patient's condition, but did not eradicate it.
If you want to fully recover, you need to stay in bed and rest until the healthy energy in your body defeats the evil energy.
But if you are infected at this time, you will get sick again.
Although the condition is not as dangerous as the first time, if you don't get enough rest, your life will be in danger.
At this time, Datong soldiers also suffered from widespread infection.
Although Shen Zhanran and Wu Youxing tried their best to treat the disease, the military camp was densely populated and the spread was extremely fast.
Coupled with the constant wars, it was impossible to effectively prevent the spread of the plague.
In desperation, Shen Zhanran had no choice but to propose that soldiers infected with the plague go into battle.
First, it is to reduce the source of infection and effectively block the spread.
Secondly, it can also weaken the strength of the Jurchens and delay the opponent's offensive.
At the same time, Shen Zhanran also considered the consequences of this matter, knowing that if the matter spread, the imperial censor would definitely take the opportunity to impeach Gong Yonggu for his life.
Moreover, once Jurchen returned to the north and spread the plague to the people of Liaodong, causing innocent people to die in vain, he and Gong Yonggu would not only be impeached by the censor, but would also have to bear the reviling and anger of the people of Liaodong.
In addition, the most important point is that they have to bear the torture of their conscience day and night.
Therefore, most of the soldiers they sent out for the first time were those who had been infected for the second time and had missed the opportunity for treatment. They had no hope of survival, and they controlled the number of soldiers sent to fight.
In this way, even if the Jurchens brought the plague back to Liaodong, not many people would die because the disease was not serious.
Furthermore, it can also be used to paralyze the Jurchens, making them think that the plague is ineffective against them.
Sure enough, after the initial panic, the Jurchens found that most people could not recover without medicine, and they did not care much about it.
Later, Gong Yonggu sent a second group of soldiers out of the city to infect Jurchen soldiers again.
At first, Hauge and others did not pay attention. When a large number of soldiers were too weak to fight, they were no longer able to control it.
After Gong Yonggu learned that the Jurchen soldiers were ill, he immediately ordered Ren Zhihua, Jiang Yu, Wang Fuchen and others to lead 5,000 elite troops to fight, and immediately defeated Hauge's troops.
Originally, Jiang Quan had a chance to capture Hauge, but because of Obai's desperate resistance, he failed.
Jiang Quan was immediately furious. After repelling Obai with the help of Wang Fuchen, he ignored Ren Zhihua's dissuasion and insisted on leading his army to pursue him. Unexpectedly, he was ambushed by Horqin halfway.
Fortunately, Ren Zhihua rescued them in time and rescued them, but they still lost nearly 2,000 people.
Then Hauge and Daishan came with their entire army, but they only lasted for one day. Because there were too many sick people in the army, they retreated under the protection of Horqin's tribe.
Unexpectedly, before Hao Ge left, Liu Zongmin and Gao Yigong led their troops to attack again.
Fortunately, He Zhen discovered it in time and guarded the fortress, so they did not let their sneak attack succeed.
However, He Zhen only had more than 3,000 men under his command. Even if he held on to the danger, he could not stop Liu Zongmin's 50,000 elite men, who hurriedly asked Gong Yonggu for help.
However, at this time, the refugees in Datong rioted again, and Gong Yonggu was unable to take care of him. He only sent a thousand reinforcements to He Zhen.
Fortunately, He Zhen was also a brave man, and Xu Wenpu brought 5,000 new soldiers recruited from the field, and he was able to barely block Liu Zongmin's attack.
Unexpectedly, Li Yan suddenly brought three thousand black armor cavalry to attack from the side and rear, and immediately defeated He Zhen's defense line.
Seeing that He Zhen was about to be defeated, Li Yan, Liu Zongmin and others suddenly led their troops back to Shaanxi.
Some people died, but not completely...
