After repelling Han Xuan's night attack, the five thousand-man Mongolian army that captured the No. 6 Bingzi Village in Gaizhou spent a lot of time capturing the fleeing Khitans and war horses. They were busy until midnight. Unexpectedly, another hour later, Zhebie's defeated troops retreated one after another, saying that Zhebie had been ambushed by the Dinghai navy and was feared dead.
The faces of the five thousand households were all shocked, and they quickly sent out elite scouts to station in the direction of Chuoshan.
Many of the Alejinchi sent out were ambushed by scattered Khitan people on the way. After arriving at Zhishan Mountain, the navy was cleaning the battlefield, and they did not dare to approach.
It wasn't until the early hours of the morning that someone came back with definite news, saying that Zhebie Qianhu and his subordinate Jingqi had indeed been ambushed and killed. Listening to the almost frantic cheers and shouts of the enemies, it seemed as if Zhebie Qianhu's head had been chopped off and displayed to the public!
Everyone couldn't believe it, but they had to believe it. And once you believe it, what follows is great panic and frustration.
It is inevitable to suffer losses in war, and the Mongols never pay attention to chasing the poor, but prefer to chase them day and night, and kill those who slow down, so being ambushed is a common occurrence. But with Zhebie's agility and the strength of his seven hundred elite cavalry, what kind of enemy could ambush him and kill him?
How powerful is the Ding Navy in Liaodong?
Several thousands of Nayan people had followed Zhebie and had not rested for several days. Originally supported by the excitement of winning consecutive victories, I didn't think much of it. But when I heard that Zhebie was in trouble, everyone's eyes were red and their hands and feet were weak.
The problem at hand is not just a defeat. Yu Zhebie is not an ordinary general. He cannot die at all!
The process of Genghis Khan's rise was a process in which he selected talented people from his close relatives and tribesmen to continuously replace the old tribal chiefs on the grasslands, and this process never stopped. Even those close to Genghis Khan would soon be replaced by more outstanding talents if their lack of personality or talent was exposed during the war, or if it was not conducive to Genghis Khan's centralization of power.
In these years, Borshu, Muhuali, Naya and others relied on their merits in the unification war to reach tens of thousands of households on the left and right wings and in the middle army, and achieved command and suppression of many Nayan tribes on the grassland. The powerful generals on the battlefield such as Zhebie, Kublai, and Subotai followed Genghis Khan separately. Relying on their achievements in the process of external plunder and expansion, they gradually overwhelmed the begging nobles and further concentrated power in the hands of Genghis Khan himself. inside.
Among these people, Zhebie was the general who received special attention from Genghis Khan. Perhaps because he was born as a prisoner and had no foundation in the Mongolian regime, Genghis Khan was particularly willing to grant him the power to command the army.
The year before last, the Mongolian army came out in full force and attacked the Jin Dynasty in three directions. Genghis Khan placed himself in the center, his disciples on the right wing, and his brothers on the left wing. Only Zhebie led an army outside the three directions deep into the northeast, and then drove more than 500 miles. Capture Liaoyang.
Such a general was only a commander in name, but in fact everyone knew that he was one of Genghis Khan's most important arms outside of his relatives. As long as Zhebie has some more achievements and qualifications, he will be the next Mu Huali and Bo Shu!
But such a powerful general had swept across all parts of the Northeast just a moment ago, and was invincible, beating the Jin Kingdom's Northeast Xuanfu envoys and Northeast Army commanders to their knees. Riding on the momentum of consecutive victories, he turned around and just stepped into Liaodong, and he died in battle?
Last year, the fourth prince Tuo Lei suffered a loss and was captured in Shandong. After returning to the grassland, he was very disgraced. His cronies such as Chiju Prince Consort and several Qianhu Nayan were all implicated, and even the entire Qianhu household was dismantled and reorganized.
Of course, Zhebei's status was far less noble than that of the fourth prince, but Genghis Khan valued and loved him a lot.
So, after something like this happened, how did everyone explain it to Genghis Khan? What kind of punishment will the five Qianhu nayans present face? What kind of feats did they have to perform and what price did they have to pay to make Genghis Khan a little less angry?
No one knows at all!
Could they still shirk it by saying that it was all because Zhebie wanted to commit suicide?
At this time, most of the Mongolians were relatively simple. And precisely because of its simplicity, it is really at a loss when faced with this situation. Several thousand families had been calculating for a while, but no one had a clue, but a senior centurion named Na Minfu broke into the account.
His frustration was no less than that of these Qianhu Nayans. After all, the reason why he was able to be transferred to Zhebie after his previous failure was due to Genghis Khan's tolerance. As a result, he failed again so quickly, and even took Zhebe's life... Naminfu had some doubts about whether he had offended Changshengtian and was cast some special curse.
But being frustrated was one thing. As a very senior centurion in the army, he still had to make suggestions.
"I had dealings with Ding Haijun when the fourth prince towed a mine and fell." Naminfu said.
The captains asked anxiously: "What's the point?"
"That group of people are more unreasonable than the wolves on the grassland, and a hundred times more ferocious than the average Jurchen! In the next few days, it will be difficult for us to win back on the battlefield!"
"This..." The captains looked at each other.
Naminfu added: "However, I heard from the spies that the Ding navy officers were cheering and joyful. I think being able to kill Zhebie Qianhu would also be a major victory for them. So..."
"So what?"
Naminfu said loudly: "The only chance is now. We take advantage of the enemy's cheers and celebrations to rush over overnight. Maybe we can turn defeat into victory!"
This method of rapid advance and retreat was Zhebie's favorite, and it was also the one that these thousands of households were most familiar with. Genghis Khan also issued a special Zhasa to emphasize this method of warfare. In many battles in the past, even if the battlefield was unfavorable for a while, as long as the Mongols' tenacity was still there, after advancing and retreating again and again, they could always wear down the enemy's morale and force a final victory.
But at this moment, none of the several thousand households could muster the energy to respond.
This suggestion is purely risky. Without Zhebie, no one can take responsibility or make a decision.
The Mongolians' extraordinary tenacity and bellicosity are based on their victory after victory and their firm confidence in victory, rather than on the actual existence of such an instinct in their blood. When they suddenly encounter an unexpected and tragic failure, their false courage can easily be lost.
Especially these Qianhu Nayan people, their hearts are in confusion, how can they make a decision?
They are all used to following Zhebie to win. Zhebie is dead, what should they do?
There was silence in the tent for a long time.
Finally, a Qianhu Wudutai who had been following Zhebie for a long time reluctantly said: "It's better not to do this. If there is another loss, will giving up delay the big event? Let's retreat to Liaoyang in the north first, and then send someone to report the funeral to Genghis Khan." .”
Naminfu said loudly: "The great thing of the Great Khan is to defeat Ding Haijun in Liaodong! If we retreat now, when the roads are blocked by heavy snow everywhere, will this battle still be fought..."
"Get out! Get out!"
Na Yan from several thousand households shouted at the same time and drove Na Minfu out of the big tent.
In the next few days, the Mongolian army slowly moved northward and joined the command of Jebe's deputy Boltu Prince Consort in Liaoyang. Along the way, they were pursued by Dinghai navy cavalry.
There were also many scattered savage tribes who had been killed by Mongolian platoons before, and they were all afraid of Mongolia's majesty. Now, they also swarmed in, intending to beat up the drowned dogs and gain some benefits.
Even though the Mongolian army was brave, they fought more than a hundred battles in several days and lost hundreds of cavalry. The remaining troops were extremely exhausted.
Ding Haijun took advantage of the victory and recaptured many villages near Gaizhou, and the fleeing Khitan people also returned one after another. Because they heard the news that the Mongolian army was defeated, scattered tribesmen from Posu Road, Shenzhou, Liaoyang and other places came to surrender one after another.
In the past ten days, the power Han Xuan could control was even greater than before. If it weren't for the restrictions on food and supplies, it would be possible to double the number of people under his command.
In Xianping Prefecture, Heshi Liehuanduan had just been defeated by Zhebie in the field battle not long ago, so he only sat guarding the city and was busy signing troops everywhere and reorganizing his troops. Even though Zhe left and went south later, leaving only the Prince Consort Bitu's troops stationed outside the city to intimidate him, he still insisted on being cautious and would not move out easily.
The day before, the subordinates of Li Yun, the judge of Qunmu Station in Liaodong, entered the city and asked him to just rest assured that the navy would definitely take action. Heshi Liehuanduan thanked him in person, but he was still doubtful behind the scenes, so he took his old friend Wendy Hanqinggo along with him, planning to retreat north to Longzhou if the war situation went unfavorably.
Unexpectedly, news came the next day that the navy would kill Zhebie in one battle and force the main force of the Mongolian army to retreat.
Including Heshi Liehuanduan, all Jurchen army generals in the Northeast were ecstatic. Zhaozhou Heshi Liede and Shangjing Wanyan Chengchong also had reinforcements in Xianping Mansion. Immediately all the troops of the three groups raised their flags and went out against the wind and snow. For several days, they fought with the troops of the Prince Consort Bitu, and the momentum was great. vast.
And at the same time, they were all alert, waiting for the really key person to make subsequent responses to the entire situation.
Countless people are speculating:
What will happen to Guo Ning of Dinghai Navy?
What would happen to Genghis Khan?
