The camp of the Qing army in the north of the city was lit with bonfires. Several lines of defense were deployed outside the camp, and the patrols were spread out several miles away. Having learned from the past, Dorgon did not dare to be careless again, for fear that the Ming army would launch another night attack.
Strange to say, the Ming army has been like a tortoise since the night attack. No matter how provocative and insulted it was, it never showed up. Even when it was feinting and testing, it resisted passively. I don’t know whether it was because they had the confidence in their hearts or because they were helpless. But for many Ergun was not idle these past two days. While he was setting up troops to plunder, he also asked the captured Ming people to cut wood and build carts, cut skins and twist ropes. In just two days, he built more than ten siege engines and trebuchets. Hundreds and more than a hundred siege ladders, but for a big city like the Imperial Capital, these equipment are just drizzle, and if my artillery blessing is nothing more than scratching an itch.
Of course, the premise is that the Ming army rises up to resist.
But what if you resist passively or don’t resist? That's another thing to say. Dorgon was actually gambling. After all, the Ming Dynasty was too weak in the old days, and few people could really fight to the death once they attacked the city.
Thinking about Li Zicheng's attack on the capital in history, he never thought that it would be so easy to enter because there was almost no resistance. His mentality at the time was actually the same as Dorgon's now. He had no expectations and just took a gamble.
After entering the customs for a few days, they gained a lot of money. Counties more than a hundred miles north of the imperial capital were plundered by them. Among them, the city of Miyun and Pinggu was completely destroyed, and not a single blade of grass grew within a radius of twenty miles in the other three directions of the capital. However, These are far from satisfying Dorgon's appetite.
He originally wanted to go east and plunder, but was angered by Chang Yu and decided to attack the capital first. If he failed, the gains would be immeasurable. If he failed, he left immediately, so he ordered the construction of chariots to prepare for war and recalled all the Azig and Nikan tribes. , prepare to strike hard.
In the commander's tent, everyone was having a drink and discussing matters. They all said that without artillery, the pressure of attacking the city would be great, and the troops were divided into four to attack the star. There were not enough troops, so they had to find a concentrated firepower to attack. The so-called firepower was the cannon fodder of the Ming Dynasty people, and the multi-purpose slings. Machines and bows and arrows...
They didn't disperse until dawn, but they were shocked to hear that the Ming army was approaching twenty miles away from the north. Dorgon frowned, and Nikan laughed angrily: "I let him off the hook the day before yesterday, but now I don't know whether he is alive or not." Then he invited Order a group of men and horses to come out of the camp.
Dorgon nodded in acquiescence, and asked Ao to help him: "Tina Ming will come to see this king."
Almost at the same time, Chang Yu walked out of the Fifth Army Governor's Mansion. The eunuch of Dongchang, who had always only heard his name but rarely met his person, surfaced in front of the critical situation of Tatar troops approaching the city. There was a meeting in the Military Governor's Mansion. The big bosses finally saw this powerful eunuch who was so powerful in both the government and the public, but they were all surprised at how young he was.
Wang Jiayan finally breathed a sigh of relief. Since the night attack, Chang Yu never showed up again, which made him panic. After this night, the little eunuch has clarified various defensive tactics, giving everyone the confidence: as long as they resist, the city will be destroyed. It won't break!
"No matter how the Tatars fight or where they fight, if you all are united, Dorgon will reach the sky if he wants to break the city." Chang Yu looked confident, which made the big guys present gradually dissipate and their confidence slowly gather.
"The Qing army won't attack from all sides if they don't have the strength. At most, they will find one place to feign attack, and then concentrate their firepower to attack one gate." Chang Yu knocked on the table to highlight the key points: "The south city is the feint attack point, and the Qing army will attack from the two gates of the north city, so the The artillery on the east and west cities was moved north, and all combat preparation materials were also moved there."
Why so sure? Everyone headed by Wang Jiayan was skeptical.
Chang Yu didn't explain, just said how he felt!
It's nonsense. Everyone is talking about it and they are very dissatisfied. Although you say you can fight, you can't act based on your feelings. If you make a mistake in judgment, the consequences will be disastrous.
In the end, Li Muchian, who followed Chang Yu to the meeting, explained: We have reinforcements eyeing the south, and the Qing army must be on guard, so sending a group of troops to Nancheng can both attack the city and keep an eye on the Ming army there. Secondly, both the north and the south The cities are too far apart. Such a separate attack would make it difficult for the Ming army to keep track of the beginning and the end. As for why it was determined that they would attack from the north city, the reason is simpler. It is close to the Qing army's camp. There is no need to travel dozens of miles to the south city for the main attack. .
Everyone suddenly realized, but they were also extremely embarrassed. It turned out that the little eunuch was not unwilling to explain, but they should have thought of such a simple reason. Are they all pig heads? Such a simple reason can actually...
"Lord Governor, please stay." After leaving the Fifth Army Governor's Mansion, Wang Jiayan suddenly called out. Chang Yu turned around and looked: "What's the matter, Sir Wang?"
"According to the Governor's opinion, will the Tatars attack the city today?" Wang Jiayan asked with his hands raised. Chang Yu thought for a moment and looked up at the sky, which was still dark: "I am not prepared enough. If I were the Governor, I would never be so hasty. Start a war.”
Wang Jiayan breathed a sigh of relief: "Okay, let's have more time to prepare."
Chang Yu smiled slightly and said, "Eat well, drink well and have a good rest." He handed over his hands and left. Wang Jiayan watched him go a long way and then sighed slightly: "I don't have the determination you have."
The sky was slightly bright, and a Ming army was passing through a small town thirty miles northeast of the capital. To be precise, it was a ruin that had just been plundered by the Tatars. The ruins and fresh corpses told the story of what kind of blood and tears it had experienced here. .
Tang Tong looked at the several mutilated corpses on the roadside, and his eyes were full of anger: "The damn Tatars will definitely make it impossible for you to come back this time!" When he saw the Tatars leaving last night, he sent several groups of detectives to investigate, but they were all intercepted. , so Tang Tong guessed that something big had happened in the capital, and it was something very unfavorable to the Tatars. They were probably entangled by the little governor, so they didn't know that the reinforcements were approaching.
So Tang Tong decisively raised his troops out of the city to help Chang Yu. This is what he did, leaving others to hide in the city and watch, but Tang Tong was different. He had fought alongside Chang Yu and knew that he His ability makes him admire him even more as a person, so he is obliged to do so at this time.
"Report, General Soldier, the Chaobai River is five miles ahead." Just after passing the town, Tan Ma came to report. Tang Tong was familiar with the area and knew that crossing the river to the west would lead to the gate of the capital. He also knew that walking along the river twenty miles north was the To the south of Tianfu is Tongzhou.
After a quick night's march, Tang Tong ordered his troops and horses to rest and recharge their batteries before crossing the river and rushing to the capital. At the same time, he sent the exploration horses ten miles away. After all, at this time, the Tatars in the capital were in danger and the cavalry was coming and going like the wind and had to be guarded against.
It was almost noon and the horse was anxious: there was a Qing army approaching from the other side ten miles away, about 5,000 men and horses. Tang Tong was shocked, and immediately ordered the entire army to prepare for war, but he was confused and secretly thought that his guess was wrong. What happened in the capital? , how could the Tatars mobilize their troops to take the initiative to fight.
However, now is not the time to study in detail, but how to respond to the battle. Although the Tatars only have five thousand soldiers and horses, they are all cavalry. I was afraid that there would only be one-third of the cavalry at this time, and they would not even be able to parry in a fight.
Maybe a fight! Although the Tatars have strong cavalry and simple and crude tactics, they are too single and not adaptable, and they can be defeated by a few tricks.
After fighting on the ground for a long time with his subordinates, he decided to do something about it. After all, he had the advantage in troops and his strength had recovered. Although he did not dare to say that he would definitely win, he had the strength to fight a showdown. The question was whether he dared to fight.
If Tang Tong would have hesitated in the past, the people who have been with Chang Yu are all bloody. Is it a man who returns them without a fight? He is not even as good as a eunuch!
Three thousand infantrymen crossed the river from the north and south to the west, outflanking and encircling them. The cavalry crossed the river to fight head on. Brothers, our men and horses in Ji Town became famous today. King Qin made his first achievement at this time. Tang Tong has learned how to fight chicken blood. With a wave of his sword, he pointed at the sky and roared, and his men and horses suddenly began to cross the river.
