In mid-September of the first year of Wuding, the Eight Banners of the Qing Army and the North Korean Western Expedition Army joined forces to complete control of the surrounding areas of Shenyang.
The coalition forces worked together to cut off the connection between Shenyang and Tieling, Kaiyuan and other cities. The Qi army shrank completely and huddled in the two cities of Shenyang and Fuzhou, sending only a small number of cavalry to the south of Liaoning.
In order to defend the Haikou out of Fuzhou, the few elites of the Qi army launched several fierce and brutal sentry battles with the Qing army Bagala in central and southern Liaoning. Both sides suffered casualties, and it was difficult to determine the winner for a while.
The main force of the coalition forces was stationed in Shoubingtai Village, twenty miles west of Shenyang. Tens of thousands of troops remained stationary for five consecutive days. Du Du's attention was attracted by the sporadic fighting in southern Liaoning. Out of the caution of the Jurchen hunters, the main force of the Eight Banners delayed in launching a substantial attack on Shenyang before capturing Fuzhou.
Du Du mobilized some cavalry soldiers to go south and continuously strengthened the Qing army's offensive in southern Liaoning. At this time, the banner leader Airli was leading the main force of the Xianglan Banner to attack Fuzhou.
The other banners sent Baya sentry scouts to kill the enemy cavalry who came out of the forts in southern Shenyang and tried to penetrate to the direction of Fuzhou for reinforcements.
Along the way, the slow-moving Korean soldiers followed the Qing army to perform tooth sacrifices. They were best at robbing local households.
The main force of the Qi army huddled in the main city of Shenyang and the surrounding forts and piers. Occasionally, a few horsemen would rush out from the piers to kill the lone Baya or Korean soldiers. The Qing army that had suffered losses would immediately launch an attack on the forts. Retaliatory attack.
During this period, Du Du twice sent Fan Wencai as a plenipotentiary envoy to discuss marriage with Qi.
Fan Wencai worked tirelessly to discuss with Kang Yingqian and others the details of the Qing Emperor's marriage to the Empress Dowager Cisheng. The two sides had a very speculative conversation, ranging from the amount of the betrothal gift to the auspicious date.
It may be that Du Du was greedy for the beauty of Empress Cisheng and thought that Shenyang was in his pocket and was the dowry for Jin Yuji's remarriage, so he couldn't bear to attack suddenly.
It may also be that before Aire captured Fuzhou, Du Du was unwilling to risk fighting on two fronts. In short, on the Shenyang battlefield in late September, neither side had any intention of a final decisive battle, but sentry horses continued to conduct tests and small-scale attacks on the periphery. fighting.
However, history took a major turn here.
During the ten days at the end of September in the first year of Wuding (1626), some subtle changes were taking place in the Liaodong battlefield, and these changes would not only affect the subsequent history of Qi, but also the future and destiny of Qing, Korea, and even distant Tsarist Russia. Had a profound impact.
Some keyboard warriors in later generations who claim to be knowledgeable about the early history of the empire like to express this emotion in third-rate history forums:
If Du Du had not stopped Dorgon's cavalry regiment in the autumn of the first year of Wu Ding's reign at Shoubingtai Village (20 miles west of Shenyang);
If Bagara, whom Obai sent to Sakhalin to ask for help from the Cossacks, could have left a week earlier;
Suppose that on September 25, Du Du allowed Zhenghongqi and Wuzhenhachao's artillery to advance to the banks of the Hun River and immediately launch an attack on the north gate of Shenyang;
If on the eve of the decisive battle between the Qing Dynasty and Qi Dynasty (referring to the Battle of Shenyang), Du Du could interrupt in time the ridiculous activity of marrying the Cisheng Queen Mother;
If Airley can give up the attack on Fuzhou before September 25th and mobilize all the cavalry of Xianglan Banner to reinforce Shenyang...
If one of the countless above assumptions is true, the fate of our Qing Dynasty will change greatly, and the outcome of the Shenyang War will also be very different. It's a pity that Du Du was still too cautious and rejected Dorgon and...
~~~~~~
On September 25th, Fan Wencai, a bachelor of the Secretariat of the Qing Dynasty, left the city at night from the north gate of Shenyang as usual. He was quite familiar with the roads outside the city of Shenyang, so he was familiar with the roads and rode back to Shoubingtai Village in more than an hour. Military tent.
Emperor Du Du, who had been waiting for a long time, was full of joy when he saw his servant coming back. He put down a copy of the newspaper in his hand and said impatiently:
"Grand Maester, how did the conversation go?"
Fan Wencai didn't have time to take a sip of water and was anxious to report the latest developments of the emperor's marriage to Du Du.
"Slave, slave..."
He quickly picked up the panting slave and yelled at him:
"Speak quickly!"
Fan Wencai only turned forty this year, and he was already very weak. Unlike his dead brother Fan Wenchen, who was smart and capable, Fan Wencai was swollen due to his long-term indulgence in women, and he breathed easily when walking.
He shuttled back and forth from Shenyang to Shoubingtai Village every day, and had to bargain with those Qi Guo Nikans, which almost cost him his life.
"Back, back to the emperor, we are still together. Today we are discussing the betrothal gift."
Fan Wencai finally regained his breath and recounted the various dangers that occurred during his mission to Shenyang today. He only described himself as Zhang Qian of the Western Han Dynasty and Ban Chao of the Eastern Han Dynasty. Relying on his eloquent words, how to persuade the Empress Dowager Cisheng and how to make all the officials of Qi accept the good news of Qin and Jin's alliance with the Qing Dynasty.
Seeing that Du Du was a little impatient, Fan Wencai took out a letter from his arms. The envelope was painted with wax and a seal with a peony pattern was inlaid on the wax.
Du Du knew that it was Jin Yuji's personal seal.
Gushi
"Hahaha, this is her seal, I remember it."
Du Du's heart was beating violently, and he carefully picked up the envelope as thin as a cicada's wings, but it seemed like he was holding half of the city of Shenyang.
"Master, be careful that the envelope is poisonous."
Du Du was stunned for a moment and said unconcernedly:
"That won't happen."
Before tearing open the envelope, the Emperor of the Qing Dynasty sniffed the peony flower in the envelope. His delicate and lively eyes shone under the oil lamp, and a few whiskers on his lower jaw trembled slightly with his breathing. With a satisfied smile on his face, he came to the candlelight, carefully opened the envelope, and held the letter full of Juanxiu's handwriting in his hands.
Fan Wencai was very anxious and wanted to know what conditions Qi Guo had said.
After Du Du read the letter from the Empress Dowager Cisheng several times, he stroked his beard and said with a smile:
"She said that according to Korean customs, the Qing Dynasty should give 77 horses, 770 shi of grain, and 7,700 jins of wood as betrothal gifts, and then she can go out of the city to surrender and discuss marrying me."
Du Du glanced at Fan Wencai, who was standing next to him with a flattering smile on his face, and stepped forward to bump the coated slave's shoulder.
"Well done, Grand Maester."
Fan Wencai was flattered. He knew that this was a greeting gift for Jurchens, and it was only used among the masters.
"Master," Fan Wencai said worriedly.
"Could this Cisheng Queen Mother think that I, the Qing Dynasty, are a fool and want us to give them food and wood? It's already October, so there must be a shortage of wood in the city..."
Du Du laughed loudly and patted Fan Wencai on the shoulder.
"Grand Master, of course I know this is a delaying strategy, but we have enough food and grass, and plenty of time. Don't be afraid. We can play with Jin Yuji. When Fuzhou is captured, we can attack Shenyang with all our strength."
"Will you give me back the seven hundred and seventy shi of food?"
Du Du's face changed drastically, he slapped Fan Wencai on the head and said angrily:
"What should I give? The food of the Qing Dynasty is blown by the strong wind! I will continue to the city tomorrow and bargain with them. I'm talking about seven of the seventy-seven horses, and the maximum of three hundred kilograms of wood, but no food."
Fan Wencai was beaten and did not dare to speak.
Du Du picked up another Tang newspaper and smiled happily, his whiskers trembling happily:
"Xianlan Banner is about to capture Fuzhou. Once their retreat is cut off, the Qi army in Shenyang will become a rat in a water tank. Then I will see what other tricks Jin Yuji has up his sleeve."
"I heard about this person when I was in Saarhu. You were not with me at that time."
Du Du kept telling brother Fan Wencheng about the romantic affairs of the Empress Dowager Cisheng that he knew.
Fan Wencai, who had just been beaten, tried his best to put on a gossipy expression that only a middle-aged woman from Hetuala could have, and patiently listened to his master's reminiscences about the Korean woman.
"The empress dowager Jin Yuji was the most beautiful woman in Seoul. During the Battle of Saarhu, the ruler of North Korea, Jiang Hongli, met this woman in Seoul and coaxed her into saying that as long as she went to Saarhu with him, she could avenge her parents - - Jin Yuji's parents were accidentally killed by the old Khan in his early years - so he took her to Kuandian, and Liu Zhaosun appeared out of nowhere. Liu Zhaosun was just a small boss at the time, a low-ranking person, and just a slave of Liu Dadao. Then The North Korean beauty fell in love with him for some reason and ran away overnight..."
Du Du kept talking, as if by belittling Liu Zhaosun, he could erase his past commitment to Kaiyuan and serve as a bodyguard.
"Your Majesty, the Commander-in-Chief wants to see you. He says he has military affairs to discuss."
The majestic Oboi stood at the door with a pair of tiger eyes.
Du Du's proud expression disappeared, as if he had suddenly swallowed a fly, and he waved his hand impatiently: "Let him wait first, I am busy with military affairs!"
The bear-like Oboi agreed, turned around and walked out without any further expression.
Fan Wencai welcomed the strongest master of Zhenghuang Banner away from the tent with a flattering look.
Du Du was silent for a moment and cursed:
"Every time I meet him, he says he has something important to do. He just wants money and food! Let him in!"
Lewen
