It was the first day of the first lunar month in the twelfth year of Chongzhen.
At the beginning of the new year, the city of Jinan was completely silent.
The strong smell of blood filled the streets of Jinan City.
The atmosphere of despair enveloped everyone's heart.
Outside Jinan City, the lights are brightly lit.
The Qing army set up Ming camps on the west, south and north sides of Jinan City.
Dots of firelight filled the countryside of Jinan City, forming a bright sea of lights.
The bright camp stretches so long that it’s hard to see it all at a glance. The lights in the field are connected to the stars in the sky. Looking up, it’s impossible to tell which is the sky and which is the earth.
Qing army camp, inside the Chinese army tent.
Dorgon sat alone on the first seat with a cold expression. The seat next to him that originally belonged to Yue Tuo was vacant at this time.
Not only that, except for the absence of Yue Tuo, the number of generals in the camp was also nearly half less than what it was outside Jiazhuang.
It was only a matter of time to conquer Jinan, but the atmosphere in the Qing army's military tent was dull and not filled with joy. Instead, it was terrifyingly depressing.
The reason for all this was that not long after they entered the vicinity of Jinan, someone in the army suddenly contracted smallpox, and it spread rapidly.
The outbreak of smallpox first appeared in Zhenghongqi, and later spread to Xianghongqi, Zhenglanqi, Xianglanqi, and Xianghuangqi.
Many people in the army lieutenant generals were infected with the disease, and even Yue Tuo contracted smallpox.
The epidemic was discovered in time. Dorgon made a prompt decision and ordered all those infected to be isolated, and those who had been in contact were also accommodated in independent camps. This curbed the spread of smallpox.
But even if the spread was contained, the impact of smallpox was long-lasting and irreparable.
Smallpox is different from other epidemic diseases. There is no treatment at all. The fatality rate of smallpox is 34% out of 10, which means that at least 30% to 40% of people will not survive this wave of epidemics.
Even those who survived would be disabled by smallpox, and even disfigurement would be considered a minor sequelae.
Moreover, due to the emergence of smallpox, the morale of the army also fluctuated uncontrollably, and morale also suffered a big blow.
Among the military tents, there was only Duduo, the leader of the Manchurian flag, and Zhen Tantai of Gushan'e of the Zhenghuang flag.
The flag owners of the two blue flags and the two red flags were in their respective military camps and did not leave the camp. The epidemic had the greatest impact on their four flags.
Ye Chen, the real Yechen of Gushan'e who was under Xianghuang Banner, was not among them, and smallpox also spread to the military camp under Xianghuang Banner.
Heavy troops gathered outside Jinan City. The main forces of the two yellow banners were under the command of Huang Taiji. They followed Huang Taiji in the border towns to contain the troops in Liaodong and other towns.
The two yellow flags at the entrance were much fewer than the other flags.
Only four flag owners of the Eight Banners of Mongolia were present, namely Adai from the Zhenghuang Banner, Ibai from the Zhengbai Banner, Suna from the Xiangbai Banner, and Hushibu from the Xianglan Banner.
The other flags were all within the range affected by smallpox, or needed to be on guard in the surrounding areas under martial law, so they did not come.
Dorgon's eyes swept over everyone in the tent, and almost all the generals who could reach him had arrived.
Dorgon was about to speak, but before he spoke, Tan Tai, who was sitting down, asked first.
"I wonder why Prince Rui suddenly convened a military meeting at this time? Is there some important military matter?"
Tan Tai leaned back on the chair, his attitude was not respectful, his tone was quite rude, and his eyes looked straight at him with a bit of coldness.
He is Gushan Ezhen of Zhenghuang Banner and Huang Taiji's true confidant. His duty in this entrance is actually to be Huang Taiji's eyes.
Although Dorgon and Yue Tuo are nominally the generals and have the right to command, Tan Tai's right to speak is not inferior to the two.
During this period, many changes occurred in the army. This time, I don't know why smallpox actually flowed into the army. The details made Tan Tai feel a little strange.
It's like there is an invisible hand controlling everything.
What's even more strange is that smallpox only spread in the two red flags and the two blue flags, but not many people were sick in the two white flags. Only the Mongolian Zhengbai flag was slightly more severely affected.
This naturally gave Tan Tai a different thought.
But there is no way to say anything without evidence.
Tan Tai looked directly at Dorgon, trying to see some clues from Dorgon's face.
But Dorgon's face remained the same as before, not much changed, and there was nothing strange about it at all.
However, Duduo changed his color and turned to glare at Tan Tai.
"I do have important military information to announce regarding this account raising discussion."
"Military intelligence is still a top priority, otherwise I wouldn't be promoted to generals at this time."
Dorgon ignored Tan Tai's gaze and disrespect. He knew very well that Tan Tai was Huang Taiji's crony.
He has been very submissive for many years, so Huang Taiji has not touched him. Offending Tan Tai is not worth the gain.
And Dorgon also knew very well why Tan Tai's attitude was like this.
In fact...Tan Tai's suspicion...is very reasonable...
"Reconnaissance cavalry reports that a large number of Ming troops have passed Yucheng, numbering around 20,000, and are less than fifty miles away from Jinan City..."
Before Dorgon finished speaking, there was a lot of noise in the military tent.
Even Tan Tai, who looked like he was raising an army to accuse him, his face suddenly changed at this time, showing an unbelievable look.
"Prince Rui is really not joking?"
Tan Tai's face darkened. Although he heard the news from Dorgon himself, he still couldn't believe it.
Although they failed to achieve full success in the battle of Jiazhuang, Xuan's army was already half-impaired by them and did not have much combat power at all. Moreover, they also received news that Xuan's army seemed to have retreated to the second line and headed towards Baoning. Retreat in the direction of the government.
The Guan Ning Army has been hiding in Linqing City since the First World War and dared not go out. They have left reconnaissance cavalry to wander around Linqing. If the Guan Ning Army is dispatched, they will receive the news first.
At the moment, Guan Ning's army has made no moves at all, and has no idea of leaving the city.
Most of the troops of King Qin of the Ming Dynasty gathered towards Beijing, the capital of the Ming Dynasty, and there were only two Ming troops left near Jinan.
One was the Shaanxi army that rushed to aid Jiazhuang. After the Battle of Jiazhuang, they went east along the border between Shandong Province and Beizhili and entered Dezhou. Previous investigations showed that the Shaanxi army only had about 15,000 people. .
However, the combat power seemed to be very strong. Chasuka and Sele of Zhenglan Banner led more than 5,000 people and were defeated by this Ming army, losing many people.
The other group was the Guan Ning cavalry led by Zu Kuan. Zu Kuan had about four thousand people under his command, and he led a partial division.
The reason why Tan Tai couldn't believe it was simple. The Shaanxi Army led by Sun Chuanting and the Guan Ning Cavalry led by Zu Kuan totaled only 20,000 people.
Dorgon said that more than 20,000 Ming troops had passed Yucheng and rushed to Jinan. Does that mean that Sun Chuanting and Zu Kuan joined forces and went south together?
Now in Jinan, the total number of their ten banners has exceeded 60,000, three times that of the Ming army. How dare the Ming army go to war?
Tan Tai has heard of Sun Chuanting's name, and Tan Tai can understand that he dares to fight. After all, Sun Chuanting has almost always won.
Gao Yingxiang, a big bandit in the Ming Dynasty, seemed to have been captured and killed by this man.
But Zu Kuan dared to fight, which was a bit incredible.
Zu Kuan was considered their old rival, and Tan Tai knew Zu Kuan thoroughly.
Zu Kuan had already fought against each other when he was serving as a general in Ningyuan.
Zu Kuan was not considered strong in Liao Town, he was just average. The servants under his command could still fight, but that was all, and they were not very eye-catching at all.
But now, Zu Kuan dared to follow Sun Chuanting southward.
"How could I possibly make a joke at this time when the military is discussing matters?"
Dorgon glanced sideways at Tan Tai, lowered his voice slightly, and said in a condensing voice.
"When the army of the Ming Dynasty arrived at nearly fifty miles, it was at dusk today. They camped near the official road. This means that the army of the Ming Dynasty was within fifty miles northwest of our army at this time."
With a distance of fifty miles, the Ming army could reach the outskirts of Jinan in as little as one day.
In the military tent, all the generals of the Qing army had solemn faces and gloomy expressions.
If they had heard in the past that the Ming army had few troops rushing for reinforcements, not only would they not have felt it was a problem, but they would have resented the fact that they came too few and brought too little military merit.
But now smallpox is spreading in the military camp, 20% of the troops are difficult to mobilize, and only 80% of the troops can be mobilized for the time being.
If we want to meet the Ming army coming from the northwest to assist Jinan, then Jinan needs to leave some guards to guard the camp, and at least 10% of them need to be removed.
If we do not slow down the offensive against Jinan City, we will have to reduce the number of troops by about 10%. This will leave only about 60% of the army that can be mobilized, which is 36,000 to 7,000 people. The advantage in military strength has actually been reduced. A lot.
In the battle of Jiazhuang, all banners suffered a lot of casualties, and many generals were injured. It can be said that their muscles and bones were damaged.
To be honest, they were not willing to fight the main force of the Ming army.
And the most important thing is that one of the Ming armies who came to help was the Shaanxi army led by Sun Chuanting.
Zhenglan Banner and the Shaanxi Army had already fought against each other outside Zhending City, and ended up being defeated, leaving hundreds of corpses behind and fleeing in a hurry.
The two leaders of the Zhenglan Banner, Jia Lazhen, were stripped of their crowns and ordered to perform meritorious service.
This record is even better than Xuan Dajun's previous record.
All banners know how difficult it is to crack the Xuan army in the first battle of Jiazhuang.
Now the Shaanxi Army is here again, which is more difficult to attack. I'm afraid that if they really fight, even if they can win, it will probably be a miserable victory.
If they were defeated, they would be in Shandong Province of the Ming Dynasty, surrounded by the army of King Qin of the Ming Dynasty. If they were defeated, they would be in a place of eternal disaster.
They came here to rob property and food and live a good life, not to fight to the death with the Ming army.
They had no way to accept too heavy casualties. The previous casualties in Jiazhuang had already left all the banners injured.
Dorgon looked at the faces of the generals in the military tent, and he actually expected such a situation.
Several banner leaders and generals of the Eight Mongolian Banners obviously did not want to fight this battle, but they were unable to speak due to the current situation.
Although Dorgon looked as usual, his heart was not as calm as his face.
The general below does not want to continue fighting with the Ming army. Does he just want to continue fighting with the Ming army?
Jiazhuang suffered heavy casualties, which had a great impact on his prestige. In order to maintain his status and prestige, it was a last resort to attack Jinan.
News came from the north that two armies came from Shaanxi in the Ming Dynasty. One was led by Sun Chuanting, and the other was brought by Hong Chengchou, the governor of the three sides of the Ming Dynasty.
Not long ago, Hong Chengchou had led his troops to the suburbs of the Ming capital in Beizhili, and Chen Xinjia also led the troops originally stationed in Changping into the capital area.
The Ming Dynasty's troops in the capital totaled another 50,000.
They will have to go north through the Ming Dynasty's Gyeonggi area to exit the customs, which is undoubtedly another potential threat.
"The battle at Jiazhuang failed to achieve full success, and there were casualties in all banners. I know this very well."
Dorgon examined the expressions of the generals in the tent. During the decades of ups and downs, he had learned a lot, one of which was to remain calm no matter what the situation.
There is a sentence in the Ming Dynasty's Military Book that Dorgon thinks is right.
"The way to be a general is to heal your heart first."
"Mountain Tai collapses in front but remains unchanged; elk rises to the left but cannot blink"
"Then we can control the advantages and disadvantages and wait for the enemy."
Dorgon stood up slowly. The first seat was originally higher than the other positions. When Dorgon stood up, he was almost half a body taller than everyone else.
"For decades, the Ming Dynasty mobilized millions of troops and spent hundreds of millions of dollars in an attempt to overthrow the Qing Dynasty, but what was the result? Wasn't the final result a dejected escape to the south of the Great Wall?"
"Saerhu, Kaitie, Guangning, Hunhe... In which battle did the Ming army not have more troops than this one?"
"But what's the result?"
Dorgon's eyes were cold and he asked in a deep voice.
His questions hit everyone's minds one after another, and the atmosphere in the military tent also changed under his words.
All the Qing generals in the military tent slowly came to their senses, and they found that they had been a little afraid of the Ming army before.
"The Xian Khan raised an army with thirteen suits of armor, and with a small attack, he conquered Liaodong. Now our troops and horses are a hundred times more powerful than the Xian Khan's back then. The Ming army that rushes to the aid is only 20,000, so why should we be afraid!"
"The battle to intercept the Ming army in Yucheng was dominated by two white flags, supplemented by other flags."
Dorgon looked around at the generals in the tent, and finally his eyes fell on Tan Tai, and he said in a solemn voice.
"General Yangwei is currently ill and is recuperating in the military camp. The important task of attacking Jinan has been left to Lord Tan Tai."
Tan Tai frowned slightly and his eyes narrowed slightly. The defeat of Jinan city was a foregone conclusion. It would definitely be captured in two or three days.
As the supreme commander-in-chief, Dorgon expressed his attitude and made it clear that the Ming army in Yucheng would be intercepted mainly with two white flags.
Giving him the task of attacking Jinan was equivalent to giving him the power to enter Jinan first and giving up a lot of benefits.
The benefits are right in front of him, and Dorgon has shown his due attitude. Naturally, Tan Tai has no reason to refuse.
"Including the Qinwang's troops from all over the country, by the middle of this month, the Ming Dynasty's troops in Beizhili, Jinan and other places will reach 200,000."
Dorgon slowly walked down the first seat, his eyes sharp, like a tiger in the forest.
"The biggest reason why the Ming Dynasty's army dared to rush to Jinan's aid was that our army failed to win the first battle at Jiazhuang."
Dorgon's cold voice echoed in the ears of the Qing army generals.
"This time, if we cannot defeat this Ming army rushing to our aid, the Ming army in other places will think that we are really weak."
"It is impossible for an injured beast to survive among the white mountains and black waters. Hunters in the mountains and forests will follow the blood traces and smells and come closer."
"Don't forget, everyone, we are now in the territory of the Ming Kingdom, not in Liaodong, in the desert. Once defeated, there is only one way to be defeated!"
(End of chapter)
