Appearing outside the Weiyuanbao Great Wall was the Qing army led by Azig! They retreated from Datong City a month ago. However, he did not return to Beijing to create little Tartars. Instead, he rested on the grasslands north of the Great Wall in Datong Prefecture for more than ten days. After joining forces with the Mongolian soldiers from the left and right banners of Tumut mobilized by Dorgon, they headed west together. Entering the Hetao grassland outside the border wall of Yulin Town.
There are quite a few of them. The Eight Banners plus the Han army plus Tumut's nomadic Mongols (not belonging to the Eight Banners Mongolia) have a total strength of 40,000 to 50,000. Supplies along the way were provided by the two banners on the left and right of Tumut - Tumut's cavalry drove cattle and sheep to join Azig!
This kind of grassland-style fighting style was nothing to the Qing army. As early as the sixth year of Tiancong, Huang Taiji, who was still the Great Khan of Houjin Dynasty, launched a grassland expedition involving 100,000 people. ——The allied forces of the Mongolian tribes pursued Lin Dan Khan all the way to Guihuacheng (Hohhot)!
Compared with the expedition more than ten years ago, the expedition commanded by Azig was nothing. However, for the Dashun Army, which had never fought outside the Great Wall, Azig's attack on Yulin was far beyond expectations. So when the news that Weiyuan Fort was attacked by the Qing army reached Li Zicheng's Tongguan Palace, the top brass of the Dashun Army were all shocked.
"Why, how could it be like this?" Li Zicheng, who had just inspected the peaceful front line and returned to the palace, was shocked and said, "Didn't you say that the Tartars were defeated in Datong Mansion? How could they go to Yulin again? Great Military Advisor, what are you doing? Tell me, what’s going on?”
Song Xiance was also so panicked that he even forgot to count his fingers, "Your Majesty, Your Majesty... We have been fooled by Wang Yongji and Jiang Yu again!"
"That's right!" Li Zicheng was really angry, his face was livid, and he gritted his teeth, "Well, I've been fooled by them again... They are clearly traitors who colluded with the Tatars!"
"Yes! Wang Yongji and Jiang Quan must have colluded with the Tatars and sold us!" Liu Zongmin also shouted, "We can't let them go!"
"We can't spare them!"
"Can't forgive..."
In the main hall of the palace, there were shouts of fighting and killing. A group of generals of the Dashun Army were all gnashing their teeth, wishing they could kill Wang Yongji and Jiang Yu in Datong Mansion.
But this time they really wronged the bad guys. Although Wang Yongji and Jiang Yu falsely reported the number of beheadings - which was nothing to the Ming army - they did nothing else.
Moreover, the first siege of Datong can indeed be judged as a victory for the Ming army - the siege lasted for a whole winter and did not damage the city of Datong. In the end, the Qing army abandoned tens of thousands of slaves and retreated in despair. How could it not be a failure?
"Stop talking about these useless things!" Li Zicheng was a little annoyed when he saw his subordinates blathering nonsense. He waved his hand and said, "Say something useful!"
"Your Majesty," Luo Hu was the first to speak, "The military newspaper in Yulin said that Fort Weiyuan has not been lost... We will send troops to rescue it immediately, maybe it's still too late!"
Weiyuan Fort was indeed not lost. The battle of Weiyuan Fort lasted for eight days and seven nights. It was not until the fifth day of April in the second year of Dashun Yongchang that the city was defeated... More than 3,000 soldiers and civilians who defended the city were all massacred. , no one is spared!
The fall of Yulin City, Dashun's stronghold in Yulinwei, would be delayed until July of the second year of Yongchang. Because the Qing army only used its troops to surround Yulin City after they defeated Weiyuan Fort. Yulin City had many more defenders than Weiyuan Fort, and the city was stronger, so the Qing army besieged it for more than thirty days before breaking Yulin City... The soldiers and civilians in Yulin City also fought against Weiyuan. The soldiers and civilians of the fort were all slaughtered!
"It's too late..." Liu Fangliang shook his head, "There are too few defenders on the border wall of Yulin Town. There are only three or four thousand in total. The Tartars will definitely find a place to break through the wall."
What he said is correct! Although Weiyuan Fort and Yulin City persisted for a long time, the only ones responsible for the attack were the Han troops under Azige. The main force led by Azig broke through the Yulin border wall at Huaiyuan Fort near Weiyuan Fort. Then break through the dangerous Yinzhou Pass south of Yulin City along the border wall, leaving a force to guard Yulin City. The vanguard has now occupied Tianbao County (Mizhi), Li Zicheng's hometown.
However, the resistance from Weiyuan Fort and Yulin City still delayed Azig's progress - because it was Azig who led the attack, not Duduo. The latter used troops boldly and decisively, while Azig was more cautious. He did not dare to move south in a large scale before taking Weiyuan Fort and using his troops to besiege Yulin City, so he gave Li Zicheng time to adjust his deployment.
"Then withdraw the troops and return to defend Chang'an!" Tian Jianxiu suggested, "Your Majesty, the Prime Minister has collected 300,000 shi of grain in the countryside of Chang'an these days and sent it all to Chang'an City...and Chang'an these days Many people in the city have fled. As long as we return to the defense and send our families to Xiangjing, we may be able to push back the Qing army with the help of Chang'an Fort."
The walls of Xi'an Fucheng in the Ming Dynasty were also extremely strong - Zhu Yuanzhang liked to build walls in the early years of the Ming Dynasty. At that time, the country also had money and food, and could mobilize the people, so all the places that could be built were built. Xi'an is also the location of the Qin Palace, and was once a candidate for the capital of the Ming Dynasty, so the city walls are very strong. Later, during the Longqing period, it was reinforced again and rammed earth was wrapped with green bricks. When Sun Chuanting became the governor of Qin, it was reinforced again. It had reached the point of being impregnable, and the city defense was by no means under the control of Datong Mansion.
If Azig cannot defeat Datong in a few months, then he will also be unable to defeat Li Zicheng's Chang'an.
Moreover, Niu Jinxing had just brought 300,000 shi of grain into the city. If Li Zicheng drove away the people in the city and evacuated their families, leaving only 30,000 people to defend the city, the savings of 300,000 shi of grain would be enough for five years... .
"Your Majesty," Luo Hu said, "Gao Yigong has 15,000 people, and if I give him another 15,000... I will guard him for three to five years. I don't believe that the Tatars can still be in Chang'an." I’m living out my life raising a baby outside the city.”
This is a way to defeat the Qing Dynasty. The Eight Banners have a small population. If this city has to be besieged for three years and that city has to be trapped for five years, they will have to delay the birth of the Eight Banners' successor before they can conquer all of China. ...
Li Zicheng was also a little hesitant. He glanced at Song Xiance and the military advisor said: "Your Majesty, Dashun and Xiangjing Mansion are also the capital! Moreover, Bohou and the Second Army Advisor are running a good business in Xiangjing. The people are loyal and the people are happy. .”
What? Li Zicheng couldn't believe that the people of Xiangjing Prefecture could still be happy if they became the tenants of the old camp soldiers?
"Your Majesty," Song Xiance said again, "it's better to transfer the family members to Xiangjing first, and then decide whether to defend Chang'an City based on the situation!"
Li Zicheng frowned deeply, as if he was thinking hard. Everyone looked at him, and after a while, they heard him say: "How about we all retreat to Huguang, and then make plans for Jiangnan?"
"No!" Luo Hu shook his head, "Xiangjing Prefecture is our home base, and it will take time to operate well before it can be invulnerable. If Chang'an is suddenly abandoned, the Tatars will definitely press on Xiangjing. What will happen then? Abandoned Xiangjing Prefecture? Then wouldn’t we become homeless dogs? As for plotting Huguang and Jiangnan... The Jiangbei part of Huguang may be easier to fight, but the Yangtze River is not easy to cross! Your Majesty, have you forgotten the Tianjin Guard? battle?"
Chen Yongfu, who suffered a lot in the Battle of Tianjin Wei, echoed: "What Tongguan Bo said is absolutely true. The Zhu Thief Prince has captured the Beiyang Shachuan Gang, the Nanyang Eighteen Zhizhi and the Jianghuai Canal Army. The navy is much stronger than when he was living in Tianjin. Now. Can we defeat the red thieves on the Yangtze River? If not, how can we hope to conquer the south of the Yangtze River?"
"This..." Li Zicheng mused, "Xiangjing, Yueyang, De'an, Chengtian... just these few prefectures are too cramped. If we can't promise Jiangnan, there is no solution after all. .”
"Your Majesty," Song Xiance said, "Since ancient times, those who have taken the south of the Yangtze River have mostly come from the upper and middle reaches, and flowed down the river, forming a trend of breaking bamboo. If our government wants to take the south of the Yangtze River, it must build warships and train navy in Xiangjing. It takes two or three years of accumulation before we can make a big move... In these two or three years, Chang'an Mansion cannot be lost, otherwise the Tartars will attack Xiangjing with all their strength, and we will no longer have a foothold. "
Li Zicheng frowned: "I'm afraid that if the delay lasts for a long time, the crown prince's foundation in Jiangnan will be firmly established."
"No," Song Xiance said with a smile, "I have received the news that the thief Prince Zhu is debauched and greedy, far better than the foolish emperor Chongzhen. He is conquering and plundering the southeast. The people are full of resentment. In another two or three years, I am afraid everyone will look west. Master Wang."
