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While Fang Ru and Zhang Yu'er were discussing countermeasures together, on this day, under Jiezhou City, the Mongolian coalition forces finally retreated after besieging Jiezhou City for more than half a month!
Of course, according to the Mongolian coalition coach Bagan, this action of the Mongolian coalition is not to retreat, but to head to the Weishui River for a decisive battle with the main force of the Han army. After the Mongolian coalition defeats the main force of the Han border army, it will return to continue the attack. Jiezhou City!
But Bagan's statement could only deceive the lower-level soldiers who only knew how to follow orders and had little knowledge. Most of the senior generals within the Mongolian coalition were not fools, but they did not believe it at all.
The war has developed to this point, and the situation has become very obvious - after successive losses of troops and generals, it is absolutely impossible for the Mongolian coalition to break through Jiezhou City! If they continue to attack Jiezhou City, the Mongolian coalition will only be completely annihilated under the heavy siege of the Han army!
In fact, this battle of the Mongolian coalition has completely failed! The most urgent task of the Mongolian coalition forces at present is to escape back to the northern grasslands as soon as possible!
All the senior generals of the Mongolian coalition knew this tacitly, but no one would say it out loud. They still needed to deceive the stupid cavalry to continue fighting. Once this kind of thing was said out loud, it would easily damage morale.
In fact, considering the current predicament of the Mongolian coalition, the generals of the coalition still looked arrogant and looked down on the Han army at all. But in fact, they were a little restless in their hearts, and they only felt that the future of the Mongolian coalition was uncertain.
Among the many Mongolian generals, Qigemu's mood was relatively calm, because he had betrayed the Mongolian coalition and secretly formed an alliance with the Han imperial envoy Zhao Junchen!
Next, he only needs to unite with the Han army to destroy the Junggar army, and then he can lead his cavalry back to the grassland safely!
In fact, when the Mongolian coalition forces retreated, Qie Gemu was responsible for commanding the Mongolian right-wing tribal cavalry to act as the rear army, while Wei Song, a spy from the Han court, and Su He, a traitor to the Mongolian coalition forces, were following behind Qie Gemu.
Looking at the hurried retreat of the Mongolian coalition in front of him, Wei Song's expression was slightly solemn, and he said slowly: "Bagan was decisive in his actions. He did not delay the retreat at all. It is a pity that the best opportunity has been missed. If I If the prediction is correct, the imperial envoy Zhao has already led his army to wait for him near the Weishui River..."
Qie Gemu looked at Wei Song sideways and said, "I just hope that your imperial envoy can keep his promise and provide food and grass for our major tribes on the right wing of Mongolia after the war as agreed."
"This is natural!" As he spoke, Wei Song turned to Su He and asked: "Chief Su He, how is the situation of the Chagatai cavalry? Are they willing to continue to obey your orders?"
Su He treated Wei Song with great respect, nodded and replied: "The warriors of Chagatai are still under my control. When the Mongolian coalition forces arrive at the Wei River, they will turn against me as soon as I give my order." , and attack the Junggar cavalry together with the Han army!"
Wei Song nodded with satisfaction and asked Qiegemu again: "Chief Qiegemu, what is the situation of the major tribes on the right wing of Mongolia?"
Qie Gemu said: "Don't worry, because this operation needs to be secretive, as long as I lead the warriors of the Ordos tribe to attack first, the warriors of the major tribes on the right side of Mongolia will definitely follow! In addition, I sent out the troops last night Hurry back to the Hetao. After my father receives the news, he will definitely lead his troops to attack the Junggar cavalry remaining in the grassland immediately. This time, he will definitely seriously injure the Junggar Khanate's vitality!"
Wei Song nodded again and said: "According to the marching speed of the Mongolian coalition, they will arrive at the Weishui River in about three days. Then everything will be left to the two of you! ... If nothing goes wrong, this battle should also be fought on the same day. Finish!"
After hearing what Wei Song said, Qi Gemu and Su He's expressions were a little complicated, but they soon became firm again.
Now, they have become traitors to the Mongolian coalition, but in order to preserve the vitality of their respective tribes, they have no choice!
*
At the same time, on the city wall of Jiezhou City, Zhang Chengxun was secretly relieved as he watched the Mongolian coalition forces gradually move away.
In recent days, in the face of the crazy offensive of the Mongolian coalition forces, Jiezhou City is not as impregnable as it seems. Dangerous situations have appeared many times, and the defenders have also suffered serious losses. As the actual person in charge of defending the city, he , the pressure is not great.
But now, everything is finally over!
However, after seeing the battle in Jiezhou City end, Zhang Chengxun could not relax. Instead, his brain raced, secretly thinking about the future development of the war: "The situation is indeed as I expected. Jiezhou City was just thrown by the imperial envoy. The Mongolian Tatars are just bait, just to hold back the main force of the Mongolian coalition! And the main force of our army took advantage of the Mongolian Tatars to attack Jiezhou City and laid a heavy siege! The Mongolian coalition has divided its forces many times in recent days, but these forces After leaving the Mongolian camp, there was no trace again. It was most likely that he was wiped out by the main force of our army... Now, the Mongolian Tatars retreated in a hurry, obviously discovering that they were surrounded... But the imperial envoy has now arranged the battle. , how can we easily let them return to the grassland safely? We must annihilate them all to achieve full success..."
Zhang Chengxun is indeed one of the most talented and knowledgeable people in the Forbidden Army. When Jiezhou City was surrounded by the Mongolian coalition forces for many days and intelligence was isolated, he had already guessed Zhao Junchen's strategic plan through only some clues. Eighty-eight.
Thinking of this, Zhang Chengxun's eyes flickered, and the ambition deep in his heart continued to rise: "The defense of Jiezhou City was certainly successful, but Guan Wuyuan is the leader on the surface. In the future, when the court evaluates and rewards He also takes the majority. Although I am the one who actually directs the battle, I don't have a decent backing. I'm afraid I won't get much credit by then... Judging from the current situation, on the retreat route of the Mongolian coalition, the imperial envoy Your Excellency must have deployed heavy troops, and there will definitely be a decisive battle at that time!... Once this decisive battle completely annihilates the Mongolian coalition, it will definitely be recorded in the history books, and all the generals participating in the battle will be superior, but it happens to be me. Opportunity!... If I can take the opportunity to gain the favor of Imperial Envoy Zhao, I can even be at the top of the imperial court’s merit list!”
Thinking of this, Zhang Chengxun suddenly turned around and asked: "When the Mongolian coalition forces are twenty miles away from Jiezhou City, order people to open the city gate, and then pass on the order, so that all the cavalry in the city who can move can assemble as soon as possible and prepare to pursue with me. Mongolian coalition!"
Upon hearing Zhang Chengxun's order, the military attachés behind him were stunned.
The Mongolian coalition finally retreated. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief. They just hoped that the war would end. Zhang Chengxun actually wanted to lead the pursuit?
You know, although the Mongols were not very proficient in attacking the city, they were good at field combat. However, there are only about 2,000 cavalry in Jiezhou City that can still move, and the Mongolian coalition still has a huge force of nearly 30,000. In terms of military strength, under such circumstances, chasing the Mongolian coalition forces would not be like hitting a stone with an egg.
Cao Ming, the garrison officer of Jiezhou City, could not help but retorted: "Zhang Tongzhi, the Mongolian coalition finally retreated and left, and most of our soldiers are exhausted. I am afraid it is inappropriate to pursue the Mongolian Tatars at this time... Do you want to ask General Guan for instructions? the meaning of?"
Zhang Chengxun waved his hand with a solemn expression: "Don't worry, I know what I know! If what I expected is correct, the Imperial Envoy has now arranged a heavy siege for the Mongolian coalition. This is also the reason why the Mongolian coalition hastily retreated this time! I will lead the troops this time The pursuit of soldiers will not directly resist the Mongols, but will try to harass their rear troops, slow down their marching speed, and buy more preparation time for the main force of our army, and wait until the decisive battle between the Mongolian Tatars and the main force of our army. Will really attack... Once my expectation comes true, this will be a great achievement. At that time, both you, me and the soldiers will receive generous rewards!... As for General Guan, he is still suffering from the disease If he is seriously ill, don’t disturb him!”
Zhang Chengxun wanted to take a risk this time and take all the credit, so naturally he would not let Guan Wuyuan participate in it.
These days of commanding operations have allowed Zhang Chengxun to establish a very high prestige among the defenders. After seeing his firm attitude, Cao Ming hesitated again and again and finally decided to trust Zhang Chengxun again.
What's more, since the Mongolian coalition's attack on the city became more and more violent, Guan Wuyuan was frightened out of his courage. These days, he has been hiding in the government office in Jiezhou City, eating fast, chanting Buddha's name, and begging for the protection of gods and Buddhas. He has not seen anyone except Zhang Chengxun. Even if Cao Ming wanted to use Guan Wuyuan to stop Zhang Chengxun's crazy behavior, he couldn't find Guan Wuyuan in a short time.
Finally, Cao Ming gritted his teeth and agreed: "I'll go and deliver the order right now!"
*
In fact, the news of the Mongols' retreat spread quickly throughout Gongchang Mansion!
Anyuan Acropolis is one of the four acropolis near Jiezhou City. It is located 60 miles southwest of Jiezhou City. There are more than 2,800 frontier troops in the city. The highest commander is Hu Cheng, a Qianhu official.
During this period of time, when the Mongolian coalition forces attacked Jiezhou City, Hu Cheng completely forgot his duty of guarding and had no intention of helping Jiezhou City to contain the Mongolian coalition forces. He just huddled in the Anyuan Guard City and defended to death. Under the powerful military power of the Mongols, it can be said that it is uneasy and panic day and night, for fear that the Mongolian eyes will shift to the Anyuan Acropolis.
On this day, when Hu Cheng received the news from Ye Bu, saying that the Mongolian coalition forces had retreated, he was immediately overjoyed and repeatedly clapped his hands and said: "Good news! The Mongols have finally retreated! No need to worry about the Mongolian Tatars attacking Anyuanwei anymore. I can finally have a peaceful sleep tonight!"
Then, Hu Cheng suddenly thought of something and asked Ye Buhou in front of him: "Do you know why the Mongols suddenly retreated?"
Ye Bushou replied: "Since this period of time, the Mongolian Tatars have made no progress in attacking Jiezhou City. I am afraid they have lost their patience... But from the villain's point of view, the most important thing is probably because the Mongols lost their troops. , the strength was greatly damaged. When the Mongols retreated this time, they only had less than 30,000 troops left. The 20,000 troops and horses they had divided into two operations in the previous two operations have not been seen yet. I am afraid they were wiped out by the imperial envoy as rumored. !”
Hu Cheng was slightly stunned and murmured: "Could it be that the official document I received yesterday is true?"
Last night, Anyuan Acropolis received an official document from Imperial Envoy Zhao Junchen, stating that Imperial Envoy Zhao Junchen had led the army to wipe out two branches of the Mongolian army, beheading more than 10,000 people, capturing more than 4,000, and capturing a large number of War horses and supplies, nearly half of the Mongolian coalition's strength had been damaged by now.
Hu Cheng has always been afraid of the enemy, and he believed from the bottom of his heart that the Han army was no match for the Mongols. After receiving the official document, his first reaction was disbelief, thinking that all this was a false report of military merit by the imperial envoy Zhao Junchen.
But at this time, after receiving the actual information and thinking back to yesterday's official document, Hu Cheng had no choice but to believe it.
"Is it true that Imperial Envoy Zhao has achieved such illustrious military exploits?" Hu Cheng looked hesitant as he muttered to himself: "Imperial Envoy Zhao has repeatedly sent official documents stating that he will annihilate the Mongolian coalition forces. It seems that he is serious about it. ! If the Mongolian coalition really lost nearly half of its troops and fell into siege, now is a great opportunity to beat them into the water and compete for military glory... On the other hand, if I have been indifferent during this period, I am afraid I will be held accountable afterwards. The responsibility of timidity..."
Finally, Hu Cheng suddenly gritted his teeth and said: "Send the order, gather all the troops in the acropolis, and follow me to the Weishui River to support the imperial envoy in the battle!"
Hu Cheng did not dare to directly pursue the Mongolian coalition like Zhang Chengxun, let alone send troops to intercept the Mongolian coalition's retreat, so he planned to lead his troops to join the main force of the Ming army under Zhao Junchen, so that he could naturally get a share of the pie after the war. .
*
Gongchang Fucheng is far away from Jiezhou City and has not yet received news from the Mongolian coalition.
However, after Zhao Junchen wiped out two branches of the Mongolian coalition, he took all the prisoners of the Mongolian coalition outside Gongchang Mansion City.
Zhang Mingren, the prefect of Gongchang, couldn't help but be stunned when he saw the dark prison camp outside the city filled with Mongolian prisoners. According to a rough calculation, there were at least three to five thousand people.
There were so many prisoners, so there must have been many times more beheaded!
Zhang Mingren has been an official in Shaanxi and Gansu for nearly ten years, and has never seen such brilliant results.
Zhang Mingren was shocked and quickly sent someone to the prisoner camp to confirm the news. After confirming that all the prisoner camps were genuine Mongolian prisoners and not ordinary people pretending to be military veterans, Zhang Mingren was immediately overjoyed and sent an order: "The Imperial Envoy is like this The illustrious military exploits are truly a blessing to the court! A blessing to the people! Immediately send people to collect the fine wine, cattle and sheep in the city, and then summon all the squires and wealthy merchants in the city, and ask them to go to the government office to discuss the next labor matters with their officials! This way The military exploits will definitely go down in history, and our Gongchang Mansion must also show its performance!"
After saying that, Zhang Mingren hurried back to the government office study and wrote a memorial of more than 3,000 words in the shortest time to announce the good news and ask for credit. He also briefly mentioned his assistance in the rear of the battlefield, and then sent People were sent to the capital on fast horses.
Zhang Mingren believed that if he could inform the court of this happy event as soon as possible, he might be able to get some benefits, or at least deepen his impression on Emperor Deqing. Naturally, such an opportunity should not be missed!
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