The situation on the battlefield is fleeting, and victory or defeat is only a matter of seconds.
When the Ming army took out handguns and other strike weapons designed specifically for heavy armor, they already had the upper hand.
Under the crushing force of weapons and equipment, the mere three thousand Eight Banner bannermen were like chickens and dogs in front of the Ming army that looked like tigers and wolves.
After only one meeting and a brief battle, more than half of the three thousand bannermen were killed or injured.
Then under Li Wensheng's command and the tactical cooperation between the Ming troops, an encirclement of the Jiannu cavalry was quickly formed.
In such a cavalry melee situation, Li Wensheng could still command thousands of Ming Army cavalry to attack and defend in an orderly manner, in addition to his own command ability.
Their usual training and martial arts performances also contributed a lot.
Li Wensheng's goal was also very clear. He would catch the Eight Banners who established the slaves and beat them up. The slaves were much more important than the Mongols.
Horqin's Mongolian cavalry and the cavalry of other tribes were no match for the Ming army's armored cavalry.
Seeing that the Eight Banners could not defeat the Ming army, they were already timid and became even more uncontrollable.
After a brief discussion with Taiji, several leaders made a decisive decision to preserve their strength.
Even though there were only two to three thousand Ming troops standing in front of them, they did not dare to charge again and fight the Ming troops in close combat.
The Ming army also seized the opportunity, assembled a superior force several times that of Jiannu, and fought fiercely, overwhelming Gu Lashi's offensive, and leaving Jiannu unable to fight back.
In less than two-quarters of an hour, before Huang Taiji's reinforcements arrived on the battlefield, they completely eliminated the three thousand bannermen who had established slaves.
The morale of the Ming army soared, and Li Wensheng immediately ordered the army to be divided into four groups to take the initiative and launch a counterattack.
Huang Taiji withdrew his troops. Although he still had a chance to make a comeback, the Eight Banners warriors with two white flags still had the courage and ability to fight decisively.
But those Mongols were completely frightened, had no military morale at all, and were no longer useful.
If he still wants to continue the fight, his troops with two white flags must press forward with all their might.
The fighting will and bravery of the Ming army far exceeded his expectations.
He witnessed the war process, and when he learned that the Ming cavalry actually had firearms, he knew something was wrong.
He no longer hid, and immediately asked Du Du to lead three more flag men to help.
But before Du Du could join the battle, the entire army of three thousand bannermen was wiped out.
He didn't want to cause any more casualties. Eight Banners warriors were very precious, not to mention that they had already lost ten Niu Lu.
How many Niulu are there in the entire Daikin?
Especially these are the elites of hundreds of battles, the mainstay of the Eight Banners, the bannermen.
"Si Baile, we still have the strength to fight, so we're leaving like this?"
"Aren't you going to avenge your sons?"
Du Du, who received the order to withdraw his troops, was so angry that he no longer cared that Huang Taiji was his elder and the commander-in-chief of the army.
"This battle has been lost. The Ming army is as powerful as a rainbow, the Mongols are already frightened, and the only available troops we have are two white flags."
"The losses of the Ming army are not big. If we fight to the death, even if we win, our Two White Flags will be severely damaged. If all the people in the Two White Flags are defeated, how will I explain to my father Khan?"
How could Huang Taiji not be angry? Not only did he lose the battle this time, he was also injured.
How could he not be heartbroken when a high-ranking flag officer died like this?
But there was no way, he couldn't afford it, and neither could Dajin. In order to preserve his vitality, he had to do this.
But Du Du didn't think so much. He only knew that he had killed a flagman with a white flag, but gained nothing.
"Then if we go back like this, we can explain to the Khan?"
"Can my position as the banner leader and your position as Baylor be preserved?"
"The corpses of the warriors were left exposed in the wilderness, and the Ming army beheaded them and went back to claim credit. What would the other soldiers think?"
How could Huang Taiji not know these truths, so in order to stabilize Du Du, he could only enlighten and explain with sincerity.
In the end, Du Du regained some sense, glanced at the Ming army behind him with resentful and fierce eyes, and rode away unwillingly.
The two of them planned to put the responsibility for the defeat on Horqin and other Mongolians.
In this way, relying on the two white flags and the achievements of this western expedition to Mongolia, they will not suffer too much.
The leaders of the Mongolian tribes and Horqin's Taiji were severely scolded by Huang Taiji, but that was all.
The newly defeated Huang Taiji doesn't dare to do anything to these people now.
Especially the Horqin tribe, there are still many places where Daikin needs to rely on them.
Their cattle, sheep, and war horses were all indispensable materials for Daijin at this time.
If there is another battle in Mongolia in the future, Horqin's help will be indispensable.
Seeing that the enemy troops began to retreat, Li Wensheng finally breathed a sigh of relief and felt relieved.
He did not order a pursuit, but asked the troops to take turns to rest and be on guard, eat and drink, and recover their strength.
Although the actual fighting took less than half an hour, the soldiers' physical strength had already reached its limit.
Heavy armor and the use of hammers and axes are extremely consuming.
If Jiannu attacked again, the Ming army might be defeated, so he did not dare to act rashly.
Ye Bushou tracked them for two hours, and reported back just before dark. The enemy troops had indeed retreated, and the Ming army began to clean up the battlefield and count the battle losses.
It was not until nightfall that the battle losses and gains were tallied.
In this battle, the Ming army killed 3,152 people and injured more than 1,300 people, accounting for nearly half of the casualties.
Fortunately, with the protection of iron armor, most of the injuries were minor and nothing serious.
Most of the Ming soldiers who died in battle were vanguards who had taken off their armor.
Two thousand people were killed and injured, and less than a hundred survived.
Li Wei was seriously injured and exhausted. Fortunately, there was a medical officer accompanying the army and a large amount of medicinal materials, and he finally saved his life.
Those arrow wounds and knife wounds can be healed in a few months.
With so many casualties, the results gained were naturally considerable.
The entire army of three thousand Jiannu was wiped out, and their heads were beheaded and tied to their horses by the Ming army.
The number of Tartar heads was nearly 4,000, which was a great harvest.
The pessimism of the death of fellow soldiers was quickly swept away by the joy of capturing these heads and about to receive military honors.
Including the heads of young Mongolian men captured in previous raids, the number already exceeds 10,000. Such a record has not been achieved in many years.
Li Wensheng believed that he must be the most successful in this northern expedition.
There were also more than 2,000 war horses captured, all of which were good horses from the grasslands and Liaodong. The war horses lost by the Ming army were quickly replenished.
After cleaning the battlefield and resting for just one night, Li Wensheng ordered the entire army to return to Datong.
All the soldiers of the Ming Dynasty who died in the battle have been cremated, while the corpses of the Jiannu and Mongolians were abandoned on the grassland and allowed to be eaten by mosquitoes, hawks and beasts.
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