"Shuai Zhang, the slave thieves are coming fiercely. I'm afraid it will be difficult for our master to resist them!"
Wang Pu, the commander-in-chief of Datong, pressed his hands on the fence of the commander's platform, with a look of horror in his eyes, obviously worried about the war ahead.
Zhang Cheng put down his telescope after hearing this, handed it to Wang Pu, and said to him: "According to my observation, the slave thieves have tried their best. Hauge's figure with a blue flag has appeared in front of him. As long as he can withstand the Tatars, Wave’s attack will only be dealt with later!”
Wang Pu actually also had a telescope made entirely of copper, which was given to him by Zhang Cheng, but he just put it into the backpack on his waist after using it just now.
At this time, he took the telescope handed by Zhang Cheng, held it in front of his eyes and started to watch: "In addition to the Manchurian Yellow Flag, the Mongolian True Yellow Flag, the Bordered Yellow Flag, and the True Red Flag, Hauge's Manchurian True Blue Flag is also in action. All that is missing now is that Azige’s Manchurian white flag remains untouched.”
He watched for a while, then put down his telescope and handed it to Zhang Chengfang who was waiting on the side. He then said to Zhang Cheng: "Commander Zhang, almost all the slaves and thieves are out. The general is afraid that the soldiers on the front line will not be able to withstand it."
"Then press the Chinese army up."
Zhang Cheng continued in a firm tone: "How can there be no death in a war? The key is whether the death is worth it. If you become a deserter, you will bear the shame whether you are chased and killed by slaves or by your own master. , only causing harm to future generations.
And those who fought bravely in front of the battle line, even though they died on the battlefield, were able to maintain the favor of the emperor and be worthy of their ancestors. They also received generous benefits and were considered worthy of their families. It can be said that they were wrapped in horse leather and died in a worthy place. "
He raised his hand and pointed forward, and said: "The Tatars who are attacking with yellow flags in Manchuria today have been killed by our Xuanfu cavalry. Zhang Guangda and Lin Fangping can immediately command their troops to the west.
Veteran General Guo's Xuanfu Biao camp on the west route fought fiercely with the Mongolian slave thieves Zhenghongqi, and clearly had the upper hand. Only the infantry on the middle route was under the greatest pressure. However, as long as they could hold on to the defense line, they would not be taken advantage of by the slave thieves.
The advantage lies with me. Once the slaves retreat, our division can attack with all our strength, advance with a drum, and break through the slaves' defense line! "
The situation ahead is indeed as Zhang Cheng said. The Xuan army's fearless spirit completely exceeded Daishan's expectations. In his opinion, even if the Xuan army in the South fought bravely, it was still incomparable to the warriors of the Qing Dynasty.
He did not want to launch a general attack at first, but under the artillery bombardment of the Xuan army, the Manchurian yellow flags, Mongolian yellow and red flags deployed at the front were forced to charge.
Dai Shan was helpless when he saw this. The Ming army on the opposite side was like crazy, and artillery bombardment continued. Although he had sent people to urge them, only some small artillery from Kong Youde came to help.
There are still more than twenty newly cast red cannons, but transporting them is extremely laborious. Although they have been transported to the position, the gun positions are not ready yet, and it is estimated that it will take half an hour before they can be fired.
In fact, all this should be attributed to the Xuanfu army's night attack. The tens of thousands of enemies they lost before withdrawing had blown up all parts of the Tucheng and left them in ruins.
Many of the mounds where the cannons were placed collapsed, seriously affecting the transportation of the red cannons. They had to be cleared one by one before the bulky red cannons could be transported out.
But even if these more than twenty red cannons begin to show their power, compared with the artillery of Xuan Dajun, they are still at an absolute disadvantage in terms of number. How can these more than twenty large iron lumps in each round be enough to change the situation? of?
However, since the charge had already been launched, Daishan could not order them to withdraw. He could only give orders to beat drums and take advantage of the situation to launch a general attack.
He even simply thought that Xuan Dajun was making a last ditch effort. It was because they were unable to fight anymore that they fired artillery so desperately and crazily, hoping to use the power of artillery to make a last ditch effort.
When the Qing warriors from the Three Banners on our side attacked, the Xuan Daming army on the opposite side did not collapse in an instant. In today's pre-noon battle, their cowardice was already highlighted.
No matter how our own side attacks, the Xuan army on the opposite side only defends but does not attack. Although there are occasionally some cavalry wandering on the flanks, as long as our own warriors attack, they will look for the wind and retreat.
This is not timidity, so what is it?
However, the development of the battlefield situation did not go as he expected. Xuanda's more than 20,000 soldiers withstood the attack of the Tatars with their bravery.
Not only that, they even exchanged their lives for lives, showing the bravery and loyalty of the Ming Dynasty soldiers. Regardless of the cavalry or infantry, they were generally commendable.
The Qing army's bannermen were indeed fierce and brave, but they were unlucky enough to encounter the Xuanfu Iron Army, which made their reputation for evil come to an end on this day.
Seeing that the Xianghuang Banner's forward was defeated, and the Mongolian Zhenghong Banner of Engetu on the right was also at a disadvantage, only the Mongolian Zhenghuang Banner Adai's troops were progressing smoothly.
From a distance, they seemed to have broken into the Southern infantry formation, but surprisingly, the Southern army was not defeated.
Seeing the struggling Southern soldiers, Daishan urgently ordered Haug to lead the Zhenglan Banner and Tu Lai's Mongolian Yellow Banner to attack. He hoped that the reinforcements from Haug and Tu Lai would tear a big hole in the middle of the Southern Army.
This will form a breakthrough in the middle, directly attack the center of the Southern Army, and then return to outflank their cavalry on both wings, thus destroying the morale of the army.
"Prince Li, Minggou is on the verge of collapse. Why not press forward with the entire army, force it to retreat, and then pursue it again." The impatience on the face of Prince Azige of Wuying County was beyond words.
However, Prince Li Daishan said with concern: "We cannot send out the entire army, otherwise once Ming Gou has a backup plan, how can we deal with it if we send out the entire army?"
When Azige heard this, he couldn't deal with it for a moment, but the eagerness in his heart could not be calmed down. He said angrily: "Prince Li, our Qing warriors have already gained the upper hand. If we don't do it in one go, how long will it take?"
But no matter what Azig said, Daishan never agreed to his request to fight.
…………
Li Jiyu's troops from the Dengfeng Battalion of the Xuanfu Army, as well as the soldiers from He Zhenxiong's Xuanfu Zhenbiao Left Wing Battalion, as new forces, set out as soon as the sun rose to support Zhang Cheng's main force in the decisive battle northward.
However, since arriving at the battlefield, they have been forming formation behind Zhang Cheng's Chinese army and have not had a chance to fight. It was not until after lunch that they began to form formation and wait.
Although the battle in the afternoon was extremely dangerous, Zhang Cheng never mobilized these two troops. The reason was simply that he wanted to use them as surprise troops in order to give the slave thieves a surprise attack.
At this moment, even Zhang Cheng's Chinese army was ready to fight at any time, but Li Jiyu and He Zhenxiong had not yet waited for the military order, and they were extremely anxious.
You know, when they marched north from Huangtu Ridge for reinforcements, they sent out heroic words to the soldiers of each battalion. This time they marched northward to act as a fire brigade, and they would go to the battlefield when they arrived.
Moreover, they have to fight to the death with the slaves and thieves regardless of their own safety. If someone shrinks from the battlefield and ruins his family's reputation, even if the commander-in-chief Zhang Cheng wants to keep his head, the brothers in his respective camps will not be able to tolerate him!
There is an unwritten rule in the Xuanfu army, that is, no matter what crime the Xuanfu soldiers committed, Zhang Cheng, as the commander-in-chief of the Xuanfu, can get away with it with just one word.
However, this is just the wishful thinking of the lieutenants and soldiers of the Xuanbei battalions. Perhaps in their hearts, Zhang Cheng is already like an emperor, at least in Xuanbei, he already has supreme power.
The words of Zhang Cheng and his family could influence the life and death of others. At that time, this was a privilege that only the emperor had.
Although Zhang Cheng had never done anything like this in the Xuanfu area, the local military households were already convinced that Zhang Cheng had such rights.
No matter what the court thinks about this, at least on Xuanfu North Road, the military households and common people have already regarded Zhang Cheng as a god. Zhang Cheng's words alone can both convict and exempt people. chastisement.
Just when Li Jiyu and He Zhenxiong were anxious, Zhang Chengfang, Zhang Chengfang's lieutenant general, rode up to them and delivered Zhang Cheng's military order to them personally: "Transmit the order and order the Dengfeng Camp and the Left Wing Battalion to immediately form a formation and go out to fight, starting from Xuanfu Town on the right wing." After marking the cavalry camp, we rushed toward Jinzhou Nanguan."
Li Jiyu and He Zhenxiong waited for a long time and finally received the military order to go to war. They were naturally overjoyed. They had made all preparations and immediately led their troops to form a formation from the right.
The Xuanfu Army is indeed an anomaly among the Ming Dynasty's official armies. Everyone else is eager to let themselves hide behind, but the Xuanfu Army is exactly the opposite. They are all eager to let themselves go to fight first.
Because in the Xuanfu Army, only military merit is the only criterion to measure the value of an army. Looking at the entire Ming Dynasty, the treatment of the Xuanfu Army, even if it is not ranked first, is at least not much different from that of the Beijing Camp. In some aspects, it is even stronger than the Beijing camp, let alone the Ming army in various towns elsewhere.
In the Xuanfu Army, there is no need to wait for the imperial court to approve and allocate rewards for meritorious service on the battlefield. As long as Zhang Cheng sends someone to approve the rewards, he can receive the corresponding rewards immediately.
As a result, all the soldiers in the Xuanfu Army battalions naturally fought bravely and competed for the lead. Even Li Jiyu and He Zhenxiong of Xinfu were no exception.
After receiving the order, they did not want to delay even a moment, and immediately led their troops to march northwest, following the footsteps of Guo Yingxian's troops in Xuanfu's Biaoying camp and marching into Jinzhou Nanguan.
…………
The news came one after another, and the governor of Jiliao, Hong Chengchou, was not at peace for a moment. Since the fighting resumed in the afternoon, the progress of the Ming army was not smooth.
First, Ma Ke, the commander-in-chief of Shanhaiguan, was once again attacked by slaves and bandits during his march to Xiaoling River in the north, and his entire army was defeated. He himself was trapped in the rebel army and did not know whether to live or die.
However, under the fierce fighting led by Wang Tingchen, the Ningyuan Army's left and right battalions, Hu Xinshui and Xia Longshan, successfully broke into the Xiaoling River, but were unable to seize the pontoon bridge on the Xiaoling River due to insufficient troops.
However, even this forced the Qing army to send another reinforcement force, which somewhat relieved the pressure on Wu Sangui.
But even so, Ningyuan's army still failed to break through the slave-bandit defense line. Although it advanced several miles north in the morning and even forced Prince Dorgon of Qing Guorui to camp outside the west gate of Jinzhou, it was unable to expand. Results.
In the afternoon, Dorgon commanded the Qing army's cavalry to launch a strong counterattack. The Ningyuan army had almost lost all the gains it had made after fighting all morning, and retreated for more than two miles.
In the afternoon, the only good news that Hong Chengchou received came from Zhang Cheng, whom he had previously been unwilling to send to the battlefield.
It turned out that Zhang Cheng only defended and did not attack before noon, showing his weakness to the enemy, but launched a crazy counterattack in the afternoon. They first withstood the Qing army's full blow.
Then he ordered the newly transferred Li Ji to meet more than 4,000 elites from the Dengfeng Battalion and He Zhenxiong's left-wing battalion, and cooperate with the veteran Guo Yingxian's Biao Battalion to launch a surprise attack on the right wing and attack Jinzhou Nanguan northwestward.
At this time, the Qing army's Manchuria Xianghuang Banner and Zhenglan Banner, as well as the Mongolian Two Yellow Banner and Zhenghong Banner were all tied to the front battlefield. Although Daishan promptly sent Wuying County King Azige to lead the Xiangbai Banner to support, he was also defeated by Guo Yingxian. The Biaoying Jingqi tried their best to stop him.
Li Jiyu and He Zhenxiong's extraordinary troops crossed Daishan's defense line of tens of thousands of slave thieves and directly attacked the Qing defense line outside Jinzhou Nanguan from the west.
However, in the south of Jinzhou, they were blocked by the Mongolian Zhengbai Banner Tatars of Yibai. Fortunately, Zu Dashou in Jinzhou City had been paying close attention to the war outside the city.
He has not slept a wink since last night. In his opinion, resolving the siege of Jinzhou depends on the battle in these two days. If he still fails this time, he may not have a chance in the future.
Although the Ming army was not defeated in this battle, once the Qing army forced them back to the south bank of the Xiaoling River, it would be difficult to cross the river, and Jinzhou City would no longer be able to hold on.
Apart from surrendering to the Qing Dynasty, the only way left was to fight to the death to break out of the encirclement. If a breakout was possible, I am afraid Zu Dashou would have made this choice long ago!
Now, seeing the Xuan army in the south and the elite Tatar slaves of the Six Banners fighting for more than half a day but still not retreating, I felt not only the courage of the Xuan army to fight to the death, but also their determination to break the siege.
Therefore, he ordered his younger brother Zu Dabi to gather more than 6,000 elite soldiers in the south gate early. When he saw through the telescope that a strange force appeared on the right wing of Xuan Dajun, crossing the battlefield with Daishan and attacking the south gate directly. , and immediately ordered Zu Dabi to lead his army to attack.
Just when Li Jiyu and He Zhenxiong led their troops to fight fiercely with the Mongolian Zhengbai Banner of Tu Lai, Zu Dabi led the Liao soldiers in the city to kill them in time. They quickly broke through the two trenches laid by the Qing army and killed one Tu Lai. Caught off guard.
Under the pincer attack led by Zu Dabi, they soon succeeded in breaking through the Mongolian Zhengbai Banner defense line in Tulai. The three trenches of the Qing army surrounding Jinzhou that had been insurmountable earlier were finally defeated by the combined efforts of Xuan's army and the Liao soldiers in Jinzhou City. Under the attack, it became a smooth road.
Hong Chengchou, the governor of Jiliao, was extremely excited after receiving the report!
Jinzhou City has been besieged by slave thieves for nearly two years. The imperial court mobilized ten generals and nearly 200,000 troops, and finally today they were able to join forces with the city's defenders.
There was hope for Jie Jinwei. How could Hong Chengchou not be excited? His right hand holding the military report was trembling slightly, but the expression on his face was still as calm as ever. He said in a very calm tone: "Quick, please come here, the prince."
Li Song had just stepped out of the Chinese army's tent. Hong Chengchou's excitement calmed down a little, and then he came to his senses and said, "I'd better go to see the prince in person."
(End of chapter)
