The guard general of Liaoyang was called Shuo Zhan.
This man was born in Zhenghongqi and inherited his father's position as Jia La E Zhen. He was similar to the regimental commander under Zhao Han and could command 1,500 people.
After entering the customs, Dorgon appointed Shuo Zhan as Melezhangjing, which means deputy general. He still only had 1,500 soldiers under his command, but from Shanhaiguan to Liaoyang, everything fell under his military jurisdiction.
Shuo Zhan only had 50 Manchurian Eight Banners troops in hand, and the remaining soldiers were all distributed in the countryside. He needed to regroup to fight.
The Manchu army has always been like this. When not fighting, they would return to the countryside, manage their own farms, and practice combat skills. They would only assemble at fixed locations when going on expeditions or for intensive training, which was more similar to Zhao Han's peasant-soldier system.
Therefore, despite the fact that Liaoyang only had 50 Manchurian Eight Banners, it was actually able to recruit 1,500 Eight Banners troops within a few days. After Dorgon took away the troops, there were only so many civilians left.
Haizhou could also summon troops, but Wu Huapu's cavalry rushed too fast. A large number of Manchu Eight Banners scattered in the countryside were killed or had their thumbs chopped off before they received the order to gather troops. There were also several groups of cavalry in Haizhou.
They cruised around the city, specifically intercepting and killing the Eight Banners soldiers who came spontaneously.
So Haizhou City was quickly occupied by the Datong Army!
However, Liaoyang learned of the enemy's situation in advance and now has more than 200 troops gathered, supported by 100 Eight Banners soldiers of the Han Army.
But Shuo Zhan still did not dare to leave the city because the Datong cavalry had already come to kill him.
On the field where the spring grass revived, dozens of Manchurian Eight Banners received the order to gather troops and rushed to Liaoyang City. Among them, there were 12 horse troops and 37 infantry troops. They were also followed by soldiers. This kind of warfare
They can wrap clothes, help the master lead horses, carry guns, and get equipment. During the war, they can be transformed into civilian servants, or they can be used as auxiliary soldiers to rush forward.
"Uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu"
The sentry on the hill observing with telescopes quickly blew the horn. More than 300 cavalrymen in charge of this area quickly gathered together to kill them.
The Manchu and Qing generals were blocked in the city. Only mid-level and low-level officers came from outside the city, and several small units had already been intercepted and killed.
Shuo Zhan stood on the tower, watching anxiously.
He once sent more than a dozen cavalrymen to each village to convey orders, telling the Eight Banners Army not to rush to the city to add fuel to the fire, but to rush to Shenyang to gather troops and then fight back. However, after these cavalrymen left the city, they were attacked by Datong troops who were ten times their size.
The cavalry intercepted and killed them, and they only relied on their horses to break out of the encirclement.
At this moment, three hundred Datong cavalry quickly surrounded a small group of enemy troops.
Even though they were far away, they lit the match ropes, loaded their ammunition and prepared to attack.
Another three hundred Datong cavalry gradually moved closer in this direction to prepare for Shuo Zhan to lead his troops out of the city for rescue.
There were 12 Manchurian cavalry troops and 37 Manchurian infantry troops. Including their coats, the number was close to a hundred. So surrounded in the wild, the cavalry troops even tried to distance themselves and escape after urgently putting on cotton armor and mounting their horses.
It's okay if they don't wear armor, but they really can't run away if they wear armor.
In order to reduce weight, the Datong Dragoons don't wear any armor to ensure their speed.
I saw these Datong cavalry, leaving only 50 to keep an eye on the enemy infantry, and the rest all went to kill the enemy cavalry. 250 cavalry surrounded and intercepted 12 cavalry. There was no need to dismount and fire blunderbuss. After approaching, they directly reined in their horses and fired, regardless of the attack.
If he missed, he would draw his sword and attack him.
After a short battle, three people were killed with fire cannons and eight others were killed in close combat. Only one Manchu cavalry was still running away.
The Datong cavalry circled back, dismounted, formed a formation, and lined up to fire cannons at the remaining enemy infantry.
"Bang bang bang bang!"
The soldiers were so frightened that they all fell to the ground and surrendered, effectively dodging the volley of fire cannons.
These Manchurian infantrymen would be surrounded and killed if they scattered and fled, and they would be shot at when they gathered together. They had no way of fighting, so they could only charge bravely. After one charge, they were killed and half wounded by musketry.
When the survivors came a little closer, this group of Datong dragoons ran away, and another group of dragoons started shooting from the side.
Unable to fight, the Manchurian infantry finally collapsed and ran towards Liaoyang City risking their lives.
The Datong dragon cavalry caught up and surrounded and killed them with their waist knives.
They actually killed a few of them, threw away their weapons and surrendered. The Datong army was so benevolent that they stripped off their cotton armor, took away their weapons, cut off their thumbs and let them enter the city.
Shuo Zhan was disgusted by this behavior. He had already received hundreds of Manchu soldiers who had lost their thumbs, and some of them were deliberately released from Haizhou.
These people cannot draw bows and fire arrows, nor can they hold swords, guns and shields firmly. They are completely useless.
Moreover, they also brought news from Haizhou, saying that there was internal strife between Hauge and Dorgon, and the Qing army was severely defeated. Beijing had been besieged, and Shanhaiguan had been breached... These news caused the morale of the Liaoyang defenders to drop.
To the extreme.
The Eight Banners of the Han Army who were guarding Liaoyang were ready to rebel at any time.
"Hang up to the city." Shuo Zhan had no choice but to order.
If the Eight Banners soldiers were abandoned after having their thumbs chopped off, the morale in the city would only be lower, and they would have to consume food to feed these wastes.
Immediately afterwards, dozens of surrendered prisoners also had their thumbs cut off and were sent outside the city.
"Help!"
"Lord Zhang Jing, please pull us up!"
"..."
The Han soldiers were crying and howling below the city, and the Datong cavalry was watching the show further away. Shuo Zhan on the city turned a deaf ear to this.
Disabled Manchus must be rescued. What does Han Chinese dressing mean?
Dozens of soldiers were crying and howling under the city. Although they only lost their thumbs, they were dead. There was only one ending: starving to death!
The 100 Han troops from the Eight Banners who assisted in defending the city, looking at the miserable situation of Bao Yi, could not help but feel sad. If their thumbs were cut off, they would be abandoned. Why the hell would they help the Tatars fight?
While inspecting the city defense in the afternoon, Shuo Zhan obviously felt something was wrong. There was something wrong with the eyes of the Han Eight Banners soldiers.
Nothing will happen now, but when a large number of enemy troops attack the city, these Han Eight Banners will definitely surrender to the enemy.
That night, Shuo Zhan abandoned his family and broke out with only his two sons. Facing a river, he ordered the remaining soldiers to break out in three directions, and he disguised himself as a soldier and escaped on horseback.
In the middle of the night, the shouts of killing shook the sky, and chases and killings were carried out in the dark.
Shuozhan's eldest son was killed, and he and his second son were captured. He was not recognized and even saved his life. After losing his thumbs on both hands, he fled on foot towards Shenyang.
Before Hu Dinggui led his troops to attack, the Eight Banners of the Han army who stayed in the city took the initiative to open the city and offer Liaoyang.
…
A few days later, Shenyang City.
This is Shengjing of the Manchu Qing Dynasty. He Luohui, the minister of the Zhenghuang Banner, was appointed by Dorgon as the general manager of Shengjing, and he was the highest-ranking official in the entire Northeast.
At this moment, Shenyang has gathered more than 3,000 troops, including more than 1,000 Manchurian Eight Banners, Han troops, and 600 Mongolian Eight Banners. The Xianghuang Banner Ahanikan stationed in Shengjing has also arrived with hundreds of soldiers.
"I'm Shuo Zhan, let me enter the city quickly!"
Ahanikan looked over and said to He Luohui: "What a great master."
He Luohui said quickly: "Let him in quickly!"
Shuo Zhan brought his son into the city. He Luo saw his hands wrapped in cloth and asked in shock: "You also had your thumb chopped off?"
"The enemy is vicious, why not just kill me!" Shuo Zhan said with a sad face.
Ahanikan asked: "Where did the enemy come from?"
These three people were all Dorgon's confidants. Historically, Ahanikan even served as the Minister of Rites.
Since we are all our own people, there is nothing to hide.
Shuo Zhan said in a low voice: "I don't know whether it's true or not. The soldiers who escaped from Haizhou brought the news. It was said that the King of Suppression (Hauge) started an army and started a rebellion. We in the Qing Dynasty fought internally and were killed by the Datong Army in the south.
We were caught off guard. Now, Beijing has been besieged and Shanhaiguan has been breached. The enemy came from Shanhaiguan."
He Luohui and Ahanikan suddenly looked at each other.
They actually... somewhat believed it.
Otherwise, where did the enemy come from? It can't be flying with wings or swimming from the sea.
They firmly believed that the Eight Banners of Manchuria were strong and would not be easily defeated.
But if Hauge provokes internal strife and recruits one or two princes to rebel, it is really possible that the Datong Army will seize the opportunity.
He Luohui thought for a long time and said: "Secure Shengjing first, in case the news is false. Recruit all the Manchu men to Shengjing, and the women can also pick up weapons to fight. Also, go to the north to summon the savage Jurchens, each tribe
One hundred warriors must be sent out!"
The Savage Jurchens were very miserable. In the past few decades, they were conquered by the Manchus in various ways.
Even if the tribes had surrendered and paid tribute, the Manchus would still attack them twice. Every time they conquered them, their population and property would be taken away, which made it impossible for the various tribes of the savage Jurchens to develop.
The Oroqen, Ewenki and other ethnic minorities of later generations were all evolved from the wild Jurchens.
Many savage Jurchens even lived in Russia in later generations. They were depopulated by the Manchus and had no combat effectiveness at all. As a result, they gave Russia an advantage. A few dozen Cossack cavalry could occupy tens of thousands of square kilometers of land.
Ahanikan said: "All the Jurchen tribesmen in the southern mountains have also moved to Shengjing to protect Shengjing as much as possible!"
Shuo Zhan said: "Han people and North Koreans cannot enter the city, they are likely to defect!"
"Yes, apart from being loyal, Han Chinese and Koreans cannot be allowed to enter the city!" Ahanikan agreed.
Tens of thousands of Han and Koreans were abandoned in the countryside without even a grain of food.
When some Manchus moved away from their farms, they simply killed all their serfs.
Wu Huapu rushed back to Liaoyang to report: "General, there are thousands of defenders in Shenyang, and it is impossible to capture it in a short time. They are afraid of defecting before the battle, and Han and Koreans are not allowed to enter the city. Even the Eight Banners of the Han army camped out of the city.
In Shenyang City, the only people who are full of people are those who are undercover."
Hu Dinggui said with a smile: "Then we won't attack Shenyang. The cavalry went to recruit the Han people, and the Koreans moved westward. They all moved to Gaizhou, Fuzhou, and Jinzhou to farm. In addition, if you go to shout outside Shenyang, say that Dorgon has already
Defeated, half a million Datong troops are about to come to Shenyang. Let’s scare them. It will take a long time to take the people away, lest the enemy troops in Shenyang come out to cause trouble."
Hu Dinggui then said to Wang Yaochen: "Order North Korea to collect grain again, and the price can be increased by 10%. If it doesn't work, we can only go to Jiangsu to collect grain. There are too many people to be resettled this time."
Hu Dinggui really stopped attacking Shenyang. He evacuated Haizhou and Liaoyang, and took away tens of thousands of people from Shenyang.
Although the Manchu and Qing strongholds had not been breached, they had become a white field.
When they left, several sections of the city walls of Haizhou and Liaoyang were blown down with gunpowder, so that they could come back and seize the cities at any time.
By the way, Liaodong, which is vast and sparsely populated, can open up pastures to raise horses!
It wasn't until Hu Dinggui moved everyone away and returned to Gaizhou safely that Dorgon finally received the news that his hometown had been attacked.