Chapter 247 Yuan Chonghuan is determined to fight decisively
Zunhua City was already occupied by Hou Jin soldiers and horses at this time. The supplies prepared before were cheaper than Hou Jin soldiers and horses. After receiving the supplies, the Tatars became even more like wolves and tigers. In contrast, Zhao Lejiao
The troops and horses under his command were in a different situation.
Perhaps it was because Huang Taiji believed that Zhao Zhijiao was already in his pocket. In addition, after receiving the news, it would take some time for Yuan Chonghuan's 20,000 Guan Ning cavalry to arrive. In order to avoid unnecessary casualties, Huang Taiji ordered all troops
The horses rested for the time being and did not initiate a night battle. However, Huang Taiji was very cautious and deployed heavy troops to the west of Zunhua City. When he thought about it, if Zhao Lijiao wanted to break through, he could only break out to the west. As long as Zhao Lijiao dared to come, he would
Let him die faster.
Breaking out to the east? What's the point? Unless Zhao Shujiao didn't want to live anymore, Yuan Chonghuan's order was to garrison Zunhua City, rush to aid the capital, and break out to the east. Afterwards, he could only ask for execution.
But this time, Huang Taiji's prediction was wrong. Zhao Shujiao went against the norm and aimed his breakout at Funing in the northeast.
At night, there was a cool breeze and the cold made people shiver. Zhao led the army quietly to gather all the remaining soldiers, and several lieutenants gathered around to listen to his orders.
General Hu Peidong put his knife on the ground and said in a deep voice: "Commander-in-Chief, what do you think we should do? Brothers, I will listen to you. The responsibility for this battle is not yours. Whether you can survive in the future depends on you.
It’s God’s will.”
Zhao Shujiao glanced at several generals with a heavy heart, and a touch of emotion appeared in his brows. There have been heavy casualties in the past two days, and even supplies were empty, but the brothers did not complain a word. The more this happened, the more Zhao Shujiao became
I feel sorry for these people, because I brought these brothers to such a desperate situation. Maybe it is right to break out to the east, and how many brothers can survive.
"Brothers, I have decided to break through to Funing. To be honest, tonight is our last chance. After daybreak, or when the Tatars react, we will have no chance even if we want to break out to the east. In this battle,
To be honest, I am not sure whether it is life or death, whether we can succeed or not. Moreover, even if we can successfully break through, we will still disobey military orders. If we are held accountable by the court afterwards, we will probably not survive. Brothers, you have to think carefully.
!”
Several generals looked gloomy and were quiet for a moment. Hu Peidong raised his eyebrows and said: "Huh, Commander Yuan asked us to go deep into Zunhua alone. The main force has not arrived yet. This clearly means that we are destined to die. If the court wants to hold people accountable, they must ask questions first.
To blame Governor Yuan, in my opinion, if you resist the order, you must resist the order. If the court wants to hold you accountable, that is a matter for later. In short, we must first survive from the Tatars."
"Yes, General Hu is right. It doesn't matter who resists the order or not. It's better than dying here in vain. Commander-in-Chief, just tell me how to fight. Brothers will listen to you. Anyway, stay here."
There is a dead end here, so why not give it a try?" Guerrilla general Bai Changhe clenched his hands into fists, and then punched the ground with his fist.
Bai Changhe is not afraid of death. From the day he joined the army, he tied his head to his belt. When fighting on the battlefield, he had the consciousness of being killed. However, he did not want to die in vain. Now the Santun Camp has fallen, and Zunhua City has fallen.
, there is no point in keeping my troops here, and there is even less value in dying.
Bai Changhe himself had some complaints about Yuan Chonghuan's order, but there were some things he couldn't say. It was not Bai who could judge Governor Yuan. Is Governor Yuan really so incompetent? No, maybe there are some personal reasons here.
, after all, the relationship between Governor Yuan and Zhao Zongbing is not very good, and it is not a secret that the two sides have feuds.
Seeing that everyone was unanimous, Zhao Shujiao frowned and began to assign tasks.
In the middle of Haishi, this was the time when people were most sleepy. Due to the continuous siege of Zhao’s elite troops, Huang Taiji was also very tired, especially Buergatu. Since Huang Taiji decided not to fight at night, Buergatu had to eat
After ordering dinner, I found a place to fall asleep. I slept very comfortably, but I was suddenly awakened by the noise outside.
Bulgatu rubbed his eyes, walked outside, and shouted sternly: "What's going on in the front?"
"Taiji, the Han soldiers and horses are coming. They are attacking Lord Hauge's defense area. It seems they want to break out!"
"Breakout?" Bulgatu grinned and sneered, "The trapped beasts are still fighting, but they are just seeking death. It seems that the Great Khan was right. The Han people want to break out of the siege to the west. Tell our people to move closer to Lord Hauge's headquarters.
Let me destroy this Han people."
The two troops of Bulgatu and Hauge were responsible for the defense of the west. Zhao led the troops to break through to the west. Bulgatu did not feel any pressure, but felt very excited. He had already tied his pockets and was waiting for the enemy.
Go up. When Bulgatu and his people arrived, they saw fires and fighting figures everywhere. The Han people were attacking fiercely. In order to carve out a bloody path, these people were really like mad dogs.
.
Soon after, Bulgatu saw a familiar face, Shanhaiguan guerrilla general Bai Changhe. This man was the most powerful general under Zhao Shujiao. Bulgatu raised his eyebrows and led his men to surround Bai Changhe.
The war was very fierce. In order to break out of the encirclement, almost everyone in Bai Changhe's army fought bravely and fearless of death. Coupled with the chaos in the camp, Hauge and Bulgatu also suffered heavy losses.
After half an hour of fierce fighting, Bai Changhe's troops finally showed signs of fatigue, but Bulgatu always felt that something was wrong.
........
The fierce battle in the west attracted the attention of many people, including Huang Taiji. However, after Huang Taiji woke up, he had been sitting firmly on the Diaoyutai. In his opinion, the harder Zhao led his troops to fight, the faster they would die.
When everyone's attention was drawn to the west, in the middle of the afternoon, the defense area in charge of Mang Gurtai suddenly came under a violent attack. Zhao Lijiao and Hu Peidong led various troops and horses suddenly appeared outside the Mang Gurtai camp.
First there was arson, then there was an attack at all costs.
Since everyone thought that Zhao was leading the army to break through to the west, the defense in the east was much laxer. In addition, there were not many defensive troops here. Mang Gurtai's reaction was not slow, and he immediately asked Amin to mobilize troops.
, but he never expected that Zhao's premeditated attack would be so fierce. Mang Gurtai's troops were beaten into chaos in just a quarter of an hour. Because it was night, there were sounds of fighting everywhere, Mang Gurtai
It was impossible to figure out what was virtual and what was real. When Amin arrived with reinforcements, he found that the battle here had come to an end. Those who should run had already run away, and they could never run away.
In this battle, Bai Changhe fought at the cost of 500 people under his command. No one survived until the end. Under his control, Zhao Lejiao, Hu Peidong, and Li Wanqing led their troops to successfully break through to the east. Even so, Zhao Lijiao entered
When they entered Funing City, there were less than a thousand remnant soldiers left in the army.
After dawn, Zhao Lejiao's body was not found, so Huang Taiji knew that Zhao Lejiao had escaped. Soon, the spies sent back the news, and heard that Zhao Lejiao had broken through to Funing City. Huang Taiji was shocked and angry.
After planning for a long time, Zhao Shujiao was fooled. But why did Zhao Shujiao go to Funing? Waiting for the court to be convicted and beheaded?
Huang Taiji was an arrogant person, and he would not tolerate being teased like this. But he was also a rational person. The top priority was not to destroy Zhao Lijiao, but to pass through Zunhua City as soon as possible and enter the hinterland of the Ming Dynasty's capital.
Soon, Huang Taiji threw Zhao Lijiao aside and ordered the 800-year-old Jin soldiers and horses to garrison Zunhua City. The rest of the main force turned westward and aimed directly at Jizhou.
On the ninth day of November in the second year of Chongzhen, Yuan Chonghuan led the Guan Ning cavalry to finally cross Zunhua City. In order to rush to the aid of the capital, Yuan Chonghuan made great determination. Not only did he ask Zhao to rush to aid Zunhua, but he also commanded generals Zu Dashou and He Kegang.
Also brought it out.
In fact, at this time, Yuan Chonghuan still had the final chance to contain the Houjin soldiers and horses. At this time, the main force of Huang Taiji had already moved towards Jizhou and Zunhua, and there were not many soldiers and horses left in the Santun camp. If Yuan Chonghuan could recapture Zun at all costs,
Hua, Santun camp, and Xifengkou line are equivalent to cutting off the retreat of Hou Jin's soldiers and horses, which will definitely make Huang Taiji worried.
In this case, Huang Taiji either sent back reinforcements or focused on plundering the capital, then transferred to Xuanfu, went north to join the Mongols, and took a long way back to his hometown.
But once you return home from Xuanfu, the situation is different. There are hundreds of thousands of elites in Xuanfu and Datong, especially in the north of Xuanfu. There are tens of thousands of Han and Mongolian cavalry in Yunfu. Even if Huang Taiji can take a detour to go home in the end,
The losses must have been heavy. Not to mention anything else, with the fighting strength of the Xuanfu and Datongfu border troops, 80% of the materials looted by the Tatars would have to be kept.
Unfortunately, this opportunity for Huang Taiji to pay a heavy price was once again let go by Yuan Chonghuan. At this time, in Yuan Chonghuan's eyes, only the capital and the emperor Zhu Youjian were left. In his heart, the only one who could make contributions and prove
The loyal way is to find a place to fight the Tatars to the death.
Thirty miles south of Zunhua City, the army took a temporary rest. Zu Dashou frowned and put his hands on the table, "Supervisor, the defense of Zunhua City is weak now, why don't we capture Zunhua and Santun Camp, and the Tatars will
Guarantee a retreat, and we will probably send troops to help."
Yuan Chonghuan thought for a while and shook his head vigorously, "No, that's just a possibility. What if the Tatars don't come back to help? It's not appropriate to do this. Now that the Tatars are attacking the capital, our best way now is to station in Jizhou
, strive to contain the main Tatar force in Jizhou, and wait for reinforcements to arrive to severely damage the Tatars."
Yuan Chonghuan is the governor of Jiliao. Zu Dashou and He Kegang only have the power to make suggestions but not decisions, so they can only accept orders. However, Zu Dashou is very doubtful that the Tatars will really start a decisive battle with Guan Ning's cavalry in Jizhou City.
What?
At least, Zu Dashou felt that if he were Huang Taiji, he would never fight to the death in Jizhou City. There is no way to beat grass valleys like this. Jizhou City is difficult to defeat, so why not just go around Jizhou?
On the tenth day of October, Yuan Chonghuan urged his troops to go to Jizhou while writing a letter to Emperor Chongzhen. He hoped that Chongzhen would agree to allow Guan Ning's cavalry to enter Jizhou, and then allow Guan Ning's cavalry to stop the Tatars in Jizhou City. It must be said that Chongzhen's military
His talents were really not that good, and the civil and military officials of the entire dynasty were all frightened by the Tatars' detention. No one thought there was anything wrong with this official document.
As a result, everyone from Chongzhen to the cabinet agreed to Yuan Chonghuan's request. Guan Ning's cavalry entered Jizhou, and not long after, five Niulu under Mang Gurtai's command arrived at the foot of Jizhou City.
Almost without saying a word, Mang Gurtai launched a fierce attack on Jizhou City as soon as he came up. The result can be imagined. In this battle, Mang Gurtai's five Niulu were defeated by Guan Ning's cavalry through the city defense.
Escape, if Mang Gurtai had not been lucky, Hou Jinbeile would have died in Jizhou City.
Mang Gurtai suffered a big loss in Jizhou City, and immediately stopped the advance of Hou Jin's troops. Huang Taiji ordered all the troops to be stationed outside Jizhou City, and for a while no one on either side dared to move.
This kind of result is exactly what Yuan Chonghuan wants. As long as the Tatars dare to attack Jizhou, they will never come back. Relying on Jizhou City, Yuan Chonghuan is full of confidence. After a few days, Hou Jin's soldiers and horses have not launched again.
An attack.
Gradually, Zu Dashou and He Kegang felt that something was wrong, and even Yuan Chonghuan also felt that something was abnormal. They sent spies to investigate carefully, and soon they brought back a shocking news.
Yuan Chonghuan and others were all deceived by Huang Taiji. At this time, the Houjin Camp was empty except for patrols and guards outside. The main force of the Tatars had already bypassed from the north and arrived in the west of Jizhou. Now Yuan Chonghuan was confused. He wanted to rely on
The plan to attack the Tatars head-on in Jizhou City also completely failed. At this time, Yuan Chonghuan discovered that the Tatars bypassed Jizhou, but he made no mistakes at all.
After Huang Taiji successfully deceived Yuan Chonghuan, he bypassed Jizhou and went straight to Pinggu. Two days later, the Jin soldiers and horses ravaged Pinggu, Sanhe, Xianghe, Wuqing and other places. The eastern part of the capital was brutally looted, and the local people suffered heavy casualties.
.
The Tatars finally began to ravage the hinterland of the capital, and the people of the Ming Dynasty also suffered heavy disasters. At this time, the Ming Dynasty truly felt the terror of the Tatars. Likewise, there were widespread complaints among the people. After all, the Ming Dynasty maintained so many millions of taels of silver every year
There were many soldiers and horses in Liaodong, but in the end the Tatars went to the hinterland of Gyeonggi to plunder.
There are many big families in Sanhe, Xianghe and other places. This time, no one is spared. With heavy losses, who can appease their anger?
.......
The Tatars had already plundered the hinterland of the capital, and Yuan Chonghuan once again implemented his original plan. He led the Guan Ning cavalry to station in Hexi.
Hexiwu is located southwest of Sanhe and southeast of Tongzhou. Yuan Chonghuan thought that as long as the Tatars dared to break through Tongzhou and live in Sanhe, they could send troops to stop it. At this time, Huang Taiji led the main force to plunder the eastern part of the capital and made a lot of money.
, the army happened to arrive near Tongzhou.
Huang Taiji was not stupid. He quickly saw through Yuan Chonghuan's plan. Therefore, he temporarily changed his route and did not attack the rich Tongzhou. Instead, he bypassed it and headed straight for Beijing.
This time, Yuan Chonghuan stared again. He found that the fist he had prepared hit the air directly, and his anger had nowhere to vent.
Just when Yuan Chonghuan was the most angry, he received a letter from Sun Chengzong. The letter had been written by Sun Chengzong a long time ago. In the letter, Sun Chengzong suggested that Yuan Chonghuan take advantage of the fact that the Tatars did not arrive in the capital, and try their best to fight the Tatars hard.
It would be good even if some of the Tatars were cut off and then annihilated.
However, this suggestion seems stupid to Yuan Chonghuan. If the main force of the Tatars cannot be wiped out, what is the point of just giving them a fierce fight?
Therefore, Sun Chengzong's last suggestion was abandoned by Yuan Chonghuan.
How did Yuan Chonghuan know that what he gave up was not Sun Chengzong's suggestion, but his last chance to save himself.