Chapter 289 Three-way Triumph (11) Decisive Battle in the Western Regions (4) Tips and Strategies
In the Ming Army headquarters in Aksu City, candlelight illuminated the contemplative faces of the generals, but no one answered immediately.
Liu Wei, the admiral of the Western Expedition, looked around and asked again in a deep voice: "There is something unusual on the battlefield today. The main force of the Mongolian army has not appeared, and the Chahar cavalry has withdrawn. There must be something fishy. What do you guys think?"
This time I had to answer. Deputy Commander-in-Chief Liu Tianfeng was the first to speak: "The general believes that Burihatu may be implementing a strategic contraction, abandoning secondary cities and concentrating its forces in preparation for a big war."
Liu Wei nodded slightly and looked around at the other generals.
General Liao Wenyao took one look at him and expressed his doubts: "The general is worried that this move may be a plan by Burihatu to lure the enemy deeper. Our army set out from Hami and played triumphant songs all the way. If
Therefore, we underestimated the enemy and rushed forward, and continued to advance westward when our foothold in Aksu was not yet stable, for fear of being ambushed by the Mongolian army."
Guerrilla general Wang Hualong had another opinion, saying: "Maybe there are changes within the Mongolian army, and the withdrawal of the Chahar cavalry is a sign of civil strife? If so, our army may use this to divide the enemy."
General Bian Zhiyuan shook his head slightly and said: "Everyone's words are well-founded. However, according to the previous information from Jinghua Trading Company, Buyan Khan was seriously ill and could not be a director for a long time, and his son died young, and his grandson Lin Dan
Batur is less than ten years old, and no one in Chahar can threaten the stability of Burihatu's power, so there is unlikely to be an internal change. In my humble opinion, we need to strengthen our intelligence to spy on the enemy.
The true meaning is protected from being deceived by illusions.”
After listening to this, Liu Wei took a deep breath and said firmly: "Everyone has his own merits in what you said. However, the combat power of our army is now definitely stronger than that of the Mongolian army. Therefore, no matter what tricks the Mongolian army has, as long as our army fights steadily,
If you consolidate Aksu and advance steadily, you will have nothing to fear.
Everyone, our soldiers are brave and well-equipped. The imperial court has given us more than a year to adapt to the climate and environment of the Western Regions. The officers and soldiers of our army have long been determined to persevere. Therefore, as long as we act step by step, no tricks will be defeated.
break."
Now that Liu Wei had set the tone, the Ming army generals began to formulate detailed city defense consolidation plans and logistical support measures. Liu Wei and the generals knew that the stability of city defenses and the smooth flow of grain routes were the key factors to victory in the war.
First of all, in order to strengthen the city defense, Liu Wei ordered the deputy general Liu Tianfeng to supervise the repair work of the city wall. They mobilized the craftsmen and some soldiers in the city and began to conduct a comprehensive inspection and repair of the city wall. For those parts that were seriously damaged
, they used solid stones and bricks for reinforcement. At the same time, observation posts and arrow towers were set up on the city walls to better monitor the situation outside the city.
In order to give full play to the power of artillery, Liu Wei assigned General Liao Wenyao to be responsible for the layout of artillery positions. They set up artillery positions at key locations on the city wall to ensure that each artillery could cover all directions outside the city.
The artillerymen conducted intensive training to improve the accuracy and reaction speed of shooting, except for the actual test firing. In addition, they also prepared enough ammunition to ensure that they could continue during a long siege.
Combat.
In terms of logistical support, guerrilla general Wang Hualong was assigned to be responsible for the safety and smooth flow of food routes. He dispatched a capable team of scouts to patrol along the main supply routes to prevent harassment by small groups of enemy troops. At the same time, they also
Multiple hidden grain and grass storage points were set up along the way to quickly replenish the material needs of the front line.
General Bianzhiyuan was responsible for coordinating the resources of all parties, such as ensuring adequate food supply in the city and ensuring the safety of water sources. They dug more wells and protected the original water sources to prevent
Enemies lurking in the city poison or destroy it.
Liu Wei personally inspected various preparations to ensure that every detail was properly handled. Everywhere he went, he would tell the soldiers: "Now the city defense of Aksu is like an iron wall, and the grain roads are carefully guarded. As long as Ercao
Stick to your post and stay vigilant. Whether it is city defense or grain roads, they will be indestructible."
With the implementation of the plan, the defense system of Aksu City was quickly improved in just a few days, and the morale of the Ming army also increased. They knew that as long as the city was foolproof, they would be able to lay a solid foundation for subsequent military operations.
.And in the rear, the safety of the grain road ensured the supply of the front line, allowing the Ming army to maintain a strong combat effectiveness in a protracted war. Under such double protection, the Ming army was prepared to meet the upcoming challenges.
After the defense system of Aksu City was stabilized, Liu Wei decided to adopt an aggressive strategy to further reduce the space for activities of the Chahar Mongolian army. He carefully planned two offensive operations, aiming to cut off possible reinforcements from the enemy and at the same time,
Launch a decisive attack on the enemy's heartland.
First, Liu Wei ordered a vanguard force composed of 3,000 elites to advance northwestward, with the goal of Wush. The main task of this force was to quickly occupy Wush and block the important channel from Kazakhstan to the Aksu Basin.
, thereby preventing possible reinforcements from the Kazakhs.
The geographical location of Wush is extremely critical. Once it is controlled, it will be equivalent to cutting off the most likely foreign aid lifeline for the Chahar Mongolian army - Kazakhstan has a vast territory, and although the main areas it faces have fallen to the Ming army
The old territories of the Oara tribes were controlled by Liu Wei, but on the southern route, there was also a narrow passage called Wushi that could enter the Western Regions. These three thousand people were sent by Liu Wei to completely block the possibility of Kazakh intervention.
At the same time, after leaving 5,000 men to defend Aksu, Liu Wei personally led the remaining 40,000 main troops to attack Balchuk in the southwest. Balchuk was an important hub connecting Aksu and Kashgar, and he controlled it.
This can lay a solid foundation for the Ming army to further advance westward. Liu Wei planned to immediately send his troops westward and attack Kashgar after capturing Balchuk.
Kashgar, as an important city in the western region of the Western Regions, is not only an important economic place, but also an important military town. Liu Wei knew that if Kashgar could be captured, it would have a major impact on the war situation in the entire Western Region. By then, the Mongolians in Yarkand City would
The military general was completely isolated, completely deprived of foreign aid, and became the pocket of the Ming army.
At the mobilization meeting before departure, General Liu Wei said impassionedly to the soldiers: "Today's battle is about the honor and disgrace of the country, and the rise and fall of our nation. We, the soldiers, should pledge our lives to our country and fight the enemy bravely. Wushi and Baer
Chuk is the only way for us to win. Kashgar is the trophy that we rely on to build our achievements and make our wives and children. As long as we work together, there is no city that cannot be conquered and no city that cannot be defeated.
Defeated enemy!"
The soldiers' morale was boosted after hearing this. They shouted slogans and vowed to prove their loyalty and bravery with practical actions. As the horn blew, the two armies embarked on the journey. Their figures looked particularly majestic in the vast Gobi.
, as if an unstoppable force is galloping towards victory.
However, things were not entirely in line with Liu Wei's expectations. When the Ming army's scouting horses brought back the news that there were a large number of Mongolian army activities inside and outside Kashgar, Liu Wei not only frowned. Later, Liu Wei sent additional scouting horses again to try to
Determine the situation in Kashgar.
Immediately afterwards, the intelligence he obtained revealed a grim fact: the Chahar tribe not only mobilized all combat forces, but even non-combatants-including the old, weak, women and children of the entire Chahar tribe-also moved to Kashgar
Gar, it seems that Burihatu is ready to stay in Kashgar for a long time.
After confirming the concentration of Mongolian troops in Kashgar, Liu Wei did not rush to launch an attack, but adopted a more prudent strategy. He understood that in the face of the full resistance of the Chahar tribe, a simple attack might cause serious consequences.
Unnecessary losses. Therefore, he decided to suspend his advance and instead looked for a suitable location to camp east of Kashgar and build a field defense line to wait for the time.
Of course, there were other reasons for his cautious response. The most important one was that he found it difficult to understand Burihatu's move to decide on a decisive battle in Kashgar.
This is not to say that Kashgar is not important. From a geographical point of view, Kashgar is very important. But the problem is that even if Kashgar is important, it seems that you, Burihatu, do not need to move the entire clan here, old and young.
Right? After all, the seat of your Khanate that has ruled the Western Regions for these years is Yarkand City.
In Liu Wei's view, Burihatu's move was like abandoning Yarkand City on the inside and using all his possessions to fight the main force of the Ming army led by himself on the outside. The problem was that Yarkand would not be relieved by this.
There is no threat - as long as Erdemutu on the southern route conquers Khotan, the next stop will be Yarkand!
Although he was a little confused, Liu Wei still felt that no matter what Buri Hatu planned, at least the Ming army was not in danger now. In this case, Liu Wei would give up Buri Hatu's intention first.
His current plan is to first wait for Erdemutu on the southern front. The current situation is obvious. He plans to form a north-south pincer attack with the troops of Erdemutu, attacking Kashgar and Yarkand from two directions.
Applying pressure forced the Mongolian army to disperse its forces, thereby weakening its defensive strength in a single direction.
At the same time, Liu Sui was well aware of the advantages and disadvantages of his bayonet musketeers and artillery when facing off against the cavalry. Although the musketeers and artillery had strong firepower, they were not as mobile as the cavalry, and as for their impact, they were almost nothing. Therefore,
He needs to make up for this shortcoming through solid battle formations and fortifications to ensure that he can exert maximum combat effectiveness in the battle with the Mongolian army.
Liu Sui ordered a series of favorable terrains to be selected east of Kashgar and began to build camps and other fortifications. He ordered the soldiers to dig trenches, set up horse and deer firewood, construct artillery positions, and deploy musketeers at key positions.
firing points. These fortifications were designed to maximize the range and power of firearms while reducing the threat posed by a cavalry charge.
While waiting for Erdemutu, Liu Sui did not relax his surveillance of the Mongolian army. He dispatched elite Ye Bushou to pay close attention to the movements of the Mongolian army in order to adjust his tactical layout at any time. He also strengthened his cooperation with the Mongolian army.
Contact with the rear ensures that the supply of food, grass and ammunition will not be interrupted.
In just two days, the Ming army's defense line was almost completed, which also showed that his army was indeed worthy of the title of "the elite of the Ming army", and the morale of the soldiers became increasingly high after the defense line was stabilized.
Having experienced hundreds of battles, they all know that although they have temporarily stopped advancing, every step is paving the way for the final victory. As long as Erdemutu's Tumut cavalry arrives at the designated position, the two armies will form an encirclement.
When the situation is strong, the Ming army's offensive will be like thunder, giving the Mongolian army a fatal blow.
While the Ming army was heavily fortified and preparing for the upcoming war, the Mongolian army in Kashgar behaved calmly and behaved almost exactly the same every day, appearing to be very organized. However, Liu Wei's current trouble is that he cannot contact his forehead.
Demutu - This is not surprising. Unless Liu Wei can send exploration horses to circumnavigate the entire Taklimakan Desert, there will be no way to contact him. Because the only passable land route is through Kashgar, Yarkand-Khotan, and these three places
All are in the hands of the Chahar people.
Some people may find it strange that Jinghua did not equip Liu Wei and Erdemutu with carrier pigeons? Yes, there are, but there is an important point in "flying pigeons to send messages": the destination is fixed (its own position is variable, and the destination
ground is immutable).
The current situation is that no matter where Liu Wei goes, he can fly pigeons to send messages to Hami, but Hami cannot find Liu Wei through flying pigeons. In other words, the same is true for Erdemutu, he can also fly
The pigeon sent the message to Hami, but Hami could not fly the pigeon to send the message to him.
This chapter is not finished yet, please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content! In short, the homing pigeons in their hands are now a bit like the pagers of later generations, also known as BP machines. It is a one-way communication rather than a two-way instant communication.
Liu Wei waited patiently for another three days, but still could not get in touch with Erdemutu, and did not notice any changes in Kashgar ahead. In other words, Erdemutu was leisurely waiting for Liu Wei to take the initiative to attack.
Liu Wei can understand Burihatu's calmness - the Ming army is the attacker, and it is a good thing for Burihatu that the attacker has not launched an attack. On the one hand, Burihatu can use this time to strengthen the city defense.
Secondly, you can sit back and watch the Ming army continue to consume supplies in the rear.
Burihatu can wait, but Liu Wei cannot wait like this forever. No matter how sufficient supplies Gao Yuanfu has prepared for him, the current march distance is already too far. Too far means huge losses along the way. If
If Liu Wei waited foolishly for a year in the east of Kashgar City, then Yuan Fu would probably have to consume the annual rations of one million people for his 50,000 people.
This will definitely not work, even if Yuan Fu is related to him in the past.
Liu Wei knew that he had to launch an attack. He personally led his elite cavalry to conduct reconnaissance, and found that the current situation was quite unfavorable. The Mongolian army seemed to have learned the lesson, and now built a double-layered city wall for Kashgar, even if the artillery destroyed the outer city wall
The Ming army did not dare to break through the gap with infantry, because not only the facilities on the second city wall were well-equipped, but the Mongols would certainly not hesitate to shower these infantry with a continuous rain of arrows.
No matter how he discussed it with the generals, he couldn't find a good solution now. As a last resort, Liu Wei took out the tips Gao Pragmatic gave him before the war, and with the mentality of "it's better than nothing" to see if Gao Yuanfu can really do it.
A prophet of uncertainty.
Unexpectedly, when Liu Wei opened Gao Pragmatic's tips bag in front of the generals, there were only four words written on the items inside: Unboxing and setting up a flag.
"Unboxing" is easy to understand. Before the war, Gao Pragmatic sent a batch of wooden boxes sealed with fire paint to his army, and he was not allowed to open them. As for when they would be opened, he would wait for his follow-up orders.
Now it seems that where the follow-up order is, it is actually waiting for the bag of tips to be opened. So the question is, what does it mean to raise a flag?
This problem quickly disappeared, because when Liu Wei ordered people to bring those boxes and opened them, he realized that the boxes contained neatly folded large scrolls and war flags.
There is nothing strange about these flags themselves. They are all the standard appearance of the Ming army. What really made all the generals suddenly realize their effect was the text on them - "The Ming Dynasty conquered the west through Nanninghou Gao"!
All the generals were stunned at the same time, and then stared at each other, as if they wanted to get the message from the eyes of their colleagues: Is this the flag of Yuan Fu? Ah, no, Yuan Fu is not responsible for the "Ming Dynasty's Western Conquest Strategy" at all!
"That's it!" Liu Wei himself was the first to react and said: "Even though it is Buriha Tucai Jue Grassland, he has never received even one favor from Yuan Fu in his life! Yuan
What Fu means is that as soon as this flag is displayed, Buri Hatu will think that it is Yuan Fu who is coming in person, and he will be surprised, and then he will throw himself into chaos, so we will have an opportunity to take advantage of it!"
Everyone suddenly realized that not only did no one think it was wrong, but they all celebrated with each other, saying: "Yuanfu's clever plan! As long as the Mongolian army thinks that Yuanfu is coming in person, they will be afraid before they fight!" Liu Wei did not hesitate and immediately gave the order.
He took down his handsome flag and replaced it with a false flag of high pragmatism - "The Great Ming Dynasty Expedition to the West and Nanning Hou Gao".
Then, the entire Ming army immediately started to move. Although no one in the army saw Yuan Fu's cavalry, everyone would find their own reasons - Yuan Fu and others would naturally arrive secretly in the army at this time.
, for such a big event, why should we say hello to a nobody like us?
In any case, with the high pragmatic flag hoisted high, the entire Ming army seemed to be completely transformed, and its morale was so high that even the Mongolian army twenty miles away felt murderous intent, and Burihatu quickly got the news.
As Liu Wei expected, Burihatu was extremely shocked. In front of many Mongolian generals, he was stunned for a long time before suddenly taking a breath and shouting: "It's bad!"
Although the Mongolian generals also had lingering fears about Gao Pragmatic's reputation, they were not as frightened as Burihatu. They all asked the Grand Master what was wrong.
Burihatu said nervously: "Gao Rixin never fights an unprepared battle. Since he has been to the front line in person, he must have a complete plan."
His face suddenly became solemn, and he suddenly made a decision: "Generals, listen to the order, all preparations must be speeded up, and we will start taking action before the third watch tonight. If you can't catch up... wish yourself good luck!"
The generals also knew why it had to be "tonight", because although the Ming army immediately took action after showing a high and pragmatic flag, the Ming army was mainly based on infantry and artillery. It was now twenty years away from Kashgar.
Liyuan, it's too late to get in position and start the war today. If the war is to start, it must be tomorrow, so our plan can be implemented tonight.
Liu Wei obviously didn't know about these things. He only knew that his own morale was now high, and Tan Ma also came to report that the Mongolian troops in Kashgar were mobilizing, but he couldn't see how they would mobilize at the moment.
Liu Wei is not in a hurry. In his opinion, when he sets up his battle formation tomorrow, he will naturally be able to see any changes in the Mongolian army. Therefore, there is no need to worry about this matter. The outcome will naturally come to an end tomorrow.
However, on the next day, it was Liu Wei's turn to be stunned - Kashgar played an empty city strategy and unexpectedly adopted a golden cicada escape strategy, and all the Chahar Mongols in the city disappeared overnight. Liu Wei quickly dispatched
After a close reconnaissance at night, we found out that the Mongolian army had quietly withdrawn to the west last night, and the target seemed to be pointed directly in the direction of Andijan.
Escaped? Grand Master Burihatu, who was so powerful in the Western Regions, actually led his troops to flee overnight just because he saw Yuan Fu's flag?
When the Ming army stayed awake all night and discovered the Mongolian army's unusual movements, Liu Wei immediately realized the seriousness of the situation. Without time to express his emotions, he quickly assembled an elite cavalry unit and personally led them to pursue the retreating Mongolian army, hoping to
Intercept them to prevent them from reorganizing their forces and continuing to interfere with the Ming army.
This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading! However, Burihatu had already been prepared. He set up an ambush in a difficult terrain and personally led a group of elite troops to break up the rear and fight against the hurried Liu Wei.
Facing Liu Wei's pursuit, Burihatu did not choose to take the initiative, but calmly waited for Liu Wei's arrival.
When Liu Wei's cavalry troops arrived, Burihatu stood on the high ground and shouted to Liu Wei condescendingly: "Admiral Liu, I have long admired your name."
Liu Wei glanced at Burihatu on the high slope, and thought something bad in his heart: This man personally led the elite cavalry to occupy the high ground, and our army was not only on a much lower ground, but also squeezed into a narrow place, with only one Mongolian army.
Charge, our army is only afraid of...
Liu Wei took a deep breath, tried his best to pretend as if nothing had happened, and replied loudly: "Master Burihatu, I have admired your name for a long time. Why, did the master suddenly not want to run away, or did he know that he was running away in front of Yuan Fu?
There is no way to escape, why don’t you just come back and surrender?”
"I am a Mongolian grand master, how can I surrender?" Burihatu knew that Gao Pragmatic was not a military commander, at least he could not appear in front of him at this time, so his usual demeanor returned to him.
"I know that Admiral Liu has a heavy responsibility on your shoulders to regain the land that the Han family has lost for six hundred years. However, now that I have returned the land in the Western Region to you, why do you have to fight to the death with me here?"
Liu Wei looked at the favorable terrain occupied by Burihatu and knew in his heart that a forced attack under such circumstances would only cause unnecessary sacrifices. He thought for a moment, decided to take an expedient measure, and responded: "Since the Grand Master is so generous, he is willing to let
After leaving this land, I naturally don’t want to cause more trouble here. Let’s say goodbye and live in peace.”
Burihatu was greatly relieved, but he still couldn't help but said: "Gao Yuanfu and I are old friends. I wonder if we can have a chance to meet today so that I can say goodbye to him?"
"Uh..." Liu Wei coughed lightly and replied: "How can I, a warrior, control Yuan Fu's actions?" After saying that, Liu Wei immediately ordered a retreat without saying a word and returned to Kashgar with his cavalry.
.At this time, the Ming army had successfully taken over this important city, while the Mongolian army was able to safely evacuate and retreat towards Andiyan.
While retreating, Burihatu couldn't help but look back and muttered in a voice that only he could hear: "In ancient times, Guo Jia left a plan to control the east of the Yangtze River, and now Gao Rihao has false flags to control the western regions... Gao Ri
Xin, Gao Rixin, you are the only one in the world who can deceive me for a whole day and night."
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