King Xiang of the Red Chamber

Chapter 717 Virtual and Real
On April 20th, as more Ming troops arrived, a large army gathered outside the city of Urumqi.

One mile away from the city were the Ming army’s connected camps. Of course, these were only the central army where Zhu Jinghong was stationed.

The Beijing camp and the army were placed in other key locations, stretching nearly twenty miles from east to west.

On April 21, Zhu Jinghong arrived at the front line, and then he led a group of senior generals to a mountain three miles southwest of Urumqi.

Although it is already April, the temperature is still very low and the strong cold wind makes people complain.

Standing on the top of the mountain, Zhu Jinghong looked at the tents spread out on all sides, and felt an endless sense of heroism in his heart.

"Black clouds press down on the city, threatening to destroy it; armor shines in the sun, golden scales spread; horn sounds fill the sky with autumn colors; rouge on the frontier turns purple at night..."

Unconsciously, Zhu Jinghong recited this frontier poem, and his heart was filled with heroic spirit.

Leading hundreds of thousands of troops on an expedition to the frontier is an unattainable dream for countless passionate men, but now he is truly involved in it.

The sense of reality and immersion before your eyes cannot be simulated by any 3A masterpiece, because this is what is really happening.

"The half-rolled red flag is facing the Yishui River, the frost is heavy and the drums are cold but the sound cannot be heard..."

After reading this, Zhu Jinghong turned around and faced the senior generals named behind him, and slowly read: "Reporting your intention on the Golden Terrace, I will support Yulong and die for you!"

There are many frontier poems, but the reason he chose this one to recite is because he focused on the last sentence.

As the legitimate son of the emperor and the world-renowned Prince of Xiang, he was surrounded by glory and honor, but also by dangers.

Especially at this critical moment, he must be careful in expressing his loyalty so as not to be used by certain people in the court.

Although he believed that the emperor would not employ people he doubted, he still had to take precautions to prevent problems from happening.

"Everyone, the emperor trusts you and has entrusted the important task of Pingxi to you and me..."

"You and I should work together and do our best to defeat the enemy, so as to live up to His Majesty's grace!"

"Don't worry, Your Highness. We will die for Your Majesty and will not return until we defeat the enemy!"

Zhu Jinghong nodded and said to everyone, "Let's go...let's sit over there and talk!"

In the direction of his finger, the guards had already arranged the chairs, and Zhu Jinghong's dozen or so staff officers had also hung up the latest combat map.

The staff system has become popular nowadays. It is required at the commander-in-chief level, with about three to four people.

The next level of generals responded with five to six people, and the two governors, Shi Guangzhu and Liu Fang, had to give up about ten people because the troops they commanded were too many and too diverse.

As for Zhu Jinghong, he had as many as thirteen people to help him deal with and analyze various aspects of the situation.

These staff officers are all drawn from deputy positions in the army, such as the deputy captains of each guard or the commanders and associate governors. Currently, they are mainly deputy captains.

Those who are chosen to be by Zhu Jinghong's side are the best of the younger generation.

After Zhu Jinghong sat down, he signaled the generals present to take their seats, and then everyone took their seats in order according to their rank.

Looking around and seeing the people appearing before him, Zhu Jinghong couldn't help but feel emotional.

Recalling the time when I first led the troops, those around me were all generals. The highest-ranking one was only the commander-in-chief, and the rest were commanders of various guards.

Later, he led troops to the northwest and became the general of the imperial guards and military camps, and the scale of his troops became larger and larger.

Up to now, the person who accompanied him in discussing matters was at least the commander-in-chief of the Beijing camp, a third-rank military general.

In this era when the first rank is an honorary title, there are only two levels above the general who is also the deputy governor and the deputy governor, who are governor-general and deputy governor-general.

In fact, Zhu Jinghong's current position is a configuration for the emperor to lead the army in person, so it would be more appropriate for the emperor to come in person.

Zhu Jinghong leaned back in his chair, looking relaxed, and asked slowly, "Everyone, I have a question that I would like to ask you to answer!"

The generals present looked at each other, not knowing what he was up to. Then Liu Fang asked, "I am a fool, how can I help Your Highness solve your doubts? Please enlighten me, Your Highness!"

Obviously the old guy is more cautious and puts himself in a low position.

At this time, Zhu Jinghong would not be too serious, so he continued: "You are all veterans who have been on the battlefield for a long time. Tell me... what is the most brilliant command?"

This question was difficult to answer, and even some of the generals present did not understand what he meant by the question.

Zhu Jinghong did not expect anyone to answer, so he just said, "I think... the most brilliant command is not to mobilize your own troops, but to mobilize the enemy's troops!"

There were no stupid people at the scene. They understood Zhu Jinghong's intention after just a little thought.

But at this point, anyone who stands up and talks about this would be a fool.

The real smart guy was Shi Guangzhu, who asked with a puzzled look on his face: "May I ask, Master Thirteen...how can we mobilize the enemy forces?"

Zhu Jinghong had to admit that Shi Guangzhu was a qualified supporting actor.

"Attacking the enemy where they must rescue is a means of mobilizing the enemy's forces. Do you agree?"

Everyone looked like elementary school students, with expressions of sudden enlightenment, which even Zhu Jinghong felt was a bit exaggerated.

He understood the purpose of everyone's flattery, so he would not expose it at this time.

"The enemy's main force withdrew, leaving behind a part to defend the city, while the other detachments continued to harass. What was their intention?"

"They are just looking for our weaknesses, and then they will wait for an opportunity to launch a surprise attack, or use Urumqi as bait to tie down our main force and consume our main force for a long time!"

"No matter which one, we will be in a passive position. We can't afford to keep wasting time like this!"

After saying this, Zhu Jinghong paused and looked at the people around him, signaling them to express their opinions.

"Master Thirteen is absolutely right. Their tricks in the past month or so have already made their purpose clear!" Shi Guangzhu said seriously.

"For now, I think... we should use a large force to capture Wucheng, and then march westward to destroy the enemy!"

Shi Guangzhu's statement was very popular, but it was not what Zhu Jinghong wanted to say, so he asked someone else to speak.

Everyone spoke up. Some suggested bypassing Wucheng and heading west directly, while others suggested surrounding Wucheng and then using a small force to harass the enemy's main force.

For this reason, everyone also debated on specific tactics, and the atmosphere on the scene was extremely heated.

A few minutes later, Zhu Jinghong signaled for everyone to be quiet, and then said, "Everyone, think about it... We are afraid of taking a long time, but can they afford it?"

"It's nearly two thousand miles to transport grain from the interior to Wucheng!"

"The enemy has more than 200,000 troops. It is impossible for them to support such a huge amount of food and fodder with only the remaining territory of Junggar!"

"At least half of their food and fodder was transported from Luosha, and the distance it was transported must have been more than three thousand miles!"

The longer the escort distance, the more food is consumed along the way, and the greater the pressure on logistics.

So objectively speaking, with both sides having 200,000 troops each at the front, it is the Russians who are under greater pressure, as they are the ones who are really making a fuss on the expedition.

Looking around at everyone, Zhu Jinghong continued, "Just now I said that when attacking the enemy, we must rescue their food and grass!"

Liu Fang asked, "So Master Thirteen means that we should attack the enemy's food supply route?"

This strategy is very common, and to be honest it is not very smart.

Zhu Jinghong knew this, so he knew that if he couldn't convince everyone, then the foreshadowing would be foolish. "If their food and grass are cut off, they will either retreat or fight to the death, right?"

Everyone nodded, but they all thought it was difficult to do this, so they still disagreed in their hearts.

"The key to the problem lies in how to attack their food supply route, so as to force them to fight in advance, or let them continue to retreat!"

Everyone continued to nod but remained silent, obviously waiting for Zhu Jinghong to continue.

"As we continue westward, it will be easier for the enemy to get supplies, but more difficult for our army. As one gains, the other loses... Is it still important to occupy this city?"

"So our goal is to fight a decisive battle with the enemy as soon as possible in a place close to the Ming Dynasty. This way we will have a greater chance of winning!"

Zhu Jinghong looked serious and said in a deep voice: "If we cut off their food supplies, we can force them to fight a decisive battle!"

At this moment, everyone finally understood what he meant, which was to cut off the enemy's food supply and force them to fight as soon as possible, so that their side could gain a greater advantage.

Although this logic makes sense, the problem still remains: it is extremely difficult to attack the enemy's food supply lines.

"The enemy also has the same idea. The direction they moved in the past few days was all to attack our food supply route!"

After hearing Zhu Jinghong say this, everyone felt that there was no hope, but they still listened quietly.

"So the more critical issue is how can we conceal our true purpose and make the enemy neglect their intentions so that we can wait for an opportunity to strike!"

"As the Art of War says, you can win by combining the right tactics with the unexpected. To me, it is more concise to say that it is better to build a plank road in the open and march through Chencang in secret!"

"How can we openly repair the plank road, and then sneak through Chencang?"

"Attacking Wucheng is just like repairing the plank road. We must not take it for a long time, and then reveal some flaws to attract the enemy to continue harassing and tie down their attention!"

"Then send another detachment to cross the mountains and penetrate into the enemy's rear, waiting for an opportunity to seize the enemy's food supplies in one fell swoop!"

"Of course, we won't pin all our hopes on seizing the enemy's food supplies. The enemy's detachments that come here can also be our targets for encirclement and killing!"

"In short, whether we force the enemy into a decisive battle or surround and kill their harassing troops, the ultimate goal is only one, and that is to kill their living strength!"

In Zhu Jinghong's view, it doesn't matter whether he occupies territory or not. As long as he kills fewer enemies, the territory will naturally be his.

To illustrate this point, Zhu Jinghong asked again: "Think about it, even if we take Wucheng, what will happen? It's just occupying one more city. The loss of soldiers and generals is not worth it!"

If we attack the city by force, many people will die. The key is that it will take a long time, which is completely a loss-making deal.

After speaking about his thoughts and concerns, Zhu Jinghong relaxed his brows and said with a relaxed look: "Everyone, I have finished what I want to say. If you have any opinions, please say them here and I will answer them one by one!"

What is being discussed now is an army of 200,000. The subsequent battle strategy concerns many people and no one dares to neglect it.

So at this time, no one pretended to be confused anymore, but started to think seriously and planned to ask questions.

Zhu Jinghong really answered one by one, and his explanations all made sense, and everyone was convinced.

During this process, Zhu Jinghong demonstrated his determination and put pressure on the generals, asking them to implement this strategy well.

Half an hour later, the discussion on strategic issues ended, and the next step was to discuss specific tactics.

This discussion took a full hour before a complete and feasible strategy of luring and deceiving the enemy was finally formed.

"Everyone, now that the strategy has been decided, we must resolutely implement it without hesitation!"

"Anyone who neglects to do so will miss the opportunity to fight, and military law will be ruthless!"

Pressure was put on everyone again, and the three-hour meeting officially ended.

In order to prevent the news from leaking, the combat strategy was known to only eight people, including Zhu Jinghong, and would not be passed on further.

Therefore, during the execution process, there would inevitably be situations where the subordinates did not understand, so Zhu Jinghong issued another military order to convey it to the 200,000 troops on the front line, requiring them to strictly implement the requirements of the order.

Two days passed quickly. After the repairs, the Ming army began to attack the city, and nearly half of the army surrounded Wucheng.

Although it was a feint, it made a lot of noise, but it did not achieve any effect in the early stages.

After fighting for seven or eight days in a row, the enemy did not launch any more harassment, which seemed extremely abnormal.

But on the ninth day, a cavalry unit of the enemy suddenly arrived and successfully attacked a Ming army camp to the west, burning a lot of food and grass.

As if they had tasted the sweetness, within the next ten days, two more cavalry units from Dzungar came one after another and each achieved some results, but also suffered losses under the pursuit of the Ming army.

On the tenth day of May, the siege had been going on for twenty days and the city of Wu was riddled with holes, all of which were the result of the Ming army's artillery fire.

But they were still not far from taking the city. Fortunately, the siege troops suffered very little losses and only consumed a lot of artillery shells.

Just like fighting at sea, in order to save as much artillery shells as possible, Zhu Jinghong ordered people to make catapults. After all, the thing that was least lacking outside the Great Wall was stone.

The indiscriminate bombing of Wucheng never stopped almost every day.

In the blink of an eye, more than ten days passed. According to the harassment of the Junggar army, the Ming army readjusted its defense points. However, they were found to have a loophole in the east and lost a lot of food and grass in the surprise attack.

In the more than one month before and after the war broke out, the Ming army made no progress overall. Instead, it was constantly ambushed and suffered huge losses.

There were voices of resentment throughout the army, and the situation could be said to be not very good.

But that is the perspective of ordinary people. In the eyes of Zhu Jinghong and a group of senior generals, the opportunity to seize the initiative may be coming.

Soon it was early June. The two thousand cavalrymen of the Dzungar Khanate, plus the 4th Brute Force Brigade of the Rakshasa Khanate, totaling 15,000 cavalrymen, quietly advanced eastward again. Their target was several military camps north of Wucheng.

The combined strength of the several military camps is only 5,000, and they are isolated and have no nearby support. If their more than 10,000 cavalry can suddenly launch an attack, it will not be difficult to defeat them in one battle.

In Constantine's view, as long as he could weaken the Ming army little by little, the final victory would surely belong to him.

In other words, Constantine's views were similar to Zhu Jinghong's, both wanting to kill as many enemy troops as possible.

However, the continuous victories in the past two months have made Constantine relax his vigilance and fail to realize that the danger has arrived.

On the afternoon of the tenth day of June, the army of more than 15,000 cavalrymen took a detour and arrived seventy miles north of Wucheng. They waited until dark before preparing for the attack.

What they didn't know was that their whereabouts had been exposed and the Ming army had set up a trap ahead.

If the Ming army could defeat these 15,000 people, it would definitely be a great victory. Not only could they recover their previous losses, but they would also gain much greater rewards.

After all, these 15,000 men are the highly mobile cavalry in Constantine's hands.

Especially the 5,000 cuirassiers, who are the royal guards of the Rakshasa Kingdom. They are the elite among the elite and can completely match the imperial guards.

Constantine only brought 5,000 cavalrymen of this level, intending to let them fight a smooth battle, in order to earn military merit and boost morale.

At night, everything is quiet and the moon is bright in the sky.

Three cavalry units rushed into the Ming army's pocket from three directions, and a melee broke out north of Wucheng.

The battle was extremely fierce and the sound of killing was deafening.

The Dzungar troops in Wucheng were all shocked, and the generals in the city went up to the city to check the situation.

The scene outside the city surprised the remaining Dzungar generals even more. They had been fighting for more than two months and had never seen such a fierce battle.

(End of this chapter)