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Chapter 796: Sudden Bad News

It was a risky move. If the rain did not come, the damage inflicted during the siege of Fuyu City would have been in vain. If the Ming army's muskets were not afraid of rain, the losses would have been even greater.

But Huang Taiji thought it was worth the risk, because there was no better way. He could not just watch the Ming army build a city every now and then, and build it quickly and well.

If this continues, within three to five years, not only will the Great Jin be squeezed to the point of suffocation, but the entire left wing of Mongolia will also suffer greatly.

In terms of hatred towards the Ming Dynasty, Lin Danhan was probably no less than Huang Taiji. He finally made up his mind to march west, but he had to return in defeat because the Ming army suddenly went north to build a city. He suffered heavy casualties and was humiliated, which seriously reduced his status in the eyes of the Mongols.

However, facing the increasingly tough Ming Dynasty, Lin Danhan seemed to have no way to fight back except hatred, but he could not ignore it. Just when he was in a dilemma, Huang Taiji brought a solution to his door. Not to mention that it was a bit risky, he was willing to try it even if the risk was greater.

So the two losers hit it off and formed an anti-Ming alliance, plotting a plan to besiege the city and attack the reinforcements. This time it was a real conspiracy, and the specific details were unknown to Huang Taiji, Lin Danhan, and the imperial teacher Hutuktu Lama, even the five Khalkha tribes and the Khorchin tribe's great taiji.

"Well, this plan of the Great Prince is very good. Let's withdraw the troops today, and the Mongolian warriors will be the first to attack the city tomorrow!" Lin Danhan understood Huang Taiji's intention in his heart, but he could not say it out loud. He emphasized the order to withdraw the troops again and walked towards the horse first.

"Beep...beep beep..." Just as everyone was following Lin Danhan and preparing to go down the mountain and return to the camp, a series of rapid horn sounds came from the east.

"Send someone to see what's going on!" Lin Danhan understood the meaning of the bugle call, but he didn't know why there was such urgent military information in the east, so he had to order his men to go and check.

About a quarter of an hour later, a team of Mongolian light cavalry rushed into the camp like the wind. The riders were all dusty and the horses were all sweating profusely, which made the Mongolian soldiers guarding the gate grimaced.

This good warhorse has now been ruined by being ridden. It will need to be fed with good feed for at least a month before it recovers. It is hard to say whether it can still be used as a warhorse.

"Huang Taiji, what's going on!"

But compared to the horses, Lin Danhan was more concerned about the news brought by the knights. As soon as he heard the general situation, he stood up and looked to the left, without even saying polite words, calling the knight by his name, his face full of anger.

"Don't be impatient, Khan... Tell us clearly how Jinzhou was lost!"

Huang Taiji understood Mongolian and had roughly understood what was going on. These knights were subordinates of the five Khalkha tribes. They came from Jinzhou and brought a very shocking and bad news. The Ming army attacked Jinzhou at night and defeated the Jurchen army defending the city. Jinzhou had already been lost.

But he didn't quite believe that Jinzhou would change hands overnight. In order to guard some of the baggage and food and cover the retreat of more than 10,000 Mongolian troops who pretended to attack Shanhaiguan, he specially arranged for his fourth brother to lead the elite Eight Banners to garrison Jinzhou City.

Although Tang Guda was not the most warlike among the princes, he was the most stable in character. With more than 4000 elite soldiers, no matter how powerful the Ming army was, it should not have collapsed at the first blow. There was not even enough time to pass on the message.

"We were ordered by the Grand Taiji to guard the banks of the Xiaoling River. Three nights ago, cannon fire was heard in the city. I waited for dawn and went around to the north of the city. I found the shadows of the Ming army on the city wall, so I rushed here as fast as I could to warn the Khan."

An older rider answered Huang Taiji's question in a simple but vague way. "... Hey, I'm worried that someone in my tribe would retreat without permission, so I arranged some people to patrol the river. Don't worry, Grand Prince." At this time, Lao Chaohua suddenly spoke up, trying to explain why the five Khalkha troops appeared in Xiaoling River, which was a bit like trying to cover up the truth.

"Did you notice anything unusual before the artillery fire sounded in the city?" Huang Taiji was too lazy to find out why the five Khalkha tribes appeared near Jinzhou. The key was how Jinzhou city was lost.

"...a few days ago... maybe four or five days ago, at dawn, at least a thousand cavalrymen left the city and headed south. Each person had at least three horses. They seemed to be traveling a long distance, and they were in a hurry, but they were all lightly equipped."

The old rider thought about it carefully with his head down, and he actually gained some insights, but after all, he didn't know the details of the Eight Banners Army, and didn't know whether it was abnormal or not.

"Khan, the main force of my army is in Shanhaiguan. If Jinzhou is lost, they will be without food and grass and be attacked from all sides. Please allow me to lead my troops to Jinzhou to provide support first!" Upon hearing this, Lao Chaohua became anxious without waiting for Huang Taiji and Lin Danhan to react.

The people who came to report the news were his people, so they would not speak nonsense. That would be a serious problem. If he left more than 10,000 main forces of the five Khalkha tribes at Shanhaiguan, he would be left alone. He must not wait any longer.

"Grand Taiji, don't rush to withdraw your troops. The situation in Jinzhou is still unclear. You should send someone to find out first."

Huang Taiji did not want to make a decision in a hurry. This time he assembled an army of nearly 7, which consumed a lot of financial and material resources. He was about to lure out the Ming army, so he certainly could not easily lose his composure.

But we cannot just ignore it. The five Khalkha armies that are holding back the Ming army at Shanhaiguan really need to rely on the food and supplies stored in Jinzhou, and we cannot just stand by and watch them die, so we want to figure out the situation first before making any arrangements.

"Beep...beep beep..." Before Lin Danhan could figure out what to do, the sound of a hurried horn came from the east.

"... I'll go take a look!" Everyone in the big tent looked at Lin Dan Khan at once, their eyes full of hesitation, as if they had a premonition of something bad happening. Huang Taiji simply didn't wait for Lin Dan Khan's order and strode out of the tent.

Jinzhou was indeed lost, and the reports from the five Khalkha riders were all true. But what he didn't know was that Jinzhou was not taken by force, but was instead taken by the Ming army in a feint to the east and attack to the west, which caused the main defense force led by Tang Guda to be attacked from both sides halfway, resulting in heavy casualties.

There were only more than 800 Jurchen defenders left in the city. Faced with the sudden appearance of thousands of Ming troops, they were unable to resist and soon suffered heavy casualties.

The inclusion of Jinzhou in the combat scope was the result of the General Staff, the Army and the Navy working together based on the emperor's intentions, with some independent creations added. The final combat plan was much more complicated and vicious.

The emperor just wanted to cut off the food and supplies on the front line by a surprise attack on Haizhou Wei, force the Jurchens to withdraw, and lift the siege of Fuyu Wei at the same time.

But the young staff officers thought that this was too easy for the enemy. They couldn't just attack whenever they wanted and leave whenever they didn't want. They had to pay a price! So another local battle of besieging a point and attacking reinforcements began.

(End of this chapter)