Before hanging himself, Chongzhen lifted the table

Chapter 234 The most feared of guerrilla warfare

"Report, the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty personally led the army to attack in two directions, one way along the grassland, the other along the Liaoxi Corridor, known as an army of one million!"

Dorgon's face turned pale when he heard this. After receiving the detailed report, he immediately shouted loudly: "Explore again!"

He really didn't expect that the Emperor of the Ming Kingdom would lead so many troops to attack the Qing Dynasty!

Although he also knew that the Ming Dynasty would definitely come to attack Liaodong, the number of troops was still beyond his expectation.

Known as an army of one million, this is definitely impossible. But there must be hundreds of thousands of troops.

The Emperor of the Ming Dynasty personally led the army. Even if he had made similar estimates in advance, Dorgon was still under great pressure when the incident came to pass.

At this time, the Qing Dynasty had just acquired a rare product called sweet potato, which was being promoted vigorously. After a few years of recuperation, it was almost able to feed the current population and was just waiting for the harvest of food from the fields!

At this moment, he really realized what the Ming Dynasty was feeling back then. Because when the Qing Dynasty used troops against the Ming Dynasty, it also liked to choose when the food was about to be harvested or just when it was harvested, so that it could replenish food and grass on the spot and reduce logistical pressure.

It is necessary to rush to harvest food now. It is not even the time to harvest. It is inevitable to reduce the position, which will also cause tension or even shortage of food. If they had to wait another two years, the Qing Dynasty would be able to have enough troops and food!

While he was thinking about this, the Princes and Belles who came with orders arrived one after another.

Therefore, Dorgon immediately announced the urgent military situation sent by the front line, and added: "The Ming cavalry coming from the grassland is about fifty or sixty thousand, and it is led by the chief assistant Fan Jingwen. Many, but the main force of the Ming army coming from the Liaoxi Corridor was personally led by the Ming Emperor. The vanguard attacked Jinzhou in one go, and I don’t know how many troops followed behind. It is said to be an army of one million!"

When Duduo heard this, not only was he not afraid, but he was excited. He immediately said loudly: "That's not good. We just made a deal with those Western barbarians. We have five thousand self-made firecrackers, which can be used just right." .”

After hearing this, Hauge also echoed: "Liaodong is our territory, with the blessing of the shaman, Minggou has never won before, and this time I will defeat them all!"

Nikan and others were not timid at all and threatened to take revenge. His ears have never recovered since he was deafened in Guan Nei last time. The sounds he hears are so weak that he usually speaks at the top of his voice.

Each of them expressed their stance like this, so naturally they had their confidence.

After the Manchu and Qing Dynasties annexed North Korea, they gained a large population, suppressed the original officials of North Korea, and gave some benefits to those at the bottom like slaves, so that the Manchu Qing Dynasty's behavior of swallowing elephants did not cause indigestion.

At this time, the Qing Dynasty had about 300,000 troops, including about 150,000 cannon soldiers and more than 5,000 fusiliers.

The size of this force has fully doubled compared to before the annexation of North Korea. If it is only used to defend the city, you can also recruit more people. It will be no problem to get another 200,000 troops to defend the city.

If you add the affiliated tribes on the grassland, there will be more than 100,000 cavalry, and there will be no problem.

Such a huge military strength has never been thought of before. Even if these forces are not just concentrated in Liaodong, they still feel confident.

Dorgon felt a little relieved when he saw that his morale was available, but he still analyzed the situation and said: "The grassland tribes need to deal with the partial divisions of the Ming army, and I'm afraid they won't be able to recruit them. For the current plan, the top priority is , defeating this army led by the Emperor of the Ming Kingdom himself is the key to victory or defeat. The more invading Ming armies, the more food and supplies must be transported. I have decided to abandon the defense of various places and defend the important town of Liaoyang!"

Liaoyang is only 120 miles away from Shenyang, and Liaoyang was the original military and political center of the Ming Dynasty in Liaodong. Therefore, the city is tall and solid, and the city defense facilities are complete. It is a good place to garrison heavy troops.

Upon hearing this, Nikan immediately asked: "Your Majesty, what about the grain fields near Haizhou?"

Since all the Ming troops returned to the pass five or six years ago, everything outside the pass has become the territory of the Qing Dynasty.

Although there are many grain fields in the Western Liaoning Corridor that were cultivated by the Ming Guardsmen, considering the possibility that the Ming army would come out to attack, most of the grain fields in the Western Liaoning Corridor were abandoned.

However, Haizhou is very far away from Shanhaiguan, so the large grain fields cannot be abandoned. After annexing North Korea, the Manchu Qing Dynasty moved many Koreans to Haizhou to work as farmers.

Therefore, no one would care if the Liaoxi Corridor gave up, but if Haizhou had to give up, some people would be reluctant to part with it.

After hearing this, Dorgon did not act arbitrarily, but explained: "Haizhou is only about 120 miles away from the sea, and there are rivers connected to it. The navy of the Ming army has an advantage. If we want to win in Haizhou Fighting against the Ming Army will definitely be a lot more difficult. Therefore, if we abandon Haizhou and extend the Ming Army’s material supply line, we can consider sending out cavalry troops to cut off the Ming Army’s material and food routes. There must be enough space!”

After hearing this, Nikan thought about it and agreed with this statement, and then said no more.

You know, the outcome of the Battle of Songjin was determined by the fact that the Qing Dynasty cut off Hong Chengchou's food route, which led to the collapse of the Ming army.

Dorgon saw that others no longer had any objections, so he ordered the troops and civilians in Haizhou to be evacuated. As for food, they could collect as much food as they could, and the rest of the land was burned.

No matter what, this can be regarded as a kind of strong wall and clear wilderness.

These slave chiefs themselves did not realize that if it were Chongzhen seventeen years ago, they would never do this. No matter how many Ming troops attack Liaodong, they will definitely fight against them, instead of retreating first, they will also have to fortify the walls and clear the country!

This strong wall and clear field is a double-edged sword. Cut yourself first, and then see if you can cut the enemy.

Subsequently, Dorgon mobilized troops from North Korea and other places in Liaodong, intending to fight the Ming army in Liaoyang.

Of course, at the gateway before Liaoyang, Anshan Yibao, a place that was easy to defend but difficult to attack, was also stationed with troops to prevent the Ming army from being able to drive straight down to Liaoyang at will.

Dorgon's plan was to first drain the Ming army's energy at Anshan Posthouse. It would be best to deal a heavy blow to the Ming army before the decisive battle in Liaoyang, then the situation would become favorable.

Based on this idea, he sent Nikan to personally lead 10,000 troops, mainly infantry, that is, Korean fire rifle soldiers to garrison.

All other people from all walks of life gathered in Liaoyang. As a precaution, he dispatched Hauge to guard the Great Wall checkpoint on the grassland side to prevent the Ming cavalry that detoured from the grassland to break away from the grassland tribes and attack Shenyang.

Dorgon himself is in charge of Shenyang, Duduo is in Liaoyang, and Jierhalang is still in North Korea. A decree has been sent to him to lead troops to reinforce Liaodong. If possible, wait until the main force of the Ming army attacks Liaoyang to attack Haizhou. Because Dorgon himself judged that the Ming army would most likely hoard food and grass in Haizhou.

Everything was ready, Dorgon looked at the direction of Shanhaiguan and shouted in his heart: Come on, they say that you personally led the troops to pacify the pass, and you are very good at fighting. Come and see, between the two of us, who is better at fighting? He is a more qualified emperor!

………………

After the Ming army left Shanhaiguan, they originally had to face important towns such as Ningyuan and Jinzhou, as well as various other military posts, such as Zhongzuo Suo, Ningqian Suo, etc. Unexpectedly, as soon as the imperial officers and soldiers arrived, the Manchu and Qing troops After hearing the news and fleeing, the army successfully recaptured one city after another. Suddenly, the morale of the imperial officers and soldiers was greatly boosted!

However, Emperor Chongzhen didn't like it very much.

A great man of later generations once said that if you retract your fist and punch it out again, the enemy will suffer more pain.

The Manchu Qing Dynasty has shrunk all its troops, which is not a good sign.

What Emperor Chongzhen was most worried about was that Dorgon was so ruthless that he even gave up Shenyang and continued to retreat north. Taking advantage of the terrain, he finally chose to fight guerrilla warfare with the imperial army.

Before the decisive battle, if there is not a large number of effective forces to annihilate the Manchus, then this guerrilla war will be very uncomfortable.

The number of troops sent out for encirclement and suppression cannot be reduced, and they can easily be wiped out by the Manchu Qing army with too many attacks and too few. If there are too many troops sent out to encircle and suppress the Qing Dynasty, but the Manchu army avoids fighting, the food consumption will be large, and it will be too much for a long time.

Therefore, Emperor Chongzhen expected that the Manchu and Qing armies would fight a decisive battle no matter what. Only by defeating the main force of the Manchu Qing Dynasty and eliminating most of the Manchu Qing army, the remaining troops will not be afraid even if they continue to fight guerrilla warfare.

The first is that the outcome has been decided, and the morale of the main force will be different from before the decisive battle.

The second nature is that the remaining Manchu and Qing troops will not be strong enough to divide their forces for encirclement and suppression, and they are not afraid of an ambush by the Manchu and Qing troops.

However, although he was so worried, Emperor Chongzhen estimated that there was a high probability that the worst case scenario would not occur.

In this era, there are certainly no people who can truly grasp the essence of guerrilla warfare regardless of the gains and losses of a city or a place.

Don't say that Dorgon is just the regent of the Manchu Qing Dynasty now, even if he is the real emperor of the Manchu Qing Dynasty, he probably can't convince others that he will not fight the decisive battle and just fight guerrilla warfare at the beginning.

This guess was indeed correct. When Emperor Chongzhen was about to arrive at Haizhou with his troops, news came from the vanguard that Jianlu had burned down Haizhou City, but Anshan Posthouse was heavily guarded.

After hearing this, Emperor Chongzhen was relieved. Dorgon didn't have the courage to give up Liaoyang and Shenyang yet!

Therefore, Emperor Chongzhen was not in a hurry to attack. After arriving in Haizhou, the army began to rest and recuperate, while waiting for Zheng Zhibao's navy to transport grain and grass to Haizhou to stock up.

There was another unspoken purpose, which was to give the Manchu and Qing armies time to assemble. What he likes most is for enemies to gather together and then destroy them in a single battle.

This was the case with Li Zicheng, and it was the same with the Yungui chieftains who rebelled. If it hadn't been like this, we'd probably still be fighting a civil war right now.

Finally, the Manchu and Qing troops were given five days, and then Emperor Chongzhen personally led the army to Anshan Posthouse.

Anshan Posthouse is an integral part of the defense system of the Liaoning Great Wall in the Ming Dynasty. It is adjacent to the Anshan River in the east and is located in the middle of the two mountains of East and West Anshan. It is 0.5 kilometers away from the two mountains in the east and west. The northeast side of the Posthouse is derived from the remaining veins of Changbai Mountain. Thousands of mountains, and to the southwest is the beginning of the vast Liaohe Plain.

Anshan Posthouse belongs to the avant-garde of Dingliao. It was built in the 204th year of Hongwu and rebuilt into an "isosceles trapezoid" castle in the 2th year of Wanli. The circumference is "one mile and 7.5 steps". The city is a masonry and rammed earth structure. The foundation stone layer is 7.5 meters high, the brick layer is 8 meters high, the city wall is 10 meters thick, the base is meters wide, and the wall is meters high, which is about as high as a three-story building.

If you want to go from Shanhaiguan or Haizhou to Liaoyang, you must pass through Anshan Yibao. In other words, for the Ming army to attack the hinterland of Liaodong in the Qing Dynasty, in addition to taking the grasslands, they must conquer the Anshan Posthouse. Therefore, this is also a battleground for military strategists.

Today, it can be seen from the flags on the top of the city and the heads of the garrison that the Manchu and Qing Dynasties stationed heavy troops here.

After seeing the enemy situation, Emperor Chongzhen did not do anything, but returned to Haizhou.

On the top of the city, Nikan had been hiding there for a long time to observe. When he saw the Ming Emperor leaving, he became nervous and immediately told his subordinates: "We must be very diligent in defending the city at night to prevent the Ming army from stealing the city. Preppers, stay away from the walls, you hear me?"

His voice was very loud, as if others couldn't hear him.

Nikan's subordinates naturally understand why their master behaves like this. It is obvious that he learns from every experience!

Naturally, after receiving this military order, they did not dare to neglect it and immediately obeyed it.

However, there was no movement that night, leaving them vigilant all night in vain.

Naturally, they did not know that the reason why Emperor Chongzhen did not launch an attack was actually waiting for news.

Anshan Posthouse can block the way of the army, but it cannot stop the imperial officers and soldiers from refusing to stop at night.

When the imperial officers and troops arrived in Haizhou, they had already sent out Ye Bushou. Not only that, on the Jinyiwei side, the Jinyiwei commander Li Ruolian accompanied him on the expedition, and also sent elite Jinyiwei spies to spy on Jianlu's situation.

On the afternoon of the next day after Emperor Chongzhen inspected Anshan Posthouse, Li Ruolian excitedly asked to see the emperor to report the latest enemy situation.

After Emperor Chongzhen heard this, he immediately held an imperial military meeting without waiting any longer.

Zhou Yuji, Huang Degong, Wu Sangui, Zeng Ying, Qin Yiming, Li Dingguo and other generals gathered together.

Fang Zhenghua was naturally there, so he told the generals about the enemy's situation: "The main force of the Jianlu forces in Liaodong is about 250,000, of which 150,000 are stationed in Liaoyang, and the other 100,000 are stationed in Shenyang. According to the news, among the Jianlu troops , most of them are Korean soldiers, and there are many gunmen..."

Emperor Chongzhen was sitting in the main seat, listening and looking at the generals below.

He found that after Fang Zhenghua announced the strength of the Manchu and Qing troops, many generals looked a little solemn.

It has to be said that although the myth of Jianlu's invincibility was broken in the first battle within the pass, Jianlu's long-term victory over the imperial army still had some residual power. It's not that I'm scared, it's just stressful.

Thinking of this, Emperor Chongzhen said seriously after Fang Zhenghua finished talking about the enemy's situation: "My lords, in this battle of Liaoshen, I will eat the 250,000 Jianlu horses in one bite. Whoever refuses to fight to the death will be let go." If you run away from Jianlu, you will be severely punished!"

(End of this chapter)