Jingnan Strategy

Chapter 510 The Great Victory in Mobei
"Clap clap-"

"kill!!"

On the vast grassland, tens of thousands of cavalrymen were besieging nearly ten thousand Ming Army auxiliary troops who formed a circular formation with baggage vehicles.

The auxiliary soldiers only wore breastplates and held old matchlocks, without any artillery.

The Wala cavalry kept shooting arrows at the middle of their team, and someone fell down at any time.

"Fire the trumpet! Call for help!"

The auxiliary officer Qianhu shouted at the top of his lungs, and the surrounding auxiliary soldiers also quickly sounded the cannons.

"Oh!"

The sound of cannons sounded on the grassland, mixed with the shouts of killing, which made the three thousand cavalrymen several miles away from them look intolerable.

Everyone turned their attention to Zhu Zhanhe's back. They didn't know what the higher-ups arranged and they didn't understand why they didn't support their brother.

"The enemy is advancing, we are retreating, change carbines!"

"We're ambushed, retreat to the north!"

Under his gaze, Zhu Zhanhe kept waiting for the main force from the south with a cold face, which also made Wang Huan feel a little more relaxed.

At this moment, the Walas stopped their attack on the Ming army's baggage train, and saw a large number of Ming army cavalry coming from the south amidst the dull sound of horse hooves. They were like a red wave, crushing the green grass from the south. .

Under his gaze, groups of Tangqi in the south fled back from the horizon, and further south of them, a flash of red was emerging.

Mahamu looked back at the dense red waves, feeling that his scalp was numb due to the stimulation of the needle point, and screamed at the top of his lungs.

"Clap clap-"

He had been paying attention to the situation around him. Seeing that Zhu Zhanhe had been leading three thousand cavalry to block them in front, he immediately understood and said:

The sound of the hooves of more than 20,000 horses was deafening. They rushed over in a line from the south, and this scene made Maha's skin numb.

"what happened?!"

"Buzz rumbling..."

This kind of pursuit and retreat greatly delayed Mahamu's retreat. At this time, the Ming army in the south, relying on their abundant horse power, had already pursued them.

"The entire army is on alert!"

"Ignore the horsepower, retreat!"

Wang Huan sat on a horse nearby and paid attention to Zhu Zhanhe from time to time.

"Now the main force of the Ming army is besieging Alitai and the others. They should not appear here so soon..."

Under his leadership, tens of thousands of Wala cavalry coerced the Wala cavalry who were the first to break out into the team, and pressed towards the three thousand Ming army cavalry.

Mahamut, who was supervising the battle on the front line, moved his ears and immediately looked towards the south.

Gunsmoke filled the air on horseback, and dozens of Ora cavalrymen who tried to break out were shot dead by the Ming army with long spears. This scene made the Ora cavalry behind them burst with liver and gallbladder, and they quickly reined in their horses.

Compared to them, Zhu Zhanhe, who knew what he should do, was waiting with a cold face, but his heart was bleeding.

Those who were previously arrogant also fell into panic, and they could only stay calm after having sex.

"Yes!" After hearing his words, his eyes lit up first, and he immediately asked someone to lower the big banner.

The Wala army also sneered first, but his father Tuohuan felt something was wrong: "How many miles has our Tangqi been released?"

Now he hopes that Zhu Zhanhe can continue to persevere. If all his previous efforts are in vain, then he can only seek refuge with Zhu Zhanqi or other princes early.

Tuohuan was always vigilant, and upon seeing this, he quickly ordered a retreat.

Mahamu, who turned his horse's head, only saw many Oara cavalry ignoring his military orders to break through and being shot by Zhu Zhanhe. He cursed and quickly shook the reins of his horse to break through to the north.

He gritted his teeth and listened to the shouts of death coming from the front, and the womanly kindness in his heart was gradually smoothed away.

Under his command, three thousand Ming army cavalry began to retreat while fighting.

"Idiot, they can only fight for one round, take this opportunity to break out!"

"Lower the great banner, divide the troops into three groups, and each find a way to retreat to his headquarters!"

When his own reinforcements appeared, Zhu Zhanhe immediately gave the order, and only then did the generals below know what their mission was.

"withdraw!"

Zhu Zhanhe quickly turned his horse's head, put the spear on his back, and took out the carbine on the saddle.

"It seems that we have high regard for this young general."

"Compassion does not control soldiers, and justice does not control wealth. This sentence is indeed correct..."

Without much hesitation, and even without the military orders being conveyed to their ears, many Wala cavalrymen had already begun to flee the battlefield.

If Mahamu wanted to escape, they would stand in front of the Wala team and fight while retreating.

Either he always insists on being upright and kind, or he changes to being cruel and ruthless. Wang Huan is most afraid that he will stop midway and become a different person. This kind of two-way approach will undoubtedly be disgusting.

"They are all besieging this baggage train, so they moved it about ten miles south." While answering first, he also comforted his father:

He thought well at first, but before he could finish speaking, there was a harsh sound from the south.

Three thousand Ming army cavalrymen began to draw their flintlock rifles from their backs and dispersed to the left and right to prepare for shooting. Zhu Zhanhe was the first to draw his gun and kill an Ora cavalryman who was trying to break through.

Without Dagu's guidance, Zhu Zhanhe instantly lost his goal, and at this time Wala also divided his troops into three groups and began to break out.

"The troops were divided into three groups to intercept!" Zhu Zhanhe's face was solemn, but he still ordered the interception.

Soon, the three thousand Ming army divided into three groups to intercept and harass the Wala cavalry.

They specially picked the horses of the Oara front army to fight. Once the horses of the front army fell down, it would immediately cause a large number of Oara cavalry to fall down, which would greatly slow down their breakout speed.

It was a pity that he had a strong sense of survival after losing his arms. He was not prepared to take everyone back to the tribe, but tried his best to retreat with Mahamu under cover.

As long as the father, son, grandfather and grandson are alive, it will not be difficult to raise another 10,000 cavalry. Anyway, now that Tatar and Taiping have suffered heavy losses, they still have enough cavalry in their headquarters to unify them and restore Yuan Qi.

"Drive! Drive..."

Tuohuan kept waving his riding whip, and Mahamu Kazuya, who was following closely behind him, also swung his riding whip, wanting to run hundreds of miles in one breath.

At this time, the Ming army in the south had already chased them from the left and right wings. The plan of the Tuohuan soldiers to divide into three groups went bankrupt because they were all beaten back by the Ming army's cavalry.

At this moment, including the 3,000 men in Zhu Zhanhe's hands, the 30,000 Ming Army cavalry were forcing Oala toward the northwest like a safari.

They were the hunters, and Mahamu became the prey to be played with.

The two sides chased and blocked him for more than half an hour, and there were fewer and fewer people around Mahamu.

Finally, when they were blocked in a hill, the 30,000 Ming army had completed the encirclement, completely surrounding them in the hills and valleys, and they ran up a low hill in the middle of the hills and valleys.

"Beep--"

The various units of the Ming army blew their wooden whistles rhythmically, and each unit advanced slowly, constantly compressing Oala's movement space, trying to limit their horsepower.

Riding his horse up the low slope, Mahamu saw that many of his cavalrymen were so tired that their horses were foaming at the mouth, while the Ming army was pressing forward step by step.

"Isn't the main force of the Ming army in the west? Can't this guy Alitai even stop him for a day?!"

At this moment, Mahamu did not know that there was a problem with their intelligence, but the Ming army had already confirmed that the intelligence they had obtained was completely correct.

"Xu..."

On Zhuma Hill, Zhu Di calmed down his heaving chest a little, and looked at the tens of thousands of surrounded cavalry with a playful look.

"grandfather!"

Zhu Zhanhe's voice sounded, and Zhu Di looked back, and sure enough he saw him riding his horse with an anxious look on his face.

"Grandpa, why are you here!"

Zhu Zhanhe did not expect that his grandfather, who was sixty-six years old, would still come to the battlefield. Zhu Di smiled and said, "It's okay. If grandpa doesn't go to the front to kill the enemy, he will take command here."

Zhu Di looked Zhu Zhanhe up and down, his eyes showing some satisfaction.

Just now, he deliberately asked the army to slow down a little and extend to both sides. One was to better surround Mahamu, and the other was to see if Zhu Zhanhe would not be able to resist rescuing the tens of thousands of auxiliary soldiers. Baggage train.

If Zhu Zhanhe really went to the rescue, then Zhu Di wouldn't know what to say to his grandson.

Fortunately, he has matured and not only successfully completed the task, but also performed very well.

"This battle will be remembered for your merits!" Zhu Di did not praise Zhu Zhanhe too much, but just ordered to Zhang Fu, Meng Ying, Meng Mao, Wang Yan and others on his left and right:

"Okay, enough teasing, the army is surrounding him and taking advantage of his illness to kill him!"

"Yes!"

Following Zhu Di's order, the 30,000 Ming Army cavalry took a short rest and then began firing in a circle.

They regarded the Walas as targets, formed a circle, raised their spears, and pulled the triggers. Then they followed the stream of troops to station their horses outside the circle to reload their spears before returning.

"Clap clap-"

"Uh-huh!"

For a time, gunpowder smoke filled the air, and countless Ora cavalry fell down.

They tried to use bows and arrows to fight back, but the Ming army's improved light armor could still defend against arrows well. These arrows could not cause any harm to the Ming army except for making grooves on the armor.

For the Ming army, which carries a load of more than 60 kilograms all year round, the existing armor of more than 20 kilograms is simply standard equipment for traveling far away with light equipment.

As long as it can protect against arrows and slashes, it is enough. Blunt weapons are not considered.

In the current battles, the Ming army rarely encounters hand-to-hand situations. Relying on powerful firepower and armor-breaking capabilities to crush the opponent has become an invincible weapon for the Ming army, and it is the same now.

"Can't sit still and wait for death, prepare to break out!"

After feeding the horses some water, Mahamu gave the military order with a solemn face. The five thousand cavalry at the core of the team were ready to go. With Mahamu personally blowing the horn, they launched a breakthrough against the Ming army.

"kill!!"

"Buzz rumbling..."

The shouts of killing and the sound of horse hooves instantly drowned out the gunfire of the Ming army, but in the face of their charge, the Ming army cavalry formed a flexible and loose formation, and began to run in the direction of the charge of the Wala cavalry, drawing their guns as they walked. Fight back.

The scene at this moment was like a tiger being toyed with by dozens of cavalry on horseback.

His pursuit failed to reach anyone, and instead he was weakened by the constant attacks during the pursuit.

On the hilly plateau, Zhu Di used his binoculars to watch the two armies gradually moving away, and slowly urged his horses to follow.

They seemed to be taking a walk, but Mahamu, Tuohuan, and they were being shot mercilessly.

"Surrender without killing!"

"Surrender without killing!"

Among the Ming army, the Oara and Tatars who had taken refuge in the early years continued to surrender, and this indeed made the Oara cavalry begin to waver.

When their casualties reached 30%, even though they were tenacious after several years of living in Lanzhou, they couldn't help but start to stop.

"What do you want to do?!"

When the team gradually stopped, Mahamu realized that something was wrong, and Tuohuan also realized what his tribe was thinking, so he spoke in advance: "Surrender on horseback!"

Tuo Huan's judgment was correct. If he didn't speak again, the generals around him might be shaken and send their prisoners to Zhu Di.

But even so, they did not escape the humiliation of kneeling on the grass and accepting Zhu Di's inspection.

Their once proud knees were now kneeling on the grass. The grandfather, grandson, father and son had their heads lowered and their backs were hunched.

A passage was opened in the Ming army, and the unhurried Zhu Di appeared in front of them with Zhu Zhanhe.

Mahamu didn't know what he was thinking. He suddenly raised his head and met the eyes of the man who had been chasing him for many years at close range.

"You're older than I thought..."

Zhu Di spoke, completely forgetting the fact that he was older than Mahamu.

"Your Majesty, we are willing to surrender to you..."

Mahamu fell to the ground and kowtowed, but Zhu Di smiled when he heard this and said to Zhang Fu, Meng Ying and others who came forward: "Did you hear that he wants to surrender to us?"

"Surrender?" Zhang Fu said contemptuously: "Mahamu, you did not surrender on your own initiative, but were beaten to surrender by us. Do you think you are worthy of using this word?"

Faced with Zhang Fu's ridicule, Ye Xian's face turned red, and Tuo Huan tried his best to stay calm, while Mahamu did not get up.

"Zhanhe, what do you think we should do with them?"

Zhu Di already had a plan in mind, but he still wanted to take the exam for his grandson.

Facing his inquiry, Zhu Zhanhe replied without hesitation: "According to the information given to Tupolo, they should not have brought all their tribesmen and soldiers."

"Keep them alive, send 20,000 cavalry to supervise them, and recruit and place their tribesmen in Hulan Huwenwen. Disband the troops and horses, and bring all the nobles of Choros tribe back to the capital."

Zhu Zhanhe did not kill the three Mahamu people for the sake of quick pleasure. Instead, he analyzed the pros and cons as a person in power and chose a choice that was more in line with the interests of Ming Dynasty.

"Okay!" Zhu Di was very satisfied with his grandson's choice. After all, it was more suitable for the Ming Dynasty to use them to recruit the remaining hundreds of thousands of Choros troops and completely solve the Moxi problem than killing three people.

Although after the Chorus tribe is appeased, new Central Asian Mongols will move eastward and station in Moxi in the future. However, at the speed of construction of the Ming Dynasty Railway, Mobei will become the pastureland of the Ming Dynasty in at most twenty years. No matter how many Mongolian tribes came to occupy the western desert, they would only end up being defeated and recruited.

Thinking like this, Zhu Di also looked at Mahamu and said: "Mahamu, although I don't want you to live, but if you are willing to recruit your tribe to the heavenly dynasty under the supervision of the heavenly army, then I am still willing to give you a count. of."

"I am willing to accept your Majesty's gift..."

Zhu Di said this, and Mahamu could only accept this condition, which he considered humiliating in his heart, or that he was simply not qualified to negotiate terms with Zhu Di.

Although Tuo Huan still had brothers and heirs in the Choros tribe, killing three of their grandfathers and grandsons would only take one more Northern Expedition to completely wipe out the Choros tribe.

Zhu Di didn't want to continue wasting money and people, otherwise he wouldn't have given Mahamu a count.

In addition, if Zhu Di does not kill Alitai and Mahamu, it will undoubtedly leave an impression on many Mongolian tribes who will move eastward in the future, that is, they can go to the Ming Dynasty to enjoy a better life if they surrender.

For Zhu Di, raising a group of Mongolian dignitaries only costs hundreds of thousands of gold, and this amount of money will continue to decrease as the hereditary ranks are reduced.

For these Mongols, except for the two heroes Tupolo and Yesian Tugan, Zhu Di would not give them hereditary and irreplaceable titles.

Thinking of this, Zhu Di also turned the horse's head and started heading south.

At the same time, less than 10,000 Oara cavalrymen were disarmed, and reports of good news came from the west.

Alitai and Taiping surrendered and were captured, with more than 40,000 officers and soldiers surrendered, more than 160,000 troops, more than 300,000 cattle, sheep and horses, and countless fodder and baggage...

Soon, a letter of success was sent to Beijing at Zhu Di's instruction, and when Zhu Gaoxu got the news, it was Chang Chaoshang, who held the meeting once every ten days on the first day of August.

"Great victory in Mobei! Great victory in Mobei!"

The military attache holding the good news ran from Fengtianmen into the square, and the officials on the left and right looked at him secretly.

On the golden platform in front of Fengtian Hall, Zhu Gaoxu watched the military attache running up. Yi Shiha cast a questioning look at him, and Zhu Gaoxu nodded in response.

With his acquiescence, the military attache ran up to the high platform without any obstruction, and came to the high platform where there were only six ministers, the six army commanders, the left and right censors of the Metropolitan Procuratorate, the Grand Scholar of the Palace and Zhu Gaoxu.

He knelt down and kowtowed, and presented a memorial with both hands: "I, the Governor of the Military Governor's Mansion, Tongzhi Wang Ren, come to see Your Majesty, please review the report of the great victory in Mobei!"

"A great victory in Mobei?"

For a moment, the ministers looked at each other, obviously they didn't expect that this time it would actually have an effect, but they didn't know the specific effect.

"Yi Shiha, please read it to everyone."

Zhu Gaoxu sat firmly on the Diaoyutai, as if this kind of thing was not worth getting excited about.

Hearing this, Yi Shiha quickly stepped forward to take the memorial and read it for everyone.

[In the autumn and seventh month of the eighth year of Hongxi's reign, on the day of Ji Maoshuo and Ding You, the Taishang led his army to Hulanhu, and divided his troops to defeat the Alitai, Mahamu and other captive chiefs. He captured more than 50,000 soldiers and 160,000 tribesmen, and captured Sixty thousand armor, hundreds of thousands of cattle, sheep and horses, more than 20,000 beheaded...]

Zhu Di never wrote any victory reports during the Northern Expedition. After all, the victory reports were written for the emperor, and he himself was the emperor, so he basically only needed to read them, and the specific casualties would not be recorded in detail.

This approach also led to the confusion of later generations about the results of his five conquests in Mobei.

However, according to Zhu Gaoxu's explanation, Zhu Di developed the habit of reporting the results of the Northern Expedition and recording the "National History" from the beginning. Although the report was very brief, the results of the battle could be displayed intuitively in front of the officials.

"Okay, this is the country's first great victory since the Beishan Valley. When the army returns in triumph, the historian will record it in the "History of the Country". It must be detailed and there must be no mistakes!"

Zhu Gaoxu ordered the six ministries and said at the same time: "How many prisoners are in custody today?"

"About 20,000 people." Jin Chun, the Minister of Punishment, reported the situation. Zhu Gaoxu nodded after hearing this and said: "Regardless of their crimes, these 20,000 people will be sent to Yuerhai, and the Tatar Yanran City will be renamed Dongran City. In Hulan Suddenly the city lost its temperature and set up Yanran City."

"The Ministry of Industry sent people to Mobei to investigate the mineral deposits in various places and plan the railway route from Hailar to Yanran City."

Zhu Gaoxu has long had the idea of ​​how to control Mobei, which is nothing more than building railways, mining mineral resources, and increasing local output through government-run trade, in order to achieve the purpose of actually controlling Mobei.

Although such an expenditure is undoubtedly a heavy burden for the Ming Dynasty, for Zhu Gaoxu, his physical condition is still very good. He is sure and confident that he can balance the Ming Dynasty's balance of payments before he leaves, and provide a good foundation for the Ming Dynasty. There is enough money and food saved for future generations of children and grandchildren.

What's more, there is one thing you can take advantage of right now...

"The Imperial Scholar Wang Hui has been ordered to conduct inspections in the capital. Now they have been carried out in Yingtian Mansion. The Ministry of Personnel and the Ministry of Household Affairs must be prepared to respond. Remember."

Zhu Gaoxu said this calmly, but this sentence made many people feel nervous.

Wang Hui went to the south of the Yangtze River, saying at best that the capital was investigating corrupt officials, but at worst that the treasury money was being spent too fast and the court needed money. At this time, killing a group of corrupt officials would not only boost people's morale but also resolve local class conflicts. , it can also enrich the national treasury and use the money from the national treasury to support the people.

Most of the money in the national treasury flows to the north, so when the national treasury is rich, the north is rich.

The more Jiangnan officials died, the more positions were vacated, the more people were involved, and the more money and food were available.

Thinking of this, many officials looked vaguely at the person sitting on the golden platform.

They all knew that it was this person who really wanted the money, but no one dared to say it. Wang Hui himself also knew that he was a knife, but he was willing to be the knife.

"I accept the decree..."

Xia Yuanji and Guo Zi stood up and bowed. Seeing this, Zhu Gaoxu also said: "Since nothing happens, let's retreat from the court!"

As soon as he finished speaking, he stood up and left. The ministers knelt on the ground and shouted long live the mountain.

As Zhu Gaoxu disappeared, they breathed a sigh of relief, stood up slowly, and left Fengtian Square with heavy hearts.

For them, the great victory in Mobei was indeed a boost, but the court would also have to pay an extra amount of money.

In everyone's mind, as long as Mobei wins the battle, there is no need to bring it into rule.

The national treasury could not last more than a few years, and now it is necessary to build the Mobei Railway, which is another expenditure.

Moreover, in a bitterly cold place like Mobei, I don’t know how much food will be poured into it in the future.

If the person sitting on that chair was not Zhu Gaoxu, the officials of the Sixth Section and the Metropolitan Procuratorate would have started to impeach him long ago.

It was precisely because Zhu Gaoxu was sitting there that they did not dare to attack him, because this man would really destroy them instead of simply beating the imperial staff.

With a heavy heart, the ministers gradually disappeared into Fengtian Square, and Zhu Gaoxu, who was riding a carriage to the Wuying Palace, also saw Hu Lun, who was trotting up to follow him.

"Your Majesty, this is the letter sent by Wang Huan..."

Hu Lun handed over the letter sent by Wang Huan. Zhu Gaoxu took it and opened it, reading the contents at a glance.

He handed the letter back to Hu Lun casually, but his expression remained normal.

"Your Majesty, His Royal Highness has made great progress this time."

Yishiha looked at Zhu Gaoxu without saying anything, and immediately spoke kindly to Zhu Zhanhe, but as soon as he finished speaking, Zhu Gaoxu glanced at him.

"If it's just this level, it's not qualified..."

(End of this chapter)