weaving

Chapter 1579 Zhou Yuji is an exception

The Tartar soldier's warhorse was completely out of control, charging forward like a madman, heading straight for Zhou Yuji.

"Good timing!"

Zhou Yuji glared at the mad horse charging towards them and roared, "Brothers, the time to kill the Tartars is now!"

After speaking, he kicked his horse hard in the belly with both feet. As if receiving a military order, the warhorse reared up and charged towards the Tartar soldiers. The knights hurriedly spurred their horses to follow and protect Zhou Yuji.

The longsword deftly dodged the tiger spear in the hand of the bastard, the tip of the blade slicing across the belly of his warhorse, its intestines mixed with bright red blood, instantly spilling onto the ground.

With a loud thud, the sturdy, heavy warhorse crashed to the ground, and the Bayara warrior on horseback also fell to the ground with a thud due to the force of the fall.

However, his left foot remained firmly stuck in the stirrup, unable to be pulled out in time, and half of his left leg was also pinned down by the horse's body, making him unable to move.

Zhou Yuji paid him no heed, spurring his horse forward and heading straight for Dulei...

One of his personal guards spurred his horse and chased after him. As he passed the fallen Bayara soldier, the guard swung his long-handled iron hammer along with the momentum of the horse's charge, striking the Bayara soldier on the head.

With a loud crash, the helmet flew far away, the skull shattered, and brain matter and blood splattered everywhere. The guard did not stop, but instead urged his warhorse to chase after Zhou Yuji ahead.

Poor Bayara, whose head was smashed and who died, had blocked an arrow that came flying at him for Gushan Ejen Dulei. He had intended to show off his superb skills and courage so that he could gain credit in front of Dulei.

But I never expected that I would lose my life in the end. Life is truly unpredictable!
…………

Among the Jurchen cavalry gathered around Du Lei, there were more than thirty Bayara soldiers, and the rest were all elites from the Plain Red Banner.

When they saw the Ming cavalry charging towards them, they showed no panic. Instead of urging their horses to meet them in battle, they dismounted and charged forward on foot.

There were seventy or eighty Tartar soldiers who dismounted and placed their feet firmly on the ground, their waists slightly lowered to stabilize their stance. The two rows in front, each with twenty or thirty men, held an iron shield and a short axe or mace.

Those following behind them were all armed with long weapons, such as long swords, long axes, and maces—heavy but incredibly powerful weapons.

The Tartar soldiers carrying shields ran forward for more than ten steps, then suddenly crouched down, using their iron shields to protect their upper bodies from the trampling and kicking of the Ming cavalry's horses.

In an instant, the Ming cavalry rushed in front of the Tartars. The warhorses naturally leaped up and were about to pass the Tartars in front when short axes and maces and other short weapons struck out at the same time, slashing or smashing the horses' legs.

The Ming knights charging at the front were immediately thrown to the ground, and even Zhou Yuji was not spared.

Then long swords and axes came flying at them. Many knights were decapitated the moment they tumbled off their saddles, with no time to dodge, let alone fight back.

However, some skilled knights, when their warhorses were injured, managed to free their feet from the stirrups, use one or both hands to brace themselves against the saddle, and leap to the side, neither falling with the warhorse nor being crushed by it.

Zhou Yuji was in the same situation, but as soon as he landed, he saw a gleaming longsword coming down, and it was too late to dodge again.

Suddenly, a figure flashed out and, with a clang, parried the blade of the long sword that was aimed at Zhou Yuji.

Zhou Yuji didn't have time to look closely. He darted to the side, grabbed a short-handled iron mace that someone had dropped, and charged forward five steps. He raised his small round shield on his left arm, hiding his body under the shield, and swung the iron mace horizontally at the enemy soldier's calf. With a scream, the Tartar soldier fell to the ground.

However, this Tartar was also tenacious. Even though his shinbone was broken and he could no longer stand, he actually squatted on the ground with his knees as legs, holding the middle of the spiked club with both hands, and smashed it at Zhou Yuji with the pointed end of the club.

How could Zhou Yuji let him hit him? He used his left arm to deflect the falling mace with a round shield, and at the same time stood up and swung his right iron mace in a wide arc, smashing it down on the Tartar's head, sending him straight to meet the old servant.

…………

Seeing that his warriors had failed to break through the Ming army's attack and were instead locked in a stalemate, Du Lei was furious.

However, he wasn't stupid, and naturally he wouldn't just get angry and do nothing. He shouted at his personal guards, "What is Tong Tulai doing? And what is Jin Li doing?"

"We've already gone to ask Tong Tulai Gushan for reinforcements, but there's still no news from Jin Li," the guard replied.

Tong Tulai, whose original name was Tong Shengnian and also known as Tong Tunai, was a Jurchen from Fushun, Liaodong.

His ancestor was Darhachi, also known as Tongdalaha or Tongdali, a Jurchen who came to the Ming Dynasty in the early Ming period. After submitting to the Ming Dynasty, he changed his surname to Tong and settled in Fushun, Liaodong.

In the 46th year of the Wanli reign, the traitor Nurhaci led his troops to capture Fushun City. Tong Tulai's father, Tong Yangzhen, under the instigation and persuasion of his cousin, Tong Yangxing, surrendered to Nurhaci and became a member of the Han army.

Tong Tulai had previously served in the Han army of the Jurchens. Later, when the Jurchen chieftain Huang Taiji expanded the Eight Banners of the Han army, he appointed him as the Gushan Ezhen of the Plain Blue Banner of the Han army.

Because the Tong family had submitted to the Jurchens very early on, and because they belonged to the same Jurchen ethnic group, the Jurchen generals respected the Tong family generals more than other Han generals.

Jin Li, whose real name is Jin Li, is from Taihu, Anhui, and his ancestral home is Pengze, Jiangxi. Unlike Tong Tulai, he is a true citizen of the Ming Dynasty, and now he is a true veteran traitor to the Han.

He was originally the Right Commander of the Imperial Guard of the Ming Dynasty. During the Wanli era, he was selected as a military officer through the imperial examination and was stationed on the border as the Commander of Zhenwu Fort in Liaodong, which was under the jurisdiction of Guangning Guard.

In the second year of the Tianqi reign, Nurhaci, the old slave, led his rebel army to capture Guangning City. It was at this time that Jin Li surrendered to the Jurchens and followed them in repeatedly attacking the Ming Dynasty. Now, this great traitor has become the Gushan Ezhen of the Bordered Red Banner of the Jurchen Han Army.

This time, Tong Tulai and Jin Li each led a thousand Han soldiers armed with firearms to follow Du Lei in attacking Anqiu County.

It was precisely because the enemy forces and the Ming army were locked in a stalemate that Du Lei thought of Tong Tulai and Jin Li's Han army, hoping to use their sharp firearms to break through Zhou Yuji's very stubborn Ming army formation.

"Why hasn't Jin Li made a move yet? Send someone to urge him again," Du Lei ordered loudly.

He knew he couldn't just wait here for Tong Tulai and Jin Li's Han army, so he shouted again, "Gather the warriors, use infantry to flank from the left and cavalry from the right, and attack the Ming dogs together!"

Seeing that there were many Ming troops on the left flank, Du Lei ordered the infantry to attack. Since the right flank was very wide, he decisively ordered the cavalry to attack Zhou Yuji from the right flank.

This shows that Du Lei was not a good-for-nothing. While not every soldier in the Jurchen army was a good commander, they were all capable fighters, that much is true.

After all, they are an army trained through years of fighting. How could any of them be cowards who are still alive and have all their limbs intact?
It is not without reason that the Jurchen cavalry penetrated deep into the Ming capital region as if it were uninhabited, with Ming troops along the way either holding firm in fortified cities or retreating at the first sign of trouble, and almost none daring to launch an offensive.

Of course, Zhou Yuji was indeed an exception!
Perhaps, there are other exceptions within the territory of the Ming Dynasty...