weaving

Chapter 1595 General, just give the order!
Liu Yuanqing was from Cao County, Yanzhou Prefecture, Shandong Province. He was the younger brother of Liu Zeqing, the Shandong General Commander. Although he held the title of Shandong Deputy General Commander, he actually had less than two hundred officers and soldiers under his command.

However, Liu Yuanqing was different from his brother Liu Zeqing. After hearing about the Jurchen invasion, he was filled with righteous indignation and wrote to the court to request to serve the country. He volunteered to use his family's wealth to recruit able-bodied men to fight against the Jurchens.

At a time when the imperial court was short of soldiers and generals, it readily agreed after receiving Liu Yuanqing's report, ordering him to lead the recruited men to the three prefectures of Qingzhou, Laizhou, and Dengzhou in Shandong to assist the government army in strengthening its defense against the Jurchens.

However, Liu Yuanqing did not lead regular soldiers; they were all untrained rookies. Although they all had the courage to kill slaves and avenge their families, they encountered numerous problems whether marching or setting up camp.

Since recruiting these new brave men in mid-December, Liu Yuanqing has been teaching them how to march and how to set up camp, going to great lengths to help them.

It was precisely because of these drawbacks that Liu Yuanqing's troops marched very slowly, always following behind other government troops, while the Jurchens could not even see their shadows.

Although Liu Yuanqing was very anxious, he was helpless. After all, the Jurchens would not wait for him to attack, and they did not know that he had such a group of strong men following him.

Now that Abatai's Jurchen army is resting and recuperating on the banks of the Shu River in Juzhou, it has truly given Liu Yuanqing a good opportunity to make a name for himself and avenge his family by killing the Jurchens.

After recruiting soldiers from various counties in Yanzhou Prefecture, including Cao County, Shan County, Chengwu County, Dingtao County, and Heze County, Liu Yuanqing first went north to intercept the Jurchens but failed. He then pursued them all the way into Jinan Prefecture, Qingzhou Prefecture, and Laizhou Prefecture. It was only when he caught up with them and entered the territory of Dengzhou Prefecture that he learned that the Jurchens had already plundered him.

Now, having set out from Dengzhou Prefecture, passed through Laizhou Prefecture, and pursued them all the way into Qingzhou Prefecture, they are stationed at Shigouya, east of Juzhou, less than thirty li from the banks of the Shu River.

Having pursued them all the way, this newly recruited group of soldiers has also gained some training and growth. Along the way, they intercepted some Tartars who were scouting ahead, as well as small groups of Jurchens who were out raiding. They are no longer as useless as they were when they were first recruited.

The troops under Zhong Minggao were stationed at Zhaoxianzhuang, north of Juzhou. Five miles further north at Tinggou were the troops under Xue Minzhong. To the northwest at Wang'erzhuang were the troops under Tang Tong and Cao Bianjiao. To the west at Sucunji were the troops under Zhou Yuji and Zhang Dengke.

Only Liu Zeqing's troops are moving a little slower and are still on their way, but they will surely arrive near Juzhou within the next day or two.

These government troops that have arrived near Juzhou are all eager to try, except for Zhou Yuji, who has already launched an attack. Cao Bianjiao is particularly enthusiastic, and even Liu Yuanqing is encouraging his subordinate Ding Yong to take the initiative to attack the Jurchen camp.

…………

Faced with the Ming army's encirclement from all sides, Abatai did not feel panicked at all. What could he do even if there were twice as many troops, let alone just over 30,000?
However, at this very moment, he lost contact with the Turgh tribe in Yanzhou, which he considered a bad omen, and he suspected there might be a conspiracy involved!

"Nearly half of our warriors are with Turgh, and now they've suddenly disappeared. Should we send an army to support them?" Baiyintu asked, looking at Abatai sitting at the head of the table.

Although both were members of the Qing Dynasty's imperial family and shared the same surname, Aisin Gioro, their social status differed greatly.

No matter what, Abatai was Nurhaci's biological son and the half-brother of the current chieftain Huang Taiji. But Baiyintu was different. He was only Nurhaci's nephew, and even his father was Nurhaci's half-brother. Even though he also had the surname Aisin Gioro, he could not compare with Abatai.

As expected, Abatai only glared at him but did not respond to his words.

At this moment, Shuo Tuo, a Gushan Ezhen of the Manchu Bordered Red Banner, spoke up: "Beile Abatai, what Baiyintu said makes some sense. There are warriors from eight banners of our Great Qing Empire at Turge, and we cannot afford to lose them. Now that the news has been cut off, it is probably not a good omen. I think we should send a troop south to find out what is going on before we can feel at ease."

Abatai glanced at Shuotuo and asked him calmly, "Shuotuo, who do you think would be suitable to send?"

Shuo Tuo was taken aback upon hearing this. After a moment's pause, he realized what he meant and quickly blurted out, "This is naturally a decision for the General. How can I, Shuo Tuo, speak recklessly?"

"Hey hey hey..."

Abatai smiled sinisterly: "Dulei, do you have anything to say?"

Du Lei said, "Although there are warriors from eight banners over Tuergegu Mountain, they have plundered a great deal of wealth from the people. I fear that they may be taken advantage of by the Ming dogs. I think we should send troops south to prevent any sudden changes that might leave us unable to come to their aid."

Abatai stroked his chin and suddenly said, "What you say makes some sense. This general thinks the same way."

His gaze swept over the various Gushan Ejen, and after a moment, he said, "Bayintu Gushan, I, the Great General, order you to lead the Bordered Yellow Banner, plus the warriors of the Suna Bordered White Banner and the Jinli Bordered Red Banner, to set off south at dawn the day after tomorrow to find Tuerge Gushan in Yanzhou."

Baiyintu was taken aback, seemingly not expecting Abatai to send him south, but that didn't stop him from accepting the order in time. He stood up from his seat and bowed, saying, "Yes, sir."

Suna and Jinli also stood up, bowed, and accepted the order.

"Don't be idle tomorrow. Make preparations early so as not to delay the start of camp the day after tomorrow."

"Whoo."

After Abatai finished speaking, he ignored them and turned to the other Gushan Ejen, saying, "The matter on Turge's side has been settled. Now it's time to consider our side as well."

Everyone wore solemn expressions, waiting for Abatai to assign tasks...

"The Ming dogs are so arrogant that they dare to spy on the garrison of our Great Qing warriors. This is unprecedented. If we don't teach them a lesson, it will only make our Great Qing look like we are easy to bully."

After giving a pep talk, Abatai said sternly, "This time, all the warriors of each banner must fight bravely and kill the Ming dogs without leaving a single one alive, so that they will know the power of our Great Qing Dynasty and never dare to treat us like this again!"

The first to jump out was Gushan Ezhen Dulai of the Zhenghong Banner, who said to Abatai, "General, give the order."

Immediately afterwards, the Gushan Ezhenzhumala of the Plain White Banner, the Gushan Ezhendulei of the Plain Red Banner, the Gushan Ezhenshuotuo of the Bordered Red Banner, as well as the Gushan Ezhenwulai of the Plain Blue Banner and the Gushan Ezhenhushibu of the Bordered Blue Banner of the Mongols, and the Gushan Ezhenliuzhiyuan of the Bordered Yellow Banner, the Gushan Ezhentongtulai of the Bordered White Banner, the Gushan Ezhenlili Bayan of the Plain Blue Banner, and the Gushan Ezhenlili Guohan of the Bordered Blue Banner of the Han Army, all clasped their hands in salute and reported Abatai's military orders.

(End of this chapter)