weaving

On the ninth day of the third month, after dusk, Wu Shoujin, the commander of the Zhenghong Banner of the Jurchen Han army, was the first to learn of the great defeat of Turge in his attempt to rescue the vinegar village.

Initially, a few remaining soldiers from the Plain Yellow Banner of Mongolia fled over. Wu Shoujin was still somewhat skeptical of their report of a major defeat in the south of the vinegar factory, but he did not treat them as deserters and continued to treat them well.

The Jurchens were, after all, a local puppet regime located in a remote corner. Even though the current Jurchen chieftain Huang Taiji was devoted to learning Han culture and was doing his best to promote Han systems in the puppet court, the Jurchens' inherent sense of hierarchy was hard to change.

The Jurchen pseudo-royal family, led by Jurchen chieftain Huang Taiji, was in the first tier; other Jianzhou Tartars were in the second tier; the Mongol Eight Banners that had submitted to the Jurchens were in the third tier; the various Mongol tribes that were outside the Jurchens were in the fourth tier; and the Han Chinese in Liaodong were in the lowest tier.

Therefore, even though they were just a few suspected deserters from the Mongol Eight Banners, Wu Shoujin, despite being a Han Banner Gushan Ejen, dared not deal with them easily. After settling these people, he immediately reported the situation to Gadahun, the Gushan Ejen of the Mongol Plain Red Banner.

Before Gadahun could make a judgment on the message sent by Wu Shoujin, Zuzerun, the Gushan Ezhen of the Plain Yellow Banner of the Han Army, which was located in the middle, also sent a message, the contents of which were exactly the same as those of Wu Shoujin.

At this point, Gadahun finally began to believe the news of Turge's failure in the vinegar village.

Although he was very unwilling, he had no choice but to believe it, because the people who appeared on Zu Zerun's side were Yu Ding and Aha, members of the Bordered White Banner of the Jurchens. Since both Jurchens and Mongols had appeared, the matter was basically confirmed.

"Lord Gushan, if Turge is defeated, will we still be able to take over the Bordered Red Banner of Buyandai?" Jiala Ezhen Ebutu asked a question that struck at the heart of the matter.

Gadahun paced back and forth with a heavy expression, not uttering a word, but his mind was racing as he pondered the pros and cons and repeatedly considered what the next step should be!
"Let's call on Wu Shoujin and Zu Zerun, those two. We'll take advantage of the Ming dogs' victory and their lack of preparation, and charge out in one fell swoop. Maybe we can break through the front line of defense," Niru Zhangjingbapu also spoke up.

Ebutu, however, questioned, "We've been fighting for three days without making a breakthrough. Do you dare say we can break through this time?"

"So, are we just going to stay here and wait for the Ming dogs from the south to come and attack us?" Bap asked.

When Ebutu saw that Bapu, relying on Gadahun's favor, dared to talk back to him, he was about to teach him a lesson when he saw the curtain lifted and Chujiala Ezhen Sangbu walk in.

As soon as Sangbu entered the commander's tent, he asked, "Lord Gushan, I heard that Turge's Bordered White Banner has been defeated?"

Bapu knew that Gadahun was not in the mood to deal with Sangbu, and he also sensed Ebutu's hostility, so he quickly went up to Sangbu and reported everything.

After listening to Bapu's account, Sangbu pondered for a moment before walking straight to Gadahun and whispering beside him, "Master, if Turge is really defeated, we need to consider our options."

Compared to Ebutu and Bap, Sangbu's thinking was that of a normal person. He seemed to judge that he was also in danger based solely on the fact that Turgh had been defeated.

Gadahun finally stopped. He first glanced at Sangbu, then at Ebutu and Bapu, and suddenly said in a deep voice, "Ebutu, immediately send out scouts to find out the situation and see if we can meet Turge and the others."

Ebutu dared not delay and immediately accepted the order and left.

“Bap, go and stand guard outside the tent. No one, regardless of who they are, may enter my command tent without Ben Gushan’s permission or without being summoned.”

"Yes, sir." "Also... something might happen tonight, so tell the warriors on night watch to be on their guard."

"Whoo."

After Bap left, Sangbu spoke again, saying softly, "Master, even Turg, Yile, and the others couldn't stop the Ming dogs. How can we possibly succeed with our small force?"

Gadahun has been stuck in place for the past few days. Although he has joined forces with Wu Shoujin and Zu Zerun to attack, he has not made any progress. He has long been disheartened, but he has no choice but to persist because of Turge's military orders.

No matter how difficult the battle was, without a military order, the troops could not be withdrawn without authorization. Gadahun was very clear about this and would not voluntarily commit such a heinous crime as confiscation of property and extermination of the clan.

Even now, after hearing the news of Turgh and Il's defeat, he didn't want to make the decision himself. However, neither Ebutu nor Bap understood his thoughts, which is why they paced back and forth in silence.

Now that Sangbu's words were right on his mind, how could he not take them seriously?
"What are your thoughts?" Gadahun asked.

Sangbu immediately replied, "Lord Gadahun, I heard that General Abatai is leading the warriors of our Great Qing Dynasty south. Now, our Tuerge has been defeated, which shows how fierce the Ming dogs are. If we continue to fight like this, I'm afraid the losses will be even greater."

Sangbu's suggestion was...why not head north to meet the general who has been ordered to lead the troops?"

"You mean... escape?"

“Master, we can see the situation clearly right now. We can’t even get through these blatant dogs in front of us, so what’s the point of talking about saving the vinegar factory or saving Buyandai?”

Once Sangbu had started talking, he stopped holding back and continued, "Even the Qing warriors of Turge have been defeated. With our Plain Red Banner forces, plus Wu Shoujin and Zu Zerun's Han Banner troops at most, do you think we can storm into the vinegar village to save Buyandai?"

Gadahun knew perfectly well what was going on, but he still had to put on a show. He said, "But we can't be sure that Turgh has really lost. We can't just abandon him like this."

He returned to his chair and said, "Besides, General Abatai has been ordered to go south, and there has been no news of him since. Even if we wanted to go and meet him, where would we go to do so?"

“How could Tuerge and Yileqi Liyu Ding, the bondservants, have escaped and ended up here? It’s clear they’ve truly been defeated.” Sangbu saw through it all: “The Ming dogs are using the Heavenly Khan’s tricks this time. Surrounding Buyandai without attacking, aren’t they just trying to lure us in and make us suffer a crushing defeat?”

“Master, Ming Gou has played such a big game, he must have calculated every detail. Since he has set a trap at the vinegar shop, he must want to devour us completely. There must be government troops in the north to intercept the General on his orders.”

Gadahun pondered for a moment, then said, "What you said makes some sense. But we can't just abandon Turg like this. Let's wait until we get more accurate information tomorrow before making a decision."

Seeing Gadahun's reaction, Sangbu sighed inwardly, but still said with unwavering determination, "Lord Gadahun, the Ming dogs' ambitions extend beyond Buyandai and Turge. In this life-or-death situation, hesitation is the worst thing you can do."

"We'll discuss this again tomorrow. You can go and rest now." (End of Chapter)