The wind rises at the end of the Ming Dynasty

Chapter 403 Cao Wenzhao

No one could have imagined that the Ming army would actually cross the lines of the east and west camps at the foot of Changling Mountain and sneak all the way outside the imperial camp.

So much so that when the alarm sounded, most of the soldiers in the Qing army's imperial camp had not yet recovered from the shock.

On the outer camp wall, the Qing army guards on duty had just raised their bows and arrows.

The next moment, a sharp sound of breaking through the air was heard in the dark night sky, and the locust-like rain of arrows had instantly knocked to the ground the Qing army guards who were about to draw their bows and arrows on the camp wall.

The soldiers who were selected by Cao Wenzhao to raid the Qing army's imperial camp were naturally no ordinary people.

They are all trusted servants under the command of the officers in each camp, the elite among the troops in the Eight Garrisons, and the bravest among the camps in the Nine Frontiers!
The shrill alarm bells rang throughout the Qing army's imperial camp.

After a brief panic, the two yellow flag guards in charge of guarding the imperial camp had reacted.

Tonight, the battle is about to begin, and all soldiers from each camp are on alert for battle, even the guards of the imperial camp are no exception.

During the successive wars, Huang Taiji repeatedly dispatched guards from the imperial camp to various locations for support.

The number of armored soldiers guarding the imperial camp was also reduced from more than 3,000 to just over 2,000.

The endless sound of trumpets echoed in the Qing army's imperial camp.

Accompanied by fierce Manchu voices, teams of fully armed Bayala guards rushed along the road between the tents to the outer camp wall for support.

only……

all of these……

is there time?
The first to lead the troops to arrive was the Grand Secretary Dorji.

Dorji and Dorgon have similar names, but they are not related by blood.

He was originally from the Ulut Mongolian Banner, and later changed to the Manchu Plain Yellow Banner.

In his early years, he followed his father Ming'an to join Nurhaci, was appointed as a defense officer, and was recruited as a son-in-law.

The two yellow flags of Mongolia were responsible for guarding the outer perimeter of the Qing imperial camp, both led by Dorji.

At this time, the outer camp wall to the east of the Imperial Camp had almost been completely occupied by the Ming army.

There were still many guards and armored soldiers on the camp wall who were resisting stubbornly, but they were clearly at a disadvantage in the fight.

The attacking Ming troops looked terrified and fought with completely no regard for their lives, almost exchanging their lives for others.

If you cut me, I will cut you back.

You stab me, I'll stab you back!
Dorji was terrified.

After so many years, I can be said to be a veteran.

But after fighting for so many years, Dorji had never seen a scene like this.

"Kill these ignorant Nikans and take back the camp wall!"

Dorji gritted his teeth, tightly grasped the knife in his hand, and roared.

No matter how frightened he was, Dorji still did not forget that he was on the battlefield.

After a brief lapse of composure, Dorji issued military orders to the guards who followed him without hesitation.

This is where the imperial camp is located, and the Khan is in the center of the camp.

If this daring Ming army were allowed to break into the imperial camp and approach the Khan, he would probably lose ten heads.

Behind him, the guards did not hesitate at all.

The moment Dorji issued the military order, they raised their weapons and swarmed towards the outer camp wall.

The bright yellow waves surged in, and the red tide was not to be outdone.

In an instant, thousands of blood waves were stirred up.

The stench of blood spread throughout the Qing army's camp.

The camp walls were narrow, making it impossible to form a military formation, so the soldiers on both sides could only fight in the form of scattered soldiers.

The Qing army's guards wore two or even three layers of heavy armor, and the Ming army's armored soldiers who attacked the camp were the same, with the worst wearing double layers of heavy armor.

The soldiers on both sides were the absolute elite in their respective armies, and there was no cutting corners in the armor they wore.

Swords and knives are of little use in such a fight and cannot penetrate armor at all.

After a brief encounter, soldiers on both sides picked up spears and blunt weapons.

Spears can penetrate armor to some extent, while blunt weapons can directly injure the enemy, causing them to lose their combat effectiveness.

Dorji had already thrown away his sword and took two hammers from his servants.

A guard soldier was pinned down by the Ming army's armored soldiers.

The Ming army's armored soldier looked crazed, his body covered in blood. He wielded his iron bone hammer and madly hammered the head of the armored soldier who had fallen to the ground.

The helmet, made of fine steel, was constantly deformed under his repeated blows.

The sound of bones cracking continued to be heard, and the wailing of the armored soldier below gradually became weaker.

But soon, the Ming soldier was knocked to the ground again.

A guard of the Qing army took a Shundao, stuck it in the gap under the neck guard, and then pressed down suddenly.

The bright red blood gushed out, instantly dyeing the camp wall red.

Before the Qing army guard's hideous smile had even faded, a pistol had already stabbed straight into his chest.

The spear tip, shining with a cold light, made a harsh steel friction sound when it collided with the armor, and then the middle section of the spear barrel arched slightly, and the steel-tipped spear head smoothly penetrated the armor with the inertia of the impact.

As the night deepens, the cold grows heavier.

On the battlefield, soldiers from both sides kept falling down.

Dorji wiped the blood off his face, his heart filled with fear.

The field of vision was filled with densely packed weapons.

There were corpses everywhere under my feet.

Dorji had never been so frightened and desperate before.

These Ming troops came in an endless stream, and were killed in layers upon layers.

When one falls, another takes his place, as if they are not afraid of death at all.

The armored soldiers following him fell one after another.

Even when he was in Hunhe River and Qingshan Pass, he had never been so frightened.

Dorji stepped back a little and retreated behind his bodyguards. Fighting in heavy armor was extremely exhausting, and he needed some time to catch his breath.

But just when he was being surrounded by people and felt safe, Dorji's heart suddenly tightened.

He had experienced this feeling once before.

That was when he was a child. He wasted time playing and met a pack of wolves on his way back.

The feeling now is exactly the same as when I was being stared at by a pack of wolves.

Dorji's heart was filled with alarm.

Hearing the sharp sound of breaking air beside his ears, Dorji subconsciously turned his body to the side.

It was this action that saved Dorji's life.

Right beside Dorji, a guard soldier was pierced through the body by a tiger spear.

The armored soldier of the guard struggled to grab the long pole on his chest with both hands.

Large mouthfuls of blood gushed out of his throat, making it impossible for him to utter a complete word.

The tiger spear nailed him to the ground. The sharp tiger spear had a huge impact force and pierced through his breastplate without much effort.

Dorji turned his head and looked towards the top of the camp wall.

A flaming red general's flag had already been planted on the wall of the imperial camp.

And right under that tall general's flag.

A warrior with a burly figure and a face as cold as iron was standing solemnly facing the wind.

"Cao Wenzhao!"

Dorji's eyes were bloodshot.

He recognized Cao Wenzhao.

In the seventh year of Chongzhen, the Later Jin attacked the Ming Dynasty and attacked Datong.

Dorji led the central army and fought with Cao Wenzhao.

He won the Battle of Datong.

But the battle right now.

he.

But I’m going to lose…

As the night deepens, the murderous aura grows stronger.

Qing Army Imperial Camp.

On top of the central military observation tower.

Huang Taiji was furious.

"What a bunch of rubbish!" "What a bunch of rubbish!"

Huang Taiji's voice was cold, as if it came from the underworld.

"What do you mean by irresistible?!"

"Explain to me what it means to be irresistible!"

Huang Taiji's eyes were as cold as a steel knife.

"Move, what are you moving?"

"Where is Dorji, where is Buyan, where is Tazhan?!"

How can we retreat in the current situation?

The situation on the front line is now chaotic, and guards from all over the country are still on their way.

As the commander-in-chief and the emperor, how could he retreat at this time?

If we retreat at this time, the guards everywhere will only think that the battle is going unfavorably and that the Ming army has advanced to the imperial court, which will inevitably cause panic.

Once the morale drops, the Ming army will take advantage of the situation and attack the camp, and the situation will completely collapse.

Therefore, he can't retreat no matter what!

Huang Taiji stood still and said in a cold voice.

"The Ming soldiers only have a few hundred men, and the imperial guards have more than 2,000 men. Why can't they resist?!"

Not long after Huang Taiji finished speaking, news came from the front line that answered his previous doubts.

"Lord Dorji has been beheaded by Cao Wenzhao. Lord Buyan and Lord Tazhan have led their troops to help us, but they have also been dispersed. The enemy is heading towards our central army."

Without the scouts' report, Huang Taiji had already seen the Ming army charging towards him.

Huang Taiji's expression became increasingly gloomy, and he was both frightened and angry.

The guards blocking the way have collapsed.

"Warfare is dangerous, your Majesty's life is worth a million gold, please return to the central army tent first."

The two ministers Ebilun and Xihan looked at each other, knelt on the ground, and advised again.

But Huang Taiji rejected their proposal again.

"No need."

Huang Taiji had a cold expression and spoke in an unquestionable tone.

"I am right here, waiting for you to repel the enemy!"

Huang Taiji raised his head and looked towards the southeast. Looking at the flickering flames in the distance, his face became increasingly gloomy.

Seeing that their persuasion was futile, Ebilun and Xihan could only go down from the observation deck and organize people for defense.

But the news that came was worse than the last, with reports of officers dying and troops being routed constantly coming in.

However, as soon as one team of armored soldiers collapsed, another team would immediately take over.

One officer was killed in the battle, and more officers were rushing over with their troops.

The two Qing army camps on the left and right sides of Changling Mountain had also recovered.

Teams of soldiers were galloping down from the foot of Changling Mountain.

On the mountain path, countless dancing torches were like fire dragons, blazing and terrifying...

……

The night is long and the wind is picking up.

The flags are flying and the weapons are sharp.

The air was filled with wailing and the sounds of killing shook the sky.

Cao Wenzhao lowered his head slightly, and sticky blood slowly flowed down the edge of his helmet.

His clothes had long been stained with blood, and his armor was stained with knife and axe cuts, arrow wounds, and gunshot wounds.

The scarlet blood flowed down his clothes and armor.

Cao Wenzhao stood in front of the formation, holding a tiger spear.

The series of fierce battles rapidly consumed his physical strength, and the injuries on his body made him feel increasingly heavy.

Cao Wenzhao was clear-headed. If he was like this, the soldiers who had followed him were probably even worse off.

In front of him, dozens of Qing guards were lying prone.

The so-called guard was Bayala.

During the Old Slave period, the Later Jin Dynasty selected 100 males from each Niulu, and selected 10 White Bayaras, 40 Red Bayaras, and 50 Black Camp soldiers.

Bai Bayala and Hong Bayala are the predecessors of the current Guard Camp.

They are the elite among their respective flags.

After a long war, he gradually became a guard with his military exploits.

But now it fell like garbage at the feet of Cao Wenzhao.

In front of him, a group of Qing Dynasty guards stood holding various weapons, but no one dared to step forward.

Cao Wenzhao's expression was indifferent. He raised his hand and slowly wiped the blood stain from his wrist with the robe.

The atmosphere on the battlefield was extremely strange.

A Niulu Zhangjing finally couldn't stand this kind of atmosphere anymore. He roared, stepped out of the crowd, and thrust his tiger spear straight at Cao Wenzhao.

Without any fancy skills, Cao Wenzhao just took a step forward, and a cold light bloomed in front of everyone's eyes.

The tiger spear in Cao Wenzhao's hand had already pierced through the throat guard on Niulu Zhangjing's neck.

Yin Hong's blood flowed down the tiger spear in Cao Wenzhao's hand.

However, the tiger spear that Niulu Zhangjing thrust forward landed slightly to the right of Cao Wenzhao's throat guard.

In a flash, victory or defeat was decided, life or death was determined.

Cao Wenzhao raised his head, looked past the heavy armor in front of him, and stared at the central military observation tower of the imperial camp not far away.

At this moment, he was only thirty steps away from the observation deck.

He could already see the Manchu and Mongolian ministers who were confused by his arrival.

Cao Wenzhao drew out his tiger spear again and stared at the motionless figure standing under the big banner.

The distance of thirty steps is not long, and it only takes a person a few breaths to walk across it.

But the distance of thirty steps now seems like an insurmountable chasm.

After all, he was not made of iron. After fighting for so long, his physical strength had already been consumed to the limit, and he was only relying on his willpower to hold on.

"kill!"

The fierce Manchu language sounded again, and the cold light appeared in front of Cao Wenzhao's eyes again.

More Qing troops swarmed in from the periphery again...

……

Blood flowed down the edge of the helmet and into Cao Wenzhao's eyes.

Everything in front of his eyes went dark and bloodshot.

Cao Wenzhao leaned his tiger spear on the ground and tried his best to support his body.

The blood had stained his armor red.

A heavy weariness invaded his consciousness.

Cao Wenzhao could feel the strength in his body draining away bit by bit.

The torrent of the times carries the fate of individuals.

The fate that is swept away by the times can only rise and fall with the times.