The Red Chamber begins with a bastard

Chapter 614: Military and Civilians Are Excited
The Jurchens lived in the extremely cold northeast. In the beginning, they mainly made a living by hunting. Later, they gradually switched to half farming and half hunting. The harsh and cold living environment not only forged the Jurchens' strong physique and character, but also trained them to have excellent riding and archery skills. Therefore, the Jurchens did not need to train deliberately. As long as they grew up smoothly, they could eventually become qualified warriors.

Therefore, the strength of the Jurchen cavalry is not accidental. They can ride on horseback as fast as the wind and walk on flat ground. They can also shoot bows left and right while galloping on horseback and never miss a shot. Therefore, in terms of riding and archery skills alone, the Han cavalry will never be able to surpass the Jurchens in their entire lives. After all, they have been fighting on horseback since birth. It is obviously impossible to catch up with them after training for a few months, years, or even more than ten years.

Fortunately, the Han people have other skill points added to their skills. They are dexterous and know how to use tools to make up for their own shortcomings, such as muskets!

Yuetuo naturally knew about muskets, and he was even familiar with the musket materials used by the Jin army. So when facing the row of black muskets of the Jin army, he was not afraid at all.

Because he knew that although the matchlock guns used by the Jin army made a scary sound, their actual effective range was not as good as that of bows and arrows. Moreover, loading ammunition was very troublesome. As long as they could withstand one or two rounds and rush to the front of the formation, the Jurchen cavalry would be slaughtered one-sidedly.

At this time, the cavalry on both sides were about three hundred meters apart. It only took fifty meters for the Jurchen cavalry led by Yuetuo to fully speed up. The roaring iron hooves shook the earth. Yuetuo could clearly discern a hint of fear in the eyes of the Jin cavalry on the opposite side. There was even a brief commotion in the Jin army's formation!

Upon seeing this, Yue Tuo couldn't help but reveal a grim smile. Based on his years of experience fighting against the Jin army, he knew that once the two sides came into close combat, the Jin cavalry would definitely collapse at the first touch.

In just a breath, the two armies were less than two hundred meters apart, but the Jin cavalry on the opposite side had not yet launched a charge. Were they stupid?

The two armies were 150 meters apart, but the Jin cavalry still did not move. Yue Tuo could not help but feel ecstatic. Either the other side was scared silly, or the general in charge was a rookie who knew nothing. Because at such a close distance, if the cavalry did not start the charge, they would never have another chance to start.

The advantage of cavalry lies in its fast horses and sharp swords. A stationary cavalry facing another cavalry charging at high speed is like a lamb waiting to be slaughtered.

Seeing that the distance between the two armies had narrowed to about 100 meters, Yuetuo was about to order his troops to raise their bows and shoot arrows, letting the Jin army have a taste of the Jurchen cavalry's unparalleled riding and archery skills. However, the Jin army on the opposite side opened fire first.

bang bang bang...

The gunshots rang out like popping beans. Yue Tuo was slightly startled, and then sneered with disdain, because as far as he knew, the lethality of the Jin army's matchlock guns was within fifty meters, and now the distance between the two sides was one hundred meters, and they could not hurt their side at all. It seemed that the general of the Jin army was indeed an outsider, haha...

However, the next second, Yuetuo felt a sharp pain in his abdomen, and immediately fell on the horse's back with a groan. The Jurchen cavalry around him were also shot one after another, and fell down in large numbers like wheat being harvested.

You have to know that the Jurchen cavalry was galloping at high speed. The rider in front fell down, and the riders behind were unable to stop and crashed into him, causing the horses and men to fall to the ground in chaos.

"Impossible, the Jin army's matchlock rifles can't shoot that far!" This thought flashed through Yue Tuo's mind as he was thrown off his horse's back.

Indeed, the effective killing range of the Jin army's original matchlock guns was only fifty meters, but at this moment, the Jin army on the opposite side was holding the latest flintlock guns, with rifling ground inside the barrels and the most efficient powder ratio, which doubled its effective range to more than one hundred meters.

In addition, the rifling can also make the bullet rotate at high speed when it leaves the barrel, which enhances stability, greatly increasing not only the range but also the accuracy. It can be said that Yue Tuo and others were unlucky, becoming the first batch of experimental subjects for the actual combat of rifled guns in the Jin Dynasty, and dozens of riders were harvested in one wave.

Although the opposing Jin army knew that these new flintlock rifles had a strong range, they had never used them in actual combat and were not sure of their effectiveness, so they were very nervous and worried at the beginning. But when they saw the fierce Jurchen cavalry falling one after another, they were all excited. The fifty musketeers in the front row immediately reloaded their ammunition, while the two hundred and fifty cavalrymen in the back swarmed out and took the opportunity to launch a counterattack.

"Kill!" The Jin cavalry increased their speed and rushed towards the Jurchen cavalry, whose formation had been disrupted, like a tide.

Boom boom...

The two cavalry units engaged in close combat, instantly stirring up a torrent of blood, with broken limbs and arms flying everywhere. Wu Sangui and Xing Wei personally led the team to charge left and right, killing until the sky was dark and the sun and moon were invisible.

The two sides fought fiercely for half an hour, and both suffered heavy casualties. At this time, Tiehu, Tieniu and Mangui also arrived with their men. With the addition of these three fierce generals, the originally stalemate battlefield was quickly decided. In the end, only more than ten Jurchen cavalrymen escaped, and the rest were either captured or killed!

In this battle, the Jin army won a great victory!!!
When Jia Huan and Zu Tianshou arrived, the battle was over and everyone was cleaning up the battlefield.

"Greetings, Lord Bingbei, Lord General!" All the soldiers dismounted and lined up to salute. The new recruits raised their heads proudly, their backs straight, and their spirits and demeanor completely changed.

Jia Huan and Zu Tianshou were very happy to see this. The army fought with a single breath. After this battle, not only did these new soldiers gain courage, but the appearance of the Ningyuan defenders would also change dramatically. Since the defeat at Sarhu four or five years ago, the Jin army had never won a field battle against the Jurchen cavalry. The morale was extremely low, and it could even be said that they had developed a psychological shadow, to the point where they would change color at the mention of the Jurchen cavalry. However, today, the Jin cavalry almost wiped out 300 Jurchen cavalry in a field battle, which undoubtedly gave the Jin army a shot in the arm and greatly boosted morale!
"Thank you for your hard work, soldiers. May you win!" Jia Huan clenched his fist and raised his arms, shouting.

"Ten thousand victories! Ten thousand victories!" All the soldiers raised their arms and shouted loudly, their voices reaching the sky and their morale was unprecedentedly high.

Man Gui led his men to bring more than 20 captured cavalrymen in front of Jia Huan and said murderously: "What should we do with these bastards? Please let the commander decide! Oh, by the way, there is a big fish here." After that, he picked up Yue Tuo.

Niulu Ezhen Yuetuo was shot in the lower abdomen. Although he was wearing leather armor, the lead bullet pierced through his abdomen. At this moment, his lower abdomen was bleeding and his face was pale due to excessive blood loss. However, this guy was tough. Although he was listless, he stared at Jia Huan with fierce eyes.

"What's your name? What's your official position?" Zu Tianshou asked loudly.

Yue Tuo snorted coldly to show his disdain, and spat a mouthful of thick, bloody phlegm at Zu Tianshou. Fortunately, the latter reacted quickly and dodged to the side.

"Looking for death!" Zu Tianshou's face turned pale.

Yue Tuo made another gurgling sound in his throat and tried to spit at Jia Huan, but Man Gui rushed in and punched him in the mouth, leaving his mouth full of blood, his lips burst, and two of his front teeth lost.

Jia Huan said coldly: "Chop him off!"

Man Gui immediately threw Yue Tuo to the ground, stepped on his back, drew out his sword and swung it, and the head rolled off, blood splattering several feet away.

About half an hour later, Wu Sangui reported the results of the battle. In this battle, a total of 252 heads were beheaded, including one Niulu Ezhen, and 24 other people were captured. 218 war horses were captured. It was truly a great victory.

However, the Jin army also suffered heavy losses, with more than 200 people killed, including more than 80 cavalrymen, an almost one-to-one casualty ratio. This was an ambush with more troops against fewer. If it had been a head-on confrontation from the beginning, the Jin army's losses would have been far more than this. It can be seen that the combat effectiveness of the Jurchen cavalry was indeed strong.

Of course, the Jin army gained actual combat training in this battle, which greatly enhanced their self-confidence. They believe that their combat power will have a qualitative leap. When new firearms are equipped in large quantities, in the near future, the Jin army will have the strength to confront the Jurchen army head-on.

Next, Jia Huan ordered a reward for the three armies, and built a Jingguan with the heads of the Jurchens. He also held a sacrificial ceremony outside the city of Ningyuan to commemorate the people who were brutally slaughtered and the soldiers who died.

For a time, the soldiers and civilians of Ningyuan City were all excited and morale was high. Jia Huan's reputation naturally rose to a higher level, and the Mongolian tribes north of the Great Wall were all afraid.

Last winter, Jia Huan led his men to attack a small tribe under the Chaohua tribe and took away all the cattle, sheep and women. The Chaohua tribe was planning to retaliate against Ningyuan City recently, but when the bloody Jingguan outside Ningyuan City appeared, the Chaohua tribe, which was ready to move, immediately stopped. This additional deterrent effect was unexpected by Jia Huan.

…………

In Jinzhou City, Dorgon learned that Yuetuo was ambushed outside Ningyuan City and almost all of his troops were wiped out, with only a dozen riders escaping. He was shocked and angry, stamping his feet and cursing: "Yuetuo, this idiot didn't listen to me, he deserves death!"

Dorgon was so angry that he smashed a wine glass and a wine pot, and planned to send troops to take revenge. But then he thought that his father Khan was attacking the Khalkha tribe of Mongolia, and Ligdan Khan of the Chahar tribe was eyeing them covetously. It was not appropriate to start another war with the Jin army at this time.

After weighing the options again and again, Dorgon finally gave up his plan of revenge and gritted his teeth and said, "Forget it. The situation is not right now. Be patient for now. When my father Khan has dealt with Khalkha, I will free up my hands to attack Ningyuan. Jia Huan, you wait for me. I will settle this account with you sooner or later."

Jia Huan thought that Dorgon would be furious and retaliate for the loss of 300 cavalrymen, so he was on high alert. However, after waiting for several days, there was no movement. He was secretly surprised and sent out scouts to inquire around. He learned that Nurhaci was fighting against the Mongolian tribes in the north. Only then did he roughly guess the reason why Dorgon was so patient.

However, Jia Huan did not relax his vigilance because of this. On the contrary, Dorgon's calmness showed that he was not easy to deal with, so Jia Huan worked harder to build city defenses and train soldiers in preparation for war.

Because Jia Huan knew that once Nurhaci had time and made up his mind to use military force against Ningyuan, the pressure Ningyuan City would face would be overwhelming. He must take advantage of this precious window of opportunity to build Ningyuan City into an iron wall and make the Guanning (Shanhaiguan-Ningyuan) defense line unbreakable.

(End of this chapter)