The Red Chamber begins with a bastard

Chapter 623 The Old Cat Burns His Whiskers
The lights on the top of Ningyuan City were bright, as bright as day. The drawbridge outside the east gate was lowered, and the triumphant Guanning Cavalry rode into the city amid the thunderous cheers and eager gazes of their comrades.

"Haha, it feels so good, it's really fucking good!" Although Tiehu and others who took off their armor with the help of auxiliary soldiers were sweating all over and were too tired to even stand steadily, they were still very excited and kept saying it felt so good.

At this moment, someone suddenly shouted, "The military commander and the general are here."

The cavalry boys who had just taken off their armor were resting on the spot, but they immediately jumped up again, standing tall, like javelins waiting to be inspected, with their sharp edges exposed!
At this time, Jia Huan and General Zu Tianshou came over, surrounded by other generals. They glanced at the cavalrymen with admiration, and suddenly jumped to a high place and shouted, "Brothers, you did a great job in the battle tonight. It was magnificent! I am proud of you. Everyone will be rewarded with two taels of silver, and the merits will be counted separately. Victory!"

"Ten thousand victory! Ten thousand victory! Ten thousand victory!" The cavalrymen raised their arms and shouted, smiling happily, with pride on their faces.

Obviously, after this night's battle, the Guanning Iron Cavalry had gained confidence and courage. Not only that, the Jin army on the top of the city witnessed the Guanning Iron Cavalry crushing the Jurchen cavalry like a landslide, and they were also greatly shocked. It turned out that the powerful Jurchen cavalry could be so vulnerable? It turned out that the invincible Jurchen cavalry could be slaughtered like chopping melons and vegetables?

There is a saying: Only those who dare to fight can fight. Sometimes, confidence and courage are more valuable than gold. After years of continuous defeats, the precious confidence and courage of the Jin army have been beaten away. But tonight, the Jin army began to regain confidence and courage!

Therefore, tonight's battle is of great significance, and it is also the battle that made the Guanning Iron Cavalry famous. From now on, those guys in the court can no longer attack the Guanning Iron Cavalry for their flashy ideas, because the real record is there - they killed more than a thousand Jurchen cavalry in the battle, but their own losses were very minor, almost negligible.

Next, Jia Huan gave some passionate encouragement, which made the soldiers present excited, and then he ordered everyone to go down and rest.

Tiehu walked up to Jia Huan and said with regret, "Nurhaci's camp was almost undefended. I almost rushed in, but unfortunately the enemy commander reacted quickly and immediately formed a shield-cart formation to block the way. Otherwise, I would have rushed the enemy camp to pieces."

Wu Sangui also said with great regret: "Nurhaci was obviously careless tonight. I'm afraid this kind of opportunity will never come again."

Indeed, Nurhaci was careless, or rather, he was too proud. Over the years, he had always been the victorious side in his battles against the Jin army. The Jin army was afraid of him like a tiger and could only hide in the city to live in peace. Unexpectedly, today he met Jia Huan, a young and inexperienced man who was not only unafraid of the tiger, but also dared to go out of the city to stroke the tiger's whiskers and even stab the tiger's anus.

So, Nurhaci was really overconfident this time. He was confident that the Jin army would not dare to go out of the city for a fight, so his camp was almost undefended, with no trenches and even no giant horses with antlers. If Dorgon had not responded properly, his 130,000-strong army would have been crushed by the 3,000 cavalry.

…………

Nurhaci forced himself to retreat ten miles away despite his injuries before he dared to order to set up camp. Thinking that he had fought on the battlefield for decades, but tonight he suffered a great loss at the hands of a young boy, he couldn't help but get so angry that he vomited two mouthfuls of blood.

This frightened Dorgon and his men. Ajige said, "Father Khan is seriously injured. It is better to withdraw the troops to Jinzhou City first, and then come to Ningyuan to avenge the loss of his life after he has recovered."

Nurhaci was not going to swallow this insult, his face darkened and he said: "I have fought countless battles in my life and have won every battle. Now I can't even take a small city like Ningyuan. This really makes me angry. If I return in defeat, wouldn't I be laughed at by the world? I'm afraid that the Khalkha, Khorbi and Korea will no longer fear me! You must gather your troops immediately. I must capture Ningyuan and take off the head of Jia Huan's son to relieve my hatred!" "But what about your injury, father Khan?" Dorgon said worriedly.

Nurhaci slapped his chest and said sternly: "I have fought on the battlefield for decades and have suffered countless injuries. This injury is nothing. Stop being fussy and acting like a child!"

Dorgon and his men had no choice but to regroup the troops and prepare for battle. Fortunately, although they suffered a terrible defeat tonight, they were not seriously injured, and the main force was intact, so they still had the strength to fight again.

As for Sun Chengzong, the governor of Liaodong, after receiving the news that Nurhaci's army had crossed the Liaohe River and entered Jinzhou a few days ago, he immediately sent three groups of troops to rescue Ningyuan.

The first group of troops had about 20,000 soldiers, led by Ma Shilong, the general of Qiantun; the second group of troops also had 20,000 soldiers, led by Jiang Yingzhao, the general of Shanhaiguan; the third group of troops was led by Yan Mingtai, the military supervisor, also with 20,000 soldiers. The total strength of the three groups was 60,000.

Let's say that the general of the front garrison, Ma Shilong, led the first group of troops and horses and stopped fifty miles west of Ningyuan City. Why? Of course, they were afraid!

Nurhaci was a famous figure who had defeated the Jin army in recent years, killing hundreds of thousands of soldiers, and had already robbed the Jin army of their courage. Now Nurhaci personally led an army of 130,000 to attack Ningyuan, claiming to have 300,000 soldiers. How could Ma Shilong not be afraid?

If it was a battle to defend the city, it would be better. Wouldn't fighting in the field be like sending oneself to death? Ma Shilong naturally didn't want to die, so he stopped fifty miles away from Ningyuan City. On the one hand, he sent spies to inquire about the news, and on the other hand, he waited for the other two reinforcements to arrive and join forces, and then discussed how to rescue Ningyuan.

This move sounds cautious, but in fact it is cowardice. If Ningyuan cannot withstand the attack of Nurhaci's army, I believe that General Ma will immediately run away and flee back to Shanhaiguan.

However, Ma Shilong soon received news from the scouts that Ningyuan City not only resisted the attack of the Jiannu army, but also bombarded the enemy camp at night and used cavalry to launch a surprise attack, killing more than a thousand enemy cavalry in one fell swoop, forcing Nurhaci to retreat ten miles.

Ma Shilong couldn't help but feel surprised and happy, and a little jealous. Jia Huan was such an awesome kid that he actually defeated Nurhaci, who was like a god of war. He was probably going to be promoted even more. Damn, could this kid really be a monster?

At that moment, Ma Shilong no longer hesitated and immediately ordered the army to march out. They arrived outside Ningyuan City at noon on the second day. On the third day, Jiang Yingzhao and Yan Mingtai also arrived with 20,000 people respectively. As a result, the military strength of Ningyuan City suddenly increased to more than 80,000.

Sun Chengzong, the governor of Liaodong, personally led 70,000 troops to Shanhaiguan in the rear, ready to provide support at any time.

Just like this, a decisive battle concerning the fate of the Great Jin Dynasty was about to break out. The eyes of the entire court, civil and military officials, and even the people of the whole country, were all looking eastward. Including Emperor Qiansheng, he was restless day and night, anxiously waiting for news from the Ningyuan front. The news that was rushed to the capital at a speed of 800 miles every day flew to Emperor Qiansheng's desk like snowflakes.

(End of this chapter)