Chongzhen revived the Ming Dynasty

The war in Liaodong is progressing rapidly.

Having learned his lesson once, Huang Taiji did not stand idly by while the Ming army built the fortress.

Despite the internal turmoil, he led the two yellow banners, two white banners, and two red banners out in full force, leaving only the two blue banners to guard against Ming troops from other directions.

He even ignored the Khorchin's pleas for help. His plan was to defeat one Ming force before going to rescue the Khorchin.

This was Nurhaci's old trick: "No matter how many routes you take, I will only go one way," relying on his familiarity with Liaodong and taking advantage of the terrain.

Within three days, the two White Flags, acting as the vanguard, arrived in the Niuzhuang area.

Niuzhuang is located west of Haizhou City, backed by the Taizi River and bordered by the Haicheng River to the east.

The Taizi River is a tributary of the Hun River. Legend has it that Prince Dan of Yan fled here, hence the name Taizi River.

Starting from Niuzhuang, one can easily access the sea via the Taizi River and the Hun River, making navigation very convenient. The Ming Dynasty once established the Niuzhuang Post Station here.

The recovery strategies proposed by Sun Chengzong, Sun Guozhen, and others all mentioned the recapture of Haizhou and Niuzhuang, and the re-establishment of garrisons there.

The vanguard of the Guan Ning Army was dispatched with the mission of establishing Niuzhuang Fortress. Similar to the establishment of the Dalinghe defense line, they were tasked with building the Haicheng defense line.

After the Haicheng defense line is established, the Ming army will move north along the Hun River and Taizi River to recover the Liaoyang area.

They then captured Shenyang and completely annihilated the Jurchens.

This is a strategy of defense as offense, and it is also Sun Chengzong's strategy of building fortifications and advancing.

With Dalinghe Fortress and Gaizhou City already completed, Haizhou and Niuzhuang are the next key areas to focus on.

Zhao Shuaijiao's task was to build Niuzhuang Fort and establish the Haicheng defense line.

If the Jurchens do not send troops, then they will continue northward after completing their defensive line.

If the Jurchens send troops, the Guan-Ning Army will seek a decisive battle with them.

After Man Gui led the Dongping army to a great victory over the Jurchens and was promoted to Marquis of Dongping by the imperial court, the generals in Liaodong were in high spirits and wanted to achieve such a feat.

Having dealt with Man Gui before, they figured that even if their servants were slightly inferior, they wouldn't be much weaker.

If Man Gui could completely defeat the Jurchens with his personal guards, so could they.
-
Zhao Shuaijiao, in particular, had a long-standing feud with Man Gui and was the most resentful of Man Gui.

After conducting numerous exercises and gaining a clear understanding of the Jurchen's fighting strength, he began planning a decisive battle against them.

Upon learning that Dorgon and Dodo had arrived with the two White Banners, he was so overjoyed he almost burst out laughing:

"Two white flags?"

"Wasn't the Bordered White Banner already crippled by Man Gui?"

"They still dare to fight!"

Disdainful of him, Zhao Shuaijiao immediately gave the order:

"All troops, let's meet those two white flags!"

He ordered his 10,000 troops to be dispatched to see if they could eliminate the two white flags.

According to the imperial court's estimate, the two white banners now consist of only thirty Niru, with approximately nine thousand soldiers.

His 10,000 soldiers were all elites selected from Shanhaiguan, and were in no way inferior to the Two White Banners.

The generals present shared the same view and were all eager to achieve the same feats as the Dongping Army.

However, some people felt this was inappropriate. One young player said:
"General, the commander-in-chief's order is to build a fort, but I believe we should guard the camp carefully."

"We will wait for the main army to arrive before engaging the Jurchens in a decisive battle."

Zhao Shuaijiao was displeased upon hearing this and rebuked him:

"who are you?"

"Do they also have the authority to command?"

"The commander-in-chief has given me full command of the vanguard battle. How dare you, a mere junior officer, speak so presumptuously!"

The young man repeatedly said he dared not, then gave his name and continued to persuade him:

"This humble general, Tong Hanbang, though merely a guerrilla commander, knows the dangers and perils of war."

"The general bears the heavy responsibility of being the vanguard and must not take unnecessary risks."

They strongly advised Zhao Shuaijiao against launching a risky attack.

Zhao Shuaijiao was even more displeased and angrily rebuked Tong Hanbang for disrupting the morale of the army.

Other generals eager to earn merit also accused Tong Hanbang of being cowardly and afraid of trouble. As the vanguard, they were tasked with probing the enemy. Most of the generals present agreed on taking the initiative to attack.

With the support of these people, Zhao Shuaijiao naturally had more confidence.

He selected nine thousand men to go out, leaving only one thousand to guard the temporary camp and protect the logistical supplies.

Pointing at Tong Hanbang, he said:
"You shall remain with your troops and not leave the camp without my orders."

"Open your eyes wide and watch carefully as I demonstrate how to defeat the enemy!"

He led the other officers and guerrillas, each with their selected elite troops, and marched out into battle in a grand procession.

No matter how worried Tong Hanbang was, he couldn't stop them now. He could only lead his own 1,000 men to reorganize the camp's defenses.
-
In the distance, the Jurchens, who had been observing the camp from afar, were taken aback when they saw the Ming army emerging from the camp.

Clearly, none of them expected the Ming army to launch a preemptive attack. In the past, when the Eight Banners troops were mobilized, almost no Ming soldiers dared to take the initiative to fight.

After the initial shock came anger, and Dordor roared:

"Do the Ming army really underestimate our two white flags?"

"Does the general on the other side think he's Man Gui?"

Enraged, he was about to send troops to engage in a head-on battle with the Ming army.

But Dorgon stopped him, pointing to a large banner with the character "Zhao" in the distance and saying:
"Among the Ming army generals surnamed Zhao, the one with the highest rank was Zhao Lüjiao."

"He's most likely the one on the other side. I heard he doesn't get along with Man Gui, so we can use that to our advantage."

He turned to Ajige beside him and said:
"Raise your banner and lure Zhao Shuaijiao over!"

The intention was to use the competition between Zhao Lüjiao and Man Gui to lure Zhao Lüjiao into launching an attack.

Upon hearing this, Ajige was immediately shocked and furious.

Last year, after his troops were decimated by Man Gui's musket formation, he managed to gather only a little over a thousand elite soldiers from fifteen of his own regiments, plus bondservants and servants, totaling three thousand men.

Unexpectedly, Dorgon made him play as a striker, or rather, as bait.

With his straightforward personality, he didn't hold back and shouted:

"Dorgon, it's bad enough that you've taken my banner chiefship, but now you want me to die."

"There are ten thousand men on the other side, and you want me to lead a thousand soldiers into battle?"

He cursed Dorgon for sending him to his death, disregarding brotherhood.

Dorgon, upon hearing his insults, showed no anger whatsoever; instead, he laughed heartily.
"If even you think this way, the other side will be even more dismissive."

"As long as you lure the Ming army out, this will be your chance to avenge your family."

He whispered something in Azig's ear, instructing him on how to act.

Ajige's expression changed several times upon hearing this, but in the end he trusted his brother and led his men into battle.
-
On the opposite side, Zhao Shuaijiao saw Ajige's banner and laughed as well:
"I thought Man Gui really crippled the Bordered White Banner, but it turns out it was just boasting."

"Let's see how he tries to explain himself after I get Ajige's head!"

He led his servants and charged forward, heading straight for Ajige.

This man almost died at the hands of Man Gui, and Man Gui treated the heads of his subordinates as a merit.

If it is found that Ajige's forces are still very strong, then it means that Man Gui is just boasting.

However, after the fight, Zhao Shuaijiao quickly realized that Man Gui was not just boasting.

Only a portion of Ajige's men were considered elite; the rest couldn't even ride horses properly and were originally just bondservants who farmed the land.

These people were naturally not strong enough, unlike Zhao Shuaijiao's subordinates, who were all the best of the best.

Before long, Ajige's three thousand men showed signs of defeat, and Ajige himself fled in panic.

Zhao Shuaijiao was overjoyed at this sight and, without hesitation, led his servants in pursuit. He planned to drive these men into the two white-flag army formations ahead and achieve a great victory.

But what he didn't expect was that the military formation that Dorgon and Dodo had set up in front was just a bluff. They had their elite archers dismount and lie in ambush on the side.

Zhao Shuaijiao hadn't gone far when a hail of arrows suddenly rained down. He was extremely unlucky and was struck by an arrow, dying in battle.

Upon seeing this, Ajige, who was fleeing, laughed wildly and turned his horse around. Zhao ordered his servants to fight desperately and escape back with the corpses.

The rest of the Ming army was completely unprepared for this turn of events, and in their shock, the entire army fell into chaos.

Dorgon then led his army in a surprise attack. If many of his cavalry had not dismounted, few Ming soldiers would have been able to escape.

Ultimately, with Tong Hanbang's help, approximately three thousand Ming soldiers escaped back to their temporary camp. (End of Chapter)