Desert Eagle Suletan Khan

Maolushan was finally conquered, but it was a tragic victory. There were only 10,000 poorly equipped Kuidong troops on the mountain. The Wei army lost 5,000 men in the battle to attack the mountain. In comparison, the attack on Fang County, which had 50,000 soldiers stationed, only resulted in 2,000 casualties. This made Melas a little unhappy.

"Your Highness, our army has captured a total of 2,000 enemy soldiers and about 20,000 people from Xingshan County. Some of these people surrendered after running out of food, and some were captured by our army, but they all support the Kuidong bandits in their hearts. Should we cut off the roots?" General Zhong Jida asked the King of Qi viciously. He suffered a great loss in the last sneak attack by the Kuidong army, and he wanted to massacre the prisoners in revenge.

"Ten thousand enemy troops only captured two thousand prisoners of war when they ran out of ammunition and food? The Kuidong Army can be said to be very brave! If it weren't for the poor equipment and insufficient food, I'm afraid I still haven't captured this mountain!" Melas affirmed the enemy's bravery, then sighed and said: "God is merciful, how can the twenty thousand civilians be innocent? Even those two thousand prisoners of war were warriors, and it is unlucky to slaughter warriors. Release the civilians and send them back to their hometowns. As for the prisoners of war, give them land and settle them near Xingshan County."

He wanted to follow the previous rules and use these two thousand prisoners of war as cannon fodder for the siege, but Li Laiheng's subordinates were very loyal to him, and he was worried that they would turn against him on the battlefield, so he simply gave them land and made them civilians. It is said that the Han people regard land as their lifeblood, and as long as they have a few acres of thin land, they will never rebel. This is just the right way to use these prisoners of war to shake the morale of the Kuidong Army. In order to disintegrate the morale of the Kuidong Army, he took many measures, such as ordering the captured Ming Dynasty royal family Dong'an King Zhu Shengqian and Tongshan King Zhu Yunqian to write letters to the generals of the Kuidong Army at all levels to persuade them to surrender. However, the influence of these two princes was far less than that of the regent Han King Zhu Jingli. Zhu Jingli's unwillingness to be humiliated and hanged himself to die for his country greatly inspired the patriotism of the Kuidong soldiers, so not many were willing to surrender after receiving the letter of persuasion. Melas didn't care. Human nature is to seek benefits and avoid harm. He firmly believed that as the situation on the battlefield changed, more and more people would surrender to him. This is the confidence of the strong.

"Report! The pseudo-Duke of Wan, Duke of Jing, and Marquis of Fuping have joined forces and sent 40,000 troops via Wushan, and have now entered the territory of Xingshan." While they were discussing the resettlement of prisoners of war and civilians, a battle report suddenly arrived.

It turned out that the many canyons downstream of Guizhou, such as Baigou Gorge, Magan Gorge, Huangniu Gorge, and Xiling Gorge, were all dangerous places with beautiful peaks, steep cliffs, winding rivers, and turbulent rivers. The river surface became wide and relatively easy to cross near Nanjinkou, the exit of Xiling Gorge. Wei Asu Housaihan ordered the general Ma Jinyu to guard Nanjinkou, a place that must be fought for by military strategists. Even if the Ming army tried its best, it would be difficult to cross it for a while. After the two sides were deadlocked for more than two months, Liu Tichun discussed with Yuan Zongdi and He Daoning and simply took a detour to Wushan and entered Xingshan from the Ming army's control area. This delayed them for some time. When they arrived, Liu Rukui's troops who were defending Maolushan had been annihilated.

"Your Highness, our army has just finished a great battle. The soldiers are exhausted, the troops have not been replenished, and the fortifications on Maolushan Mountain were severely damaged in the battle. It would be better to temporarily abandon Maolushan Mountain, withdraw to the east bank of Xiangxi, defend Xingshan City, and recall General Saihan before fighting a big battle with the Ming army," suggested the trusted adviser Chen Hongzhu.

Melas knew that Chen Hongzhu's words were a foolproof plan. His 40,000 troops lost 5,000 in the attack on Maolu Mountain, and they would inevitably be exhausted after a long period of continuous fighting. It would be more likely to win if he chose to avoid the limelight and wait until he met with Asu Husaihan in Guizhou before fighting the Ming army. However, the arrogant blood of the Ikmin'an clan flowing in his body made him refuse the idea of ​​retreating to Xingshan City. He looked at the generals and said, "Since the southern expedition, our army has been invincible. The enemy trembles when they see David's flag. Now someone wants to take advantage of our fatigue to stroke our tiger whiskers. Warriors, can you still fight? Warriors, should we retreat like sheep?"

"Fight to the death~Fight to the death~Fight to the death~" The generals of David's country roared in unison, and the roar shook the felt tents.

"Good! This is my David's good man! Go back to camp and discipline your men to prepare for tomorrow's battle," Melas ordered majestically, "Tell Saihan to lead his troops from Guizhou to Maolu Mountain immediately. Guizhou is very close to Maolu Mountain, and it can be reached in two days by rapid march. I will give him three days. If he does not arrive after three days, he will be subject to military law!"
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On the third day of December in the twenty-third year of Qianyuan (1666), the Ming and Wei armies fought at Maolu Mountain. The two sides fought fiercely in Gaojizhai, Lijiadian, Baicheng, Baiyang Mountain, Liancheng Mountain, Shuanglongguan, Changping and other forts, and fought repeatedly without a clear winner.

At dawn on the sixth day of December, the main forces of the Ming and Wei armies lined up at the foot of Jiulianping Mountain for a fierce battle. At noon, Asu Housaihan arrived with more than 17,000 Wei troops and attacked the Ming army's flank. Saihan fought fiercely, personally leading more than 4,000 cavalry as the vanguard, and rushed towards Liu Tichun's central army. Liu Tichun was caught off guard and retreated repeatedly. Seeing the central army's flag retreating, the morale of the Ming army suddenly wavered. Melas took the opportunity to order the entire army to attack. The Wei army rushed in formation with a roar, and the sound of "Haorui" could be heard everywhere. The Ming army was defeated and corpses floated for hundreds of miles.

Liu Tichun, Yuan Zongdi, and He Daoning led the remaining troops to retreat to Badong. Before they could catch their breath, Mailas sent Asu Hussein to attack Badong. Although the Ming army still had more than 20,000 people at this time, the army had lost its morale and collapsed again. The three generals had no choice but to retreat to Wushan. They thought that Wushan City was built on the mountain and the terrain was steep, which could stop the pursuers. But the guards did not chase them. Mailas was determined to encircle and annihilate the main force of the Kuidong Army and the army of Jiangling King Li Laiheng, and was not interested in the remaining soldiers who fled to Wushan. After capturing Badong, he ordered the troops of Datong Deputy General Zheng Guoyin to garrison Badong and the troops of Zhumalu Deputy General Li Yingming to garrison Xingshan, and he led 45,000 troops down the river to Jiangling.
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After a series of victories, the morale of the guards was high and they soon approached Yiling Prefecture. The one guarding Yiling Prefecture was Jiang Shangying, the governor of Huguang in the Ming Dynasty, and his 2,000 soldiers. Jiang Shangying was originally the governor of Huguang appointed by Emperor Yongli, but after the death of Emperor Yongli, he defected to Li Laiheng.

Seeing the Wei army approaching, Jiang Shangying stamped his feet anxiously. There were only 2,000 miscellaneous soldiers in Yiling City. How could they defeat tens of thousands of Wei army? He wanted to escape, but he was afraid of Li Laiheng's military law. Everyone knew that King Jiangling was very strict in managing his army. He wanted to ask for help from the Jiangling garrison, but distant water could not quench thirst. While he was worrying, he suddenly thought of the letters he had received from King Dong'an and King Tongshan. Well, now the two vassal kings of the Ming Dynasty have advised him to surrender to the Wei. He was originally a minister of the Ming Dynasty, and it seemed that surrendering by the king's order was not a violation of his integrity. Thinking of this, Governor Jiang no longer hesitated and sent an envoy to the camp of King Qi Mailas to ask for surrender.

"Go back and tell Mr. Jiang that if he is willing to surrender, I will recommend him as the Earl of Yiling." Hearing that Jiang Shangying was willing to surrender, Melas was overjoyed and promised him the title of Earl in one breath. He was not interested in the two thousand weak soldiers under Governor Jiang, but his title as Governor. After witnessing the bravery of the Kuidong Army in the Battle of Maolushan, the prince was still frightened and decided to use both combat and inducement to surrender to disintegrate the Ming army. Jiang Shangying was the horse bone he used to buy for a thousand gold coins.

Seeing the fishing pole and fishing flag planted on the top of the Yilingzhou city wall, Qi Wang Meilas was in high spirits and proudly ordered to continue down the river to Jiangling the next morning. (End of this chapter)