Desert Eagle Suletan Khan

"When the Wei army attacks us, don't you feel the worry of being in danger? If you are willing to send troops to help, I am willing to return the land of Jingyue to you." Looking at the piece of brocade sent by Li Laiheng, Prince of Jiangling of the Ming Dynasty, Tunqi, the General of the Northern Expedition of the Qing Dynasty and Prince of Qingyang in the mansion of Prince of Qingyang in Changsha, exclaimed sincerely, "Li Laiheng is really a character! When the Wei army is at the gate of the city, he is not only not panicking, but also thinking of asking us to help him rescue."

"Your Highness, the Kuidong bandits have no faith and loyalty. Even if we send troops to help them, I'm afraid they won't return Jingzhou and Yuezhou after the war." General Fu Ertai was full of disdain for Li Laiheng's words. The scene of Kuidong breaking faith and taking advantage of the battle between the Qing army and the Wei army to seize Jingzhou and Yuezhou not long ago was still before our eyes. If it weren't for the Kuidong army's interference, the Qing might have driven the Wei army out of Huguang. How could such bandits be trusted?
"I know what you said, but Li Laiheng is absolutely right when he said, 'If one tooth is lost, the other will be cold.' If we allow the Wei army to destroy Kuidong, the next target of the Wei state will be us. What's more, the Wei army is besieging Shaanxi, and the emperor is in danger. As ministers of the country, we should share the emperor's worries. Make good preparations and send troops to attack Baling tomorrow. Jingzhou and Yuezhou were lost in my hands, and I should recover them," Tunqi said firmly.

"Yes!" Seeing that the coach had made up his mind, Fultai had no choice but to say yes respectfully.

On January 1667, , the Qing general and the Prince of Qingyang, Tunqi, agreed to the request of Li Laiheng, the Prince of Jiangling, and led troops to seize Yuezhou. He first captured Pingjiang and Mufu Mountain, and then headed straight for Baling and Tongcheng. Upon hearing that the Qing army was heading north, Qin Wang Chuo Siji had to abandon his plan to cross Dongting Lake from Baling to Jiangling to join his brother, and led his troops to Baling and Tongcheng to confront the Qing army. In order to prevent his brother from blaming him, the young prince wrote a long letter to express his difficulties.

After receiving his brother's letter, King Melas of Qi was in a dilemma. The original plan was to attack Kuidong from three directions. The Xi Rimo route in the south was restricted by the difficult Shu Road and had just arrived in Fengjie. The route of his sixth brother in the east encountered the Qing army heading north, leaving him alone to attack Jiangling. Facing the main force of the Kuidong army, the troops were inevitably insufficient. Should he fight or not? If he fought, his troops were not as strong as the Ming army; if he didn't fight, it would inevitably damage morale.

"Your Highness, as the commander-in-chief, was ordered to march south. If you avoid a strong opponent, what His Majesty will think? Moreover, there were three routes to attack the Ming Dynasty, but the other two did not arrive in time. Only Your Highness bravely moved forward. Doesn't it mean that God will give the credit for destroying the Ming Dynasty to Your Highness alone?" Seeing that he was hesitant and wanted to retreat, his trusted adviser Chen Hongzhu encouraged him.

This aroused Melas's ambition, and he said vigorously: "Sir, you are right. Jiangling is right in front of us, and there is no reason to give up halfway. Even if the enemy is more numerous and we are fewer, I will meet that little tiger!"
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"Your Highness, the Wei army has captured Yidu and Zhijiang, and is attacking Shangbailizhou in Songzi. The Earl of Xinhua is leading his troops to defend Songzi. The situation is critical, and we have received three emergency letters in succession," General Wu Zhiqi respectfully reported to King Jiangling Li Laiheng.

Li Laiheng frowned and fell into deep thought. He had just returned to Jiangling with his army when he received unfavorable news. The southern guards invaded Kuizhou and cut off the connection between Kuidong and Shaanxi; the eastern guards occupied Baling and were about to cross Dongting Lake to join the northern guards. Fortunately, he persuaded the Qing army in Huguang to go north and pinned down this group of troops; but the northern guards were too aggressive. After taking Yiling, they successively conquered Yidu and Zhijiang counties, and headed straight for Songzi, the last pass to enter Jiangling. The upper Bailizhou of Songzi and the lower Bailizhou of Jiangling (later generations were connected due to siltation and the circumference exceeded 100 miles, so they were collectively called Bailizhou. At this time, the upper and lower Bailizhou were still separate) are both islands in the middle of the Yangtze River (Yangtze River), and are also important fortresses guarding the Yangtze River. The tomb of King Huai of Chu is on the island, and the battle of floating bridges between Wei and Wu during the Three Kingdoms period was also here. It can be called the gateway to Jiangling. The Wei army has already fought to hundreds of miles away from the island. How can we not be worried?

"Your Highness, please make a decision whether to fight or retreat," said Yidu Hou Ta Tianbao anxiously. Yidu County was his fiefdom, and now it was occupied by the guards, how could he not be anxious?
"Haha, I killed 26 members of the Weiguo envoys with the original intention of provoking the false king's anger and luring him to advance alone. Now the Southern Guard Army is being held back in Fengjie, and the Eastern Guard Army is fighting fiercely with the Qing army in Baling. It is a good opportunity to concentrate our forces to defeat the false king. There is nothing much to say. You should return to the camp and make good preparations. Tomorrow you will rush to Songzi with me to fight a decisive battle with the enemy," Li Laiheng ended his silence and gave a serious order.

"Your Highness is wise. You lured the fake King of Qi to go deep into the enemy's territory alone. Even though the fake King is extremely cruel, he is no match for Your Highness~" All the generals flattered him in unison, believing that the enemy had fallen into a trap and that they had a sure win. Li Laiheng smiled and asked them to return to the camp and prepare for battle. After everyone left, he took out a letter from his sleeve and his expression became serious.

The letter was written by the Qi King Melas of Wei State, and the content was to persuade the surrender: "The Qi King of the Wei State wrote to His Excellency the Jiangling King of the Ming State: When I was in the north, I knew that there was no one better than you in the Ming State. In the past, the Qing barbarians invaded the capital, destroyed the tombs of the Ming Dynasty and destroyed the clothing of the Han people. You alone occupied Kuidong and continued the Ming Dynasty. You can be called a hero! I, the Great Khan of Lotus, raised an army in the west of the desert and allowed all ethnic groups to dress independently. This was not only to avenge the Mongols, but also to avenge the Han people. Now I am preparing the Pixiu, What a blessing it is to have a hunting party in Kuidong! The holy ruler cherishes talents, and I admire you, so I write to you to show the virtue of our court. The rise and fall of the world has its own destiny. The Qing Dynasty, with all its might, could not stop David's attack. Isn't it foolish for you to use Kuidong to stop a big country? If you raise an army and surrender, the court will treat you as a guest of Yu and rank you among the kings. Your Highness is resolute and decisive, and will be able to make choices calmly. The safety of Kuidong depends on this move. We appreciate each other and I will not express my feelings in this letter."

Regardless of whether the letter was well written or not, the key point is that the date on the signature was "February 1667, the th year of Qianyuan ()", which was after he killed members of the Weiguo envoys and sent their heads to the pseudo-King of Qi. But the pseudo-King of Qi did not mention this matter at all in the letter, but kept praising him. This beast is really kind and forbearing! Killing the envoys and sending their heads to show the Kuidong army and people his determination to never surrender, and also to anger the pseudo-King and lure him to go deep into the country. Unexpectedly, this beast persuaded him to surrender in a gentle manner as if nothing had happened. Would such a person really be angered by a few heads? But if he was not angry, what did he rely on to dare to go deep into the country alone?
Li Laiheng felt that the fake King of Qi had not fallen into the trap. He must have something to rely on if he dared to lead his army deep into the enemy's territory. Either he thought that the Wei army was strong and could defeat the enemy with fewer troops, or that there were reinforcements. He stared at the map carefully, and when his eyes swept to Zhongxiang, he suddenly shouted, "Is the fake King waiting for Hu Maozhen and Yang Laijia's troops in Zhongxiang to join him? We must defeat them as soon as possible before the enemy reinforcements arrive!"

No matter what the other party's plan is, the letter still has to be returned. After thinking for a moment, King Jiangling wrote quickly: "King Li Laiheng of the Great Ming Dynasty presents this letter to His Royal Highness the King of David with tears and blood: Your Highness is wrong to praise me. You said that there is no one better than me in the Ming Dynasty. I am ashamed and guilty. The great China, with its glorious history, is there no lack of benevolent and ambitious people? Haven't you seen Guan Yu, Zhang Gongqi, and Yue Fei? In the national crisis of this dynasty, there are endless people who died bravely. Even if there were the Ten Days of Yangzhou and the Three Massacres of Jiading, what is there to fear? Although I am stupid, I also have the ambition to serve my country. I will only forge a soul with my blood and paint. Your Highness calls himself a hero, but why don't you lure me with false words? Let's go hunting in Jiangling? I have already pledged my loyalty to the country. I dare not hear anything else. I hope Your Highness will take it as a witness." (End of this chapter)