Desert Eagle Suletan Khan

Throughout history, few have fought to the death in war; many have merely observed. This observation was a means to avoid direct involvement before the situation became clear, thus protecting oneself. If one side gained a significant advantage, most observers would surrender to the winning side, further escalating the shift in the balance of power. King Chuo Siji of Qin faced a similar situation. Before his campaign, the Great Khan of Lotus had given him 150,000 troops. The successive battles to conquer Jiangnan had not diminished his army; on the contrary, the influx of surrendered soldiers and generals had increased it to over 200,000. The young prince, full of vigor, prepared to continue south and conquer Zhejiang. The Jiangxi region was a fertile land of China. For one thing, the confiscation of the wealth of pro-Wu officials and large salt merchants during the capture of Yangzhou, along with the bribes received from salt merchants, provided the Kingdom of Wei with a staggering 13 million taels of silver for military expenses. More importantly, controlling the salt industry of Lianghuai meant a continuous source of revenue for the Kingdom of Wei, significantly enhancing its war potential. It was precisely because he witnessed the prosperity of Jiangnan that he wanted to take control of Zhejiang, another important source of money and grain.

"Above is heaven, below are Suzhou and Hangzhou." Now that Suzhou is in his hands, Chosiji also wants to visit Hangzhou. Indeed, with a strong army and ample supplies, when is a better time to continue south and seize Zhejiang? So, he assembled an army of 200,000 in Wujiang County, Suzhou Prefecture, sharpening his swords, ready to march south along the Grand Canal to Jiaxing and Huzhou, and then directly attack Qiantang (the capital of Hangzhou Prefecture). Having half Ming imperial blood, he was deeply influenced by Han culture from childhood. After deploying the battle plan, he exclaimed to his generals, "I have heard since childhood that the south is rich in resources and beautiful in scenery. Hangzhou's Longjing tea, Shaoxing's yellow wine, Huzhou's writing brushes and zongzi are all top-notch. A few days ago, I was so busy with the battle that I only stayed briefly in Yangzhou and Suzhou before leaving. Now that I have conquered Zhejiang, I want to visit West Lake!"

"This old minister also has this wish, but for generals who are constantly on the move, after conquering Zhejiang, I'm afraid the Great Khan will issue another decree ordering us to continue our advance into Jiangxi. Let alone visiting West Lake, I'm afraid even getting a good night's sleep will be difficult," replied Xi Rimo, the deputy general in charge of the Eastern Expedition, with a smile. He was a veteran and senior minister of the Great Wei Kingdom, which is why he dared to make such a joke.

"I was just joking around for fun. I guess the Fairy of West Lake is out of my reach! Hahaha~" Chosiji laughed heartily. He understood the hidden advice in the Oirat Wolf's joke: You are the commander-in-chief of the entire army. If you go sightseeing, it will inevitably cause unrest in the army. It is better to stay in the camp.

"Hahaha~" All the generals burst into laughter.

The speaker may have been unintentional, but the listener took it to heart. After returning to his camp, Xuan Youcai, the general of Jizhou, immediately summoned his trusted confidant and instructed him: "On this trip south to Zhejiang, be sure to bring back plenty of Hangzhou Longjing tea, Shaoxing rice wine, Huzhou writing brushes, and zongzi for this town. This town intends to present them to His Highness Prince Qin."
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Before the main army could even set out, the Great Khan of Lianhua, far away in Huguang, sent another urgent message by fast horse. Chosiji opened his father's letter and read it; it was different from what he had expected. His father first praised his son's military achievements, then instructed him to slow the advance, and after capturing Jiaxing Prefecture, to station himself in Chongde. He was not to rush forward, but instead to send an envoy to Hangzhou to force the Zhejiang Governor, Jiang Guozhu, to surrender. The Great Khan's reason for this was that he had previously sent an envoy to persuade Jiang Guozhu to surrender. Governor Jiang had been very polite to the envoy, saying that he had long intended to submit to the Celestial Empire, but due to the distance between Anhui and Jiangsu, he could not immediately submit. He promised to wait until the imperial army arrived in Zhejiang, at which point he would mobilize the entire province to join him. The wise and shrewd Khan naturally knew that this was nothing but a duplicity, but now that he knew the Eastern Route Army had taken all of Jiangnan (Southern Zhili), he figured that Jiang Guozhu wouldn't dare to defy the imperial army. Thus, he conceived the idea of ​​forcing Jiang Guozhu to surrender. In a letter to his son, he wrote triumphantly: "...With my unstoppable momentum, I doubt Jiang Guozhu would dare disobey... If he surrenders, we can use the troops from Zhejiang as the vanguard to advance westward into Jiangxi and attack Wu Sangui's flank..."

After reading the letter, Chosiji secretly thought that his father, the Khan, was a shrewd businessman. He wanted to subdue the enemy without fighting, reducing his own casualties, and also use the surrendered troops as vanguards to fight for him, thereby strengthening his own power. It was truly a risk-free and highly profitable deal! He couldn't disobey the emperor's command, so what else could he say? He then led his army to attack Jiaxing. Leading the vanguard were none other than General Chen Wenda, Deputy General Liu Bangzhu, and Assistant General Niyaha, all former subordinates of the surrendered Liu Zhiyuan. Although the court had dismissed Liu Zhiyuan from his post, the positions of his generals and two sons remained unchanged. Appointing them as vanguards was also intended to allow them to achieve military merit and prove their loyalty.

Chen Wenda, Liu Bangzhu, Niyaha, and others were eager to establish themselves in the new dynasty by making military achievements, and they led 20,000 troops at a rapid pace. However, making merit was not an easy task. Not far from Jiaxing, Zhao Yue, the general of Jiaxing, and his deputy Zhao Po surrendered with 7,000 men. Zhao Yue and Zhao Po were brothers, both sons of Zhao Guozuo, the former governor of Zhejiang. Zhao Guozuo's father, Zhao Yihe, had surrendered to the Qing in 1634 and was awarded the title of Third-Class Jiala Zhangjing (Light Cavalry Captain) for his meritorious service. He himself was extremely loyal to the Qing Dynasty and had repeatedly made military achievements. Wu Sangui, fearing that he would affect his plans to become emperor, used various means to remove Zhao Guozuo from his position as governor of Zhejiang on the grounds of old age and old illness. To appease him, he appointed his son, Zhao Yue, as general.

The Zhao brothers naturally knew that their father had been ousted by Wu Sangui, and they were unwilling to die for the Great Zhou. Upon hearing that the Wei army was marching south, they sent men out of the city to surrender. Surrender meant there was no merit to be gained, so Chen Wenda and the others had no choice but to accept it with grim faces. According to the original plan, they stationed themselves in Chongde County, Jiaxing Prefecture, to await the Qin King's army.

Jiaxing, a strategically important city in Zhejiang, fell into his hands without a single battle. While Chosiji was overjoyed, he also felt somewhat bored. Following his father's wishes, he stationed his troops in Chongde and then sent envoys to Hangzhou to persuade them to surrender. However, to everyone's amusement and dismay, the deputy general Mahada, stationed in Huzhou, also surrendered with 5,000 men. Mahada was a Manchu, and after the fall of the Qing Dynasty, he had become a rootless man, only wanting to make a living and having no intention of dying for the Great Zhou. Seeing that the Zhao brothers of Jiaxing had surrendered, he readily became a guard.

Upon hearing that Huzhou had also surrendered, Chosiji laughed heartily and said to Xirimo, "I originally intended to carry out my father Khan's order to station troops in Chongde, but unexpectedly, Jiaxing and Huzhou have both fallen to me without firing a single arrow. It is clear that the Zhejiang army has no will to resist. In that case, let's be even bolder. I will lead my troops to take Haining, and you can lead your troops to garrison in the new town of Huzhou. This way, we can better threaten Hangzhou, and I believe that scoundrel Jiang Guozhu will not dare not surrender."

Xirimo thought for a moment and said, "The Khan's intention is for us to garrison Chongde. If Jiang Guozhu refuses to surrender and we continue to attack, wouldn't that go against His Majesty's will?" "A general in the field may disobey the emperor's orders. You just carry them out. If Father Khan blames me, I will bear the responsibility," said Chosiji, who, though young, was very responsible.

Upon hearing this, Xi Rimo led an army of 70,000 to Huzhou, stationing it in Xinshi Town, Deqing County. This location, situated between the Grand Canal and the Tiaoxi River, offered no further major rivers as obstacles, allowing direct access to Qiantang, the capital of Hangzhou Prefecture. Meanwhile, Zhuo Siji led an army of over 140,000 to Haining, with his vanguard consisting of the newly surrendered Jiaxing General Zhao Yue and 11,000 troops under Huzhou Deputy General Mahada.

The Battle of Haining was the only battle fought by the Wei army after entering Zhejiang. Defending Haining was a force of 12,000 elite troops under Liu Guoyu, a trusted lieutenant of the Zhejiang governor Jiang Guozhu. Liu Guoyu had previously followed Jiang Guozhu in defeating Zheng Chenggong, and his troops were quite formidable. At the outset of the battle, they defeated the forces of Zhao Yue and Mahada, and Zhao Yue's younger brother, Zhao Po, was also killed in battle. Upon hearing the news, His Highness the Prince of Qin was enraged and personally led a large army to attack the city. The disparity in strength between over 100,000 Wei troops and a small city was simply too great. After holding out for seven days, Haining fell, and Liu Guoyu committed suicide.
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"Your Excellency, the Imperial Guard is pressing in on our borders. We are outnumbered and outgunned. You must come up with a plan," Liu Tongchun, the deputy commander of the city's garrison, said anxiously to Governor Jiang Guozhu inside Hangzhou.

Jiang Guozhu sighed, “Back then, when the rebels attacked Nanjing, I and the other generals fought desperately and barely managed to win. I thought that with such a great achievement, the Qing Dynasty would surely reward us, but unexpectedly, not only did we receive no reward, but they also investigated my crime of losing Zhenjiang, dismissed me from my post and confiscated my property. Although I was later reinstated, it was a near-death experience. Why? In the eyes of the barbarians, we Han generals are all slaves, and it is difficult to trust us. This is true of the Qing Dynasty, and it is also true of the Wei Kingdom. It is precisely because of this that I decided to be loyal to the Great Zhou. The King of Zhou (referring to Wu Sangui) is, after all, a Han Chinese.”

"You mean to hold Hangzhou and fight the Wei army to the death?" Liu Tongchun was startled. "But even a fierce general like Admiral Liang has been killed in action, and Governors Lang, Qu, and Han have surrendered to the Wei. Now, Jiaxing and Huzhou have also surrendered without a fight. The Wei army has split into two routes, one stationed in Xinshi Town to cut off our throat, and the other attacking Haining to threaten our flank. Our army only has tens of thousands of troops in total. How can we resist?"

"You misunderstand. I didn't mean to try to stop a chariot with my bare hands. I was just expressing my feelings!" Jiang Guozhu sighed. The incident of being held accountable even after winning a battle had dealt him a heavy blow, and he had long lost his edge, only wanting to live a good life.

"Report! Haining has fallen, and Vice Commander Liu has been killed in action!" Just as we were talking, the guards brought another chilling piece of news.

"What!" Jiang Guozhu was shocked. Liu Guoyu was his confidant, and his troops were the elite of the Hangzhou garrison. How could they have lost Haining City so quickly? After a long while, he calmed down and said listlessly, "Immediately send someone to the Wei army camp to tell His Highness Prince Qin that I am willing to offer Hangzhou City to the Wei Kingdom."

After Jiang Guozhu surrendered, to reassure the people, Prince Qin, Zhuosiji, informed the Great Khan of Lianhua that Jiang Guozhu would retain his position as Governor of Zhejiang, and the other surrendered generals would also retain their posts. This news triggered a wave of surrenders, with Li Rong, the General of Wenzhou, Ma Yinyang, the Deputy General of Ningbo, Sun Jiayin, the Deputy General of Quzhou, Shi Tiaosheng, the Military Commander of Jinhua, and Jiang Maoxun, the Military Commander of Chuzhou, among others, coming to surrender. For a time, the Eastern Route Army's momentum surged. Zhuosiji ordered Jiang Guozhu, Li Rong, Jiang Maoxun, and other surrendered generals to lead over 30,000 troops to garrison Zhejiang, while he himself led an army of 230,000 from Quzhou into Jiangxi. (End of Chapter)