I am Emperor Wanli

Chapter 421 Offensive and defensive changes
"Report!"

The loud shouts from afar broke the silence. Under the gazes of tens of thousands of people, a Ming Antu whipped his mount and ran to Altan Khan in the dust. He dismounted, half-knelt on one knee on the ground, and reported loudly.

"Report! 30,000 Ming infantry and 30,000 cavalry from the Eastern Sixth Wing of Mongolia have gathered at Sanbulachuan (Erenhot), led by Qi Jiguang, and are heading southwest."

Everyone was surprised. Sanbulachuan was less than 400 miles northeast of Datong, and 60,000 cavalry and infantry would arrive in a few days. It was even closer to the Yongxiebu and Tumed tribe pastures.

The troops of 30,000 households on the right wing are now all gathered at the Datong border. The Yongshebu and Tumed tribes are left alone. If they are cut off from their retreat and their lair is directly destroyed by the Ming army, they will suffer a great loss.

When the news spread, leaders of all tribes looked at each other in bewilderment, worrying their hearts out.

The soldiers under his command were all talking about it and were in panic.

When Altan Khan heard this, he knew that he had fallen into the trap set by the Crown Prince of the Ming Dynasty.

He wanted to slap the Ming Dynasty in the face and force it to sign a humiliating treaty, but he didn't expect that the Ming Dynasty's crown prince would take advantage of the situation and slap him in the face, making it swollen.

A lifetime of fame is ruined in an instant!

His eyes turned black, his heart ached, he let out a scream, and fell off his horse.

Everyone exclaimed: "Great Khan!"

They all dismounted and lifted him up.

In the midst of the chaos, Bosihaer rolled his eyes, raised his hand and shouted, "The Khan has suddenly contracted a serious illness and is in poor health. Please withdraw your troops to Daqing Mountain! The Yongxiebu and Ordos tribes, return to your bases!"

Nalin Taiji and other Taiji Nayan all echoed: "Yes! The Khan is ill, withdraw the troops immediately!"

The response was like thunder, and all the troops turned their horses around and retreated northward.

Especially those in the rear team, when they heard the order, they turned their horses around and ran away without saying a word, fearing that if they were too late, their homes would be robbed by the Ming army.

In less than an hour, the place was empty, with only traces of countless horses' hooves trampling back and forth left.

Xue Yi looked at the backs of tens of thousands of Tumed cavalry retreating northward in panic, sneered a few times, and felt endless pride and passion in his heart.

The offensive and defensive positions of the Ming Dynasty and Mongolia changed from then on!

Back at Zhengguan Fort, the gate tower and city walls were a sea of ​​cheers. Thousands of soldiers raised their arms high and shouted loudly, venting their excitement and joy.

They don't understand the principle of changing the offensive and defensive situations, they just feel particularly relieved and proud.

In the past, the northern barbarians were arrogant and would often come to the border to provoke trouble, trample on the farmland and pastures of the military garrisons outside the border, destroy crops, rob cattle and sheep, and abduct people.

The officers and soldiers at the border could only close the borders and swallow their anger.

It was not until the 43rd year of the Jiajing reign that Hu Bingbu took charge of the three borders and the situation gradually reversed. However, today's situation is the first time that such a situation has been encountered.

Looking at the cheering soldiers, Wang Chonggu roughly understood the Crown Prince's deployment.

He took advantage of the situation and gave Altan Khan a hard slap in the face.

To this end, he made many preparations. First, he strengthened the vigilance on the three borders of Datong and Xuanfu in Shanxi and waited carefully.

At the same time, Qi Jiguang mobilized the infantry in Luanhe River, which was good at dealing with cavalry, and then recruited the cavalry from the six eastern wings. The army was reorganized and marched westward to threaten Altan Khan from the rear wing.

Altan Khan was a powerful ruler in the south of the desert. He could weigh the pros and cons in his mind and was not as reckless as Xinai and Tumen Khan. He saw that things were impossible to do and was ruthless.

Maybe he just pretended to faint to give himself and everyone else a way out.

Although the two armies did not formally engage in battle this time, the swordplay was more dangerous than a real battle. If there was any accident, it would be a bloody battle.

Wang Chonggu turned to Ma Fang and said, "Master Ma, we have all been deceived by Altan Khan."

"Why did Wang Duxian say that?"

"Have you ever heard of a legend?"

"What legend?"

"Legend has it that Altan Khan won every battle because he was blessed by the Eternal Heaven."

Ma Fang nodded and replied, "I have heard of this legend as well. But later the Intelligence Bureau found out that before Altan Khan went on an expedition, he would go to the Wengguan Sacred Mountain to pray to the Eternal Heaven and ask for divination. He would only go on the expedition after receiving an oracle from the gods."

Wang Chonggu asked, "Yes! Did Altan Khan go to the sacred Wengguan Mountain during this trip south?"

"I don't know." Ma Fang shook her head and suddenly remembered, "Minister Wang must know."

"Yes, Wang Taihan must know. He must also know other habits of Altan Khan, some of his habits before going on an expedition, but we didn't notice them, but the Intelligence Bureau should have collected them through secret spies.

Uncle Ma, Xue Yi went to visit Mrs. Wang the night he entered the city." Ma Fang understood immediately.

Xue Yi was confirming whether Altan Khan went to the sacred mountain of Wengguan to offer sacrifices to the sky, as well as other customs before going to war.

Every general had his own habits when going to war. For example, he must put seven copper coins from the Hongwu period in his purse.

Xue Lin would always paint his helmet with cinnabar before going to war.

Qi Jiguang must copy a poem.

It's all for the sake of peace of mind, secretly praying for victory and a safe return.

Altan Khan must have had it too.

Through the clues in the relevant reports, His Royal Highness discovered these habits of Altan Khan that he himself might not have noticed, and realized that Altan Khan was actually bluffing. Then he made this plan and asked Xue Yi to go to Datong to confirm with Wang Daokun that Altan Khan had not made up his mind to go to war before carrying out this risky plan.

Unexpectedly, it was a great success and without firing a single shot, the authority of Altan Khan was shattered.

Wang Chonggu figured this out. Looking at the excited soldiers around him, he sighed, "Master Ma, I suddenly feel old. Really old."

Ma Fang chuckled and said in high spirits: "After today's battle, I feel like I am 20 years younger and have endless energy. I didn't have any thoughts before, but today is different. I have decided to confer the title of Lanxi Earl to Lanxi Marquis!"

When the news from Zhengguanbao reached Yulin City, Huo Ji immediately gave the urgent report to Qiejin and Bahanaji.

"This time it was His Royal Highness the Crown Prince who did his best to protect your two families. You must remember His Royal Highness's kindness in the future."

Qiejin knelt down, and Hannaji knelt down as well. They kowtowed three times respectfully toward the east, and then turned to Huo Ji and kowtowed again.

"Your Highness, I will repay the grace of heaven with my life and sacrifice my life for the country. I dare to ask you to be my adoptive father and take the surname Huo. Please help me!"

Bahananji said: "Me too!"

During this period, Huo Ji really liked Qie, who was both intelligent and brave, and the brave Han Naji also loved his straightforwardness, so he went with the flow and responded: "If so, it is also an honor for this old man."

"Thank you, foster father! Please give us two names."

Huo Ji thought for a moment, "You two have entered Ming from Jingbian, and you will be called Huo Jing, with the courtesy name..."

"Zhongming! Foster father, please give me the name Zhongming!"

"Okay, you will be called Huo Jing, with the courtesy name Zhongming. And Han Naji, you will be called Huo Bian, with the courtesy name Jingbian."

"Good!" The two of them said happily, and kowtowed again and said, "I am Huo Jing/Huo Bian, and I pay my respects to my foster father!"

Huo Ji stroked his beard and laughed!
When the news from Zhenganbao was passed back to the capital, Xu Wei immediately reported it to Zhu Yijun with the Tangbao.

"Has Altan Khan been bedridden since his return?"

"Yes, Your Highness. He was so angry that he vomited blood. But he still has enough strength to control the 30,000 households on the right wing."

"That means he is not in danger of death. He is in good health. This didn't make him die." Zhu Yijun immediately sent an order, "Send an order to Qi Jiguang, and have his troops conduct drills at Sanbula River to practice the coordination of cavalry and infantry, and how to fight cavalry. Then carve a stone on the line of Sanbula River to clearly mark the east-west boundary of the desert south.

Then each unit returned to its garrison, and the cavalry and infantry drawn from Shaanxi, Gansu, and Shanxi returned one by one to defend the city.

Wei Xuezeng was given the title of Minister of War and transferred to the post of Governor-General of Pingliao, in charge of military and political affairs in Northeast China, while Li Chengliang and Xiao Wenkui remained in their original positions. Huo Ji was given the title of Minister of War and transferred to the post of Governor-General of Zhili, in charge of the defense of the three borders of Shanxi, Datong, Xuanda and Datong.

Cao Bang was appointed as the Minister of War and the Governor of the three border military affairs of Shaanxi, Ningxia and Gansu, and was stationed in Lanzhou.

Xu Wei's heart moved, "Your Highness, our army's next step is Qinghai?"

"Strike him while he's weak! This time, Altan Khan has been severely slapped in the face. I'm sure that in the next two or three years, the Mongolian right wing will be in turmoil, and his life will definitely be difficult.

We will start from Qinghai, clean up the Qinghai Tumed tribe entrenched in Qinghai Lake, and then subdue the old Tubo tribe, recover the Dogansi Xuanweisi, and cut off Altan Khan's wings. "

"Your Highness is wise!"

"Tan Lun was transferred back to the capital and took charge of the Ministry of War. He was appointed as the military supervisor of the Ministry of Supervision. Wang Chonggu"

Zhu Yijun pondered for a while, "Mr. Huang from the Ministry of Justice is ill and has repeatedly submitted petitions to resign and return home. I summon Mr. Wang back to the capital to serve as the Minister of Justice."

"As you command."

Zhu Yijun went over the things he needed to do in his mind and made sure nothing was left out. Just as he was about to ask Xu Wei to leave, he suddenly thought of something.

"Mr. Wenchang, I haven't heard from Mr. Gangfeng for a long time. Where did he go on his incognito visit?"

Xu Wei was stunned for a moment. I know where Aldan Khan is, but I really don’t know where Hai Rui is.

(End of this chapter)