Ming politicians

Huang Taiji's main concern is the deployment of the campaign. The above mentioned so much is just to remind everyone, because these people are the main generals who will lead the army to fight. After all, the most important thing is the pertinence of the campaign deployment.

Over the years of conquests, Huang Taiji believes in one thing, let you come a few ways, I will go all the way, even if the opponent has thousands of troops, I will turn a blind eye, and what I will deal with is one of your many troops. Once you wipe out one army , to win, the opponent will encounter a major impact, and will have to change the combat deployment. At this time, the opportunity will come.

So, no matter how Su Tiancheng arranges, what Huang Taiji cares about is the confrontation between the Manchu Eight Banners and the Han Eight Banners. As for the Mongolian grassland, don’t care about it for now. The grassland needs to be calm now. Once the battle between the Qing Dynasty and the Ming Dynasty is at a stalemate After the state, the Mongolian Eight Banners will be used to deal a major blow to the Ming army.

There are three issues that Huang Taiji needs to determine, and they are also the three most critical issues.

The first question is whether the Ming army's attack this time is a large-scale attack, or whether it is a decisive battle between the Qing Dynasty and Ming Dynasty. The Qing Dynasty needs the overall mobilization of the whole country, and the national movement of the Qing Dynasty is here. A victory in the battle, or a tie with the Ming army, is a victory for the Qing Dynasty.

The second question is whether the main attack direction of the Ming army is Liaodong, and whether there will be any problems here, or the situation of the last grassland conquest, for the Qing Dynasty.It is extremely unfavorable, and may even affect all battles, and it will also cause major omissions in the deployment of the Qing Dynasty.

The third question, the deployment of the Qing army, can only be solved after the first two questions are clarified.The deployment of the Qing army is the most pertinent. Of course, it cannot rely entirely on the analysis of intelligence. No matter what the intelligence is, the defense deployment in the three directions of Liaodong, Shenyang, and Haizhou must in place.

After clarifying these three aspects, it is possible for Huang Taiji to consider the issue of counter-offensive. The counter-offensive must avoid the elite troops of the Ming army.Attack from weak points.

Huang Taiji truly admires Su Tiancheng. Judging from the collected information, Su Tiancheng's arrangements are very good. The three directions of Liaodong, Fuzhou and Datong are all arranged properly. While attacking, he did not forget to defend. , to avoid rear problems.Such a comprehensive deployment and arrangement will cause headaches for opponents.

But the battle is approaching.No matter how comprehensive the deployment and arrangement Su Tiancheng made, Huang Taiji must find out the flaws and weaknesses from it, and launch a large-scale counterattack while the Ming army is attacking.

The discussion process was very intense, and everyone expressed their views.This is also the advantage of the Qing Dynasty. When major matters are involved, everyone thinks about the fate and future of the country. For the time being, no one will think about their own interests. For example, when sending troops to fight.No one thinks that their army has taken on the heaviest task and may cause major sacrifices, etc. Everyone wants to be able to undertake the most difficult task.

This is a fine tradition of the Qing Dynasty, and it is also something that Huang Taiji can be proud of. It is precisely because the Ming army lacks such fighting spirit, pushes each other, and preserves its strength, that it leads to retreat and loses a lot of territory.

Of course, with Su Tiancheng in front of him, the situation has completely changed. This is a dialogue between the strong and the strong. Don't think about the problems in the cooperation between the Jiangning Battalion and the Frontier Army. Su Tiancheng can completely overcome these problems.

On the issue of determining whether this is the general attack of the Ming army, the opinions are basically consistent, but Dai Shan also raised objections. Dai Shan mainly believes that the negotiations between the Qing Dynasty and the Ming court have always been relatively smooth, and the Ming court also believes that The intention of surrendering the Qing Dynasty, but later established the crown prince, the Chongzhen Emperor of the Ming Dynasty, felt that he was being teased, and demanded to attack the Qing Dynasty in a rage. Could this be Su Tian who could appease the Chongzhen Emperor? Angry, the attack launched was actually just a show, because Su Tiancheng was very cautious in conquests. When he was not sure, he would not launch a large-scale conquest, let alone think of a decisive battle with the Qing Dynasty.

The objection raised by Daishan has sparked many discussions. According to the information obtained, the possibility of the Ming army launching a general offensive is very high, and there is almost no doubt. The Battalion, the Liaodong Frontier Army, and the Datong Frontier Army all participated in the battle. With a large army of hundreds of thousands, it is almost impossible to attack on a small scale, and the cost of the large army is huge. Unless the Ming court had too much money and nowhere to spend it, besides, Su Tiancheng used so many troops and spent a huge amount of money, just for putting on airs, and he couldn't explain it himself.

A consensus was formed that the Ming army was launching a general offensive, and Huang Taiji finally decided that this was the Ming army's general offensive. The Qing Dynasty must mobilize the whole country, and the previous tactical arrangements did not waver. .

Matters concerning the main attack direction of the Ming army have caused a lot of controversy.

It is clear that the main attack direction of the army is in Liaodong, but it is precisely because it is too clear and obvious that it arouses suspicion. Fan Wencheng was the first to raise objections.

After a lot of analysis, Fan Wencheng rejected the route of attack from the direction of Mongolia, because the frontier army in Datong had already started to move, and the soldiers of the Xibe tribe and the Daur tribe also cooperated in the action, but the deployment in the direction of the grassland, They are all defensive in nature and did not launch an attack. Besides, launching an attack from the direction of the grassland will take a long distance and cost a lot of money. The Ming army is not particularly used to fighting on the grassland, and if they attack from the grassland, they may have to face the Eight Banners of Mongolia. This is by no means wise. I believe that Su Tiancheng would not make such a choice.

The rest is to attack from the two directions of Liaodong and Haizhou.

The reason Fan Wencheng is most worried about is actually intelligence. Fan Wencheng believes that it is not normal to have obtained too much information from Liaodong. It means that the army is about to launch a large-scale attack. Information must be kept secret. Tang Haitai Even if it is not exposed, it is impossible to obtain a lot of information so easily. Is this information too easy to come by?

Dorgon also raised an objection, thinking that the main attack direction of the Ming army is likely to be carried out on both sides at the same time, that is, from the Liaodong and Haizhou directions at the same time, but there may be differences in the intensity of the attack. Yes, if the Ming army takes Gaizhou, Yaozhou, Haizhou and other places, Guangning and Xipingbao will be in danger. The Jiangning battalion and the Liaodong frontier army can coordinate with each other. Ning and Xipingbao's Manchu Banners and Han Eight Banners.

Daishan and Jierhalang also put forward their opinions, thinking that this defense must be comprehensively balanced, and there can be a little emphasis, but neither of them has a clear position on which direction to focus.

Hauge’s views are somewhat different from those of others. After becoming the crown prince, Hauge’s vision is different, and he considers the issue a little more comprehensively. He believes that the Manchu Eight Banners and the Han Eight Banners can use a combination of defense and offense. Adopt a defensive strategy in the direction of Liaodong, and adopt an offensive strategy in the direction of Fuzhou. The Guanning Jin defense line in Liaodong is extremely strong. It is not very likely to break through this line of defense, but attacking from the direction of Fuzhou, The situation is different. We can wipe out the vitality of the Ming army to the greatest extent. Besides, the Qing Dynasty also has a certain foundation in these places. It is just that in the process of conquest, we must pay attention not to damage the interests of the people too much, so that we can guarantee The attack went well.

During the discussion, Huang Taiji kept silent. There was a map on the table, and the markings on it were very clear. The possible main attack directions and routes of the Ming army were all marked out, including the possible attack directions by waterways. .

The opinions discussed by everyone actually combined the second question and the third question, and they all expressed their own opinions, but no one is sure about the issue of clarifying the key direction of the Ming army's attack, because this question is too It is so important that it may affect the overall deployment of the Manchu Eight Banners and the Han Eight Banners, and if you are not careful, you will lose everything.

After everyone finished speaking, Huang Taiji spoke slowly.

"The main direction of the Ming army's attack is the most critical issue. It must be clarified. As for Liaodong and Haizhou, which are the key attack directions, this possibility is unlikely. Su Tiancheng would not make such an arrangement. He arranged The deployment of the attack must have a focus, and our arrangement is the same. I have said long ago that it is all the focus, so there is no focus. There is only one direction of attack, and we must make a decision in this regard."

"I would like to ask you a few questions. First, is there any problem with the source of the intelligence, that is, is there any abnormality in the intelligence network in the direction of Liaodong, Daming Capital, Anning Fort, and Jingbian? If there is no abnormality, then Don't doubt the accuracy of the intelligence, otherwise all the decisions you make will be untenable."

"Secondly, to launch an attack from the direction of Liaodong or from the direction of Haizhou, which direction is more beneficial for the Ming army's next move, and can directly threaten Shenyang."

"Thirdly, what are Su Tiancheng's combat habits? Is he fully prepared every time, is he not fighting unprepared battles, and is he taking risks?"

"If these aspects are analyzed well, in my opinion, the direction of the Ming army's main attack will be clear."

Huang Taiji finally made a decision. The key defenses of Guangning and Xiping Fort must resist the attack of the Ming army and must not lose the city. At the same time, launch an attack on the Jiangning camp from the direction of Haizhou, using a two-pronged approach. (To be continued..)