Guangzong Yaoming

Chapter 326 The fateful moment

To the east of Zhaiershan Fort, south of Hulutao, the military order from the Privy Council arrived.

Li Chengliang looked very serious.

After a long silence, he said to Zhang Weixian, "Young Master, pass the order down and prepare the army for war. It will only take a few days."

Zhang Weixian now just felt excited. In his opinion, since he was following Li Chengliang and since it was planned by His Majesty and the Privy Council, and now it has indeed come to this step, how could he fail?
Delivered to your mouth!
But Li Chengliang didn't see it that way.

During the long time he stays in the gourd, the latest military intelligence will also be sent to him.

Li Chengliang has his own judgment, but he is old and will not say anything nonsense.

The soldiers of the Beijing camp hidden here began to prepare for the battle, and Li Chengliang silently looked at the sea.

It was a long time later that he asked someone to call Tang Guda over.

"…My Lord."

Tang Guda was still very nervous. He looked at Li Chengliang's back and bowed respectfully.

"Have you ever thought about what will happen to you after being arranged here by Nurhaci?"

"I..." He hesitated, and covered up with fear, "The battlefield is dangerous, but I can't care about it. At least I can't lose face for Jianzhou and be worse than my elder brother and second brother."

Li Chengliang turned around and looked at him, then smiled knowingly: "Are you not afraid of death?"

"We dare not," Tang Gudai replied, and then added, "No matter where the Marquis wants us to fight, we dare not let down our father's trust or bring trouble to the court."

"You are not cut out to lead troops into battle."

Li Chengliang suddenly said this, and Tang Guda looked up at him in surprise.

"You are cautious in what you say and do, and you are the kind of person who will fight for power in the future. But Jianzhou now has to speak with fists, so Nurhaci is willing to abandon you."

"My Lord, I don't understand..."

"You are pretending not to understand." Li Chengliang turned around again and continued to look at the sea, then said with a sigh, "Nurhaci should accept the kindness of the court. Although it was to suppress Yehe, I have helped you Jianzhou to some extent, and now I will help you again."

Tang Guda didn't dare to breathe and his heart was beating wildly.

Seeing that Li Chengliang was here and that he was guarding the 3,000 people from Jianzhou here, Tang Guda had already felt like he was in a sea of ​​fire and swords, but he could not show any panic or anxiety at all.

Now he said again that his father had actually abandoned him. Tang Guda suddenly felt that the wind blowing from the bay had become much colder.

"It will only take five or six days to go back and forth by fast horse," Li Chengliang said. "I will send someone to take you to Yagu Pass, and you can go back now. You can tell Nurhaci everything you see here. Whether you people in Jianzhou live or die depends on his decision."

When he turned around and looked at Tang Guda again, his eyes were like lightning and his expression was murderous.

"I'll only give you seven days." Li Chengliang said grimly, "It would be best if Nurhaci doesn't dare to act rashly. If he's just trying to coax you and then rebels against the Ming Dynasty, you and them will have to think about yourselves. Have you discussed this among yourselves these days?"

Tang Guda didn't know what to say.

Of course they had discussed it. If Tang Gudai hadn't talked to them about anything on the road, after they were put under guard here, the leaders of the three tribes who had surrendered would still ask him.

Who is not afraid?
Various thoughts and speculations had already turned over Tang Guda's mind many times, and having been cut off from news for so many days, he didn't know whether what Li Chengliang said about raising an army to rebel against the Ming Dynasty had already shown any signs.

"My Lord, I am the only one going, this..."

"Let's talk it out." Li Chengliang said nonchalantly, "You are all unsuccessful people. Otherwise, why didn't you follow Nurhaci to Korea, but were sent to Ming? If you never come back, they will be without a leader. I will let them know that working for me is the way to survive."

Tang Guda was cold all over.

"It's the same with Nurhaci." Li Chengliang stared at him. "If he can restrain himself and still obey the emperor's will, and you return and serve him wholeheartedly, I will ask His Majesty to reward you for your merit in the future. If he just coaxes you and eventually raises an army after you return, isn't that pushing you into the fire pit?"

"Ama has no objection..."

"Whether he will rebel or not depends on what he does next. It's best if he doesn't rebel, so that the people of Jianzhou won't suffer and I won't have to waste my time." Li Chengliang said no more, "Go and explain it to them, and then leave as soon as possible."

Li Chengliang did this first, and then reported it to the emperor and the Privy Council.

The ink in the tent was ready, but his first sentence was: Jianzhou is ready to make a move, so Nurhaci must hesitate for a few more days...

That’s right, this was Li Chengliang’s open strategy: Stop pretending, I’m showing you my cards now, I’m right here.

For Nurhaci, there are two interpretations of this news.

First, Li Chengliang had to expose himself to intimidate him. Doesn’t this prove that the opportunity is better?

Another interpretation is, of course, that Li Chengliang has been hiding here all along and the Khan's court is gone.

Which one does he choose to believe?

In fact, the clearer the cards, the less choice Nurhaci had: the Ming dynasty’s rulers and ministers had been wary of him to this extent. If he continued to be servile in the future, would he really be able to keep Jianzhou safe?

After he finished writing his secret memorial, Tang Guda had already set out, and he also found the leader of the Jianzhou soldiers who were here.

"Tang Gudai must have told you something, but he may not have made it clear." Li Chengliang looked at them calmly, "You are all from the Hada, Huifa, and Ula tribes, and you are not the people that Nurhaci trusts and values ​​the most after he surrendered to Jianzhou. Now, in addition to considering the possibility of serving the dynasty and being rewarded for your meritorious service, you also have to consider the possibility that Nurhaci will take the opportunity to rebel against the Ming Dynasty."

Surrounded by the generals and soldiers of the Ming Dynasty's capital camp, the three men dared not even breathe in front of the famous Li Chengliang.

Life and death are just a matter of thoughts for the person in front of you.

Li Chengliang's tone softened again: "In short, since you have come to the Ming Dynasty, either I can trust you and you have to fight for your merit or for your future livelihood. Or I can't trust you, so there is no need to be on guard against you. You are all fighting men, don't you understand? Forget that you are surrendered to Jianzhou, think of yourself as a general of the Ming Dynasty, the Liaoyuan Military and Civilian Government of the Three Tribes, you may be able to return to your hometown in the future and be valued by the court."

"My Lord... are you serious..."

Some people heard the deeper meaning in the words.

The Jurchens who are still in the former territories of the Three Tribes no longer have their former lords and dignitaries.

Li Chengliang said as a matter of course: "The Xiliang Earl is a surrendered citizen, and His Majesty has also conferred him the title of Earl. Nurhaci sent you to the Ming Dynasty, and from now on, it is the best choice for you to regard yourselves as surrendered citizens. The most important thing is that only by doing this, even if Nurhaci has bad intentions, you don't have to worry about being eliminated by the Ming Dynasty. Isn't this the truth?"

For them, their mentality was in a fragile stage at the moment, and they were worried every day that the Ming army next to them would suddenly rise up and wipe them out first.

People from all three tribes had personally experienced Nurhaci's ambition, so it would be strange if the Ming Dynasty did not guard against him.

Except for one thing: Didn't Nurhaci know that the Ming Dynasty was on guard against him? When these 3,000 people were sent to the Ming Dynasty, didn't the Ming Dynasty have any means to deal with them, and let them become a potential hidden danger? Since they were like meat buns that could never come back, why not keep them as a living force for the future?
Tang Guda passed through Jinzhou, where the situation was serious, and he was thinking about these issues along the way.

He hadn't figured it out yet. It was a different time at that time. He didn't understand that Nurhaci's sending them here was a test. After they arrived at Hulutao, they couldn't send back any news, which also became a basis for Nurhaci's judgment.

When Tang Gudai passed through Liaoyang, the border fort and wall west of Jinzhou were in danger, and the area around Jinzhou began to mobilize and arrange a second line of defense.

But he was on the road and didn't know the news.

When he was about to reach Yagu Pass, the war situation in Jinzhou and Yizhou finally changed.

The so-called "defeat is like a mountain collapsing."

"Guard this place well and let them come over at full speed!"

Dai Qing's first order was to his Anda and fifth brother, asking them to quickly enter the border wall through the gap on the west side of Jinzhou.

"Great Khan, the news must be spread to the north." He said to the excited Lindan Batur, "If we rely on ourselves, we will only lose more and more people here. Khalkha and Khorchin should move south quickly to make them vulnerable to attack from both sides."

"Of course!" Lindan Batur was very excited as he watched his cavalry rushing into the Ming border wall like a tide to chase the defeated army. "The Han army in the north dare not move lightly, and the reinforcements in the south must be resisted. Du Ling, attack Jinzhou City first!"

"No, we must first seize some food and grass outside the city. Attacking the city is not easy." Dai Qing pointed to the west and south. "At the mouth of the Daling River, there will definitely be reinforcements coming from the west. It is best to ambush them in the wild! In the area of ​​Tashan in the south, the Ming army that can help from the north can only come from there. There is no need to attack the city. We must stop the reinforcements and let the Liaodong Ming army fight alone. If we can't stop them, they will come and go like the wind, causing chaos everywhere in Liaodong, and the Jurchens will definitely not be able to sit still!"

The news also reached Shanhaiguan.

The border wall was breached and Liaodong was in danger, which was of course terrifying.

For the Ming Dynasty's rulers and ministers, this is the most critical moment.

The capital did not know about it for the time being, but Zhu Changluo had made arrangements before leaving Beijing. The retired Wang Xijue was not sent home, but instead controlled the troops left in the capital together with the young Duke Dingguo, Xu Wenbi's grandson Xu Xigao, Wang An, Qin Liangyu's husband Ma Qiancheng, and Wang Zhizhen.

Jiangnan was even slower to realize the situation.

All of a sudden, the defenders north of Shanhaiguan all began to move north to provide support, also to guard against the Tatars from directly attacking Shanhaiguan from the south.

No matter what, the primary goal is of course to drive the Tatars out of the border wall.

The 10,000 troops of the Beijing Camp and the 3,000 troops of Jianzhou led by Li Chengliang and Zhang Weixian finally showed up.

It came faster than Li Chengliang expected, so the situation was not optimistic, which showed that Jinzhou had indeed been in a situation of struggling to hold on.

After all, the entire Liaodong troop deployment did not leave enough room for Jinzhou, but left a deliberate but reasonable weak point due to the needs of the war situation.

However, for the surrounding Ming troops who were unaware and in panic, the appearance of Li Chengliang and the Beijing camp army was indeed a great encouragement.

It would still take the army at least a full day to march from Zhaiershan Fort to Tashan.

It would be no joke to encounter the Tatar cavalry when they advanced hastily, with exhausted soldiers and disorganized formations.

What Li Chengliang is more worried about now is that after they enter the border wall, they will go straight eastward and wreak havoc in the area south of Liaoyang, which would make it difficult to chase them.

We have to stop them in the Jinzhou area and south of Yizhou.

Yuan Keli stayed at Panshan Posthouse, southwest of Dahei Mountain east of Yizhou.

From here to the south, there is a river loop consisting of several rivers.

Guangning Guard, Guangning Central, Left and Right Guard, all the Ming troops left behind in this area were deployed by Yuan Keli on this line of defense.

"Success or failure depends on this. We must not let the Tartars pass Panshan!"

Today, there are densely packed forts to the north and northeast of Yizhou, and countless people and supplies have been moved here from the Guanjinning area.

When the Khan's army enters the border wall, they will of course plunder supplies, but they will soon find that something is wrong.

Go west out of the border wall and rush back to the old nest? Then what is the purpose of this trip?
Go south to Shanhaiguan? They will only be blocked in the narrow Liaoxi Corridor.

If Li Chengliang and Dalinghhe Fort east of Jinzhou cannot quickly keep them in Jinzhou, they will have to come east.

But Yuan Keli didn't need to stay here all the time. He just gave the order to strengthen their confidence.

Afterwards, he would lead the main force to the west of Shisanshanyi, try to block the Khan's army to the west of Dalingh River and narrow the encirclement.

It started here, Tang Guda had just arrived in Hetuala.

But Nurhaci is not here.

He shouldn't be here, he should be in North Korea.

But Tang Guda didn't know where he was.

"My dear, it's too late. I can only bring a message. I have to hurry back!"

After hearing what he said, He Heli knew that Li Chengliang had already been in Liaodong. He was still in shock. Hearing this, he asked him in astonishment: "Fourth Prince, you... still want to go back..."

"I don't know what my father has decided to do." Tang Gudai said sadly, "But if I don't go back, the Ming Dynasty will definitely destroy Jianzhou!"

"Can……"

He Heli knew that what he said was the truth. Wasn't letting him go the final warning from the Ming Dynasty?
It would have been fine if Jianzhou had not rebelled against the Ming Dynasty, but if it did, then of course the Ming Dynasty had done its utmost.

But if Tang Gudai didn't rush back now, wouldn't that make the Ming Dynasty think they would rebel? I'm afraid that before Nurhaci could rush back and reorganize the army and prepare, the Ming Dynasty would immediately take the initiative to attack to prevent a surprise attack.

"Prince, you must tell Father that what I saw there was not the original army from the Beijing camp. From what I heard from them, they only arrived a short time ago, and the original 10,000 troops have long disappeared!" Tang Gudai solemnly warned, "You must think twice!"

He didn't dare to delay any longer and immediately rushed back, even though he was exhausted.

He Heli naturally could not make such a decision, and had to report to Nurhaci quickly.

Nurhaci had not returned yet, and there were still too many things to deal with and arrange between him and North Korea.

In his opinion, the progress of the Khanate's army would not be so fast. After all, the Liaodong border wall had been generally stable for so long, and Inner Khalkha and Khorchin would move first.

But the situation on the battlefield has begun to change.

After the message was sent out, He Heli took out a draft article written in Manchu that was still being revised.

Is it true that this thing that Nurhaci asked him to prepare will be of no use?
Only one chapter today, middle-aged people are afraid of holidays

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(End of this chapter)