The Ming Dynasty began from Sarhu

Chapter 265 Asking for Credit
It was bright day, and behind the Ningyuan city wall, flags were flying and swords and spears were everywhere. Teams of elite cavalry from western Liaoning and elite border troops were gathering at the Chunhe Gate city wall.

The auxiliary soldiers wearing mandarin duck battle jackets moved down the four mounted falconets and divine fire flying crows from Ningyuan, transported them with oxen and horses, and prepared to leave the city with the soldiers.

In addition to the Shaanxi Town and the Beijing Camp stationed at the Yongning, Weiyuan, Yanhui and Chunhe gates for external defense, the rest of the border troops and Liao Town troops have assembled at the Chunhe Gate and are on standby, ready to pursue the enemy at any time.

With the Kaiyuan retreat, the Ningyuan defenders finally shook off the gloom and depression of the past few days. From the generals and military supervisors to the soldiers, everyone was beaming with joy.

Several generals and lieutenant generals were even more arrogant and full of anticipation for the upcoming pursuit. Looking at the expressions of Wang Zai Jin and You Shiwei, it seemed that they were about to leave the city to have a banquet.

Of course, there was no Manchu-Han banquet in this era.

But they can eat at other tables.

Red umbrella and white pole, after eating, lie down together
Lying on the board and burying the mountain, relatives and friends come to eat

Next year, it will be full of red umbrellas

Children's songs came from Chunhemen Street. A group of children from Ningyuan followed the Shaanxi border troops and chased the soldiers for candy.

The border troops sent to aid Liao had just received their food and wages, and the soldiers had some spare money, so they squandered it recklessly in the city.

In just a few days, the prices in Ningyuan were driven up by tens of thousands of people, and the price of rice rose to three taels of silver per stone.

In the eyes of the people in the city, these beggar-like foreign soldiers suddenly became rich people.

~~~~
The nursery rhyme reached the city wall of Chunhe Gate and reached Zu Dashou's ears. He turned his head and looked at the border army generals in front of him.

Although General Zu appeared amiable on the surface, a look of disgust could be seen between his brows. The scar on his forehead had turned purple.

You Shiwei and others were surrounding Wang Jinglie and the military supervisor eunuch and praising them wantonly.

The generals compared Wang Zai Jin and the eunuch surnamed Liu to Wei Xiaokuan and Ma Yun of this dynasty (a eunuch who commanded troops during the Yongle period). The fact that Ningyuan City was able to be preserved was all thanks to the two superiors.

Zu Dashou stood nearby and felt nauseous.

"Without Wang Jinglüe, Liaoxi will be lost, and the people of Liaoxi will have to wear pigtails from now on! They will become bondsers to Liu Zhaosun."

"Liu Jianjun prepared food and fodder for the army and won a battle thousands of miles away. He's no better than Zhang Liang and Xiao He, reincarnated."

Wang Zai Jin, dressed in military uniform, gently stroked his beard and accepted the clumsy flattery of these warriors.

Military Supervisor Liu Yingkun pointed at the deserted other side of the river, as if he was possessed by Jack Ma.

At this time, the Ningyuan moat was shrouded in thick fog, and nothing could be seen beyond half a mile.

After Wang Zaijin and You Shiwei finished their flattery, he stroked the city wall and sighed:
"Liu the thief is also well versed in astronomy and geography, just as good as Zhuge Kongming! Unfortunately, good prevails over evil, and the law of nature will always prevail. Today is the day they will die!"

Just now, the servants sent by Zu Dashou came back to report that the Kaiyuan army was fleeing eastward. The official road from Ningyuan City to Shahu Fort was littered with weapons and food abandoned by the Kaiyuan army, and even artillery was thrown away.

Then, Wang Jinglue and the two military supervisors' personal soldiers who were sent out as scouts also returned one after another. They brought back the same information: the Kaiyuan army fled in the fog, the cavalry had disappeared, and a large number of Liao people and foreigners were left behind.

Hundreds of thousands of troops besieged Ningyuan for several days. They had cut off the food supply and water supply to the city, defeated the reinforcements from Shanhaiguan, and were about to capture the city. However, in such a good situation, they suddenly withdrew their troops and fled, leaving their weapons and armor behind. The only reasonable explanation is that something unexpected happened within the Liu bandit group.

Thinking of the bandit leader who was shot by a musket last night, everyone unanimously decided:
Liu Zhaosun is really dead this time.

However, to be on the safe side, Wang Jinglüe decided to let the Zu family army take the lead, as the vanguard of the army, and go out of the city to pursue together with the elite troops from the nine borders.

After hearing this, the generals and lieutenant generals all threw up their arms to ask for battle, and at the same time solemnly promised General Zu that Liao Zhen could fight in the front without worry, and their brothers would hold the line in the back.

Zu Dashou naturally didn't believe these nonsense.

In the battle to defend the city a few days ago, the Zu family army was at the front and suffered thousands of casualties. Now they are asked to be cannon fodder. Liaozhen is really being treated as a sucker.

Although the scouts confirmed that the Kaiyuan army had escaped, the sudden fog made Zu Dashou feel a little uneasy.

Based on his understanding of Liu Zhaosun, this man was insidious, cunning and full of tricks. Even if he was really hit by a musket, he would definitely leave a backup plan before he died, waiting for the defenders to leave the city and pursue him.

If we rush out now, we will most likely be ambushed by the Kaiyuan army.

By then, Liaozhen would be surrounded, and You Shiwei and other foreign troops would never send reinforcements.

The conflict between Liaozhen and the guest army has been going on for more than a day or two. Everyone is aware of this, but they have not broken the window paper.

"The thick fog is not conducive to close combat. My retainers have suffered heavy casualties. Xuanfu and Yansui are well-equipped with firearms and should serve as the vanguard of the army..."

As soon as Zu Dashou said this, he was immediately refuted by Wang Zhenyuan, the lieutenant general of Xuanfu Town, and Wu Zimian, the lieutenant general of Yansui Town:
"General Zu, you're wrong. Everyone knows that Liaozhen has a strong army and powerful horses. The Liao army receives millions of dollars in annual military pay, and their firearms are the best among the nine frontiers. How can we compare to them?"

"Commander Wu is right! Liaoxi also played a significant role in the destruction of the Jiannu and the capture of Hetuala. I remember the report sent to the court by General Zu saying that Liaozhen had sent Huang Taiji fleeing in panic and had killed over 500 Mongolian Duoyans. This shows the Liaozhen's combat power. Why are they afraid of a group of defeated soldiers now?"

Zu Dashou glared at You Shiwei and was about to retort when Wang Zaijin waved his hand, interrupting the quarrel between the three of them:

"Alright, I came to Liaoxi to fight, not to listen to you talk about those old stories. Now let's just talk about the war."

Wang Zai Jin glanced at Liu Yingkun.

The eunuch supervising the army said slowly, "The emperor has Liaoxi in his heart. He took out these two million grains from the inner court, which is barely enough for the army to eat. Since you have all eaten the imperial grain, you have to fight. I am working for the emperor, so let me put it bluntly. Ningyuan is in danger, and the emperor will not support soldiers who don't fight..."

After hearing this, the generals of the foreign army echoed it and vied with each other to express their loyalty to the eunuch supervising the army.

When Zu Dashou saw this and looked at the expressions of the people around him, his heart sank and he understood what was going on.

All the food and supplies that Zu Dashou had stored on Juehua Island had been looted by Liu Zhaosun.

The food and fodder in Ningyuan City were all supplied by the imperial court, and were brought from Shanhaiguan not long ago for the defenders in the city.

Theoretically, the Zujia Army should also have a share of these grains.

Of course, that's just in theory.

According to the current situation, as long as the dead eunuch instigates Wang Zai Jin, and the two of them reach an agreement with the border army leaders, not a single grain of food in Ningyuan City will fall into the hands of Liaozhen.

I never expected the new emperor to fall out so quickly. Even before Liu Bang was pacified, the court was already eager to attack Liaoxi. Could it be that, as that Guangdong officer had said the other day, Liu Zhaosun had already made peace with the court? Was he willing to sacrifice Liaozhen in exchange for peace within the Great Wall?
Zu Dashou knew very well that Wang Zaijun and others might not be unaware of Liu Zhaosun's scheme.

But for these visiting teams, they are winners no matter what.

Let Liaozhen rush to the front. Even if there is an ambush, they will be cannon fodder. If Liu Zhaosun is really dead, it will be even better. After Liaodong is recovered, the military merit will be taken by the guest army.

Zu Dashou actually felt that the scene before him was somewhat familiar, as if he had seen it before.

He suddenly remembered that in Sarhu, he followed Li Rubai to besiege Hetuala. Not long after leaving Shenyang, they were blocked by a tiger. Thousands of troops were kept idle until the foreign troops were defeated one by one.

Is this retribution?
While he was still in a daze, Wang Zai Jin had asked the flag officer to bring out the imperial sword. In front of all the generals, he drew the sword and wiped it carefully in his hands.

Finally, the Liaodong Governor patted General Zu on the shoulder and said seriously:

"General Zu, let Liao Zhen take the vanguard position. I order you to leave the city immediately! Lead the troops to pursue the thief Liu! Do not miss this opportunity! Once you defeat the thief Liu and recover Liaodong, I will commend you to the emperor."

It took two thousand Liaozhen soldiers a full hour to clear out the stones and wood blocking the corridor of Chunhe Gate.

Sixteen burly soldiers turned the gallows and struggled to lift the jack that had been lowered.

In order to facilitate the passage of the army behind, You Shiwei ordered the Qianjin Gate gallows to be blocked.

When Zu Dashou heard this, he immediately sent his servants back to stop them.

"Commander You, if the army retreats, the gate must be lowered. It can't be stuck now."

When You Shiwei heard this, he became furious and whipped the servant.

"The battle hasn't even started yet, and you Liaozhen are already thinking about retreating! Get lost!"

Zu Dashou, along with Zu Dabi and three thousand elite servants, walked out of the Chunhe Gate city wall with trepidation.

A long line walked across the suspension bridge and headed towards the confusing fog on the east bank.

The border troops of Xuanfu, Yansui and Shanxi followed Zu's army slowly.

Teams of elite cavalry roared through the thick fog and appeared on the battlefield in western Liaoning.

Zu Dashou led the last 10,000 or so Zu family soldiers and slowly marched eastward.

As soon as they crossed the moat, You Shiwei and Wu Zimian, two assassins, sent scouts to urge them to speed up and chase after the thief Liu.

Zu Dabi was furious when he heard this. He raised his whip and chased after the two foreign army scouts, whipping them and telling them to get out immediately.

Zu Dashou said nothing and walked straight towards the earthen wall outside Chunhe Gate that had just been stopped.

He was very curious why Liu Zhaosun spent so much manpower and resources to repair this city wall that was destined to collapse.

Without rammed earth walls, not only would it collapse if people stood on them, let alone mounting artillery.

Zu Dashou, accompanied by two servants, rode his horses forward and came near the earthen wall.

The scaffolding in front of the earthen wall has not been removed yet. Adobe bricks and bamboo poles are scattered on the ground. Rows of earthen stoves are still emitting blue smoke, and food is cooking in the pots.

The thief Liu retreated in a hurry.

Zu Dashou went around behind the earth wall.

The whip in his hand fell to the ground.

He finally saw the secret behind the earth wall.

A huge sloping earthen mound is hidden behind the earthen wall. The height of the mound is two zhang. There is a huge platform on the slope, which is large enough to mount ten red cannons.

Zu Dashou suddenly realized.

"The earth wall is just a decoy. The earth pile behind it is the real killer."

Zu Dashou looked at the mist in the distance and breathed a sigh of relief.

"Fortunately you died, otherwise Ning Yuan..."

He ordered people to dismantle the mounds and blow up and seal all the tunnels outside the city.

Whether it is demolishing the earth pile or destroying the tunnel, the workload is not small.

You Shiwei saw from afar that the Liaozhen troops stopped moving forward as soon as they left the city. The combat troops became auxiliary troops and were actually moving soil and bricks under the city. He could not help but become furious:
"This traitor Zu Dashou is even more cunning than Li Rubai!!"

"Yes, sir, this is the character of Liaozhen. They always drag their feet in fighting and even play tricks right under our noses. Master, Zu Dashou just beat up one of our people."

You Shiwei was furious.

This time, Wang Zaijun and Liu Yingkun arranged for him to lead the troops out of the city to pursue, but in fact they wanted him to supervise the battle in Liaozhen.

"Call all the servants, I'm going to confront him! How dare you rebel against the heavens!"

Just as the personal guards were about to leave, suddenly, bursts of conch shell sounds were heard from the fog, followed by the dense shouts of soldiers and horses.

This personal soldier had participated in the Battle of Sarhu. When he heard the conch shell sound, he was immediately frightened and collapsed to the ground.

"Master, the Jiannu are coming! Run for your lives!"

You Shiwei whipped him hard.

"What Jiannu? This is the Kaiyuan Army. It seems Liu Zhaosun is not dead. Don't panic. Zu Dashou and the others are at the front. Let's retreat back to the city!"

(End of this chapter)