Taichang Ming Dynasty

Chapter 306 Blocking War

At that time, rumors were flying everywhere, saying all kinds of things. Among them, the one that made Nurhaci most unhappy was that Shuotuo ran away because his father Daishan favored his second wife and did not treat his two sons born to his first wife well.

In this situation, Daishan would have been best served by remaining silent and exerting influence, speaking up for his son to deny the allegation of defection. He would have also put the adultery scandal on hold, allowing Shuotuo to be acquitted, thus projecting the image of a loving father. However, instead of speaking up for his son, Daishan, even before the facts were verified, repeatedly pleaded with Nurhaci to hand Shuotuo over to him for execution, assuming he had rebelled against the government. Amin, like Daishan, repeatedly knelt and begged Nurhaci to execute his brother. Nurhaci refused.

In order to calm the situation as quickly as possible, after the matter was investigated and adultery was confirmed, Nurhaci only killed the low-ranking and powerless Molohun couple.

On the 20th, Nurhaci decided to release Shuotuo and Zaisanggu, saying, "Zaisanggu wishes to reunite with his brother Amin. If he does not wish, he can join another Beile. Shuotuo wishes to follow his father, so be it. If he does not wish, he can come to follow my grandfather."

It's clear that Nurhaci no longer believed Daishan and Shuotuo could mend their father-son relationship, and he developed a fondness for Shuotuo, determined to personally protect him. To Daishan, Shuotuo didn't matter; he was just a son, and he had plenty of them, so it didn't matter if he followed his grandfather. What truly mattered was Nurhaci's change of heart.

After the "adultery" and "house-building" cases, Nurhaci had already become dissatisfied with Daishan. Therefore, this time, he did not intend to favor or shield Daishan anymore, and he wanted to get to the bottom of everything. Since the rumor of "defection to the Ming Dynasty" was false, it was very likely that Shuotuo ran away due to mistreatment and indifference.

After the "escape case" was over, Nurhaci immediately launched an investigation into Daishan. He did not directly ask Shuotuo if he was persecuted by Daishan's second wife and therefore suffered his father's cold shoulder. Instead, he indirectly investigated the Zhushen people under the control of Yuetuo and Shuotuo, that is, the ordinary people below the rank of Beile and above the rank of slaves.

Upon investigation, it was found that Daishan had indeed not treated Shuotuo and Yuetuo equally. The tribesmen he distributed to Shuotuo and Yuetuo were all old, weak and inferior. Knowing that the tribesmen of the two were inferior to those of his other half brothers, Nurhaci summoned Daishan and questioned him:
"You were also born to my first wife. Why don't you think about how I treated you? Why did you trust my second wife's words and mistreat your grown son? Furthermore, I chose the best sons to be your sole heir. Why didn't you follow my example and give your best friends to Yuetuo and Shuotuo? You were bullied by your wife, so you gave the inferior sons to your older son and the best sons to be your sole heir, the youngest son born to you and your second wife?"

If Daishan had been clear-headed, he would have knelt and wept, admitting his fault. But he refused. Faced with Nurhaci's questioning, Daishan not only refused to weep and admit his fault, but he also refused to back down and admit that he had been deceived by his stepwife. Instead, he accused Shuotuo of adultery with his concubine, and even had a witness, Kalezhu, to testify. In other words, Daishan felt his actions were justified. His son had framed him, so was he supposed to smile and give him a good face?
Nurhaci immediately ordered the arrest of this so-called witness. And this time he did not send anyone to interrogate him, but for the first time ever, he condescended to interrogate Kalezhu in person.

Unable to withstand the Khan's pressure, Kalezhu refused to deny the allegations, much less admit his false accusations. He simply stated that he had not personally witnessed Shuotuo and Daishan's concubine committing adultery, and that his accusations were based on a few details of their lives. Nurhaci then investigated the twenty people who had traveled with Shuotuo's wife and Daishan's concubine. Their testimonies contradicted Kalezhu's details.

Based on this, Nurhaci came to his own conclusion, concluding that Shuotuo was framed and Kalezhu was making a false accusation.

After the truth was revealed, Nurhaci was furious and completely disappointed with Daishan. Daishan had actually believed slander and abused his ex-wife's son. And even if he had committed adultery, so what? She was just a concubine, while Shuotuo was your son.

To protect Daishan, Nurhaci himself did not investigate the affair between his wife and the eldest prince, but only punished Daishan. However, Daishan did not investigate further and directly used "adultery" as a justification for "abuse", and repeatedly asked to kill his son on the pretext of "rebellion against the Jin Dynasty and defection to the Ming Dynasty".

So, Nurhaci ordered Kalezhu to be tortured to death, and announced in public: "How can a person who wants to kill all his own sons and brothers be qualified to be the king of a country and take charge of major government affairs! He inherited his father's country before, so he was made the crown prince. Now the crown prince will be abolished, and all his colleagues and tribes will be seized." So far, the Great Jin Dynasty was abolished.

Daishan had never imagined the consequences of this incident would be so serious. Faced with the threat of his position being in jeopardy and possibly suffering the same fate as Chu Ying, he quickly came to his senses. A favorite concubine? Bullshit favorite concubine! Her safety and status were far more important.

On September 28, the fifth year of the Tianming reign of the Great Jin Dynasty, which was also the 48th year of the Wanli reign of the Ming Dynasty, Daishan killed his stepmother with his own hands and sent someone to report to Nurhaci, "If my father Khan does not sentence me to death, I can be reborn." He hoped that his father Khan would allow him to meet him and apologize.

When Nurhaci saw that Daishan had repented and killed his wife to prove his guilt, he softened his attitude and did not imprison him like he did Chu Ying.

However, Nurhaci did not restore Daishan's position as crown prince. Instead, he continued to weaken Daishan's influence in the Jin Dynasty through various methods.

First, the Eight Beiles swore an oath, and now they simultaneously supported Dergelei, Yuetuo, and Shuotuo, letting these three young men who had a feud with Daishan lead the most elite troops in the Eight Banners to block the Tiger Skin reinforcements. In Nurhaci's deployment, this was a gift of merit.

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About a quarter of an hour later, nearly two thousand elite cavalry led by three young men encountered the cavalry scouts newly sent by Zhu Wanliang.

The reason why Zhu Wanliang's troops were able to rush to Fengji in such a short time was entirely because they were nearby.

Xiong Tingbi once said: "Fengji, forty miles southeast of Shenyang, could be a stronghold for Shenyang. Hupiyi, thirty miles southwest of Fengji, could also be a stronghold for Fengji. Fengji is ninety miles northeast of Fushun and ninety miles southwest of Liaoyang. If the enemy were to target Liaoyang, head for Fushun, or enter Magendan, they could all pass through this fort, which could be intercepted. If Fengji is not defended, Shenyang will be isolated; if Hupi is not defended, Fengji will be isolated, creating a three-way balance of power."

In other words, the Liaoyang East Line of Defense, centered around the three major towns of Shenyang, Fengtian, and Hulunbuir, was designed from the outset to ensure support from neighboring towns on the same day a city was attacked. Furthermore, as long as the three towns could hold out until the next day, support from Liaoyang would surely arrive.

However, despite the proximity of the two cities, the Jin army had been constantly expelling the Ming cavalry scouts from the outset, preventing Zhu Wanliang's troops from obtaining effective information about their positions. To avoid running headfirst into the enemy's main camp and being surrounded, he had no choice but to slow down his march after a ten-li forced march. He also continuously dispatched additional cavalry scouts, ordering them to force their way forward as a team.

However, the Jin army responded quickly. Before Nurhaci dispatched Degelei, Yuetuo and Shuotuo to order the elite troops of the Zhenghuang and Xianghong flags to block the Ming army in the direction of Hupi, the remaining elite troops left by Huang Taiji in the Zhengbai flag camp launched several proactive attacks on Zhu Wanliang's cavalry scouts.

The 200-man regiment that had killed and wounded two of the three-man Jin army squad was then attacked by the superior forces of the Plain White Banner. After a burst of attack, the 200-man regiment was immediately routed.

The 200-man regiment also released fireworks signals to inform the enemy of their location. However, Zhu Wanliang did not personally lead his elite troops to confront the enemy like Li Bingcheng did.

This wasn't because he didn't dare, but because he couldn't. Under the arrangement of mutual support among the three towns, Li Bingcheng's primary task, facing a direct attack, was to defend the city and await reinforcements. As long as Fengji wasn't lost, his mission would be accomplished. Even if he led 3,000 elite cavalry out of the city, the bulk of his main force remained hunkered down inside and outside the city. With the square city wall in place, Li Bingcheng had little to worry about. But Zhu Wanliang did. He left Hupi with over 10,000 men, 80% infantry and 20% cavalry. Without a city wall to protect them, the cavalry's role could only be to support the infantry. If the enemy cavalry attacked with a large force, his cavalry would have to confront them, risking their lives to buy the infantry time to form their battle lines. Only by reaching the outskirts of Fengji, deploying their forces, and constructing temporary fortifications to confront the enemy could the bulk of his cavalry break free from their supporting role and become a true ranger.

"Deputy General! Look." The close attendant beside him guided Zhu Wanliang to look at a bright firework that had just bloomed in the air.

Zhu Wanliang looked on silently, waiting intently.

boom!
After waiting for a while, Zhu Wanliang heard the sound of fireworks exploding amid the noisy marching.

"Order the central army and the left and right guards to form a battle formation immediately. Set up obstacles." Zhu Wanliang ordered in a deep voice.

"Yes." The attendant took the order and turned around to leave.

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The elite Jin troops blocking the reinforcements moved very quickly. Under the command of Degelei, they ignored all the Ming troops they encountered along the way and galloped non-stop towards the main body of the Ming army.

Before Zhu Wanliang's order could be completed, the cavalry led by him collided head-on with the elite Jin army's reinforcements.

The composition and equipment of Zhu Wanliang's cavalry were similar to those of Li Bingcheng's, the only difference being that their armor rate was slightly lower. Even his core group of four hundred household servants were not all armored. The Red and Yellow Banners, led by Degelei, Yuetuo, and Shuotuo, were the most armored of the Jurchen troops. Even if they didn't wear the most protective full-body fish-scale armor, they at least wore cloth armor lined with iron plates.

Zhu Wanliang saw that his side did not have an absolute advantage in numbers. Moreover, most of the bandits were wearing armor and were very imposing. He immediately concluded that this army was not one he could confront head-on.

If Zhu Wanliang had only brought this cavalry, he would have immediately turned around and retreated, just like Li Bingcheng did when he met Huang Taiji. However, Zhu Wanliang still needed to buy at least a quarter of an hour for his infantry.

Zhu Wanliang's initial strategy was to fight and retreat, luring the enemy into shooting arrows. As long as the enemy did not charge the infantry formation, it would not matter if the cavalry lost a few men.

However, Dergelei wasn't about to fire his arrows. This was his first time personally leading a large cavalry attack. Previously, he had served under the Zhenglan Banner, under the command of his half-brother, Manggurtai. He wanted to demonstrate his prowess to his father. Even if he couldn't replace Manggurtai, he wanted to break away from the Zhenglan Banner completely. Therefore, upon seeing Zhu Wanliang's cavalry, he immediately ordered a full charge.

Degelei and the two brothers Yuetuo and Shuotuo each led a group of troops, regardless of their importance, and accelerated towards the Ming army in the classic deployment of three groups in the center, left and right.

Seeing that the Jin army didn't fire but instead charged directly, Zhu Wanliang instinctively thought that the enemy was going to crush him in one fell swoop, so he immediately made adjustments. A head-on collision! Only a head-on collision!

"kill!"

The Jin and Ming armies collided, and the smell of blood began to spread.

Zhu Wanliang's weapon wasn't Li Bingcheng's long spear, which required precision and agility. Instead, he carried a medium-length iron hammer and a small iron-clad shield. His strength was immense, and a single blow to the head was enough to dislodge even a helmet. If he encountered a counterattack, he would raise his shield to block it, then strike at the waist or chest at an angle. Protected by a dozen or so followers armed with the same weapons, Zhu Wanliang could always challenge his chosen targets without worry. They fought and killed as they marched, quickly attracting the attention of the Degelei.

Degelei didn't know who Zhu Wanliang was, nor had he seen him before. His armor didn't have any unusual features. But Degelei knew that only important figures on the battlefield had escorts. It didn't matter if he was a lieutenant general, a captain, or a captain. He would kill him first.

Dege Lei was a skilled archer and horseman, and he was prepared to shoot the Ming general dead. Archery in close combat was difficult because it required drawing the bow, which left many holes. Once the enemy got close, there was no chance of a counterattack. However, these hidden dangers were no problem for Dege Lei.

"Cover me!" After knocking another Ming soldier off his horse, Degelei retreated from the front line of the battlefield under the cover of his personal followers. He took out his bow and arrows from a relatively safe position. Then, he drew the bowstring and took aim.

At this point, Zhu Wanliang and Degelei were less than thirty steps apart. A single shot would surely penetrate his armor, and once that happened, his life would be certain. But Zhu Wanliang, commanding an entire army, commanding a city, and holding the rank of deputy general, was no ordinary man. He was alert and vigilant, and as Degelei drew his bow, he caught a glimpse of something unusual happening.

In a flash, Degelei released the arrow, and Zhu Wanliang raised his shield to block it.

呲!
Although the arrows could penetrate the fish scale armor, they could not penetrate the arm armor after penetrating the iron-clad wooden shield.

Zhu Wanliang blocked the fatal blow. However, Bayala, who was engaging Zhu Wanliang in close combat, seized the opportunity. He swung his chain hammer at Zhu Wanliang, and Zhu Wanliang was unable to dodge, being struck directly in the right shoulder.

Fortunately, his close follower subconsciously sacrificed himself to block the chain with his forearm, so Zhu Wanliang was not really hit. But even so, Zhu Wanliang's shoulder armor was still slightly dented.

(End of this chapter)