The Wanli Emperor of the Ming Dynasty was extremely rebellious

Chapter 305 This is not over yet
In the vast Qinling Mountains, on the ancient Chencang Road, more than 100,000 cavalrymen lined up for hundreds of miles on the winding mountain road.

The rumbling sound of horse hooves echoed among the mountains, shaking the earth like a rolling earth dragon.

After receiving Xiao Ruxun's urgent report, Wanli was extremely anxious, but there was no point in being anxious because there was no means of transportation that could fly in the sky at that moment.

If they wanted to cross the Qinling Mountains to Lintao Prefecture, they had to take the Chencang Ancient Road to Fengxiang Prefecture first.

The Chencang Ancient Road is over a thousand miles long, winding and undulating, so large groups of cavalry cannot run too fast on it.

Because when encountering a steep slope, the cavalry has to dismount and lead the way. If they run too fast, the cavalry and the horses will collide with each other on the steep slope.

There was no other way, they could only ride the horses and lead the horses, moving slowly forward on the winding mountain road.

Fortunately, the horses could conserve their energy when riding slowly or leading them, so they could still travel more than 200 miles a day, but they were just more tired.

Five days later, at about 3 p.m., a black spot suddenly emerged from the valley south of Chencang County at the westernmost end of the Guanzhong Plain.

The black spots were like sweet springs gushing out from dry land, gradually spreading to the east, west and north, becoming more and more numerous, as if there would be no end.

The vanguard Shenwu Front Camp has already rushed out of Chencang Road, and the mountain road ahead is gradually becoming empty. The Imperial Guards and Jinyiwei Light Cavalry are also gradually accelerating and rushing out quickly.

Around the hour of You, the sun gradually sets, and the view ahead suddenly becomes clear. We have arrived at the Guanzhong Plain!

Wanli looked at the endless fields ahead and couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.

Chencang is only about 800 miles away from Lintao Prefecture. If you hurry, you can arrive there in about three days.

To be honest, he was really exhausted these past few days. He had to lead the horse for more than ten miles or even dozens of miles a day, and uphill, which he had never tried before.

At this moment, he felt as if his legs and feet were filled with lead, swollen and painful.

He got off the horse with great difficulty and was just looking for a place to sit down, stretch his legs and have a good rest when Qin Bangping, the deputy general of the Shenwu Front Camp, suddenly rode his horse at full gallop.

What is this guy doing? Isn’t he tired after running in the mountains for so many days? Why is he riding his horse around everywhere?
Qin Bangping was not really tired. He also came from the Bashan and Shushui Mountains, and leading a horse up a slope was a common thing for him.

When the man came close, he dismounted and flew up to him, holding an envelope in both hands and said respectfully, "Your Majesty, this is an urgent report from the Ningxia Town General at noon. The mountain road is full of troops and horses, so it can't be delivered inside. I will accept it first."

Xiao Ruxun finally submitted another report. What is the situation in Lintao Prefecture?
Wanli took the envelope, tore it open and looked at it, his face full of strange expression.

Xiao Ruxun's urgent report was very simple, just one sentence: I led my troops in a bloody battle for four days, and more than half of them were killed or wounded. There were still 30,000 to 40,000 enemy cavalry. For some reason, the enemy cavalry suddenly stopped their fierce attack and began to gather south.

Four days?

That’s pretty much yesterday’s battle report.

Why did the Northern Tartar cavalry suddenly stop their fierce attack?

At the beginning, the Duolun Tumed and Weiwushen tribes fought desperately with the Gansu Town cavalry like crazy. Why did Xiao Ruxun's Ningxia Town cavalry dare not fight anymore?

More than half of the Gansu Town cavalry have been killed or injured. More than half of the cavalry under Xiao Ruxun have also been killed or injured. The total number of them who can fight is estimated to be no more than 10,000. There are still 30,000 to 40,000 Northern Tartar cavalry. Why are they suddenly afraid to fight?

Are the Duolun Tumed and Weiwushen tribes afraid of losing the fight?
That's unlikely.

There are only a few thousand of Xiao Ruxun's men who are not injured, and the rest are all wounded. How can they, with 30,000 or 40,000 cavalrymen, not be able to defeat them?
Wanli paused for a moment, then handed the urgent report to Qi Jiguang, who had rushed over, and said solemnly, "The Duolun Tumed and Weiwushen tribes should know that the Shenwu Camp cavalry is crossing the Qinling Mountains."

Qi Jiguang took the urgent report and read it, then nodded slowly and said, "Your Majesty is wise. They must have known we were coming, so they gathered south to prepare for retreat."

Humph, can you run away? You can run away, but you can’t run away from the temple. This matter is not over yet!
Wanli snorted inwardly, then said decisively, "Bangping, quickly order your men to set up camp and rest. You will set out at dawn tomorrow morning and must reach Lintao Prefecture within three days."

Upon hearing this, Qin Bangping quickly bowed and said, "I obey your order."

After saying this, he turned around, mounted his horse, and galloped away.

Wanli asked Qin Bangping to lead the Shenwu front camp to scare Huo Chiluo and Bingtu Taiji.

Sure enough, two days later, while they were still on their way, Xiao Ruxun received another urgent report: The Northern Tartar cavalry had turned around and fled south!
It is obvious that there are spies from the three major families of Puzhou along the way, and the Northern Tartars are well aware of their movements.

Around 3 p.m. on the fourth day, they finally arrived at the Tao River Valley south of Didao City.

At this time, the remaining cavalry from the Shenwu Front Camp and Gansu Town and Ningxia Town had already set up a joint camp on the river bank, and the soldiers and civilians from Taozhou Guard who had fled from Didao City had also run out of the city.

In the five or six miles wide river valley, the farmland has been trampled to pieces, and broken tents, shacks, and straw huts are scattered everywhere. The scene is a complete mess.

Seeing this, Wanli couldn't help but frown slightly.

At this time, Qin Bangping, Xiao Ruxun and Man Gui had already rode their horses to meet them.

Xiao Ruxun was fine, seemingly only suffering minor injuries, but Man Gui was covered in bandages, and the parts not covered by the armor were all red.

After the emperor and his subjects exchanged greetings, Man Gui, still filled with guilt, said, "Your Majesty, I deserve death. I failed to defend the area and forced Your Majesty to lead his army thousands of miles to come to our aid."

This is all the work of the three major powerful families in Puzhou.

Wanli shook his head slightly and said, "General Man, this is none of your fault. This is entirely due to the internal thieves. You don't have to blame yourself. You have done a great job in saving so many soldiers and civilians in Taozhou."

Man Gui still felt a little guilty and said, "Your Majesty, I am guilty. The Taozhou border troops and garrisons were almost completely killed or wounded. The southern defense line of Gansu Town was exposed. I don't know how to fill this defense line."

This line of defense is really difficult to repair. Gansu Town is a long and narrow terrain, spanning three to four thousand miles from east to west. After this battle, there are less than 40,000 border troops left in Gansu Town. How to repair such a long line of defense with so few troops?
However, this is not a big problem.

Wanli consoled him: "General Man, it's alright. If you don't have enough men, you can recruit more. I will recruit as many as you need."

How many men are enough?
Man Gui's face was filled with emotion, yet he felt a little embarrassed. "Thank you for your grace, Your Majesty. Your Majesty, please forgive me. I can't say exactly how many troops Gansu Town will need."

You say it’s not good?
Wanli couldn't help but ask curiously: "Why, is there any problem?"

Man Gui said with a troubled look on his face, "Well, if the Duolun Tumed and Weiwushen tribes hadn't invaded like crazy, the original 50,000 troops would have barely been enough.

The problem is, the Duolun Tumed and Weiwushen tribes have already begun to invade. Their grazing areas almost cover all areas south of Gansu Town. I don't know how to defend against them."

Oh, so that's the problem.

Wanli could not help but snort coldly: "The Duolun Tumed and Weiwushen tribes dared to invade the Ming Dynasty. I will let them know the consequences.

Don't worry, now that I have led my army here, I will resolve the problems of the Duolun Tumed and Weiwushen tribes. They will have no chance to invade again."

Is His Majesty going to destroy the Duolun Tumed and Weiwushen tribes?
Man Gui was stunned for a moment, then quickly said, "If we can solve the problems of the Duolun Tumed and Weiwushen tribes, then we will have enough troops to garrison the border for 50,000."

We will discuss this issue after all the Shenwu Camp arrives.

Wanli thought about it carefully, then asked, "Bangping, have the navy warships delivered any food and fodder?"

Qin Bangping nodded repeatedly and said, "Their first batch of one hundred centipede ships have already delivered 50,000 dan of grain. They have already returned to continue transporting the grain. More navy warships will continue to deliver grain from now on."

As long as there is no problem with food.

Wanli nodded slowly, looked at the soldiers and civilians of Taozhou who looked exhausted and sad, and then sighed softly, "Give half of the first few batches of food to the soldiers and civilians of Taozhou. Don't let them starve."

Qin Bangping quickly bowed and said, "I understand."

Wanli looked at the wounded soldiers in the camp again, then said solemnly, "General Man, Ruxun, report to me how many of your men have been killed or seriously injured. I can't delay the compensation. When the next batch of navy warships arrive, I will send them to collect it."

Upon hearing this, Man Gui and Xiao Ruxun bowed repeatedly and said, "Thank you for your grace, Your Majesty."

Wanli said solemnly: "Taozhou garrison commander Li Fang and Taomin deputy general Li Lianfang are both good. If they had not fought desperately to stop the northern barbarians, the Taozhou garrison would have suffered heavy casualties.

I will posthumously confer the title of Viscount upon them, and see if they have descendants who will inherit the title. If so, I will grant them fiefs, rewards, and arrange for people to teach them. Such loyal and righteous people must be well nurtured in the future."

(End of this chapter)