Griffin Commander in the Late Ming Dynasty

"The enemy's lair is nearby, increase reconnaissance efforts!"

Coincidentally, external reconnaissance cavalry captured a group of merchants from outside the Great Wall. After careful interrogation, the merchants pointed out that the Left Wing Middle Banner of the Khorchin tribe was just thirty miles away and they came there to trade.

With the rumbling of horses' hooves, thousands of cavalrymen rushed towards a group of yurts thirty miles away like a whirlwind.

However, when they entered, they were surprised to find that there was no one in the area. The entire tribe had moved away, all the herdsmen had run away, leaving only empty tents.

"Strong walls clear the wilderness!"

The faces of the volunteer soldiers present were gloomy. They didn't expect the Mongols would do this to the Central Plains!

One soldier sighed: "These Tartars want to starve us to death!"

The Mongolia south of the desert is the area of ​​Inner Mongolia in later generations. As they went further and further towards Outer Mongolia, they almost lost supplies from the court. Moreover, there were many sandy areas along the way, making travel difficult. Many soldiers fell ill due to acclimatization.

Looking at the traces on the ground, the scout in charge of reconnaissance said: "The Mongolian tents were not taken away in time, and there are some things left on the road, which means they left too hastily. The main force of the Mongolian army should be nearby!"

Heading northward, the army advanced 500 miles in ten days. The soldiers and horses were exhausted both physically and mentally, but they still had not found the main force of the enemy.

During this period, groups of Mongolian cavalry kept appearing in front of the army, trying to attract them to a certain place.

The volunteers ignored their hard work and continued to march in the direction of the traces they had found.

The Mongolian light cavalry seemed to have grown out of the ground, following behind them and barking like a pack of wild dogs, always keeping out of the range of fire, because many of their happy companions had been sniped and killed.

As soon as the volunteers turned around to pursue them, these Mongolian cavalrymen would scatter with their tails between their legs, change horses, and immediately flee far away, leaving the pursuing volunteers at a distance, trying to lure them out again, as if they were playing a joke.

Looking at the Mongolian cavalrymen who were fleeing in panic and throwing away gold and silver, a light cavalryman cursed in hatred: "These dogs are acting so damn convincingly!"

The reconnaissance platoon leader rode over, sighed, and said, "Our army is running low on food and fodder, and we still can't find the enemy's base. The morale of the army is starting to waver."

The Volunteer Army's battles had been too smooth all along, and they had basically encountered no effective resistance. Now that the main forces were heading south to recover the Central Plains, they naturally began to become impatient when faced with the Mongolian cavalry's rogue tactics.

In terms of logistics, the Mongolian army used meat floss and milk powder invented by Genghis Khan, which were very easy to carry. Generally, one person had multiple horses, and the amount of milk powder and meat floss a soldier carried at one time was almost enough for a month's rations.

This meant that the Mongolian army required almost no logistical support, had extremely strong mobility and flexibility, and could boldly launch long-distance raids with confidence.

Furthermore, a Mongolian cavalryman had to carry three horses and change them constantly, so as to maintain the horse's physical strength and speed and sustain a long march.

Even though the Volunteer Army was wealthy and powerful, and had learned this way of marching, it was still difficult for them to do the same as the real Mongolian cavalry. Each person could only be equipped with two horses, and many southern soldiers were not used to the food on the grasslands, and the taste of bird would fade in their mouths after a long time.

Someone said in a hateful voice: "The Mongolian barbarians are best at running away. If I find their lair, I will destroy it!"

......

The Mongolian flags' nests were hundreds of miles apart, there was no satellite search, and the sky was full of dust. The volunteers were in trouble as subsequent reinforcements had not yet arrived. If they could not find the enemy's nest for a long time to get supplies, they would really starve to death.

Fortunately, for safety reasons, Jiang Han also specially dispatched a group of Ranger Dragoons and Scouts to serve as reconnaissance units to assist the army. They can help find water sources so that everyone will not die of thirst.

As the days went by, the volunteers became more and more restless, and the pressure on the political commissar of the army began to increase.

The army had only traveled halfway to its destination, and had not yet spotted the main force of the enemy. If they did not have supplies after walking a few hundred miles, they would starve to death in the grassland and Gobi.

In all dynasties that went beyond the border to fight, the Tartars' lair was hard to find and food and grass were hard to come by. Often tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of troops were wiped out. Many generals began to worry about this time going beyond the border.

191, who was in charge of the team, glanced at the group of young generals and asked calmly, "How long can our army's supplies last?"

The quartermaster immediately stepped forward and said, "General, the food and fodder our soldiers brought with them is less than three days' supply! If we slaughter all the captured cattle and sheep, we can only last a month at most!"

The volunteer army is difficult, the Mongolian army is even more difficult, and cavalry is more difficult to train than infantry.

War horses in the Central Plains need to be fed corn fodder, while war horses in the grasslands also need to eat grains. They may only eat grass for several hours a day occasionally, and they also need plenty of drinking water.

They fortified their cities and cleared the fields, brought along herdsmen, drove large numbers of cattle and sheep, and needed to gather somewhere with pastures and rivers.

When a tribe migrates, large numbers of cattle and sheep gather together, tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of heads, so the movement is bound to be slow.

Faced with the volunteer cavalry chasing behind them, the Jirim League had to separate some herdsmen and drive some cattle and sheep to other directions to lure the volunteers into the wrong direction.

In recent days, all the banners in the Jirim League have suffered heavy losses and are suffering terribly.

"I'm going to go back and beat them to death!"

In the upper reaches of the Taoer River, there were herds of cattle and sheep and herdsmen. The Zasak Manzhu Xili of the Left Middle Banner of Horqin clamored for a decisive battle with the Dayan Army.

Under the deception of several zasaks, his tribe was the first to adopt the strategy of scorching the walls and clearing the countryside. Seeing that the elderly, the weak, the women and children, as well as the cattle, sheep and supplies in the tribe could not be protected along the way, Manzhu Xili could no longer endure this kind of escape-style battle.

Concubine Zhuang's eldest brother Wu Keshan said, "Fourth brother, calm down. We are no match for the Great Yan Army. If we fight them head-on, we will only die!"

Manzhu Xili whipped a herdsman who couldn't move and said angrily: "Are we just going to die? We are too slow, they will catch up sooner or later!"

Knowing that they were no match for the enemy, many Zasaks still wanted to force a fight. After losing their cattle, sheep and herdsmen, they would be left with nothing, so they might as well try their luck.

The quarrel over there attracted the attention of Tushetu Prince Badali. He shook his head and sighed, "This Central Plains army is too abnormal. They have chased us for more than a thousand miles and they are not starving to death. They don't even want to return. What a big hatred they have. They treat people like dogs. If this continues, my Jirim League will collapse without a fight..."

Seeing that he was about to flee the Jirim League and the southern part of the desert, Badali had no choice but to write a letter and send his confidant to the three Khalkha tribes in the northern desert to ask Tushetu Khan Gunbu and Chechen Khan Shuolei for asylum. (The Chechen Khan has nothing to do with the Chechen Republic)

On September 15, the volunteers who had been in the grasslands and Gobi desert for more than a month finally found the Jirim League retreating northwards! They also received the reinforcements they had been waiting for!

After the recovery of the area around Northern Zhili, Jiang Han received a request for help from Mobei, so he sent all the fast-moving T-dolls he had over there, and also brought a considerable amount of supplies. After a large number of Iron-Blooded T-dolls entered Mobei, they immediately expanded the scope of the investigation.

The volunteer cavalry did not sit idle waiting for follow-up reinforcements, but actively attacked after ideological education by the political commissars. They determined the location of most of the Mongolian cavalry and the places where their baggage was gathered by observing the direction of the Mongolian cavalry's harassment, the scope of their activities, the number of people dispatched, and by checking the killed Mongolian light cavalry and the amount of meat floss, milk powder, and horse feed they carried.

The scouts in the sky were like a flock of birds, gradually clearing the terrain of the entire Mobei region, with rivers, meadows, and traces of tribal movements all visible.

Based on these, the volunteer army finally found the right direction and determined the movements of the Mongolian coalition forces of the Jirim League.

"After chasing you for thousands of miles, we finally found you!" Every volunteer army general was very excited.

The target has been found, and the next step is hunting.

Huo Qubing, Marquis of the Han Dynasty, and Zhu Di, Emperor Chengzu of the Ming Dynasty, both rushed thousands of miles to find the enemy's lair and forced them to fight a decisive battle!

Nomadic people are best at moving around and have extremely strong mobility. To some extent, their skills are comparable to those of bandits.

Especially Prince Badali of Tushetu, he was like a fortune teller, once there was any sign of trouble, he would roll up his bedding and be the first to rush out, running faster than a rabbit.

During the Battle of Yangzhou, Badali was the first Mongolian prince to flee. He angered Huang Taiji so much that he died on the spot.

To deal with this kind of Runren Emperor, this battle must be fought with a surprise attack, shielding the battlefield, strictly blocking the news, and catching them off guard!

Under the leadership of 191, all the cavalrymen took off their heavy armor. The Mongolian cavalry who came to spy on the military situation had a hard time surviving and were constantly sniped and killed. Recently, it has been rare to see Mongolian cavalry who dare to show up and cause trouble.

This opportunity is rare. Before the reinforcements arrived, we couldn't find the person. We drew our swords and looked around, feeling confused. Now we finally found the real person, and everyone is very excited.

The weather in February is still extremely cold. A gust of wind blows, and the grassland is filled with coolness.

Large flame flags with red borders were fluttering in the wind. The volunteers and dragon riders had assembled and stood in formation, forming large and small square formations. There was no other sound in the field except the fluttering flags and the snorting of a few war horses.

Looking at the densely packed team and the uneasy faces of some cavalrymen, Political Commissar Xu Da turned his head to look at 191. After getting the other party's nod of approval, he looked around with a serious expression and began a morale-boosting speech.

"Soldiers!"

"We have been in Mobei for more than a month. During this month, I know that everyone has suffered a lot! However, our relatives and friends have suffered even more! Their ancestors lived under the rule of the Mongols and were the lowest class of people."

"Our ancestors were not afraid of risks, remained steadfast and unyielding, and overthrew the Mongols,"

"Emperor Taizu of the Ming Dynasty led eight northern expeditions, and a group of emperors led five expeditions to the northern desert. Xu Da, Li Wenzhong, Mu Ying, and Lan Yu led thousands of Chinese soldiers, fearless of wind and sand, and overcame all difficulties. They fought in the northern desert many times and expanded the territory for the people of the Central Plains."

"The land beneath your feet is the burial place of our Chinese ancestors! They came here and fought here 200 years ago!"

"We are following the will of our ancestors and the order of our Great Yan Emperor to set foot on this land again! We cannot lose the land that our ancestors exchanged for with their blood because of cowardice! We must also fight for future generations! Fight for countless people to live in a peaceful and prosperous era!"

In the dark sea of ​​people, countless eyes moved along with the movement of Xu Da's horse. Pride flashed in everyone's eyes, and their soul seemed to be sublimated at this moment.

Xu Da rode his horse back to the front of the battle and shouted: "The loyalty of our ancestors has shaped our original aspirations!"

"Soldiers of the Volunteer Army, take up your weapons, let the enemy feel your anger, set this grassland on fire, and make China great again!"

Xu Sheng raised the silver hammer high and shouted, "Long live!"

"Long live!"

"Long live!"

"Long live!"

Thousands of volunteers shouted fanatically and raised their swords towards Xu Da.

"Kill! Kill! Kill!"

"General, can you please say a few words?"

The loud shouts of the entire army echoed over the grassland. Xu Da thought it was enough and chose to return the stage to 191. However, 191 was not very good at public speaking.

She coughed lightly and said slowly: "Let's go!"

The sound of horse hooves rumbled, the earth trembled, and thousands of volunteer cavalrymen with a large number of iron-blooded human figures rushed like a torrent across the grassland wilderness covered with grass and trees, and pounced on the Mongolian main force that was resting by the Taoer River.

On the boundless grassland, vast and boundless, on the banks of the Taoer River, there are yurts dotted around, smoke curling up from cooking, sheep flocking in the sun, and horses neighing.

A group of tired herdsmen lay lazily on the golden meadow, cursing the weak and incompetent tribal leader in their hearts.

Suddenly, on the distant horizon, a black shadow slowly approached, accompanied by the roar of iron hooves of thousands of horses galloping!

The herdsmen around were stunned for a moment. What was rushing over from the distance was a red tide that could not be described in words, and the scouts in the sky were like dark clouds.

"The Yan army is coming!"

A broken scream pierced the tranquility of the grassland. It was obvious that the army rushing over was the Great Yan Army, the killer that they had been avoiding in recent days!

The Mongolian camps stretched for more than ten miles, and included not only the coalition forces of various tribes, but also a large number of herdsmen and cattle and sheep. The first to be attacked were the troops led by Manzhu Xili stationed on the periphery.

Manzhu Xili is the fourth brother of Concubine Zhuang Bumbutai. He was granted the title of Jasak Dorbatulu Prince by the Qing court. He considered himself to be young and promising, and the strongest warrior in Mongolia.

"Array! Array!"

"Warriors of Khorchin, follow me to mount the horse and kill the enemy..." Manzhu Xili shouted loudly.

The Mongolian cavalry moved violently in response to the warlike Zasak.

Manzhu Xili was worthy of the name Baturu, and the title was not earned in vain. He urged his Mongolian horse to rush straight towards the attacking volunteers.

With a whistle, the Khorchin cavalry warriors immediately split into two groups, like a huge iron clamp, encircling the enemy from both wings, fully demonstrating the ancestral tactics of the Mongolian cavalry.

"shoot!"

Manzhu Xili drew his bow while on horseback and shouted the order to fire a volley at the oncoming volunteers.

A rain of arrows was thrown at the cavalry in front like locusts. In a flash, dozens or even hundreds of cavalrymen were thrown off their horses.

However, what shocked him was that the Great Yan Army in front of him was strangely not only not disturbed, but instead accelerated the speed of the charge, with hundreds of cavalry in a row, advancing like a wall.

There were also a large number of steel monsters rushing to the front with roars. The arrows shot at those monsters could only make some clinking sounds and could not affect the opponent's pace at all.

As a burst of bone-chilling gunfire rang out, the first few rows of the charging Mongolian cavalry fell to the ground in an instant, and were then trampled by the horses' hooves of the following Mongolian cavalry. Instantly, their flesh and blood were blurred into a mass of flesh and bones.

Faced with such a tragic scene, Manzhu Xili had no sympathy at all. Such cruel scenes were being played out on the grassland every moment, and he had long been accustomed to it.

Blood splattered everywhere, and Manzhu Xili was filled with uncontrollable excitement. He waved his bow and arrow frantically, shouting at the top of his lungs: "Warriors, charge!"

While he was having so much fun, the Mongolian warriors around him were panicking. A tribe had only a few hundred cavalrymen, and the young and strong herdsmen could barely make up one or two thousand people. How could they fight against the sea of ​​enemy cavalry? Where did the leader get the confidence?

When the Khorchin cavalry adjusted their angle and position again and prepared to fire a volley, the bullet sweep from the Iron Blood had already begun.

The dragoons' rotary machine guns and the rangers' mounted machine guns began to spray tongues of fire, pouring down on the enemy like a rainstorm as they advanced. The Khorchin cavalry were caught off guard, and their horses and men fell to the ground, their flesh and blood were blurred, and a sense of fear suddenly arose.

The war horses were moving too fast, and the Mongolian cavalry behind them had no time to avoid them, and their comrades in front were trampled to death.

Manzhu Xili was distressed and angry, but he had no way to deal with it. The enemy's muskets were continuous, and the cavalry were so closely spaced...

The cavalry of both sides approached quickly, and the dragon flags and wolf flags mixed in an instant. Amid the cold shining metal of spears, swords, axes, etc., there were the sounds of weapons clashing, bowstrings ringing, horses neighing, and soldiers screaming as they fell off their horses.

Soon after the two sides engaged in battle, the Khorchin Mongolian cavalry fell one after another like cut grass, and many cavalrymen turned around and ran away in fear.

As it turned out, the scattered Mongolian cavalry chose to confront the iron torrent of volunteers led by 191, who had rich combat experience, head-on, and had no power to fight back. The only thing left for them to do was to escape desperately.

Thousands of Mongolian soldiers were reduced to few in a flash, only Manzhu Xili rushed the farthest and seemed to be in good shape.

On the bumpy horseback, Manzhu Xili crossed paths with several medical champion cavalrymen, but for some reason, he hardly stabbed or cut his opponents. His movements as if he was in an empty space seemed brave and fierce, and his movements were as fierce as a tiger, but when he looked at the record of 0/5, it was actually useless.

Looking at the black gun muzzles pointing at him, Manzhu Xili felt something was clearly wrong. When he turned around, he saw his subordinates either lying or kneeling behind him. The grass around them had already been stained red with blood, and there were nothing but corpses.

In desperation, Manzhu Xili slowed down his horse, turned around calmly, and his face showed the confidence of a strong man. He wanted to take advantage of the situation and escape.

However, a long spear lifted him off his horse and flew him into the air like a dragon emerging from water. Before he could react, the spear blade slashed across his neck, separating his head and body.

"I don't know what this means." 191 didn't even look at this weird guy who was doing performance art in the army, and continued to ride forward.

A few miles away, there was a lot of noise around the tent of Prince Zhuoliketu of Khorchin.

Hearing the people outside the tent shouting and neighing, Wu Keshan couldn't help but frown and said angrily: "You dog slave, you are becoming more and more unruly. How dare you ride your horse like this in front of my tent?"

He was about to rush forward to scold and accuse them, but several riders had already rushed up to him, panting and kneeling on the ground. The leader cried out in a sobbing voice: "Your Majesty, something terrible has happened! The Yan army is coming!"

"what?"

Wu Keshan was shocked and kicked the servant in front of him: "What bullshit, is it that the Yan country's army flew over from the sky?"