I

Xilamulun River means "Yellow River" in Mongolian.

It is the source of the Western Liao River, so it is also called Liao River and Da Lian River.

"Great Khan, you can't go further south!" Darhan advised on the north bank of the Xilamulun River.

Chahun Dorji pulled the reins, looked at the wide river in front, and at the endless army and livestock behind him, and said with great pride: "The army of more than 100,000 people has not fought any tough battles, should we just disperse like this? "

Mergen was also trying to dissuade him: "Great Khan, we are sending troops this time to conquer the Horqin tribes. This goal has been achieved. The Bahrain tribe and the Zalut tribe have been conquered. The remaining tribes must either surrender or flee. Even so. The tribes, tribesmen and livestock that escaped were also captured by us. We have robbed so much pasture, livestock, people, slaves and food. We should just take it when we get it. Why do we have to go south to provoke the Han people?"

Darhan said: "Yes, there is no need to fight the Han people anymore. The most important thing now is how to resettle the surrendered Horqin tribesmen. Take the hostages when they need to, and change the pastures when they need to. Taiji in Khalkha We must lead the army to leave some behind to consolidate our rule in the Horqin Grassland. We have expanded too fast in the past few years, and even in Hulunbuir, some tribes still have second thoughts."

The other Khalkha Mongolian leaders also began to dissuade him.

They had made a lot of money by sending troops this time. The loot they grabbed was enough to provide them with food and clothing for several years. There was really no need to continue fighting south. What if there's a big defeat and you can't keep the loot?

Chahun Dorji looked resolute, but he was making careful calculations in his heart.

His succession to the throne was too short, and he urgently needed a big victory to establish his supreme authority. Although the battle against Horqin was successful this time and there were numerous gains, the one who achieved the greatest military exploits was Deputy Khan Darhan.

Nowadays, many tribal leaders have high regard for Darhan, which makes Chahun Dorji have to be wary.

Also, Darhan captured Horqin's noble daughter and secretly picked out the two most beautiful women, which made Chahu Dorji very dissatisfied.

He is not for the two women, but thinks that he has been ignored and that his authority has been greatly challenged! If Darhan sends all the ladies to him for distribution, even if Darhan wants to select a few more beauties, he will reward them very generously.

If you want a woman, I can give it to you, but you can't take it away without my consent!

"The Han people have nothing to fear. If you break the Han people's cities, you can grab more goods and people." Chahu Dorji was determined to go his own way.

"Khan, please think twice!"

"Sweat!"

First, the leader of the big tribe dismounted and knelt on the ground to persuade them hard. Immediately afterwards, many small tribe leaders followed Lu and knelt down one after another.

Even the Danzhu Lama who accompanied the army shook the wheel and said: "Great Khan, it is getting late, and the road back to Mobei is long. If we continue to fight southward, if the war drags on for a long time, the army will probably face difficulties returning to Mobei. snowstorm."

Chahun Dorji was still riding on his war horse, surrounded by people kneeling on the ground.

The tribal leaders all had the same idea. They were satisfied with the loot and did not want to take the risk of fighting the Han again.

Chahun Dorji, who threatened to become the Great Khan of Mongolia, could not even restrain his subordinates at this moment. He was filled with rage and wanted to kill a few of them with a knife, but he didn't dare to actually do it.

"That's all, hahahaha!"

Chahun Dorji laughed loudly, pointed to the south and said: "This year's battle was really exciting. Let's leave those Han people in the south alone for now, and wait until next year to deal with them severely!"

"Great Khan, Holy Ming!" The leaders of various ministries were overjoyed.

Immediately afterwards, using the pretext that the Horqin Grassland was not stable, Chahun Dorji announced that the main force must stay. He asked Darhan and Mergen, each with a son, to return to Mobei with part of their army. While dispersing the strength of the two men, he also kept the two men close to him to prevent them from causing trouble if they ran far away.

Both the Left Banner and the Right Banner of Bahrain were raided by Horqin, resulting in numerous casualties among the tribesmen. Therefore, the two tribes of Bahrain can receive compensation and take away some herdsmen, cattle and sheep from the captives, and move to the flatter and more fertile Xilingol.

The Zarut tribe was also raided, and the herdsmen were divided among the captives, and they also obtained the rich territory left by Badali.

Lama Shixi, who was forced to surrender halfway, could keep his tribe and property, but he had to hand over some herdsmen and slaves. At the same time, the whole family must move to the pastures on the other side of Lianhuan Lake. Although the area has shrunk, the pastures are more fertile and can grow wheat. Changing the pasture in this way was to allow Lama Shixi to occupy the land where Manzhu practiced rituals, and completely turned Horqin's tribes into enemies.

After Lama Shixi moved away, the vacated pasture was handed over to Chahun Dorji's younger brother to rule. You can first select a group of captives to graze, and wait until next year to migrate some Khalkha herdsmen to replenish it.

For the rest of the pasture, Chahun Dorzi himself occupied the territory of the Bahrain and Aruhorqin tribes. The brothers Mergen and Darhan were given pastures of the Hongol tribe. The remaining leaders of each tribe, each with a son, were placed in Tongliao and the surrounding vast grasslands.

A series of profit distributions made Darhan stunned throughout the whole process. He did receive rewards and expanded his territory, but his strength was completely divided. His son and brother, also because of the huge profits, are likely to only take orders from Chahu Dorji in the future.

"Long live the Great Khan, long live the Great Khan!"

Countless people cheered and shouted. Chahun Dorji, who had only succeeded to the throne for one year, had completely convinced them.

What a generous and kind-hearted Khan, it would be right to follow him in the war!

Even Lama Shixi, who had taken refuge from the Horqin tribe, felt that he had grown in power. Although his territory has become smaller and his tribe has become fewer, the land after the replacement has rich water and grass, fertile soil, and can be redeveloped.

Chahu Dorji, who gained supreme prestige, continued to say to his tribe: "That Badali led his troops south to join the Han people. The Han soldiers may come over at any time. You divide a small number of troops, bring the population and livestock, and go to receive them. My own new pasture. But the main force cannot go too far. Once you encounter traces of Han soldiers, they will immediately move closer to me! In addition, I will send three thousand cavalry to the south to serve as sentinels. Our troops must be ordered to gather at any time. !”

…

Chifeng is currently under the jurisdiction of Hebei Province.

At the beginning, the Datong Army only recaptured Ningcheng as far as it could go, which was the former Zhongjing of the Liao Kingdom and the residence of King Ning in the early Ming Dynasty.

Gradually, it was discovered that although Ningcheng was good for defense, it was not convenient for fighting out, so they expanded northward to Chifeng.

The area in Chifeng has many hills and mountains, as well as river valleys and plains.

Mountain grasslands can be used for grazing, and valley plains can be cultivated. Therefore, the original Mongols were not driven away, but several Karaqin Mongolian leaders were killed and pastures were designated for herdsmen to live in. The local Han slaves were rescued, divided into fields and settled, and some of them immigrated one after another. There are already more than 3,000 Han people in the river valley and plain.

Normally, due to logistical supply problems, only a thousand Datong troops are stationed in Chifeng.

At this moment, tens of thousands of troops have gathered!

Zhang Tieniu personally led the troops northward, with 4 infantry divisions, 2 cavalry divisions, and more than 8,000 Horqin and Wengniut Mongolian cavalry under his command. Not counting the civilians who transported food, the total military strength was 80,000! Counting the civilians, the number of troops was more than 100,000.

When Khalkha and Horqin were fighting, the Datong Army had been transporting troops and food northward.

"The spies brought back news that Khalkha stopped moving south, but its army refused to leave," Zhang Tieniu said, pointing to the map. "The main force of Khalkha is stationed at the left and right banners of Bahrain. They can flee westward along the mountains and valleys at any time. .”

Badali, whose whole family fled south, said: "Chahun Dorji is too ambitious. Under normal circumstances, he should have robbed him and returned to Mobei. Now he actually stayed here because he wanted to completely occupy the Horqin grassland. For safety reasons , he also left a way out for himself, if he couldn’t win, he could leave the baggage and run away.”

Li Dingguo looked at the map and said: "There are several passable places in the southern mountains of Daxinganling. If we send troops from Chifeng, it is likely to scare the enemy away. If we want to retain the main force of the enemy, we must have the cooperation of friendly forces on the west route. It will take Mr. Fei ( Fei Ruhe (Fei Ruhe) led his army to recruit the various tribes in Chahar, and headed north from Zhangjiakou and Jining (Ulanqab), and marched eastward along the Yanshan Mountains to block the back road to Khalkha."

Zhang Tieniu said: "The news has been sent. Lao Fei returned to Beijing some time ago to report on his duties. I don't know if he has returned to the station. Even if he comes back, I don't know if he can send troops on time."

In ancient times, there were no telephones or telegraphs, and the north lacked rivers for fast communication. If the two armies wanted to cooperate thousands of miles apart, it would purely depend on the tacit understanding and luck of the commanders.

On the other hand, the Liaoning direction has definitely been waiting for an opportunity.

After Li Zheng became the governor of Heilongjiang, he had been stripped of his military command authority. Due to the changes in Khalkha and the Cossacks moving south again, he regained temporary command this summer. The troops in Liaoning and Heilongjiang were handed over to Li Zheng for unified command.

Hu Dinggui was settling the refugees for reclamation, and he also had to keep an eye on the remaining Tatars in Manchuria. His division was temporarily on hold.

Li Zheng and Xiao Zongxian, leading two infantry divisions and one cavalry division, gradually assembled in the direction of Siping. They found that all Horqin's troops had fled, so they walked west along the Liao Great Wall. Most of the required logistical equipment was also transported along the Liao Great Wall, and finally the group headed north towards Kulun.

"There are Mongolian sentries ahead!"

"Kill as many as you can!"

Wang Tingchen, who had traveled hundreds of miles to attack the Tatars and performed meritorious services, and was punished for violating military discipline, was now leading the vanguard of the Northeast to explore the route. To be honest, he was punished at that time, and gradually he was compensated continuously. Pang Chunlai also acted as a matchmaker for his son, and he married the ministers of the court. Wang Tingchen was mentally balanced at this time.

There were only a few hundred sentry cavalry sent out by the Khalkha Mongols in the Kulun area. Facing the Datong cavalry that was ten times their own, they whipped away without saying a word.

The Khalkha leader who was about to take over the Kulen Pasture quickly evacuated after hearing the news.

"Great Khan, take your gains back to Mobei!"

Over at Chahun Dorji, the leaders of various ministries began to make trouble again.

They had not yet established a stable foothold in the Horqin Grassland, were unfamiliar with the place, and had so many trophies, so they really did not want to take the risk of fighting again. There are movements of the Han army in the south, and traces of the Han army are found in the east. It makes sense to escape from the west as soon as possible.

Chahu Dorji said: "Withdrawing our troops back to Mobei now, we will indeed make a lot of money, and we can take away countless trophies. But if we leave this time, the Han people will take the opportunity to occupy the grassland and surrender to us." The Monan and Modong tribes will also betray us and turn to the Han people. Mobei is too cold and barren, so this is a good place. We must fight the Han people. We don’t need a big victory, just push the Han people back. Then we will firmly Occupy this place and move the tribes here one after another. In less than twenty years, we will be able to multiply many tribesmen and have more people, livestock and food!"

"Qiang!"

Chahu Dorji drew his sword and said: "As a last resort, this battle must be fought. If we win, Khalkha can grow stronger and unify all the Mongolian tribes. If we lose, it will be difficult to go south again. In the future, our descendants will We can only stay in Mobei. Listen to me, gather an army, and fight the Han people to the death!"