Rule the Ming Dynasty Alone

In this era, horses are the most important strategic material.

On the battlefield, horses are the most mobile weapon. They can complete the transfer of military power faster, thus forming a more effective situation of using more to defeat fewer.

In a predicament, if the army is stuck without rice for cooking, they can kill horses and obtain meat and blood on the spot, thereby alleviating the army's urgent needs.

Since Zhu Youtang ascended the throne, he has begun to promote foreign trade policy.

In recent years, the Ming Dynasty not only increased the import of horses from the northwest by cracking down on the tea-horse trade, but also obtained a large number of Mongolian horses through the cotton trade.

In the past, the Liaodong Army might have been short of horses and food, but under the management of the Ming Dynasty, not only was the Liaodong granary consolidated, but it also had a large number of war horses.

Just like this, the army led by Zhao Chengqing now has a large number of horses, which can be regarded as retaining a glimmer of hope for Zhao Chengqing's troops who are in trouble.

However, they were still in trouble. The road ahead was blocked by huge rocks, and the only escape route had been blocked by the Emu tribe, making them a thorn in the side of others.

In the next few days, Zhao Chengqing did not lie down. While sending the vanguard battalion to break out in the direction of the Emu tribe, he sent people to clear the large rocks blocking the road, and at the same time continued to order the search for water sources.

It was just God's will that the little well water dug out with great efforts could not provide the needs of the army, and it was even more difficult to clean up the big rocks.

The sky in Haixi is not stained with dust, and there is no sign of rain at all.

As one of the seven Jurchen tribes in Haixi, the Emu tribe also inherited the Jurchens' skills of riding and shooting, and has been living a life of hunting and herding.

This time it seemed like they were all out, with a total of 15,000 troops gathered here to contain the only passage in the Long Snake Rift Valley.

Temporary military camp, sweat tent.

The leader of the Emu tribe is Bao Lidao, who is the father-in-law of Bagas. The reason for helping the Alchuka tribe this time was not out of in-laws, but driven by interests.

Not to mention the generous benefits promised by Bagas, the well-equipped Ming army in front of them is also coveted, and the deterioration of the relationship between the Ming and the Beiyuan provides an opportunity.

Although the Emu tribe is indeed unable to invade the Ming Dynasty from the south, the Ming Dynasty has never been good at field warfare. In addition, the Emu tribe, Shanhaiguan and four major tribes are located across it. Now that the Ming Dynasty has broken with the Northern Yuan Dynasty, the right time, place, and people are all on its side.

Driven by profit, Bao Lidao decided to take the risk of directly eating this Ming army's vanguard. While strengthening his own strength, he also hoped to get generous returns from his son-in-law and the Ming court.

Meetings are also held here, and there is a sand table in the center.

Haixi is different from Mongolia. Although there are prairie areas suitable for grazing, there are many mountains, virgin forests and large rivers.

They are actually in a mountainous landscape now. Because there are many unopened virgin forests, it has become a natural pocket terrain.

It was precisely because this was a war where it was extremely easy to intercept the Ming army, so after they agreed to Bagas, they blocked the Ming army in the Long Snake Rift with little effort.

"The Long Snake Rift Valley has become a dead valley. As long as we stay on Qingshi Slope, we can trap them to death!"

"That's true, but they can still escape once they remove the collapsed rocks!"

"The collapse point of the Long Snake Rift Valley is several feet high. How can manpower possibly move it away? You are just trying to cause trouble!"

"Even if they can move the huge rocks, how can they support this project now that they are short of water and food?"

…

The leaders of the Emu tribe gathered in the sweat tent. They were very confident that Zhao Chengqing's tribe was trapped by their own troops and did not think that Zhao Chengqing could dig out the boulder and escape.

In fact, the objective conditions are also here, not to mention that the collapse of the Long Snake Rift Valley has turned the Chang Snake Rift Valley into a death valley. The Ming army simply cannot persist for such a long time in clearing the blocked area.

Just like this, they took advantage of the terrain advantage in this battle and took advantage of the fact that the Ming army was not aware of the latest situation in the Changshen Valley, so they successfully trapped Zhao Chengqing's troops in the Changshen Rift Valley at a very small cost, and even completely annihilated this mighty force. The sluggish Ming army.

If some of them were worried about the crazy growth of the Ming army in recent years, but after seeing how easily Zhao Chengqing's troops were manipulated by them, they no longer had the slightest sense of awe.

At this moment, they actually began to celebrate this easy victory.

Although Bao Lidao knew that Zhao Chengqing's troops were already trapped in the urn, he looked very calm and said: "Now is not the time for us to take it lightly. We must resist their major counterattack. If we can force them to surrender, it would be best, otherwise we will trap them to death." Long Snake Rift!"

Although the current variables cannot be too big, especially outside the Long Snake Rift Valley, there is only one road. He has set up three levels of checkpoints to make it difficult for Zhao Chengqing to fly.

But he knew that Zhao Chengqing probably wouldn't sit still and wait for death. Although his three levels were enough to withstand the counterattack, this was the only way out after all.

As for the final result, his most ideal result was for Zhao Chengqing to lead his troops to surrender, but he could still accept it if he could trap the Ming army to death in Changshen Valley.

"Khan, once the Ming army surrenders, will it be difficult to deal with so many of them?" A bald leader immediately asked in doubt.

"We don't really need to fight to the death with the Ming Dynasty. As long as the Ming Dynasty court pays the ransom and promises not to conquer our Emu tribe, we can also let them pay the ransom and leave!" The corners of Bao Lidao's mouth raised slightly, and he immediately said his most ideal wish. The result said.

Although he was not only able to collect the Ming Dynasty's sophisticated weapons in this battle, but also received generous rewards from Bagas, his ambitions went far beyond that.

Now that Zhao Chengqing's troops are trapped by him, they are likely to surrender to him next. If the Ming Dynasty agrees to their conditions, then they can actually release this Ming Dynasty army in exchange for greater benefits.

Although the Ming Dynasty's army was notorious for being defeated, it was unimaginably rich, and he could become the strongest tribe in Haixi by relying on the Ming Dynasty's supplies.

Due to his own limitations, he has never had the ambition to take over the Central Plains, but he has a long-cherished wish to unify Haixi, and this time is undoubtedly a good opportunity given to him by God.

"Khan is wise!" When the leaders present saw Bao Lidao coming up with this idea, they bowed their hands respectfully.

After this meeting, the Emu Department's strategy can be said to have been finalized, but it wants to use Zhao Chengqing's army as an opportunity for its own rise.

Bao Litu had already regarded Zhao Chengqing's troops as a meal on his plate. He turned to look at his military advisor Nikan and said, "Military advisor, does Zhang Jin, the governor of Liaodong, have any response?"

"There is no response yet, but the Ming Dynasty has deprived our Emu Guard of all official positions and ordered other guards in Haixi to attack us!" Nikan shook his head gently and reported the latest situation.

Although now with the help of the geographical advantage, they can easily defeat Zhao Chengqing's troops. It's just that he once went to the Jinluan Temple to be a saint, but he knew that the Ming Emperor was not a simple person, and things might not go as smoothly as Bao Litu did.

Of course, the Ming Emperor was only one person after all, and it was also a fact that the Ming court did not have a strong army. Zhao Chengqing, who was once regarded as the commander-in-chief of the Ming Dynasty's strongest frontier army, was easily trapped in the Changshen Rift Valley, and his life and death were already in their hands.

"Those titles are in name only!"

"Originally we didn't care about it, but now it's just right for the Ming Dynasty to take it back!"

"I thought that Ming Dynasty was strong and powerful before accepting the title, but now it seems that Ming Dynasty is just a paper tiger!"

…

There were many leaders present who received the title. Although they were surprised that the Ming court responded so quickly and decisively, they seemed to be happy to see the success and expressed their opinions one after another.

Bao Lidao originally wanted to become the lord of Haixi, but now that he was deprived of the title, he opened the shackles again and could annex the other six tribes with great fanfare, imitating the feat of Qin that unified the six countries.

At this time, a soldier hurriedly walked into the sweat tent and delivered a military message.

The leaders present saw the soldiers rushing in directly, and their faces looked very solemn, and they couldn't help but look at Bao Lidao sitting in the center with confusion.

Bao Lidao knew that this was a letter from Fei Ge, his closest ally, the Huifa Department, but when he saw the content on the note, he also showed a solemn expression.

"Khan, what happened?" Military advisor Nikan knew something might have changed, so he asked first.

Bao Lidao put down the note in his hand, looked around at the people present and said: "News has just been sent from the south! It turns out that the Ming Dynasty has a back-up force. Part of their grain transport army is played by Jinzhou Guards and Ningyuan Guards, and the grain and grass they transport are hidden. arms!"

"I asked why Zhao Chengqing dared to advance so rashly. He actually had a back-up plan. He was counting on Jinzhou Guards and Ningyuan Guards to rescue him!" The bald leader thought of Zhao Chengqing's rash advances before and seemed to have some understanding.

"Jinzhou Guards and Ningyuan Guards are both ruthless people, what should we do now?" Several leaders knew that the southern part of their Emu tribe was empty, and they couldn't help asking worriedly.

Once the Jinzhou Guards and Ningyuan Guards come to attack, their Emu tribe will be attacked from both sides. Once Zhao Chengqing's tribe is allowed to escape, it can be said that this time it is a fire.

You know, Zhao Chengqing's troops numbered 10,000, and with the troops of Jinzhou Guard and Ningyuan Guard, they no longer had the upper hand.

However, the atmosphere suddenly changed. Military advisor Nikan smiled and said: "Khan, since the Ming Dynasty's trump card has been revealed, we should also let them see that the water in Haixi is much deeper than the Ming Dynasty court thought! "

He had always been worried because things were going too smoothly. Now that he knew the trump card hidden by Daming, he suddenly felt at ease. He was now confident of winning.

Huh?

The leaders present looked at the smiling military advisor Nikan, but they were all dumbfounded.

It was clear that they were facing a situation of being attacked from both front and back, and Zhao Chengqing's troops who were besieged by them were likely to escape. How could military advisor Nikan still laugh? Could it be that this person was a spy?

Facing everyone's puzzled looks, Bao Lidao smiled mysteriously and said: "The Ming Dynasty should never attack the Alchuka tribe from the east, nor should it break with the Bei Yuan. Now it's time to let them see us. Haixi girl is really amazing!"

This is indeed the case. The Ming Dynasty's army to conquer the Alchuka tribe entered Haixi from Jianzhou, first passing through the Huifa tribe, passing through the Emu tribe, and finally entering Alchukha.

Due to the division of labor, food transport troops are usually mostly civilians or old, weak, sick and disabled soldiers recruited temporarily. Therefore, they have never had much combat effectiveness and have been ignored by many people.

It was originally an exquisite arrangement. Just when the Jinzhou Guards and Ningyuan Guards were preparing to assemble into an army, a Jurchen tribe suddenly attacked the grain transport army.

No one expected that the Ming Dynasty's conquest of a small Haixi Jurchen tribe would turn out to be an iron ox in the sea, causing the Ming Dynasty's war situation to develop in an unfavorable direction.

The capital city at the end of February seemed to be very mysterious.

While the capital was still in panic, the fourth battle report had been delivered to Beijing.

The imperial court did not wait for the good news that Zhao Chengqing's troops were out of trouble. Instead, they learned that the Jinzhou Guards and Ningyuan Guards hidden in the grain transport army had been raided by a Jurchen army, and the grain transport troops had withdrawn to Jianzhou.

Although it has not been found out which Haixi Jurchen tribe is responsible, the answer is actually ready to come out.

What's worse is that since three major tribes in the Seven Haixi tribes have formed an alliance to betray the Ming Dynasty, no one can guarantee whether a fourth tribe will appear, which makes the Ming Dynasty now suspicious.

The Metropolitan Procuratorate, the Great Prison.

Facing the unfavorable battle situation of the Haixi Jurchens, Zhu Youtang felt a strong uneasiness in his heart. He also decided to be superstitious and personally approached Dongfang Dao Fuji, who claimed to be ignorant.

Since the Western Han Dynasty, fuji has become more and more prosperous. As the economy of this dynasty becomes more and more prosperous, it will provide a bigger stage for fuji masters who can predict the secrets of heaven.

Although Dongfang Dao was in prison, he came in with equipment, and even put on a loose Bagua robe of some vintage before the Fuji activity.

With the help of the two boys, he shrank into the robe as if possessed by a god, and the awl hanging on the shelf moved on the sand table.

The awl seemed to be scratching in the sand table irregularly, but something magical happened quickly. Eight characters appeared in the apparently messy strokes.

"The yin rises and the yang wanes, and the main force rises after its death!"

Guo Yong stayed with Zhu Youtang and read out the words on the sand table in confusion.

"What do you mean?" Zhu Youtang asked calmly when he saw "Xing" was very uncomfortable.

Dongfang Dao swallowed his saliva and said cautiously: "Your Majesty, the common people are just conveying Zi Gu's secrets, everything has to be reviewed by you!"

Guo Yong knew that fuji was different from the word test, so he usually did not help to solve the puzzle. Thinking of the word "disaster" earlier, he couldn't help but think of the concubines that the emperor had favored recently.

February is destined to be an uneasy time.

As the end of the month came, the night sky became pitch black. That night, a fit man suddenly emerged from the ground.

Anyone who sees this scene will be extremely shocked, because this is the small forest in the north of Xiyuan, only a dozen meters away from Taiye Pond. (End of chapter)