Eight miles west of Hetuala, there was a mountain called Zao Tu Mountain, also known as Chimney Mountain. It lay across the west side of Hetuala, protecting the small city.
This mountain became the natural barrier of Hetuala. As the Qin Army advanced eastward along the Suzi River, they would inevitably pass by Chimney Mountain, and this mountain was the last barrier of Hetuala.
Nurhaci gathered all his men, leaving behind thirty thousand able-bodied men. He ordered them to slowly move to the south, while he himself led his men to Chimney Mountain to set up a defense, preparing to use the terrain of Chimney Mountain to fight the Qin army to the death.
Chu Ying, that unfilial son, had already made up his mind to fight his father. Nurhachi had no choice but to fight.
He lost two of his five generals, and there were still three left. Each of them was brave and astute. Under their leadership, the morale of the Jianzhou army was high. If they worked hard enough, they might have a chance of winning. After all, they were fighting on their home ground, and the Qin Army had come from afar. Food was a big problem.
Nurhachi planned to fight at Chimney Mountain for a while, and then fight in Hetuala for a while. They would gradually wear down the logistics of the Qin Army, forcing the Qin Army to retreat, and then he would lead his troops to kill them.
Fighting the Qin Army could not be the same as fighting the Nine Tribes United Army. The Qin Army had a clear command, and there were no loopholes in the command system. It would be meaningless to hope for internal strife among them.
Nurhaci used all the weapons he had bought from the Qin army, the weapons seized from the allied forces of the nine tribes, and some weapons bought from the Liaodong army. He tried his best to arm his troops. As for those who did not have any weapons, he armed them with wooden sticks and the like to boost their morale.
They could not lose to the Qin Army in terms of morale. Otherwise, they would lose before the battle even started.
The Qin Army advanced at a steady pace, advancing steadily and steadily, pouncing towards Jianzhou with the momentum of Mount Tai. Along the way, they destroyed several strongholds. Jianzhou was almost powerless to fight back, so the morale of the army was high.
On the morning of the 15th of September, the Qin Army arrived at the western side of Chimney Mountain. Ma Chong used the telescope to observe the situation on Chimney Mountain and found that the Jianzhou Army had indeed gathered their main forces here. The defensive facilities on the mountain and at the foot of the mountain were connected, and there were traps and potholes everywhere to hinder the advance. There were many silk banners, and there were also many soldiers.
Clearly, this wasn't a ploy, but a true main force. The information wasn't wrong.
"Chu Ying, this should be the decisive battle. Blades and spears have no eyes on the battlefield. My army will not hold back. You must be mentally prepared."
Ma Chong called Chu Ying over and explained the cruelty of war to him, lest he couldn't accept the fact that so many of his clansmen were killed.
Chu Ying nodded, indicating that he understood.
"I know, General Ma. You don't have to worry about me. I'm prepared and I can accept it, but …"
"Just what?"
"I want to send someone to pass a message to the Jianzhou Army one last time. It's a final attempt."
Chu Ying asked Ma Chong for permission.
"Attempt?"
Ma Chong was a little puzzled. "What attempt?"
"The Daqin Army has only sinned against Nuer Hachi, Eyidu, Anfeyanggu, and Fei Yingdong. The others can live. As long as they hand over these four people, the others can live and become Daqin citizens!"
Ma Chong looked at Luo Rong, and Luo Rong also looked at Ma Chong.
There really wasn't much to say.
"Sure, go and do it!"
If they could disrupt the morale of the Jianzhou Army before the battle, it would also be a good thing for the Daqin Army. In ancient warfare, there was a tactic of surrounding three and leaving one out. The intention was to give the enemy hope of survival, so that they wouldn't fall into a dead end and fight like cornered beasts, bringing great casualties to the army. This method of asking them to surrender was actually a psychological method of surrounding three and leaving one out.
Give them hope of survival, and then see what they choose.
It could be said to be ingenious.
At this time, a young general beside Ma Chong suddenly asked Chu Ying, "General Chu, do you know if there is a path around this mountain?"
Ma Chong turned his head to look at the young general. Seeing that it was his personal general, Mao Wenlong, he asked, "Mao Wenlong, what do you mean by this? Do you have any good ideas? "
Mao Wenlong joined the army in Hangzhou at the age of 20. Because he was literate, he quickly stood out. When Xiao Ruxun arrived in Nanjing, he was sent to Nanjing to join Xiao Ruxun's main force of the Northern Expedition Army.
After that, he was assigned to be a literate soldier under Ma Chong. Because he had read military books and was relatively smart, he was recognized by Ma Chong and gradually promoted to an officer.
Ma Chong still admired this literate young man. Knowing that he had always been very smart, he took the initiative to ask him for the reason.
Mao Wenlong cupped his fists and said, "Previously, we received information that in order to focus on the enemy, Nuer Hachi moved all the people of Jianzhou to the south to take refuge, and stayed to fight against us wholeheartedly. This is certainly a good plan, but if something happens to these people in the rear, I'm afraid that the tens of thousands of soldiers in front of us will immediately collapse, right?"
Ma Chong frowned.
"Are you trying to say …"
"I asked for a group of cavalry to go around this mountain and attack the people of Jianzhou. I don't want to destroy them, I just want to attack and kill some of them, causing chaos so that they will send people back to report to Nuer Hachi. This will shake their morale and cause them to collapse.
Together with General Chu's persuasion to surrender, we can achieve unexpected results. There is no need for our army to fight against them on a large scale. These more than 30,000 Jianzhou soldiers are not easy to deal with. If we forcefully take them down, I'm afraid that our losses will be more than one or two thousand. "
Mao Wenlong's words stunned Ma Chong and Luo Rong. After a while, they looked at Chu Ying together.
They did not know if Chu Ying was willing to accept this result.
After a while, Chu Ying gritted his teeth.
"If we can make them surrender as soon as possible, this price is nothing. General Mao, there is a way to go around this mountain, but we need to go around in a big circle to get to the rear. The journey is long and the road is not easy to travel, but the Jianzhou soldiers will definitely not have any defenses. Are you willing to make a trip?"
"Of course!"
Mao Wenlong cupped his hands, his face full of confidence.
Ma Chong curled the corner of his mouth and nodded.
"Sure, Mao Wenlong, I will give you two thousand elite cavalry. Bring them to attack the people of Jianzhou. Are you sure you can win?"
Mao Wenlong dismounted and knelt on one knee. "If I can't win, please cut off my head!"
"Alright!"
Ma Chong immediately gave the military order to allocate two thousand cavalry to Mao Wenlong and let him lead them to attack the people of Jianzhou.
Chu Ying's messenger quickly arrived at the camp of the Jianzhou army and conveyed Chu Ying's intention to persuade them to surrender.
"General Chu said that as long as the people of Jianzhou hand over Tong Nu 'er, Hachi, Eyidu, Anfeyanggu, and Fei Yingdong, the others can live. The Emperor of Daqin only offended these four people. The others can live and be pardoned!"
After the messenger's words were conveyed, Nurhachi's tent fell into a dead silence.
Eyidu, Anfeyanggu, and Fei Yingdong all looked at Nurhachi in surprise. Nurhachi also looked surprised.
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
