In Wang Shiyang's plan, the next step was to kill as many Mongolians as possible at Shiling Pass, which was known as one of the three passes in Shanxi. He wanted to weaken their fighting power so that the formation of tens of thousands of people he prepared for them outside Taiyuan City could be used.
If they wanted to repel the Northern Barbarians, they had to leave the city and fight in the wild. They had to counterattack!
At that moment, Wang Shiyang's fifty thousand men in Taiyuan Town were ready, and the forty thousand reinforcements from Yulin Town were also ready. Nearly one hundred thousand men gathered in Taiyuan City. Wang Shiyang had already made up his mind to kill the ten thousand Mongolian cavalry outside Taiyuan City even if it was three for one.
On the twentieth day of the twelfth month of the twenty-fifth year of Wan Li, the defense of Shiling Pass began.
Wang Shiyang might have withdrawn a portion of the troops he arranged to defend Shiling Pass, but there were still fifteen thousand of them. The general in charge was Wang Shiyang's trusted subordinate, Ma Zun. Ma Zun was brave and good at fighting, and he was even better at defending. The terrain of Shiling Pass was dangerous, and they were well-prepared. Wang Shiyang thought they could hold off the Mongolians for around ten days.
Wang Shiyang miscalculated.
On the twenty-sixth day of the twelfth month of the twenty-fifth year of Wan Li, Shiling Pass was lost. The general Ma Zun died in battle, and only a few hundred of the fifteen thousand soldiers escaped pathetically. Most of them died in Shiling Pass. They were defeated in just six days.
On the twenty-seventh day, Wang Shiyang received news that Shiling Pass was lost, and he was shocked.
He felt that Shiling Pass could be defended for at least ten days, but why were they defeated in six days? Almost all the soldiers died in battle, and even Ma Zun, who was good at fighting, died? He did not understand.
The soldiers who came back to report said that the Mongolians attacked Shiling Pass fiercely for five days, but they did not succeed. The Ming Army defended with ease, but on the fifth night, the Mongolians suddenly launched a night attack. They pressed heavily on the border, and the Ming Army lost almost as soon as they noticed.
The soldiers who escaped cried and said that the Mongolians were so densely packed that they could not be killed. It was as if they suddenly received reinforcements, and they crushed the defenders of Shiling Pass.
Ma Zun did not want to lose, and he led his men to attack Shiling Pass at dawn. They were surrounded, and all the soldiers were killed. Ma Zun also died in battle.
Wang Shiyang instantly felt that something was not right, but he did not know what it was. He could only send an order to the three armies. The Mongolians were about to invade, and all the divisions were to follow the plan and enter the battle zone to prepare for a tough battle!
Wang Shiyang's military accomplishments could be considered passable. At the very least, he was much better than some of the civil officials of the Song Dynasty. He was also much better than some of the Grand Secretaries who blindly gave out commands.
If nothing unexpected happened, the ten thousand Mongolian cavaliers would not be able to return. After all, it was a fight of one hundred thousand against ten thousand. Even if they used their lives to pile on the Mongolians, they would still be able to kill them.
That was his decision. He put on his armor and made up his mind to fight alongside his soldiers.
On the same day that Shiling Pass fell, outside Beijing, Li Rusong's twenty thousand elite cavalry, who had been in the capital for four days, were idling and resting in a camp outside the city.
For the soldiers, it was very simple to fight when there was a battle and not fight when there was no battle. They would not be nervous or anxious, especially for the Liaodong iron cavalry and the Jurchen elite cavalry who had been through hundreds of battles. For them, fighting was as easy as eating and drinking. There was really nothing to say.
Even for Nurhachi, who had once again been forcibly recruited by Li Rusong to fight with ten thousand cavalrymen, this was something that he was very hopeful about. He hoped that he could go back without his cavalry.
Since the end of the battle in Korea, he had lost more than four thousand cavalrymen and five thousand horses. Although he had received a lot of money and rewards from the Ming court, the money and titles could not instantly increase the number of able-bodied men he lacked the most.
At most, he could mobilize thirty to forty thousand able-bodied men to fight. Losing one-tenth of them in one battle, and they were very elite ones, he felt a little heartache. But since his master, Li Rusong, had summoned him, he did not dare to be negligent. Without the support of the Li family in Liaodong, Nurhachi could not move an inch.
And this was also because he was eager to become an official, so he took the initiative to ask for it. He had dug a pit and jumped into it, so he could only accept it. He had to go to Korea.
But this time, it was like he was forced. He was planning another expedition against the Haixi Jurchen, but then Li Rusong rushed to him and asked him to send ten thousand elite cavalrymen to follow him into the pass to fight. Nurhachi was stunned on the spot.
Why?
Nurhachi asked.
Li Rusong hurriedly explained. Only then did he know that the Ming Empire was attacked by the Mongols. The situation was very critical now. The Mongols were about to attack the capital. His father, Nurhachi's old master, Li Chengliang, was mobilized to defend Zijing Pass with tens of thousands of Jingying soldiers. The situation was very critical.
Of course, Li Rusong knew what the Jingying soldiers were like. Otherwise, when they entered Korea, Xiao Ruxun would not have brought the allied forces of the Daming Empire from all over the North, South, East, and West, but the once most powerful Jingying army.
Now everyone knew that the Jingying army was corrupt, and they should not have been used. But this time, the situation was urgent, and there was no time to recruit soldiers from other places.
Old Li bit the bullet and led the useless Jingying soldiers to fight against the fierce Mongols. Old Li was almost scared to death. He hurriedly prepared ten thousand elite Liaodong Iron Cavalry. Calculating that the number was not enough, he did not have the confidence, so he came to Nurhachi and asked him to send ten thousand cavalrymen to gather twenty thousand people to fight in the pass.
Nurhachi almost spat out a mouthful of blood.
Old Li, I was just about to send troops to attack the Haixi Jurchen, and you actually want to … This is the second time, Old Li!
The first time, he originally planned to kill the Haixi Jurchen, but in the end, he was forced to do so and lost the lives of more than four thousand warriors. He only barely recovered after three years of recuperation. Just as he was about to sweep the Haixi Jurchen with an indomitable spirit to increase his strength, Li Rusong came again.
"Dalang, to tell you the truth, I'm planning to attack the Haixi Jurchen. They have been provoking me, and if I don't fight back, what will others think of me? How about this, I'll send ten thousand men to help you, and the rest, I'll bring them to attack the Haixi Jurchen, okay? "
He asked carefully with a bitter face.
In the end, Li Rusong slammed the table and stood up.
"Nu 'er, do you think I don't know what you're thinking? We grew up together, how can I not know what you're thinking? Put away your little tricks, bring the troops and enter the pass with me! As for the Haixi Jurchen … I'll send someone to warn them. If they dare to attack when you're not around, I'll personally lead the troops to destroy them when I come back! "
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