Ningxia went to war.

For five or six days in a row, it was a large-scale dispatch of troops and horses, and all walks of life in Ningxia seemed to be actively mobilized, and Yang Yiqing initially showed an extraordinary level in mobilization ability.

But after the war began, as time progressed, the results of the battles everywhere returned, and it was a bit "unsatisfactory".

"Anbianhou's men and horses encountered the main Tatar force sixty miles west of Ningxia Zhenweisuo, and the two sides briefly exchanged troops, and Anbianhou's headquarters lost more than 60 people, and the artillery did not enter the Tatar camp, so there was no first achievement."

"An Bianhou withdrew to Bianqiang Fort, and the Tatars were afraid that this was a plan to lure the enemy into depth, so they retreated eighty miles to the north, and Anbianhou led his troops to the south."

……

Generally.

Zhu Feng lost the battle.

It's not that he can't do it, it's that the strength of the Ming army is not good, and all the people add up to 4,000 people who can dispatch him, and the Tartar sorties are all in 10,000 units.

Moreover, the other party does not fight with you in a group, knowing that your artillery is powerful, and also knows that you can lay a "mine array" of yellow powder, but this yellow powder must be ignited, and the Tatars just don't drill into your ambush circle, and you have no move.

So much so that Zhu Feng retreated to the fortress of the border town and almost fell into a heavy siege, but fortunately, the Tatars felt that this was "luring the enemy to go deeper", or felt that Zhu Feng was not so bad, and there might be some powerful backhand, and when withdrawing the troops, he did not just withdraw three or five miles to prepare for another battle, but directly retreated eighty miles north......

Zhu Feng's main force turned the corner.

After Zhu Feng escaped, he did not come to the town of Ningxia Town, but went south......

This also shows that Zhu Feng is not very confident to fight with the main Tatar force, and now it has become Zhu Feng, the famous "god of war", who avoids the war.

Even Zhu Feng blindly avoided the war, let alone soldiers elsewhere.

……

The station of Yansui Town is also the station of the trilateral general system.

The news of Zhu Feng's defeat, although suppressed by Yang Yiqing, still reached Qin Hong.

After Qin Hong saw the battle report, all he thought of was ...... This battle can't be fought.

"Immediately play, ask Your Majesty to dispatch troops and horses from Datong, Biguan and other places to gallop to the trilateral lands to prevent the Tatars from penetrating deeply." What Qin Hong is thinking about now is not whether Yang Yiqing can take advantage of the initiative.

What he was thinking about was some big surprise on the three sides.

In other words, even if Emperor Trillium wants to take the initiative to fight, Qin Hong believes that this battle must be held on.

……

……

The news reached the eccentric level.

Wang Qiong, as the governor of the partial pass, was responsible for controlling the military affairs from the partial pass to Taiyuan and other places, and when he knew that Zhu Feng had suffered a setback in Ningxia, he also realized that Yang Yiqing was a bit "on paper".

"Lord Zhongcheng, if it goes on like this, Anbianhou is afraid that he can only hide in Tibet, and the Tatars may find that he is unable to fight again at any time and besiege him."

Even Yao Shun, the general under Wang Qiong's command and deputy commander-in-chief, also noticed that there was a big problem with Yang Yiqing's tactics.

Wang Qiong shook his head and said, "If anyone else goes, this battle will not be able to be fought according to His Majesty's wishes." The little prince of Tatar came to attack with all his strength this time, and only hit Ningxia this way, completely because he saw that the terrain of Ningxia was difficult to attack, so he could only hold on. And there are defects everywhere in the passes...... The worst ...... The Tatars have already acquired six or seven artillery pieces from our Daming border town......"

What worried Wang Qiong happened.

The Ming Dynasty repeatedly used artillery to deter the grassland tribes, and although the little Tatar prince Batu Munk had not yet copied it, he captured the Ming Dynasty's artillery in several previous encounters.

Together with the captured shells, it was already possible to form a local firearms suppression.

Even the Tatars used the captured artillery on attacking fortifications, which made it easier to find targets than using artillery in the field, and with a specific direction of attack, the effectiveness of artillery could be maximized.

"Please Your Majesty, Biguan is willing to send troops to help Ningxia." Wang Qiong felt that she couldn't ignore Zhu Feng's little brother.

Moreover, Wang Qiong has "lofty ideals", no matter whether he can get specific official positions in the court and the court, at least he must establish his prestige in the northwest, and the governor of the partial pass has always been too marginalized, and he cannot be recognized by the mainstream civil servants in the court, he hopes that he can become a trilateral general system and replace Qin Hong to preside over the main military affairs in the northwest.

If you don't want to be the governor of the general system, you are not a good military man.

……

……

The war situation in the northwest is tight, and news is constantly coming to the capital.

But most of the battle was hidden in the northwest.

Ningxia encountered setbacks and did not report to Yang Yiqing, the governor of Ningxia Town; Yang Yiqing found that there was a defeat, and he did not report to the trilateral general system as much as possible; In order to ensure the stability of all parts of the northwest, Qin Hong did not report to Beijing if he was disheartened, and he did not report his defeat to Beijing......

Then the news that Zhu Youzhu knew was only that the guards and generals below thought that they could report it to the imperial court.

But even so, Zhu Youzhu could feel that the situation in the northwest had not only improved because of the arrival of Zhu Feng and Yang Yiqing in Ningxia, but had even deteriorated a lot.

Xiao Jing said: "Your Majesty, judging from the known use of troops in Ningxia, it is indeed difficult to obtain results in a sortie battle, and the Tartars also know the power of the Ming artillery, and they will no longer charge the camp of the Ming army with heavy cavalry. ”

Zhu Youzhu frowned and said, "So far, there hasn't been a single regular battle?" Why did Zhijie fight with the main force of the little Tatar prince with only a few words? ”

Xiao Jing was puzzled: "Or if the two sides have no direct contact, they will each withdraw their troops." ”

"Since the Tatars retreated, why didn't Zhijie pursue? With the power of artillery, are you still afraid of the return of the Tatars? Isn't this exactly what Bingkuan said before, to get rid of evil? Zhu Youzhu was a little angry.

The Tatars retreated, and you Zhu Feng also retreated, what does this mean?

Deliberately not in direct contact?

What the emperor didn't know was that Zhu Feng withdrew because the Ming side suffered a big loss in this battle, but the Tatar side did not suffer any losses.

When Yang Yiqing played the report, his words were like those generals who used troops in the northwest, and he seemed very "tactful", that is, he only wrote the beginning and the result, not the process, and at the same time did not report the losses of both sides, but only mentioned it in one stroke.

In fact, the achievements of the Ming Dynasty in the northwest in the past, especially the first merit, were often achieved at the cost of losses many times greater than those of the Tatars.

Even Wang Yue's victory in Helan Mountain is also this way.

It was not until Wang Yue's battle at Biguan that this situation was reversed, and the loss of the Ming Dynasty was much lower than that of the Tatars.

Zhu Feng just brought out the normalcy of the foreign war in the northwest, that is...... If you can't fight, you will die, and when you are demoralized, you have to retreat, also to prevent being pursued by the Tatars.

In the emperor's opinion, he felt that Zhu Feng was deliberately avoiding the war.

"Without Bingkuan, what is this going on?" Zhu Youzhu saw that Xiao Jing couldn't say why, so he angrily pushed down a stack of songs.

Wei Bin on the side could only silently pick up the scattered music and rearrange it.

Zhu Youzhu asked, "Is there any news from Liaodong?" ”

Xiao Jing said: "Your Majesty, the slave maid doesn't know, does this news from Liaodong mean that the new uncle wants to attack the grassland with the soldiers and horses of the slave Gandusi?" ”

"Yes." Zhu Youzhi replied very directly.

Xiao Jing was only then implemented, and he didn't even know how many people in the court knew about this news, and he didn't know if the emperor had passed Zhou Jing when he asked Zhou Jing, the secretary of the household department, about the allocation of money and grain by the household department.

Xiao Jing said: "Xinjian Bo has not played any games recently, and Liaodong has not mentioned any mention of the transfer of soldiers and horses of Nuer Gandusi. ”

"Secretly sending troops, naturally it is not suitable for outsiders to know." Zhu Youzhu said, "I issued a secret decree before, informing Xinjian Uncle that he would only raise his case with me when he was in trouble, it seems that he was able to transfer troops smoothly, and even the grain, grass and baggage were replenished, so he didn't ask me for trouble." ”

When Xiao Jing heard this, he pondered in his heart.

There's no news, even if it's good news?

Too far-fetched, right?

If there is really no news, then Your Majesty, why do you still ask us who don't know?

Zhu Youzhu stood up and said: "Once Xinjian Bo has any progress in the east, the soldiers and horses of the Ming towns should cooperate with the march to the grassland, this time not to seek a big victory, but to force the Tatars to retreat, so that they do not dare to invade the Ming Pass in recent years." ”

Xiao Jing said: "The autumn harvest in Ningxia will end in the next half month. ”

Zhu Youzhu glared back at him and said: "The loss of money and grain in a place is a trivial matter, and we must ensure that there will be no major losses in the northwest in the next few years." In fact, I want Bingkuan to raise the trilateral military affairs, let him take charge, and let the little Tatar prince have a hundred guts, but he doesn't dare to come. ”

Xiao Jing thought to himself, Zhang Zhou is not so mysterious, right?

Can one person scare the Tatars?

Your Majesty, you are too idealistic!

"It is also ordered that the two places of Yansui and Biguan can no longer hold on to it, and they must think about changes. Let them judge the situation and send troops on their own according to the specific situation. Zhu Youzhu said.

Xiao Jing said: "Your Majesty, in the land of Hetao, there is still the Menggol Jin Department of the fire sieve, if he is ...... With ill intentions, I am afraid that sending troops will bring bad consequences. ”

Zhu Youzhu said sharply: "I don't believe him for a long time since I don't believe such a wolf ambition as Huo Sie, he is subordinate to the Ming Dynasty in the name, can he defend the border town against even a single Tatar soldier in the past two years?" Since he is a person of a foreign race, his heart will definitely not be on the side of Da Ming, and he will take the opportunity to exterminate him, too! ”

Xiao Jing was very anxious.

The emperor is too heartfelt.

found that the fire screen did not help Da Ming at a critical time, and in this eventful autumn, he had to be extinguished with the fire screen?

The fire sieve is a big disaster for the Ming Dynasty, if the fire sieve is combined with Batu Munk, then the border land of the Ming Dynasty will really be unlucky.

……

……

Cabinet.

Liu Jian and the three of them sorted out the battle reports of the past few days, and came to a conclusion similar to that of Qin Hong, Wang Qiong and others, that is, the further the battle in Ningxia is fought, the greater the losses of the Ming Dynasty.

"It's time for Your Majesty to call this battle to a halt." Liu Jian said.

Li Dongyang reminded: "Your Majesty can't listen to such persuasion, judging from the current dispatch of the Beijing camp, Your Majesty may have a tendency to use troops in Jizhou." ”

He had such a judgment, which was based on the reason why Zhu Youzhu dispatched 10,000 people from the Beijing camp to approach the direction of Jizhou.

Jizhou town is located between the Beijing division and Shanhaiguan, is the defense line of the east road of the Ming Dynasty, in the past it was mainly used to guard against the three guards of Duoyan, this time the three guards of Duoyan cooperated with the little prince of Tatar to use troops against the Ming Dynasty, which seemed to be the "revenge" of the house last year, but it was soon beaten back by the governor of Jizhou, Wang Xian.

Now Duoyan Sanwei doesn't even dare to stay in Daning and other places where he used to live and graze.

Xie Qian said: "Bin Zhi, do you think that Your Majesty wants to fight out of Jizhou and divert attention from the battle of Ningxia everywhere?" ”

Ningxia can't beat it, and Batu Munch can't beat it, so let's close the door and dig out Duoyan Sanwei again.

It's like hitting a child at home on a rainy day.

lost the upper hand in Batu Munk, lost face, and got face back from Duoyan Sanwei.

Li Dongyang said: "According to Wang Xian's report, in the past half a year, even in the beginning of spring and summer, Duoyan Sanwei is no longer close to the place of the Daming border pass, and the intention of Jizhou's use of troops at this time is unknown. ”

Liu Jian asked: "You don't know, and the military department doesn't know either?" ”

"Hmm." Li Dongyang nodded.

The emperor used troops, but it seemed that he skipped the military department, and he did not explain to his courtiers why he sent 10,000 soldiers and horses to Jizhou.

Xie Qian sighed: "Needless to say, it was Zhang Bingkuan who was making suggestions behind his back, and it seemed to be Zhang Bingkuan's idea." ”

"I don't think so." Li Dongyang also denied this statement, "Zhang Bingkuan is in Nanjing, if His Majesty has a place to find him in the Northern War, he should be transferred back to Beijing in a hurry, and he can be reached in six or seven days at most." His Majesty has never mentioned this, could it be that Zhang Bingkuan is in Nanjing, and there is something more important than the use of troops in the north? ”

Liu Jian thought for a while, and said with a gloomy face: "I also feel a little strange when you say this, Your Majesty doesn't seem to want to rely on Zhang Bingkuan in this battle, but there seems to be his shadow everywhere in this battle." ”

Xie Qian said: "You two are really idle, tomorrow you will go up, and then ask Your Majesty to let the troops and horses be dispatched from all over the three sides, even if it is to make a appearance, we should not stand idly by." ”

……

……

Wenchen had no decision-making qualifications for the First Battle of Ningxia, and he knew nothing about the transfer of troops in Liaodong and other places.

Ma Wensheng, who vaguely knew some movements and rumors, was secretive about this, and asked the three members of the cabinet to guess, they would never have thought that the emperor was going to let Wang Shouren transfer troops from northern Liaobei into the grassland, and come thousands of miles away to "encircle Wei and save Zhao".

No matter how you look at it, there is no timeliness.

However, in Liaodong, the governor Lu Wan provided a lot of support for Wang Shouren's march into the grassland.

Wang Shouren led his troops across Liaodong, and Lu Wan even went to comfort Wang Shouren in person, bringing enough grain, grass and meat to him.

"Bo'an, if you enter the grassland like this, you may have to walk two or three thousand miles as soon as you go, and in my experience, the grassland road is very difficult to walk."

Lu Wan went to remind Wang Shouren as a passer-by.

Last year, I led troops into the grassland, and I almost couldn't come back.

Wang Shouren said: "Last year's use of troops against Uliangha was already a cold winter, and extreme weather would indeed slow down the marching process. It's only September now, and no matter how bad the grassland climate is, it won't reach the point where there is no return. ”

Lu Wan smiled: "It seems that you are full of confidence, but you don't know how to prepare?" ”

Wang Shouren pointed to the barracks outside the camp tent and said, "Six thousand cavalry, a total of six hundred light artillery, and ten thousand shells. 4,000 flint guns, 100,000 projectiles, no crossbows, only bows and arrows and short blades, to lighten the burden of the march. ”

When Lu Wan heard this, he instantly felt that Wang Shouren's way of fighting was different from other people.

"Bo'an, let me ask you, when you beat the Jurchens, you also used this kind of configuration? If you give up the heavy armor, I'm afraid it will ......"

What Lu Wan is most afraid of is that Wang Shouren pursues light soldiers too much, which will produce the evil consequences of not being able to retreat after adventurously.

No matter how powerful your firearms are, and the Tatars use strong crossbows and bows and arrows, aren't your soldiers going to fight the streets?

Wang Shouren said: "The soldiers in northern Liaobei are used to attack the heavy artillery, and the light artillery is used less. But what Lai Guogong cast in Yongping Mansion is light artillery nine times out of ten, according to his meaning, he will enter the grassland in the future, and the light artillery is more mobile, more useful, and more valuable than heavy artillery, as for the flint gun...... It is also used as a confrontation between the two grasslands. ”

Lu Wan only knew.

It turned out that the "sub-mother cannon" and "heavy artillery" that he admired by Lu Wan were, in Zhang Zhouna's view, just flashy "big toys".

The Tatars can't stay there and let you fight.

The most important thing for the two sides to fight on the grassland is to maintain mobility, and because of the heavy weight of the long-range artillery and heavy artillery, there are at least three or four hundred catties or even a thousand catties, so they can only be carried on wheeled chariots and pulled by horses, and the transfer speed is very slow, and it is very affected by the terrain.

On the other hand, light artillery.

The heaviest is only more than 100 catties and less than 200 catties, and the horses can be carried completely, and they can be loaded directly on the base and fired when they go to unload them.

The Tatars can run or reload their horses directly to chase them.

Lu Wan said: "It seems that you are fighting this battle to win against the Tatars with surprise soldiers and light soldiers. ”

"Yes." Wang Shouren does not hide this, "After entering the grassland, you will fight when you encounter it, and if you enter the grassland from here, you may not need to go out from here, and you can return to the south from any place on the nine sides." If the Tatars dare to come, even if they fight to the death of the net, the whole army will not be destroyed. These cannons, even if he captures them, will not be able to capture the pass of my Ming Dynasty. ”

"yes."

Lu Wan couldn't help but sigh in his heart.

No matter how powerful the light artillery is, it has never been able to directly break through the earthen city walls and gates of the Ming Dynasty.

The light artillery was used as a cavalry in the field, and the effect of the shotgun was ......

"Six Hundred Gates...... Lai Guogong has also been prepared for a long time, or if the little prince of Tatar does not fight Ningxia, he will also arrange for you to send troops to the grassland at the appropriate time. Lu Wan realized that this battle was definitely not hasty.

If it was a passive counterattack, it would be impossible for Zhang Zhou to prepare 600 light cannons, thousands of shells, and thousands of flint guns for Wang Shouren in a short time.

Wang Shouren arched his hand and said: "Regarding the defense of the Nuer Gandu Division, as well as the naturalization and placement of the Jurchens, I have to worry about Lu Zhongcheng. ”

"Well said, well said."

Lu Wan said with a smile, "Sometimes I really envy you young people, who have the courage to fight at a young age. ”

Wang Shouren naturally knew that Lu Wan was envious of him, and he could win Zhang Zhou's trust, so he took the title at a young age.

"I also hope to have the opportunity to fight side by side with Lu Zhongcheng." Wang Shouren also showed respect for Lu Wan.

After all, Lu Wan was in Liaodong, and he didn't make a mistake, and he also helped him a lot when he cooperated with the soldiers Jurchen before.

(End of chapter)