Chapter 764 Force
There is almost no place worthy of the battle of Wuhai. The 20,000 Tarots completely faced the enemy head-on in a situation of delaying to die. In the face of the fierce attack of the Ming army, the result can be imagined.
The records of this battle by the historians of the Ming Dynasty are also limited to a few words: the Duke of Zhen attacked the Wuhai in the middle of the night, broke down at dawn, killed more than 8,000 thieves, captured more than 5,000, and the rest fled. The thief was afraid of the battle and fled to Hangjin to defend it.
Who knows how many stories of blood and fire are hidden behind this few words, and how much tragedy and fear are hidden. Those who experienced this battle can clearly recall the fighting that night: Borkin, the general manager of Wuhai Wanhu, led 20,000 Tatar soldiers and rushed up against the bombardment of the rocket guns of the Ming army as if they were going to die. After they fought with the forward army led by Jiang Bin, 40,000 to 50,000 soldiers and horses were glued together, under the walls of Wuhai, on the side of the felt room and alleys. On the side, the scene of fighting and killing by the woods makes the people who survived the battle after the event still dare not recall.
The fearlessness of death of the Tatar soldiers was greatly beyond the expectations of the Ming army. Even at the beginning of the battle, Song Nan learned that tens of thousands of cavalry would be withdrawn from Wuhai, but in the face of these 20,000 Tatar soldiers as cannon fodder, the victory of this battle was still not easy.
This has completely improved Song Nan's battle against the Tatari people. Since he went to the northwest to fight against the baldness, and even the Great Wall Pass with more than 20,000 Ming troops alive to cut off more than 100,000 Tatar soldiers and horses inside and outside the Great Wall, Song Nan is very disdainful of the fighting power of the Tatar soldiers from his heart. However, after this battle of Wuhai, Song Nan realized how brave the Taran soldiers were without a retreat, and their combat effectiveness was surprising.
However, in the misty morning, the Yellow Dragon Flag and the Song-character Shuai Flag at the head of Wuhai City flung in the wind. Although the Tatar soldiers were extremely brave, Wuhai Town still changed hands and became the first Tatar town to be captured in more than 100 years. To some extent, the symbolic significance of capturing the Wuhai Sea is far greater than the actual combat significance.
Song Nan led the people to walk on the streets of Wuhai on the rubble and ashes all over the ground. Looking at the collapsed houses around them, the felt houses still emitting smoke and fire. They sat together and watched the darting people of these Ming people invading their towns, and couldn't help sighing. Like the Taran's invasion of the Ming territory, these Taran people have now experienced the pain of being captured by the Ming army and reduced to prisoners slaughtered by others. The most injured in the war is the civilian people.
However, the sigh of the Duke of Daming did not last long. Soon he turned to the generals who followed him and ordered: "Make a search of the whole city immediately, but those who resist or do not comply with the laws of our army will never show mercy and order people to collect and summarize the property and materials of the whole city. Xu Tai is responsible for transporting these materials back and handing them to Yang Yiqing. Adults will be handed over."
The generals responded in unison. Xu Tai pointed to a group of Tatari people gathered together and said, "What about these people? Are they all old and weak women and children escorted back to the Ming Dynasty?
Song Nan shook his head and said, "We will check whether there are any of them astar soldiers who pretend to be the common people, find some who can work and stay to do hard work, and the rest of the rations to disperse them. We are not here to feed the bald people. These people are just consuming food."
The generals were silent, and Zhang An whispered, "General, the weather is about to turn cold. If these people are dispersed to the grassland, I'm afraid they will not be able to withstand the harsh winter."
Song Nan sighed a few steps and said, "Well, I ordered people to register them and take them all to Yanchi County, where they were slaughtered by the tarots, and it is also possible for them to become the people of my Ming Dynasty from now on, but for temporary placement, this matter still needs to be reported to the court to be considered. I can't bear to watch them die of hunger and cold. My Ming soldiers and horses are teachers of benevolence and righteousness, and I also want to do benevolence and righteousness.
Zhang Anlian claimed that he was and ordered his generals to do it quickly.
Jiang Bin looked at the happy morale of the soldiers of the Ming army and smiled, "Our first battle flag has won, and the morale of the soldiers is also rising. We have wiped out more than 10,000 captured Tatars in one fell swoop, and we have only lost more than 4,000, which can be said to be a great victory. When the news reached the capital, the emperor would laugh happily. Unfortunately, the old thief was run away. Unexpectedly, the old thief was so decisive that he abandoned Wuhai Town, abandoned the lives of 20,000 Tart soldiers, and let them die.
Song Nan nodded and said, "It's really decisive enough. We used firearms in Bulong Lake. He must know that if he fought hard with us, he would be defeated, so he simply gave up Wuhai. The stay of these two thousand people is to delay our time. In his calculation, he must have thought that we would have to attack for at least a day or two to take this place, but he didn't expect that it only took us a few hours.
Xu Tai said, "If you are bald, you can flee to the east. It is reported that they went to Hang Jin 300 miles away. We should chase and take down Hang Jin. Once Hang Jin is captured by us, the Tart will have no foothold on the south bank of the Yellow River."
The generals nodded one after another and said, "What Lord Xu said is that now only one town on the south bank of the Yellow River is occupied by the Han Jin, and the rest are scattered tribes and towns. Taking down Hang Jin completely makes the Tahs lose their foundation on the south bank of the Yellow River. The general can order the army to go straight to Hang Jin; within ten days, Hang Jin will be broken. . The south of the Yellow River is all in the hands of Daming.
Song Nan stood by a collapsed low wall, gently patted the earth bricks on the top of the wall, frowned and thought for a while, turned to face many expectant eyes and slowly shook his head and said, "We are not going to Hangjin."
"What?" The generals were stunned.
"Are we going to retire? The Northern Expedition of Hangjin was half successful. Even if the Yellow River is difficult to cross and the area north of the Yellow River has not been recovered, it is enough to drive the Tarans across the Yellow River to make this expedition a small success. Jiang Bin shouted.
Song Nan smiled and repeated, "We won't go to Hang Jin. Let him escape to Hang Jin. The purpose of our expedition this time is to recover the river, not to find the bad luck of being alone. What you said is not wrong. Taking down Hang Jin can firmly grasp a large area of land south of the Yellow River to ensure a stable win-lose situation, but what I want is the whole river. My goal is to drive the Tarmas to the north of Yinshan Langshan Mountain, not just to let them see each other across the river.
"But the general, after taking Hang Jin, we can still cross the Yellow River north to attack the north bank of the Yellow River." Ma Ming asked puzzledly.
"Yes, but time waits for no one. This is more than 300 miles east to Hangjin. As Lord Xu just said, it is indeed expected to take Hangjin within ten days, but this does not include the rest time after taking Hangjin. It will take at least half a month, and all this is still based on the smoothness of everything. If the battle does not go well, even Spend more time. And our most precious thing is time. Today is the first day of October, and half a month later, it will be late October. You can already feel the severe cold of the northern climate. In another half a month, we don't know whether it will be snowy or cold here. Therefore, we can't be led by the nose.
"So where should we plan to march next?" Zhang Andao.
Song Nan picked up a dead branch and drew it in the dust on the ground and explained, "This is Wuhai and this is Hangjin. If we take Hangjin first and then go north, it is equivalent to turning a big corner and walking hundreds of miles in vain. The baldness can hope that we are like this. The longer he is delayed, the happier he will be. So instead of attacking Hang Jin, we went straight north and attacked here first.
The branch in Song Nan's hand drew a big arrow on the soil, extending all the way north, drawing a small circle at the end of the arrow.
"This is a small town, which is already close to the bank of the Yellow River. Take here, and about 50 miles north is the Yellow River. If we can suddenly cross the Yellow River, take the Linhe County occupied by the Tarta, and then attack the Urat flag in the northeast of the Harla River, it is equivalent to cutting off the passage to the south of the wolf. When we appeared on the back of the bald abdomen, I wonder if the Lord of Tatar can still stay safely in Hangjin, south of the Yellow River, waiting for us to chase him?
The generals widened their eyes and looked at the simple map on the ground. Zhang Anfu praised him and said, "Miaoji, this is forcing him to give up Hangjin and let him take the initiative to withdraw south of the Yellow River. He will refuse to let us cross the Yellow River, so he will take the initiative to shrink his troops on the north bank of the Yellow River. The purpose of recovering the south bank of the Yellow River can be achieved without a single soldier. The general can be said to be as strategic as his grandson.
Song Nan rolled his eyes. What does it mean? It sounds like a curse, but Zhang An understands his intention deeply. The purpose of his attack on the mouth is to force the bald man who can withdraw his troops to shrink the north bank of the Yellow River, so as to catch the bald nose in turn. Of course, all this is based on a foundation. The troops of the Tari are now stretched. If it were before the Northwest War, it can be imagined that tens of thousands of Tari soldiers and horses would soon be gathered on the north bank of the Yellow River to defend against the river. Now the most lacking for baldness is the troops. He can only be retracting with the main force and guarding the north bank of the Yellow River. Avoid the bad luck that the empty hinterland on the north coast will be occupied by the Ming army.
"The strategy is a wonderful plan, but it is not easy to attack the mouth along the north of the Wuhai Sea. Ulanbu and the desert are called the sea of death, and they are all deserts of the Gobi, which may not be conducive to the march of the army and logistical supplies." Xu Tai frowned.
Song Nan smiled and said, "Logistics supply is your business. It depends on your ability. As for this desert, it is not a forbidden area, but it is only dozens of miles from east to west. It's not too difficult for him to travel through time. According to the order, the whole army is ready to start, and everyone is equipped with plenty of clean water and dry food, wearing a wind and sand mask; all the wheels are all converted into sand sleds, and the horses pulling the cart should also be wrapped in their horses. Today, we will take a rest and prepare for a day. Tomorrow morning, we will cross the sand sea north. If nothing happens, we will be in Yingkou Town in five days.