Yongli Ming Dynasty

Chapter 301 Calm down
In Baoning Prefecture, Haoge looked at the urgent reports from all over Sichuan Province with a gloomy expression on his face.

After Yang Zhan and his men captured Chengdu, Cao Xun was stationed in Chengdu, while Yang Zhan led 6,000 men to continue northward. After Li Guoying was defeated, there was no more organized Qing army in Chengdu.
The Ming army marched all the way to capture the counties of Chengdu and soon arrived in Mianzhou. After Yang Zhan and others arrived in Mianzhou, Zhan Tianyan, the deputy inspector of Long'an Prefecture in northern Sichuan, and Zhu Hualong, the general of Songpan, also gathered 5,000 troops to join them.

After Yang Zhan joined Zhan Tianyan, Zhu Hualong and others, more than 10,000 Ming troops continued to march northward. Yang Zhan and others marched along the Jinniu Road, and along the way, Zitong and other counties were successively captured. Until they reached Jianmen Pass, they were stopped by Li Guoying who led the remnant soldiers who surrendered along the way.
Although Jianmen Pass is dangerous, Wang Zuntan, Li Guoying and others fled all the way north, and the army was already in a panic.

Under the fierce attack of Yang Zhan and others, Li Guoying also held out for less than a day before continuing to flee north with his remaining troops.

Although Jianmen Pass is dangerous, the soldiers have no will to fight and their morale is completely lost. What is the use of this magnificent pass?

Yang Zhan and his men pursued the victory and laid siege to Guangyuan. Li Guohan, a Han army commander of the Bordered Blue Banner who was left in Baoning Prefecture, arrived in time with reinforcements upon hearing the news. Yang Zhan and his men then withdrew and retreated to Jianmen Pass.

To the east, Sun Kewang and his loyalist camp were also unstoppable. They led their troops into Tongchuan and occupied the entire territory of Tongchuan Prefecture without much effort.

Sun Kewang originally wanted to continue his advance to Shunqing, but at this time, Haoge led his army back north from Chongqing.
In order to avoid fighting with Haoge and other elite Qing troops, Sun Kewang held Tongchuan tightly and stopped advancing to Shunqing. Instead, he marched south to take over Hezhou, Dingyuan and other counties north of the Yangtze River in Chongqing Prefecture.

At the same time, Qin Yiming and others also led their troops to Dazhou, and began to confront the remnants of the Qing army including Lu Guangzu at the border between Baoning and Kuizhou.

More than a month ago, the Qing government nominally occupied the whole of Sichuan and even wanted to invade the province. But in the blink of an eye, the whole of Sichuan rebelled and the Qing army was defeated.
Now, only Baoning and Shunqing Prefectures were left in the hands of the Qing army, but even these two remaining prefectures were surrounded on three sides by the Ming army.
Haoge's face was gloomy. He finally understood why the Gui Regent refused to limit the boundaries to the four prefectures.

This Gui Jianguo had obviously planned it in advance, that is, to take advantage of the stalemate between the two armies in Bozhou to disrupt the situation and recover Sichuan Province.
It was not surprising that the Ming court contacted the generals of Sichuan Province. What really shocked Haoge was the strength of the Han people in Sichuan Province.

Sichuan Province has clearly been ravaged by the Western bandits for several years, with starving people and bandits everywhere, and has long been in ruins.
But when the Ming court arrived, they quickly deployed 40,000 to 50,000 soldiers in Sichuan Province. This kind of appeal was really shocking.

Jueluo Bahana looked grim after reading the report on the table. The counterattack of the Ming army in Sichuan was nothing. At this time, there were still 15,000 elite Eight Banners Manchu soldiers in Baoning Prefecture. Li Guohan of the Bordered Blue Banner who had been stationed in Baoning, and Ma Huabao and others who had fled back from various places in Sichuan Province could also gather more than 10,000 Green Camp Han soldiers.

With the elite troops of the Eight Banners of the Qing court, as long as these 20,000 to 30,000 troops gather together, unless they encounter the Ming imperial guards under the city of Bozhou, none of the Ming troops that are now causing chaos in Sichuan Province can be their opponents.

But Jueluo Bahana knew that this was simply impossible. Hauge would never gather troops to fight against the Ming court at this time.

At this time, the most dangerous thing for Hauge was no longer the Ming army. The soldiers of the Zhenglan Banner under Hauge must not suffer any serious losses.

Jueluo Bahana looked at Haoge above and said

"Your Majesty, the Ming army suddenly launched an attack at this time. It was obviously premeditated. If Sichuan Province falls, the imperial court will probably be held accountable as well. What should we do now?"

Haoge was silent for a while, a hint of determination flashed in his eyes, and suddenly he spoke in a deep voice

"The situation in the court is still uncertain. We must not engage in a major battle with the Ming army in Sichuan at this time."

"We can't stay in Sichuan anymore. We can only withdraw to Hanzhong now."

When Juelu Bahana heard this, he was shocked. Now the Qing Dynasty only had Baoning and Shunqing Prefectures left in Sichuan Province, and Hauge was even ready to abandon these two remaining prefectures. If Sichuan Province really fell, how much guilt would they have to bear?
Hauge made the decision without hesitation. He ignored Jueluo Bahana and summoned all the generals. The generals of the Qing army soon gathered in the Baoning government office.
In the lobby of the government office, Aobai, Mandahai, Li Guohan and other Eight Banners generals gathered. After reading the newspaper that Haoge found, they all looked grim.

Hauge glanced at the people below and said

"Nikan was defeated in Bozhou, losing his army and humiliating his country, which put us in a passive position."

"The Ming troops in various parts of Sichuan Province have rebelled together this time. It is obvious that this was premeditated. Now we are surrounded on three sides. Baoning Prefecture and other places are desolate and dilapidated, and there is no way to support the army."

"Our army's food and salaries are now transported to Hanzhong. The mountains between Sichuan and Hanzhong make it difficult to transport food and salaries. Once the Ming army lays siege on the city and cuts off the food supply, we will be in danger."

"I have decided to withdraw my troops back to Hanzhong. What do you think?"

As soon as Haoge finished speaking, Li Guohan's expression suddenly changed and he immediately spoke

"This is absolutely not feasible. Although the Ming army is coming with great force, they only rely on the 10,000 or 20,000 imperial guards."

"As long as the imperial army is gone, the remaining Ming troops in Sichuan Province are nothing but chickens and dogs. We can easily destroy them."

"The Qing Dynasty and the Ming court are now at war everywhere. The Ming court's imperial guards will never be able to stay in Sichuan for a long time. As long as we hold on for a while, the Ming court's imperial guards will definitely leave. Once the Ming court's imperial guards leave, we can use Baoning as a fulcrum to retake Sichuan."

"Baoning is the gateway for the Qing Dynasty to enter Sichuan Province. We took advantage of the chaos in Sichuan Province to seize it. If we evacuate now, I am afraid we will suffer a lot of casualties if we want to enter Sichuan again."

"The court ordered us to govern Sichuan Province. How can we just abandon such an important place? This matter is of great importance. Please think twice, Prince Su."

Haoge glanced at Li Guohan who was looking serious below him, but his face was expressionless.
Li Guohan's identity is somewhat complicated. Li Guohan surrendered to the Qing court with his father decades ago. Although he was a Han Chinese, he was able to serve as Huang Taiji's personal guard and was personally granted the title of Morgan Guard by Huang Taiji.

Apart from the regular bannermen, Li Guohan was almost the most trusted Han Chinese in the Qing court. Even some ordinary Manchu nobles in the Qing court were far inferior to Li Guohan in status.
Li Guohan was Gushan Ezhen, a member of the Han army under Jirgalang, and was a member of Huang Taiji's personal guard. However, he had followed Dorgon on many expeditions and was highly regarded by Dorgon.

Hauge could not tell for a moment whether this person's opposition was really for the court's sake or for some other purpose.
Haoge passed by Li Guohan, looked at Aobai and Man Dahai, and said

"What do Beile and General Aobai think?"

Aobai and the other two were silent when they heard this. In just one month, Nikan died, the Ming army launched a massive counterattack, and most of Sichuan Province fell. Now Hauge even wanted to completely abandon Sichuan Province. They were a little at a loss for a while.
Mandahai Aobai looked at the expressionless Hauge above, and a trace of fear flashed in his eyes. The two were silent, not only because of the matter in Sichuan Province, but also because of Hauge.
Nikan's death was too strange. Although the Ming army had publicized that they had set an ambush with a large army in advance, Aobai and others still instinctively felt that something was wrong.
Hauge's troops evacuated a few days earlier than Nikan's troops. Hauge's troops did not lose a single soldier, while Nikan's troops were completely wiped out.

Of the 4,000 men under Nikan's command, not a single one had returned alive. The entire army was truly annihilated.
How many troops would the Ming court have to use, and in what areas would they have to set up ambushes, in order to kill all of these 4,000 elite Manchu soldiers?

Moreover, after the news of Nikan's defeat was reported back to Qijiang, Hauge did not immediately mobilize his troops to resist the enemy. Instead, he chose to withdraw across the river on the grounds that Qijiang was narrow and the walls of Chongqing were completely lost. This was in stark contrast to his previous determination to fight a decisive battle with the Ming army.

Although Aobai and Mandahai did not have any evidence at this time, they did not dare to get too close to Haoge. However, they did not dare to forcibly oppose Haoge's proposal at this time. The last person who offended Haoge and others was now gone.

When Nikan was still alive, they could still watch from the sidelines, but after Nikan was gone, they could no longer act on their own. They didn't want to be the next one to be wiped out.
The two were silent for a long time, and finally Man Dahai spoke

"If we give up Baoning, Sichuan will be completely occupied, and our hard work this year will be in vain. But what Prince Su said makes sense. The Qing army is surrounding us, and we have to be on guard."

"This matter is of great importance. I think it is better to report it to the court and let the court make a decision through public discussion."

After Man Dahai finished speaking, Aobai also agreed, and then the two of them stopped talking, and the scene fell silent.

Man Dahai and the other two chose to remain neutral in the end, and since the two refused to express their views, this military discussion was doomed to be fruitless.

The people in the field discussed the battle and defense for a while, but they could not reach a consensus. The Qing army only decided to discuss it tomorrow and then dispersed in silence.
Although the military meeting was scheduled to be held tomorrow, Hauge did not summon the generals again in the days after the meeting.
On the fifth day after the military meeting, two thousand blue flag soldiers suddenly drove a large number of civilians back from Shunqing Prefecture, and also brought back a large amount of rice and grain.

On the morning of the sixth day, Hauge left an order appointing Man Dahai to take full charge of the war in Sichuan Province, and then led his Zhenglan Banner Army to break camp and return to Hanzhong in the north.

Mandahai Aobai and others started to panic when they saw the order left behind.

Man Dahai and his two men chased to Hauge's army, but Hauge disappeared. Two days later, the 10,000 blue flag soldiers in Baoning City finally withdrew with all their food and wages, leaving behind only Man Dahai and Aobai who looked confused.
Hauge led his army to retreat to Hanzhong via Bazhong Nanjiang. After returning, Hauge directly occupied Hanzhong City.

After a brief rest, Haoge led 7,000 blue and Manchu soldiers from Baocheng, heading north along the Baoshui River, passing through the Xiakou Pass and crossing the Qinling Mountains to Meixian.

After discovering that the Ming army surrounded Baoning on three sides, Hauge decided to abandon Sichuan Province.

The moment he sent Nikan away, there was no turning back. Even Mandahai and Aobai had noticed something unusual about Nikan's death, so how could he deceive Dorgon?
Dorgon realized that after Nikan's demise, he would cut off his food and money and force him to return to the court.

Although the Ming court's Regent Na Gui promised to provide 4,000 shi of grain every month, how could the Ming court trust him? Even if the Ming court was trustworthy, Hauge would never hand over his life to the Ming court!

Hauge had already made a plan. Even if the Ming army did not launch a large-scale counterattack this time, Hauge would find a reason to return to Qin Province.

Return to Hanzhong, occupy Xi'an, use the food and money provided by the Ming court as a transition, and then actually control Qin Province, and then use the power of Qin Province alone to support the army under his command

After controlling Qin Province, he would order the Ming court to cooperate in sending troops, and use the Ming court's war to force the court to recognize his control over Sichuan and Shaanxi, obtain the post of Governor-General of Sichuan and Shaanxi, and legitimately control the land of Sichuan and Shaanxi. This was Hauge's real plan.

Haoge was Prince Su and the General Jingyuan appointed by the Qing court to be in charge of the Sichuan-Shaanxi War.

When Haoge first arrived in Qin Province a year ago, he directly defeated Sun Shoufa, He Zhen and others who had been besieging Xi'an for several months. The Ming Yi army was killed and many heads rolled. He was very powerful in Qin Province.

Hauge led his army to Mei County suddenly, but the Mei County Magistrate did not dare to stop him and directly opened the city to welcome him. After Hauge entered the city, he immediately ordered people to plunder food and supplies.

Hauge and his men took a short rest in Mei County before continuing their march to Xi'an. However, at this time, the scouts Hauge had stationed in Xi'an suddenly came to report.

Only then did Haoge learn that ten days ago, Wu Sangui, the King of Pingxi, had already led nearly 10,000 Guanning troops to enter Xi'an.

This news caught Hauge off guard. After Wu Sangui surrendered Shanhaiguan and followed the Qing army to pacify the remaining troops of Li Zicheng's Shun army, he was transferred out of the pass by Dorgon and stationed in Jinzhou.
At the beginning of the Hongguang Dynasty, the Qing Dynasty named Wu Sangui the King of Pingxi, but the Hongguang Dynasty also named Wu Sangui the Duke of Ji. No one knew how Wu Sangui would choose between the king of the Qing Dynasty and the duke of the Ming Dynasty.
The Qing court sent Wu Sangui to Jinzhou to prevent him from having any connection with the Ming court and to completely cut off his thoughts. But now Wu Sangui has been transferred back to the interior of the country and has arrived in Qin Province.

In the Qing court, Dorgon's power grew day by day. Whether it was Kong Youde and the other three Shun kings or Wu Sangui, the Pingxi King, almost all the Han officials in the court submitted to Dorgon.

At this time, Dorgon suddenly transferred Wu Sangui to Hanzhong, not only for the Sichuan-Shaanxi war, but also to use this to clamp down on Hauge and make Hauge submit.
Haoge could use the title of Prince Su to intimidate the ministers in Sichuan and Shaanxi, but he certainly could not intimidate Wu Sangui who had just arrived from the capital.

At this time, Wu Sangui had already settled in Xi'an, which was defended by city walls. The Guanning Army under Wu Sangui was also quite famous in the Qing court. It was an elite Han army that was not inferior to the Qing court's bannermen. At this time, it was impossible for Hauge to attack and seize the city.

After some consideration, although Hauge was unwilling to give up the plan to capture Xi'an,

In the name of Prince Su, Hauge forcibly requisitioned a batch of food and supplies from several counties near Mei County, and then led his troops back to Hanzhong along the original route.

After Haoge returned to Hanzhong, his soldiers went out and took over the counties in Hanzhong. At the same time, they sent people to guard Liuba, Yangxian and other important roads from Qin Province into Hanzhong.
When Hauge tried to occupy Xi'an, the situation in Sichuan Province changed drastically. Hauge left without saying goodbye and suddenly led his troops away. The strength of the Qing army in Sichuan Province also suddenly decreased.

After Li Guohan discussed with Aobai and others, they decided to withdraw their forces immediately. The Qing army gave up Shunqing and withdrew all its troops to defend Baoning Prefecture.

After the Qing army withdrew, Sun Kewang also took advantage of the situation and completely occupied the entire Shunqing Prefecture.
At this point, the three Ming armies of Yang Zhan's army in Chengdu, Sichuan, Sun Kewang's army in Shunqing, Sichuan, and Qin Yiming's army in Kuizhou, Sichuan, officially bordered each other, and the three armies surrounded Baoning Prefecture tightly in the middle.

After the Ming army connected, the three armies also sent out troops at the same time and attacked Baoning Prefecture from three directions.
Although the three Ming armies were numerous and powerful, there were still 4,000 elite Eight Banners led by Aobai Mandahai in Baoning Prefecture. The Green Camp Han troops in Sichuan Province also gathered in Baoning at this time. The Ming army's attack this time was not as unstoppable as imagined.

The three Ming armies were all stopped under the strong city. The Ming army had no better solution for a while, so they could only surround the city first and ask the imperial army in the rear to mobilize artillery support.
Although the Qing army in Baoning Prefecture relied on the city walls to stop the Ming army, the situation in the army was not optimistic either.

Hauge led his troops to leave Sichuan without authorization, and the food and money from Hanzhong were delayed. Although Aobai, Mandahai and others stopped the Ming army, they had already decided to retreat.

However, when Aobai and others were planning to abandon Baoning and evacuate Sichuan, Haoge suddenly returned to Sichuan with food and money.

When Yang Zhan and his men found out that the Qing reinforcements had arrived, they dared not to siege the city anymore and each led their troops back to the city.

The Ming troops withdrew, and the Qing troops in Baoning Prefecture did not pursue them. As the two sides withdrew their troops to defend, Sichuan Province, which had been in chaos for several months, finally began to return to peace.

(End of this chapter)