Prince Chongzhen

Chapter 509 Difficulty
For the Ming Dynasty, a chaotic Europe is the best Europe. Allowing Spain to reverse the situation is not in the interests of the Ming Dynasty.

This was an obvious thing, and even General Bourgeva, a French general who had just arrived in the Ming Dynasty, could see it clearly. So he had the confidence to convince the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty even though he didn't have much bargaining chips.

But his judgment of the situation was ultimately not accurate enough, or it could be said that the French envoy had been completely overwhelmed by the bad news at home, and thus lost his objective judgment of European countries.

On the surface, France seemed to be on the verge of national destruction.

If the domestic rebellion cannot be extinguished in a short period of time, the legion formed by Spain with the military aid from the Ming Dynasty will inevitably be like entering a no-man's land.

But this war that lasted for thirty years involved the whole of Europe, and the Franco-Spanish battlefield was just one of them.

While the Great Conde was hesitating about which side to stand on, the Battle of Zusmarshausen had already come to an end.

This battle in Bavaria directly shattered the last effort of the Holy Roman Empire. Afterwards, the German electors gained great autonomy, and the Holy Roman Empire was essentially destroyed.

As a result, Spain was the only country left in the Catholic League to resist in Europe, and the Peace of Westphalia, which laid the foundation for the European structure, was signed.

Of course, the Swedes still need some time to deal with the remnants of the Holy Roman Army, and may not be able to assist their allies immediately. However, England, which is across the sea from France, has been in a state of almost no effort throughout the war, so it seems reasonable for them to provide some economic assistance.

At this point we have to mention the English Civil War.

Charles I, who was about to be released from house arrest, had already convinced the Presbyterians and the Scots, and the second war with the revolutionaries had begun several months ago.

However, Cromwell's ability to lead troops was too strong, and there were many contradictions within the Royalist Party. After several battles, the Parliamentary Army, which had just defeated the Royalist Party, was led by Cromwell to fight against the Scots. The final battle that would determine the fate of England was about to begin.

Normally, England, which was in the midst of a civil war, would not be able to spare the time to support France. However, Cromwell was not only good at leading troops in battle, but was also extraordinary in politics. Such a person must have seen how unfavorable the situation in Europe was for England, which was isolated overseas. As long as France came to him for help, it would be reasonable for him to squeeze out some help.

At this point, Zhu Cilang withdrew his attention from Europa.

Returning to their roots, the last of the Tartars' strength has basically gathered north of the Yellow River and Huai River, and it is time to completely quell the civil strife.
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August

Kaifeng

Since Wang Zhengzhi was expelled, the Qing court understood the determination of the Southern Dynasty.

Afterwards, surrendered generals like Jiang Ge, who held heavy troops and had ulterior motives, were captured one after another by various means, and the Qing court was finally able to concentrate all its forces together.

It has to be said that Dorgon took great pains to prepare for this decisive battle.

Not only did he mobilize more than 200,000 troops from various places, he also borrowed Hauge's troops through Jirgalang.

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"Your Majesty, the army is stored here, and the daily consumption is huge. Most of our army is cavalry, why don't we go straight to Huai'an along the Yellow River?"

Looking at the strong man who made such an impassioned speech, Dorgon did not know how to respond for a moment. The man's name was Gunbu, and he was the current Tushetu Khan.

Although they were one of the first Mongolian tribes to submit to the Qing Dynasty, they had withdrawn to their own pastures to guard against the remnants of the Siberian Khanate before the Qing army divided into three groups and marched south to attack the Ming Dynasty.

This time he was transferred because of the situation, but for some unknown reason, no one from top to bottom told him the real situation, which led to this scene.

To be honest, there is nothing wrong with what Gunbu said.

After taking Huai'an, the place where three rivers meet, the Ming army slowly took over Xiangyang, Hefei and other places south of the Huai River, and did not launch an attack on Henan, which was located in the angle between the Yellow River and the Huai River.

If the Qing army could really recapture Huai'an by relying on the mobility of its cavalry, it would at least be considered to be in an offensive position on paper.

But after fighting so many battles, how could Dorgon see it as so easy?
There is no need to talk about whether the cavalry can successfully capture Huai'an. Even if they really capture this city, it will only be a repeat of the previous battle.

It should be noted that although the Ming army's navy did not play a big role in the previous battle, judging from the fact that the Ming army's warships immediately cut off the river after the army was defeated, this tactic of closing the door to beat the dog was prepared long ago, but their own troops were defeated too quickly and they did not have the opportunity to display it. Otherwise, even if the army had not been defeated due to various twists and turns, it would have been completely blocked north of the Yellow River and Huai River.

Under such circumstances, how can we still talk about taking back Huai'an?
Glancing at Gunbu's puzzled face, Dorgon couldn't help feeling disgusted. Fortunately, not all the generals present were as clueless as him. After only a few breaths of silence in the tent, someone stood up.

"Let the Khan know that the dense network of waterways in the south is not conducive to the cavalry's performance. Our army was defeated several times before because of this, so the prince chose to meet the enemy in Kaifeng."

"Luo Luohun, if you lose, you lose. There's no need to say anything else."

Although Dorgon was quite satisfied with Luo Luohun's rescue, there was still a hint of blame in his tone. Then he turned to Gunbu who was in a daze, and after thinking for a moment, he continued speaking.

"But he is right. Our army is not good at water stations. Meeting the enemy here is to maximize our strengths and avoid our weaknesses."

Now that things have come to this, even if Gunbu is surprised, he can't ask any more questions.

Seeing this, Dorgon thought that the matter was settled, but who would have thought that after the Mongolian generals in the account retreated one after another, Fang Dayou, the Shandong governor who was in charge of military supplies, ran in hurriedly.

Unlike Jiang Ge who had a large army, the whole of Shandong could not muster more than a few thousand soldiers and horses, so Fang Dayou was naturally not a threat. Moreover, since he surrendered to the Qing Dynasty, he had not only exerted his subjective initiative to the extreme, but also did not do anything beyond the rules. The Qing court would not take action against him.
Take this time for example. Ever since the Qing court's troops and horses from various places arrived in Henan one after another, Fang Dayou has taken the initiative to raise funds for the army and strive to provide logistical supplies for this war.

Of course, the north was already in decline, and Shandong alone could not provide for the needs of the army.

It’s just that the Qing court and its people attached great importance to this war, and governors and governors-general in various places were doing their best.

"Why are you so panicked?"

"Your Majesty, I have calculated that the army has only 120,000 dan of grain and fodder left."

(End of this chapter)