Gou was a member of the imperial family in the late Ming Dynasty

Chapter 414 Encounter
The order was given and the entire army went into battle lightly equipped. Inteta Bunang left two teams of a thousand men behind to drive the cattle and sheep and march slowly behind, while he led the main force in front and headed directly towards Fengzhou.

In Intertabunang's opinion, Bu Shitu is not to be feared. Now Bu Shitu has become a grasshopper in autumn and can only jump for a few days. This time, the purpose of Lindan Khan's army coming out in full force is to directly defeat Bu Shitu and take over the entire Tumed.

With Chahar's voluntary abandonment, the Mongolian headquarters will be transferred from Chahar to Tumed. This is the decision made by the Khan. As the Khan's most trusted and capable general, Intertabunang wished he could grow wings and fly directly to Fengzhou to defeat Bushitu's army in one fell swoop and win the victory for Ligdan Khan.

Along the way, although there was resistance, it was not strong and the number of cavalry that intercepted was pitifully small. This made Intertabunang conclude that Bu Shitu's main force must be in Fengzhou. As long as they could get to Fengzhou as soon as possible, it would be a great achievement.

Therefore, Intertabunang issued such an order, preparing to travel day and night to Fengzhou and catch Bushitu off guard. On that day, Intertabunang's main force galloped 160 miles, which was extremely fast. You should know that when the Mongols were at their strongest during the reign of Genghis Khan, the fastest marching speed of the Mongolian cavalry was only more than 20 miles faster than Intertabunang. This speed was comparable to the blitzkrieg of the armored forces of art students during World War II.

Because the cavalry advanced too quickly, the troops behind were greatly distanced from the front army. When Intertabunang once again ordered to increase the speed on the second day, the distance was much larger, and the two sides were completely out of touch.

After two days of rapid marching, Intertabunang's army was still more than 150 miles away from Fengzhou. After determining its location, Intertabunang was in a good mood. Although his men and horses were exhausted from traveling for days, Fengzhou was already in sight. If they continued their journey tomorrow, they would be able to reach the battlefield.

But at this moment, a scout suddenly came to report that a large group of enemy troops were found camping ahead, and they seemed to be Bu Shitu's troops.

Upon hearing the news, Intertabunang was not surprised but happy. Since they were not far from Fengzhou, it was normal to run into Bu Shitu's army. Especially when he was sure that this cavalry had less than 10,000 people, Intertabunang became even more excited. In his opinion, this should be one of the troops that Bu Shitu had mobilized to Fengzhou, and they were moving towards Fengzhou just like them, and he just happened to run into them.

Such a large number of cavalry is not small for the various tribes on the grassland, but it is a piece of fat meat for Intertabunang. He has nearly 30,000 people under his command, all of whom are the elite of Ligdan Khan. If he can directly destroy this cavalry, it will not only deal a heavy blow to Bushitu, but also win the first merit in the Tumed battle.

Without hesitation, Intertabunang immediately decided to eat this cavalry as an appetizer for the upcoming battle.

"Will Lindan Khan's people really come?" Wang Jinwu couldn't help but ask Zhu Shenzhui, who was less than twenty miles away from Intertabunang's army.

"Haha, don't worry, kid, I will definitely come!" Zhu Shenzhui smiled without hesitation.

When Ligdan Khan divided his troops into two routes to attack Tumed, Zhu Shenzui got the news and set his sights on Intertabunang's southern army.

As soon as Intertabunang's cavalry entered Tumed, they were targeted by scouts sent out by Zhu Shencui. Zhu Shencui's every move was under his surveillance.

Zhu Shenzui had made preparations long ago. He knew very well that it would not be a good thing for the Tenger tribe if Lindan Khan took over Tumed. Moreover, Lindan Khan was not a master worth serving. Although Bu Shitu was not a good person either, if he had a choice, Zhu Shenzui would rather choose to live with Bu Shitu than Lindan Khan.

Facing Lindan Khan's westward migration, Bu Shitu would certainly resist, but there is no doubt that Bu Shitu is no match for Lindan Khan. Once Bu Shitu is finished, the Tenger tribe will be Lindan Khan's next target. Given Lindan Khan's character, he will most likely annex the Tenger tribe directly, or even kill Tana and her son.

This was a result that Zhu Shenzhu absolutely could not allow to happen. He had to help Bu Shitu stop Lin Dan Khan. However, as one of Lin Dan Khan's tribes, the Tenger tribe could not stand on Bu Shitu's side. Moreover, Bu Shitu was not a good person. He was a cunning fox. If he did so, Bu Shitu might sell out the Tenger tribe. This was not impossible.

For various considerations, Zhu Shenzui immediately chose Ligdan Khan's southern army as his target after receiving the news that Ligdan Khan was sending troops, which is the cavalry led by Intertabunang.

Tenger's strength was limited, and they were not sure about defeating Lindan Khan's main force. Moreover, Zhu Shenzhui still needed a big battle between Lindan Khan and Bu Shitu to let the two sides compete and weaken their respective strength. But there were no more concerns about taking down Intetabunang. At present, Lindan Khan's strength was not as good as before. This time, he divided his troops into two routes to attack Tumed. His military intentions were not concealed at all. Once the two armies met in Fengzhou, Bu Shitu would definitely not be his opponent.

Zhu Shenzhui's goal was to take advantage of this opportunity to directly eat up Intertabunang's southern army, cut off one of Lin Danhan's arms, and relieve the pressure on Bu Shitu. As long as this goal was achieved, it would not be so easy for Lin Danhan to take down Bu Shitu. At least with Bu Shitu's strength, he could still resist a little.

Two days ago, when Zhu Shenzhui learned that Intertabunang's southern army was marching quickly, he decided to start the war here. Zhu Shenzhui chose a good location. This area is an excellent battlefield and not too far from Fengzhou. In addition, he had already inquired about Intertabunang, the leader of the army. Intertabunang was the most capable general under Lin Danhan. He was brave and arrogant. He marched all the way without any trouble. Once he learned that there were cavalry here, Intertabunang would definitely conclude that it was one of the troops gathered by Bu Shitu to Fengzhou. With Intertabunang's personality, he would never miss this opportunity.

Zhu Shenzhui's judgment was correct. Less than half an hour after Wang Jinwu asked, a scout came to report that Intertabunang had led a large army towards them.

"Hey! This guy is really here? That's great, hehe!" Upon hearing the news, Wang Jinwu rubbed his hands excitedly, with a look of anticipation on his face.

After wandering around for a long time in the past few days, Wang Jinwu finally met his opponent. He had been looking forward to it for a long time. Zhu Shenzhui smiled. Now the fish has been hooked, the guests have arrived, and the banquet is about to begin.

Intertabunang was an outstanding general, not a brainless reckless man, otherwise Ligdan Khan would not have entrusted him with the important task of commanding the southern army.

After determining the location of Zhu Shenzhui's troops, Intetabunang immediately decided to start a war. He quickly sent a thousand-man team to conduct a quick raid as a reconnaissance and diversionary force to prevent the enemy from escaping upon hearing the news. His main force followed, with all the men stringing their bows, putting on armor, and mounting their horses, the entire army set out and galloped towards their destination.

Less than 20 miles, the warhorse trotted for a short time, and soon Intertabunang arrived near the battlefield. At this time, the thousand-man team he sent out had already started fighting with the enemy, because Intertabunang's order adopted a roving battle tactic, mainly to pin down the enemy and wait for the main force to arrive, and the enemy's reaction seemed a bit slow. In addition to sending a thousand cavalry to drive and shoot at each other, the main force gathered in a group in the camp, as if there was no decent command at all, it looked chaotic, and there was a faint sound of continuous shouting.

"Haha! Hahaha!"

Seeing this scene, Intertabunang was overjoyed. This was clearly a mob. There were quite a lot of them, probably as many as seven or eight thousand. Many Mongolians on horseback were gathered in a group and no one knew what they were doing. They were too far away to see clearly, but based on Intertabunang's experience, they were probably herding cattle and sheep or something like that, otherwise they would not have gathered in a group under such circumstances.

The Mongols fought differently from the Ming people. The Mongols' logistical support relied on the cattle and sheep driven along with the army, which was somewhat similar to the migration of nomads.

This tactic existed as early as the time of Genghis Khan and has been used for hundreds of years. Intertabunang's southern army also adopted this tactic, but because they were lightly equipped, Intertabunang's cattle and sheep logistics had already pulled away from the main force and fell far behind.

So Intertabunang understood what was going on with the enemy at a glance. They must have been terrified after discovering the thousand-man team he had sent out, and intended to escape. But when they escaped, they were unwilling to abandon their precious cattle and sheep, because these were their logistical supplies. Once these cattle and sheep were gone, they would lose their supplies. In just a few days, they would be starved to death without food, not to mention fighting.

Because of this, the enemy panicked and only sent out a part of the cavalry to drive away his thousand-man team, while the main force protected the cattle and sheep and began to retreat. But they didn't think about how fast the cattle and sheep could drive the march? How could they compare with their own cavalry? As a result, before they could escape, their main force arrived and directly stopped the enemy.

After seeing this, Intertabunang did not hesitate and immediately ordered to prepare for attack without arranging his troops. In his opinion, this army was simply a bunch of chickens and pottery dogs that could not withstand a single blow. As long as his army charged, they would be able to defeat them. After killing this army, the cattle and sheep of the enemy would just be their supplies. Intertabunang would not have to worry about the trouble of his own logistics troops being disconnected. It was like killing two birds with one stone.

If he missed such a great opportunity, how could he be called a great general? Just as Intertabunang ordered the whole army to prepare for the attack, the Mongols on the opposite side also discovered the arrival of his army. They shouted loudly and panicked even more. Many Mongols on horseback began to flee in all directions. Seeing this scene, Intertabunang was no longer worried. The credit was within his grasp.

"Boys! Great achievements are at hand. You are all the most heroic warriors of the Khan. God is above, follow me! Kill them all! Kill!" Drawing out his long sword, Inttabunang swung the sword and shouted. Behind him, cheers rang out. Everyone's blood boiled and their hearts surged. There was an extremely hot look in their eyes as they looked forward, and there was excitement and anticipation.

At the order, Intertabunang did not consider any tactical ideas at all, and directly led the cavalry to increase the speed of the horses. The war horses under his crotch gradually started to run, faster and faster. In a blink of an eye, the distance between the two sides was shortened. At this time, Intertabunang had already seen the frightened expressions on the faces of the Mongolians closest to them, and he saw more and more Mongolian cavalry breaking away from the main force, turning their horses' heads and fleeing in all directions.

Intertabunang didn't care about these fleeing Mongolian cavalrymen at all. His target was the main force of the enemy. As long as he could break them directly and rush forward on horseback, he would win the battle. What followed was nothing more than a massacre with his sword.

(End of this chapter)