Strategy for the Revitalization of the Late Ming Dynasty

Chapter 100: Taking Nanjing
Inside and outside the Qing army camps on the east, west and south sides of Fengyang City, there was chaos and confusion everywhere. It was not until the evening of that day that the basic order of the previous day was finally restored.

Qing soldiers who had died of their serious injuries were constantly carried out of the tents. A large number of civilians who had fled during the Ming army's counterattack that night were also captured by the angry Eight Banners soldiers, beheaded and displayed to the public. Their bodies were hung directly on wooden stakes in front of the Qing army camp.

After Duoduo cleaned up the mess, without even taking a breath, he immediately summoned all his generals to discuss the next countermeasures.

The Qing army suffered heavy losses in last night's night attack. The casualties among the armored soldiers alone were close to 3,000, and most of the bodies could not be recovered. Even the civilian laborers who participated in the operation lost more than a thousand in the melee.

Furthermore, the Qing army had also lost a great deal of the timber they had previously painstakingly cut and transported from the distant foothills. If the artillery had not been brought up in time, the losses would have been far greater.

Moreover, tens of thousands of Eight Banners soldiers endured mosquitoes in the wild and lurked in the plains for a night, but ultimately gained nothing. They watched the Ming army go into battle and show off their might after the Lanma Gou, but were unable to attack. The army was already full of complaints, and many people even cursed behind their backs.

When had they ever fought such a cowardly battle against the weak Ming army?
When they followed Huang Taiji in western Liaoning, the Ming army was always forced into a dilemma and suffered repeated defeats. Even if the latter took the initiative to attack at night, they often asked for trouble. It was never like this now, where they took the initiative to attack and suffered the humiliation of the Ming army.

The Ming army's unexpected counterattack dealt a heavy blow to the morale of the Qing army. There was even a situation where the Qing army, which had previously forced the Ming army to move south from Shaanxi, Henan, Shandong and other places, took advantage of the dawn and chaos everywhere to flee in groups of three or five to surrender to Fengyang.

Many Ming and Shun soldiers who surrendered to the Qing army had originally followed their generals in cutting their braids. They were actually very resistant in their hearts, but they had no choice but to submit.

Faced with such a failure, Duoduo, as the commander-in-chief of the army, had to give an explanation to the tens of thousands of Eight Banners soldiers, especially the generals in the army.

"Those deserters were tortured and have all confessed honestly. The reason the Emperor was able to see through the prince's plan and react so quickly during this night attack was because of their leaks."

Bolo reported calmly, his eyes secretly glancing at Duoduo and Tulai beside him.

"If they hadn't secretly colluded with the Ming army and leaked the military deployment, allowing the Ming emperor to prepare in advance, this night attack would have been successful."

"These Nikans are unforgivable and should all be torn into pieces by five horses." Seeing that the generals in front of him showed doubtful expressions on their faces, Tulai immediately expressed his opinion.

"Your Highness, we should kill them all to deter the remaining surrendered soldiers. Otherwise, some will definitely take the chance and collude with the Ming army again."

"Emperor Ming is truly too cunning. He actually bribed those surrendered soldiers. It's no surprise that he figured out my plan to lure the enemy and made his deployments early on."

When Duoduo said this, he felt a rare sense of timidity in his heart. He hesitated for a moment, then said sternly:

"Tulai, you're right. These people should all be killed. These Nikans and the Qing Dynasty are not on the same page. They can't be trusted.

However, after missing this night attack, we can only lay siege to force the Emperor Ming to call on the southern army to defend the throne. A night attack can be used once, but it must not be used a second time.

Duoduo still hasn't figured out how Zhu Cilang realized that he launched this night attack to lure the enemy, and how he maintained his strategic composure in such a critical situation?
But he couldn't talk about all this now. The impact of this failure was too bad. If Duoduo still wanted to lead the army, he had to clear himself of the responsibility. Tulai realized this and took the overall situation into consideration, so he took the initiative to clean up his mess.

The generals who were summoned to attend the military meeting were actually well aware of this, but as Tulai, Bolo and others expressed their opinions one after another, no matter how many opinions they had in their hearts, they had to swallow them back.

At this time, all the generals in the Qing army also understood the seriousness of the situation, but now was far from the time to settle accounts with internal strife. After the war was over, Dorgon would naturally settle the accounts bit by bit.

Although they did not have the same status as Jirgalang and Hauge, they were generally aware of the open and secret struggles among the three brothers Dorgon, Ajige and Dodo over the years.

Duoduo has now committed such a big mistake. Given Dorgon's character and way of doing things, he will definitely not escape punishment. It is even hard to say whether his merits and demerits can be offset in the end.

Therefore, all the generals in the army now focused their attention on the upcoming battle.

Before this, they were not prepared for a long siege. All they wanted was to attack for a few days to scare the Ming army in the city, and then lure them into surrender and break the city.

But now, the Ming army showed high morale, and it was impossible to quickly break the city. Since entering the pass, the Qing army finally hit a wall and quickly adjusted its mentality and combat strategy.

"But now the Ming Emperor has won victory after victory. We haven't even been able to breach the first earthen wall. The morale of the Ming army is high, and the combat effectiveness of those armored soldiers is not weak at all. Our soldiers have suffered repeated setbacks, and their morale is shaken. I am afraid that a siege and a violent attack will be extremely difficult."

In the military tent, Nikan, who had come from Huaibei to attend the military meeting, didn't care about all the details and directly expressed his concerns:

"If we want Emperor Ming to summon all the troops to defend the throne, we must first intimidate him. Furthermore, with Emperor Ming's intelligence, he must have guessed that we won't be able to fight for a long time. The food and supplies in the city will probably only last for a year or so."

Duoduo, Bolo, Tulai, Tunqi and others were all surprised when they heard this. They never expected that Nikan, who had always been arrogant and domineering and did not take the Ming army seriously, would actually say such calm words.

"You're right. The most difficult part now is attacking the city. The Ming army has already made thorough preparations. We've been defeated repeatedly before because we were always trying to take shortcuts. It's time to fight a real battle."

Tulai said with a straight face:
"I think we should dig trenches, build earthen walls, and advance all the way to the outside of the earthen wall. No matter how many artillery pieces the Ming army has, they won't be able to do anything to us. Once we dig through the horse-blocking ditch and under the earthen wall, we can bury gunpowder and explode it. Let's see how the Ming army defends!"

"Anyway, there are still tens of thousands of civilians. No matter how many more cannons the Ming army has on its earthen walls, how many can they kill? Once we dig through the horse-blocking ditch, the Ming emperor will surely be unable to sit still and will send troops to fight." Tun Qi also spoke.

"Hmph, as long as we force the Ming army out, we won't lure them out or retreat this time. Killing them all will be as easy as chopping melons and vegetables."

Ah Shan snorted coldly and said arrogantly, "The Ming army may be able to defend the city, but they will definitely be no match for our Qing army in a field battle!"

"We do need to find a way to force the Ming army to fight, but the Ming troops in Fengyang City are not easy to deal with. Last night, Bayala captured several Ming soldiers who were about to fight. After a night of torture, we got some information about the situation in Fengyang City."

After hearing what Ashan said, Bolo immediately shook his head. He sighed and his face looked very grim.

"Emperor Ming has 30,000 elite personal soldiers in the city, all of whom are well-equipped field soldiers. They are said to have practiced Qi Jiguang's military tactics and are very skilled in the Mandarin Duck Formation. They have been training in Jiangnan for almost a year. Xu Dingguo and Geng Zhongming were all defeated by them, and their combat power is very strong.

The city also contained over 3,000 cavalrymen and 5,000 to 6,000 war horses. These cavalrymen were quite powerful and should not be underestimated. Furthermore, Emperor Ming summoned 20,000 to 30,000 local soldiers. While these troops were not very effective in field battles, they were capable of defending the city.

Not only that, there are tens of thousands of young and strong men in the city. It is said that the stored food can last for three years. Even if the food is reduced by 20%, it can last until February of next year. If we rely solely on siege, I am afraid we will not be able to defeat the Ming army.

The area around Fengyang had already been destroyed by the Ming army. Not to mention food, even a tree could not be found. We had to go dozens of miles away to cut down trees when attacking the city.

By then, I'm afraid that instead of the Ming army being trapped to death, we might be the ones who can't outlast them."

As soon as these words were spoken, the Qing army generals who had just escaped from the complicated military affairs and had not yet learned the inside story of the interrogation showed surprise and even panic on their faces. This was the first time they knew the exact military situation of the Ming army in the city.

Of course, these military intelligence may not be completely accurate. On the one hand, the captured Ming soldiers are likely to lie and exaggerate; on the other hand, the Qing army’s own troops were exaggerated several times. Although the soldiers and generals under them were aware of this, they also knew exaggerated numbers.

But no matter which one it is, even if there are only 10,000 armored soldiers and 1,000 cavalrymen capable of field combat in the city, the tens of thousands of camp soldiers and tens of thousands of young and strong men guarding such a strong city will be a tough nut to crack.

Boro looked at the generals and continued meaningfully:

"The Ming army under Emperor Ming's command was equipped differently from the border troops. They had a limited variety of weapons, especially firearms, of which there were only a few fixed types. The most powerful of these was the turtledove-foot musket, and the most numerous were the bird muskets manufactured by the Nanjing Arsenal. Unlike other border troops, they had a wide variety of firearms, but none of them were very useful. These firearms were of excellent quality. The turtledove-foot musket could even penetrate two layers of armor at a distance of 100 steps, and it rarely exploded, making it very safe to use.

In addition to muskets, there are also many cannons in Fengyang City, including red cannons, French cannons, and general cannons. There are hundreds of them displayed on the city walls alone. It is said that there are still a large number of them in the armory that have not been used.

In addition, there are many types of bombs such as mines and cannons. During this night raid, Baiyintu should be the one who understands the power of these things the most, not to mention rockets such as the "Swarm of Bees" and the "Hundred Tigers Running Together", which are even more numerous."

With Bolo's introduction and combined with the intelligence previously obtained by the Qing army's scouts, Duoduo, Tulai, Nikan, Tunqi, Baiyintu and others basically outlined the general appearance of the Fengyang defenders.

Zhu Cilang's army was fully equipped, had sufficient food and fodder, and had a special teaching team to boost morale. Moreover, these soldiers were well-trained and had armor, spears, muskets, artillery, mandarin duck formations, and cavalry.

The most crucial thing is that each of these tens of thousands of troops is basically like a Ming army servant, brave and good at fighting, not an ordinary person, and even has better combat power than the servants of some Ming army generals.

When they thought of this, the Qing army generals in the big tent almost couldn't help but gasp. They had never imagined that the Ming Emperor had such a powerful army under his command.

Moreover, Tulai and Bolo both had a hunch that there were more tricks involved, but they could not be discovered by relying solely on a few captured soldiers.

Otherwise, although they were all Ming troops, the Ming troops in other places were weak in combat and collapsed at the first touch, and they were scrambling to surrender, but the Ming troops in Jiangbei were so powerful. The secret here is definitely not something that can be explained in a few simple words.

"But if we don't besiege Fengyang and force the Ming army to fight, and continue south to attack Yangzhou, I'm afraid the same thing will happen. It's also a fortified city, and there must be strong troops stationed there."

After hearing what Bolo said, Tunqi suddenly said, "Now, the only option left for us is to storm Fengyang."

"Yes, now there is probably no better way except to storm Fengyang and force Emperor Ming to fight!"

"If we can trap Fengyang, we can at least capture the Ming Emperor. Those Ming troops are indeed stronger, but they are still far behind us in a field battle!"

"That's right. Not to mention Xu Dingguo, even Geng Zhongming's troops weren't very strong. Emperor Ming relied on several times more troops to defeat Geng Zhongming in a field battle. What could he possibly use to fight against my great Qing warriors?"

"As long as the Ming Emperor is captured, the so-called Ming court will collapse and there will be no need to worry at all."

"Emperor Ming has transferred all his elite troops to the north of the Yangtze River. The south of the Yangtze River is now completely empty. If we can cross the river and march straight to Nanjing, it would be a brilliant plan."

"But it's still hundreds of miles south to Yangzhou. If we get around the canal, I'm afraid the Ming navy will attack us."

"Not only that, even if we reach Yangzhou, or even capture it, what will happen? As long as we can't cross the river, Emperor Ming will definitely not be anxious."

"That's right, it's a waste of effort. As long as Emperor Ming doesn't send troops, it's useless for us to capture Yangzhou, unless we can cross the river and capture Nanjing. But raising ships to cross the river will probably take months."

"Emperor Ming has made preparations long ago. Even if we capture Yangzhou, we won't have time to cross the river. If the logistics are insufficient, retreating north will be very troublesome."

"."

The generals of the Qing army immediately began to discuss the matter. They had unconsciously developed a fear of Zhu Cilang, the Ming army, and these sturdy cities. No one had the sharpness and confidence they had when they first marched south.

As Duoduo listened, he already felt that something was wrong. This was not only a fear of the Ming army, but also a challenge to his authority as the commander-in-chief of the army and the prince of the Qing Dynasty.

You know, all the previous wars were fought under his command.

However, as the supreme commander of the army, without the support of military achievements, he was unable to convince his generals at this time. He then turned his attention to Tulai, hoping that the other party could support Bolo.

In this way, when he makes the final decision, the voices of opposition will be much smaller.

Tulai immediately understood Duoduo's look, but did not do what he expected. Instead, he changed the subject and said loudly:
"I think we should hold the Ming Emperor back in Fengyang, forcing him to send out elite troops to stop us and wear down his forces. Then, we can wait for Prince Ying to sail down the river from Wuchang and take Nanjing. By then, the Ming Emperor will have nowhere to escape."

As soon as these words were spoken, the Qing army tent exploded. A group of people first looked at each other, and then started discussing it, all of them looking as if they had suddenly realized something.

"A two-pronged attack, taking Nanjing directly, this strategy will definitely lead to victory. This is actually how we won during the previous Western Expedition against Li Zicheng. Otherwise, even Tongguan would not have been so easy to capture."

"Moreover, even if Emperor Ming noticed it in advance, he would be unable to stop it unless he dared to break out with his elite troops."

"Hahaha, if Emperor Ming dares to break out, we will do as we did in Shaanxi. We will first take Fengyang, then Yangzhou, and then cross the river to take Nanjing and seize the world of Jiangnan."

"At that time, why would we care about Fengyang? We could just kill all the Ming troops that broke through and capture the Ming emperor alive. We wouldn't be worried that the Ming troops in other places wouldn't surrender, just like what happened in Shaanxi after Li Zicheng fled south."

"."

Originally, in their eyes, the Ming court was even more despicable than Li Zicheng. Although it occupied the entire south, it would immediately fall down with a "boom" at the slightest touch.

Therefore, when Duoduo led his army south, no one thought that the so-called two-pronged attack was necessary. Even Zhunta, who led the army south from Shandong to assist in the battle, was considered to be coming to steal the credit.

When Duoduo transferred the latter to be stationed in Guide-Bozhou, all the generals supported him because they could not bear to see anyone reaping the benefits after their hard battle.

Moreover, Ajige led his troops to pursue the remaining Shun army. From Shaanxi to Huguang, there must have been many tough battles along the way. Even if he wanted to go east, it would probably take until June.

In Duoduo's original plan, he would enter Nanzhili at the end of March, sweep across Jiangbei in a month, and by the end of April he should have taken Nanjing and even the entire Jiangnan. Why would he need Ajige?

Now, after Tulai's reminder, the generals calculated the time and roughly guessed that Ajige should have occupied Wuchang by now. They only needed to send Tangma to contact him and he should be found within ten days.

"A two-pronged attack, taking Nanjing directly, this is a good idea!"

Seeing the morale of the army was like this, Duoduo finally had to compromise. He had no better solution for the time being. Both besieging Fengyang and marching south to Yangzhou required sufficient troops, and crossing the river required a large number of ships, which were what he lacked most at the moment.

"I will immediately send someone to contact Prince Ying. Emperor Ming has now concentrated all his troops in Fengyang. Naturally, there are no soldiers defending Jiangnan, Jiangxi and other places. As long as Prince Ying can raise enough ships and lead his army down the river, everything will be smooth sailing.

However, we can't sit idle either. We must continue to attack Fengyang City to deplete the troops in the city. We also need to send people to Yangzhou to investigate in advance to determine the route for the army to move south."

Soon, as Duoduo issued the latest military orders, Kong Youde, Geng Jimao and other Han army generals also entered the big tent to discuss the specific plan of digging trenches and continuing to advance.

(End of this chapter)