Strategy for the Revitalization of the Late Ming Dynasty

Chapter 173 Cutting off the Qing Army's Food Supply

In Changsha City, Du Yinxi quickly summoned Tian Jianxiu, Hao Yongzhong, Liu Fangliang, Yuan Zongde and other generals of the Changsha Standard Battalion and the Palace Right Army to discuss the specific deployment of pursuing the Qing army that harassed Duoduo's troops.

A total of 100,000 troops retreated northward, and there were nearly 100,000 civilians accompanying them. Duoduo's little tricks naturally could not be hidden from Du Yinxi. He and his generals saw the amazing achievements Zhu Cilang had made in Jingzhou, and they were all eager to try.

At this time, the myth of the Eight Banner Army's so-called "invincibility" had been broken, and the morale of the Ming army reached an unprecedented high.

However, both Hao Yongzhong's Changsha Battalion and the Right Army of the Palace had very limited mobility on the battlefield due to the lack of cavalry. Du Yinxi did not dare to attack rashly before Duoduo's entire army retreated.

Although Hao Yongzhong had a bad temper and wanted to gain the first merit in Changsha's war against the Qing before Tian Jianxiu, he did not dare to act under the suppression of Du Yinxi.

Of course, his real concern was the Eight Banners. The few cavalry he had were ultimately inferior to the Eight Banners. While the morale of the various units was boosted, Hao Yongzhong knew this wouldn't immediately close the gap in strength.

Soon, under Dorgon's repeated urging, the main forces of the Qing army outside Changsha began to retreat one after another. Although they retreated much faster than Dorgon had originally planned, because they had been prepared in advance, the Ming army in the city did not harass frequently, and everything went very smoothly.

Under Duoduo's slightly disappointed expression, the Qing army took away almost all the remaining military supplies, even wood, stone bullets, except for a dozen red-haired cannons that had been scrapped due to excessive use.

Duoduo and Bolo, one in front and one behind, personally maintained the front line to prevent the Ming army in Changsha from following and pursuing them.

Duoduo was afraid of Zhu Cilang, but he was not afraid of Du Yinxi at all. He personally led the troops to cover the rear, and the morale of the Qing army was stabilized. During the retreat from Changsha to the north, there was almost no abandonment of soldiers, armor, and supplies.

However, although it is only a few hundred miles from Changsha to Yuezhou in the north, one has to cross five major rivers on the way. The main force of the Qing army in the north led by Dorgon is all stationed in Daorenji and Linxiang, and cannot go south to provide support.

Duoduo could only rely on careful planning and cautious steps to cover the retreat of the army.

Not only were there rivers that repeatedly hindered the cavalry's movements along the way, but to the north of Changsha, there were towering mountains and ridges stretching for dozens of miles, which forced Hao Yongzhong and Tian Jianxiu's armies to follow immediately.

In fact, if Duoduo wanted to give full play to the mobile combat capabilities of the Eight Banners, it would be safest for him to travel along the river at this time and guard against the south and west.

However, due to the presence of the Ming navy, those large and small boats, and even those large ships equipped with dozens of cannons on one side with a range of several miles, Duoduo did not dare to let his troops get close to the river.

You know, he had been planning for so long and making so many deployments, and he personally led the troops to the rear, just to stabilize the morale of the army that had been shaken by the war in the north.

After all, a withdrawal is a withdrawal. No matter how carefully planned or how cleverly laid out, once the army begins to retreat without achieving significant results, it is inevitable that the morale of the army will be shaken.

Du Yinxi seized this opportunity and sent Tian Jianxiu and Hao Yongzhong to lead the cavalry in the city to attack, and they kept chasing the Qing army's rearguard troops, and even caught up with a large group of Qing army cavalry in the valley east of Xiangyin.

Tian Jianxiu and Hao Yongzhong gathered all the troops, but finally they only managed to gather less than two thousand cavalrymen, a considerable number of whom were their own personal guards. The scout cavalry in the army were Tangma, who had no idea how to ride in formation and their combat effectiveness was far inferior to that of the Tianqi Army.

The two men knew that they were not strong enough, and they did not dare to set up a battle formation and openly confront the thousands of cavalrymen in the rear of the Qing army. They mainly harassed the enemy along the way and continuously attacked the small groups of Eight Banners Army that were left behind.

They were not prepared for a tough battle at all, especially after seeing Duoduo's rear guard army, which was far stronger than theirs, they completely gave up the idea of ​​fighting a tough battle.

However, Duoduo had other intentions for this pursuing Ming army. He deliberately exposed a flaw and lured the latter into the valley, then quickly turned his guns around and caught the pursuing Ming army off guard.

Of course, in the hilly and mountainous areas north of Changsha, Duoduo could not encircle the enemy in such a short time. He just wanted to teach these pursuing Ming troops a lesson!

The Prince Yu of the Qing Dynasty could not defeat the Ming Emperor, so how could he not defeat a group of Ming generals?

Duoduo used the Eight Banners cavalry of two Niulu as the vanguard. As soon as he counterattacked, he displayed the momentum of the powerful Eight Banners army. Tian Jianxiu and Hao Yongzhong saw that the situation was not good and had to lead the troops into battle themselves.

Relying on their advantage of more than twice the number of troops, the two fought with the Qing army for several rounds until Duoduo mobilized hundreds of Eight Banners cavalry to join the battlefield and completely forced them to retreat.

Duoduo's goal wasn't to completely annihilate this Ming army, so he didn't linger, much less pursue them. The terrain wasn't ideal for cavalry, and with tens of thousands of Ming troops still inside Changsha, he'd be in trouble if he got stuck there.

Seeing that more than a thousand Eight Banners cavalrymen under his command had repelled the Ming army, Duoduo immediately sent Tangma to contact the retreating army in the north and asked the latter to leave troops behind to provide support.

Twenty miles later, after passing through the mountains and hills in the north, there is a large plain with a river running through it. It is very suitable for large-scale cavalry combat, but it is also very suitable for the Ming army's cavalry formation.

Duoduo naturally felt that his plan was safe, but whenever he thought of Zhu Cilang, he dared not relax at all.

At the same time, after being repelled by the Qing army, Tian Jianxiu and Hao Yongzhong did not withdraw their troops. Instead, they continued to pursue and harass, killing the lagging cavalry of the Qing army.

Faced with the equally mobile Ming cavalry on horseback, those who fell behind during the retreat, or those who were covering the flanks, were often unable to gain the upper hand in the battle.

For this reason, Duoduo had to start arranging cavalry to take turns to provide cover, fighting and retreating. Relying on his powerful elite cavalry, he forced back the Ming army's harassment time and time again.

The Qing army marched northward and, after reaching the south bank of the Miluo River, gradually lost the initial order due to the constant harassment from the Ming cavalry and the continuous bombardment from the Ming navy on the river.

Zhu Cilang had long known about the battle situation in Changsha, and he naturally would not sit idly by. As the Ming cavalry in Yuezhou City set out and began to harass Yingtian and other places, Bolo and Duoduo had to order the army to retreat northward at a faster pace.

Under the sudden attack of the Ming army, many Qing soldiers who were transporting food and supplies across the river were very frightened, and chaos was about to break out.

However, Dorgon had predicted this long ago. After rebuilding the pontoon bridge, he pretended to send troops north, causing Zhu Cilang to relax his vigilance. In fact, the focus of his troops was always in the south.

Moreover, after experiencing several previous defeats, Dorgon had already realized that Zhu Cilang was a Han emperor who was extremely aggressive and had no fear of the Eight Banners Army. It was impossible for such a person to give up attacking Duoduo's army.

A group of soldiers had traveled hundreds of miles from south to north and were already exhausted. Under harassment from the enemy, they were retreating at an accelerated pace and carrying a large amount of baggage. If they revealed any flaws, the consequences would be disastrous.

Dorgon absolutely could not allow such a thing to happen, otherwise his plan to achieve some military results in Jingzhou, Yuezhou and other places would probably be immediately thwarted.

Therefore, when he received the military report from the scouts in the south, he immediately led a group of Eight Banners cavalry south and engaged in battle with the Ming cavalry that had passed through the Dongting Lake navy and transferred to Miluo River and other places.

However, Zhu Cilang did not send out the main force of the Tianqi Army. After the previous two major battles, the main force of the Tianqi Army was exhausted. He finally only dispatched more than a thousand cavalrymen who were in good condition.

On the plains southeast of Dongting Lake, the Eight Banners launched a fierce attack on the harassing Ming cavalry. Their troops had an absolute advantage in numbers, and they fought more fiercely, quickly defeating the Ming army's repeated attacks.

However, the Ming cavalry did not suffer a serious blow. Under the cover of the Dongting Lake navy, they were finally able to successfully leave the battlefield. Tian Jianxiu and Hao Yongzhong also quickly withdrew to Changsha from the east bank of the Xiangjiang River.

The cannons on the navy's warships, and even the muskets in the hands of the sailors, had far greater power and range than the bows and arrows of the Eight Banners cavalry, and the armor on the Eight Banners cavalry was simply not enough to withstand the Ming army's artillery shells.

In the Xiangjiang River and Miluo River, the Ming navy warships fired several rounds of salvos, and the Eight Banners, which had been attacking rapidly, were quickly disrupted and had to give up the pursuit.

Duoduo was extremely anxious when he saw his soldiers falling down one after another due to the pursuit, but he was helpless and could only order the troops to retreat.

However, he knew that once they crossed the Miluo River, the Ming army's armored vehicles would be almost impossible to pursue. Although he suffered some losses in his retreat northward, the final result was still acceptable.

However, the retreat to the south and north ended in failure, and coupled with the losses along the way, the morale of the main force of the Qing army inevitably suffered a heavy blow.
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In the temporary palace of Yuezhou Prefecture, Zhu Cilang picked up an urgent military report from the imperial desk. After reading it for a few seconds, he handed it to Chen Fu and said with his usual smile:
"Dorgon is truly a formidable figure. He personally led a cavalry unit south to intercept the intercepting cavalry I sent. Now the main force of the Qing army has successfully returned north."

"Your Majesty, Linxiang City has become quite stable thanks to the Qing army's construction. The height of the city alone is nearly two meters, and many parts are built with rocks. I'm afraid it would be difficult for artillery to directly destroy it in a short period of time."

Wu Jinxi paused, then continued, "Now, Dorgon has sent more troops in, making it even more difficult to fight!"

"Moreover, the Tartars are now extremely vigilant against the Green Camp Army. Not to mention the Green Camp Army in Linxiang City, even Wang Tiren in Wuchang City is difficult to contact." Liu Tichun also said.

Dorgon, Tan Tai and others were right to worry. After the "Battle of Jingzhou", the Jungta tribe was almost wiped out, and the Green Camp army generals in various parts of Huguang began to stir.

Putting aside the turmoil in various parts of Chengtian Prefecture, even in Linxiang City, which was heavily guarded by the Eight Banners Army, there had been several deserters, not to mention Wang Tiren, who had been thinking of leaving a way out for himself from the beginning.

However, as Dorgon began to take measures to strengthen his control over the Green Camp Army, those Green Camp Army generals who were ready to make moves also went into hiding. Although they were shaken by the combat effectiveness of the Eight Banner Army, no one dared to challenge the combat effectiveness of the Tartars!

"Now, Jingzhou, Yuezhou, Changsha, and Jiujiang are all in my hands. Without Linxiang as a foothold, Dorgon would probably not dare to mobilize a large army to fight elsewhere. He would naturally be cautious.

Moreover, we certainly can't capture Wuchang City in a short time, but Linxiang is still easy to attack. Dorgon has now lost the initiative on the battlefield. His continued stay in Huguang is nothing more than winning some battles, stabilizing the army's morale, and at the same time regaining some face."

Zhu Cilang continued while looking at the map hanging in front of him:
"However, if Dorgon wants to stop me like this, then he is wishful thinking. Even if I don't send troops to attack Linxiang City, I can still make him withdraw!"

Chang Denggui heard this and immediately laughed:

"Although Dorgon is considered strategic, his march south has been fruitless, resulting in heavy casualties. He must be wary of Your Majesty and our army, and is cautious and hesitant to act freely. The more he does this, the more disadvantaged he will become, and he will ultimately be completely defeated by Your Majesty."

"Given the current situation, even if Dorgon wanted to fight Your Majesty, would he be able to do so?"

Lin Changfeng then raised his head and said with a smug look on his face:

"If he's not careful, he might end up repeating Duoduo's mistakes. By the time the entire Huguang region is recaptured by Your Majesty, will he still be able to serve as the so-called regent?"

After hearing this, Zhu Cilang nodded in agreement. He had guessed Dorgon's thoughts correctly, but he didn't expect that the other party was even more cunning than he imagined. He actually repaired the plank road in public while secretly passing through Chencang, and stabilized the army retreating north with a surprise attack.

However, these are not enough to change the overall situation of the battle.

The situation in Huguang is now completely under his control. The subordinate counties of Changsha and Jingzhou have basically been recaptured by the Ming army. The counties of Chengtian Prefecture have been captured without a fight. The Han River grain route of the Qing army is directly under the attack of the Ming army.

Chang Denggui's previous actions in pursuing the Qing army in the north and recovering the prefectures in northern Jiangnan were very successful.

Under Zhu Cilang's delegation of power, he and Zhang Huangyan analyzed the Qing army's strength in northern Huguang and launched a bold attack. The defeated Qing army was completely lost in their composure. Ambushes along the way were basically impossible for a disorganized and scattered army.

However, due to the obstruction of the river, the Ming army's pursuit speed was not fast, and in the cold winter, it was not easy to wade across the river and achieve a roundabout encirclement.

Naturally, all the supplies in the city were destroyed by the retreating Eight Banners Army, and then looted by the defeated Green Camp Army or local bandits.

Although there were many Green Camp troops who defected throughout Chengtian Prefecture, and even in the southern part of Xiangyang Prefecture, there were also Green Camp troops who held their ground. When Chang Denggui led his troops to pursue them, he encountered many Green Camp troops stationed in the area, and they had closed the city gates.

Without siege equipment, it would be difficult for cavalry to capture a city that offered stubborn resistance. Chang Denggui naturally would not take this risk. He was only here to expand his victory, not to really recover lost territory.

You must know that in the Battle of Jingzhou, although the Qing army stationed in the north was almost wiped out, and Junta and Bahana were both killed, the main force of the Qing army was still there, and its strength was far superior to that of the Ming army.

At this time, if the Ming army divided its troops and stationed them in various places, it would be courting its own destruction.

Of course, recovery and garrison are not the same thing. Zhu Cilang just wanted to bluff, intimidate Dorgon, and shake the morale of the Qing army.

"Dorgon will not retreat north easily. Next he will either attack Jingzhou or Yuezhou."

Chen Fu then analyzed: "If Dorgon can capture Jingzhou, the situation in Huguang will be greatly beneficial to the Qing court, and the main force of the Qing army's southern expedition will no longer need to stay in Huguang for garrison."

After hearing this, Zhu Cilang nodded and agreed:
"Dorgon's trip south to Changsha was a complete loss. Now that he's lost in the north, he must win a battle, both for his reputation and for the sake of the war situation. Although I'm in Yuezhou, Jingzhou is obviously easier to capture."

Upon hearing this, Liu Tichun suddenly sighed and frowned.
"If the Qing army is really determined to attack Jingzhou, this battle will be difficult to fight. Dorgon concentrates his forces to attack Yuezhou, and we can use them to divide our forces and use the rivers and lakes to assist in defense. But Jingzhou..."

"General Liu is right. We must find a way to keep the main force of the Qing army at the gates of Yuezhou City. Otherwise, the initiative of this battle will return to the hands of the Qing army."

Wu Jinxi immediately expressed his support, even cupping his hands and saying meaningfully to Zhu Cilang:

"Your Majesty, even if we lead the Qing army to attack Jiujiang, it would be better than letting them attack Jingzhou. By then, the Qing army will have traveled a long distance and their armies will be exhausted. This may be an opportunity for our army to win."

"Dorgon won't be fooled easily. We can't overestimate the Qing army and scare ourselves, but we must not underestimate the Qing army, otherwise we will suffer a great loss sooner or later."

Zhu Cilang naturally understood what Wu Jinxi meant, but he shook his head and said:

"The struggle for power within the Qing army is also very complicated. Dorgon is now facing pressure not only on the battlefield but also politically. He will definitely not dare to take risks easily."

As Duoduo led the main force of the Qing army that had marched south to retreat to Yuezhou, the most powerful force on the Huguang battlefield entered a state of rest and recovery. The situation in the entire Huguang region also returned to the plan of the Five Military Governor's Office, which was relatively favorable to the Ming army.

The geographical situation of Huguang and the weakness of the Eight Banner Army enabled the Ming army to block the Qing army step by step, just as it had done in history, without even worrying about losses in the rear.

Zhu Cilang's situation is much better now than it was in history. He has a strong city and a powerful army. He does not have to rely entirely on the strong army to retreat on its own initiative, nor does he have to wait for the time window when the main force of the Qing army has not yet had time to move south.

But at the same time, the strength of the Ming army was far from enough to fight a decisive battle with the main force of the powerful army. If Zhu Cilang wanted to recapture Wuchang and completely remove the sword hanging over his head, he had to find ways to force Dorgon to withdraw his troops from Huguang.

Otherwise, he would not be able to use troops against Wuchang or Xiangyang, recapture Huguang, and completely fill the gap in the Yangtze River defense line.

At this time, Zhu Cilang was also worried about whether Hauge and Wu Sangui had pacified Shaanxi, sent troops from Hanzhong, marched into Sichuan, and opened up a third southern expedition route.

"If that's the case, what else can we do to force the Qing army to withdraw?" Chang Denggui narrowed his eyes, paused, and said, "After the battle of Jingzhou, it will not be easy to defeat the Eight Banners Army in a field battle."

"There's no need for a field battle. I just need to cut off the Qing army's food supply, and Dorgon, Duoduo and the others will surely waver." Zhu Cilang suddenly laughed and said:

"Wang Guangtai should have returned to Yunyang by now. As long as the Green Camp troops in Yunyang rebel, Dorgon will be in Jingzhou and probably won't dare to stay there any longer."
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Outside the barricades at the north gate of Yunyang City, Wang Guangtai, dressed as a Green Camp army sentry, passed the inspection of the city gate sentry and hurriedly rode his horse into the city gate. The sound of horse hooves came from the bluestone paved ground, and he soon entered the city.

At this time, Yunyang City had already begun wartime alert under the surveillance of the remaining Eight Banners officers. Wang Guangtai's two brothers, Xu Qiyuan, were also secretly monitored.

However, this place is far away from the battlefield. Although the city gate is heavily guarded and no unauthorized persons are allowed to enter, many places in the city are still crowded with people.

Soon, in the alley leading from Beimen Street to Chenghuang Temple, Wang Guangtai, under the protection of his old subordinates' servants, entered another alley on the west side.

He quickly changed clothes there with his elder brother Wang Guangen's servant. When he came out of the alley again, he was dressed like a servant. Then he went straight south through an alley and came to Wang Guangen's mansion.

The brothers had lost the trust of the Qing court long before. After the defeat in the Battle of Jingzhou, the Eight Banners soldiers and Han generals from Liaodong sent by the Qing court to monitor them took the opportunity to launch an uprising and even asked for help from Xiangyang.

However, the Qing army was very short of manpower at that time. They could hardly defend Xiangyang and had no time to take care of Yunyang. Without the advantage in manpower, the Eight Banners soldiers and Han generals did not dare to take direct action.

Wang Guangtai knew that if he returned directly with a dozen servants, he would be controlled by the Tartars, and even arouse the vigilance of the Liaodong Han generals and the Eight Banners Army in the city, making it difficult for him to act.

Therefore, he directly sent people to sneak into the city, contact his two brothers, and confirm the situation in the city and whether his old subordinates were still reliable before finally deciding to enter the city.

After all, if the situation in Yunyang City was no longer under the control of their brothers, he could still escape to another place and not die in vain.

The courtyard of the palace was completely silent at this time. After Wang Guangtai entered, he did not expose himself immediately. He didn't know how many eyes were watching him.

After knocking on the last door in the backyard three or five times, someone inside immediately opened the door with a creak and respectfully welcomed him into the backyard.

Wang Guangtai walked quickly along the eaves of the wing room. The yard was full of Wang Guangen's servants. He soon walked to a large wing room in the backyard. In addition to his two brothers, there was also Li Shiying, the general in charge of the troops in the city.

"Big brother!"

(End of this chapter)