Strategy for the Revitalization of the Late Ming Dynasty

Chapter 89 Return in triumph
On the battlefield littered with corpses, Zhao Zhengdong seemed to be insensitive to the stench in the air. He swung his sword expressionlessly at the blood-stained neck of a Geng army soldier on the ground.

However, because his arms were sore and weak, he lacked strength, and the direction of his sword was slightly off, he had to chop three times before he could chop off the opponent's head.

Now, all the clothes and armor on the Geng army soldier have been stripped off. Although the cotton armor is seriously damaged, it is not difficult to repair. The craftsmen in Fengyang City can easily repair it.

The belt around his waist and the short axe on it were still intact. He also had more than ten taels of blood-stained silver and two jewel-studded hairpins on his body, which should have been looted by Geng's army when they looted Huaibei.

Of course, all the captured spoils must be handed over to the public. Once anyone is found to have kept them privately, regardless of the amount, they will be beheaded immediately.

Zhu Cilang had no mercy on such intentional and extremely bad things happening in the army. Previously, when he went north to Guide to pacify Xu Dingguo, some soldiers were executed on the spot for hiding the spoils.

"These bastards, I don't know how many people they killed and how much stuff they robbed before, and each of them has so much gold and silver on them!" Gu Defu cursed in a low voice as he picked up the head on the ground.

"Who can resist looking at this white silver!" Chen Tao complained softly, while reluctantly throwing a silver ingot in his hand into the basket behind him, and even couldn't help turning his head back to take another look.

But at this time, Mao Qing was patrolling nearby. As soon as he finished speaking, he felt that Mao Qing seemed to turn his head and look at him, and he instantly retracted his head.

"If you have the guts, take it and see if the military judges will chop off your head..." Zhao Zhengdong said in a deep voice with a cold face as he listened to the complaints of several people.

If he hadn't been so tired that he had no strength left, he would have kicked the two whining guys.

After saying that, he raised his hand and swung his knife, chopping at the head of another Geng army soldier lying on the ground in front of him.

Gu Defu was about to say something, but Zhao Zhengdong glared at him and he swallowed the words back into his stomach. He just smiled sullenly.

He turned his head to look to the north and found that the Tianqi Battalion had brought a new group of laborers. This group of laborers was even larger in number, almost covering the entire horizon. They quickly entered the battlefield, which was still in a mess, and quickly joined the ranks of cleaning up the battlefield.

"It's still more impressive to be a cavalryman." Gu Defu was a little lost in thought, muttering, "I want to be a cavalryman too!"

It is said that Chang Denggui led a team of cavalry and directly attacked the Eight Banners soldiers who stayed in the north of the lake area to guard the cannons. The latter had just received the news from Geng Zhongming's Tangma. Seeing Chang Denggui leading his troops in a menacing manner, they retreated without even fighting.

However, they destroyed three of the pontoon bridges before the Ming army caught up with them, and forced the civilians to push some of the artillery into the lake. If their troops were not too few and they had no time to kill people, they would probably have killed the thousands of civilians who followed the army as well.

Chang Denggui led the Tianqi Battalion at galloping, quickly waded across the river, repelled them, and then easily took over the thousands of eager civilians.

After being captured by the Qing army, these thousands of civilians had been treated like two-legged livestock. When they saw the Ming army coming, they not only did not run away, but instead came forward and wanted to follow them.

After all, if they could not enter the city and did not get the protection of the officers and soldiers, they would soon be captured by the Qing army again.

Before, they did not trust the officers and soldiers, but now after realizing the brutality of the Qing army, they have no choice. In the past half month, almost everyone here has had relatives or friends fall under the butcher knife of the Qing army.

With the assistance of more than 3,000 laborers, the mountains of armor and weapons on the battlefield were all moved back to the Palace Army camp before sunset, and the headless corpses were buried nearby by the laborers in pits dug nearby.

At the same time, Zhu Cilang quickly organized his troops and planned to camp there to rest for one night, and then immediately return to Fengyang City. Although Zheng Sen had led the navy to contain Nikan in Wuhe, if the other party was willing to take a detour and force his way across the river, they could arrive here in less than a day.

Zhu Cilang knew very well that with his current strength, he could not easily escape the enemy's harassment. Cavalry still had a huge advantage on such a battlefield.

At the beginning of the evening, a light drizzle began to fall from the sky, and the clearing of the battlefield had been basically completed. The four cavalry bureaus sent by the Tianqi Camp pursued and killed and captured hundreds of Geng army soldiers, many of whom were Liu Zhong's old subordinates.

These soldiers were the ones who failed to seize horses during the great rout. They could not outrun the cavalry on the plains, so they all fled into the nearby deserted villages.

However, the cavalrymen of the Tianqi Camp had already taken turns to scout these places, and they knew very well where they were suitable for Tibetans.

There was nothing but plains all around. As soon as the defeated Geng soldiers appeared, they would be immediately discovered by the searching Ming cavalry. They had no way to hide and could only surrender.

That night, Zhu Cilang received the list of captured items submitted by Chang Denggui, Zhang Huangyan and others after verification, as well as the information on enemy prisoners killed in the battle and a summary report on casualties of each unit.

Chang Denggui was the commander-in-chief of the Palace Army, holding command of the entire army and responsible for all matters related to training. As the chief instructor, Zhang Huangyan, in addition to assisting the commander-in-chief with training, also had the additional responsibility of overseeing various military affairs.

Of course, the power of the instructor system was strictly limited by Zhu Cilang within the military law. The power of the army's logistics, military affairs, etc., was another system, which ensured Zhu Cilang's absolute control over the army.

Zhu Cilang first looked at the casualties of various units in the central army. Although they won this battle, it was a decisive battle and was not easy to fight. Each unit suffered heavy losses.

Among the four battalions that contributed the most in this battle, the four thousand-man headquarters of Tianwu Left Battalion, Tianwei Center Battalion, and Wuyong Battalion deployed in the front suffered heavy losses, with 153 killed, 45 seriously injured, and 186 slightly injured.

Of the forty-five seriously injured, the vast majority would not survive this night, and those who did survive would have little chance of returning to the army. As for the lightly wounded soldiers, some were still in danger of their lives.

Then came the cavalry from the Tianqi and Jing camps, each of which suffered dozens of casualties. However, about a third of them were lightly wounded, so the overall losses were still manageable.

In this battle, although Geng Zhongming's more than 3,000 soldiers were almost wiped out, with nearly 1,000 of them surrendering, the Palace Army and the Nanjing Camp also suffered heavy losses, with nearly 500 casualties.

If Zhu Cilang had fought against the Eight Banners Army led by Duoduo himself instead of Geng Zhongming and Liu Zhong's former subordinates, his losses would probably have been even greater, and he might not even have won.

"These are all heroes who fought for the Ming Dynasty and for the people of the world. We have arranged for civilians to collect their bodies. We must also find their names and the suicide notes they left behind, and do our best to help them realize their wishes.

When this war is completely over, I will enshrine their spirits in the Shrine of Heroes, where they will be worshipped forever by future generations. The Ming Dynasty will never forget them, and neither will the people of the world!

The funeral arrangements and compensation for the fallen soldiers are one of Zhu Cilang's most important concerns now. He paused, then continued:

"These matters must be arranged properly and absolutely no mistakes can be made, especially for those who have parents, wives and children at home. Compensation must be provided as soon as possible.

If they are orphans, we must quickly find them adopted sons from among the children who are stranded elsewhere to carry on the family line. I absolutely cannot let these heroes of the Ming Dynasty feel disheartened."

Upon hearing this, Chang Denggui and Zhang Huangyan immediately responded in unison, "Your Majesty is wise and wise. From now on, the soldiers will be even more dedicated and loyal to their country!"

Zhu Cilang nodded, calmed down, and then continued to look through the gains of the battle while listening to Chang Denggui's report.

Geng's army was almost wiped out in this battle. Among them, 2,300 soldiers were killed in battle, and more than 1,100 people eventually surrendered. Most of them were Liu Zhong's former subordinates who were defeated in the first round of volleys.

Zhu Cilang had ordered the officers of the surrendered Geng army to be identified and beheaded. The remaining ordinary soldiers were to be used for hard labor and to escort the captured supplies back to Fengyang.

These people are all strong and healthy, just right for doing these things. As for the captured civilians, they naturally also have to work, but with these surrendered soldiers around, they don't have to work themselves to death.

Zhu Cilang would naturally not show mercy to these soldiers who surrendered to the Qing army.

If it were not for the purpose of reducing the number of other surrendered soldiers recruited by the Qing army at this time who would fight to the death, he would probably use the same method he used against the Tartar soldiers to deal with them.

As the emperor of the Ming Dynasty, Zhu Cilang had to base everything on political considerations rather than emotional decisions.

You know, the Qing army marched south this time, engulfed with nearly 100,000 surrendered Shun troops and Ming troops. Although these troops were not very strong in combat, they still played an important role on the battlefield.

Zhu Cilang must find a way to undermine the morale of these people when Duoduo drives them to besiege the city. Victory on the battlefield is one aspect, but recruiting surrendered soldiers, reforming them, and setting an example are equally important.

After reading this, Zhu Cilang's originally gloomy expression finally returned to normal. He then opened the list of seized items presented by Zhang Huangyan.

The first thing that caught the eye on the list was the captured war horses. This was the trophy Zhu Cilang needed most at the moment. Although he could also obtain southwestern horses, they could not be used as the main force of war horses.

In this battle, the Ming army captured more than 2,300 war horses from Geng's army, most of which were horses that the defeated soldiers did not have time to ride away. There were even hundreds of mules used to transport military supplies, as well as ox carts temporarily requisitioned by the Qing army, which were specially used to pull cannons.

While Geng Zhongming's army wasn't professional cavalry, it was a fully equine force. He commanded over 2,500 men and horses. Aside from the 300 or 400 who escaped and those who sustained casualties on the battlefield, the remaining mules and horses had been largely confiscated.

As for the more than 20 red-haired cannons and dozens of other small cannons in Geng Zhongming's army, there was no time to move them away when he was defeated. The Eight Banners soldiers retreated in a hurry and only pushed some of them into the river, but countless gunpowder shells were abandoned by the lake when Geng's army was defeated.

However, the largest number of items seized in this war were various swords, guns, and armor.

Although most of these weapons and armor had been damaged in battle, repairing them would be a complex undertaking, and their quality would be significantly lower after repair, they were more than sufficient to equip the militia defending the city. Zhu Cilang roughly estimated that these warhorses would be enough to double the size of the Heavenly Cavalry Battalion and establish a fully staffed cavalry headquarters. The artillery would also be enough to equip two battalions, and after repairing the broken armor, swords, and guns, he could easily form a 2,000-man militia.

These dozens of extra cannons, more than two thousand war horses, and the two thousand militiamen equipped with armor and swords as planned by Zhu Cilang, with the support of Fengyang City's defense, are definitely enough to give Duoduo a hard time.

On the morning of the second day, after a thorough search, the Tianqi Battalion had basically eliminated the defeated Geng army soldiers hiding in the surrounding plains.

Afterwards, Zhu Cilang asked Chang Denggui and Zhang Huangyan to lead the troops personally, escort the wounded in the barracks south first, and transport more than a thousand heads of Geng's soldiers cut off on the battlefield back to Fengyang, and hand them over to the defenders in the city to build a "Jingguan" to deter the Qing army that was about to march south.

At the same time, an express horse with a 300-li express speed had already delivered the news of Zhu Cilang's great victory in the first battle to Fengyang overnight, and was on the way to Nanjing, Luzhou, Huai'an, Xuzhou and other places.

At this time, Geng Jimao had not yet fled to Bozhou, and Nikan, who was stationed in Wuhe County, had no idea that such a fierce battle had taken place on the plain less than a hundred miles away from him.

After Zhu Cilang made sure that the surroundings were safe, he calmly led his troops and marched south in triumph!
On the morning of the third day, at 2:15 pm, after a day and a night of preparation, Minister of Rites Shi Kefa, Minister of Revenue Gao Hongtu, and Grand Secretary of the Dongke Ma Shiying and others finally arranged all matters, big and small, inside and outside the city.

Not only that, the local gentry who had originally moved into the city with the people were also organized by them. Thousands of people in Fengyang City came to both sides of the main road into the city. After hearing the news of the Ming army's victory, they were all ecstatic.

You know, they had heard about the looting and killing by the Qing army in Huaibei. People in the city were also in a panic before. They were worried that if the city could not be defended, the Qing army would carry out large-scale massacres and looting after breaking into the city.
It's no exaggeration to say that the people of Fengyang City have been living in fear during this period. Although the Emperor is in the city and there are tens of thousands of troops in the city, no one knows whether they can stop the Tartars!
At this time, with the news of the great victory, the people in the city finally felt at ease. Under the organization of Shi Kefa and Gao Hongtu, they all ran to the city gate happily to watch the excitement.

Shi Kefa and Gao Hongtu might not be able to do other things, but they had served as officials for many years and naturally knew how to organize a grand ceremony. Not to mention, they now had the help of Zhu Cilang, with sufficient food and grass and the support of the people, which naturally made it easier for them to do such things.

At this time, thousands of excited people gathered on the main roads of the city, and on the city walls stood local gentry organized by Ma Shiying and others. Everyone had a smile on their faces, as if they were full of hope for the future of the Ming Dynasty.

"Everyone, please look over here!"

Ma Shiying was specifically responsible for receiving these gentry, and took the opportunity to build relationships and accept bribes. Shi Kefa and Gao Hongtu were both noble and valued their reputation, so they did not want to get involved in these things, which allowed Ma Shiying to take advantage.

"Your Majesty, in one battle, you took the heads of thirty thousand Tartars. Today, you have built a Jingguan (a memorial) for the people of the world to admire. It is also to intimidate the barbarians and show your determination to restore the country!"

Ma Shiying took them to visit the "Jingguan" built overnight between the inner city and the earth wall, which frightened many of the old gentry and elders so much that they turned pale.

Of course, when he was introducing it, he accidentally exaggerated a little bit and said that the more than 1,000 heads that were first transported back to the city were 30,000, which caused the gentry to exclaim in surprise.

"That head atop the Jingguan is the head of Geng Zhongming, the traitorous general of our dynasty and the false king of the Eastern Tartars. This thief aided and abetted the tyrant, committing countless evil deeds and slaughtering countless civilians. Now that he has been defeated by Your Majesty, he deserves his punishment!"

Geng Zhongming's body was hanging on the city gate next to the "Jingguan". More than ten years ago, he participated in the Dengzhou Rebellion, causing countless people to die and become displaced, and eventually surrender to the Jiannu. He finally paid the price.

"This time, the Eastern Tartars have mobilized tens of thousands of troops, full of schemes and intrigues. But before Your Majesty, they are nothing but clowns. Our army's thundering offensive will overthrow them in a single battle."

Ma Shiying was well prepared, and at this moment he spoke incessantly and eloquently, drawing cheers and praises from the gentry in front of him.

"Your Majesty is valiant and wise, truly worthy of being a great leader!"

"One hundred thousand enemies were annihilated in one battle, shocking the entire world. This has never happened since the time of Emperor Shenzong. We are truly fortunate to witness such a grand spectacle!"

"Your Majesty, leading the army in person this time, can be said to be planning and winning battles thousands of miles away, worthy of the legacy of Emperor Chengzu!"

"That's right, Your Majesty's trip south is a blessing to the people of Jiangnan. With the assistance of renowned ministers of both civil and military caliber, you will surely be a sage ruler through the ages!"

"Old Sun is right. No matter what, the credit for this great victory must go to Elder Ma, who is coordinating the rear in Zhongdu!"

"Indeed, without the assistance of Lord Ma, this great victory would not have been so easy. Your Majesty is a sage king, and your ability to identify and employ people is truly astonishing!"

These gentry rarely had the chance to speak to Ma Shiying, and at this moment they were all extremely fawning. Without exception, they all wanted to take the opportunity to establish a relationship with Ma Shiying and prepare for the imperial examination that would probably be held next year.

After all, these people recognized the Ming Dynasty in their hearts. As long as Zhu Cilang showed the ability to hold on to half of the country, they would be loyal to him until their death.

In fact, many of them had already started planning their retreat. If the Jianghuai guards were defeated, they would not mind leading the way for the Qing army.

So, when the good news came back from the north last night, these people were shocked but also relieved, and then quickly made a decision.

This is why Zhu Cilang must win on the battlefield. After winning a battle, not only will the civil servants who used to argue in the court over trivial matters stop arguing, but even the gentry will become more loyal.

After all, in history, all the officials of the Southern Ming Dynasty, whether they were capable or not, were like shrews and children, quarreling and fighting with each other in the court, fighting for dominance, and many times it was because they could not break the situation on the battlefield.

Sometimes, all it takes is one victory to change things dramatically!
Now, whenever Ma Shiying spoke, these gentry would rack their brains to join in the conversation, and Ma Shiying would always respond with a smile and nod in agreement from time to time.

The two sides sang in unison and cooperated very well!

Of course, these people were not only eloquent, but also had good eyesight. Almost every one of them saw the silver and jewelry that Ma Shiying accidentally left in the corner, and fully demonstrated the fine quality of honesty and returned them all to Ma Shiying.

At the end of the Si hour, Zhu Cilang led the northern expedition army to assemble outside the city, and then the entire army began to enter the city.

Amid the sound of drums and trumpets that resounded throughout the heavens and earth, the Ming army formations, with neat ranks, heavy armor and fluttering flags, entered the city from the Hongwu Gate in the south of Fengyang City, looking mighty and domineering.

Hu Maozhen led 500 cavalrymen from the Beijing Camp to clear the way, followed by the Tianwei Central Camp and Tianwu Left Camp of the Palace Army, as well as the imperial guards guarding Zhu Cilang. Then, the cavalrymen from the Tianqi Camp led by Chang Denggui were the finale. The dozens of captured cannons were transported by mules and horses driven by civilians and followed at the end of the team.

After the Ming army entered the Hongwu Gate city wall in the south of Fengyang City, they soon appeared on the main road leading to the Chengtian Gate of the Forbidden City. The 500 cavalrymen in the vanguard slowly passed by, holding the flags of their respective camps.

Following behind them were the Palace Army, which were marching in formation. They stepped to the beat of drums, their steps in unison, their armor majestic, the jingling armor plates and the densely packed, high-raised weapons flashing with dazzling spots of light. Thousands of Geng soldiers' heads were impaled on those raised spears.

These are the gains of Zhu Cilang’s personal expedition this time, and they are also the basis for the Palace Army to march into the city with their heads held high and with great fanfare!
Zhao Zhengdong was still holding the big flag representing the Tianwu Left Camp of the Palace Army. He walked at the front of the team, listening to the cheers on both sides, his face full of excitement and pride. The fatigue of rushing back to Fengyang for two days suddenly dissipated, and everything was worth it!
He made considerable contributions in this battle. On such a glorious occasion as the army entering the city, it was natural for him, the advanced representative of the army, to raise the flag.

Under the bright sunshine, the sounds of war drums, bugles, horse hooves, and footsteps mixed together. The majestic military formations, the dazzling armor, the flags fluttering in the wind like butterflies, and the terrifying and eye-catching heads stuck on the spears all made the people on both sides of the street fascinated.

"Hero! Hero! Hero!!!"

"Kill the Tartars and recover our country!"

"Kill the Tartars and recover our country!"

The people on both sides of the street looked at this mighty army with excitement and excitement on their faces. Cheers gradually rose up at the scene, and the excited crowd even squeezed each other. Fortunately, Shi Kefa and Gao Hongtu sent a large number of officers and soldiers in advance to maintain order.

For such a long time, we have been living in fear, fearing that one day the Tartars would break through the city gates and come in to burn, kill and loot the people. How can we not be angry when seeing such a scene?
Many of the officials and local gentry on the city walls were stunned. Although it wasn't their first time seeing the Palace Guards, it was their first time seeing such a grand ceremony and a majestic military formation.

Now, under the influence of the joyful atmosphere conveyed by the good news, and amidst the surging waves of cheers from the people below, their hearts seemed to be surging as well - this is the army of the Ming Dynasty, a truly powerful army!
As Zhu Cilang rode into the city, the dragon flag fluttered high above the army formation. The cheers on both sides of the street gradually reached a climax, one wave higher than the other. The people were outraged, and countless hands waved towards their emperor at the same time.

Suddenly, led by someone, a thunderous roar erupted on both sides of the street, and then thousands of people knelt down and saluted Zhu Cilang who entered the city.

"Your Majesty is mighty, Your Majesty is mighty!"

"Long live my emperor, long live, long live!"

"."

Zhu Cilang was riding on his horse, looking at the people on both sides. The scene before him was the same as when he first entered Nanjing City, and even worse.

This is what the people want!

　Thanks to book friends "Yueken Road Dazhuang" and "An Ordinary Handsome Guy" for their rewards.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)