Wind Rises in North America 1625

Chapter 344 "Pull out this nail!"

March 4 (April 16, 1637), Gwasan Fortress (present-day Gwasan County, North Korea)
In late spring, the chill of winter lingers on the Korean Peninsula.

Outside Guoshan City, the Qing army camp was filled with tents and fluttering flags.

However, the soldiers gathered in twos and threes around the fire in the camp looked dejected, completely unlike their triumphant return after the campaign.

Since the attack on Tieshan City, the Qing army has lost nearly a thousand elite troops, yet it has not been able to shake the city in the slightest. It can be said that it has been battered and bruised, and is in a very sorry state.

Prince Wuying, Ajige, rode a magnificent white horse and led a troop of Bayara soldiers into the camp, covered in dust from their journey.

He was a burly man with a fierce look between his brows. A gold-inlaid saber hung at his waist, and the scabbard still bore traces of blood, left from when he killed Korean fugitives on the road.

Shuo Tuo (son of Daishan) and a group of military generals were already waiting outside the tent. When they saw Ajige dismount, they quickly stepped forward and bowed, saying, "Your Highness!"

Ajige gave him a cold glance and snorted, "Shuotuo, with the war going on like this, you still have the nerve to stand here?"

Shuo Tuo's face stiffened. He was clearly embarrassed by being reprimanded to his face by his twelfth uncle, who was five years younger than him. But seeing the other party's aggressive manner, he lowered his head and said, "This humble general is incompetent, but the Ming army's firearms in Tieshan City are sharp, truly..."

"Useless!" Ajige cracked his whip and strode into the central command tent. "Summon all the generals. I want to see just how tough this Iron Mountain City really is!"
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Afternoon, around 1-3 PM.

Inside the main tent, the generals stood on both sides, the atmosphere heavy.

Ajige sat high in the main seat, his gaze sharp as a knife, sweeping over the crowd.

Inside the main tent, the generals stood on both sides, the atmosphere heavy.

Ma Guangyuan, the commander of the Plain Yellow Banner of the Han Army, spoke first: "Your Highness, the Ming army in Tieshan has fierce firearms. Our army has launched several strong attacks, but all have been blocked by guns and cannons. I suggest that we cut off their supply lines first and wait for them to fall into disarray."

Samushka, the Manchu Eight Banners Gushan Ejen, shook his head and said, "Tieshan is backed by the sea, and the Ming army can transport grain from Pi Island. Cutting off their food supply is useless."

"..." Ma Guangyuan was speechless.

Indeed, if the sea were frozen in winter, making it difficult for Ming ships to sail, they could besiege the city and wait for it to fall into disarray.

But now it is late spring in April, and the sea has long since thawed. The Ming army can not only transport grain back and forth, but also use the cannons on the ships to help the Ming army defend Tieshan.

"If a siege doesn't work, then we'll have to launch a direct assault," Mafuta said impatiently. "I refuse to believe that Iron Mountain City can be as fortified as Namhansan City."

Upon hearing this, the many Korean generals in the tent immediately showed expressions of embarrassment and indignation.

In order to besiege Tieshan City, the Qing army not only mobilized a large number of Han and Manchu Eight Banner troops, but also ordered Korea to send troops to assist in the battle.

Joseon, which had just surrendered, dared not refuse the Qing army's conscription request. So it sent Liu Lin, the military commissioner of Ping'an, and Lin Qingye, the prefect of Uiju, with 5,000 troops to Tieshan to assist the Qing army in the attack.

The Korean side originally planned to secretly inform the Ming army at Tieshan to avoid damaging relations between the two sides, but fearing that the matter would be exposed and bring trouble upon themselves, the king and his ministers discussed it several times in secret and abandoned this risky behavior.

In the end, he could only secretly advise Liu and Lin, who were leading the troops, not to exert too much effort when attacking Tieshan, and hoped that this attack on the Ming army would be fruitless, so that "the two countries could each return to their respective territories".

"Tetsun is your territory in Korea, so you should be very familiar with its geography and customs. Tell me, how should our army attack it?"

He intended to play ostrich and not participate in the military discussion about how to attack Tieshan, but Ma Futa's unintentional words successfully attracted Ajige's attention, and his gaze shifted to Liu Lin and Lin Qingye.

“Your Highness…” Liu Lin stood up helplessly, first bowing respectfully to Ajige, then carefully choosing her words: “As a vassal state, our actions are all decided by the order of the Celestial Dynasty, and we dare not shirk or evade it in the slightest.”

"..." Ajige gave him a deep look, a barely perceptible sneer appearing at the corner of his mouth, "You Koreans, are you perhaps too intimidated by the Ming army's reputation to dare to use your weapons against them?"

You just betrayed your former master, and now you're turning around and trying to stab them with a knife? Can you even get over that mental hurdle?
"Everything is in accordance with... the Heavenly Army's will." Liu Lin said with her head down, her voice filled with difficulty.

Upon hearing this, Ajige smiled wryly.

The people of the court are all weak and incompetent!
"Gentlemen, I have just arrived today and have heard that Tieshan has been attacked for a long time without success and has suffered heavy losses." Ajige tapped his fingers lightly on the armrest of his chair, his gloomy gaze sweeping over the generals in the tent: "Our Great Qing cavalry is invincible in Liaodong, and the Guan Ning garrisons, which pride themselves on being the strong army of the Great Ming, cannot even scratch the edge of our Eight Banners."

"Then why has the Ming army of Dongjiang Town, which has always been as weak as mud, suddenly become strong and able to stop the Qing army from breaching the city gates? Can you explain this to me?"

The words had barely left his mouth when the tent fell into a deathly silence. Ah, this was quite embarrassing!

Several months ago, 100,000 iron cavalry of the Great Qing crossed the Yalu River and swept across the entire Korean peninsula with overwhelming force. In less than a month, they captured Seoul, the capital of Korea, besieged Namhansanseong Fortress, and finally forced the Korean king and his ministers to kneel down and surrender, becoming a vassal state of the Great Qing.

But this small Iron Mountain City has been under continuous siege by our Great Qing since the beginning of the Qing Dynasty. It has lasted for four months, and we still cannot break through it. Instead, we have suffered heavy losses at the city walls, which is very frustrating.

Ajige was absolutely right. On the Liaodong battlefield, the only force that could rival my Eight Banners cavalry was the Guan Ning Army, which was supported by the entire Ming Dynasty. However, they could only rely on their strong fortifications to contend with my elite Eight Banners troops.

As for Dongjiang Town, even during Mao Wenlong's rule, its threat to our Great Qing Dynasty was extremely limited.

At best, they took advantage of the lapses in the defense of our border villages and towns to sneak in and gain some insignificant spoils.

Once a direct confrontation takes place, with both sides engaging in a fair battle, Dongjiang Town will be no match for them.

Even if they were to defend a city, under the fierce attack of my Eight Banners soldiers, they would quickly be routed, abandoning the city and ultimately forced to flee to the sea.

For example, Tieshan City, which caused our Qing soldiers to suffer heavy losses, had been captured by our Qing Dynasty several times before, and each time it was taken in one fell swoop with almost no effort.

But why, after so many years, has Dongjiang Town become so powerful, and Tieshan City become so impregnable?

Ujenhachao's Left Wing Gushan Ezhen Shitingzhu coughed lightly and said slowly, "Your Highness, according to reports from our spies, in recent years, a force calling itself 'Xinzhou Huaxia' has been secretly supporting Dongjiang Town, not only providing them with many new firearms, but also transporting large quantities of grain from the south to supply them with enough food."

"There are even rumors that this new continental force may have sent troops to help defend the Dongjiang Town stronghold. They are well-equipped with firearms, use unpredictable tactics, and their strength should not be underestimated."

"Xinzhou?" Ajige raised an eyebrow. "Who are they? Ming Dynasty bandits, or sea pirates?"

Shi Tingzhu shook his head: "It is said that they come from a continent east of the sea, but they are by no means bandits or pirates. They have powerful firearms and huge ships. After they help Dongjiang Town, they may become a formidable enemy of our Great Qing."

"The Ming army in the Guan Ning garrisons also has cannons and muskets. I didn't find it difficult to fight them," Ajige said dismissively. "Could it be that the Xinzhou people, after joining forces with the Dongjiang garrison, are stronger than the Guan Ning army?"

"Your Highness..." Shi Tingzhu wanted to advise Ajige not to underestimate the enemy, but seeing the other party's arrogant appearance, he swallowed his words.

"No matter how powerful the Ming army's firearms are, they are nothing more than ceremonial guards and fortified city walls," Ajige said loudly. "If our army launches a frontal assault, we will naturally suffer losses."

He turned his gaze to several Korean generals: "Liu Lin, is your Korean navy confident that it can blockade the sea and cut off the communication between the Ming army's land and sea?"

Liu Lin's forehead was covered in sweat: "Your Highness, the Heavenly Army... oh, the Ming army's warships are sharp, their cannons are fierce, our navy is really..."

"Useless!" Azig roared. "Then let's change tactics!"

He abruptly stood up, his gaze fixed intently on the generals in the tent: "Night raid!"

The generals were taken aback.

We've already used night raids!

"No matter how powerful the Ming army's firearms are, they will have difficulty loading and firing them at night. Our army will take advantage of the night to scale the city walls, break through one corner first, and then attack from both inside and outside!" Ajige grinned maliciously. "Ma Guangyuan and Shi Tingzhu, you two will lead your troops in a feigned attack from the front to draw the Ming army's firepower. Shuo Tuo and Samushka, you two will lead the elite Eight Banners troops to choose a secluded corner to scale the city walls and make sure to defeat the enemy in one fell swoop!"

Shuo Tuo hesitated: "Your Highness, the Ming army has been on guard against our night attacks, and has even..."

"Then we'll overwhelm them!" Ajige shouted. "The Ming army is weak and its fighting strength is low. As long as our elite Eight Banners troops climb the city walls, the defenders will surely be terrified and collapse."

"No need for further words. We will take action at midnight tomorrow. Anyone who dares to back down will be executed!"

"We are determined to remove this thorn in our side, Tieshan!"

The generals stood solemnly and responded in unison.

After the military meeting ended, Ajige stood alone outside the tent, gazing in the direction of Tieshan, his eyes flashing with cold light.

A Bayara soldier asked in a low voice, "Master, are we confident of victory in this battle?"

Ajige sneered: "Does the Ming army think they can stop the iron cavalry of our Great Qing with firearms? How laughable! Pass down the order: if we win this battle, slaughter all the defenders of Tieshan City!"
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(End of this chapter)