Wind Rises in North America 1625

Chapter 563 Fear (Part 3)

November 12th, the fifteenth year of Chongzhen (December 16, 1642).

Winter has arrived, and the north wind, whipping up heavy snowflakes, howls mournfully, turning the world into a hazy, pale white.

The temperature was so low that your breath would freeze instantly, and exposed skin would feel as if it would freeze and lose all feeling in the cold wind.

In this desolate wilderness ruled by harsh cold, Gaizhou City lies silently on the Liaodong land like a giant beast covered in snow. Its dark city walls are faintly visible in the wind and snow, exuding a chilling and sinister aura.

About two miles from the city wall, at the gate of the Qing army camp, several brocade dragon banners representing the status of princes were violently billowing in the gale, making a crackling sound.

Prince Yu, Dorgon, and Prince Raoyu, Abatai, stood side by side, both wearing heavy sable fur coats, their iron helmets covered with a layer of snow, and even their eyebrows and beards were covered with icicles.

Their gazes, like those of frozen eagles, were fixed on the immovable city of Gaizhou in the distance, their faces so somber they seemed to blend into the leaden sky.

Behind them stretched endless camps and countless bannermen and bondservants huddled in the wind and snow, shivering, along with many more Han slaves driven there to serve as forced laborers.

The entire camp was filled with an oppressive and dejected atmosphere that was hard to dispel, as chilling to the bone as the bitterly cold weather.

"Clang... Clang... Clang..."

The dull sound of gongs faintly came from the city wall, the signal for the changing of the guards, clearly audible, carrying an almost defiant composure.

Just an hour earlier, the Qing army's futile offensive was easily repelled, leaving behind dozens of corpses and even more wailing wounded soldiers, before retreating in disarray.

The Xinhua and Ming soldiers on the city wall, clad in dark military overcoats, didn't even cheer. They simply and efficiently readjusted their cannon positions, checked their muskets, and cleared the snow from the firing ports, as if they had just driven away a swarm of annoying flies.

Abatai spat out a mouthful of saliva, which froze into ice shards before it even hit the ground: "Damn it! This damned weather, this damned city... more than twenty days have passed, and we haven't even managed to gnaw a single piece of plaster off the wall. When have the warriors of my Eight Banners ever fought such a humiliating battle!"

Dodo's young face was now filled with a sinister look. He tightened the reins, and his warhorse trotted uneasily. "Abatai," he said, "I didn't entirely believe your report that the city's defenses were strong and the firearms were sharp. But what I've seen with my own eyes these past few days... the methods of these new Chinese are indeed formidable! And let me tell you, it seems our Great Qing has been having some bad luck lately!"

Upon hearing this, Abate paused, his expression faltering as he recalled the difficult year ahead.

Since the massive Battle of Songjin last year, the Qing Dynasty seems to have been cursed, encountering one misfortune after another.

The battle, which was originally a sure thing, was disrupted by the damned Ming army in Liaonan—which, in retrospect, was mainly composed of Xinhua people—who took advantage of the situation and captured Haizhou and Liaoyang in succession, with their forces pointing directly at Shengjing, forcing the front-line army to return to reinforce.

Although the army launched a surprise attack on its return journey, inflicting heavy losses on the pursuing Ming army at Dalinghe and beheading thousands, the planned strategic objectives were completely thwarted.

Not only did they fail to annihilate a large number of the Ming army's main force, but they also depleted the country's already insufficient food and supplies. Even Khan Huang Taiji died suddenly on his way back.

What's infuriating is that the Ming army is even boasting that they shot the enemy on the battlefield, which is utterly humiliating to the Qing Dynasty!

After the Khan's death, the country was in turmoil. It was only with great difficulty that Prince Rui Dorgon, Prince Li Daishan, and Prince Zheng Jirgalang became regents and helped to establish the young Emperor Fulin, thus stabilizing the situation.

After the spring, in order to alleviate the food shortage in the country, which was so severe that people were almost resorting to cannibalism, they had no choice but to send Abatai and Dudu with 50,000 troops to bypass Shanhaiguan and enter the pass to plunder.

However, the capital region and Hebei had already been repeatedly plundered and devastated, and the grain they had seized was far from enough.

They dared not venture further into Shandong, fearing that the battle lines would be too long, leading to interception by the Ming army and the loss of too many soldiers.

Moreover, as soon as they entered the pass, chaos broke out in the rear: Shen Shikui of Dongjiang Town attacked and captured Fenghuang City, harassing Hetu Ala; the fickle Kong Youde invaded from Hamgyong Province in Korea, raiding border villages and plundering people and supplies; the Ming army in Lushun marched north and occupied Xiong Yue Fort; and the new Chinese in Gaizhou were even more ostentatiously rebuilding the city's defenses and establishing beacon towers...

Abatai still feels lingering fear when he thinks of the tragic scenes of people freezing and starving to death on the streets of Shengjing last autumn and winter and this spring and summer, with no one to collect their bodies.

According to rough estimates from various banners, the number of bondservants and Han slaves who died of cold and starvation last winter and this spring is estimated to be as high as 70,000 to 80,000!

When spring plowing season arrived, even the banner soldiers had to take off their armor, roll up their sleeves, and work in the fields themselves, causing widespread resentment among the Eight Banners troops.

When asked to supply grain to North Korea, the Koreans made excuses, claiming that their country was suffering from severe disasters, had been repeatedly plundered by Donggang Town and Xinhua, that Kong Youde was causing trouble in Hamgyong Province, and that Prince Gwanghae (who lived longer than in the original history) was rebelling and vying for the throne. They said that they were beset by internal and external troubles and had no surplus grain supply.

Just when they had finally made it to the autumn harvest and were hoping to catch their breath, in September, the Ming army and the Xinhua people in Liaonan pounced out like wolves, once again breaking through Haizhou and burning down tens of thousands of acres of soybeans and wheat in the surrounding area that were about to be harvested.

When Hauge, who was stationed in Liaoyang, led his troops to the rescue, he found only scorched earth. For this, Dorgon stripped him of his title of Prince and punished him by demoting him to a military unit...

“Prince Yu…” Abatai sighed, using a respectful title for Dodo, “You saw it yourself, it’s not that I didn’t try my best. This Gaizhou city is even harder to take than Jinzhou city. The cannons on the city walls are firing from afar and with great accuracy, and the muskets are raining down like rain. Our arrows can’t reach them at all, and the siege ladders were blown up before they could even get close. The Eight Banners soldiers… have suffered heavy casualties!”

Dodo's face was grim, and he did not respond.

He recalled the siege scenes of yesterday and today: the Eight Banners warriors charged forward, roaring as they braved the wind and snow, but after entering within three hundred paces, plumes of white smoke rose from the city walls, and cannonballs whistled as they crashed into the crowd, leaving behind severed limbs and a scene of utter despair.

After finally breaking through to within a hundred paces, the barrage of musket fire from behind the battlements began incessantly, bullets piercing through the cotton armor and easily felling even the bravest Bayara soldiers in droves. He had never seen such firepower and accuracy from the Ming army before.

"Is it really impossible to take it down?" Dodo asked in a muffled voice.

“Really… there’s no way.” Abatai gave a bitter smile. “Even if we put all 10,000 of our men into the mix, we probably still wouldn’t be able to budge them an inch.”

Upon hearing this, Dodo fell silent once again.

In fact, throughout the decades since the Qing army (later Jin army) rose to power in Liaodong, there have been very few examples of them capturing fortified cities through frontal assaults.

Among the many fortified cities in Liaodong, such as Fushun, Qinghe, Tieling, Shenyang, Liaoyang, Guangning, and Kaiyuan, Fushun, Liaoyang, Tieling, and Guangning were all captured because of traitors who opened the city gates. Guangning, in particular, surrendered without a fight.

In both Shenyang and Kaiyuan, the main generals led the charge into battle first, followed by internal spies causing chaos. In both cases, the Qing army captured the cities without incurring much cost.

Strictly speaking, only Qinghe was captured by the Qing army through a strong attack, but it cost Nurhaci 1,500 lives.

Qinghe was not a city where the Ming army had heavily amassed troops; it only had a little over a thousand garrison soldiers.

In other words, the Qing army, despite its seemingly numerous sieges, actually had quite limited experience in attacking fortified cities.

Several years ago, after Huang Taiji conquered Korea for the second time and completely subdued this small country in the east of the sea, he gathered tens of thousands of troops to besiege Tieshan City built by Dongjiang Town, but still suffered heavy losses.

Aside from the deaths and injuries of several thousand soldiers, they made no progress whatsoever in breaching this fortified city of the Ming army, which was heavily fortified with cannons and muskets.

"These new Chinese are a formidable enemy of our Great Qing Dynasty..."

Amid the howling wind and snow, Dodo murmured to himself.

Upon hearing this, Abatai was also alarmed and realized an even more terrifying problem: in any war in which the new Chinese were deeply involved, the Qing Dynasty seemed to be at a disadvantage!
From the Battle of Tieshan to the raids in southern Liaoning, from the chaos in Korea to the fortified city of Gaizhou before us, and even the rumors that they had established many fortified strongholds in places like the Heilongjiang River, the Ussuri River, and the North Qinhai Lake (Lake Xingkai), they have been constantly squeezing the Qing Dynasty's sphere of influence in the former territory of the Jurchen people...

This force from overseas, like a tough tendon, tightly bound the Qing Dynasty's ankles, making it feel constrained and in pain every time it exerted its strength.

"The Regent's idea is that we must take Gaizhou and open up the road to Lushun in the south, at least to drive these new Chinese into the sea and ensure that Liaonan is safe." Dodo seemed to be saying this to Abatai, or perhaps he was trying to convince himself. "But... if we continue fighting like this, even if we throw all 10,000 Eight Banner soldiers into the fray, we probably still won't be able to touch the city walls of Gaizhou."

Abatai lowered his voice: "Prince Yu, forgive my bluntness. It's freezing cold, and the Eight Banners soldiers are sleeping outdoors, with more and more suffering from frostbite. Transporting supplies is also extremely difficult, and the army's food reserves are running low. If this stalemate continues, we'll collapse on our own without even the garrison of Gaizhou coming out to fight. The memorial I submitted a few days ago..."

Dodo waved his hand, interrupting him: "The Regent sent me after reading your memorial. How could he not know the difficulties? But the situation at home... alas!"

He sighed. "Korea is unreliable, and the Mongol tribes are also watching. If we can't even solve this minor problem in Liaonan, what will those opportunists think? Where is the dignity of our Great Qing?"

Just then, a fast horse galloped from the south through the wind and snow. The scout on horseback fell off the saddle and reported breathlessly: "Your Highness, Your Highness! In the south... the Ming army in Lushun has made some movements again. About two thousand men have left the city and are moving north. Judging from the direction, they seem to be heading to Xiong Yue Fort to reinforce the troops and transport grain, as a backup for Gaizhou."

He took a breath and continued his urgent report: "Also... on the sea, although most of it is frozen, our scouts have spotted small groups of sled teams from Xinhua moving on the ice at great speed and with elusive movements. It seems... it seems they are frequently scouting the flanks of our camp and supply lines!"

Abatai and Dodo exchanged a glance, both seeing the seriousness in each other's eyes.

The enemy not only defended their position impregnably, but also had reinforcements, and even dared to launch proactive attacks, intending to contain their flanks.

“It seems that the commander guarding Gaizhou City is not a mediocre talent who only knows how to defend to the death.” Dodo narrowed his eyes, a cold glint flashing in them. “Abatai, stop the siege. Continuing to fight will only increase casualties.”

"Then... how will we explain this to the Regent?" Abatai asked worriedly.

If they retreat now, suffering heavy losses and returning empty-handed, the Regent's punishment will likely be severe.

Dodo gazed at the silent yet fortified city in the wind and snow, gritted his teeth, and said, "I will report the situation here to the Regent. Gaizhou is not something that can be taken without a strong attack. Rather than exhausting our forces here, we should retreat for the time being, strengthen the defenses of Haizhou and Liaoyang, and seek a better strategy next year."

"These new Chinese... have become a major threat to our Great Qing Dynasty. We need to plan for the long term; they cannot be eliminated overnight."

He turned his horse around, facing south towards Lushun, and said bitterly, "Let them be arrogant for a few more days. Once our Great Qing has recovered and our supplies are plentiful, we will mobilize the entire nation's army to crush this Liaonan region, along with that damned 'Xinhua,' into dust!"

He made some strong statements, but amidst the swirling snow, they seemed somewhat blustering but actually weak.

Abatai nodded silently, ordered the retreat, and prepared for the withdrawal.

In the Qing army camp, the exhausted soldiers breathed a sigh of relief upon learning that the attack on the city would cease. However, an invisible sense of defeat and fear of the dense barrage of firearms, like the frigid weather, seeped deeply into the hearts of every Manchu officer and soldier.

On the city wall of Gaizhou, a scarlet battle flag fluttered stubbornly in the wind and snow. The dazzling five-pointed star on the flag appeared and disappeared, like a morning star piercing through the dim world, stubbornly shining a light of hope amidst the leaden clouds and swirling snow.
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(End of this chapter)