Ming Dynasty entry: I am Chongzhen, the greatest emperor of all time!

Chapter 108 Shengjing Has Fallen!?
As the iron hooves of six hundred Xuanjia cavalrymen rolled over the cannon crater, Dorgon's sword had just cut down the third Ming soldier's shield bearer.

These heavily armored cavalrymen, clad in scales, drove into Gabushixian's ranks like wedges, their eighteen-foot-long lances piercing through three layers of heavy armor as easily as tearing leather.

Dorgon's offensive momentum stalled.

Zhu Youjian initially intended to kill the enemy by beheading them first, but although he had many cavalrymen, they were not very useful, and he only had six hundred Xuanjia cavalrymen who were truly capable of entering the battle.

Breaking into the enemy lines is extremely difficult.

That's why he can only continue doing what he's best at.

Be a fish!

He knew that 20,000 of the rebel army's infantry suffered from night blindness, and only in this way could the rout be staged to be completely convincing.

His original intention was to free up more Qing troops so that Dorgon would have some empty space around him.

But Dorgon was surprisingly helpful.

They dared to come and take his head with only two thousand men.

This is a golden opportunity.

Just as Dorgon's personal guard commander parried two long swords, the tip of a third spear pierced through the breastplate under his arm.

"Master, let's go!" The bondservant used his shoulder to brace against Dorgon's mount. "The southern dogs came prepared!"

Dorgon's neck guard sparked as an arrow grazed his neck, his eyes fixed on the swaying dragon flag twenty paces away.

Zhu Youjian's chainmail was stained dark red with blood, his left arm was draped in a cloth strip across his chest, but his right hand was still tightly gripping the Emperor's Sword, pointing it in this direction.

Dorgon knew that he could not afford to collapse at this moment, because even if he were to be defeated or trapped, it would deal an irreparable blow to the Eight Banners defense line.

Before he could finish speaking, "Let Ujenchaoha Camp's Franco machine guns," another four horses charged forward.

It took two lives to stop the attack.

The personal guard, Jiala Zhangjing, was almost in tears, and he grabbed Dorgon, trying to pull him back.

Now it's not a question of whether to retreat or not. Even if we are trapped or defeated, and the blow is significant, there is still a glimmer of hope. But what if Dorgon dies here?

That was a heavy blow to the Qing Dynasty.

Dorgon shouted things like, "Release me..." "I will not retreat!" "I'll cut you down, you dog slave..."

But his body was unusually sincere, and he would occasionally urge his warhorse to go even faster.

Heavy cavalry provided cover on both sides.

They came quickly and went quickly.

But this action seemed to drain the energy of the western wing defenders.

The Jiala, who had been advancing with unstoppable momentum and chasing after 20,000 rebel soldiers, found themselves involuntarily retreating with Dorgon in the terror of the night.

Seeing this, Zhu Youjian no longer cared about pursuing or not pursuing.

He hurriedly found Li Guo and said, "Stop organizing the defeated soldiers! Get your men to shout!"

"Then Dorgon collapsed."

"Abunai, you too, shout it out loud!"

Not long after.

"My lord!" the Bannerman of the Bordered Yellow Banner roared at Dorgon, dragging his severed arm, "The rebels in the west are shouting that you have been defeated!"

As if to confirm his words, a chorus of howls suddenly echoed across the battlefield: "Dorgon has been defeated! Dorgon has been defeated!"

The Mongolian cavalry shouted in both Chinese and Mongolian, their voices echoing through the hills.

The momentum was deafening.

Although the Jurchens were Manchus and spoke Manchu, they were controlled by the Ming Dynasty for a long time. In addition, many Han Chinese were captured from the north in the last ten years or so, so there were quite a few people in the Eight Banners who could understand Chinese.

Not to mention the fluency in Mongolian that came from living among the Manchus and Mongols.

Those who understood naturally looked terrified, while those who didn't understand would definitely ask questions.

As Dorgon had predicted, after Zhu Youjian's nearly 70,000 men roared, the previously unbreakable Eight Banners front, which even showed signs of a counterattack, suddenly began to tremble.

Uncontrollably, they retreated backward.

One of the Gushan soldiers, who was engaged in a fierce battle with Huang Degong's troops, suddenly began to retreat. Even after the Gushan commander, who was supervising the battle, killed three people, he could not stop the decline.

Zhu Youjian leaped onto the spare warhorse brought by his personal guards. "Order Qi Jiguang's army to infiltrate the Jurchen camp. Under no circumstances should they be allowed to defend it! Li Guo, lead your cavalry to break through! Mongol cavalry, prepare to charge with me!"

Twelve cowhide drums sounded simultaneously, changing the tune, and the previously scattered Ming infantrymen suddenly formed small formations of five men each.

Wolf-tooth spearmen swept aside the Qing army's archers and cavalry, while spearmen thrust at the horses' bellies. Behind them, rattan shield bearers pulled out palm grenades and threw them into the gaps in the heavy armor.

Dorgon's binoculars were covered in blood. As he tore off his wrist guard to wipe the lenses, a shrill scream came from the northeast.

Li Guo's old camp of rebels had somehow circled around to the side and rear. These cavalrymen, who were originally bandits, did not use sabers, but instead used maces with iron chains to smash people's skulls.

"Master!" Goshha grabbed Dorgon's reins. "If you don't leave now..."

The iron-inlaid horsewhip lashed the guard's face, leaving it covered in blood. "Have Bai Ya La escort the Red-Clad Cannons back into the main camp. Hold the camp first, then let..."

The explosion drowned out any further commands; three high-explosive shells detonated thirty paces away.

Zhu Youjian's dragon flag suddenly moved forward a hundred paces, tearing a gap in the formation of the yellow-bordered flag.

"His Majesty has decreed!" A messenger on horseback waved a command flag, "Whoever beheads Dorgon will be granted a marquisate!"

The Xuanjia cavalry suddenly abandoned their spears and switched to muskets. It has to be said that this kind of firearm, which fires three shots in quick succession, is simply born for cavalry close combat.

The three-barreled gun turned the last thirty paces into a death zone.

Dorgon's personal guard captain shielded him from five lead bullets with his body, tearing off his master's brocade cloak as he fell.

"Change horses!" Dorgon kicked aside his dying mount and leaped onto his personal guard's warhorse, while Zhu Youjian's imperial sword was already pointed at his back.

The remnants of the Jiala tribe finally set up their last two mother-and-child cannons, and the shrapnel turned the fifty Xuanjia cavalrymen who had caught up the closest into sieves.

Dorgon seized the opportunity to break out northward with three hundred personal guards, but the routed soldiers of the Bordered Yellow Banner blocked their retreat.

"Charge out!" Dorgon's sword slashed down the Niru Ejen blocking his path.
"Have Wuzhen Chaoha's battalion cover the rear! Order all units to return to the main camp!"

Twenty breech-loading cannons turned their muzzles, and solid shot ripped bloody trenches in the Ming army's pursuit route.

Zhu Youjian suddenly reined in his horse and turned southeast, "Let Huang Degong's troops seize the artillery positions! Li Guo, continue to hold off Dorgon!"

Just as the gunner ignited the sixth shell, Huang Degong's gun team rushed into the gun position.

These veterans of the Beijing Garrison specialized in tinderboxing, and the Han Chinese flags of the Wuzhen Chaoha Battalion lay fallen in droves beside the gunpowder boxes.

Dorgon's telescope finally caught a glimpse of life: two more Jiala were arrayed two miles away, and they were relatively well-organized and intact.

If he can hold off the cavalry behind him for three quarters of an hour, he can reorganize his army.

If they could lure the Ming army into a siege, they might still have a chance to turn the tide.

Thinking of this, he quickly tore off his jade thumb ring and threw it to the messenger, "Go to the capital immediately and have Sony steal from the Southerners' backs!!"

"Quickly bring over those two Jiala over there to hold off the pursuers. The rest of you, follow me into camp immediately!"

Just as the two Jiala began to draw their battalions, the drumbeats from the north began to change.

Upon hearing the commotion, the Ming army, which had originally been scattered in several groups, changed formation. Qi Jiguang's army advanced in the center, while the Mongol light cavalry flanked them from both sides, aiming to completely encircle the remnants of the Eight Banners.

"Your Highness! The Ming dogs are about to lock down the city!" Fan Wencheng's hand warmer was nowhere to be found, and his hands were blue with cold. "We have to retreat. Miyun should have already fallen. Let's retreat to Miyun first!"

"We cannot retreat. If we do, the 100,000 soldiers of the two Yellow Banners, two White Banners, and four Banners will be trapped and die in this northern land!"

Before he finished speaking, the head of the Banner Chief of the Plain Yellow Banner suddenly flew over everyone's heads, and Li Guo's saber gleamed coldly in the rain of blood.

Dorgon quickly turned his head to look and was shocked.

This general, who came from a bandit background, led three thousand personal cavalry and forcefully broke through the blockade of two Jiala.

Meanwhile, Qi Jiguang's army, with its formidable small formation and high level of organization, had successfully stormed into the Qing army's camp.

The troops were positioned one-third of the way through the main camp, effectively blocking the Qing army's movement routes from all directions.

Dorgon sighed, realizing that retreating now was the only option.

After a moment's hesitation, they pulled on the reins and ordered, "Retreat towards Zhangjiakou!" The conch shell that suddenly sounded in the Eight Banners army became the last straw that broke the camel's back.

Upon hearing the order to retreat, the Qing troops, who were engaged in a fierce battle, turned and ran.

The lassoes used by the Mongol cavalry were designed to trip the horses, causing the fleeing soldiers to tumble and fall to the ground like rolling gourds.

"Your Highness, given the current situation, retreating to Miyun is the best option!" Fan Wencheng hurriedly stepped forward to persuade him.

Dorgon nodded slightly. "That's right, retreating to Miyun is the best option now."

"Once we reach Miyun, I can calmly reorganize my army, join forces with Dodo's troops, and take the capital with an army of 100,000. There is no doubt that we can turn defeat into victory."

"Then why does Your Highness still retreat to Zhangjiakou?!" Fan Wencheng asked, puzzled. Since Dorgon knew the reasons, why did he insist on choosing the most dangerous route?

Dorgon explained, "Even if we capture the capital, what then? If we are trapped in one place, the emperor of the Southern Dynasty can freely send troops to besiege us. Furthermore, there is no food in the north, and even my Eight Banners soldiers cannot withstand three meals of hunger!"

"Given the current fighting strength of the Ming army and the damned courage of Zhu Youjian, they certainly won't confront us head-on."

"At that time, there will be no way to go to heaven or to hell, and he will only end up like Daishan!"

"There are Ming troops at Shanhaiguan Pass, and there are also 30,000 Ming cavalry outside Xifengkou Pass."

"Let's leave ourselves a way out before Zhangjiakou is controlled by the Ming army."

Although Fan Wencheng felt that the plan was full of flaws, he was recently frustrated and angry, perhaps because Dorgon had been beaten into a rage or because all his plans had failed.

Anyway, it's useless to try to persuade them now.

Fan Wencheng could only try his best to make up for the shortcomings.

Nearly 20,000 Qing troops rushed toward Zhangjiakou.

The Ming army pursued them relentlessly.

……

In the blink of an eye, the night had faded, and the rising sun cast its first rays.

The lead pellet grazed past Li Xiaoquan's helmet, leaving a fist-sized dent in his iron-studded headband.

The night was still filled with the bloody spittle of the night, and the three-barreled gun was still emitting blue smoke.

Thirty paces away, the man with the fangs had just raised his bow when he was thrown off his horse by the flash of the gun muzzle.

"Don't be greedy for heads!" The general swung his mace and smashed the shoulder armor of the fleeing soldier.

"Chase after the banner and beat it!"

Li Xiaoquan nodded, looked at the corpse on the ground, and swallowed hard.

These Jurchens are really tough. Even though they have already been defeated, their morale has not dropped too much, and they still have the strength to organize small-scale ambushes to stop their pursuit.

For the Ming army, it was something they wouldn't even dare to dream of.

Three hundred light cavalry surged northward with the tide of fleeing soldiers, but Li Xiaoquan suddenly pulled on the reins.

Years of experience on the frontier had honed his intuition, which sent chills down his spine. The birch forest ahead was eerily quiet; not even a startled bird was in sight.

"There's a trap." The warning was cut off by crossbow bolts, and seventeen or eighteen heavy arrows shot down from the treetops.

The three Ming soldiers fell off their horses without a sound. Li Xiaoquan's mount was shot through the eye socket, and he drew his waist knife before he even hit the ground.

Thirty armored warriors burst forth from the pile of decaying leaves, their lead spears aimed straight for Wang Huzi's throat.

Li Xiaoquan held his sword to block the gun barrel, his face smeared with blood from the ruptured tiger's mouth.

He kicked the Qing soldier's shin guard with his iron-plated riding boots and, as the soldier staggered, slit his throat with his other hand.

"Circular formation!" Wang Huzi grabbed a dead horse to use as cover and blindly fired his three-eyed gun into the woods.

The ambush troops had no intention of fighting; after firing two rounds of crossbow bolts, they turned and left.

By the time the Ming army remounted, the tide of defeated soldiers had already disappeared behind the hills.

Goshhabumbutai of the Bordered Yellow Banner lay prone under the horse's belly, with three whistling arrows still in his right arm quiver.

The seventeen-year-old Bayara guard stared at the brocade dragon banner a hundred paces away, its yellow silk canopy riddled with holes from lead bullets.

Three unsaddled warhorses suddenly charged out from the side, and Bumbutai's horn bow fired whistling arrows in rapid succession.

The Ming soldier leading the pursuit fell from his horse, and the lassoes of the thirty Mongol light cavalrymen immediately became disorganized.

Taking advantage of the opportunity, Bumbutai jumped onto the horse's back and galloped wildly into the mountain valley, pulling on the reins.

Five three-eyed gun pellets hit the iron pole of the flag, but Bumbutai ignored them.

He rushed to Dorgon's side like a madman.

"Master! It's still forty li to Chengde Prefecture!"

Dorgon's breastplate was dented with three gun marks, but he never let go of his telescope.

In the lens, the routed soldiers were being cut down like wheat by Qi Jiguang's army, and a Jiala (a type of soldier) was actually regrouping in the valley.

The twelve-foot-long spears formed a chevaux-de-frise, forcefully withstanding the charge of two thousand rebel cavalry.

Meanwhile, most of the Ming army's pursuing troops were still twenty miles away. After a brief consideration, Dorgon devised a plan.

"Order the entire army to withdraw and defend Chengde Prefecture!"

One of the guards following Dorgon immediately turned around.

Zhu Youjian, twenty miles away, pressed down on the telescope.

"Order Huang Degong to divide his infantry into three battalions to block Shuangshugou, and order Li Guo's cavalry to press all their troops to Baihetan."

Eight cannons were dragged up a hill by mules and horses, and their exploding shells flew over the heads of the fleeing soldiers and crashed into the valley.

The barricades with blue flags were instantly torn apart by blood and flesh, but the armored soldiers in the rear immediately filled the gaps.

The archers of the three Niru hid in the reeds, and heavy arrows skimmed the water's surface, killing the Ming army artillerymen.

Zhu Youjian pressed his hand on the scabbard, "Once they have regrouped, order the Mongol tribes to open the northern route to Chengde Prefecture."

When Dorgon's cavalry charged across the last mountain ridge, the smoke signals on the Chengde city wall were already clearly visible.

Suddenly, Bumbutai cried out at the top of his lungs, "Master! The southern barbarians have stopped chasing us!"

Dorgon turned around and looked.

In the telescope, the Ming army's dragon flags began to be lowered ten miles away.

Qi Jiguang's army's Mandarin Duck Formation transformed into a defensive square formation, with Mongol light cavalry patrolling back and forth on both flanks.

The garrison in Chengde Prefecture numbered only a few hundred, and they captured it with a single attack.

The remnants of the Plain Yellow Banner seized the opportunity to surge into the city gate, abandoning even the cannons that had fallen into the river.

"Take men to take over the city defenses." Dorgon's fingernails dug into the blue bricks of the crenellations. "Ujen Chaoha camp, go up the west city wall. Baiyala, hide behind the horse-faced ramparts, and so on..."

The smoke and dust rising on the horizon chilled him to the bone.

Dodo's brocade dragon banner pierced the morning mist, and conch shells echoed one after another atop Chengde city walls.

Twenty thousand Plain White Banner cavalry swept across the wilderness like a torrent, only to come to an abrupt halt three miles from the Ming army.

Thirty Hongyi cannons were unloaded from camel backs, all pointing their muzzles at Qi Jiguang's army formation.

The sudden turn of events caught Zhu Youjian off guard, and he could only hurriedly order precautions.

All the command flags were lowered, and the cannons that were being loaded with ammunition immediately turned around.

Li Guo's rebel cavalry split into eight groups and retreated to their main camp, while the White-Spear Soldiers erected three layers of chevaux-de-frise.

Two fast horses galloped into Chengde Prefecture.

"Master!" Dodo's messenger was kicked to the ground before he could even kneel properly. "Who sent you? Where is the capital?"

Dorgon was truly enraged; the scabbard of his sword slammed against the city wall, sending bricks flying. "I'll let you attack the capital! Attack!"

"Master, Shengjing has fallen..."

(End of this chapter)