Di Ming

Chapter 233 "In my opinion, this plan is most likely feasible!"

The fire struck Chi as if struck by lightning. He hadn't expected that at this critical juncture, the Han army would suddenly arrive!

Not only will there be no more chance to eliminate Zhu Yin, but he himself will also be in danger.

Buddha, will you no longer protect Huo Luochi?

Even though Huo Luochi had been through countless battles, he was at a loss and was stunned for a moment.

"Boom!" The Ming cavalry roared in, yellow sand filled the sky, and their momentum was like thunder.

Following the cavalry came an even greater number of infantry, overwhelming and surging like a tide.

Upon seeing the large Ming army advancing from the east, the already demoralized and disheartened Tatar army was utterly demoralized.

"Don't be afraid! Hold on! Hold on!" Huo Luochi roared hysterically, his eyes bloodshot. "Shulan! Your thousand-man squad, push forward! A'erhun! Where is your thousand-man squad!?"

But at this moment, the Tatars were doomed, and the centurions were no longer able to control their subordinates.

In a panic, large groups of Tatar cavalry fled in different directions, completely disorganized like headless flies. Some went south, some went east, and some even collided with each other, making the chaos even more difficult to escape.

If a few hundred Ming soldiers are so difficult to deal with, how much more difficult would it be if thousands of troops came?
More than a thousand resentful Tuda soldiers seized the opportunity to riot, further exacerbating the chaos. The arrival of the Ming army was the final straw, finally emboldening them to rebel against the control of the Mongol nobles.

At this moment, the only force that could remain in order was Huo Luo Chi's Golden Tent Guard. Although the guard had not yet fallen into disarray, they were scattered and broken up by Zhu Yin's three hundred iron cavalry.

"Taiji, hurry up and leave!" the Han scholar said, his face ashen. "As long as the green hills remain, there's always hope for a future resurgence!"

Huo Luochi looked at the Han Chinese strategist, then suddenly raised his hand and slashed his neck with his knife.

"Uh..." The Han Chinese strategist clutched his neck, staring at his master in horror, before collapsing limply.

Huo Luochi didn't even glance at the Han Chinese strategist. He saw that Zhu Yin, who was wearing a ghost mask, was only a dozen feet away from him, and behind him were the Ming cavalry rushing in. How could he dare to stay any longer?

Huo Luochi nimbly leaped onto his horse, gave a whistle, and fled south, followed by several centurions and over a thousand personal guards.

He came with 10,000 cavalrymen, but now only a thousand or so have fled with him.

Zhu Yin, leading his cavalry through the Tatar ranks, roared, "Reinforcements have arrived! Kill the Tatars! Don't let them escape!"

With a shout, he thrust his long spear and killed a Tatar soldier, then took the lead in pursuing Huo Luochi.

Lancha, Ding Hongying, Cao Wenzhao, Mao Wenlong and others followed Zhu Yin and killed the enemy like weeds. How could Huo Luochi's personal guards stop them?

Huo Luochi, his soul filled with despair, led his less than a thousand elite cavalry in a desperate escape, slaughtering any Tatar soldiers who blocked his path.

Zhu Yin and his men moved as if they were in an empty field, chasing and killing Huo Luochi amidst the chaos of the Tatar army.

Almost simultaneously, Li Rubai's four thousand cavalrymen clashed with the chaotic Tatar cavalry.

With a loud crash, the Tatar cavalry, having lost their speed, were thrown to the ground.

The Ming cavalry would not let the chaos of the Tatar army pass by. They immediately used the speed of their horses to flank the Tatar cavalry and block their escape routes to the north and south.

More than a thousand Tuda soldiers suddenly shouted in unison, "Surrender! Surrender! Surrender to Mr. Zhihu!"

Many people laid down their weapons and knelt before Zhu Yin, who was pursuing Huo Luochi.

"Hahaha!" Li Rubai laughed loudly, "That's exhilarating! That's exhilarating! I never imagined that Mr. Zhihu could be a match for a hundred men! He truly deserves to be the reincarnation of the Star Lord!"

The claim of being able to defeat a hundred men is obviously an exaggeration. Although Zhu Yin was a former special agent and had diligently practiced martial arts and archery over the years, he was only fifteen years old and lacked strength. He was not born with superhuman strength, so how could he be able to defeat a hundred men?

Although he was not a match for a hundred men, he was stronger than a match for ten men, and could be considered a fierce general with high martial arts skills.

"General, you are mighty!" Xiong Tingbi shouted, "Your subordinate is late!"

He rode a chestnut horse, wielding a long sword, and led 1,500 elite soldiers from Jiangnan to block the Tatars' escape route.

When Hao Yunlai and Zheng Guowang arrived with their troops, they saw how weak the Tatar army was and how it collapsed as soon as it arrived. They knew that the Tatar army's morale had been completely shattered because of its inability to besiege Zhu Yin.
This is indeed a rare and excellent opportunity to defeat the enemy.

At this moment, they saw a general dressed in magnificent armor, wearing a ferocious demon mask, leading a group of lion-like cavalry in pursuit of the commander-in-chief of the Tatar army.

The masked general wielded a long spear that was rarely seen these days, like a reborn Prince Lanling, thrusting east and west, maneuvering swiftly and decisively, dominating the battlefield, and defeating all who stood in his way!
"It's Zhu Yin!" Hao Yunlai exclaimed in surprise. "I never expected Zhu Zhihu to be so brave!"

He thought he was very familiar with Zhu Yin, but he didn't know that Zhu Yin could be as fierce as a general and so imposing in the enemy army.

Although he was also wearing armor, it was only for his own protection. Seeing that Zhu Yin was truly skilled in both literature and martial arts, he couldn't help but feel both jealousy and admiration.

Zhihu, how come you're better than me at everything?
hateful!

Zheng Guowang exclaimed in surprise, "I never imagined Zhu Zhihu would be so valiant! Among civil officials, none can surpass him!"

She brandished her spear and shouted defiantly, "Kill!"

A group of Zheng family soldiers followed her in the charge, heading towards the fleeing Huo Luochi.

Hao Yunlai sat motionless on his horse, too afraid to charge, and could only hesitate. But he wasn't going to give up easily, and gave the order:

"Order the Tatars to surrender! Disarm them and they will be spared! Anyone who resists will be killed without mercy!"

At this moment, Huo Luochi only had a few hundred men left. They desperately charged forward on horseback, and it seemed they were about to break through the encirclement of the Ming army's left wing cavalry and escape.

Zhu Yin caught up to within twenty zhang of him.

"Firefall, Chi, don't run!" Zhu Yin hurled his spear with all his might, aiming at the nearest Tatar cavalryman. The Tatar cavalryman screamed, the spear embedded in his body, and fell from his horse.

Without his spear, Zhu Yin immediately took the bow and arrow from his horse, skillfully drew back the heavy bow, squinted at Huo Luochi who was galloping wildly on his horse, and shot the arrow with a "whoosh" as Huo Luochi looked back in panic.

Huo Luochi was clad in fine armor; one could only shoot at his face, which lacked a visor, by waiting for him to turn around.

However, this requires a high level of archery skill.

Zhu Yin took Li Shimin as his role model and practiced archery diligently for many years, becoming quite skilled. Although his physical strength was still insufficient, his accuracy was that of a divine archer.

At a distance of twenty zhang, even riding a fast-moving warhorse, Zhu Yin was very confident that he could hit the enemy's face.

"Ouch!" Huo Luochi cried out in pain as he fell off his horse with an arrow in his cheek.

He wasn't wearing a face shield, so Zhu Yin's arrow pierced his cheek and went straight into his brain, killing him instantly—a quick and painless death, in a way.

Poor Huo Luochi led 10,000 cavalrymen north, only to suffer defeat and die. The flames of ambition ignited in his heart by Bo Bai and Prince Qing were extinguished before they could even burn.

"What a brilliant archer!" Lancha exclaimed.

He was the true archer, but before he could even make a move, Huo Luochi was shot dead by Ezhen's arrow. In a few more years, when Ezhen's strength has grown, he will surely be a master archer.

"Uncle Tiger is mighty!" Ding Hongying, riding her horse to Zhu Yin's left, shouted, cracking her whip.

When the Ming army saw that Zhu Yin was a master archer and had killed the enemy chieftain with a single arrow, they cheered loudly.

"My lord is mighty!"

Zheng Guowangqiu narrowed his eyes, thinking to himself that Zhu Zhihu's archery skills were also quite remarkable. "Taiji!" the guards on both sides shouted in unison, their voices filled with grief and indignation.

"Avenge Taiji!" Hundreds of guards shouted, turned their horses around, and charged towards Zhu Yin without hesitation.

Unfortunately, this tragic scene was destined to be a bloody spectacle before the end of the great battle.

At this moment, Li Rusong, Xiong Tingbi, Zheng Guowang and others led their troops to attack, and hundreds of the most elite Tatar personal guards were surrounded and quickly killed.

More than a thousand Tatar soldiers had already surrendered to Zhu Yin, and more than a thousand Tatar cavalrymen were captured. Most of the rest were killed in the struggle.

Only a few hundred Tatar cavalrymen managed to escape.

More than 10,000 warhorses were captured intact.

Of the ten thousand Tatar cavalry, only a few hundred escaped, and even their leader, Huoluochi, was shot dead, resulting in the complete annihilation of the army.

The Ming army's losses were negligible.

It wasn't until dusk that the victorious Ming army finished clearing the battlefield.

All the generals congratulated Zhu Yin on his great victory. Without Zhu Yin, there would have been no such resounding triumph.

After this battle, Zhu Yin's prestige in the army was significantly enhanced.

Zhu Yin, however, showed little joy. Many of the family soldiers who had served the Zhu family for years had died in the Danxia lands, which saddened him greatly.

Zhu Yin wrote a report to the emperor, who led the charge in reporting the victory, and Zheng Guowang and others signed it. Since Prince Qing escaped from Helan Mountain, this was a great victory that was enough to boost morale and give the court an explanation.

In times of crisis, generals and supervisors often falsify reports, concealing defeats while exaggerating victories, and even killing innocent people to claim credit. But this great victory was absolutely genuine.

However, when the news of victory reached the imperial court, many officials were sure to doubt its authenticity.

After writing the victory report, Zhu Yin summoned the generals for a meeting.

Only then did Zheng Guowang and the others realize why Zhu Yin had separated from Li Rusong and Qin Liangyu, and had only led more than 500 people back to Helan Mountain.

It turns out that the 5,000 vanguard soldiers encountered a 15,000-strong Oirat army marching south at Jilu Village!
The vanguard consisted of only two thousand cavalry and three thousand White-Spear Army soldiers. In the vast Gobi Desert, where cavalry roamed freely, they were no match for the fifteen thousand Oirat troops. For the safety of their commander, Zhu Yincai, on the advice of Li Rusong and Qin Liangyu, left Jilu Village.

Li Rusong and Qin Liangyu, on the other hand, held their ground at Jilu Village, awaiting reinforcements.

If Zhu Yin was able to hold out for a day with only 500 men in this Danxia landform, resisting multiple attacks from a Tatar army of 10,000, then if these 500 strongmen had not left Jilu Village, but instead stayed with Li and Qin's 5,000 troops to defend Jilu Village, wouldn't they have been able to defeat the 15,000 Oirat army? If so, then wouldn't it have been unnecessary for Zhu Yin to leave Jilu Village to seek safety?
No.

Why not?

The reason Zhu Yin was able to withstand an enemy force twenty times his size for a day was not only because his five hundred men were highly skilled, but more importantly, because the terrain of Danxia Land was far more advantageous for small-scale defense than that of Jilu Village. Danxia Land was like a small, high-altitude town, forcing the Tatar cavalry to dismount and fight on foot, essentially fighting in street fighting, their least favorite type of warfare. Their formations couldn't be fully deployed, and their numerical advantage couldn't be fully utilized; they could only commit two to three thousand men at a time.

Jilu Village is different.

Jilu Village was an abandoned Han Dynasty city, with much of its walls collapsed. Moreover, the surrounding area was flat, making it ideal for large cavalry units to circle the city and fire arrows – a siege tactic most effective for steppe cavalry. The 15,000-strong Oirat army could fully utilize their cavalry and numerical superiority.

It's obvious that the Ming cavalry was inferior to the Oirat cavalry. Even Li Rusong's Liaodong cavalry was not as strong as the armored Mongol cavalry; they were only stronger than ordinary Mongol cavalry without armor.

The Mongol Empire was once powerful and still has some foundation. Even though it is now fragmented and not what it used to be, the armor coverage rate of its cavalry is still quite high.

Of the more than 15,000 Oirat troops, 5,000 were armored soldiers, also known as "Iron Cavalry".

How could Li Rusong's two thousand Liaodong cavalry possibly be a match? Li Chengliang's Liaodong garrison was able to deter the left-wing Mongols not because of the so-called Liaodong Iron Cavalry, but because of the power of firearms, superior troop strength, control of trade and markets, and, most importantly, the deterrence of the Ming Dynasty.

When it comes to cavalry combat power, the Mongols are still the most formidable. Even the Jurchens would admit defeat in this regard.

Although Qin Liangyu's White Spear Army was very strong, it consisted entirely of infantry, which could only defend against cavalry, and its numbers numbered only three thousand.

Therefore, even if Li Rusong and Qin Liangyu tried their best, they could only defend the area for a maximum of five days.

This is the limit.

Even with two ordinary generals, they couldn't hold out for a single day.

Two days have passed. The rear guard must reach Jilu Village to provide support within two days!

Without defeating the 15,000 Oirat troops besieging Jilu Village, Zhu Yin could not continue pursuing Bo Bai and Prince Qing.

Zhu Yin was immediately in a dilemma.

The 13,000 rear guard troops, having marched over 200 li to reach Danxia Land for the battle, were already exhausted and certainly needed rest. To march overnight to Jilu Village, 200 li away, would they still have any fighting strength? They were utterly exhausted.

This shows just how formidable Huo Qubing's 10,000 cavalrymen were when they charged over 1,000 li in six days, covering 200 li each day.

I definitely can't do it.

However, Jilu Village was in grave danger, and there was a fear that Li Rusong and Qin Liangyu might be lost if the situation dragged on.

What should I do?
Zhu Yin raised the question, and Shang Yang spoke first: "General Qi's 10,000 cavalry should be able to reach Jilu Village within two days. Once General Qi arrives, Jilu Village will be safe."

Zheng Guowang snorted coldly, "Relying on Qi Jiguang? What if he doesn't show up?"

Hao Yunlai also shook his head, "Betting that Commander Qi will arrive at Jilu Village within two days is too overconfident. What if he can't make it? The distance from Hetao to Jilu Village is at least four or five hundred li, isn't it?"

Li Rubai looked down at his cracked leather shoes and said with a touch of sadness:
"What should we do? Our 4,000 cavalry have already marched more than 200 li, and the men and horses are exhausted and can no longer continue. They need to rest for a day or two. But my brother is still at Jilu Village."

Everyone frowned.

The rear guard currently numbers 13,000 men, with enough provisions for half a month's supply—it sounds like a well-trained and well-supplied force. However, the men and horses are too exhausted to continue their journey.

But Jilu Village urgently needs rescue.

Shang Yang suddenly said, "My lord, I have a plan, though it is very risky, but it is worth a try."

Zhu Yin said, "Tell me about it, Zhouming."

Shang Yang said, “Our soldiers and horses need rest, but the surrendered Tuda soldiers and captured Tatar soldiers do not. Our warhorses need rest, but the captured enemy warhorses do not.”

What? Upon hearing this, everyone looked at Shang Yang in astonishment.

Zhu Yin's expression was solemn. "Zhou Ming's intention is to have the three thousand surrendered and captured men ride their warhorses, exchange them for our army's armor and flags, and go to rescue Jilu Village?"

“Indeed,” Shang Yang laughed. “Although three thousand cavalrymen are not many, they are enough to hold back the Oirat army and allow Jilu Village to hold out for two more days. As long as we hold out for two more days, the rear guard, which has finished its rest, will surely arrive soon.”

"Too risky!" Zheng Guowang frowned. "Those who are not of our kind will surely have different hearts! They were forced to surrender, and they will definitely harbor thoughts of retaliation. How can we give them warhorses and armor and make them work for us?"

Shang Yang laughed and said, "Perhaps it wouldn't work with someone else. But they surrendered to the Governor-General, who has his reputation, so it's different. Since they've surrendered, they should be willing to serve the Governor-General!"

"In my opinion, this strategy is most likely feasible!"

P.S.: Can anyone tell me if this method is feasible and reliable? I mean, based on the conditions in the book.

(End of this chapter)