How can one be Emperor Chongzhen without money?

Chapter 187 The Death of Hudun Rabbit Khan
In the borderlands, just before dawn, it is the darkest and coldest time of the night.

The wind felt like tiny knives cutting into my face, it was so painful.

Yangguli, mounted on his horse, leaned slightly forward, his eyes fixed on the camp ahead where a few lights still flickered. That was the Chahar Khanate's main camp of Huduntu. The camp was quiet, with only a few campfires still burning, and the night patrols were sparse, showing little sign of vigilance.

He raised his right hand and swung it down sharply!
The more than a thousand "lackeys" and "guards" behind him, dressed in tattered fur coats and with dirty faces, suddenly sprang into action. There were no shouts of battle; the only sounds were the rustling of footsteps on the dry grass and suppressed breathing.

Tong Yangxing's Han army artillerymen, working in small groups, swiftly tore off the thick felt coverings of more than a dozen carts. The dark cannon barrels were revealed—the ten newly cast tiger-crouching cannons. The muzzles had long been quietly aimed at the most conspicuous, gold-trimmed tent in the center of the camp—although it was dark, the tent's golden gleam was so striking that it reflected the light of the campfire!
"Release!" Tong Yangxing growled in a low voice.

boom! boom! boom!
Several loud explosions suddenly shattered the pre-dawn stillness. Ten slugs, whistling as they slammed into the golden-topped tent and the surrounding tents, like meteorites falling from the sky. Although they didn't cause many casualties, they certainly gave the sleeping Mongols a fright.

"Kill!" Yanguli roared, drew his sword, and was the first to charge out.

The "lackeys" behind him also tore off their tattered clothes, revealing the fine yellow cotton armor they wore underneath. Wielding gleaming swords and spears, they surged towards the already chaotic Chahar camp like a flood that had burst its banks.

The Mongol camp immediately erupted into chaos.

Many Chahar soldiers, just awakened from their sleep and still not understanding what was happening, were hacked to death inside their tents. The stables also erupted into chaos; frightened warhorses neighed and ran wildly, trampling tents and injuring men. The screams of women, the wails of men, and the clash of weapons mingled together, with fire and blood everywhere.

But this chaos didn't last long.

The personal guard of Huduntu Khan, those elite soldiers known as the "Ten Thousand Kheshig," were indeed different. Though panicked, they remained composed. Under the repeated shouts of Huduntu Khan's uncle, Benghua Taiji, and cousin, Eje Taiji, they quickly gathered around the Khan's tent, forming a tight circle with shields and spears. The iron armor they wore gleamed coldly in the firelight; it was the finest goods that Sutai Fujin had traded with Yuan Chonghuan for the best horses from the grasslands, delivered just ten days earlier.

These armored guards desperately blocked the first charge of Yangguli's white-armored soldiers. Swords struck the iron armor, sending sparks flying and producing a piercing screeching sound. The two sides clashed, swords and axes hacking and slashing, a fierce and evenly matched battle, until corpses quickly littered the ground. The Later Jin soldiers hadn't expected to encounter such a formidable opponent, and their offensive was immediately halted.

Just then, the First Princess Consort, Nangnang, mounted a swift horse. She was also clad in chainmail, a scimitar clutched in her hand, and shouted to the group of loyal cavalrymen beside her, "Warriors! Charge with me! Kill those barbarians firing cannons!"

She pulled on the reins and charged ahead towards the artillery positions on the flank of the Later Jin army. About three hundred cavalrymen followed her, like a red whirlwind, resolutely rushing towards Tong Yangxing's artillery unit.

Tong Yangxing, being a veteran, remained calm in the face of danger. He quickly ordered the gunners to turn the guns around. "Load the grapeshot! Fire!" he commanded in a hoarse voice.

Boom!

A dense hail of lead bullets rained down like water. The vanguard of Consort Nangnang's personal cavalry, men and horses alike, were riddled with bullets and fell instantly. Consort Nangnang's mount was also struck, neighing and collapsing to the ground, throwing her heavily to the ground. Her guards desperately pulled her back from the ground, but the momentum of the charge had already been completely shattered.

At that very moment, a black line appeared on the horizon. The black line drew closer and closer, transforming into a moving city wall—Huang Taiji's main force had arrived.

Seeing that the Khan's main force had arrived, Tong Yangxing was greatly encouraged and immediately directed the gunners to push the Tiger Crouching Cannon forward until it was very close to the Chahar army's line.

"Aim at that circular formation and bombard it!" Huang Taiji coldly commanded from his horse.

boom! boom! boom!
The cannon fire resumed, this time closer and even more terrifying. A dense hail of bullets pounded into the tightly packed circular formation of the Kheshig guards. Even with their superior iron armor, they could hardly withstand the onslaught at such close range. Instantly, screams of agony erupted from the crowd, blood and flesh flew everywhere, and the formation that had been desperately holding on was blasted open in an instant, leaving several gaping holes.

In the midst of the melee, a lead bullet, seemingly out of nowhere, struck Hu Dun Tu Han in the chest with a soft thud. Hu Dun Tu Han was wearing golden armor and waving the Sulu Ding banner to boost morale.

His body jolted violently, he swayed twice, and mouthfuls of blood gushed from his mouth, staining his battle robe and armor crimson. He fell heavily backward.

"Great Khan!" The eyes of the two men, Beng Hua Taiji and Eje Taiji, turned red. They fought off the enemies around them and rushed over to drag Hudun Tu Khan to a relatively safe place.

Hu Dun Tu Han's face was deathly pale, his breath barely a whisper. He gripped his uncle, Beng Hua Taiji's, hand tightly, and stammered, "No... I can't... Uncle, you... you take the best men and protect Su Tai... she's carrying my son... and Han Yin... southeast, to Datong... find the Ming Dynasty..."

He then looked at his wife, Nangnang, and the other leaders who had struggled to come to his side: "You... take the other wives and followers... and run towards the Hetao region... split up and run... every one of you who survives is a life for us... wait for my son... to grow up..."

"Quickly! Do as the Great Khan says!" the clown Taiji roared, his eyes red. A squad of the most elite personal guards immediately protected Su Tai Fujin, who was already crying her eyes out and had a slightly protruding belly. They seized several fast horses, fought their way through the crowd, and galloped off in the southeast.

The other groups, along with Consort Nangnang and other noble families, as well as a large number of ordinary followers, cattle, and sheep, fled in disarray to the southwest like ants scattered from a nest.

Seeing that his men had all fled, Huduntu Khan, supported by his personal guards, struggled to his feet and roared, "Bring me my bow! The descendants of the Borjigin are not to run away like rabbits! I will show Huang Taiji how a true Mongol Khan dies!"

He ordered the remaining hundred or so heavily wounded, armored guards around him to hastily form a small wagon formation (Gulieyan) with their vehicles and supplies, and planted the great banner of Suluding, symbolizing the Great Khan's authority, deep into the center of the formation. He himself sat down with his back against the banner, drew his bow and arrow, his chest throbbing with pain with every breath, blood constantly oozing from the corner of his mouth, but his eyes remained fixed like an eagle's on the approaching Later Jin soldiers.

Huang Taiji's army completely surrounded the small wagon formation.

“Tong Yangxing.” Huang Taiji’s voice was completely calm.

"Chen is here!"

"Use cannons to flatten it for me."

"twitter!"

The ten tiger-squatting cannons were pushed almost to the side of the wagon formation. Their dark muzzles were pointed at the people inside who were fighting to the death.

"put!"

boom!
The cannon fire was deafening. Lead bullets rained down like raindrops. After each volley of shelling, fewer and fewer men remained standing in the wagon formation. But as soon as the cannon fire ceased, sporadic arrows would fly out from the wagon formation.

Until finally, there was no more movement inside.

The Later Jin soldiers cautiously crept in and dragged the barely alive Hu Dun Tu Han from the pile of corpses. He was covered in blood and barely breathing. The soldiers carried him to Huang Taiji's horse.

Huang Taiji sat upright on his tall white horse, looking down at his dying opponent, his face filled with undisguised smugness.

He fought this battle brilliantly, catching the enemy off guard and even capturing the leader first, directly destroying the Khanate of Huduntu Khan!
From now on, he will be the only Great Khan in both the southern and northern deserts.

Tiger Mound Rabbit Sweat struggled to open his eyes, looking at Huang Taiji. His lips twitched weakly, as if he wanted to laugh, but more blood and froth welled up. His voice was hoarse and broken as he said, “Huang…Huang Taiji…you used trickery, and cannons…to defeat me…what’s so great about that…In terms of firearms…you…you can outmaneuver the Ming Dynasty? You…you have ten cannons…the Ming Dynasty…has a thousand! Ten thousand!…They…will use even more…bigger cannons…to blast you to pieces…hahahaha!”

Huang Taiji's face instantly darkened, his gaze turning icy. "You dare to speak nonsense even when you're about to die!" He suddenly drew his waist knife, a flash of cold light!
The head of Hu Dun Tu Han rolled to the ground, its eyes, which refused to close, still gazing at the gray sky.

Holding a blood-dripping knife, Huang Taiji addressed all the soldiers and officers around him, as well as the kneeling prisoners surrendering, in a loud voice:
"The Chahar tribe is dead! The Northern Yuan dynasty is now extinct! The legitimate line of the Golden Family is severed by my hand today!"

His gaze swept across the battlefield strewn with corpses, and over the trembling prisoners.

"From this day forward, on this southern and northern grassland, in the land covered by the Eternal Heaven, there shall be only one Great Khan! That is me, the Khan of the Great Jin Dynasty, Aisin Gioro Huang Taiji!"

"Those who submit to this Khan are his subjects, brothers of the Jurchen warriors, and can share in wealth and glory!"

His blade pointed at the headless corpse of Hudun Tuhan, and his tone suddenly turned fierce:

"Those who defy this Khan, those who dare not submit—will be killed without mercy!"

(End of this chapter)