How can one be Emperor Chongzhen without money?

Chapter 333 You fight your way, I'll fight mine.

On the 20th of April in the sixth year of the Chongzhen reign, it got dark early in the Thousand-Li Pine Forest (a thousand li from north to south, not a thousand li from east to west).

The forest was dark, ancient trees blocking out the sky, with only a few patches of light filtering through to illuminate the muddy path. A large army was marching through the woods, weary men and horses, all displaying a sense of impatience. The lead soldier, a Bayara, used his machete to cleave through the vines blocking their path, followed by the rest of the troops, who trudged along, their steps uneven.

The Khan, Huang Taiji, rode on his horse, his fat face glistening with oil, it was hard to tell if it was sweat or the dampness of the forest. He kept urging, "Faster! Faster! We must get out of this forest before dark!"

The army wasn't moving slowly, but the forest paths were difficult to traverse. The horses' hooves and footsteps thudded on the thick layer of fallen leaves. Huang Taiji, still not satisfied with the pace, turned to Beile Abatai and roared, "Tell the front to throw away more supplies! Lightly equipped, forced march! We must reach the walls of Kaiping within five days!"

Abatai responded and spurred his horse forward to relay the order. A commotion broke out in the procession, and several large carts carrying tents were overturned by the roadside.

Huang Taiji, panting heavily, used the tip of his whip to push aside the branches obscuring his face. His mind was in turmoil. Capturing Chongzhen would certainly be a great achievement, but that boy was very slippery and would probably get wind of it and run away in a flash.

But then he thought again, a sinister smile creeping onto his lips, and muttered to himself, "Run? It's fine if they run! As long as my army stands under the walls of Kaiping, the news of Chongzhen's hasty retreat will spread like wildfire across the grasslands! Those Mongols from India, and those opportunists in the southern steppes, will understand who the true masters of the Mongols are! This golden rice bowl of 'selling out the Mongols' is rightfully mine to take!"

He subconsciously touched the leather pouch beside the saddle, which contained some dry rations—this time, in order to quickly traverse the thousand-mile pine forest, he hadn't allowed anyone to drive cattle and sheep on the march; the entire army had only carried half a month's worth of rations.
If Emperor Chongzhen had fled, it would have saved him a lot of trouble; otherwise, his men would have been robbing grain everywhere!

At the same time, in the Khan's Palace in Kaiping, the candlelight was so bright that it made people's faces look yellow.

Emperor Chongzhen sat in the main seat, his fingers tapping unconsciously on the armrest. Below him stood Sun Chuanting, Cao Wenzhao, and Zhang Xianzhong, and even Empress Dowager Sutai, accompanied by Altan Hongtaiji, sat at the lower end. The room was eerily quiet.

Sun Chuanting held the secret letter, his voice low: "Your Majesty, Governor-General Lu Xiangshan of Jiliao has sent a secret report via express courier. The scouts of Ningyuan Town risked their lives to deliver the message, confirming that Huang Taiji's main force of approximately 15,000 men, along with 25,000 Mongol auxiliary troops, armed with artillery, have left Daning and are advancing towards Kaiping. Furthermore, in Fuzhou, Dorgon is leading the Korean Green Standard Army in a fierce attack, but Governor-General Lu judges it to be a feint."

After he finished speaking, the palace fell even quieter. Cao Wenzhao's brows furrowed deeply: "Your Majesty, the barbarian chieftain is here for your alliance and marriage with the Indian Mongols! His forces outnumber ours four to one; he's up to no good!"

Still dressed in Mongolian attire, Zhang Xianzhong retorted defiantly, "What are you afraid of! Our Kaiping city is a newly built fortress! No matter how many they come, we'll destroy them all!"

Empress Dowager Su Tai twirled her prayer beads quickly and said softly, "Your Majesty, if Kaiping is besieged, trade routes will be cut off. The people who have been gathered around us with great difficulty will likely dissipate."

Sun Chuanting walked to the map and pointed to Kaiping City: "General Zhang's bravery is commendable. However, the new city of Kaiping has twelve outer walls with twenty-four gun emplacements for support. But the city walls are not very sturdy; the southwest section collapsed during last year's rainy season. There is only one moat outside the city, and it is not very deep. In addition, the city's reserves are not much. If it is besieged by 40,000 troops for a long time, it will be difficult to maintain food, medicine, and morale."

He paused for a moment, then added, "Moreover, if His Majesty were besieged in the borderlands, I fear the hearts of the people would waver."

Upon hearing this, the hall fell into a deathly silence.

Emperor Chongzhen was trapped in a siege.

Or run?
The thought lingered in everyone's minds, but no one dared to say it aloud.

If the emperor runs away, this alliance meeting will become a joke, and Huang Taiji will immediately become the ruler of the grasslands.

But it seems that he can't just stay put. It's one thing for the emperor to guard the country's gate, but Kaiping isn't the country's gate; Kaiping is just the "lawn" outside the gate!
It must be said that Huang Taiji's ability to seize opportunities is truly remarkable.

Emperor Chongzhen remained silent, his gaze sweeping across the map before finally settling on "Daning" and tapping it lightly. Everyone watched him.

Suddenly he raised his eyes and swept them over the crowd: "Being trapped is not the solution, and running away will only alienate the people of the grasslands. Huang Taiji wants to play chess with me. He wants to checkmate me, and I will play along! However," he raised his voice, "this old general, like the chariot, will not be trapped by a mere city! He can attack his Kaiping, and I will attack my Daning! I will take Daning three times!"

Upon hearing this, everyone's eyes lit up!
Attacking Da Ning is a good idea; we'll force them to defend it!

He stood up and walked to the map, emphasizing Kaiping: "Sun Baigu!"

"Chen is here!"

"I leave 10,000 Imperial Guards under your command, and all the garrison in Kaiping will be under your control! Relying on the twenty-four gun emplacements outside the city, you will block my advance layer by layer, wearing them down step by step! Prepare plenty of firearms, gunpowder, and ammunition for the gun emplacements, and dig horse traps and lay caltrops underneath them! Your task is to be like a nail, nailing me down in Kaiping, and exhausting Huang Taiji's morale!"

"Your Majesty, I obey! The city stands, and so shall we!" Chongzhen pointed eastward, pausing on Daming: "I will personally lead 10,000 Imperial Guards, and Zhang Xianzhong will lead 2,000 Mongol cavalry, to march east immediately! I also order Lu Xiangshan to lead 20,000 troops from Jizhou to join forces at Fuyuwei! Together, we will have 32,000 troops to take Daming!" He gritted his teeth, "This time, I will take Daming!"

He looked at the crowd and said, "The Indian envoys Mizar and Amir Khan, and the two princesses, Saren and Gaoyun, will all accompany me!"

Furthermore, I will leave quietly, only saying to the outside world that I have caught a slight cold and need to rest. The ceremonial guard and banners will remain unchanged!

Everyone was taken aback for a moment, then understood. This was to bring important figures along, both for protection and to demonstrate their determination to conquer the east, and more importantly, to let these people witness the great battle firsthand—to show them the might of the "Mongol Heavenly Army"!

He left the ceremonial banners in Kaiping to stabilize the hearts of the people there, and at the same time, to retain Huang Taiji as much as possible.

Upon hearing this, Empress Dowager Su Tai slowed down her hand that was holding prayer beads, and gently bit her red lips with her pearly teeth.

April 21st, early morning, it was pitch black.

The east gate of Kaiping City was quietly pushed open a crack, and troop after troop of men and horses filed out. The horses and men were gagged, and their hooves were wrapped in cloth. Zhang Xianzhong led five hundred Mongol cavalry to scout ahead, while Emperor Chongzhen's imperial carriage was in the center, escorted by eight thousand imperial guards. Cao Bianjiao led two thousand cavalry to the rear, erasing any trace of their march.

The Indian envoys, Mizar and Amir Khan, rode on horseback, their fur robes tightly wrapped around them, their bodies trembling slightly with excitement. Both had fought in India, but this time was different. This time, they were fighting on the Mongolian steppes, the homeland of the Mughals!
This is truly eye-opening! I wonder if those genuine Mongolians could even fight?

However, Princess Saren and Princess Gaoyun both look quite nice.

Both Saren and Gao Yun were dressed in close-fitting clothes. Saren was composed, while Gao Yun looked around curiously. Consort Yang, Yu Jiao, rode closely behind Emperor Chongzhen, who was also riding a warhorse, her sharp eyes scanning the darkness.

"Sun Qing, I entrust this to you." Chongzhen silently recited this in his heart, then sternly ordered, "Accelerate the advance! Advance up the mountain at dawn!"

The column flowed silently like a river towards the Yanshan Mountains in the east. Every ten li (approximately 5 kilometers), scouts were left to establish contact points. The order was: use hawks to deliver messages, and light smoke signals in case of emergency.

April 22nd, early morning, Kaiping city walls.

Sun Chuanting, dressed in military uniform, inspected the twelve-sided city wall. He carefully examined each crenellation, especially the southwest section that had collapsed last year. "Prepare plenty of rolling logs and stones, and pile up the sandbags thicker!" he instructed his deputy.

He then inspected the twenty-four gun emplacements outside the city and ordered each emplacement to be stocked with 500 catties of gunpowder, dry rations, and water. "Dig the horse traps under the emplacements another foot deeper! Spread the caltrops more densely!"

Inside the city, under Su Tai's command, the Mongol women and children began carrying arrows, and the private soldiers of various Taiji and Jinong families were organized, with soldiers taking turns to go up the city walls. The atmosphere suddenly became tense, but orderly.

On April 24th, the sun rose high and dried the dew on the grassland.

On the northern horizon of Kaiping City, a dark line slowly emerged, growing wider and wider until it transformed into an endless army formation. The 40,000-strong Later Jin army, like a tide, silently swept across the withered grasslands and slowly came to a stop three miles from the city.

Under the central banner, Huang Taiji reined in his horse, squinted, picked up his binoculars, and surveyed the city of Kaiping before him.

Atop the city wall, a massive bright yellow dragon banner fluttered in the spring breeze, its gold-embroidered dragon shimmering in the sunlight. On either side of the banner stood large flags bearing the character "征" (zheng, meaning expedition), signifying the emperor's personal campaign, along with a complete set of imperial ceremonial banners, including "信幡" (xinfan, a banner symbolizing imperial authority) and "宣教幡" (xuanjiaofan, a banner symbolizing imperial authority). The banners fluttered in the wind, creating an imposing and solemn atmosphere. It seemed that Emperor Chongzhen of the Ming Dynasty was indeed within this city.

But Huang Taiji's gaze pierced through the dazzling banners, fixing fixedly on the city itself. It was different from what he remembered, and even from what his scouts had reported. The city walls were clearly higher and stronger, the fresh marks of rammed earth clearly visible. Even more striking were the more than twenty low but sturdy triangular gun emplacements standing abruptly around the outer perimeter of the walls, like spikes growing from a giant beast, blocking every path leading to the main city wall. The entire city of Kaiping resembled a giant beast that had curled up and raised its spikes.

Huang Taiji's plump face twitched slightly, and he clenched his fist. He instinctively felt that this fortress before him was quite different from the "meeting place" he had envisioned, a place he could easily conquer. This Chongzhen brat seems to have gone all out; is he really going to confront him head-on here?
He instinctively tried to force that all-powerful, sinister smile, but it came out somewhat forcedly. For the first time, a shadow of unease crossed his mind: this wasn't a retreat, but rather a prepared stance, waiting for him to attack!
"Hmph," he snorted, as if trying to dispel his displeasure, and muttered to himself, "A bluff! A few earthen mounds, and they think they can stop my mighty Eight Banners army?" He raised his whip, pointing it at Kaiping City, his voice suddenly rising and echoing throughout the army:

"Issue the order! Set up camp! Surround Kaiping City for me!"

"Whoo!"

A deep horn sounded, and the black tide began to surge, splitting into several streams that converged on Kaiping City. A great battle was about to begin, its bloody prelude about to unfold.

(End of this chapter)