Ming Dynasty: Moral blackmail? I, Emperor Chongzhen, have no morals!

Chapter 117 Jiannu retreats north

"Shuotuo, the second wave of siege soldiers prepare to attack." Dodo stared intently at the Ming army on the city wall as he issued the battle order.

This Jurchen siege was far more intense than the attack on Jizhou Town, and the Jurchen soldiers' morale was also much higher than it was under the walls of Jizhou Town.

Liu Wenxiu, who was directing the defense of the city from the city wall, was hit by a cannonball, and the debris splashed all over him.

He spat and said, "Damn it, these Tartars are really strong."

This was Liu Wenxiu's first battle against the Tartars. He felt that no matter how strong the Tartars were, they were no more than the Ming army's border troops used to suppress bandits. The Ming army was now well-supplied with military pay and provisions, and their weapons and armor were new. These new troops had been training for a year and a half, so they would definitely not suffer a loss in battle.

Unexpectedly, the battle ended in a draw. You have to understand that the Ming army was defending the city while the Qing army was attacking it. The defending army was still at an advantage. If it were a field battle, they would definitely be at a greater disadvantage and might not even be able to defeat these Tartars.

Liu Wenxiu then abandoned his underestimation of the Jurchens, picked up his firearms, loaded ammunition, and began to fight back.

About an hour later, groups of Jurchen soldiers jumped onto the city wall and began hand-to-hand combat with the defending soldiers. Steel blades slashed at their bodies, blood splattered everywhere, and cries of agony rose and fell.

Upon seeing the Jurchen soldiers climbing the city wall, Sun Kewang threw aside his firearms, grabbed a steel sword, and led his soldiers into hand-to-hand combat.

He and a soldier fought together against a Tartar. Although they managed to subdue the Tartar, the soldier was also slightly injured, and both of them had bloodshot eyes.

Just then, a Ming soldier rushed up from behind the Tartar, lit a musket, and the lead bullets from the musket instantly hit the Tartar, causing blood to spurt out.

Upon seeing this, before the Tartar could react, Sun Kewang, wielding a steel knife, rushed forward and severed the Tartar's head. His neck broke, and blood gushed out, staining the gray-brown city wall red.

"Damn it, what do these Tartars eat to have such strength?" Sun Kewang cursed angrily as he saw the Tartar corpses fall to the ground with a thud.

He now understood why the Ming army was always on the defensive in open battle. Given this Tartar's fighting strength, if the Ming army were suddenly attacked and lacked food and equipment, they would definitely be overwhelmed in an instant. It turned out that he was still resentful that Sun Chuanting had suppressed their night raid outside the city and thought that Sun Chuanting was cowardly.

In retrospect, this was prescient. Even if it was a night raid, the Tartars, without any defense, wouldn't have gained much advantage. If there had been an ambush, these three thousand night raiding troops might have all perished. It seems the imperial commanders are quite capable. If they hadn't surrendered in Gucheng, they certainly wouldn't have gained anything after the imperial court recovered. They would have either been wiped out or spent their lives as bandits, not even knowing where they died in the end.

Thinking of this, Sun Kewang felt a sense of relief.

"Sun Kewang, how's it going on your end?" Liu Wenxiu asked, panting as she ran over.

Sun Kewang looked around and saw that a few soldiers were still fighting back against a few Tartars who had climbed onto the city wall: "We've basically driven back those who have climbed the wall. What about your side?"

"That's right. If the Tartars weren't so few in number, this city would be really hard to defend." Liu Wenxiu wiped the blood seeping from the corner of his mouth.

Just then, another drumbeat sounded from the Jurchen camp.

Liu Wenxiu turned his head and looked towards the direction of the Tartar camp: "The Tartars are going to attack the city again." After saying that, he walked towards the south wall of the city gate.

At the same time, a second batch of Ming soldiers defending the city also climbed the city walls, replacing the exhausted and wounded Ming soldiers.

"Bring the kerosene up here." Sun Chuanting directed the soldiers carrying wooden barrels on the city wall to place one barrel at each of the Ming soldiers guarding the city's battlements.

"When the Tartars attack, light the oil and throw it under the ladders," Sun Chuanting said.

The first wave of attack was so fierce that Sun Chuanting was able to bring up the few remaining oils. If the ladders hadn't been burned, the morale of the subsequent waves would have been even stronger.

However, once the oil ran out, the Jurchens were building more siege ladders, so there was no way to burn it anymore.

Shuo Tuo stood on horseback not far outside the city, watching the first wave of soldiers who had been repelled. He frowned slightly and shouted, "Attack the city!"

A second wave of soldiers rushed towards Tongzhou City.

The tug-of-war continued until evening. The Jurchen soldiers were exhausted, with more than a thousand killed and more than two thousand wounded, some seriously and some lightly.

Dodo, who was observing the battlefield from the rear, sighed when he saw the sixth wave of Jurchen soldiers retreat. After a day of attack, the Ming army in Tongzhou showed no signs of fatigue, and it was no longer possible to capture and plunder Tongzhou.

Just then, a scout rushed to Dodo's side and said, "Reporting to the General, the 10,000 Ming troops in Jizhou Town are still 100 li away from here."

"understood."

After speaking, Dodo waved his hand, signaling the scouts to go and rest. These Ming soldiers were all infantry; it would take them until this time tomorrow to travel a hundred li.

He then glanced at the sky; the sun had already set, and the horizon was tinged with a blood-red glow. He said, "Send orders to Shuo Tuo and Sony: rest for three hours. After three hours, we will retreat tonight. Du Du will lead the rearguard!"

Dodo can no longer fight. If he can't take Tongzhou, they'll be wiped out once the Ming army arrives in Jizhou.

Although Tongzhou City was not captured, the money and grain collected from the villages and towns outside the city were enough to make the trip worthwhile and to give an account of what was to come back to.

The Ming soldiers on the Tongzhou city wall breathed a sigh of relief as they watched the retreating Jurchens. After a day of fighting, they could finally rest.

"Take stock of casualties, and bring the lightly and seriously wounded to the city walls for treatment," Sun Chuanting said as he walked along the city wall, checking on the injured.

Were there any soldiers who survived after falling into a coma?

Just then, baskets of hard-crusted bread were carried up to the city wall and distributed. Sun Kewang grabbed a hard-crusted bread, took a water bag, and came to Sun Chuanting's side, presenting the bread and water bag to him: "Lord Sun."

Sun Chuanting took the hard biscuit and started eating it. At this moment, Liu Wenxiu walked over to Sun Chuanting while eating the biscuit: "Lord Sun, we don't have much oil and logs left. We've also used up half of our gunpowder and cannonballs."

Sun Chuanting nodded slightly: "Hold on for two more days. If the Tartars don't withdraw, we'll ask the capital for reinforcements."

Sun Chuanting felt that the ten thousand Tartars were only fiercely attacking the city today, and that their attacks might not be so fierce in the next two days, or they might have to retreat in the next two days. If the siege continued for a long time, the Tartars might be surrounded, after all, this was under the walls of the capital, and they only had ten thousand soldiers, without logistics or support.

The following day, before dawn, Dodo led his army northward along the river, preparing to cross the border from Miyun and return to Liaodong along the Mongol Kharachin tribe.

The soldiers who had begun to defend the city waited for nearly two hours. The sun had fully risen, and seeing that the Tartars had not yet attacked the city and there was no smoke from the camp, they quickly went to the camp below the city and reported to Sun Chuanting, Sun Kewang, Liu Wenxiu and other generals: "Reporting to Lord Sun, there is no smoke from the Tartar camp and no sign of them leaving the camp."

The group was eating hard flatbread when they suddenly heard a report from a city guard. They exchanged glances, and Sun Kewang said, "It seems these Tartars have retreated?"

"Liu Wenxiu, lead the scouts to investigate the camp," Sun Chuanting said, then looked at the rest of the group: "Don't let your guard down."

"Yes," the crowd responded.

>