With 100,000 elite soldiers at the start, what should you call me?

……

A valley in the Xianxia Ridge.

This place boasts lush green mountains and clear waters, with fresh air, resembling a celestial abode for spiritual cultivation.

But today, the air is filled with the smell of blood.

Faced with the superior firepower of the new army, the only outcome for the Qing army was defeat.

Eleven heavy machine guns, eighteen precision mortars, and several thousand Jian'an-made warships, plus some wooden-handled grenades.

If the Qing army wanted to get close and fight the New Army soldiers, they had no choice but to risk their lives.

But the soldiers of the Qing army were not robots, nor did they have a firm belief. The reason they were willing to risk their lives for the Qing Dynasty was because the Qing Dynasty was powerful.

Now, facing the powerful new army, their only options for not dying are to flee or surrender.

The Qing cavalry and infantry launched a full-scale charge. After the soldiers at the front fell, the soldiers behind them were terrified and stopped in their tracks, scrambling to escape.

No matter how many people the supervising officer killed, it couldn't stop them.

Even if the Qing army escaped, the New Army's firepower would not stop.

Seeing this, Zhang Biao immediately ordered a pursuit. The vanguard battalions on both sides were already poised to attack and charged out to chase the fleeing troops.

The Qing army, which was in a state of collapse, was simply unable to stop them, and the efficiency of the new army in killing people was too high.

Raise a gun and pull the trigger, and a life is gone.

The vanguard broke through the Qing army's formation, followed closely by the Shenji Battalion and the rearguard battalion. The battle was swift and decisive, with the Qing army suffering heavy casualties and no one daring to fight back.

Only the reinforced battalion did not pursue; their task was to manage the heavy weapons in the army, water the heavy machine guns to cool them down, pack up the tripods, and prepare for a transfer at any time.

The new army pursued the Qing army relentlessly, but the narrow canyon behind them left most of the Qing soldiers with nowhere to escape and they had no choice but to kneel down and beg for mercy.

Tens of thousands of Qing soldiers dropped their weapons and took off their armor, raising their hands high as they were separated and guarded.

"Commander! We think we've caught some big fish!"

Zhao Yi, the commander of the vanguard battalion, excitedly arrived at the Ninth Army headquarters.

"Oh, what big fish did you catch that makes you so excited?" Zhang Biao glanced up, smiled slightly, and then continued working.

"Commander, you'll never guess who we've captured! The highest-ranking Qing commander in this southward campaign is named something like Deshilehun, the Grand General of the Southern Expedition of the Manchus, and also a Beile!"

"Besides him, there was another one named Hong Chengchou, who was also a very high-ranking official, a governor-general!"

"The General Who Pacifies the South, the Governor-General!?" Zhang Biao was both surprised and delighted upon hearing this, and immediately stood up.

He was very familiar with these two names. The intelligence department investigated the identities and backgrounds of all the generals of the Qing army, and Lekedehun and Hong Chengchou were mentioned countless times.

After all, these two were the main commanders of the Qing army's southward campaign, one in charge of military affairs and the other in charge of domestic affairs.

Catching these two would be a great achievement!

"Okay, take me to see these two."

Any Qing generals who were recognized were imprisoned in solitary confinement, as they were considered dangerous individuals.

Once they use their influence, those Qing troops might take the opportunity to cause trouble.

Before long, Zhang Biao arrived at a simple tent. He lifted the tent flap and found a wooden cage inside, in which was a strong man who looked to be about thirty years old and had a raven-like hairstyle.

The man had narrow eyes and a shifty, rat-like appearance. His clothes were tattered, covered only by a ragged cloth.

This man was Lekedehun. He was sitting in a wooden cage, his face contorted with anger. When he saw Zhang Biao enter, he immediately started cursing.

"Call Li Tianlai!"

"I am the Grand General Who Pacifies the South, a Beile of the Great Qing Dynasty!"

"Is this how you treat me!"

"I'm telling you, when my Manchu cavalry marches south, not one of you will survive!"

Lekedehun cursed loudly, and his mental state seemed somewhat abnormal at this moment.

Tens of thousands of troops were routed like paper in front of the new army. How could this not cause him to have a mental breakdown?

Since he began fighting alongside Emperor Taizong, he had never fought such a humiliating battle.

Moreover, these new soldiers showed him no respect whatsoever as their general.

Even though he was a defeated opponent, he shouldn't be treated like this.

On the contrary, he now believed that the new army was a group of uncivilized southern barbarians, even worse than the Manchus.

They would treat renowned generals with courtesy as long as they were willing to surrender.

But he never expected that these bandits would humiliate him like this!

"So you've contracted Chaos?"

Zhang Biao couldn't help but sneer at Lekedehun's incompetent roar.

"I am Aisin-Gioro Lekedehun, who are you?"

"Your names are all convoluted, just like foreigners'. Oh right, you are foreigners in this era." Zhang Biao finished speaking and looked the other person up and down, as if looking at animals in a zoo.

"I am Zhang Biao, commander of the Ninth Army of Longxiang. You are not qualified to see our commander."

"As the General Who Pacifies the South, you should know quite a lot. I'll give you a chance: surrender and tell us about the city defenses around Nanjing in Zhejiang."

"Hmph." Lekdehun snorted coldly and stopped talking.

"It's okay if you don't tell me. I'll ask someone else. By the way, if you surrender voluntarily before the public trial, you might be able to reduce some of your crimes. If you remain stubborn, you'll only face death."

After saying these words, Zhang Biao turned and left. Lekedehun frowned, suddenly feeling a sense of fear. However, as a noble prince, he could not allow himself to bow down to the lowly Han people.

Zhang Biao quickly arrived at the tent where Hong Chengchou was being held.

There was an old man, about fifty years old, with a raven-tail hairstyle, sitting in the cage with his eyes closed.

The old man has a large frame, indicating that he must have been a strong man in his youth, although he looks somewhat thin now.

This person was Hong Chengchou.

"You are Hong Chengchou, the Governor-General of the Ming Dynasty." Zhang Biao entered and saw that this man was indeed extraordinary.

However, keeping that money rat tail made it look a bit too ridiculous, ruining his image and making him look too much like a slave.

Hong Chengchou suddenly opened his closed eyes and looked at Zhang Biao.

Upon hearing the words "Grand Governor of the Ming Dynasty," a hint of nostalgia flashed in his eyes, but it quickly disappeared.

That was his most passionate, yet also most humiliating and frustrating period in his youth.

In his youth, he also served the Ming Dynasty, fighting against bandits and conquering barbarians, eventually rising to the position of governor-general.

He originally thought that by becoming the governor of Jiliao, he could realize his ambitions and pacify the Jurchens. However, he found that Liaodong was a deep and dangerous place, with various forces only concerned with their own interests and difficult to reconcile. Nevertheless, he was able to keep the generals in check by virtue of his governorship and his own prestige, and fought the Jurchens to a standstill.

The Jianning clan could be wiped out by slow and steady attrition, but the emperor behind the scenes kept changing his mind and, after listening to someone else, insisted that he launch an attack to fight the Jiannu.

He hastily assembled his troops, but the Qing army seized the opportunity and inflicted a major defeat, resulting in the loss of a large number of Ming Dynasty elite troops, the collapse of the Guan-Ning-Jin defense line, and his own capture.

Finally, they surrendered to the Later Jin dynasty.

"Are you Li Tian?" Hong Chengchou asked in a hoarse voice.

"I am Zhang Biao, commander of the Ninth Army of the Longxiang Army. Governor Hong's Qing army has been defeated. I hope you will recognize the times and surrender voluntarily."

Hong Chengchou closed his eyes, seemingly not wanting to pay attention to Zhang Biao, while Zhang Biao continued.

"If you can surrender to the Manchus, why can't you surrender to my New Army? Of course, you can also choose not to surrender."

"You should think this over carefully."

After saying that, Zhang Biao left.

Hong Chengchou watched Zhang Biao's departing figure, then slowly opened his eyes, sighed, and felt melancholy.

The best decision reached by the General Staff was to persuade senior generals to surrender.

If a high-ranking general openly surrenders to the New Army, especially a Han Chinese general, the New Army will publicize it extensively. This will make it easier for the New Army to take over territory in the future and reduce resistance. At the same time, it will exacerbate the suspicion between the Manchus and Han Chinese within the Qing Dynasty.

Once the scholar-official class believed that the Qing dynasty was no longer viable, they would immediately abandon it and join the new army.

Once they are brought into the fold of the new army, these scholar-officials will witness what it means to be completely outclassed by the scholar-official class.