The death camp did not disappoint Daishan. Under the leadership of Cao Wenzhao, they had already bypassed the Kerxin Grassland from the west, then entered from the north of the Kerxin Grassland, and attacked the Zhuri River Grassland directly.
After they captured the lone Horqin tribe, after interrogation, they learned the location of the sweat tent and the general deployment of their troops.
There were about 4,500 people left in the death camp at this time, and most of the others died of injuries that could not be treated. If we directly attack the Horqin Khan tent, we can only hit the stone with an egg.
However, the death camp had traveled thousands of miles, and Cao Wenzhao was unwilling to turn back. He still hoped to catch the Horqin tribe by surprise. Therefore, he quietly sneaked with the death camp forty miles to the north of Horqin Khan's tent.
In a long-dried river bed, waiting for opportunities.
On this day, several Mongolian soldiers sent by Cao Wenzhao rushed back one after another to report that most of the soldiers and horses where Horqin Khan's tent was located had gone to the southwest and northwest.
Cao Wenzhao was immediately overjoyed. It was a perfect opportunity, and he decided to give a desperate blow to the biggest lackey of Jianlu.
However, the morale of the death camp at this time was not as high as when it first left the fortress. There are three reasons.
First, most of the soldiers had relatives and friends who died during the Jianlu invasion. They joined the death camp for revenge. After the first few ventings, the hatred was relieved and was no longer what it was at the beginning.
Full of hatred.
Second, there are some soldiers who came for glory and wealth. They went out to the fortress with the dream of getting rich and promoted, and a series of battles allowed them to grab enough money. Those Mongolian Tatars who were accomplices of the Jianqiu captured many of them from the capital.
Wealth, therefore, became cheaper for the soldiers in the death camp. These people felt that the Mongolian Tatars had almost killed and made enough money. Compared with the soldiers who left the fortress out of hatred, their morale was lower and they wanted to return to the capital.
.
Third, after every war, comrades are injured. And as long as they are injured, the seriously injured ones are equivalent to sacrifices in this war. The compatriots who are slightly injured, because in continuous battles, there is no logistical supplies, no medical treatment, only
Only those comrades who are particularly strong and lucky can survive tenaciously. Most of the compatriots who were slightly injured eventually suffered from aggravated injuries and died. This is a blow to the morale of the army, especially when they are out of the country for a long time.
Now after.
Only a very small number of people went out of the fortress with the intention of being loyal to the emperor and serving the country. The morale of these people was not reduced. Unless they killed the Mongolian Tatars and turned the world upside down, and the general did not order a retreat, they had no idea of returning to the pass.
Cao Wenzhao was not a fool. He could certainly see that the morale of the army was not high, and he also knew the reason why the morale of the army was low.
He was actually very satisfied with the death camp. If it were any other Ming army, without logistics, continuous fighting, and death threatening everyone at all times, it is estimated that not many Ming troops could persist until now.
However, Cao Wenzhao was not very satisfied with one person, and that was Zuo Liangyu. As one of his three major arms, he actually wanted to return home.
Looking at Zuo Liangyu's horse-full of trophies, Cao Wenzhao had the idea of beating him. He was already a senior general, and like the soldiers, he was obsessed with gaining wealth for himself. When he had enough, he wanted to leave.
There is no thought of loyalty to the emperor and the country at all in him, and he has no overall view of the situation.
However, Cao Wenzhao did not have an attack, nor did he show any dissatisfaction with Zuo Liangyu. This was outside the fortress, surrounded by countless enemies. If it were to cause disunity in the army, the consequences for the death camp might be
Devastating. After all, Zuo Liangyu had agreed to seize the spoils before leaving the fortress.
At this time, Zuo Liangyu, Cao Bianjiao and Huang Degong listened to the reports from the Mongolian soldiers. They all looked at Cao Wenzhao and waited for the order.
After Cao Wenzhao praised them a few times, he asked the two Mongolian soldiers to return to the army.
The war was cruel. Because they lived in the capital, their relatives were also killed by their own people and they lost their families.
Cao Wenzhao and others did not doubt their loyalty, because in the Ming army, many Mongolians were serving for the Ming Dynasty. It was the predecessor of their death camp, the Three Thousand Battalion in the Beijing Camp, who served in the founding of the People's Republic of China.
At the beginning, they were all composed of Mongolian people, conquering the grasslands for the Ming Dynasty.
Cao Wenzhao looked at his three grand prizes and ordered in a deep voice: "Assemble the troops and stand by."
"Yes, Marshal." The three generals replied in unison, but Zuo Liangyu's voice seemed weak. Fortunately, it was mixed in with the answers of the other two and did not seem so abrupt.
The soldiers of the death camp were supposed to rest on the spot according to the organizational structure. After giving the order, they were quickly assembled.
The three generals returned to Cao Wenzhao to resume their orders, and then followed Cao Wenzhao and accompanied the general to inspect the camps.
Cao Wenzhao was in front of the formation, looking at the military formation of more than 4,000 people. Many people's faces were unshaven and looked tired. Many soldiers' armors were also damaged, and they were no longer as bright as when they first left the fort.
Bright armor.
The death camp soldiers brought only a few firearms from the pass. At the beginning, the gunpowder was used up and became useless. Some of the weapons were damaged, so the weapons in their hands were replaced by those from the Mongols.
The weapons were seized.
Cao Wenzhao patrolled until he reached the formation, then he stopped and said loudly: "Comrades in the death camp, our last battle is about to begin. After this battle, I will take you back to the capital, officially
Become a member of Jingying."
In the voice of Cao Wenzhao's personal guards, his words reached the ears of every soldier in the death camp. Of course, those who were watching in the distance did not hear it.
The entire death camp was like a pool of stagnant water. Suddenly a big stone was thrown in, causing waves.
Everyone's face, no matter what the purpose of coming to the grassland, showed an expression of surprise, excitement, and ecstasy. It was obvious to Cao Wenzhao that the entire death camp was like an old and infirm person.
Rejuvenated and full of vitality.
Cao Wenzhao waited for a while for all the soldiers in the death camp to digest what he said, and then he continued: "The last enemy we have to face is the biggest accomplice of Jianlu. There are several soldiers in the army alone.
There are as many as ten thousand people.”
Upon hearing this, the soldiers of the death camp gradually became quiet and their emotions returned to calm. They knew that this last battle would be the most dangerous battle since they came out of seclusion. After all, they only had more than 4,000 people and they had already fought.
My body has been tired for many days.
Cao Wenzhao's words continued to reach their ears from his personal guards, "Without the existence of these accomplices, Jianlu would not dare to invade the capital alone. We must give them a lesson before returning to the capital.
Let them know the price of invading the Ming Dynasty. Only by beating them severely can we return to the capital and give an explanation to the people of the Ming Dynasty, all the villagers who were harmed, and the emperor."
As Cao Wenzhao spoke, he observed the changes in the mood of the soldiers. When he talked about the strength of the enemy, he saw that some soldiers even showed a hint of fear. This was within his expectation.
He remained calm and continued his pre-war mobilization: "After this battle, we will return to the capital with a lot of loot and become a member of the capital camp. Our death camp is composed of soldiers from all sides.
The battalion has not only become one of the most relied-upon troops by the emperor, but also has a designation granted by the emperor that no one else has. I believe that when you return to Beijing in triumph, your former colleagues will envy and look up to you."
Listening to Cao Wenzhao's words, the soldiers of the death camp thought of their former comrades. What would their expressions be like if they heard the news about themselves? As they thought about it, many of them had proud smiles on their faces.
"However, if we don't have a good record outside the Great Wall and just attack those small tribes, they will be dissatisfied, they will make sarcastic remarks, and they will think that they will come to the grassland to take a look at our death camp.
Because if we can do it, they can do it too. Do we allow this to happen?"
When Cao Wenzhao said this, he looked around at the soldiers of the death camp in front of him and said no more.
The soldiers in the death camp all showed angry expressions. They were determined to die before leaving the fortress. If some people see that they have made huge gains, they want to follow suit and come to the grassland for a walk.
Just come to grab the spot in the death camp, do you agree?
"Not allowed!" A shout rang out, which surprised Cao Wenzhao slightly, because the voice came from Zuo Liangyu behind him.
Immediately afterwards, the voices of "not allowed" began to sound one after another among the soldiers, and slowly all the soldiers shouted "not allowed".
Cao Wenzhao signaled silence with his hand, and when it was about time, he said loudly: "Okay, we will never allow this to happen. We were the ones who stood up and responded to the emperor's call. The honor should only belong to us. Now there is one
God-given opportunity has given us an opportunity to make great achievements and make great achievements that others cannot do."
When the soldiers of the death camp heard this, they all looked attentively and listened carefully to Cao Wenzhao's next words, not knowing what kind of God-given opportunity it was.
Cao Wenzhao did not let them wait long, and told them: "The biggest accomplice of the Jianlu, our enemies not far away, suddenly sent their troops out of their home base and headed southwest and northwest.
There are only a few troops guarding their sweat tents. This is the people of the Ming Dynasty who were harmed by them protecting us, asking us to avenge them and teach the Horqin people a harsh lesson."
When the soldiers of the death camp heard this, they all breathed a sigh of relief. There were not as many enemies in front of them as they had initially imagined. When the death camp was about to attack them, they sent their own troops out. Could it be that the capital of heaven really was
If you don't tolerate these robbers, make these robbers pay their price?
When thinking of this, all the soldiers began to show their fierce fighting spirit. If you don't seize such a good opportunity, you would be a fool.
When Cao Wenzhao saw that his morale was high again, he felt happy and announced: "Everyone, have a good rest and wait until we set out tonight to give the Tatars a hard blow in their sleep!"
Cao Wenzhao understood that there were many variables in the victory of the war. What he did was to seize the opportunity of victory as much as possible, whether it was fighter opportunities or morale. As for the outcome, it depends on God's will.