On the south bank of the Dushi River, Asbas, the general manager of thousands of households on the left wing of the Tatars and the commander-in-chief of the Duoyan tribe, led eight thousand troops and arrived in the pouring rain.
After conquering the Chicheng Great Wall Fortress in Longmensuo, Asbas quickly moved horizontally in accordance with Dayan Khan Batu Mengke's request, cut off the southward passage of Xuanfu's Upper and North Road, and tightened his pockets.
After that, Asbas left a small number of troops to guard Chicheng and some of the steep mountain passes on the east side to prevent the Ming army from Dushi City from escaping through the mountain trails. Although this was almost impossible. The road leading to Dushi City from the North Road was only
First, if the young emperor of the Ming Dynasty wanted to escape southward from the mountains, it would be tantamount to seeking death. However, out of caution, Asbas still sent troops to ensure that they would not escape from the mountains.
After two days and two nights of marching, Asbas's troops finally arrived near Monolith City. In the past two days, Asbasi had learned about the situation in Monolith City through Feiyu. He also knew about Batu Munch.
At the news of the start of the siege, Asbas was actually a little annoyed. Dayan Khan was eager to attack. Apparently he did not want the credit for capturing the young emperor of the Ming Dynasty to fall into his own hands. He did not want his reputation among the tribes in Monan to spread far and wide.
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In the final analysis, Batu Monk actually does not fully trust the commanders of the six left-wing tribes. Although the six commanders headed by himself have already sworn to surrender to him and obey his call. But in Batu Monk's heart,
The ones he trusted the most were the troops from his Chahar headquarters.
Although Asbath complained in his heart, he did not hesitate in action. After all, this was a big operation. Batu Munch mobilized a large number of troops to carry out this operation to capture the little emperor of the Ming Dynasty. He was determined to win. Whoever is bad
After he had done something wrong with him, Bi was severely punished by him afterwards.
Moreover, this is an action to capture the little emperor of the Ming Dynasty. The Ming Dynasty is the mortal enemy of all descendants of the Yuan Dynasty. No matter whether you are in Mobei or South, no matter which family or tribe you are from in the Yuan Dynasty, this is the consensus. Catch the Ming Dynasty.
Regarding the matter of making the little emperor, even without Dayan Khan's order, Asbasi would do his best.
However, when they arrived at the Dushi River, they were met with a downpour. The entire group was soaked to the skin and in a state of disarray.
Asbas was standing under a big tree on the hillside on the river bank to hide from the rain. At this moment, Chi Wen, the commander of the former army, climbed up with his legs covered in mud and loudly reported.
"Commander, it's over. We can't cross the river tonight. There is no bridge on the river."
Asbath frowned and said: "There is no bridge? Didn't you say there is a stone bridge?"
"There are only a few stone piers left. They must have been demolished by the Ming army in Dushi City to prevent us from crossing the river." Chi Wen said.
Asbath scolded: "The bastards want to use this method to prevent us from crossing the river, but I'm afraid they can't even think about it. The Monolith River is only about twenty feet wide, so we can just flow across it. Send the order and cross the river by crossing the river."
Chi Wen said: "Commander, I don't know the depth of this dark river. We are exhausted, why don't we stay overnight and rest. It won't be too late to cross the river tomorrow at dawn."
Aspa thought for a while, but also felt that crossing the river in such a hurry was indeed a bit reluctant. The soldiers and horses were really tired after traveling all the way. After crossing the Dushi River, they arrived at the foot of Dushi City, and then they began to attack the city. To discredit crossing the river was not only to
It is risky, and it is necessary to discredit and camp on the other side. The enemy situation in Dushi City is currently unknown. It would not be good if the Ming army came out to harass them.
So Asbath nodded and said: "Okay, let's send the order and the soldiers and horses will camp along the river bank. It seems like there is no way to light a fire tonight. Let's just find some shelter under the trees and rocks for the night."
Cross the river early tomorrow morning."
The order was passed on, and the eight thousand troops stopped along the slightly gentle river bank on the south bank and rested on the spot. Not to mention, the Tatars were quite good at making fires. In such heavy rain, they actually used tarpaulins to set up a fire.
He put up an awning, took out dry moss from the tree hole, found some dry branches, and lit up dozens of bonfires.
Gathering around the fire, the Tatars lay down on the spot and snored loudly in their sleep.
On the other side of the Monolith River, hundreds of people were also busy in the darkness. They cut down branches, packed mud and rocks with straw and built more than a dozen fortifications in the rain. Rather than talking about fortifications, they were more like bunkers with earthen fences. A
A round three-foot-square earth fence was covered with branches to camouflage it. A long shooting hole was opened in the earth fence facing the river.
Zhang Yanling and Zhu Houzhao stood in the rain wearing raincoats, looking through the rain curtain at the bonfires on the other side.
"The Tatars have arrived, and they seem to be in large numbers." Zhu Houzhao looked at the shadowy figures of the Tatar soldiers and horses on the other side and said softly.
Zhang Yanling nodded and said: "Good time, good time."
Zhu Houzhao looked at Zhang Yanling in surprise and said, "A good time?"
Zhang Yanling smiled and said: "Yes, they came under heavy rain. And they actually don't swim across the river all night now. They won't be able to cross the river tomorrow morning."
Zhu Houzhao was stunned and suddenly said: "Uncle, are you saying that the water in the river will surge tomorrow morning? They will not be able to cross?"
Zhang Yanling smiled and said: "Exactly. This rain came just in time. Half a day earlier, my plan of attacking with fire would have been impossible. But now, it will become an obstacle for the Tatars to cross the river. Isn't this God's will?"
Liu Jin on the side sighed: "That's true. Your Majesty is truly blessed by heaven."
Usually when Liu Jin said this, it was somewhat flattering. But when Liu Jin said this today, even Zhang Yanling didn't think it was flattering. All of this can be attributed to luck, but perhaps there is indeed God's blessing in the dark.
"With such a heavy rain, the surrounding rainwater has gathered in the Dushi River. The river water is already rising at this moment. Tomorrow morning, the river will probably be much wider and deeper. Originally, if they forced the crossing tonight, we would have no choice but to
Retreat to the city, because the river is not deep enough at the moment, and they can rush over. But tomorrow morning, it will be another matter." Zhang Yanling said solemnly.
Zhu Houzhao said happily: "Does that mean that they will be blocked on the other side? They will not be able to cross at all?"
Zhang Yanling shook his head and said: "No, they will definitely force the crossing. After a heavy rain, it will take at least a day or two for the river water to fall back, and they can't afford to wait. We are counting the days on our fingers now, and they are also racing against time. Because they know,
Reinforcements are coming, they can't afford it."
Zhu Houzhao nodded and said: "What my uncle said is absolutely true. But if they force their way tomorrow, how will we deal with it? We have to send more people to defend here."
Zhang Yanling smiled and said: "Your Majesty, how many manpower are there? There are only more than a thousand capable soldiers in the city. Once we mobilize them, what will happen to the little Tartar prince's attack? The defensive force in the city must be sufficient."
Zhu Houzhao frowned and said: "Didn't you say that after today's battle, the Tatars outside Beicheng will be unable to attack?"
Zhang Yanling said: "The inability to attack does not mean that he does not attack. Because he has to launch an attack and he has no other choice. If the Tatars coming from the south are blocked from crossing the river, how can Batu Munch sit idly by? He must contain the soldiers and horses defending the city. No.
Let our soldiers and horses go out of the city to block the Tatars crossing the river. I think that he will attack at all costs. Even if his morale is as low as the valley at this moment, he will launch an attack."
Zhu Houzhao nodded and said: "That's the truth. But how many people do you plan to send to defend here?"
Zhang Yanling said in a deep voice: "Fifty people."
Zhu Houzhao said in shock: "Fifty people? How can we stop them?"
Zhang Yanling said: "You can't stop them, but you can hinder them and kill them. The delay is a moment, and killing a person is a person. The Tatars can cross the river, but the city cannot be lost. Therefore, the soldiers and horses in the city cannot be mobilized.
We must ensure that we defend the city. Your Majesty, tomorrow you and Zhang Yin will defend the city in the city. I and my fifty personal guards will be here to stop the enemy."
The rain was pouring and noisy. Zhu Houzhao stood there silently.
"Uncle, I will be here with you to stop the enemy tomorrow. I will also bring a hundred guards with me. One hundred and fifty people should be able to delay the blocking for a longer time." Zhu Houzhao said.
"Your Majesty..." Zhang Yanling shouted.
"No need to say it, I have decided." Zhu Houzhao waved his hand.
Zhang Yanling said no more. After thinking about it, he reached out and took off the leather sheath around his waist and handed it to Zhu Houzhao.
"What is this?" Zhu Houzhao asked in surprise.
Zhang Yanling reached out and opened his leather sheath, pulled out a double-barreled short-barreled bird gun, handed it to Zhu Houzhao and said: "This is a double-barreled shotgun for my personal use. It is very powerful. Since the emperor is determined to kill the enemy, I will present this to you."
Give it to your Majesty. Your Majesty may also have a handy firearm to kill enemies. I will tell the Pope how to use it. This firearm is most useful for killing enemies."
Zhu Houzhao looked at this exquisite firearm with a unique shape in the dim light, and said with a smile: "So you still have such a treasure with you. I took your fire gun, wouldn't it be to win people's love?"
Zhang Yanling said with a smile: "This is indeed specially made for me by a woman I like. I will ask her to make another one for me later. This bento is for me to fulfill my promise yesterday and give it to the emperor."
Zhu Houzhao smiled and said: "Okay, you're welcome. This firearm is really beautifully made and must have cost a lot of money."
Zhang Yanling said: "Three thousand taels."
Zhu Houzhao stuck out his tongue and said: "Uncle is really very generous. He spent three thousand taels of silver to build such a plaything."
Zhang Yanling said: "If you can kill Tatars, let alone three thousand taels, it's worth thirty thousand taels. This blunderbuss killed no less than twenty Tatars at the top of the city today. It's already enough."
Zhu Houzhao laughed and said: "That's right. It can kill Tatars, no matter how much money you spend, it is worth it. I will use it to kill a hundred Tatars."
Zhang Yanling nodded and smiled: "One hundred? I will count them for the emperor tomorrow."
Zhu Houzhao smiled and said: "Are you serious? I'm just bragging. But even if I can only kill one, I will be happy. The important thing is that I can no longer stand by and watch. I have to kill the enemy with my own hands. This is the right thing to do.