Outside the valley, more than a thousand Tatar cavalry were crowded on the mountain road. Batu Monk stood on the mountain road with an excited smile on his face.
From the early morning pursuit to the present, thanks to the Ming Dynasty digging this mountain road for transporting grain and grass supplies for the Bianzhen Zhaibao Fortress, they were able to pursue on horseback, saving a lot of energy and time. However, the cavalry was not fast in pursuit on the mountain road.
, after all, the mountain road is narrow and rugged, and the weather is extremely hot, so it is very hard.
Batumengk's original estimate was that the Ming army's young emperor and his party must have fled south along the mountain road, and would never dare to stay in the mountains. Because that was their only way to escape. After escaping, the Ming army would definitely
He tried his best to escape south along the mountain road, so all he had to do was chase along the mountain road.
However, Batumengk also had a plan in mind. Of course, he did not want to go too deep into the hinterland of Ming Xuanfu Town. If he went too deep, it would be difficult for him to escape once he encountered a large number of Ming troops. So he set the pursuit distance
For fifty miles.
According to normal estimates, the little emperor of the Ming Dynasty and his party fled south on foot, and their speed must have been very slow. If they were given a night and half a day, they would only have escaped forty or fifty miles. Therefore, within a distance of fifty miles, the cavalry would definitely be able to pursue them.
Those who catch up with them. If they haven't caught up within fifty miles, there is no need to catch up.
Not long ago, they chased here and originally wanted to pursue directly. However, a soldier suddenly discovered a plume of green smoke coming from the valley to the west, which immediately attracted everyone's attention.
The small group of Tatar soldiers and horses sent out quickly sent back the news that Ming army soldiers and horses were found in the valley. It was the escaped Ming Dynasty young emperor and his party.
Upon hearing the news, Batu Munch couldn't help but laugh. The gloom and anger in his belly suddenly disappeared.
This group of Ming soldiers were so stupid. They thought they were fine after only escaping twenty or thirty miles. Did they think they would just give up? It would be fine if they just hid. Maybe it would be difficult for me to find them.
I thought they would continue to escape along the mountain road, and maybe they would really miss them. But they actually made a fire in the valley, and maybe roasted game. That was too much, and they were looking for death.
"Great Khan, all the Ming army is in the valley. You can enter from the north and south sides of the valley." Commander Qi Gemu came on horseback and sent the second wave of news.
"Okay! Qie Gemu, we will divide our troops into two groups and attack from the north and the south. Centurion Chaolu, lead a hundred brothers to occupy the hilltop in front of you to prevent them from climbing up the mountain and running up the mountain road. We will attack from three sides and leave them with no way to escape.
"Batu Munch gave the order loudly.
In the valley, after hearing the news of the arrival of the Tatars, there was a panic. Sharp bamboo whistles sounded, and the sleeping soldiers were awakened one after another, confused and frightened.
Liu Jin realized the seriousness of the problem and apologized to Zhang Yanling repeatedly.
"Master Marquis, we didn't expect this. We just wanted to get some food for the emperor. Master Marquis..."
Zhang Yanling had no time to deal with him and shouted loudly: "Wake up everyone and prepare to face the enemy immediately."
Zhang Yin shouted loudly, and the ignorant soldiers quickly woke up and got up to prepare for battle. Thirty gunners quickly loaded their ammunition and prepared to fight.
Chen Shiyi said loudly: "Master Hou, the terrain in this valley is not good, and we may be attacked from a flank. There are many Tatars, so I'm afraid they can't fight head-on."
Zhang Yanling shouted in a deep voice: "Of course you can't fight forcefully, you have to occupy the high ground and hold on."
Chen Shiyi said: "If the hillside to the east is not built, if it is close to the mountain road, the Tatars will definitely occupy it first."
Zhang Yanling asked: "What's the terrain like in the west?"
Chen Shi said, "There is a hill to the west, but the top of the hill is too small and the terrain is very gentle. I'm afraid I won't be able to hold it."
Zhang Yanling gritted his teeth and said: "We can't control that much anymore. We must seize the top of the west mountain immediately. If you stay in the valley, you will definitely die."
Chen Shi nodded and loudly agreed, and quickly issued the order. Zhang Yin also knew that this was the only way, and immediately led dozens of soldiers to rush to the hillside on the west side of the valley.
Zhu Houzhao's face turned pale and he stood in a daze under a big tree, as if he was in a daze.
Zhang Yanling walked over and said in a deep voice: "Your Majesty, we have to leave."
Zhu Houzhao said hoarsely: "Uncle, how many people from the Tatars have come?"
Zhang Yanling said: "About a thousand people, they are Batu Munch's people."
Zhu Houzhao sighed: "As expected, my uncle was right. He refused to give up. There are more than a thousand people...can we resist?"
Zhang Yanling said in a deep voice: "Your Majesty, just do what you want and don't ask about the outcome. At this moment, you can only fight to the death to kill the enemy. Don't think too much."
Zhu Houzhao nodded slowly and said: "I understand. Let's go!"
Soon after, everyone occupied the hill to the west. It was indeed a hill, but the terrain was very gentle. It was just a small highland on the side of the valley. There was originally a higher mountain to the west, but it was a pity that the mountain stood on a cliff.
, there is no way to go. This hillock is actually part of the valley. Strictly speaking, it is just a highland in the valley.
Perhaps it is a hillock formed by alluvial erosion caused by flash floods. The gravel on the top is exposed, there are few trees, and it is all relatively loose sand. The entire hillside is only fifty or sixty paces in radius, and it is a bit steep near the west. It should have been formed after being washed away by the water flow.
There is a deep ravine on the side. The other three sides are gentle hillsides formed after the soil collapsed.
The entire hillside is like a huge tomb, and it is a collapsed tomb. The overall height is only 10 feet. Because the slope is gentle, there is almost no danger.
However, this is a commanding point after all. There are a few huge rocks about ten feet in diameter on the top of the hillside, which may have been loosened by floods and rolled down from the top of the cliff on the west.
As soon as everyone climbed to the top of the slope, Tatar soldiers and horses poured in from the north and south sides of the valley below. The sound of horns resounded through the mountains and forests, and the sound of horse hooves shattered the peace.
"The gunmen will defend on three sides, and the rest will build simple fortifications to prevent the Tatars from firing arrows." Zhang Yin ordered loudly.
The soldiers took action immediately and began to build simple fortifications with gravel and dig sand trenches with swords and shields.
Zhang Yanling settled Zhu Houzhao and others behind the big stone. When he turned around, he saw Zhao Yuancheng standing behind him, seemingly hesitant to speak.
Zhao Yuancheng whispered: "Master Hou, there is something I have always wanted to report, but I am afraid it will not be good to say it."
Zhang Yanling said: "What's the matter? Just say it. Say goodbye to mother-in-law and mother-in-law. Time is urgent."
Zhao Yuancheng nodded and said: "Okay. Mr. Hou, we are out of ammunition."
Zhang Yanling was stunned and quickly asked: "How many are left?"
Zhao Yuancheng said: "Before entering the valley, I asked them to count and found that each person had less than twenty rounds of ammunition left."
Zhang Yanling's heart trembled, and his brows furrowed. In fact, when he broke out last night, Zhang Yanling knew that there was insufficient ammunition. This time, as the emperor went on patrol, Zhang Yanling did not expect to encounter a large-scale attack by the Tatars.
Each of the guards only carried more than two hundred paper-packed ammunition. Logically speaking, this much ammunition is enough, and it was also filled with several ammunition pouches on the waists of the gunners.
However, after countless days of fierce fighting, the amount of ammunition is obviously insufficient. At present, each person has less than twenty paper-packed bullets left, which is indeed a serious problem. The main reason is that the bows and arrows have been exhausted, and the only long-range strike method now is
Bird gun, if the bird gun runs out of ammunition, then we can only fight hand to hand.
"Tell brothers, you must save ammunition and cannot use it randomly. From now on, you must aim and shoot. Try to kill a Tatar with every round of ammunition. If you run out of ammunition, it doesn't matter. Just put on the bayonet and fight hand-to-hand."
Zhang Yanling said in a deep voice.
Zhao Yuancheng nodded slowly and said, "Okay, I'll tell the brothers right now. At worst, I'll have to fight with them."
Zhao Yuancheng turned around and walked away, but Zhang Yanling stopped him and said: "Brother Yuancheng, it's a safe idea. We all have to go back alive. Otherwise Axiu will be sad."
Zhao Yuancheng nodded and said with a smile: "I know. I'm fine. I have a son. But Mr. Hou can't be fine. Axiu still wants to give you a fat son, and I haven't become an uncle yet."
Zhang Yanling laughed and said: "After returning to the capital, I went to Guanyin Temple with her to beg for a child. Axiu begged me several times, but I didn't have time to accompany her."
Zhao Yuancheng smiled and nodded and walked away.
Below the hillock, Tatar soldiers and horses slowly approached, filling the grassland at the foot of the hilltop. Some Tatar soldiers had already begun to cut down trees, and it seemed that they were going to make wooden rafts to protect against arrows and bird cannons.
Batu Monk rode his horse slowly to the bottom of the slope, surrounded by more than a dozen Tatar cavalry with shields to protect him. Even so, Batu Monk reined in his horse and stood still two hundred steps away.
"Hahahahaha, you want to escape? Even if you run to the end of the world, you can't escape from the palm of my hand, Batu Munch. You can't escape even with your wings. Give up your resistance, why bother forcing me to kill you. The little emperor of the Ming Dynasty,
Surrender obediently and I will not make things difficult for you."
Batu Munch was full of energy, and even though he was two hundred steps away, his voice was still clearly carried by the wind to the ears of everyone on the mountain.
Zhang Yanling looked at Batu Monk from a high place and laughed loudly: "Batu Monk, are you still bragging? More than 20,000 troops surrounded us from the north and south, and our strength was six or seven times more than ours. What was the result? There were over 10,000 casualties and a complete defeat.
.You still have the nerve to make noise here? Is this the great hero of the Tatars, Dayan Khan? It seems that you Tatars are all blind. He is obviously a pustule, but he says he is a great hero. Hahahaha."
Zhang Yanling was condescending, and his voice carried far away, and the Tatars could hear it clearly. Especially after he finished speaking, the Ming army on the mountain burst into loud laughter, which was even more harsh.
Batu Munch's face turned cold and he cursed angrily: "You are just laughing at those who don't know whether to live or die. I will take you and cut off your heads one by one, take out your intestines and feed them to the dogs to see if you can survive."
Can you laugh out loud? What does victory or defeat mean in a moment? You guys haven't yet
Is this the end of the road? One last piece of advice to you, don’t lose your mind and lose your life. The little emperor of the Ming Dynasty has only one life. If you die, you will lose everything. If you die, your country will belong to others. You are willing to do this
Are you going to die here? Think about it. Don’t be confused."
Before Zhang Yanling could reply, he heard Zhu Houzhao shouting loudly from behind: "Little Tatar prince, don't waste your efforts. I'm not afraid of death. As the leader of the Ming Dynasty, how can I be forced by you Tatar barbarians? I won't care.
If I die here today, I, the Ming Dynasty, will still be the Ming Dynasty, I will still have a new emperor, I will still be the Zhu family, and I will still be the insurmountable mountain for you Tatars. Don’t threaten me with matters of life and death. I am not afraid of you.”
Zhang Yanling turned around and saw Zhu Houzhao standing beside him at some point. Although his young face was pale, he had a determined expression.
"Your Majesty said well!" Zhang Yanling praised in a deep voice.
Zhu Houzhao nodded slightly and said softly: "How can I be humiliated by the Tatars? I am not ashamed of my ancestors of the Ming Dynasty."
Batu Meng heard this clearly, sneered several times, and said no more. There was no communication between the top and bottom of the mountain. On the mountain, the soldiers gathered to build simple fortifications. In the valley, the Tatar soldiers quickly built simple wooden rafts. Both sides were busy.
Preparing for the upcoming battle.
At noon, the hot sun shines down directly, and the steam rises and falls on the mountain. The air seems to be burning, and it is so hot that people can't breathe.
At this moment, the trumpet sounded. The Tatar attack began.