Before the Xuanfu generals arrived to join forces, Zhu Houzhao followed Wang Yuan's suggestion and led his army to Datong Mansion to garrison.
Except for Wang Yuan and the emperor, all other internal and external generals opposed this move!
Because there were only more than 30,000 regular soldiers around Zhu Houzhao at this time, and the rest were all civilians and miscellaneous soldiers. He had been hiding in Yanghe, waiting for the Xuanfu border troops to come to join forces, and then go south together. It would be safer.
The Mongolian cavalry once appeared in Huairou, not far from Datong Mansion. What if the emperor ran into them in the past?
On the night of arriving at Datong Mansion, Jiang Bin took the initiative to communicate with Wang Yuan privately, and he spoke heart-to-heart: "Governor Wang, you and I may have had a rift in the past. But now the Tatar army is marching south, and the emperor is patrolling the border areas.
, there must not be any mistakes, we should work together."
Wang Yuan smiled and said: "I know this truth better than you. I just hope that when we are facing battle, you generals will not be greedy for life and afraid of death."
Jiang Bin asked: "Then why did you ask the emperor to move to Datong Mansion in advance before the Xuanfu army arrived?"
"The city of Datong Prefecture is very tall. Even if Your Majesty is besieged in the city, can the Mongols break the city wall with their heads?" Wang Yuan asked.
Jiang Bin said: "Things on the battlefield cannot be discussed with common sense. If the Tatars really besiege Datong Mansion, who knows if there are spies in the city? What if someone opens the door to offer the city?"
Wang Yuan was so angry that he laughed: "Your Majesty is marching in person. You and I are guarding a city with 30,000 troops. How can we defend a city and be forced to open the city gate? If this happens, I will hack you to death first and then commit suicide."
It would be a shame to survive!"
"I'm not afraid of 10,000, I'm just afraid of the worst," Jiang Bin sighed, "Besides, I'm afraid that the emperor will make a mistake again. If the emperor can honestly stay in the city, I won't be afraid. What if he wants to take the initiative to go out of the city to look for enemies? Wang
Can the Governor still persuade me?"
Wang Yuan remained silent, unable to refute.
In this war, the emperor is the biggest variable, and no one can guess what his next military order will be.
Jiang Bin said: "Governor Wang, let's make an agreement. Before the Xuanfu army comes to join forces, the emperor's chariot is not allowed to move forward even half a step. Once the emperor behaves mischievously, even if he contradicts him face to face, he must be forced to stay in Datong Mansion.
."
Wang Yuan thought for a while and said: "The military situation is changing rapidly. I suggest moving to Datong Mansion in advance. I hope that once a fighter plane is discovered, I can immediately go to respond. But what you said makes sense. Well, if there is any news from the front, Your Majesty must lead the way.
As the army marches south, I will lead all the cavalry as the vanguard to clear the way, and you will drag His Majesty back to Datong Mansion."
"Okay, it's a deal!" Jiang Bin finally felt relieved.
After these words were spoken, both parties felt very satisfied.
Jiang Bin felt that Wang Yuan was more reasonable than ordinary civil servants and would not mess around at critical moments; Wang Yuan felt that although Jiang Bin often ignored people's affairs, he was still very clear-headed.
Compared with the original historical events, the time of the Mongolian invasion has not changed, and the Mongolian march route has not changed.
However, there have been many changes in the Ming Dynasty!
Because of Wang Yuan's appearance, the rebellion of Liu Liu and Liu Qi was put down in advance, and Turpan no longer threatened the border. Therefore, Zhu Houzhao was able to patrol the north one year in advance, giving him an extra year to prepare, and to replenish the empty troops in the border towns in large quantities.
Not only did the level of drills of various units of the border army increase, but the number of soldiers also increased by 20 to 30%.
Wang Yuan still had 6,000 soldiers in his hands, and the Ming Dynasty's military strength on the battlefield was about 20,000 more than in history.
Moreover, Wang Yuan suggested moving to Datong Prefecture in advance. Once Wang Xun comes into contact with the main Mongolian force, Ming reinforcements can arrive on the battlefield three to five days in advance!
…
But it was said that Wang Xun and Zhang Min led their troops south and encountered two thousand Mongolian cavalry in a village.
"This must be the main force of Mongolia!" Zhang Xi said firmly.
Wang Xun immediately decided: "Yes, this must be the main force of Mongolia!"
Even if it’s not, it must be!
Neither Jiang Bin, Xu Tai, nor other border town generals, nor the eunuchs commanding the Beijing camp, ever thought of truly defeating the Mongolian army.
Because the Mongols were an all-cavalry team, although they were dispersed into numerous groups for looting, they sent out scouts anytime and anywhere. The Ming army was mainly infantry. Once a large force was dispatched, it would inevitably attract the attention of the Mongols.
How to fight this?
The Mongols took advantage when they had an advantage and ran away when there was danger. How could the Ming army capture the main force and defeat them?
Except for the emperor, the strategic goal of everyone is to eat a considerable amount of Mongolian troops, such as the two or three thousand Mongolian cavalry in front of them. Once the Mongols lose two to three thousand and the main force of the Ming Dynasty arrives, the little Mongol prince will inevitably lead
Run away with the loot.
When the time comes, when the emperor gets over the addiction to winning battles, he can publicize it as a great victory, and everyone, eunuchs and generals, can be promoted through meritorious service.
Zhu Houzhao wanted to fight a big war, but his generals only wanted to fight a small war. The emperor and his ministers could not urinate in the same pot.
As for Wang Yuan, he will fight big battles if he can, and small wars if he can. Everything depends on the situation on the battlefield.
"Array up!"
Wang Xun gave the order, and the officers and soldiers of Datong Mansion immediately formed their formation.
The deputy commander-in-chief Zhang Xi was a veteran general, and his grandson Zhang Yu had already served as a staff general. He commanded only a few thousand cavalry and was responsible for sentinel work during marches and covering the flanks during battles.
"The thieves are running away!"
The two thousand Mongolian cavalry did not engage in the battle at all. When Wang Xun formed the formation, they immediately turned around and fled.
Zhang Min shouted to his grandson: "General Zhang, please keep the enemy here and don't engage in battle without permission."
Zhang Yu immediately gathered more than a thousand cavalry and chased two thousand Mongolian light cavalry. After chasing for a while, the Mongolian light cavalry suddenly came back and Zhang Yu quickly led his troops to retreat.
The two sides went back and forth, chasing each other for a long time. There was no fighting at all, they just fired a few arrows randomly.
Then, the Mongolian cavalry left, and the Datong Prefecture army could not catch up even if they wanted to.
Wang Xun and Zhang Xi continued to march forward, spreading out sentry cavalry along the way to avoid being surrounded by large groups of Mongolian cavalry. Soon they became very angry. The two thousand thieves cavalry they encountered before actually dispersed into countless plundering groups.
, did not pay attention to the Ming army at all.
For three consecutive days, the two sides fought countless times.
Only one of the Mongolian cavalry died, and it was because the horse lost its front hoof, fell and was seriously injured. Zhang Yu rushed up and chopped off his head. The Ming army cavalry also suffered several casualties. Some fell off the horse accidentally and were injured, and some were unlucky enough to be hit by arrows.
On the contrary, many people who were plundered were saved, and many trophies were seized, which were the property that the Mongolian cavalry took the initiative to abandon halfway in order to facilitate their escape.
"I feel something is wrong." Zhang Xi may not be good at fighting, but he knows the habits of the Mongols very well. "The Tatar thieves we have met these days seem to be taking the initiative to slow down and lead us to run south."
Wang Xun was also a veteran general, and he immediately realized: "I'm afraid there is really the main enemy force ahead, and they want to set up an ambush to lure us over."
Zhang Xi said: "Withdraw."
Wang Xun hesitated and said: "What should I do with His Majesty's military order?"
Zhang Xian blinked and said: "The general is outside, and the emperor's order is not accepted. Just say that the enemy's main force is found in the west, so we will head west. We can't knowingly know that there is an ambush ahead, and we should stupidly run into it."
Wang Xun thought for a while: "That's all."
"Report!"
Suddenly, the sentry horse rushed back, bringing with him an officer and soldier from Yingzhou City.
The Yingzhou officers and soldiers dismounted from their horses, knelt on one knee and said: "Commander Wang, the main force of bandits is besieging Yingzhou and seems to want to attack the city. Please go to the rescue quickly, Commander-in-Chief!"
"I know." Wang Xun waved him down.
Zhang Xi said with an ugly face: "How can the Mongols attack the city? They want to besiege the city and bring reinforcements!"
Wang Xun also had a headache: "Then what should we do? Your Majesty asked us to find the main force of the enemy and hold it back. We could fool them easily before, but now Yingzhou is surrounded. If we don't rescue, we will be impeached by the civil servants of Yingzhou.
, and secondly, it is tantamount to disobeying His Majesty’s military orders.”
Zhang Shi suggested: "Let's advance slowly, and immediately send someone to report to Your Majesty, saying that the main force of the rebel army is attacking Yingzhou."