I

The Manchu and Qing positions in the west of the city were garrisoned by Daishan's Zhenghong Banner and part of Jierhalang's Xianglan Banner. The rest were the Eight Banners of Mongolia and the Eight Banners of the Han Army.

Daishan was old and didn't sleep very deeply. When he heard the sound, he immediately went out to check.

Jirharang rode up in person and said to Daishan: "The Nanman raided the forts along the river. All the forts there were lost, and the Wuzhenchaoha camp near the fort was also destroyed."

"How many enemy troops are there?" Daishan asked.

Jirhalang said: "It's not clear yet, but it shouldn't be many, otherwise the enemy would have killed them long ago."

Daishan said: "Organize a counterattack immediately and drive those Nanmanzi into the sea!"

The two men ordered more than 10,000 horse and infantry troops, brought out the siege artillery, and headed in the direction of Lu Xiangsheng and Xiao Zongxian.

Although the Manchu siege artillery was protected by earthen walls, more than 20 of them were successively destroyed by the Datong Army. More than 20 artillery pieces in the forts along the river were also captured by Lu Xiangsheng and Xiao Zongxian in a surprise attack, which equaled the loss of about 50 pieces.

The remaining more than 130 artillery pieces are scattered on the east, west and north sides of Gaizhou City. Only 40 cannons can be used on the west side.

When the Manchu and Qing Eight Banners troops were withdrawn from their siege positions and assembled to attack westward, more than 4,000 follow-up reinforcements had arrived. One thousand of them were artillery. Fifty artillery pieces were moved from the ship and artillery positions were set up on the shore. The forwards led by Lu Xiangsheng and Xiao Zongxian also dragged over twenty captured cannons.

Prisoners such as Cao Zhenyan also worked hard. These surrendered Manchu artillerymen, in order to leave a good impression in front of the Datong Army, were very active in helping transport the artillery to the seaside.

Those who are not active are dead!

Before the third batch of reinforcements arrived, Li Dingguo and Wang Tingchen returned. They robbed all the way to the vicinity of Jinzhou, but Ningyuan and Jinzhou had heavy troops, and they almost suffered a loss when they plundered the population.

Seeing the Tatars pushing the cart forward, the two cavalrymen immediately turned into infantry to help defend the temporary position first.

Li Dingguo arranged the soldiers under his command and ran quickly to see Lu Xiangsheng and Xiao Zongxian: "The first division and the second division are attacking Shanhaiguan. The news has reached Fuzhou City. We are going back to Fuzhou first this time. Ningyuan of the Tatars , the soldiers of Jinzhou were delayed for several days by General Wang (Wang Tingchen) and I. In a few days, we lost more than 300 cavalry, but it also delayed the Tatars from rescuing Shanhaiguan for a few days. "

"Okay!" Lu Xiangsheng clapped his hands happily.

This was a military plan that had been planned long ago. Once the Manchu Qing attacked Gaizhou, Zhang Tieniu and Fei Ruhe would go to Shanhaiguan. They all went by boat. One set off from Dengzhou and landed east of Shanhaiguan. The other set off from Tianjin and landed west of Shanhaiguan. They attacked the defenders in Shanhaiguan from east to west.

As long as Shanhaiguan is captured, troops will be stationed there and hungry people will be recruited to farm in the pass, which will serve as another base for sending troops to Liaodong in the future.

This is a safe plan. You can also cross the sea and cooperate with Li Zheng and Xiao Zongxian. The four divisions will outflank Dorgon's retreat and directly defeat the elite Eight Banners army. However, the logistical pressure is too great. Once there is a storm, the entire army is very likely to go hungry. At this time, the Bohai Sea has entered a period of high storms. The navy only dares to sail along the coastline. Crossing the Bohai Sea is an extremely risky move to transport troops and food. All are high-risk behaviors.

Just when Daishan and Jierhalang were about to lead their troops to attack the reinforcements, a fast horse came from the north like crazy. The horse was so tired that it was foaming at the mouth.

"Your Highness, Shanhaiguan is being attacked from two sides, and Weiyuan Terrace was occupied by the Nanman a few days ago!" the messenger knelt down and said.

There was dead silence in the handsome tent.

Weiyuan Terrace, also called Weiyuan City, is about one kilometer east of Shanhaiguan. Historically, it was here that Wu Sangui surrendered and joined the Qing Dynasty as a pioneer in entering the country.

Some people say that Weiyuan Terrace was built by Wu Sangui. In fact, it existed as early as the early Ming Dynasty.

If the Manchu Qing wanted to attack Shanhaiguan, they had to attack Weiyuantai first. Moreover, there is a tunnel connecting Shanhaiguan and Weiyuan Terrace, which can transport troops unexpectedly.

Among the Datong army, there were obviously knowledgeable people who quickly raided and captured Weiyuan Terrace, and then blocked the troop transport channel.

As for Shanhaiguan City, there are 6,000 Eight Banners troops stationed there, as well as more than 10,000 family members of the Eight Banners troops.

The food in the city can only last for three or four months at most.

If the coats and civilians were killed and eaten, they would be able to survive for at most half a year. If Dorgon is still wasting his time with the Datong Army in Gaizhou, even if he captures the city, if he cannot seize a large amount of grain and grass, he will not be able to rescue Shanhaiguan.

Because to rescue Shanhaiguan, Weiyuan Tower must be captured first. The Datong Army only needs to defend this city to consume Dorgon's troops and supplies.

Destroy the city or save Shanhaiguan?

Dorgon felt his mouth go dry. He expected that Shanhaiguan would be attacked, but he did not expect to be attacked from both sides. This is different. Putting aside the offensive and defensive battles of Guancheng, the supply of grain and grass in Shanhaiguan is a big problem. The grain in Liaodong is blocked by Weiyuan Station and cannot be transported.

The Datong Army did not even need to attack, but just stationed troops in Weiyuan Terrace, and could starve the Eight Banners Army in Shanhaiguan to death!

"Convene nobles from all banners to discuss matters!" Dorgon could not make the decision on his own.

A war was about to break out in the west of the city, and all the carriages were pushed out. After receiving Dorgon's order, they could only temporarily withdraw and let Lu Xiangsheng's reinforcements gain a foothold on the seaside.

Jirhalang came angrily and asked, "I'm in the middle of a war, why are you summoned in such a hurry?"

Dorgon said: "Shanhaiguan was attacked from the east and west, and Weiyuan Terrace was raided and captured by the enemy."

Jierhalang said: "Weiyuantai is east of Shanhaiguan. The enemy has not captured Shanhaiguan. How can it be possible to capture Weiyuantai?"

"It must have come by boat." Daishan said out loud.

Dorgon nodded and said, "I came by boat."

Hauge walked to sit down next to Dorgon: "Gaizhou City is not easy to fight. Yesterday I had three favorite generals. Two of them died and one was crippled. If we continue to fight, they will all die."

Daishan said: "The fortifications in the west of the city are not stable. The Nanman reinforcements have pulled out the forts along the river, and the Wuzhenhachao camp outside the camp is gone. Once the siege continues, the enemy reinforcements will definitely attack the west side of our army. Ji and I will Erhalang’s position is very dangerous.”

Man Dahai suggested: "It's better to gather our troops and attack the enemy's reinforcements with all our strength."

Ji'erharang couldn't help but roll his eyes: "The enemy troops in Gaizhou City are not dead. Let's attack their reinforcements with all our strength. The defenders in the city will definitely look for opportunities to fight. Moreover, the reinforcement camp is on the seaside. Not only the reinforcements have artillery, but also the reinforcements The ships also have artillery. It was the best time to attack just now, but now it has been delayed. After the enemy has established a foothold, it will be almost as difficult to conquer the place as it is to attack the city."

Hauge said angrily: "Are we abandoning Gaizhou and rushing to rescue Shanhaiguan with our army? Aren't we tired of running for our lives and being led by the Nanman?"

Dorgon looked at Daishan: "What is the second brother's idea?"

Dai Shan sighed: "What other ideas do you have? Retreat immediately, divide the troops to guard Yaozhou and Haizhou, and prevent the enemies of Gaizhou from moving north. Then the main force will be stationed in Ningyuan and Jinzhou. After a month's rest, more grain and grass will be recruited, and then Shanhaiguan will be rescued. . You cannot go directly to Shanhaiguan, otherwise you will be defeated by the enemy waiting for work!"

Jierhalang also said: "Shanhaiguan cannot be lost. Once it is lost, we will be blocked in Liaodong again. And those southern barbarians, after taking Shanhaiguan, can farm in the next few years, and they can send troops at any time when they have enough food and grass. To At that time, both Ningyuan and Jinzhou are in danger, and with the enemy in Gaizhou, we will be attacked from both sides and become what we were more than ten years ago."

More than ten years ago, the Manchu Qing Dynasty was besieged on all sides. The Ming Dynasty, Mongolia, North Korea, and even the savage Jurchen tribe were all at war with the newly rising Manchu Qing Dynasty.

Moreover, the internal affairs of the Manchu Qing Dynasty were brought to a near collapse by Nurhaci. The shortage of food was such that they robbed the food of the Han people under his rule - each household paid as much food as they wanted, and if they couldn't hand over food, they would kill people.

After Nurhachi's death, Daishan could inherit the throne. But faced with the dilemma, Daishan knew that he could not shoulder the heavy responsibility, so he supported Huang Taiji's succession.

It was Huang Taiji who saved the Qing Dynasty and led the Qing Dynasty out of its predicament.

Once Shanhaiguan is lost, the Manchu Qing Dynasty will reappear in the predicament that Huang Taiji faced at the beginning of his succession. Dorgon is not Huang Taiji, he does not have the ability to lead the Qing Dynasty out of the quagmire!

After the leaders of the Eight Banners expressed their stance, Dorgon exhaled: "Withdraw troops!"

Gaizhou is not a public toilet. You can come and leave whenever you want.

With more than 30,000 comrades here, the Manchus had to pay a high price for withdrawing their troops.

That day, the remaining artillery pieces of the Manchu and Qing Dynasties poured shells frantically towards the city wall. Although the cannon casting technology in the early Qing Dynasty was much higher than that in the late Qing Dynasty, it had to be used sparingly in a short period of time, otherwise the life of the cannon would be greatly reduced.

The Manchus and Qing Dynasties were crazy. They didn't care about the life of the artillery. They continued to fire after cooling down a little, making no secret of their imminent withdrawal.

In addition to firing at Gaizhou City, they also opened fire at Lu Xiangsheng's camp on the seaside.

The bombardment lasted for three days, with several artillery guns exploding. At the same time, large groups of cavalry were sent to explore and clear the way to the north.

On the fourth day, Dorgon ordered: "Destroy all heavy artillery, destroy all carriages and ladders!"

The so-called heavy artillery of the Manchu and Qing Dynasties refers to artillery of more than 10 pounds. This kind of artillery can't be driven fast at all.

Then, Dorgon left a large number of civilians and a Wuzhenha Chao Battalion to block the pursuit of the Datong Army.

"The Tatars are really going to escape, prepare to leave the city to pursue them!" Hu Dinggui said on the tower, patting the railings left by the bombardment.

They didn't dare to pursue immediately, fearing that the Manchus were luring the enemy out of the city.

Seeing the Manchu and Qing troops break away, Li Yangxing, who stayed behind, was almost desperate. He was a soldier of Kong Youde, and he did well in the Manchu Qing Dynasty, but no matter how well he did, he became an outcast.

Dorgon had just summoned Li Yangxing in person: "Fight the war well and delay it as long as possible. I will take good care of your wife and children. Your eldest son will be given a hereditary title. Your youngest son will stay with me as a personal attendant." .”

How else could Li Yangxing choose?

Sacrificing one's life to stop the Datong Army can bring peace to one's wife and children, and can bring wealth to one's sons. If you dare to surrender on the battlefield, your whole family will die miserably, and after surrendering to the Datong Army, there will probably be no good fruits.

The frustrated Li Yangxing said to the Eight Banners of the Han Army under his command: "Kill the enemy and serve the country. Today, guard the camp!"

The morale of these Wu Zhen Chao soldiers is extremely low. Who the hell wants to die?