Chapter Eighteen: Complete Victory

  A few miles ahead, in a thicket of wormwood grass.

  Yi Bilong was startled by the sudden loud noise and asked in surprise: "What's going on? What do these Southern Ming barbarians want to do?"

  Ta Zhan raised his head and looked at the sky, saying in a low voice: "Erbu Long, we can't wait any longer!"

  "Alright." Ertai nodded and said in a deep voice, "I'll lead 1,000 cavalry to launch a frontal attack, first break through the Southern Ming barbarians, you lead the remaining 1,000 cavalry to encircle from both wings, this time we must annihilate these Ming troops completely!"

  "Alright." Tao Zhan said in a low voice, "Let's do it this way."

  Two thousand Mongolian cavalry emerged from the dense thistle thickets like ghosts, sweeping towards the Ming army that was waiting in formation.

  Tavan and Abutai, although seasoned veterans, had become extremely contemptuous of the Ming army due to their long string of victories. This contempt led them to make the decision to divide their troops into three routes, using only a thousand cavalrymen to launch a frontal assault!

  ■■■

  "General, look quickly!" a sharp-eyed house servant suddenly shouted loudly, "Cavalry! Jianluo cavalry!"

  "Huh?"

  Wang Pu followed the direction of his family's servant's pointing finger and indeed saw that the dark horizon had already emerged with a starry, twinkling glow. Under the light, a large group of Jianluo cavalry rushed over like a tide, and in an instant, the sound of galloping hooves shook the sky and earth, like thunder rolling from the edge of the sky, making people's hearts tremble with fear!

  The family soldiers under Wang Pu's command were all seasoned veterans of a hundred battles, but they too changed color.

  Wang Pu's face also changed, Jian Nu is really formidable!

  Zhen Youcai's trick of creating a diversion and the linked poisonous plan surprisingly failed to deceive Jian Nu, but instead was turned around by Jian Nu who designed a counter-plan. If it weren't for Wang Pu having an unusually keen sense of smell for danger on the battlefield, nearly a thousand soldiers would have fallen into Jian Nu's ambush, which would have led to their complete destruction.

  "Oh my god, Jian Nu didn't fall for it."

  Zhen Youcai, who was originally standing behind Wang Kuo, escaped into the circular defense array like a rabbit and hid under the horse's belly.

  Scarface licked his lips, the scar across his face looked particularly ferocious and terrifying in the firelight. Scarface took two steps forward and said to Wang Pu: "General, there are at least 2,000 Jinanu cavalrymen, over a thousand in the front, and four or five hundred on each flank. It looks like they're trying to wipe us out."

  "What a big appetite you have, Jian Nu! Aren't you afraid of cracking your teeth?" Wang Pu sneered.

  Scarface said in a low voice: "General, I'll take 200 brothers to tie up the Jianlu cavalry in front. You lead the rest of the brothers and hurry away."

  Wang Pu said in a low voice: "Run? Can you outrun Jian Nu?"

  Scarface said: "That's better than waiting for death."

  "Waiting for death?" Wang Pu sneered, "Who will live and who will die is still uncertain, hum!"

  "General!" Scarface exclaimed urgently.

  Wang Pu was not moved at all, and walked to the front of the 600-strong Ding family's formation, shouting loudly: "All brothers listen up! The Jianlu cavalry has arrived, it's too late to escape now. If you want to survive, you must fight with your lives! Everyone remember what General Ben said just now, calm down, you must calm down, this little trick of the Jianlu is nothing!"

  Thousands of Jin slaves cavalry were approaching like a whirlwind, with flames flying and hooves sounding like thunder. Wang Pu stood with his back to the Jin slaves cavalry, his expression solemn, standing firm as a mountain. Whether in modern or ancient times, the law of survival on the battlefield is always the same: when narrow roads meet, the brave win; the more afraid of death, the faster they die; if you want to survive, you must fight for your life!

  "On your mark, get set..."

  In Wang Pu's stern and severe roar, the first team of household troops raised their firearms in unison and aimed at the Jinluo cavalry rushing forward.

  An officer is always the best example for soldiers, Wang Pu's action of standing at the forefront of the battlefield has thoroughly inspired these soldiers, even the general is not afraid to die, what do these bodyguards have to fear?

  In the deafening sound of iron hooves, the sinister figure of Jian Nu cavalry was already vaguely visible. Some Jian Nu cavalrymen holding strong bows had begun to shoot randomly at the sky, and sharp arrows were constantly whizzing down from the sky. One arrow even brushed past Wang Pu's cheek, just a little bit away from piercing his head.

  Wang Pu's body was as still as a mountain, and he didn't even blink his eyes.

  Wang Pu knew that he couldn't afford to waver or retreat now. If he retreated, his men would only retreat faster, and they would end up like the Ming army at Songshan, defeated and slaughtered by the Jianzhou cavalry. Hold on, we must hold on! Although the Jianzhou arrows can kill people, the probability of being hit from such a distance is not high!

  "Oh no!"

  "Oh, damn it!"

  "Oh no, my foot..."

  More and more unlucky house slaves were shot by random arrows, falling to the ground in agony and wailing. Some timid house slaves began to get restless, but when they saw Wang Pu standing still at the front of the array, they quickly calmed down again.

  The Janissary cavalry charged forward with lightning speed.

  The first team of household troops who had already raised their guns and taken aim were so tense they almost suffocated, but Wang Pu still hesitated to give the order to fire.

  Rumble...

  In the deafening sound of horseshoes, the distance between the two armies was getting closer. At this time, almost all the Jianlu cavalry began to draw their bows and set up arrows, waiting for the distance to get a little closer before shooting arrows at the enemy. Just as they were about to do so, Wang Pu suddenly shouted: "First team, open fire!"

  The first row of family members felt relieved of their heavy burden and pressed down on the curved hook with force.

  "Boom!"

  A hundred fire lances lined up in a row suddenly burst into bright red flames under the night sky, and the Jianlu cavalry rushing at extreme speed instantly fell over, with dozens of horses and men falling into the blood pool. The following Jianlu cavalry was not affected at all, relying on their skilled riding skills to jump over their fallen companions and continue to charge forward wildly.

  These slave cavalrymen had no idea of the danger, thinking that the Ming army in front of them was no different from other Ming armies they had encountered before. In their impression, as long as they could withstand the first shot of the Ming army, victory would already belong to them, and then the Ming army would completely lose its resistance and become sheep to be slaughtered.

  Wang Pu was also not intimidated by the surging tide of Jin cavalry, calmly repeating the same order.

  "Second squad, ready... fire!"

  "Boom!"

  "Third squad, ready... fire!"

  "Boom!"

  "Fourth squad, ready... fire!"

  "Boom!"

  Under the pitch-black night sky, bright red flames kept flashing, followed by one wave after another of deafening thunderous sounds. The heavens shook and the earth trembled as row upon row of Jinuo cavalry fell to the ground. As they drew closer, the power of the Ming army's firearms grew stronger, with more and more Jinuo falling each time.

  By the time the sixth column was in position and ready to open fire, the 1,000 Janissaries who had charged from the front were more than half destroyed. The first to fall was Ibrahim Pasha himself, shot through the face by a bullet which knocked him off his horse. In the face of such heavy casualties, the Janissaries' psychological defenses finally collapsed and they lost their courage to continue charging forward; they turned their horses around and fled in disarray.

  The slaves are also human beings, they are also afraid of death and will run away!

  "Hmm..."

  Wang Pu let out a long sigh of relief, and the huge stone in his heart finally fell to the ground. These 600 Ding households did not disappoint Wang Pu, they withstood the cruel test of actual combat.

  "General, Jian Nu has been repelled!" Knife Scar Face rushed up like a madman, shouting loudly, "Jian Nu has really been repelled!"

  "Don't be too happy yet!" Wang Pu said coldly, "The enemy in front has been repelled, but the two wings are coming back quickly. Scarface, take teams 1, 2 and 3 to the left to block them. Did you learn from the previous formation shooting?"

  "I've learned it." Scarface said eagerly, "The left side is mine, Squad 1, Squad 2, Squad 3, follow me!"

  ■■■

  Shengjing

  The fire at the imperial palace and the residence of Prince Bao is still raging, and Emperor Taizong, looking somber, arrives at the Daqing Gate with his guards. The gate is now a ruin, reduced to rubble and ashes, its former grandeur and majesty gone. Behind the gate, not far away, is the Chongzheng Hall, which has been burned down halfway, and the remaining half is on the verge of collapse in the raging fire.

  It can be imagined that after the great fire, Shengjing will definitely become a ruin.

  Hong Taiji let out a long sigh, watching as his father's and his own decades of hard work turned to ashes. How could he not be heartbroken? What made Hong Taiji even more distressed was that what had been destroyed this time was not just the prosperous capital city, but also the mighty military prestige that the Jurchen people had accumulated over several decades through hundreds of bloody battles large and small!

  This Ming army must not be allowed to return alive to Guannei, especially its commander!

  If this Ming army were to return alive to the interior, the Ming army would no longer be at a psychological disadvantage when facing the Qing army. They would no longer be timid and would regain the courage to fight a decisive battle against the Qing army. This would be a disaster for the Manchu people outside the pass, and Huang Taiji would not allow such a situation to arise.

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