Chapter 55: The Final Battle of Maqin

  "Yes, Admiral, I will immediately dispatch someone to Lanzhou to report this matter to the Governor-General!" Zhou He said. As a Han Chinese, he still had a deeply rooted loyalist ideology in his heart. Although this monarch was not a Han Chinese monarch, after more than 200 years of Manchu rule, most Han Chinese had probably long since regarded them as their true rulers and forgotten their original identity as an alien people. Zhou He was such a scholar, deeply poisoned by feudal thought, still with the idea of imperial power above all else in his mind. Although the Qingma Army and the Ma Family Army were merely dependent on the court's separatist forces, Yang Changjun, the Governor-General of Shaanxi and Gansu, could only control Lanzhou City at most. However, Zhou He still regarded him as the highest military and political leader in the entire Shaanxi-Gansu region.

  "This is not the time to be busy, now we need to come up with a strategy on how to deal with the Western Sichuan Army. This time the Western Sichuan Army has launched a large-scale invasion, and they are so well-prepared, it's definitely not going to be easy for them to retreat!" Ma Haiyan's face was as black as the bottom of a pot.

  "Governor, do they really think they can swallow our Qinghai and Gansu whole? Our Ma family army has over a million elite troops! Can they digest it? Aren't they afraid of bursting their belly?" Gu Hongyun said with a furious face.

  "It's possible that they really have such thoughts this time!" Zhou He said. For more than a decade, the Sichuan Army and the Qing court had been at peace, during which time the Sichuan regime had long since stabilized and accumulated enough powerful strength. One mountain cannot accommodate two tigers, and there must be a decisive battle between Sichuan and the Qing court. It is clear that Sichuan seems to have taken Ma's army as a breakthrough. This is not surprising, as Ma's army of 100,000 elite troops were all cavalry, and in this era, cavalry was undoubtedly the most excellent mobile force. If Ma's army attacked the rear of the Sichuan Army during the battle between the Sichuan Army and the Qing court, the Sichuan Army would be unable to resist. Therefore, the Sichuan Army planned to take the initiative and solve the problem of Ma's army first.

  "Your Excellency, since the Western Sichuan Army wants to swallow us up, let's fight them to the death! Your Excellency, please allow me to lead the army out of the city and rescue the garrison at Yushu. Let's have a decisive battle with the Western Sichuan Army on the grasslands!" Gu Hongyun knelt down and begged. Until now, he was still worried about his younger brother Gu Hongtao's safety, not knowing that Gu Hongtao had already been killed by the Qing army.

  "Hong Yun, get up. Now is not the time to be impulsive. The Sichuan army's momentum is strong, if we recklessly send troops out, it's very likely that we'll be defeated by the Sichuan army. At that time, defending Qinghai will become even more difficult!" Ma Haiyan didn't act impulsively and listened to Gu Hongyun's opinion. He had aged and was no longer as impulsive as he was in his youth, and he considered problems more comprehensively.

  "This time, the Western Sichuan Army is launching a large-scale invasion. For our Qinghai Ma Family Army and even the entire Ma Family Army, it's a life-and-death battle. We must defeat the Western Sichuan Army to protect Qinghai and our foundation. Therefore, resisting the Western Sichuan Army is not just a matter for our Qinghai Ma Family Army alone. Send someone to inform the Hezhou Ma Family Army and Ningxia Ma Family Army that it's now a matter of life and death, and we need everyone to work together to resist the Western Sichuan Army!" said Ma Haiyan.

  "Yes, Admiral, I will personally go to Hezhou later to meet with Admiral Ma Anliang," said Zhou He.

  "In addition, we must counterattack and cannot let the Western Sichuan Army attack at will. Our advantage lies in mobility and offense. The soldiers of the Qingma Army are not used to defending cities. The Western Sichuan Army has strong firepower, and if they use their big guns to attack the city, we can't defend it at all! Therefore, as long as we actively take the initiative to attack and thoroughly eliminate them in a field battle, we may have a chance to win!" Ma Haiyan said loudly.

  "Admiral, you are wise!" Zhou He and Gu Hongyun hastily said.

  "Your Excellency, with the strength of the Western Sichuan Army, I'm afraid that by the time reinforcements arrive, Yushu will have already fallen. Therefore, I think we should not rescue Yushu, but instead concentrate our limited troops and join forces with the Hezhou Ma Family Army and the Ningma Army to annihilate the Western Sichuan Army in one fell swoop!" Zhou He suggested.

  Gu Hongyun opened his mouth, but still didn't say much. Although he was worried about his brother's safety, he also knew that sending troops to rescue Yushu in this situation was impossible. The Qingma Army had already suffered heavy losses, and Ma Haiyan would not agree to divide the army again, which would only waste their limited strength.

  "Do you have any good advice?" asked Ma Haiyan.

  "Your Excellency, after General Kansai's army takes down Yushu, the next direction of attack will definitely be Maqin. We have ten battalions there, with tens of thousands of elite troops. If we can take Maqin, we'll lose half our forces. Therefore, I think we should order the garrison at Maqin to hold their ground and drag down General Qingma's army. This way, we'll have enough time to redeploy our forces, use Maqin as the final battleground, and defeat General Kansai's army in one battle, completely crushing their ambition to annex us!" Zhou He said.

  "Decisive battle at Maqin?" Ma Haiyan muttered to himself, standing up and stopping in front of the Qinghai map hanging on the wall. If they were to engage in a decisive battle at Maqin, the Qing army would have to use all its strength. After this all-out effort, whether they would win or lose was hard to say. "I hope Allah will protect his people!" Ma Haiyan closed his eyes and muttered to himself, then opened them again, as if he had made a final decision.

  "Alright, the Xikang army wants to fight, then we will have a decisive battle with them. With Maiqin as the center, we will thoroughly defeat them on the grassland. Order the garrison of Maiqin to hold their ground and wait for reinforcements, do not engage in battle with the Xikang army without permission before the main force arrives. Order the garrison of Xining, except for the 3rd and 4th battalions that will stay behind to guard Xining, the remaining 1st, 2nd, 10th, 11th, 13th, 14th, 16th, 18th, 22nd, 24th, 25th, 26th, 27th, 28th, 29th and 30th battalions to prepare to depart immediately, tomorrow they will set out for Maiqin to prepare for the decisive battle with the Xikang army. Also, request that the Hezhou Ma family army and Ning Ma army send their most elite troops to participate in the battle. If we fail, then it will be their turn next!" Ma Haiyan calmly gave the order.

  "Yes, General!" Zhou He and Gu Hongyun both acknowledged. Zhou He was going to visit Gansu General Ma Anliang in Hexi, so the task of leading the troops would definitely be handed over to Gu Hongyun.

  "Father, I request to go to war and eliminate the Western Sichuan Army!" Ma Lin said loudly.

  "No, you stay in Xining, this time I'll go myself! As a veteran of many battles, I'd like to see if the Western Sichuan army has what it takes to swallow my 100,000 elite troops from the Ma family!" Ma Haiyan said with great fanfare.

  "Ah! Father, I'll go instead!" Ma Lin hastily advised. After all, Ma Haiyan was already 64 years old, and at this age, it seemed unlikely that he could still ride a horse and fight in battle. Even the long journey's bumps might take his life.

  "No need to say more, although I'm old, I can still ride a horse and wield a cavalry sabre!" Ma Haiyan said stubbornly.

  Everyone saw this and no longer persuaded him, knowing Ma Haiyan's determination to fight against the Sichuan troops.

  As soon as Ma Haiyan's order was given, the entire Xining City suddenly became tense, and the troops of various departments were mobilized, ready to go into battle at any time. At the same time, envoys sent to Lanzhou and Hezhou had also set off. The envoy to Lanzhou was preparing to lodge a complaint with Shaanxi-Gansu Governor Yang Changjun about the brutal invasion of the Sichuan-Tibet Army, while the envoy to Hezhou was requesting that the Ma Family Army and Ningma Army also send troops to jointly deal with the Sichuan-Tibet Army.

  The current Hezhou Ma family army is controlled by Ma Anliang, the son of Ma Zhan'ao. Although Ma Anliang is only 36 years old this year, he is wise and has a lot of strategies, quite like his father. Although Qing Ma Jun's Ma Haiyan and Ning Ma Jun's Ma Qianling are both his uncles, they all look up to him as their leader.

  Zhou He arrived at the riverbank in just one day and met with Ma Anliang. Ma Anliang was also shocked to learn of the large-scale invasion by the Western Sichuan Army. However, as the three families of the Ma clan had always been closely related, he immediately expressed his willingness to help. He would dispatch the elite troops of the Ma family army to participate in the Battle of Maguan. At the same time, he would send someone to inform Ning Ma's army to also send troops to participate in the battle. The combined forces of the three families would engage in a decisive battle with the Western Sichuan Army at Maguan.

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