Chapter 4: Seeking Survival in Death

Wang Pu is certainly not someone who acts impulsively; rather, he makes decisions after careful consideration

In less than a moment, the household servants lurking in the low-lying area emerged in a single file, leading their warhorses. The soldiers behind tightly held onto the tails of the horses in front to prevent them from getting separated. Under the pitch-black night sky, this troop of over a thousand household servants resembled a group of ghosts from hell, silently maneuvering past the side of the Qing army's camp.

Xiao Qi received the order and departed

Upon receiving intelligence, Wu Sangui, Ma Ke, and Wang Tingchen acted swiftly, hastily withdrawing their troops. Li Fuming, the commander of the Xuanfu garrison, and Zhao Wuzhu, the deputy commander of Datong, were also unwilling to lag behind and followed suit in retreating. The commanders of the six garrisons simultaneously withdrew their forces, and this sudden retreat caught the Ming soldiers completely unprepared, leading to a large-scale upheaval in the ensuing chaos

... ...

Returning to the main point, due to the constant military campaigns by the Manchus, a significant number of men were lost, resulting in a male population of only about 100,000 among the total of 300,000. After accounting for underage boys and elderly men, the number of able-bodied adult males who could actually go to war was at most 60,000. If it were not for Nurhaci's establishment of the Eight Banners system, which maximized the military potential of the Jurchens, it would have been impossible for such a small population base to unify Liaodong, let alone to take control of the Central Plains.

General

General

Ah? Attack Shengjing!" Xiao Qi exclaimed in surprise, "That is the stronghold of the Jianzhou Jurchens!"

By the time the message reached the governor's office of Hong Chengchou, it was already too late

During the reign of Nurhaci, the total population of the Jurchens in the entire Liaodong region was merely a little over one hundred thousand. By the time of Hong Taiji's rule, a large number of Han, Mongolian, and Korean people were integrated into the Jurchens, collectively referred to as the Manchus, which raised the population of the Manchus to three hundred thousand. It is important to note that the Liaodong region originally had over two million Han people, but during the several decades of Nurhaci's rule over Liaodong, these over two million Han were almost entirely slaughtered, leaving only a few tens of thousands who were incorporated into the Eight Banners by Hong Taiji, thus becoming Manchus, but in reality, they were still the banner slaves of the Jurchens. It is important to note that the Liaodong region originally had over two million Han people, but during the several decades of Nurhaci's rule over Liaodong, these over two million Han were almost entirely slaughtered, leaving only a few tens of thousands who were incorporated into the Eight Banners by Hong Taiji, thus becoming Manchus, but in reality, they were still the banner slaves of the Jurchens

Only after walking a distance of over ten miles did Wang Pu order Xiao Qi to light a torch to lead the way, and instructed the servants to mount their horses, sweeping eastward like a whirlwind.

In other words, the former stronghold of the Qing Dynasty, Shenyang, is now merely garrisoned by a group of elderly individuals and children, with a maximum number of only three to five thousand people. This indeed presents an opportunity, at least worth attempting. Of course, Wang Pu could also choose not to launch a surprise attack on Shenyang, but instead flee to Korea and then return to Dengzhou by sea. However, once Wang Pu returns to Dengzhou, he would be arrested and imprisoned, ultimately facing execution in the capital, just as the historical Wang Pu was.

The surprise attack on Shengjing may seem quite mad, but it is actually still possible to succeed. Of course, if given a choice, Wang Pu would not want to take this risk; however, the harsh reality forces him to take desperate measures, seeking survival amidst peril.

This point is not difficult to understand; the Jurchens have a strong sense of vigilance towards the Han and Mongolian people, and they would never allow the total military strength of the Han army's Eight Banners and the Mongolian Eight Banners to exceed that of the Jurchen Eight Banners

Hmm. Wang Pu nodded slightly and said in a deep voice, "I had Xiao Qi bring you here because I want to tell you one thing: this time we are going to attack Shengjing"

Rest assured, General

The three of them looked at each other in disbelief, each wearing an expression of incredulity, thinking that either the general had gone mad or that they had misheard.

Until Dorgon led the Qing army into the Pass, the total population of the Manchu Qing did not exceed 300,000, excluding the hundreds of thousands of Han slaves captured during the six incursions by the Qing army. The status of these Han slaves was even lower than that of the few thousand Han people remaining during Nurhaci's time, as they did not even qualify to become banner slaves. The total military strength of the Eight Banners army consistently remained around 60,000. Even when adding the Han army of the Eight Banners, primarily the Ming troops led by Geng Zhongming, Shang Kexi, and Kong Youde, as well as the Mongolian Eight Banners, the total military strength of the Manchu Qing was only about 100,000, and at most would not exceed 120,000.

Turning back to discuss the Ming army at Songshan Camp, it was already in complete disarray at this time

Low-lying area

Shortly after Wang Pu led his troops away from the main camp, the commander of the Mi Yun garrison, Tang Tong, indeed acted as Wu Sangui had anticipated, first leading his forces to retreat towards Ningyuan.

Wang Pu did not respond, and Chen shouted: "Send orders to the entire army to lead the horses on foot, and bypass the side of the Jian Nu camp. Brothers, be sure not to make too much noise, and do not get separated!"

Due to limitations in population and military strength, the major battles between the Jurchens and the Ming Empire, such as the Battle of Sarhu, the two Battles of Ningyuan, and the later Battle of Songshan, were all fought with full mobilization. Particularly in the Battle of Songshan, the Qing army initially faced setbacks, prompting Hong Taiji to conscript all males aged between thirteen and sixty from the "Manchu State".

A typical example is the notorious traitor Fan Wencheng, who fervently urged Dorgon to lead the Qing army into the pass. This individual claimed to be a descendant of Fan Zhongyan. During Nurhaci's reign, he was nearly captured and executed, and throughout Hong Taiji's rule, he remained an insignificant official. It was only when Dorgon ascended to the position of regent that he truly gained prominence. It was precisely due to the relentless encouragement from traitors like Fan Wencheng that Dorgon resolved to lead the Qing army into the pass, taking a monumental step that Nurhaci and Hong Taiji had never dared to imagine.

At this time, the Qing army had already emptied its ranks, with all available troops dispatched to the front lines, leaving only a few elderly, weak, sick, and disabled soldiers to guard the main camp. Furthermore, with over one hundred thousand main Ming troops having completely collapsed, the Qing army did not deploy any scouts around the camp for reconnaissance. They were entirely unaware that small groups of Ming soldiers could bypass them.

"You did not hear incorrectly," Wang Pu said coldly, "We are indeed going to launch a surprise attack on Shengjing, striking directly at the heart of the Jianzhou bandits!"

Xiao Qi exclaimed, "What is that for?"

The stronghold of the Jurchens must be heavily guarded. The bearded man also exclaimed, How can we manage with just over a thousand of us

In fact, only Wang Pu, this time traveler, would make such a reckless decision: to launch a surprise attack on Shengjing from the rear of the Qing army

At dawn, Wang Pu led his troops to the banks of the Daling River and ordered them to rest on the spot. He also instructed Xiao Qi to bring in Big Beard and Scarface. Both Big Beard and Scarface were originally bandits, skilled in martial arts and naturally fierce. Two years ago, Wang Pu had led a campaign to eliminate their bandit den, and since then, the two had transformed into Wang Pu's trusted subordinates.

According to Wang Pu's understanding of the Ming History, at this time, the Manchu chieftain Hong Taiji had already conquered the Mongols, Koreans, and the indigenous peoples of the Heilongjiang region. The apparent territory under Manchu rule had stretched for thousands of miles, with a population exceeding one million. It seemed that they possessed sufficient strength to potentially annihilate the Ming Empire; however, this was merely an illusion.

"Kick the camp?" Wang Pu shook his head and said in a deep voice, "No, our goal is not to kick the camp"

The Qing army had long been prepared for this. Upon receiving the news of the Ming army's overnight retreat, the chieftain Huang Taiji decisively ordered Dorgon to lead the troops in pursuit. He also personally commanded the Eight Banners army to encircle Songshan City completely. As a result, if Hong Chengchou could not leave Songshan City, he would be unable to prevent the retreat of the generals from the six garrisons, thus losing the last opportunity to turn the situation around.

Of course, hetushu.com. The elderly and children will not go to the battlefield; their task is merely to replace the adult males in guarding the rear.

... ...

An undeniable fact is that the financial foundation of the Qing Dynasty was indeed too weak

Little Seven leaned close to Wang Pu and excitedly asked, "General, the enemy camp is almost empty. Should we attack now?"

Although Wang Pu is fearful of death, he understands how to win people's hearts. He brought the families of the bearded man and the scar-faced man to Datong for support. Grateful for his kindness, the bearded man and the scar-faced man have followed Wang Pu through thick and thin over the past two years, establishing significant contributions and proving their loyalty. As a result, both of them have been promoted to the rank of Qianzong, responsible for leading over a thousand of Wang Pu's retainers.

The retreating Ming army, under the relentless pursuit of Dorgon, suffered a catastrophic defeat, with countless soldiers trampled to death in the chaos. On their escape route, they encountered layers of ambushes set by the Manchu forces, ultimately resulting in the deaths of over 50,000 soldiers, with many more drowning as they were driven into the sea. Only Wu Sangui and Tang Tong managed to escape with their lives, while the Qing army sustained only a few hundred casualties.

The big-bearded man and the scar-faced man quickly followed Xiao Qi to Wang Pu and cupped their fists in greeting

The historical texts claim that Nurhaci and his son Hong Taiji were exceptionally talented and had established a policy of ethnic equality between the Manchus and Han from the very beginning. This is fundamentally nonsense; in reality, Nurhaci only wanted to guard the Changbai Mountains as a tribal leader, while Hong Taiji merely aspired to rule over Liaodong as a minor sovereign. Neither of them ever contemplated taking control of the Central Plains, nor did they ever treat the Han people well

Xiao Qi was unaware of Wang Pu's military intentions and mistakenly thought he intended to launch a surprise attack on the Qing army's main camp