books44 Chapter 127 Withdrawal
Chapter 127 Withdrawal
The next morning, Bolo continued his attack on Dingyang County.
The siege horns sounded, and their shouts were deafening. The archers on the city wall pulled their bowstrings to the full, and arrows rained down like locusts at the soldiers attacking the city, but the Eight Banners soldiers did not retreat, and rushed forward madly. At the beginning of the battle, the Qing army used all their strength, and soon after suffering certain casualties, the Qing army began to climb the city wall. The soldiers of both sides engaged in fierce hand-to-hand combat on the city wall.
Dingyang City seemed to be on the verge of collapse under the violent attacks of the Eight Banners soldiers, and it seemed that it might be captured at any time. However, it always felt that there was a breath left. The Meng army soldiers fought desperately. Although they were at a disadvantage, no one retreated. Although the Eight Banners soldiers who climbed the city wall were brave, the Qing army who climbed the city wall were often besieged by the Meng army, which temporarily put the battle situation in a delicate balance. Bolo stood behind the formation, staring at the battlefield. Bolo gritted his teeth and decided to invest all the remaining elite troops in his hands in order to break the deadlock and capture the city in one fell swoop.
Just as Bolo was about to issue an order for a full-scale attack, several Qing army scouts came running like a gust of wind, followed closely by Huang Xiyin, who looked exhausted. When they came to Bolo, Huang Xiyin couldn't wait to say, "Marshal, Zheng Zhilong has decided to surrender to the court! Now that Xianxia Pass is unobstructed, we don't need to attack Dingyang County anymore! Please lead the troops to withdraw to Xianxia Pass as soon as possible," Huang Xiyin said breathlessly, his voice revealing irrepressible excitement.
When Bolo heard this, his expression became extremely complicated, with both joy and anger. Bolo was silent for a moment, staring at the Eight Banners soldiers on the top of the city who were fighting the enemy desperately. After a long while, Bolo took a deep breath and slowly said, "Sound the horn to call back the troops!"
Following his order, the clear and melodious sound of golden gongs spread throughout the battlefield. The Eight Banners soldiers on the city wall looked at the formation with confusion. Now was the critical moment, why would they withdraw their troops at this time?
But military orders are as firm as mountains. Upon hearing the signal, the Eight Banners soldiers had to retreat. The originally fierce battle gradually subsided. Bai Yongfu on the top of the city first breathed a sigh of relief, and then looked at the retreating Qing army with some confusion.
In the Qing army camp.
"Marshal, why did you order the troops to withdraw? I think if we make a little more effort today, Dingyang City will be captured and we can capture the traitor Bai Yongfu," Nikan asked angrily as soon as he returned to the camp.
Bolo looked around and found that all the generals were puzzled. Bolo then signaled Huang Xiyin to speak.
"Generals, Zheng Zhilong has decided to submit to the imperial court. Fujian has been returned to the Qing Dynasty. There is no need to attack Dingyangcheng again."
As soon as Huang Xiyin finished speaking, all the generals were stunned, with astonishment on their faces. Tulai was even more overjoyed and said, "Zheng Zhilong actually surrendered! Then Zhu Youjian will be easy to capture? We can capture him alive right away!"
However, Huang Xiyin shook his head and said calmly: "The false emperor of the Ming court has left Fuzhou and has arrived in Yanping. Zheng Zhilong does not want to take action and bear the infamy. He actually wants us to enter Fujian and do it ourselves."
When Nikan heard this, he felt quite unwilling and said indignantly: "Marshal, if we fight again, we will be able to capture Dingyang City in one fell swoop! Otherwise, two thousand of our men will have died in vain." At the end, Nikan even had tears in his eyes.
Upon hearing this, Bai Yingtu sighed, but retorted: "What's the point of attacking Dingyang City at this time? It will only cost more Manchu lives in vain! It's better to quickly go south and enter Xianxia Pass, capture Zhu Youjian alive, and let the Ming court establish an emperor. We will capture him and let the world see who has the destiny."
Everyone was talking and whispering, and the noise was endless. After a while, Tulai stepped out of the crowd, bowed to Bolo and said, "General, we should move south as soon as possible. The army led by Meng the thief is approaching Hengzhou Prefecture. If we delay any further, we may be blocked."
Bolo looked at the people in front of him expressionlessly. After a long silence, he finally spoke: "Well! In this case, let's pass the order to prepare to withdraw the troops." After that, he waved his hand to signal everyone to disperse and do their own things.
As the Qing army began to move south, Bai Yongfu frowned as he looked outside the city. Wu Shunchang beside him asked, "Sir, what do these Tartars mean? If they continue to fight for a while, Dingyang City will be broken. Why don't they fight anymore?"
Bai Yongfu shook his head and said, "I don't know. Maybe the governor has arrived with his army. He sent some scouts to the south to check the situation. He also sent a messenger to report to the governor immediately, saying that the Qing army has made unusual movements."
Wu Shunchang nodded, and just as he was about to turn around and leave, he seemed to have remembered something and asked in a low voice: "Sir, do you still need to prepare?"
Bai Yongfu hesitated for a moment, shook his head and said: "Stop first and see what the Tartars want to do."
Wu Shunchang nodded in understanding. He hurried down the city wall and began to organize and deploy scouts to go out of the city to investigate the movements of the Qing army.
Wu Shunchang then rushed to the West City. Along the way, he was full of thoughts. He thought that they would have to withdraw from the city today, but who knew that the Qing army would stop fighting halfway through. It was really strange. Wu Shunchang scratched his head and was puzzled.
After arriving at Xicheng, Wu Shunchang saw the light cavalry team that had been waiting for a long time. This light cavalry was carefully selected by Bai Yongfu and had strong mobility. Bai Yongfu always cherished his life. For defending Dingyang City, it would be best if he could hold it. Once the situation was not good, he would definitely choose to retreat first without hesitation to preserve his own safety. Then Wu Shunchang ordered the light cavalry to temporarily disband and wait for military orders.
At this moment, Meng Jun had just passed Hengzhou Prefecture, and the two armies were like a Y shape. Meng Jun did not know that Bolo had withdrawn his troops and was no longer attacking Dingyang City. Meng Jun only knew that Bolo had begun attacking Dingyang City yesterday, and Meng Jun would be able to reach Dingyang City tomorrow. Meng Jun only hoped that Bai Yongfu could hold on for three days.
The flags fluttered in the wind, and the army rushed forward like a raging torrent. The officers encouraged the soldiers' fighting spirit, and the soldiers marched forward quickly, with determination and courage revealed in their eyes.
The army has been on the march for more than four months since it set out on the expedition in the first month of the year. Except for occasional rest, the rest of the time has been spent on marching and fighting. Although the soldiers of the Meng army looked exhausted at this time, a spirit of bravery began to emerge, and their morale was still high despite the long journey.
Behind the army, baggage trains followed closely, raising clouds of dust. In the sky, a flock of wild geese took off in surprise, their cries echoing in the air, as if they were cheering for the army. The mountains in the distance looked particularly majestic in the sun, as if they were witnessing the transformation of the army.