Chapter 752 Whose Dawn
"Failed?"
Outside the big tent, the loyal guards held torches, the flickering light made Altan Khan's face flicker.
"Yes." The general said: "The enemy... the enemy..."
"What enemy army?" Altan looked around and found the precious sword hanging on the side of the big tent.
"Since receiving the order from the Khan to break through the pass in two days, Wan Hu led his army to attack Luanling Pass fiercely..."
Altan walked over and took out his sword.
The general lowered his head, trembling all over, "We are about to break through the pass, but..."
The long sword slowly came out of its sheath.
The general felt goose bumps all over the back of his neck, and his whole body went limp. He shivered, "At this moment, a group of people and horses suddenly rushed out from behind."
The long knife was raised.
"Horsemen?" Tuotuo's tent was right next to the big tent. He put on his clothes and rushed over after hearing the noise. "Where did the horsemen come from?"
"I don't know. But those soldiers were dressed in rags, but they were quite tough. About 7,000 people, and everyone was fierce! Khan." The general saw the raised long swords and the rage in Altan's eyes, and he said almost in a wailing voice: "At that time, our army was almost all at the pass and outside the city. We were caught in such a pincer attack... and were immediately defeated."
"Tuotuo." Altan slowly put down his long sword.
The general let out a long sigh and slumped to the ground. He knew he had escaped.
As a close minister in charge of secret espionage, Tuotuo knew that he had made a mistake.
"The army has surrounded Datong, and there are mountains all around Luanling Pass. Where did those 7,000 troops come from?" Meng Xian also came. He was shocked when he heard the news, and he also raised questions.
And this question should be explained by Tuotuo.
"Mountains." Tuotuo only thought about it and gave the answer, "If Ming reinforcements appear along the line from Datong to Luanling Pass, they will definitely not be hidden from our scouts. In this case, they must be in the mountains."
"But the mountains on both sides of Luanling Pass are steep. How can 7,000 troops get through?" The nobles also came.
It suddenly became quiet outside the big tent, and everyone in the crowd was silent.
Everyone knows the consequences of the defeat at Luanling Pass.
Altan's plan failed.
The army now has only one way to go, and that is to head south.
That is to say, to go all out and burn your boats.
And the initiative thus returned to Jiang Qingzhi's hands.
"I dare say that Jiang Qingzhi had already prepared the reinforcements." A voice came clearly in the night.
Everyone turned around and saw Zhao Quan walking towards them. In the firelight, his eyes were bright and his expression was firm.
"Khan, as the Art of War says, the right time, the right terrain, and the right people are all important. Our army is heading south, and the right time is equally shared. Only the right terrain and the right people are in Jiang Qingzhi's hands. He must have made preparations in advance and laid an ambush around Luanling Pass. We are just waiting for the right opportunity..."
This is to analyze the war situation and also to rescue Altan.
Altan's tactics were seen through, blocked and eventually defeated by Jiang Qingzhi one by one.
This was a humiliation and a crisis for Altan.
Look at the dissatisfaction and suspicion in the eyes of those nobles.
They began to doubt Altan's ability.
Where has the once wise and powerful Altan Khan gone?
Facing the young man Jiang Qingzhi, he was like an old veteran who was played around by his opponent.
Zhao Quan's appearance was very timely, and the nobles' faces felt a little better.
"Yes! Jiang Qingzhi is the most cunning in using troops. You bastard, he must have set up an ambush long ago."
"No wonder the Ming people say he is the best general."
Zhao Quan looked at Altan with some embarrassment. While his words helped Altan out of the dilemma, they also belittled his ability.
Look, your long-planned trick has long been seen through by Jiang Qingzhi.
What the hell!
What do you want these nobles to think?
"Father Khan." Sengge came. He glanced at Zhao Quan and nodded slightly, indicating that the words were well said. As for belittling Altan Khan's ability, it was not a big deal at this time.
If we don't rescue Altan, these nobles will become disloyal. Once the army loses its morale, why go south? Just go back and have a rest.
Sengge walked to the front and said, "I just asked, the eldest prince of the Ming people, that is, Prince Yu, is also in the pass."
Everyone was startled.
"What did you say?"
Even Jineng was surprised. "That's the future crown prince. How could he appear at Luanling Pass?"
The general was called in again and knelt down to apologize, "I forgot about this before..."
He had been so frightened by Altan's murderous intent that he had forgotten about this matter.
"Is there any evidence?" someone asked.
"Guan Shang played the dragon flag."
sizzle!
Amid the sound of people gasping for air, Zhao Quan covered his forehead with his hands. He said in disbelief, "It is impossible for a Ming Dynasty prince, especially the eldest prince, to fight on the battlefield. Did he evacuate later?"
"No, he was always there, and...he even participated in the fight."
Zhao Quan looked at Altan, and a thought popped up in his mind, "Is the Emperor Ming... crazy?"
"No, he's not crazy." Ma Tianlu came, and he looked at everyone with a sharp gaze, "This is a gesture. Do you remember the first two emperors of the Ming Dynasty?" "Zhu Yuanzhang, Zhu Di!" Ma Tianlu asked and answered himself, "Zhu Yuanzhang is needless to say. After Zhu Di seized the throne from his nephew, he launched five northern expeditions, which broke up the forces that had just gathered in the grassland. Fortunately, the emperors of the Ming Dynasty were suppressed by the literati since then. The victory of Tumu Fort completely broke the backbone of the emperors and generals of the Ming Dynasty, and the grassland gained the upper hand. Everyone..."
Ma Tianlu's voice floated in the night sky, "Don't forget the character of the current Ming Emperor. In the face of the persecution of the ministers and the pressure from the palace, he still refused to give in. If he had not taken refuge in the Western Garden, the Ming Dynasty would never be in such a mess today."
"What do you want to say?" Buting asked impatiently.
"The Emperor Ming ended his years of dormancy after the cleansing and rebuilding of the imperial guards." Ma Tianlu clenched his fists. "Back then, he wanted to reform the Ming Dynasty, but was defeated by his ministers. Now he has ended his dormancy and is out again... He let his eldest son go to the battlefield in person, just to tell the world..."
Ma Tianlu slowly looked at everyone and said in a deep voice: "He wants to make the Ming Dynasty return to its former glory. He wants the army to march out of the Great Wall, he wants the dragon flag to fly outside the Great Wall, he wants us to kneel on the ground and shout "Heavenly Khan" towards the dragon flag!"
Ma Tianlu said sternly, "Are you willing to submit to the Central Plains again? Are you willing to dance at the Emperor Ming's banquet?"
"Of course I don't want to!"
Ma Tianlu waved his fist, "The Khan is here, and a hundred thousand cavalrymen are here. This is the best chance to shatter the Emperor Ming's beautiful dream. What are you waiting for? Follow the Khan and march south with all your strength! We will march to the capital of the Ming Dynasty!"
"Go south!"
"Great Khan, send out the troops!"
"Fight to the Ming capital and capture the emperor alive!"
"With a hundred thousand troops marching south, it will be useless even if the Emperor himself comes to Luanling Pass."
"Sweat!"
The crowd is very excited!
Altan looked at Zhao Quan and Ma Tianlu with appreciation.
He continued Kublai Khan's methods and adopted a conciliatory approach to some talented Han people, and recruited many talents. For example, Zhao Quan, since joining him, has made many suggestions and defeated the Ming army with his own troops many times. If it weren't for his identity, Altan Khan even thought that he could be his prime minister.
The crisis arrived today, and just when Altan was preparing to suppress it forcefully, Zhao Quan took the lead and Ma Tianlu finished, reversing the situation in an instant.
As expected, the Han people are very talented!
There was a glint in Altan's eyes. "The Emperor Ming sent his eldest son to Luanling Pass in person, which also made this Khan feel completely relieved."
Everyone was puzzled. Zhao Quan and Ma Tianlu looked at each other and smiled. Zhao Quan walked over and said, "The capital of the Ming people is empty!"
"That's right." Ma Tianlu nodded.
"Why don't you say it?" Zhao Quan asked.
"We have to give some face to those in higher positions." There was a hint of sarcasm in Ma Tianlu's eyes.
"That's right." Zhao Quan had given Altan a lot of ideas over the years, but most of them were rejected. He was thoughtful at this moment, wondering if he had said too much over the years.
Historically, after Altan Khan lost his ambition, in order to negotiate peace with the Ming Dynasty, he lured and captured White Lotus leaders such as Zhao Quan and handed them over to the Ming Dynasty.
Altan's face looked a bit sickly red in the firelight. "There are piles of corpses on Luanling Pass. Our army has made several attempts to break through the pass. This shows that the defenders are weak. The Emperor Ming sent his eldest son to Luanling Pass. Logically, he should be accompanied by elite troops. But where are the elite troops?"
Sengge said: "All the elite troops have been withdrawn."
After escaping from Luanling Pass, the general galloped all the way. Now he was exhausted and suddenly remembered something, "Khan, the warriors reported that there seemed to be guards of the Emperor Ming at the pass."
"Hahahaha!"
Altan laughed loudly, and the nobles looked at each other and gradually started laughing.
"Jiang Qingzhi withdrew the elite officers and soldiers in the capital area. The Emperor Ming was extremely embarrassed and even assigned palace guards to his eldest son. Hahahaha!"
"The capital is empty. We only need to break through Luanling Pass and then rush in. By the time Jiang Qingzhi rushes out of the city, my army will have already rushed to the Ming capital. With one blow... this world will be ours."
Altan looked at everyone with satisfaction, "Get ready! Tomorrow..." He looked at the sky, "No, today. Send out troops today."
Everyone left excitedly.
"Zhao Quan, Ma Tianlu." Altan called out to the two of them.
"You are indeed talented." Altan looked at the two of them, "Warriors are needed to fight, but you are needed to govern the world."
This is a veiled promise: once we conquer the world, you two will become my right-hand men.
The two of them couldn't help but breathe hard.
Who hasn’t dreamed of holding power over the world?
Yan Song was called a treacherous villain, but many people were more envious, jealous and hateful of him.
"I am willing to die for the Khan!"
Altan nodded, and after the two men left, he entered the big tent.
Two sons and an adopted son followed in.
"Father Khan, I want to be the forward." Butin volunteered impatiently.
"There's no rush for this." Altan turned around, the red glow on his face had long since dissipated, his eyes were solemn, "Today is the decisive battle."
Sengge was startled. "Isn't the army heading south?"
"Those are words to boost morale." Meng Xian sighed, "Since Jiang Qingzhi has arranged an ambush, he must be able to guess the outcome of the battle at Luanling Pass. Once the army moves south, Jiang Qingzhi will immediately send troops to encircle the rear..."
Buting finally understood, "That is to say, Jiang Qingzhi has already prepared for a decisive battle, and is just waiting for my army to move before attacking."
Altan nodded, his hand on the hilt of the knife, "It's dawn."
Everyone looked back and saw a faint glow in the sky outside the tent.
Altan walked out of the tent and squinted at the east.
"Today, it will be decided...who will be the one who reigns supreme?"
(End of this chapter)
