Chapter 251: This Man Wang Dou Must Be Eliminated

Amid the silence, Abatai, the Raoyu Beile of the Bordered White Banner of the Eight Banner Manchu, suddenly rose to his feet. He addressed Dorgon, Yoto, and the others: "By order of the Grand General, the Yangwu Grand General, and all you princes — Lu Xiangsheng, Wang Dou, and the other Ming armies are marching south. I believe we must take this with the utmost seriousness!"

He said with a stern face: "I further believe that these two must be eliminated. Otherwise, the abundant spoils our Great Qing warriors have seized may be difficult to transport out of the passes."

Duoduo, the Banner Lord of the Bordered White Banner, also said: "The Raoyu Beile speaks with great reason. The forces of Lu Xiangsheng and Wang Dou have reached Zhending, and it is expected they will soon move south. They watch us like tigers from the side, following step by step. When they might suddenly strike — this situation is truly worrisome."

Duoduo had previously held the Ming armies in contempt, but after the great defeat at Dingzhou, the fear still lingered in his heart. His regard for Wang Dou and the Xuan-Da armies was, if anything, even greater than Abatai's.

Dudu, the Banner Lord of the Bordered Red Banner of the Eight Banner Manchu, also said: "The Raoyu Beile and Prince Yu speak reason. Wang Dou's troops have sharp firearms and are fierce and daring in battle. His infantry are mostly brave and unyielding, daring to fight in open formation. Lu Xiangsheng, Yang Guozhu, and the others all rely on his momentum. Yang Guozhu, Hu Dawei, and the other Ming Regional Commanders have many cavalry under their command, swift and nimble, not inferior to our own troops, and Wang Dou's forces also have their support. They combine infantry and cavalry, able to fight head-on and strike from afar... Looking across the entire Ming realm, it is the Xuan-Da forces that pose the greatest threat to our army."

Enggetu, the Banner Lord of the Plain Red Banner of the Eight Banner Mongol, and Buyandai, the Banner Lord of the Bordered Red Banner, both said: "As Prince Du and Prince Yu have said, that Ming Wang Dou's forces are no trivial matter. Now that they are moving south, we must be prudent and more prudent, careful and more careful."

Dorgon had urgently summoned the various banner lords to council. Even Dudu, Enggetu, Buyandai, and others far away in Tongzhou had rushed over. When Wang Dou was mentioned, the three banner lords had clashed with him at Tongzhou, and naturally, bitter memories weighed on their hearts.

One by one, each spoke, all agreeing that Lu Xiangsheng and Wang Dou's southward march must be treated with gravity. Hearing them speak thus, even those banners that had not yet clashed with Lu Xiangsheng and Wang Dou — with the bitter lessons of these four banners of the Eight Banner Manchu and Eight Banner Mongol before them — could not afford to be anything but cautious.

Yoto sighed: "Since the first year of Chongde, though the Raoyu Beile warned us about this man Wang Dou, we failed to fully grasp the danger. Counting the lives of brave warriors lost under Wang Dou's command, before and after, it is nearly three thousand. These warriors..."

He shook his head: "It was all our own carelessness and underestimation of the enemy. In the end, we brewed this bitter fruit."

Adai, the Banner Lord of the Plain Yellow Banner of the Eight Banner Mongol, said: "Compared to the first year of Chongde, although our Great Qing troops have advanced smoothly in this campaign, it has still been far more difficult than the last. Now, more and more Ming soldiers dare to resist and raid our forces. If we do not break Wang Dou's troops, as the Raoyu Beile said, I too fear that the spoils our Great Qing warriors have gained will be difficult to transport out of the passes."

Wang Dou could now be said to have become a symbol of martial valor and spirit for the Ming soldiers. Inspired by his string of great victories, more and more Ming troops dared to leave their cities and fight in the field. The worries of Adai and the others were not without reason. If Wang Dou won a few more great victories, the Qing troops who had entered the passes this time would face the danger of sinking into a quagmire.

Dorgon gave a light cough, and immediately everyone fell silent.

Dorgon said slowly: "As the various banner lords have said, with the Ming forces of Lu Xiangsheng and Wang Dou moving south, we must all be cautious. Moreover, this man Wang Dou — I, the Prince, must eliminate him!"

"If we allow him to grow strong, our Eight Banner warriors will be crippled banner by banner at his hands, and our officers and men will flee at the mere sight of him. How then could we still wage war?"

Buyandai, the Banner Lord of the Bordered Red Banner of the Eight Banner Mongol, said obsequiously: "What Prince Rui says — does it mean we must launch a direct, hard assault against the Ming general Wang Dou? ... This, after a bloody battle, I fear..."

Abatai rose again. His expression was stern as he looked around at everyone: "Fellow banner lords, in the first year of Chongde, that Wang Dou was merely a minor Garrison Commander of the Ming. That day, I, your Beile, withdrew from the city rather than lose several hundred warriors, never expecting that Wang Dou would thereby grow so powerful."

"He became a Mobile Corps Commander, and the brave warriors of our various banners lost at this man's hands have already reached over two thousand. After battle, it is unavoidable that Wang Dou's power will rise again. When he becomes a Ming Assistant Regional Commander, Vice Regional Commander, or Regional Commander, how many more of our Great Qing warriors will be lost in battle against him? Three thousand? Five thousand? Or ten thousand?"

"If this continues, will the Eight Banners of our Great Qing still exist? As Prince Rui said, no matter how bloody and difficult the battle, Wang Dou must be eliminated!"

Everyone was silent. Buyandai sat down again in shame, though inwardly he was resentful. They Mongols had submitted to the Manchus only because attaching themselves as wings allowed them to enter the passes and reap great benefits — not to serve as cannon fodder in hard, bitter battles.

After this campaign, Buyandai would have to seriously consider whether continuing to attach himself to the Qing state was a wise choice. Though Huang Taiji had given him a daughter in marriage, the weight of one Manchu woman against the future of the warriors in his own banner — anyone could see which was heavier at a glance.

Dorgon glanced at Buyandai, then said to Dudu and Duoduo: "Prince Yu, Anping Beile — you two have clashed with this man Wang Dou. Tell us, how should we proceed against him?"

Dudu thought carefully for a moment, then cupped his hands and said: "In reply to the Grand General, Wang Dou's forces have extremely sharp firearms, and their military discipline is strict, so the power of their firearms can be brought to its fullest. When I attacked their wagon fortifications at Tongzhou, I could not even approach within several tens of paces of their position, and only lost officers and men in vain."

He suggested: "Since our Great Qing troops entered the passes, we have captured many Ming cannons. We could use these captured cannons to assault Wang Dou's positions."

He added with regret: "It is a pity that Prince Gongshun did not enter the passes. Otherwise, with the many firearms and cannons in his army, he could certainly face off against Wang Dou's forces."

Duoduo said: "Indeed, Wang Dou's firearms are extremely sharp. Their firelocks have long range and great power. In particular, their battle formations are strict and imposing. Their musketeers can wait in tight formation for our warriors to enter their range before opening fire. Our Great Qing's powerful bows and strong arrows have no chance to be brought into play at all!"

"Besides their musketeers, their pikemen and sword-and-shield men are also extremely fierce and brave. When our heavily armored warriors of the banner formed up and attacked, they could not break through their battle lines at all!"

Yibai, the Banner Lord of the Plain White Banner of the Eight Banner Mongol, said unconvinced: "So you are saying that this Ming general Wang Dou is completely invulnerable? That our Great Qing troops, peerless in mounted archery, cannot bring our strengths to bear?"

"What about harassment, cutting off their supply lines — would that not work?"

The Raoyu Beile Abatai said: "Lu Xiangsheng and the others are quite prudent. The army's provisions are all carried with them; their supply lines cannot be cut at all. Even if their army can only carry a month's worth of provisions, it is lamentable that our Great Qing troops are now divided into several routes, and are instead being defeated one by one. The spoils we have seized are continuously serving as provisions for their army."

"The battle of Dingzhou was exactly like this. My Bordered White Banner army labored bitterly to seize a great quantity of provisions and baggage from Dingzhou and other places, only for it to become their spoils of war in the end. As for harassment — Lu Xiangsheng's army numbers ten thousand, most of them cavalry, and they carry their provisions with them. How could we harass them? Our Eight Banner horsemen simply cannot bring their strengths to bear."

Everyone was silent. After a long while, Dorgon said thoughtfully: "It seems that in battle against Wang Dou's forces, we can only try to avoid his frontal edge and strike at the flanks of his allied forces. In the end, we must emulate the battle at the Hun River fought by our Great Ancestor Emperor Gao, using many war wagons and cannons, and attacking continuously with tenfold forces. Only then might we have a chance of victory."

His resolve was set. He looked around at everyone: "This man Wang Dou must be eliminated. Better early than late. I, the Grand General, have decided: the entire southern army shall assemble, and we shall choose a suitable time and terrain. With tens of thousands of elite troops and the force of a thunderbolt, we shall wipe out Lu Xiangsheng, Wang Dou, and all their forces in one stroke. What are the views of you princes?"

His eyes blazed brightly as he swept his gaze over everyone.

Dudu, Abatai, Duoduo, and the others all rose to their feet, impassioned and vehement, agreeing with the Grand General's view. In any case, when they attacked Wang Dou in the future, the main force could not possibly be theirs — why not gladly go along? As for the various banner lords of the Eight Banner Mongol, as cannon fodder of the newly attached forces, they naturally had no room to interject in such matters of grand strategy and tactics.

Jirgalang, the Banner Lord of the Bordered Blue Banner, was somewhat hesitant, but seeing Dorgon's gaze sweep toward him, he still rose to express his agreement.

Perhaps because of the tragic fate of his father and brother, Jirgalang was always extremely cautious in his daily conduct, and even seemed to give others an impression of weakness and obedience. Faced with the aggressive Dorgon, whose thirst for power grew ever stronger, he always chose to submit.

Huang Taiji had long since seized the two Yellow Banners of the Eight Banner Manchu and also made his son Hooge the Banner Lord of the Plain Blue Banner. At this moment, father and son were leading troops outside Shanhai Pass to pin down the enemy and had not entered the pass. Seeing that the several banner lords who had entered the pass all agreed with his opinion, a satisfied expression appeared on Dorgon's face. Finally, he asked the Yangwu Grand General Yoto: "What is the Yangwu Grand General's opinion?"

Seeing Dorgon act so arbitrarily, deciding everything before asking his opinion, Yoto was somewhat displeased.

At this time, Yoto, as Yangwu Grand General, commanded the right-wing forces of the invading Qing troops. However, several years ago, because of arrogant and disrespectful behavior before Huang Taiji, Yoto had been stripped of his Beile title, demoted to Beizi, and fined five thousand taels of silver. Although Huang Taiji had restored his Beile title the year before, Yoto had since become much more steady and restrained, with a certain air of concealing his emotions.

Faced with the aggressive Dorgon, he was also unwilling to clash head-on and worsen their relationship. Besides, he, Yoto, as a Beile, was two ranks lower than Dorgon in title. Among the Qing troops invading this time, Dorgon was in fact the Regional Commander.

Though displeased in his heart, Yoto showed nothing on his face. He said slowly: "What the Grand General says is extremely reasonable. This man Wang Dou can be called a mortal threat to our Great Qing state. Eliminating this man is better early than late. I, the Grand General, also agree!"

On the third day of the twelfth month of the eleventh year of Chongzhen, in Zhending Prefecture, inside the Xuan-Da encampment.

Near noon, the entire camp stirred again. Amid the reports of scouts from each battalion, countless soldiers shouted loudly: "The brothers transporting grain are back."

Lu Xiangsheng, Yang Guozhu, Hu Dawei, Wang Dou, and the others were also alerted. Looking out from the camp, indeed, across the bleak wilderness, a dense mass of carts and pack animals, braving the cold wind, was heading toward the camp. Lu Xiangsheng clapped his hands in great delight: "Excellent! With these provisions, the soldiers of the army will have no worries of hunger or cold."

From Xingtang County to Zhending Prefecture was only eighty or ninety li. Everyone had estimated that the grain transport army would return within two days, but it had taken three. There might have been some setbacks along the way, but all in all, it had gone smoothly. The commanders went out of the camp to greet them, and soon, carts and pack animals laden with provisions came in an endless stream.

Looking at the provisions being transported, Wang Dou's stated four thousand dan was no problem at all. Lu Xiangsheng beamed, looking at Wang Dou with an almost doting gaze. Hu Dawei, Yang Guozhu, and the others were full of joy, and the looks they directed at Wang Dou were filled with admiration and gratitude.

Ever since Wang Dou had led his troops to Changping, they had truly been indebted to him far too many times.

At last, the rolling convoy of baggage carts reached the camp, and the entire encampment erupted in jubilation. Everyone was beaming with joy, watching the transport soldiers, their heads and faces wrapped tightly, drive the carts laden with grain into the camp in a mighty procession. With these provisions, at least for this one month, the army would not have to worry about food and drink.

Zhong Diaoyang, Li Guangheng, Chen An, Guo Yingxian, and the others who had escorted the grain transport dismounted and strode over to report back to Lu Xiangsheng and Wang Dou. Wang Dou saw that in just two or three short days, the cold wind had cracked open lines on the faces of Zhong Diaoyang and the others. Some had what seemed to be blade scars and arrow wounds on their armor. In this freezing weather, being out on the road was truly arduous.

From their appearance, it seemed they had fought with Qing troops. Yet their spirits were high, and even the transport soldiers and auxiliary troops of each battalion were all full of energy and smiling broadly.

Lu Xiangsheng personally helped them up and sighed: "Generals, you have worked hard. Was the journey smooth?"

Although Zhong Diaoyang's military rank was the lowest among them for this grain transport, since the grain was stored by Wang Dou, Zhong Diaoyang was implicitly the leader among the generals. He said loudly: "In reply to the Viceroy, our journey was smooth overall. Only when we reached the Xingle area did we encounter a band of slave raiders harassing us, which delayed us for some time."

Guo Yingxian grinned broadly and said: "Haha, over a thousand Tartar soldiers, several hundred armored ones, and they thought they could harass our grain transport convoy? Old Guo, General Li, General Chen, and the others gave them a good slaughter. Those thousand-odd Tartar soldiers ran far away and didn't dare come back."

Everyone laughed. Though there had been this small interlude, the grain transport had gone fairly smoothly overall. Lu Xiangsheng instructed the generals to quickly enter the camp and rest. But then he noticed several hundred men standing erectly behind the Baoanzhou soldiers of Zhong Diaoyang and Li Guangheng, and a look of puzzlement appeared in his eyes.

Wang Dou also saw at that moment, standing behind Zhong Diaoyang, a remarkably handsome young officer. He wore a suit of fine iron armor and a large red cape, standing motionless in the cold wind, looking incomparably heroic and martial. Wang Dou recognized this officer — it was Gao Xun, whom he had personally received that day, serving under Han Chao as the officer of the C Company of the B Battalion.

Wang Dou had long since learned from Han Chao that in the grain stockade within Xingtang County, Zhending Prefecture, Han Chao had left his subordinate Squad Commander Gao Xun to guard it, and had also selected three hundred able-bodied men from the refugees for him to command and train. Now that the garrison duty was complete, Gao Xun had led his several hundred troops to rendezvous with Zhong Diaoyang and join Wang Dou's main army.

At this moment, Wang Dou looked at the nearly four hundred men behind Gao Xun, arrayed by company, each standing in perfect order. They had three companies of pikemen and two companies of musketeers. Though their armor was insufficient, at least their military bearing and formation were strict and orderly, and many faces bore a fierce, battle-hardened air.

Wang Dou could not help but nod slowly. The company officers and squad leaders among them were naturally filled by veterans from the original companies. But in just a few short months, for the former able-bodied recruits to be trained to this state — it fully demonstrated Gao Xun's talent.