Chapter 544: A Storm Gathers Over the Mountains

On the tenth day of the eighth month, on a great mountain east of Hetu Ala in Liaodong, many Jianzhou Jurchens were searching the mountains for wild fruits.

Hetu Ala was the second capital established by Nurhaci; his first capital was called Fei Ala. Hetu Ala was built after Nurhaci unified the majority of the Haixi and Donghai Jurchens. In the forty-fourth year of the Wanli reign, he declared himself Khan there, established the Tianming reign, and founded the slave-holding regime of the Later Jin.

The mountains around Hetu Ala were like a sea of peaks, tall and densely forested, with very little arable land. After the Battle of Lvshun, the Jianzhou bandits abandoned Zhenjiang. Once the Dongjiang Garrison recovered some strength, it reoccupied Zhenjiang Fort and pushed northward, seizing the Kuandian Six Forts along the way, turning Hetu Ala into the front line. At this time, most of the people in Hetu Ala were still from the original Jianzhou tribe, with some living in old stockades scattered across the mountain forests, but they were mostly the old and weak. The young and able-bodied had largely gone to settle in central Liaodong, where they obtained better living conditions.

This year, food shortages were widespread, and Hetu Ala was no exception. Fortunately, they still had the great mountains for hunting and gathering fruit. Though the mountains were full of dangers, it was still a way to survive. However, after the Dongjiang Garrison recovered the Kuandian Six Forts, they frequently came to launch Mobile Corps Commander attacks. These islanders, once on the verge of death, had regained their vitality after receiving support from Dengzhou.

Although the Jurchens fought fiercely, the Liao people were equally martial. The Dongjiang Garrison had been campaigning for years in the area between Zhenjiang and Hetu Ala and knew the terrain as well as the Jurchens did. During Mao Wenlong's era, the Dongjiang Garrison had besieged Hetu Ala multiple times and even once captured Sarhu City in a surprise attack. Now, with their equipment and provisions guaranteed and their numbers exceeding the true Jurchen population of Hetu Ala, the Jurchens found them increasingly difficult to deal with. Their range of activity was being squeezed smaller and smaller, which meant the Jurchens of Hetu Ala had far fewer opportunities to hunt and gather fruit.

Digging for fruit and ginseng in the forest was the most common activity for these Jurchens. Some of the youths among them even carried large Manchu bows. A few already had rabbits and birds in their hands.

Suddenly, a sharp whistle—*wu*—rang out from the foot of the mountain. All the Jurchens on the mountain turned their heads in unison. Two more whistling arrows sounded in quick succession from the mountainside.

An old man leading them shouted, "Get down the mountain, quickly! Get down!"

Chaos erupted on the mountain. The shouts of elders calling for children rose and fell. Those hunting and gathering fruit scrambled desperately down the mountain. Some baskets and back-carriers were dropped, but no one paid them any attention.

The crowd dashed through the mountain forest. Accustomed to life in these hills, and despite including many women and children, their speed through this kind of wooded terrain was not slow.

"The Dongjiang island raiders are coming! Get back to the city!" Once they reached the main road, several armored soldiers shouted urgently. The crowd fled toward the old city of Hetu Ala. Along the way, people continuously emerged from the forests to join them, merging into a stream of refugees on the main road.

Horns sounded from the walls of Hetu Ala. People farming and hunting in the surrounding area fled toward the city from all directions. Figures armed with blades and spears climbed onto the city walls.

After most of the people had fled inside, the eastern city gate was immediately shut. A few scattered true Jurchens who arrived later found the gate barred and had no choice but to detour toward other directions.

On the official road to the southeast, several dozen Later Jin armored riders spurred their horses at a gallop. In the distance, a tide of people surged along the road. Among them was a Vice Regional Commander's red banner, one zhang and six chi tall, bearing a large character: "Shang."

Lianshan Pass. This imposingly named pass was, in reality, a fortress situated in a river valley. The pass controlled the official road leading from southern Liaodong to Shenyang, the most important route through the mountainous region of southern Liaodong. To the west of the pass, another road led to Liaoyang via the Tianshuijing Station. These two roads made Lianshan Pass a strategic location, though the pass itself had no natural barriers to rely on.

West of Lianshan Pass stood a majestic mountain over nine hundred meters high: Mount Motian. In the later years of the Qing dynasty, this famous Mount Motian would witness both the heroism of Nie Shicheng's troops during the Sino-Japanese War and the farcical neutrality during the Russo-Japanese War.

Atop the southern gate of Lianshan Pass, Dudu, with a few rat-like whiskers on his upper lip, furrowed his brow. Dudu was the son of Nurhaci's eldest son, Cuyen. Cuyen had been strangled to death on Nurhaci's orders, but his two sons were not implicated. Dudu was initially granted the title of Taiji and, in Nurhaci's later years, even became the Banner Lord of the Bordered White Banner. Later, Nurhaci gave the Bordered White Banner to Haoge, clarifying that the two White Banners belonged to Huang Taiji and his sons. Dudu was then transferred to the Bordered Red Banner. Dudu's father, Cuyen, and Daišan were brothers from the same mother. Following bloodlines, Nurhaci moved Dudu into the Red Banner system, making it clear that the Red Banner system belonged to Daišan's line.

Dudu himself was relatively low-key. Although he had lost his position as Banner Lord for no reason, he always acted with caution. As a mid-level cadre among the Later Jin nobility, he avoided the high-level power struggles. Huang Taiji even made efforts to win him over. This time, he was appointed to lead his own troops and a portion of the Ujen Cooha to garrison Lianshan Pass, while his younger brother Nikan was transferred to Haizhou.

The forces under his command consisted of five niru under his personal control, five niru of the Plain White Banner, 1,300 Ujen Cooha troops under the Bordered Red Banner, 3,000 bondservants, and three red-barbarian cannons. After the previous spring offensive, bondservants had been mobilized to dig some trenches here. After Dudu arrived, he pressed them relentlessly. After working over a hundred bondservants to death, a mountain fortress defense line similar to the one at Lvshun was completed. This mountainous terrain was unsuitable for Later Jin cavalry maneuvers. Huang Taiji's order to Dudu was to defend Lianshan Pass to the death. Although there was a road west of the pass leading to Liaoyang, as long as Lianshan Pass held, the Ming army could not truly threaten Liaoyang.

The view from the southern wall of Lianshan Pass was vast, allowing one to see far to the south. In the distance, some faint, blurry dots were wriggling. They were hard to make out without careful observation, but the battle-hardened Dudu knew very well what they were: the vanguard of a marching Ming army.

Scouts had long since brought word of the Ming army's movements. Starting in the seventh month, large numbers of Ming troops had appeared successively at Tongyuan Fort, Fenghuang City, Caohe Fort, and other places. Boats carrying provisions crowded the riverways. Small Ming detachments advanced along the official road, clashing repeatedly with Later Jin scouts along the line from Caohekou to Lianshan Pass.

Dudu's strongest impression was that the Dongjiang Garrison's combat effectiveness had markedly improved. These Liao soldiers used to possess only bloody courage, but now they had a degree of combat skill, and their equipment was far better than before. The Later Jin soldiers no longer found them so easy to deal with.

Relay riders constantly brought orders from Huang Taiji in Shenyang, informing Dudu that Ming forces were increasing across all of Liaodong. Dudu, while speeding up his defensive preparations, intensified reconnaissance toward the Tongyuan Fort direction. Yesterday, Bayara scouts had spotted a large Ming force between Caohekou and the watershed, belonging to Mao Chenglu's troops from Guanglu Island, with a small contingent of Dengzhou soldiers in support. The vanguard numbered about six hundred men.

Upon receiving this news, Dudu knew the Ming offensive had finally arrived. During the last spring offensive, Dudu had followed Yoto in defending Lianshan Pass and had learned firsthand the advantage of Dengzhou's firearm formations in the river valley terrain. This time, the garrison had occupied Fenghuang City and Tongyuan Fort, securing crucial campaign assembly points and forward support bases. This was no longer a light-force raid deep into enemy territory; this attack would certainly be fiercer than the last.

Dudu turned to the Jalun Zhanggin behind him and said, "Take three hundred armored soldiers and one hundred White Armor Soldiers out to battle. Beat back the Ming dogs' vanguard."

The Jalun Zhanggin acknowledged the order and left. The city gate at the foot of the wall opened, and the armored soldiers filed out, crossed the trench positions in front of the pass, and advanced south along the official road to meet the enemy.

Horns sounded. Dudu let out a long sigh. He had no confidence in the coming battle, but he also had no path of retreat. A drumbeat rolled from the front. Dudu murmured, "It has begun..."

In the eighth month of the eighth year of the Chongzhen reign, as the main forces of the Dengzhou Garrison were successively transferred to the Gaizhou front line, war clouds gathered densely over Liaodong. The Later Jin troops also detected the changes in frontline troop strength, and both sides engaged in constant reconnaissance and counter-reconnaissance. On the tenth day of the eighth month, the Dongjiang Garrison on the northern front was the first to launch an attack, officially commencing the Dengzhou Garrison's autumn offensive.

The northern front lay amidst a vast expanse of mountains, with military operations centered around Hetu Ala. Hetu Ala was the old nest of the Jianzhou tribe. After the Jianzhou bandits seized central Liaodong, the population here became relatively sparse, making its political significance greater than its military significance.

Ever since the Dongjiang Garrison was established, it had continuously attacked the Jianzhou bandits in this direction. The previous spring offensive had failed to capture it, so this time, more troops were committed. In early August, a mutiny occurred on Zhangzi Island. Shang Keyi brought the situation under control. Assisting him were over five hundred combat troops under Shang Kexi, and the Jimo Company Commander's headquarters stationed at Fenghuang City also dispatched five hundred combat troops to stand by on the coast opposite Zhangzi Island.

With the support of these two external forces, Shang Keyi swiftly took control of Zhangzi Island. He placed Huang Long and nearly a hundred of his confidants and retainers under house arrest before sending them to Lvshun, then announced that he was taking over command of the Zhangzi Island army.

The main force of Zhangzi Island's troops was still Liao people. Because Huang Long had poor relations with Dengzhou, living conditions on Zhangzi Island were worse than on the other islands. Moreover, Huang Long's corrupt practices remained completely unchanged, so the ordinary island soldiers felt no attachment to him.

At the time of the mutiny, most of the island's soldiers had already gone ashore in preparation for launching the autumn offensive, so Shang Keyi encountered very little resistance. After securing Huang Long, he immediately went ashore himself and headed to the assembly point near Kuandian to take over the army.

A Dengzhou fleet promptly delivered a batch of provisions, pay, and military equipment. Shang Keyi already had some prestige on the island. Now, with the powerful Dengzhou Garrison dominating southern Liaodong backing him, once the provisions, pay, and equipment were distributed, the ordinary island soldiers cheered. The lower-ranking officers defected to Shang Keyi one after another. As with Shang Keyi's own troops, the Dengzhou Garrison also dispatched a team of instructors this time to guide the Zhangzi Island troops in battle.

Pi Island, not far from Zhangzi Island, soon received the news. Shen Shikui had also just returned not long ago. He certainly did not believe it was an accidental mutiny. It must have been that Shang Keyi, while at Nanchenghuang Island, had accepted Chen Xin's orders. With Shang Kexi and the Jimo Company Commander's headquarters providing support, Shang Keyi launched the mutiny with remarkable speed.

Shen Shikui was badly frightened. It turned out that Huang Long had been the backward element within the Dongjiang Garrison. Now, Shen Shikui suddenly realized that he himself had become the commander with the most distant relationship with Dengzhou. He hastily sent someone to Kuandian again, adopting a more proactive stance and expressing willingness to commit the troops garrisoned at Zhenjiang Fort to the northern front offensive, to lend Shang Keyi a hand.

The battles at Lianshan Pass and Hetu Ala had opened the prelude to the campaign, but the Dengzhou Garrison in the Xiuyan and Gaizhou directions remained quiet. A storm was gathering over Liaodong. The Later Jin forces in Gaizhou and Haizhou stood ready in tight formation, while the Later Jin also began its final mobilization. (To be continued...)