Chapter 1746: Just Waiting to Kill the Little Emperor!

The news that Zhu Youjian's imperial carriage had reached Yanzhou Prefecture was brought on the twenty-eighth day of the ninth month by the treacherous merchants Fan Yongdou, Jin Liangyu, and Wang Dayu of Zhangjiakou to the Later Jin army's main camp at Tianshou Mountain.

Zhu Youjian, living his life over again, actually knew about the eight great imperial merchants of the northern Qing in Zhangjiakou, but after leading his troops from Datong to Xuanfu, he took no action whatsoever against the eight great imperial merchants, and did not even tightly seal off the traffic between Badaling and Juyong Pass. This allowed Fan Yongdou, who was wholeheartedly serving the Later Jin, to drag along his two accomplices Jin Liangyu and Wang Dayu to report the tremendous good news of Zhu Youjian's arrival at Yanzhou Prefecture to Hong Taiji, who was encamped at Tianshou Mountain!

"Is it true? The little emperor of the Southern Court has really reached Yanzhou Prefecture?" Happiness had come too quickly, and Hong Taiji could scarcely believe it!

Hong Taiji's purpose in striking Tianshou Mountain had merely been to lure those two cowards Zhu Chunchen and Yuan Chonghuan to Changping to their deaths. He had not expected that of those two cowards, one would go on playing turtle, crawling slowly toward Changping, while the other would set up an iron-barrel formation along the Wenyu River, and no matter how Dorgon feigned defeat, he simply would not take the bait (he was balancing his accounts with the greatest delight)! He had thought the trip to Tianshou Mountain had been for nothing again, yet in the end it had drawn out the greatest little emperor of the Great Ming himself!

"It's true, it's true!" Jin Liangyu, who had come with Fan Yongdou, could speak fluent Manchu. Prostrate on the ground, his face full of fawning, he said, "This little emperor is just like the Ying Temple and Wu Temple sovereigns—a muddle-headed ruler who loves to play at war."

"Oh?" Hong Taiji felt something was off in these words. Liking to fight wars makes one a muddle-headed ruler? Who was he talking about?

Jin Liangyu still did not realize he had misspoken, and went on babbling away, "And this little muddle-headed ruler is also dissolute and lecherous. Last time he marched out to Datong, he even led troops into the grasslands and seized the eldest princess of the Chahar tribe, Wu Liangha. This eldest princess was also a widow—her husband Guiyingqia had been slain in battle by the little muddle-headed ruler himself! This little muddle-headed ruler kills men's husbands and seizes their widows. He has truly lost all conscience!"

What does a treacherous merchant like you know! Hong Taiji felt even more displeased. Killing a man's husband and seizing his wife and daughter—that is the very mark of a hero! This Great Khan loves doing such things most of all. How is that losing all conscience? It is a treacherous merchant like you who has lost all conscience.

Although in his heart he wanted to slaughter this babbling treacherous merchant, Hong Taiji still put on an approving look, nodded with a smile, and said, "Good, good. I only feared he would not come. As long as he dares come, this Khan's Eight Banners warriors will surely see that he never returns!" At this point he paused, then asked, "Do you know how many troops the little emperor has brought with him?"

"This slave knows," said Wang Dayu, the biggest grain merchant in Zhangjiakou, a fat man in his forties with a doughy face all wreathed in ingratiating smiles, also speaking Manchu. "This slave has many acquaintances in the yamen of the Regional Commander of Xuanzhen, and recently took on the business of supplying grain and fodder to the Datong troops, so I know how many men the little emperor has with him."

"How many?" Hong Taiji asked.

"The cavalry and infantry officers and men who marched over from Datong with the little emperor number roughly between twenty and thirty thousand." Wang Dayu said, "In addition, Xuanzhen originally had more than thirty thousand cavalry and infantry. A while ago twenty thousand were transferred into Juyong Pass, leaving only the Governor-General of Xuanda's headquarters battalion and the Xuanzhen Regional Commander's headquarters battalion, about ten thousand elite troops."

Hong Taiji thought for a moment and muttered to himself, "At most forty thousand, and it is impossible for all of them to enter the pass—so no more than thirty thousand horse and foot!" He laughed and said to the Later Jin generals around him, "Heaven truly blesses the Great Jin. If this little emperor comes to Tianshou Mountain, he is certainly doomed!"

The Beile and generals in the great tent, as well as the chieftains of the various Mongol tribes, all stirred with vigor at these words.

On this incursion, none of them had gained much. If one reckoned carefully, they would all be running at a loss!

If they could kill—no, if they could only inflict a crushing defeat on Zhu Youjian—they need not fear failing to reap great profit!

And as long as Zhu Youjian brought his troops to Tianshou Mountain, his defeat was certain!

For Hong Taiji's strength in hand was still ample: the Eight Banners elite troops alone numbered about twenty thousand, the booi bondservants seven or eight thousand, and there were also thirty thousand cavalry of the Kharchin Mongols, the Inner Khalkha Mongols, and the Khorchin Mongols—a total force of as many as fifty-seven or fifty-eight thousand!

With so many troops, how could they fear not crushing the Zhu family little emperor's thirty thousand men?

……

"Your Majesty, at present the Jiliao Army's more than fifty thousand men are west of Shunyi and north of the Wenyu River. The Capital Camps' more than fifty thousand men are south of the Wenyu River and north of the Northern Park. Changzhen still has more than twenty thousand men in Changping City. Miyun has more than ten thousand troops of the Jizhen West Route Auxiliary. Inside Beijing City there are still about fifty thousand men of the Capital Camps and the Embroidered Uniform Guard. We have nearly thirty thousand men in hand, all along the line from Juyong Pass to Yanzhou Prefecture. In addition, Shunyi, Pinggu, and Tongzhou have about twenty thousand militia troops and the Shuntian Governor's headquarters troops. All told, the various forces add up to about two hundred thousand men."

"Your Majesty, if you feel that is not enough, you may also draw reinforcements from Baozhen, Tianjin, Shanxi, and other places, and may even issue an edict summoning all the realm to rally to the throne!"

At the temporary imperial residence in Yanzhou Prefecture, the two Chief Staff Officers of the Headquarters Army, Yang Hao and Sun Zushou, along with the Governor-General of Xuanda, Zhang Yiming, were before the map devising plans for Zhu Youjian.

Hearing Yang Hao propose summoning all the realm to rally to the throne, Zhu Youjian hastily waved his hand. "Forget rallying to the throne. We are a military genius whose martial prowess surpasses the age—what need have We of the whole realm rallying to Us?"

Such boasting, and not a trace of a blush! In truth, Zhu Youjian was afraid of these unreliable throne-rallying armies. If he did not summon them, they could stay home and muddle along. If he really made them come to Beijing to fight the slave rebels to the death, that would be poking a hornet's nest—they would either scatter on the road or revolt first.

Earlier, after the Battle of Sarhu, when the Wanli Emperor transferred troops to reinforce Liaodong, many had revolted or scattered!

In the Tianqi era, when Sichuan troops were transferred to reinforce Liaodong, it touched off the She-An Rebellion. The Yongning tusi of Sichuan, She Chongming, took advantage of the troop mobilization to launch a mutiny in Chongqing, killing more than twenty Sichuan officials including the Governor of Sichuan, Xu Keqiu. He even occupied Chongqing for a time, besieged Chengdu, and went so far as to proclaim himself King of Great Liang, setting up his own little court. Meanwhile, the Shuixi tusi of Guizhou, An Bangyan, under the pretext of aiding Sichuan in suppressing She, also rose in rebellion in the second year of Tianqi and besieged Guiyang for ten months!

Although through the efforts of the Ming armies on all fronts in the southwest, the two rebels She and An had ultimately not grown too great, and Chongqing Prefecture, which had once fallen, was recovered, and the two rebels She and An were pressed back to the border region of Sichuan, Guizhou, and Yunnan—still, by the time Zhu Youjian ascended the throne, the unrest had not yet been quelled.

And during the Jisi Incident of his previous life, the throne-rallying armies marching from the northwest had, for various reasons, deserted or mutinied in large numbers en route, and the rebel refugees and roving bandits of the northwest had grown great because of it!

"Your Majesty," Sun Zushou, seeing the little emperor was somewhat conceited, frowned slightly and said, "With only thirty thousand men in hand, I fear we cannot defeat the eastern barbarians at Tianshou Mountain. Perhaps we should urge the Jiliao Army to move quickly to Changping. Then we could concentrate a hundred thousand troops at Changping!"

"Not necessary!" Zhu Youjian still shook his head. "No need to urge the Jiliao Army. And there is no need to send thirty thousand troops to Tianshou Mountain. The infantry here in Xuanzhen move slowly; bringing them along would only be a burden."

"What?"

"Your Majesty..."

Yang Hao, Sun Zushou, and Zhang Yiming were all taken aback, staring at the little emperor.

The little emperor smiled and said, "The infantry that came from Datong and the infantry here in Xuanfu need not be deployed. We will take twelve thousand cavalry—that is enough!"

The Headquarters cavalry Zhu Youjian had brought to Xuanfu numbered about ten thousand, and Hou Shilu of Xuanzhen had another two thousand cavalry in hand, all elite troops of household-retainer quality.

But no matter how elite, they were only at the level of ordinary Eight Banners soldiers. How could they defeat the eastern barbarian host, which numbered as many as fifty or sixty thousand?

Zhu Youjian smiled and said, "The infantry here in Xuanzhen I leave to the three of you. After We march out, you are to divide the troops and hold Juyong Pass, Zhenbian Fort, Baiyangkou Fort, Bohai Fort, Gubeikou, and Miyun, to prevent the slave rebels from crossing the border wall and escaping after their defeat."

Such confidence—there was no one else like it!

Yang Hao, Sun Zushou, and Zhang Yiming did not know what to say!

Zhu Youjian glanced at the three of them and smiled. "Tomorrow We shall march out first with twelve thousand men, each with two horses, to test ourselves against Hong Taiji! Rest assured, the three of you—We shall surely be victorious. Just wait for Our report of victory!"

(End of Chapter)