Chapter 807: Raise the Ming Banner!

A young man of seventeen or eighteen, sturdily built, wearing a Ming-style breastplate and an iron helmet, galloped up with a group of companions of similar age to the front of Batur Hongtaiji's horse, where he was watching the battle from high ground. The young man's armor was covered in bloodstains, and in his right hand he carried a dripping bundle. Only when he reached Batur Hongtaiji did he jerk his warhorse to a halt; the horse let out a shrill neigh, its front hooves rearing high before crashing down heavily onto the snow-covered ground.

"Sengge!" Batur Hongtaiji, already advanced in years, looked at the young man and broke into a doting smile.

Mongol tradition was to pass the succession to the youngest son (the youngest son of the principal wife), and this young man named Sengge was Batur Hongtaiji's fifth son. Though not the very youngest, he was the second youngest. Batur Hongtaiji's youngest son was Galdan, but Galdan's mother had once made a reincarnation pact with the Third Wensa Living Buddha, who was visiting the Dzungar tribe — she asked the old, ailing Living Buddha to agree to be reincarnated as her son. After the old Living Buddha agreed, he returned to Tibet and passed away not long after. Then Galdan's mother, who was Batur Hongtaiji's wife, became pregnant and later gave birth to Galdan.

In other words, Galdan was born a reincarnated Living Buddha, so of course he could not become the heir. Thus the Sengge before him was Batur Hongtaiji's successor.

And today's battle was the first great battle Sengge had ever taken part in!

To help his son establish authority as quickly as possible, Batur Hongtaiji had, a year earlier, selected five hundred young men of outstanding martial skill from the subordinate tribes to serve as his son's companions. He had also equipped them with armor gifted by the Ming and the finest warhorses, and had them train together in charging enemy formations.

Just as Yangir Khan's Kazakh allied army was collapsing under the repeated attacks of the Dzungar artillery, mounted musketeers, and cavalry, Batur Hongtaiji seized the moment and immediately sent his son Sengge with his five hundred iron cavalry into the assault, charging toward the great banner of Yangir Khan. The sole objective was to kill the Kazakh Khan, Yangir!

The Kazakh Khanate had originated from the Golden Horde; its khans were descendants of Jochi. Although they professed the faith of Arabia, the state's organization remained Mongol in character — in truth it was a nomadic tribal confederation without a strong central authority. Once Yangir Khan died, the khanate would easily fall apart.

In that way Batur Hongtaiji could more easily conquer all of Moghulistan — the territory held by the Dzungar Khanate and the Kazakh Khanate was called Moghulistan by the Persians, meaning "the land of the Mongols."

Only by fully controlling this territory would the Dzungar tribe have the possibility of founding a khanate!

Watching the battle from high ground, Batur Hongtaiji had already seen Yangir's main formation broken through and the Kazakh Khan's great banner toppled. The only thing he could not yet confirm was whether Yangir Khan, who commanded immense prestige in the Kazakh Khanate, was dead.

"Father!" Sengge had by now dismounted and, holding the bloody bundle in both hands, came before Batur Hongtaiji. "I have brought Yangir's head!"

"Is that so?" Batur Hongtaiji said overjoyed. "Bring it here, let me see!"

A guard beside him immediately stepped forward to take the bloody bundle and opened it. Inside was a severed head with eyes still open in death.

Among Batur Hongtaiji's retinue was an adviser who had once been sent as an envoy to the Kazakh Khanate. He glanced at the head and cried out in ecstasy, "Hongtaiji, Yangir Khan is dead! This is his head!"

"Ha ha ha!" Batur Hongtaiji laughed three times. "All troops, attack! We must let the Kazakhs know the might of our Dzungar tribe! Let them know who is the master of Moghulistan!"

For the Kazakh Khanate, the death of Yangir Khan was undoubtedly the beginning of a dark age. The state that had barely held together disintegrated; vast, rich pastures were seized by the Dzungar tribe, and the splintering Kazakh tribes slaughtered one another in their struggle for the remaining grasslands.

And for Batur Hongtaiji, already advanced in years and in steadily declining health, victory did not mean the start of a happy life either. For he had already caught a chill before the decisive battle at the Chu River, had been running a low fever for several days, and had gone onto the battlefield purely by forcing his sick body onward.

Perhaps because his heart's desire had now been fulfilled, the spirit that had been suppressing his illness suddenly dispersed. That very night Batur Hongtaiji developed a high fever, coughed incessantly, and spat up blood-tinged phlegm.

Knowing his time was short, Batur Hongtaiji at once had his heir Sengge, his eldest son Chechen, his second son Jotba Batur, and his younger brother Khükhür Ubashi — who were drinking in celebration at the camp by the banks of the Chu River — all summoned to his tent. He also had himself dressed in a Ming first-rank military officer's python robe and black gauze cap (both sent along with the cannons), and in his hands he held two imperial edicts issued by Zhu Cilang.

One was the edict investing Batur Hongtaiji as Grand Protector of the Northern Protectorate, and the other invested Sengge as the Grand Protector of the Northern Protectorate's designated successor.

As early as when Galdan was detained in Yulin, Prince Dai Zhu Cijiong had been entrusted to request these two edicts from Zhu Cilang.

Seeing Batur Hongtaiji dressed in this manner, Sengge, Chechen, Jotba Batur, and Khükhür Ubashi were all stunned.

What was going on? Why had the Hongtaiji put on this gaudy Ming official dress? Could it be that the Dzungar tribe's submission to the Ming was in earnest?

Batur Hongtaiji's eldest son Chechen looked at his father and asked, "Father, are you... going to raise the Ming banner?"

Batur Hongtaiji did not answer directly, instead turning his gaze to his younger brother Khükhür Ubashi. Khükhür Ubashi closely resembled Batur Hongtaiji, only much younger, with jet-black, glossy hair and beard and a healthy complexion.

Within the Dzungar tribe, Khükhür Ubashi was one of the rare "intellectuals," proficient in Mongolian, Chagatai, Persian, and Chinese, and able to read the military strategy classic Romance of the Three Kingdoms bestowed by the Qing court. Batur Hongtaiji had therefore always treated him as his own Zhuge Liang.

The Mongol Zhuge Liang stroked his beard and waved a folding fan (unable to find a goose-feather fan, he had already sent Tsering Lama to Nanjing to buy one), pretending to think it over.

"The Hongtaiji wishes to obtain more aid from the Ming to resist Russia?"

Batur Hongtaiji's expression was grave. He nodded slightly and said, "My health is failing day by day; I do not know when I shall return to the Land of Bliss. After I die, the Dzungar tribe and Sengge must have someone to rely on. Otherwise the ferocious Russians will surely seize the opportunity to take our Dzungar lands, cattle, sheep, and people. Therefore we must secure the Ming's support."

In truth, this Hongtaiji of the Dzungar tribe had not spoken his full mind to his brother. What worried him most right now was not Russia at all, but rather his own "Zhuge Liang of a brother." His eldest son Chechen and second son Jotba Batur were both none too bright and easily incited by others. And Khükhür Ubashi schemed against outsiders and his own kin alike from morning to night — he might well stir up Chechen, Jotba Batur, and Sengge into infighting.

Therefore Batur Hongtaiji wanted to use the Ming banner to stabilize his son Sengge's position, so that he could securely become the Grand Protector of the Northern Protectorate!

As for the Russian threat — as long as the Dzungar tribe remained united internally, and with Ming support besides, there was nothing to worry about!

The Russians' strength lay only in muskets and cannons. Now that the Dzungar tribe could obtain these from the Great Ming as well, what was there to fear?

"But the Great Ming demands that we send troops against the Yarkent Khanate!" Sengge said, looking at his father's sickly appearance with great concern.

"Then send the troops!" Batur Hongtaiji coughed several times. "Yarkent is allied with the Kazakhs and Bukhara and has always opposed our Dzungar tribe. Now that the Kazakhs are temporarily routed, it is time to free our hands and deal with the Yarkent Khanate.

Moreover, Abdallah Khan of the Yarkent Khanate is a harsh and ungrateful man. After seizing power he slaughtered the nobles of the various tribes on a grand scale and even drove out his brothers Ibraim and Ismail. Both of Abdallah Khan's brothers are here with us — now is the perfect time to use them as guides, join forces with the Ming army, and advance from east and west to destroy the Yarkent Khanate in one stroke!"

"But Father, your health..." Sengge looked at his father's condition and truly could not set his mind at ease.

Batur Hongtaiji raised the edict by which Zhu Cilang had invested Sengge, straining to raise his voice: "This is the Son of Heaven of the Great Ming's decree appointing you as designated successor to the Military Commissioner of the Northern Protectorate! You are now the Dzungar heir confirmed by the Son of Heaven of the Great Ming. If I do not make it, you will naturally assume the duty of sending troops against the Yarkent Khanate!"

(End of Chapter)