The First Gongsheng of Ming Dynasty

Chapter 616: No return from the storm
The sky is full of wind and snow.

The valley at night was already brightly lit with lights. When Cui Yuan saw soldiers carrying things everywhere, he couldn't help but feel a little worried in his heart. He was afraid that the Tatars would leave and come back.

"Uncle, the cannons are all set up. According to your instructions, they are all set up high. As long as the Tatars come, they can be spotted two miles away. They will never be allowed to take another step forward within one mile."

"That's fine, that's fine."

Cui Yuan raised his head and continued to look at the sky in the distance. He couldn't even tell which direction was over there.

All I know is that there is always a faint red light coming from over there. It may be a bonfire, or it may be an artillery battle going on.

"Is there any news about Marquis Anbian?" Cui Yuan asked.

"not yet."

"We need to be more prepared." Cui Yuandao, "I also need to pack up quickly. I have to leave before dawn."

"But uncle, it's not easy to drive away so many animals."

"Then just kill them all. When Uncle Xinxin fought with the Tatars on the grassland, didn't he just kill them all?"

"But in the battle at Weininghai, Uncle Xin Xin brought back all the humans and animals."

"This one……"

Cui Yuan has always wanted to use Wang Shouren as his benchmark. If he doesn't know how to do something, he just thinks about what he would do if it were Wang Shouren.

But Wang Shouren did not adhere to established laws when doing things, which made Cui Yuan invisible in many cases.

Cui Yuan thought for a while and then said: "It's a long journey back to Daming from here. If you can't take it back, kill it. Take whatever fur you can carry. As for the meat... bury all their dead in it, so they should ...You won’t eat it anymore, right? No, it’s hard to say. If the cold winter cannot pass, leaving these animals to them can be regarded as giving them food for the winter.”

The general on the side was a little confused.

They have never seen such a sharp-minded, yet self-denying general.

They usually see many people who are willful and self-willed. As for Cui Yuan, a scholar with little airs, in their opinion, he really doesn't look like a commander in charge of troops in the traditional sense.

"Take away those who can be taken away, and burn those who cannot be taken away. Put their belongings together... We only need to take away the cannons and fire bombs. We can do as much as we have the ability to do. If the Tatars come back again, we must be ready to withdraw at any time."

Cui Yuan felt that he was staying in a dangerous place.

The general said: "Uncle, the Tatars will not come back again, right?"

"If Anbian Hou's men and horses did not arrive at the predetermined position, or if the Tatars had a certain advantage in the close combat, or if they found that our men and horses were indeed too few, they would definitely take risks... and we would rob so many of them. We have killed so many of them for their livestock and food. How can they survive in this cold winter? The trapped beasts still fight."

"Yes."

Although the generals below did not agree with what Cui Yuan said.

But one thing was that they felt that Consort Cui's knowledge was pretty good. At least he was well-educated and could speak the truth.

From the battle situation, we can analyze the situation of the Tatars spending the winter, and then make an inference that sounds reasonable... Maybe it sounds simple to ordinary scholars, but for those who don't know a few Chinese characters, For those who serve in the military, these words are simply a wise saying to the ears.

……

……

Cui Yuan led few men and horses, and it was not easy to clean up the entire camp left behind by the Tatars.

In the end, everything was burned down as Cui Yuan said.

As the team continued to move forward, Cui Yuan was riding on his horse and couldn't help but stop and look at the raging fire behind him. He suddenly felt a sense of pride. This was a greater sense of accomplishment than when he blocked the little Tatar prince on the north bank of the Yellow River.

After all, this time, he is the coach, and everything is dispatched and directed by him personally, as if he no longer has to rely on others.

"After I go back, the princess will probably take a high look at me, right?"

Cui Yuan suddenly felt a little unconfident when he thought of this.

Working for Daming meant working for his wife's family, but it also depended on his wife and brother-in-law's impressions and opinions of him... He suddenly felt that his life was a little tired.

"General, there is news about Anbian Hou."

"Say!"

"Marquis Anbian has already led troops to pursue the Tatars, but it seems that the Tatars turned to the other side, and our main force of the Chinese army did not surround them."

"Alas!" Cui Yuan sighed heavily, "It would be nice to be able to stop something that has been anticipated a long time ago. It is also a good thing that the Tatars did not fight to the death. Are you still fighting?"

"This... I'm not sure. But it is said that our Chinese army is still about twenty or thirty miles ahead, so it is not close."

Cui Yuandao: "If this is the case, it is unlikely that we will catch up tonight. There is no need to be in a hurry when marching... Let's stay where we are first."

He Song came over and said, "If we stay where we are, will it..."

"Don't worry." Cui Yuandao, "Take a rest for a while, see if the carriage and everything are tied up, and just walk along the way they retreated. Most of them won't dare to come back."

Knowing that Zhu Feng had led troops to fight the Tatars, Cui Yuan was basically relieved.

This shows that the Tatars know that the Ming Dynasty has heavy troops, so the Tatars do not dare to take risks and come to trouble him. After all, his troops have artillery and fire blunderbuss. As long as they persist for a while, they will meet him at Zhufeng. The Tatars will not be able to get any advantage, and the Tatars may even fall into a tight siege on the Ming side because they did not run away quickly.

Ever since.

The army had not gone far out of the valley and was stationed again.

"Sir, those prisoners... do you want to kill them all? Take them back with just their heads?"

"No need." Cui Yuandao, "It's better to keep them alive. Besides, the ones captured are basically old, weak, women and children, so what's the point of killing them? If they die of cold and hunger on the road, it won't be too late to chop off their heads. We can't do it casually Kill and surrender."

"Yes."

……

……

In the middle of the night, Cui Yuan's troops stopped and walked.

By daybreak, they had not gone ten miles in total, because this group of people carried artillery, heads, prisoners, and some belongings. They could not move too fast in such unfamiliar conditions on the ice and snow roads.

Originally, the Tatars left a path when they retreated, but as the snow fell heavier and heavier, by daybreak, the previous snow marks had been covered up.

In the end, Cui Yuan had to let the soldiers stay where they were and light the fire again, waiting to get in touch with Cui Yuan's headquarters.

"What a damn weather."

Cui Yuan didn't know how to describe his mood.

Obviously he had just won the battle and felt that the future was bright, but he was in an unfamiliar grassland and experienced a heavy snowfall. This harsh environment made him feel that he might not be able to return to the Ming Dynasty alive, and the credit he received would be Will fly away, and all efforts will be in vain.

After daybreak, the group of people did not go any further.

Fortunately, the snow finally stopped.

Cui Yuan walked out of the tent. Although the temperature outside was very low, he did not feel cold because the soldiers were very good at logistics supplies. Especially the winter clothes prepared by Jizhou for the expedition were strictly in accordance with the regulations. Produced according to the standards set by Zhang Zhou.

And people of this era, especially the soldiers guarding the border in the north, are more adaptable to cold weather and are not so squeamish.

In other words, you have no right to be squeamish.

"Uncle, would you like a sip of the hot soup that was just served? They are all animals slaughtered last night. The brothers have brought a lot of them, so there will be rations on the way."

The soldiers were very happy.

It was not easy to find firewood in this harsh environment. Fortunately, we came out of the Tatar camp last night. When the Tatars retreated, they couldn't even take care of people and animals, let alone the firewood they had prepared for the winter. and charcoal to take away. In addition, the supplies accompanying the army included charcoal and pebbles. In the ice and snow, the soldiers of the Ming Dynasty made a bonfire, drank hot soup, and talked about the harvest last night. It seemed that the worries about the harsh environment were eliminated, and everyone was filled with joy. With the joy of victory.

"Ah."

Cui Yuan was indeed hungry.

My stomach was growling last night, so I just ate a few mouthfuls of dry food wrapped in my clothes. It was cold and stiff, but in this environment I had to eat to resist the cold, so I had to eat at that time.

Now he also urgently needs a bite of hot rice and a bowl of hot soup.

After Cui Yuanre finished his meal, he instantly felt confident. Even the breath in his mouth was more vapor than before, and his face was a little more relaxed and relieved.

"The Tatars are getting further and further away."

"Yes. Sir, the Tatars ran away and never came back."

"Eat, eat and drink enough, and continue on your way."

As Cui Yuan spoke, he personally visited each camp. Wherever he went, there would still be soldiers serving him soup. It seemed that in this environment, every soldier could give him the best. The thing is a bowl of hot soup.

And Cui Yuan also won the respect of the local soldiers in Ji Town through last night's battle.

Only then did they realize that this uncle Jingshan was not a vain person.

"grown ups!"

"General!"

"Uncle!"

Because Cui Yuan has never officially led troops before, and this time he is not leading troops as the commander-in-chief. Others call him various names, but they are basically honorifics. Cui Yuan also knows that these rough men are He is kindhearted.

"Eat quickly, don't look at me, I've already drank, I'm full! Only in this way can you be energetic."

"Yea, haha."

Cui Yuan quickly became involved with this group of people.

"General, there is news about Anbianhou... Anbianhou has already come this way, maybe... more than ten miles away!"

"Really? Then let the soldiers eat quickly, and those who were on duty also come over quickly and have a hot meal. Let's go forward and gather our troops as soon as possible."

"Yes!"

Cui Yuan gradually felt at ease.

It was because he had eaten, and also because he knew that Zhu Feng was coming with troops soon, so at least he was no longer fighting alone.

Cui Yuan led a thousand men to attack the Tatar camp with tens of thousands of people. Thinking about it now, Cui Yuan felt that he was very brave. How could he be fooled into lameness by Zhu Feng at that time?

……

……

Even if it was more than ten miles, both sides walked together at the same time, and they still walked for an hour and a half, and they didn't get together until noon.

It only seemed like we had walked six or seven miles on one side.

When Cui Yuan saw the dark army of the Ming Dynasty in the distance, the feeling was both familiar and unfamiliar. They were soldiers and horses he personally led, and he was the commander... He had left his own army last night, and then fought alone, almost losing his life. All gone.

"Knowing the truth."

When Cui Yuan saw Zhu Feng coming, he was very excited and almost wanted to go up and hug Zhu Feng.

As for the previous accusations against Zhu Feng, they were all forgotten now.

Zhu Feng got off the horse and seemed very excited. The two finally hugged each other. It felt like... they were the best friends in this life. At least they had experienced adversity together, fought together, and achieved meritorious deeds together.

The two chatted for a while and greeted each other.

Cui Yuan smiled and said: "It's okay on my side, not many were destroyed by the bombing, but the Tatars were in disarray and killed less than a thousand enemies."

"Here we are."

Zhu Feng smiled and said, "If the ears are cut off, there are 1,300 pairs in total."

"Ears? OK?" Cui Yuan didn't quite understand.

If cutting off the ears can be regarded as merit, then why bother with it? But the question is, how to determine whose ears belong to them?

Zhu Feng said: "This is a temporary measure, but there is nothing we can do about it. There is no need to build a capital temple now. It will be difficult to preserve the heads on the way back with so many heads. However, the Tatars still withdrew, and they couldn't catch up even if they wanted to. ...In the end we can only..."

The two looked at each other and smiled.

Obviously, the two of them still have some traits in common.

That is to know how to give up when things are good.

After all, the two of them are not generals from ordinary families. They are now considered to be princes and nobles, and they still have to make some considerations when doing life-threatening things.

Besides, if we continue to chase, the outcome in the end is unpredictable. If the Tatars take advantage of the familiar terrain and launch some night attacks, etc... one mistake may lead to great joy and sorrow.

Cui Yuan pulled Zhu Feng aside, pointed to an open space and said, "Let's rest first."

Zhu Feng nodded and said: "That's what I meant. The soldiers are all exhausted. But it's so cold now that the soldiers may not be able to sleep well."

Cui Yuandao: "Then let's go back to the valley. That's the old nest of the Tatars. In addition to firewood, the terrain is better and the wind is not that strong. In addition, there were many places burned last night. , or there is still a little bit of warmth, so it would be perfect for the soldiers to camp on it."

"it is good."

Zhu Feng also felt that what Cui Yuan said made sense.

Zhu Feng also smiled and complimented: "Brother Cui, you didn't stay in Yanwu Hall for long, but you have a lot of knowledge. When you get back, Brother Zhang and I will recommend you to become an instructor."

"Oh... let's talk about it later."

Cui Yuanben felt very happy.

But then I think about it, if I can return to the capital, I will definitely hide at home and not come out. Is it really a glorious thing to become a teacher?

However, Cui Yuan also seemed to realize that he was a little too negative and would start to get used to being a coward, but he vaguely felt that there was nothing wrong with it.

……

……

The troops did not stay where they were but continued to march.

We only need to walk less than twenty miles to reach the valley where the Tatars gathered before.

After the soldiers gathered together, they started talking and laughing.

There are more than 10,000 soldiers and horses, many artillery and muskets. It seems that a soldier knows that the Tatars will not dare to come back... They dare not fight a thousand people, and now there are more than 10,000 people... unless The Tatars ate the heart of a bear and the gall of a leopard.

"Sleepy."

Cui Yuan said to Zhu Feng, "I just want to sleep on a warm bed for a few days and nights... I'm too tired."

(End of this chapter)