Chapter 147: The Eve of the Decisive Battle

Night fell upon the commander-in-chief’s headquarters.

The Scar-faced Captain knelt before Wang Pu’s desk, his expression heavy with shame, while Zhao Xin, Tang Sheng, and Monk Zhang stood on either side, looking equally solemn.

The fierce battle before nightfall had ultimately ended with the Jianchu withdrawing on their own initiative. Tantai had failed to encircle the two thousand-man regiments of Zhao Xin and Tang Sheng, and had nearly trapped himself in the process.

Wang Pu asked calmly, "Scar-face, how heavy were the casualties in your regiment?"

The Scar-faced Captain answered gloomily, "More than a hundred brothers died, and over three hundred were wounded."

Wang Pu then turned to Zhao Xin and Tang Sheng, asking, "What about you two?"

Zhao Xin replied, "Nineteen dead, thirty-six wounded."

Tang Sheng reported, "Seventy dead, one hundred and sixty-three wounded."

"Wonderful," Wang Pu said, his tone heavy. "We originally set out to reinforce Zhao Liujin, only to be blocked right outside the city walls, losing six to seven hundred brothers in the process. This battle was utterly humiliating."

The Scar-faced Captain’s head dropped instantly, and he muttered, "General, it was entirely due to this subordinate's incompetence."

Wang Pu did not scold him. Instead, he asked, "Scar-face, tell me now: do you still think a single regiment of yours is enough to deal with the tens of thousands of Jianchu outside the city?"

Filled with shame and wishing the ground would swallow him up, the Scar-faced Captain replied in a low voice, "No."

Wang Pu then looked at Monk Zhang and asked, "Monk, if I gave you five hundred-man squads, could you wipe out the Jianchu camp outside the city?"

Monk Zhang also lowered his head and answered quietly, "No."

Zhao Xin cupped his fists toward Wang Pu and said sternly, "General, it seems we underestimated the enemy. The Jianchu are not as fragile as we imagined."

"Now that you know, that’s enough." Wang Pu rose to his full height and said in a ringing voice, "Find an opportunity later to speak with your subordinate commanders, squad leaders, and every single brother. The Jianchu are not roving bandits; they are a battle-hardened elite force, not a mob that shatters at a single blow. The few times we defeated them, we were actually very lucky."

Zhao Xin and the others chorused, "We will convey the General’s words to the men tonight."

"Tonight won't be necessary," Wang Pu said. "We have more important things to do tonight."

Zhao Xin asked in surprise, "What things?"

A fierce look suddenly flashed across Wang Pu’s face, and he said in a deep voice, "We just suffered a defeat. If we let the matter rest here, wouldn't that boost the enemy's arrogance while destroying our own prestige?"

The Scar-faced Captain and Monk Zhang immediately lifted their heads again.

Zhao Xin asked cautiously, "Then what is the General's intention?"

Wang Pu chuckled. "Heh. The two of you will return to the camp right now, muster all the brothers, and launch a night raid on the Jianchu's western gate camp. Bring along those two mortar cannons as well. I've kept this gear hidden for a while, and didn't even use them when the Jianchu's siege was at its fiercest. Now is the time to let them show their might."

"Understood!" The Scar-faced Captain, Zhao Xin, Tang Sheng, and Monk Zhang acknowledged the order and departed.

Not long after they left, a disheveled Zhao Liujin entered the headquarters, fell to his knees before Wang Pu, and said miserably, "General, this subordinate is incompetent. The grain and forage we were escorting were intercepted by the Jianchu."

"Get up, Regional Commander Zhao," Wang Pu said calmly.

"Uh..."

Zhao Liujin was astonished. He had expected Wang Pu to fly into a rage, or perhaps even have him executed, but he never dreamed Wang Pu would react with such casual indifference.

Wang Pu smiled faintly and said, "Regional Commander Zhao, you have already rendered a great service to the court. I have already asked Eunuch Zhang to submit a memorial to His Majesty through the Directorate of Ceremonies. Barring any major accidents, as soon as this campaign ends, you will be the Deputy Commander-in-Chief of Datong."

"Ah?" Zhao Liujin could hardly believe his ears, stammering, "Th-this... is this true?"

"Of course it's true." Wang Pu stepped forward, gently patted Zhao Liujin's shoulder, and said warmly, "Deputy Commander Zhao, work hard. As long as you obey orders, I will never treat you unfairly."

Zhao Liujin quickly straightened his back and declared loudly, "This subordinate swears to be loyal to the General unto death!"

"Very well," Wang Pu smiled. "You've been fighting the Jianchu all day; you must be tired. Go back and rest."

"This subordinate takes his leave!" Zhao Liujin responded boisterously.

At the Datong North Gate, in the Jianchu camp.

Hooge was hosting a banquet in his command tent for his trusted aides Leng Sengji, Turai, and Tantai. Today was a day of celebration: not only had they captured a massive quantity of horse feed, but they had also repulsed the defending garrison that sortied from the city, greatly boosting the military prestige of the Great Qing cavalry. Almost everyone was beaming with happiness, except for Xifu, who sat with tightly furrowed brows, lost in thought.

Hooge raised his wine bowl and shouted loudly, "Everyone, toast to Tantai! Tantai fought brilliantly, forcing Wang Pu's firearm regiment right back. From now on, we no longer need to fear Wang Pu's firearms. Whenever we meet them again, we'll just fight using Tantai's tactics. What does losing a bit of face matter? Winning the battle is what counts most!"

"The master speaks wisely!"
"We subordinates will fight using Tantai's methods from now on!"
Turai, Leng Sengji, and the others chimed in with agreement.

Xifu, who had been silent for a while, suddenly spoke up, "Master, this subordinate feels something might be a bit wrong."

Hooge hated nothing more than someone dampening his festive mood. He frowned and asked, "What's wrong?"

Xifu said, "Shouldn't Wang Pu's firearm regiment be much harder to deal with?"

"What are you talking about?" Hooge said displeased. "Wang Pu's firearm regiment aren't heavenly soldiers or divine generals; why would they be hard to deal with? We couldn't beat them before because we hadn't found the right method. Didn't Tantai find a way to break it today? From today on, Wang Pu's firearm regiment is finished."

Xifu insisted, "This subordinate still feels something is amiss."

*Boom! Boom!*

Just as Xifu’s voice trailed off, two violent explosions suddenly echoed from the distance. The men could even feel the ground beneath their feet tremble slightly. Hooge sprang to his feet and said grimly, "It's cannons! Where is there fighting?"

Before the echoes of the fierce artillery fire faded, intense gunfire erupted in quick succession. By now, everyone heard it clearly—the gunfire was unmistakably coming from the west. Shortly after, a personal guard strode hurriedly into the tent, dropped to one knee, and reported, "Master, bad news! The Ming army took advantage of the night to sortie from the city and launch a surprise attack. They are fiercely assaulting the western gate camp!"

"Quick!" Hooge was shocked and ordered urgently, "Gather the troops immediately! Go and reinforce them at once!"

"Yes!" Turai, Leng Sengji, and the others shouted in acknowledgment and hurried off to muster their forces.

Tantai was even more anxious. "Master, this subordinate will gallop back to the western gate camp right now."

"Go!" Hooge said darkly. "The western gate camp cannot suffer any mishaps, or our siege of Datong will be ruined."

"This subordinate understands. I take my leave!"

Tantai knelt, bowed to Hooge, and turned to stride swiftly out of the tent.

However, before Turai, Leng Sengji, and the reinforcements could arrive, the Jianchu's western gate camp had already been breached. Wang Pu's two mortars, cherished and kept hidden for so long, played a crucial role. Two solid iron balls came screaming through the air, smashing the sturdy palisade gates of the Jianchu camp into splinters. When the Jianchu inside the camp heard the cannon fire, crawled out of their tents, and rushed in a chaotic mob behind the gate, the Datong militia who had sortied with the army had already filled the trench before the Jianchu camp with wooden doors. The Scar-faced Captain, Tang Sheng, Zhao Xin, and Monk Zhang led the musketry unit in a direct frontal assault.

Before the Jianchu could loose an arrow, several dense volleys of gunfire rang out. The Jianchu crowded behind the gates and fences collapsed in swathes. The Jianchu in the western gate camp were mostly Tushetu people, and after all, the Tushetu were not Jurchens; they had no desire to die for the Jurchens here.

The Tushetu quickly collapsed, leaped onto their horses, and fled in panic. The more than three hundred Jurchens who fought to the death were all slain. By the time Turai and Leng Sengji arrived with reinforcements, the Ming army had completely seized the Jianchu's western gate camp.

Leng Sengji and Turai launched an assault, attempting to recapture the camp while the Ming army had yet to dig in, only to be met with a crushing counterattack from the Ming firearm regiment. They lost several hundred cavalrymen for nothing. Realizing there was no hope of retaking the western gate camp, Leng Sengji and Turai had no choice but to lead their troops back to the northern gate camp.

Over the next five days, Hooge sent troops several times in attempts to retake the western gate camp, but all failed, losing over a thousand Tushetu cavalrymen in vain.

By this point, the Jianchu siege of Datong had effectively become a dead letter.

A frontal assault failed; a siege could not hold. The Jianchu had fallen into an intractable dilemma. Realizing this, Xifu strongly urged Hooge to withdraw. Since the siege of Datong was already nominal, what was the point of staying?

Xifu urged Hooge to lead his troops to Beijing to join forces with Dorgon, but Hooge hesitated. He did not want to suffer a defeat, but he wanted even less to return and take orders under Dorgon.

Just as Hooge hesitated, a disaster suddenly struck.

Almost all of their horses suddenly came down with severe dysentery; the moment a man mounted one, the beast would collapse weakly to the ground!

Leigong Mountain Camp.

Monk Zhang cupped his fists toward Li Yan and said offhandedly, "Commander Li, all eight thousand sets of horse gear have been handed over in full. I should escort the horses and silver back to Datong to report to the General."

"Ah, no rush, no rush," Li Yan waved his hand with a smile. "Since it's nearly lunchtime, General Zhang, you should have a meal on the mountain before leaving."

Li Yan was, of course, harboring an ulterior motive in keeping Monk Zhang for a meal. He had noticed that Monk Zhang was a straightforward man lacking guile, making it easiest to extract information from him. Li Yan wanted to pump Monk Zhang for some background details on Wang Pu, especially regarding the firearm regiment.

Monk Zhang patted his belly and said cheerfully, "My stomach is indeed a bit empty. Fine, I'll eat before I go."

"Straightforward!" Li Yan laughed heartily. "Lao Qi, have the kitchen prepare wine and food immediately."

"Yes."

Li Jun acknowledged the order and left.

In less than the time it takes to brew a cup of tea, the kitchen brought out the wine and food. After pouring two bowls of wine for Monk Zhang, just as Li Yan was about to lead the conversation, Monk Zhang blurted out unprompted, "Commander Li, I heard you have a man under your command named Jing Maozheng, who used to be a bandit king over in Shaanxi?"

Li Yan smiled. "There is indeed such a person."

Monk Zhang wiped the wine stains from his lips with an honest grin, "To not keep it from you, before I, the Monk, threw in my lot with the imperial army, I also made a living as a highwayman. Heh, speaking of which, I share the same trade as that commander under your command."

"Someone come," Li Yan’s heart stirred, and he commanded in a ringing voice, "Summon General Jing here immediately."

Datong, General's Headquarters.

A visibly exhausted Zhen Youcai cupped his fists toward Wang Pu and said in a slightly hoarse voice, "General, the twenty-five thousand paper cartridges, along with the fifteen hundred Dragon King cannons, have all been delivered to the firearm regiment in full."

Wang Pu said with satisfaction, "Youcai, you've truly worked hard."

Zhen Youcai bowed and replied, "This is only what this subordinate ought to do."

"Youcai," Wang Pu grasped Zhen Youcai's withered hands tightly and said sincerely, "I won't speak words of gratitude; that would be too hypocritical. If we can truly annihilate the Jianchu outside the city this time, you will take first credit! Even if the court doesn't reward you, I certainly will. Tell me, what reward do you want?"

Zhen Youcai shook his head and replied with equal sincerity, "General, this subordinate doesn't want any rewards. I just want to follow you and accomplish great things!"

Wang Pu squeezed Zhen Youcai's withered hands hard and said nothing more.

Zhen Youcai suddenly asked, "General, I heard the one who escorted the horse gear up Leigong Mountain this time was the Monk?"

Wang Pu nodded. "That's correct."

Zhen Youcai asked, "General, you must have had a purpose in making such an arrangement, didn't you?"

Wang Pu smiled and asked, "What do you think?"