bookrebus Chapter 168 The troops are approaching the city
Chapter 168 The troops are approaching the city
(Map of the Joseon Dynasty)
The Kingdom of Korea was divided into eight provinces, and the one bordering the Ming Dynasty next to the Yalu River was Pyeongan Province of the Kingdom of Korea.
Although the Joseon Dynasty had a small territory and had been invaded many times in history, it lasted for 27 dynasties from 1392 to 1910.
However, now that the Later Jin had almost wiped out the Li royal family ahead of time, this dynasty probably had no hope of continuing its rule for another 500 years.
This time, the Later Jin Dynasty's surprise attack on the Lee Dynasty of Korea was too smooth. In the early stages, it basically pushed forward smoothly and encountered almost no decent resistance.
Therefore, when the Later Jin army reached the capital of Korea, the beile and flag owners who led the troops of the Later Jin army began to divide their troops into several groups and attack forward separately.
Every Beile and banner lord wanted to win merit, occupy more land and plunder more wealth, so naturally they were unwilling to leave many soldiers and horses to garrison the city.
This also gave Lu Cheng great convenience. With only 6,000 soldiers and horses, he was able to advance like a hot knife through butter and successively captured Changcheng, Shuozhou, Yizhou, Longchuan, Dingzhou and other places in Pyeongan Province, and soon occupied half of Pyeongan Province.
At the same time, generals from various regions in northeastern Liaodong also sent out troops, gathered on the border of the Later Jin Dynasty, and approached the Yalu River, threatening the Later Jin Dynasty's homeland.
Before the Later Jin invaded Korea, they had taken into account the possibility that Liaodong of the Ming Dynasty might get involved, and they were always on guard against Liaodong's troops.
After learning that Lu Cheng had sent a large army across the Yalu River, Nurhaci did not rush to send troops, but allowed Lu Cheng's troops to penetrate deep into Korean territory, preparing to attack Lu Cheng's troops from both the north and south within Korea. While destroying Korea, he would severely damage Lu Cheng and even further recapture the Zhenjiang Fort area.
For a time, the troops of the Later Jin Dynasty moved from northeast to southwest along the Yalu River and approached Pyongan Province. The troops of the Later Jin Dynasty that invaded Korea returned along the same route and also approached Pyongan Province.
The Liaodong troops across the Yalu River were also gathering towards Zhenjiang Fort, and a standoff formed between the two sides.
At the same time, Lu Cheng also took 10,000 troops from southern Liaoning and stationed them in the Zhenjiang Fort area.
This time, Sun Chengzong sent two generals, He Shixian and You Shigong, with 50,000 troops to support Lu Cheng.
In Zhenjiang Fort, He Shixian and You Shigong looked at the map on the table and were both a little worried.
He Shixian pointed to a location on the map and said, "Brother Lu, according to the battle report from the front, Nurhaci personally led 5 troops and has arrived in the south of Chushan, less than a hundred miles away from Changcheng. With the speed of the Later Jin cavalry, I'm afraid they will soon reach Changcheng. With the thousands of troops you sent, can you really stop the Later Jin army?"
You Shigong also advised: "But it's not just Nurhaci's 5 troops. When Amin's troops return from the south, there will be troops from the north and south. Even if you and I add up our troops, it's still not enough. I think we should withdraw our troops as soon as possible. Let them occupy Korea, it's not our territory anyway."
Lu Cheng shook his head: "My two brothers, if we allow the Later Jin to fully occupy the Korean Peninsula, we can obtain a large amount of food supplies and a long-term stable food base. We will also lose an ally.
Also, you don't have to worry too much. Even though I only sent out a few thousand soldiers, there is no problem defending the city. However, I also need to trouble you two brothers to help defend the Kuandian, Yongdian, and Xindian areas, and don't let the Houjin troops attack our territory.
As for the rest, you two don't need to worry about it. Don't forget, my best skill is defending the city."
He Shixian nodded when he heard this: "Speaking of this, I have to admire Brother Lu's use of firearms. After this battle, can Brother Lu give me a few new muskets?"
"No problem at all."
You Shigong also stood up and said, "Brother Lu, you can't miss out on my share."
"Don't worry, my two brothers. You will definitely be included."
Among the generals in Liaodong, Lu Cheng had good relations with He Shixian, You Shigong, Chen Ce, Tong Zhongkui and others, and the best relationship among them was with He Shixian.
He Shixian was a man of courage and strategy, and he had worked his way up from the bottom, being promoted to the position of general entirely on the basis of his own merits. In this respect, his experience was very similar to Lu Cheng's.
As for You Shigong, Chen Ce and Tong Zhongkui, they all came from military examinations and had real abilities.
In the original history, these generals and several other generals of Liaodong died in the decisive battle with the Later Jin when Yuan Yingtai was in charge of Liaodong.
It can be said that during Yuan Yingtai's administration of Liaodong, not only did Liaodong lose the two important cities of Liaoyang and Shenyang, but he also killed all of Liaodong's most capable generals on the battlefield.
Now, because of Lu Cheng, these generals are still alive and well, and they have a good relationship with Lu Cheng. They visit each other during the holidays and often sit together to discuss military training and deployment.
If Lu Cheng wants to become king in the future, he will naturally need some talented generals and commanders, and these people are worth winning over.
As for whether these people are loyal to the Ming Dynasty, it is not too important.
As long as the Ming Dynasty exists, everyone is loyal to it. If the Ming Dynasty is gone, who will be buried with it?
After arranging the defense of the north of Zhenjiang Fort, Lu Cheng led his troops into Pyeongan Province and personally rushed to Changcheng.
The cities of Korea are also small. Changcheng is about the same size as Zhenjiang Fort. At this time, there are nearly three thousand soldiers stationed in the city, and enough food and ammunition are stockpiled.
At the same time, Lu Cheng's Liaonan troops were stationed in Shuozhou, Guicheng, Dingzhou and other places.
Not only that, Lu Cheng also deliberately leaked the news that he was in Changcheng to let Nurhaci know.
Nurhaci and the entire Later Jin hated Lu Cheng to the core.
Since Lu Cheng arrived in Liaodong, he entered Hetuala City twice and assassinated Fan Wencheng, Li Yongfang, and several sons and grandsons of Nurhaci. He also poisoned the nobles of the Later Jin Dynasty, killing and injuring more than one hundred Later Jin nobles and their families.
In addition, it was Lu Cheng who caused losses to the Later Jin army many times, which prevented the Later Jin from conquering Liaodong.
It can be said that looking at the entire Liaodong, and even the entire Ming Dynasty, the Ming person who was most hated by everyone in the Later Jin Dynasty was Lu Cheng.
Therefore, after learning that Lu Cheng was in Changcheng, Nurhaci directly led an army of 50,000 to surround the entire small Changcheng. This time, no matter what the cost, he was determined to kill Lu Cheng.
Nurhaci even gave orders to Amin, who was on a southern expedition, to lead his troops to bypass Guicheng and head straight for Shuozhou, cutting off Lu Cheng's retreat route back to the Ming Dynasty.
At this moment, Lu Cheng was standing on the top of the city wall of Changcheng, which was less than two meters high, looking at Nurhaci's army outside the city, but he was not panicked at all.
He has been the deputy general for so long, it's time for him to make further progress.
Nurhaci had his eyes on Lu Cheng's head, but he didn't know that Lu Cheng was also eyeing Nurhaci's head.
Just as Nurhaci was about to order an attack on the city, the soldiers on the city wall loaded their rifles with ammunition and prepared to shoot.
Improved versions of explosive packs and grenades were also placed on the top of the city walls.
There are also some mortars hidden under the city walls, ready to be moved to the top of the city at any time.
This is destined to be a war that spans the ages. Lu Cheng also wants to let those Jurchen Tartars experience the true power of firearms two or three hundred years in advance...