Chapter 19 Victory in the first battle
"Damn it, must these Ming soldiers have taken the wrong medicine? They are so reckless in fighting!" Ezhe cursed while riding on his horse, looking at the city wall of Datong Prefecture that had been impossible to capture.

Lin Danhan's face was even uglier. His heart was bleeding as he watched his tribesmen, who were about to show off their power, being killed on the city walls by the crazy Ming army.

He was the Great Khan of Mongolia and the leader of all tribes, but the left wing of Mongolia either betrayed him or was killed by the Later Jin Dynasty, and the twenty-six most powerful tribes that had just arrived on the right wing of Mongolia had to join forces to deal with him. It can be said that he was attacked from both sides.

Now he has declared war on the Ming Dynasty again, causing his own people to die on the Ming city walls.

Lin Danhan couldn't help but doubt whether his decision was correct or not.

Secondly, it was Lin Danhan's cautious and fearful personality that eventually led to his death from illness on the way to escape.

Seeing that the Ming army was difficult to defeat, he began to doubt his life again.

General Mandulatu echoed Ezhe, "In the past, the Ming army would collapse at the first blow. Even those who were capable of fighting were not so desperate. Could it be that the Ming emperor personally led the army?"

Ezhe said disdainfully: "It would be great if the Emperor of Ming Dynasty really led the army in person. Let me see how I can follow his example and capture him alive first!"

Bagen, the general who had previously opposed the war with the Ming Dynasty, said anxiously: "Your Majesty Khan, there are not many warriors following us. They should die on the grasslands, not on the walls of the Ming people. I think this battle that should not have happened should not continue."

Upon hearing this, Ezhe immediately shouted angrily: "Bagen, if you are afraid, you can hide in your wife's arms!"

"Your Highness, I..." Bagen wanted to explain himself, but was stopped by Lin Danhan.

"Enough, now is not the time to argue!" Lin Danhan looked at Ezhe and scolded him, "You should not be so warlike. A failed war does not reflect your bravery!"

"Please give me 10,000 men, my father. I will capture Datong Prefecture before sunset!" Ezhe said aggrievedly.

Lin Danhan ignored him and turned to look at Bagen and said, "If we give up attacking the Ming people, do you have any ideas to solve the food and grass needed by the tribe?"

Realizing that Lin Danhan was thinking of withdrawing his troops, Bagen immediately said excitedly: "Your Excellency Khan, the men of the grassland are best at fighting to support the war. We originally came here to annex Ulianghai. In this case, why don't we hold on to Kharchin before it unites with the twenty-six tribes and take it down first? This way, we can not only obtain food and fodder, but also resolve the threat of Kharchin in advance?"

Upon hearing this, Lin Danhan fell into deep thought. He originally attacked Datong Prefecture just to avenge the murder of his son-in-law, and to rob the Ming people to obtain some food and supplies.

Now the Ming people have been prepared, and they will not get any good results in the wild, and they cannot gain any advantage because of the high and thick walls of Datong City. With this in mind, it would be more cost-effective to directly turn their spearhead to deal with the Kharchin tribe.

In any case, it is better than dying in battle under the Ming city walls.

Thinking of this, Lin Danhan once again showed his nature, and the fine tradition of retreating when encountering a tough opponent, and shouted loudly: "Retreat!"

"Father!" Ezhe glared at Bagen angrily and said, "Use all the troops, we can take Datong before dark!"

Lin Danhan glared at his son and sighed, "My son, you are too young. It is not difficult to take Datong Prefecture, but do you know how many warriors will be sacrificed?"

After saying this, without waiting for Ezhe to persuade him further, he turned his horse around and prepared to withdraw.

On the top of the city wall, Datong Lieutenant General Fang Zikun personally put on armor and went into battle. He brandished a long sword and with a "swish" he chopped off the head of a Tartar who had just appeared on the city wall. The gushing blood drenched Fang Zikun in what was like Asura hell.

"The general has also come to the top of the city wall... ahem... to rob us of our silver..."

Fang Zikun turned his head and saw an old soldier sitting on the ground, holding his abdominal wound with his left hand weakly. His intestines were leaking out, blood was constantly flowing out, and he spoke weakly. However, when he saw Fang Zikun looking at him, the old soldier still laughed and said, "We...we killed three people. Just because we died...it doesn't count!"

Fang Zikun's eyes were slightly red. He squatted down and supported the old soldier's crooked head, and assured him word by word: "Don't worry, the three taels of silver will be handed over to your family without a cent less!"

"I, Old Sun, will say...I will say that I didn't follow the wrong person!"

After the old soldier said his last words, his head tilted and he died.

"Damn it! I'm going to fight you Tartars!"

Fang Zikun has always been a reckless man, otherwise he would not have taken the initiative to kill Lin Danhan's son-in-law without authorization. It was only because Guiying threatened to reward him under the city that Fang Zikun felt that the other party had humiliated the dignity of the Ming Dynasty.

This time, Fang Zikun is going to be reckless again.

However, Lin Danhan did not give him this opportunity. The horn of retreat began to sound, and the Mongolian Tartars who had attacked the city several times suddenly retreated like a tide.

Fang Zikun, who was covered in blood, watched the Tartars retreat. With bloodshot eyes, he cursed fiercely: "Damn Tartars, if you have the guts, don't run away!"

Lin Dan Khan came with great momentum, but the battle started off well but ended badly. There was not even a camp set up outside the city. The enemy came and went like a gust of wind.

I thought it would be a fierce battle, but I didn't expect it to end so absurdly.

The Datong soldiers on the city wall were stunned for a long time before they came to their senses and started shouting.

"The Tartars have retreated!"

"Let's defeat the Tartars!"

"Hey, run slower or Grandpa will cut off your head!"

The cheers from the city wall soon spread to the city, and the people of Datong soon learned the news of the Tartars' retreat, and they all took to the streets to tell each other.

At this time, Cheng Jiming, who was packing up in the government office and urging his servants to find out the escape route, heard the shouts of the people in the city and was stunned. He grabbed a servant by the collar and asked, "What are they shouting? Are the Tartars retreating?"

The servant said happily: "Master has secured it! We have secured it, and Lin Danhan has retreated!"

Cheng Jiming finally felt more confident. The panic on his face was immediately replaced by the dignity of a senior official. He said majestically, "Bring me my official robe. I want to go up to the city wall and fight the Mongolian Tartars!"

The servant curled his lips secretly, and quickly found the official robe stuffed in the suitcase for Cheng Jiming to change into.

When Fang Zikun saw Cheng Jiming for the first time since the war broke out, he saw this military supervisor sent by the court swaying on the top of the city wall with a brand new sword in his hand, looking like an eagle or a wolf. His murderous aura seemed to be visible to the naked eye. No one would doubt that if a Mongolian Tartar appeared at this time, this military supervisor would surely rush forward to fight without fear.

"General Fang, I will definitely recommend you to the imperial court for merit!"

(End of this chapter)