Chapter 850
A Fateful Encounter
"There's no need to go back to Datong City. We can go around to the side. That area is still within Datong's jurisdiction, and with Guo Deng and Kuang Ye guarding it, the enemy can't get there. We've already passed that road, so we'll be familiar with it and it'll be safe to go again."
The emperor was persuaded; it's always safe to repeat the same path.
The army changed course and turned back. Cao Nai was both angry and amused: "The city is just ahead. Once we enter the city, we'll be safe. Even if there are enemies lying in ambush, do you think our army of over 100,000 is just for show? What about Jing Yuan? Isn't he the vanguard?"
"The Imperial Son-in-Law Commandant was ordered to return to the city to scout the way, and he has been gone for a quarter of an hour."
Cao Nai could only lead other ministers to persuade the emperor.
But they couldn't even see the emperor; they could only stand outside the imperial carriage and stare at Wang Zhen.
The battle came unexpectedly. First, when Jingyuan advanced to a side of Datong, he encountered an enemy army, and the two sides clashed unexpectedly.
At that moment, Kuang Ye had just captured Guo Deng and coerced him into revealing the actual military situation in Datong. He had just divided the reinforcements into three routes and assigned them to the Datong garrison to guard Datong.
Just then, scouts discovered enemy activity: two Oirat armies had secretly infiltrated a section of Datong's defenses, and half of them had already entered.
If their reinforcements hadn't arrived just in time, they probably wouldn't have even known their escape route had been cut off.
The hasty battle resulted in heavy casualties, but fortunately, most of the Oirat army was driven out of the defensive line.
Looking at the casualty figures, Kuang Ye was heartbroken. He wrote in his log: "The reaction speed was too slow. Although they were brave, they lacked agility. The Fifth Army Battalion has become so lax. When we return to the capital, we must intensify our training and never slack off again."
After finishing his log, he immediately wrote down the situation in Datong and sent someone on horseback to catch up with the emperor and report the military situation.
Meanwhile, they discovered that the central army of the Oirat Mongols had approached Xuanfu, but they did not know the actual situation of the battle. However, considering the state of the Datong defense line, he feared that Xuanfu could not be held either. In his letter, he urged the emperor to hurry back to the capital as the top priority.
Kuang Ye estimated that, if all went smoothly, the emperor's carriage would enter Weizhou by evening. Once the emperor was safe, he would locate Esen's main force, first annihilate it, then encircle and trap it, finally finding all the enemy troops who had infiltrated the rear.
Kuang Ye's plan was well-thought-out, but little did he know that the emperor would turn northeast halfway there and head towards Xuanfu.
When the scouts discovered that the imperial entourage and Esen's main central line were getting very close, not only the emperor and Wang Zhen were startled, but Esen's army was also taken aback.
Then they reacted quickly, disregarding the difference in the number of troops, and directly charged the imperial carriage.
Esen's cavalry was formidable; they did not linger in battle, but instead engaged in flanking maneuvers, charging and then retreating.
Wang Zhen ordered Song Ying to cover the rear, while he led the main force to protect the emperor and run frantically.
Song Ying died in battle.
The emperor finally sensed something was wrong and quickly took over command. He first ordered Earl Gongshun Wu Kezhong and Commander Wu Keqin to cover the rear, and then ordered Zhu Yong and Earl Yongshun Xue Shou to support the Imperial Son-in-Law Commander Jing Yuan, who was entangled with the Oirat army. Then the imperial carriage hurriedly fled to Xuanfu.
Seeing the emperor in a panic, the Duke of England had no choice but to help reorganize the army despite his illness.
Wang Zhen berated Kuang Ye and Guo Deng for their poor defense, allowing the enemy to break through their lines and concealing the fact that they had failed to report it.
The Duke of England said, "This is the main force. It should not be the western army, but rather the central army. Their target was Xuanfu before, but now they are probably on the imperial carriage."
The Duke of England gritted his teeth and said, "We've come this far, there's no time to retreat. Order Yang Hong to bring troops to our aid immediately and hold the south side of Xuanfu. We must not let Esen's army cut off our retreat."
Wang Zhen said irritably, "The Xuanfu army is chasing us and killing us. We are retreating south now. How can they possibly bypass us and reach our rear? It would be better to have Yang Hong send troops to block the pursuing army immediately and send troops from the northwest of Xuanfu to support us."
The British Duke, however, felt that they still had many bargaining chips and did not need Yang Hong to come and provide support; rather, securing their retreat route was more important.
But soon, news arrived from the rear that Zhu Yong, who had gone to support Jing Yuan, had led his army into the Oirat encirclement before he could even find Jing Yuan. Of the 30,000 troops, most had perished, including Zhu Yong and Yongshun Earl Xue Shou. The remaining small number survived only because Jing Yuan, after escaping his pursuers, circled back and, seeing the surrounded Ming army, led his men to break through the encirclement from the outside, allowing more than 10,000 men to escape. When the emperor heard that Zhu Yong, the commander-in-chief of the central army, had been killed in action, and that Kuang Ye's battle report had finally reached the army after a long journey, he was shocked.
He learned that Esen's forces were likely to infiltrate through the Datong defense line. In addition to this central army, there were unknown numbers of Esen's troops hidden along the way. He refused to accept the Duke of Ying's suggestion and instead listened to Wang Zhen's opinion. He immediately ordered Yang Hong to lead the Xuanfu army to provide support from the northwest of Xuanfu.
After two days of hasty and chaotic fleeing, scouts discovered a large army of Esen sixty li southeast of Xuanfu.
Their escape route has been cut off.
emperor:……
Wang Zhen: ...
The British Duke laughed out loud, furious.
While the emperor was fleeing in a desperate and chaotic manner, the capital was peaceful and serene.
Because they had just received news that the stubborn young emperor, who longed for the battlefield, had finally decided to return to the capital.
All the officials breathed a sigh of relief, as did the Empress Dowager and the Empress in the inner palace. Everyone began to happily prepare for the Emperor's return.
Even the Prince of Cheng relaxed considerably. After finishing his work, he happily left the palace, waving his fan.
Once his elder brother returns, he can finally unload his burdens and be the carefree little prince he once again.
The happy Prince Cheng decided to treat himself today and immediately took his entourage to a restaurant on the main street for a meal.
"Your Highness, which restaurant would you like to eat at today?"
Prince Cheng thought for a moment and said, "I'm tired of Taotielou and Zhuangyuanlou. They haven't introduced any new dishes in two months. Let's find some other restaurants."
The guard thought for a moment and said, "Your Highness, I know a place that makes delicious mutton soup with bread."
Prince Cheng simply loved to eat, unlike the people at Zhuangyuanlou who ranked dishes by quality and value. As soon as he heard it was delicious, he immediately said, "Let's go eat now!"
The guard led him to the end of the main street, turned into a small alley, and not far away there was a steaming shop.
The rich aroma of mutton soup wafted over, and Prince Cheng's eyes lit up instantly, prompting him to quicken his pace.
As you get closer, you'll find the shop is packed with people, and three tables have been set up at the entrance, all of which are already full.
As soon as the guards went up, the shopkeeper turned around and shouted at the three tables that weren't full, "Who wants to share a table?"
Neither of the two tables with only three guests remained silent. However, the people at the far end table with four guests turned around, saw him, and immediately grinned, waving and saying, "Come over here!"
The Prince of Cheng looked in the direction of the sound and saw Pan Yun. He was stunned for a moment, then immediately led his guards up to her.
Miaozhen and the others immediately moved aside to make room for Prince Cheng.
Prince Cheng sat down beside Pan Yun, surprised, and asked, "Miss Pan, what are you doing here?" (End of Chapter)