Southern Ming Rebel Army

Chapter 390: The Return of the Yuyuan Army

Shaanxi and Sichuan were in the midst of war. Dorgon was no longer able to reach Sichuan and Shaanxi. He had not even defeated Jiang Xiang of Datong. Zhao Yongping of Zhou army was already attacking Shandong. At such a critical juncture, he had no time to rush to the aid of Sichuan and Shaanxi.

After several days of secret discussions in the palace, Dorgon finally decided to transfer troops from outside the Great Wall to Beijing again.

In several rounds of mobilization, more than 2,000 Solon soldiers had already entered the pass. Dorgon strictly ordered the Solon soldiers outside the pass to mobilize another 6,000 men to enter the pass to fight.

The Solon soldiers were mainly composed of the Daur, Ewenki and Oroqen people from the Heilongjiang region, who originally lived in East and West Siberia and the Greater Khingan Range.

Living in the forest-grassland of the Heilongjiang River basin with a harsh natural environment, and engaging in traditional fishing and hunting in the extremely cold land, this difficult environment has endowed the Sauron people with extraordinary physical strength, endurance, physical fitness and bravery, which is the reason why they are regarded as the most brave soldiers.

Since Dorgon decided to defend the area inside the Great Wall, a mere 6,000 men, no matter how brave they were, could not solve the current situation of deploying troops everywhere. Therefore, 30,000 men were drawn from outside the Great Wall in Shengjing and Ningguta areas. Once these 30,000 men were drawn out, the vast area outside the Great Wall would be almost empty with less than 10,000 soldiers.

In Dorgon's view, if he could not suppress Meng Jun, even if he withdrew from Shanhaiguan, there would only be a few years of peace. In the future, Meng Jun would definitely use troops in Liaodong. Since he could not defeat him when Meng Jun was weak, he could still stop him by retreating outside the pass. As for Meng Jun at that time, Dorgon did not dare to hope that Li Zicheng and Zhang Xianzhong would appear in the Central Plains to attract firepower for the Qing Dynasty.

If we retreat, we will be destroyed sooner or later, so we might as well fight a decisive battle with the Zhou army while we still have strength left, defeat Zhao Yongping's Northern Expedition Army first, stabilize the north, follow the old strategy, and watch the internal strife in the south.

Moreover, most of the troops under Zhao Yongping's command are surrendered soldiers, and most of Meng Jun's elite troops are still in the hands of Lin Shiqi in the Huguang Camp. If the Qing Dynasty concentrates its forces to fight him, its chances of winning will be greater.

In the Qing court, some people were puzzled as to why Lin Shiqi did not go north to join forces with Zhao Yongping's troops. Once Lin Shiqi went north to Henan, the two sides could attack from both sides and enter Shanxi. From a high position, he could drive straight to the capital and enter Hebei from Shandong. Even if the Qing Dynasty still had troops in northern Sichuan, Shaanxi, and Henan, they would certainly not be able to stop him.

However, Dorgon knew this very well. He was most likely guarding against the Ming court. Even when Zhao Yongping launched the Northern Expedition, Dorgon was clearly aware that Meng Jun was taking risks.

If the Ming court took advantage of Meng Jun's northern expedition to contact Li Chengdong and Zheng Chenggong and send troops together, Meng Jun would be seriously injured even if he did not die.

Dorgon felt a little melancholy. He wondered whether the envoy had arrived in Kunming and how the conversation went with Zhu Youlang.

………………

Yuyuan Army Camp, night.

As night fell, the Yuyuan military camp was silent except for the faint light of a candle in the big tent. Liang Min and Yang Sanwu sat opposite each other, both of them had taken off their armor and changed into looser clothes.

Liang Min said to Yang Sanwu, "We will meet King Zhou tomorrow. What do you think, Brother Yang?"

Yang Sanwu analyzed in a low voice: "In my opinion, the Ming Dynasty is doomed. Since Chongzhen, the world has been in chaos, and many heroes have been fighting for supremacy. Now, the strongest has appeared. King Zhou led his troops to the north and was unstoppable. Xuzhou surrendered without a fight, and Jining was taken in just a few days. If it were us, we would not be able to take it even if we besieged it for three months. Didn't we agree when we came here to surrender to King Zhou, eat his food, and get his salary?"

Liang Min sighed and said, "After being a member of the Ming Dynasty for so many years, I suddenly have to change my allegiance. Sigh."

"If the Tartars didn't want to shave our heads, enclose land, burn, kill and loot, why would we have to rise up in rebellion? If King Chuang could have ruled the world firmly, I would rather live a peaceful life in the countryside. Why bother doing this bloody job!" Yang Sanwu said indifferently.

Liang Min nodded and said, "I understand, but I don't know how King Zhou will treat us?"

At this moment, a gust of wind blew into the tent, causing the candle flame to sway and flicker, making the light in the entire tent flicker.

Yang Sanwu said softly, "If the King of Zhou is favored by heaven, we will lead our people to surrender and he will treat us with kindness and justice. The ancient sages all established their countries with sincerity and comforted their people with kindness, so they were loyal to him."

………………

In Jining City, Meng Jun finally waited for the Yuyuan Army. Meng Jun and other generals looked at the Yuyuan Army from afar outside the camp and saw several people in front of them, walking hurriedly towards the Zhou Army camp.

Led by Liang Min and Yang Sanwu, they were followed by four or five generals.

When the generals of the Yuyuan Army saw Meng Jun, they immediately bowed and said, "Greetings, Your Majesty!"

Meng Jun hurriedly stepped forward, helped Liang Min and Yang Sanwu up, looked at them with a gentle gaze, and said with a hint of concern: "I heard that the Yuyuan Army has no food and money, and its weapons are incomplete, but they still insist on resisting the Qing. They are truly rare loyal and brave!"

Liang Min raised his head, met Meng Jun's gaze, and said in a slightly hoarse voice: "Your Majesty, we are indeed in a difficult situation, but the Yuyuan Army is united and vowed to fight the Qing Dynasty to the death. Unfortunately, we are short of food and money, and our weapons are old and outdated, so it is difficult to sustain. Therefore, Liang and Brother Yang have discussed and are willing to lead our troops to submit to Your Majesty and work together for the great cause."

The Yuyuan Army lived a hard life. They were half farmers and half soldiers, and food supply was always in short supply, not to mention military equipment and armor. Except for the generals and some elite soldiers of the Yuyuan Army, most of the others had no armor and armor.

After hearing this, Meng Jun's eyes flashed with joy, and he praised: "General Liang and General Yang are willing to join me, which will be even more powerful. Don't worry, from today on, I will properly arrange the food, wages, and weapons of the Yuyuan Army."

After hearing this, Liang Min and Yang Sanwu bowed and replied, "We are willing to go through fire and water for the king, and we will never change our minds!"

Meng Jun patted the two men on the shoulders, speaking in a gentle but firm tone: "From now on, you are my children. In the future, we will drive out the Tartars, recover our land, and share a peaceful and prosperous era!"

Afterwards, Meng Jun ordered his men to transfer a batch of food and fodder to the Yuyuan Army. The Yuyuan Army that followed Liang Min and Yang Sanwu to the expedition totaled more than 60,000 people. Not only did these people not have complete armor and weapons, but most of them had pale faces and looked malnourished.

Fortunately, most of these people are young and strong, and most of them have been on the battlefield and seen blood. They are definitely stronger than the new soldiers Meng Jun recruited from the seven towns in Huaibei.

Afterwards, Meng Jun personally hosted a banquet in Jining City for Liang Min, Yang Sanwu and a number of Yuyuan Army generals. Generals from Zhou Army such as Gu Yanwu, Zhao Yongping, Qian Biao, Gao Jinku, Liu Tichun, Hao Yongzhong and others also accompanied them.

It should be because Meng Jun's power is growing day by day. When he holds a banquet, there is no one who is blind enough to say weird things at the banquet, and both the guests and the host end the banquet happily.

Afterwards, the generals of the two armies dispersed, leaving only Liang and Yang behind.