"Report! The Eight Banners soldiers on the right wing have surrendered."
"Report, the Eight Banners soldiers on the left wing have surrendered."
......
Every time the scout reported some news, Man Dahai's face became darker.
By the end, his face was darker than charcoal.
As a large number of soldiers surrendered, Man Dahai had to withdraw the remaining forces to Jiefan Village, intending to defend it to the death.
Huang Degong quickly rushed up and killed him.
He ordered his soldiers to surround Jiefan Village.
"General," Gao Yigong came to Huang Degong, "our troops have surrounded Jiefan Village. The surrendered Jiannu soldiers are in front, and our troops are behind. We can launch an attack at any time."
Huang Degong replied without hesitation: "Then attack immediately!"
Gao Yigong suggested in a low voice: "Should we wait a while?"
Huang Degong glared and asked, "What are you waiting for?"
"Wait for the artillery!" Gao Yigong explained: "The artillery is heavy and the mountain road is rugged. It will take some time to transport it from the foot of the mountain to here."
"No need to wait!" Huang Degong sneered and said, "We have the surrendered Jiannu soldiers as a shield, so why not use them?"
Gao Yigong blinked his eyes and said, "I will obey your orders."
Under Huang Degong's order, the Ming army began to besiege Jiefan Village.
Jiefan Village was built on the mountain, with a circumference of more than 1,500 feet.
It is a city of earth and stone.
The surrendered soldiers of the Eight Banners tied white cloth on their right arms, carried the siege equipment prepared in advance by the Ming army and charged forward.
Due to the surrender of a large number of soldiers, many places were left undefended.
After just one charge, Jiefan Village was breached by the surrendered soldiers of the Eight Banners.
The surrendered soldiers of the Eight Banners rushed in first, and countless Ming troops poured into the village through the gap and began to massacre.
Man Dahai first fought bravely in the city, but as the number of soldiers around him decreased, he could only flee to the city wall and fight while retreating.
But doing so can only delay time and cannot reverse the situation.
Under the joint siege of the Eight Banners surrendered soldiers and the Ming army, Man Dahai was forced to the northwest corner of the city wall.
He glanced outside and quickly looked away in fright.
There are steep cliffs outside, and if you fall down you will be smashed into a meat patty.
Looking inside, there were countless Ming troops in the city.
Looking at the city walls on both sides, they were crowded with soldiers.
There were soldiers from the Eight Banners who surrendered, and there were also close confidants who had not yet surrendered.
Man Dahai knew he had no way to retreat, so he shouted, "Stop it, I have something to say."
Huang Degong was not far below the city wall. He shouted in the crowd, "Man Dahai, if you have something to say, please speak up."
"Who are you?"
"Huang Degong, the governor of Ping Liao."
Man Dahai's face turned pale as paper, and he said in a deep voice: "I want to ask, is it too late to surrender now?"
"What do you think?"
Man Dahai's only glimmer of hope was shattered.
He was neither sad nor grief-stricken.
Perhaps because he knew his own ending, Man Dahai's heart suddenly calmed down.
He knew that what was coming could not be avoided.
After a bitter smile, Man Dahai asked: "Since it's too late, can you do me a favor?"
"you say."
"I will ask the Eight Banners soldiers who are still resisting to lay down their weapons and surrender. Can you show some mercy and give them a chance to live?"
Huang Degong sneered and asked again: "What do you think?"
Man Dahai's face turned even paler.
He said in a pleading tone: "Governor Huang, I beg you, please spare their lives!"
Huang Degong still said with a sneer in his tone: "I can spare your life, but there is a condition."
Man Dahai was delighted and said quickly, "Please speak, Mr. Huang."
Huang Degong clenched his fists and said in a frighteningly cold tone: "Damn it! You know to eat when you are hungry, and sleep when you are tired. But you only think of surrendering when you are about to die! It's too late!"
Man Dahai seemed to have completely lost his strength, and he gasped for breath while leaning against the cold battlements of the city wall.
Huang Degong was about to order an attack when he suddenly remembered something.
He raised his head and said loudly: "Man Dahai, how do you want to die?"
Man Dahai said nothing.
He didn't know what to say.
Huang Degong had lost his patience and gave the order directly: "Kill!"
The surrendered soldiers of the Eight Banners were like wild dogs that had broken free from their reins, and they rushed towards the soldiers of the Eight Banners who had not yet surrendered.
Amid the flashing of swords and sabers, both sides suffered casualties.
By the end of the fight, only a dozen people were left by Man Dahai's side.
These are his confidants.
Even if I die, I will be loyal to him.
Man Dahai originally wanted to fight until the last man standing and then kill himself with a knife.
But he was worried about being captured by the Ming army.
Once captured, not only would they lose their lives, but they would also be tortured before losing their lives.
For him, suicide is the most honorable way to die.
After slashing a surrendered soldier of the Eight Banners with his sword, Man Dahai said to his close associates: "I have no regrets in my life as I have you by my side before I die."
"Your Highness..." The confidants burst into tears.
"No need to say anything," Man Dahai patted one of them on the shoulder, "We have not let down the Qing Dynasty!"
After saying that.
Man Dahai jumped over the city wall and fell into the cliff below, where he was smashed into a pulp.
Seeing this, the rest of his confidants jumped down and committed suicide.
Huang Degong had no mercy at all.
He shouted an order: "Find Man Dahai's body and hand it over to the court. Eliminate the remaining enemies in the city, take over the defense of Jiefan Village, and prepare to attack Hetuala."
That afternoon.
The Ming army was divided into several echelons and advanced in an orderly manner.
Some elite troops of the Ming army entered Jiefan Village.
The vanguard troops moved their camp from Sarhu to the foot of Jiefan Mountain City.
The main force moved its camp to Sarhu.
The baggage train in the rear transported food and military supplies to Sarhu and Jiefanzhai in preparation for the next battle.
Since Huang Degong was not very literate, many procedures were handled with the help of Prince Ding Zhu Cijiong.
Although this move caused dissatisfaction among the military officials, the generals were not bound by the orders of the emperor when they were away from the battlefield.
The Ministry of War couldn’t do anything about it even if they wanted to.
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