Tunqi originally wanted to ambush Gao Yigong who came to support him, but the fierce battle consumed most of the physical strength of the soldiers and horses.
So he did not fight to the end, nor did he clean up the battlefield.
After making sure that He Jin and most of his troops were killed, they evacuated quickly.
When Gao Yigong arrived at the battlefield, the war was already over.
The ground was covered with blood, broken limbs, and bodies that were not completely dead but still moving...
"Where is He Jin?" Gao Yigong asked everyone he met.
After asking more than ten times, I finally met a soldier who was slightly injured.
The man stretched out his right hand and pointed tremblingly at a mound not far away, "The central army flag fell there..."
Gao Yigong's face suddenly changed, he jumped on his horse and rushed forward.
The scene was not as messy as imagined.
Apart from the corpse, there were also extremely messy horseshoe prints.
Gao Yigong began to get scared. He was afraid of seeing He Jin's body.
But if the central army flag falls, it means the main general has been killed.
So he was looking forward to it.
Looking forward to encountering a miracle, the miracle that He Jin is still alive.
But there are no miracles on the cruel battlefield, only cold corpses and bloody reality.
He Jin died on the battlefield.
Gao Yigong was stunned for a long time before accepting this reality.
As a soldier, he, like He Jin, was prepared to die on the battlefield.
But what I didn't expect was that this day would come so suddenly.
"Come here, carry Commander He's body back to the camp." Gao Yigong took a deep breath and said.
"Yes," nearby soldiers quickly gathered around and began to carry the bodies.
The reinforcements he brought were on guard from a distance while rescuing Ming soldiers who fell into the water but had not yet drowned.
Gao Yigong was looking for He Jin's warhorse on the battlefield, intending to help him fulfill his wish of dying on the battlefield.
In ancient times.
Wrapping the body in horsehide is a burial ritual that originated in the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period and gradually disappeared after the Han Dynasty.
The idiom "die wrapped in one's horse's hide" has two other meanings besides the determination to die on the battlefield.
One is to hope that the deceased will have a mount in the afterlife to accompany him on travels or battles.
Another meaning is dignity.
Ordinary people at that time could not afford to keep a horse, so wrapping the body in horsehide symbolized the noble status of the deceased.
This system disappeared because the economy was developing.
This kind of martyrdom ceremony was too shabby for generals and too luxurious for ordinary soldiers.
So as time went by, it gradually disappeared in the long river of history.
Gao Yigong searched for He Jin's warhorse for a long time but couldn't find it. When he finally found it, he broke down and sat on the ground crying.
After a long time, after cleaning up the battlefield, he returned to the central army in a depressed mood.
Wang Yongji in the central military camp had already learned the news.
He was silent for a while, then took a deep breath and exhaled slowly to show his sadness.
He was the governor-general of Pingliao, in charge of the life and death of the three armies.
The mood swings caused by sadness and joy would only affect his military plans and would not be of any benefit to the war.
So...he couldn't be sad for too long.
Just as it was getting dark, the messenger brought the loss data.
"Report, He Jin's troops originally had 3,487 people. In this battle, more than 2,500 were killed or missing. The rest are mostly injured and need time to recuperate."
"How did the Eight Banners soldiers break up He Jin's army?" Wang Yongji asked with a frown.
Although He Jin was born a bandit and had not received formal training and command of troops, he was a veteran on the battlefield and had rich experience in battle.
The deployment of troops may not be eye-catching, but it will not reveal too many flaws.
He Jin's defeat was very strange.
"The wounded soldiers said that the Jiannu cavalry came from a distance, first fired a round of arrows at the front of the army, then went around to the left rear of the army and started charging. Most of the soldiers at the left rear were not wearing armor, so the army was broken through."
"Rear left?" Wang Yongji asked.
"Yes, He Jin placed most of the unarmored soldiers at the left rear. It is close to the central army, and the undulating terrain is not conducive to cavalry marching."
"This is even more strange. How did the Jiannu know about He Jin's weakness in the first place?" Wang Yongji was very puzzled.
But he didn't think much about it, after all, there were more important things at hand.
In this battle, not only was He Jin killed, but his troops also lost the ability to continue fighting.
Therefore, the next focus is how to deploy troops and continue to attack Guangning.
But before that...he had to quell the conflicts within the Ping Liao army.
Because He Jin's death would definitely cause a stir within the Ping Liao army.
If not handled properly, it will exacerbate the conflicts within the Ping Liao army.
As night fell, the generals from all the divisions gathered in the central military tent.
Gao Yigong attacked Wu Sangui first: "As a vanguard, it's fine that you couldn't stop the Jiannu cavalry. But you didn't even provide support for so many people who attacked the right wing over a long distance! You are responsible for He Jin's death."
Wu Sangui was calm in his heart but said with great sadness: "This matter has nothing to do with me. My troops are trapped in a narrow strip of land surrounded by water on three sides and a mountain on one side. There is no time to provide support."
"If you don't believe it, you can ask the governor or someone else," Wu Sangui added.
Gao Yigong looked at Wang Yongji and found that the other party nodded.
There was no need for Wang Yongji to defend Wu Sangui because this was the fact.
Gao Yigong was suddenly speechless.
In fact, before supporting He Jin, he was also in the central army.
So I have some understanding of the situation on Wu Sangui's side.
Gao Yigong did not give up. After thinking for a while, he continued to question: "Even if the main force was unable to provide support, the message should have been delivered in time, right? What were your scouts doing? If the message had been delivered to the central army earlier, He Jin would not have died in the battle!"
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