In Huang Taiji's view, since the Ming army had already fired a shot.
Then there's definitely no time to fire the second shot.
So he also made a decision to have the other cavalrymen slow down so that he could rush to the front.
"This is the time for me, the Great Khan, to shine. I can't let anyone think I'm afraid of death."
Huang Taiji was extremely shrewd and always tried to project an image of bravery and fearlessness.
He would rush to the front as long as he was certain that the risk was not high.
However, he was blinded by victory and could only see the Ming army's cannons.
However, they failed to notice that the Ming Dynasty merchant caravan, which should have scattered, instead gathered together.
Qin Liangyu did not place her hopes on Li Zicheng's artillery.
She ordered the White-Clad Soldiers to prepare for battle.
She quietly mounted her horse and then addressed her soldiers:
"When Emperor Taizu founded the country, Wang Baobao of the Mongol Yuan dynasty once sent cavalry to launch a surprise attack. At that time, Fu Wujing led several thousand spearmen and annihilated the Mongol Yuan cavalry."
"Thus, he became famous overnight!"
"My lads, today is our turn to make our mark!"
In fact, Qin Liangyu learned this story on the spot.
He inquired about this from the clerk accompanying him on his way to build up his army.
Although Qin Liangyu was loyal to the emperor and loved her country, she was indeed not very well-educated.
The White-Spear Soldiers didn't really understand the story, but they knew that their commander was trying to boost their morale.
They didn't know anything about Fu Youde; they only knew they had to obey Qin Liangyu's orders.
"Rest assured, Commander, we will serve you with our lives!"
Qin Liangyu nodded in satisfaction.
"Okay, then let's..."
Just as she was about to say something more, she heard a cannon blast behind her.
Qin Liangyu turned around in surprise and exclaimed, "I knew Li Zicheng's cannons were extraordinary, but I didn't expect that they could fire again after only a dozen breaths."
"It's a pity that the Beijing garrison collapsed too quickly, otherwise the Jurchens would have suffered a great loss just from that cannon!"
But what she didn't expect was that after the cannon was fired, the Jurchen army suddenly stopped.
Then, as if he had lost his soul, he froze in place for a moment.
What's wrong with them?
Qin Liangyu was puzzled, but she also knew that the opportunity to fight was fleeting.
Ninety percent of a cavalryman's fighting power lies in their impact, and the fact that the Jurchen cavalry are currently stationary presents the perfect opportunity to attack.
"Brothers, charge with me!"
Qin Liangyu roared and charged ahead of the pack.
Although she was a woman, she was very strong and tall.
The white-clad soldiers roared and charged out.
At this time, Fan Wencheng was caught between the Ming army and the Jurchens.
He was also very puzzled.
Why did the Great Khan suddenly order the cavalry to stop?
"Although the Ming army seemed to have laid an ambush behind the cannons, there weren't many of them."
"As long as the cavalry launches an attack, they will at least have the strength to fight back."
Fan Wencheng immediately rode back.
When he returned to the Jurchen army, he realized that something terrible had happened.
It turns out that Huang Taiji had been putting on a show, charging ahead of the entire army.
Wearing a suit of golden armor, he was practically a natural target.
So Li Zicheng fired his second shot directly at him.
Because the two armies were not far apart at this time, Li Zicheng simply fired directly at point-blank range, without even calculating the trajectory of the bullets.
The shell flew out instantly and hit Huang Taiji directly.
As a cloud of blood mist rose, the nearby Jurchen cavalry were all stunned.
Then there were the cavalrymen further away.
"No, what about our big Khan?"
They guessed that Huang Taiji had been hit by a cannonball, but they didn't expect the impact of the shell to kill him so badly that his body was torn to pieces...
Oh no, there aren't even many body parts, let alone corpses.
Seeing this scene, how could the Jurchen cavalry dare to continue their charge?
Upon seeing this, Fan Wencheng was deeply saddened.
"How could the Great Khan have died like this?"
"This is simply...incomprehensible!"
"Could it be... could it be that the Mandate of Heaven still exists for the Ming Dynasty?"
The Jurchens were divided into the raw Jurchens and the mature Jurchens.
The Jurchen people, who had lived among the Han Chinese for a long time, were more civilized and organized, but they were not particularly brave in battle.
Huang Taiji's main tribe was the Jianzhou Jurchen, belonging to the "civilized" Jurchen, who didn't really believe in ghosts and gods.
However, precisely because of this, the combat power of mature women is slightly lower than that of unborn women.
Huang Taiji achieved a great victory in this battle, and the troops he led were all elite.
Most of them were originally Jurchen.
They were already shaken to their core when they saw their Khan killed by a cannon shot.
Upon hearing Fan Wencheng's last words, he couldn't help but ask, "What do you mean by that?"
Fan Wencheng subconsciously said, "Back then, the Mongol Khan Möngke was killed by Song army cannons, which allowed the Song Dynasty to survive for another twenty years."
These Jurchen people had never actually heard of Möngke Khan, but they knew about Mongolia.
"Huh? The Great Khan of Mongolia was also killed by Han Chinese cannons?"
"Could this truly be the will of Heaven?"
"Damn it! We didn't consult the oracle before setting out for this battle. We must have angered the Eternal Heaven!"
The morale of the Jurchen army immediately wavered.
In fact, if it weren't for Fan Wencheng's words, most of these cavalrymen would have known to run away when they saw the White-Spear Soldiers charging towards them.
That way, a lot of vitality can be preserved.
But they were so frightened by these words that they forgot to turn around immediately.
By the time they realized what was happening, Qin Liangyu had already led her troops to their vicinity.
At this point, the cavalry had no choice but to grit their teeth and fight them to the bitter end.
"Kill them!"
However, cavalry is already countered by spearmen, and at this point they are unable to launch an attack.
The Jurchen cavalry quickly found themselves at a disadvantage after a short engagement.
He had no choice but to dismount and fight the White-Spear Soldiers on foot.
At this moment, Qin Liangyu's eyes lit up, and she ordered the White-Spear Soldiers, "Men, quickly cut off the legs of those horses, and then retreat to a distance!"
The soldiers with white spears didn't know what the order meant, but they carried it out immediately.
After they stepped back, Qin Liangyu called out loudly to those behind her:
"Brother Li, fire the cannons now and blast them to death!"
Seeing her fierce appearance, Li Zicheng couldn't help but shudder.
"That's strange. I remember hearing people say when I was a child that women from Shu are all quite gentle. Why is General Qin like this?"
Li Zicheng was unaware that he had been deceived by his elders, but he dared not be negligent and immediately operated the cannons to fire.
The Jurchens initially thought the Ming army was about to collapse when they saw the White-Spear Soldiers retreat.
But soon, when the cannons roared, they realized they had made a grave mistake.
"Oh no, the Ming army is going to use cannons to kill us!"
"The Khan has been killed by a single cannon shot, how can we possibly survive?"
"Run! We can't fight anymore!"
The Jurchens' morale collapsed instantly.
Almost as soon as the cannon fire stopped, they scattered and fled.
Fan Wencheng was now utterly despondent.
As Huang Taiji's staunch confidant, he knew he would not have a good end once Huang Taiji died.
But soon, his eyes lit up.
"Wait a minute! The Later Jin... oh, I mean the Jurchens! I have no chance of survival with the Jurchens, but I still have a chance with the Ming Dynasty!"
"In any case, I was once Huang Taiji's close follower and know many of the Jurchen secrets."
"If I were to return to the Ming Dynasty, I could at least save my life, no matter what."
"Perhaps there's still a chance to redeem oneself!"
His eyes lit up, and he secretly slipped away from the Jurchens around him, intending to surrender to the Ming army.
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