Although Mangultai was extremely dissatisfied, Daišan had already put him in a very difficult position.
The other banner lords and princes were actually happy to see this happen.
So no matter what Mangultai himself thought, he had no choice but to go to Guangning City.
After the news spread, many people immediately went to Mangultai.
"Banner leader, are we really going to obediently go to Guangning to our deaths?"
"If we throw all 10,000 of our men into Guangning, then there won't be any Plain Blue Banner left!"
Mangultai's trip to Guangning was clearly fraught with peril.
At this point, only his own subordinates could come to his door.
Mangultai was the banner lord of the Plain Blue Banner, and theoretically should have had more than 10,000 troops.
However, after Huang Taiji became the Great Khan, he made things difficult for him both openly and secretly.
In addition, when Hauge went to Goryeo, he also took some troops from him.
Therefore, at this time, Mangultai had less than 10,000 soldiers.
Mangultai said coldly, "What you said is indeed correct. If we all die in Guangning, there will indeed be no more Zhenglan Banner."
"But if we don't go, do you think we'll be able to have the Plain Blue Banner in the future?"
This wasn't because Mangultai harbored any grudge against the Later Jin and thought that if no one guarded Guangning, their Jurchen state would be doomed.
Rather, he was well aware that if they, Zhenglan Banner, dared to utter even a single word of dissent...
Daishan will definitely come directly to cause him trouble.
After all, Daishan and his son held two flags, the Plain Red Flag and the Bordered Red Flag.
His strength far surpasses that of Mangultai.
Everyone else understands this principle.
So when Mangultai said those words, those officers of the Plain Blue Banner dared not speak.
Seeing this, Mangultai felt a sense of helplessness.
"Sigh, why are there so few smart people around me who can give me advice and solutions!"
But he only made a slight remark.
He still needs to solve this current problem.
He stood up and said, "Although our trip to Guangning is extremely dangerous, it's not a certain death sentence!"
Upon hearing this, the Ejen (banner leaders) all showed excitement in their eyes and hurriedly asked, "Banner leader, what do you mean by that?"
"Do you perhaps have confidence that you can defeat the Ming army at Guangning?"
Mangultai was speechless.
If it were the Ming army from a few years ago, he would actually have some confidence.
But if it were the Ming army today, he would have no confidence at all.
Mangultai said helplessly, "Don't say such foolish things!"
"What I mean is, since Daishan is clearly trying to trick us, the Khan won't stand idly by!"
“I know Hauge. Although our new Khan is a bit concerned about his image, he is not stupid.”
“He must know that if all of our Zhenglan Banner died in Guangning, there would be no one to keep Daishan and his son in check.”
"How long can he hold onto the position of Great Khan?"
"So as long as we hold Guangning and hold it for a month or two, Hauge will surely arrive with reinforcements!"
This analysis doesn't have any major problems.
Upon hearing this, the Ejen of Zhenglan Banner all breathed a sigh of relief.
"You're so clever, Banner Master!"
"That's true, Khan Hauge won't just watch us die."
"Guangning was also a fortified city. The old Khan went to great lengths to finally capture Guangning."
"We can hold out for a few months, that's something we can do."
"Hold on tight, and there's a way!"
Seeing that his words had roused his men, he realized that they were now invigorated.
Mangultai breathed a sigh of relief.
"If they all lose heart, then Guangning City will be impossible to defend!"
"But... can we really hold out for a few months?"
He recalled the legend of that cannon that destroyed dozens of miles of land with a single shot and even killed Huang Taiji's Ming army cannon.
Mangultai had absolutely no idea what to expect.
"Well, let's just take it one step at a time."
Several days later.
Li Ruolian looked at the military intelligence sent back by the scouts, a thoughtful look appearing in her eyes.
"So, the Jurchens have already sent troops to garrison Guangning?"
"That's a brilliant move!"
At the beginning of the Ming Dynasty, although the Northern Yuan withdrew from the Central Plains, it still occupied Mongolia and was eyeing the Ming Dynasty covetously.
At that time, in order to deal with the Northern Yuan, Emperor Taizu not only enfeoffed princes in the north.
They also built the Nine Border Towns, which stretch for thousands of miles from east to west.
It served as the northern bulwark of the Ming Dynasty.
Each town was not a single fortified city, but rather had the Great Wall on the outside and several strong fortresses on the inside.
Guangningwei was the core of the Liaodong Town fortress complex back then.
The famous Doyan Three Guards in the early Ming Dynasty actually grazed their livestock in the area north of Guangning Guard.
The Liaodong General's Office was once located here.
Over two hundred years of management have made Guangning City extremely sturdy.
If it weren't for a traitor in the city back then, a man named Sun Degong would have directly defected to Nurhaci and surrendered the city.
It seems the Jurchens will have to expend considerable effort to capture Guangning.
"Now it's our Great Ming's turn to attack this fortified city."
Li Ruolian let out a long sigh.
But at that moment, someone nearby laughed and said, "General Li, why are you sighing?"
"The military report said that the Jurchens sent a full 10,000 men to support Guangning this time."
"What if we swallowed all 10,000 people whole?"
"From now on, no one will be afraid of the Jurchens anymore."
Li Ruolian nodded.
"Li Zicheng, what you said is quite right."
It turned out that the person who had just spoken was Li Zicheng.
Ever since Zhu Youjian heard from Gao Qingyun that the Jurchens would eventually take over the Central Plains...
He regarded the Jurchens as a major threat.
Over the past year, Zhu Youjian had thoroughly studied the map of Liaodong.
Therefore, the current movements of the Jurchens were not unexpected by the Ming Dynasty.
Since the plan was to besiege Guangning, Li Zicheng would naturally have a chance to make his appearance.
Li Ruolian said earnestly, "Li Zicheng, this time, the attack on Guangning will still depend on your cannons to make a difference."
Li Zicheng laughed and said, "Don't worry about that. The Italian cannons I got from you, sir, are definitely reliable."
"Let alone Guangning, I could even take Ping'an County."
Li Ruolian frowned, wondering what kind of place this Ping'an County was.
But he didn't ask any further questions.
Besides Li Zicheng, he also had contact with Zheng Chenggong.
So he also noticed some problems, realizing that the students taught by Gao Qingyun seemed to like saying strange things.
Li Ruolian shook her head, thinking to herself, "I don't care about anything else, as long as this kid's cannon doesn't malfunction and can help me break through Guangning, that's enough!"
He stood up and ordered those around him, "Let's speed things up and try to reach Guangning City in two days!"
"Furthermore, order the main force to detach 10,000 troops and head east to set up camp on the west bank of the Liao River to monitor the area east of the Liao River."
"So that we won't be kept in the dark when the Jurchens send reinforcements!"
At his command, the Ming army immediately sprang into action.
Surprisingly, they arrived near Guangning City a day earlier than expected.
On the city wall, Mangultai looked at the Ming army outside, a hint of fear in his eyes.
"The Ming army arrived so quickly?"
"I estimate they won't arrive until tomorrow at the earliest!"
Not only Mangultai, but also other Jurchen troops of the Plain Blue Banner were somewhat afraid.
They were among the elite soldiers of their time, and they knew best that marching speed itself represented combat effectiveness.
Only when the army is highly organized and the soldiers are all elite can a rapid march be carried out.
Otherwise, your army will be full of the old, weak, sick, and disabled, and all the men will be forcibly recruited.
Even if you want to be fast, you can't be fast!
"This Ming army is indeed somewhat different!"
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