Volume 1: The Wind Rises in Tumubao Chapter 24: The Country and the People
After the Oirat people retreated to the camp, there was no movement until dark.
According to information obtained by the Embroidered Uniform Guard, continuous screams could still be heard a hundred steps away from the Wala camp.
What most people shouted was: "My eyes, my eyes!"
It can be seen that the Wala people rarely use lime powder to sprinkle their eyes when fighting. They don’t know that this thing cannot be exposed to water, otherwise it will heat up and burn the eyeballs.
Fortunately, the Ming army had little time to prepare, and the hastily burned lime powder was of extremely low purity and had limited lethality. Otherwise, the eyes of the 20,000 cavalrymen would have been lost.
Even so, it was enough to give the Wala people a headache.
The sky gradually darkened. About five hundred soldiers, led by an old veteran, rushed to the front line from the direction of Juyongguan.
Outside the camp gate, a garrison officer stepped forward and asked, "Is this Lord Luo?"
"It's Luo!" Luo Tong dismounted and asked anxiously, "I wonder what the battle situation is like ahead? Is the emperor safe?"
"We just repelled the Wala's attack during the day. The emperor is waiting for you. Please follow me!"
Upon hearing this, Luo Tong hurriedly caught up and arrived at the central military tent.
"Your old minister, Deputy Imperial Envoy Luo Tong, pays respect to the Emperor!"
"No need to be polite, my dear family!"
Zhu Qizhen looked at him secretly and saw that although this man was over sixty years old, he was tall and strong, with a pair of bright eyes, and looked like a fierce general.
"No need to be polite, my dear family!"
Luo Tong did not stand up, but said: "I am late in coming to your rescue, Your Majesty, please punish me!"
Zhu Qizhen smiled and said, "What crime have you committed?"
"The emperor personally led the army to fight against the Oirat Yesen, and this old minister was guarding Juyong Pass, but did not send troops to rescue him in time, causing the emperor to fall into danger. This is a capital crime!"
Obviously, it was only after Kuang Ye and others withdrew to Juyongguan with the civil officials and wounded soldiers that Luo Tong learned about the battle situation on the front line.
When he heard that the emperor was besieged in Tumu Fort by the Wala army and was almost in despair, Luo Tong could no longer bear it and gathered hundreds of people guarding the pass and rushed straight to the front line.
In fact, this man was not a military general, but a civil official. He was a Jinshi in the tenth year of Yongle, and was appointed as an imperial censor and was ordered to inspect Sichuan.
This man was honest and upright during his time as an official , and offended many people. He was even sent to Jiaozhi, thousands of miles away, for confronting the emperor head-on.
In the first year of Xuande, Le Loi rebelled. Luo Tong led his troops to suppress the rebellion and defeated the rebels, who fled in panic. When Emperor Xuanzong learned about it, he summoned him back to Beijing and appointed him as a Deputy Director of the Ministry of Revenue. In the early years of Zhengtong, he was promoted to Director of the Ministry of War and stationed in Juyongguan.
Zhu Qizhen's only impression of this person was that when he was transferred to the post of Langzhong of the Ministry of War, he went to the palace to express his gratitude. Apart from that, he had only seen him in memorials.
"We are trapped in Tumubao because of my poor command. What does it have to do with your family?"
Luo Tong was stunned. He did not expect the emperor to admit his mistake directly. He was a little uncomfortable for a moment.
"Your Majesty, please don't say that. From what I heard, it was all because of the eunuch Wang Zhen's reckless command..."
Zhu Qizhen interrupted him and said, "I am the commander-in-chief. If I blame a eunuch for the trouble, wouldn't it make people laugh?"
There is no way to deal with Luo Tong now. As a leader, don't you have any dignity?
I've given you this way, and you just put the blame on Wang Zhen. Isn't that great?
"Your Majesty is very wise and righteous. It is a blessing for our Ming Dynasty!"
Zhu Qizhen waved his hand and said, "My dear minister, your words are too polite. Stand up and speak!"
"yes!"
Luo Tong then stood up and bowed, saying, "I have heard from Minister Kuang that Your Majesty decisively attacked and defeated Alazhiyuan under the siege of the Wala army. I admire you very much. I wonder what the battle situation is like now? If Yesen is in hot pursuit, I am willing to be Your Majesty's vanguard and hold Yesen back so that Your Majesty can withdraw to Juyongguan first."
Zhu Qizhen smiled and shook his head, saying, "Luo Qingjia is worrying too much. Yesen is hiding in the camp and dare not come out."
Luo Tong looked a little confused when he heard this. He just said that you can admit your mistakes and correct them, and you understand the big picture, so why did you blow it off the moment you turned around?
I have to say that although the emperor is young, he is quite good at bragging.
Yesen had an army of 120,000, and you had 40,000, which was equivalent to three against one. How could they be beaten by you and stay in their hometown without coming out?
You’re kidding!
"A gentleman should not stand under a dangerous wall. I think Your Majesty should go first..."
"emperor!"
At this time, the curtain of the tent was lifted, and Zhang Fu walked in. When he saw Luo Tong, he couldn't help but be stunned.
"Lord Luo, long time no see!"
Luo Tong looked up at Zhang Fu, then bowed and said, "Duke Ying, long time no see!"
Zhang Fu bowed to him, then turned to Zhu Qizhen and said, "Your Majesty, you called me?"
"right!"
Zhu Qizhen nodded and said, "You go and make arrangements for the five military camps to withdraw to Juyong Pass in batches. You can discuss the specific retreat routes with Luo Qingjia ."
Zhang Fu asked, "Your Majesty, are we going to withdraw?"
Zhu Qizhen said: "It is the best time to evacuate now, since the Wala people have not yet found a way to crack the lime bombs."
"Well, I'll make the arrangements right away!"
Zhang Fu was a calm person with a strong sense of the overall situation. Although the Ming army had the upper hand for a while, he was very clear that this was not a place to stay for long. The emperor's life was worth millions, and if something went wrong, who could afford it?
Moreover, lime bombs are only suitable for defense, not for offense. Over time, sooner or later, others will find a way to crack it. The emperor is right. We should stop while we are ahead and take this opportunity to retreat quickly!
Zhang Fu and Luo Tong went down to discuss, and an hour later, they came to the central military tent again.
Also coming this time were Chen Ying, Chen Huai, Li Zhen and others.
"Your Majesty, I have already made arrangements. The first batch of evacuees will be over 5,000 in total, mainly the wounded, and will leave before daybreak."
Zhu Qizhen nodded and said, "Just do as your family wishes."
"emperor……"
Seeing Zhang Fu hesitated to speak, Zhu Qizhen said: "We, the king and his subjects, are united in killing the enemy and share life and death. Why can't we speak directly? Why are we still hesitating?"
Seeing Zhang Fu's hesitation, Luo Tong could not help but say, "Your Majesty, we suggest that the Three Thousand Battalion escort Your Majesty to evacuate together."
Zhu Qizhen shook his head and said, "I am not a wounded soldier, why should I rush to retreat? If the soldiers knew about this, wouldn't it cause chaos in the army?"
Zhang Fu looked at Luo Tong helplessly, as if to say: See, I told you that the emperor would never agree to it.
"Your Majesty!" Luo Tong continued to insist, "Your Majesty, please put the country first and withdraw to Juyong Pass first!"
"The country and the people?" Zhu Qizhen suddenly asked, "I want to ask you a question, what is the country and the people?"
"The country... the people..."
Luo Tong suddenly hesitated. Yes, he keeps shouting about the country and the people, but what is the country and what is the people?
"She is the soil, Ji is the grain, this country is, is... the vast rivers and mountains..."
