Inside Guhuacheng, Omubu and the Later Jin envoy stood frozen, staring at the battlefield outside the walls.
No one spoke.
The silence was stiff, heavy, almost choking. Even the air seemed to have solidified.
After several long moments, the Later Jin envoy suddenly snapped out of his daze. His face twisted with panic as he shouted at the top of his lungs.
"Open the city gates! Charge out! Hurry and go help us!"
Omubu looked at him.
He answered with a single word.
"Oh."
The sound was calm. Too calm.
The instant that word left his mouth, Omubu's right hand moved. His saber was drawn in a flash, so fast the motion was almost invisible. Cold light flickered, then vanished.
The Later Jin envoy's head flew up into the air.
Blood sprayed.
Before the body even collapsed, Omubu's left hand shot out and caught the severed head midair. He rushed toward the city wall, climbed onto the parapet, and raised the head high for all to see.
His roar echoed across the battlefield.
"I've killed the Later Jin envoy! I've killed the Later Jin envoy!"
He did not pause.
"Stop firing on us! I'm coming out to help my Mongol brothers!"
The gates of Guhuacheng swung open.
The Tumed tribal warriors surged out in a flood, shouting as they ran.
"Mongols! We are Mongols!"
"Do not attack your own people!"
With those words spoken openly, there was no reason for anyone to strike them down.
After all, was it not better to unite and fight the Manchu together?
"Charge!"
"Charge!"
Another thunderous crash rang out.
An armored car slammed straight into a Manchu soldier, sending him flying through the air like a rag doll.
The vehicle twisted its rear, its front gun barrel snapping into position. A sharp bang rang out, and a Manchu soldier in the distance dropped instantly to the ground.
Arrows poured down onto the armored car like rain, clanging loudly as they struck its iron shell.
Their attack failed to pierce your armor.
Manchu cavalry rushed forward, lances lowered, stabbing viciously at the vehicle.
Their attack failed to pierce your armor.
One furious Manchu soldier leapt forward, drew his saber, and hacked wildly at the armored car.
Clang. Clang. Clang.
Their attack failed to pierce your armor.
Then came a single gunshot.
Bang.
A Manchu soldier staggered, a gaping hole torn through his chest. He collapsed on the spot, dead before he hit the ground.
The armored car surged forward again.
Bang.
Another Manchu soldier was crushed beneath it, his head shattered as iron wheels rolled over him.
Their attacks on the enemy side were instantly lethal.
But every attack against the armored car failed.
How was this battle even supposed to be fought?
Dorgon raised his saber, his mind in chaos. For the first time, he genuinely did not know what to do.
Yue Tuo reacted faster.
"Retreat!" he shouted hoarsely. "Retreat! Fall back first! We need to figure out how to deal with this thing before we fight again! Go back! Go back now!"
Only then did Dorgon snap out of it.
Yes.
When facing strange and incomprehensible weapons, retreating first was the wisest choice.
"Retreat! Retreat!"
Gongs rang out across the battlefield as the Manchu forces began to withdraw. Yue Tuo and Dorgon were the first to turn their horses and flee.
Since ancient times, anyone who accomplished great things first learned how to run.
The Manchu revered Romance of the Three Kingdoms as a military manual. Liu Bei fled. Cao Cao fled. None of them considered fleeing shameful.
What was truly shameful was failing to escape.
The two commanders ran faster than anyone else.
Yue Tuo, though sick and coughing incessantly, now ran just as fast as the young and vigorous Dorgon.
Their main forces rapidly pulled back several hundred meters.
The armored cars were not fast enough to pursue.
The Gao Family Village Cavalry Battalion lacked the horsemanship to catch them.
However, several Mongol light cavalrymen chased after them.
The Mongols were born on horseback. Their speed was terrifying.
Unfortunately, while their riding skills were unmatched, their combat techniques were crude.
One Mongol cavalryman fired an arrow at Dorgon's back.
Dorgon twisted his body and dodged it cleanly, then immediately fired back.
His arrow struck true.
The Mongol rider fell straight off his horse.
"Damn it," someone muttered. "This guy actually has some skill."
Another Mongol rider rushed in, saber raised.
Dorgon sidestepped effortlessly, then swung his saber backward in one smooth motion.
The Mongol cavalryman was cut down and thrown from his horse.
The surrounding warriors stared in shock.
For a moment, no one dared to chase further.
Dorgon and Yue Tuo, leading the shattered remnants of their army, galloped madly toward the northeast and disappeared into the endless plains.
The leaders had escaped.
But the battle was already decided.
The Mongols erupted in cheers.
"We won!"
"We actually won!"
"We finally defeated the Later Jin!"
The people of Gao Family Village were just as excited.
"The Manchu aren't that terrifying!"
"We avenged Instructor He!"
"We avenged the people who died at Daling River!"
Amid the chaos, Omubu slowly dismounted and approached the Wushen tribe leader.
He lowered his head, dropped to one knee, and spoke loudly.
"From this day onward, my Tumed tribe pledges allegiance to the Wushen tribe. We will ally with the Great Ming and strike down the Manchu together!"
Cheers erupted again.
"Wushen!"
"Wushen!"
But the Wushen tribe leader knew very well why they had won this battle.
He walked toward Zao Ying, clasped his fists in the Han salute, and spoke solemnly.
"From now on, everyone must fight alongside our Han friends to defeat the Manchu!"
"Defeat the Manchu!"
"Defeat the Manchu!"
The roar swept across the grasslands like thunder.
Zao Ying turned her gaze to Omubu.
"Where are Ligdan Khan's wives and son?" she asked. "And the Khan's seal passed down from Genghis Khan?"
Omubu answered immediately.
"They are with the Chahar tribe, far to the east."
"Excellent," Zao Ying said. "Lead the way. We must secure the Khan's seal."
As a surrendered general, Omubu was eager to prove his loyalty.
He led them east.
After some time, they reached the Chahar tribe's encampment.
The once-glorious Golden Family had long since faded. Years of war against disobedient tribes and the Later Jin had drained the Chahar tribe to the brink of collapse.
Faced with the combined forces of the Han, Wushen, Ordos, and Tumed tribes, they surrendered immediately, without even nocking an arrow.
Ligdan Khan's wives, Nangnang Fujin and Sutai Fujin, along with his son E'zhe, were brought before Zao Ying.
Zao Ying did not waste words.
She extended her hand.
"Hand it over."
With trembling hands, Nangnang Fujin presented an imperial seal.
This was the Imperial Seal of the Yuan Dynasty, engraved with four large characters.
Zhigao Zhi Bao.
By all rights, this seal should have been handed to Wushen, who would then claim the title of Great Khan.
But Zao Ying had no intention of doing that.
She took out a wooden box prepared in advance, lined with soft silk. She carefully placed the imperial seal inside, closed the lid, and slipped the box into her pouch.
Then she smiled.
"Nangnang Fujin, Sutai Fujin, E'zhe. The three of you will come with us."
None of them dared object.
Only then did Zao Ying turn back to Wushen.
"From now on," she said, "the steppe is yours to manage."
Wushen did not yet realize that he had become a Mongol traitor, or perhaps a historical sinner to the Yuan Dynasty.
Or perhaps he understood perfectly, but chose to ignore it.
Either way, the Yuan Dynasty was destined to fall here and now.
The only question was whether it fell into the hands of the Manchu, or the Han.
The Wushen tribe leader clasped his hands and spoke loudly.
"My Han friend, thank you for helping me pacify the steppe. From this day forward, I will govern the grasslands well, trade freely with the Han, and together we will deal with those Jurchen barbarians!"