Ajige did not move his troops to reinforce Dandong. Instead, he gathered twenty thousand soldiers and marched straight toward the Mongolian grasslands.
The grand campaign of "Seven Captures of Meng Huo" had officially begun.
Not long after they entered the steppe, a scout came galloping back at full speed, his horse foaming at the mouth.
"Report! Khalkha cavalry spotted ahead!"
Ajige laughed loudly, clearly amused. "We barely stepped onto the grasslands and they already showed up? Excellent. Beat them flat."
The Eight Banner soldiers erupted into excited howls. To them, Mongolian tribes were practically sparring partners. They charged forward with wild enthusiasm and slammed straight into the Khalkha riders.
The result was completely predictable.
The Khalkha cavalry stood no chance against Ajige's army. Within a short time they were battered, bruised, and fleeing in every direction like frightened mice.
The first capture of the Seven Captures of Meng Huo was complete.
Riding high on victory, Ajige immediately sent envoys to the Khalkha tribe. The message was simple. Submit to the Qing dynasty and present the tribute known as the Nine Whites each year. Eight white horses and one white camel. If they did that, Ajige would spare them from annihilation.
That night, the envoy returned.
He bowed and reported, "The Khalkha are clearly frightened. When they saw our twenty thousand troops they did not dare resist directly. They did not give me a formal answer yet, but their chieftain looked ready to surrender."
Ajige could not hide the smug satisfaction on his face.
"Of course they are scared. The Khalkha were never our match to begin with. The only thing worth worrying about is how many Mongolian tribes will answer the call of the Mongol Khan Eje after his proclamation. If a large number of tribes come to help them, that could become troublesome."
Early the next morning another scout came racing in.
"Report! Urgent news. Reinforcements from the Tumet tribe have arrived. After seeing support arrive, the Khalkha chieftain has suddenly changed his attitude. He no longer looks willing to surrender."
Ajige snorted coldly.
"Tumet? What is there to worry about. Send the troops. Give them a good beating and let the Khalkha see our real strength."
Another battle erupted.
The Tumet cavalry fought fiercely against the Eight Banner troops, but before long they were overwhelmed. They retreated westward in defeat and fled far into the distance.
The second capture was complete.
Soon another scout arrived.
"Report! Reinforcements from the Keshike tribe!"
Ajige waved his hand dismissively.
"What is there to be afraid of. Beat them flat as well."
The third capture was complete.
Reports continued arriving one after another.
Ajige, the brilliant general who excelled in both offense and defense, the reliable champion of the army, the self proclaimed guardian of justice in the world who loved to brag about punishing evil for the sake of good people, launched into a series of victories that looked ridiculously heroic.
He punched down the Khalkha.
He kicked over the Tumet.
He beat the Keshike.
He stomped on the Sunite.
The unstoppable image he displayed on the grasslands looked almost like the beginning of a new steppe legend.
Among all the heroes under heaven, who else could rival him?
Another scout galloped in.
"Report! The Uxin tribe has arrived to support the Khalkha!"
"Another tribe?" Ajige burst out laughing and tilted his blade toward the sky. "Fine. Move out. Give this Uxin tribe a solid beating too."
By now Ajige had accumulated plenty of experience bullying Mongolian tribes. He was completely fearless. No matter how many tribes showed up, they were nothing more than punching bags.
As long as you beat them hard enough, everything would be fine.
Ahead on the grasslands, a large formation of cavalry slowly spread out.
At the front stood a surprisingly young man. Like the other Mongols he wore clothes made of animal hide, yet there was something different about him.
It was hard to describe.
Imagine placing the Qing civil official Fan Wencheng among a group of rough military officers. A cultured scholar surrounded by illiterate soldiers would immediately become the most eye catching figure on the entire street.
That was the kind of feeling this young man gave off.
Ajige raised his voice and shouted, "Who are you?"
The young man answered loudly.
"Chief of the Uxin tribe. Erzh'e!"
Ajige narrowed his eyes slightly.
"I have heard your tribe has been quite impressive recently. Apparently you unified a bunch of small tribes in the western steppe. I also heard something about powerful war wagons. Very impressive rumors." He clicked his tongue mockingly. "So tell me, did you bring those famous war wagons today? Let me make one thing clear. I am not afraid of any nonsense wagons."
Erzh'e burst into laughter.
"If you like war wagons that much, of course I brought them."
He smiled calmly.
"In a moment you can play with them to your heart's content."
After saying this, Erzh'e suddenly moved his horse sideways.
Ajige blinked in confusion.
Instead of charging forward, the Mongolian cavalry began moving aside to the left and right, almost like they were opening a giant door.
Then Ajige understood.
Behind them, slowly rolling forward, appeared a massive formation of black iron vehicles.
A deep horn suddenly sounded.
"Woo."
One iron vehicle released a loud whistle.
Then all the others responded.
"Woo. Woo. Woo."
White steam burst upward into the sky.
The scene was so bizarre and overwhelming that Ajige stood frozen for several seconds.
At the front of the iron convoy, a small hatch flipped open. The head of Zao Ying popped out from inside. She waved a large five colored banner and pointed forward dramatically.
"Charge. Give the Jianzhou dogs a tiny little lesson."
"Charge!"
"Woo!"
The entire iron convoy roared in response.
The massive iron vehicles accelerated and charged straight toward Ajige's army like a steel flood.
Ajige stared at them and suddenly felt something very wrong.
How the hell were you supposed to fight this thing?
Just one glance was enough to understand that normal tactics would not work.
More than a hundred iron vehicles formed an unstoppable torrent of steel crashing toward them. The sheer momentum alone made the Eight Banner soldiers feel their legs trembling.
One soldier shouted in panic, "General! How do we fight this thing?"
"It is completely made of iron!"
Another soldier stammered nervously, "Can... can I start shooting arrows now?"
Ajige finally snapped out of his shock and roared.
"Fire arrows!"
The soldiers hurriedly drew their bows and unleashed a storm of arrows toward the iron vehicles.
Clang. Clang. Clang. Clang.
Enemy attacks failed to penetrate the armor.
Ajige's mind instantly descended into chaos.
Then came a gunshot.
Bang.
One Eight Banner soldier dropped instantly.
A hundred vehicles meant roughly a hundred guns firing. Within moments dozens of soldiers had fallen.
At first glance the casualties were not that severe.
But the real damage was elsewhere.
Morale.
Nothing terrified soldiers more than an enemy they had absolutely no idea how to fight.
It was the fear of the unknown. The despair of complete helplessness.
With a deafening crash, the iron vehicles smashed directly into the Qing battle formation.
Wherever they passed, men and horses were sent flying. Some soldiers had their legs crushed and lay screaming on the ground. Others were knocked several meters away and curled up while coughing blood. A few unlucky ones were simply run over completely, leaving them no chance to scream at all.
One hundred iron vehicles tore straight through Ajige's twenty thousand troops.
That single charge shattered the entire formation.
Ajige's mouth hung wide open, his expression identical to the look Dorgon had when he first saw the iron vehicles.
A subordinate beside him shouted desperately.
"General! What should we do now?"
Ajige finally woke from his shock.
He immediately turned his horse around.
"Run! Get out of here first!"