Nowadays, a military term called "decapitation operation" is very popular. It means using advanced weapons, carrying out precision strikes, and first eliminating the enemy's main leadership and command center in order to completely destroy the opponent's will to resist, so as to achieve a quick victory. This is the same meaning as a proverb left by our ancestors, "Capture the thief first and capture the king, and beat the snake and hit the seven inches". Just like Yang Guo said in the martial arts novel "The Condor Heroes", if the leader is eliminated, then his subordinates will no longer make trouble. In the history of the continent, there have been many famous "decapitation" operations. For example, the well-known "Xuanwumen Change", when Li Shimin launched an attack on his brothers. There was also the Battle of Poyang Lake in the Ming Dynasty, where Zhu Yuanzhang successfully killed Chen Youliang and other important enemies. These historical events all embody the essence of the "decapitation operation", that is, to achieve a quick victory by striking the enemy's head with precision.
At the end of the Ming Dynasty and the beginning of the Qing Dynasty, the most memorable battle was the Battle of Fuchikou. In this battle, Azig played an important role and successfully took Li Zicheng's head. This can be said to be Li Zicheng's final fate, his old camp was completely destroyed, and hundreds of thousands of troops were as fragile as paper. After this battle, Li Zicheng was forced back to the combat method he was once familiar with - wandering warfare. In the end, he suffered misfortune in Jiugong Mountain, Hubei, and a generation of legendary Chuang Wang ended his life in this way.
In Yangxin, Hubei, there is a place called Fuchikou, which is now known as Fuchi Town. There is a mountain here called Banbi Mountain. The mountain is not high, but it is important. It is in an important place in Hubei and Jiangxi, and the mountain peaks are lonely but magnificent, as if they were standing directly from the river. This place used to have armies fighting for it and can be said to be the focus of history. Next to Banbi Mountain, the water of the Yangtze River splits the mountain in half like a sharp sword. One side remained on the south bank, and the other side was washed by the river onto a sandbar on the north bank. Due to the obstruction of the mountains on both sides, the Yangtze River turns a big bend here, which is the narrowest place below the Three Gorges of the Yangtze River. Some people say that if you row across the river from here, you only need to paddle eighteen times to reach the opposite bank. In order to commemorate the history here, people built a "Banbishan Ancient Battlefield Exhibition Hall" here. This place is full of traces of history, and whenever people walk through it, they can recall that period of history. I hope that future generations will remember this important place and the story here.
According to the historical records of Banbishan, on a day in 1645, Li Zicheng led his army down the river to Fuchikou. He placed his old camp here, and his family and military equipment were docked by the river. The news was reported to the Qing army by the local people, who sent fast pursuers to chase after them from the water and land. In the middle of the night, these pursuers rushed to Li Zicheng's bedchamber, and his three concubines committed suicide by throwing themselves into the river because they could not escape, and he himself fled the battlefield in a hurry. In this fierce battle, Li Zicheng's generals Liu Zongmin and Zuo Guangxian, as well as his two uncles, all died heroically in the Battle of Fuchikou. The military advisor Song Xiance was captured by the Qing army. Li Zicheng lost his important assistant and had to flee alone. He finally fled along Ruichang and Xingguo (Yangxin) to Tongshan. Then, on the sixth day of the battle, that is, on May 4, Li Zicheng mysteriously disappeared from Jiugong Mountain in Guotongshan County, Xingguo, Huguang.
Standing on the old battlefield at the mouth of Fuchikou, looking at the opposite shore there are several towering chimneys, light smoke curling and beacon fire. The ferry shuttles on the river, like leaves floating in the river. At this time, the clouds were thick, and the sky seemed to be shrouded in a dome. In this hazy smoke and rain, I can feel the majesty and murderous aura of the ancient battlefield. I can see the scene of that spring 377 years ago, the continuous rain has been falling for half a month, and there is no intention of stopping, but it is getting heavier and heavier. At that time, the rain carried the chill of late spring, and invaded the Dashun army that was rushing south, as well as the people who accompanied them and their relatives. At that time, the Dashun army marched south in a hurry in the rain and struggled all the way. I could hear the sound of the rain mixed with the shouts of the people and the neighing of the horses, and I felt the urgency and crisis. This continuous rain made the atmosphere of the entire battlefield even heavier and more depressing.
At this time, Li Zicheng's old battalion was stationed at Fuchikou, and his dependents and accompanying fleet were anchored by the river. Suddenly, the Qing army launched a fierce attack from both land and water, carrying out night attacks. In the chaos, the sound of killing was everywhere, some people were killed, some people were captured, and some people were forced to jump into the river to escape. In the Dashun army, how many heroic soldiers worried their parents? How many families have lost their way home? The continuous rain seemed to tell endless sadness, and the voices in all directions were as sad as Chu Ge, which made people cry. This endless rain seemed to be crying for Li Zicheng and his Dashun army, lamenting their dream-like fate and fate......
Li Zicheng was a legendary figure who was once the ruler of the north from his uprising to the eventual overthrow of the Ming Dynasty, claiming to have a million-strong army. After his victory, he successfully sat in the Golden Luang Palace. However, at a critical moment, his army snatched Wu Shangui's concubine Chen Yuanyuan, who was about to surrender, which caused great anger from Wu Shangui. The Shanhaiguan Pass where Wu Shangui was stationed at that time was an extremely important strategic location, so his rebellion caused Li Zicheng great trouble. Wu Shangui was grief-stricken because of Chen Yuanyuan's incident, and in anger, he pulled up the anti-flag. However, in the Battle of One Stone, he suffered a crushing defeat. Just two days after ascending the throne in Beijing, Li Zicheng was forced to flee the city in a hurry. This series of events not only shows the chaos of Li Zicheng's army, but also reveals the complex human nature of Wu Shangui's personal emotions that affect the entire strategic situation.
Li Zicheng once experienced a very miserable defeat, and there were only a dozen people left in the Shangluo Mountains, but he later regained his strength. So this defeat was only temporary, and he planned to return to Xi'an. The terrain of Xi'an is dangerous, he can hold it here, and then regroup his forces from here to fight the Qing army again. However, all this he intended was not so easy to achieve, because the Qing army would not give him a respite. Especially on the way of the British king Azig, they had Wu Sangui's Guanning iron cavalry as the vanguard, holding high the banner of "revenge on the monarch's father", and quickly pursued westward. Li Zicheng was chased and fled, fleeing all the way south. Therefore, although this defeat is heart-wrenching, it does not mean that it is over, and he still has a chance to get back on his feet.
Li Zicheng originally had hundreds of thousands of troops, and he decided to retreat in two ways. One route passed through De'an Province and the other through Jingzhou Province before finally meeting at Wuchang Province with the goal of attacking Jinling. He knew very well that the Qing army's Eight Banners Iron Cavalry was powerful, and if he fought them directly, he might not be able to win. Then why not turn to attack Nanming's army? After all, the territory in the north had been taken away by the Qing army, so why didn't they turn to attack the territory of the Southern Ming to make up for the losses? It's like changing the home field and still being able to make a difference. In this way, even on the new battlefield, they still have hope of achieving their goals.
Although Azig was targeting one of Lee's troops, he always pursued them and focused on "decapitation" no matter how the other side divided his forces. He firmly believed that as long as Li Zicheng was eliminated, the rest of the army would become no threat. Judging from the subsequent historical process, this strategy has indeed worked. Azig's unwavering ambition has led him to focus on what matters most, and that's where the difference between victory and defeat lies.
Azig was the twelfth son of the Qing Emperor Nurhachi, who was originally given the title of Taiji. He excelled on the battlefield and was later given the title of Baylor. He participated in many campaigns against the Ming Dynasty. In the first year of Shunzhi, together with the regent Dolgon, he defeated Li Zicheng's Dashun army at Shanhaiguan, after which he was named Prince Heshuoying. He also held the position of General Jingyuan. After Li Zicheng's defeat, Azig led his army to evacuate Beijing and Xi'an in the first month of the second year of Shunzhi, and marched towards the Huguang region. They passed through Neixiang, Dengzhou, Chengtian and other places, and the navy and army led by Azig continued to pursue Li Zicheng's army, causing Li Zicheng to be defeated repeatedly. The pursuit demonstrated Azig's military prowess and strategic vision.
Azig had a decision, and that was to attack Li Zicheng. In the historical sources, there is indeed a significant record. In the seventeenth volume of the "Records of the Ancestors of the Qing Dynasty", an incident is mentioned. At that time, in the leap month of the second year of Shunzhi (1645), Prince Azig reported the battle situation to the emperor as the general of Jingyuan. He said that Li Zicheng personally led a large number of horse infantry, and the total number reached 200,000. These forces included troops from Xi'an, as well as garrison troops from Huguang in Xiangyang, Chengtian, Jingzhou, and De'an. They claimed to capture Nanjing, adopting a strategy of advancing by land and water. Our army was also divided into two routes, the naval army and the army, which pursued them in Dengzhou, Chengtian, De'an, Wuchang, Fuchikou, Sangjiakou and Jiujiang respectively. For the soldiers who surrendered, we pacified; Those who refuse to surrender will be beheaded. In the end, we defeated them eight times at Li Zicheng's old camp.... This is a description of a major military operation and battle in Azig. That year was indeed a fatal blow to the Dashun Dynasty. The above content is based on the original meaning and described in concise and straightforward language, ensuring that the original meaning can be clearly expressed while simplifying it with less similarity. Hopefully, this expression meets your needs.
During the battle, we captured two puppet Zhao marquis (Li Shouyi and Li Shouzheng), as well as their wives and concubines. In addition, we found a gold seal. At the same time, we also captured the puppet Marquis Liu Zongmin (i.e., Liu Zongmin), his wife, two daughters-in-law, his adopted son, the wife of the puppet Marquis Jiang Nai, and the wife of the puppet Marquis Gu Yan. There is also a puppet general soldier Zuo Guangxian, his wife, three sons, and a warlock puppet military advisor Song Xiance. In addition, we also obtained two concubines of the former Ming and Jin kings of Taiyuan Mansion. On the battlefield, we decisively executed these two self-made uncles and the puppet Marquis Liu Zongmin. As for Zicheng, he had three wives and concubines who fled urgently because of our pursuit, and finally jumped into the Yangtze River to commit suicide. We pursued Zicheng and divided our forces, engaged the enemy a total of thirteen times, and won the victory. During the battle, we captured thirty-one camels, six thousand four hundred and fifty horses and mules, and three thousand one hundred and eight boats.
Records of Azig's "beheading" of Li Zicheng at Fuchikou are recorded in historical documents in many places. According to the Kangxi Dynasty's Wuchang Mansion Chronicles, after Li Zicheng's defeat at Fuchi, the remnants of his troops were scattered throughout the state border, scattering and fleeing like birds and beasts, mainly retreating to the direction of Ruichang and Wuning. Due to the depth of the valley and the narrow roads, Li Zicheng personally led a team of more than 10,000 people to disperse his troops on the crossroads at the junction of Tongshan and Wuning. He personally selected a force and planned to occupy the Nine Palaces. Azig pursued closely, bent on completing the great achievement of "cutting the head of the ditch", and even gave up chasing and killing the other remnants. There was a force that fled to Ruichang and reached Luocheng Mountain around the end of April. At that time, they left behind a large amount of baggage, and thousands of women were left behind. When they got lost and crossed the weir mountain, the plank road was as narrow as a rope, and both people and horses panicked, causing more than 1,000 horseback riders to drown in it. In this battle, Azig's Eight Banners forced Li Zicheng to a desperate situation, which was both tragic and distressing.
Li Zicheng planned to flee from Fuchikou to Jiujiang, but before reaching Jiujiang, the Qing army was already in hot pursuit and reached Fuchikou. The enemy reorganized his forces and occupied the banks of the river to resist. Hinnai joined forces with Haninga, the leader of the protectors, and Hilgen, the commander of the staff, to repel their army. During the battle, the Qing army killed more than 40 enemy generals and intercepted more than 300 enemy ships. Of these, the enemy even set himself on fire two hundred ships. Haninga (Ga) led the elite troops directly to Li Zicheng's camp. Li Zicheng's situation became urgent, and in desperation, he pushed his three concubines into the river, and then quietly escaped across the mouth of Fuchi. However, when he was about forty miles away from Jiujiang, he was caught up by the Qing army again. The elite cavalry of the Qing army suddenly rushed in and quickly approached the enemy garrison. Li Zicheng was left with only the remnants of the soldiers, and they climbed the mountain in a panic.
That night, Li Zicheng and his old troops camped at Fuchikou to rest, and he estimated that it would take at least a day for the Qing army to catch up with them, so he looked forward to a peaceful night. However, just as he was falling asleep, Azig suddenly launched a night attack. Some elite troops raided Li Zicheng's camp, while several other armies laid siege to other camps of the Dashun army. The soldiers of the Dashun army were exhausted because of their continuous escape, so when the Qing army attacked, many people were awakened in their sleep and had to deal with it in a hurry. At this moment, the camp of the Dashun army was in chaos, and the shouts of killing, artillery, and cries were intertwined, which seemed extremely chaotic.
Although Li Zicheng escaped, his base camp was attacked by the enemy, and the commander-in-chief could only flee in confusion. This was undoubtedly a tragic defeat. Li Zicheng led the scattered soldiers and their families, fighting and fleeing along the way, many crying. In particular, in a battle at Fuchikou, many generals such as Song Xiance and their families fell into the hands of the enemy. Except for Song Xiance, everyone else was killed. Based on these records, it can be said that in the Battle of Fuchikou, Li Zicheng's important generals such as Liu Zongmin, Zuo Guangxian, and his two uncles all suffered misfortunes. Liu Zongmin has been Li Zicheng's right-hand man for many years, and Song Xiance is his think tank. The Battle of Fuchi deprived Li Zicheng of the important support of his right and left hands, and he could only flee alone. His ranks, followed by mournful weeping, were demoralized, surrounded by the singing of the enemy, and could no longer redeem their defeat.
Li Zicheng suffered a crushing defeat, panicked like a lost dog, and as urgent as a fish escaping from a net. He was defeated in the battle of Fuchikou, and although he was not killed on the spot, Azig did not let up in his pursuit. He tried to gather the remnants of his forces to regroup, and a week later fled to Jiugong Mountain. Unexpectedly, in the chaotic era, he was mistaken for a thief by the local villagers. A regimental trainer named Cheng Jiubai, who had no combat experience, knocked him down with a shovel. In this way, Li Zicheng disappeared at the foot of Jiugong Mountain, and his life came to an end. "Tongshan County Chronicle" records such a period of history: "Nine strong men gathered at Xiaoyuankou and jointly eliminated the thief head." Since then, Li Zicheng has lost the opportunity to turn the tables, and his uprising for more than ten years and the Dashun Dynasty have been wiped out.