Stealing the Ming Dynasty [Complete] - 19

page views:1 Publication date:2023-03-24

In Chapter 11 of "Sweeping Through the Army Like a Rolling Basket,"

Huang Shi was unwilling to answer the question at all. He snorted and used a legal term from his previous life: "I don't answer questions that haven't happened."

It took He Dingyuan a long time to understand what Huang Shi was trying to say, which made him even angrier. He couldn't help but burst out: "What if Brother Yang did this? What if Brother Zhang did this? How would you punish him, sir?"

"Brother Yang would never violate military law, never!" Huang Shi also couldn't help but burst out. If there was anyone in the army's high command who liked to take it as a joke by defying Huang Shi's authority, then He Dingyuan was definitely the only one: "As for Brother Zhang, he would definitely come to me to complain if he had any grievances. He would never act first and report later!"

He Dingyuan was enraged by Huang Shi's attitude. He stood up and shouted: "Does the sir mean that if I go to settle a personal score, no matter if it's an irreconcilable feud, the sir will kill me too?"

Huang Shi retorted sharply: "Do you think that soldier is innocent?"

He Dingyuan waved his fist in the air and shouted: "That's right, very innocent."

Huang Shi's tone became even more severe: "Do you still think he shouldn't die?"

"Of course he shouldn't die." He Dingyuan's voice became so loud that even the guards on guard outside couldn't help but peek inside, and the faces of the two guards became very tense.

Huang Shi, his face stiff, waved them out, then glanced at He Dingyuan and sneered, "Then why didn't you release him privately?"

This question left He Dingyuan speechless. Huang Shi sneered several more times, "Why didn't you release him? Answer me, why did you obediently supervise the execution?"

He Dingyuan's face grew redder and redder, and he slammed his fist on the table, "I truly regret not releasing him back then."

"Get out. Don't come in unless I call you." Huang Shi waved again, shooing away the peeking guards, then leisurely turned to look at He Dingyuan, suddenly blurting out, "Bullshit!"

He Dingyuan was startled by this sudden curse and leaned back. Huang Shi let out another cold laugh: "Brother He, I know you. Even if you're not convinced, you'll still obey my orders. You might argue with me, you might quarrel with me, but you won't..." Huang Shi emphasized his words sharply, "You absolutely won't disobey my orders." He

Dingyuan, his face flushed, was panting heavily, still trying to come up with a rebuttal. After hesitating for a while, he finally said, "That soldier was pitiful, and his situation was truly understandable."

Huang Shi gave a mocking smile, stood up, and walked around the table as he said, "Brother He, let's be frank today. That soldier was pitiful, I admit that. But let me tell you what he was thinking. He was definitely thinking—I have merit, I have hard work. Even if I killed someone, it wouldn't matter. The higher-ups won't hold it against me for a dead Han soldier."

Huang Shi stopped and stared blankly at He Dingyuan, shaking his head: "If everyone thinks like that, how can this army be led? Hmph, I want to tell them that disobeying orders—is a crime. Don't think that past merits give you a

get-out-of-jail-free card." "But those veterans have risked their lives following you, sir. Over the years, they have made great contributions to you." He Dingyuan thought for a moment and then said, "Soldiers have been led this way for thousands of years. Chinese law has always emphasized evaluating merits and deeds."

"Discussing merits and demerits. Ha. This time I criticized him, next time someone will think—I have merits, I have worked hard, even if I only run once on the battlefield, I will be given a chance to redeem myself." Huang Shi was a very stubborn man. He firmly believed that the order of a tyrant was better than no order at all. He also worried that a thousand-mile dike could be breached by an ant hole. Huang Shi believed that military orders were stricter than existing laws. Many orders on the battlefield were more unreasonable than military law, meant to drive people to their deaths, but soldiers had to mechanically carry them out: "In our Great Ming, there are always people who think that forgiveness is a thousand times easier than permission, but this only applies to families. On my Changsheng Island, without prior permission, there is no forgiveness."

Seeing that He Dingyuan was still angry, Huang Shi snorted again: "Brother He, let me ask you, if that soldier did not kill himself, but cried to you, asking you to kill for him, what would you do?"

He Dingyuan tilted his head and began to think. Huang Shi waited patiently for a long time, and He Dingyuan finally said reluctantly: "I will talk to the magistrate and Brother Yang, and ask the magistrate to uphold... uphold justice."

"You will get it too. I have at least a hundred ways to avenge him. But not now, and certainly not today, the day I just announced a general amnesty to the Han army in Liaodong!" Huang Shi quickly chimed in. He knew that once someone was pardoned, no matter how vehemently the words were spoken, the soldiers of Changsheng Island would go around looking for their old enemies, killing them openly or covertly—if they couldn't do it openly, wouldn't they at least do it covertly? Once this hatred spread, Huang Shi worried that it would be impossible to control: "That prisoner knows I won't allow it. He thinks his personal affairs are more important than the regulations of Changsheng Island. He would rather openly violate the regulations than tolerate it. I will not tolerate such a challenge to military law, nor will I encourage this trend."

"He did not challenge your military law, sir," He Dingyuan's voice rose again.

Huang Shi actually smiled: "Brother He, whether it's an intentional challenge to the military law of Changsheng Island or an unintentional mistake, I've always been able to distinguish between them. For example, you—you unintentionally violated military law, and I didn't say anything."

"When have I ever violated military law?" He Dingyuan's tone remained high, but he unconsciously changed his self-reference.

"Aren't you married?" Huang Shi gently rebuked, tapping his fingers on the table. "That violates my military law."

He Dingyuan's neck immediately turned red and swollen, veins bulging. "It was arranged by my hometown, and the person was sent to the island by my hometown."

"Haha, yes, it was an unintentional mistake." Huang Shi seemed to be in a much better mood. He raised his eyes as if recalling something funny, his mouth unconsciously widening into a grin. Huang Shi leaned forward and whispered, "Let me tell you a story, it's about that scoundrel Li Yunrui. You know he came to my Changsheng Island for committing a womanizing crime. Commander Li has always been very thirsty for women, haha."

Huang Shi laughed heartily again. He Dingyuan looked at him, bewildered. Huang Shi finally stopped after a long while. He told He Dingyuan the story the secret agent from the Imperial Guard had told him: "Someone saw Li Yunrui secretly going to the stable to sleep with a mare... hahahaha... a mare, and more than once. Haha, the smell in the stable, how could he stand it? Haha... You mustn't tell anyone."

Huang Shi's expression immediately calmed down: "Because I stipulate that officers are not allowed to get married before half of their subordinates are married. More than half of the officers in the Military Intelligence Bureau are not married, so Commander Li is not married either. He once came to test my intentions." Huang Shi swallowed, his face showing a look of guilt and emotion: "I told him he was not allowed to touch women, and if he caused any trouble—like getting a girl pregnant and then crying and begging to marry him—I would not let him off easily. Actually, I even arranged for him to have a fling in Shandong. But it still wasn't enough; in the end, he refrained from touching women and went to sleep with a mare..."

“And Zhao Manxiong, Jin Qiude, Yang Zhiyuan,” Huang Shi counted on his fingers, his face a mixture of guilt and emotion growing stronger. “In the past two years, Zhao Youji has at least made arrangements with two families, but in the end, he gave up on both. Those two girls couldn’t wait and got married. He didn’t tell me any of this, but I know it all.” Huang Shi looked up at He Dingyuan again. He shook his head helplessly and sighed, “Over the years, everyone has sacrificed a lot for Changsheng Island, including you, Brother He.”

He Dingyuan thought of the coarse grain pancakes he ate and the alfalfa soup he drank. And his wife’s meager supplies. He couldn’t help but feel a little teary-eyed. “The adults have sacrificed even more.”

"If you can all do it, then as the commander of an army, there's no reason why I can't." Huang Shi smiled faintly. Although he had established the military law, he had never made himself an exception within it, nor had he made any special provisions for Huang Shi... He was just like all the other officers, only receiving one more fish each day than the soldiers. Take women, for example. He wouldn't allow Li Yunrui and the others to lay a finger on them, so he wouldn't either: "You are all veterans who have followed me since Guangning. If I don't treat you well, why should I pardon that soldier? If I pardon that soldier, how can I not pardon others in the future?"

Both men fell silent, each lost in their own thoughts. After a while, He Dingyuan asked in a low voice, "Sir, shouldn't you go to the execution ground and offer that prisoner a cup of wine?"

"Didn't you offer it for me?" Huang Shi lowered his head and sneered, his face turning gloomy again, his tone turning icy: "Brother He, if you have any grievances, just tell me. But it's best not to shout outside. Especially not at the gate of my camp, or in a crowded place like the execution ground." Huang Shi squinted and exhaled a long breath: "I think quite a few people will be dissatisfied. They'll feel that you're backing them up, and they'll become even bolder."

"This subordinate begs for punishment, sir."

"No need for punishment, there's no such clause in the military law." Huang Shi waved his hand magnanimously. He knew that He Dingyuan couldn't control his mouth at all, so Huang Shi would never include a similar clause in the military law: "What is not prohibited by military law is permitted. Now I'm just asking you for a favor as a brother."

"Sir, you flatter me." After thanking him, He Dingyuan's eyes darted around: "Sir, you said many people will be dissatisfied?"

“Of course, many people have deep-seated hatred for those Han soldiers.” Huang Shi took a couple more steps, then returned to his seat.

After a while, seeing that he didn't say anything more, He Dingyuan cautiously asked, “Since you know this, aren't you afraid that the morale of the army

will be unstable?” “Would the morale of the army be unstable?” Huang Shi’s eyes brightened, his sharp gaze fixed on He Dingyuan’s face.

In the years since he established the garrison, Huang Shi had never taken a salary or eaten any special food. He shared everything he had with his soldiers. Other generals wouldn't treat his slave soldiers, let alone his personal guards, in the same way. All the regulations he established, whether it was ice-breaking, food, or marriage, Huang Shi practiced them himself, never putting himself above them. And in war… Huang Shi never risked his soldiers’ lives for his own advancement. In times of crisis, he would fight alongside his soldiers on the front lines, leading them from victory to victory time and time again… These facts, along with the tireless propaganda of the Loyalty to the Emperor and Patriotism Church, had long made Huang Shi’s image exceptionally lofty.

"The morale of the troops is not wavering," He Dingyuan admitted with a sigh. Although he was very dissatisfied with Huang Shi's handling of the situation, he was still grateful to have such a superior officer as Huang Shi. This incident would not shake the respect and love that the soldiers on Changsheng Island had for Huang Shi. The soldier's elder brother might be the angrier person in front of him, but he had only transferred his hatred to others. For example, the military judge in the initial trial—who did not immediately deliver a not-guilty verdict; or Yang Zhiyuan—who insisted on reporting the case to higher authorities; and as for Huang Shi—even the prisoner's elder brother would secretly defend his idol.

He Dingyuan hesitated before finally saying, "But, there are always personal grudges involved."

"Report it, and I will naturally find a way to deal with it... certainly not now." Huang Shi was very dismissive of using hatred as a pillar of military morale. If hatred were so useful, there would have been no reason for the 500,000 soldiers and civilians of Dongjiang in history to defect back to the Later Jin. As for human emotions, Huang Shi also believed that they were too fickle. What he believed in was order, and ironclad rules and regulations.

Then there's the issue of interests. It's less accurate to say that Huang Shi's Changsheng Island lacked a private army, and more accurate to say that its tens of thousands of soldiers were Huang Shi's personal army. Huang Shi was striving to create a unique system, ensuring that the vast majority of people could benefit from it. Once this system was formed, those within it became part of a vested interest group, meaning they could only share Huang Shi's fate. At least for now, Huang Shi believed that even if He Dingyuan were bribed, he absolutely lacked the power to pull the troops away from Huang Shi's command.

"Those who trust me, like you, Yang Zhiyuan, and Li Yunrui, will all seek my permission beforehand. I will also treat you with the utmost enthusiasm and goodwill. But those who violate military law without seeking my permission either know that I will never grant their requests, or they feel that I am not a trustworthy person. In that case, I will not presume to take care of them. Otherwise, I will most likely be ridiculed by them in their hearts, and they will test my bottom line again and again."

Huang Shi waved his hand to indicate that the conversation could come to an end: "Go prepare for the expedition. We will set off for Fuzhou early tomorrow morning."

Sweeping through the army like a whirlwind, Chapter 12: Infiltration.

Before nightfall, the Zuo Xie's grain officer had already distributed military rations to various parts of the Dongjiang Army inside and outside Pangu Fort. The supplies for Zhang Pan and the Shang brothers were sent directly to their main camps, but the Jiu Huo and Pan Shi battalions still followed the old rules on Changsheng Island, with everyone going to the makeshift temporary canteen to collect their food. At Zhang Minghe's insistence, the rations for the Vanguard Battalion were no longer distributed to the battalion's supply officer. Instead, all officers and soldiers of the Vanguard Battalion were required to collect their food from the Changsheng Army's mess hall.

Huang Shi and He Dingyuan also emerged from their tents and joined the queue one after the other. The two caused a stir among the Vanguard Battalion soldiers in the line. The soldiers around them knelt down to salute the two generals, and soldiers from other ranks also tried to squeeze in to catch a glimpse.

The officers of Changsheng Island struggled to maintain order in the ranks. Even the soldiers from the Firefighting and Rock Battalions, who were obediently queuing, grumbled with an air of superiority, "You've never seen anything like this before! Don't push and shove!

Those who do will be dragged out and flogged!" The Changsheng Island soldiers in Huang Shi and He Dingyuan's line, along with the two surrounding lines, received their rations and walked past the kneeling Vanguard Battalion soldiers with their heads held high. They merely gave the two

men a slight nod: "Sir, Lord He." Huang Shi returned the nods, while He Dingyuan behind him was also busy. After receiving the nods, the Changsheng Island soldiers and officers raised their chins high and strode arrogantly past the kneeling soldiers.

In the distance, Shang Kexi and his elder brother watched coldly. Despite the Changsheng Island officers' efforts to suppress them, many still clung to the line, but the rations were slowly being collected.

"I've long heard of General Huang's strict discipline, and it's come to this." Shang Keyi stared at the noisy crowd for a long time. "General Huang is receiving rations with his soldiers... and this... and it hasn't caused a riot."

"Brother, look closely." Shang Kexi pointed to the officers and attendants who were desperately maintaining order. He was now much more familiar with the Changsheng Army than his elder brother. "Those officers and soldiers are called the Changsheng Island Inner Guards, General Huang's henchmen."

"Household guards and personal soldiers?" Shang Keyi was slightly surprised. He quickly asked, "Isn't there a rumor that General Huang doesn't have any household guards?"

"No, not household guards. General Huang doesn't seem to have any household guards." Shang Kexi waved over a personal soldier and told him to go and see what was going on. A moment later, the guard returned and reported what he had seen and heard. Shang Ke smiled smugly at his elder brother: "What did I tell you? Whether it's ordinary soldiers or those inner guards, they all call General Huang 'Sir' instead of 'Head of the Family.' General Huang doesn't have any servants."

Shang Keyi shook his head repeatedly: "What arrogant soldiers! They just nod and move on. Even my personal guards wouldn't dare treat me like that."

“Those internal guards aren’t personal soldiers either; they almost never go to the battlefield, but they wield considerable power.” Shang Kexi didn’t know how to describe the power of Huang Shi’s internal guard. They were essentially a combination of Huang Shi’s previous life’s military police and guards, their specific functions not yet fully differentiated and separated. Shang Kexi scratched his head: “I’m not entirely sure either, but as far as I know, those internal guards manage almost everything. Sometimes they don’t seem to completely obey General Huang; the military judges and training officers from Changsheng Island often order them around.”

Zhang Minghe had originally asked his personal guards to get him food, but seeing Huang Shi and He Dingyuan queuing up themselves, he quickly led his guards to join the fun. Zhang Minghe, clutching his helmet, strode ahead, his guards following closely behind at breakneck speed. This group, like tigers descending from the mountain, rushed past the Shang brothers, their armor and swords clanging loudly. Watching them plunge headlong into the crowd of soldiers queuing up, Shang Kexi couldn't help but beat his chest in frustration: "Damn it, I should have asked to get rations with the fire brigade too. Now Zhang Minghe is running off to curry favor with Commander Huang, while I can only watch from here."

"You go ahead if you want, I'm not going to squeeze in with those lowly soldiers. What if there are bad guys in there?" Shang Keyi sneered. Turning to his brother, he asked, "I'm going back to camp for lunch. Are you coming with me?"

At this moment, Zhang Minghe and his group were stopped by an officer from the Changsheng Island Imperial Guard. Although this guard didn't recognize Zhang Minghe, he could tell from his gleaming armor and the large entourage that the person opposite him was someone of importance. The guard said politely, "Gentlemen, please line up at the back of the queue. This is the rule of Changsheng Island. We can guarantee that everyone will get hot food, so you can rest assured."

Zhang Minghe, who had just run over, panting heavily, gave a wink, and immediately a personal guard stepped forward with a smile and asked, "Brother, what is your name?"

"I dare not." The guard clasped his hands in salute, "I am the captain of the Changsheng Island Guard..."

The personal guard listened with a grin, then glanced behind him and said, "My master is Commander Zhang of the Vanguard Battalion."

Upon hearing that he was a battalion officer, the captain quickly bowed and clasped his hands to Zhang Minghe again, "I was blind, please forgive me, Commander Zhang."

"No offense, no offense." Zhang Minghe spoke quickly. He had only been an officer for a few months and had not yet developed any authority. Zhang Minghe then pointed to Di Huang and He in front of him and explained to a junior officer, "I would like to go and say a few words to Commander Huang."

“I humbly beg Lord Zhang’s forgiveness,” the guard said respectfully, but his tone was firm. “There are rules on Changsheng Island that everyone must start from the back of the line, not even the Junior Guardian of the Crown Prince. If Lord Zhang has anything urgent to say, I can pass on the message and call the Junior Guardian of the Crown Prince out of the line.”

Zhang Minghe quickly said, “No need, no need.” He glanced around and saw Huang Shi and He Dingyuan take another step forward as he spoke. He said urgently to the guard, “I’ll go alone. Please make an exception for me.” As soon as he said this, one of his personal guards took out some silver and stuffed it into the guard’s pocket.

The Imperial Guard captain was terrified, hastily throwing away the silver and taking two steps back. He grabbed a stunned colleague from Changsheng Island, saying, "Lord Zhang, please forgive me. It's not that I'm unwilling to make things convenient for you, but the military law of Changsheng Island is as strict as a mountain. This colleague is also an Imperial Guard captain; you can ask him, Lord Zhang. I truly have my reasons. Please forgive me, Lord Zhang."

Seeing Huang Shi and He Dingyuan walk forward again, Zhang Minghe was as anxious as an ant on a hot pan. However, he didn't dare push past the guards on Changsheng Island and force his way in. At this moment, one of his personal guards, his eyes darting around, asked, "How about we swap them one by one?"

Seeing that the guard officer didn't understand, the guard pointed to a soldier from the Vanguard Battalion at the front of the line and said, "That man, come out, we'll go in. Is that alright?"

The two guard captains exchanged glances, and before they could speak, Zhang Minghe's guard added, "He's queuing on behalf of my master, it was arranged long ago, please do us a favor."

The two guard captains exchanged another glance. Neither of them were fools; they knew the guard opposite them was lying. But they were, after all, facing a battalion commander, and he was being so humble and pleading. Moreover, since he was an officer from another faction, they couldn't be too unreasonable. So, one of them nodded and explained the rules of Changsheng Island: "You can queue up for someone else, but the other person must be willing..."

"Of course, it has to be willing." The personal guard started pushing his way in before the Changsheng Island guards could finish speaking, shouting, "Protect the lord!" Once

inside, they immediately started identifying people. Zhang Minghe's personal guards kept asking if the people in front of them were from the Vanguard Battalion. If they mistook them for soldiers from the Firefighting Battalion or the Rock Camp, they would apologize. But nine times out of ten, they were right, and soon a large group of Vanguard Battalion soldiers were shooed out. Those soldiers didn't say a word and all obediently went to the back of the line to rejoin.

They moved all the way to behind He Dingyuan, and Zhang Minghe greeted Huang and He with a smile.

Because these five or six people insisted on squeezing in, dozens of soldiers with blank expressions were quickly kicked out. These soldiers showed no resentment, but the Firefighting Battalion guards in charge of this line started whispering among themselves. The soldiers from the Firefighting and Rock Camps also shook their heads. Several Rock Camp soldiers in these three rows had come from the Vanguard Camp after the Battle of Nanguan, and they secretly rejoiced at the sight.

Huang Shi, having received the food, waited for He Dingyuan and Zhang Minghe with the plates for a while. Zhang Minghe's personal guard tried to take the plates for him but was glared at fiercely by Huang Shi. As Huang Shi stepped out of the ranks, the soldiers behind him called out softly one after another:

"Sir."

"Sir."

"Sir."

"Good, good, good..." Huang Shi responded all the way, nodding to himself as he walked out of the crowd. Only then did the inner guards maintaining order withdraw their wary gazes that had been hovering around Huang Shi. Outside, there were several simple tables, with felled trees lying around them. Huang Shi and He Dingyuan randomly found one to sit down, and Zhang Minghe quickly sat down next to them.

These were all large tables, each seating over a dozen people. Soldiers would occasionally call out "Sir!" and sit down to eat. Huang Shi and He Dingyuan ate heartily, while Zhang Minghe constantly scrutinized the others at the same table with eagle-like eyes.

After finishing their meal, Huang Shi and He Dingyuan got up and left, Zhang Minghe abandoning his unfinished food and following closely behind. He didn't notice several guards in the distance subtly observing Huang Shi's table, only turning to check on the other officers after they left. As Huang Shi and

his group left, Dugu Qiu had just received his share of food for auxiliary soldiers. If Later Jin Han troops defected to other units in Dongjiang, they would be formed into separate armies according to Mao Wenlong's orders and placed under the command of former Later Jin Han officers who had surrendered. However, Changsheng Island in Huangshi did not permit the establishment of a separate Han army unit. Strong soldiers like the Dugu brothers were immediately assigned to the isolated auxiliary battalion. After several witnesses confirmed their local Han army identity, the two brothers were then assigned to the fire brigade's supply train. It was precisely because of this policy that the tragedy occurred.

As Dugu Qiu began to eat, a pair of eyes were watching him intently from not far away. Song Jianjun's second brother was the murderer who killed Dugu Qiu's elder brother. Six years ago, 100,000 troops in Liaoyang and Shenyang were wiped out, and the court abandoned the Hedong region. At the time, Song Jianjun, a military household in Gaizhou, didn't think much of it—where else could he be a soldier and get a salary? But after the Later Jin implemented the shaving law, he became uneasy, always feeling that he had let down his ancestors. Finally, three years ago, he made up his mind and fled south with his younger siblings…

When his brother was executed, Song Jianjun wept bitterly. He felt his brother, who had repeatedly distinguished himself in battle, didn't deserve to die—meaning someone had sabotaged him. But Song Jianjun's simple mind couldn't figure out who was behind it. He never suspected Huang Shi—this invincible war god who never treated them like slaves and always fed and clothed them was definitely a good person; he also never suspected Yang Zhiyuan—Yang had never bullied anyone and was always fair in enforcing military law; Song Jianjun didn't hate He Dingyuan, the executioner—although He often beat soldiers, he also often beat officers. Besides, being beaten was a soldier's duty. Song Jianjun even felt that it was thanks to Huang's tactics and He's training that he had been able to return alive from the battlefield time and time again.

So the only bad guy was obviously Dugu Qiu, who was not far away. It was these guys who came to Changsheng Island and were assigned to their brothers' unit as auxiliary soldiers, thus disrupting Song Jianjun's peaceful life. Song Jianjun grew increasingly furious, his fists clenched so tightly that he could see nothing but Dugu Qiu.

"Song Jianjun, stop!"

A loud shout rang in Song Jianjun's ears. He realized he had unknowingly walked behind Dugu Qiu, who had also been startled by the shout. Dugu Qiu turned around, his eyes filled with a mixture of fear and rage. The

one who had stopped Song Jianjun was a squad leader from the fire brigade; the Song brothers were his subordinates. The Dugu brothers had previously served as his supply troops. The murder had occurred during joint training; Yang Zhiyuan had questioned him about the case, and he had even written to Yang Zhiyuan pleading for the murderer's life.

During lunch today, the squad leader had been keeping an eye on the two sworn enemies. Although he sympathized with Song Jianjun, the superiors' intentions were clear: no vigilante justice against the former Han army would be tolerated within the unit. Therefore, stopping Song Jianjun's unusual movements was a way of protecting him. The squad leader stopped the hot-headed Song Jianjun, walked up behind him, and coldly asked, "Song Jianjun, what are you doing?"

Song Jianjun's chest heaved violently, his fists clenched so tightly they cracked. He gasped for breath and suddenly roared at Dugu Qiu, "I know you're a traitor, you bastard..."

"Shut up. Do you want a beating?" the squad leader shouted angrily, "Song Jianjun, go back to the camp and rest."

The officer's long-standing authority immediately softened Song Jianjun. He glared at Dugu Qiu one last time, then left angrily. That night, lying in bed, Song Jianjun kept clenching his fists and secretly vowed, "I will kill him, I must kill him."

After Song Jianjun left, the officer looked at Dugu Qiu coldly again and said emotionlessly, "Eat quickly, then go back to the camp and rest." Then he walked away with his hands behind his back. Emotionally speaking, even if Song Jianjun had beaten Dugu Qiu, the squad leader didn't think it was too much.

However, the handling of Song Jianjun's brother this time is very intriguing. The murderer was swiftly and publicly executed, and Huang Shi, the highest-ranking officer on Changsheng Island, showed no sympathy whatsoever. Song Jianjun and Dugu Qiu's squad leader had secretly inquired with Yang Zhiyuan about the reaction of the senior officers in the old camp. According to Yang Zhiyuan, the Changsheng Island command was shocked and disgusted by this blatant disobedience to military law. Soon, the internal security system issued orders confirming this statement. The internal security officers beheaded the executed murderer and displayed his head publicly, repeatedly declaring that all Changsheng Island soldiers were allies, and any act of harming allies would not be tolerated.

Therefore, out of concern for Song Jianjun, this squad leader would also resolutely stop any private revenge. Allowing his subordinates to play on the fringes of military law would undoubtedly be asking for trouble.

After dinner, Dugu Qiu returned to his tent. As night fell, the soldiers in the tent fell asleep, their snores and sleep-talking filling the air. But Dugu Qiu couldn't fall asleep. The recent dispute reminded him of his older brother…

His elder brother had been the village leader since childhood, tall, strong, and a kind-hearted man. After joining the military household, he became a squad leader, then a sergeant, and by the time Shenyang fell, he was a deputy battalion commander. In the village, his brother often helped his neighbors, and the younger generation listened to him. When Fuzhou surrendered to the Later Jin regime, the anxious old village chief asked his brother what the future held.

"Hey, where don't we serve as soldiers and eat our fill? We all toil in the fields," Dugu Qiu's brother's words reassured the villagers. After the Later Jin regime stabilized in Fuzhou, to facilitate governance, it, like other places, appointed the most respected and strongest men as leaders of the village's Han army self-defense force. Thus, Dugu Qiu's brother became a Han army lieutenant commander. Later, the Ming army came again... The Ming army occupied Lushun... Ming spies began issuing proclamations calling on the Liaodong people to flee south...

Fuzhou countered with a blockade order. The order demanded that the Han army kill any Liaodong people fleeing south, with each head worth a string of cash. This immediately caused an uproar in the village. The harvests had been poor for years, the village was getting poorer, the village girls wouldn't stay, and outsiders wouldn't marry into the village. The young men were all desperate to kill for money to get wives. Dugu Qiu remembered that the old village chief had even come to his elder brother about this. The old village chief, in his old age, liked to chant Buddhist mantras. He told Dugu Qiu's elder brother, "If those people can afford the toll, let them pass. Less killing, less sin..."

"Okay!" Dugu Qiu's elder brother agreed immediately.

Dugu Qiu also remembered the scene of his elder brother bringing his sister-in-law back. Two years ago, one day, his elder brother took two young men from the village out on patrol in the morning, and returned excitedly before noon. They each brought back a woman, and the other two kept praising Brother Dugu Qiu's good judgment, expressing their endless gratitude. The other young men in the village were incredibly envious that they had saved on dowry. The old village chief, seeing three more people in the village, also kept praising Brother Dugu Qiu's ability.

The three men didn't waste any more words, and they couldn't wait until dark. Each picked up their woman from their horse, shouting and jumping as they ran into their houses, slamming the doors shut. The village elders, their mouths agape with their few remaining teeth, stared at the tightly closed doors, laughing happily. The village women also laughed and chattered, arguing about which man would bring a new member to the village…

Recalling the joyous scene, Dugu Qiu smiled faintly in the darkness from his bed… Then the village's harvest worsened. Last year, when the old village chief mobilized the entire village to dig a canal to divert water from the Shahe River, his youngest son was swept away by the rapids. The village chief's eldest son failed to save his brother's life and died along with him...

Last month, when Dugu Qiu, his elder brother, and several young men from the village returned from the fields, they found the village filled with weeping. The village elders lay in pools of blood, and the old village chief had been stabbed in the stomach and went into shock. When he awoke, his grandson and granddaughter had already been killed. The widowed daughter-in-law and unmarried daughter were also abducted by the Later Jin Plain Red Banner soldiers—according to Nurhaci's orders, they would be sold to the Mongols in exchange for grain… Dugu Qiu and his elder brother held the dying old village chief's hand, looking into his cloudy, bewildered eyes, and listening to his last question before he breathed his last: "Without men, does the whole family deserve to die?"

That night, all the young men in the village gathered at Dugu Qiu's elder brother's house, and the most hot-tempered one shouted loudly: "Brother Dugu, we're just waiting for your word, whatever you say, we'll do it!"

Dugu Qiu's elder brother looked worriedly at his wife behind him and the baby in her arms who was less than a year old, and finally spat out a mouthful of phlegm. He stood up and stomped his foot heavily: "Go to Jinzhou? Damn it, isn't being a soldier and getting food wherever you are? We're all just scraping by in the dirt!"

Recalling his elder brother's decision, Dugu Qiu saw again his brother's bloodied corpse and those unclosed eyes—he hadn't recognized his enemy even in death, only knowing that the other was a soldier he was training with. The murderer was immediately pinned to the ground by the military judge on the training ground, and the entire training ground erupted into chaos. Amidst the chaos, Dugu Qiu wept as he closed his brother's eyes: "Brother, go in peace. I will raise your son to adulthood."

Dugu Qiu felt tears welling up again. He struggled to quietly climb out of bed and groped his way towards the tent entrance in the dark.

This was a skill taught to him by his elder brother, Dugu Qiu. In the Ming Dynasty, making noise in the tent was strictly forbidden, as it could trigger a "camp riot"—officers abusing soldiers was commonplace in the Ming Dynasty, so if someone cried or sighed in the tent, it could easily trigger a chain reaction of similar suffering. In the darkness, no one could recognize anyone else, making it a perfect opportunity for soldiers to settle scores and seek revenge. Countless officers had died in these riots over the centuries, so anyone in the Ming army who dared to make noise in the tent would be immediately executed without mercy!

Although Dugu Qiu hadn't heard of this rule in the Changsheng Army, and there seemed to be no such rule as "ten times the punishment is execution" or "five times the punishment is slow slicing," he dared not risk his life, so he quietly left the tent in the dark. The patrolling soldiers looked over warily. Dugu Qiu said in a hoarse voice, "I need to relieve myself."

When he reached the spot the patrolling soldier pointed to, Dugu Qiu didn't go to the toilet but instead collapsed to the ground, clutching his head and weeping. Back when they were military households of the Ming army, Dugu Qiu and his elder brother had participated in the field training of the Fuzhou Guard. During those days, many soldiers were enslaved and bullied by their commanders, and they would always lie scattered in the wilderness, weeping uncontrollably. They ignored each other, and after crying their fill, they would return to camp to sleep, only to have new people come and find a place to cry again.

"Brother, brother!" Dugu Qiu had also been bullied and bruised during his first Fuzhou training. That day, he lay in the wilderness, weeping like this. But that night, his elder brother was there, staying up all night with him in the wilderness, comforting the young Dugu Qiu with the warmth of family. In this unfamiliar Changsheng Army, Dugu Qiu missed his hometown and neighbors even more, feeling incredibly lonely. He hugged his head tighter and tighter, curling up on the ground and wailing.

"Soldier, what's wrong?" a gentle voice called out.

Dugu Qiu loosened his arms and looked out through his tear-filled eyes. In the darkness, a blurry figure stood before him, blocking the moon behind him. Dugu Qiu choked out, "I need to relieve myself."

The person's voice was very, very slow, but gentle yet exuding a confident strength: "Soldier, why are you crying? Has an officer bullied you? Tell me. I'll stand up for you."

"No, no... Go away, it's none of your business..." Dugu Qiu regretted his words as soon as they left his mouth. He looked fearfully at the dark figure before him and timidly asked, "Is this officer an officer?" As he spoke, he scrambled to his feet and knelt down: "Sir, sir. I just needed to relieve myself."

"I'm not some adult, I'm just your friend. If you're bullied, tell me, and I'll stand up for you."

Dugu Qiu found the man's words absurd and laughable. After hesitating for a moment, he suddenly said, "I have no money."

A soft laugh came from the darkness: "Soldier, I don't want your money, I'm just here to help you."

Dugu Qiu touched his eyes. The person in the darkness also seemed to be dressed in black, possessing an indescribable air of authority and majesty. Recalling what the shadowy figure had just said, he suddenly shuddered: "Are you a god?" Dugu Qiu's tone became even more urgent: "A god?"

"I am not a god." The shadowy figure slowly shook his head, then chuckled again: "But I am someone sent by the gods to help you."

"Bodhisattva, Ancestor..." Dugu Qiu cried out, prostrating himself on the ground: "Save me from suffering!" After howling twice, he suddenly became worried: "God, my story is very long and tedious."

“Hmm, it might be long, but I have plenty of time to listen,” the dark figure said, having just finished urinating when he heard someone crying and followed the sound. He sat down on the ground, adopting a comfortable posture, and let out a satisfied sigh. “Go ahead, I love listening to others talk.”

“I have an older brother, he’s a very good person, very good to me, and my older brother is good to everyone…” Dugu Qiu began to speak…

The man in black listened quietly, his right hand touching the cross and the icon on his chest. This was the symbol of the Loyal Patriotic Catholic Church, which every accompanying chaplain wore on his chest at all times. The cross was engraved with the motto and guiding principle of the Loyal Patriotic Catholic Church—“No one is unredeemed.”

…

Twenty miles outside Fuzhou City, in a dense forest, there was a very well-hidden camp. The area surrounding this camp for dozens of miles was a military restricted zone, and any unauthorized personnel who approached would be mercilessly killed.

"Reporting to the First Prince, the Third Prince," the Later Jin soldier turned around and said to the last person, "Fourth Prince, the Ming army has already built a bridgehead at Shahe."

"Understood, go down." Amin waved his hand, and the soldier left. He gave Huang Taiji, who was sitting at the end of the table, a deep look: "You were right."

Huang Taiji smiled calmly: "I've reviewed all the records of Changsheng Island over the past three years. The interval between Huangshi's battles is always about three to four months. This time is no exception."

"Isn't it through spies?" Manggutai asked curiously, then pressed on: "Then do you know why it's three and a half months?" Huang Taiji

shook his head, a hint of helplessness on his face: "It's not through spies. Infiltrating Changsheng Island isn't too difficult, but information simply can't get out. My current understanding of Changsheng Island comes from Jinzhou, and there are many inconsistencies and contradictions between those sources." Huang Taiji paused: "As for why it's three and a half months, I estimate it's because Huangshi takes about three and a half months to train each batch of new recruits."

Amin's expression only changed slightly, but Manggutai gasped sharply. This time, Huang Taiji captured a group of prisoners during his expedition to Liaobei and gave Mangultai 1,500 people and a lot of cattle and sheep, which finally gave his Plain Blue Banner a breather. Upon hearing that Huang Shi could train a batch of new soldiers in three and a half months, he felt dizzy: "Is that true?"

"I think I'm not wrong. I've checked repeatedly in the Battle of Jinzhou, it was about five or six hundred. Gaizhou had more than a thousand, Nanguan had one battalion, and this time it's two battalions. I guess Huang Shi's training method is one-on-one, and after each training session, he takes these new soldiers out to experience the battlefield."

After saying that, Huang Taiji clapped his hands with a smile: "He always likes to play it safe, always preparing a backup plan, relying on numbers to fight against fewer people. We waited for more than a month in Fuzhou, but it wasn't for nothing. We worked hard to transport those treasures from Liaoyang, but it wasn't for nothing either." Mangultai's eyes became hesitant again. Although his Plain Blue Banner had recovered its strength with the Mongol

soldiers

and cattle and sheep given to him by Huang Taiji, he was still very unwilling when Huang Taiji came to persuade him to fight in Liaonan. Mangultai consistently believed that they should attack the Mongols, the weakest of the three and always able to seize some men and livestock. Secondly, he thought they should lure the Guan Ning Army; those guys hadn't fought in almost five years, and if they could be lured into the open, Mangultai considered them the biggest fat pig to eat.

As for Liaodong and Liaonan, Mangultai had no intention of fighting them.

When Huang Taiji came to persuade him, Mangultai described Chen Jisheng and his men in Liaodong as a group of beggars, with Mao Wenlong as the leader of the beggar gang. In fact, Mao Wenlong had also incorporated many old and weak men into his field army, and Mangultai always suspected that Mao Wenlong was sending them to their deaths to save food. For years, Mangultai and Amin had never proactively attacked Mao Wenlong; on the contrary, the Dongjiang Army had always been actively attacking, because even a victory against Mao Wenlong might not yield ten suits of armor and a hundred shi of grain, so being defeated by Mao Wenlong would be a huge loss. Mangultai's Plain Blue Banner had been fighting Mao Wenlong in Liaodong for many years and knew each other very well. In Mangultai's words, although the Later Jin army was also poor, Mao Wenlong was even poorer. Korea already had vast areas of barren mountains and rivers, and now it suffered from drought and frost year after year. The Ming army in Liaodong had reached the point where they would starve if they didn't raid the Later Jin army.

He also didn't want to come to Huangshi in southern Liaodong. Now Mangultai always referred to the Changsheng Army as porcupines. Although they were fat, they were hard to bite. He felt that it would be better to go to Mongolia and seize the current Genghis Khan than to fight porcupines in southern Liaodong.

Huang Taiji could tell what Mangultai was thinking just by looking at his face. Mangultai's thinking was similar to Nurhaci's: "We must first defeat Liaonan and Liaodong, so that we can raid the Mongols and the Ming Dynasty without worrying about our rear."

After saying this, Huang Taiji saw that Mangultai was still half-dead and silent, and could only sigh inwardly. Nurhaci and the Later Jin high command had always opposed attacking that poor guy Mao Wenlong. Huang Taiji was the only one who insisted on dealing with Mao Wenlong first—preventing him from raiding them—before they could raid in peace. However, his words carried little weight now, and few people listened to him. He could only rely on political deals to win over fools like Mangultai.

Seeing that Dai?an also lacked enthusiasm for the battle against Huangshi, Huang Taiji was even more disappointed. This time, his northern expedition against the Mongols was a great victory. Not only had he released the two Yellow Banners, but he had also captured a lot of people and livestock. Based on this victory, he strongly advocated attacking Liaonan again, but most of the banner leaders below Nurhaci opposed this idea. Huang Taiji managed to win over Mangultai and Dai?an by distributing spoils of war among them.

The field forces concentrated in southern Liaodong consisted of forty Niru drawn from the two White Banners, the Bordered Red Banner, and the Plain Blue Banner. Nurhaci, unable to resist the three Beile's insistence, reluctantly lent them thirty Niru from the two Yellow Banners. The remaining troops were to be sent to Liaodong to assist Amin's Bordered Blue Banner in defending against the Dongjiang Army.

With the great battle imminent, Mangultai and Dai?an remained hesitant and indecisive. Since hearing about the scale of Huangshi's offensive, they no longer wanted to fight to the death. But persuasion was necessary. Huang Taiji suddenly asked Mangultai, "Has there been any news from Amin? How many people have fled to Mao Wenlong?"

Mangultai and Amin were respectively the banner lords of the two Blue Banners, both stationed in Liaodong to defend against Mao Wenlong's guerrilla forces. Their relationship had always been good, and they had maintained contact recently. Mangultai shook his head and recalled, "From the beginning of this year to the end of May, about five thousand men fled, with fifteen thousand of them fleeing in May alone."

Daishan exclaimed in surprise, "Only that few?"

Mangultai looked at Daishan in astonishment and asked, somewhat puzzled, "Few? That's quite a lot. And in the last month alone, fifteen hundred men have fled, and it's getting faster and faster."

Although Daishan didn't speak, his eyes were full of disdain. Huang Taiji, standing beside him, chuckled and said, "Fifth Brother, you have no idea what the situation is like here, Great Prince." He then turned to Daishan with a sympathetic expression and asked, "Last month, at least three thousand men fled from Fuzhou, right?"

Daishan withdrew his gaze from Mangultai and said angrily, "Not only that! In May, not counting Gaizhou, over four thousand men from Fuzhou alone fled to Jinzhou. And June isn't even over yet; another six thousand men fled from Fuzhou, and over three thousand from Gaizhou."

Seeing Mangultai's stunned expression, Huang Taiji said seriously, "After the Battle of Nanguan in February, over fifty thousand men from Fuzhou and Gaizhou have fled to Jinzhou, including over four thousand Han soldiers."

Mangultai's face turned ashen. The four guards of Hai, Fu, Jin, and Gai together had sixteen thousand men, a population of four hundred thousand. The Later Jin regime organized nearly 20,000 Han soldiers to maintain local security and assist the Later Jin's two Red Banners in collecting grain and laborers. These Han soldiers were all former junior officers from the Ming Dynasty's military households and were relatively prestigious in their respective villages. They were not only the Later Jin regime's main tool for fighting bandits and ensuring tax revenue, but also the main force against the Ming Dynasty's Dongjiang Army's intelligence warfare and guerrilla warfare. As long as these Han soldiers were present, a village would only see a few small households and bachelors flee, not an entire village deserting.

"You all remember the announcement Huang Shi issued at the end of April, right?" Mangultai and Daishan nodded after hearing Huang Taiji's question. After confirming that Nurhaci's massacre order had led to a large-scale defection of Han soldiers, Huang Shi's painstakingly cultivated intelligence network posted his amnesty notices for the Han soldiers from Fuzhou, Gaizhou, and Haizhou all the way to Liaoyang City, and each time the entire city was covered overnight. This matter caused a sensation at the time and greatly angered Nurhaci.

"This is a new proclamation..." Huang Taiji flicked his wrist and pulled out a worn proclamation, its tattered edges clearly indicating it had been torn from the wall: "Yu Daming, Left Vice Commander-in-Chief, Commander-in-Chief of Liaodong, and General Huang, bestowed with the Imperial Silver Seal, respectfully informs the elders of Fuzhou, Gaizhou, and Haizhou..." Huang Taiji

read a few more lines and

then Daishan snorted, "I've seen it." "I haven't seen it," Mangultai, who had been listening intently, quickly said, "Continue, what's next?"

"Hmph," Daishan grumbled, "All you've done these past few days has been hunting, of course you know nothing."

Huang Taiji smiled and continued reading. This new proclamation had appeared in Fuzhou for ten days, detailing the murder that had occurred on Changsheng Island. Huang Shi, in order to spread this propaganda, deliberately elaborated on the scandalous details, which was why Mangultai had been so engrossed in listening. To gain people's trust... Huang Shi meticulously wrote down the origins and names of both parties. To strengthen his persuasiveness, Huang Shi also carefully described the murderer's merits and hardships, as well as the deep-seated hatred between him and the deceased.

"...I swear to Heaven and Earth that all of you who come to surrender on your own will not be harmed, and I will protect you with my own power. If I break this oath, may Heaven's lightning strike me..." Huang Taiji read the proclamation with great emotion, his eyes fixed on the full text of Chinese characters, while his Manchu words flowed smoothly from his mouth: "...Within the three guards of Fu, Gai, and Hai, those who surrender a city will be given their city, and those who kill false officials will be given their official positions. I will not break my word. I hope you gentlemen will think deeply and not make a mistake for yourselves."

Daishan finally waited until Huang Taiji finished reading, and he couldn't help but snort coldly again: "This was reported to the city by spies from Changsheng Island ten days ago. What's so strange about that?"

"With this proclamation, I estimate that next month, at least another 50% of the Han soldiers and civilians fleeing from Liaonan to Jinzhou will flee. When the news reaches Haizhou and Liaoyang, the Han soldiers there will probably also have to take risks." Huang Taiji put down the proclamation with a wry smile, then a mysterious look appeared on his face: "However, the First Prince and Fifth Brother certainly don't know where this proclamation came from."

Daishan and Mangultai asked in unison: "Where did it come from?"

"From Aita." Huang Taiji smiled wryly and sighed again. Aita's real name was Liu Xingzuo, a hereditary military family in Liaodong. After the Later Jin captured Shenyang, Liu Xingzuo surrendered to the Later Jin regime. He had hundreds of retainers and three thousand Han soldiers under his command. Therefore, Nurhaci also included Liu Xingzuo in the banner system. Now, Liu Xingzuo's retainers and Han soldiers are an important force in maintaining stability around Gaizhou: "Aita's trusted subordinate tore down a proclamation to persuade Aita to surrender, and even suggested that he launch a surprise attack on Gaizhou to surrender it to Huangshi."

"That Han dog!" Mangultai roared angrily, "Did Aita want to cut him into a thousand pieces?"

"Aita didn't even tell me," Huang Taiji smiled bitterly again, waving the proclamation, "Although Aita was afraid, he didn't do anything to his trusted subordinate. He just had his personal guard secretly burn the proclamation. Fortunately, the personal guard he ordered was one of my men, otherwise I would still be in the dark."

Dai?an and Mangultai were silent for a moment, then Mangultai said coldly, "Aita is unreliable, but we can't kill him either."

“Of course not, do you need to tell me?” Daishan glanced at Mangultai with displeasure. Nurhaci had already instilled fear in the Han army, even imprisoning and whipping Li Yongfang. If he were to kill Liu Xingzuo as well, the Han army in Liaonan would likely scatter and flee to Huangshi.

“Aita, and those Han soldiers, many think we are finished. Huangshi has promised to forgive and forget, so the Han army in Fu and Gai is completely unreliable.” Huang Taiji had laid the groundwork, and now, feeling the time was right, he went straight to the point: “So we only have two paths now. One, abandon Fu and Gai, relocate all the Han soldiers and civilians, organize a blockade at Haizhou, and create a no-man's land in between. After we contract, we can concentrate our forces and control the southward flight of the Han people. Huangshi doesn't have many cavalry right now, so he won't dare to venture deep inland.”

Hearing that such a large area of land had to be abandoned made Daishan feel a pang of pain. He pondered for a moment: “Then the other path is to fight in the open field?”

Huang Taiji nodded: "Yes, Fuzhou is too close to Shahe, and Huangshi has built a bridgehead. So if we want to annihilate him in one fell swoop, we must lure him to the north of Fuzhou. Only by eliminating him can we restore the Han army's confidence in us and protect Fuzhou and Gaizhou."

"How do we lure him?"

"Abandon Fuzhou." Huang Taiji had already planned it out. He pointed to the map and began to explain his plan: "Tomorrow morning we will abandon Fuzhou, make it look like we are fleeing in panic, and take all the Han people with us to lure him into pursuit."

Mangultai immediately asked suspiciously: "How do you know he will pursue us?"

Huang Taiji smiled and said: "I just said that he comes out every three to four months. If I'm not mistaken, this time he has brought new recruits to experience the battlefield again. Besides, he is a military officer of the Ming Dynasty, not a civil official. Ming military officers want beheadings, not the merit of recapturing cities. This time he has mobilized a large army and will definitely not leave empty-handed. For both public and private reasons, he will definitely pursue our retreating supplies."

“Very good reasons.” Daishan tapped the table. “Should we burn the city? If we do, I’m afraid he’ll retreat.”

“He will definitely retreat.” Huang Taiji didn’t think Huang Shi was a very decisive person. Besides, he had another important reason for opposing burning the city: “Not burning the city has another advantage: it can separate him from his artillery. His artillery is very powerful.”

“Indeed very powerful.” Mangultai immediately nodded in agreement, pointing his finger at the location of Fuzhou City. “Leave this city to him, so he can rest assured about his cannons. I think this way he will leave some troops to protect the city, supplies, and cannons, while he leads a large infantry force to pursue.”

This time it was Daishan’s turn to look at him suspiciously. He first glanced at Huang Taiji, then scrutinized Mangultai: "Did you take him for a fool? I remember you two lost last time."

Mangultai blushed instantly, but Huang Taiji maintained a faint smile, turning to Mangultai with undiminished composure: "I did say he was a scholar, and I did underestimate him that time, but... Fifth Brother, what do you think of Huang Shi's fighting?"

"Mediocrity, no mistakes, but definitely no flair, and his reactions are incredibly slow." Mangultai had a lot of thoughts, but he couldn't quite articulate them: "Well, he has no feel for the battlefield, that's what I mean."

"Just a mediocre general," Huang Taiji smiled slightly again: "We lost to him. Although losing to a mediocre general isn't nice, it's the truth."

"Alright, a mediocre general forgets his duty for a small gain." Huang Taiji clapped his hands, drawing the attention of all three. He then gestured on the map again: "He doesn't have many horses, so he won't be willing to let the horses carry supplies. Therefore, he'll probably be using manpower-driven carts to transport infantry supplies, and he definitely won't leave the main road. Let him chase after us, and then ambush him from behind, right here."

Huang Taiji picked up a brush and drew a black line on the map, then pointed to both sides of the line and said, "His spear formation is powerful, but it can only be effectively deployed on flat ground. Both sides are hills and forests, so I'm certain he won't dare to attack from either side."

Mangultai was now getting into the swing of things, and as he listened, he added, "He definitely didn't bring tents or food. We'll send out scouts to prevent him from scattering his troops to cut timber and gather food. If we can hold out until nightfall, he's finished. His army will be on the verge of collapse overnight."

"He brought a lot of friendly troops with him this time, but their combat strength is far inferior to his own. I've said before that he's a mediocre general, and for a mediocre general, weak troops are a burden, not an asset. Huang Shi doesn't yet have the ability to effectively utilize his weaker friendly troops, so I'm certain he'll deploy in a circular formation, attempting to protect all his friendly troops and supplies with his own forces. As for his breakout point..." Huang Taiji emphasized the intersection of the black line and the official road on the map: "I'm convinced he'll only launch a strong attack here." He glanced at Daishan: "Deploy all the treasures we brought here; he'll definitely launch repeated attacks until he's exhausted."

Daishan carefully examined the location and nodded in agreement: "You said he brought a lot of weak friendly troops."

"Yes, this time he's definitely afraid his allies will disrupt his formation." Recalling the experience of the last battle, Huang Taiji made a confident judgment: "If he sees he can't break through the main road, he'll probe here, here, and here..." Huang Taiji pondered and selected several suitable attack positions on the map: "In the end, his main force will be exhausted, and he'll start to lose control of his panicked allies, which will be the crucial moment."

Huang Taiji has spared no expense in this trip to Liaonan. The Later Jin is currently a very poor military group, so Huang Taiji used the spoils of this battle to forge one hundred sets of horse armor. To save money, he only made heavy armor for the horse's face, neck, and chest, leaving the hindquarters and belly unprotected. Although Huang Taiji tried his best to select a group of large horses, even with the horse armor and heavy cavalry armor, these one hundred horses could only launch one powerful charge, and they might not even be able to break through the dense infantry formation. Therefore, Huang Taiji planned to use these "heavy cavalry" at the most critical moment.

"I've inquired about every detail of the Battle of Gaizhou. Huang Shi personally took charge at the crucial moment of the battle. Last time at Nanguan, he also acted impulsively and wanted to fight me to the death. I think he has a fierce spirit in his bones." Huang Taiji lightly flicked his brush, seemingly revealing a hint of regret, but his hand didn't stop, the tip of the brush pointing to a hill that looked relatively flat: "Here! We'll leave him a loophole to break out. He'll probably lead his cavalry in a desperate battle at the last moment, so this will be his death ground. The Ming army will also collapse."

Mangultai clapped his hands and laughed: "Good place, I completely agree."

Daishan was a little worried: "Won't there be any accidents? Won't he have a chance to break out?"

"No accidents, this will be his burial ground."

Sweeping through thousands of troops like a whirlwind, Chapter 14 Hesitation On

June 28th of the fifth year of Tianqi, just as dawn was breaking, the spirited Huang Shi walked out of his tent, gazing in the direction of Fuzhou. Last night, there were flickering lights near the official road from Fuzhou to Haizhou. It was unclear what the Later Jin army was doing there, but the Ming army dared not send anyone out to investigate further under cover of darkness. Huang Shi looked into the distance, and soon after, intelligence officer Li Yunrui rushed over: "This subordinate greets Your Excellency."

"Commander Li, has the Jurchen made any unusual moves?"

"No, everything is normal. The lights on the official road last night went out before dawn. We don't know what the Jurchen are up to, but it's definitely not reinforcements."

Since the Later Jin army's dozen or so regiments near Fuzhou had all gathered here, a military intelligence barrier had formed around Fuzhou. Although this intelligence barrier had been somewhat weakened after the Ming army built a pontoon bridge over the Fuzhou River, a thick fog of war still shrouded Fuzhou.

"Alright, let's cross the river." Huang Shi firmly believed that strength could overcome skill. Although it was relatively easy to judge the size of the Ming army, which was a guest force, the Later Jin army on the opposite side, this time the Ming army in Liaonan had nine thousand soldiers, of which the Jiuhuo and Panshi battalions alone had nearly five thousand soldiers. Zhang Minghe, that activist, needless to say, and the more than two thousand soldiers brought by Zhang Pan and the Shang brothers were also their elite troops.

Therefore, Huang Shi did not think that the Later Jin army had no chance even if they defended the city. His plan was to first use artillery to smash the city gate, and then use them to cover friendly forces to capture the city gate tower. Huang Shi's two direct field battalions were used to guard against possible sneak attacks by the Later Jin army. In addition, they also had to protect the auxiliary troops to build a fortress at the Fuzhou city gate, so that the main army would not have to retreat across the Fuzhou River at night.

...

The Later Jin army hidden north of Fuzhou was having breakfast. Mangultai invited Daishan to eat the deer he had caught the day before. The two of them were eating heartily and noisily around the campfire.

Inside Huang Taiji's tent, the shaman's drum was beating loudly. Just like in his home in Liaoyang, Huang Taiji always placed his bed to one side, leaving the spacious area in the middle for the lamas to use for their shamanic rituals. These shamans danced and sang in tunes incomprehensible to ordinary people to the beat of the drums.

Huang Taiji stood solemnly, his hands outstretched. Behind him, a little girl who looked to be about twelve years old was gently helping him put on bright yellow armor. The shaman's chanting suddenly stopped, and he sat down abruptly on the ground. Huang Taiji and the little girl behind him clasped their hands together and bowed deeply to the priest who had completed the process of divine possession.

A long time later... The deity possessing the shaman slowly opened its eyes and spoke in a majestic tone unlike any human: "Go, darling of the gods, the one whose life you take will not live!"

...

At this moment, Huang Shi's banner suddenly flapped loudly in a gust of wind. He Dingyuan looked up and stuck out his tongue: "What a strong wind! The flagpole is bent like this."

"The great wind rises..." The more than 20,000 troops before him filled Huang Shi with excitement. He inadvertently let out a poem by Emperor Taizu of Han, but after only reciting the beginning, Huang Shi inwardly cried out in alarm and choked. "

The great wind rises, the clouds fly high, my might extends throughout the land, I return to my homeland, where can I find brave warriors to guard the four directions?" Unexpectedly, He Dingyuan finished reciting it in one breath. He thought Huang Shi had forgotten the rest of the poem. After finishing reading, He Dingyuan didn't forget to loudly praise the "miracle" book: "Emperor Gaozu of Han's poem is truly remarkable! He is indeed the true dragon who founded the four-hundred-year foundation of the Han Dynasty. After three generations, only Emperor Gaozu of Han can barely compare with Emperor Gaozu of our dynasty."

Huang Shi glanced at this simple-minded creature with nothing to hide, and a smile appeared on his face. He Dingyuan read Liu Bang's poem twice, and without thinking, he said, "My lord, today this humble general is willing to be the first to scale the city walls."

"No!" Huang Shi refused him without even thinking. Seeing He Dingyuan's seemingly aggrieved expression, he quickly comforted him, "When it comes to the field battle, you should still help me kill generals and capture flags." "

After several days of preparation, the Ming army built three pontoon bridges yesterday using readily available materials. Huang Shi took one for himself, and according to the plan, one was given to Zhang Minghe, and the remaining one was shared by Zhang Pan and Shang Keyi. Shang Kexi's men would wait behind, using whichever pontoon bridge was available first.

Soldiers from the Firefighting Battalion and the Rock-Stone Battalion were deployed in dense formations south of Fuzhou River. The Imperial Guard officers in charge of order, carrying the plans from the General Staff, directed the officers of each squad to lead their squads across the river one by one.

The soldiers, with their helmets on their backs and muskets or long spears slung over their shoulders, marched in orderly steps to the sound of drums. The Imperial Guard officer standing at the pontoon bridge entrance blew a whistle, followed by a signal to let them pass—Huang Shi had plagiarized many of the gestures he had seen from traffic police in his previous life.

'Walk across the bridge.'" "The officer shouted, and the drumbeats stopped. Countless feet stepped across the pontoon bridge in quick succession...

Huang Shi stood on a mound on the south bank, watching the surging flow of people. The bridge swayed back and forth, like a straw, rapidly pulling the massive infantry column from the south bank to the north. Behind him, besides a group of his trusted subordinates, was Zhang Minghe, who had been following closely behind for days. The Vanguard Battalion's performance in front of this group of people made Zhang Minghe blush with embarrassment. Although the officers were also directing their units across the river in order, each time it was someone's turn, that officer had to shout..." With a few shouts, the personal guards of the individual officers busied themselves trying to keep their group from getting separated.

Zhang Minghe secretly ordered his guards to urge them on several times, but the more they urged, the more chaotic things became. In their anxiety, the officers began to beat each other, and the area around the pontoon bridge of the Vanguard Battalion was filled with shouts and the cracking of whips. Urged on by Zhang Minghe, the officers began to push and shove to speed up the crossing, with people being pushed into the river and causing repeated disturbances. Even so, after the entire Firefighting Battalion had crossed, the Vanguard Battalion was still less than halfway across.

Zhang Pan and Shang Keyi were standing nearby. They weren't moving fast, but they weren't pushing their soldiers too hard, so they were outpaced by Zhang Minghe. By the time the Vanguard Battalion had crossed halfway, Zhang Pan's men hadn't finished, and Shang Keyi hadn't even started. Seeing their progress, Zhang Minghe secretly wiped away a bead of sweat, a satisfied smile creeping across his face.

However, being fast wasn't necessarily a good thing… a large number of Changsheng Island's internal guard troops were on the other side of the river. They held simple topographical maps set up by the General Staff, using gestures and pointing to guide the troops crossing the river into their designated positions. Zhang Pan wasn't moving very fast, so he could… The officers adjusted their deployment slowly, avoiding immediate chaos.

However, the Vanguard Battalion was currently lacking in experienced officers. After a large number of soldiers were scrambling across the pontoon bridge, they immediately formed a chaotic mass on the opposite bank. The scattered soldiers pushed and shoved each other, then were further jostled forward by the even larger influx of soldiers rushing in from behind. Huang Shi shook his head slightly; the military strategy of "attacking halfway across the river" perfectly described how to fight such a disorganized army, completely defenseless and unable to regain its battle formation in a short time.

Large beads of sweat streamed down Zhang Minghe's forehead as the young general frantically issued orders. One by one, his personal guards were sent out to deliver messages. Some rode directly onto the pontoon bridge, whipping their horses wildly as they forced their way across the crowd. One fool, seeing he couldn't make it, desperately jumped into the river and swam to the other side to inform the officers.

Huang Shi sighed inwardly. Nearly half a year had passed, and the Vanguard Battalion, the elite force of Liaonan trained by Zhang Pan, hadn't recovered its fighting strength at all. However, he didn't intend to mentor Zhang Minghe, after all, Zhang Minghe was just a young general, barely twenty years old, and had inherited the battalion commander's position as an adopted son. Therefore, he needed to slowly cultivate his prestige within the army. Zhang Minghe still had a long time to learn and face various situations; at least now he could learn to control the army undisturbed.

After the fire brigade soldiers crossed the river, it was the turn of the supply troops. Although Changsheng Island couldn't afford a large number of full-time auxiliary soldiers some time ago, Huang Shi had begun to build his own special forces unit—such as a pontoon bridge unit. A pontoon bridge team of over a hundred people was busily transporting armor and uniforms by pushing wheelbarrows. Today, this team of full-time auxiliary soldiers finally had a chance to put their daily training to use. They strode swiftly across the swaying pontoon bridge.

The auxiliary troops of the other battalions, however, were hastily recruited farmers; their daily diet was worse than that of the combat soldiers, and their morale was far lower. When the first infantry unit of the Panshi Battalion stepped onto the pontoon bridge, Shang Kexi, who was waiting at the rear to cross the river, ordered his men to move to the rear of the Panshi Battalion. He himself spurred his horse to Huang Shi's side, unleashing a torrent of praise and flattery. Shang Kexi and Zhang Minghe, working in perfect harmony, flattered Huang Shi with perfect coordination, like a double act, making Huang Shi feel quite pleased with himself, laughing heartily. Stop. He Dingyuan and Li Yunrui, their skin crawling, stepped back and secretly sneered at Shang Kexi and Zhang Minghe. Only Hong Antong remained behind Huang Shi, his face expressionless as if he hadn't heard anything…

Although the Ming army's scouts had begun to form an intelligence barrier, their limited cavalry numbers prevented them from completely isolating intelligence. The Later Jin scouts, perched on the hills to the north, strained their vision. The swift movements of the Changsheng Army drew sighs from one of the Later Jin cavalry leaders: "Too fast, too fast! More than twice as fast as expected! Quickly inform the Grand Prince!"

A quarter of an hour later, most of the Panshi Camp's infantry had crossed. Huang Shi and his men suddenly saw the Ming scouts on the opposite bank waving their flags. Soon, a cavalryman rode to the shore, pulled off the flag from his back, and began waving it. The inner guards beside Huang Shi immediately and loudly translated the flag signals:

"The Jurchens of Fuzhou are starting to flee?" "Shang Kexi and Zhang Minghe shouted at the same time, "Is this true?"

"It seems they've fled." Huang Shi thought for a moment, feeling confused by the military actions on the other side. Huang Shi instructed the guards around him, "Scout again! Report the enemy's strength and movements immediately."

"Yes, sir!" The guards around Huang Shi immediately took out their flags and waved them. The signalman on the opposite bank read the order softly, then turned and passed the flag signal to a signalman further away. That signalman would then pass the signal down layer by layer.

Qi Jiguang's military treatise specifically discussed the use of flags by scouts, but even Qi Jiguang's flag signals couldn't convey accurate orders. By Huang Shi's time, even Qi Jiguang's system was ineffective. Huang Shi reorganized and improved Qi Jiguang's system into flag signals. After training, these scouts could greatly accelerate the transmission of military intelligence using flag signals.

"About fifteen Niru (military units), over 1,600 armored Jurchens, and nearly 3,000 unarmored Jurchens. They have taken over 10,000 Han Chinese civilians, along with a large number of livestock and supplies." Huang Shi frowned, pondering the hidden message. Shang Kexi and Zhang Minghe beside him were already stunned. They couldn't imagine that such rich information could be conveyed with just a few flags.

The flag signals of Changsheng Island could not only transmit numbers but also describe complex situations when necessary. This was largely due to the Chinese phonetic alphabet system that Huang Shi had previously promoted in the training teams and was now in the instruction teams.

"Stop the Panshi Camp!" Huang Shi spurred his horse and charged down the hillside. The Imperial Guard officer guarding the pontoon bridge immediately stopped the flow of people, allowing Huang Shi and his personal guard to cross first. Zhang Minghe had followed Huang Shi without hesitation when he set off. Shang Kexi, after a moment's hesitation, also hurriedly spurred his horse to catch up, while simultaneously sending his personal guards to inform his brother to take over his Changshan Island troops.

Flag signals from the opposite side indicated that no enemy troops had been spotted within several miles, so Huang Shi and his cavalry headed straight for Fuzhou. As they approached Fuzhou, they could faintly see flames rising from the city's side, and the lead scout reported that the Later Jin army in Fuzhou had all fled.

Huang Shi ordered his men to enter the city to fight the fire while simultaneously expanding the search area, creating a vast intelligence field with a radius of ten miles, stretching from the river crossing bridge to the city walls of Fuzhou.

The fire in Fuzhou was quickly brought under control. The soldiers entering the city were pleased to find that the accumulated firewood was actually quite scarce and disorganized. After inspecting the various deployments, Li Yunrui concluded that the enemy's escape was hasty, and they had no intention of setting fire to the city. He also concluded that their forces were very weak.

Huang Shi, after hearing this report, fell into deep thought. Gazing at the billowing dust rising in the direction the Later Jin army fled north, he softly asked Li Yunrui, "Are you sure their forces are weak?"

"Absolutely!" Li Yunrui replied confidently. Besides the fire, he had also quickly inspected the warehouses and camps. From all indications, the soldiers currently stationed in Fuzhou were only a dozen or so Niru of the Plain Red Banner. "There's another point," he added, "I believe the Jurchens decided to escape yesterday."

"Hmm, you mean the official road?" Huang Shi had already sent men to inspect the road; it was riddled with potholes. It seemed the fires in Fuzhou last night were the Later Jin army digging those potholes.

“Exactly,” Li Yunrui replied in a deep voice, then uttered his thoughts in one swift motion: “The Jurchens know that our army relies on carts to transport supplies on the official roads, so their digging of pits is clearly to prevent our army from pursuing us. Then why did they choose to dig pits rather than flee last night?” Li Yunrui took a deep breath as he spoke, and Huang Shi’s eyes shone brightly at him, which made Li Yunrui very proud: “This shows that the Jurchen forces in Fuzhou are very limited. They were afraid that they would lose control of the Han people if they marched at night, so they insisted on waiting until dawn to leave.”

“Hmm, very reasonable.” Huang Shi pondered for a moment, feeling that Li Yunrui’s intelligence analysis seemed flawless: “Then why did they suddenly decide to retreat last night?”

Li Yunrui was taken aback: “This… this subordinate does not know, please forgive me, sir.”

“I’m asking myself that,” Huang Shi laughed heartily. Li Yunrui wasn't originally a staff officer, and Huang Shi said with a smile, "You've done a very good job as an intelligence officer, what crime have you committed?"

Even before Li Yunrui spoke, Jin Qiude had been frowning and deep in thought. Upon hearing Huang Shi's words, he quickly said, "This humble general believes that the Jurchens might be hoping for a lucky break, thinking we wouldn't dare attack. They might also be waiting for reinforcements. But seeing that reinforcements couldn't arrive in time, they hastily retreated. There's also a third possibility, though it's very unlikely: the Jurchens might have ambushed us with all the intact units of the Plain Red Banner and the entire Bordered White Banner. What we're seeing now is all a ruse by the Jurchens."

"The newly recovered Red Banner and the Bordered White Banner protecting Gaizhou? Using these two banners to ambush us?" Huang Shi shook his head as he spoke, then nodded slightly after thinking of the two banners Jin Qiude had mentioned earlier, and pressed Jin Qiude for an answer: "Perhaps? Maybe?"

Jin Qiude bowed and clasped his hands on horseback: "This humble general is not confident, please forgive me, sir."

At this moment, another intelligence officer ran over. After the officer spoke a few words with Li Yunrui, Li Yunrui hurriedly reported to Huang Shi: "Sir, we did not find any Han Chinese hiding there, which means that the Jurchens had indeed decided to escape long ago, which is why they were able to divide all the Han Chinese into groups and take them away. And it certainly wasn't just for one day; today should be the last batch."

Jin Qiude breathed a sigh of relief: "The Jurchens' forces in Fuzhou seem to be very weak. They are probably thinking of delaying as long as possible, gradually transferring their population to Gaizhou."

"Then what are we waiting for? Let's give chase immediately!" Zhang Minghe, who had been listening for a while, suddenly jumped out and said, "General Huang, I am willing to be the vanguard and lead my troops to pursue the runaway Jurchens immediately." Zhang Minghe quickly calculated the time in his mind, then looked at the dust cloud to the north. The Jurchen army with a large number of refugees probably couldn't run fast either: "I will pursue with light troops. We can catch up with the Jurchens within two hours and rescue the people."

Huang Shi also calculated for a moment: "The runaway Jurchens have fifteen Niru. You can't pursue them with light troops. Even if I give you all my cavalry, it won't work." Before Zhang Minghe could speak, he asked Jin Qiude, "If my troops pursue with light troops, we should be able to catch up in an hour, right?"

Jin Qiude smiled and said, "An hour is enough."

“Well then, let’s take the auxiliary troops who transport the armor.” Huang Shi pointed to the potholes on the official road. “First, concentrate our efforts on moving the wheelbarrows and armor across. We’ll take the armor, leave the rest of the supplies, and we should be able to keep up with our allies.” Huang Shi paused here. Pursuing the retreating enemy was undoubtedly a great achievement, but leaving no one behind to defend Fuzhou was impossible. If they were to launch a counterattack, all that supplies would have to be given away. But he doubted which allied force would be willing to leave behind, and he worried that leaving his own independent battalion behind might not be enough in a battle.

Shang Kexi seemed to see Huang Shi’s concerns. He clasped his hands and shouted, “General Huang, this humble officer is willing to stay and defend Fuzhou, to protect your retreat.”

Huang Shi stared at Shang Kexi, trying to find any hypocrisy in his words. Shang Kexi clasped his hands again, “General Huang, this humble officer speaks with utmost sincerity.” Then he bowed his head. Shang Kexi still remembered the sixty heads Huang Shi had given him in Jinzhou last time, so he was determined not to claim credit this time.

As they spoke, Zhang Pan and Shang Keyi arrived, their war drums thundering behind them. Long before the other three battalions had finished assembling and reorganizing, the infantry of the Fire Rescue Battalion had already arrived with all their supplies. At this time, the Panshi Battalion had also crossed the Fuzhou River. Judging from the progress on the riverbank, it was still uncertain whether it or the Xuanfeng Battalion would line up and set off first.

Zhang and Shang became sullen upon hearing that the Jin army had fled Fuzhou. The recapture of the city was the achievement of the supervising eunuch, and Wu Mu was now beaming with pride. If Huang Shi wanted, he could distribute some of the credit to the civil officials of Shandong, but if they didn't pursue, these military officers would have made a wasted trip. Zhang Pan and Shang Keyi immediately echoed Zhang Minghe's words, and the three of them went on to praise Huang Shi's martial prowess and reputation, their underlying message being to urge him to launch a pursuit.

After observing their expressions, Huang Shi sighed to Shang Kexi, "This time, I'll have to trouble you."

"I am willing to serve Commander Huang," Shang Kexi replied, understanding that Huang Shi had granted his request. Without further ado, he led his personal guards away to deploy the work of occupying and defending Fuzhou.

The cannons certainly couldn't keep up with the troops' pace, because the official road was full of potholes, so the ammunition carts and bronze cannons couldn't cross immediately, and the artillery hadn't even crossed the pontoon bridge yet. Therefore, Huang Shi assigned them to defend Fuzhou together with Shang Kexi's troops who were crossing the river. Huang Shi secretly rejoiced that Fuzhou hadn't been burned down, otherwise it would have been very troublesome. Just as he was about to order a pursuit, Li Yunrui suddenly spoke up: "My lord, I believe it's not advisable to pursue without intelligence." Ignoring the angry glares from Zhang Pan, Shang Keyi, and Zhang Minghe, Li Yunrui loudly said, "My lord, I just considered what Jin Youji said." He pointed northeast

: "More than thirty li away is Yongning Fortress, also a large granary near Fuzhou, which can provide the army with the necessary food. And our army hasn't searched north of Fuzhou, so the possibility of the Jurchens ambushing us certainly exists." Shang Keyi and Zhang Pan, furious but unable to speak, stared at Li Yunrui, while Zhang Minghe, who considered himself... Huang Shi, who had more influence, quickly clasped his hands in a fist and said, "General Huang, this humble officer is willing to lead my troops in a hasty pursuit. General Huang can lead the main force to follow, and in this way, there will be no chance of failure." Shang Keyi, fearing that Zhang Minghe would steal all the credit, also stepped forward and called out, "General Huang, you are wise! This humble general is also willing to go along." Just as Huang Shi was hesitating, Jin Qiude also considered the pros and cons. Seeing Zhang Minghe and Shang Keyi volunteering, he chimed in, "Sir, since the two generals are so eager to fight, this humble general thinks it is appropriate for you to do as they say, and for you to lead the main force to follow." Huang Shi had known Jin Qiude for so long, so he naturally understood what Jin Qiude was thinking. If they encountered an ambush, friendly forces would take the first hit; if there was no ambush, whoever beheaded it, as long as it was the Left Army, Huang Shi would have the credit. If they won, everyone would be happy; if they lost, it would be Shang Keyi and the others' fault. The fire brigade had already arrived, and Huang Shi, without further hesitation, decisively ordered: "My mind is made up. Pursue the fleeing Jurchens. The order will be: Commander Mao's troops, Guerrilla Zhang's troops, then the fire brigade and the vanguard battalion. The Panshi Battalion will be the rearguard." The three outlying generals who received the order immediately cheered: "General Huang, you are wise! We obey!" "General Huang, you are wise! We obey!" ... The order was quickly relayed, and the fire brigade's supply and combat troops worked together, carrying wheelbarrows and armor packages across. While they were busy, the friendly forces behind them also began to advance. These lightly armed pursuing troops went directly off the main road, bypassed the section with roadblocks, and continued forward. Their supplies would be left behind in Fuzhou for protection. Shang Keyi and Zhang Pan also left with their respective troops. Jin Qiude used flag signals to inquire about the situation on the other side of the Fuzhou River. Duncan's artillery had not yet crossed the river, and Shang Kexi's men and a large number of baggage and auxiliary troops were currently using the three pontoon bridges. He asked hesitantly, "Has the lord decided not to bring the cannons?" "Yes, the artillery carts and ammunition wagons are too heavy. If the roads were good, we could keep up with the troops, but the official road here is like this, and with the river crossing, it probably won't be over in less than an hour." Huang Shi quietly watched the progress of the fire brigade and the rock-solid battalion's supply troops, and without turning his head, ordered, "Jin Qiude and Li Yunrui, stay behind and speed up the intelligence and staff work." The two replied in unison, "Yes, sir." Huang Shi nodded and explained to his subordinates, "I am not afraid of any ambush on the other side. There are probably only a dozen or twenty intact Niru of the Red Banner of Fuzhou, and the Bordered White Banner also needs to cover Gaizhou, so even if there is an ambush, what can it do to me?" Jin Qiude and He Dingyuan exclaimed in unison, "The lord is wise." "The lord is wise," Li Yunrui echoed, and then stubbornly insisted, "The Bordered Blue Banner of the Jurchens is undoubtedly still in Liaodong, but there has been no news of their two Yellow Banners for a long time." "With Lindan Khan here, the two Yellow Banners wouldn't dare leave Liaobei in the autumn." Seeing that the Firefighting Battalion was about to reorganize and depart, Huang Shi immediately pulled on his reins and rode forward. He didn't forget to smile at Li Yunrui: "That's called strategic vision. You wouldn't understand." Huang Shi and He Dingyuan were both leading their own horses. According to the new marching regulations of the Changsheng Army, except for scouts on patrol, all cavalrymen of the Firefighting and Panshi Battalions had to lead their horses, to ensure the horses' stamina so they could handle emergencies. Since the regulations didn't specifically state that this didn't apply to Huang Shi, he joined the others in leading his horse. Over the years, everyone on Changsheng Island had become accustomed to Huang Shi's unconventional and strange behavior, so they weren't particularly surprised. However, Zhang Minghe's eyes nearly popped out of his head. He quickly jumped off his horse, wanting to follow, but hesitated for a moment before remaining still. Finally, Zhang Minghe secretly made up his mind to stick with his elite vanguard battalion and avoid getting too close to Huang Shi unless absolutely necessary. After Huang Shi left, Zhang Minghe overheard Li Yunrui asking Jin Qiude, "Why are you so sure that the Two Yellow Banners dare not leave Liaobei now, sir?" Jin Qiude laughed, "Lindan Khan boasts of having 400,000 archers. Although that's an exaggeration, he should still have a force of 100,000 to 200,000. The Western Barbarians may be so poor that all they have left are bows and arrows, but if they can't defeat the armored Jurchens, can't they defeat unarmed civilians? The Jurchens' Two Yellow Banners have only seventy-odd Niru; leaving them in Liaobei isn't much at all." "Hmm, Lord Jin is wise. It's just that the lack of definite news makes me a little uneasy." "If everything were definite, what would be the point of having a staff team? Just merge them all into your intelligence team." While the two were chatting and laughing, they both raised their hands to salute the fire brigade they were traveling from. The rules of the Ming Dynasty were already very detailed. For example, a sergeant had to kowtow twice to a squad leader, and a squad leader had to kowtow twice plus a bow to a battalion commander. However, Huang Shi abolished all these cumbersome kowtowing procedures on Changsheng Island. Huang Shi plagiarized the military salute from his previous life and established the Changsheng Island military salute. Although lower-ranking officers didn't receive the kowtows from soldiers, they no longer had to kowtow to their superiors all day long. Starting this year, Huang Shi added a rule that all officers must salute the marching troops. Huang Shi believed this would help improve the soldiers' sense of honor. Zhang Minghe naturally didn't understand what they were doing. The words Jin Qiude and Li Yunrui had just spoken had frightened him quite a bit. Talking about one's superior behind their back was a serious offense in his Vanguard Battalion. Although Zhang Minghe hadn't yet established enough official authority, no one in the Vanguard Battalion would dare to talk about him in public. Zhang Minghe even considered reporting them to Huang Shi. He glanced at Jin Qiude and Li Yunrui again; several of Huang Shi's imperial guards were around them, but they seemed oblivious to Jin and Li's words, still busy directing traffic. Therefore, Zhang Minghe abandoned the idea of currying favor. As a feudal army, the Ming army primarily relied on harsh punishments to intimidate its soldiers and instill respect and fear in them. The most serious crimes, such as desertion, complaining about officers, and desertion in the face of battle, were punishable by dismemberment, disembowelment, and liver removal. More serious offenses, such as failing to report for duty, excessively loud or foul-smelling farts, causing disturbances in the camp, or disrespectful kowtowing, would result in execution. Minor offenses, such as improper attire, forgetting rain gear, or giving irrelevant answers, would be punished by ear amputation. Other forms of corporal punishment included nose amputation, face shaving, bone cutting, and arrow piercing, with each punishment graded according to the severity of the offense. For example, arrow piercing was graded from one arrow to five arrows… These days, the Dongjiang Left Army was assembled, and the officers knew a major battle was imminent. Therefore, to maintain military discipline, they were carrying out massacres, slaughtering several people every day outside the gates of their camps. The officers also made their entire battalions come to witness the executions, hoping to deter potential troublemakers. Although Huang Shi didn't participate in this himself, he had observed it several times. After accompanying him on one trip, Duncan once again exclaimed with great emotion: "The soldiers of the Ming Dynasty are truly the most resilient soldiers in the world."

Those soldiers sentenced to have their ears and noses cut off accepted their punishment without complaint, then simply wrapped their wounds in cloth and went back to work. The soldier with arrows piercing his cheek never uttered a sound and could still walk quickly during the parade. Afterwards, Duncan complained to Huang Shi that if he had known beforehand that being a Ming Dynasty soldier was such a dangerous job, he would have preferred to be a staff officer.

Even now, among the allied forces fighting alongside the Changsheng Army, there are many disabled soldiers with missing ears and noses, and countless soldiers with arrow scars on their faces. These forms of corporal punishment that would leave permanent marks have all been abolished on Changsheng Island. Huang Shi believed that such punishments severely damaged the soldiers' sense of honor and collectivism. He believed that all visible scars on a soldier's body should be from the enemy, and should be a source of pride, not shame. Furthermore, slapping was also abolished by Huang Shi as an insult. The only forms of corporal punishment remaining on Changsheng Island were whips and clubs. Anyone who dared to use vigilante justice would be punished most severely by the military law authorities of Changsheng Island.

Even after the Panshi Battalion completed the transport of supplies, the Xuanfeng Battalion was still not ready to depart. Therefore, Wu Mu immediately ordered the Panshi Battalion to set off first, while he himself would bring up the rear.

Huang Shi and He Dingyuan led their horses side-by-side on the right side of the official road, their scouts spread out five miles away on either side. Good news kept coming in: one hill and forest after another had been safely checked, and Zhang Pan's vanguard was almost catching up with the fleeing Jurchens.

"Looks like there's no ambush ahead," Huang Shi sighed with disappointment, his expression turning dejected.

He Dingyuan noticed Huang Shi's disappointment and couldn't help but ask, "Does Your Excellency hope for an ambush? Are you worried about not getting enough credit?"

"I do somewhat hope for an ambush. And I think Inspector Li is quite right; without scouting, there's no such thing as certainty." Huang Shi listlessly whipped his leg with his riding crop, shaking his head and sighing repeatedly. "But it's not for credit. If I were only thinking of myself, I would never pursue them. It's for Lord Sun."

He Dingyuan was even more puzzled, and his voice suddenly rose: "For Lord Sun?"

"Yes, the Liaoxi Army hasn't fought a battle in almost five years. The generals in charge of the Guan Ning Army are all long-legged; otherwise, they wouldn't have survived the repeated defeats at Liaoyang and Guangning. And Commander Ma… sigh, Commander Ma is eager to make a name for himself; I'm afraid he'll be too hasty." Huang Shi felt that Sun Chengzong's biggest problem was his lack of understanding of the importance of veteran soldiers. He suspected that Sun Chengzong thought equipping an army with luxurious gear made it a strong army: "Now, there are always people in the court urging Lord Sun to advance on Liaoyang. But the 160,000 soldiers of Guan Ning are mostly farming households; let alone a thousand, probably not even five hundred have seen battle. This isn't an attack, it's suicide!"

He Dingyuan recalled the equipment he had seen at Shanhaiguan, and felt a pang of sadness and jealousy. He pondered the meaning behind Huang Shi's words: "So, Lord Sun hopes to rebuild the slaves here?"

"Yes." Of the tens of thousands of people here, only Huang Shi knew that Sun Chengzong intended to target Yaozhou, and he also felt that this location was indeed well chosen. Huang Shi always believed that as long as the Guan Ning Army could win one or two field victories, establish a psychological advantage over the Later Jin, and be tempered by the fires of war, then the heavily armed Guan Ning Army would easily sweep away the Later Jin. Ever since Huang Shi hesitated to become the second Qi Jiguang, he had been thinking about how to coordinate with the offensive in Liaoxi: "The Jurchens can only send the Bordered Red and Bordered White Banners. Let alone that they can't send all of them, even if they did, what could they do?"

He Dingyuan laughed heartily upon hearing this, his face full of disdain and smugness: "Don't say that we have a whole brigade now. As long as you have the Changsheng Army, as long as the defeated generals of these two banners dare to come, as long as they dare to engage in direct combat..." At this point, He Dingyuan vigorously swung his empty right arm: "We can also crush them in one fell swoop."

"Exactly." Huang Shi thought so too. Therefore, he was determined to weaken the fighting strength of these two banners by attacking Fuzhou. He hesitated for a moment before saying to He Dingyuan, "I've thought it over. After we recover Fuzhou, I'll write to Lord Sun and tell him I'm willing to be the Commander-in-Chief of the Liaoxi Military Affairs."

"My lord..." He Dingyuan was so excited he didn't know what to say.

"We don't need to go to Liaoxi. We can just take two artillery battalions and two cavalry battalions directly from Lord Sun. I'll use the Jiuhuo and Panshi battalions as the vanguard, and I'll also take the battalions from Commander Mao's Left Wing. Then we'll lead them straight to Gaizhou, and then Haizhou. After two battles, the four battalions of new recruits in the Guan Ning Army will be veterans, and their confidence in the Jurchen lands will be established..." At this point, Huang Shi suddenly stopped and sighed, a hint of pain showing on his face: "As for what Commander Mao and my colleagues in Dongjiang think of me, let them think what they will. Call me a villain, call me ungrateful, I'm wholeheartedly devoted to the country, and I have a clear conscience."

He Dingyuan fell silent. After a long pause, he managed to say with difficulty, "Your Excellency is wise."

Huang Shi smiled slightly, "Thus, the additional taxes will be waived throughout the land, and Lord Sun's wish will be fulfilled. You can also return to your hometown in glory. As for me, the court has already granted me five thousand households as hereditary property, which is equivalent to one hundred thousand mu of land in Liaonan. That is more than enough for me."

Zhang Pan had abandoned the Han people and fled after catching up with the ten Niru (military units) of the enemy army. They were clearly afraid that if they were caught by the Ming vanguard, they would be unable to escape. The Ming vanguard, while pacifying the people, rode up to Huang Shi to report their victory and inquire whether to continue the pursuit. Just as Huang Shi was inquiring about the status of the fleeing enemy, suddenly plumes of smoke rose from the rear, and countless signal fires shot into the sky. This indicated that the rear guard had encountered an extremely urgent situation.

Huang Shi and He Dingyuan exchanged a startled glance, quickly mounted their horses, and looked south. During this time, the number of fire signals increased, indicating that the rear guard had launched all of their communication devices into the sky at once.

"Halt!" Huang Shi's order was relayed swiftly.

"Halt!"

"Halt!"

...

"Rear column to front column!" Huang Shi issued his second order.

"All troops, about-face!"

The troops, which had just been winding northward along the official road, abruptly stopped and quickly turned around. At this moment, the messenger ordering Zhang Pan and his troops to cease pursuit had not yet reached the vanguard.

"Move out!" Huang Shi shouted, spurring his horse and galloping south: "Full speed ahead!"

"Forward!"

The Firefighting Battalion and the Rock Reef Battalion formed a long snake, and when the order was relayed, the snake's body jerked violently as if electrocuted. In the sunlight, the densely packed heads on it trembled like scales, the snake's head slowly accelerating towards Fuzhou... accelerating continuously... finally beginning to gallop southward along the official road.

The Later Jin army's auxiliary troops were working frantically, scouts constantly rushing past them, relaying military intelligence one by one.

"They arrived so quickly!" Daishan was stunned after hearing the report. The fortifications weren't even finished yet.

Huang Taiji remained calm and composed, a smile still on his face: "They just didn't have time to dig trenches, everything else is ready."

"It's all that Vanguard Battalion's fault, they were too slow!" Mangultai couldn't help but curse. When they estimated that the decoy troops had been caught up, the Vanguard Battalion hadn't even passed the designated ambush site. The Later Jin army had no choice but to launch a full-scale attack. Fortunately, the Ming army's rearguard quickly retreated north to join the main force, thus not wasting too much deployment time.

...

Huang Shi observed the Later Jin battle line before him. The densely packed flags looked to represent at least fifty Niru (military units), and they even came from six unaffiliated banners.

"Sir, the Panshi Battalion is fully armored."

"Sir, the Juhuo Battalion is fully armored."

"Alright." Huang Shi surveyed the surrounding terrain. It was mostly hills and forests; if the enemy cavalry launched a surprise attack on friendly forces amidst the chaos, it could cause serious trouble. "Pan Shi Battalion, retreat. Form a circular formation with Zhang Youji and the others, protecting the supplies and civilians in the center."

"Fire Rescue Battalion, along this official road," Huang Shi gestured with his hand over his eyes. Then, he suddenly stretched his arm forward, slashing towards the Later Jin's central flank deployed along the road. "Team A on the left side of the road, Team B on the road, Team C on the right side, Teams D and E following behind Team B, attack in columns and break into the enemy lines."

"Yes, sir." The messenger quickly ran off.

"Assemble the cavalry of the Fire Rescue Battalion and Pan Shi Battalion. Stay with me and await further orders.

" "Yes, sir." "

After the Battle of Nanguan, Huang Shi wanted to request more iron armor, but everyone was busy with factional strife and no one paid him any attention. So Huang Shi had no choice but to strip the cavalry and musketeers of their iron armor. Now, the two thousand five hundred spearmen in the two battalions are all in iron armor, but the fifteen hundred musketeers and four hundred cavalrymen have regressed to leather armor.

Huang Shi's deputy general's flag tilted slightly forward, and the five infantry squads of the Firefighting Battalion sounded their drums in unison. Song Jianjun, in the Firefighting Battalion's B squad, carried his musket and followed his comrades, heads held high, towards the enemy. They stopped eighty meters in front of the Later Jin army's battle line. The iron-armored spearmen standing in the rain of arrows showed no panic; they were as calm as if they were standing in the sun enjoying the sea breeze on Changsheng Island.

The squad leader counted the arrows fired one by one with his hands behind his back, and only after more than a dozen soldiers fell to the ground did he calmly call out: 'Musketeers, step forward.'" "

Musketeer Song Jianjun strode forward with his men. He skillfully set up his musket, bent down to carefully aim, and then blew his whistle sharply.

Bang!

Bang!

One volley followed immediately. After three volleys, Song Jianjun reloaded his musket. He blew his whistle again, strode forward, set up his musket, and glanced at his comrades. Seeing that everyone was ready, he blew another short, sharp whistle.

The firing began from eighty meters away..." The Ming army advanced relentlessly, soon creating a twenty-meter-wide cloud of smoke on the battlefield. The retaliatory fire from the Later Jin archers grew increasingly weak and ineffective; at such a distance, each arrow required full force to inflict damage, and their stamina quickly waned.

After both sides suffered hundreds of casualties, the Ming army's line finally advanced to within fifty meters of the Later Jin's. The Later Jin archers began to retreat. The Later Jin army had erected numerous rattan and wooden shields on the battlefield, which the archers could barely move. They all took cover behind them.

The Ming army repeatedly fired at the dense array of rattan shields and wooden planks, sending wood chips flying everywhere. Soon, more and more rattan shields were shattered under the continuous fire. But there were layers upon layers of these rattan shields, and it was unknown how many rattan shields the Later Jin army had brought.

Zhang Minghe was dejectedly reporting the situation to Huang Shi. Seeing the large Later Jin army approaching from ten miles away, his vanguard battalion immediately lost its fighting spirit. The soldiers retreated like a receding tide amidst the officers' scolding. Fortunately, the Later Jin army seemed to have no intention of pursuing them but immediately stopped to prepare for battle, so Zhang Minghe's army suffered almost no losses and was now positioned within the circular formation of the Panshi Camp.

Huang Shi was naturally very dissatisfied with the performance of the Vanguard Battalion. If they had just delayed a little longer, he could have returned in time and wouldn't have allowed the Later Jin army such a leisurely deployment. Looking at the Plain White Banner opposite, Huang Shi sighed, "I didn't expect that without General Zhang Pan and General Zhang Feimao, their Vanguard Battalion couldn't even keep orders."

Zhang Minghe lowered his head, his face flushed. Huang Shi, his face stern, watched the musketeers' futile firing and shouted in a deep voice, "All troops advance! Hand-to-hand combat!" "

Song Jianjun drew his dagger, watching his comrades, spears in hand, march past him in unison to the beat of drums. The armored soldiers had already lowered their masks, and as they marched, they lowered their spears to a horizontal position. The enemy opposite had ceased firing, seemingly prepared for a direct assault. The Ming army cautiously advanced in formation, wary of a sudden attack from behind rattan shields and wooden planks.

With a long horn blast from the rear of the enemy lines, the rattan shields and wooden planks rose from the ground, attached to wooden sticks or hemp ropes, and were all dragged to the rear by the Later Jin soldiers. Then came the continuous sound of strings being released…

" Two thousand sets of barricades reinforced with iron nails were linked together, covered with thorns, and topped with twelve-foot-long barricade spears, followed by heavy crossbows. "Daishan smirked self-deprecatingly, "We've kept these captured from the Ming for so many years in warehouses, never imagining we'd have a day to use them." Mangultai

chuckled dryly: "It's a pity that Father Khan melted down all the bronze cannons to exchange for grain, otherwise it would have been even more perfect." "

Sweeping through the enemy ranks like a whirlwind, Chapter 16: The White Army

. This time, the main force of the Later Jin army was also infantry. After Huang Taiji's Plain White Banner and the two Yellow Banners transferred from Liaonan defeated Ligdan Khan in early April, they reorganized for less than two months in April and May and then carried a large amount of supplies south. To maintain secrecy, they did not take the official roads but instead traveled through forest trails. Although the men were still relatively unharmed, the horses of these Niru (military units) were severely depleted. Moreover, this was after drawing troops from each of the six banners, and by early June, they had almost exhausted the horse resources of four banners. In order to prevent the horses from dying in large numbers, most of the remaining horses were transported back to Liaozhong to rest and recuperate, which still made Nurhaci very distressed.

The Bordered Red and Bordered White Banners, which were left to guard Liaonan, did not have many warhorses left. However, because they were well maintained, their cavalry had now become the main force of this Later Jin army. These more than a thousand cavalrymen were deployed on both flanks, ready to launch attacks and harass at any time." To conserve their strength, most of them led their warhorses into battle. The Later Jin army deployed over 3,600 infantrymen from 40 Niru (units of military units) on the main defensive line to withstand the Ming army.

Although Huang Shi's Changsheng Army's return was faster than he had imagined, it still gave the Later Jin army an hour to deploy their defenses. With the efforts of tens of thousands of unarmored auxiliary soldiers, they completed all the work except digging trenches. The chevaux-de-frise were also chained up. In the previous Battle of Nanguan, the Later Jin's use of chevaux-de-frise spears against the Ming army was ineffective, so this time the Later Jin soldiers placed the spears on the fortifications.

Hearing Mangultai and Daishan's words, Huang Taiji laughed. When Huang Shi first returned, he was somewhat worried, fearing the Ming army would immediately launch an attack. At that time, the Later Jin army had just transported a large number of fortifications by manpower, and many armored soldiers had also participated in the transport, so they were exhausted. The Later Jin generals were delighted to see the Ming army resting, as this gave them ample opportunity to recover their strength.

Although the forests of Northeast China were numerous and dense, the Later Jin army was still quite bothered by mosquitoes while hiding in the woods. Huang Taiji and his men dared not make any noise, so they too were bitten all over. He hadn't felt particularly itchy initially because he was preoccupied with the success or failure of the ambush. But now, with the tension gone, Huang Taiji felt an intense itch all over his exposed body. He was reluctant to make any complicated movements due to his status, but Mangultai beside him was already scratching his head and rubbing his hands and feet. The

Ming army opposite them had neither water nor food, and the cavalry responsible for harassment ensured they wouldn't have the opportunity to gather firewood or set up camp. Huang Taiji glanced at the setting sun out of the corner of his eye, then focused intently on the line behind him. The Jin army continuously rained crossbow bolts into the Ming army's positions... He believed the Ming army would have two options: First, to unleash a barrage of musket fire. This was easy; they could simply re-erect their shields and buy time. Second, the Ming army could attempt to attack other, more easily breached locations. This was also no problem; Huang Taiji had already studied the terrain and had countermeasures.

A smug smile spread across Huang Taiji's face. He would exploit the Ming generals' greed for glory by setting up an ambush, luring away the enemy's infantry and artillery. After carefully studying the terrain, he would use the one-hour window (originally planned for longer) to complete the deployment, ultimately forming an impregnable defensive line with superior long-range firepower. Huang Taiji smiled smugly, feeling he had every reason to be proud—although it was a bit late, the problem in Liaonan was finally solved. Moreover, these Ming soldiers might be recruited.

Huang Taiji didn't care for a general like Huang Shi who was greedy for merit and reckless, but Huang Shi's soldiers were very capable fighters. Huang Taiji hoped to find a way to recruit them. "I wonder what Huang Shi's expression is like now. He must be filled with regret. He regrets that he shouldn't have been so greedy for merit, and he regrets that he shouldn't have ventured into unfamiliar territory." Huang Taiji regretted that he couldn't see.

Huang Shi's expression was indeed very complicated. When he saw the first volley of crossbow bolts, his facial muscles twitched violently. It only took him a blink of an eye to see the enemy's deployment, but Huang Shi's heart was in turmoil. An indescribable feeling was churning in his chest.

Huang Shi glanced at the Plain White Banner opposite him and let out an indescribable sigh. He said in a voice that only a few generals around him could hear, "The Jurchens are defeated. Although I knew this day would come sooner or later, I never thought it would come so soon!"

Behind the barricades, the Later Jin soldiers were frantically winding the crossbows with winches. The first rank of the Ming army lost more than ten men in the first round of firing. But the drums continued to beat, and the soldiers in the rear seemed oblivious to the instantaneous casualties of those in front, rushing forward to fill in, only to fall again in the second volley of bullets. The rear ranks rushed forward to fill in, and then the third volley came…

Of the 250 spearmen in the fire brigade, more than 50 fell in the blink of an eye. But they had reached the chevaux-de-frise, and the spearmen's captains shouted in unison, "Hey—brothers, charge! Turn the Jurchens into meat skewers!"

Twenty chevaux-de-frise spears mounted on the fortifications thrust forward at once. Although the speed of the thrusts was slow due to friction, half of the twenty Ming soldiers in the first rank were still pierced. The chevaux-de-frise spears easily tore through their armor, tearing through their clothes and piercing their internal organs. In excruciating pain, these critically wounded soldiers instinctively dropped their weapons and clutched the spear shafts embedded in their bodies.

The Ming soldiers in the rear pushed them aside without hesitation, thrusting their spears wildly forward. Immediately, screams erupted from the other side of the chevaux-de-frise. Many of the Later Jin soldiers standing behind the chevaux-de-frise were armed with wooden sticks and ropes; they were responsible for controlling the rattan shields and planks. These soldiers had been warned before the battle that the Ming army would immediately bring up musketeers after the initial shock, so they had to use their shields to cover the crossbowmen behind them. But now they encountered spearmen charging straight at them. These Later Jin soldiers behind the chevaux-de-frise were the first to be impaled and bloodied.

Before the screams subsided, the third rank of Ming soldiers also crowded to the edge of the chevaux-de-frise. Each one raised their spears above their heads and thrust them with all their might. This time, it was the chevaux-de-frise's spearmen who suffered. Many of them, before they could even pull their spears from the dying Ming soldiers, were pierced and killed by the wildly thrusting Ming spears. Several soldiers, though they had managed to retrieve their chevaux-de-frise, found their overly long spears less maneuverable than the Ming army's long spears. Before they could even set up their chevaux-de-frise on cover, they were struck by the second and third volleys of Ming thrusts.

Dai?an and Mangultai stared in disbelief at the fierce battle unfolding on the front lines. The Ming infantry unit deployed on the main road charged straight at them. Now, hundreds of soldiers from both armies were crammed into the narrow road, engaged in a frenzied exchange of thrusts through the chevaux-de-frise.

Huang Taiji's smile froze. The Ming soldiers who reached the chevaux-de-frise on the main road pushed forward desperately, thrusting their nine-foot-long spears with all their might. Many of them couldn't even see their opponents, their vision blocked by their comrades, but they would seize any opening they could find and thrust their spears wildly.

The locked chevaux-de-frise also halted the Later Jin's short-range counterattack. For a moment, countless spears spewed from above the chevaux-de-frise. They streaked across the air with dense, silvery trails, piercing the Later Jin soldiers opposite them until they cried out in agony. These Later Jin soldiers were forced back by the chaotic barrage of spears thrusting and stabbing. The battle line resounded with screams of agony, the dull thud of spears piercing flesh, and the long, drawn-out shouts of the Ming soldiers: "Heave-ho! Charge! Brothers, turn them into meat skewers!"

The Later Jin soldiers on both flanks of the main road glanced sideways at the center, their eyes wavering between the fierce battleground on the road and the Ming soldiers before them. But the fire brigade's A and C units opposite them stood calmly and steadily. The A and B infantry units, responsible for flank cover after the exchange of fire, had remained on the defensive. Although the screams and shouts from the main road were deafening, not a single one of them dared to spare a glance at the battle. Cold, emotionless eyes pierced through the gaps in each soldier's helmet and mask, sending chills down the spines of their enemies—especially the veterans of the Jinzhenglan Banner of the Jia Division.

Ever since Huang Shi began his retreat, Wu Mu's face had been extremely grim. Huang Shi's original plan was to have the stronger Panshi Battalion as the rearguard, but he had taken it upon himself to have the Xuanfeng Battalion move to the rear. Without a capable rearguard, there was no rearguard at all. Although Huang Shi hadn't reprimanded him, Wu Mu had a nagging feeling that something was amiss, and immediately distanced himself from Huang Shi whenever he saw him. After Huang Shi's thoughtful remark, Wu Mu couldn't contain his curiosity and rushed over to ask, "General Huang, what do you mean by that?"

Huang Shi casually replied, "Eunuch Wu, you are wise. The Jurchens rely solely on their brute force. Now that their brute force has vanished, what is there to fear?"

This seemingly nonsensical statement left Wu Mu utterly bewildered. He scratched his head and pressed, "Has the ferocity vanished? What does General Huang mean by this?"

Huang Shi didn't answer immediately. Seeing the fire brigade advance into the enemy lines, sacrificing 30% of its troops to seize the barricades, Huang Shi glanced at the white flag fluttering in the wind opposite them, and shook his head with a complex expression: "I thought the Jurchens would still dare to fight us in open battle!"

This time, Huang Shi's march employed a cautious advance strategy. Search teams were densely deployed along both sides of the official road for several miles. The secretly hidden Later Jin army would remain stationary, but if they entered within ten miles of the Ming army, they would be immediately discovered by the search teams. Therefore, catching the Ming army off guard was impossible. However, Huang Shi noticed that the Later Jin army consisted of about seventy Niru. Given their arrogance during the South Gate campaign, they would certainly launch a full-scale attack, intending to wipe out the Ming army in one fell swoop.

Huang Shi continued speaking to himself, "I didn't expect the Jurchens to send so many men. But since so many have come, we should naturally ambush them head-on. Although a surprise attack is impossible, there's always a chance to preemptively rout my vanguard or launch a fierce attack on our central route. This is a viable strategy."

If seventy Niru appeared ahead, it would be a repeat of the Battle of Nanguan. The Ming army would still have no choice but to either fight or retreat. Seeing that the Later Jin army was unwilling to repeat the Battle of Nanguan, Huang Shi understood that the Later Jin army no longer had the confidence to defeat the Changsheng Army head-on. Huang Shi then thought of the problem with the Vanguard Battalion. The Later Jin army didn't even want to waste time pursuing the Vanguard Battalion; once they drove the Ming army out of the battlefield, they hurriedly deployed defenses, unwilling to waste even a moment.

"In battle, courage is paramount. Moreover, the general is the commander of the army; if the general is cowardly, the soldiers will fall." When Huang Shi first saw the entire Later Jin army lined up on their retreat route, he thought the enemy had the courage to fight to the death. But seeing the Later Jin army relying on chevaux-de-frise for defense and attempting to use crossbows to repel the Ming army in order to drag the battle into a protracted war, they were completely reassured. The Later Jin army clearly hoped to wear down the Ming army, which lacked water and food, by prolonging the war. While Huang Taiji's opportunistic tactic was clever, it also showed that the Later Jin generals, including himself, had lost confidence in defeating the Changsheng army.

Huang Shi straightened his legs, lifted his saddle, and stood up in the stirrups. His whip pointed at the Plain White Banner opposite: "From this I know the Jurchens are not to be feared, from this I know they are incompetent, from this I know the Jurchens have no courage left to fight!" Excited, Huang Shi shouted: "Order a continuous assault! Don't give the Jurchens any time to breathe!"

The second squad of the fire brigade had already pushed back the Later Jin soldiers by at least two meters. Many corpses of both armies were already lying on the chevaux-de-frise, and some wooden planks and rattan shields had been picked up by the front-line fire brigade soldiers and placed on nails and thorns. After Huang Shi ordered the assault to continue, the squad leader shouted "Flip!" The soldiers then leaped over the corpses and splinters of wood. As they jumped over the roadblock, the Later Jin soldiers fired more than a dozen crossbow bolts, instantly pinning several Ming soldiers to the chevaux-de-frise.

Meanwhile, some brave Later Jin soldiers threw javelins, daggers, and broadswords, knocking down several more Ming soldiers. However, more than twenty Ming soldiers had already regained their footing, raising their spears and thrusting forward.

Song Jianjun and the other musketeers followed closely behind. But as the drumbeats grew more urgent, they knew the muskets were no longer needed. Sure enough, the officer quickly shouted, "Musketeers, switch to spears!" Upon

hearing this order, Song Jianjun immediately bent down, pried open the hands of a dead comrade, picked up his spear, and silently removed the mask from his helmet—musketeers didn't need to remove their masks if they weren't engaged in close combat. "

Flip!"

"Flip!"

"Flip!"

...

Rows of Ming soldiers rolled over the roadblocks in unison, as fierce fighting broke out between the Ming and enemy forces. The Later Jin crossbowmen also left their posts. Some drew their swords to fight back, while others were pushed backward by the chaotic crowd. Dozens of double-man crossbows were knocked to the ground by the fighting, and no one paid them any further attention.

"What strong soldiers. So strong, so strong..." Daishan murmured, his eyes wide with amazement. He looked at the battle line pushed forward by the Ming army and asked, "Fortunately, we prepared more than one layer of defense. That must be Huang Shi's personal guards and henchmen, right?"

"I don't think so... I'm afraid," Mangultai replied casually. He was staring intently at the battle ahead, unconsciously biting his right thumb nail, making a screeching sound.

The Jin army had begun to collapse after engaging Song Jianjun's comrades in the four Niru. One Niru had already died in the chaos, and his men threw down their weapons and ran off the main road from both sides. This further demoralized the other three retreating Niru. Firefighting Team B, like a sharp prow, cleaved the enemy forces in two like waves. Following closely behind, Firefighting Team D began to spread out to the flanks, covering Team B's sides.

After these four units dispersed, another chevaux-de-frise appeared before the Ming army, followed by three consecutive volleys of twenty crossbow bolts…

“Hey! Brothers, charge! Skewer them like meat skewers!”

The dull thud of spears piercing flesh echoed again.

“First rank, lie down!” the officer of Firefighting Team B shouted, and twenty soldiers reflexively dropped to the chevaux-de-frise. Their armor, though resistant to thorns, was vulnerable to being pierced by nails. “Flip!”

As

the soldiers behind pushed their comrades over the barricade, many soldiers' hands, bracing themselves against the chevaux-de-frise, were instantly pierced by thorns, drawing blood. One soldier, bracing himself with his arm, slipped and was pinned to the chevaux-de-frise's nails.

"Flip!"

The waist drum behind him beat urgently. Upon hearing the command, Song Jianjun grabbed his brother's shoulder and flipped him over. The armored soldier in front of him fell, and without thinking, he rushed forward to fill the gap...

"Kill!" Song Jianjun thrust fiercely, his spear piercing the edge of the enemy's shield with lightning speed, piercing him from forehead to back of the head. As a veteran who had been on four battlefields, as an assassination expert who had honed his spear skills for over a thousand days, Song Jianjun was now fearless even when facing the Later Jin white-armored soldiers... "Kill!" Another Later Jin crossbowman who attempted to fire was pierced through the chest by him.

"Just one squad, and they've already broken through the second line of defense." Daishan felt like he was having a nightmare, but he just couldn't wake up. Mangultai, beside Daishan, had unconsciously bitten off all the nails on his right thumb. He switched hands and began biting off the nails on his left thumb even harder.

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