Stealing the Ming Dynasty [Complete] - 10

In Chapter 13 of "Who Will Sharpen My Sword?", Duncan's

applause erupted: "A true army, truly admirable."

Duncan was a Scotsman who came to the Chinese mainland during the Wanli era. Due to illness, he stayed at the church, where, inspired by God, he repented of his past sinful life (of course, this was only Duncan's own account; more importantly, Duncan was penniless at the time) and became an assistant to the Jesuit monks.

Duncan spoke fluent Chinese and had no problem conversing with Huang Shi. Normally, the Jesuits wouldn't send personnel to remote islands overseas, but Duncan had a gut feeling: this was his chance to realize his ambitions. After observing and conversing with Huang Shi, Jin Qiude also concluded that he was a seemingly pious but actually ambitious fellow—exactly the kind of person Huang Shi needed.

...

It snowed today, and Huang Shi set off early in the morning, wrapped in his leather coat.

The patrolling soldiers braved the wind, their beards and eyebrows all white, the red tassels on their hats turned silver. They shouted at the top of their lungs, "Sir, watch your step!"

Huang Shi steadied himself. From his eyes to the black sea, all that remained was snow. The soldiers occasionally tapped the ground with their sticks to make sure they were still on solid ground.

"Last night, we only needed two shifts to break the ice, and during the day, only one shift will be enough," the patrol leader reported to Huang Shi, his voice full of joy. Winter was almost over: "Sir, we really did it!"

Huang Shi could imagine the bright smiles on the soldiers' faces without even turning his head. He pointed to a figure in the distance and asked, "Is that Duncan?"

"It's Mr. Duncan. Mr. Duncan arrived early this morning."

Duncan wore an ill-fitting uniform and an iron helmet, looking somewhat out of place. Huang Shi hadn't decided what to do with this barbarian, so he gave him the position of staff officer, and the soldiers all called him Mr. Duncan.

"General, you're late." Duncan wore a leather glove with a thick layer of oil on his wrist. Not only his eyebrows and mustache, but even the fine hairs on his face had turned white... he really did look like a white-haired baboon.

"Your soldiers," Duncan said, pointing to the diligent patrols, he had seen many Ming Dynasty troops before, "are excellent soldiers. I had some misconceptions about Ming soldiers in the past. It seems your country doesn't lack hardworking soldiers, but rather qualified officers."

"Thank you for the compliment. My country's soldiers are indeed the best in the world." Huang Shi said this with great pride.

The word "worldwide"... Duncan glanced at Huang Shi, but didn't say anything more.

"I have some questions to ask you, sir. Let's go back to camp and discuss them." Huang Shi's tone was very polite; Duncan's words made him feel very comfortable.

Duncan raised an eyebrow: "General, can't we talk in the snow?"

Huang Shi swept his hand in a wide arc, including the unfinished shoreline: "This year, we must finish the wall as soon as possible. Could you help me with the planning?"

Duncan squinted and looked around: "It would be an honor to serve you, General. I think we should call this project 'The Great Liaohai Iron Wall,' what do you think?"

"Good, let's call it the Great Liaohai Iron Wall." Huang Shi smiled and looked up at the swirling snowflakes—winter had been so long, could spring be far behind?

...

Thanks to the Little Ice Age, the frost-free period in Northeast China was only three months, and the freezing period at the southern entrance of Changsheng Island was extended by several dozen days. But even the longest period eventually ended, and the alarm was finally lifted. Huang Shi adopted Zhao Manxiong's plan, claiming that a large number of traces of Later Jin troops had been discovered on the east bank, and that the soldiers had driven away the threat of death through their own efforts. Of

the 1,600 soldiers, more than 700 fell during the arduous ice-breaking operation, eighty of whom would never rise again. Huang Shi buried the fallen and hastily produced a batch of medals.

"You saved our entire army,"

Huang Shi said, pouring a bowl of wine and placing a bowl of vegetables on each tombstone. He personally and gently buried the well-deserved medals of these fallen soldiers in the soil before the graves, and then, according to his own custom, offered a bouquet of wildflowers. As he addressed the cemetery, behind him stood the solemn Dongjiang soldiers. The first solemn funeral for these lowly soldiers began and ended quietly in their presence.

"You saved yourselves, and you will surely save the people of Liaodong. I, Huang Shi, have no doubt about this."

One by one, under the gaze of the fallen soldiers, Huang Shi awarded medals to every outstanding patrolman and ice-breaking soldier. Although this was not military merit, the officers had nothing to say, and no one had anything to say. Zhao Manxiong and other officers also received medals along with the soldiers.

The refreshing sea breeze caressed the upright chests of the soldiers, and the medal system reform finally began quietly. "

...

Form a square formation of four hundred men, including two hundred and fifty-five spearmen, with the remainder being musketeers. This square formation is very effective against cavalry charges." Duncan was explaining European frontal combat experience to Huang Shi.

"You mentioned that Western formations are equipped with a large number of muskets and field artillery, which I don't have for now." "Western" was a general term used by the Ming Dynasty to refer to Europe, which Duncan fully understood.

"Muskets are only used to counter enemy light cavalry's muskets and bows and arrows; victory still depends on hand-to-hand combat." In this era, hand-to-hand combat was still the key to victory; muskets were only used to counter the enemy's ranged weapons. "As long as we have heavy infantry willing to fight, we can defeat heavy cavalry. The Jurchens don't have muskets or cannons either. Without muskets, our army can use bows and arrows against their light cavalry. Group melee combat is the focus of our training."

"Our army is short of weapons; for now, we can only provide wooden spears." There are still some reserves from the supplies obtained from Shanhaiguan; attaching iron tips to the spears shouldn't be a problem.

“That’s not the problem. An army with fighting spirit, armed with sticks, is better than a rabble wielding blades. General, the main problem with our army is that too many men have never seen blood. An army isn’t raised, it’s forged in battle. Only 10% of your troops have seen the battlefield, which is very problematic. I don’t think such an army can be called an army.”

Duncan’s words were very insightful. Huang Shi greatly appreciated this: “Excellent, our army must engage in battle as soon as possible.”

“There is another serious problem,” Duncan said without reservation: “Our army’s organization is fundamentally unreasonable. The officer-bodyguard system is similar to the Western knight-servant relationship, which seriously affects the army’s combat effectiveness. Medieval armies are destined to be eliminated, and our army must be reformed.”

“I completely agree with you, but now is not the time.” To implement reforms, Huang Shi first needed a victory, an undeniable victory.

...

According to Jesuit history books, "...When the Taizu Emperor of China served the Ming Dynasty, he repeatedly defeated various rebel armies, including the Tatars. In the emperor's legendary campaigns, Jesuit priest Adolf Duncan played a crucial role. He helped the Chinese emperor reform the army, introducing modern tactics and field artillery to this medieval-level force. He also helped the emperor perfect the multi-faceted fortification technology originating in Europe. It was with these techniques that the emperor's army destroyed the once invincible Tatar army in Northeast China and the rebellious armies wreaking havoc in the heart of the Ming Dynasty...Through long periods of shared hardship, Duncan consistently demonstrated rare steadfastness and courage, earning him a high reputation within the Chinese army and government. Simultaneously, he established deep personal friendships with the emperor's future high-ranking officials, which helped the Jesuits thoroughly open the path to the Chinese imperial family and upper echelons of society."

...

In April of the third year of the Tianqi reign (1623), the Later Jin dispatched ten thousand cavalry southward, intending to capture Lushun in one fell swoop and eliminate the Ming army's bridgehead in Liaodong.

(End of Section 13)

Who will sharpen my sword for me? Section 14 Morale

"The news of the Jurchens' southward advance has been confirmed, and the Dongjiang headquarters has also sent people to inform them. However, the message won't arrive for several days. The only reinforcements we can count on for Lushun are our Changsheng Island and the Fire Rescue Battalion."

Huang Shi convened an emergency military meeting. The first Lushun defense battle was a major victory for the Liaodong Ming army, and the subsequent Lushun Beishan battle also involved more than 10,000 troops. Moreover, the Ming army achieved a victory in the field battle. It wouldn't be Huang Shi if he didn't take this opportunity to train his troops.

Therefore, Huang Shi set the tone from the outset: "My Fire Rescue Battalion, along with the Lushun Gangfeng and Xuanfeng Battalions, belong to the Dongjiang Army. We cannot sit idly by and watch our ally suffer."

"My lord, you are wise. Our army is lacking in weaponry," Zhao Manxiong, although only twenty years old, was already quite old-fashioned. As Huang Shi's chief commander, he was the first to object.

He Baodao, a year younger than him, was a completely different person: "Commander Zhao, you are mistaken. You are simply afraid of the enemy! Hmm, Commander Yang, how many weapons do we have?"

Huang Shi shook his head and turned his gaze to Yang Zhiyuan. Commander Yang Zhiyuan, who was in charge of the treasury, first glared at He Baodao before reporting in great detail: "Fifteen iron bows, one hundred and twenty-four suits of armor, sixty-one iron spears, four hundred and fifty turbaned wooden spears, longswords..."

After he finished speaking, Zhao Manxiong's face showed a hint of pride. He Baodao spoke again: "Sir, I am willing to lead one hundred elite soldiers to reinforce Lushun."

"No." Huang Shi said loudly: "Send four hundred soldiers. I will personally lead the team. Commander He, Commander Jin, and Duncan will accompany you. Commander Zhao and Commander Yang will stay behind to guard the old camp on Changsheng Island."

"My lord is wise." He Baodao shouted, his voice like thunder.

"My lord, you are wise," Zhao Manxiong still refused to give up. "The armor is insufficient, and the wooden spears are for training; I fear there will be many casualties."

"An army with fighting spirit can defeat the Jurchens even with wooden spears," Huang Shi quoted Duncan. A true army is forged in battle, not trained. If soldiers lack combat experience, even if everyone is armed to the teeth, they may not be effective. "It's time for our men to see blood. I have made my decision; Commander Zhao, there's no need for further discussion."

A large group of soldiers were privately discussing the Western prophet Duncan. Huang Shi had secretly told him this was inside information. Duncan had observed the stars for a long time, seemingly mysteriously, and vaguely predicted the battle in early March.

Before setting out, Huang Shi consulted with Duncan again, and Duncan devised a strange ritual. The officers were initially uninterested in this prayer, but seeing Huang Shi and Jin Qiude's piety, they reluctantly watched.

The series of defeats in Liaodong dealt a significant blow to the appeal of the local deities, Bodhisattvas, and Laozi. Huang Shi was determined to rebuild his image as an all-powerful figure, recognizing the formidable power of religion in this era—a spiritual nuclear weapon, in his opinion.

The ceremony, meticulously designed by Duncan, was indeed quite moving. After the solemn prayer, even some previously indifferent soldiers became excited. Seeing this interest, Duncan shouted at the top of his lungs, "God's glory will surely shine upon the devout General Huang! This time, General Huang will definitely return with honor and victory! Whether in defense or offense, the Jurchens will suffer a shameful defeat!"

The soldiers were skeptical, and most officers were doubtful. Only Huang Shi and Jin Qiude happily declared that they would certainly bring glory to God and prove that God's warriors were invincible.

Before leaving, Huang Shi assigned some tasks to Bao Jiusun, telling him that his main focus should be on fishing and hunting, with farming being only the third priority.

Bao Jiusun suggested raising ducks, arguing that they could produce duck eggs.

"Wouldn't raising chickens be better? Chickens eat less than ducks, but they lay more eggs." Huang Shi remembered that ducks liked to roam freely, and from an energy conservation perspective, raising chickens was more efficient.

"You're right, sir, but raising chickens requires a lot of manpower, and their food conflicts with the soldiers' diet."

"Won't ducks conflict?"

"You're wise, sir. We'll let the ducks out and let them find their own food."

"Where to? What will they eat?"

"To the seaside to eat fish and shrimp."

There were plenty of fish and shrimp at the seaside; there simply weren't enough people to catch them all, nor was there enough manpower to do so. The ducks would essentially be a group of soldiers engaged in fishing, and the duck eggs they provided would be free.

Large numbers of soldiers began digging for wild vegetables, and by March, nearly 20,000 mu of land had been prepared and planted with corn and peanuts. Bao Jiusun told Huang Shi that corn and peanuts have different root depths, so planting them together wouldn't conflict, thus making one mu of land equivalent to two mu.

After settling his family in his hometown, Huang Shi selected five hundred soldiers to set off. Besides the one hundred veterans who had seen battle, he also brought four hundred exemplary soldiers who had received medals more

than once. The fire brigade arrived in Lushun even earlier than the main force of the Later Jin army. The Later Jin vanguard was conducting reconnaissance around Lushun Fortress while awaiting reinforcements.

This time, Zhang Pan, the Dongjiang guerrilla commander and Lushun governor, did not greet Huang Shi in his official robes. Instead, Zhang Pan, dressed in military attire, personally waited for Huang Shi's boat at the harbor. As the small

boat slowly approached the shore, Zhang Pan greeted him: "General Huang, how have you been?" "Thank you for your concern, General Zhang," Huang Shi replied, nimbly jumping ashore from the small boat and walking alongside Zhang Pan. "What is the enemy situation now?"

"The forests near Lushun have been completely cut down. The Jurchens are building siege weapons behind the northern mountains." Since Zhang Pan's garrison in Lushun, he had also committed crimes that Greenpeace advocates abhorred. Adopting the principle of cutting down whatever could be cut down, and burning what couldn't be cleared, he had completely stripped the vegetation around Lushun.

This meant that if the Later Jin army wanted to build camps, watchtowers, and ladder towers, they would have to start construction dozens of miles away. This not only greatly increased the transportation burden but also gave the Ming army more warning time.

"General Huang is truly righteous," Zhang Pan suddenly blurted out.

Although Huang Shi had heard this phrase countless times, the sudden praise still startled him. "General Zhang flatters me. We both served under Commander Mao, so coming to reinforce is only my duty."

Since the Battle of Sarhu, the Ming army had never successfully defended a single city. At this time, Ming generals regarded their positions as commanders-in-chief and deputy commanders outside the pass as a death sentence. A general like Huang Shi, eager to leave the pass, naturally shone brightly. He also knew that Lushun was a close call, and he was focused on using the opportunity to train his troops, so he felt almost no psychological pressure.

Zhang Pan, however, saw things differently. He had a very good impression of Huang Shi, and upon seeing the equipment of Huang Shi's men, he was even more impressed. Pointing to Huang Shi's wooden spearmen, he smiled and said, "General Huang heard that Lushun was in danger, so he personally led these soldiers to help me. If we were in different places, I absolutely could not have done it."

As the last bridgehead for the Ming army in Liaodong, Lushun had been continuously absorbing equipment from the fleeing Ming army for over a year since the fall of Guangning. The Lushun fortress had a considerable reserve, with armor and weapons for several hundred men.

"When General Huang passed through Lushun last time, he left behind equipment and horses for over a hundred cavalrymen. Today, I am returning them to their rightful owner. In addition, I would like to offer a batch of equipment to General Huang as a token of my gratitude." Zhang Pan urged Huang Shi to take the time to train his old cavalrymen, as they hadn't ridden horses for almost a year.

"Thank you very much, General Zhang." Huang Shi didn't refuse; good deeds are indeed rewarded.

Zhang Pan smiled slightly: "General Huang, you flatter me. This is precisely the time for us to stand together against the enemy. Such thanks are too formal."

Zhang Pan, the Commander of Lushun, was a man who had risen to the rank of guerrilla general in his early twenties. His rapid ascent from a common soldier to this position was not solely due to his status as a trusted confidant who had followed Mao Wenlong on his voyages. Huang Shi's risky rescue had already deeply moved him. With the enemy at hand, Zhang Pan wanted to arm every soldier as much as possible. Otherwise, if Lushun Fortress were breached, not only would all the supplies fall to the Jurchens, but their lives would be in danger. Zhang Pan was well aware of this.

Lushun currently has two battalions, totaling approximately 3,500 soldiers, including 1,200 combat troops and 2,300 auxiliary troops. When Huang Shi led his 500 men into the fort, every Ming officer and soldier they encountered cheered loudly. The Ming army's repeated defeats seemed to have no effect on these soldiers. The

more than 3,000 Ming soldiers were sharpening their weapons, seemingly eager for the Later Jin army to arrive immediately. When Zhang Pan selected soldiers, he deliberately kept those who had grudges against the Later Jin, sending large numbers of ordinary civilians to the rear.

The Later Jin's repeated victories in Liaodong did not intimidate the Ming soldiers here; on the contrary, they fueled their ferocity. Hearing of the Later Jin's large-scale southward advance, the Ming soldiers in Lushun fort became even more excited, eagerly awaiting revenge against their enemies.

Having endured the harsh winter of ice-breaking, Huang Shi's men maintained high morale, making his officers quite proud. Seeing the enthusiastic scene in Lushun, Jin Qiude somewhat dejectedly said to Huang Shi, "Sir, the morale in Lushun is comparable to ours."

"Military strategy dictates: 'The guest army should not be placed at the forefront, nor in the middle.' My troops' morale is on par with the Lushun army; you should be proud." After all, the guest army, unlike the main army, wasn't defending its own base, so it was a military consensus that their morale couldn't compare. Thus, whether defending or attacking, the guest army was mostly used as reserves or for flank cover. "

Besides," Huang Shi continued, "every soldier in the Lushun army has a personal grudge against the Later Jin, which is something my troops can't match." Huang Shi didn't intend to rely solely on hatred to maintain morale; he personally believed such things were unsustainable and easily led to irrational behavior among the soldiers. Since he had the time and resources that Zhang Pan lacked, Huang Shi hoped to build his army's morale on discipline, a belief in victory, and the allure of religion.

(End of Chapter 14)

Who Will Sharpen My Sword? Chapter 15:

Jin Qiude led his soldiers to the Lushun Armory to receive their equipment, while Huang Shi followed Zhang Pan up the city wall to inspect the city's defenses.

Lushun Fortress faced the sea on one side, and Zhang Pan had been painstakingly developing it for seventeen months. On land, he had built two wooden walls outside the fortress walls, and buried a large number of wooden stakes on the outermost layer. The soldiers inside the fortress were enthusiastically inspecting the city's defenses, as if they had inexhaustible energy.

Behind the north city wall of Lushun Fortress, a towering tower had been built. This was the highest point of Lushun Fortress and also the command post. From here, one could overlook the entire fortress walls and gates. A five-zhang-high command flag had already been raised on the tower, surrounded by several command flags and battalion flags of different colors. Zhang Pan scanned the entire Lushun Fortress and ordered the flag officers to begin testing the command system.

When the command flag pointed to a certain fortress gate, the garrison flag on the gate tower would also wave, which was called "responding flag," indicating that orders from superiors had been received. Zhang Pan and Huang Shi followed the direction of the command flag. The flag on the city tower fluttered several times, each time relaying the order to the lowest-ranking officer.

Then came the test of troop control below the city tower. The captains there, upon receiving the flag, beat their clappers and war drums, either going up to provide support or forming battle formations on the inner flanks according to the tower's orders.

On the city towers of each fortress were black and yellow flags, serving as warning flags to report the battle situation to the tower and reporting flags on mission execution, respectively. Messengers were stationed at both the tower and under the flags, capable of handling complex tactical communication needs.

Flags were the most important means of command in this era. Zhang Pan, far away in the tower, could not use the general's flag to command specific soldiers, nor could he make accurate commands. The warning flags of each unit were the eyes of the officers. Losing a flag meant losing command; no matter how large the army or how well-equipped, it would immediately detach itself from the military structure.

Each time the flags were called, the units under command quickly responded and relayed the orders. Although Huang Shi couldn't understand the flag signals of the Lushun Army, he could tell from Zhang Pan's smiling face that the signals were accurate. Each officer, while relaying the flag signals, led his men to salute the tower.

This extra action was overwhelming for Huang Shi. Led by their superiors, garrison commanders, and lieutenants, the soldiers, taking advantage of their unit's flags waving, raised their weapons high above their heads and pounded them wildly. Wherever the flags pointed, everyone shouted frantically towards the tower.

The cheers spread through the army like a ball of flowers, the enthusiastic sounds and the soldiers' leaping figures continuous, gradually making him feel almost suffocated with excitement. After the last flag was called, the units that had already been called couldn't resist the urge to shout. Every soldier—no matter where they were—raised their loudest voices to show the general on the tower their courage and fighting spirit.

Long after the overwhelming jubilation subsided, Huang Shi finally let out a long breath, his soul returning from its soaring flight. Turning to look at Zhang Pan beside him, he saw that although the latter still wore a smile, his lips trembled with excitement. Zhang Pan looked at Huang Shi, opened his mouth, and uttered a few indistinct, broken syllables.

"With such morale, the defeat of the Jurchens is inevitable," Huang Shi finally managed to utter a complete sentence.

"Just as General Huang said..." Before he could finish, Zhang Pan suddenly threw his head back and burst into laughter, a long laugh tinged with sorrow. The laughter finally subsided with a low sigh: "I will surely drink the blood of the Jurchens with General Huang."

With that, Zhang Pan regained his composure and confidence. That resolute sigh seemed both a promise to the fallen in Liaodong and a prophecy to the brutal enemy.

Next, Zhang Pan discussed the command of Huang Shi's 500 soldiers with him. Dongjiang Town hadn't been formally established yet, and no official flag signals had been issued, so Zhang Pan couldn't directly command Huang Shi's troops. Indeed, everyone used the Ming army's military code to formulate flag signals, but each general had their own, and with the addition of personal preferences and habits, Zhang Pan and Huang Shi's flag signals became somewhat ambiguous.

A four-zhang-tall guest general command flag was finally erected to the left of Zhang Pan's main flag. The two generals would communicate using messengers. Huang Shi's soldiers were positioned below the tower along with several hundred other soldiers as reserves. He Baodao and Jin Qiude would go down to lead the army, while Duncan would stay with Huang Shi on the tower.

On April 18th of the Tianqi reign, the Later Jin army dragged a large quantity of hastily manufactured equipment from behind the North Mountain, and the defense of Lushun began.

Huang Shi wisely hid far away near the tower; he couldn't disturb Zhang Pan's command at this tense moment, and besides, his position allowed him a clear view of the battle below the city.

The Later Jin soldiers first attempted to dismantle the wooden stakes, immediately encountering fierce fire from the watchtowers on the fortress walls. The Later Jin warriors leading the assault were heavily armored, their bodies bulging, and the rain of arrows from fifty meters away caused little harm; aside from a few soldiers wounded in the arms, some with arrows lodged in their bodies showed no effect. The Ming army stopped firing after two volleys and switched to steel-armored crossbows.

Crossbows had a slow reload speed, similar to arquebuses, so Ming soldiers generally didn't like using them in open battle, but they were very effective for defense. Zhang Pan's Lushun Fortress had a hundred of these.

According to the Ming dynasty's calculation method, a single slash was considered a serious injury, while three arrows were needed for a single serious injury. Huang Shi had personally witnessed that even armored warriors hit by arrows usually suffered only superficial wounds, not affecting their combat effectiveness in the short term. The effect of being hit by three arrows was indeed similar to being slashed by a knife, while being pierced by a spear would cripple not only a person but also a horse. Even a sharp wooden spear could pierce a person's chest and abdomen, directly damaging internal organs.

The steel-armed crossbow was not as powerful as a spear, but its effect was close to a knife slash. Although it could not penetrate the Later Jin's shields, its flight speed was very fast, making it difficult for Later Jin soldiers to block with their shields. The Ming army in Lushun, positioned high above, fired crossbow bolts in rows. Each time, more than a dozen Later Jin soldiers screamed in agony, dropping their shields and rolling to the ground.

The Later Jin soldiers struggled to hold up their shields, protecting their heads and chests, desperately digging through the mud on the wooden walls, working together to remove the wooden stakes from the breastwork. To conserve the archers' energy, there were auxiliary soldiers beside each crossbow. As these men opened their crossbows, the archers coldly watched the scene below.

After the auxiliary soldiers loaded the crossbow with iron arrows, the archer would close his left eye, carefully aim, and then fire the crossbow. They would either shout excitedly or sigh in disappointment, and then step aside to let the auxiliary soldiers repeat the process.

After seven or eight rounds of firing, the auxiliary soldiers' reloading speed began to slow down. The officer immediately signaled the substitute soldiers in the rear to switch roles. After suffering over a hundred casualties, the Later Jin vanguard finally cleared a path through the wooden stake array. Large, leather-covered wagons were pushed up, their open roofs providing cover for the siege team to continue breaching the wooden wall.

The Ming soldiers lit their wind lamps, and numerous large arrows bound with resin were already prepared on the wall. Once the archers signaled that they had aimed, the auxiliary soldiers ignited the arrows, causing the crossbows to attach rockets to the wagons.

This wooden wall was only thirty meters from the fortress wall. The Later Jin soldiers refused to come out and die, continuing to breach the wall from under the wagons until the flames engulfed the wagon roofs before fleeing to other wagons. After waiting for some time, the Ming archers simultaneously released their triggers, pinning some enemy soldiers to the ground.

The carts ahead were constantly being burned, and new carts kept coming up the Later Jin lines. The defenders and the soldiers below the city began playing psychological warfare. Even though some carts were almost completely burned, the Later Jin soldiers wouldn't run. Some carts hadn't even burned through their roofs before the soldiers rushed to the back of another cart.

Huang Shi saw a Later Jin soldier seize the opportunity, and after the Ming army opened fire, he immediately sprinted away, running a few meters away. But a crossbowman who had intended to burn the carts fired an arrow in time, piercing his thigh with a burning ball of fire. The Later Jin soldier screamed and struggled to crawl away, but an arrow immediately flew, opening a large hole in his back. His body twitched for a long time after he lay on the ground.

The Later Jin army finally broke through two wooden walls before all the carts were burned. Seeing the watchtower being slowly pushed up, Huang Shi on the Lushun Fort's high tower began to miss the cannons of Guangning. As he turned his head slightly and sighed, he noticed Duncan beside him shaking his head slightly.

"Mr. Duncan, what are your thoughts?" Huang Shi asked in a low voice.

“The castle is too crudely built; this kind of fortress has been obsolete in our Western region for a hundred years.”

Duncan looked around as if searching for something. Huang Shi also scanned the surroundings—everyone was on his side—and drew his knife, handing it to him.

Duncan didn't refuse, and lightly drew a rough sketch of a bastion on the ground with the tip of his knife. The star-shaped outer wall concealed the equally star-shaped inner wall.

Duncan tapped the ground with his knife: “That’s it—no matter where the attacker comes from, they will be attacked from the front, the front flank, both sides, and the rear. The enemy's defensive vehicles were completely ineffective; no defensive vehicle in the world can protect against attacks from seven directions.”

Huang Shi stared at the sketch of the bastion for a while. It was indeed a brilliant design, but the sharp protrusions of the outer wall seemed to be a weak point.

When he raised this question, Duncan solemnly dragged a vertical white mark on the ground with the tip of his knife, from the sharp corner through to the inner wall: "What's the use of breaking through here? There's a solid inner wall with no entrance in front, and there will be two outer walls behind, meaning the attacker will be attacked from eight directions."

Duncan then drew a horizontal line, cutting off the top of the sharp corner of the bastion's outer wall: "When attacking this position, you will also be attacked from the front and sides, needless to say, the same situation as Lushun Fort today. Even if a section of the outer wall is destroyed, there will be no loss for the defenders. The enemy will always be exposed to attacks from several sides, and the defense of the fort gate will not be weakened in the slightest."

(End of Chapter 15)

Who Will Sharpen My Green Blade Chapter 16 Holding the

Line When Huang Shi and Duncan looked up, the Ming archers were bravely meeting the advancing watchtowers, and the auxiliary soldiers around them were also raising their shields high, blocking in front of the archers.

The watchtower, taking advantage of its height, provided ample cover for the Later Jin archers. The Ming auxiliary troops could only protect these precious archers with their own bodies; some auxiliary soldiers, already struck by several arrows, struggled to hold on until reinforcements arrived before finally retreating. The

Later Jin army's cumbersome siege ladders also climbed up below the city walls, while the Ming soldiers inside prepared fire pots, and a squad of soldiers grabbed their weapons, ready to scale the walls.

As the ladders approached the fortress gates, the battle intensified. Ming soldiers behind the walls drew their swords, ready to fight the enemy scaling the walls. With the watchtower suppressing the Ming archers, Later Jin archers seized the opportunity to surge down to the city walls, attempting to cover the scaling soldiers.

Ming soldiers repeatedly took short runs from the city walls, desperately hurling oil pots at the watchtowers and ladders. The Dongjiang officers observed the effects, directing crossbows to fire rockets at targets where enough oil pots were concentrated.

This sight once again prompted Duncan to exclaim, "Your Ming soldiers are incredibly brave and admirable. Such fine soldiers are rare even in the West."

As always

, Huang Shi was delighted to hear this. A heavy thud echoed from the fortress gate; Huang Shi knew it was a battering ram attempting to breach the bolt. The Ming soldiers below the tower began to line up, and within moments, hundreds of Ming soldiers were in formation. An officer calmly offered each of them a toast, a gesture of encouragement. They were preparing to leave the city to risk their lives sabotaging the siege equipment. Zhang Pan was naturally reluctant to entrust this one-way mission to Huang Shi's men, and few generals dared to assign such a task to a foreign army.

Before setting off, they were given cover fire. Zhang Pan's red flag relayed the order to the city walls, where officers immediately organized the attack. Hundreds of Ming soldiers charged forward, peering out to attack the enemy formation below. However, the initial coordination was somewhat chaotic, as the attacks were not simultaneous. The Later Jin archers, prepared for the attack, inflicted heavy casualties on the Ming soldiers who were advancing in waves.

The flags reported the failure, so Zhang Pan had to order another attempt.

This time, the effect was much better. Several Ming soldiers peeked out almost simultaneously, pouring boiling water and hot oil down, followed by large logs and rolling stones. The last rank of archers to peek out even fired a single shot. Several Ming officers, their helmets covered, cautiously peered through the battlements to observe the battle. This time, they almost simultaneously waved frantically backward, signaling that the time was right. The flags at the north gate immediately reported the latest battle situation and continued to intensify efforts to break up the enemy ranks below the city.

The tower then ordered the Ming troops on the inner side to engage. When the gong sounded, the soldiers crouched down like runners Huang Shi had seen in races. As soon as the fortress gates were opened, they roared and sprinted out at top speed. Huang Shi saw them immediately engage the surging Later Jin soldiers in fierce combat. The observation officer at the north gate reported accurately—the enemy troops in front of the city gate were in disarray and were immediately pushed back by the Ming army.

The soldiers guarding the fortress gates pushed the two large doors shut with all their might, slamming them shut behind the assault team and cutting off Huang Shi's view. The flags on the north gate seemed to continuously report that the battle was progressing smoothly. Although Huang Shi couldn't see the fighting at the city gate, the Ming soldiers on the walls had begun to calmly attack the area below, and he could see two nearby watchtowers being toppled.

This troop of soldiers bought the Ming soldiers on the walls a considerable amount of time to fire freely; more watchtowers and ladders were hit and burned, and the Later Jin archers seemed to have been driven back quite a distance. No arrows were fired onto the city walls for a long time, and the Ming soldiers increasingly peeked out to attack with greater ease. Huang Shi noticed that the archers on the Later Jin watchtowers were also focusing their attention on the outside of the fortress gates.

When the sound of another ramming came from the fortress gates, Huang Shi felt that more than half an hour had passed. Hundreds more soldiers emerged from beneath the tower and lined up. After they formed ranks, auxiliary soldiers brought over barrels of liquor, and the leading officer began to toast his men with a farewell drink…

The Ming army's tactics were always to use soldiers as human walls to protect the gates, thereby achieving a better exchange ratio. Generally, soldiers were placed outside the gates, and the gates were opened occasionally for reinforcement. However, Lushun Fort didn't have many soldiers, and Zhang Pan was determined to deplete the Later Jin's siege equipment, so he always let the soldiers get close before attacking. Once the assault team left, the fort gates would never be opened again for them; every officer and soldier from top to bottom knew this.

Huang Shi watched as the soldiers tilted their heads back and drank the bowls of strong liquor one after another… Was this the price of a loyal and brave life?

Clang! The soldier who finished drinking smashed the bowl at his feet, then wiped his mouth with a flourish… Oh, and he still had to add another bowl.

By the end of the first day, 80% of the siege equipment that the Later Jin had painstakingly brought over was destroyed. The Ming soldiers in Lushun Fort, burdened by personal vendettas, were fighting with near-frenzied fervor, far exceeding the Later Jin's expectations.

Huang Shi's troops remained inactive. Huang Shi himself wasn't entirely confident that the visiting army could fight with the same fervor as the main Lushun army, as they had no loved ones or property to protect there.

A light rain fell on the second day, and the Later Jin army suspended their attack. In the era of cold weapons, such weather made attacks nearly impossible, as the attackers' bows and arrows were unusable in the rain, while the defenders at least had rolling logs and large stones.

Huang Shi, having arrived in this era, realized that while heavy rain significantly reduced the firing rate of firearms, it also rendered crossbows completely useless. Historically, rigorously trained British troops, using peaked caps and cotton gauze, could maintain a 40% firing rate for muskets in heavy rain, and artillery, with its swivel doors, could even reach 70%. However, even with cold weapons like bows and arrows, the chances of success were slim. Powerful infantry crossbows had a range of only twenty meters in the heavy rain. And this had nothing to do with training; a wet bowstring and bow body were useless. A bow that could withstand a lot of force in sunny weather would break in the rain, and more force would render it unusable.

The Ming soldiers in Lushun carefully removed and preserved their bowstrings, drying them and reassembling them after the rain stopped in the evening. The Later Jin army, on the other hand, converted their damaged equipment into siege ladders.

On the third day, the Later Jin army launched a multi-pronged attack on Lushun Fortress, attempting to find weaknesses in the defenses. Zhang Pan decisively organized a counterattack, utilizing the advantage of inside-line warfare, constantly breaking out from the three fortress gates to disrupt the enemy's advance, and retreating before a large enemy reinforcement could arrive.

Huang Shi had now joined forces with Zhang Pan, who felt his counterattack forces were insufficient and planned to utilize Huang Shi's troops, whom he was less familiar with

. "The Jurchen forces are weak there," a personal guard shouted, pointing to a flag on a distant wall.

Zhang Pan squinted at the banners on the north gate tower, then turned to Huang Shi and said, "General Huang, thank you for your trouble. Please order two hundred soldiers to leave the north gate and destroy the siege ladders."

Huang Shi immediately sent his guards to inform He Baodao, and a large contingent marched towards the north gate. The fortress guards opened the gates promptly and provided cover.

Zhang Pan wasn't entirely confident in their fighting ability, and Huang Shi was unsure how they were performing. Both were on tenterhooks until the flag signal arrived, at which point Zhang Pan breathed a sigh of relief: "A strong general has no weak soldiers. They've scattered the enemy so quickly."

"Enemy reinforcements!" a personal guard shouted again. The banners indicated a large mobile enemy force heading towards He Baodao's location.

"Sound the retreat at the north gate, and simultaneously attack from the west gate," Zhang Pan quickly ordered.

When the attacking force returned, Huang Shi saw the soldiers collapsing to the ground or drinking water for their horses. Only one knight charged straight towards the tower.

"I am He Baodao, a Thousand-Strong Training Colonel under General Huang, the Guerrilla Commander of Dongjiang," the knight said, abruptly reining in his horse just before reaching the tower. He hurled a flag at the feet of the two generals, followed by a severed head: "I have captured one banner and beheaded one lieutenant."

He Baodao and Jin Qiude's soldiers, along with several other Ming troops, launched successive attacks. When He Baodao returned, he once again carried a flag aloft: "I am He Baodao, a Thousand-Strong Training Colonel under General Huang, the Guerrilla Commander..."

He returned for the third time. Just then, two heads rolled around at Huang Shi and Zhang Pan's feet: "I've seized one banner and beheaded two!"

Another attack... "I've beheaded one general and seized two banners."

Before nightfall, when they called He Baodao back for the last time, Zhang Pan and Huang Shi stared intently at the city gate where he was to appear. Sure enough, He Baodao, leading the charge, rushed to Huang Shi and Zhang Pan again. This time, his face covered in blood, He Baodao once more raised the captured banner, shouted, gave a powerful salute to the two generals, and threw it at Huang Shi's feet again.

The soldiers and guards above and below the tower would cheer in unison every time He Baodao announced his name and threw down the banner. This time, besides Huang Shi and Zhang Pan, the remaining officers also joined in the cheers.

"Commander?! Such a fierce general..." Zhang Pan, both surprised and delighted, finally blurted out his true feelings, but after only a few words, he realized his mistake, his arm pointing at He Baodao still frozen in mid-air.

Huang Shi remained silent with a smile, but the guards behind him were already glancing sideways at Zhang Pan, their faces showing slight anger. Realizing his slip of the tongue, Zhang Pan chuckled dryly and withdrew his hand, making the atmosphere extremely awkward.

"I don't think he's ready for promotion yet. General Zhang, are you going to stand up for him?" Huang Shi joked to defuse the situation. "

Haha, exactly." Zhang Pan also seized the opportunity, laughing heartily, "Although this is General Huang's territory, I'll still lend a hand when I see injustice."

Huang Shi noticed that Zhang Pan's gaze lingered on He Bao's sword, and his expression was quite subtle.

(End of Chapter 16)

Who Will Sharpen My Sword Chapter 17 Clan Rights

That night, the Jin army burned the siege ladders and retreated twenty miles to set up camp. The fierce counterattack of the Lushun army made them realize that the Ming army still had reserves. The rudimentary siege ladders were definitely not enough, and a full-scale attack on the city would result in heavy casualties. To capture Lushun, they needed to rebuild siege equipment, and in much greater quantities than before.

Although the enemy retreated, scouts quickly reported that the Jin army hadn't gone far and would likely resume production of equipment, so there wasn't much of a celebratory atmosphere in Lushun. With the immense pressure eased slightly, the considerable casualties among the Ming soldiers dampened morale, prompting Zhang Pan to order a reward banquet for the troops.

Huang Shi, as a guest general, sat at the head of the table on the left, while Zhang Pan, according to custom, occupied the head seat on the right. Initially, everything was fine, but after Zhang Pan got drunk, things changed

. His covetous gaze kept lingering on He Baodao, making Huang Shi slightly uncomfortable. Since it was a military banquet, after several rounds of drinks, the various generals naturally offered their skills. After a while, He Baodao couldn't stand it any longer and jumped out to perform a spear technique to entertain the two generals.

Zhang Pan was overjoyed upon hearing this and immediately ordered his personal guards to bring out a wooden dummy as He Baodao had requested, with three red dots drawn on its throat, abdomen, and heart.

"Kill!"

"Kill!"

"Kill!"

He Baodao shouted in unison, thrusting three times with lightning speed, each spear piercing the wooden dummy with deadly accuracy, striking the red dots precisely. The assembled officers knew they were no match for He Baodao's skill; even a slow, deliberate thrust wouldn't achieve his precision. For a moment, all was silent.

Zhang Pan stepped down to inspect the dummy. Huang Shi, however, had great confidence in He Baodao's martial arts and smiled at him. He Baodao felt he had greatly enhanced his superior's reputation, and beneath his arrogant demeanor, a hint of joy crept into his expression.

After inspecting the dummy, Zhang Pan loudly applauded. His officers, though feeling humiliated, secretly admired him. Soon, officers offering He Baodao toasts surrounded him in layers.

"General Huang, where did you find such a fine hero as Commander He?" Zhang Pan asked as soon as he returned to his seat.

Huang Shi gave a brief explanation, which made Zhang Pan extremely envious. He thought this guy was incredibly lucky, finding a treasure just off the street. Huang Shi didn't mention the insult He Baodao had given him upon their first meeting, nor did he mention the fellow's arrogance and disrespect. Not being from a feudal hierarchical society, Huang Shi didn't care much for such things and didn't dwell on them.

"General Huang," Zhang Pan, being a young general, couldn't keep his mouth shut after drinking too much, "I'm willing to exchange one hundred suits of armor and thirty fine horses for Commander He. Would General Huang be willing to part with them?"

This question was impolite; one shouldn't ask so directly, always giving the other person a chance to politely decline. However, since Zhang Pan didn't bother with subtle probing, Huang Shi found himself in a difficult position. Publicly embarrassing the other person would damage relationships with his colleagues, especially since he had already received quite a bit from Zhang Pan.

As he pondered a more tactful response, Zhang Pan sensed his reluctance and regretted his impulsiveness. But the words were already out, and Zhang Pan genuinely admired the He Bao sword, so he gritted his teeth and said, "I also have three singing girls, which I will give to General Huang as well."

These singing girls were indeed Zhang Pan's favorites, and giving them as a gift meant he was practically "bankrupt." Women were considered private property in the Ming Dynasty, so Zhang Pan's words weren't unreasonable, but they were still offensive. Huang Shi felt very uncomfortable, secretly thinking that Zhang Pan was belittling him, as if he were a greedy and lustful man—it seemed this military man Zhang Pan really didn't know how to speak properly.

"I'm not some slave, how can you talk about exchanging women?"

Before Huang Shi could refuse, He Baodao angrily shouted from below, causing everyone around to change color. Zhang Pan only wanted Huang Shi to agree to let him serve in the Lushun army, not to treat him as a servant. Even if He Baodao was unwilling, he should at least owe Zhang Pan a favor, but instead he resorted to insults.

"Commander He, shut up," Huang Shi called out. According to military regulations, He Baodao was in the wrong. When two generals were discussing the future of their subordinates, he had no right to interrupt.

"General Zhang..."

Huang Shi took a breath, intending to speak frankly, but Zhang Pan laughed: "I, Zhang, have never been one to submit to anyone in my life, but with such a loyal and brave subordinate, I can only swallow my saliva and congratulate General Huang."

"You dare not." Following the custom of mutual flattery, Huang Shi quickly complimented Zhang Pan's subordinate as well, and then...

"Commander He, apologize to General Zhang."

He Baodao knelt on one knee before the two generals, holding a large bowl of wine: "This humble servant was rude; please forgive me, General Zhang."

Zhang Pan accepted the cup with a regretful expression: "General Huang, I must reiterate my point. Commander He is utterly loyal and has made considerable contributions; he truly shouldn't be just a lowly commander."

"My lord will promote me at the appropriate time; I have no complaints." He Baodao interjected again.

"You're being nosy again; get out." Huang Shi gently reprimanded him, and He Baodao silently withdrew. Zhang Pan looked at the two men with suspicion, wondering how Huang Shi had managed to gain such loyalty.

In truth, Huang Shi wasn't entirely sure either. Though his face remained impassive, he was secretly pondering the same question as Zhang Pan. Fortunately, he had already witnessed He Baodao's prowess during the incident at Shanhaiguan, otherwise he might have had other ideas.

He Baodao wasn't unaware that repeatedly interrupting during military councils was impolite, nor did he know that contradicting his superiors was a major taboo. He simply couldn't control his tongue. In He Baodao's memory, Huang Shi would at most give a mild "Shut up."

He Baodao also knew that this temper of his would be unacceptable under anyone else; he'd either be driven mad or dragged out and beaten to death. He felt that his superior, Huang Shi, was a strange person, rarely displaying the demeanor of a superior and often enjoying debate.

Before their first meeting in Guangning, He Baodao initially felt Huang Shi was somewhat ungrateful. However, Huang Shi, as a high-ranking general, tolerated the offense of a lowly soldier like He Baodao, which was undeniably magnanimous. Moreover, He Baodao knew that without Huang Shi's return to quell the rebellion, he would most likely have died in the Guangning uprising.

Whenever giving orders, Huang Shi naturally tried his best to communicate with his subordinates, striving for understanding rather than forceful coercion. Not only He Baodao and Yang Zhiyuan, but also Jin Qiude and Zhao Manxiong, had long felt a sense of loyalty and camaraderie through these exchanges.

Huang Shi, as a modern man unaccustomed to feudal society, always sought to persuade with reason and was very tolerant of his subordinates' disrespect and jokes. While Huang Taiji's actions might have contained an element of affectation, Huang Shi's courtesy towards his subordinates was entirely natural, stemming from a deeply ingrained sense of equality. He didn't consider being offended by someone of low status a heinous crime, nor did he regard his subordinates as lackeys or slaves.

Therefore, Huang Taiji's subservience, enough to make others willing to die a hundred times over, had no devastating effect on Huang Shi, but Huang Shi's subordinates were very receptive to it.

After the banquet, Huang Shi called He Baodao over: "I still won't promote you. Do you know why?"

"This subordinate doesn't know," He Baodao replied quickly, his tone still revealing resentment.

"Today you personally cut off several heads, and I guess you also personally seized those flags, didn't you?"

"Exactly," He Baodao replied loudly.

"That's why I'm not promoting you." Huang Shi felt that He Baodao was very capable as a centurion, able to greatly boost the morale and fighting spirit of the soldiers around him, but...

"Today I entrusted you with several hundred men, and you were the first to charge. If one day I become a general and let you command an army of ten thousand, I estimate you will still be the first to charge, and you still won't be like Zhao Manxiong, hiding in the back to command. So I would rather promote that coward than promote you, if you could..."

"Your subordinate is not convinced!" He Baodao argued angrily: "My He family has been a border general of the Ming Dynasty for two hundred years. Generation after generation, we have been fighting on the front lines to inspire the army, and each generation has made great contributions to the Ming Dynasty."

He wasn't lying, but this kind of army was not the army Huang Shi envisioned. He changed the subject: "Your marksmanship was excellent today. I think your He family must have special training methods, right?"

"That's right."

"I want you to teach this method to all the soldiers, and it would be best if you could write it down in detail..." Huang Shi felt that good techniques should be promoted to the whole army as soon as possible, and training an elite force would be a great achievement for He Baodao.

Just as Huang Shi was about to state his conditions, He Baodao interrupted him: "This subordinate cannot do that, please forgive me, sir."

Huang Shi asked in surprise, "Why?" He felt that this was a very natural and reasonable request.

"Our He family has been hereditary generals of the Qin army for two hundred years, generation after generation defending the Ming Dynasty against the Eastern barbarians. Countless family members have died in the war..." He Baodao even smiled as he spoke of this tragic history, his tone full of fervor: "My family has repeatedly told me since I was a child that the wealth and honor of my He family for the past two hundred years is all thanks to this six-foot-long spear and the three-foot-long blade in my hand."

"My lord's kindness to his subordinates is as high as the sky and as deep as the sea, and I would never be able to repay it even if I died on the battlefield for him. As a training commander, I will naturally guide the soldiers in their spear techniques. However, these secrets passed down in the clan are the foundation of my He family's survival and must never be revealed to outsiders. Please understand, my lord." After saying this, He Baodao clasped his hands and bowed, then fell silent.

(End of Chapter 17)

Who Will Sharpen My Sword? Chapter 18: Persuading to Surrender –

Huang Shi was very dismissive of this feudalistic thinking. He believed that learning by one family or clan behind closed doors was inefficient and easily lost. From both a developmental and preservation perspective, breaking down feudal barriers and sharing knowledge was the most efficient and scientific approach.

He Baodao bowed respectfully, his body unwavering.

“Since that’s the case, I won’t force you.”

Huang Shi knew that he would ultimately have nothing to say to such a stubborn young man from a respectable family.

The next day, Lushun Fort was bustling with activity again. Everyone knew that the Later Jin army would return, and the new battle would be even more intense than the last.

Since He Baodao refused to cooperate, Huang Shi had no choice but to consult with Duncan again to see if there were any Western experiences that could be adopted. This was originally Huang Shi’s second choice, because he had already spoken with Duncan many times. This Westerner seemed to excel in architecture and artillery, and didn’t seem to know much about melee infantry.

Huang Shi, accompanied by Duncan and several other men, toured the area, chatting as they went. Seeing many Ming soldiers sharpening their swords, Duncan exclaimed, "I've always thought swords and knives were weapons for mercenaries and bandits; the government troops should be using spears and muskets."

"A musket?" He Baodao scoffed. "Those things aren't very good."

"Why aren't they good?" Duncan quickly retorted.

"This Lushun Fort alone has over a hundred muskets. If they were good, do you think we, the Ming Dynasty, wouldn't use them?" Jin Qiude chimed in. When Zhang Pan sent Huang Shi's soldiers to select equipment, Jin Qiude saw a large stockpile of muskets in the storeroom, but he didn't take a single one.

Huang Shi, intrigued, asked, "Why are arquebuses so unusable?"

"They explode. They explode every four or five shots, so soldiers dislike them."

The Ming Dynasty equipped its soldiers with a large number of firearms, but soldiers preferred weapons like the three-barreled gun and the quick-firing pistol. While these were acceptable in large numbers, arquebuses were mostly locked away in storage. These guns had long barrels, requiring high-level craftsmanship. Ming Dynasty artisans were considered low-class, and their skills were passed down through generations in a feudal tradition.

Therefore, the explosion rate of Ming arquebuses was extremely high. If a soldier fired close to the face, an explosion would either kill or cripple them. So, although the Ming Ministry of Works manufactured hundreds of thousands of arquebuses for the Liao army, these weapons ended up rusting in warehouses. In Huang Shi's original historical account, Manchu soldiers also avoided arquebuses, preferring to wield swords and spears rather than touch them.

After hearing these introductions, Huang Shi remained silent, but Duncan jumped up and shouted: "This is a crime! To let brave soldiers lose their lives in vain, all the officials who supervised the manufacture of arquebuses should be hanged!"

In the eyes of the Ming Dynasty's scholar-officials, the "brave soldiers" that Duncan mentioned were nothing more than lowly people and criminals, and disposable commodities. Given the low status of military men in the Ming Dynasty, it was only natural that they were treated poorly.

"Let's not talk about muskets for now," Huang Shi calmed the excited Duncan, bringing the topic back to the original point: "We can train spearmen first. You say swords are useless?"

"Yes," Duncan replied seriously: "The government troops aren't bandits. It's too unbecoming for them to just go in and hack and slash with a broken knife."

Huang Shi turned his gaze to He Baodao, who nodded in agreement: "There's a saying that three arrows are not as good as one sword, and three swords are not as good as one spear. Arrows are fine against mountain bandits. But against heavily armored cavalry like the Jurchens, unless it's their face or throat, it's not surprising that a dozen arrows wouldn't kill them. And if someone is slashed three times, even if their armor is thick and they're not seriously injured, the blood loss will take half their life. As for spears..."

He Baodao took a horse stance, spread his arms, and made a thrusting motion in the air: "Kill!"

After withdrawing his hands and feet, He Baodao sighed, as satisfied as if he had just killed someone: "Now we can cut off heads."

“However…”

Just as Huang Shi began to ponder He Baodao’s opinion, He Baodao, who was speaking heavily and panting, choked Huang Shi with another harsh remark: “If it’s a shield bearer, it won’t work…”

He Baodao then gave another impromptu demonstration, his left hand covering his chest to represent a shield, slowly moving down to his abdomen: “I’ll use the shield to deflect the spear tip…”

Then, in slow motion, he took a large step forward, his right arm swinging in a wide arc from under his ribs to his chest: “Another head in hand.”

“Spears can be arranged in formation,” Duncan retorted, his face red and his neck thick.

“We can also form a shield formation.” He Baodao shook his head and put away his stance. “Don’t think that only you Westerners are smart, and that we Ming soldiers are all fools. The key is still individual martial arts skills. If you are good at spear fighting, you win with spears; if you are good at swordsmanship, you win with swordsmanship…”

Huang Shi stroked his chin and thought for a long time. “Show me the movements again… slowly… start over… a little slower… do it again… um, I understand…”

Huang Shi thought seriously for a while and finally gave the order: “After this battle, Jin Qiude, go and change your weapons. We don’t need swords and shields anymore; we’ll replace them all with spears. Spears over six feet long.”

Seeing his subordinates’ puzzled faces, Huang Shi didn’t intend to explain his thoughts now, after all, this still required arduous training: “As Commander He said, if you are good at spear fighting, you win with spears. After all, spears are more powerful and you can strike first. Our army still needs to practice spear formations diligently, the so-called preemptive strike.”

Before the other officers could object, Duncan said impatiently, “And those muskets, I want to see them with my own eyes.”

"Alright, I'll go ask General Zhang for it when I get back. They don't need it anyway." Huang Shi readily agreed. The muskets in the warehouse were no different from scrap metal; Zhang Pan wouldn't refuse this favor.

"Back on Changsheng Island, we must train our troops diligently. Although Mr. Duncan is a Westerner, I hope you can work together with him, without distinction."

"Yes, sir!" During the Ming Dynasty, Han Chinese generally viewed Caucasians more favorably, and the Westerners' humble attitude towards the Ming Dynasty didn't evoke any ill will in them. Even He Baodao didn't consider Duncan a brutal barbarian.

"Mr. Duncan, once we return to Changsheng Island, please help me train the spear formation well,"

Duncan confidently assured him. "I certainly won't disappoint the general."

Huang Shi was determined to train his soldiers to He Baodao's level of skill and combat prowess. Although He Baodao had vowed not to reveal his family's secrets, Huang Shi didn't think it was entirely hopeless. He believed in gradual change of mindset; after all, there was the saying "boiling a frog slowly in water"... well, He Baodao had proven that story to be a rumor, but Huang Shi still thought the principle was valid.

The issue of muskets was quickly resolved. Zhang Pan, as expected, had no fondness for those inferior weapons and promised Huang Shi he could take all the stockpiled ones after the war. As Huang Shi thanked him with a smile, Zhang Pan was also infected by his optimism. For a moment, both of them forgot that the Later Jin army was still twenty miles away, hastily constructing siege equipment.

Speak of the devil, and he appears! Two days later, a troop of knights rode up to Lushun Fortress, shouting outside the gate that they were messengers sent by the emperor. When Zhang Pan received the report, he was discussing the defense of the city with Huang Shi. After hearing the report, Zhang Pan pondered for a moment, then a smile slowly appeared on his face: "General Huang, what do you think?" "

In war, one must strike hard at the first drumbeat, then the momentum wanes, and finally the army is exhausted. The Jurchens' morale has undoubtedly collapsed, so I estimate that they sent someone to persuade us to surrender." Huang Shi breathed a sigh

of relief upon hearing this news; the lowered morale of the Later Jin army was indeed good news. During the first siege, everyone in the Later Jin army thought they could take the city in one fell swoop, so naturally everyone fought hard to scale the walls. Now that the officers no longer had absolute confidence, the soldiers naturally considered retreating and were somewhat pessimistic about the prospects of victory, thus greatly reducing their fighting strength. As long as they won another battle, the Later Jin army would be extremely demoralized, and the ordinary soldiers would no longer have the confidence to attack. A third battle was impossible; the enemy was not foolish enough to come and die when their morale was already low.

Zhang Pan clapped his hands and laughed, as if he had seen light in the darkness: "The Jurchens have miscalculated this time. Doesn't this tell all our officers and soldiers that victory is just around the corner?"

After the bloody battle at Lushun, the soldiers knew that the Later Jin army would definitely come again, so it was impossible not to be nervous. As the commander of the army, if officers at all levels were in high spirits, the soldiers would naturally be more motivated.

"Let the envoy in," Zhang Pan ordered impatiently, "Quickly gather the officers and let them all come to listen."

In the hall, Huang Shi still stood in the guest general's position. After the Later Jin envoy entered, he handed over the letter and bowed according to the Later Jin etiquette: "This humble one greets General Zhang Pan of the Ming Dynasty."

Then he bowed to Huang Shi as well: "This humble one greets General Huang Shi of the Ming Dynasty."

Zhang Pan ignored him and pointed to the clerk, shouting loudly: "Read it!"

The clerk shook his head and read it aloud. It was indeed a letter of surrender, and the conditions were very generous. Not only would the officers and soldiers of Lushun be guaranteed their lives and property, but everyone would also receive a reward.

The officers in the hall initially stood with taut lips and gripping their sword hilts, but Huang Shi burst out laughing. Zhang Pan glanced at him reproachfully, but couldn't help but smile as well.

Seeing the two generals laughing, the officers in the hall relaxed their facial muscles one by one, and the laughter grew louder and louder.

After the clerk finished reading the letter, Zhang Pan said to the Jin envoy with a cold smile, "You're about to die, and you still won't wake up?"

(End of Chapter 18)

Who Will Sharpen My Sword Chapter 19 Countermeasures After

Zhang Pan finished speaking, he reached out to the clerk for the letter. The clerk, who also had a talent for comedy, handed over the letter while feigning sincerity, saying, "These conditions are really generous, sir, you should think it over!"

Seeing the clerk's serious expression, all the officers in the hall burst into thunderous laughter, including Huang Shi and Zhang Pan. The sound seemed to shake the roof tiles off.

The Later Jin envoy's face was pale, but amidst the laughter, he still asked in a deep voice, "Why is the general laughing?"

"So you can die knowing why!" Zhang Pan waved his hand, drawing a circle that encompassed all the officers in the room, before gritting his teeth and saying, "Everyone in this room, including myself, is a commoner from Liaodong, with families and loved ones, living in peace and prosperity. Even if you Jurchens compensate us for our land and property, can you return our elders and relatives?"

With that, Zhang Pan tore the letter to shreds. "A few measly coins? Once we've slaughtered all the Jurchens, won't we just take them ourselves?"

Knowing he was doomed, the envoy sneered and retorted loudly, "While the two generals are brave, the iron hooves of our Great Jin are invincible."

"Guards, drag him out and behead him!"

When the guards stepped forward and bound the Later Jin envoy, the man did not resist. He had known this might be his fate when he came to Lushun on orders: "I am but a lowly person, while the two generals enjoy great fame. Have you not heard

the saying, 'When two countries are at war, envoys are not killed'?" "A traitorous slave from Jianzhou, daring to call himself an enemy state?" Zhang Pan snorted.

As the soldiers dragged the envoy away, he remained defiant: "When the nest is overturned, how can the eggs remain intact? In three days, I will be waiting for the two generals and everyone in this hall in the netherworld..."

In ancient times, envoys from both sides of a war were usually bold, otherwise they would easily lose face for their side. This envoy spoke eloquently from beginning to end, without resorting to any tantrums or insults. This made Huang Shi slightly regretful, because if officers could see the ugly face of an enemy on the verge of death, it would only intensify their contempt. Even Huang Shi himself felt a slight sense of awe in the face of such composure from the envoy.

The two Later Jin guards behind the envoy remained silent. After the envoy was led away, Zhang Pan frowned and said, "You can go back and report now. General Huang and I, Zhang Pan, will be waiting for you Jurchens to come and die in Lushun."

"We will convey General Zhang's message," one of the Later Jin soldiers on the right said loudly in Chinese. "So, General, you are returning his head to us so that his family can bury it."

"Very well. I have always admired warriors. Although he is a barbarian, I will not let him die a headless ghost."

According to Zhang Pan's order, the envoy's head was displayed on a flagpole to all of Lushun, then placed in a wooden box, and handed over to the Later Jin soldiers who had come with him along with the body.

"When we fight in the future, we will consult with the two generals again." The Later Jin guards left politely, their morale as high as ever.

The generals in Lushun burst into laughter. The Ming army's fighting spirit was also high, so they naturally took the remark as a joke. Zhang Pan and Huang Shi wouldn't lower themselves to make things difficult for a few soldiers.

After the officers dispersed, Zhang Pan smiled meaningfully: "General Huang, what are your plans?"

Huang Shi returned the smile: "General Zhang, you have everything under control; you must be very confident."

The two looked at each other for a moment, then simultaneously burst into laughter.

------------

Shanhaiguan.

The sound of gongs and drums was deafening, and two people were setting off firecrackers.

A huge crowd of onlookers gathered at the gate, each face filled with envy. Several children were even carried on their parents' shoulders to watch the spectacle, letting them experience the atmosphere of scholars bringing glory to their ancestors.

Amidst the reverent gazes, a young man strode confidently through the gate. Several elderly neighbors, gathered to offer their congratulations, stood before him. He adjusted his official robes and knelt before his father in the ancestral hall, kowtowing nine times respectfully: "Father, I have been fortunate enough to pass the imperial examination thanks to the blessings of our ancestors."

...

"Brother, aren't you planning to go to the capital to take the imperial examination again?"

"No, we're from Liaodong. We can't serve as officials there. A Jinshi (successful candidate in the highest imperial examination) must go elsewhere, so a Juren (successful candidate in the provincial imperial examination) is just right. I've already submitted a letter to Lord Yuan, the military commissioner of Liaodong. Lord Yuan told me there's a vacancy for a county magistrate in Juehua County, and I can take the position."

"Juehua County?"

"Little sister, you don't know, Ningyuan Fort has been under construction for almost a year, and under Lord Yuan's supervision, it's almost finished. Juehua Island has just been established as a county, and the magistrate is already on his way, but no Juren from our area is willing to go to such a dangerous place to serve as a county magistrate."

"Brother, do you want to be a county magistrate for the rest of your life?"

“In the future… little sister, weren’t we from Tongzhou, Shaanxi, six generations ago? Perhaps we could get permission from our clan to move back to our ancestral home.” The eldest brother of the Zhao family, with his father’s consent, had just changed his name to Yingong and was determined to serve as an official on the Liaoxi defense line.

“Father…”

“So many generations have passed, there’s nothing wrong with reconciling with our clan, isn’t there?” Six generations ago, the Zhao family was originally from Shaanxi. After their ancestor became an official in Liaodong, he had some disagreements with the clan. As a court official, having a conflict with the clan head was, according to the Ming Dynasty law, a crime of contempt for human relations. After being dismissed from office, the Zhao ancestor simply didn’t return to his hometown to face persecution, but instead studied and passed down

his family’s legacy in the Northeast. In this generation, the Tongzhou clan produced a scholar, Zhao Jingzhi, who even ranked first in the Tongzhou prefectural examination. As soon as Zhao Yingong passed the provincial examination, the clan resumed correspondence. Although from a modern bloodline perspective, his family was no longer from Shaanxi, in the Ming Dynasty, as long as he still bore the surname Zhao, he couldn’t treat his ancestral family with disrespect.

...

The next morning, while it was still pitch black, Zhao Yingong packed his bags, ready to leave.

"Second brother, little sister, we're counting on you to take care of Father and Mother." Zhao Yingong was eager to report to the Liaoxi frontier. He hesitated, then finally said softly, "Little sister, spend more time with Mother. Big sister's matter will pass."

"Big sister was too careless." Zhao's younger brother sighed. The matter was barely settled, and his sister had been gossiping with the neighbor girls, bringing shame upon herself and making the whole family a laughingstock.

"Little sister understands, big brother, don't worry." The little sister knew her mother was troubled. Since her sister's hasty marriage, rumors had spread to her in-laws. As the saying goes, good news doesn't travel far, but bad news travels fast. Her sister's in-laws thought their daughter-in-law was a crazy woman and weren't treating her well.

Zhao's younger sister said angrily, "That guy is truly despicable!"

"Little sister, you were right before. He's always been a cold-hearted person. It's a pity that eldest sister doesn't listen to you." Zhao Yingong also sighed. He was heartbroken to hear that his eldest sister was unhappy, but what could he do when his daughter was married?

"Those soldiers are all the same!" Zhao said bitterly, "He was clearly deliberately provoking my sister..."

------------

At the same time, in Lushun Fort, Liaodong.

"Reporting to the two generals, a scout reports that the Jurchens are attaching wooden wheels to their siege equipment..."

Huang Shi and Zhang Pan listened intently to the report. The Later Jin army had been building a considerable amount of siege equipment over the past few days, and yesterday evening they began their chaotic preparations to break camp and set off. They were already harnessing their horses just after midnight today, clearly heading towards Lushun again.

The two immediately began discussing countermeasures.

"General Zhang, destroying the letter and executing the envoy has greatly angered the Jurchens. They only finished building the equipment yesterday, and today they're already attacking without a second thought, showing no regard for the horses' strength and stamina. Hmph, they've already lost half the battle." Huang Shi spoke first, emphasizing the principle that a general shouldn't raise an army out of anger.

"They've built three times the number of watchtowers and ladders as last time, meaning most of the horses will be used for pulling carts." Zhang Pan gritted his teeth and sneered repeatedly. He had deliberately told several Later Jin soldiers to defend Lushun Fortress to the death, and sure enough, the Later Jin army frantically built siege weapons; so far, everything had gone according to his calculations.

“Subtracting the manpower for pulling the carts, the Jurchens only have less than two thousand soldiers available.” Huang Shi and Zhang Pan had calculated this at least ten times. Two thousand freely mobile cavalry was the most pessimistic estimate; in reality, it might not even be fifteen thousand.

“North and South Mountains!” Zhang Pan pointed forcefully on the map. This was the only route the Later Jin could take to bring their weapons to Lushun. Other roads were either too far or too rugged. “There’s a bend here, and it’s uphill, with mountains and forests on both sides—a perfect spot for an ambush.”

Huang Shi studied the map for a while. The road curved there, with jungle on both sides for concealment, but no open ground for cavalry to charge.

“The Jurchens’ two thousand troops will be divided into front, rear, left, and right armies. The front army will be at most half, so it won’t exceed one thousand men. They worked all day yesterday, so they should be quite tired today.” Huang Shi clapped his hands. Behind this historical victory, there were so many calculations. Now he finally understood them all. Invaluable experience and lessons learned—this trip was truly fruitful.

“If we can defeat the main force of the Jurchen vanguard, their central army will naturally tremble with fear.” Without mobile cover troops, siege equipment could be ambushed at any time. Once the Ming army defeats the vanguard, they will be invincible. Huang Shi thought it through more and more clearly: “Even if the Jurchens still insist on attacking, we are not afraid. Their central army will be exhausted from dragging the equipment over. Our army can wait in comfort and attack these unprotected siege equipment. It will be a piece of cake.”

Zhang Pan looked at the map for a while before looking up: “I still have nearly a thousand soldiers available. The remaining thousand or so auxiliary soldiers will also be armed and ready to attack. That makes a total of two thousand men. If that’s all, my plan is exactly the same as General Huang’s. But since General Huang has brought several hundred soldiers, I am not willing to let the Jurchens off so easily.”

(End of Chapter 19)

Who Will Sharpen My Sword? Chapter 20: The Attack

Zhang Pan advocated dividing the army into two groups. Half of the soldiers in the front group would ambush the Later Jin vanguard, while the remaining rear group would block their retreat. Originally, although the attack on the Later Jin vanguard with nearly a thousand soldiers and a thousand or so auxiliary soldiers was abundant, there wouldn't be much spare strength. Now, with several hundred more soldiers, the strength of Lushun was much better. The Later Jin's losses under Lushun in the previous two days were also much greater than in the original history of Huangshi.

“The vanguard will launch a surprise attack, and with our forces outnumbering the Jurchens, we are certain of victory. The rear guard will remain as a reserve; if the vanguard fails, the rear guard will immediately join the battle. This is exactly the same plan General Huang described. However, if the Jurchens flee in fear, we will force them into the forest, compelling them to abandon their horses and scatter.”

If the Later Jin vanguard is defeated, it will pose no further threat. Zhang Pan heavily tapped the road behind Nanshan Mountain, the likely location of the Later Jin central army: “If the vanguard successfully defeats the Jurchen vanguard, the rear guard must conserve its strength and then directly attack the Jurchen central army. They are currently climbing the mountain with their equipment; our forces will advance rapidly from above, achieving a decisive victory!”

"Moreover, their horses are tied to their carts, and they can't be taken off in a hurry. Even if they were, the horses would be exhausted," Huang Shi exclaimed, adding, "Prepare plenty of gunpowder and oil canisters. When we rush in, we'll start burning their carts and siege equipment, preventing them from forming a battle formation. The Jurchen rear guard won't be able to charge either."

"Exactly! I estimate they won't even have a chance to form a battle formation, but it's always good to be prepared with plenty of gunpowder and oil canisters." Zhang Pan stood up straight with high spirits, "This time we must seize as many horses as possible, and then we'll split them with General Huang."

The sky was already tinged with the pale light of dawn, and Lushun Fortress resembled a buzzing beehive, with soldiers everywhere cleaning their swords and spears.

When Huang Shi saw He Baodao, he was carefully blackening two waist knives over the campfire so that the enemy wouldn't be able to see their gleam in the moonlight or early morning.

“The battle won’t begin until after dawn. Everyone else is just wiping their blades, but Commander He is smoking his. You’re really cautious.”

“It’s a habit.” He Baodao didn’t even look up as he repeatedly smoked his blade. “Anyway, this blade is already sharp enough. It can be used if we encounter Jurchen scouts on the road.”

Huang Shi wasn’t too worried about this. Didn’t Zhang Pan’s ambush succeed in history?

He Baodao carefully sheathed his smoked blade and then began smoking his spearhead. “Since the Battle of Sarhu, I don’t know how many times I’ve dreamt of this day. Finally, we’re going to have a real showdown with the Jurchens on the battlefield. Even if I die

, I’ll be content.” “The campaign is imminent. Don’t say such things.” Although he knew it was feudal superstition, Huang Shi was still very unhappy to hear it, and even had a bad feeling.

Looking around, the other soldiers were also excited, but they still seemed somewhat nervous and uneasy.

“Yes, since Sarhu, we desperately need a victory.” Huang Shi was also excited about this battle of ten thousand men, but he couldn’t help but feel a little apprehensive.

Before setting off, Zhang Pan sensed the soldiers' tension; many gripped their weapons nervously, only releasing them abruptly with low curses from the spasms of pain.

Zhang Pan ordered his personal guards to read the order: anyone who hadn't committed patricide, murder, or wife-stealing at the hands of the Later Jin could stay and defend Lushun Fortress, for this battle required soldiers willing to die for their cause.

The guards and officers repeatedly shouted this order, but the Dongjiang soldiers, aside from gripping their weapons even tighter, didn't respond.

"I've long heard that the soldiers left at Lushun Fortress all harbor deep hatred for the Jurchens. I used to think it was an exaggeration, but I didn't expect it to be true," Huang Shi remarked, startled by the scene.

"I did indeed select them, but I didn't expect it to be so clean," Zhang Pan replied, seemingly surprised as well.

Huang Shi praised, "With the army's morale high, we will surely defeat the Jurchens."

"I've long heard of General Huang's eloquence; would you be willing to..." Zhang Pan pointed to the city gate tower, "to boost morale?"

"These are mostly General Zhang's soldiers; I won't embarrass myself,"

Zhang Pan said with a wry smile. "I'm tongue-tied and can't speak well, especially when thousands are looking at me."

"Very well," Huang Shi readily agreed, dismounting and galloping up the city tower. More than two thousand soldiers quickly gathered below, looking up. The relatives of the military households also strained to get closer to the inside of the gate, eager to hear the legendary speech of Huang Shi.

He wanted to instill pride, then a sense of mission, and finally make the soldiers feel that their sacrifice was worthwhile...

Huang Shi took a few deep breaths, considered his plan, and finally spoke loudly:

"The three sage kings of the past dynasties have created our China..."

The rule of the three dynasties was the ideal of Confucian governance: wise rulers, unimpeded speech, incorruptible officials, and people living in peace and prosperity, free from hunger and poverty. Even commoners could write their grievances

on memorial pillars, which would reach the imperial court, so there were no wrongful imprisonments, no injustices or illegalities in the world... This beautiful story, which they had been hearing since childhood, immediately made many soldiers look on with fascination. Every Ming Dynasty person struggling at the bottom of society fantasized about that wonderful era...

"...Since the Three Dynasties, China has never experienced a golden age again, hence the barbarians have coveted the Central Plains..."

This statement reflects a Confucian consensus: after the Three Dynasties, there were at best "well-governed eras," meaning better than chaotic times. No matter how well subsequent Chinese rulers performed, they could never surpass the wise kings of the Three Dynasties. Before the flawless mirror of the Three Dynasties' rule, any Chinese emperor would inevitably be reflected with a face full of pockmarks. "Enjoying a golden age" should only be a self-deprecating remark by Chinese officials, not a boast by Chinese emperors.

Huang Shi believes this humility expresses the ambition of Chinese rulers; they understood their shortcomings and also reflected their confidence—the merits and demerits will be judged by posterity. For example, the "Reign of Wen and Jing" in the Han Dynasty and the "Reign of Zhenguan" in the Tang Dynasty were acknowledged by later Confucian scholars as approaching the level of a "golden age."

"...The weak Song Dynasty could not defend itself, and thus our Chinese land was plunged into ruin..."

Before the fall of the Ming Dynasty, three emperors claimed a golden age, two of whom were from the Song Dynasty. Emperor Zhenzong of Song, after surrendering to the Liao Dynasty, claimed a golden age would arrive in a few days to cover his shame. Emperor Gaozong of Tang also secretly did something similar, though neither of them dared to admit it later. As for Emperor Gaozong of Song and his minister Qin Hui, who clamored for a "golden age" throughout their lives, they have been a laughingstock of China for centuries. This eagerness to boast only shows that they dared not let posterity judge them.

"...Emperor Taizu raised the banner of righteousness and drove out the tyrannical Yuan, thus we know that the barbarians will one day be destroyed..."

Huang Shi gradually became immersed in his emotions, stroking the bright red military flag of the Ming Dynasty. It was under this flag that Ming soldiers used bamboo poles to drive away the Mongol cavalry and overthrow the four-surname system imposed on China... Huang Shi also remembered that under the other two red flags, the Chinese army repeatedly launched counterattacks against the raping and plundering enemies, protecting the elders and people of the motherland, making the whole world believe—China will never perish, never.

"...Although the barbarians are rampant for a time, China has a reason to rise again. Let this turning point begin today, let it begin in our hands..."

Huang Shi spoke passionately for a long time. The era he came from had painful memories, and now he had arrived in an era of even greater pain. For a moment, all these emotions merged together.

He was not unaware that nationalism was a double-edged sword, each side equally sharp—like the era he came from, nationalism brought China independence, allowing the Chinese people to challenge any power, but it also made China pay a considerable price. But he personally believed that a nation must first stand up before it can talk about inclusiveness.

The soldiers below the city listened quietly. Huang Shi knew that many would die today; these sacrifices were inevitable.

"...We will bleed, and the Jurchens will bleed; we will die, and the Jurchens will die..."

Huang Shi took a deep breath, noticing everyone anxiously waiting for his next words:

"But our souls have the incense of the Chinese people to enjoy, and the ancestral tablets offered by our descendants to sacrifice ourselves for, while the Jurchens have none!"

A thousand years after the Code of Hammurabi had been buried in the sand, when the Egyptians had planted pyramids like forests, the ancestors of the Chinese were merely a tribe of ten thousand on the Loess Plateau. But starting from the legendary Three Dynasties, the Chinese gradually incorporated the entire East Asia into their territory, their descendants multiplying and thriving.

"Gentlemen, strive on!" Huang Shi leaned on the flagpole beside him, his emotions surging for a long time—today, am I a Chinese in the true sense of the Ming Dynasty?

After speaking, the soldiers lined up and set off, winding their way like a long snake towards the gray horizon. The mountains at the edge of the land shimmered with menacing shadows in the night. The Ming army marched forward in a mighty procession, each soldier prepared to accept the fate that awaited them there—just like the misty scenery before them, full of unknowns and dangers…

Every soldier who passed through the fortress gate was like a newborn infant, shouting with all their might, one shout after another:

“Long live the Emperor!”

“Long live the Ming Dynasty!”

...

In April of the third year of the Tianqi reign (1623), ten thousand Later Jin cavalry marched south to attack Lushun. Three thousand Liaodong Ming soldiers fought valiantly in Lushun, their bodies piled high before the fortress gates...

The Later Jin army failed to capture the fortress after three days, and retreated twenty li, sending envoys to persuade Lushun to surrender... Zhang Pan, the Lushun garrison

commander, destroyed the letter and beheaded the envoys. Enraged, the Later Jin army attacked Lushun again... Zhang Pan and Huang Shi mobilized the entire Lushun fortress to attack... More than two thousand Dongjiang soldiers fought a great battle with the Later Jin army outside Lushun fortress on the north and south mountains... In this battle, the Ming army won a great victory! (End of Chapter 20) Who Will Sharpen My Sword? Chapter 21 Return Hundreds of huge watchtowers and ladders were pushed to the side, many burning fiercely. During the battle, the Ming army had no time to rescue the horses, and the Later Jin army had no strength to do so either, so a large number of warhorses were burned alive. "Send more scouts." Huang Shi ordered He Baodao to keep scouting northwards to avoid being ambushed by the Later Jin army. After capturing the battlefield, the Ming soldiers began collecting spoils, cutting off the heads of unclaimed corpses and checking for silver and copper coins. This work wouldn't stop until they were completely exhausted. Therefore, most of the Ming soldiers, including Huang Shi's men, sat on the ground, panting heavily. Scouts returned wave after wave, seeing only the retreating enemy forces fleeing north, abandoned flags and corpses of men coughing up blood. "We won," Huang Shi sighed, finally able to relax. ... Just now, after the Later Jin vanguard was scattered, the central army stared in disbelief at the Ming army that appeared before them like divine intervention. Their weapons and armor were mostly still mounted on carts, and the soldiers and auxiliary troops were mixed together, showing no clear military organization. Faced with the rapid attack of the Lushun army, the exhausted Later Jin central army was thrown into chaos in an instant. A few brave soldiers hurriedly threw down ropes to put on their armor and grab their weapons, while most others let out a shout and scattered in all directions. When the Ming army set fire to their supplies, the Later Jin army was thrown into complete chaos. Some officers wanted to counterattack, some wanted to form defensive formations, and others wanted to retreat and regroup. In this utter chaos, the Later Jin troops had long since disintegrated; soldiers couldn't find their generals, and generals couldn't find their soldiers. The Ming soldiers charging down the hill, setting fires and hacking and slashing, caused the Later Jin army to crumble. The surging tide of fleeing soldiers swept away the Later Jin rear guard attempting to reinforce them... The battlefield was littered with corpses. Huang Shi walked through it twice; only thirty or forty men had fatal wounds, and these were the ones who caused the dozens of Ming casualties. Those who were caught and killed by the Ming army while fleeing were twenty times that number. Unfortunately, it was only a rout, and the results were rather meager. However, Huang Shi understood that without a strong cavalry, how easy was it to win a decisive battle? In addition to the defense of Lushun and the ambush of the Later Jin vanguard, the Ming army collected over a thousand heads on the battlefield, rendering the Later Jin incapable of launching an offensive in the two banners of Liaonan. Meanwhile, Chen Jisheng and Wang Chongxiao ambushed the equally arrogant and complacent Later Jin Plain Blue Banner at Changcheng, beheading over a hundred. The Ming army in Liaodong had essentially thwarted the Later Jin's spring offensive. "General Zhang seized over a thousand horses this time; let's form a cavalry unit too," He Baodao and Jin Qiude eagerly suggested. Huang Shi, however, sighed. A cavalry unit would be good, but horses eat too much. It's like the iron cavalry of Li Mu during the Warring States period, who swept across the north; the Zhao state even harvested the wheat that had just sprouted to feed the horses. Now, Changsheng Island doesn't even have enough food for its people; there's simply no surplus to feed the horses. After expressing his concerns, Jin Qiude reluctantly agreed, but He Baodao's eyes reddened with anxiety: "Sir, let Brother Yang figure out a solution, we can't do without the horses!" "How many horses does Brother Huang need?" Zhang Pan's laughter came from behind. He had just arrived and overheard He Baodao's last words: "I will transport them to Brother Huang over the next few months." "General Zhang..."

Huang Shi was interrupted by Zhang Pan before he could speak: "Brother Huang, you and I are fighting side by side against the enemy, so don't be so formal. We've both served under General Mao, so let's address each other as brothers."

"Brother Zhang," Huang Shi said with a smile, "I don't plan to take many horses, fifty will suffice."

Zhang Pan was taken aback, then quickly realized Huang Shi had misunderstood and thought he was trying to keep them for himself. He hurriedly explained, "I said I would send them to you in a few months because we don't have enough ships, and horses are delicate and easily die. We agreed to split them 50/50, so how about 500?"

After stating the number, Zhang Pan quickly added, "Too many horses are injured, their legs are broken, so they have to be killed for meat. There are really only about a thousand in good condition."

Huang Shi replied with a smile, "There's not enough food for people on Changsheng Island, let alone horses. I appreciate Brother Zhang's kindness."

"General Huang, have you considered planting alfalfa? It has a high yield and can also be used for food." Lushun has large areas of alfalfa planted there, with a yield several times that of millet.

“But there isn’t enough arable land on Changsheng Island,” Huang Shi briefly explained his predicament.

Zhang Pan, however, said it was no problem. He suggested that Huang Shi develop West Island and Central West Island himself, which would increase the land area; those two barren islands weren’t small either.

“I’m only appointed as the Changsheng Supervisor…” Huang Shi hesitated.

“What are you afraid of? Just occupy it first, and then ask the higher-ups for this assignment. Even if they don’t give it to you, will they blame you for developing the land and taking in the people?” “

Yes, Brother Zhang is right.” Huang Shi realized he was bound by old-fashioned notions of authority. In feudal society, officials didn’t strictly control their subordinates, especially in this situation.

"It's settled then. I owe Brother Huang five hundred horses. I also found quite a few large carts this time, laden with armor

and weapons. Brother Huang, take some as well." Zhang Pan, in a good mood, smiled happily. "Manggultai, who calls himself some fierce barbarian, has already vanished with his guards long ago." "This man is reckless and impulsive, the complete opposite of the listless Daishan. If it were Amin and... and Huang Taiji coming," Huang Shi paused when he mentioned Huang Taiji, the oppressive feeling that the name once placed on Huang Shi was no longer as suffocating, and he quickly continued, "Especially Huang Taiji, he is a shrewd strategist in military campaigns and rarely makes mistakes. Brother Zhang, you must be careful."

"I know, a rather clever barbarian." Zhang Pan smiled nonchalantly. If it weren't for Huang Shi's reputation for bravery, he would have laughed at Huang Shi for diminishing his own prestige and boosting the enemy's.

...

Of the 1,200 soldiers and 2,000 auxiliary troops in Lushun before the war, only about 2,200 survived. Huang Shi's 500 men also lost over 100, and more than 70 had infected wounds and were on the verge of death.

In that era, the army could only clean wounds with salt water, but if pieces of clothing were torn into the muscle tissue, infection almost certainly meant death. The Ming army in Lushun had a special finishing squad to ensure that severely wounded soldiers didn't die in too much pain.

Huang Shi resolutely refused to finish off his men, but he could only watch helplessly as they struggled in agony. One wounded soldier, after his wound became infected, screamed incessantly. Huang Shi had no antibiotics or painkillers; all he could do was personally rub salt into his wound.

"Sir, give me a quick death," the soldier would say each time Huang Shi intensified his pain.

"Hold on, hold on," Huang Shi would always encourage him, but in the end, he died tragically.

Seeing Huang Shi angrily hacking at the trees with his sword, Jin Qiude and He Baodao couldn't help but advise, "Sir, call the finishing blow team! Why make them suffer any more?"

"Brother Huang," Zhang Pan comforted him, "leave them in Lushun for now. Once they've recovered, I'll send them back."

He knew Huang Shi couldn't bring himself to kill them, so he planned to persuade him to return to Changsheng Island first.

"If anything happens, wouldn't it be better to leave them in Lushun? They protected this land, and I won't forget their offerings when I hold my rites." Zhang Pan had already built a new burial ground outside Lushun. He remembered Huang Shi's words before he went to war: "I won't let their souls suffer in the afterlife. Brother Huang, you can rest assured."

"How could I not trust Brother Zhang? But I brought these five hundred men with me," Huang Shi smiled bitterly, "so whether they live or die, I will bring these Changsheng disciples back."

Huang Shi racked his brains for a long time trying to find a substitute for antibiotics, and finally decided to try anything as a last resort.

"Go find General Zhang and ask for horses, two of them first."

Huang Shi ordered the knife to be boiled again in boiling water, then began scraping the flesh off the wounded soldiers.

"Scraping off the rotten flesh won't help, it will just keep rotting. My lord, life and death are predestined, let them reincarnate sooner." He Baodao had suggested several times that he personally handle the scraping, saying that his skillful knife work would ensure the wounded soldiers died without pain.

"Scrape." Huang Shi spat out the word through gritted teeth.

First, the wounded soldiers were tied tightly to the bed, then several soldiers held them down and began scraping off the rotten flesh, the sound like cutting rubber making one's teeth ache. After the first soldier was scraped, he couldn't even scream anymore, and the remaining wounded soldiers struggled and begged for death, but were still scraped one by one under Huang Shi's strict orders.

"Kill the horse and take the meat." Huang Shi ordered his men to slaughter a horse, and with the same knife boiled in boiling water, cut strips of fresh horse meat, removed the fat, and applied the fresh meat to the wounds.

Animal meat has natural antibacterial properties, and Huang Shi wasn't sure if it would work, so he could only hope for the best. After using one horse for half a day, Huang Shi wasn't comfortable using it for cooking, so he replaced it with another horse for fresh meat. Uninjured soldiers took turns applying ointments to the wounded. Huang Shi mandated that they bathe daily, and their clothes had to be boiled and soaked in salt water before any work was done.

...

A few days later, Zhang Pan came to check again. One soldier had died; he was probably too badly wounded, or perhaps there were remnants of cloth and metal that hadn't been removed. But the wounds of the remaining soldiers had scabbed over, and their fevers had subsided.

Zhang Pan smiled and said to these lucky ones, "If you hadn't survived, it would have been a disservice to the dozen or so horses General Huang had killed. Two horses for one of your lives!"

Once the soldiers recovered, they immediately came to thank Huang Shi, the general who had been willing to exchange horses for soldiers, their words filled with gratitude.

In early May, Huang Shi had finished making coffins, collected each corpse, loaded them onto ships, and transported them away. The imperial court had already received news of the victory at Lushun, and it was said that the formal establishment of Dongjiang as a garrison was already under discussion in the court. The soldiers' pay and rations were also being discussed by the Ministry of War and the Ministry of Revenue.

When Huang Shi parted ways with Zhang Pan, he took all the muskets, not to mention six hundred long spears and armor. The fire brigade was about to be upgraded from muskets to cannons.

(End of Chapter 21)

Who Will Sharpen My Sword? Chapter 22

On the way home, Huang Shi thought about the Catholic issue again. He thought it over and over and still decided to use religion. Confucianism does not speak of chaos, force, strangeness, or gods, and if he didn't occupy the religious ground, someone else would. He certainly couldn't encourage the soldiers to believe in Buddhism, needless to say, Taoism was not very useful either. The Boxer Rebellion's invulnerability to swords and spears might have had good effects in the early stages, but the aftereffects and side effects were too great, so these were all unacceptable.

Using Catholicism could also obtain technical and personnel support from the Jesuits, which would have many benefits in the long run. However, the doctrine must be changed; Huang Shi intends to control this belief system himself. If the religion can be promoted, Huang Shi, as its spokesperson, will gain wider support, which will benefit his future plans.

...

"Monogamy is fine, as long as buying concubines and maids isn't a crime." Huang Shi and Duncan quickly reached a consensus on this issue.

“We can’t touch our ancestors’ worship; it’s a Chinese tradition.”

“That’s not quite right.” Duncan hesitated.

“The Jesuits prioritize promotion, then the perfection of their doctrines, right?” Huang Shi was pointing out the Jesuits’ true intentions.

“That is… okay.” Duncan felt this could be changed later, and the Jesuits thought the same way, so he agreed.

“Original sin is unacceptable. Belief is about accumulating good deeds, not atonement. This must be changed.” The Catholic doctrine of original sin was too terrifying; according to this theory, the soldiers’ ancestors were in hell. The soldiers would absolutely not accept that.

“No way.” Duncan was about to lose his temper.

“Why are you so stubborn? You can say that if you don’t believe, you have to go to the middle church—that’s almost like the human world, you can’t ascend to the most beautiful heaven. If you believe, you can take your ancestors to heaven too…” Huang Shi talked for a long time, finally adding, “Everything is for promotion; we’ll talk about promotion later.”

“Okay.” Duncan compromised.

“Warriors go to heaven after they die, it doesn’t matter whether they believe or not.” Huang Shi certainly hoped that believers wouldn’t be afraid of death, but he didn’t want non-believers to be afraid of death either.

“This absolutely cannot be changed.” Duncan and Huang Shi argued for a long time, and finally Duncan came up with a compromise: these fallen warriors could become spirits of heroes, which sounded a bit like Shintoism in Japan.

“No way.” Huang Shi immediately objected; he still had his bottom line.

Duncan earnestly explained some benefits, but the more Huang Shi listened, the more he sounded like a samurai, saying, “No, I don’t like this idea.” No normal person likes to make themselves unhappy.

In the end, it was decided to modify Norse mythology. Of course, the doomsday war, which was bound to be destroyed, had to be discarded, while the Valkyries who became military prostitutes would obviously be retained, which would be a considerable spiritual reward for Huang Shi’s single soldiers.

"...In short, God gathers the fallen warriors for the final battle on Judgment Day. In the Heavenly Camp, every soldier can eat meat in large chunks, drink wine in large bowls, and have a group of goddesses to worship. That's how it is." Huang Shi solemnly summarized the doctrine, then nudged the dumbfounded Duncan: "Write it down!"

"Okay." After Duncan finished writing, he said, "The Jurchens are the army of hell. Since the general said to conform to Chinese language habits, let's call them Yama Demons, how about that?"

Yama Demons? Huang Shi found the term somewhat familiar, but he couldn't recall its origin. However, that wasn't the point. He categorically rejected it: "No, the Jurchens can't be associated with hell or demons in any way."

"Why? Wouldn't killing the Jurchens please God, no, please the Lord?"

Duncan looked confused as he spoke, and Huang Shi shook his head helplessly.

"Mr. Duncan, you really don't understand us Chinese... Ming people, if we follow your logic, it could negatively impact morale, and some soldiers might be too afraid to fight the Jurchens!"

"Why?" Duncan practically spat out his saliva.

"The devil is the king of hell, and the Chinese think even the big shots of hell are not to be trifled with. I assure you, if we preach according to your Jesuit doctrines, the soldiers will secretly offer incense to the devil too. The best way is to offend neither side... Never mind, you don't understand what 'the best way' means."

The final explanation was that Huang Shi was a Jesuit general, so the Jesuit soldiers fighting for him were pleasing God, and the Jurchens were just barbarians used as a test. Anyway, listening to the Jesuit general was the only way to go; after death, they could go to heaven to feast and play with goddesses.

"There's no devil's temptation, the devil can't give anything... only God's test, failure means being sent to hell... What does the devil need souls for? Hmm, let me think about that."

Huang Shi pondered for a moment: "I've got it, it still needs to conform to the Chinese way of thinking, it's to use ghosts to refine magical artifacts, those souls will suffer a fate worse than death, burned by ghostly fire every day, unless someone pleads with God before they are completely destroyed, that's it, write it down."

As long as he can control a religion, Huang Shi doesn't care what it's called, as long as one day China can conquer Rome, he sees no problem with God and the Han people making a covenant in the Qinling Mountains. Since this name can be exchanged for resources for now, he'll use it for now, anyway, he has the power to modify the doctrine, Huang Shi thinks the name is just a code.

After several busy days, all the problems were finally resolved. Before arriving at Changsheng Island, Duncan flipped through his notes again, staring blankly at the drastically altered doctrines: "Is this still Catholicism?"

"Of course it is," Huang Shi retorted dismissively, patting the draft doctrines: "This is Catholicism with Chinese characteristics."

"If that's the case..." Duncan quickly wrote down a sentence: Clergy can marry.

...

Huang Shi didn't intend to fool the officers as well, and besides, they might not be able to be fooled. This matter probably couldn't be implemented without the support and understanding of several trusted officers.

"Sir, this humble servant disagrees! Confucius said, 'Do not speak of disorder, force, strangeness, or spirits.'"

As always, He Baodao was the first to jump out as soon as he had barely revealed some ideas about promoting Catholicism.

(End of Chapter 22)

Who Will Sharpen My Sword? Chapter 23 The Magic Box

Huang Shi, already used to this, simply smiled: "Commander He, the soldiers believe in all sorts of demons and monsters, isn't that even worse?"

He Baodao, without thinking, uttered a treasonous analogy: "I don't believe that any religion can boost morale. Such an army is nothing more than the Yellow Turban rebels and Red Turban rebels."

The other three officers turned pale upon hearing this, and Yang Zhiyuan hurriedly called out: "Commander He!"

"My lord, please forgive me." He Baodao knelt down in fright.

"These are all brothers here, get up and speak first." Huang Shi paced around the small cabin a couple of times. There was nothing wrong with speaking behind closed doors, but this wasn't the first time He Baodao had done this. It seemed he really needed to find a way to deal with him, otherwise he would cause trouble sooner or later.

He Baodao hesitated for a moment before finally speaking again: "Last year, I heard that the Jesuit priest Xu had instigated a rebellion, with two million followers and hundreds of thousands of civilians joining him, while the government army numbered only twenty thousand. In less than six months, the rebels vanished, and Xu was executed by slow slicing in the capital. May I ask, sir, what use is this?"

Huang Shi stopped and sighed: "At least it can be icing on the cake. Moreover, our army needs many things from the Jesuits… The Jesuits have connections with many high-ranking officials in the court…"

The Jesuits could not only provide technical personnel in areas such as shipbuilding, artillery, and metallurgy, but also had good relationships with figures like Sun Yuanhua and Xu Guangqi. Many Confucian scholars in the Ming Dynasty converted to Christianity, mainly because they valued the books brought by the Jesuits. These Ming Dynasty Confucian scholars translated and published dozens of works on world geography, geometry, human anatomy, etc. Unfortunately, these publications were banned and destroyed in Huang Shi's time, so only the entries remain.

In fact, this kind of exchange also brought great benefits to the Ming Dynasty. For example, by the late Ming Dynasty, medicine had come to believe that the brain was the organ of thought, and there were even works that suggested that children's brains were small and the elderly's brains were dry, thus affecting their intelligence, and thus some related medical techniques were developed. Furthermore, the discussion on the theory of a spherical earth also began in the late Ming Dynasty and was accepted by a considerable number of people. Moreover, the direction of the discussion had shifted to the study of causes—similar to the explanation that all things are born from the earth and therefore must return to the earth. If this kind of thinking could continue for another hundred years, who can say that the theory of universal gravitation would not have been proposed in China?

But in Huang Shi's previous life, these Chinese thoughts and theories were all abruptly halted by Emperor Kangxi's single sentence, "utterly laughable." Those who dared to spread them were exiled to Ningguta, and the books were all burned and banned—a truly regrettable situation. Huang Shi's tone was gentle as he explained these reasons. As a modern man, he deeply understood the value of academic exchange. He Baodao, his momentum dampened, opened his mouth but ultimately fell silent. However

, Zhao Manxiong objected, feeling that religion was uncontrollable: "The Western Catholic tradition is in the hands of the Westerners." Zhao Manxiong worried about the danger of being held hostage and giving others leverage.

"You're overthinking it," Huang Shi said with a smile, explaining the original doctrines, including the prohibition against ancestor worship: "We're just borrowing the name; control will remain firmly in our hands. The soldiers can easily compare and know which is better and who to believe."

The Jesuits had promised to send Huang Shi more shipbuilding and mining technicians, and even help him contact Spanish merchants, if he could promote Catholicism.

"My lord, you underestimate the power of religious sects,"

Zhao Manxiong retorted loudly, his expression showing some anxiety. "There's no comparison when it comes to faith in God. Faith in God is the most irrational thing in the world. Once the soldiers believe in this Western god, then you, my lord, are just a mortal. How can you possibly contend with God?"

Seeing Huang Shi deep in thought, Jin Qiude spoke up. He had always been an active supporter of Catholicism, and his trip to the Jesuits had left a deep impression on him. The exquisite instruments and novel theories had greatly impressed him: "General Zhao, I cannot agree with your argument. My lord, so many benefits can be obtained for free. Why shouldn't we take them?" "What do you mean you don't want?"

Zhao Manxiong stared at him and asked, "If you know it's bait, would you still swallow it, General Jin?"

Jin Qiude glanced at him disdainfully and laughed loudly, "Why are they the fishermen and we are the fish? The only thing we can rely on in this world is strength! We have soldiers and cannons, what's there to be afraid of with a bunch of Western monks?"

Yang Zhiyuan, who had been silent until now, also spoke up, "I think this Western god is just trying to persuade people to do good, so it's not a big deal. Our army has military law, who can stir up any trouble?" Huang Shi knew that Yang Zhiyuan was a very devout person. He believed in all kinds of Bodhisattvas, Erlang Shen, and the Earth God, and he always sincerely offered incense to all kinds of gods.

“Alas, which god would come up and teach people to do evil? Yet they still collect donations for nothing.” Zhao Manxiong shook his head and smiled bitterly for a long time. He had suffered greatly as an orphan since childhood, so he didn’t believe in any gods. Finally, Zhao Manxiong turned to Huang Shi and bowed deeply: “Although I can’t explain it clearly, I feel that there will be endless troubles. Please, sir, see the truth.”

“I feel the same way,” He Baodao added. “Confucius said, ‘I do not speak of disorder, strength, strangeness, or gods.’ There is always a reason for what the sage said.”

Jin Qiude bowed deeply to Huang Shi with the most solemn posture. His scholarly background made him have no reverence for any gods or Buddhas: “Sir, in this world, the strong are respected. Zhao Qian always feels that they are fishing. Are we destined to be fished? Between us and the Jesuits, it’s not certain who will be the fisherman and who will be the fish. The Jesuits can bewitch people and win over ministers in the court. Can’t we use the same skills? The benefits are right in front of us. We should devour them first, and then fight each other according to our own abilities.”

"Pah!" Zhao Manxiong spat on the ground in an annoyed tone, saying in an unusually fierce voice, "Knowing there's trouble, why go looking for it? What if we can't win?"

Jin Qiude ignored him and went straight to Huang Shi, asking, "Sir, if everything in the world has to be considered perfectly, then we shouldn't do anything at all. Commander Zhao lacks confidence, but does Your Excellency lack confidence in your own strength?"

...

After returning to Changsheng Island, Huang Shi ordered that each coffin be covered with the military flag—the Viper Flag of Changsheng Island—and then solemnly buried the more than one hundred soldiers.

Unlike tradition, Huang Shi placed a cross on each grave, supposedly to send the soldiers' souls to the heavenly camp. The soldiers accepted this with a detached attitude. Jin Qiude preached extensively about the doctrines, a task Huang Shi had entrusted to him—he felt as if he had opened Pandora's box.

While watching from the sidelines, Huang Shi pointed at Jin Qiude on the stage and asked, "Commander He, do you think Commander Jin believes this?"

"Of course not. He's someone who's read the sages' books, how could he believe this?"

Huang Shi smiled and nodded, "That's right." No wonder Confucianism in China is called the "Confucian religion" by foreigners; it has indeed effectively prevented the spread of religion among the scholar-official class. "But the soldiers don't understand the great principles of our Chinese Confucianism. I just hope they can also be educated and not forget their loyalty to the Ming Dynasty (actually, to Huang Shi himself)."

Duncan had another concern. He finally told Huang Shi that if the Jesus Church knew this doctrine, not only would they get nothing, but he would also be expelled from the church.

Huang Shi piously clasped his hands together, looked up at the blue sky, and said softly, "God will understand your and my good intentions in promoting Catholicism."

"Perhaps... well, I mean certainly." Duncan made the sign of the cross several times. "But the Jesuit priests won't understand. My report is certainly very good, but they will still send people to inspect."

Huang Shi still looked up at the sky with a piously expression and replied softly, "They will understand. We can pray, we can pray to God." — When it comes to vanity projects, you white-haired baboons are far inferior to us Chinese.

After the Battle of Lushun, Dongjiang Town was officially established. The imperial court ordered the Ministry of Revenue and the Ministry of War to send officials to Liaodong to verify the number of registered soldiers and inspect the soldiers, men, and equipment of each camp in Dongjiang Town.

(End of Chapter 23)

Who Will Sharpen My Sword? Chapter 24 Counterattack

"General Mao is appointed as the Vice Commander-in-Chief and Commander-in-Chief of Dongjiang, with the hereditary title of Commander of the Thousand Households of Dongjiang Town."

Huang Shi announced the imperial court's appointment to Chang Sheng and his generals.

"Zhang Pan is appointed Vice Commander-in-Chief, Assistant General of Dongjiang, hereditary Deputy Centurion of Dongjiang Town, and Commander of Lushun Commandery..."

Zhang Pan has also been promoted to a third-rank military officer. Huang Shi's men held their breath, waiting quietly for what was to come.

"Huang Shi is appointed Vice Commander-in-Chief, Assistant General of Dongjiang, hereditary Deputy Centurion of Dongjiang Town, and Commander of Changsheng Commandery and Xizhongdao Commandery."

"Congratulations, sir!" the officers cheered in unison.

Huang Shi smiled: "It's not over yet. You all will also receive rewards."

"Zhao Manxiong, Jin Qiude, Yang Zhiyuan, and He Baodao are all appointed Garrison Commander of Dongjiang and hereditary Junior Flag Officer of Dongjiang Town."

"Thank you for your promotion, sir." The officers bowed again. After these men died, their eldest sons would no longer have to start as soldiers, and their families would receive land and military households in Dongjiang Town.

"Finally, there's one more thing, the issue of military supervision. Since Dongjiang has been established as a garrison, according to ancestral rules, civil officials should govern the military, and each garrison needs a civil official to supervise the troops..." "

There are no outsiders here, so I'll speak frankly. The civil officials of the Ming Dynasty treat our military officers like slaves. All the generals and officers of Dongjiang have submitted petitions to General Mao, opposing the supervision of civil officials." Huang Shi and Zhang Pan also jointly signed a letter to Mao Wenlong, stating that Dongjiang is located overseas and that the court should be requested to handle the matter expediently.

"And the result?" He Baodao couldn't help but ask. Huang Shi kept the suspense building

: "Eunuch supervision is also an ancestral rule! General Mao requests the court to send an eunuch to supervise the troops in Dongjiang." Mao Wenlong, after all, still wanted to speak for the Liaodong Ming army; his roots were also in the Liaodong military group.

"Won't the Court of State Affairs reject such a request?" Zhao Manxiong and Jin Qiude exclaimed simultaneously.

"His Majesty has decreed that General Mao must submit another detailed report on the battle of Lushun. General Mao's report is included with the victory report. The Court of State Affairs cannot reject it."

Finally, the cabinet's request to send a civil official to supervise the troops in Dongjiang Town was rejected by the Tianqi Emperor, who instead ordered the eunuch Wei, the head of the Eastern Depot, to draft the candidates for supervisor. Eastern Depot affairs did not require cabinet approval, so although the cabinet objected several times, the Emperor approved each request. When the news reached Dongjiang Town, it was met with cheers.

Eunuchs were close to the Emperor, and their reports did not need to go through the Office of Transmission. This meant that military achievements and grievances could be directly reported to the Ming Emperor. The officers believed the Emperor was the most just and understanding of their plight; they had always been bullied because the civil officials had covered up the truth and deceived the Emperor.

…

“We also need an Eastern Depot eunuch and two Imperial Guards from Changsheng Island. We need to find out their backgrounds,” Huang Shi handed Li Yunrui a note with three names and their positions.

While waiting for the supervisors to arrive, Huang Shi was troubled by a resurgence of feudalism. Although the Huang family had expanded after the Battle of Lushun, they now had nearly fifty retainers.

"My lord, this is what Commander Yang instructed me to do." Bao Jiusun spread out a map of Changsheng Island, on which a large area of land was drawn, including a thousand mu of arable land. Bao Jiusun said that this all belonged to Huang Shi.

"My land?" Huang Shi was startled.

"Indeed." Since Huang Shi was now the deputy centurion of Dongjiang, Yang Zhiyuan instructed Bao Jiusun to immediately select some strong military households for Huang Shi, granting each household twelve to fifteen mu of the best land. The produce from this thousand mu of land would belong to Huang Shi and could be used to subsidize the Huang family's servants.

Yang Zhiyuan, He Baodao, and Jin Qiude also went to draw the land. As hereditary junior officers, they were tentatively assigned five households, with each person initially allocated fifty mu. While explaining these details, Bao Jiusun couldn't help but reveal a face full of envy.

However, Huang Shi didn't hear Zhao Manxiong's name: "Where's Commander Zhao?" "

Commander Zhao seems to think Changsheng Island is unsafe. He personally led his retainers to West Island to survey the wasteland."

"Retainers?"

Huang Shi's four generals had also started recruiting retainers. It was said that they had privately discussed and agreed on a minimum of ten retainers.

Hong Antong was ordered to investigate, and sure enough, they had already set the rules. Huang Shi secretly guessed that this was mostly Zhao Manxiong's idea—the total number of retainers for the four men—that is, the total number of privileges, should not exceed that of their superiors. Undoubtedly, once Huang Shi's retainers increased, they would raise the number again.

The retainers had a completely master-slave relationship with their masters, making them more reliable and conducive to strengthening cohesion. However, Huang Shi worried that these retainers might become psychologically distorted and create a gap between them and ordinary soldiers.

Sure enough, what he feared most came to pass.

"My lord has ordered that private fights are forbidden in the army..."

Today, Jin Qiude came to report a brawl to Huang Shi. Seven or eight people had gotten into a fight over a trivial matter, and one person was injured.

"Five soldiers, according to the military regulations established by my lord, are to be punished by cleaning toilets for ten days and carrying excrement to be used as fertilizer..."

In the fire station on Changsheng Island, Huang Shi has replaced beatings with punishments such as confinement and hard labor. Moreover, urination and defecation are prohibited on Changsheng Island, and many toilets have been built on the island.

"I have also brought two other men to you, my lord. Please deal with them strictly."

Jin Qiude is the military judge of the fire station. He was surprised that even a small matter involving two men was being brought to Huang Shi's attention: "You decide how to deal with them. Why did you bring them to me?"

"They are Huang Aqi and Huang Yiliu. The army has military law, and the family has family rules. I dare not act on my own." Because of Huang Shi's name, the servants skipped the number ten, and some people complained that Huang Jiu and Huang Shi's names were too similar. So, starting with Huang Da, they all added the character "A" to distinguish them. "

Is military law less important than family rules?" Huang Shi was taken aback.

Jin Qiude, however, thought Huang Shi wanted to protect the servants and quickly advised, "This humble servant humbly requests that Your Excellency punish them strictly according to the Huang family rules, lest you discourage the soldiers."

"I haven't established any family rules." Huang Shi was dumbfounded.

"This..." Jin Qiude was greatly surprised. Huang Shi hadn't established any family rules after recruiting servants for so long. His family rules had been established long ago and read aloud when recruiting servants. As the thought crossed his mind, he first flattered Huang Shi, "Your Excellency is very busy, I admire you."

However, Jin Qiude was still somewhat dissatisfied with Huang Shi's carelessness: "No wonder those two servants were so bold."

Huang Shi ordered Zhang Zaidi to bring the two men.

"Yes, Your Excellency."

Jin Qiude didn't want to pry into the Huang family's affairs, so he immediately slipped away.

"Forgive us, Master." The two men surnamed Huang immediately prostrated themselves on the ground as soon as they entered the room.

“Brother, let it go this time. Let's settle things properly before dealing with them, otherwise it'll be… it'll be…”

“Punishment without instruction.” Huang Shi had recently started teaching Zhang Zaidi idioms and literacy.

In front of officers and soldiers, Zhang Zaidi always referred to himself as a subordinate. Previously, he only called Huang Shi “Brother” when they were alone together, but if only the servant Xiao Zhang was with them, he didn't hold back, constantly addressing him as “Brother.”

“You’ll also be punished by cleaning the toilets.” Huang Shi felt that everyone should be treated equally in the army, so he ignored Zhang Zaidi’s pleas.

“Yes, we understand.” Huang Aqi and Huang Yiliu didn’t seem to have any resistance…that’s good.

“Alright,” Zhang Zaidi seemed to agree, smiling at Huang Shi, “Brother, after I finish cleaning your toilets, lend me these two men. I need to fix a toilet too.”

Huang Shi had his own private toilet, which Zhang Zaidi seemed quite envious of.

Seeing that Huang Shi didn't speak, the two Huang family servants assumed he had tacitly agreed and hurriedly said, "We are willing to serve you, Second Master."

Huang Shi then realized what Zhang Zaidi meant: "Wait, I meant for them to go with those men to clean the latrines in the army."

Zhang Zaidi seemed slightly surprised, and the two Huang family servants lying on the ground also secretly looked up at Huang Shi's expression. Their eyes met, and they immediately lowered their heads again.

"How can this be? They are members of the Huang family. How can you let them go out and be humiliated, Brother?" Zhang Zaidi felt bewildered. No matter how badly the servants were wrong, Huang Shi should have dealt with it behind closed doors.

"They violated military discipline; they should be dealt with according to military law. Is that wrong?"

"Brother, you can't distinguish between public and private matters!"

...

In the end, Huang Shi compromised and allowed the overjoyed Zhang Zaidi to borrow the two happy servants.

After they left, Huang Shi summoned Hong Antong and asked him about it. He learned that if Zhao Manxiong's servants broke the rules, they were all handed over to their respective heads for punishment. While the punishments existed, they were completely different from the military regulations. Huang Shi pondered for a long time, still confused, unsure whether this tradition should be considered a clear separation of public and private matters or a blurring of them.

"Sir, this is from the supervising eunuch Wu," Li Yunrui handed Huang Shi the simple information he had gathered, along with another sheet of paper: "This is from two brothers of the Embroidered Uniform Guard."

Huang Shi glanced at it and made a rough judgment in his mind: "Li Yunrui, what do you think of these three men?"

"Replying to Your Excellency. These three men all come from humble backgrounds, especially Eunuch Wu and the Chen brothers of the Embroidered Uniform Guard." "They're illiterate like most soldiers, so they shouldn't be as difficult to talk to as civil officials..." Li Yunrui immediately perked up and began his analysis.

"Very good," Huang Shi praised after listening, adding that being able to analyze problems independently is better than mechanically following orders.

After Li Yunrui left, Huang Shi said to a servant, "Go and call Captain Liu; I have something to tell him."

Overall, the servants were quite useful, and Huang Shi couldn't help but like this feudal system. He felt that compromising with tradition a little wasn't so bad. As long as people didn't go too far or go too far, he planned to turn a blind eye and not completely reform it.

Before the person Huang Shi was looking for arrived, Zhang Zaidi pushed open the door and came in: "Brother, I brought someone for you to see."

This address made Huang Shi's heart skip a beat—had this kid also hired servants? This was a bit out of line.

Behind him was a soldier in his twenties, a very unfamiliar face. Huang Shi was sure he hadn't seen him before, but before he could look at him closely, Zhang Zaidi had already greeted him with a cheerful greeting.

As usual, Zhang Zaidi reached out to pull up a stool to sit down. He and Huang Shi were always very casual with each other in private, just like back in their old home in Liuhe. However, he stopped immediately after making a single movement, and said sternly to the soldier behind him, "Bring it here." The

soldier, who looked a year or two older than Zhang Zaidi, was extremely respectful to little Zhang... Huang Shi was practically petrified.

The soldier even wiped the dirt off Zhang Zaidi after moving the stool:

"Father, sit down."

...

(End of Chapter 24)

(End of Chapter)

Side Story :

"Records of the National History, Hereditary House of King Cheng"

King Cheng, surnamed Zhang, personal name Liwen, courtesy name Naiming, was from Liaodong. His father's name was Wuji, his wife was Zhao, and they lived in Liuhe. King Cheng was his third son...

...

In ancient times, when discussing military strategy, the brave could not advance alone, nor could the cowardly retreat alone. The generals of the late Ming Dynasty gathered strong men as personal retainers, treating soldiers like servants. This system was truly a great harm. In battle, these personal retainers each served their own masters, and the soldiers were suspicious of each other. When they saw profit, they would fight amongst themselves, and even clear orders would not be obeyed. When defeated, they would riot and collapse, and even orders could not stop them.

At the beginning of the Changsheng reign, the old laws of the Ming Dynasty were followed, and Wang also benefited from them. When Emperor Taizu wanted to eliminate these abuses, Wang hesitated. Taizu angrily rebuked him: "My army is the army of the court, not private property. Those who are of one mind with me, share it. Those who seek to harm the country for their own gain, get rid of them."

Wang retorted angrily: "To sacrifice my family for the country is my wish. How dare I disobey my elder brother's command? Why test me with words?"

Taizu appeased him somewhat, then dismissed all his family retainers, using the land to support the strong men. Thus, the Changsheng army was no longer a private army. He commanded his generals as easily as his own arms, and his soldiers as easily as his own fingers. They advanced with the sound of drums, undaunted by seas of fire, and retreated at the sound of gongs, leaving no stone unturned even for mountains of gold.

Wang possessed great strength in this, as detailed in the Veritable Records of Emperor Taizu

…

The praise reads: With his intelligence and outstanding talent, Wang, following the mandate of Heaven, assisted in the founding of the nation—how magnificent!

------------

From *Tales of the Northern Lands* :

The Wang family ancestors had performed good deeds for generations…

…

When the Wang was fifteen, a beggar entered the Willow River to beg. His face was fierce and his voice menacing, and everyone avoided him. Only the Wang gave him food, which the beggar ate without thanks. After finishing, he laughed loudly and said to the Wang: “I am the War God Erlang Zhenjun, in charge of the wars and calamities of the Three Realms. The Supreme God has spread war to Liaodong. Your family is blessed with great fortune and is not destined to die out. Your descendants will also be wealthy and noble. I have received your food, and it is my way of repaying you.”

Having said this, the beggar vanished. The whole village thought he was a madman, but the Wang felt a sense of unease.

A month later, a heavy snow fell. The Wang was warming himself at home when suddenly he saw a man striding towards him, wearing a golden crown, silver armor, a python robe, and a black cape. The Wang looked closely and realized it was the beggar from before. The man shouted angrily: “Hmph! The Dragon Calamity has arrived! Quickly go north of the village!”

The Wang awoke with a start, realizing it was all a dream. The Wang, suddenly enlightened, pretended to gather firewood and went north from his house. Before long, a man lay dead in the snow, surrounded by a dozen silver foxes and purple tigers, as if protecting him. The beasts bared their teeth and roared at the sight of a stranger, but the king showed no fear and stepped forward. The beasts stared intently at the king, then suddenly cheered and retreated.

The king called for his father and brothers to come to his aid. The man in the snow was none other than the High Emperor. Upon rising, the king treated the High Emperor as if he were his brother…

truly, “outwardly displaying the loyalty of ruler and subject, inwardly forging the bond of blood ties.”

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