[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-a-little-soldier-of-the-late-ming-border-army":3,"chapter-a-little-soldier-of-the-late-ming-border-army-a-little-soldier-of-the-late-ming-border-army-chapter-228":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","A Little Soldier of the Late Ming Border Army",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},1205517,1561,"Chapter 228: Slaughter Them Till They Scatter Like Fallen Blossoms","a-little-soldier-of-the-late-ming-border-army-chapter-228",228,"\u003Cp>This expedition was a fight for their own survival. Wang Dou had no need to stir them up — the officers and soldiers were already brimming with fighting spirit.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After the troops assembled, at the mid-mark of the mao hour — past six in the morning by later reckoning — several thousand soldiers were already marching in dense formation along the official road in front of the village fort. Wang Dou’s battalion banner led the way, followed by the central guard, the military discipline soldiers, two squads of Night Scouts, and Li Guangheng’s cavalry unit.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Next came Han Zhong’s Company Commander unit, with the supply carts and artillery carts following behind Han Zhong’s troops. These supply carts had all been emptied, waiting only to return fully laden.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The horse-drawn carts were pulled by mules and horses, while the supply soldiers pushing single-wheel barrows trotted lightly along the hard-packed road with their empty carts. Like the matchlock soldiers in the army, these supply troops each carried a matchlock on their back and wore a waist saber at their belt, ready to serve as matchlock men when they met the enemy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Like the single-wheel war carts, most of the horse carts were empty; only a portion carried gunpowder and cannonballs, along with some army supplies. Behind the supply carts, mules and horses pulled the artillery pieces one after another. The iron-rimmed wheels ground over the hard-packed road with a crunching sound.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For this campaign, Wang Dou’s battalion artillery unit brought all fifteen medium breech-loading swivel guns, twenty-five small bronze breech-loading swivel guns, and thirty crouching-tiger cannons. The artillery unit’s full complement of one hundred sixty men all set out. Unit Commander Zhao Xuan treasured these cannons beyond measure and could not rest easy without inspecting them several times a day.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Besides the battalion artillery unit, the artillery units under Company Commanders Han Zhong and Wen Fangliang also set out in full. Each company artillery unit had five breech-loading swivel guns, ten small bronze breech-loading swivel guns, and fifteen crouching-tiger cannons. Altogether, these one hundred thirty cannons large and small would surely provide the entire army with tremendous fire support.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Behind the supply carts and artillery carts, Wen Fangliang led his company of soldiers as the rear guard. From the battalion banner to the company banners, then to the Squad Commander banners and unit flags, the whole army advanced company by company, their formation and banners in perfect order — a clear display of this army’s formidable bearing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Dou had long since sent out many Night Scouts twenty to thirty li in all directions; any movement in the surrounding area could be reported back at any time.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>……\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The soldiers of Shunxiang Army were physically robust; even in full armor and helmets, they quickly covered several li.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gradually the surrounding terrain grew arid, and the wheat fields on both sides gave way to a stretch of wilderness. The road ahead was now flat and easy to travel. Wang Dou ordered his grand army to deploy in a five-man-abreast column formation. He rode a chestnut-red steed and looked around. By now the official road was already hidden amid a yellow-earth wasteland, with only a few lonely little trees shivering in the cold wind.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The sky was dry and the ground parched — good weather for battle — though from time to time a gust of cold wind swept past, carrying a few small snowflakes that stung the face. The breath of the soldiers turned into thick white vapor, and the mules and horses snorted from time to time.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the late Ming, cold weather came early, yet heavy snow was rare, so the drought never eased. For Wang Dou, dry cold was always better than damp cold; it meant his gunpowder stayed in good condition and would not get damp and hard to ignite.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Of course, for late Ming armies, this kind of weather was a major hindrance to matchlock warfare, because the priming powder in the flash pan could be blown away by the wind — even three-barreled guns had this problem. But Wang Dou’s matchlocks all had self-closing flash pan covers, so this problem did not exist for him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As they marched across this wilderness, traces of a battlefield gradually came into view. It seemed to be the place where Li Guangheng had pursued and cut down the fleeing Qing troops a few days before.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Over a hundred headless, naked corpses lay scattered across the plain. Many of the dried, stiff bodies had already been gnawed to pieces by wild dogs, their entrails dragged everywhere, along with patches of deep red bloodstains here and there.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A smile appeared on Wang Dou’s face. He glanced back at Li Guangheng; Han Zhong’s father-in-law also wore a rather smug expression. The cavalrymen under his command grew a bit louder, many pointing at the corpses with faces full of pride.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Military Discipline Officer Chi Dacheng frowned. Several military discipline soldiers under him, with inspection flags strapped to their backs, immediately rode out, galloped up to the cavalry unit, and barked: “No noise on the march — violators will be dealt with by military law.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At once the entire army fell silent again, and the men strode quietly toward the Zhangjiawan direction.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After marching over ten li from the village fort along the dry, hard road, the Night Scouts sent out began encountering Qing sentries one after another — mostly red-armored riders with white trim, scouts of the Qing Bordered Red Banner. At first these Bordered Red Banner scouts were arrogant beyond measure, even galloping up from a distance to take a look, and immediately came under concerted attack from the army’s Night Scouts.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They had not expected these Ming Night Scouts to be so fierce. After unexpectedly leaving behind some corpses, they fled far off, only hovering at a distance to spy from afar.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Dou paid them no mind; his marching formation remained unchanged. In battle against the Qing troops, this army of his no longer felt fear — especially after the great victory at the stone bridge a few days earlier, the soldiers’ self-confidence had reached an unprecedented height.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Wang Dou knew that this expedition would not be peaceful. Those scouts would surely gallop back to report. Perhaps halfway along the road, what awaited him would be several thousand Tartar soldiers and a bitter, hard fight.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Near noon, they reached the area that later generations would call Taihu. They had already covered more than half the distance to their objective at Zhangjiawan. Though the place had the word “lake” in its name, it was a vast stretch of arid wilderness. A river several li to the left was nearly dry; the Liangshui River two li to the right was already more than half dried up. A village by the river had long since been burned down, leaving only broken bricks and tiles.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Dou knew it was time to stop. Just then, a Night Scout several li ahead urgently waved a small yellow flag. He had received the forward Night Scouts’ signal: at least several thousand Tartar troops were rolling toward them in force.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Dou strained his eyes toward the distance. In the wilderness near the Zhangjiawan end, a great cloud of dust seemed to be faintly heading this way. A bitter fight was still coming, Wang Dou reflected. But if a bitter fight it must be, he was not afraid. He looked around at the officers and soldiers beside him; every face showed excitement.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The army’s morale was ready to be used. Wang Dou ordered them to halt on the spot, take defensive precautions, and prepare for battle. The urgent drumbeats of the central army sounded, and Wang Dou’s army, following orders, at once linked head to tail and formed a field square.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Dou climbed onto his command war cart, the Marshal’s Chariot. That chariot required two horses to pull it; its platform stood three meters high, with protective railings and shield boards on all sides and a canopy overhead — enough to shield the commanding general within from enemy arrows, spears, and bow fire. It also allowed him to look down from a height and survey the army formations on all sides, commanding his troops with ease.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not far from Wang Dou, the observation-pole cart was also hurriedly set up. A heavily armored central-army flagman jumped into the crow’s nest. Beside him, several stout soldiers shouted “one, two, three” and, using the seesaw principle, erected the thick observation pole, which stood over a dozen meters tall.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This observation-pole cart was assembled from two war carts; each cart likewise required two horses to pull. The flagman standing in the crow’s nest could survey enemy movements within a dozen li in all directions and relay them at any time to the flagmen beside the commanding officers, closely coordinating information on surrounding enemy activity.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Dou had hauled this observation-pole cart all the way from Baoanzhou, a thousand li, and it was finally being put to use.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The battalion supply vehicles accompanying this campaign included one hundred twenty single-wheel barrows and eighty horse carts. Each company supply unit also had fifty single-wheel barrows and forty horse carts. The mules and horses were quickly gathered into the central army. These three hundred eighty war carts in total formed a surrounding wall on all four sides, with eighty carts deployed on each side, spread out in a horizontal line, each cart linked to the next, enclosing the soldiers inside tightly and securely.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On the right shaft of each war cart, protective shield boards were quickly inserted. The shield boards were made of hardwood, and the outward-facing side was painted with the likeness of a fierce beast. Wang Dou’s several thousand troops, concealed inside the cart formation, could fire outward at their leisure, maximizing the power of their firearms and minimizing casualties among the soldiers.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Of the remaining sixty war carts, many carried gunpowder and cannonballs. These were arrayed around the perimeter of the central army to form another small square, enclosing Wang Dou’s observation-pole cart, Marshal’s Chariot, central-army flagmen, drummers, guards, and others within.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Guangheng led his cavalrymen. They all dismounted and stood quietly directly in front of Wang Dou’s central army. Military Discipline Officer Chi Dacheng also led his military discipline soldiers, patrolling everywhere to inspect the soldiers’ deployment and bearing; any sign of fear was severely reprimanded without leniency.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After so much painstaking training, his artillery unit was finally being put to use. Zhao Xuan was beside himself with excitement, directing the gunners to set up the cannons on all four sides and remove the cannon covers. Of his battalion artillery unit, aside from five medium breech-loading swivel guns, ten small bronze breech-loading swivel guns, and fifteen crouching-tiger cannons set up behind the cart formation, the remaining cannons were all deployed in front of the cart formation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The company artillery units of Han Zhong and Wen Fangliang were deployed on the left and right sides of the cart formation respectively. To better protect the artillerymen, roughly every few war carts had a cannon sandwiched between them, and caltrops were scattered in the area several dozen paces in front of the cannons.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thus deployed on all four sides, this field cart formation easily enclosed Wang Dou’s several thousand troops within.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Dou’s one company had a strength of over a thousand men. The supply soldiers among them could also fight, serving as matchlock men. Excluding the seventy men of the company artillery unit, as well as the headquarters guards, flagmen, drummers, military discipline officers, medics, powder smiths, and others who did not fight for the moment, the remaining nine hundred-plus men could mostly fight.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The matchlock and pike soldiers in Han Zhong’s and Wen Fangliang’s two companies each defended two sides of the square. The remaining battalion Night Scouts and Li Guangheng’s cavalry unit served as a reserve, ready to reinforce any side of the cart formation at any time. Every man in Li Guangheng’s cavalry unit had a matchlock; when firepower was insufficient, they could also serve as matchlock men.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Dou looked around. The officers and soldiers had swiftly taken their positions, each gripping his weapon tightly, tensely awaiting the coming battle. Inside the central army, surrounded by the war carts, Medical Officer Wang Tianxue led the medics in setting up iron cauldrons to boil hot water for the soldiers. The moment a soldier was wounded in battle, he could be treated at once.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thanks to the rigorous daily training of the Shunxiang Army, by the time the great cloud of enemy dust was still far off, this cart camp had already completed all its preparations.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>……\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Night Scouts had withdrawn squad by squad into the cart formation. The flagman standing in the high crow’s nest of the observation pole continuously changed his flag signals, reporting the approaching enemy’s situation to Wang Dou inside the Marshal’s Chariot. Wearing his gleaming silver iron armor, Wang Dou closely monitored the situation ahead from inside the cart.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The dust cloud drew nearer and nearer. Then the earth faintly trembled, as if tens of thousands of hooves were heavily pounding the ground, making the whole land quake. Almost simultaneously, a sky-blotting expanse of red banners with white borders appeared on the horizon, and faintly visible among them was a huge woven-gold dragon banner.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They raised an immense cloud of dust. Beneath the ocean-like billowing red-and-white banners were all Qing armored riders in red with white trim. Judging by the boundless, shoreless scale of it, the force numbered well over ten thousand. It seemed all the Qing riders were galloping at full speed; every sound between heaven and earth seemed to vanish, leaving only the thunder of hooves.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Watching them draw closer and closer, Wang Dou spat. Putting on such a huge show might scare other Ming armies, but it would not work on him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He looked coldly around. His soldiers were arrayed in neat formation behind the war carts — matchlock men in front, pikemen behind — every man in full armor, stout of build, and brimming with fighting spirit. Though the imposing might of the Qing cavalry startled them, they all still stood ramrod straight, their expressions calm and composed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Qing scouts must have clearly identified this as a Ming cart-and-cannon camp, because less than two li from Wang Dou’s cart formation, the Qing troops gradually slowed their horses’ pace. A smile appeared on Wang Dou’s face: “Can’t run anymore?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He cast a look of utter contempt at the opposite side and said loudly: “Don’t be fooled by these Tartars’ blustering show — they’ll soon learn what suffering tastes like.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His voice carried far and wide; the soldiers on all four sides heard it clearly. At once a great laugh erupted. Even if some had been a little nervous before, it now vanished like smoke.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Dou knew the Qing troops opposite would not attack immediately. He said loudly: “Pass the word to the men: sit down on the spot and rest. Drink some water, eat some dry rations, store up your strength, and then give those thieves a good killing. Those Tartar soldiers — slaughter them till they scatter like fallen blossoms in the wind.”\u003C\u002Fp>",2546,"2026-06-03T14:05:36.780Z",1,"Novelzhen Translator","e4c7d6b767656c7e0889666e9c7cb5217a7a23304f6144700f104bf763fd953e","a-little-soldier-of-the-late-ming-border-army-chapter-229","a-little-soldier-of-the-late-ming-border-army-chapter-227",896,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fa-little-soldier-of-the-late-ming-border-army-cover.jpg"]