[{"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-421":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},1205710,1561,"Chapter 421: The Secret to Victory","a-little-soldier-of-the-late-ming-border-army-chapter-421",421,"\u003Cp>The Drunken Immortal Pavilion had six floors in all, occupying a prime location in the north of the city. Its cuisine was also quite outstanding, and business was booming every day. It was said the restaurant owner had some connection to the Prince of Xiang’s estate, so ordinary people dared not cause trouble here.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Though Huang Degong had boasted he would reserve the entire restaurant, in the end he only booked the top floor — one table for the several Regional Commanders, Vice Regional Commanders, and Wang Dou; a few tables for Xie Yike and the various subordinate officers. Each man’s personal guards stood watch downstairs, eating and drinking in shifts.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The interior was arranged both grandly and elegantly: floors laid with red sandalwood, great pillars of golden-thread nanmu, and a dozen or more lanterns hanging overhead — it could be called brilliantly lit.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Dou shared a table with Sun Yingyuan, Huang Degong, Zhou Yuji, Meng Ruhu, Zhang Yingyuan, and the others.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At their station, what great fish and meat had they not tasted? So they only picked local Xiangyang specialty rustic dishes: broad beans and sausage flash-fried with dried pickled vegetables, secret-recipe hand-torn eggplant, dried bamboo shoots braised with pork, tofu braised with beef brisket, and so on — every dish a feast for both eye and palate.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Coupled with the famous Huguang “Double Spring Nectar” fine wine, the company feasted with immense relish and roared their approval.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Especially that secret-recipe hand-torn eggplant — eggplant was normally only available in summer and autumn, so being able to eat it now was thanks to the prevalence of hothouse cultivation in the Great Ming. Naturally, these dishes were exceedingly expensive, beyond the means of ordinary households.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Huang Degong was the greatest lover of wine. When he was twelve, his mother brewed wine, and he stole and drank every drop, giving rise to an amusing anecdote and allusion.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Now he stood, holding a large wine jar in both hands, and said to Wang Dou, “General Wang, you and I have become fast friends. By our capital custom, when friends meet, they must down three bowls in succession. I shall drink first to show my respect.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He brought out a large seafaring bowl, filled it to the brim, tilted his head back, and poured it down in one gulp.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Immediately he filled it again, gulped it down with a rumble, filled it once more, and drank three bowls in one breath, his expression unchanged.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing such gallantry, everyone around roared their approval.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Huang Degong looked at Wang Dou, panting heavily, and said, “General Wang, your turn.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With a clang, he set a large seafaring bowl before Wang Dou.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Dou stood. “Very well,” he said. “I shall keep a gentleman company at the risk of my life.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He poured a large bowl of wine and drained it in one breath. The same chorus of cheers erupted around him. Everyone shouted, “General Wang has a vast capacity!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“General Wang is mighty and awe-inspiring!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Only Xie Yike at the next table felt some concern. In the past, when encountering such scenes, he had loved them most — not only would he drink himself dead drunk, he would often go wild with drunken madness. But over the years he had matured considerably. Though he still drank, he rarely got drunk anymore. Now he had no heart for wine; his thoughts were entirely on Wang Dou, and he wondered whether he should go over and block the toasts.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet he saw Wang Dou quickly down three bowls in succession, his expression likewise unchanged. In his later life he too had been “tested by alcohol”; though what stood before him now was white liquor, its proof could not compare with that of later ages.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When Wang Dou finished drinking with such unbridled boldness, not only did everyone around roar their approval, but Huang Degong’s eyes also blazed as he raised his thumb: “Exhilarating! General Wang, this friend — I, Huang Chuangzi, have made for life.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He sat down and said in a deep voice, “I hear that General Wang executed some of Zuo Liangyu’s subordinates?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Everyone at the table listened intently. This matter had caused an enormous stir. Not only had it spread throughout Huguang, but Huang Degong and the others had also learned of it in detail soon after entering Xiangyang city.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Dou said, “Indeed. On the very day the Xian bandits entered the city, these disorderly soldiers were plundering the common people, so I carried out summary justice.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Huang Degong shook his head repeatedly and sighed: “I know you run a tight command, General Wang, but first you offended Eunuch Supervisor Liu, and now there is this affair. Zuo Kunshan is not a man who lets grievances rest.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He thumped his chest with a sound like a landslide: “If you, my young brother Wang, ever have need of me, Huang Chuangzi, you need only speak.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sun Yingyuan, Zhou Yuji, Meng Ruhu, and the others likewise expressed their willingness to mediate and put in a word or two. Wang Dou knew they meant well. He smiled and said, “Should there be any need to trouble you elder brothers, I, Dou, will not stand on ceremony.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Beyond that, everyone chatted idly, and they were all especially interested in Wang Dou’s string of great victories and the strength of his army’s armor.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Dou was not surprised by this. From the eleventh year of Chongzhen onward, he had fought shoulder to shoulder with the armies of Xuanda and Guanning, and everyone was invariably curious about his Shunxiang Army, all wanting to know the secret behind Wang Dou’s success in slaying the enemy and winning victories.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When Huang Degong raised this question, Sun Yingyuan even stopped him, saying, “This is General Wang’s secret method for training troops — how could it be lightly divulged?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Dou laughed. “It’s no matter. We are all brothers in arms. What is there that cannot be spoken of?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He pondered for a long while, and under the expectant gazes of the crowd, uttered six words: “Sons of good families, allot land.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing everyone deep in thought, he explained: “‘Sons of good families’ — just as when Marshal Qi trained his army back in the day, he used only men of pure, honest, and good character, to prevent army riffraff from corrupting military morale. For example, when the Xian bandits raided Xiangyang, they initially entered with no more than a few dozen brigands, yet the entire city’s officers and soldiers collapsed utterly. Of what use are such men?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Dou continued: “‘Allot land’ — so that officers and men are spared from hunger and cold, their families have food and clothing, and with no worries at home, naturally every man is willing to fight.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Everyone fell into deep thought. Sun Yingyuan even rose and paced, clearly pondering the words Wang Dou had spoken with great care.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhou Yuji, a man of few words, suddenly spoke at this point: “I have long heard that General Wang’s firearms are lethally sharp, and that no slave-brigand or roving bandit who encounters them fails to lose heart. Might we be allowed to see a demonstration?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>All eyes converged on Wang Dou. He pondered a moment, then smiled. “You may.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was not only these military officers who were interested in Wang Dou and his army. Huguang Provincial Governor Song Yihe, Army Supervisor Wan Yuanji, and others were equally curious. When they heard that Wang Dou was going to drill his firearms for the assembled officers at the parade ground, they immediately joined in.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On the twenty-first day of the second month, officers and officials gathered in force at the eastern suburb training field. Song Yihe, Wan Yuanji, Zhang Kejian, and their numerous staff advisers; Meng Ruhu, Zhang Yingyuan, Sun Yingyuan, Huang Degong, Zhou Yuji, and others; along with their subordinate officers Ma Wenzhi, Ma Zhi, Lin Baoguo, and the rest — a huge crowd assembled.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Eunuch Liu Yuanbin, having had his face swept aside by Wang Dou, did not attend, nor did Lu Jiude. Yang Sichang was gravely ill, but his son Yang Shansong came nonetheless.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Those drilling with firearms were the soldiers of the Yi-grade units under Wu Zhengchun, Shen Shiqi, and Gao Xun. All their arquebusiers were selected and formed into a four-rank firing array. Drilling with firearms before friendly troops, every arquebusier steeled his spirit, striving to display the most awe-inspiring face of the Shunxiang Army.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In front of the formation, from fifty to one hundred paces away, were arrayed a great number of human-shaped targets, each clad in various kinds of armor and holding different types of shields in their hands.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After the firing order was issued, the deafening sound of the volley visibly startled the onlookers. When they looked again at the field, the foremost human-shaped targets had already been knocked down and sent tumbling to the ground. The shields, armor, and other gear upon them were either riddled with gaping holes or shattered beyond recognition.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Many faces turned pale. The power of these firearms was too great. If one encountered such arquebus fire on the battlefield, even wearing heavy armor would be useless.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The shock was clearly far from over. After the front rank of arquebusiers fired, they rapidly withdrew, and the second rank continued the shooting.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The onlookers noticed one detail: those Shunxiang Army arquebusiers loaded their powder and shot with extreme speed. Many made a rough estimate — these soldiers could fire three shots within fifty to sixty breaths. They could not help but feel a chill in their hearts.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What did this signify? It signified an unending torrent of firepower. If cavalry or infantry encountered such gunners on the battlefield, even if they spent lives to fill the gap, could they possibly charge into their faces?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After four ranks had fired, the field was already a blanket of gunpowder smoke, and the ground before them lay in utter devastation. Every human-shaped target lay sprawled in disorder on the ground, tattered and riddled with bullet holes. After the officers and officials went down to inspect, they could all see the pallor on one another’s faces.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>These human-shaped targets had been arranged from fifty to one hundred paces away. They wore padded armor, iron armor, or ordinary mandarin-duck battle jackets. Yet the outcome was much the same in every case. That being so, within a hundred paces, no matter what shield one held or what armor one wore, before the arquebusiers of the Shunxiang Army, was there any path but death?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The skin on Army Supervisor Wan Yuanji’s face twitched. He asked to borrow an arquebus to examine, and Huguang Provincial Governor Song Yihe and the others also crowded around, discussing and inspecting it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Everyone noted that this arquebus was no different from those ordinarily used by government troops. The slight difference was that this one was more finely crafted, and one could see at a glance that it could be used with confidence.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Also, everyone noticed one point: the butt of this arquebus was somewhat different, quite similar to the stock of a red-barbarian gun, able to be braced against the shoulder. Yet there were many such red-barbarian-style arquebuses in the army, and none possessed the power of Wang Dou’s.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wan Yuanji turned it over and over, examining it for a long time. He also examined the fixed-paper-cartridge ammunition and mused, “Is this Marshal Qi’s concept of fixed-load powder and shot?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Dou said, “Yes. In Marshal Qi’s time, bamboo tubes were used to separately package the powder and the ball. Your humble general has combined them into one, making battlefield operations swifter.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He continued, “The drill just now was performed by the Yi-grade soldiers of our army. Using fixed cartridges, they can fire three shots in sixty breaths. If they were Jia-grade soldiers, most could fire four or five. In battle, with arquebusiers arrayed in four or five ranks, the firepower is unceasing, making it difficult for bandit foes to close in. Of course, this requires arduous training in peacetime.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A collective sigh arose from the crowd. Such fine soldiers, and these were only Yi-grade troops — to what degree did the Jia-grade soldiers of the Shunxiang Army excel?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Regional Commanders Meng Ruhu, Sun Yingyuan, Huang Degong, and the others also borrowed an arquebus to examine. Greed and longing shone in everyone’s eyes. What a fine piece. Meng Ruhu stroked the dark, solid barrel, loath to put it down, and sighed, “Is the reason General Wang’s arquebuses are so powerful due to superior workmanship?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Their own armies also had arquebuses, but not only could their power not compare, they often burst their barrels, making soldiers afraid to use them. The Shunxiang Army had no such problem — clearly the result of fine crafting.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Dou said, “That is one reason.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In fact, the Great Ming’s requirements for firearm manufacture had always been extremely strict. All military weapons produced were required to be marked with the specific ministry, guard, battalion, year, and season of manufacture, so as to facilitate supervision and assign accountability. However, problems with firearms never ceased, and the issues within were deeply complex — not something that could be explained in just a few words.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sun Yingyuan said thoughtfully, “There is also a difference in the gunpowder.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Dou smiled and nodded. After Li Zhifen’s powder factory was perfected, their rounds could pierce heavy armor at a hundred paces. The range and power of the Shunxiang Army’s firearms now firmly ranked first in the Great Ming.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>However, for the various Regional Commanders, if armor could be pierced at seventy or eighty paces, that was sufficient for use.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing that Wang Dou did not elaborate on the differences in the gunpowder, the others tactfully refrained from asking. Having witnessed the power of the Shunxiang Army’s firearms today, each man was already fully satisfied; to inquire further into core matters would be to not know one’s place.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Next, the group went to the camp of the Shunxiang Army’s Artillery Company Commander in Fancheng and watched the cannon firing directed by Zhao Xuan. Among the various officers and generals, they had seen plenty of red-barbarian cannons and Frankish cannons, but they had never seen any that could deliver the power of Wang Dou’s army’s artillery.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The crowd suddenly saw the light. With artillery like this, plus such arquebuses, no wonder Wang Dou’s army was invincible under heaven.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After watching the drill, everyone beamed with delight, each believing they had obtained what they wanted. Afterward, Meng Ruhu, Sun Yingyuan, Huang Degong, and Zhou Yuji gathered together. They all coveted the sharp firearms of Wang Dou’s army and discussed whether they should forge fine arquebuses themselves.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Huang Degong had a different opinion. He said, “Making is not as good as buying. Their gunpowder is clearly different. Even if we forge fine arquebuses, they clearly would not match what their army uses. Better to sound them out and see if General Wang is willing to sell bullets and powder… As for the artillery, General Wang said that gunners are all built up by expending gunpowder; the cost is too great…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Huguang Provincial Governor Song Yihe, for his part, summoned the Huguang Vice Regional Commander Zhang Yingyuan and carefully inquired about what Wang Dou had said that day at the Drunken Immortal Tavern. He murmured, “Fine workmanship, fixed-load cartridges, sons of good families, distribution of land — I understand now…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>……\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Note: Regarding the quality issues of Ming dynasty firearms, reading this passage from the “Divine Weapons Treatise” makes everything clear.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Someone asked: Recently, large and small divine weapons have switched from copper to iron, abandoning casting in favor of forging, yet they are still unusable. Why is this?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I say: The manufacturers wish to gain a reputation for shrewdness, so they cut costs to achieve it. I once heard General Lu Tang say: “When the south first began making arquebuses, the labor cost was over three taels of silver. Now not even one tael is grudgingly given. One tael is not enough to cover the cost of iron and charcoal for a fine arquebus — and the rest can be inferred. How can a strict mother-in-law ever scold a clever daughter-in-law for failing to cook without rice?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I say: Looking at it this way, then China, after all, cannot achieve fine workmanship!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I say: Not so. I have heard that in trade with the Eastern and Western Oceans, the various barbarians specifically buy the arquebuses of Guangdong. Those that the common people sell to the barbarians are extremely fine in workmanship, while those made for the government offices are shoddy and inferior. From this we can see: it is not that my China cannot achieve fine workmanship, but that it is unwilling to do so.\u003C\u002Fp>",2806,"2026-06-03T14:05:53.320Z",1,"Novelzhen Translator","e2089db5e6ec5e7155f2f7d9940116249536cacc175050cf00ed2c9a58dda069","a-little-soldier-of-the-late-ming-border-army-chapter-422","a-little-soldier-of-the-late-ming-border-army-chapter-420",896,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fa-little-soldier-of-the-late-ming-border-army-cover.jpg"]