Chapter 149: Qi Qi Jiguang, Who Only Needed a Chance

Zhang Zhang Siwei was a scholar, and of course, he had read all his books into a dog's belly. He didn't understand at all how terrifying the four words "military talent" were.

A person with military talent can do whatever they want on the battlefield—they can win no matter how they fight, and they can't lose no matter how they fight. No matter how much obstruction there is behind them, they can win.

When Wang Wang Chonggu was studying, he read about Li Li Shimin destroying Song Jingang and didn't believe it either. Even if Li Li Shimin wasn't a person, Li Li Shimin's subordinates and troops weren't people? How could they achieve such a record?

It wasn't until Qi Qi Jiguang appeared that Wang Wang Chonggu truly understood that military talent really doesn't follow any logic.

In the fourth month of the fortieth year of Emperor Jiajing, over 20,000 Japanese pirates, Red-Haired Barbarians, Black Barbarians, and desperate people invaded Ninghai Jiantiao, Linhai Taoshan, Princess Taiping Xinhe, Chumen, and over ten other places in Zhejiang with 50 warships. Alarms were frequent, and smoke signals stretched for a thousand miles.

On the 19th of the fourth month, about 1,000 Japanese pirates on 16 ships landed at Mu Xifeng in Fenghua and reached Ninghai that night, ravaging and looting.

After receiving the report, Qi Qi Jiguang deployed the defense of Taizhou. On the morning of the 22nd, he led a main force of 2,000 men to rush to Ninghai, marching 200 *li* in one day and night. On the 24th, after encountering the enemy, Chen Chen Dacheng and Yang Wen led the troops in the "Mandarin Duck Formation," and in just half an hour, they routed the enemy. The remaining pirates fled in panic. In this battle, the casualty ratio was 600 to 0; the Qi Family Army suffered no casualties.

On the 22nd of the fourth month, Japanese pirates landed at Zhouyang Port, and on the 24th, they looted various places outside the Xinhe city wall and besieged Xinhe.

Qi Qi Jiguang's wife, Lady Wang, was staying in Xinhe. She stood up, ordered the armory to be opened, and mobilized the common people to put on military uniforms and hold weapons, mixing with the soldiers to guard the city. Qi Qi Jiguang's wife personally climbed the city gate to guard it. Even though the main force wasn't in Xinhe, the Japanese pirates thought the main force was inside the city and didn't dare to attack for a long time.

On the night of the 26th, Qi Qi Jiguang led his troops back to Taizhou from Ninghai County. The 2,000 southern soldiers marched through the night on empty stomachs, crossing the Tongyan Ridge and rushing 70 *li*, arriving at the prefecture city ahead of the enemy on the morning of the 27th. On the day of departure on the 22nd, the soldiers led by Qi Qi Jiguang only had three days of rations, and by the time they returned to Taizhou, the army was already out of food.

Chen Chen Dacheng believed that the soldiers had rushed 70 *li*, crossing mountains and ridges, and returned to Taizhou on empty stomachs, so they were not suitable for continued combat. Rushing back and forth, the soldiers were exhausted; they should at least eat a meal.

But at this time, the Japanese pirates had already broken into the foot of Jingjiang Mountain and sneaked to Huajie, only 5 *li* from the city. Qi Qi Jiguang then ordered: "We must destroy the thieves first, and then eat."

The Battle of Huajie began.

Chen Chen Dacheng, Ding Bangyan, and others led the troops in hot pursuit, annihilating this group of Japanese pirates. In this battle, they captured 2 pirate chieftains alive and beheaded 308, with countless others drowning. This battle also rescued over 5,000 common people who had been abducted, while the southern soldiers only lost 3 men, including squad leader Chen Wan Wenqing.

You know, the Japanese pirates burned their ships before landing, which is called "burning the boats to land," meaning they would fight to the death. This is the most common method for Japanese pirates to boost morale; there is no retreat.

This method had been tried and tested, but the Japanese pirates encountered Qi Qi Jiguang.

From the 22nd of the fourth month to the 22nd of the fifth month, in one month, Qi Qi Jiguang fought nine major battles on land and water in Ninghai, Xinhe, Huajie, Shangfengling, Chumen, Aiwanwan, Tengling, Changsha (Wenling Changsha), and Yangqi, killing over 5,000 enemies and rescuing over 10,000 common people, while the southern army led by Qi Qi Jiguang only lost less than 20 men.

The common people of Taizhou relied on him as a Great Wall, and eastern Zhejiang relied on him for protection.

This was the war miracle created by Qi Qi Jiguang in the fortieth year of Emperor Jiajing, and it was also a silhouette of Qi Qi Jiguang's fierce combat record.

Encountering such a fierce general, plus the crafty Zhang Zhang Juzheng, Wang Wang Chonggu was beaten violently, which could be considered seeing things very clearly. Fighting? Who could fight him? It was better to earn money with peace of mind.

But Zhang Zhang Siwei still lived in his own world. He felt that he could use those schemes to defeat Zhang Zhang Juzheng, Qi Qi Jiguang, and others.

"Nephew, you still don't understand. The Great Ming world is not supported by us petty people, but by gentlemen like Zhang Zhang Juzheng and Qi Qi Jiguang. They are the pillars of the country. We are just digging for food in the world they support."

"Can your little schemes dig into the pillars of the country?" This was the last time Wang Wang Chonggu advised Zhang Zhang Siwei. If he couldn't be persuaded, he wouldn't advise him again.

"Good." Zhang Zhang Siwei held the retirement memorial in his hand and finally let out a turbid breath, agreeing.

Wang Wang Chonggu took back the memorial and left Zhang Zhang Siwei's house.

Seeing his father return, Wang Qian went up to meet him and said: "Father, how did the talk with Zhang Zhang Siwei go?"

"Stubborn and unyielding," Wang Wang Chonggu said with extreme dissatisfaction: "He wouldn't listen to anything I said. He just felt he was right. Does he think he can bring down Zhang Zhang Juzheng and Qi Qi Jiguang by finding people to compile those low-class stories?"

"When Qi Qi Jiguang was in Taizhou, because he had no money for medical treatment due to injury and illness, he had a big quarrel with his wife. In order to send 'carbon respect' and 'ice respect' to the Quanchu Guild Hall, Qi Shuai had to turn around in every way. Qi Qi Jiguang's wife, Lady Wang, saw that Qi Qi Jiguang had no money to see a doctor and quarreled with Qi Qi Jiguang until the whole of Taizhou knew about it!"

Wang Qian said in horror: "Qi Shuai is such a heroic figure, and he is also troubled by money?"

"What do you think? The rotten things Zhang Zhang Siwei compiled, like Persian beauties, are unbearable to look at. It's only been these two years that Qi Shuai hasn't had to send silver to the Quanchu Guild Hall, and the Emperor's rewards have been continuous, so Qi Shuai's house hasn't been quarreling because of these things." Wang Wang Chonggu really didn't want to admit it, but Qi Qi Jiguang was truly a hero, and he was truly poor.

In the tenth year of Emperor Wanli, the supervising secretary Zhang Zhang Dingsi impeached Qi Qi Jiguang for being a member of Zhang Zhang Juzheng's faction. Qi Qi Jiguang was appointed as the Regional Commander of Guangdong. In the thirteenth year of Emperor Wanli, the supervising secretary Zhang Zhang Xigao impeached Qi Qi Jiguang again, and Qi Qi Jiguang was dismissed. In the same year, the censor Fu Guangzhai impeached him again, stripping Qi Qi Jiguang of his salary. Qi Qi Jiguang, a hero of his generation, died of illness at home because he had no money to see a doctor.

Qi Qi Jiguang was really quite poor.

Hearing that Zhang Zhang Siwei wanted to attack Qi Qi Jiguang's grain, Wang Qian was stunned. He said blankly: "That is the Emperor's martial arts teacher. Does Zhang Zhang Siwei not know fear at all when attacking Qi Shuai?"

"The Emperor will really kill his nine clans! Father, before Zhang Zhang Siwei makes a move, let's make a move first!"

Wang Qian never considered himself a gentleman. His life had just begun, and he was about to be implicated by Zhang Zhang Siwei and go to hell. Who could Wang Qian reason with?

The most critical thing was that the Jin faction's Ma Fang, Ma Gui, and others were also in the army.

Sometimes Wang Qian didn't know what to say. Ma Fang, Ma Prince, Ma Gui, and Li Li Rusong were all very convinced by Qi Qi Jiguang and got along extremely well with him.

"He doesn't dare." Wang Wang Chonggu shook his head: "Since he is no longer clamoring to recommend a Grand Secretary, there is no need to attack Qi Shuai. We can still live in peace for a while. When the army returns in triumph, we will burn Zhang Zhang Siwei's house. If we can't burn him to death, we will make him move over to live with us, keeping him under our noses to prevent trouble."

Wang Qian nodded and said: "Okay, I will arrange it. I just happened to bribe the firewood carrier in Zhang Zhang Siwei's house."

The firewood carrier was a corvée laborer sent by the Coal Market to deliver firewood to Zhang Zhang Siwei's house every day. The mobility was very high, and they were all wanderers and landless common people. Giving them a hundred taels was a lifetime of money, enough for them to risk their lives.

That night, inside the Hall of Literary Brilliance of the Quanchu Guild Hall, the lights were bright. Zhang Zhang Juzheng was writing a letter to Qi Qi Jiguang. Since Qi Qi Jiguang was granted a title, Zhang Zhang Juzheng had rarely corresponded with Qi Qi Jiguang, and they rarely met on weekdays.

But this didn't mean the boat of friendship had capsized. On the contrary, everyone was doing what they could for the Great Ming in their respective fields.

"Have you found out clearly?" Zhang Zhang Juzheng stopped writing and looked at You Qi.

"Found out clearly. It's Liu Tai," You Qi said a name carefully. Liu Tai was a *Ming Jinshi* of the fifth year of Emperor Longqing, had a waist tag of the Quanchu Guild Hall, and was Zhang Zhang Juzheng's student.

Zhang Zhang Juzheng had always felt it was strange—what on earth was Zhang Zhang Siwei relying on to clamor for the recommendation of auxiliary ministers at this time? Now was the time to let Zhang Zhang Siwei enter the Cabinet. After the Northeast was settled and Qi Qi Jiguang returned in triumph, the Emperor would have his hands free. With the little Emperor's temper, if he didn't execute Zhang Zhang Siwei's nine clans, Zhang Zhang Juzheng would take the Emperor's surname, Zhu!

The problem lay in the Northeast war. Zhang Zhang Juzheng began to pay attention everywhere, wondering what Zhang Zhang Siwei wanted to do. At the same time, he planned to write to Qi Qi Jiguang and Li Li Chengliang, urging them to be extremely careful.

There were only so many ministers in the Northeast, and Zhang Zhang Juzheng checked everyone. Finally, Liu Tai, who had just taken office as the Liaodong Inspecting Secretary, entered Zhang Zhang Juzheng's field of vision. This was his own student.

"The Emperor always says I teach well and explain principles clearly. Look at what kind of people I've taught. You Qi, your teacher's level of teaching students is really not very good," Zhang Zhang Juzheng let out a heavy sigh upon hearing the name Liu Tai.

You Qi hurriedly said: "Teacher's principles are not wrong! That Liu Tai is from Jiangxi and is a fellow townsman and close friend of Fu Fu Yingzhen. He has a master behind him. Teacher didn't know the details; it was Liu Tai who deliberately concealed it."

"Isn't Liu Tai's ancestral home in Huguang and he was born in Sichuan? How is he from Jiangxi and a close friend of Fu Fu Yingzhen?" Zhang Zhang Juzheng asked with a frown.

You Qi bowed his head and said: "Ancestral home in Huguang, born in Sichuan, arrived in Jiangxi at the age of three. He is a fellow student, fellow townsman, and fellow examinee of Fu Fu Yingzhen. After Fu Fu Yingzhen was convicted and imprisoned, Zhang Zhang Siwei seized the opportunity to lobby Liu Tai."

Hearing this, Zhang Zhang Juzheng finished writing the letter and said: "Send the letter to Liaodong by 800-li express."

On the third day, Qi Qi Jiguang, who was in Guangning, received a letter from the capital. There were three letters in total. The first was a letter from the Great Ming Emperor—not an imperial edict, but just a letter.

In the letter, the little Emperor chattered about his recent studies. Now, as the number one martial arts expert in the youth group, he could draw a 60-jin hard bow and hit the target six out of ten times. He had also learned to ride a horse. When Qi Qi Jiguang returned in triumph, he would perform for Qi Qi Jiguang.

Regarding the war, the Emperor's meaning was very clear: don't seek victory.

It didn't matter if you couldn't win; just treat it as training. Preserving effective strength was the foundation.

Now the court had money. If 10,000 men couldn't break through, then train 100,000. If you lose this time, then bestow titles and tribute on the Tu-Man's Khan Chahan Khan. Anyway, the Northwest had already bestowed titles on the Andahan. If there are many lice, you won't itch. The late Emperor and the Jin faction started this precedent, and it's not easy for a widow and orphan to sit on the throne. It doesn't matter if we bestow titles on the Khan Chahan Khan.

As long as the final result between the Great Ming and the Tu-Man tribe is that the Great Ming wins, that's fine.

Qi Qi Jiguang showed a smile. How big a face does the Tu-Man have to need 100,000 men? The court was already struggling to support 10,000 elite soldiers; 100,000 elite soldiers—selling the imperial palace wouldn't be enough.

The second letter was written to him by Zhang Zhang Juzheng. Qi Qi Jiguang was also a bit strange. Since he was granted a title in the first year of Emperor Wanli, they had rarely corresponded, and they rarely met on weekdays. They had never corresponded by letter before. The content of the letter was extremely surprising. Zhang Zhang Juzheng asked him to be wary of petty people, especially regarding grain and military equipment, and to be extremely careful about petty people making trouble.

Qi Qi Jiguang had always been extremely careful about internal spies. He had suffered many such losses when fighting in the Southeast. If he hadn't been so good at fighting, I'm afraid the grass on his grave would be three *zhang* high. Qi Qi Jiguang would be even more careful about Zhang Zhang Juzheng's reminder.

The third letter was from his wife. In the letter, his wife first scolded Qi Qi Jiguang's concubines—Chen, Shen, and Yang—one by one, saying that they were wasting too much in the mansion. Although the Emperor's rewards were many, they couldn't be so wasteful. These three concubines were fighting each other, making the mansion jump and jump, with no peace.

Qi Qi Jiguang had three concubines. "Of the three unfilial acts, having no descendants is the greatest." Qi Qi Jiguang's wife, Lady Wang, had children who died early one after another, and she was no longer able to give birth. Qi Qi Jiguang took three concubines to have children. Taking concubines after the age of forty without a son was explicitly stipulated in the Great Ming Law.

But Qi Qi Jiguang took these three concubines behind Lady Wang's back. Everyone in the Great Ming knew that Qi Qi Jiguang was afraid of his wife. The undefeated Qi Qi Jiguang had to retract his claws when he returned home. Later, when Lady Wang found out about the concubines, it caused quite a stir.

Lady Wang also urged Qi Qi Jiguang not to charge into battle anymore. At this age, he was no longer the young Qi Qi Jiguang who could kill seventeen thieves with a single blade. He must cherish himself. Also, Yang had added a son for Qi Qi Jiguang, weighing six *jin* six *liang*, and asked Qi Qi Jiguang to give him a name.

In Lady Wang's letter, besides longing, there was resentment—resentment that Qi Qi Jiguang went out to fight, resentment that Yang had given birth to a son for Qi Qi Jiguang, and the greatest resentment was that she herself could not continue Qi Qi Jiguang's lineage.

Lady Wang had given birth to children for Qi Qi Jiguang, but they all died early in the chaos of war. To continue the lineage, Lady Wang had also tried every possible way, running to the Jiuli Lake in Xinghua to pray to the Nine Carp Immortals to give birth to another son, but the imperial physicians had also diagnosed Lady Wang and she could no longer give birth.

Qi Qi Jiguang wrote three reply letters and had his personal guards send them to the post station to be sent back to the capital by fast horse.

Then he led his personal guards to patrol the grain and military equipment. His grain was not something anyone could burn just by saying so. The defense was extremely strict. He checked it once and was sure there was no fire hazard. Standing in the camp, he looked toward the direction of Jia Shanhai Pass.

Even if his grain was burned, so what?

The Emperor had stockpiled 200,000 *shi* at Lijiabao in Yipian Shi, 400,000 *shi* at Jia Shanhai Pass, 800,000 *shi* at Jizhou, and 4 million *shi* at the 500 warehouses in Tongzhou. Once the front-line grain supply had problems, the entire line would immediately start transporting, fully guaranteeing logistics.

This was not only the Emperor's imperial favor, but also Wang Wang Guoguang's petition to suspend the distribution of salary grain to capital officials and prioritize front-line military use.

This was a very important part of the "Vibrant Martial Arts."

Qi Qi Jiguang had never fought such a wealthy war in his life.

Fighting in Taizhou, Ninghai, Huajie, and other places, crossing mountains and ridges and going hungry was common. Now it was good. Qi Qi Jiguang looked at so much grain and military equipment and even had an illusion: if you tied a dog in the commander's tent, this war wouldn't be lost either.

It's really good to have money.

Qi Qi Jiguang looked at the sky. He was now hoping that it would snow quickly. Once it started snowing, it would be time to advance.

In early October, Li Li Chengliang had already set up the Great General Cannon in front of the Dragon King Temple. If it didn't snow until December like last year, Li Li Chengliang would really have to blow up the Dragon King Temple.

Zhang Zhang Xueyan received Zhang Zhang Juzheng's letter and immediately found Li Li Chengliang.

Li Li Chengliang also had a letter similar to Zhang Zhang Xueyan's in his hand.

"This bastard Liu Tai actually wants to burn our grain! Men!" Li Li Chengliang stood up after reading the letter, furious, and said: "Arrest Liu Tai!"

Zhang Zhang Xueyan, as the Inspecting Secretary, should have advised the Commander not to be angry, but after thinking about it, "advise my ass." If they lost the war, he, Zhang Zhang Xueyan, wouldn't have a good ending either.

The personal guards arrested Liu Tai and brought him to the Regional Military Commissioner's office at the fastest speed. Li Li Chengliang was already burly, and now, burning with rage, he walked step by step to Liu Tai, picked him up like a chick, held him with both hands, and carried him.

Zhang Zhang Xueyan looked at this strange posture. How stupid must this Liu Tai be to do such a thing?

What was Li Li Chengliang? He was a warlord.

Li Li Chengliang was a figure who crawled out of the mud. Winning battles was his capital for promotion, and Liaodong had a very typical trend of becoming a warlord state. The entire Liaodong war was fought by Li Li Chengliang's servants, or the 3,000 guest soldiers Li Li Chengliang raised.

Calling Li Li Chengliang a warlord wasn't wrong at all, except that this warlord was now willing to listen to the court.

Li Li Chengliang tilted his head and looked at Liu Tai seriously, staring at him fiercely with a ferocious face, his mouth twitching as he said: "I heard you want to burn our grain?"

"No, Commander, don't listen to others' instigation!" Liu Tai's feet were off the ground, and he kept shaking, but Li Li Chengliang's hands were like pliers.

"If you weren't a student of Mr. Zhang, you would be dead now! A dead person, do you know that? There are many fierce beasts in Liaodong; dying in the tiger's mouth is very appropriate!" Li Li Chengliang threw Liu Tai to the ground and said coldly: "Lock him up and take him down to interrogate him."

"I am an official of the court, the Liaodong Inspecting Secretary. Li Li Chengliang, don't be too arrogant! I will definitely report to the court and punish you for the crime of rebellion!" Liu Tai only felt pain in his armpits and said angrily.

Li Li Chengliang sneered at Liu Tai and said: "Hmph, do you know what 'slightly giving military authority to generals' means?"

"It means when fighting a war, I have the final say! Even the Heavenly King can't manage it, unless there is an imperial edict from Your Majesty! I suspect you, a dog, are colluding with the barbarians, so I can put you in prison! You had better be clean underneath! Able to withstand interrogation!"

"Taste the Liaodong torture—sitting on an ice block. Let's see if you confess!"

Sitting on an ice block was a torture where a person was pressed naked onto ice blocks. It was bone-chilling and painful. Absolutely no one would be willing to try such torture. Zhang Zhang Juzheng said Liu Tai had a problem, and Liu Tai said he had no problem. One of them must be lying, and Li Li Chengliang believed the person lying wasn't Zhang Zhang Juzheng.

Zhang Zhang Xueyan said: "Arrest everyone who has had contact with Liu Tai and interrogate them, and verify them against each other. Naturally, we will know the result."

It only took half a day for Liu Tai and the servants who contacted Liu Tai to confess directly. Zhang Zhang Xueyan wrote a memorial to the capital, requesting to summon Liu Tai back to the capital for interrogation. On the second day after Liu Tai was arrested and sent to the capital, the Dragon King probably saw that the dark cannon muzzles weren't just for show, and the sky began to drift with light snow, followed by a heavy snowstorm.

It snowed, so it was time to advance. Li Li Chengliang immediately gathered all the guest soldiers and headed straight for Tieling. Qi Qi Jiguang led 10,000 elite soldiers and rushed straight to Daning Guard from Guangning. Chen Chen Dacheng would lead 20,000 men from the four passes of Xifengkou to provide support, encircling the Tu-Man Khan Chahan Khan from three sides and twenty-one routes.

From Xifengkou, passing through Fumin Station, Kuanhe City, Huizhou City, Jizhuang Station, Fuyu Station, one can reach Daning Guard, a total of 480 *li*.

And from Guangning Guard to Daning Guard, it is 485 *li*, passing through ten stations. These post roads were all repaired in the twenty-seventh year of Emperor Hongwu.

During the Yongle years, the Prince of Ning moved inland, and Daning Guard began to decay. Finally, the Beiping Regional Military Commission existed in name only. Since the Yongle years, every dynasty had people remonstrating to restore Daning Guard, and even in the Emperor Chongzhen years, Xu Xu Guangqi was still saying that Daning Guard should be restored.

This was related to the power of the Northern Barbarians at this time. To the Northwest was the Tumed tribe's Khan, Andahan—this was the Right Wing. To the Northeast was the Tu-Man tribe's Khan Chahan Khan—this was the Left Wing.

In the thirty-sixth year of Emperor Jiajing, the Left and Right Wings of the Northern Barbarians formally split. The Left Wing's Kudeng Khan was no match for Andahan and moved eastward, settling in the Tianshou Mountains (Greater Khingan Range). After Kudeng Khan died, he passed the throne to the Tu-Man Khan, who conquered the Haixi Jurchens, Jianzhou Jurchens, and other tribes.

The Tu-Man Khan called himself Khan Chahan Khan. Khan Chahan meant white, the sun—the purest Golden Bloodline under the Eternal Blue Heaven, a similar extended meaning.

Of course, the Great Ming called the Tu-Man Khan "Tu-Man" or "Chahar Tumen."

In the tenth month of the third year of Emperor Wanli, the Tu-Man Khan had 60,000 cavalry in his hands.

And Qi Qi Jiguang set out from Guangning with only 10,000 elite soldiers as the main attack direction, Chen Chen Dacheng set out from Xifengkou with only 20,000 as support, and Li Li Chengliang went to Tieling to cut off the support of the Haixi Jurchens and Jianzhou Jurchens for Daning Guard.

There were only 10,000 elite soldiers for the main attack, led by Qi Qi Jiguang. In the heavy snow, after a slight reorganization, Qi Qi Jiguang began to advance. The vanguard, Li Li Rusong, led 2,000 men to set out first. Qi Qi Jiguang was the main army, and Deputy Regional Commander Ma Fang and the Governor of Military Affairs Liang Liang Menglong were the rear guard, responsible for grain and military equipment.

The army began to advance toward Daning Guard in the heavy snow.

The northwest wind roared, and the world was like an inverted hanging. This snow was too heavy, so heavy that it was almost impossible to distinguish southeast, northwest, up, or down. People had just walked past, and the footprints they stepped on disappeared without a trace after a gust of wind. This was the "white hair wind" on the grassland. In the blizzard weather, no animals were active, except for the Great Ming Army advancing.

Liang Liang Menglong checked the grain and military equipment, looked at the heavy snow flying, exhaled, and asked Ma Fang beside him with some doubt: "With such heavy snow, is it unwise for us to advance at this time?"

Ma Fang shook his head and said: "Do you believe that Qi Shuai could walk to Daning Guard even with his eyes closed?"

"Qi Shuai is also a person," Liang Liang Menglong said angrily. Qi Qi Jiguang was also a person. In this kind of weather, even bears were huddled in caves, unwilling to move. Ma Fang's words were simply unreasonable.

Ma Fang laughed twice and said: "Frostbite is an important factor in non-combat attrition on snowy days."

"Before this departure, the Ministry of Revenue allocated 30,000 sets of cotton clothes. The Capital Battalion had three sets of cotton clothes per person, and one set of cotton clothes was priced at 1.5 taels of silver, which is 45,000 taels. They also gave 20,000 pairs of deer-skin boots. Just the pair of shoes under our feet—wear one pair and prepare one pair. One pair is 6 taels of silver, totaling 120,000 taels. Wind hats, 30,000, one hat is 2 taels of silver, 30,000 hats is 60,000 taels."

A wind hat was a windproof hat. The hat was divided into two pieces, left and right. The top of the hat covered the forehead, and the sides covered the cheeks and could be tied. With one pull, only a pair of eyes remained.

Liang Liang Menglong stomped his feet hard. These soldiers were not soldiers; they were clearly walking silver ingots! Ma Fang tucked his two hands into his sleeves and walked forward, saying: "Heavy snow will hinder the mobility of the soldiers. Wheels may encounter slipping or potholes. In heavy snow, roads cannot be passed, and places that could be reached directly may need to be bypassed by tens or hundreds of *li*. In the white hair wind, visibility is very low, and it is impossible to identify roads and determine directions, or even march."

"But there is a limit, and that is one *chi* deep."

"This snow looks heavy, but in the tenth month, no matter how heavy it is, it won't exceed one *chi* deep. It won't affect the advance of the vehicles. Look, after a few hours, the heavy snow will stop."

"Qi Shuai—this person, rather than saying he is gifted, it is better to say he is observant and meticulous in everything."

Sure enough, when they set up camp, the snow in the sky slowly became smaller. Liang Liang Menglong specifically took a construction ruler, inserted it into the snow, and the thickness of the snow was less than one *chi*, only missing three *li*.

"Amazing!" Liang Liang Menglong held the ruler and said in great surprise.

Ma Fang still tucked his hands. He was old and couldn't fight anymore. Looking at Liang Liang Menglong's surprised expression, he said: "Do you know how long Qi Shuai prepared to fight outside the border?"

"From the second year of Emperor Longqing to now, it has been a full eight years."

"He has been waiting for this opportunity."

When the author wrote this, he remembered that self-deprecating sentence of Qi Shuai: "Viewed as a wart, how can one exhibit one's talents?" Qi Qi Jiguang only needed a chance—a chance to fight a war. Please vote for monthly tickets, Aoooooo!!!!!!!

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 150 =====

"As for General Qi, rather than saying he is gifted, it is better to say he is meticulous in his observations and careful in all things."

Sure enough, when they were setting up camp, the snow in the sky gradually lightened. Liang Liang Menglong specifically took a construction ruler and inserted it into the snow; the accumulated snow was less than a foot thick, missing by only three millimeters.

"It's divine!" Liang Liang Menglong said, clutching the ruler, incomparably astonished.

Ma Fang still kept his hands tucked in his sleeves. He was old now and could no longer fight. Looking at Liang Liang Menglong's astonished expression, he said, "Do you know how long General Qi prepared for this campaign beyond the frontier? From the second year of Emperor Longqing until now, it has been a full eight years."

"He has been waiting for this opportunity the whole time."

When the author writes to this point, he is reminded of the self-deprecating words General Qi said earlier: "Viewing it like a wart, how can one find room to display one's talents?" Qi Qi Jiguang only needed one opportunity, an opportunity to fight a war. Begging for monthly votes, Awoo!!!!!!!!

(End of chapter)