Chapter 150: Regret That I Am Not Strong Enough to Go Together

For eight years, Qi Qi Jiguang had come from the south to the north, from a Assistant Regional Commander of the Divine Machine Battalion to the Regional Commander of the Jizhou, Yongping, and Jia Shanhai Pass three towns. He won a great victory at Xifengkou, and because of this, the Emperor bestowed upon him a marquis title as a special favor, even if it was only a "flowing title." But from then on, Qi Qi Jiguang's status became that of a military noble.

Why did the court always want to impeach the Prince of Prince Dingxiang, Zhu Zhu Xizhong, for his princely title?

Because Zhu Zhu Xizhong, on his deathbed, sent a memorial stained with blood directly to the Emperor. The little Emperor, who went to visit the sick, found Zhang Zhang Juzheng with the blood-stained memorial and wanted Zhang Zhang Juzheng to arrange for Qi Qi Jiguang to return to the capital to revitalize the Capital Battalion in the capacity of a military noble. If Zhang Zhang Juzheng refused to agree, the little Emperor would hold the blood-stained memorial and refuse to let go.

It wasn't until Zhang Zhang Juzheng agreed that Zhu Zhu Yijun washed his hands.

A military noble actually reached the Emperor directly—this was breaking the rules. How could a military noble bypass the Ministry of War and send a memorial directly to the Emperor!

Moreover, that Grand Marshal of the Ministry of War, Tan Lun, who was sitting in his position and doing nothing, thought all day about going to the front line to fight battles himself. He turned a deaf ear to these things that destroyed the ancestral laws and the overall situation of civil officials controlling the military.

The Senior Grand Secretary of the Great Ming, as the leader of the civil officials, talked all day about "slightly giving military authority to generals" and "generals being controlled by civil officials no less than slaves." If this wasn't a traitor to the civil officials, what was it!

Qi Qi Jiguang led his horse, walking

It is just a cold wind; could it be more terrifying than the public opinion in the imperial court?

The hood is connected to the cotton coat for convenience. Qi Qi Jiguang stood still and looked behind him. The war chariots were lined up in a long, single-file dragon behind him, moving forward slowly and firmly. He turned around again and continued his march.

Just as Ma Fang said, in the tenth month, no matter how hard it snows, it will not exceed a foot. As long as it does not exceed a foot, it will not have a fatal impact on the march.

Qi Qi Jiguang reached out, placed his hand behind a war chariot, and pushed hard to move it forward; the chariot had sunk into a pit.

On the chariot was a Frankish cannon; artillery is the divine weapon of field warfare. And the chariot he was pushing was the very one that His Majesty had personally pushed when the grand army set out.

"Let me do it." Yang Wen wanted to replace the Regional Commander and Earl of Qian'an in pushing the chariot. This section was an uphill road, and the donkeys and mules pulling it were struggling. As a result, the wheels had sunk into a pit. This post road of four hundred and eighty-five *li* from Guangning to Daning Guard had not been repaired for nearly two hundred years.

"It's fine." Qi Qi Jiguang smiled and waved his hand, continuing to push the chariot. He lowered his head slightly and pushed hard, forcing the chariot out of the pit. The vehicle continued forward, and then he inserted a small flag he was holding into the side of the pit to prevent the chariots behind from falling into it.

Qi Qi Jiguang once told the young Emperor that leading troops in war is not a difficult matter. If a general views his soldiers as his own hands and feet, the soldiers will view the general as their heart and soul; if a general views his soldiers as dogs and horses, the soldiers will view the general as a stranger; if a general views his soldiers as dirt and grass, the soldiers will view the general as an enemy.

Qi Qi Jiguang never believed that leading troops in war was a difficult thing. If everyone from top to bottom is of one mind, what enemy cannot be defeated? Therefore, the soldiers push the chariots, and he pushes the chariots too.

But to be able to achieve this, not to mention the entire Great Ming, even looking back across the long river of history, is rare. Otherwise, Li Li Shimin sharing a single sheep with his soldiers would not have left such a colorful mark in the history books.

Almost no military general would eat from the same stove as his soldiers.

But Qi Qi Jiguang can do it. The secret to his invincibility is actually that simple.

Yang Wen had followed Qi Qi Jiguang for so many years and thought that once General Qi became a military noble, he would change. But General Qi was still that same General Qi, eating from the same stove as the soldiers and pushing chariots with them, rather than sitting on a chariot and barking orders.

Yang Wen is convinced, Ma Gui is convinced, Li Li Rusong is convinced, and Lord Ma Fang is also convinced. The entire Capital Battalion is also convinced.

"His Majesty also provided every person in our Capital Battalion with a pair of ear warmers. They aren't needed for marching, but when stationed, at least our ears won't freeze." Yang Wen pushed the chariot and kept laughing foolishly. Since leaving Jia Shanhai Pass, Yang Wen had been in a state of excitement. His condition was exactly the same as most of the soldiers in the Capital Battalion.

Ear warmers, a pair of furry rabbit-fur ear covers. These were purchased by His Majesty using the inner treasury and distributed to every soldier in the Great Ming Capital Battalion.

This is a campaign beyond the frontier. Not only is Qi Qi Jiguang waiting for an opportunity, but the soldiers of Great Ming are also waiting for an opportunity, waiting for an opportunity to display their talents.

Qi Qi Jiguang couldn't help but think of his disciple in the capital who was very diligent in practicing martial arts—the supreme Emperor of Great Ming.

"Hating that I am not yet strong, unable to go together."

These were the words His Majesty said to Qi Qi Jiguang when he was pushing the hub of the war chariot.

"Why did General Qi want to write military books in the first place?" Yang Wen asked, stepping heavily through the snow, feeling somewhat puzzled.

Qi Qi Jiguang looked back and answered nonchalantly: "How would a warrior have the time to play with ink and paper? Isn't it just because I was idle?"

"Idle is idle." Behind this reason, Qi Qi Jiguang actually knew why he wrote military books, why a warrior would play with ink and paper.

It was just that during those five years of training troops in Jizhou, he had already perceived a terrifying fact: the civil and military officials of the entire court, and even the soldiers under his command, viewed him as a wart—something redundant and useless. He clearly knew that his ambitions could no longer be displayed, so he left behind military books, letting future generations realize that unreachable dream for him.

This was his motivation for writing military books.

Qi Qi Jiguang knew that his former patron, Zhang Zhang Juzheng, very much wanted him to fight beyond the frontier. But Zhang Zhang Juzheng was previously a Junior Grand Secretary, and now he is the Senior Grand Secretary; Zhang Zhang Juzheng could not do it.

Zhang Zhang Juzheng had already exhausted all his strength just to maintain the court situation in a relatively healthy state.

At the end of the sixth year of Emperor Longqing, before the New Year, Zhang Zhang Juzheng wrote a letter to Qi Qi Jiguang. In the long letter, there was one sentence: "I secretly believe that today, one should prioritize the Emperor's decree, regardless of whether one has a military title or rank."

That is to say, Zhang Zhang Juzheng secretly believed that today, one should prioritize the Emperor's decree and not care about whether one has a military title or rank.

From the moment Qi Qi Jiguang began leading troops to resist the Japanese pirates, Zhang Zhang Juzheng had been supporting him without any reservations. But by the end of the sixth year of Emperor Longqing, Zhang Zhang Juzheng also pessimistically discovered that five years of training troops had been of no use at all; wanting to fight beyond the frontier was as difficult as ascending to heaven.

Zhang Zhang Juzheng was already finding it difficult to continue supporting Qi Qi Jiguang, unable to support Qi Qi Jiguang in further displaying the heroic ambitions in his heart.

Reaching this point was already Zhang Zhang Juzheng's limit. What kind of disappointment, sorrow, and even despair must one feel to say such words?

"A man has high aspirations; how could he be willing to labor in vain?"

Fortunately, fortunately, there was still His Majesty, so that was fine. After waiting for eight years, Qi Qi Jiguang finally waited for this opportunity.

"Start a tune, sing a song, and boost the morale," Qi Qi Jiguang said to Yang Wen with a smile.

"Alright." Yang Wen thought for a moment; he needed to choose a song.

"Song of Wind and Waves" was a song from the time of suppressing the Japanese pirates; it was not very suitable in the north. The "Song of Wind and Waves" was created by Qi Qi Jiguang when he was resisting the Japanese pirates in Ningde, Fujian.

At that time, it was between summer and autumn, and the coastal areas were often hit by typhoons. Seeing that the soldiers and civilians were suffering greatly, Qi Qi Jiguang paid attention and investigated everywhere, studying the infinite principles of all things, combining them with changes in celestial phenomena, and figuring out the laws of wind and weather, writing a military song that was popular and easy to understand.

This also became a song that the soldiers and civilians in the southeast coastal areas had to sing when going out to sea. It mainly talks about the relationship between weather changes and clouds, starlight, sea sand, and animals.

For example, "When sea swallows flock, wind and rain arrive; when sea pigs run wild, the wind cannot stop." When there are many swallows on the sea, wind and rain arrive; when there are many pigs in the sea, the wind cannot stop.

For a long time, the "Song of Wind and Waves" guided the production and life of the residents in the southeast coastal areas.

Qi Qi Jiguang ordered the march in the white-haired wind. Inside and outside the Capital Battalion, no one disobeyed, and they didn't even ask questions. Facing the strong wind and heavy snow, they began to march, because Qi Qi Jiguang really understood the timing of heaven.

"Song of Triumph" was also not suitable; the "Song of Triumph" is sung when returning in triumph.

"Clouds follow the dragon, wind follows the tiger; fame, wealth, and profit are but dust and dirt." Yang Wen turned around and took the lead in singing loudly. Then, the soldiers of the war chariots near Yang Wen began to echo. Finally, the singing of the Great Ming army on the march went from uncoordinated to uniform, and finally, the sound roared between the mountains and forests.

The singing went straight up to the clouds, as if it wanted to disperse the dark clouds in the sky.

At the end of the Northern Song Dynasty, the iron hooves of the Jin people broke through the Northern Song capital of Kaifeng, and the land north of the Yellow River fell. From the day of the fall, the resistance never stopped. At that time, they all used red scarves as their sign, which lasted for more than four hundred years.

Who the author of this "Song of Breaking the Barbarians" is can no longer be verified. Some say it was Liu Liu Futong, and some say it was Master Zhen Guan, but it was generally when the Dragon and Phoenix Northern Expedition was galloping on horseback that this song was sung all over the country.

"Looking at the Divine Land, the common people are suffering; the thousand-mile fertile soil is all desolate." Qi Qi Jiguang held the wheel and pushed hard.

Qi Qi Jiguang did not like fighting wars, because wherever there is war, the common people never fare well. The northwest had been fighting for more than ten years, and the southeast had been fighting for decades. The common people were displaced, the land was desolate, and the bones of children were left by the roadside. The scourge of war is the scourge of war. Once the scourge of war arises and the flames of war spread, the ones who suffer the most are the common people.

Qi Qi Jiguang strongly agreed with the saying: "Those who are good at fighting should be punished with the highest penalty."

Those who are good at fighting, although they can defeat the enemy and satisfy the heart of their lord, harm the lives of the people and poison all living things. They are the so-called "those who lead the land to eat human flesh," and they should be punished with the highest penalty.

He would rather have no place to use his martial arts than see the flames of war rise everywhere in Great Ming. But what made him despair was that Great Ming was clearly full of places for him to use his martial arts, but he was unable to use them.

He was not warlike at all, but he had to fight.

Because his campaigns were to eliminate the Japanese pirates, to eliminate the Northern Barbarians, and to eliminate the enemies of the Great Ming group who were related to life and survival. Therefore, he had to fight, and he had to win.

The Great Ming army seemed to be moving slowly and firmly toward Daning Guard, and the singing was still filled with high-spirited fighting spirit under the firmament.

"Look at the world, it is full of barbarians; the Heavenly Dao is incomplete, and the common man must mend it. Good men, leave your parents, only for the sake of the common people, not for the master."

"Holding a steel saber ninety-nine times, kill all the barbarian children before stopping. I am a dignified man; how can a Han man be willing to be a barbarian's horse or cow?"

The Great Ming army's appearance shines with heavenly might.

One day later, the haze was finally swept away, and the weather cleared up. But the weather did not turn warm; instead, it became even colder. "Snowing is not cold, melting snow is cold."

The vanguard, Li Li Rusong, marched rapidly along the Daling River, exiting the pass from the Princess Taiping Fortress Great Wall pass, and arrived at Yingzhou Guard, Xingzhong.

The Master Murong Xianbei established Longcheng here as the capital of the Three Yans—Former Yan, Later Yan, and Northern Yan. During the Northern Wei to Sui and Tang Dynasties, Yingzhou was established. During the Liao and Jin Dynasties, Xingzhong Prefecture was established. During the Yuan Dynasty, it was Xingzhong Prefecture. During the Emperor Hongwu years, Yingzhou Guard was established.

This has always been a strategic location beyond the frontier. Li Li Rusong's vanguard arrived, and he personally led scouts to investigate the situation.

The terrain of Yingzhou Guard is higher in the north, northwest, and southwest, and lower toward the east, shaped like a winnowing basket opening to the east. The two major mountain ranges, Songling Mountain and Nuluerhu Mountain, run through it in a northeast-southwest direction, coupled with the Daling River alluvial plain, making it easy to defend and difficult to attack.

The vanguard led by Li Li Rusong and the Great Ming army came from Guangning, which is attacking Yingzhou Guard from the east.

That is to say, Great Ming was in an unfavorable terrain from the beginning. Once an attack was launched, the terrain on three sides was higher. Whether it was attacking from high to low or the Tumut cavalry charging south, the Great Ming army would be in a very passive position.

"Northwest wind." Li Li Rusong looked solemn as he reached out to feel the wind direction. That is to say, if the enemy fired from above, the arrows could ride the wind, having a longer range and greater power. For the Great Ming army, everything became unfavorable.

Of course, if the Great Ming army could win, it would also be difficult for the enemy troops in Yingzhou Guard to escape.

The ground temperature in the tenth month was still very high. The first layer of snow that fell on the ground had already melted, and then froze as the temperature dropped rapidly, making it difficult for the enemy's cavalry to charge. This was the best news for the Great Ming army.

"Opportunity must not be lost." Li Li Rusong clenched his fists, looking at the archway of Yingzhou Guard in front of him. He wanted to launch an attack immediately, attacking when they were unprepared. An attack in such snowy weather would definitely catch the enemy off guard.

But Qi Qi Jiguang had repeatedly urged Li Li Rusong not to act rashly. The role of the vanguard was not to break through, but to occupy a stronghold and repel the enemy's harassment, allowing the main army to have a place to land and deploy when they arrived.

Faced with military orders and the opportunity of war, Li Li Rusong chose the military orders.

The vanguard led by Li Li Rusong began to build a hard camp. This kind of hard camp was the method Great Ming used to break the barbarians back then.

"Those who are good at fighting stand in an invincible position, without losing the enemy's defeat."

Once the hard camp was built, they would enter an invincible position where the Great Ming army could attack or defend, and would not fall into a dilemma of being unable to advance or retreat.

In terms of showing personal bravery and collective decision-making, Li Li Rusong rarely chose the latter instead of the former. If Li Li Chengliang were here, he would definitely be surprised by Li Li Rusong's change. One must know that when Li Li Rusong was selecting military generals in the Capital Battalion, he even spoke rudely to Qi Qi Jiguang and Tan Lun.

Li Li Rusong was the most rebellious person in the army. He did not obey discipline, liked to charge into battle personally, and could fight fierce battles. He could be called a brave warrior, but this kind of reckless warrior would bring a lot of trouble to the army at certain times.

While the Great Ming army was setting up camp, the barbarians in Yingzhou Guard had no movement at all. A dozen scouts buried themselves in the snow to observe the movements of the barbarians in Yingzhou Guard, and some bolder scouts even approached the camp area.

It was snowing heavily. The left wing of the Northern Barbarians occupying Yingzhou Guard never thought that the Great Ming army would choose to fight beyond the frontier in such bad weather. The last time the Great Ming army fought beyond the frontier was... last year, when Li Li Chengliang went out of Fushun Pass to pacify Gule Fortress and captured the rebellious chieftain Wang Gao.

Before Li Li Chengliang went out to fight, the Great Ming army was always passively defending. Whether in the northwest or the northeast, since the Battle of Yingzhou during the reign of Emperor Wu Sect, the Great Ming army had not fought beyond the frontier, so much so that the Northern Barbarians never thought that the Great Ming army would still fight beyond the frontier.

Even though some people in the court had informed the Tumut Khan Chahar Tumen of the news that the Great Ming army was gathering in Guangning and Xifengkou, Chahar Tumen still believed that Great Ming was in a strategic defensive posture and would not easily leave the pass, let alone believe that the Great Ming army would sneak attack Yingzhou Guard.

Not only did Tumut Khan Chahar Tumen think so, but most of the Northern Barbarians thought about problems this way, and even many Great Ming people thought about problems this way, thinking that Qi Qi Jiguang's arrival in Guangning was just like last year, acting as a support for Li Li Chengliang's campaign beyond the frontier.

Li Li Rusong set up camp twenty *li* outside Yingzhou Guard, and the barbarians in Yingzhou Guard did not discover that the enemy was already close at hand. Twenty *li* is a distance from which one can attack at any time. The wind was strong, and the wind rolled the snow on the ground, dancing in the air, making the visibility even lower.

"You go back to rest; I'll stand guard." When the camp took shape, Li Li Rusong came to within three *li* of the camp again and changed shifts with the scouts. A scout had been buried in the snow for a full three hours, without eating a mouthful of food or drinking a mouthful of water.

"Greetings, Assistant Regional Commander!" The scout stood up and said excitedly. He did not expect that the person changing shifts would be Li Li Rusong himself.

Another two hours passed, and the sun set in the west. A Company Commander of the Northern Barbarians in Yingzhou Guard finally discovered some abnormalities and planned to go and check it out personally.

Li Li Rusong, who had shot through iron armor in the Martial Arts Room of the Imperial Palace, stood up, pulled the five-foot longbow behind his back to his chest, and drew a four-liang arrow. He pulled the bow into a full circle, squinting his eyes to look at the Company Commander who had discovered the abnormality. When the wind calmed down slightly, Li Li Rusong released the hundred-jin bow in his hand. The arrow flew out fiercely, spinning in the air with a whistling sound, heading toward the Company Commander who had approached to sixty paces.

The arrow, which should have drawn a perfect parabolic arc, drew a strange arc because of the oncoming northwest wind, shooting toward the Company Commander. When the Company Commander sixty paces away heard the sound of the arrow's whistle, it was already too late.

The black arrow, caught in the wind and snow, drew an arc of light with its arrowhead, flying toward the Company Commander at an extremely fast speed. It pierced his leather clothes, drilled into the upper left of his chest, and nailed into his ribs. The ribs could not stop the arrow's breakthrough, and they broke with a sound. The arrow entered the flesh by ten millimeters and was firmly nailed in.

The Company Commander lowered his head and looked at the arrow in his chest in disbelief, still wanting to confirm whether the arrow was real or an illusion brought by the heavy snow. The pain came fiercely only after his doubt.

The Company Commander fell softly into the field. He wanted to wail, but could only make some beast-like moans. His lung had a hole in it, and he could no longer breathe. He crawled twice with force, and then he had no more life.

He was dead as dead could be.

After this barbarian Company Commander died, it took nearly half an hour before anyone came out to look for him. The battle between scouts broke out instantly. Twenty-one teams of scouts began to test each other with the barbarian scouts.

The barbarian scouts were indeed good at mounted archery, but the ground had already frozen, and the horses could not gallop. The Northern Barbarians' greatest reliance, their horses, lost their use.

In terms of foot archery, Li Li Rusong and the Great Ming scouts had never feared anyone. Even if the British longbowmen, whom Li Li Yashi feared extremely, came to Great Ming for military exchange, Li Li Rusong had the confidence that Great Ming would win completely.

Foot archery is always a duel of strength and skill. The scouts of Great Ming all used five-foot strong bows, hundred-jin powerful bows, which shot far and accurately.

Archers are indeed long-range, but that does not mean they have no close-combat ability. These burly scouts, whose waists were thicker than water buckets, were good hands at long-range shooting and were no less inferior in close combat. The scouts Li Li Rusong brought had a name that was not very well known: Night Scouts, Beacon Tower Distant Marquises.

The Great Ming Tan Sima and Grand Secretary Tan Lun mentioned that they should select from the Night Scouts to enter the Embroidered Uniform Guard as Northern Depot riders to adapt to Great Ming's increasingly growing demand for elite riders.

There were only about three thousand Night Scouts and Beacon Tower Distant Marquises along the long Nine Frontiers defense line.

The Northern Barbarians in Yingzhou Guard never figured out who the enemy was. All the scouts sent out to investigate were picked off and hunted by the Great Ming Night Scouts one by one. A feeling of fear spread. Even when night fell, it still could not stop the Night Scouts hiding in the night from harvesting the lives of the barbarian scouts.

Night Scouts are those who can operate at night.

Qi Qi Jiguang's main army finally arrived at the front line of Yingzhou Guard.

"Let's eat after we finish Yingzhou Guard." Qi Qi Jiguang finished reading all the reconnaissance reports and made a very familiar decision: eat after finishing.

Not letting Li Li Rusong's vanguard attack, and Qi Qi Jiguang's main army arriving and attacking without even eating—isn't this stealing credit! Li Li Rusong, this fearless and reckless person, actually endured it just like that?

The situation was not like this. If it were seen by the lowly scholars who did not enter the military camp, this would be a true portrayal of stealing credit on the front line. For this one small matter, the lowly scholars could write a ten-thousand-word story to splash dirty water on Qi Qi Jiguang and Li Li Rusong. And Qi Qi Jiguang and Li Li Rusong's memorial would have to be sent to the Emperor through the Ministry of War. If the Ministry of War suppressed it slightly, the truth of the matter would become fighting for credit.

Actually, it was because Li Li Rusong's vanguard did not carry a large amount of artillery. Specifically, they did not have the main battle chariots, the main heavy chariots, and only had two Frankish cannons. In the absence of heavy fire support, attacking in the face of unfavorable terrain was not wise.

When the main battle chariots were pushed to three *li* from Yingzhou Guard, the Northern Barbarians spread throughout Yingzhou Guard finally reacted. The ones fighting them were the Great Ming army.

Accompanied by the steady forward movement of the war chariots, the horn of the Great Ming army's attack sounded, and the sound of drums shook the sky. The two thousand barbarians occupying Yingzhou Guard were unable to resist the seven thousand Capital Battalion soldiers of the Great Ming army.

The Great Ming Capital Battalion was three times the enemy, and also carried one Frankish cannon, each equipped with nine sub-cannons, which could be quickly reloaded from the rear.

Under the cover of the large shields of the main battle chariots, the Great Ming army pushed toward the camp of the Yingzhou fortress step by step. The enemy began to organize a charge. Three people were responsible for one Frankish cannon. When the enemy charge reached nearly eighty paces, after the chariot commander waved the small flag in his hand, the Frankish cannon began to fire.

The roaring sound of artillery suddenly rang out, and gunpowder smoke began to fill the air. Exploding shells roared out of the cannon barrels, smashing heavily toward the Northern Barbarians with a whistling sound. As they flew over the heads of the many mobs of Northern Barbarians, the exploding shells suddenly burst, and the iron caltrops and iron fragments inside the shells shot out in all directions during the explosion.

The iron caltrops and iron fragments swept through the crowd, and blood lotuses slowly bloomed amidst the explosions.

Qi Qi Jiguang had been observing with a telescope. After the first round of volley fire, the Hu Lu line completely collapsed. The light chariots began to advance. There were four people on each light chariot, holding fire muskets for fire suppression, and the people pushing the chariots carried waist belts and hook-sickle spears, responsible for close combat.

The situation of the war was already completely one-sided. For the barbarians, the original geographical advantage became an obstacle to escape.

The scales of victory had already begun to tilt, but the disciplined Capital Battalion still advanced in an orderly manner, without any act of stealing credit. Qi Qi Jiguang had criticized the "head-counting credit" more than once, so the Capital Battalion's credit recording was collective credit. That is to say, heads were no longer the only standard for measuring war merit; the battle line was.

The grand army began to split, encircle, and eliminate them in an orderly manner.

The regular troops did not leave the war chariots to fight, and the surprise troops left the war chariots to fight. Ten regular soldiers operated the war chariot, and ten surprise soldiers were led by a team leader, including four bird-gunners, two rattan shield soldiers, and two halberd soldiers. The rattan shield soldiers defended, and one fire soldier was specifically responsible for finishing off the enemy. Wherever the war chariot passed, the finishing soldier would cut the throat of every enemy lying on the ground.

The halberd has three prongs and three tips, with wings like bull horns. It can strike and defend, serving both as a spear and a shield. When the enemy is far away, the two prongs can serve as a rocket rack to launch rockets. When the enemy approaches, it can be used as a long weapon.

The Great Ming war chariots were like a flesh-and-blood millstone, grinding through the Hu Lu line in Yingzhou Guard.

The enemy was defeated.

In this battle formation, the shells of the Frankish cannons were exploding shells.

Great Ming's exploding shells were numerous, including watermelon cannons, flying cloud thunder cannons, flying urge-to-explode cannons, divine fire meteor cannons, etc. The widespread application of exploding shells had to mention the "Memorial on Manufacturing Firearms" by Weng Danda, Tan Sima during the Emperor Jiajing years.

Weng Danda, appointed as the Viceroy of the Three Frontiers as the Left Vice Tan Sima, supervised the frontiers in the northwest for six years and fought with Altan Khan for six years, and Altan Khan could not take any advantage at all.

In the twenty-eighth year of Emperor Jiajing, Weng Danda entered the capital as Tan Sima. Weng Danda, who could win battles, like Hu Hai Zongxian, Zhu Wan, Qi Qi Jiguang, and Yu Yu Dayou, was considered a "butcher who kills like hemp" because he could win battles. Is winning battles very remarkable? Isn't he still a butcher who kills like hemp?

In the same year, Weng Danda's father died of illness. According to the Great Ming system, Weng Danda had to return home to observe mourning for twenty-seven months. Weng Danda returned home to observe mourning and retire. As soon as Altan Khan heard that Weng Danda had left, he immediately began preparations to move south.

And then it was the Altan Khan's invasion of the capital region in the twenty-ninth year of Emperor Jiajing.

The Emperor Jiajing Emperor revoked Weng Danda's mourning period. Many scholars in the court repeatedly blocked it, saying that if he was not willing to observe mourning, he was not a human son, and that "not avoiding mourning for military service" was not the law of the former kings.

Weng Danda was from Chaoshan, and his hometown was in Jieyang County, Chaozhou Prefecture. From returning home to observe mourning, to the dramatic changes in the capital, to being revoked from mourning and re-appointed, he traveled twenty thousand *li* back and forth.

When Weng Danda was revoked from mourning and re-appointed, his back carbuncle flared up. But Weng Danda rushed back to the capital from Chaoshan in less than forty-one days.

After returning to the capital, Weng Danda was repeatedly attacked again, and was finally demoted to guard Zijing Pass. The following year, during the capital inspection, Weng Danda requested retirement due to illness, was disgusted by the Emperor Jiajing Emperor, and was stripped of his status and made a commoner.

In the thirty-first year of Emperor Jiajing, the conflict between Great Ming and Altan Khan was repeatedly defeated. The Emperor Jiajing Emperor thought of Weng Danda again and issued three urgent edicts to re-appoint Weng Danda as Tan Sima. But when the edict arrived, Weng Danda had already passed away due to illness.

The war in the northwest had been rotting ever since.

Exploding shells were the divine weapons Weng Danda created to deal with the barbarians, because the barbarians did not have much armor, and the shrapnel and iron caltrops from the explosion could cause effective damage.

Qi Qi Jiguang had been wandering on the battlefield. The Great Ming army was cleaning up the battlefield, and Qi Qi Jiguang wanted to improve the exploding shells. Great Ming's exploding shells were filled with ten *liang* of gunpowder, which was very powerful, but the filling inside was still in the stage of practical exploration. Some were filled with sulfur poison, some with iron caltrops, some with fierce fire oil, and some with stones.

Qi Qi Jiguang wanted to determine which one had the greatest lethality, and also wanted to improve the exploding shells. Some exploding shells became duds after being fired, and there were also cases of cannon explosions.

This General Qi spent all day studying how to kill people more efficiently and quickly. But as a military noble, if he didn't study how to kill the enemy, should he study the difference between Persian beauties and Great Ming beauties?

Weng Danda was a pity. If there hadn't been the turmoil of revoking mourning and re-appointment, how would it have been Altan Khan's turn to be arrogant? Begging for monthly votes, Awoo!!!!!!

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