Chapter 135

Chen Ying madly thrust the spear in his hands through the gaps in the crowd again and again. All around him were packed Killer Squad soldiers, their dense thicket of long spears, blades and clubs, and trident-spears stabbing out in an endless stream. The last dozen or so exhausted White Armor Soldiers were trapped in the middle, fighting desperately like cornered beasts in vain.

Cries of "Kill the Tatars!" gradually rose, and hundreds of soldiers on the left wing shouted in unison, merging into a resounding chant. Chen Ying joined in at the top of his lungs, as if he possessed inexhaustible strength and felt no fatigue at all. The spear in his hands thrust and stabbed without pause until the final White Armor Soldier collapsed, his body riddled with spear holes. The combat soldiers then fell upon the wounded and the corpses on the ground without a moment's rest, stabbing wildly in a frenzy.

Several officers kept shouting loudly to stop them, finally bringing the frenzied soldiers to a halt. The battlefield fell silent for a moment, leaving only the pitiful cries of wounded horses and injured soldiers from the Wendeng Battalion.

Everyone was still immersed in the atmosphere of the bloody battle. Some stared at the corpses lying all around in various gruesome states, while others looked at their blood-spattered comrades beside them with slightly dazed expressions.

"Ten thousand victories!"

Huang Side's raspy, broken voice rang out. The eyes of the surrounding combat soldiers regained their luster, and they all shouted together.

The cry of "Ten thousand victories!" spread across the entire battle line, merging into a mighty roar like a tidal wave. Everyone shouted with all their might in excitement, and even the commoners of Guanxian on the city walls joined in.

Chen Ying crouched on the ground, covering his face and weeping loudly. Many other sons of Liaodong did the same. Since the old chieftain raised his army, they had lost their homes and their dearest ones. For the sake of vengeance and their conviction not to become slaves, they had endured years of suffering, and at this moment, it all seemed to have been repaid.

As for the local soldiers from Shandong, they were equally excited. Besides the daily propaganda and indoctrination that made them hate the Jianzhou Bandits just as much, a sense of pride and honor welled up in their hearts. They had defeated the Jianzhou Bandits that everyone feared. The Wendeng Battalion was the strongest army.

Chen Xin watched this stirring scene with a smile on his face, letting these soldiers vent their emotions freely. They had been subjected to all kinds of intense stimuli during the battle, and such a release could soothe their feelings. Of course, the Indoctrination Officers would still need to do a great deal of follow-up work after the battle.

Psychological counseling for the army was an extremely complex task. Even the self-aware revolutionary soldiers of the Napoleonic era would sometimes suffer inexplicable, formation-wide collapses, even just while marching, yet the same unit could stubbornly attack a powerful enemy the very next day. Chen Xin did not know much of this knowledge either, but he had always attached great importance to this issue. He believed that guidance and relief should be effective.

When the voices gradually subsided, Chen Xin said to Liu Pojun, whose face was streaming with tears beside him, "Recall the troops and deploy defenses."

A clash of cymbals rang out, and all the infantry began to reform their squad formations, each returning to their designated banner unit. After the second clash of cymbals, they withdrew by banner unit, returning to the position from which they had launched the attack.

The cavalry once again sent out two squads of Night Scouts. Chen Xin's order to them was to reconnoiter the Later Jin army's encampment. Having suffered such heavy losses, they would surely withdraw quickly. Chen Xin was certain he could not catch up with them, so sending out the cavalry was merely for show, to put pressure on the enemy commander. The remaining cavalry patrolled the outer edge of the recent battlefield to prevent any Jianzhou Bandits playing dead from escaping.

After all the infantry units returned behind the original line of breastworks, a gong sounded, and the combat soldiers, who were beginning to feel their exhaustion, could finally sit down and rest. Then, a suona horn sounded from the central army, and all unit commanders headed toward the central army banner.

The officers quickly assembled. As soon as Huang Side arrived, he began flattering profusely, "The Jianzhou Bandits have ravaged the imperial capital region, yet the strong army my lord has trained defeated them in a single battle. The prestige of our Wendeng Battalion will surely spread throughout the land from this, and everyone will know my lord's name."

Lu Chuanzong laughed heartily and said, "My lord, killing Tatars is truly satisfying."

Zhu Guobin still wore an excited expression. He had shot dead one Jianzhou Bandit in the skirmish line but had not secured the head. The cavalry battalion had not served as the main force this time, so he had essentially been a spectator, but he still felt a shared sense of honor. Among the chief officers, he was the only one from Liaodong, so he was the most emotional one here.

Chen Xin smiled and waved his hand, stopping the officers before first assigning military tasks: "Each Company Commander's unit is to detach two firearms banner squads and one Killer Squad banner squad that saw less combat to clean up the battlefield. The Military Judge will dispatch men to patrol and supervise. The Quartermaster is responsible for inventorying the spoils. Collect the heads of the Jianzhou Bandits neatly. When cutting off the heads, be careful not to sever the queues. Also, that Jalan Ejen and the banner must be preserved especially well."

Everyone knew these were all evidence for reporting merit, and they all agreed in turn.

"All unit commanders are to immediately compile casualty reports. If there are many wounded, soldiers may be detached to help care for them. The Military Judges, Training Corps, and Indoctrination Corps are each to compile the situations they have gathered to serve as a basis for future improvements."

Dai Zhenggang asked, "My lord, where do we go next? Are we still going to Jingshi?"

Chen Xin shook his head and said, "Not for now. The main force of the Jianzhou Bandits' whereabouts are unknown, so we will not move for the time being. This time, their flanking force was dealt a head-on blow by us, the only one since they entered the passes. The Jianzhou Chieftain may come seeking revenge. If we continue heading north, the chieftain will surely fight us to the death. How can our small force withstand that in open battle?"

Lu Chuanzong also agreed, "My unit suffered heavy losses. That dog of a County Magistrate won't open the gates. Marching through ice and snow with so many wounded, how can we fight any battles?"

Zhu Guobin also cursed, looking at the gate tower, "If it weren't for us being here, this city would certainly have been breached by the Jianzhou Bandits today. That dog of an official actually refuses us entry into the city. How are we to settle so many wounded? How many more of the injured will die needlessly living in tents?"

Hearing them bring up the County Magistrate again, Chen Xin smiled faintly and said to Nie Hong, "Send someone below the city walls. Tell that County Magistrate that if he still refuses to open the gates, I will certainly denounce him in my victory report. Also tell him that a large force of Jianzhou Bandits is still behind us and will soon come seeking revenge."

Lu Chuanzong said bitterly, "What if he still refuses to open them?"

"Then use the Crouching Tiger Cannons to demand it of him once more."

Although Chen Xin spoke harshly, he believed that as long as this County Magistrate was not a blockhead, he would know how important the military achievement below his city walls was. The victory report might even be delivered directly into the Emperor's hands. If Chen Xin were to severely denounce him, his official career would likely be over.

Although the city wall was somewhat dilapidated, it was still better than a single line of breastworks. Inside the city, they could also find more physicians and laborers, making it easier to treat the wounded soldiers, while also providing the other soldiers with a better sense of psychological security. This was also one of the advantages of fighting with one's back to a city.

Huang Taiji might indeed come seeking revenge, and the reasons were ample. While Huang Taiji was rampaging through the imperial capital region, a Ming army had suddenly appeared and slain so many Later Jin soldiers. If he did not annihilate them, those Mongols would think the Ming army also had strong forces and would continue to waver.

As long as they could better mobilize the manpower within the city over the next two days and repair the city walls, even if Huang Taiji came, he might not dare to attack. According to Chen Xin's prior investigation, the walls of Guanxian were five li and two hundred sixty-nine paces in circumference, narrow east to west and long north to south. Including the parapets, they were two zhang and nine chi high, and nine chi wide at the top, with four city gates in total. The defensive moat outside the walls was one zhang and five chi deep and three zhang wide, but it had frozen over in winter, so this obstacle would be of little use.

With a strong army like the Wendeng Battalion, whose morale was at its peak, and some organized civilians, Chen Xin was not afraid of the Jianzhou Bandits attacking. If Huang Taiji heard the account of the battle, he should know what a great price he would have to pay to take a city defended by such an army. Casualties were one aspect; on the other hand, he had led his army deep into enemy territory and absolutely dared not fight such a tough battle. Once a large number of wounded appeared, his mobility would be greatly reduced.

Chen Xin had come to serve the Emperor. He had already appeared before the eyes of the people of Guanxian. He was unwilling to continue north, and going south would be safe, but if word spread, he might be seen as retreating in the face of battle, which would affect his political speculation.

Ultimately, neither Chen Xin nor Huang Taiji had come to fight to the death. Therefore, Chen Xin believed that the casualties Huang Taiji could accept would definitely not be too high. As long as the city's defenses were strengthened to a certain degree, it was unlikely that Huang Taiji would act on impulse, abandon his main objectives, and engage in a fight to the bitter end with a mere Picket Officer.

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Zhang Dahui hurried back from Zuoanmen. When he reached Chongwenmen Street, he saw both sides of the street packed with people. He went over to look and saw many beggars and refugees walking down the middle of the road, most carrying weapons like spears and clubs, while some held objects like soul-summoning banners. As they walked, they chanted incomprehensible incantations. Curious, he asked a bystander, who told him these were the troops of a Vice General Shen. That Vice General Shen knew magic arts and would lead these men to slaughter all the Jianzhou Bandits.

Zhang Dahui's eyes widened into perfect circles. He was somewhat skeptical. These people did not look at all like they could fight, but since the imperial court had appointed this inexplicable Vice General Shen, perhaps the Ministry of War had verified his abilities, and it might actually be true.

The procession of beggars on the road stretched on endlessly. Besides beggars and refugees, it was also mixed with many shifty-eyed idlers. People around him said the total number was as high as seven thousand, and rumors were spreading that they would soon leave the city.

The more Zhang Dahui watched, the more bored he became. He rarely even saw anyone robust. He had no idea how they could possibly kill Jianzhou Bandits. If there really were magic arts that could be performed, why bring them along at all? So he stopped wasting time and went directly back to the courtyard in Zhengdongfang.

He pushed open the door to the main room and saw Song Wenxian, his eyes bloodshot and his face utterly haggard, leaning back in a chair in a daze.

He said to Song Wenxian, "Mr. Song, the Guanning Army ran away last night!"

Song Wenxian sprang up from his chair and asked repeatedly, "What about the Xuan-Da Army?"

"They didn't run. Man Gui is now the Military Grand Coordinator. The court and the city are already in complete chaos. Even spirit dancers have become generals."

Song Wenxian paced anxiously around the room several times and muttered fretfully, "Now is the best opportunity, but I don't even know where Lord Chen is. How can I notify him?"

Zhang Dahui smiled and said, "Mr. Song, stop pacing. Even if we knew, we couldn't get out. The city gates are all closed without exception now, and the south is full of Jianzhou Bandit scout riders. How could anyone get through?"

Song Wenxian let out a long sigh, deeply pained at watching a good opportunity slip away. Ever since the Guanning and Xuan-Da armies had been defeated, chaos had reigned within Jingshi. The incomparably ferocious Jianzhou Bandits were separated from them by only a single wall, casting a shadow over everyone's heart. In the ensuing panic, rumors spread everywhere in Jingshi, most of them targeting Yuan Chonghuan. Some said he colluded with the Jianzhou Bandits to negotiate peace, others said he was afraid to fight. The killing of Mao Wenlong was also dug up and recounted by the people. Every street and alley was filled with all sorts of rumors. Yuan Chonghuan himself had also heard these rumors. During his first audience, he had not even dared to wear his official robes, but to his surprise, the Emperor treated him with exceptional favor, even giving him a fur coat to wear.

On the first day of the twelfth month, the Emperor summoned Yuan Chonghuan and others again. This time, the young Son of Heaven suddenly turned hostile, questioning him about the killing of Mao Wenlong and the unauthorized peace negotiations. He immediately had Yuan Chonghuan arrested and imprisoned. His method was very similar to how Yuan Chonghuan had killed Mao Wenlong—first lulling the opponent into a false sense of security, then suddenly turning hostile and striking.

As the commander of operations against the Later Jin, Lord Yuan had to bear the greatest responsibility for this Jianzhou Bandit incursion. Not only was he completely unaware of the Later Jin's large-scale troop movements, but he also did nothing on the defensive lines at Jizhen and Sanhe-Tongzhou. When it came to the battle outside Jingshi, he was defeated again. Moreover, he still had lamas with his army and had repeatedly requested entry into the city. Chongzhen had reached the limit of his patience with him.

At the time, Chongzhen did not arrest Zu Dashou and even offered him some consolation. As a result, shortly after returning to camp, this man fled with the Liaodong army. Once this army, which received the most funding, ran away, only the heavily damaged Xuan-Da Army remained. Jingshi was thrown into panic several times a day, in a constant state of anxiety. If an army were to arrive at this moment, how inspiring it would be. Thinking of such a scenario, Song Wenxian's eagerness grew even more urgent.

Zhang Dahui had spent some time in Chen Xin's personal guard unit and had heard a thing or two about warfare. He advised Song Wenxian, "Mr. Song, please set your mind at ease. The Jianzhou Bandits are all mounted. Lord Chen would never dare to rush to Jingshi at this time. In any case, the Jianzhou Bandits don't seem to be leaving anytime soon. There should still be an opportunity, and it might even be a better one."

Song Wenxian finally nodded and slowly sat down.