[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-late-ming":3,"chapter-late-ming-late-ming-chapter-151":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Late Ming",{"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},926511,1218,"Chapter 151: The Battle of the Four Cities (11)","late-ming-chapter-151",151,"\u003Cp>PS: A Note on the Launch\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thank you, dear readers, for your great kindness. The book has finally launched. This is the author's first attempt at writing, and reaching this point has already been a surprise. Many readers have given evaluations that exceed my own assessment of this book.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When this book reached three hundred thousand characters, it only had five hundred collections and just over two thousand recommendations. At the time, I planned to update once every few days and just finish it casually. Recommendations from friends like Cui Xiaosan, Poker Loves to Hit Me, and the Idle Daoist Priest helped many readers discover this book, and its performance suddenly improved greatly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To actually appear on the same charts as those great authors — over five hundred thousand clicks, more than forty thousand recommendations, and even tips — all of this exists only because of the repeated support of every reader.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The late Ming is an era both brilliant and bleak, far beyond what an ordinary writer like myself can fully portray. I have done my best to share some of my shallow understanding with you all. Other words I will save for when the book is finished.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I hear that first-day subscriptions are very important, so I shamelessly ask for your subscriptions and monthly tickets. Thank you all again, dear readers.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>……………………………… one ~ …………………\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I also want to extend special thanks here to the two great authors Lonely Swordsman and Old Bai Niu for their recommendations, as well as the tremendous help from editor sister Donggua and deputy moderator Brother Xiyang Chenzui.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chen Xin rode his horse to the corpse-strewn crossroads. Wang Changfu's face was wrapped in cotton cloth, blood still dripping down his cheek. The moment Chen Xin saw him, he shouted, \"Wang Changfu, have you figured out what your job is or not?\" Wang Changfu saw Chen Xin and hurried over, saying, \"This officer grew anxious for a moment.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You are a battalion Company Commander. Your duty is to command and oversee the line. If you die, who will command?\" \"Yes, this officer knows his error.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"When merits are assessed, your personal merit will be reduced by one grade. The Third Company Command is unaffected.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Changfu and the Vice Company Commander repeatedly agreed. Chen Xin dismounted and asked, \"How is the defense deployed?\" \"Two platoons deployed on each of the southeast sides, but the losses just now were considerable; none are at full strength.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chen Xin said to Liu Pojun behind him, \"Transfer one firearms detachment to Wang Changfu, reinforce the south side.\" Liu Pojun immediately distributed command arrows and ordered a central army messenger to move the troops. Chen Xin, holding a simple map himself, continued, \"Have we confirmed the location of the Tatars' central army?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Liu Pojun said, \"We just captured several bondservants and interrogated them. It's at the department government office inside the east gate.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Are the baggage, coin, and grain there?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"They are. When the Jianzhou Chieftain left, he took the ones from the front. What the remaining Tatars extorted is still there.\" A smile appeared on Chen Xin's face. \"Wang Changfu, two platoons will penetrate East Street. The Fourth Company of the Second Battalion Command will be the main assault. The second Banjiu Foot Gun detachment will all be committed to East Street. We must control that area before the Guanning Army enters the city. Zhou Shifa will lead garrison troops to accompany them. Dong Yu, send a few quartermasters as well.\" According to what Cao Wenzhao had told Chen Xin, when Huang Taiji was here, he dreamed of turning the four cities into Later Jin territory, so there were still some restrictions then. Once he left, the remaining Later Jin troops would certainly loot openly. The gold and silver the Tatars plundered should be considerable.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhou Shifa had been with the central army all along. He acknowledged the order, then asked, \"My lord, if other friendly troops want to enter, how should we handle it?\" Chen Xin said flatly, \"Arrest those who force their way in. Kill on the spot any who dare draw blades. Zhou Shifa will be responsible for this. Unless Lord Sun Ge and Lord Zhang come in person, no one else is permitted to enter. Dong Yu, send men immediately to find a place near the north gate. Once the silver and coin from the department office are found, move them there.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The men loudly acknowledged the order and left. Then Lu Chuanzong arrived from the north gate. His First Battalion Command had already sealed off North Avenue, blocking every alley entrance with a combat squad. The Jianzhou bandits in the north city had also been split into two parts. He had come specifically to the intersection to request instructions from Chen Xin. After dismounting, he said to Chen Xin, \"My lord, the north gate is already shut. A Guanning Army cavalry unit came around from the east, saying they want to enter the city.\" \"Don't open it. Find a Squad Commander to deal with them. Just say it's to guard against the Jianzhou bandits, and you need to request instructions from a superior officer before opening the gate.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Chuanzong chuckled. \"Understood. In the chaos of war, a superior officer can't be found for a while.\" Chen Xin also smiled and said to Lu Chuanzong, \"Of course. We've seized the crossroads. The Jianzhou bandits are already doomed to defeat. The Guanning Army just wants to come pick the peaches — as if such a good thing exists. Just ignore them. Company Commander Lu, how many more troops can you spare?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I can deploy two platoons, but they're not at full strength.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Dong Yu had finished assigning tasks to a few quartermasters and hurried back over. \"My lord, with so many dead Later Jin soldiers, their belongings are probably still in their quarters. We should go search too. Those beasts scraped the earth bare; the valuables won't be few.\" Chen Xin nodded. \"I was just thinking the same.\" He also called over Nie Hong. \"Have those captured bondservants lead the way. Search the places where the Jianzhou bandits usually lived. Take gold, silver, and jewels first, then silks. At the end, take as much grain as you can carry. Nie Hong, take half the central army guard detachment to supervise. Still move it to the place Dong Yu selected.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Dong Yu immediately said, \"It's already chosen.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"What place?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"The academy inside the north gate. We'll put the wounded there too. Then we can openly and honorably post troops to guard it. Those officers probably have little interest in an academy.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chen Xin clapped his hands and smiled. \"That's an excellent choice.\" Lu Chuanzong, however, was a bit worried. \"That's a place for studying and examinations. If we occupy it, will Lord Sun and Lord Zhang make us move out?\" Chen Xin shook his head. \"We've earned them such enormous military merit. Who would step forward over such a trivial matter? Rest assured, those lords are shrewder than the next. If they were that kind of bookworm, they wouldn't have reached their current official posts. Go at once. Ransack every Jianzhou bandit dwelling in the north city.\" As they spoke, the reserve Fourth Company ran past them and entered East Street. Because the street was narrow, only the two platoons Wang Changfu had deployed earlier could serve as the main assault. By now, the cannon fire at the east gate had ceased. Most of the Jianzhou bandits up there had been redeployed or had fled. The Guanning Army could enter the city at any moment. They had to race against time to get ahead of them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After the crossroads was captured, the Later Jin soldiers' morale collapsed rapidly, and they completely lost command. Most of the Later Jin soldiers at the east and south gates scattered and fled. The Guanning Army and other loyalist troops outside the city were unaware of this and were still cautiously probing outside the walls. They had also noticed the unusual activity on the ramparts but feared it was a Jianzhou bandit trick. After all, the attack had only been underway for half a day. No one thought the city could be taken in a single day. They hoped the Jianzhou bandits would flee on their own, so everyone could earn military merit without risking their lives — and maybe make a little extra money.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chen Xin did not report his progress upward either. He even arranged for some firearms squads to take turns firing into empty alleyways, creating the appearance that fierce fighting was still ongoing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The two platoons of the Third Company Command practically jogged forward along East Street. All the Jianzhou bandits along the way fled in panic into the small side streets and alleys. Even Wang Changfu found it strange — the Jianzhou bandits who had just been resisting desperately, why had they turned into this the moment the crossroads was lost?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They reached the department government office in less than a quarter of an hour. After rounding the spirit screen, they found the main gate wide open. The ground was littered with silver ingots, jewels, and bolts of silk. Zhou Shifa and a few quartermasters' eyes lit up. They rushed inside and, not far past the main gate, caught several Luanzhou Han civilians who were clutching valuables.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhou Shifa and the others used their blades to force these men to lead the way. After entering the main hall, they turned right. This was the department office's main granary. The doors to several storehouses inside were also open. Two Jianzhou bondservants had just climbed over the outer wall and jumped out. Zhou Shifa paid no attention to those people at all. He went straight into the storehouse to look, froze for a moment, then burst into loud laughter.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Changfu and the Squad Commander of the Fourth Company also ran over. They looked and murmured, \"At least tens of thousands of taels of gold and silver, and so much silk. How long will it take to move?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhou Shifa knew about Chen Xin's maritime trade goods. He said to Wang Changfu in a low voice, \"This silk is also silver, useful to the lord. We must move all of it. Take your men to the east gate. Hold the gate fast. Don't let the Guanning Army enter too early.\" ……………………………………………………………………\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A group of Ming soldiers from Lintao shouted with excitement. These men had accents from Shaanxi, Shanxi, and Henan. Many had been press-ganged along the way by Regional Commander Wang of Lintao. Now, riding the momentum of a winning battle, their morale soared like a rainbow. Led by a few officers, they ran out of the west gate's barbican and entered West Avenue.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Liu Minyou followed behind them, with Zhang Erhui and the dumb monk at his side. Zhang Erhui was holding a flag lance, his face flushed red with excitement, shouting along with those soldiers. The dumb monk was still his dull-witted self, but he had taken off that suit of silver armor. He wore only an oversized Ming army padded jacket, and the Ming helmet had also been removed from his head — his head was simply too big. He just had a red cloth tied around his head.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Liu Minyou had watched those cannons for a while outside the city. Huang Side had been there the whole time, cozying up to the artillerymen. Liu Minyou observed the gun carriages and powder bags for a while, roughly committing them to memory.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The dense gunfire and shouting from within the city made Liu Minyou feel as if he were sitting on a bed of needles. Though somewhat afraid, he was also a little curious, wanting to see what ancient warfare truly looked like. Watching the streams of loyalist troops continuously entering the barbican, he finally could not restrain himself and, bringing his two attendants, followed behind the Lintao soldiers into the city.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When the group reached West Gate Avenue, the ground was covered in bloodstains. Headless Jianzhou bandit corpses lay strewn everywhere in disorder. Some beggar-like Ming soldiers were stripping the clothes off them. A surge of stomach acid rose in Liu Minyou's throat. He quickly turned his head away and suppressed the wave of nausea.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When he looked up, he saw Chen Xin's command flag at the crossroads. Liu Minyou hurried forward. The street was awash in blood. Liu Minyou left a trail of bloody footprints with every step. When he saw a Jianzhou bandit whose head had been blown open by a musket ball, he finally could not hold back and vomited.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhang Erhui quickly came over to pat Liu Minyou's back and handed him a coconut ladle. When Liu Minyou had vomited enough, his eyes a little red, he straightened up, took a sip of water, steadied himself, and surveyed the surrounding streets. Many shops had been smashed open by soldiers, and the sounds of ransacking came from within.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>From a shop on the left, a man with a queue and shaved forehead suddenly ran out. Zhang Erhui, spear in hand, stepped in front of Liu Minyou.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Before Zhang Erhui could advance, several government soldiers chased out from behind. With a flurry of punches and kicks, they beat the man to the ground. The man with the pigtail screamed pitifully on the ground, wailing, \"Soldier lords, I'm Han! I'm from Angezhuang in Luanzhou! All my neighbors can testify!\" A Squad Commander from Lintao pressed down on the man's head, turned it this way and that, examined it, and laughed loudly. \"You're not Han. You're silver.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Liu Minyou thought he was going to extort silver from the man. Who knew, the Squad Commander suddenly swung his blade down and lopped off the man's head. The gushing blood pushed the head askew. The Squad Commander grabbed the queue, lifted it up, examined it carefully for a moment, and hung it on his belt with satisfaction. Blood still flowed from the short stump of neck left on the corpse, making the red on the ground even darker.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Liu Minyou breathed heavily, watching that Squad Commander lead his men off to the next house. Liu Minyou looked at the corpse on the ground, his legs going weak. He finally understood the scene of ancient warfare now. It was far more brutal than the blockbusters.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He murmured, \"Why kill civilians?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhang Erhui said loudly, \"Brother Liu, they're not civilians. They're secondary Tatars. They deserve to die.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Liu Minyou looked at Zhang Erhui in astonishment. \"They were forced to shave their heads too. Just because they have no hair, they're all secondary Tatars?\" Zhang Erhui, still full of righteous conviction, said, \"We Han don't look like that. The indoctrination officer said that without hair, you can't recognize your ancestors!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Liu Minyou knew that Zhang Erhui had recently been listening to people talk about war everywhere in the barracks and had also heard many mobilization speeches from the indoctrination officers. He just hadn't expected him to have absorbed this kind of viewpoint. With corpses everywhere around them now, Liu Minyou had no heart to educate this young attendant. He waved his hand and led the two onward toward the crossroads. Many sections of the road were paved with corpses, the street surface flowing with so much blood that some spots were even slippery.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Liu Minyou's cloth shoes were already completely soaked through with blood.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because he was wearing civilian clothes, some Ming soldiers on the roadside looked at him with ill intent. But the dumb monk beside him was undoubtedly a massive deterrent, and he was also wearing a padded jacket. These men assumed Liu Minyou was a civil official leading troops and quickly fled. By the time he reached the area guarded by the Wendeng Battalion, he finally breathed a sigh of relief.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then, at the intersection, he learned that Chen Xin had gone to the north gate academy and followed after him. This entire area was controlled by the Wendeng Battalion, with Wendeng combat squads on both sides, which gave him a great sense of security.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When he saw Chen Xin, it was beneath the Kuixing Tower on the east side of the academy. Some soldiers were unloading many bolts of silk from several horse carts. Behind them, more soldiers led horses coming in an endless stream from the east.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The moment Chen Xin saw him, he came over and smiled. \"These Tatars must have looted everything around Luanzhou clean. The silks and cotton cloth in the department office storehouse are piled like a mountain. There's enough to give every dun household in Mazidun and the Wendeng Battalion a padded coat this year.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Liu Minyou said to Chen Xin, \"These are things they looted from the civilians of Luanzhou. If we take them...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"If we don't take them, the other loyalist troops will. The civilians absolutely cannot get them back. Even if Sun Chengzong wanted to return them, he'd have to rely on those clerks to distribute them, and in the end, they'd just fall into the hands of local officials, gentry, and their relatives. Better to give them to our dun households.\" Liu Minyou let out a long breath. He knew this was the truth. He found a stool and sat for a while, his mind finally settling. Suddenly remembering the earlier incident, he asked Chen Xin, \"Just now, there were Ming soldiers killing civilians — it seemed to be from Lintao. Let's quickly send someone to report it to Sun Chengzong.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chen Xin hurried over and made a lowering gesture with his hand. \"Minyou, we absolutely cannot report this. There are so many people in Luanzhou city with shaved Tatar heads. Officers killing a few people to pass off as heads is common practice. Everyone's eyeing that thirty-tael reward per head. Do you think Sun Chengzong doesn't know? If we report it, how many people will we offend?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Even when those officers were garrisoned in Jizhou, they'd sometimes catch beggars and kill them. Lord Sun has led troops for many years. If he really stuck rigidly to principle, he'd never be able to keep these roughnecks in line. As long as it's not a city-wide massacre, he won't interfere, and he can't control it. He's just one man — can he keep an eye on every roughneck in the whole city?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Liu Minyou's lips quivered a few times, but in the end he said nothing more. Listening to the agonized cries of the wounded soldiers coming from inside, Liu Minyou stood up, rolled up his sleeves, and said, \"I can't help with much else, so I'll help you tend to the wounded soldiers.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>............................................................................One........................\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wendeng Camp took advantage of the chaos in the city to seize control of the road from the department office to the academy. Zhou Shifa led over three hundred soldiers in a coordinated effort, emptying out all the valuable goods the Jianzhou bandits had stored in the department office. They also rounded up all the riderless horses left on the main street and sent everything to the academy. After moving the valuables, Zhou Shifa also moved a portion of the grain supplies, and before the Guanning Army entered the city, he withdrew entirely from the department office.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Guanning Army finally entered the city, dragging their feet. Their artillerymen performed well enough, but the troops tasked with the assault were terrified of the Jianzhou bandits. By the time they reached the top of the wall, they were greeted by a few soldiers from Wendeng Camp.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wendeng Camp controlled the main roads. Many Jianzhou bandits, finding no escape, hid in civilian homes or in the corners of alleys. Like a tidal wave, the Guanning Army surged into the city, shouting and yelling. They were quite good at fighting when the momentum was on their side, and most importantly, entering the city meant an opportunity for plunder.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The units under Zhang Chun and You Shilu at the south gate also planted their great banners on the southern wall. Drums and horns sounded unceasingly throughout the city, but all units had lost their cohesion; no one could tell which camp's signals were which. Soldiers searched for Jianzhou bandits door to door, while simultaneously looting for money and valuables.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wendeng Camp's forces split into small squads. After sweeping through several areas where the Jianzhou bandits had concentrated, they seized another portion of valuables. Chen Xin's mounted personal guards blew their bamboo whistles continuously, gradually recalling the troops. Before dark, most had returned to the academy. Zhou Shifa led the garrison provosts out on patrol to maintain military discipline and track down those who had not yet reported back.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Liu Minyou casually washed his hands in a basin of reddened water and walked out the east gate of the academy. He looked up. The setting sun was like blood, staining the eastern city wall a swath of crimson. Several columns of thick smoke rose within the city, and on the north gate main street, Ming soldiers were breaking down doors everywhere.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chen Xin had already tallied the spoils of war. He came over and said to Liu Minyou, \"From the department office and a few other key locations, we've seized nearly one hundred thousand taels in gold and silver. And that's just what we found in various places—who knows how much they'd already sent away earlier. We also took several hundred heads, and the head bounty is over ten thousand more. War really is the fastest way to make money.\" Liu Minyou replied absently, \"We can finally count ourselves as having money this year. The civil affairs side will be a bit easier. It's just that the casualties were rather high.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chen Xin said with satisfaction, \"The casualties were worth it. In the end, we won.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Listening to the soldiers' curses and the civilians' wails coming from all directions, Liu Minyou stared blankly and said, \"Did we really win?\"\u003C\u002Fp>",3663,"2026-06-03T06:46:43.627Z",1,"Novelzhen Translator","f4a1dac58361caf80768a3dc6d72867a369bdd949c6752606e5a742efb6a7989","late-ming-chapter-152","late-ming-chapter-150",580,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Flate-ming-cover.jpg"]