Chapter 458: Little Pass Fort

Over a hundred bondservants, carrying short swords, were herding several hundred commoners toward Zhubokou. None of them had weapons, only some carts loaded with earth and stones.

Amid a din of shouting, Zhang Zhongqi followed a few armored soldiers, using their blades to force over thirty commoners up a nearby hill. Most of these people were actually sturdier than him, but not a single one dared resist them. Zhang Zhongqi's task was to find a large log to use as a battering ram to break open the city gate, because the initial scouts had told Manggūltai that the gate tunnel had not been blocked. Among the bondservants were also quite a few craftsmen; if the attack stalled, they could manufacture crude siege equipment and attack again.

Zhang Zhongqi climbed a nearby slope, where there were many large trees. Several bondservants led the commoners and began selecting trees to fell.

Zhang Zhongqi found a rock for himself. The terrain here was slightly elevated, giving him a clear view of the battle two hundred paces away. Groups of newly captured bondservants were hauling earth and stone to the base of the wall; that shallow trench would soon be filled level.

Zhang Zhongqi could be considered an old campaigner, but he had actually never killed a single person with his own hands. Every time they fought the Ming army, the Ming troops could only hold out for a brief moment. Once those retainers were all dead, the rest would scatter in a rout, and then the Later Jin soldiers would effortlessly cut them down from behind, easier than slaughtering chickens or ducks. But even so, Zhang Zhongqi had never killed anyone. He was also somewhat afraid of killing, so he always focused single-mindedly on finding ways to stash more silver and jewelry. With the care of his Niru Commander, he often ended up with considerably more than others.

Since entering the pass this time, he had followed the eastern army in sacking Bao'an Prefecture. This year the Later Jin army was desperately poor, and around Bao'an Prefecture they fought with bloodshot eyes. Some military forts they would have bypassed before, they attacked this time as well. Those places often held a considerable number of people and supplies. The looted goods were first sent out through the border pass, guarded by Plain Blue Banner men in Tumed, and transported back to Liaodong in batches.

Then they swept south from Bao'an Prefecture all the way to Lingqiu. Zhang Zhongqi looted a great deal of silver and jewelry, and also took two bondservants. He left one person at the Lingqiu camp to watch his things, and brought one with him to Guangchang. Now he had two bondservants again, driving a donkey cart. There was also another small cart; at this moment, all were here cutting wood.

"This year will be a good one." Zhang Zhongqi squinted happily, watching the distant Zhubokou where arrows and stones flew thick. Quite a few bondservants had fallen below the wall, but neither of Zhang Zhongqi's two were among them. No matter how many died, it caused him no heartache.

By his reckoning, it was about time for them to head back. He had heard his Niru Commander tell him that once they got through Zhubokou, they would return to Lingqiu, then go to Datong to rendezvous with the main army, and then they would likely leave the pass.

Zhang Zhongqi fished out three hand-rolled cigarettes and offered them to two armored soldiers from the same village traveling with him. The few of them gathered together to watch the excitement over at the city wall. Zhang Zhongqi had now become familiar with the true Jurchens in the Niru as well. Their Niru had suffered over half casualties in the Jisi year and had later been replenished. Many of these people were actually not genuine Jianzhou Jurchens either. Quite a few came from Haixi, Yehe, Ningguta, and other places. In essence, they were not much different from bondservants like Zhang Zhongqi who had been raised to banner status. Among them, the Yehe were the hardest to assimilate; they generally spoke Mongolian. Their hatred for the Jianzhou Jurchens ran deep, and it took many years before they basically accepted the Later Jin identity. Some of the uncivilized Jurchens were even lower in status than Zhang Zhongqi. These people could not communicate in the language and were quite discriminated against within the Niru, usually serving as death soldiers at the front as cannon fodder. To gain the status of a true Jurchen, they had to be exceptionally fierce and survive the brutal frontal assaults.

The wall at Zhubokou was only a little over two zhang high. The armored soldiers overseeing the formation did not wait for the battering ram or scaling ladders, but directly drove those commoners to pile earth at the base of the wall. The earth rampart grew higher and higher. A group of bondservants below the wall held up shields, covering the archers behind them. The number of Later Jin archers providing cover fire grew steadily. These hunters, superb marksmen, quickly suppressed the Ming troops on the low battlements. Once the earth rampart was built a bit higher, they could climb onto the wall. The moment close-quarters combat began, that would be the end for the Ming army. Other than the Dengzhou Garrison, Zhang Zhongqi had never seen any Ming army that could sustain close combat against Later Jin soldiers.

Led by Zhang Xiushen, the men on the wall were hurling stones and shooting arrows down, killing or wounding quite a few of the commoners forced to attack the city. Any commoner who fell wounded, dead or alive, was thrown down below the wall to become fill material. Earth and stones were easy to procure. Watching the situation, Zhang Zhongqi thought that even before they finished making the battering ram, they might already storm the gate.

On the wall, there was a Ming army officer in a red cape, brandishing a large saber as he supervised the battle everywhere. He darted east and west, seizing any opening to pop out and shoot an arrow. He himself had already been struck by two arrows.

Zhang Zhongqi watched that Ming officer fighting fiercely everywhere. He did not think him brave, nor did he find him detestable; he merely thought this man could still fight. As for why those Ming soldiers fought, Zhang Zhongqi never wanted to think about it.

By this time, those commoners had finished cutting the large trees. More commoners came up from below, carrying those thick logs down the mountain. Before Zhang Zhongqi descended, he saw a scout ride across the main road and gallop swiftly to Manggūltai's banner. Zhang Zhongqi paid it no mind and slowly followed them down to the foot of the hill, where they stopped. The area was already packed with the ox and horse carts of the rear echelon.

Zhang Zhongqi then called over several bondservants and began making a battering ram. When he looked at the wall again, the mound of earth and stones was nearly level with the parapet. A few impatient armored soldiers rushed to the top of the earth rampart, but the Ming officer led his retainers in stabbing them down one by one with long spears. A Bayara ran out from under Manggūltai's banner and loudly shouted a reward of half a hereditary rank from below the wall. Zhang Zhongqi could not help but be somewhat surprised that they would offer half a hereditary rank for such a small pass.

This hereditary rank was what the Later Jin commonly called a "future prospect," divided into fourteen grades in total. The lowest was Beiyu. Within the Eight Banners, a Beiyu corresponded to a Niru Commander. The prospect was measured in units of Beiyu; the more units, the higher the rank. For instance, only with two Beiyu hereditary ranks could one be called an Assistant Regional Commander. Assistant Regional Commander was further divided into three classes, called First-Class to Third-Class Jalan Zhangjing. This hereditary rank did not necessarily mean a substantive command position; it could be a noble title for an ordinary soldier or officer, somewhat analogous to later military rank systems.

Ordinary armored soldiers rarely had such an opportunity. Once this order was given, over a dozen fierce Later Jin armored soldiers scrambled up the slope beside the city wall. The commoners below were forced to pile the earth rampart higher and higher. Finally, an armored soldier leaped onto the battlements. Zhang Zhongqi stared unblinkingly at that tiny pass fort. The wall resounded with thunderous battle cries. One after another, Later Jin soldiers were knocked down or fell from the wall. Throughout it all came the furious roars of that Ming officer.

Later Jin armored soldiers swarmed up like ants. Zhang Zhongqi shook his head. Once the follow-up armored soldiers surged up, that Ming officer would undoubtedly die.

"Kill the slaves!" "Kill the slaves!" The officer's voice kept roaring. Gradually, the voices of some other soldiers began to echo in response. Over twenty Later Jin soldiers had already climbed onto the wall, only to be driven back down or to die up there.

The first wave of assault was repelled. That Ming officer, his head covered in blood, stuck his head out, spat a mouthful of blood-red phlegm down at the base of the wall, and then tossed down the severed head of a Later Jin soldier.

A volley of heavy arrows shot up from below the wall. The officer laughed heartily and ducked back behind the battlements, only his voice still cursing, "Dog Tatars, I eat the Emperor's grain. I've killed three Jianzhou bandits today, so I've earned that grain…"

Manggūltai's enraged curses drifted up from below the wall. Immediately after, a second wave of armored soldiers began scaling the wall. The answering battle cries of the Ming troops on the wall grew louder and louder instead. The fighting intensified. Zhang Zhongqi's mouth gaped wider and wider. This bunch of Ming soldiers was surprisingly tenacious.

Everyone around was focused on the fierce attack and defense, all watching intently, including those newly captured bondservants. Zhang Zhongqi's eyes darted around and quickly found a target. He swiftly sidled over to the donkey cart of another armored soldier nearby, reached out, and plucked a bundle from the cart bed. Not a single person around noticed. Pretending to be looking for a better angle to watch the siege, Zhang Zhongqi quickly circled to the outer side. He rummaged blindly inside the bundle, felt some jewelry and silver, and stealthily slipped them into his bosom. Then he crumpled the wrapping cloth into a ball and stuffed it under a piece of wood.

Having done this deed, Zhang Zhongqi let out a long breath. This kind of theft would be severely punished. For a Han Chinese like him who had been raised to banner status, he could be beheaded. But he always thought of the old and young in his family, wanting to loot a bit more so they could get more grain, and so he took risks time and again.

As he glanced around, the fierce battle on Zhubokou still raged. Manggūltai's great banner swayed repeatedly. Zhang Zhongqi noticed, however, that he was not moving troops toward the wall, but rather pulling a group of White Armor Soldiers to the rear. Then some armored soldiers began driving the nearby Ming commoners up the hills on both sides, while overturning some of the handcarts and setting up obstacles.

"What's this for?" Zhang Zhongqi watched those armored soldiers in astonishment.

Zhang Zhongqi soon got his answer. His great benefactor and direct superior, the Niru Commander, came over. The Niru Commander urgently asked Zhang Zhongqi, "Have you finished making that gate-battering thing?"

"Yes, it's done." Zhang Zhongqi hurriedly led him over. A crude battering ram cart had been completed, its wheels even taken from several dismantled horse carts.

"Drag it to the front immediately. The Third Beile needs it." The Niru Commander's face was covered in sweat.

Zhang Zhongqi immediately summoned a group of commoners and bondservants, urging them to push the cart toward the city gate. Once these people had moved off, he asked the Niru Commander, "Master, I saw the earth mound has already reached the parapet. Why do we still need to batter the gate? Breaking the city is just a matter of time anyway, why rush this moment?"

"What the hell do you know?" The Niru Commander glanced around and lowered his voice. "There are Ming troops catching up from behind. It's a good thing Tobohui happened to send someone to contact Abatai and ran into them halfway. They're already engaged with Tobohui now. If we don't break through Zhubokou quickly, we…"

Zhang Zhongqi said with a smile, "What's there to fear from Ming troops? In this narrow place, ten White Armor Soldiers can rout over a thousand of them…"

"What Ming troops? It's the Dengzhou Garrison!"

"Mother! Dengzhou!" A jolt ran through Zhang Zhongqi's entire body, and he couldn't help but cry out in alarm. The Niru Commander hastily cut him off. "Don't say it aloud! Hurry and get those people to charge the city gate. The Nikan in this damned pass are detestable. You can travel all through Xuan-Da and rarely run into this, but we just had to run into it here."

Before the Niru Commander's words had faded, the sound of a cannon shot came from far to the south. The muffled, thunderous sound echoed through the cliff-walled gorge, turning into wave after wave of reverberation.

The crowd in the gorge turned their heads one after another to look. Beads of sweat trickled down Zhang Zhongqi's forehead, and his hands trembled slightly. Another cannon shot followed immediately. The crowd began to stir a little. A group of armored soldiers moved into the crowd to suppress those who were becoming restless.

Zhang Zhongqi wiped the sweat from his forehead and stole another glance. Everyone around was turning their heads south to look, at a loss. As if nothing were amiss, Zhang Zhongqi felt around on a nearby horse cart and found a small wooden jewelry box, quietly stuffing it into his own bosom.

PS: Note: Zhang Xiushen, Garrison Commander of Cigou Camp. In the seventh year of Chongzhen, when the Later Jin invaded Xuan-Da, amid a general collapse at the mere sight of the enemy, Zhang Xiushen defended Zhubokou, fought unyieldingly, and died in battle.

〖∷Fast Updates∷∷Plain Text∷〗