Chapter 464: Catching Spies

In the third month of the seventh year of Chongzhen, the Later Jin army besieged Datong, with the Eight Banners massing around Datong's perimeter. The Ming relief forces lacked coordination and trust among themselves, and all halted at the Inner Great Wall — including Zhong Laosi's dragoons.

Zhong Laosi refused to take Haoge's bait at all, staying holed up at Zhubokou and waiting for the Later Jin army to attack. In the end the Later Jin army withdrew on its own, but Zhong Laosi remained paranoid. Even when scouts reported that the Later Jin army had already concentrated toward Datong, he still held fast at Zhubokou, slowly transporting refugees and supplies toward Fuping. Haoge's flirtatious glances were all wasted on a blind man.

Zhong Laosi also received a long letter from Wang Zhangfu. The letter cursed Zhong Laosi until the blood drained from his head, yet the formal commendation was written with extravagant praise, lauding Zhong Laosi to the skies. Zhong Laosi stayed at Zhubokou, trading verbal blows with that bunch of censors and supervising secretaries at Daoma Pass. The censors and the Zhili regional inspector all refused to verify his battle merits, so the imperial court gave him no rewards.

The Ministry of War's orders to break the siege came one after another, each more urgent than the last. The siege of Datong had to be lifted. Wang Zhangfu told Zhong Laosi that the Later Jin army could not afford to drag this out and would soon withdraw, so Zhong Laosi was in no hurry.

Wu Xiang could not withstand the urging of the Ministry of War and the army supervisor, and sent out a vanguard to engage the Later Jin army. As always, they fled at the mere sight of the enemy, and then he sent a field report back to the Ministry of War claiming the Later Jin army numbered a hundred thousand. You Shiwei likewise sent out a vanguard force, which skirmished with Later Jin scout cavalry outside Datong. He was more honorable than Wu Xiang and sent out his own retainers. They won that engagement, but then the Later Jin army promptly dispatched reinforcements, and You Shiwei shrank back. Cao Wenzhao's forces, coming to the rescue from the south, had just reached Taiyuan and were equally suspicious. Seeing that the forces under Wang Chengen and Ai Wannian, who had come with him, were advancing slowly, Cao Wenzhao also halted at Ningwu Pass.

By the fifth day of the third month, Huang Taiji no longer had the time to wait for the Ming army to come to the rescue. The main army withdrew from Datong, and on the way conveniently besieged Yanghe. Yanghe was the garrison seat of the Viceroy of Xuanda. But at that moment, Viceroy of Xuanda Zhang Zongheng and Provincial Governor Hu Zhan'en were still in Datong, leaving only a military defense circuit intendant, Zhu Wannian, to defend Yanghe.

Datong's walls were high and its moats deep. Huang Taiji withdrew in the face of difficulty, but he knew Yanghe's troops were hollow, so he made a show of force beneath the city walls, having his armored soldiers drive the nearby commoners past, to lure Zhu Wannian out to attack.

Zhu Wannian could not mobilize Yanghe's troops. In righteous fury, he ultimately led his own one hundred and thirty retainers out to battle and was cut down by Later Jin soldiers outside the eastern gate, becoming a major trophy of this Later Jin incursion.

By this time, the various Ming relief forces had all gathered at the passes of the Inner Great Wall. After Datong was freed from its predicament, Zhang Zongheng coordinated the various forces to advance into Xuanda. The main force of Dengzhou's king-saving army reached Lingqiu via Zijing Pass, and including support troops their total strength exceeded seven thousand. The two sides' scout cavalry probed each other, each fearing the other. You Shiwei proactively maneuvered toward Hunyuanzhou. Wu Xiang dared not act alone and also moved toward Hunyuanzhou. By the eighth day of the third month, they had all concentrated at Hunyuanzhou, assuming a posture of decisive battle with the Later Jin army.

After the Later Jin army killed Zhu Wannian, seeing that the Dengzhou garrison did not rashly attack, they also did not proactively strike Hunyuanzhou. After Cao Wenzhao and Ai Wannian's forces reached Hunyuanzhou, the various Ming forces, under Zhang Zongheng's command, slowly advanced north. But Zhang Zongheng still dared not seek a decisive battle, and the supply of provisions was also extremely difficult. Each force had its own calculations, and Wang Zhangfu dared not advance recklessly alone.

By the twelfth day of the third month, the Later Jin army broke through Yanghekou and Huyukou and exited the pass, hanging Zhu Wannian's corpse at Huyukou for three days. Zhang Zongheng commanded the main army to remain at Datong, reporting to the imperial court that the siege of Datong had been lifted, and claiming that they were in pursuit of the Later Jin army.

The incursion of early Chongzhen's seventh year finally ended. The Later Jin army plundered nearly a hundred thousand people, and the commoners killed were several times that number. The entire Xuanda region lay desolate. But the Dengzhou dragoons' slaying of Manggūltai salvaged some face for the Ming army.

On the fifteenth day of the third month, the Dengzhou dragoons, led by Zhong Laosi, headed straight for Xuanfu. Zhong Laosi ignored Zhang Zongheng's orders entirely and went directly to Zhangjiakou Fort to set up camp.

The sudden arrival of this Ming army caused considerable chaos at Zhangjiakou, even more terror than when the Later Jin had entered the pass. Because as soon as they arrived, they first piled up nearly a thousand severed heads of Later Jin soldiers outside Zhangjiakou, and dozens of genuine barbarian captives were bound along both sides of the road. Finally, they hung up Manggūltai's armor, the banner of the Bordered Yellow Banner's gūsa ejen, the banner lord's great standard of the Plain Blue Banner, and the gūsa ejen's banner of the Plain Blue Banner. Some Dengzhou cavalry blockaded all roads at Zhangjiakou, forbidding any person or goods from entering or leaving.

Zhangjiakou was well-informed and knew this army had come without orders, so the gates of Zhangjiakou Fort were tightly shut and strict precautions were taken. The Provincial Governor of Xuanfu, Jiao Qingyuan, quickly sent men rushing to Zhangjiakou, but they were all blocked outside the military camp gates. The reply Zhong Laosi gave was that there was word of Jianzhou bandits operating outside Zhangjiakou and they might invade again to attack Zhangjiakou Fort and Xuanfu, so the dragoons had to remain on alert here.

Zhang Dong, who had been trapped in Zhangjiakou for over a month, finally breathed a sigh of relief. He left the city and entered the military camp. When Zhang Dong entered Zhong Laosi's camp, the familiar military bearing of Dengzhou put him at ease, but the guards did not lead him to the central command tent, but rather to an inconspicuous tent.

Zhang Dong walked in somewhat surprised. After lifting the door curtain, a refined scholar turned his head and smiled at Zhang Dong, "Director Zhou entrusted this old man to inquire after your whereabouts, my lord Zhang. Now that I see you, I am at ease."

Zhang Dong hurriedly returned the courtesy, "So it is Sir Song who has come to take charge of the overall situation. Then this subordinate's heart has a firm foundation."

Song Wenxian beckoned Zhang Dong to come in and sit. After Zhang Dong took his seat, he asked in a low voice, "Has Mr. Song come here with the dragoons because of the matter of Zhangjiakou merchants colluding with the slaves?"

Song Wenxian nodded. "This matter is indeed related to these merchants, but how to proceed still requires discussion. The two guides we captured were dispatched by Fan Yongdou and Wang Dayu of Zhangjiakou, but neither was directly arranged by them. It was arranged through street fighters in Baoding, Lingqiu, and other places. In this matter, there is no solid evidence to speak of."

Zhang Dong said respectfully, "Then what is Lord Chen's intention on how to proceed?"

Song Wenxian stroked his beard and smiled, "Lord Chen has delegated full authority to me. The minimum requirement is to intimidate the Zhangjiakou merchants. As for the specifics, he told this old man to decide after reaching Xuanfu. As it happened, when we were at Hunyuanzhou, this old man met with both Wu Xiang and You Shiwei. In this matter, we might as well cooperate with the Guanning Army."

Zhang Dong lowered his head in thought for a moment and said, "But many of the Xuanda border troops have also returned to aid. The dragoons suddenly appearing at Zhangjiakou — those border commanders have intertwined interests here, and I fear they may clash with our army. From what this subordinate just saw, the dragoons have suffered considerable losses and now number less than a thousand."

Song Wenxian shook his head dismissively. "No matter. Wang Zhangfu is within two days' march. Not every man in the Xuanda border army is connected to the eight families. By suppressing only the eight families, we can divide the Xuanfu powers. There are also many people waiting for the eight families to fall so they can redistribute the Zhangjiakou border trade."

Zhang Dong cupped his hands in admiration, "Thanks to Sir Song's arrival, this matter is indeed clearly sorted. Since Lord Wang is within two days, as long as both Guanning armies participate, the local powers of Xuanda cannot suppress us strong dragons."

"The Guanning Army will certainly participate." Song Wenxian pointed outside the tent. "Wu Xiang suffered defeat, and You Shiwei hesitated to advance. The likelihood of both being implicated and punished is great. They need us to give them some heads to offset their merits. As for Zhangjiakou here, we'll split it fifty-fifty, on the condition that… they make the first move."

"Then what if Zhang Zongheng, Jiao Qingyuan, and the others obstruct us?"

"Zhang Zongheng?" Song Wenxian laughed heartily. "He can barely save himself. When this old man passed through Baoding, I already sent word to Zhang Dahui. By now, the impeachment memorials in the capital accusing Zhang Zongheng of sitting idly by and watching the slaves should be filling the skies. Bao'anzhou and Lingqiu were breached, Xuanda is in ruins. Someone has to take the blame for this. If Wu Xiang and You Shiwei don't want to take it, they'll have to listen to us."

Zhang Dong nodded repeatedly and said with some excitement, "Just yesterday the eight families of Zhangjiakou were still transporting grain outside the pass. Many people were involved. Now that neither people nor goods can enter or leave, there are also plenty here who want the eight families to fall. These people are local powers too. With their help, we can arrest people with pinpoint accuracy."

Song Wenxian stood up and said to Zhang Dong, "Recruit a batch of street fighters and thugs in Zhangjiakou. Don't hesitate to offer generous pay. The most crucial thing in this matter is that we must not appear to want to monopolize the benefits of Zhangjiakou. As long as we beat down those eight families, the benefits of the border pass will still be divided among the people here. Go speak with that Tang Hongchang. Have him privately explain to the other families that we are giving him face by not dealing with the other merchants. This way we can divide them. This Tang Hongchang will consequently rise greatly in status in Zhangjiakou and will also maintain close ties with our Dengzhou garrison in the future. According to Lord Chen's phrasing, he's called a proxy. Through him we can check and balance the other merchants here. The other merchants' strength is not as formidable as the eight families. At least within one or two years, the supplies the Later Jin obtain from Zhangjiakou will drop drastically, and the silver they spend will increase greatly. That will be a success for us."

"Understood. This subordinate will find some street fighters, and when the time comes, lead the dragoons to arrest people on the charge of catching spies. After interrogation, hand them over to the censors and the Embroidered Uniform Guard coming to Xuanda. As long as the Guanning Army makes the first move and we have witnesses in hand, the imperial court will be helpless."

"Precisely. Once this matter is settled, you will then discuss the return of captives with the Tumote. Go back today and prepare your men. Tomorrow, this old man will have Zhong Laosi make his move."

Zhang Dong had heard something of Zhong Laosi's affairs. He smiled at Song Wenxian, "This time, who knows what kind of merit this Zhong Laosi will be credited with."

"He will soon return to Dengzhou. The next time you see him, he may have already been promoted. Lord Chen has prepared a good post for him."

………

"Zhou Shao'er, are you coming back to Dengzhou with me or not?"

"Zhong Laosi, it was you who transferred me to the Fifth Battalion. I was doing just fine originally, but you kept transferring me east and west. This time you're going back to the Military Academy — you want me to go back with you and be a drill instructor?" Zhou Shao'er cursed at Zhong Laosi. "I told you to strike the Bordered Yellow Banner, but you just wouldn't believe me. Now what?"

Zhong Laosi rubbed his forehead. "Struck or not, we struck them anyway. What can be done? Tomorrow we deal with those Han traitors and then head back to Dengzhou. But I'm only at the Military Academy temporarily. Wang Zhangfu's adjutant is on good terms with me and already secretly told me that in Lord Chen's letter to Wang Zhangfu, it was clearly stated: have me go to the Military Academy to perfect the drill manuals for the dragoons and the musket teams. If I do well, he'll send me to another battalion."

Zhou Shao'er and Liu Yue leaned in together. "What battalion?"

Zhong Laosi said with smug satisfaction, "The Young Guard Battalion."

Liu Yue hesitated, "That bunch of teenage soldiers?"

"The pay is the same as the Guard Battalion, higher than ordinary battalions. Are you two coming or not? When the time comes, it'll be easier for me to request men from the Military Affairs Department."

Zhou Shao'er and Liu Yue exchanged a glance. "We're in!"