Chapter 1086: Nobles and Wicked Commoners (Seeking Subscriptions)

"Ada, are those people singing 'Welcoming the Roving King'? Why does it sound a bit off to me?"

"Ke'er, what do you think is off about them?"

"It sounds a bit mournful. Welcoming the Roving King is a great joyous occasion! Why does it sound like a funeral dirge?"

"It does seem a bit like that."

"Hmph, these people must all be wicked commoners!"

"Ke'er, there you go again."

Outside the Monk's Plain fortress, a father and son on horseback were conversing while listening to people sing "Welcoming the Roving King." This father and son were no ordinary figures. The father was named Luo Hu, the Tong Pass Marquis of the Shun dynasty, a General-in-Chief, and the Military Governor of Hanzhong — formerly the leader of the Children's Camp who had followed the Shun dynasty's founding emperor Li Zicheng in campaigns east and west, and who had now grown into a high-ranking dignitary of the Shun court.

The one conversing with Luo Hu was his eldest son, the heir to the Tong Pass Marquis, Luo Ke. At first glance, the present Luo Ke looked almost exactly like the Luo Hu who had once followed Li Zicheng — both were sturdy, tiger-headed young men. But on closer inspection, one could detect what was wrong.

This Luo Ke only resembled his father Luo Hu in appearance; they were not at all the same kind of person.

Luo Hu was simply a farmer's son, and no matter how wealthy and noble he became, he could never shed his peasant roots. He was down-to-earth and approachable, able to get along with the tenant farmers on his estate and the common soldiers under his command. When living on his own estate, he would even work the fields alongside the tenants. After a few cups of wine, he would tell a group of Sichuan peasants about how poor he had been as a child and how he had gone without food. If he saw poor people suffering, Luo Hu would shed tears of sympathy. If he saw others with nothing to eat, he would share his own food with them.

But Luo Ke was clearly a noble son, aloof and haughty, with no commoners in his eyes at all. His tone when speaking to commoners was commanding, and he would not waste a single extra word. If a commoner did something that displeased him, he would curse them as wicked commoners. Luo Hu, however, would never call anyone a wicked commoner — even if they truly were wicked commoners, he would never utter those two words.

Because in Luo Hu's subconscious, he himself was also a wicked commoner. At least, he had once been a wicked commoner!

In short, this Luo Ke was plainly the kind of rich young master that Luo Hu had particularly detested since childhood. But now Luo Hu especially liked him, because Luo Ke was his son!

His own flesh and blood, identical in appearance, impossible to be fake — how could he not like him?

Of course, Luo Ke was by no means a profligate wastrel. In fact, he was far more outstanding than the Luo Hu of years past: gifted in letters, highly skilled in martial arts, thoroughly versed in military texts, and a top graduate of the Yunnan Military Academy. He had also caught the eye of the Army-Nurturing Crown Prince Li Laiheng and become a prince consort of the Shun.

Just as Luo Hu was at a loss as to how to instruct his son, he suddenly caught sight of the kneeling Squire Wang and Squire Wang's several sons.

"What's the matter with them?" Luo Hu asked Wang Xi, who had arrived before him.

Wang Xi was one of Li Dingguo's men, enfeoffed as General of Martial Might and holding the post of Regional Commander — in the Shun, the post of Regional Commander was not a particularly high office, commanding only three or four thousand troops (a unit of that size was called a battalion in the Shun), somewhat larger than a regimental commander on the Ming side. His superior was the Military Governor, and below him were brigade commanders (equivalent to battalion commanders on the Ming side), and below the brigade were companies (also called sections).

"My Lord Marquis," Wang Xi said, "these people are all private salt dealers smuggling salt into Hanzhong."

Luo Hu turned back to his son. "Ke'er, what punishment do you think they should receive?"

"They should be beheaded!" Luo Ke said. "What use is there in keeping such wicked commoners alive?"

Luo Hu sighed and thought to himself: Your old man was once a wicked commoner too. If I had fallen into the hands of a Ming official like you, I would have been dead as well.

But sympathy was sympathy, and beheading was beheading.

Luo Hu said to his son, "You've never killed anyone, have you? Go on, see some blood. Once you've done it, you won't panic on the battlefield!"

"Right!" Luo Ke nodded heavily, then swung down from his horse, drew his waist saber, and strode toward Squire Wang and the others kneeling on the ground.

At the same moment that Squire Wang and his several sons had their heads chopped off with swift strokes of the blade, Sima Yu — who two days earlier had led troops to trick open the gates of the Monk's Plain fortress — was already standing atop the wall of Dasan Pass, watching a great bonfire blaze on the drill ground inside the town. This was the signal fire reporting to the main army at Monk's Plain.

The battle to seize Dasan Pass had been extremely fierce! Although the garrison at Dasan Pass had also been fooled into opening the north gate, allowing Sima Yu's unit (about 300 men), who claimed to be reinforcements, to enter the town — the Shun army's spies were truly formidable, having obtained the garrison's password.

But afterward, when the garrison checked their credentials, they saw through Sima Yu and his men, and the two sides began fighting inside Dasan Pass. Although the garrison at Dasan Pass had superior numbers, these Shaanxi local troops were no match at all for the Shun's elite garrison soldiers in close-quarters combat. After barely holding out for most of a day, Dasan Pass changed hands.

After seizing Dasan Pass, the Chencang Road was more than half open, but still not completely unobstructed. For north of Dasan Pass there was still Erli Pass, and beside Erli Pass stood Yimen Town, while north of Yimen Town and Erli Pass was the county seat of Baoji. Only after taking Erli Pass, Yimen Town, and Baoji County seat would the Chencang Road be fully opened.

However, relying on the few thousand lightly equipped troops who had crossed over the Qinling Mountains (Wang Xi brought 1,500 men, Luo Hu brought 2,000), there was no way they could take Erli Pass, Yimen Town, and Baoji County seat. Given the Ming army's current state of alertness, a surprise attack like the one on Dasan Pass would not happen often.

And falling at almost the same time as Dasan Pass were Chencang Mountain, Wuzhang Plain, and Jinya Pass east of Monk's Plain — Jinya Pass was a small pass on the Baoxie Road, guarding a branch road extending from the main Baoxie Road that led straight to Wuzhang Plain.

After seizing Wuzhang Plain and Jinya Pass, the Baoxie Road was also more than half open — likewise not completely open, because Xiegu Pass and Mei County seat were still firmly under Ming army control.

If the Shun wanted to completely open the passage from Hanzhong into the Guanzhong region, they would have to capture all of the cities and passes: Erli Pass, Yimen Town, Baoji County seat, Xiegu Pass, and Mei County seat.

What Zhuge Kongming had failed to accomplish in his day would now have to be done by the Shun's "Rival of Zhuge," Li Dingguo!

At this moment, Li Dingguo was leading an army through the gorges of the Chencang Road.

This was an army of about fifty thousand men, still equipped as mountain troops. Most carried firelocks and saber-and-shield (including javelins), and fewer than ten percent of the combat soldiers carried pikes. Cavalry and artillery were both few in number: only about 2,000 cavalry, and those were organized one horse per man, with no good horses either — all Sichuan and Yunnan ponies. There were only twelve bronze-cast 3-jin and 6-jin cannons, dragged by horses, rumbling northward.

Li Dingguo had by now received reports from Luo Hu and Wang Xi, and knew that the surprise attack had succeeded — what Zhuge Liang had once accomplished, he too had now accomplished!

But his mood was not in the least cheerful, because before leading his troops out of the Wudu Mountain camp, he had learned of Duoni's defeat and death.

The Jianzhou Jurchen rebellion that had plagued the Great Ming for nearly forty years had now been completely pacified!

The speed with which the Great Ming had crushed Duoni truly exceeded Li Dingguo's expectations — and in fact exceeded Zhu Cilang's expectations as well, because Duoni's skill at warfare was far inferior to his father Dodo's. He thought he was Nurhaci at Sarhu, but in reality he was worse than Yang Hao. Yang Hao with eighty thousand (actual number) against sixty thousand had at least held out for four days, and his losses were roughly half. But Duoni had let an army of over ten thousand young guardsmen beat him to a pulp, and then fled through ice and snow, reducing his seventy thousand troops to a few thousand survivors. After receiving the report, Li Dingguo felt an urge to hack someone to death!

But Duoni was already dead, and even if he were not, it would not be Li Dingguo's turn to do the hacking. What he had to consider now was how to fight better than Zhuge Liang at Wuzhang Plain.

This time he would have to be a true "Rival of Zhuge," or sooner or later he would be bottled up by the Ming army at Wuzhang Plain and Monk's Plain — the present Guanzhong could not compare to Han dynasty times. Even if those two plains and the surrounding slopes were planted with millet, they could not feed Li Dingguo's great army!

(End of Chapter)