[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-stealing-ming":3,"chapter-stealing-ming-stealing-ming-chapter-197":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Stealing 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},1220814,1614,"Chapter 197: Section Fourteen: Hesitation","stealing-ming-chapter-197",197,"\u003Cp>On the twenty-eighth day of the sixth month of the fifth year of the Tianqi reign, just as dawn was barely breaking in the early morning,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>the spirited Huang Shi walked out of his own tent and gazed toward the direction of Fuzhou. Throughout the previous night, there had been scattered points of firelight near the official road from Fuzhou to Haizhou, and no one knew what the Later Jin army was busy with there. But in the darkness, the Ming army dared not send anyone out several dozen li to scout. Huang Shi had not been watching the distance for long when Intelligence Officer Li Yunrui hurried over: \"Your humble subordinate pays respects to my lord.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Commissioner Li, have the Jian slaves made any unusual movements?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"None. Everything is normal. The firelight on the official road last night was extinguished before dawn. We still don't know what the Jian slaves were up to, but it was certainly not reinforcements.\" Ever since the dozen or so niru of the Later Jin army near Fuzhou had all concentrated here, a military intelligence barrier had formed around Fuzhou. After the Ming army built a pontoon bridge over the Fuzhou River, this intelligence screen had receded somewhat, but a thick fog of war still shrouded the skies above Fuzhou.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Good. Let us cross the river.\" Huang Shi firmly believed that one strong point defeats ten clever tricks. Although it was relatively easy for the opposing Later Jin army to assess the size of the Ming army as a guest force, this time the Liaonan Ming army had nine thousand combat soldiers, of which the Firefighting and Rock Battalions alone accounted for nearly five thousand combat soldiers. Zhang Minghe, that zealous activist, went without saying, and the over two thousand men brought by Zhang Pan and the Shang brothers were also the elite under their command.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Therefore, Huang Shi did not think the Later Jin army had any chance even if they defended the city. His plan was to first use artillery to smash the city gates, then use them to cover friendly forces in seizing the gate tower. Meanwhile, Huang Shi's two directly controlled field battalions would guard against possible sneak attacks by the Later Jin army. In addition, they would also protect the auxiliary soldiers while they built a fort at the gates of Fuzhou. This way, the main army would not need to withdraw back across the Fuzhou River at night.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>……\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The main Later Jin army, hidden north of Fuzhou, was eating breakfast. Manggūltai invited Daišan to feast on the deer he had caught while hunting the day before. The two of them were shouting and eating heartily by the campfire.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Inside Hong Taiji's tent, the shaman's drum was beating rhythmically. Just like in his home in Liaoyang, Hong Taiji always placed his bed to one side, leaving the spacious central area for the lamas to perform their ritual dances. These shamans danced and gestured wildly to the drumbeats, their mouths singing tones incomprehensible to ordinary mortals.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hong Taiji's expression was solemn, his arms extended straight out. Behind him stood a young girl who looked to be only about twelve years old, gently and carefully fastening a bright yellow suit of armor onto him. The shaman's song suddenly stopped, and the person collapsed to the ground. Hong Taiji and the young girl behind him pressed their palms together and bowed deeply toward the medium who had completed the process of divine possession.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After a long while, the heavenly deity possessing that shaman slowly opened its eyes and spoke with a majesty no human possessed: \"Go. Favored child of heaven, the man whose life you seek to take — he shall not live!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>……\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At that moment, Huang Shi's banner gave a loud crack in a sudden violent gust of wind. He Dingyuan looked up, clicked his tongue, and said: \"What a strong wind! The flagpole is bent to this extent.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"A great wind rises...\" The sight of the twenty-thousand-strong army before him stirred Huang Shi's heart, and without thinking, a line from the Han Grand Ancestor's poem slipped out. But just as he began the opening line, Huang Shi inwardly cried out in alarm, and his voice caught in his throat.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"A great wind rises, clouds fly and scatter; My might extends within the seas, I return to my homeland; Where can I find brave men to guard the four frontiers?\" Unexpectedly, He Dingyuan recited the entire poem in one breath, assuming Huang Shi had simply forgotten the following lines. After finishing, He Dingyuan did not forget to loudly praise it: \"The poem of the Han Grand Ancestor, Emperor Gao, is truly remarkable. Worthy of the true dragon who founded the four-hundred-year foundation of the Glorious Han. After the Three Dynasties, only the Han Grand Ancestor can barely compare with our dynasty's Grand Ancestor.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Huang Shi glanced at this single-celled creature with a clear conscience, a smile surfacing on his face. He Dingyuan recited Liu Bang's poem twice over, then without a second thought blurted out: \"My lord, today your general wishes to be the first to scale the city.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"No!\" Huang Shi refused him without even thinking. Seeing the aggrieved look on He Dingyuan's face, he quickly consoled him: \"When it comes to field battle, you can still behead generals and seize banners.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After several days of preparation, the Ming army had used ready-made materials the day before to construct three pontoon bridges in a single day. Huang Shi claimed one for himself. According to the plan, Zhang Minghe was to have one of the remaining ones, and Zhang Pan and Shang Keyi were to share one. Shang Kexi's men would wait in the rear and use whichever pontoon bridge became free first.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The soldiers of the Firefighting and Rock Battalions stood in dense, orderly square formations deployed south of the Fuzhou River. The internal security officers responsible for maintaining order held the staff department's plan and directed each unit officer to lead their unit across the river one by one.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The combat soldiers carried their helmets on their backs, their firelocks or long spears slung over their shoulders, marching in step to the drumbeats. The internal security officer standing at the mouth of the pontoon bridge blew a whistle and then made a hand signal to proceed — Huang Shi had plagiarized many of the traffic police gestures he had seen in his previous life.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"March at ease across the bridge.\" The unit officer shouted the command, and the waist-drum beats ceased with his order. Countless pairs of feet tramped continuously across the pontoon bridge...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Huang Shi spurred his horse to stand on a mound on the southern bank, watching the stream of people roll past. The bridge swayed back and forth like a straw, rapidly drawing the massive infantry column from the southern bank to the northern bank. Behind him, besides a group of his direct subordinates, was Zhang Minghe, who had been following him step for step these past days. The performance of the Vanguard Battalion in front of this circle of men made Zhang Minghe blush with shame. Although his officers were also directing their units across the river in sequence, whenever it was someone's turn, that officer had to shout and yell, while the officer's personal guard squad noisily struggled to keep their cluster of men from scattering.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhang Minghe secretly ordered his personal guards several times to hurry them along, but the more he hurried, the more chaotic it became. The officers below, growing anxious, began beating the men. Around the Vanguard Battalion's pontoon bridge, there was instantly a clamor of roaring and flying whips. Under Zhang Minghe's repeated urging, the officers began crowding and fighting for passage to speed up the crossing. From time to time, someone was pushed into the river, stirring up one commotion after another. Yet even so, after the Firefighting Battalion had fully crossed the river, the Vanguard Battalion had still not finished even half.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Further off, Zhang Pan and Shang Keyi were also not moving fast, but they did not frantically urge their soldiers. So they were outdone by Zhang Minghe. By the time the Vanguard Battalion had crossed halfway, Zhang Pan's men had still not finished, and Shang Keyi had not yet begun. Seeing their progress, Zhang Minghe secretly wiped away sweat, his face unable to suppress a smile of being worse than the best but better than the worst.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>However, greater speed was not necessarily a good thing... On the opposite bank, there were large numbers of Changsheng Island internal security troops, holding simplified terrain maps prepared by the staff department. They gestured and pointed, guiding the crossing troops into their designated positions. Zhang Pan's speed was not very fast, so his officers could slowly adjust the deployment without being thrown into a flurry.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But what the Vanguard Battalion lacked most right now were experienced officers. After large numbers of soldiers were driven scrambling and tumbling across the pontoon bridge, they immediately formed a chaotic, noisy mass on the opposite bank. The scattered soldiers shoved each other, and were pushed forward by even more men rushing over from behind. Huang Shi watched and shook his head slightly. In military doctrine, the so-called \"strike while they are mid-crossing\" referred precisely to attacking this kind of disordered mob, utterly incapable of self-defense and unable to reform into battle formation for a long time.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Large beads of sweat slid continuously down Zhang Minghe's forehead. The young commander frantically issued orders, his personal guards dispatched one after another to deliver messages. Some men rode their horses directly onto the pontoon bridge, lashing out wildly with their whips to force their way through the stream of people. One fool, seeing he could not get through, in desperation actually leaped into the river and swam across to notify the officers on the opposite bank.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Huang Shi sighed inwardly. Nearly half a year had passed, yet the Vanguard Battalion, the Liaonan elite personally forged by Zhang Pan, had completely failed to recover its combat effectiveness. But he did not intend to give Zhang Minghe pointers. After all, Zhang Minghe was a young commander barely twenty years old, and he had inherited the position of battalion commander as an adopted son. He needed to slowly build his authority within the army. Zhang Minghe still had a long time to learn and needed to face all kinds of situations. At least now he could learn to control his army without interference.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After the Firefighting Battalion's combat soldiers crossed the river, it was the turn of the battalion's logistics troops. Although Changsheng Island had been unable to support large numbers of full-time auxiliary soldiers in the previous period, Huang Shi had already begun building the special forces units he envisioned — such as the pontoon bridge unit. The pontoon bridge team, composed of over a hundred men, was busily pushing wheelbarrows to transport armor and bedding. The daily training of this full-time auxiliary unit had a chance to be put to use today; they strode swiftly as if flying across the swaying pontoon bridge.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The auxiliary soldiers of the other battalions, however, were all military farming households temporarily conscripted. Their daily rations were worse than those of the combat soldiers, and their morale was far lower. By the time the first infantry unit of the Rock Battalion stepped onto the pontoon bridge, Shang Kexi, who had been waiting at the very rear to cross, ordered his subordinates to move behind the Rock Battalion. He himself spurred his horse to Huang Shi's side, and a torrent of praise and flattery gushed forth. Shang Kexi and Zhang Minghe sang in duet, their coordination in flattering Huang Shi seamless, like a pair performing a double act. Huang Shi listened, swelling with pride and laughing heartily. He Dingyuan, Li Yunrui, and the others, covered in goosebumps, retreated a couple of steps and secretly sneered at Shang Kexi and Zhang Minghe. Only Hong Antong remained behind Huang Shi, his face still expressionless as if he had heard nothing...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Although the Ming army's scouts had begun to form an intelligence screen, limited by their own cavalry numbers, they could not achieve complete information isolation. The Later Jin army's scouts, gazing far into the distance from some hills to the north, watched the rapid movements of the Changsheng Army. One of the Later Jin cavalrymen, who looked like a leader, sighed repeatedly: \"Too fast, too fast. More than twice as fast as expected. Quickly, inform the Grand Beile.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A quarter of an hour later, the Rock Battalion's infantry had also mostly crossed. Huang Shi and the others suddenly saw the Ming army scouts on the opposite bank waving their flags one after another. Soon, a cavalryman spurred his horse to the bank, pulled the flag from his back, and began waving it. The internal security soldiers beside Huang Shi immediately began slowly translating the flag signals aloud.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"The Jian slaves in Fuzhou have begun to flee?\" Shang Kexi and Zhang Minghe shouted out simultaneously: \"Is this true?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"It seems they have fled.\" Huang Shi pondered; the opposing military movements left him feeling waves of confusion. Huang Shi instructed the internal security guards beside him: \"Scout again! Report immediately on the enemy's strength and direction of movement.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"At your command!\" The internal security soldiers beside Huang Shi immediately drew out their flags and began waving them. The signalman on the opposite bank quietly read the order, then turned and transmitted the flag signal to the signalman further away. That signalman would then relay the signal onward, layer by layer.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Qi Jiguang's military manual specifically discussed the use of flags by scouts, but Qi Jiguang's scout flag codes still could not transmit precise orders. By Huang Shi's era, even Qi Jiguang's system no longer worked. Huang Shi reorganized the set used by Junior Guardian Qi and improved it into a flag language. After training, these scouts could use flag language to greatly accelerate the transmission of military intelligence.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Around fifteen niru, over one thousand six hundred armored Jian slaves, nearly three thousand unarmored Jian slaves, herding over ten thousand Han civilians in total, along with a large amount of livestock and baggage.\" Huang Shi furrowed his brow, pondering the hidden information within. Shang Kexi and Zhang Minghe beside him were already dumbfounded; they could not imagine how a few flags could convey such rich information.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Changsheng Island's flag language could not only transmit numbers but also, when necessary, describe complex situations. This was largely thanks to the Hanyu Pinyin system that Huang Shi had previously promoted in the training teams and was now promoting in the instruction teams.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Halt the Rock Battalion for a moment.\" Huang Shi clamped his horse's belly and charged down from the hillside. The internal security officer controlling the pontoon bridge immediately stopped the flow of people, allowing Huang Shi and his personal internal security squad to cross the pontoon bridge first. When Huang Shi set out, Zhang Minghe followed without a second thought. Shang Kexi, after a moment's daze, also hurriedly spurred his horse to catch up, while simultaneously sending a personal guard to notify his brother to take over his Zhangshan Island troops.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The flag signals from the opposite side told Huang Shi that no enemy troops had been found within several li. Huang Shi and his mounted squad thus headed straight for Fuzhou. As they approached Fuzhou, they could faintly see flames rising from the direction of the city. The foremost scouts also sent back reports that the Later Jin army in Fuzhou had already completely fled.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Huang Shi ordered his subordinates to enter the city and fight the fires while simultaneously expanding the search radius, forming a massive intelligence fan with a radius of ten li, stretching from the bridgehead fort at the river crossing all the way to the walls of Fuzhou.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The fires in Fuzhou were quickly brought under control. The soldiers entering the city were pleased to discover that the accumulated firewood in the city was minimal and arranged very haphazardly. After inspecting the various deployments, Li Yunrui concluded that the enemy had fled in great haste and had no intention of actually burning the city. He also concluded from this that the enemy's strength was very weak.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After hearing this report, Huang Shi fell into deep thought. He gazed at the billowing dust in the direction of the Later Jin army's northward flight and asked Li Yunrui softly: \"Are you certain the enemy's strength is very weak?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Certain!\" Li Yunrui replied with full confidence. Besides the matter of setting fires, he had also swiftly inspected the warehouses and military camps. No matter what signs one looked at, the soldiers recently stationed here in Fuzhou were only the dozen or so niru of the Plain Red Banner: \"There is one more point. Your humble subordinate believes the Jian slaves made the decision to flee yesterday.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Mm, you are referring to the matter of the official road.\" Huang Shi had already sent men to inspect the official road, which had been dug full of potholes. It seemed the firelight seen at Fuzhou last night was the Later Jin army digging pits.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Precisely.\" Li Yunrui replied in a deep voice, then voiced his thoughts all at once: \"The Jian slaves know our army's baggage relies on vehicles for transport on the official road. Their digging of pits was clearly to prevent our army from pursuing. Then why did they prefer to dig pits last night rather than flee?\" Li Yunrui took a deep breath here. Huang Shi's eyes watched him with piercing brightness. This made Li Yunrui very pleased: \"This shows the Jian slave forces in Fuzhou are very limited. They feared that marching at night would cause them to lose control of the Han civilians, so they insisted on waiting until daylight to leave.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Mm. Very logical.\" Huang Shi mulled it over carefully and felt that Li Yunrui's intelligence analysis seemed to have no flaws: \"Then why did they suddenly decide to retreat last night?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Yunrui was taken aback by the question: \"This... this your humble subordinate does not know. I beg my lord's forgiveness.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I was asking myself.\" Huang Shi laughed heartily twice upon hearing this. Li Yunrui was not originally a staff officer. Huang Shi said with a smile: \"You have done very well as an intelligence officer. What crime is there?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>While Li Yunrui had been speaking, Jin Qiude, standing to the side, had been frowning in deep thought. Hearing Huang Shi's words, he quickly said: \"Your general believes the Jian slaves may have harbored wishful thinking, believing we would not dare attack. Or they may have been waiting for reinforcements, but seeing that help could not arrive in time, they retreated in haste. There is also a third possibility, though very unlikely: the Jian slaves have ambushed ahead all the intact niru of the Plain Red Banner and the entire Bordered White Banner, intending to ambush us. Everything we are seeing now is a deliberate deception laid by the Jian slaves.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"The Plain Red Banner, which has just recovered its strength, and the Bordered White Banner covering Gaizhou? Using these two banners to ambush us?\" Huang Shi shook his head as he spoke. He then considered Jin Qiude's first two points and nodded slightly, pressing Jin Qiude with a question: \"Perhaps? Maybe?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jin Qiude bowed from horseback with clasped hands: \"Your general is not certain. I beg my lord's forgiveness.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At this moment, another intelligence officer ran over. After the officer exchanged a few words with Li Yunrui, Li Yunrui hurriedly reported to Huang Shi: \"My lord, we have not found any Han civilians who hid themselves. This indicates the Jian slaves had indeed long since decided on fleeing, which is why they were able to organize all the Han civilians into teams and take them away. And it certainly wasn't just one day; today should be the last batch.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jin Qiude exhaled in relief: \"The strength of the Jian slaves in Fuzhou indeed appears very weak. They were likely clinging to the idea of dragging things out one day at a time, gradually transferring the population to Gaizhou.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Then what are we waiting for? Let us pursue immediately.\" Zhang Minghe, who had been listening for a while, suddenly jumped out and said: \"Military Commander Huang, your humble subordinate is willing to be the vanguard and immediately lead his own troops to pursue the fleeing slaves.\" Zhang Minghe quickly did a mental calculation of the time and looked again at the dust clouds to the north. That group of Later Jin troops, burdened with a large number of refugees, presumably could not run fast: \"Your humble subordinate will pursue with light troops and can catch up to the Jian slaves within two hours, rescuing the common people.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Huang Shi also mentally calculated for a moment: \"The fleeing slaves have fifteen niru. You pursuing with light troops won't work. Even if I gave you all my mounted squad, it wouldn't be enough.\" Without waiting for Zhang Minghe to speak, he asked Jin Qiude: \"If our troops pursue with light equipment, we should be able to catch up within one hour, right?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jin Qiude smiled: \"One hour is more than enough.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Mm, then bring the auxiliary soldiers who carry the armor.\" Huang Shi pointed at the potholes on the official road: \"First concentrate our efforts on moving the wheelbarrows and iron armor across. We'll take the iron armor and leave behind the rest of the baggage. Our speed should be about the same as the friendly forces.\" Huang Shi paused here. Pursuing a retreating enemy was clearly a great merit no matter how one looked at it, but it was impossible not to leave men behind to defend Fuzhou. If they were caught by a counterattack, all this baggage would be a gift to the enemy. But no matter which friendly force was left behind, they would likely be unwilling. And if Huang Shi left behind one of his own independent battalions, he worried that if battle occurred, the friendly forces might not hold up.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Shang Kexi seemed to see through Huang Shi's concerns. He clasped his fists and shouted: \"Military Commander Huang, your humble subordinate is willing to stay behind and hold Fuzhou, securing the army's rear for the Military Commander.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Huang Shi fixed his gaze on Shang Kexi, searching for any trace of hypocrisy or pretense. Shang Kexi clasped his fists again: \"Military Commander Huang, your humble subordinate speaks with utmost sincerity.\" Having said this, he lowered his head. Shang Kexi still remembered the sixty heads Huang Shi had allotted to him at Jinzhou last time, so this time he was determined not to compete for merit.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>While they were speaking, Zhang Pan and Shang Keyi also hurried over. Behind the two of them, war drums rumbled. Before the other three battalions of friendly troops had even finished assembling and reorganizing, the infantry of the Firefighting Battalion had already advanced with all their baggage. By now, the Rock Battalion had also completely crossed the Fuzhou River. Judging by the progress at the riverbank, it was still hard to say whether it or the Vanguard Battalion would form ranks and march out first.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Upon hearing that the Later Jin army in Fuzhou had fled, Zhang and Shang also became sullen. Recovering a city was the merit of the Army Supervisor Eunuch, and now that fellow Wu Mu was already beaming with pride. If Huang Shi were willing, this portion of merit could also be shared with some civil officials in Shandong, but if they did not pursue, then these military officers would have made the trip for nothing. Zhang Pan and Shang Keyi immediately voiced their agreement with Zhang Minghe, and the three of them proceeded to extol Huang Shi's martial valor and prestige in concert, the meaning behind all their words urging him to launch a pursuit battle.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After gauging their expressions and words for a moment, Huang Shi sighed to Shang Kexi, \"This time, I must trouble you.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I am at General Huang's service,\" Shang Kexi understood that Huang Shi had already granted the earlier request. Without further words, he took his personal guards and left to deploy the occupation and defense of Fuzhou.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The cannons definitely could not keep pace with the troops, because the official road was full of potholes, so the ammunition carts and bronze cannons could not get through for a while. Moreover, the artillery unit had not yet crossed the pontoon bridge, so Huang Shi assigned them to defend Fuzhou together with Shang Kexi's unit, which was currently crossing the river. Huang Shi also secretly felt fortunate that Fuzhou had not been burned down, otherwise it would have been very troublesome. Just as he was about to give the order to pursue, Li Yunrui suddenly spoke up: \"My lord, this humble officer believes that without intelligence, it is not advisable to pursue.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ignoring the furious looks cast at him by Zhang Pan, Shang Keyi, and Zhang Minghe, Li Yunrui said loudly: \"My lord, this humble officer has just reflected on Mobile Corps Commander Jin's words.\" He pointed to the northeast: \"Furthermore, just over thirty li away lies the Yongning Garrison City, which is also a large granary near Fuzhou and can supply the provisions the army needs. Our forces have not yet scouted north of Fuzhou, so the possibility that the Jianzhou slaves are lying in ambush for us indeed exists.\"\u003C\u002Fp>",4268,"2026-06-04T07:54:30.907Z",1,"Novelzhen Translator","f6f77a764c06498ce9e57fc335c836f8ba7f5610ef83eee6af2f68242f45911c","stealing-ming-chapter-198","stealing-ming-chapter-196",323,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fstealing-ming-cover.jpg"]