[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-stealing-ming":3,"chapter-stealing-ming-stealing-ming-chapter-298":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},1220915,1614,"Chapter 298: Section 53: Chishui (Part 3)","stealing-ming-chapter-298",298,"\u003Cp>On the twenty-first day of the ninth month of the seventh year of the Tianqi reign, on the southern bank of the Chishuihe.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Among the tents of the Ming army, large numbers of campfires still trailed thin wisps of blue smoke; the firewood on top had mostly burned to a pale white ash. The Ming soldiers used the lingering warmth of the fires to heat their breakfast and boil water. The day before, officers and non-commissioned officers at every level had been told that a fierce battle might come today, and they had passed this word on to the soldiers.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The previous night, the Vanguard Battalion headquarters had ordered that the men be allowed to eat meat to their fill. The soldiers savored the steaming pork, knowing that hard work awaited them the next day. Over two thousand of the battalion’s recruits had enlisted in Fujian; though they had already endured many hardships along the way, they were still somewhat nervous. But the veterans acted as if nothing were amiss — they ate the delicacies before them with hearty appetites, and their main topic of conversation was the rewards that would come after the great battle.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Once they had eaten and drunk their fill, those battle-hardened veterans crawled into their tents, dropped onto their beds, and fell asleep at once; in the blink of an eye, snoring rose in waves across the camp. Their demeanor put the recruits much more at ease, and the recruits’ nervous, anxious whispers gradually ceased. The entire camp soon fell silent, broken only occasionally by the footsteps of the patrolling non-commissioned officers.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Early this morning, every Squad Commander went to the camp to collect fish. The Vanguard Battalion had netted a good number of river fish from the Chishuihe the day before, and this morning each squad was allowed to take one fish for breakfast. By the time the soldiers got up, the squad leaders had already finished cooking the fish soup, and then they portioned out the fish soup and flatbread to each man for breakfast.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>These squad leaders were the non-commissioned officer corps of the Funing Army. Serving as a bridge between the officers and the soldiers, they played a vital connecting role and were the Funing Army’s most important asset. Huang Shi’s officers — needless to say, most of whom had been promoted from the NCO ranks — were all keenly aware of the NCOs’ importance. Beyond the officers, Huang Shi also hoped that his soldiers would hold the NCOs in sufficient esteem.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For that reason, the Funing Army had many regulations designed to win respect for the NCOs — for example, they were responsible for distributing meals, and they were required to eat last. Of course, all this brought its own rewards. Not only did they have the chance to be promoted to officer, they could also earn medals more easily than ordinary soldiers. Finally, Huang Shi gave them a special reward: squad leaders received no salary in grain; in addition to the one tael and five mace of silver each soldier was due every month, Huang Shi, in his own name, gave each of them a red envelope, which usually contained a Funingzhen silver coin worth five mace.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After breakfast, the soldiers helped one another don their armor. Jia Minghe had already ordered the heavy infantry to put on their armor and stand ready. While the soldiers were busy fastening their iron armor, the muffled sound of cannon fire came drifting from the direction of the Chishuihe. Once they were fully armored, they silently picked up the long spears that had been stacked together and followed their officers as they marched toward the riverbank.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Chishuihe held many black river reefs. In the central channel there were several fairly large ones, against which the river water beat into white spray. Near the two banks, where the water was shallower, even more reefs jutted up from beneath the surface, and some rocks lay hidden just a little below the waterline — their faint, half-visible dark shadows could be seen through the river water.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On each side of the Chishuihe lay a relatively flat riverbank. From time to time, cavalry galloped across these banks, relaying intelligence and orders back and forth. The height of the banks on both sides was roughly level with the water’s surface, and the line where land met water was covered with large cobblestones. The Vanguard Battalion’s engineer corps was busy at the river’s edge, tying felled branches into bundles with rope, then weighting them with stones and tossing them into the Chishuihe along the bank. The current there was relatively slow, so these mixed masses of wood and stone would not be washed away; they all accumulated beside the reefs along the riverbank.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This gently sloping riverbank was not very long. Not far away, a fairly steep earthen slope soon rose up, dotted with low shrubs and small trees. Above this slope lay another stretch of relatively flat woodland and grassland. Jia Minghe was standing right there on the high slope on the southern bank, surrounded by a cluster of staff officers.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Behind Jia Minghe, the artillery was conducting ranging shots — both to adjust the angle of the cannons and, incidentally, to strike a blow at the rebels’ morale. The cannon fire went on for a while, then gradually died down. On the opposite bank, the rebel army was massing in ever greater numbers. Soon, a dense, dark mass of heads appeared in the distance. Jia Minghe raised his telescope and looked: the rebels were carrying large numbers of bamboo rafts and wooden floats, advancing slowly from the north with heavy steps.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A staff officer strode quickly up behind Jia Minghe and reported in a clear voice: “My lord, no signs of large-scale raft-building or forced crossings have been found anywhere else, and rebel forces all along the river seem to be converging on our position.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Understood.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A moment later, another staff officer came over and reported: “My lord, the Vanguard Battalion has finished assembling.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jia Minghe lowered his telescope, turned his head, and gave a few instructions. At once, staff officers and orderlies spread his commands in all directions. The Ming arquebusiers strode in great strides to the slope on one side of the riverbank and began setting up their firing positions. Most of them placed their arquebuses on the slope that faced down from the high ground toward the riverbank’s mudflat, looking down from above upon the Chishuihe.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After the arquebusiers finished deploying, the rebel vanguard also reached the opposite riverbank. Large numbers of rebel soldiers ran down from the high slope on the far side; the moment they touched the ground of the riverbank, they dashed toward the water’s edge, laboring furiously to clear away the reefs and debris on their side.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Next, a great number of bamboo rafts were shoved down from the high slope, raising huge clouds of sand and gravel as they plunged violently down the incline and slammed heavily onto the ground of the riverbank, producing an unending series of violent crashes. The rebel soldiers followed right behind these rafts, nimbly leaping over the obstacles on the steep slope to reach the level ground, and agilely dodging the bamboo rafts and wooden floats that came chasing after them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>By this time, the Ming army had reported that no large-scale river-crossing activity had yet been spotted elsewhere. Jia Minghe sent orderlies to notify the friendly forces, telling them to strengthen their vigilance and to inform him at once if anything developed. He raised his telescope again. On the road opposite, rebels were still streaming toward this spot in an endless flow — truly a vast sea of people.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“My lord, shall I give the order for the cannons to open fire?” a staff officer asked from behind Jia Minghe after seeing this imposing display.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Of course not,” Jia Minghe replied, his tone rising slightly, as if carrying a trace of surprise. Without turning his head, he said: “First, have our spearmen move into position.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“As you command, my lord.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Ming army’s drums began to beat in a steady rhythm.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“All troops — rise!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Advance!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Following their officers’ forceful commands, the Ming army’s two thousand heavy infantry moved in step with the drumbeats, marching in neat ranks toward the edge of the slope. Sunlight spilled across these soldiers’ iron armor and spear blades. Seen from the sky, it looked like a sheet of quicksilver flowing through the woods.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>These soldiers suddenly appeared before the eyes of the rebels on the opposite bank. In the woods stretching over a li along the shallows, silver light danced everywhere; hundreds upon hundreds of Ming armored infantry flashed into view from within. This mass of silver light quickly flowed to the edge of the high slope, then swiftly streamed down the slope, and in a short while spread out across the riverbank on the opposite side.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Dress right — dress!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Dress right — dress!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Large numbers of Ming officers, their backs to the enemy, issued the command to their men. The Ming spearmen formed a double-line horizontal rank, as if trimming the Chishuihe with a thin silver border.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“All troops — sit!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After this order was given, the Ming soldiers all sat down on the riverbank, at the same time raising the nine-chi long spears in their hands high toward the sky. The officers in front of them also turned around, each placing both hands behind his back, hidden beneath his red cape, and gazing coldly across at the rebels on the opposite bank.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gust after gust of wind blew across the river, passing over the heads of these two thousand officers and men. The white plumes on their helmets produced a fine, whistling sound in the wind — the only noise on the Ming position.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On the opposite bank, more rebels charged down the high slope. At the river’s edge, they used both hands and feet, shouting work chants in unison as they strained together to push aside the reefs along the bank. Many of them were bare-handed and barefoot, cut and bleeding from the reefs and weeds, yet each acted as if he felt nothing, still laboring to clear the obstacles to the crossing, as if none of them saw the Ming army waiting in full battle array on the opposite bank.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After Jia Minghe received the report that the infantry had finished deploying, he quietly instructed: “Commence bombardment.” Then he walked slowly to the edge of the high slope and watched the crowd on the opposite bank in silence.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Given the current distance between the two armies, the Ming army, following artillery regulations, began bombarding with solid shot. The ten field cannons were fired one after another in rotation. Some shots struck the high slope on the opposite bank, some fell into the Chishuihe, but most hit the densely packed riverbank or the steep slope teeming with moving men.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The stone fragments sent flying by the cannonballs knocked down the men around them in swathes. From time to time, someone screamed as he tumbled from the steep slope down onto the riverbank. Some bamboo rafts broke free of control, throwing off the ropes that bound them, and came howling straight down the steep slope to the ground, pinning rebel soldiers who could not dodge in time directly into the mud of the riverbank.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>One round of bombardment followed another. This time, a bamboo raft lying flat on the riverbank was hit squarely. The large raft’s bamboo poles were a full four layers thick. They had been tightly bound together, making the raft look like a large, fully inflated hide raft. Under this ferocious impact, the bamboo raft first bent violently, curling up like a sheet of waste paper crumpled by a child’s hand.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then the bamboo raft violently bounced up from the ground. The four layers of long bamboo poles were either shattered into splinters or shot out from the raft like wild horses breaking their reins, twisting through the air, somersaulting several times, and then screaming down toward the ground, plunging deep into the earth like rows of javelins, the victims’ blood still running down the bamboo shafts.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The bombardment continued round after round. More and more rebel soldiers fell on the opposite riverbank; a dozen or so bamboo rafts were torn to shreds by the cannon fire one after another. Yet still more men arrived with still more rafts. They pushed their comrades’ corpses aside, then dragged their rafts onward, or ran a few quick steps forward to join their companions ahead in wading into the water to shift the reefs.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Right in front of the Ming cannons, these men stubbornly cleared a level path along the shallows at the river’s edge. A dozen or so rebel soldiers, carrying tow ropes on their backs, ran swiftly and dragged a bamboo raft into the water. When that large bamboo raft floated proudly on the river’s surface, the rebels on the opposite bank let out a resounding cheer.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Switch to canister shot —”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As the rebels’ bamboo rafts began entering the water one after another, the Ming artillery likewise switched to close-range ammunition. While the Ming gunners were changing rounds, the rebels had already waded into the water and jumped onto their rafts, paddling furiously toward the southern bank. At the same time, many rebels clung to the rafts with one hand while treading water, pushing the rafts toward the middle of the river with all their might. The rebels on the rafts sang mountain songs as they paddled.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Although this was a shallow crossing, once there were many bamboo rafts in the water, some inevitably got pushed onto hidden reefs. Even before the Ming army opened fire, one raft struck something, and then, caught by the current, flipped completely upside down, hurling the men on it into the water. Several were slapped straight down into the river.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Fire!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Ming canister shot sprayed across the water’s surface at the men who had nowhere to take cover. On two rafts that were close together, half the men plunged headfirst into the water in an instant; the remaining few also collapsed face-down onto the rafts. The rafts, now out of control, spun in circles as they shot rapidly downstream. The river water washed over the surface of the rafts again and again, each time rinsing away the blood, but still more blood flowed from beneath the bodies, soaking the upper layer of bamboo once more in red liquid.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet the continuous cannon fire clearly still could not stop the rebels’ determination to cross the river. Moreover, once the Ming cannons ceased bombarding the riverbank, the rebels sent even more bamboo rafts down into the Chishuihe. Compared to the minority of rebels who climbed onto the rafts, far more men simply leaped straight into the river. Most of them carried weapons, and quite a few had tied one end of a tow rope around their waists.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Although this was indeed a shallow crossing that was easy to traverse, the current in the middle of the river was still fairly swift. Once they reached midstream, whether they were rebels on bamboo rafts or swimmers in the water, they all had to summon every last ounce of strength to struggle against the rushing current. And this was precisely the best moment for the Ming cannons to fire.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Every round of canister shot claimed a great many lives. At this critical moment of crossing, even a slight wound was enough to prove fatal. The Ming cannons fired again and again. After each cannon blast, one could see a batch of rebel soldiers who had been fighting the river with all their might suddenly stop moving. When the next wave struck, their stiffened bodies would be rolled over several times by the river water, then swept downstream.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>One after another, bamboo rafts that had lost all momentum were shoved hard by the Chishuihe against the black reefs. Countless bodies were hurled violently into the air by these fierce collisions, then battered repeatedly against the reefs or the water’s surface like thin, flimsy sheets of paper. Once the rebels passed the midstream, the Ming arquebusiers began firing. Under their officers’ commands, they carried out volley fire in a methodical, orderly fashion. After each bank of gunpowder smoke cleared, some of the charging rebel warriors could be seen toppling backward into the river.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The closer they drew to the southern bank, the more cautious the rebel soldiers became. They pushed the now-empty bamboo rafts ahead of them, laboriously shoving them forward as they swam over. The Ming arquebusiers, firing from their commanding height, shot without pause, raising spouts of spray around the rafts or blasting splinters from the rafts themselves.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>One bamboo raft after another approached the southern bank, only to be swept downstream by the river one after another. Gradually, some floating corpses were pushed by the current to the edge of the southern bank. Most of these men had their heads submerged in the water, with only their backs showing above the surface. When these drifting bodies were caught by the branches along the southern bank, they stopped and accumulated in ever greater numbers.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not only along the southern bank, but even on the reefs in the middle of the river, corpses began to catch and hang. These fallen men were sometimes also blocked by reefs hidden beneath the surface. They slowly piled up in these places, until eventually even the large bamboo rafts began to be obstructed by them, coming to a halt among the hidden reefs and the bodies.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“How many men have the bandit soldiers lost?” Jia Minghe posed a question to the staff officers behind him, his tone so calm it seemed utterly devoid of emotion.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Six hundred?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Seven hundred?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Seven hundred fifty?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The several staff officers behind him all spoke at once, giving their rough estimates. Jia Minghe did not commit himself either way, but merely raised his telescope again and held it to his eye to observe the situation on the opposite bank.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The rebels on the far side were still pouring in in a continuous stream. Men kept dragging more bamboo rafts as they charged down to the riverbank, then shouting work chants in unison as they pushed them into the Chishuihe. Next, they would nimbly leap onto the rafts and begin paddling with relaxed expressions. Yes, relaxed expressions — as if they were peacefully setting out on the journey home.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>More and more corpses and bamboo rafts were becoming trapped on the river’s surface, and the water downstream was gradually stained with streaks of pink. Yet the one-sided slaughter continued. Finally, the obstacles on the river grew so numerous that the newly arriving rafts could barely find a clear channel to cross. Still, the brave sailors aboard them struggled furiously to find a path, and just like those before them, they sang loudly as they paddled — singing the same songs they had sung the night before.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On the riverbank, those who had not yet entered the water also joined in the ballad, and as time passed, the northern bank once again erupted in earth-shaking song. This resonant southwestern folk tune easily drowned out the gunfire of the Ming army. Countless men sang of their ancestors and heroes, impatiently throwing themselves into the water, carrying weapons or tow ropes on their backs, vying to swim toward the southern bank.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The first rebel soldier to set living foot on the riverbed of the southern bank did not live another moment — a musket bullet struck him the instant he stood up. The comrade behind this vanguard pushed aside his corpse and got his hands on the obstacles the Ming army had left on the bank. As he gasped for breath and tried to drag them away, another musket round blasted into his chest. The rebel soldier’s eyes flew wide open; blood-flecked foam spilling from his mouth, he toppled backward, letting the broad Chishuihe claim his remains.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As the Chishuihe carried this man away, several more rebels rose to their feet. Gasping heavily, they threw themselves recklessly at the Ming obstacles to drag them aside. One man untied a tow rope from his waist, intending to loop it around a reef. These few were spotted by a squad of Ming musketeers, who took careful aim and, at their officer’s command, fired a volley. The rebels all pitched forward onto the very obstacles they had tried to move, becoming part of them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>While the Ming musketeers reloaded, a full dozen or more rebels came charging over. First they tore the corpses away and tossed them aside, then together they hauled one of the Ming obstacles off the riverbank. Just as they shouted their work chant and began dragging it toward the river, the Ming muskets roared again, and this batch of rebels also collapsed. The one in the lead spun backward and fell, one hand clutching his chest, yet his right hand still gripped that tree branch so tightly that even the massive impact of the musket shot could not separate them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A tow rope was looped around a reef on the riverbank. By now the faces of the staff officers behind Jia Minghe had begun to turn pale. One of them could not help but sigh: “An army, so long as it is willing to bleed, can always advance.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Another staff officer agreed with emotion: “No wonder the She-An Rebellion spread across four provinces and was so hard to quell. Though the rebel troops are few, they have such tenacious men among them.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>More and more tow ropes were secured to reefs near the southern bank, and the rebels’ ballad on the northern bank grew ever louder. In whole formations, they descended into the Chishuihe, clutching the ropes as they came toward the southern bank.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The ground before the Ming obstacle line was already covered with corpses, yet the rebels had forcibly torn a breach in that line. At last, one rebel staggered onto the soil of the southern bank. The Ming officers on the riverbank still stood with their hands clasped behind their backs, watching this utterly exhausted man stumble forward, drawing closer to them. In the next volley, this rebel soldier was blasted backward and became the first man to die on the southern bank of the Chishuihe.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jia Minghe looked down at the Chishuihe at his feet — the river now truly lived up to its name. The Ming musketry had concentrated its fire on the breach in the obstacle line. Massed squads of musketeers had formed a rotating volley aimed at this gap, which for the moment kept the rebels from coming ashore. But the rebels were steadily widening the breach, and it was clear the muskets could not hold them back much longer.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Time for the pikemen.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Yes, my lord.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Ming drums on the riverbank sounded once more. The Ming heavy infantry, long rested and full of pent-up energy, rose at the sound. The Ming officers at the front turned back and began issuing orders. After a few simple formation adjustments, they strode forward in great steps, passing the officers and advancing all the way to the rear of the obstacle line.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Halt!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Dress right!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Eyes front!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Following the commands of the officers behind them, the Ming ironclad infantry pressed tightly together into battle formation, ultimately arraying themselves in a long, three-rank horizontal line. The musketeers fired over them into the rebel depth. As the pressure abruptly eased, more rebels swarmed up and hauled away many of the obstacles at once, and then still more rebel soldiers emerged from the river onto the bank.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Ming infantrymen all grounded their long pikes and watched the rebels’ movements in silence. A few, then dozens, then over a hundred rebels emerged from the muddy Chishuihe, red droplets dripping ceaselessly from their eyebrows, lashes, and beards. Their coarse cloth garments had all turned a dark, blackish red.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>These men gasped for breath in great heaving gulps, trudging through the mudflats by the river, one step deep, one step shallow. Their hair and clothes were twisted into tangled clumps, and they shivered repeatedly in the wind. The rebel soldiers tightened their grip on their weapons, staring at the Ming troops before them, slowly, slowly closing in.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“All ranks — lower visors, prepare for battle!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In unison, the Ming heavy infantry used their left hands to lower the visors on their helmets, then one after another they assumed their stances and leveled their long pikes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The rebels let out a long-suppressed roar of fury, mustering the last shred of strength in their bodies as they charged furiously at the Ming defensive line.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“First rank — thrust right!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The battle had been over for a long time, yet Jia Minghe and the staff officers behind him still maintained their erect postures, gazing out toward the Chishuihe.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Report —”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A soldier’s drawn-out call rang out behind them. The Ming army’s casualty figures had been tallied.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“My lord. Our army has eighty-seven killed and one hundred ninety-five wounded.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Understood. Dismissed.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After the soldier saluted and left, Jia Minghe sighed and took a few more steps forward. The Ming army was clearing the battlefield on the riverbank. The number of severed heads taken today could not be estimated, but it was certainly in the thousands. Yet even more of the fallen had been carried away by the Chishuihe — the rebel soldiers who died today were beyond counting. The staff officers under Jia Minghe all estimated the number at over fifteen thousand.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gazing at the river water, dark red as blood, Jia Minghe gently removed his helmet and cradled it in one arm. Looking ahead, he said in a loud voice: “Brothers, let us salute these brave enemies.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The staff officers behind Jia Minghe also silently removed their helmets.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They gazed together for a long time at the corpses and bamboo rafts bobbing on the river’s surface. At last one officer said softly: “Every man in our Funing Army is a warrior, and so we respect warriors above all. But we are the dignified imperial army of the Great Ming, and they are bandits… Since the Grand Commander first raised this army, it has swept aside all before it. This is not something an opponent can withstand through courage alone.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Twenty-third day of the ninth month, seventh year of the Tianqi reign. Chishui Garrison.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The gates of Chishui Garrison were thrown wide open. Along both sides of the road from outside the city gates all the way to the temporary government office within the city, Ming soldiers stood packed in dense ranks, every one of them clad in iron armor, their helmets worn perfectly straight.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Two men approached. They walked to the Ming formation outside the city, then knelt facing forward. After performing a grand prostration, they immediately knocked their heads on the ground. They rose, bowed, shuffled forward three small steps, then knelt again to perform the kowtow. They rose… kowtowed again… and in this manner proceeded from outside the city through the gates, and from the gates all the way to the front of the temporary government office.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhang Heming, in a full set of scarlet official robes with a black gauze hat and jade belt, sat in the center. When the two men saw Zhang Heming, they no longer dared to rise. They remained kneeling and slowly crawled forward. Zhang Heming gave a cold snort. Gripping the jade belt at his waist, he rose to his feet and strode forward to the steps of the central gate. Huang Shi, in full battle dress, his left hand pressing on his sword hilt, followed with a grim face at Zhang Heming’s side and slightly to the rear.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhang Heming’s face was filled with fury, his long white beard trembling involuntarily. His left hand remained on the jade belt at his waist, while his right arm extended forward and downward, index and middle fingers thrust out like blades. He shouted at the two men kneeling on the ground: “She Chongming, An Bangyan, do you two admit your crimes?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She Chongming and An Bangyan did not answer, only prostrated themselves on the ground and knocked their heads without cease. Zhang Heming watched them kowtow until the skin on their foreheads bled, then gave another cold snort and waved a hand at the surrounding soldiers. Several soldiers immediately stepped out of formation and bound She Chongming and An Bangyan. The two men hung their heads in dejection, offering no resistance whatsoever. Once the Ming soldiers had tied them up, they were dragged down and locked into a prisoner cart, to be sent in chains to the capital to report the victory.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Once the two had been dragged away, Zhang Heming swept the fury from his face entirely. He laughed three great laughs and, fully satisfied, turned and walked back to the central seat, leaning back comfortably against the chair, his fingers lightly tapping the tabletop. Huang Shi’s position was at Zhang Heming’s side. Besides the two of them, the hall also held Huang Shi’s two battalion commanders: He Dingyuan and Jia Minghe. These two each had a stool to sit on; they sat facing each other at the lower end from Zhang Heming and Huang Shi, guarding the doorway like the two temple guardian generals.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhang Heming was advanced in years, so the surrender ceremony was formally concluded at this point. He first lavished great praise once more on Huang Shi’s martial valor, then commended He Dingyuan and Jia Minghe as well. He said that whether it was He Dingyuan’s desperate defense of an isolated city or Jia Minghe’s forceful blocking of the returning army, both were great achievements — and of course, both were inseparable from Huang Shi’s leadership, for as the saying goes, “Under a strong general, there are no weak soldiers.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He Dingyuan had found this campaign somewhat frustrating. He had expected the rebels to launch frenzied assaults on Chishui Garrison, and Huang Shi’s pre-departure exhortation had filled him with a solemn, tragic resolve akin to “The wind sighs, the Yi River is cold; the brave man departs, never to return.” But he had not expected the rebels to be utterly unable to withstand a single blow. Chishui Garrison was not a large city to begin with, its perimeter less than three li. With five thousand Ming troops stationed inside Chishui Garrison, the defense was absolutely watertight. Add to that the Funing Army’s muskets and cannons, and the rebels would certainly die in droves no matter how many came.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At first, She Chongming came to probe twice. The Ming army had not even used its full firepower, yet both times the rebels left with bloody noses. After that, the Yongning Army never came back to Chishui Garrison looking for trouble. Later, An Bangyan arrived and organized another probing attack. That enemy assault was of considerable scale — the rebels attacked on three sides, leaving one open, mobilizing roughly ten thousand men for a simultaneous assault on the city. Seeing the enemy’s fierce momentum, the Panshi Battalion naturally did not dare to be negligent and let loose with cannons and muskets at full force. As a result, the Shuixi Army never came a second time.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What followed was a long, drawn-out period of garrison duty. Although He Dingyuan several times wanted to sally out and counterattack, Huang Shi’s repeated parting instructions — “Chishui Garrison must not fall, absolutely must not fall” and the warning that “if Chishui Garrison is lost, the Funing Army will be completely annihilated” — constantly weighed on He Dingyuan’s mind. After much repeated deliberation, he felt he could not endanger the entire army for a moment’s satisfaction. So He Dingyuan forcibly suppressed his desire to attack and spent every day gazing out with longing, hoping the rebels would assault the city.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Unexpectedly, before the rebels came to attack the city, Huang Shi’s Firefighting Battalion arrived instead. Once He Dingyuan made contact with the Firefighting Battalion, he knew there would be no further chance to destroy the enemy — the rebels’ annihilation was only a matter of time. Casualties were inevitable in the struggle for victory, but asking soldiers to take risks merely to satisfy one’s personal desire for glory was hard to justify. Seeing that the war now held no suspense, He Dingyuan was very glad that more of his soldiers would return home healthy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jia Minghe, on the other hand, felt deep revulsion toward She Chongming and An Bangyan. Once the atmosphere relaxed, Jia Minghe immediately exclaimed: “Those two wretches She Chongming and An Bangyan have such soft bones. So many men died for them — how could they still surrender, still think of clinging to life?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Huang Shi smiled faintly but said nothing. It was Zhang Heming, in excellent spirits, who cleared up Jia Minghe’s doubts: “How could those two wretches possibly be allowed to live? Once they are sent in chains to the capital, they will certainly suffer death by a thousand cuts. They are merely hoping to use their own bodies to trade for the court’s leniency toward their clansmen.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jia Minghe was momentarily stunned. Before his eyes, the scene of the southwestern rebels fighting to the death to cross the river seemed to replay itself. A pang of sympathy stirred in his heart, and he pressed further: “Lord Zhang, will the court deal leniently with the rebel factions in Shuixi and Yongning?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhang Heming stroked his long beard and said with a smile: “I fear not. If only the two ringleaders had been captured, the court might perhaps offer amnesty to their sons. But now the bulk of the rebel troops in Shuixi and Yongning have laid down their arms, and the remnants in those two places are no longer a threat. This old man believes that these two Pacification Commissions should be uprooted entirely and their clans exterminated, to serve as a warning to the other native officials.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Although Zhang Heming phrased it as what he believed the court would do, in practice the court generally approved the resolve of the local grandee in charge of the mopping-up. Huang Shi therefore knew that the lives of the multitudes of soldiers and civilians in Shuixi and Yongning largely rested in Zhang Heming’s hands. After He Dingyuan and Jia Minghe had left, Zhang Heming pondered for a moment, then turned his head and asked Huang Shi: “Commander Huang, in your opinion, how should we deal with these tens of thousands of surrendered rebel troops?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With the defeat of She Chongming and An Bangyan, the encircled enemy forces had also surrendered to the Ming army. In addition to the combat troops they had brought, there were many native soldiers who had been transporting grain, plus the Yongning troops who had previously surrendered to Huang Shi. In total, the Ming army had taken fifty thousand rebel prisoners, among them over three thousand sturdy women who had also been conscripted to carry grain.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Commander Huang has already taken over ten thousand heads this time — a considerable number. But when it comes to severed heads, the more the better, is it not?” Zhang Heming’s tone was very flat, his expression utterly unruffled.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“From what I just heard, Lord Zhang intends to submit a memorial to the court, proposing that Yongning and Shuixi be converted from native administration to regular administration?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Indeed. So keeping these people would only be a source of trouble — they might well rise in revolt again in the blink of an eye.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Huang Shi had long considered the prisoner problem. He also knew that converting such a vast territory to regular administration would be an immense achievement, one Zhang Heming would never pass up. Seeing Zhang Heming admit to this intention, Huang Shi cautiously offered his counsel: “Lord Zhang, this humble general believes that killing prisoners is inauspicious. Moreover, these native soldiers might allow us to use barbarians against barbarians.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Oh? Explain.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sixteenth day of the tenth month, seventh year of the Tianqi reign.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>These past few days, the Emperor had been unable to speak, and yesterday he had nearly suffocated several times. Today, Tianqi seemed slightly better. He used his eyes to signal the Empress, telling her to summon the Prince of Xin to the palace at once, and also ordered the entire Grand Secretariat to wait in attendance outside the hall.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the afternoon, the Prince of Xin stumbled in. He had just opened his mouth to speak when tears suddenly streamed down like rain. Though he prostrated himself on the ground and performed the ritual of paying respects to the Emperor, he could not utter a single word. Both the Empress and the attending young eunuchs were alarmed at the sight. Although everyone was mentally prepared, Tianqi had not yet passed away, and for the Prince of Xin to behave this way was a grave breach of decorum.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was Tianqi who smiled instead, and his dark, sallow face once again radiated a kindly glow. Struggling to keep breathing, he forced out a few words in fits and starts: \"Prince Xin is truly my own blood brother.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After these words, Tianqi fell silent again. While laboring to breathe, he signaled with his eyes for the attendant to bring a seat for Prince Xin. When the eunuch brought a stool, Tianqi frowned in dissatisfaction no matter how it was placed, until finally he was satisfied only when Prince Xin was seated right beside his sickbed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With every breath, a sharp metallic wheeze sounded from Tianqi's chest. Though he had almost lost the strength even to cough, he still placed his hand on Prince Xin's, gently stroking his younger brother's hand with his fingertips. After a while, Tianqi turned his gaze toward the doorway, his eyes filled with longing and insistence.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Until the sun dipped to the west, Tianqi still glanced toward the door from time to time. The great hall was deathly silent, save for the Emperor's breathing, which sounded like a broken bellows.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Your Majesty! Your Majesty!\" Wei Zhongxian came shouting all the way as he ran toward the bedchamber, his heavy footsteps echoing through the entire corridor and palace.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>These days, whenever Tianqi awoke, he would dispatch Wei Zhongxian to the Tongzhengsi. Hearing Wei Zhongxian's shouts, Tianqi's eyes brightened. He strained to lift his head, as if trying to sit up, but ultimately gave up.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Your Majesty,\" Wei Zhongxian burst through the door and threw himself to his knees, holding up a memorial as he shouted: \"Great victory in the southwest! Marshal Huang has routed the rebel army at Chishuiwei, taking twelve thousand six hundred and fifty-five heads, and capturing She Chongming, An Bangyan, and over forty-five thousand of their followers alive.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Having spoken, Wei Zhongxian cast aside the memorial and knocked his head against the floor: \"A great joy for Your Majesty, a great joy for Your Majesty!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tianqi seemed suddenly drained of all strength. Lying flat on the bed, he lightly flicked his fingers. Everyone obediently withdrew, leaving Prince Xin alone.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tianqi gathered his breath for a moment, then forced out a sentence: \"The Donglin Party cannot be trusted. Do not listen to their reckless nonsense.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Prince Xin wept as he said, \"Yes, Imperial Brother.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tianqi nodded slightly. After a moment, he rasped out: \"Make good use of Wei Zhongxian, and also Huang Shi.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Prince Xin, tears streaming down his face, nodded desperately: \"Yes, Imperial Brother.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The next few words Tianqi spoke were very simple: \"Treat the Empress well.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Prince Xin finally burst into loud sobs. He bent over his brother's bed and cried: \"I obey the decree.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Prince Xin felt a hand pass over the top of his head, and it was very firm. He raised his tear-blurred eyes and dimly saw his brother still smiling at him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Come—\" Tianqi's final words rang out very loudly, as if his strength and vitality had returned. He poured all his hope into a great shout: \"My younger brother shall be a Yao and Shun!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On the sixteenth day of the tenth month of the seventh year of Tianqi, Emperor Xizong of Ming passed away.\u003C\u002Fp>",6717,"2026-06-04T07:54:54.057Z",1,"Novelzhen Translator","d2547f31dfea601cb951512590eef81b3559709290230b8ca722da7017f0cb15","stealing-ming-chapter-299","stealing-ming-chapter-297",323,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fstealing-ming-cover.jpg"]