King Luhuang of the Ming Dynasty: My father, Ming Taizu

"Thousands? Where did they come from?!"

When Wang Junliang heard this number, his heart tightened.

Although Changguo County had 400 defenders and tens of thousands of residents, the Japanese pirates had harassed it for several days and caused some damage.

Moreover, there were many women and children in the city, and there were not many young and strong laborers. It was not easy to defend the precarious county town in the face of such a large number of Japanese pirates.

"The eastern bay is full of their ships."

A man frowned slightly, his expression was also a bit solemn: "It looks like they are not a group of people."

"Sir, the imperial court's reinforcements..."

Wang Junliang didn't say anything. He thought about it quickly and then said softly, "Don't tell anyone about this for now."

As soon as they heard what Wang Junliang said, the two men knew what was going on.

You have already asked the court for help and sent several letters, but the master above has never responded, and there has been no news of reinforcements.

"Sir, why don't you... go!"

The squatting man slowly stood up, the solemn expression on his face melted away and turned into a simple smile: "You stay here, let's..."

"What are you talking about!" Wang Junliang glared and shouted in a deep voice: "I am the county magistrate of Changguo!"

"When a foreign enemy invades, it is my duty to defend the territory. How can I escape from the battlefield?"

After being scolded by Wang Junliang, the two men were not annoyed at all. They still smiled innocently, and even smiled more brightly.

"Mind your own business, and remember what I said, don't tell anyone about this!"

Wang Junliang left a word, turned around and disappeared into the endless rain.

His official robe was already soaked through, stained with indelible mud and sand, and was torn in places, having long lost its former color. It looked more like a tattered gown.

The two men looked at each other, grinned at each other, put on their still wet shirts which they had just wrung out of the water, stepped into the heavy rain and caught up with Wang Junliang.

The rain is getting heavier.

The gaps in the city wall were simply blocked with sandbags, which managed to stop the flowing rainwater.

It can block the rain, but it may not be able to block the Japanese pirates.

While working, Wang Junliang kept thinking about how to defend himself, but he could not find a safe way.

The city wall of Changguo County is low and built with loess. Originally there was a layer of rammed earth on the outside, but it has long been unable to bear the weight due to years of rain erosion.

In addition, due to days of fighting, the city wall only looks like a wall, and its defensive function has been negligible.

In the evening, the rain was lighter. Wang Junliang returned to the county government office and sat in an empty side room, chewing on the coarse grains in his hand with a frown on his face.

Now he had to think not only about defending against the attacks of Japanese pirates, but also about the food and resettlement of the people in the city.

The violent storm was a devastating blow to the already unreliable houses. Many houses in the city had been blown away by the strong wind, and a large number of people were temporarily placed in the granary by Wang Junliang.

Although it is called a granary, there is not much grain in it. The remaining grain is only enough to feed the people in the city for three days.

If we don’t repel the Japanese pirates and gather food and grass in three days, there will be famine after the war, and the entire Changguo County...

"Sir, drink some hot water."

The lawyer sat beside Wang Junliang, took out a kettle from his arms and handed it to Wang Junliang.

He reached out and took it, feeling a warmth.

"Where did it come from?"

Wang Junliang frowned slightly, but the master grinned and said, "I dismantled the furniture at home and used it to keep the people warm."

"This is a fresh fever. Drink some to get rid of the cold."

Wang Junliang looked at his master, feeling a little bitter. He opened the kettle and took a sip, then said softly, "You have suffered a lot following me."

Like any other official partner, Wang Junliang's legal advisor came to him after he passed the imperial examination, offering him financial support and planning to build some business in Changguo.

Such situations were common in the Ming Dynasty. When those poor students achieved fame and were sent to serve as officials in other places, some of them could not even afford the travel expenses, let alone rebuild the county government and recruit officials when they arrived at the garrison.

At this time, someone would come to the master, offer financial support, become the master's legal advisor, and take up the post with the master.

Doing so is a win-win for both parties. The master has start-up capital, and these legal advisors who pay the money have a natural way out, whether it is to set up a local business or do some other business. With the master's green light, there is profit to be made.

Naturally, corruption and collusion between officials and businessmen also thrive in this way in various parts of the world, but this has become a common practice and cannot be changed by the efforts of one person.

Therefore, most of the children from poor families forget their original intentions after taking the imperial examinations and becoming officials. In fact, some of them are forced to do so.

From this we can see that being an honest official is not easy.

Wang Junliang's situation is not much different from that of other children from poor families, but he has his own ethics and sets three rules when choosing a partner.

After arriving in Changguo, Wang Junliang never engaged in collusion between officials and businessmen, but only allowed his lawyer to do some small business within the national law.

Changguo County is in such a situation now. The lawyers who work with him may not only lose their invested money, but also their lives.

"What are you talking about, sir?"

Hearing Wang Junliang's words, the master grinned and said, "I came to you because I had no way to serve my country and failed the imperial examinations many times."

"Everything I do is in accordance with my heart. It has nothing to do with you, sir."

Wang Junliang smiled lightly when he heard this, handed the kettle to the other party, and sighed: "If you can become a local official, it will be a blessing for the local people. But now..."

"Master, there are quite a lot of Japanese pirates gathering on the seashore, right?"

The master suddenly spoke, interrupting Wang Junliang. Wang Junliang was slightly startled and asked subconsciously: "Did they tell you?"

"Didn't I tell them not to tell anyone?"

"No need for them to tell me." The master also took a sip of water and said softly, "I can guess it."

"Not only me, but the people in the county have guessed it as well."

"Before I came back just now, several elders in the county also told me that you don't have to worry."

As he spoke, he looked at Wang Junliang and whispered, "If the Japanese pirates come again, they will live and die with the county."

Hearing this, Wang Junliang's heart was churning. There was an indescribable emotion stirring in his heart, making his eyes hot.

"them……"

"Sir, don't think too much." The master spoke again: "If the Japanese pirates come, we will use knives if we have knives, and arrows if we don't have knives."

"We don't have swords or spears, but we still have stones, sticks, and a lot of passion."

“They’ll never take the county.”

After nightfall, the rain stopped.

The raindrops from the eaves fell slowly and landed in the puddles, making a series of light sounds.

There was silence in Changguo County. A dozen guards in tattered official uniforms stood on the dilapidated city wall, gazing into the distance.

The sea at night is inexplicably dark, like an endless abyss that can swallow everything in the world.

The wind was getting weaker and weaker. The dark clouds in the sky had been blown away, turning into large patches of clouds, which occasionally blocked the moonlight and left shadows on the sea.

Several guards leaned against a simple watchtower, their eyes half closed and half open, trying to recover as much strength as possible before the battle.

It was late at night, the moon was bright and the stars were sparse, the wind had completely stopped, and the sky was cloudless.

The cunning moonlight sprinkled down, and the silvery light shone on the dense woods, reflecting dots of brilliance through the water droplets that had not yet fallen.

The trees in the forest seemed to move. The guards on the watchtower focused their eyes and saw many figures moving quickly in the forest, heading straight towards the city.

"Japanese pirates! Japanese pirates!"

Seeing these shadows, the guards immediately roared loudly, and the soldiers who were resting on both sides were awakened at the same time, looking into the distance in panic. In the forest leading to the coast, countless black shadows were walking quickly, flashing cold light, which were long swords that had been unsheathed.

"The Japanese pirates are attacking! The Japanese pirates are attacking!"

"Quick! Go and inform the adults!"

"Fire arrows!"

Whizzing.

There was no room for anyone to stand on the city wall of Changguo County. The soldiers on the watchtower drew their bows and arrows, and arrows whizzed away like raindrops. Screams were immediately heard from the woods.

"what!"

"idiot!"

Random shouting and cursing were heard, and those people moved faster.

Soon, the Japanese pirates rushed out of the woods and rushed towards the county town, shouting.

They all wore simple armor, either made of leather or wood, and some simply tied a few bamboos on their chests to serve as breastplates.

Under the moonlight, all the Japanese pirates showed ferocious faces, stepped on the muddy road, and rushed forward shouting.

"Don't panic! Shoot!"

Wang Junliang had already rushed to the city wall and climbed up the watchtower. He pointed at the Japanese pirates below and shouted, "Block the city gate!"

"Shoot arrows at those climbing the wall!"

"Lancer!"

Inside the city, a large number of people were holding simple spears and wooden sticks, staring intently at the low top of the city wall. As long as the shadow of the Japanese pirates appeared, these spears made of bamboo poles would immediately stab out and take the lives of the Japanese pirates.

"Give me the press!"

Among the group of Japanese pirates, one person's armor was obviously different from the others. This person held a long sword and kept shouting, while the Japanese pirates around him rushed forward desperately.

These people seem to be charging without any plan, but the direction of their attack is very particular.

Some of the Japanese pirates headed straight for the gate of Changguo County, while others rushed towards the gap in the city wall, slashing at the sandbags with their long swords.

After just a few hits, a big hole was poked in the sandbag, and the sand inside quickly flowed out, and the gap seemed to be about to be washed away.

Wang Junliang stood on the watchtower, taking in all of this. His eyes narrowed and he shouted, "Climb up the wall and stab them!"

"We can't let them break through the city wall!"

As he said that, he jumped down from the watchtower, grabbed a sharpened bamboo pole, quickly climbed up the city wall, and swung the pole downwards desperately.

Wang Junliang led the way, and the people and guards in the city responded one after another. Dozens of people began to climb up the city wall and poked down desperately with the bamboo poles in their hands.

Screams were heard one after another. Some of the Japanese pirates were stabbed in the neck and fell down wailing, while others grabbed the bamboo poles and pulled people down from the city wall.

Anyone who fell down would die instantly.

Whizzing!

The Japanese pirates below the city also drew their bows and arrows, aimed at the defenders on the top of the city and shot them down immediately.

Wang Junliang's eyes turned red. The bamboo pole in his hand was pulled away by the Japanese pirates. He simply drew out his long sword and swung it down with all his might.

"Kill! Kill!"

"Hold the city wall! Don't retreat a single step!"

"kill!"

The soldiers and civilians in the city shared the same hatred for the enemy and would never retreat.

Some were dragged off the city wall and lost their lives, some were shot by arrows and fell in a pool of blood, but none of the soldiers and civilians defending the city were afraid.

When one person falls, another immediately takes his place, and they continue to move forward bravely.

But there were too many Japanese pirates.

Not only did they rush to the city walls, but there was also a steady stream of Japanese pirates pouring in from the distant woods. They were so dense that it seemed like there was no end to them.

This number is definitely not in the thousands, but probably in the several thousand.

Wang Junliang waved the long sword in his hand desperately. His left arm had been hit by an arrow and blood was flowing, but he still gritted his teeth and persisted.

puff!
Wang Junliang slashed the neck of a Japanese pirate who was climbing up with his sword, and kicked him over. Looking to the side, he saw that a huge gap in the sandbag pile had been cut by the Japanese pirates.

Many Japanese pirates were rushing into the city through the gaps.

Wang Junliang's eyes suddenly turned red. Without saying a word, he jumped off the city wall and rushed up with a long sword in his hand.

Behind him, his advisor and a dozen other men also came up. These soldiers and civilians held sickles, sticks, and even hoes in their hands, and fought desperately with the Japanese pirates.

"My lord! The city wall can no longer be defended!"

The master held a spear in his hand, stabbed a man to the ground, and shouted loudly: "Take your men and retreat quickly!"

"Protecting the people is important!"

"I do not go!"

Wang Junliang gritted his teeth and spoke. His palms were trembling slightly and his body felt weak, which were signs of exhaustion.

But he still didn't want to retreat.

"My lord, leave quickly!"

The master's voice was a little sharp: "Protect the people! Protect the people!"

"Come on!"

The master shouted loudly, then looked at the Japanese pirates who were pouring in front of him, roared, and rushed in with a spear in hand.

A dozen people followed him and fought the Japanese pirates head-on. In the blink of an eye, several people fell in a pool of blood.

Turning around and looking behind him, he saw that several gaps had been breached and the Japanese pirates were pouring in. The defense line of the city wall was in name only.

"My lord, leave quickly!"

The man who had reported the news earlier rushed out at this time, pushed Wang Junliang hard, and then rushed forward with a hatchet.

Wang Junliang staggered back, his eyes bloodshot and his teeth clenched.

Retreat? Where can I retreat to now?
As long as they leave the county town, all the people will become lambs to be slaughtered and will be gradually devoured by these Japanese pirates, until not a single one will be left alive.

Now, the only option is to fight to the death.

Wang Junliang gritted his teeth, paused, and looked at the soldiers and civilians fighting desperately with the Japanese pirates on both sides. He was determined to die.

"kill!"

Wang Junliang roared, his throat seemed to be broken, and there was a hint of misery and determination in his voice.

He picked up his long sword, stepped forward quickly, and swung it at the Japanese pirates in front of him.

After the Japanese pirate was chopped down, he clearly saw his master lying in a pool of blood, with several arrows piercing his body, and he was already dead.

A surge of blood rushed to his head, and Wang Junliang rushed forward desperately, wielding his long sword, and chopped down several Japanese pirates, forcing them to retreat.

Changguo County seemed to have fallen into the hands of the Japanese pirates.

But at this moment, bursts of thunder suddenly came from the distant sky.

Boom! (End of this chapter)