Uncle from a poor family

Chapter 666 Coming out of seclusion
Li Zisheng actually led his troops out of the border.

Not to mention that the border guards of Shanxi Town did not understand, even Tan Chang and others around him did not support him doing so. After all, putting the entire army in danger would seem very unusual in the current Ming Dynasty, where defense is the main strategy.

Everyone else wants to retreat and defend, but you are the only one moving forward courageously. This is not called being a maverick, nor is it called going against the current. You are simply an idiot.

But even Qin Chang did not expect that Li Zisheng, through a lot of talk and a set of effective means, actually got a large group of people to follow him out of the pass and accept his strategy of ambushing the Tatar army in the valley outside the pass.

"Master Li is a capable man."

After a day's march, the team arrived at the agreed ambush site.

This is a valley surrounded by mountains, with a narrow road connecting it from east to west. The high mountains in the north block the cold current from the south, and there are several springs on the south side of the mountain that never freeze and gush out spring water. The streams formed by the springs run through the entire valley, making the temperature here more than ten degrees higher than outside the valley, and many places are not frozen.

At the edge of the valley, Qin Chang, who had been trudging all the way, stopped to rest. He drank water from a leather bag while observing the topography of the valley.

From then on, as long as the Tartars did not show up, no stoves could be lit during the day, and even someone as noble as Qin Chang could only drink cold water.

The water was just taken from the arms of Xiao Lianzi, the young eunuch who served him. Because it was placed outside and had come all the way through the ice and snow, the water in the leather bag would freeze easily. Therefore, when Qin Chang drank it, the water was still somewhat warm.

Xiao Lianzi's lips were chapped, but he could only watch Qin Chang drink the water comfortably, while his own portion had to be warmed up before he could drink it.

At this time, a general flag of the Jinyiwei came over and asked in a low voice, "Eunuch Tan, can we fight this battle? Lord Li said that he has sent troops to Pianguan to help, but there has been no movement in the past two days."

Qin Chang wiped the water stains from the corners of his mouth and asked, "What's the matter? Don't you want to fight?"

"Brothers, we have never had any experience in fighting." The Jinyiwei general flag was also very upset, "This place is not like the capital, it's freezing cold, and today... it's simply..."

"Is your bedding missing or something?"

Tan Chang scolded, "Didn't you ask the brothers to put on more cotton clothes?"

"I've said it before, but it's not that cold here now..."

It was hard to find any major faults with the commander-in-chief of the Embroidered Uniform Guard at the moment.

After all, this group of people was specifically here to transport cloth, cotton clothes and other supplies to the northwest. Although most of the items had been transferred to the nearest earthen fort for storage by the local garrison, the soldiers had already taken enough cold-resistant items with them.

There may not be enough dry food, but there are definitely enough clothes for winter, and you can even have as much as you want.

Li Zisheng's intention is very simple. We have all worked hard to get out of the pass and wait for an opportunity, just waiting to fight with the Tatars. How can I let you freeze at the critical moment of life and death?

Qin Chang shook his head: "I am also very curious. Since you all have concerns, why don't you go and tell Li Zisheng? Why do you have to come to our house to complain? When he asked you to leave the pass, you all opposed it. What can he do to you?"

"Isn't it the Emperor's order?"

The general flag said with a bitter face, "If you retreat in the face of battle, you will be punished by death."

Tan Chang said speechlessly: "The law does not punish the masses, don't you know that?"

The general scratched his head in embarrassment. "Lord Li also said that we will all be promoted after returning to the capital, and we don't have to risk our lives this time. As long as we hide well and lure the prey into the trap, we will rush in and they will definitely be the ones running away. It will be a great achievement if we chop off a Tartar's head and bring it back. He will write a memorial to commend us for our achievements."

"Do you trust him so much?"

Tan Chang frowned.

The general flag seemed very embarrassed, but still said: "On one side is the imperial order, and on the other side is Lord Li's promise. If you don't believe it, you have no other choice, right?

"Besides, Lord Li's words are still credible to a certain extent. After all, the person standing behind him is Zhang Guozhang, whom His Majesty respects the most.

"Besides, even if Lord Li breaks his promise, don't we still have you? You were once the seal officer of the Imperial Household Department. It would be such an honor for us to follow you into battle."

Qin Chang didn't know whether to laugh or cry: "My goodness, Li Zisheng won't let go of anyone he can use, even I have been tricked by him!"

"what did you say?"

The general asked blankly.

"I say, Minister Li is a capable man, and he is really good at bewitching people. No wonder so many people in the court believed him, even the late emperor... Oh! Forget it! Now that we are here, we can only hope that the Tartars will arrive as scheduled, and that we can ambush properly and earn military merit... This trip will be worthwhile!"

Seeing that it was impossible to turn back, Qin Chang could only follow Li Zisheng's example and try his best to convince himself that he was on the right path.

……

……

It's quiet at night.

That night, the moon was bright in the sky, as bright as day, so the army was still unable to light a stove. The soldiers could only hide behind huge rocks, wrapped in heavy winter clothes, and be ready for battle at any time.

Because the history books only record that the Tatars destroyed Pianguan on the Jiachen day, Zhang Yanling could only calculate the time backwards from this and estimated that the Tatars went south three or four days ago. Therefore, the time could not be specific to a certain night, and these days could be considered "dangerous days."

This valley is the only way to the southern pass, and there is no way to get around it. So as long as history does not deviate, the Tatars will come sooner or later.

Qin Chang went to bed early.

In the middle of the night, he was shivering with cold, but at this moment someone tapped his forehead with a finger, and he quickly opened his eyes.

"Eunuch Qin, get up."

But it was Li Zi Province.

Qin Chang's voice was a little hoarse. He looked around and asked, "What are you doing here?" Li Zisheng said softly, "The Tartars are coming."

Qin Chang was originally in a very bad mood when he woke up, but when he heard this, his body suddenly perked up, his mind became clear, and he was no longer sleepy. Instead, he felt a complex emotion of inexplicable joy and fear, which made his whole body forget the torture of the cold he was currently enduring.

"Really here?"

Qin Chang couldn't help swallowing.

Li Zisheng pulled Qin Chang up and walked out.

Outside the tent, most of the soldiers were awakened from their sleep.

Originally, the cat was waiting in the valley, and everyone had the same doubts in their hearts as Qin Chang. No one thought that this kind of waiting was necessary. Many people were complaining and hoped to return to Beijing as soon as possible.

There are simply too many old soldiers in the Beijing camp.

"The Tartar cavalry..."

Li Zisheng took Qin Chang to a high place, picked up a telescope and looked into the distance.

Qin Chang took a look and then asked in surprise: "What is this...?"

Li Zisheng asked, "A telescope, doesn't Eunuch Tan know it?"

"How did it end up in your hands?"

Qin Chang was very curious, "Weren't they all sent to the northwest? Did you secretly intercept one?"

Li Zisheng held his binoculars with focus, his eyes fixed on the moving target in the distance, and said casually: "My nephew Yanling said that there are as many of these things as you want."

Qin Chang frowned: "That's not what Zhang Laizhan said during the time of the previous emperor."

"Didn't I also fall into such a state during the time of the previous emperor?"

Li Zisheng said, "Isn't the most important raw material for making this thing Huangshan mica? Maybe they found a mine. After all, I still have some... Keep your voice down, don't let the Tartars notice."

Tan Chang asked: "How far is the enemy from here?"

"About three or four miles. It's because the moon is bright today and the stars are sparse. Otherwise, if they were marching at night and they didn't have torches, it would be hard to detect them."

Li Zisheng said as he observed the movements of the Tatars.

There was a person crouching next to him. It was Wang Fang, a captain of the border army.

Wang Fang's eyes reflected the bright moonlight at this time, just like a wolf waiting for prey in the middle of the night. He had an inexplicable admiration for Li Zisheng from the bottom of his heart. He whispered: "Sir, it is not clear whether this group of Tartars is the vanguard or the central army. There must be at least four or five hundred people."

"Can you beat me?"

Tan Chang asked.

Wang Fang said: "Looking at their loose formation, it seems that they didn't come here specifically for the herdsmen's camp. I don't know whether they didn't notice it or just didn't care at all...

"If we fight them head-on, the outcome is uncertain. But if they head straight for the camp... we have a large number of people ambushed in the camp, and many of our people are hiding in many tents. When the time comes, we can fire muskets at close range, and the Tartars will definitely not expect it."

"very good."

Li Zisheng said, "The Tartars came south to plunder. If they encounter prey, how can they return empty-handed?"

Qin Chang asked cautiously: "The herdsmen's stance is unclear. Will someone go and tip off the herdsmen?"

Li Zisheng shook his head and said, "If you doubt someone, don't use him. We don't have a better choice right now, right?"

Wang Fang smiled and said, "Don't worry, eunuch. If the Tartars knew that there were our people in the nomadic camp ahead of them, how could they come here so leisurely? They look so leisurely, it doesn't seem like they are ready to fight at any time..."

"Aren't these herdsmen and their cattle and sheep excellent prey? Why can't the Tartars get excited?"

Tan Chang asked with a frown.

Wang Fang explained: "Will fighting our border troops be the same as fighting a small tribe with few men in the tribe? But it is said that as long as the herdsmen of the tribe they are targeting pay a certain amount of livestock and property, they can be spared, so they seem to be in no hurry."

"Why is this happening?"

Tan Chang looked puzzled.

Li Zisheng smiled and said, "The Tartars also understand the principle of exhausting the pond to catch fish, and usually they will not kill all the people...On the grassland, only the young and strong can fight, but anyone can graze. For the time being, you can regard this tribe in front of you as the Tartars' free-range livestock, just slaves who manage their property and can take whatever they want."

"Closer again..."

Qin Chang's tone of voice changed a little.

"Shh, keep your voice down."

Li Zisheng was very dissatisfied and said in a scolding tone, "Eunuch Qin, you must stay calm in this battle. The soldiers below are watching us, so you must not lose your composure!"

Wang Fang couldn't help but look at Qin Chang.

As the eunuch of the Imperial Household Department of the Ming Dynasty, what a noble status he had! How could he be so obedient even after being scolded by an outsider?
Even Wang Fang couldn't help but think that this was probably the majesty of the Lord Zhongcheng.

(End of this chapter)