Uncle from a poor family

Chapter 672 The First Meritorious Official
The Ming troops began to retreat one after another.

When they were halfway through the pursuit, they suddenly heard the sound of a horn. Many people were actually reluctant to withdraw from the battlefield, because even the timid soldiers of the Beijing camp knew that if a soldier could encounter such a favorable battle in his life, it was a blessing earned in eight lifetimes. If they retreated like this, they might not have the chance to experience it again in this life, let alone the next.

This is how the Ming soldiers are. Once the two sides are evenly matched and real fighting occurs on the battlefield, no one is willing to die.

But now that they have the upper hand, it is a good time to take advantage of the situation. No one is willing to give up the fat meat in front of them, even though they know that there is a great risk in continuing the pursuit.

However, with the military order in place, all the troops were withdrawn.

The first to retreat were the border troops from Pianguan Town, namely the subordinates of Captain Zhu Yu.

Then came the men of Wang Fang, the Captain of Datong Town. They also had rich experience in dealing with the Tartars and knew that the Tartars were brave and cunning. If they continued to pursue them and ran into the main force of the Tartars head-on, they might even lose their lives.

When the soldiers of the Beijing Camp saw that even the border troops had retreated, they thought that the border troops were experienced in dealing with Tatars and that they must have discovered some crisis that was difficult for ordinary people to perceive. So, no matter how unwilling the soldiers of the Beijing Camp were, they had to withdraw.

When the Ming troops gathered together, the Tatars did not just flee in panic. After a brief period of chaos, they gathered their troops again and began to organize a counterattack.

At least the Tatars, who were responsible for the rear guard, taught the Ming pursuers a lesson with their cavalry archery. The casualties of more than ten cavalrymen made the Ming soldiers feel enormous pressure.

……

……

The troops withdrew.

At daybreak, the camp was bustling with activity, and the herders took away everything they could.

After tossing and turning for half a night, Li Zisheng still didn't feel sleepy. He pulled Qin Chang, Wang Fang and others to talk, completely ignoring the urging of Zhu Yu and others.

"Sir, if you don't leave now, you may run into trouble." Zhu Yu said, "I have sent people to sneak into the valley for dozens of miles and found that the Tatars are organizing troops to rush here.

Li Zisheng asked in surprise: "After last night's disastrous defeat, do they still dare to come?"

"hehe."

Wang Fang, Qin Chang and others on the side couldn't stop laughing.

At this time, a mood of arrogance was spreading throughout the army.

Li Zisheng calmed down a bit, stood up and said, "It's time to go... As I instructed before, quickly withdraw the troops to Pianguan, and then report the victory to His Majesty from there."

Qin Chang said dissatisfiedly: "If we don't report the victory now, when will we report it? It is better to let His Majesty know the good news as soon as possible."

"Does Eunuch Tan think it should be done as soon as possible?"

Li Zisheng smiled and said, "Then I'll listen to you. I'll send a messenger to ride a fast horse back to Beijing to report the victory."

Qin Chang said with emotion: "In the camp, you killed 22 enemies, captured 18, and killed 16 more in the pursuit. Such a huge achievement can be written about at any time... Minister Li is really a pillar of the Ming Dynasty. You are of course the first meritorious in this battle. Let's report it like this, okay?"

“No, no.”

Li Zisheng tried his best to be humble and waved his hands to deny it, but he couldn't hide the smug smile on his face. "It's all because of your Majesty's good teaching, Zhang Guozhang's planning and winning the battle from a thousand miles away, and Eunuch Qin's great help, and the soldiers' bravery in killing the enemy. How can I, Li, dare to take the first place?"

Wang Fang advised: "This battle was entirely due to your persistence. It would be unreasonable not to take the first credit."

Li Zisheng lowered his posture this time and said seriously, "When reporting on your achievements, you must explain the whole story. All of this is due to Zhang Guozhang's insight. If he hadn't let us ambush here and wait for the Tatars to fall into his trap, would we have had a chance to win?"

Qin Chang was startled, thought about it, and nodded: "That does make some sense."

At this time, Wang Fang, Zhu Yu and others echoed. "Have you finished packing?"

Li Zisheng looked at Lv Liu, a captain of the Beijing Army, who was standing beside him.

Lu Liu said respectfully, "Your Excellency, we have packed up everything we need to pack up. The herdsmen have brought their livestock and said they want to go through the pass with us... Do we really want to take them with us?"

Qin Chang frowned and asked, "Can we take them with us?"

Li Zisheng waved his hands and said, "You can't say that. After all, I made a promise to them before. I would let them graze on the grasslands under the protection of Daming in the future. I would give them the fertile grasslands of Hetao as a reward. That's why I asked them to help me with all their strength. How can I go back on my word?"

"Yes Yes."

Qin Chang nodded.

That expression seemed to be saying, you are a great contributor and you have the final say.

Zhu Yu also quickly spoke up for those people, saying, "Yes, sir, after this battle, if the Tartars come again, they will definitely seek revenge on them. Without us, I'm afraid these herdsmen will have no choice but to be slaughtered."

Li Zisheng said: "That's it. It seems that General Zhu is still very considerate of them... This is morality and benevolence. Doesn't Your Majesty always emphasize tolerance and benevolence? Put yourself in their shoes. We know what they need. As long as they are loyal to the Ming Dynasty, we should fulfill their wishes!"

"I don't deserve the title of general."

Zhu Yu hurriedly said, "I am just a centurion."

Qin Chang said with a smile: "If Lord Li said you are you, then you are the one. With your contribution today, you will surely be promoted. Don't underestimate our Minister Li. How many high-ranking officials in the court were promoted by him? Not to mention the position of a general, even the ministers and cabinet ministers must rely on our Minister Li."

"Yes Yes."

Zhu Yu felt even more excited when he heard this.

I just accepted bribes from that group of herdsmen, hoping that in the future they could have men from their tribe serve under me, so I spoke to them.

How come in Lord Li's eyes, I have become a benevolent and righteous person admired by His Majesty?
Li Zisheng suddenly remembered something and said, "Where is the man who rushed out and shot arrows at the Tartar troops last night? I told him to come and see me early in the morning, why hasn't he come yet?"

"grown ups."

Zhu Yu reminded, "That person has been here for a long time. He is the young man who introduced the camp situation to you earlier... He is very brave despite his young age. Although he doesn't speak Chinese fluently, he is very strong and fearless. If he is trained well, he will definitely become a brave warrior with the courage of Xiang Bu!"

Li Zisheng said, "That's great. Take him with you. Let him stay by your side as we continue our journey west to deliver the gifts. When we return to the capital, I will commend him to the emperor."

Zhu Yu asked: "Should we let him come in and kowtow to express our gratitude?"

"Why thank you? I just led everyone out to fight, and you earned the credit for me. And that young man helped the imperial soldiers lure the Tartars into the trap, which led to this great victory. I commended him on behalf of the court, so why should I thank you?

"Everyone, please don't despise me. I am a very vulgar person. After all, I am not a person who is elegant and refined. I can't pretend to be so. Let's go to Pianguan first. On the way, Eunuch Qin will commend you for your merits... Don't worry, no one in the army will be left out, and there are many merits!"

"Order!"

Everyone present was moved by Li Zisheng's courtesy and humility towards others.

After winning the battle, he was neither arrogant nor impatient, and he didn't show any disdain for us soldiers. Where can we find such a good coach?

Who says that only a literati can be the Chief Censor to lead us into war?
This high-ranking official who came from a Taoist background makes us feel more familiar with him.

(End of this chapter)