The Ming Dynasty began from Sarhu

Chapter 12 General, Please Stay

"Two thousand slaves were killed or wounded, and we suffered only a hundred casualties. Is this true?"

"Foster father, the Jiannu were defeated but remained calm. They quickly organized a counterattack. We still have hundreds of Jiannu heads left. I estimate we killed over two thousand enemies. We even shot a high-ranking Tartar official, but unfortunately we didn't get his head."

As the sky gradually brightened, in the main military tent of the Shajianzi camp, Liu Jing showed an expression of disbelief on his face. He stared blankly at the Zhenyi heads piled up into a small hill. There were at least three hundred of them.

Liu Jing felt as if he were in a dream.

Qiao Yiqi, Kang Yingqian and others were also very surprised. Although the Ming army was far from afraid of the Jianzhou Jurchens at this time, and even maintained a certain degree of confidence, it was still incredible that they could take so many heads at once.

"It's a pity that Fourth Brother died in the enemy's camp and his body could not be brought back."

Liu Zhaosun lowered his head and said nothing. Liu Jing's brows, which had just relaxed, became heavy again. Qiao Yiqi advised from the side:

"The dead cannot be brought back to life. General Liu, please accept my condolences. I will personally submit a memorial to request meritorious service for Liu Tianxing."

Liu Jing was silent for a long time. He had been fighting wars all these years, and his adopted sons had left him one by one. He was getting old, and even if he had a heart of stone, he would still feel sad when he thought about it.

He looked up at Liu Zhaosun, thoughtfully.

Kang Yingqian did not care about the casualties of the Ming army and reacted calmly to Liu Tianxing's death.

This power-hungry civilian military supervisor stared intently at the Jiannu head lying on the ground, clapping his hands and laughing:

"In the past, when Li Chengliang was defending Liao, every time he conquered Jianzhou, he would report to the court if he took a dozen heads, but only a few killed a hundred. Yet, he still had the audacity to claim a great victory. Liaodong has seen great victories year after year, yet the Jiannu have only grown stronger. How ridiculous! Captain Liu, today you've beheaded over two thousand people. You also killed Amin, a true son of a general."

Liu Zhaosun looked confused. He didn't know how level 300 became 2,000, nor did he know when he had killed Amin.

Liu Jing just smiled silently beside him.

Qiao Yiqi then smiled meaningfully.

Kang Yingqian stared at the Jiannu head, his mouth wide open with joy.

He realized this was an opportunity, a chance to gain military merit.

At the Battle of Sarhu, two of the four armies were defeated, and one retreated. Only the Eastern Army turned the tide and dealt a heavy blow to the rebels.

When the news reaches the capital, the government and the people will surely be excited, and the emperor will certainly praise him for his meritorious service as a military supervisor.

If he could achieve greater military merit, Kang Yingqian could stay in the capital and serve as a director of the Ministry of War. After a few years of experience, it would not be impossible for him to enter the cabinet.

Thinking of this, Kang Yingqian looked up and said to Liu Jing:

"Liu Bazong has made such a great contribution. I believe he should be promoted to Qianzong and reported to the court to celebrate his achievements. What do you think, General Liu?"

Liu Jing was immersed in the grief of Liu Tianxing's death in battle. After hearing this, he slowly said:
"As for promotions within the army, I'll listen to the two military supervisors. Liu Zhaosun has made great contributions in this attack on the Jiannu. So, let's follow Supervisor Kang's advice and promote him to the rank of Qianzong."

Liu Zhaosun said modestly:

"It was all thanks to my adoptive father's careful planning and the effective supervision of the two military supervisors. The soldiers were loyal to their country and fought bravely against the enemy. How dare I take credit for it?"

Seeing that Liu Zhaosun was so humble and knew how to behave, Kang Yingqian smiled and nodded.

He patted Liu Zhaosun on the shoulder, saw that there were still traces of blood on his mail armor from the night raid, and praised:

"You are indeed a young hero. Captain Liu, there is no need to be modest. Your contributions have been witnessed by myself, Supervisor Qiao, and your adoptive father."

"I believe you have the potential to be a general. Commanding a mere one hundred men is far too few. The Jiannu are still determined and will surely attack. I will promote you to a captain, so that you can lead more troops and relieve your adoptive father's worries."

Liu Zhaosun looked back at his adoptive father, and Liu Jing nodded to him with a loving look on his face.

He was quite moved, knelt on the ground, and said loudly:
"Thank you, Military Supervisor and foster father, for your support. I will do my utmost to defeat the enemy and live up to your expectations!"

All three of them nodded. Kang Yingqian helped Liu Zhaosun up, looked at him with a gentler look, and turned to look at Liu Jing.

"General Liu, Captain Liu Qian have achieved great success. We should congratulate them. The other officers and soldiers will also receive rewards. I will report this to the imperial court and request credit for our Eastern Route Army."

Liu Jing bowed slightly.

Before the night attack, he thought that Xiao Shisan was just going to the Bordered Blue Banner camp to make some noise and kill a few scouts, but he didn't expect that he would cause such a big commotion.

The ground was filled with the heads of the real barbarians. Liu Jing had been in the border town for many years and was knowledgeable. He could tell the real barbarian heads apart at a glance.

The more than 300 human heads are of high quality and not fake.

The night raid was quick and it was not easy to bring back so many heads.

Liu Jing certainly knew that the number of slaves and bandits actually killed by Liu Zhaosun and his men was far higher than this number.

"Soon after Fushun fell, so many people became slaves to the Tartars. The distinction between Chinese and barbarians has become so different. It is sad and lamentable."

Qiao Yiqi looked at the heads of the bondservants lying on the ground and sighed like a scholar.

This Korean military supervisor now began to side with General Liu and linked his own fate with that of the Eastern Army.

"General Liu, you can provide relief to the injured soldiers, especially the Korean archers, and show our Celestial Empire's grace by providing them with good care."

General Qiao had a good impression of the Koreans, except, of course, for Jiang Hongli who had been killed.

"Father, Military Supervisor, this night raid on the slave bandits was successful thanks to the generous assistance of General Deng and General Jin. The Korean archers made great contributions, and they captured many of the Zhenyi heads. Although the two generals were foreign troops, they should report this to the court and reward them generously. The Zhejiang soldiers suffered heavy casualties this time. Father, I suggest that they be compensated immediately."

Deng Qilong and Jin Yinghe were both covered in blood, as if they had been drenched in blood.

After a night of bloody fighting, both of them were exhausted to the extreme.

They were only auxiliary troops of the Eastern Army. Logically speaking, even if they made meritorious service and were rewarded, it would not be their turn.

Seeing Liu Zhaosun asking for credit for themselves, both of them showed gratitude.

Kang Yingqian seemed to be thinking about something. This Captain Liu was not only brave in battle, but also quite knowledgeable about being a general and knew how to win people's hearts.

Everyone's eyes turned to General Liu. Liu Jing was stunned for a moment. Yesterday, when the salaries were distributed, he paid out all the tens of thousands of taels of silver he brought from his hometown in Jiangxi, and several of his adopted sons also contributed several thousand taels.

At this moment, the Liu family couldn't even take out a penny.

Of course he knew the benefits of providing relief to the wounded and rewarding brave warriors, but he just didn't have the money now.

It will take a very long time to expect the court to reissue military pay.

Military Supervisor Qiao Yiqi was born into a wealthy family in Jiangnan and was usually generous. Seeing the awkward atmosphere, he whispered to Liu Jing:

"General Liu, I have some small change on hand, about two thousand taels, but I'm afraid it's not enough."

Liu Jing was about to thank him for his kindness, but he heard Qiao Yiqi continue:
"When Jiang Hongli entered the camp, he pulled dozens of carriages. Besides food and fodder, there were other things in the carriages. Did General Liu forget to send someone to count them?"

The two smiled at each other, Liu Jing slapped his forehead and called Liu Zhaosun over:
"Xiao Shisan, the Jiang family brought over ten thousand taels of silver and some food supplies, all for the Eastern Route Army, and also..."

"What else?"

Liu Zhaosun was shocked. He didn't expect Jiang Hongli to have so much silver.

In this era, commanders leading troops to war had to bring large sums of money. When encountering a tough battle, only rewards for the soldiers could boost morale.

"Go and see for yourself, don't let outsiders know. I'm old, sixty-two years old this year, and I can't make decisions on many things. You have to take care of military affairs in the future. Our Liu family needs to leave behind a descendant!"

Liu Jing looked at him meaningfully and asked Pei Dahu to follow Liu Zhaosun to check the camp.

"Leaving a descendant, what the hell is this?"

Liu Zhaosun stood there, not reacting for a long time.

"The night raid soldiers will go down and rest first. The rest of you will reinforce the barracks and guard against the slave bandits' attack!"

The generals agreed and dispersed.

There were only two civil servants left around: Kang Yingqian and Qiao Yiqi.

After General Liu walked away, Qiao Yiqi came up to him and smiled mysteriously.

"Captain Liu, do you know what the general means?"

Liu Zhaosun shook his head innocently.

"I wonder what's in that carriage?"

Liu Zhaosun stared at Qiao Yiqi, somewhat bewildered. "I led a night raid on the enemy camp and was nearly killed by Bayala. I narrowly escaped death. How do you know all this?"

The two civil servants exchanged a glance, and Qiao Yiqi stopped keeping the secret and whispered,

"She's a beautiful Korean girl. I've heard from Jiang Hongli before that she's skilled in archery and horsemanship. She came here to avenge her father."

"What? Skilled in archery and horse riding?"

Liu Zhaosun was confused. Could this be the singing girl Jiang Hongli mentioned yesterday? Is his riding skill serious?

Kang Yingqian said disdainfully, "Humph, most Korean ladies have natural feet, not the three-inch golden lotus feet of the Celestial Empire. How can they be so pretty? They are only half-beauties."

Didn't North Korea call itself "Little China"? How could they not have learned the "essence" of women's foot binding? Liu Zhaosun naturally didn't care about this; he wasn't that obsessed with it.

Qiao Yiqi teased:

"Liu Qianzong, stop pretending. Lord Gwanghae is very fond of this woman. Do you like her?"

When Qiao Yiqi gets playful, he is really the best. Sometimes he speaks Northeastern dialect, sometimes he speaks Cantonese, and he switches between them seamlessly. He is indeed a veteran traveler who has traveled all over the country.

"This Meiji? Is she an entertainer?"

"Hahahaha! I don't know. Just give it a try, Mr. Liu Qian, and you'll know."

Qiao Yiqi laughed.

Liu Zhaosun's reserve disappeared completely. After the fierce battle, his adrenaline secretion increased and he became very interested in women.

Recalling what his adoptive father said before he left, Liu Zhaosun suddenly understood.

But, is it really okay to be so careless?
Liu Zhaosun had seen many South Korean beauties in his previous life. Of course, they were all seen through the screen, and they were not natural. However, their figures and looks left a deep impression on the time traveler.

Meiji is right here at my doorstep, so if I say I’m not moved, I’d be lying.

Thinking of this, he couldn't help but raise his leg and walk out of the tent.

The two civil servants looked at each other with contempt.

This is the hypocrisy of intellectuals. They were chatting vividly just now, but in the blink of an eye they turned into moralists.

"General Liu Qian, you should go check on the silver first. This beautiful girl is very fierce. I'm afraid you won't be so lucky."

Liu Zhaosun knew that these two wanted to share some of the profits, but he didn't want to say it out loud.

That night, the three of them left the tent under the cover of darkness and went to the camp where Jiang Hongli's carriage was parked.

After Jiang Hongli was killed last night, this place was sealed off and no outsiders were allowed to enter or leave.

When Liu Jing's servants saw the three men coming, they stepped forward to stop them.

Liu Zhaosun took out his adoptive father's command arrow and showed it to the servant, and the servant gave way.

The three of them walked up to the carriage and looked at the wheel marks. The things loaded on the carriage were very heavy.

"It's likely that the Jiannu bribed Jiang Hongli. Fortunately, we killed that bastard last night, eliminating this great threat to our Eastern Route Army."

Liu Zhaosun pushed the carriage, which was quite heavy. He lifted the curtain and saw wooden boxes inside. He opened any box and found it was full of silver.

It took the three of them more than an hour to finish the inventory.

Eighty thousand taels of silver, five thousand taels of gold, and two carts of antiques, calligraphy and paintings.

"So much money has been plundered from the people!"

When Qiao Yiqi saw that his sworn brother was like this, his face turned gloomy.

Kang Yingqian's eyes were full of smiles as he reached out to touch the neatly arranged silver ingots.

These properties were not recorded in the military register and belonged to Jiang Hongli's private property. He could just swallow them up. As long as the Liu family didn't say anything, the court would never know.

The three of them discussed and made the following allocation:

The five thousand taels of gold were left to General Liu.

Twenty thousand taels of silver were given to Kang Yingqian, the remaining forty thousand taels were used as rewards and pensions, and twenty thousand taels were handed over to Liu Qianzong for safekeeping.

Qiao Yiqi, who came from a wealthy family, said he didn't want any money. He only picked out a few calligraphy and paintings, and gave all the remaining antiques to Kang Yingqian.

This time, General Kang received 20,000 taels of silver and more than a cart of antiques, so it can be said that he made a fortune.

After the distribution was completed, the three of them were all smiling happily, and their eyes looking at each other became much gentler.

The three of them looked towards a carriage decorated with floral patterns, and it seemed as if someone was looking over here from inside the carriage.

Kang Yingqian nudged the tall Liu Zhaosun and said with a smile:
"General Liu Qian, go ahead!"

After saying that, he pulled Qiao Yiqi away, took two steps, and ran back to Liu Zhaosun, whispering:

"Don't indulge in women. Get up early tomorrow. This night attack has caused casualties in all camps. Go and comfort the wounded in person. This will help you win over the people and recruit more troops."

The two men left with a smile, and Liu Zhaosun stood there alone.

A bright moon rose east of the camp. Liu Zhaosun sheathed his Miao Dao and looked up at the carriage, hesitating whether to go over.

A charming female voice came from afar.

"General, please stay."

~~~~~
Moonlight as water.

Liu Zhaosun and Meiji looked at each other across the curtain of the carriage.

"General Liu Qian, did you really go on a night raid on the Jiannu?"

"Is this still false?"

A faint fragrance came towards him, and his heart was moved. Liu Zhaosun imagined the erotic scene of sleeping with the beauty, and reached out to lift the curtain.

A sharp dagger was placed in Liu Zhaosun's hand.

"Please go back to my house and ask questions first."

Liu Zhaosun suddenly felt that this beautiful girl was interesting.

"Killing thousands of Tartars is nothing. Back then, my adoptive father and I were in Korea..."

When Liu Zhaosun saw Meiji, he couldn't help but start talking nonsense again.

"Are you really a great Korean...woman?"

The curtain of the carriage opened and Meiji slowly leaned out.

Under the moonlight, the woman had an extremely beautiful face, a graceful figure, and an extraordinary look in her eyes.

Liu Zhaosun reached out to help...

"I escaped death after nearly a century to come to Liaodong, only to have the Ming army suffer a crushing defeat. Now the Tartars are rampant. I'm dying to avenge my family. Life is hopeless, and I will die here today!"

After saying that, she placed the plum blossom dagger on her neck.

Liu Zhaosun hurriedly stopped him.

"Girl, wait!"

"General, are you willing to avenge me?"

I didn’t expect that there would be such a strong-willed woman in North Korea.

The evil thought that had just arisen in my heart disappeared instantly.

"Who is your enemy? How did you and Jiang Hongli know each other?"

"It's a long story."

(End of this chapter)