The Ming Dynasty began from Sarhu

Chapter 414 Walking on Thin Ice
The most important affairs of a country lie in its military, and the most important thing for an army lies in its horses. — "A New Book on Performance"

The dusk was like ink spilled on a desk, gradually seeping into half the sky. Under the setting sun, the horses with bridles on their backs were kicking their hooves and swishing their tails in the woods, looking extremely anxious.

The cavalry left the woods and slowly moved towards their target.

The world of light and shadow in the suburbs of Linqing, half of it is hidden in the night, and the other half is in the light.

When they were only two miles away from Zuo Liangyu's camp, the sky became completely dark and the surroundings became gloomy. The horses and riders finally calmed down.

Although they were very reluctant, they chose the lesser of two evils. Based on what they had seen and heard along the way in the past two days, the Liaoxi soldiers would rather launch a surprise attack on the opposing camp of tens of thousands of troops than become an enemy of the half-human, half-god, bloodthirsty and cruel tyrant in front of them.

Liu Zhaosun rode around the cavalry with a goose-feather knife in his hand, looking at everyone with a cold gaze. When the emperor passed by, everyone fell silent, with only the noise from the camp in the distance and the chirping of insects in the surrounding grass.

"Disperse!"

The three hundred cavalrymen, as if pardoned, dispersed and returned to the forest to rest, waiting for Emperor Wuding's order to attack.

After this battle, the soldiers from Liaoxi can return home to Jinzhou or Guangning, where Zu Dashou once lived, and reunite with their families.

Emperor Wuding promised not to pursue them and also promised that each of them would be given 300 acres of land, which was enough to maintain the servants' previous affluent life.

Of course, if they fled now, they would die like the bandits, either from starvation or plague. Or perhaps, they would be killed by the Emperor's sword. No one had any doubt about this last point.

~~~~~
After inspecting the cavalry, Liu Zhaosun slowly put the goose-feather knife back into its sheath, and took Zhang Dong with him, one man and one horse, and continued to approach the enemy camp.

The night light will reflect the sharpness of the knife. If the enemy can't see it, the night attack will be in vain.

For many things, only by experiencing them personally can you deeply understand the principles behind them, just like the plague, it will not let his subjects go just because he is a time traveler.

How many subjects does he have?

The painful lesson taught him that from now on, he had to be extremely careful, cautious and cruel in everything he did.

The operation of any thing, the apparent perfection and balance are built on a brutal game, not innately.

In the words of Big Brother in 1984:
War is peace,

Freedom is slavery,

Ignorance is strength.

These three sentences plus the phrase "That's not a reason" will be Liu Zhaosun's new motto, and will run through his actions...

"Zhang Dong, catch a tongue and bring it back."

"Yes!"

Zhang Mazi rode forward, took a horse bow from the emperor, and disappeared from Liu Zhaosun's sight like a ghost.

Although he had learned about the general situation of the enemy from the captured servants two days ago, the battlefield was changing rapidly and Liu Zhaosun did not want to make any more mistakes. There was no guarantee that Zuo Liangyu would make temporary changes, so anything was possible.

He now has only 300 cavalrymen, and there are at least 40,000 troops stationed in the opposite camp. He is no longer the moth that flew into the flame in Sarhu.

Figures swayed on the top of Linqing City Wall. He hoped Pu Gang could reach an understanding with him. If not, after the night attack, his combat prowess would be enough to protect Zhang Dong and the others. The thought of more casualties made Liu Zhaosun feel a little ashamed. He leaned over the horse's back, carefully listening to its breathing, and getting himself into combat mode as quickly as possible.

From the bloody battle of Hunhe in the 47th year of Wanli's reign to this night attack tonight, he has not charged into battle for seven years, and has not experienced the thrill of cavalry charges and close-range fighting for seven years.

He had almost forgotten that he was once the bravest and strongest servant under his adoptive father.

The injuries left by the bloody battle of Hunhe River had made him miserable. In the days that followed, he no longer rushed to the front, no longer with the soldiers, but hid behind the formation, sitting on the immovable throne, sipping Tieguanyin or Biluochun, gently waving the command flag, and commanding the bravest and most loyal soldiers under his command to go through fire and water and sacrifice their lives again and again.

From Shandong to Japan, from western Liaoning to the capital.

Now, all his injuries have healed. He is stronger than before, close to being a demigod. He is bloodier and more cruel than before. It is time to change everything...
"Your Majesty, I caught Tongue. He was abusing a woman just now. Damn it, I'll kill the other two!"

"You should catch two."

Liu Zhaosun looked at Zhang Dong. Zhang Mazi had just returned from the night, with blood still on his face. He rode his horse in front of the emperor, with a half-dead Ming army captain on his horse.

"First, trial, then..."

Liu Zhaosun waved his hand, and Zhang Mazi immediately pulled the captain off his horse, swung his fists and beat him up without saying a word, and then officially began the interrogation.

Zhang Dong stared at the pair of eyes filled with fear and anger, and said viciously:
"I'll only ask you once, the second time will cost you your life. How many people are there? Where are the sentries stationed? Where is Zuo Liangyu's tent? What are the night watch orders tonight? Don't shout. No one else can hear you. If you dare to shout, I'll cut off your tongue first."

The prisoner opened his swollen eyes and glared at Zhang Dong fiercely. When he saw Liu Zhaosun standing next to him, he was so scared that he stepped back.

Zhang Dong chuckled, cut off a piece of flesh from the prisoner's leg with his dagger, took out a piece of prepared salt from his sleeve, and applied it to the wound like a plaster. The prisoner immediately felt excruciating pain.

A piece of horse manure was stuffed into his mouth.

"Have you thought it through? Nod if you have."

The prisoner nodded repeatedly.

Zhang Dong took the horse manure away, and before he could open his mouth, the captain blurted out everything he knew, like shelling beans:

"There are 30,000 to 40,000 of them, all auxiliary troops. There are only 10,000 combat troops. General Zuo is to the west of the main camp, with a sentry behind the trench. The command is 'fire attack Linqing'... I'm telling the truth and have never done anything against my conscience. I didn't do that woman just now. General, please spare my life!"

The information provided by this person was exactly the same as the confessions of the captured servants two days ago. Liu Zhaosun nodded slightly at Zhang Mazi.

The captain realized that he could not escape death, so he kowtowed to the two men and begged for mercy:
"General, I'm from Zhongdu (Fengyang). There's been a famine there these past two years, and the villagers can't survive. That's why I came to the north with them to beg for food. If you kill me, you'll kill my whole family. I have an 80-year-old mother..."

"That's not a reason."

Zhang Dong simply twisted the boss's neck.

"Prepare for a night attack."

Emperor Wu Ding blew the bamboo whistle, and the cavalry hidden in the night quickly lined up like ghosts, quietly waiting for the emperor's orders.

(End of this chapter)