Tang Dynasty Bandits

Chapter 104: The Past of Ming Cult

"Ming Shiyin." Facing Zhu Wen who came to him with Lan Suting, Ge Jian coldly spat out these three words.

"I have never heard of this name." Zhu Wen asked in confusion.

"That's right, you haven't heard of it." Ge Jian said calmly, "Back then, with the exception of Sect Leader Pang, we all used pseudonyms when we started the rebellion. I was called Xu Ji, and Ming Shiyin was called Zhang Xuanren."

But Zhu Wen could sense the murderous intent in Ge Jian's calm words.

"Zhang Xuanren, the Suzhou defender," Lan Suting whispered. "He's the most gifted cavalry commander in Pang Xun's army. General Feng personally entered Suzhou to persuade him to surrender, sleeping soundly in the enemy camp all night. If he hadn't defected and dealt Pang Xun a fatal blow, Pang's rebel army might have held out for more than six months."

Speaking of Zhang Xuanren, Zhu Wen knew him. In the past, Emperor Yizong personally wrote an edict to confer the title of Yinqing Guanglu Dafu, Jianxiu You Sanqi Changshi and You Xiaowei Dajiangjun Yushi Dafu in order to win his surrender.

However, although this official position looks long and nice, it actually has no real power and is far less valuable than the Left Shence Army Chief and Supervisory Censor, whom the court once tried to use to recruit the leader of the alliance Wang Xianzhi.

Zhu Wen sneered, "It seems that the traitor Ming Shiyin hasn't had a very happy life since joining the imperial court. Both are top cavalry commanders, but General Kou is the deputy governor of a town, while Ming Shiyin can only hide under General Yan, leading a mere one hundred armored cavalrymen."

"Who dares to give you so many troops, you treacherous villain?" Ge Jian sneered. "When 'Ghost King' Ming Shiyin defected in Suzhou, he had 10,000 soldiers under his command. Now his strength is only one percent of what it once was."

It turns out that Ming Shiyin is also one of the four great kings of the Ming Cult.

"How does Ming Shiyin's military tactics compare to those of the Taining army's bandit commander?" Zhu Wen asked.

Just because Ming Shiyin was despised by mouth didn't mean he was truly to be despised. You have to know that during the Battle of Qizhou, Ming Shiyin led a hundred armored cavalrymen and charged back and forth among the tens of thousands of Wang Xianzhi's troops, as if he were in an empty land!
"If we were to engage in a free-range archery duel on the prairie like the Hu people, Ming Shiyin would be no match for Kou Qianzhi," Ge Jian commented. "Ming Shiyin isn't good at training cavalry archers. But when it comes to armored cavalry charges, breaking through enemy lines and crushing the enemy, he's still superior to Kou Qianzhi."

As soon as these words were spoken, Zhu Wen's expression suddenly became solemn.

He had witnessed the power of Kou Qianzhi's cavalry charge.

"What about General Feng?" Zhu Wen continued to ask. He knew that in the past when Pang Xun was pacified, although all four generals participated in the battle, General Feng made the greatest contribution. Ming Shiyin was defeated by General Feng in a fair cavalry battle, which made him want to turn against him.

"General Feng is equivalent to the combined strengths of Kou Qianzhi and Ming Shiyin," Ge Jian said. "At first, the two of them used their cavalry to counterattack, and General Feng was unable to gain any advantage. So, he used a combination of light and heavy cavalry to attack Ming Shiyin's supply route, tire him out with horseback archery, and then swept him in with his cavalry, ultimately defeating Ming Shiyin."

Zhu Wen knew that Ming Shiyin's loss would not be too great, otherwise Feng Shuai would not have to risk his life and enter Suzhou City alone, lying safely in the enemy camp to appease Ming Shiyin.

Ge Jian said, "Ming Shiyin is a very proud and restless person. Feng Shuai might be the only one he admires wholeheartedly. Even Sect Leader Pang might not be able to do the same."

Zhu Wen said: "After all, Feng Shuai defeated Ming Shiyin in the area where he was best."

Ge Jian said, "But General Feng is a Hu person. The court dare not place Ming Shiyin under his command. Otherwise, the officials in Chang'an will not be able to sleep peacefully."

Zhu Wen agreed, "Old General Kang Chengxun, who led the suppression of Pang Xun, once said that General Feng's 3,000 Daibei cavalrymen were as powerful as a 100,000-man army. Now General Feng has 8,000 Shatuo cavalrymen. If Ming Shiyin could help, he would give the Emperor even more sleepless nights than even Master Pang."

But from this we can also see what a remarkable figure Pang Xun was.

Fighting against four generals alone, he can be said to have won honor in defeat.

"The Ghost King should return to where he belongs. He shouldn't be living a miserable life in this world." Ge Jian said calmly, "It's been ten years. This matter must finally come to an end."

Zhu Wen finally understood why Ge Jian wanted to join the Cao Army at this time.

It turns out that the main target is not Yan Shuai, but the traitor Ming Shiyin. Wherever Ming Shiyin is, Ge Jian will hunt him down.

"But Alliance Leader Wang died in battle, and our army's strength was severely damaged. It doesn't seem like the best time."

"It's a pity that I didn't know where Mingshi was hiding before." Ge Jian sighed, "He's just like his nickname, he's as cryptic as a ghost."

"If not, how could Commander Yan use him as the key trump card to decide the victory?"

Ge Jian added, "There's another reason. Alliance Leader Wang is actually an old acquaintance of mine. He participated in our uprising years ago, but back then he was known as Wang Hongli." Lan Suting, standing nearby, exclaimed in astonishment, "Wang Hongli, Pang Xun's top general, the one who annihilated 30,000 government troops in a single battle and killed 'Wolf Commander' Dai Keshi in battle?"

Although the four generals were strong, they had little experience in the past. The chief general who fought against Pang Xun was the veteran general Kang Chengxun, and the deputy general was the "Wolf General" Dai Keshi, who was known for his ferocity and cruelty.

At that time, Dai Keshi led 30,000 elite troops from Guanzhong and marched straight into the enemy camp, but Wang Hongli took advantage of the heavy fog to attack the camp and his entire army was wiped out. Dai Keshi fled on horseback, but was caught up by Wang Hongli and stabbed to death.

Zhu Wen said, "I heard that General Wang Hongli is good at using a horse spear and has a face full of pockmarks..."

At this point, I suddenly realized that if a handsome man like Wang Xianzhi had a bunch of pockmarks on his face, who could recognize him as Wang Xianzhi, the leader of the Zhenyi Alliance?

As for the horse lance, the Zhenyi League is a remnant of the Wagang clan. Although its founder, Wang Bodang, was known as the "White-robed Divine Arrow," he was also an expert with the horse lance. So, what's so strange about Wang Xianzhi's proficiency with the horse lance?
After Wang Xianzhi officially launched his rebellion, jokes about Wang Xianzhi began to spread among the people, saying that he had a face full of pockmarks and looked ugly and ferocious. Unexpectedly, this turned out to be the right thing to do.

Although Wang Xianzhi was not good at using troops, it was no surprise that he rose like a comet in Pang Xun's army because of his extraordinary martial arts skills. He was not originally a member of the Ming Cult.

In the battle to kill Dai Keshi, Wang Xianzhi, who used the alias Wang Hongli, was undoubtedly brave and invincible. However, the strategies of luring the enemy deep into the territory, making the enemy soldiers underestimated, and launching surprise attacks in the fog were all planned by Pang Xun himself.

Lan Suting said, "Senior Ge, you came here to seek revenge for your old friend, Alliance Leader Wang."

Ge Jian nodded. "Back then, Sect Leader Pang was forced into a desperate situation and led his army out of Xuzhou, leaving me to defend the city. However, Ming Shiyin suddenly attacked and attacked the city gates, forcing the soldiers to open the gates. I fought hard for three days and nights, and all my brothers died. Cong Zhou's mother also died in my arms..."

At this point, the brave and vigorous man, like a tiger, spoke with a hint of bitterness: "I was seriously injured and mixed in with the corpses, barely escaping alive. At that time, Cong Zhou was captured by the government troops. Because I was young, I was not executed for a while. I risked my life to fight my way in, rescued him, and escaped alone."

"Not long after, I received the news that Master Pang had been executed. I was completely heartbroken. I also heard that the commander of the imperial army, Kang Chengxun, had been promoted. I immediately planned to imitate Yao Li's act of cutting off his arm and stabbing Qingji, feigning surrender and taking Kang Chengxun's head. However, I couldn't let go of Cong Zhou, so I gave him two things in the ruined temple: a dagger and a new dress."

"If Cong Zhou chooses the dagger, I will kill him and sacrifice myself to avenge Master Pang. If Cong Zhou chooses the clothes, father and son will hide their identities and barely survive."

Hearing this, Lan Suting's expression changed slightly. Ge Congzhou, who had been listening in a daze, was even more shocked. He had never expected that he would go through such a dangerous situation when he was only three years old. "Grandpa, you actually wanted to kill me?"

Ge Jian sighed, "Actually, your grandfather isn't a cruel person, or someone with big ambitions. Now that I think about it, if you really chose the dagger, at most he would have given you away, but he would have given you a chance to survive."

Hearing this, Ge Congzhou breathed a sigh of relief: "I knew Grandpa wasn't that kind of person."

Ge Jian continued, "A few years later, I heard that the old villain Kang Chengxun was killed by the imperial court itself. I gave up my revenge thoughts for a while and returned to my hometown with Cong Zhou as a farmer and son. With the skills I've learned over the years, I can thresh wheat very quickly and do a lot of farm work, so I can make a living."

"I never expected to hear news of Ming Shiyin's reappearance and the death of Alliance Leader Wang this year. Also, my brother, 'Ape King' Yuan Chang, raised an army in Jiangdong, but was also annihilated by General Lei."

Wang Xianzhi's original plan was to march eastward along the Yangtze River, hoping to join forces with Yuan Chang and Wang Ying's rebel forces in Jiangdong. Unexpectedly, at the same time that General Yan killed Wang Xianzhi, General Lei also defeated Yuan Chang's rebel forces, which had swept across ten states.

"I, Ge, have always been a patient person. But Sect Leader Pang said I was born with wings, so I don't need to crawl. My old brothers are gradually dying. I, Ge Jian, am also passing away with age and time, and my will has faded with the years. Only the passion in my heart has not yet cooled. Why not take advantage of this body while I still have some strength and give it a good fight?"

As expected of him being the "Wing King" among the Four Kings of the Ming Cult, he suddenly exuded a heroic spirit while speaking, as if he was about to tear the tent apart in an instant and point directly to the sky.

Ge Congzhou clenched his fists suddenly, his face flushed red. "Grandpa is right. If we don't kill a treacherous villain like Ming Shiyin, will he continue to harm others in this world? When Grandpa kills him, Congzhou will also shoot him in the body and poke a transparent hole!"

Zhu Wen heard clearly that Ge Jian came out of seclusion this time with the intention of committing suicide.

Ten years ago, Ge Jian was soft-hearted and reluctant to leave his child behind, saving the father and son from separation. But Ge Congzhou was now twelve or thirteen years old and could almost take care of himself. He brought Ge Congzhou to Cao Jun, also with the intention of entrusting him with his care.

If it was a formal duel, Ge Jian might be able to kill Ming Shiyin with his anger, but Ming Shiyin was surrounded by hundreds of armored cavalrymen who were like Pixiu.

So Ge Jian was probably planning to die together and drag Ming Shiyin, his old acquaintance and mortal enemy, to hell together!

Ge Congzhou was still young and ignorant, and he applauded his father's passionate speech.

Little did he know that he might soon lose his father!

(End of this chapter)