The Ming Dynasty: Starting with the border troops, it was overthrown and the Qing Dynasty was destro

Chapter 48 Wangzhuang
Inside Majia Village, Jiang Han had just returned from Ansai County, looking travel-worn and tired.

He removed his armor and headed towards Majia Village.

The wheat was almost ripe, and he was worried about it, so he decided to go and check on it.

For months, he and his men launched repeated raids, targeting the Li family's caravans. They robbed the Li family more than a dozen times, seizing no less than thirty or forty cartloads of grain and weapons.

Nowadays, the Li family doesn't dare to easily send even a single cart of goods out of the city, and the Yulin Guard has also ceased its operations, no longer sending caravans to Ansai.

He has firmly controlled all the trade routes around Anse.

Seeing that the battle had been quite successful and the Li family's trade routes had been cut off, Jiang Han recalled most of the troops that had been dispersed.

Only a few elite soldiers were left to keep watch. Once the caravan's whereabouts were discovered, they would immediately send someone back to report, and then send out cavalry to rob it.

Just as Jiang Han was leading his men to visit Majia Village, a fast horseman suddenly arrived with news:
"Lord Jiang, another convoy has left the city and is heading this way!"

Upon hearing this, Hei Zi's eyes lit up, and he rubbed his hands excitedly, saying:

"Great, another job! Boss Qi, let me lead the team this time!"

Jiang Han didn't pay any attention and immediately sent Hei Zi with over a hundred men to go with the cavalry, instructing him to go and return quickly.

Hei Zi grinned and immediately selected over a hundred elite soldiers, who then hurried off with the cavalry.

Not long after, Hei Zi returned, looking travel-worn, his face beaming with barely suppressed joy.

He rushed to Jiang Han, his voice brimming with barely suppressed excitement:
"Boss Qi, great news! We've got a big job!"

Jiang Han raised an eyebrow, somewhat puzzled:

"What big job? Look how happy you are, explain it clearly."

Hei Zi blurted out:

"It's Wangzhuang! Prince Qing's Wangzhuang! These people are going to Prince Qing's Wangzhuang!"

Upon hearing this, Jiang Han suddenly jumped up:

"What Wangzhuang? Tell me in detail!"

Kuroko took a deep breath and slowly said:

“I stopped those people and interrogated them on the spot.”

"According to their account, this trip is to a fortress upstream of Jinmingchuan, specifically to haul grain!"

Jiang Han was somewhat puzzled:
"Wangzhuang, upstream of Jinmingchuan? I've never heard of it."

Kuroko then explained:
"I heard from them that the newly planted wheat in Wangzhuang is ripe and they need to exchange the old grain for grain to sell, so they specifically asked the Li family to send people to pick up the grain."

"Going upstream along the Yan River, Wangzhuang is located at the very upstream end!"

He paused, his face filled with urgency.

"Chief Qi, let's go take a look!"

Jiang Han nodded and made a decisive decision: "Let's go!"

Without further ado, he and Hei Zi, along with four or five cavalrymen, sped along the Yan River, heading straight for the upper reaches of Jinmingchuan.

The group rode horses along a shortcut, going uphill along the dry riverbed and through the valley, which would save them a lot of time.

In less than two hours, the group arrived at the upper reaches of the Jinmingchuan River.

But when Jiang Han reached the upstream area, he discovered that Jinmingchuan had not dried up.

An earthen dam stands across the Jinmingchuan River, holding back the already limited river water and preventing any of it from flowing out.

Jiang Han spurred his horse closer and took a closer look. Behind the dam, he saw fields of golden wheat, a stark contrast to the desolate yellow earth surrounding Ansai.

The clear river water reflects the white clouds, complementing the boundless golden waves of wheat before them, together forming an incomparably peaceful and serene picture.

Looking at this scenery alone, anyone would probably think they were living in a peaceful and prosperous era. Next to the earthen dam, there is a wooden sign with the five large characters written in bright red cinnabar: "Wangzhuang, those who enter will die."

As if to confirm this warning, several half-rotten corpses were hanging from the large tree next to the sign.

Green flies buzzed around, their bellies pecked at by some animal, their intestines spilling out onto the ground, emitting a pungent stench.

Hei Zi and the others stood silently before this horrifying scene for a long time, their expressions shifting between light and dark, their thoughts unreadable.

Seeing this, Jiang Han stepped forward, gently patted their shoulders, and whispered:

"Let's go and take another look ahead."

The group composed themselves, circled around the riverbank to the other side, climbed over a small hill, and finally saw the so-called "fortress".

The guide said it was a fortress, but in Jiang Han's eyes, it was not a fortress at all, but a small city!
The city was built against the mountain, surrounded on three sides by thick city walls. Two corner towers stood beside the city walls, and a towering watchtower stood above the main gate.

Jiang Han clicked his tongue in disbelief. How was he supposed to handle this thing?

The city wall is over two zhang high, and the outer layer is covered with blue bricks, making it as sturdy as if it were made of iron.

The walls were decorated with watchtowers and watchtowers, and a shallow moat was dug around the city, making it virtually impenetrable.

(The protruding part of the city wall is called the "horse-faced wall," and above it are corner towers. The purpose is to ensure that there are no blind spots in the city wall.)
Looking out from a high vantage point, the city is fully equipped with facilities, including mills, threshing grounds, and barracks.

Judging from the size of the barracks, the number of garrison troops was not large, probably around three to five hundred.

Although the number of people is not too large, with these fortifications, even a force of several thousand might not be able to break through.

Kuroko's brows were furrowed, and his tone was full of worry:

"Chief, this is going to be tough."

"We only have this many men, and this city wall is at least seven or eight feet wide, covered with blue bricks. I'm afraid we can't even blow it up."

"Moreover, we don't even have shield carts. If we launch a full-scale attack, dozens of people can easily stand on the horse and riddle us with bullets."

Jiang Han sighed and waved his hand, signaling everyone to walk around the mountain again to look for any flaws.

After circling around to the south side of the city, Jiang Han saw a row of dilapidated houses outside the city, and some ragged farmers were working hard in the fields.

Kuroko glanced at it, then suddenly had a flash of inspiration and suggested:
"Chief, what do you think about us setting these dilapidated houses on fire, then launching a surprise attack on the garrison while they're out putting out the flames?"

Jiang Han rejected the proposal without even thinking:
"You're thinking too simply. These people are obviously tenant farmers from Wangzhuang. Their houses are on fire, do you expect the guards inside to run out and put out the fire?"

"You're a soldier yourself, don't you know what these guys are like? You should be grateful they didn't take advantage of the chaos to rob you."

Hei Zi thought about it and nodded in deep agreement, but he was still somewhat unwilling.

The endless golden wheat field before us is truly dazzling; it's hard for anyone not to be tempted.

With so much grain available outside, it's hard not to imagine just how much grain is piled up in the granaries of Wangzhuang.

Not only him, but even Jiang Han was craving it, and was thinking about how to break through this fortified city.

But the more he thought about it, the more uneasy he felt.

"The Li family hasn't dared to send out a convoy for several months, so why did they suddenly send out more than a dozen people today and dare to come out so openly?"

"And why did they have to come this way to Majia Village? Have the Li family members gone mad?"

But no matter how much he thought about it, he couldn't figure it out. In the end, he could only shake his head helplessly and suppress his doubts for the time being.

Jiang Han never imagined that these three families would join forces to set up such a trap, just waiting for him to walk into it step by step.

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(End of this chapter)