I, Emperor Chongzhen, have extended the life of the Ming Dynasty by five hundred years.

Wang Yongzhen led his troops out of the city, heading straight for the forward outpost.

During the march, the adjutant stepped forward and asked, "General, I have already sent scouts to investigate the front. There is a mountain hollow near the outpost. Should we send more scouts to expand the investigation area?"

"This is all thanks to finding it for free, no need to be suspicious!"

Wang Yongzhen rode on his tall horse, his eyes gleaming with confidence. In his mind, this operation was as easy as taking candy from a baby.

"Report! Scouts from the outpost have been spotted five miles ahead!"

A scout galloped up, his face covered in dust, but he dared not slacken his pace in the slightest.

Have you ever fought?

The scout replied truthfully, "When we approached, the enemy had already run away. They were moving extremely fast, and we didn't get a clear look at their appearance."

"Investigate further and report back! There must be no errors!"

"yes!"

After receiving the order, the scout quickly turned his horse around and galloped away, soon disappearing from sight.

Wang Yongzhen looked at his adjutant behind him, a slight smirk playing on his lips, and said with a hint of contempt, "Hong Niangzi betrayed the Great Shun Dynasty, a crime that cannot be forgiven. If we capture her today, it will be our greatest achievement! We will then be rewarded with riches and honors, needless to say."

Upon hearing this, the adjutant bowed and said cautiously, "This humble general believes that Lady Hong is cunning and treacherous by nature. Perhaps this humble general should lead a contingent of troops to investigate first, in case anything goes wrong."

"Oh!"

Wang Yongzhen chuckled lightly and said disdainfully, "You think too highly of Hong Niangzi. She's all brawn and no brains, she never follows any strategy in battle, she just relies on brute force. If she hadn't taken Li Yan as her husband and made him her strategist, her small group would have been wiped out long ago!"

"I've heard that she has a subordinate named Cheng Youde, who is rather cunning and adept at deception. Is that true...?"

"No need!"

Wang Yongzhen waved his hand and said, "This man is fickle and opportunistic, a complete opportunist, nothing to fear. Pass on my order: the entire army will launch a frontal attack! A swift and decisive victory is essential; do not miss the opportunity."

"What if the other side has laid an ambush?"

"Five thousand against three thousand, the advantage is in our hands, who cares about an ambush or not."

Wang Yongzhen waved his hand and said boldly, "Bring out the cannons and blast them to smithereens!"

Before setting off, this army specially brought out ten cannons from the camp. These cannons were not ordinary civilian cannons, but the Weiyuan cannons that the Ming army voluntarily surrendered after their surrender.

This artillery piece is exquisitely crafted, featuring front and rear sights that effectively enhance firing accuracy. While the barrel lacks iron hoops, the ammunition chamber is individually thickened to ensure stability during firing. It also has a dedicated touchhole cover, demonstrating ingenious design. Overall, its firing accuracy is extremely high, making it a deadly weapon on the battlefield.

The army marched forward with unstoppable momentum, encountering no resistance along the way, and successfully arrived at the Red Maiden's outpost camp.

Wang Yongzhen's eyes were cold, and he immediately ordered the ten Weiyuan cannons to be lined up in a row.

"fire!"

At a command, ten cannons roared simultaneously.

"boom!"

"boom!"

In an instant, the sound of cannons deafened the heavens, and thick smoke billowed.

The shell was fired, streaking across the sky like a meteor, crashing into the outpost camp with the force of destruction.

Although these artillery pieces did not use exploding shells, the power of their solid shot was still considerable. Each shell that landed was accompanied by a cloud of dust, and wherever it hit, walls were blasted to pieces, and tents were torn to shreds.

Under the relentless bombardment of artillery, the outpost was instantly reduced to a scene of devastation, with ruins and craters everywhere.

A cruel smile crept across Wang Yongzhen's lips as he immediately ordered, "All troops, attack! Whoever kills Hong Niangzi will be rewarded with ten thousand taels of silver!"

The soldiers immediately became excited, raising their swords and spears, shouting wildly, and surged towards the outpost camp like a tidal wave.

However, the soldiers who first rushed into the outpost quickly realized something was wrong. All around was eerily quiet, without a sound.

Boom!

Just as these people were looking around in confusion, a huge explosion suddenly came from beneath their feet.

Those at the epicenter of the explosion didn't even have time to scream before being blown to pieces.

Boom!

Boom!

A series of huge explosions rang out, flames shot into the sky, and thick smoke billowed.

The screams of agony rose and fell, turning the outpost into a living hell in an instant.

"Retreat! Retreat now!"

Wang Yongzhen reacted quickly and immediately issued a retreat order.

Although he didn't understand why Hong Niangzi suddenly had a brain, that didn't matter.

Run!

The enemy was clearly well prepared; if we don't retreat in time, we risk total annihilation.

But by this time the situation was completely out of control, and the army was unable to evacuate in an orderly manner amidst the explosions and chaos.

The soldiers scattered and pushed each other. Some were knocked to the ground and trampled by the crowd that surged up behind them before they could get up. The scene was chaotic.

"Charge!"

"Kill them!"

Just as the Shun army was in chaos, Hong Niangzi, who had been lying in ambush, led a large army out from the rear.

Amidst the vast army, a bright red dress stood out.

With his rear cut off, Wang Yongzhen had no way to retreat and had no choice but to fight.

"Look at the knife!"

Hong Niangzi, wielding a pair of mandarin duck knives, headed straight for Wang Yongzhen.

when!

A piercing metallic clang rang out, and the two men stepped back, only to find themselves locked in combat once more.

Wang Yongzhen wielded his long sword with all his might, but after a few rounds, he realized that he was no match for him at all.

Hong Niangzi's moves were fierce and varied, each strike aimed directly at vital points. Wang Yongzhen, despite his brute strength, appeared somewhat clumsy in front of Hong Niangzi's twin swords, and could only fight and retreat, looking utterly disheveled.

Taking advantage of the opportunity, Hong Niangzi spurred her horse to a hilltop. From this vantage point, she shouted down at the Shun army, "You've all fought your way here with me, and I don't want to be your enemy. Back then, we couldn't survive, so we had no choice but to kill officials and rebel! Now, Li Zicheng won't tolerate me. If you believe in me and continue to follow me, we'll rebel against Li Zicheng!"

Many people present were former subordinates of Hong Niangzi. Upon hearing this, they couldn't help but waver, and their movements slowed down.

Wang Yongzhen, his face flushed with rage, roared, "You unfaithful woman! You've repeatedly had affairs with that Emperor Chongzhen, betraying your promises and even attempting to incite the army! Shameless whore, I spit on you!"

"You're talking nonsense!"

Hong Niangzi shouted, her eyes blazing with fury.

Immediately afterwards, she turned her horse around and charged toward Wang Yongzhen like a madwoman.

Wang Yongzhen was completely unable to withstand Hong Niangzi's wrath and was beaten back step by step, ending up in a sorry state.

The Shun army was already at a disadvantage, and many soldiers on both sides even knew each other. Seeing this situation, some soldiers kept throwing away their weapons and giving up resistance.

Wang Yongzhen inwardly cried out in alarm. He knew very well that he could not win this battle no matter what, so he could only desperately whip his horse and lead the remaining troops to flee.

boom!

Another loud noise startled Wang Yongzhen, and his heart pounded.

He calmed himself down and realized that it wasn't a cannon or gunpowder that had been planted beforehand; it looked more like a large firecracker.

However, he had barely breathed a sigh of relief when he soon discovered something even more terrifying.

Suddenly, another army appeared from nowhere. Moreover, it was a cavalry force, numbering at least two or three thousand.

Warhorses galloped, their hooves kicking up clouds of dust.

Wang Yongzhen's face showed an incredulous expression, because he discovered that the opponent was still able to maintain a neat formation during the all-out charge, and their movements exuded a sharp killing intent, which showed how powerful their combat strength was.

"kill!"

This cavalry force, which suddenly appeared, charged straight into the Shun army's formation like a tiger descending a mountain.

The Shun army was already in a state of panic, and now they were completely powerless to fight back, and were scattered by this sudden cavalry attack.

brush!

Before Wang Yongzhen could react, he was cut down from his horse by the enemy general.

The cut was clean and swift; Wang Yongzhen's head flew high into the air, blood gushing out like a fountain. It rolled on the ground a few times, its mouth opening and closing, its eyes filled with resentment.

Seeing their commander fall in battle, the soldiers lost all courage to resist and knelt down to surrender.

Hong Niangzi rode forward, looked at Li Ruolian approaching, and said, "You didn't need to come at all, I can handle things on my own!"

Li Ruolian smiled dismissively and said, "This is His Majesty's order; we are all acting under orders."

Lady Red immediately showed some dissatisfaction and retorted, "Your Majesty still doesn't trust me?"

"If His Majesty didn't trust you, you would have died three times over."

"Since you trust me, the outpost battalion is enough to deal with these people, why send the warrior battalion?"

Li Ruolian said, "War is never a matter of reckless courage. Your Majesty believes you can win, and I believe you can win too, but what will be the price?"

Hong Niangzi was stunned. She wasn't unaware of what these words were saying, and... they sounded so similar!

Li Yan had said the exact same thing before, and it was only after she married Li Yan that her army grew stronger day by day.

"Okay, thank you, alright?"

You could tell that there was still some resentment in Hong Niangzi's tone.

Li Ruolian shook her head and said, "We are now working together, not me helping you or you helping me, so there's no need for thanks."

"You... forget it, forget it!"

Hong Niangzi tossed her head and asked again, "What should I do next?"

"Re-establish the forward outpost and prepare for a full-scale attack on Zhengding!"