Late Ming Dynasty: So what if Emperor Chongzhen was inactive?!

Chapter 35 The two grandsons cherish each other, Hong Chengchou's life hangs by a thread

In Guyuan, Shaanxi, a dappled mare and an old yellow horse are riding side by side, with Sun Chengzong and Sun Chuanting chatting happily on horseback.

Sun Chengzong even felt that this young man's military strategy surpassed his own, and couldn't help but sigh, "Talented people emerge in every generation, and new people replace the old."

"Great talent, Bai Gu! His Majesty is eager for talent, and I cannot allow such a talented person as you to remain among the common people. I should recommend you to His Majesty again." Sun Chengzong stroked his white beard and looked at Sun Chuanting with admiration.

Sun Chuanting suddenly felt a little guilty. He had been holding back for several days, but today he finally couldn't help but clasp his hands and say, "To be honest, a few days ago, His Majesty sent people to demand my two daughters, so I..."

Sun Chengzong was stunned:
The Imperial Ancestral Instructions of the Ming Dynasty state: "Emperor's relatives are not allowed to participate in politics, and dukes, marquises, and earls are not allowed to command troops."

"What is Your Majesty doing? You are wasting talented people!"

However, there were exceptions. Xu Da, the Duke of Wei, had his eldest daughter marry Zhu Di, the Prince of Yan, and she later became his empress. Sun Chengzong could only use this story to comfort him.

Sun Chuanting forced a smile, but he was still somewhat dejected. In the Ming Dynasty, relatives of the emperor's wife seemed noble, but in reality, they were despised. He was a legitimate Jinshi (a successful candidate in the highest imperial examinations) and did not need to rely on his status as a relative of the emperor's wife to become an official.

There has been no rebellion in Pingliang Prefecture, where Guyuan Town is located. Guyuan was the seat of the Three Border Governor-General's Office during the Ming Dynasty. The Three Border Governor-General's Office controlled four major military towns: Yansui, Ningxia, Ganzhou, and Guyuan, and could directly mobilize tens of thousands of troops. During the expedition against the Mongol Yuan Dynasty, the Western Route Army set off from here, so it would not be wise for them to rebel here.

However, the situation in Yan'an Prefecture is not so good; Yan'an Prefecture is now in complete chaos.

Yan'an was besieged for several days. Although the city was held, a severe drought in northern Shaanxi led to food shortages, and Yan'an was no exception. The officials and people inside the city were starving, while the starving people outside desperately tried to attack the city, believing there might be food inside. Those outside couldn't get in, and those inside couldn't get out; Yan'an had become a besieged city.

Hong Chengchou, the Shaanxi Grain Supervisor, was sent by Hu Tingyan, the Shaanxi Governor, to deliver grain to Yan'an. He knew this was Hu Tingyan's revenge for his previous impeachment and that he intended to use bandits to kill him, but he still came. As the Grain Supervisor, transporting grain was his duty. Although Hu Tingyan harbored malicious intentions, his order was in accordance with the law, and Hong had virtually no room to refuse.

These were turbulent times. Not long after he submitted his impeachment memorial, the Tianqi Emperor died. Hong Chengchou felt that no one would pay attention to his memorial, and he would still be subject to the control of Hu Tingyan, the governor of Shaanxi, which made him feel extremely desperate.

He was also an ambitious young man who wanted to serve his country, help the world, and achieve great things. However, reality slapped him in the face, and he felt that he might not be able to survive this ordeal.

Of course, he didn't just sit idly by. He still had a group of militiamen and garrison soldiers he'd borrowed from the local areas to escort the grain. Based on his previous experience suppressing the White Lotus Rebellion in Shandong, he believed the so-called rebels were nothing more than a rabble.

Risk and opportunity coexist. As long as he can defeat the refugees, it will be a real military achievement, and he can be promoted based on his merits.

However, Hong Chengchou realized he was wrong, terribly wrong! This group of bandits in Shaanxi was no ordinary rabble; the proportion of soldiers among them was unusually high!

Ten miles outside Yan'an, Hong Chengchou's grain transport unit was surrounded by three layers of troops. He ordered his soldiers to form a large circle around the grain carts as a temporary fortress, and then commanded his soldiers to defend the carts, using spears and crossbows to repel the rebels' attack.

However, he only had three hundred poorly equipped garrison soldiers and eight hundred militiamen by his side, and his arrows were also insufficient. Ten weak arrows were fired, and not one hit the mark. Hong Chengchou roared, ordering his men to wait until the enemy was close before firing, but he hadn't expected the rebels to also have crossbows, and those were far superior in both range and accuracy. "These are the elite of the border army!" Hong Chengchou felt a chill run down his spine.

Hong Chengchou knew that if they hadn't been surrounded, his soldiers would have already routed. Even so, his soldiers and militiamen lay on the ground, groaning in pain, their cries irritating Hong Chengchou.

He said, half encouraging and half threatening, "Hold on! We don't lack food. As long as we hold on, we can last a long time, but if we can't hold on, we'll die! Think of your wives and children at home. They're waiting for you to come back! Don't even think about surrendering. Without food, you won't be able to walk two hundred miles before you starve to death! Do you see their eyes? They're red! They've been eating human flesh. If they surrender, they'll eat you!"

Whoosh whoosh! ! !
A volley of arrows was thrown in from outside, one of which pierced through the armpit of Hong Chengchou's official robe.

"Get out of the way!" Hong Chengchou shouted, leaning against the grain truck.

After the initial volley of arrows ended, Hong Chengchou saw through the gaps in the grain wagons that the bandits had split into three groups, barely forming a wedge formation, and were charging towards the grain wagons.

"Rise up and fight the enemy!" Hong Chengchou roared.

The garrison commanders, their household guards, and junior officers, along with their soldiers and militia, also began their operations.

As the bandits drew closer, the supply convoy's crossbow bolts finally found their mark. However, this time the organized bandits did not scatter as before. Instead, under the threats and shouts of some of their leaders, they continued forward despite casualties. The supply convoy quickly ran out of bolts.

The two sides began a full-scale battle across the grain wagons, spears thrusting back and forth. The grain transport troops, with their superior position, won, but lost dozens of men, while the bandits left behind a field of corpses, estimated to be no less than three hundred.

They barely held on until nightfall, when the bandits launched another night attack. The garrison soldiers and militia, already on edge all day, were driven to the brink of collapse by the attack. Some climbed onto grain carts to run away, but were mistaken for those seeking reinforcements and hacked to death.

Hong Chengchou personally supervised the battle, killing those who fled and those who broke through the encirclement, sustaining more than ten wounds himself.

Seeing the miserable state of the deserters, the garrison soldiers and militiamen finally abandoned their hopes.

Hong Chengchou led his men in a desperate struggle, and after suffering heavy casualties, they once again held the position. When the headcount was taken the next morning, less than half of the three hundred garrison soldiers remained, while more than seven hundred of the eight hundred militia remained.

However, what made Hong Chengchou even more desperate was that the bandits from yesterday, unable to break through, attracted the help of another band of bandits.

Nearly five thousand people had gathered outside the vehicle, while they numbered less than a thousand. All they had to rely on were the grain carts and a low wall less than two people high made up of stacked grain.

Hong Chengchou was in despair: "Is this the place where I, Hong Chengchou, will perish?!"

(End of this chapter)