The Black Sails of the Ming Dynasty

Chapter 106 Commander

The inspector gritted his teeth and said, "Carry the wounded soldiers away for treatment."

The soldiers scattered to carry the wounded, but those who fell within the range of the crossbow bolts were left unattended, wailing and bleeding to death.

The local militia stepped forward and said, "Sir, why don't we try to break down the main gate?"

The patrol officer glanced at him and said slowly, "The bandits are numerous and have powerful crossbows. The patrol office cannot handle them. We must wait for the garrison troops."

The local militia was in a great hurry and said, "Sir, this is impossible! Even if Haining Guard and Xinhe Garrison arrive, it will take at least two hours. Including the time to deliver the message, it will take four hours round trip. How can we possibly make it in time?"

This group consisted of servants from the Lin family, who were deeply distressed and empathetic to their master's misfortune.

The inspector's voice was cold and stern: "Before the garrison soldiers arrive, we will surround the Lin residence and prevent the thieves from escaping."

The team leader said, "What if, during this time, the master and young master are harmed..."

The patrolman said, "Our garrison soldiers will kill the thieves and avenge them."

Seeing the inspector's icy expression, the squad leader said helplessly, "Sir, since we're going to surround the thieves, shouldn't we send a squad to guard the back door?"

The inspector frowned and said to the clerk, "Then we'll trouble the clerk and his men."

Having just avoided trouble through the back door, the clerk was unwilling to go back and made all sorts of excuses.

The inspector gritted his teeth and said to the squad leader, "Then you go!"

The team was about to set off after receiving their orders when they suddenly felt a slight tremor in the ground.

He looked into the distance and saw an orange-red light shining in the southeast sky, as if another group of people was approaching.

The inspector and the clerk exchanged a glance, their expressions changing as they wondered if these were reinforcements for the bandits.

Judging from the commotion, it seems quite a few people have arrived.

It seems... there are also cavalry...

The firelight from the southeast grew closer, and the thunderous sound of hooves became clearer, clearly indicating a large cavalry force.

Jiangnan is short of horses. Such a large cavalry force is something that even the garrison troops, let alone mountain bandits and river bandits, cannot muster. This is a private army!
Shock flashed in the inspector's eyes, and he thought to himself, "The Lin family of Huangyan truly lives up to its reputation as a prominent family in Zhejiang. They were able to command the commander to bring their family troops to their rescue. The depth of their family's influence is truly terrifying!"

Three faint sounds of a wooden clapper could be heard coming from inside the mansion.

The sun had risen, and the surrounding fields were shrouded in darkness.

Those dozens of cavalrymen galloped all the way here, showing no concern for the loss of their warhorses.

As they approached, dozens of cavalrymen reined in their horses, which neighed and kicked up a cloud of dust.

Before the horse had even come to a complete stop, a man dismounted and strode over to the front.

This man was broad-shouldered and narrow-waisted, dressed in cloth-faced iron armor, wearing a helmet with plumes and a ceremonial cap. His arms and hands gleamed coldly. His left hand held a goose-feathered sword hilt, while his right hand held a horsewhip. His expression was stern, and as he strode forward, his armor clanged.

The sheer imposing presence alone was enough to keep the hundreds of people in front of the mansion from even breathing, and the crowd unconsciously parted to make way for them.

"Commander." Upon recognizing the newcomer, the patrolman quickly bowed and saluted, his heart filled with shock. He thought to himself, "It's actually the Commander of Haimen Guard leading the team personally!"
I thought the Lin family was a fallen phoenix, worse than a chicken, but it turns out they're a starved camel, bigger than a horse. They really were looking down on people!
"If I had known this would happen, I should have ordered my men to launch a full-scale attack, seized the opportunity to show off to the commander, curry favor with the Lin family, and secured a bright future! Alas! How I regret it!"

The clerk didn't recognize the commander at all. Only when he saw the patrol inspector salute did he realize who it was and followed suit with a bow.

The commander stared at the courtyard wall, his voice as cold as ice, and asked, "How many thieves have broken in?"

"Uh..." The inspector thought for a moment, realizing that if he said too little, he would seem too incompetent, so he answered, "About a hundred people."

"Have you sent anyone through the back door?"

"Uh... I was just about to dispatch someone." The inspector's expression froze.

The commander's gaze was sharp as a knife, coldly shooting out: "Hundreds of people blocked the main gate, yet not a single one guarded the back gate. The thieves escaped, and you will not escape responsibility!"

"Yes." The inspector felt a deep sorrow in his heart.

The commander ordered the family soldiers, "Zhao Ba, you take fifteen men and guard the back gate! The rest of you go find a battering ram to break open the main gate!" "Yes, sir!" Dozens of family soldiers clasped their fists in obedience, their voices booming.

"Commander, the gate seems to be open..."

"Hmm?" The commander turned around and saw that the gate of the Lin residence was slowly opening.

He looked up at the wall again, only to find that the thief had vanished.

As the gates of the Lin residence opened, a group of people poured out, and the family soldiers drew their bows, creating a sickeningly loud sound of bowstrings being pulled.

"Stop!" The commander gestured, and the soldiers slowed their bowstrings.

He stared intently and saw that the crowd coming out of the Lin residence was only wearing close-fitting clothes. Each person had a black cloth over their head, their hands were tied behind their back, and they were being pushed out in a stumbling manner.

More and more people left the mansion, numbering about one or two hundred, crowding a large open space.

"boom!"

A gunpowder exploded inside the Lin residence, startling everyone in front of the gate, who scattered and fled.

The commander hurriedly ordered the surrounding soldiers, "Stop them! Don't let a single one escape!"

"Yes!" The surrounding soldiers quickly surrounded them, shouting, "Don't move! Sit down!"

But these people were all covered by black cloths, unable to see what was in front of them, and were extremely panicked, so they were not going to stop easily.

The soldiers became ruthless and killed several people on the spot.

The screams only spurred the crowd to scatter and flee.

The commander's personal guards numbered only sixty-odd men, and even on horseback, they couldn't control so many people escaping.

In a panic, I didn't know what to do.

The commander had already realized that these people should be members of the Lin family and servants, but there were too many of them, and they were all masked and dressed similarly, making it impossible to identify them.

The group was mostly men, but there were also some slender women. They were just wandering around without saying a word, probably because their mouths were gagged.

Then he shouted, "I am the commander of Haimen Guard! You are all safe now, do not move!"

His voice couldn't carry very far on his own, so he ordered his guards to shout together, and then he had the constables, clerks, and local militia disperse to control the crowd.

The commander strode forward, grabbed one of the men, and removed his hood.

The man was over forty years old, with neat hair and beard, and fair skin. He was clearly a gentleman from a household. His eyes were full of terror, his mouth was stuffed with dirt and tightly bound with a rope, and he could only sob incessantly.

The man, his hood removed, thought he had been captured by bandits again and struggled incessantly. Only when he saw that it was a Ming general in armor did he stop struggling, tears streaming down his face, sobbing as if he had something to say.

The commander drew a dagger from his waist and cut the rope.

"Pah! Pah! Pah!" The man spat out mud soaked with saliva, panting, "General, he's in the crowd! We can't... we can't escape!"

The commander already had a vague suspicion, but he still pressed on, "Speak clearly, are the thieves also mixed in with the crowd?"

The man nodded frantically: "Yes, yes! Take off our clothes, the thieves... are mixed in... trying to take advantage of the chaos, we absolutely cannot let them escape!"

The commander cursed inwardly, thinking how cunning the thieves truly were!
A few nights ago, the rope blocking the river at Haimenwei suddenly broke without warning. After questioning the captain of Beiwei, he learned the whole story and realized that he had been tricked.

The collapse of the river-blocking cable could be a minor or major incident. On the minor side, if the cable had been in disrepair for years and was simply damaged, it could be reported to the Ministry of War for replacement.

To put it bluntly, as the commander, he cannot escape charges of damaging military supplies, failing in defense, and neglecting his duties.

Pulling up a radish brings out the mud; he couldn't escape the fact that he embezzled salaries, exploited soldiers, bought and sold military equipment, and allowed his troops to plunder.

The most terrifying thing is that he received an urgent report today that the Emperor passed away on the first day of the ninth month.

The day the river-blocking cable broke was the fourth day of the ninth lunar month, and both the north and south garrisons of Haimen were holding banquets.

Emperor Taichang has only been dead for three days!
It's during a period of national mourning!
(End of this chapter)