Late Ming Dynasty: From the Defeated Soldiers at Daling River to Ascending the Throne

Chen Feng and his group were very lucky; apart from encountering a few scattered riders on the main road, they did not encounter any other Later Jin cavalry.

Using the faint moonlight, they found a hollow at the foot of the mountain and stopped.

At this moment, Liang Siye was already hanging upside down, with a rope around his neck preventing him from curling up. His current state was somewhat similar to the Hanged Man in the Tarot.

Chen Feng knelt on the ground and used his hand to check Liang Siye's carotid artery; the pulse was normal.

"Wake him up."

Hao Dadao walked up to Liang Siye and slapped Liang Siye's face with his palm, which was as big as a palm fan.

"Cough—hoarse!" Liang Siye slowly woke up after having two more teeth knocked out by the slap.

His eyelids slowly opened, and in his upside-down vision, he felt as if the world had turned upside down, with several blood-stained faces swaying before his eyes.

He tried to shout, but his head was throbbing and he had difficulty breathing, so he couldn't make a sound.

"Don't move," Chen Feng said slowly, his tone extremely calm. "The more you move, the faster you'll die."

Liang Siye stopped moving, staring intently at the person in front of him. "What do you want to do?"

"First question," Chen Feng held up one finger, "What's your name? What brings you to Yizhou?"

"I...cough cough...Xi Beiren, Fuquan Zhakdan...a merchant..." This was the explanation Liang Siye had prepared before coming. His father had instructed them that their identities must never be known to anyone except the burly men and a few princes of the Great Jin Dynasty.

Chen Feng didn't speak, but just looked at him, a slight smile appearing on his lips. "Do you know where the blood flows when a person is hanging upside down?"

Liang Siye's Adam's apple bobbed.

"Pour it all into your head." Chen Feng poked his temple with his finger. "First, your eyes feel swollen, like they're about to burst. Then your ear canals get hot, and you start to experience tinnitus. About an incense stick later..."

Chen Feng pointed to the bridge of his nose, "The nose will bleed first, then blood will flow from the seven orifices, and then the blood will spurt out directly from the seven orifices..."

Chen Feng spread his hands out in a popping motion, "Then there will be a 'pop' sound, and the scalp, along with the hair, will split open and fall off."

After Chen Feng finished speaking, the valley was so quiet that you could hear the sound of withered grass breaking.

Not only was Liang Siye trembling, but Zhao Sheng and the other two also unconsciously took a half step back.

"Nonsense... utter nonsense!" Liang Siye spat out the words through gritted teeth, "Unheard of..."

"Is that so?" Chen Feng's tone remained calm. "So, are you feeling a headache coming on? Are your eyes starting to feel uncomfortable? Are your legs and feet starting to feel cold?"

Liang Siye's pupils suddenly contracted.

"It's good to be cool." Chen Feng got up, turned his back, and leaned against a tree. "If it gets completely cold, those two legs will be useless. Half a cup of tea, at most half a cup of tea."

He stopped looking at Liang Siye, closed his eyes, and began to count the time silently.

Seeing the interrogation pause, Meng Changgeng was the first to move over, lowering his voice to ask, "Boss, is what you're saying true?"

Zhao Sheng immediately squatted down, his eyes sharp as hooks: "Boss, you're from the Embroidered Uniform Guard, aren't you?"

Meng Changgeng looked at Zhao Sheng in surprise, "The Embroidered Uniform Guards have waist badges, but the leader doesn't have one! I checked him yesterday when he was taking a bath..."

Before Meng Changgeng could finish speaking, Chen Feng flicked his index finger across his head, saying, "You dare to rummage through my clothes!"

Meng Changgeng was knocked so hard he covered his head and dared not utter another sound, while Chen Feng continued to silently keep track of the time.

Hao Dadao scratched his head and said in a deep voice, "Who cares about the guards? As long as we can pry this bastard's mouth open!"

Chen Feng didn't stop counting; he just raised his hand to signal them to be quiet.

Hanging upside down, Liang Siye began to breathe heavily, blood rushed into his skull, the blood vessels in his temples throbbed wildly, and black and red noise appeared at the edge of his vision.

The chill in my lower limbs spread from my toes up my calves and knees...

"I confess! I confess!!!" Liang Siye burst into tears.

Chen Feng counted to one hundred and eighty-seven and gently raised his hand.

Meng Changgeng quickly stepped forward, untied Liang Siye's neck collar, and lifted Liang Siye's upper body up.

Liang Siye gasped for air like a fish out of water, his face streaked with saliva, tears, and snot.

After a dozen or so breaths, Chen Feng nodded, and the rope was put back on.

"Second question," Chen Feng held up two fingers, "You're a Shanxi merchant, right?"

Liang Siye's eyes widened.

Which one?

Seeing that Liang Siye remained silent, Chen Feng then announced their names one by one: "Fan Yongdou? Wang Dengku? Jin Liangyu?... "

He paused for two breaths after each report, his gaze locked onto the other person's pupils.

This is a basic technique in modern interrogation: drawing the other person into your rhythm while observing their micro-expressions.

The rhythm must not be broken; you must continuously apply psychological pressure to the other party. If you let the other party retaliate, it may cause a greater psychological backlash.

When the words "Liang Jiabin" were uttered, Liang Siye's eyelids trembled uncontrollably.

"Who is Liang Jiabin to you?"

"You...how did you know..." Liang Siye blurted out, then realized his mistake and quickly shut his mouth.

Chen Feng tilted his head towards Hao Dadao, who had been holding back for a long time. Hao Dadao cracked his knuckles and walked toward Liang Siye.

Hao Dadao punched Liang Siye squarely in the chest, and the sound of ribs breaking could be clearly heard in the night.

Liang Siye arched his back and gagged. The upside-down position caused stomach acid to flow back into his nasal cavity, and his neck was being pulled by a rope, turning his entire face purplish-red.

"Father...father and son..." he gasped, "Liang Siye...my name is Liang Siye..."

"The third question," Chen Feng held up three fingers, "What did you send to the Tartars this time?"

"Gunpowder...grain, food..."

"How many?"

"Five thousand catties of gunpowder... thirty thousand shi of grain..."

Before he could finish speaking, Zhao Sheng had already kicked him with the sole of his boot.

"Traitorous dog!!! How long can 30,000 shi of grain feed the Tartars?! How many Ming soldiers can be killed by 5,000 jin of gunpowder?!" With each shout, he kicked Liang Siye, who swayed like a sandbag, coughing up blood incessantly.

Chen Feng didn't stop him. He waited until Zhao Sheng, panting heavily, stepped back before continuing, "Fourth question. Where are the granaries and gunpowder depots in Yizhou?"

Liang Siye, trembling, confessed: "There are two granaries... 300,000 shi in the east granary and 100,000 shi in the south granary... The gunpowder depot is also in the south of the city, storing 50,000 jin of gunpowder, located near the Daling River, convenient for the army to access..."

Chen Feng took out the two pieces of silk from his pocket and spread them out in front of Liang Siye: "Is this thing called a dragon ticket? What's it used for?"

Liang Siye stared at the letter stamped with a Manchu seal, his lips trembling: "You...you can't even do this..."

Zhao Sheng slapped him across the face with his backhand, "Speak!"

"It was a pledge made to us by the Emperor of the Great Jin... We sent them grain, gunpowder, and ironware... In the future... in the future, when the Great Khan gains control of the world, he can monopolize the salt, iron, tea, and wine trade with this pledge... With this pledge, he can enter and leave the Khan's tent... In the Great Jin... no... in the territory of the Tartars, he can receive preferential treatment... This matter is extremely secretive, only... only a few confidants of Huang Taiji know about it... and not many people have seen our faces..."

Liang Siye spoke faster and faster, as if afraid of being beaten again, "I have 30,000 taels of silver notes from Yong Sheng Qing Bank in my pocket! And another 200,000 taels in the hidden compartment of the sandalwood box! I'll give it all to you! Just please spare my life..."

Chen Feng suddenly smiled. The smile was faint, but it sent a chill down Liang Siye's spine.

"The fifth question," he softened his voice, even adding a touch of amiability, "Where in Shanxi did your Liang family originate?"

Liang Siye fell silent, his eyes darting around in their bloodshot sockets, as if pondering the other person's intention in asking the question.

The mountain wind swept through the pass, making a whistling sound like a sob.

Seeing Zhao Sheng about to kick again, he finally hissed, "...Guoxian! There are also businesses in Daizhou!"

Zhao Sheng stopped and looked at Chen Feng.

"Sixth question: Do you know the hometowns of the other seven families?"

Liang Siye was already on his deathbed. He weakly shook his head and said, "I don't know... Our eight families rarely keep in touch... We usually just meet... in Zhangjiakou or Xuanfu..."

Chen Feng nodded. This was consistent with the history he knew. The eight major Shanxi merchants formed an alliance, but in order to avoid exposure and to know each other's headquarters, the Guoxian County mentioned by Liang Siye also needed further verification.

Chen Feng slowly stood up. "It's a pleasure working with you."

Then he turned to Hao Dadao: "Cut off his head and bandage it up."

"Yes, sir!"

The moment Liang Siye's scream escaped his throat, the cold glint of the blade flashed upwards.

With a "plop," the head rolled off.

Hao Dadao lifted his head by his hair bun, grinned, and said, "This bastard got off easy."

Chen Feng ignored the headless corpse that was still convulsing; he fell into deep thought. Judging by the time, Zhang Chun should be setting off from Jinzhou soon.

On September 26th and 27th of the fourth year of the Chongzhen reign (1644), Zhang Chunhui led his army to fight a decisive battle against Huang Taiji at Changshan. Due to the chaos in the Ming Dynasty's command and Wu Xiang's escape, Zhang Chunhui suffered a major defeat.

Zhang Chun and more than 30 other generals and officers were captured. The Later Jin dynasty seized a large amount of firearms, food, and armor, further strengthening its power.

This defeat marked the complete failure of the Battle of Dalinghe. The Ming Dynasty lost all its elite troops outside the Great Wall and could only retreat to Ningjin. It no longer had the ability to take the initiative to attack the Later Jin.

Chen Feng had no sense of belonging to the Ming Dynasty, but after learning about the Later Jin's gunpowder depot, he wanted to do something for two reasons: first, for Zheng Sanfu and the others who were fighting, and second, for his own future plans, as the Later Jin's strength would naturally improve.

But he quickly dismissed the idea. He only had five men on his side, and even if he went back to recruit the troops stationed in Yizhou, it wouldn't be enough, not to mention the issue of combat strength.

Just the question of whether they could make it to the decisive battle at Changshan by walking with dozens of people is a problem.

Moreover, such a large group would likely be discovered by Tartar scouts on the road and wiped out.

Chen Feng stood up, sighed deeply, and said, "Let's go! Let's hurry back to the village."

Meng Changgeng glanced at Liang Siye's brocade clothes and said weakly, "Boss, these clothes..."

"Take it off if you want."

"Alright!" Meng Changgeng said, and carefully began to pull off Liang Siye's clothes.

Once everything was ready, the five men rode out of the ravine on horseback.

On horseback, Meng Changgeng couldn't help but lean closer and ask, "Head Chen, are you really a member of the Embroidered Uniform Guard?"

Chen Feng didn't bother with him at first. He respected the habits of his soldiers, and as long as it didn't affect the combat mission, he wouldn't interfere, just like how his old squad leader used to ignore his smoking...

The thought of cigarettes made Chen Feng irritable, and he snapped at the incessantly chattering Meng Changgeng, "Stop asking about the Embroidered Uniform Guard!"

Zhao Sheng slapped his saddle hard: "I knew it! The leader must be a secret agent from the Northern Garrison!"

The look in his eyes as he looked at Chen Feng held a newfound respect, and even a hint of relief, as if to say, "Just as I thought."

These days, all the illogical behavior and extraordinary insights seem to have found their answers.

Chen Feng neither admitted nor denied it, but simply lowered his body and stared into the darkness ahead.

Suddenly, a rider charged out from behind the hilltop directly in front of us!

Immediately afterward, seven more riders charged out, each with a sword drawn, and it looked like they were about to collide with Chen Feng!

"Tartars!" Chen Feng's shout echoed across the plains.