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

Zou Yuan, the garrison commander of Xifengkou, stood on the Zhenyuan Tower at Xifengkou, his hand resting on the crenellations as he looked north.

He squinted, staring at the few moving black dots in the distance, and had been staring for the time it takes to drink half a cup of tea.

The black dot got closer and closer. At first, it was not too fast or slow, but when it was about five miles away from closing the door, the group of people started to speed up.

Zou Yuan initially thought that the Mongols had come out to investigate the situation at Xifengkou, but when he saw the group of people start to speed up, he abandoned this idea.

The Mongols wouldn't send out such a small group. Besides, when the Mongols scout a pass, they spread out and circle around; they wouldn't just charge straight at the pass.

"Pass down the order," Zou Yuan said, "have Guo Zhuo lead thirty riders out of the pass to intercept that group and make him find out what kind of people they are."

The guard responded and turned to run down the city wall.

Zou Yuan continued to stare at the black dot.

In the year of Ji Si, the Tartars entered through Xifengkou. At that time, he was just a garrison commander.

The Tartars caused a huge disturbance in Beizhili, scaring the newly enthroned emperor half to death.

An investigation later revealed that three garrison commanders had been killed and two adjutant generals had been replaced, which is why he was transferred from Zunhua to fill the vacancy.

He hasn't been sleeping well these past two years, always worried that the Tartars will come from the north again.

Moreover, it is said that the Tartars have besieged Dalinghe City for more than two months. Wang Weicheng, the general of Jizhou, ordered the strengthening of defenses at passes such as Xifeng and Beigu to prevent a surprise attack by the Tartars.

Zou Yuan stared at the approaching black dots, his hand pressing tightly against the edge of the stack.

........................

Guo Zhuo realized that he hadn't checked the Chinese calendar before going out today.

He was a junior officer in the Xifengkou garrison, with thirty men under his command. His daily duties included patrolling, checking caravans, and collecting tolls.

He was just about to go to the stable to check if his gelding had eaten enough when the adjutant's personal guard rushed in: "Officer Guo, the adjutant has ordered you to take thirty riders out of the pass and intercept that group of Tartar spies to the north."

Guo Zhuo nearly dropped the bean bag in his hand. "Tartars...spies?"

Before Guo Zhuo could say anything more, his personal guards had already left.

Guo Zhuo stood there stunned for three breaths, then cursed and started calling for help.

When all thirty riders had gathered, his palms were already sweaty.

He served in the army for eight years, and the biggest battle he fought was wiping out a band of more than twenty mountain bandits. He managed to surround and kill them by sheer numbers.

Should we send him to intercept the Tartars?

But military orders are absolute; if he didn't go, he would be beheaded.

Guo Zhuo mounted his horse and led thirty men out of the gate.

As soon as they exited the gate, it closed behind them, and Guo Zhuo couldn't help but curse.

The group stopped about a mile away.

Guo Zhuo's heart skipped a beat.

In his experience, most people, upon seeing government soldiers rushing over, would either run or get into a fighting stance.

This group of people, on the other hand, just stopped their horses and stood there, as if waiting for them to pass by.

Guo Zhuo reined in his horse and glanced back at his men.

There were thirty people present, and all of them had drawn their knives. Although the formation was a bit messy, there were still thirty knives.

"Surround them!" he shouted.

The thirty riders dispersed, forming an arc around the area.

When Guo Zhuo was fifty paces away from the group, he finally saw what they looked like.

Then he froze.

What are they wearing?

Some wore red armor, and some wore white armor; it seemed to be the armor style of the legendary guards.

Several of them wore light armor worn by night watchmen, which was so gray that their color was indistinguishable.

The young man leading the group was wearing the cloth armor of a Ming Dynasty general, with a large piece missing from the skirt and the breastplate severely damaged.

Guo Zhuo's back started sweating again.

This group of people doesn't look like spies. Spies are always hidden, why would they dress like this and wander around like that?

But they don't seem like our own people either. What kind of people from outside the Great Wall would come in from there?

"Halt!" He raised his knife, his voice tightening. "Dismount!"

The young man glanced at him, dismounted, and raised his hands.

leisurely.

Guo Zhuo felt even more uneasy and forcibly raised his voice to cover up his anxiety, "Who is it!"

"Ningyuan Army, from Jinzhou." The young man spoke, his voice low but clear, "One of us. My name is Chen Feng."

Guo Zhuo almost laughed in anger, "Jinzhou is seven or eight hundred li away from here, what are you Ningyuan Army doing coming all the way to Xifengkou? And entering from outside the pass?"

"We're infiltrating deep into Tartar territory to carry out a secret mission," Chen Feng said calmly. "We'll exit through the northwest gate of Yizhou."

Guo Zhuo stared at him for three breaths, then glanced at the dozen or so people behind him—some old, some young, some Han, some Mongol, all wounded, with all sorts of things hanging from their horses.

When he saw a bald man, his heart skipped a beat, but when he saw that there was no pig tail behind the bald man, he breathed a sigh of relief.

"What secret mission?"

Chen Feng didn't say anything, but simply raised his chin and gestured towards the back of the line.

Guo Zhuo followed his gaze and saw a round object hanging on Chen Feng's mount, with black bloodstains on the cloth covering it. It was clearly a human head.

Chen Feng said, "It's the head of the Later Jin Jiala Ezhen Orosechen. I cut it off."

Guo Zhuo's cold smile froze on his face.

Jiala Ezhen? He's equivalent to a military commander in the Ming army.

He looked at the severed head, then at Chen Feng, and couldn't make up his mind. He needed to consult the lieutenant general about this matter.

"Tie them up first." He wasn't sure what these people were up to, but tying them up was definitely the right thing to do.

Several men dismounted and walked forward with ropes in their hands.

"What are you doing!" A shout suddenly erupted from the group.

A burly, dark-skinned man rushed up from behind, blocking Chen Feng's path. His eyes were wide as cowbells. "Tie up our boss? Do you know who he is?!"

Guo Zhuo's men were so overwhelmed by this imposing aura that they stopped in their tracks.

"He's a battalion commander under Song Wei, the general of Shanhaiguan! You, a mere banner officer, have the audacity to kidnap a battalion commander?"

Guo Zhuo was stunned.

Qianzong?

He instinctively looked at Chen Feng.

Chen Feng kept his eyes closed, his face expressionless.

But behind him, two people had very interesting expressions. The bald man was pulling at his earlobe, his face pale; the other, a weathered man, covered his face with one hand and gripped the reins with the other.

Guo Zhuo suddenly felt that something was wrong.

He looked at Chen Feng again, who had already opened his eyes. Chen Feng glanced at the loud-voiced man, then at Guo Zhuo, and said nothing.

Guo Zhuo hesitated for a moment, then raised his hand to stop his men. "Then... we won't tie them up, but they have to hand over their weapons."

Chen Feng nodded.

The loud-voiced man was about to say something when Chen Feng glanced at him, and he shut his mouth, reluctantly unfastening the knife and throwing it on the ground.

Guo Zhuo's men went up to collect the weapons, and one by one, the men unsheathed their knives and threw them on the ground, making a clanging sound.

"Come with us." Guo Zhuo waved his hand and led his men back.

………………………………………………………………………

Zou Yuan saw Guo Zhuo leading a group of people knocking on the gate from the city tower. There was no fight, and no one was tied up. He was filled with doubt.

But he believed that Guo Zhuo wouldn't do something like colluding with the enemy; Guo Zhuo didn't have the guts.

Zou Yuan selected forty or fifty servants and descended from the city wall.

Chen Feng followed Guo Zhuo and his group to the gate, where it took about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea for the gate to open.

The city gate was pitch black. Zou Yuan stood in the passageway with forty or fifty armored soldiers. The inner city gate was closed, clearly to prevent them from causing trouble.

Guo Zhuo jogged up to Zou Yuan and whispered a few words in his ear. Zou Yuan's expression changed several times in the torchlight.

Zou Yuan stepped forward, his gaze sweeping over the group of uninvited guests before finally settling on Chen Feng.

Zou Yuan walked up to Chen Feng and sized up the young man. "I am Zou Yuan, the garrison commander of Xifengkou. You are Chen Feng?"

Chen Feng curtsied and said, "This humble officer, Chen Feng, greets General Zou. Please forgive me for being in armor and unable to perform the full ceremony."

"It's alright." Zou Yuan waved his hand. "Where's your commander's seal?"

"I didn't bring it with me."

Zou Yuan stared at him for a few moments. The man's eyes didn't dodge when he spoke, and his tone wasn't weak, but he didn't have any seal on his body, which didn't make sense.

"I heard you killed a Jala Ejen, where's his head?"

Chen Feng raised his chin, and Zhao Sheng brought the head over, lifting the cloth to show it to Zou Yuan.

This was to prevent Zou Yuan from having the idea of ​​killing someone for military merit. Even if Zou Yuan had such an idea, Zhao Sheng could smash the head, and the other party would get nothing.

Zou Yuan ignored their little schemes and glanced down at them.

The head had been cut off several days ago. Although it hadn't decomposed due to the cold weather, it had developed a nauseating stench.

Judging from the facial features and bone structure, it is indeed a Tartar head, with a shaved head, a braid, and an ear that was shot off by an arrow. It should not be the kind of person who killed innocent people and claimed credit for it.

But was the owner of this severed head Jiala Ezhen? He didn't know.

If it's true, this head could at least promote a common soldier to a centurion.

He looked up, glanced at the young man again, and remained silent for a while.

"Take them away," he ordered his men. "Separate them into different rooms, and don't let them talk to each other."

Zou Yuan's servants searched Chen Feng and his men, but found nothing except some dry food and two waist tokens from the Later Jin army.

Chen Feng was escorted out of the passageway by two soldiers. He glanced back and saw Zhao Sheng, Meng Changgeng, and Hao Dadao being taken away separately.

When they parted, Meng Changgeng and Zhao Sheng looked at him with some anxiety, but Chen Feng told them not to worry.

He withdrew his gaze and followed the two servants into a room.

Before entering, he said to one of the servants, "Brother, please inform General Zou and have him go to the Shanhaiguan General's Office to deliver a message: the matter of the grain supply camp has been settled."

The servant nodded and closed the door.

Chen Feng placed Orosechen's head on the table in the middle of the room and lay it on the kang (a heated brick bed) covered with dry straw.

Smelling the faint musty smell in the room, Chen Feng slowly closed his eyes, his nerves, which had been tense for many days, gradually relaxed.