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

Chen Feng had just closed his eyes when the door opened.

He sat up, and a middle-aged clerk had already entered, carrying a pen and ink in his hand.

The clerk spread a piece of paper on the table, bowed respectfully to Chen Feng, and said, "This humble official, Dong Jing, the clerk of the Xifengkou official register, is conducting a routine inquiry with you, sir. I would appreciate your cooperation."

Chen Feng pursed his lips and sat down opposite the clerk.

It seems the garrison commander of Xifengkou is unsure of his own tactics and is trying a softer approach first.

Seeing Chen Feng sit down, the clerk licked the tip of his pen and said, "May I ask your name, sir?"

"Chen Feng".

Place of origin.

"Liaodong Town, Liaoyang."

Chen Feng casually mentioned a place name: Liaoyang had been occupied by the Later Jin for more than ten years. Given the corruption of the household registration system in the late Ming Dynasty, it was simply impossible to find out the truth.

He spoke with a Jiaoliao accent from beginning to end, which made it even harder for Dong Jing to find any flaws in his story.

"Year of birth".

"Twenty-two years old."

Chen Feng did not answer directly about the reign title, because he had no idea what the reign titles of the Ming Dynasty emperors were.

Based on his judgment, the original owner should be around twenty years old, so he just gave an age randomly.

"The thirty-eighth year of the Wanli reign," Dong Jing noted down, "His position."

"Under the command of General Song Wei of Shanhaiguan, the commander of the 1st rank was a 1st rank..." Chen Feng added, "Promoted temporarily."

Dong Jing paused, then looked up at him and asked, "Why did you go to Xifengkou...?"

Questions came one after another, and Chen Feng answered them one by one.

Some of it was true, some was half true and half false. He told the truth about most of his actions after time travel, but omitted the part about intercepting Liang Siye.

After questioning him for half an hour, the clerk put down his pen and pushed a sheet of paper filled with writing in front of him: "Sir, please take a look, is there any error in the record?"

Chen Feng looked down and glanced at it.

Chen Feng found the ancient typesetting and traditional characters a bit daunting, but he could still understand them generally.

The recorded content is similar to what he said, although some parts have been embellished.

For example, "infiltrated the Later Jin camp" became "deeply behind enemy lines under secret orders", and "killed Orosechen" was written as "slayed one Later Jin Jiala Ezhen in battle".

This clerk named Dong Jing is very clever; he knows how to write beautifully.

Chen Feng nodded and handed the paper back to Dong Jing.

Since it was not a formal interrogation of the suspect, there was no fingerprinting process.

Dong Jing tidied up his writing materials, bowed, and left.

The door closed, and the room became dark again.

Chen Feng lay back down on the bed.

He didn't hide too many details from Xifengkou; most of it was the truth, but he didn't admit to the existence of the Embroidered Uniform Guard.

Because he knew that his secret couldn't be kept hidden. Even if he had informed the other eleven people in advance, he could trust Zhao Sheng and the other six, but the remaining five night watchmen might not be able to keep the secret.

Although these night scouts were temporarily following him, they weren't very close.

It's better not to reveal anything and let them tell the truth. Only by telling the truth can they avoid being exposed.

As for Liang Siye's part, which involved the division of hundreds of thousands of taels of silver, even Hao Dadao could tell what he should and shouldn't say.

Another reason why Chen Feng was so calm was the group of night watchmen who got separated after the gunpowder depot exploded.

With their ability to evade capture at night, someone will always manage to return alive.

That person will bring the message back: a man claiming to be a centurion under Song Wei led his men to bomb the Later Jin's grain and fodder camp.

Zhang Chunhui will know, Song Wei will know, and Wu Xiang will know.

Although Chen Feng didn't know much about Song Wei, how many fools could become a general? Even if Song Wei was unhappy with him impersonating a centurion, he would reluctantly accept the title of centurion for the sake of military merit.

According to Chen Feng's understanding of the battle, the Later Jin deployed at least forty cannons in this battle, and one of the reasons for Zhang Chun's great defeat was that the Later Jin's artillery was too powerful.

Now that the gunpowder depot is gone, Tong Yangxing's cannons are also silenced, which will reduce Zhang Chun's pressure and may even allow him to win the battle.

Winning is fine, but if Zhang Chun loses, it will be more advantageous for Chen Feng.

Chen Feng's lips twitched slightly.

In order to avoid punishment from Emperor Chongzhen, Song Wei would try every means to claim the title of Qianzong (a military rank).

As for Wu Xiang, his subordinate Wang Jie was unable to return. Only Wu Xiang knew the inside story. In order to protect his official position and life, he would do his best to protect himself in order to share in the credit.

So all he can do now is wait.

Zou Yuan will report the matter up the chain of command, and then wait for someone from Shanhaiguan to come, or for himself to be sent to Shanhaiguan.

At that time, his military merits would not only save his life, but also serve as the basis for his promotion.

Chen Feng closed his eyes.

He was already seated at the card table. His hand wasn't great, but it wasn't the lowest-ranking hand either.

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

Due to a shortage of rooms in Xifengkou, except for Chen Feng who was held in solitary confinement, the other eleven people were basically divided into three or four people per room.

Meng Changgeng, Hao Dadao, and Lao Putou were locked in a storage room.

After the footsteps outside the door disappeared, Meng Changgeng grabbed Hao Dadao's sleeve and pulled him to the corner of the wall.

"Old Hao, come here."

Before Hao Dadao could react, Meng Changgeng raised his hand and gave him a sharp rap on the forehead.

"Ouch!" Hao Dadao clutched his head, his eyes wide. "What the hell are you doing?!"

"What did I do?" Meng Changgeng demanded, his voice low and his face flushed. "I'm asking you! When we entered the pass, why did you shout 'Commander of Song Wei'? Were you just bored?!"

Hao Dadao was taken aback for a moment, then said matter-of-factly, "Did I call you wrong? Isn't 'Boss' the same as 'Commander of the Thousand'?"

"He..." Meng Changgeng opened his mouth but then closed it again, glanced at the door, and lowered his voice even further: "His position as a commander of a thousand men is fake!"

Hao Dadao's eyes widened even more. "Fake?"

"It's fake!" Meng Changgeng kept looking back at the door, and then recounted his conversation with Chen Feng.

"You...you mean, the boss...he's not..." Hao Dadao stammered.

"I knew from the beginning that he was a fake commander." Meng Changgeng's voice was bitter. "Later I thought he was a member of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, but I didn't expect that even the Embroidered Uniform Guard was fake."

Hao Dadao's mind was blank. He stared at Meng Changgeng, then at Lao Putou, his expression shifting from bewilderment to shock, and then from shock to anger.

"Then he..." Hao Dadao's voice changed, "...he lied to us?"

Meng Changgeng remained silent.

"He lied to us!" Hao Dadao's voice suddenly rose. "We've risked our lives for him, and he actually lied to us!"

"Keep your voice down!" Meng Changgeng covered his mouth.

Hao Dadao broke free of his hand, his chest heaving violently, his eyes a little red. "I believed everything he said. He said he was going to bomb the grain supply camp, and I went without a second thought! He said he was going to cover the rear, and I went to cover the rear! I even took an arrow for him, I almost lost my life! And it turns out he was a fake?"

Meng Changgeng opened his mouth, but didn't know what to say.

Old Pu leaned against the dry grass in the corner of the wall, having remained silent until now.

Hearing Hao Dadao say such angry words, he raised his eyelids and glanced at Hao Dadao, "So what if it's fake?"

Hao Dadao turned to look at him, "He lied to us!"

Old Pu said slowly, "What's wrong with a real commander? What's wrong with a fake commander? A real commander runs faster than a rabbit when he sees a Tartar, while a fake commander leads us to kill Tartars and brings us back from beyond the Great Wall."

He paused for a moment, then said, "Why do you care if it's true or false?"

Hao Dadao was stunned.

Old Pu closed his eyes again, leaned against the hay, and a smile appeared on his wrinkled face. "Besides, he's not a bad person, is he?"

Hao Dadao stood there, his expression shifting several times, before finally uttering, "Then... then he can't lie..."

Meng Changgeng sighed and patted his shoulder: "Alright, keep this to yourself. Someone will definitely take you out for questioning later, so don't say anything. If you want to settle accounts with him, wait until this is over."

Hao Dadao opened his mouth, but didn't say anything.

Just then, the door lock clicked.

The door opened, and two soldiers stood outside. One of them pointed at Meng Changgeng and said, "Hey, you bald guy, come out!"

Meng Changgeng's heart sank, but he forced a smile. "Gentlemen, where are you going?"

"Question me." The soldier waved his hand impatiently. "Hurry up!"

Meng Changgeng stood up, a smile on his face, and walked out. When he reached the door, he turned back and glanced at Hao Dadao.

Hao Dadao glanced at Meng Changgeng, closed his eyes, and nodded.