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

Chen Feng and his group traveled south along the Luan River and entered the territory of Yongping Prefecture.

The sky was overcast, and the clouds hung low.

Along the official road, many farmland fields were flooded, and some crops were clearly ruined before they were even ripe.

Chen Feng could tell that these were remnants of flooding. He had participated in several disaster relief operations in his previous life and was no stranger to this kind of scene.

Every few miles along the official road, you could see shacks, makeshift shelters of reed mats, rags, and branches, leaning precariously as if a strong wind could blow them down.

The man squatting in front of the shack was emaciated and had a vacant look in his eyes as he stared at the pedestrians on the main road.

A woman was holding a young child. Chen Feng could see that the child was extremely thin, with pale skin, and had already died in his mother's arms.

Chen Feng's throat tightened, and he turned his head away.

The further south you go, the more refugees there are. By the time you reach the vicinity of Yongping Prefecture, the shacks along the official road are already lined up in a continuous stretch.

Many children had straw tags stuck in their hair. Human traffickers picked and chose along the roadside, taking away several girls who looked fairly good.

There were frozen skeletons everywhere along the roadside, and Sun Ergou even asked why they weren't buried.

Old Pu said not to worry about it, it would be gone by tonight.

He didn't say how he died, but Chen Feng knew the answer.

The cannibalistic society is now vividly embodied.

Chen Feng saw a tea stall by the roadside, where several merchants were gathered and talking. He suggested that they rest and have some tea by the roadside, and then got off the cart.

The accompanying soldiers did not stop them and dismounted as well.

Chen Feng sat down on the bench behind the group of people, picked up his teacup, and perked up his ears.

"Manager Wang, the price of grain has risen ridiculously high this year. How much did you bring on this trip?" a tall, thin merchant asked a slightly shorter merchant.

The merchant being questioned chuckled, "Nine thousand shi, that's too little."

Another merchant chimed in, "I heard that the price of millet in Yongping Prefecture has increased by 70% this year, reaching 2.7 taels. Has Manager Wang made a fortune this time?"

The grain merchant surnamed Wang waved his hand, "What's the point of making money! There was an earthquake in Huguang in July, and floods in Jiangnan. Grain prices have skyrocketed. There's no way to make any money."

The tall, thin merchant said, "Go to Luanzhou. They just had a locust plague there. I heard that millet is already over three ounces a day, and in Leting it's almost four ounces."

The grain merchant surnamed Wang's eyes lit up. "Is this really true?"

"We've known each other for so many years, why would I lie to you?"

"Okay! We'll go there tomorrow."

One of the merchants said, "But Manager Wang, you'd better be careful if you go that way."

"Does Manager Zhou have any advice for me?"

The merchant surnamed Zhou didn't keep them in suspense and said directly, "I just came from Funing. I heard that a group of defeated soldiers came from the north and gathered some refugees to plunder the countryside. The government is sending troops to suppress them, and they've headed south."

The grain merchant surnamed Wang looked rather grim. "This..."

Just then, Chen Feng stood up and walked up to the merchants, cupped his hands in greeting, and said in Mandarin with a accent similar to that of Southern Zhili, "Gentlemen, may I ask you a question?"

When the merchants saw someone approaching, they all stopped talking and sized up Chen Feng.

This person was young, and his face wasn't particularly handsome, but there was a heroic air about him between his brows.

Looking at the two tables behind him, everyone there was covered in dust and wearing standard uniforms, clearly soldiers, but they didn't have the dejected air of defeated soldiers.

The grain merchant surnamed Wang sized up Chen Feng a few times. Seeing that he was not a defeated soldier and that he was well-mannered, he nodded and said, "May I ask, sir?"

Chen Feng smiled and asked the merchant surnamed Zhou, "This shopkeeper just said he came from the east?"

The merchant surnamed Zhou stood up and cupped his hands in greeting. "I am Zhou Xin'an, and I have indeed just come from the east."

"Manager Zhou, it's a pleasure to meet you. I am Chen Feng, a captain under General Song of Shanhaiguan." Chen Feng smiled and cupped his hands in greeting. "Manager Zhou, are you aware of the situation beyond the pass?"

Upon hearing that this military officer was an official, the merchants all stood up and bowed.

Zhou Xin'an's attitude became much more respectful. "So you are Lord Chen. My apologies for my rudeness."

After exchanging pleasantries, Zhou Xin'an said, "My lord, I have never been to the area beyond the Great Wall; I have only heard some stories about it."

Upon hearing the news from outside, Zhao Sheng and the others turned around.

"Please speak, Manager Zhou."

Zhou Xin'an felt pressured as he looked at the dozen or so soldiers staring at him. He carefully said, "I heard that Ningyuan suffered another defeat a few days ago."

Chen Feng's heart skipped a beat. "When did this happen?"

"Just a few days ago, I heard that Ningyuan suffered another defeat, losing more than 30,000 troops, and the commander was also killed in battle." After saying this, Zhou Xin'an secretly observed Chen Feng's expression, afraid that the young officer would get angry upon hearing about the defeat.

Chen Feng didn't show any reaction on his face, but Zhao Sheng and the others behind him were getting restless.

Chen Feng asked, "Do you know which lord died in battle? What is the situation in the Battle of Ningyuan?"

Zhou Xin'an looked troubled. "Sir, you're putting me in a difficult position. I'm just a lowly merchant, how could I possibly know such military secrets? I've only heard about it secondhand."

Chen Feng nodded, seemingly lost in thought.

According to the original historical trajectory, Zhang Chun should have engaged in a decisive battle with Huang Taiji at Changshan on September 26th and 27th.

Forty thousand elite Ming soldiers were wiped out, but no high-ranking generals died in the battle.

He Kegang, the only high-ranking military officer to die in the Battle of Dalinghe, was killed by Zu Dashou in late October, not in battle.

But now, this merchant named Zhou Xin'an says, "The commander of the army has died in battle."

Who died?

Zu Dashou? Zhang Chun? He Kegang? Or Song Wei?

He recalled the things he had done in Dalinghe, the one most likely to cause historical change being the bombing of the grain and fodder camp.

In other words, his time travel altered the predetermined course of history, but it also meant that he could not predict how things would develop in the future.

This feeling is awful, like stepping into thin air while walking in the dark.

Chen Feng took a deep breath, suppressing his unease, and continued, "Thank you, Manager Zhou. May I ask if there are any other interesting news from elsewhere?"

Seeing that the officer wasn't angry, Zhou Xin'an breathed a sigh of relief.

At this moment, the grain merchant surnamed Wang interjected, "I am Wang Yunchuan, and I do know something about things in Shanxi."

"Please speak, Manager Wang."

Wang Yunchuan laughed and said, "I heard that the three rebels, Zijinliang, Chuangwang, and Ba Dawang, have gathered four or five hundred thousand people and are causing trouble in Pingyang, Zezhou, and Lu'an. Governor Song Tongyin led troops to suppress them, and the fighting has been going on for several months. I heard that the fighting is so fierce that the sky is dark and the ground is littered with corpses."

Chen Feng frowned slightly. "The King of Rebellion? Is his name Li Zicheng?"

Wang Yunchuan was taken aback. "Li Zicheng? Never heard of him. The rebel king's surname is Gao, I think his name is Gao Yingxiang."

Chen Feng understood. It seemed that Gao Yingxiang was still alive in the fourth year of Chongzhen's reign, and Li Zicheng was not yet famous.

Wang Yunchuan then said, "I've heard there's a high-ranking official surnamed Hong who's ruthless in killing rebels..."

Chen Feng chatted with the group for a few more minutes, then the soldiers escorting him behind him urged him on.

Chen Feng bid farewell to the shopkeepers and boarded the cart to continue his journey.

The group continued eastward.

Along the way, corpses and shacks were still everywhere.

Chen Feng silently observed all of this. The scene was even more tragic than what he saw on the African continent three hundred years later. And when he looked through the historical records, the description of this scene was nothing more than the four words "displaced people carrying the roads".

In the fourth year of the Chongzhen Emperor's reign, there were still thirteen years until the fall of the Ming Dynasty.