The New Destiny of the Ming Dynasty

Not long after Yang Zhen chased Yang Zhan'ao out to wait, he heard Yang Zhan'ao running back with a lantern in his hand. Before he even entered the house, he was already calling out from outside the window:

"My lord! Guerrilla General Zhang and Commander Li have returned! General Zu Keyong and General Xu Changyong have also arrived!"

Upon hearing this, Yang Zhen quickly walked outside. Yang Zhan'ao led the way with a lantern, and Yang Zhen followed behind. Just as they reached the gate, they saw Zhang Degui and Li Lu leading a group of people on horseback, escorting a general in his thirties and a general in his forties, who arrived at the gate of the small courtyard covered in dust.

The general in his thirties was none other than Zu Keyong, whom Yang Zhen had met at the military council earlier that day. The other general, in his forties, was presumably Xu Changyong.

The group of people who came over saw Yang Zhen personally come out to greet them, and they all quickly dismounted and came over to meet him.

Yang Zhen, however, stepped forward to help Zu Keyong, who had dismounted, and said to him, "I'm so sorry that it's so dark before I've invited you two over!"

Zu Keyong was an honest man, and seeing Yang Zhen's enthusiasm, he immediately said, "It's nothing! I should have come to visit sooner!"

After a hurried exchange of greetings, Yang Zhen turned to Xu Changyong, who had already dismounted, and took his hand, saying, "I've heard so much about you, Brother Xu, but I never imagined I'd only meet you today! Please, Brother Xu, come in! Please come in!"

Xu Changyong was about forty years old, with a rugged appearance and a full beard. He wasn't very tall, but he was extremely strong. Perhaps due to years of riding horses, he walked with slightly bowed legs. Upon hearing Yang Zhen's polite words, he immediately grinned and said, "Yang Xiezhen, you're too kind! I'm unworthy of such praise! Unworthy of such praise!"

Upon seeing Xu Changyong, Yang Zhen realized that he was an easy-going and upright man, and his previous worries vanished.

He then took the lantern from Yang Zhan'ao and led the way for Zu Keyong and Xu Changyong, heading towards his residence in the courtyard.

The soldiers of Yang Zhenying, who lived in the side rooms of the front yard, crowded their heads at the door and broken windows, trying to see what was happening outside. Zhang Degui was so angry that he cursed and whipped one of the windows, telling them to stay in their rooms and not to come out and get beaten.

It wasn't that the soldiers in Yang Zhen's camp were unsophisticated; it was simply that there was absolutely no entertainment to be had at this time of night.

The courtyard was small, just a few steps away. Soon, Yang Zhen led Zu Keyong and Xu Changyong to his room.

At Yang Zhen's insistence, the group quickly took off their military boots, climbed onto the kang (a heated brick bed), and sat cross-legged around the wine and meat on the kang table.

Before long, Zhang Degui and Li Lu had arranged the camp duties for the night's guard duty and patrols, and then they came to Yang Zhen's room together.

Yang Zhenqiang ordered the two men to sit on the kang (a heated brick bed), and everyone ate meat and drank wine together. Then, he said to Yang Zhan'ao, the captain of his personal guards standing at the door, "Send someone out to keep watch! No outsiders are allowed in this little courtyard of mine!"

Yang Zhanao agreed and hurriedly went out to make the arrangements.

Upon hearing Yang Zhen's words, the others knew that the next topic would be of interest to them all, so they all looked at Yang Zhen and waited for him to speak.

Yang Zhen didn't speak. He first picked up the wine jar, which weighed about five or six pounds, and filled the earthenware bowls of the group with wine. Then, he picked up the bowls and said:

"Although Yang Zhen has been in the army for a long time, he has always been aloof and dislikes socializing. So, although he has been in Ningyuan for over a month, he has had very little contact with the two generals! Seeing the two generals today, I realize that I really shouldn't have done that! Come! Come! Come! Brother, let me drink first as a sign of respect!"

After speaking, Yang Zhen tilted his head back and drank the contents of the earthenware bowl, then turned the bowl upside down to show that he had drunk it all.

Whether it was Yang Zhen in the past or Yang Zhen now, he had a good capacity for alcohol. In addition, the liquor from the late Ming Dynasty was not the highly diluted liquor of later times. He could drink a bowl without any problems.

Yang Zhen's generous behavior won the great favor of Zu Keyong and Xu Changyong, who both enjoyed drinking. Without saying a word, the two men raised their bowls and drank it down.

Several people put down their wine bowls, and Li Lu, who had been watching for an opportunity, quickly picked up the wine jars and refilled them.

At this moment, Zu Keyong picked up a piece of beef and said, "Yang Xiezhen summoned us here overnight; it's probably not just for drinking and eating! The commander-in-chief wants us to go north with you, which will only take two or three days. We need to come up with a plan as soon as possible!"

Xu Changyong, while gnawing on a boiled lamb chop, mumbled incoherently, "I heard Brother Yang got the commander's order today! Once we leave the city, how we go is entirely up to you—I'm just a rough man, not good at all that finesse! How we go is up to you! I, along with three hundred Mongol soldiers, each with a horse, a spear, a sword, a strong bow, and a quiver of arrows! We're just waiting for your command, brother, to set off at any time!"

"That's wonderful! Brother Xu is truly generous. I, Yang Zhen, will toast you with another bowl of wine!"

In fact, Yang Zhen's biggest worry in private was Xu Changyong.

He had never heard of this person before, and the three hundred Mongol soldiers he led were the largest force in this northward expedition. If Xu Changyong did not cooperate, things would become much more complicated.

Although Yang Zhen had already made up his mind, if Xu Changyong did not cooperate, he could use the pretext of disobeying orders in front of the army, based on the conditions agreed upon by Zu Dashou and Fang Yizao, to kill Xu Changyong. However, if he did that, the three hundred Mongol soldiers under Xu Changyong's command would be difficult to command.

Moreover, once this is done, this northward-bound team will likely soon become disunited and alienated.

Now that Xu Changyong is so generous and easy to get along with, Yang Zhen is genuinely happy.

"Brother Yang, I've heard a lot about you before. Although we've never worked together, I trust you! This time, I'm going north with you. You're in charge. I'm entrusting my life to you!"

After saying this, Xu Changyong tilted his head back and downed the second bowl of wine, turning the bowl upside down to show that he meant what he said.

Historically, Xu Changyong followed Yang Zhen north to rescue Songshan. Yang Zhen was wounded, fell from his horse, and was captured. Xu Changyong led his troops to break out of the encirclement, but was soon surrounded by another group of Jurchen cavalry.

Finally, Zukeyong, who was surrounded with him, was captured and chose to surrender, while Xu Changyong chose to resist to the end and died in the encirclement.

Yang Zhen knew that the rough and tough man was not faking it, so he then focused his efforts on persuading Zu Keyong.

Regarding the topic raised by Zu Keyong, Yang Zhen did not rush to express his thoughts. Instead, he asked him in return, "General Zu was born and raised in Ningyuan, and previously served in Jinzhou for a long time. He should be very familiar with the terrain between Ningyuan, Jinzhou, and Songshan! So, in General Zu's opinion, what should I do?"

Before Zu Keyong arrived, he naturally had his own ideas, which Zu Dashou had told him.

Zu Keyong held Zu Dashou in high esteem.

This respect is not just the respect that juniors have for their elders in a large family, nor is it just the respect that subordinates have for their superiors in the army. Rather, it is Zu Keyong's admiration for the wisdom and brilliance of his commander as a veteran soldier in the Liaodong army.

Indeed, Zu Keyong greatly admired Zu Dashou, who had brought boundless glory to the Zu family, and naturally accepted Zu Dashou's words without a second thought.

At the same time, Zu Keyong, an upright man, immediately put down his wine bowl upon hearing Yang Zhen's request for advice, and said, "Commander Yang! This northward expedition to rescue Songshan and Jinzhou will undoubtedly be fraught with danger! It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say it's a matter of life and death! Tens of thousands of Tartar troops are already spread throughout the mountains and seas north of Ningyuan, and south of Jinzhou and west of Songshan—ambushes and death traps are everywhere! One wrong move and our six hundred men will become meat on the Tartar's chopping block! Commander, our six hundred-plus men, our six hundred-plus lives, are all in your hands; you must not be careless!"

What Zu Keyong said was certainly correct, and Yang Zhen completely agreed with it.

Therefore, as soon as Zu Keyong finished speaking, Yang Zhen immediately said, "General Zu is right! I completely agree! I wonder, in General Zu's opinion, how should we avoid falling into the Tartars' ambush and encirclement? If we can avoid the Tartars' ambushes and scouts on our way north, we will have already succeeded halfway!"