The New Destiny of the Ming Dynasty

Yang Zhen hadn't dared to have high hopes, but now that the rescue team heading north had its own independent battalion, he was already quite satisfied.

As for the future, he didn't dare to hope for anything. He did want to keep Zu Keyong's and Xu Changyong's troops under his command forever.

But he also knew that under the current circumstances, this was simply impossible.

After all, Zu Keyong was a rising star among the younger generation of Zu Dashou's family. With Zu Dashou as his backer, he would not take the initiative to join him and be used by him.

The troops led by Zu Keyong were elite soldiers from Zu Dashou's central cavalry. Although they were few in number, they would never let Yang Zhen get away with it.

As for Xu Changyong, the same goes for him. Although his status was not as high as Zu Keyong's, he was also a fierce general who came from Zu Dashou's army.

Moreover, Zu Dashou placed him in the Mongol camp of Sanggarsai in order to control the Mongol soldiers of Sanggarsai, and it was impossible for him to be transferred to Yang Zhen.

However, Yang Zhen was also very clear that as long as he survived this time, and as long as he could reach the outskirts of Songshan City and deliver the news that reinforcements were coming, he would definitely be rewarded.

He knew that Jinzhou City was well-equipped and could not be captured within a month or two. Moreover, Jin Guofeng, who was stationed in Songshan City, was the most skilled general in defense in the Ming Dynasty at present. Although Songshan City was almost captured several times under his strong defense, it was not taken in the end.

Therefore, the events in Songshan City in the spring of the twelfth year of Chongzhen's reign can be described as a close call, but the most dangerous situation was actually the rescue team he led.

So, as long as he survives until the Tartars retreat, the Provisional Ningyuan Vanguard Battalion will most likely be preserved, and perhaps the word "Provisional" can even be removed.

Yang Zhen took the banner personally inscribed by Governor Fang Yizao, and after finalizing the departure time with his two superiors at dusk on the fourth day of the third month, he bid farewell to Fang Yizao and Yuan Shu and hurriedly returned to his camp.

When Yang Zhen returned to his own camp inside the East Gate of Ningyuan City—Chunhe Gate—Zu Keyong had already obtained military orders and led the one hundred elite soldiers of the Central Army assigned to him by Zu Dashou to move into the camp.

Zu Dashou, worthy of being a renowned general of Liaodong, promised to send Yang Zhen one hundred elite soldiers, and the one hundred men he sent were indeed all highly capable.

Moreover, these one hundred elite soldiers did not come empty-handed. They brought their own warhorses, and each of them carried a bow, a sword, a spear, and wore armor.

Yang Zhen could tell at a glance that these people were all carefully selected from the so-called Guan Ning Iron Cavalry, which Zu Dashou relied on most.

At the same time, Zu Dashou kept his word regarding Yang Zhen borrowing the "Lumi Gun".

For Zu Dashou, although the Lumi guns were very valuable and he was reluctant to use them normally, these expensive firearms were somewhat useless to his heavy cavalry, which he had spent a lot of money to build.

First, the numbers are too small to form a powerful firepower, and they cannot play a role in a large-scale battle involving thousands of troops.

Secondly, loading is too troublesome, and ignition is also difficult, especially on horseback at high speed, at most one shot can be fired.

Furthermore, his soldiers were not used to it; in comparison, the rough men in Zu Dashou's army preferred strong bows and heavy arrows.

So, although Zu Dashou was a little reluctant to part with the money and gave it to Yang Zhen, he finally took out dozens of "Lumi guns" that he had treasured for many years.

Deep down, giving these "Rumi guns" to Yang Zhen was more about comforting his conscience.

Zu Dashou had fought a lifetime of battles, and no one knew the Jurchen Tartars' little tricks of besieging points and attacking reinforcements better than him.

In his view, Yang Zhen's trip was indeed fraught with peril.

Although Yang Zhen's idea of ​​going by sea was a bright idea for him, he still believed that as long as Yang Zhen and his men landed and approached Songshan City or Jinzhou City, they would inevitably encounter the Tartar cavalry and even fall into a trap that had been set up in advance.

Yang Zhen is dead, but he had an uncle named Yang Guozhu, who was a garrison commander in the Ming Dynasty!

It would be unreasonable for me to just do nothing and let Yang Zhen go to his death, and to not do the only thing Yang Zhen asked me to do before he left.

So, after much hesitation, Zu Dashou disregarded the objections of his trusted confidants, such as Wu Sangui, and decided to act decisively, allowing Zu Keyong to temporarily bring his only forty-one "Lumi Guns" manufactured under the supervision of the imperial court in the twenty-sixth year of the Wanli reign (1594) under Yang Zhen's command.

Therefore, Zu Keyong, who came to join forces with Yang Zhen's former troops, said to Yang Zhen as soon as they met:

"Yang Xiezhen! The Marshal sent me with the Lumi guns you requested! Forty in total! Adding the one I lent to Li Lu before, that makes forty-one! That's all the Marshal has under his command!"

Yang Zhen, who had just returned from Fang Yizao and Yuan Shu, was overjoyed upon hearing Zu Keyong's words. He quickly stepped forward, grasped Zu Keyong's hand tightly, and thanked him profusely.

"Thank you, Commander! Thank you, brothers! With these muskets, our chances of success on the northward march will increase significantly!"

"With these muskets, the chances of victory in the north will increase significantly!"

Zukeyong didn't believe it deep down.

After Zu Dashou agreed to lend the Lumi guns to Yang Zhen and others, Wu Sangui specifically sought out Zu Keyong and told him to keep the Lumi guns in the hands of his own people. He instructed them to destroy the guns if they were in danger of falling into the hands of the Tartars, and to bring them back to Commander Zu's command if they returned victorious.

However, Zu Keyong did not care about Wu Sangui's words. Zu Keyong was no less fierce than Wu Sangui, but his mind was much simpler.

Of course, the degree to which he was valued in Zu Dashou's army could not compare with that of Wu Sangui. Therefore, Wu Sangui's various instructions and exhortations before his departure not only had no effect, but also made Zu Keyong resentful.

Most importantly, Zukeyong, who came from a military background, was used to archery and horsemanship and did not recognize the role of muskets or firearms in large-scale battles.

Therefore, upon meeting Yang Zhengang, he handed over all the "Lumi Guns" he had brought to Yang Zhengang without reservation.

Yang Zhen was very grateful for Zu Keyong's actions, and his words and attitude changed accordingly.

The doubts and distrust I had about Zukeyong's capture and surrender vanished in an instant.

That afternoon, upon hearing that Zukeyong had led his troops to relocate and join forces with Yang Zhen's forces, Xu Changyong also requested military orders and, with the three hundred Mongol soldiers and their warhorses that had been transferred, moved to the east gate of Ningyuan City.

After handling the relocation and joint venture matters, Xu Changyong, led by Zhang Degui, came to meet Yang Zhen.

After meeting Zhang Degui and Xu Changyong, Yang Zhen sent his personal guards to fetch Zu Keyong and Li Lu. The group sat cross-legged on Yang Zhen's large kang (heated brick bed) to discuss the deployment of troops.

Once everyone had arrived, Yang Zhen took out the banner bearing the inscription "Provisional Ningyuan Vanguard Battalion," personally written by Governor Fang Yizao, and showed it to the people present, saying:

"Brother Xu! Brother Zu! This is the banner personally written by Governor Fang. After our three divisions join forces, these six hundred or so men will be called the Provisional Ningyuan Vanguard Battalion from now on until our victorious return!"

The six hundred or so people Yang Zhen mentioned were actually six hundred and twenty-eight people.

Yang Zhen's former subordinates, including Yang Zhen himself, totaled 196 people.

Zukeyong's force consisted of one hundred men, including Zukeyong himself, making a total of one hundred and one.

Zukeyong had never been in charge of a task on his own, so he did not have his own personal guards or retainers.

However, Xu Changyong had a group of personal guards and retainers. Without these guards and retainers, he would not have been able to control the three hundred Mongol soldiers.

Therefore, among the three units of the joint operation, Xu Changyong had the largest number of men, including 300 Mongol soldiers and 30 of his own personal guards and retainers, totaling 331 men.

"Now that we've completed our joint operation, according to Governor Fang's opinion, and also my brother Yang Zhen's, this advance team, in terms of vehicles, horses, infantry, and the front, rear, left, and right, still needs to be organized into a clear sequence!"

After saying this, Yang Zhen looked at Xu Changyong and Zu Keyong, waiting for them to express their opinions.

Yang Zhen knew very well that the men under Zu Keyong were all fed by Zu Dashou, and there was no way he could win them over.

The three hundred Mongol soldiers temporarily under Xu Changyong's command were extremely unreliable, and he had no intention of bringing them under his command.

Therefore, his reorganization of the troops was more for the sake of easier command.

However, Xu Changyong and Zu Keyong were unaware of Yang Zhen's thoughts.

Seeing Yang Zhen holding the banner written by Governor Fang Yizao, they all felt a chill run down their spines.

The two looked at each other, and finally Xu Changyong spoke first.

He said, "Brother Yang! This time, on the northward journey, Commander Zu and Governor Fang have made it clear that you will be in charge. Brother, you are to reorganize the troops. I, Xu, cannot object, but I must first say the unpleasant things in advance, so as not to damage the harmony between you and Brother Yang in the future."

"These three hundred Mongol soldiers that I'm leading now aren't my own men. They were transferred from Sanggarsai by the commander-in-chief. I'm only leading them temporarily. When this trip is over, I'll return the commander-in-chief's orders, and these three hundred Mongol soldiers must be returned to their rightful owner. I can't make that decision on my own!"