The New Destiny of the Ming Dynasty

Zhang Guogan was the same Zhang who was on duty outside the small training ground that day. He was known for his quick wit and sharp tongue. When he uttered these words so fluently, it immediately caused a stir among the crowd.

"That's right! You want us to go save them?! Grandma!"

"I'm not afraid to die! But I'm not willing to die to save them!"

"Chatterbox Zhang, this time you finally said something useful!"

Seeing the crowd quiet down only to be stirred up again by Zhang Guogan's words, Yang Zhen was also having a headache.

He knew that what Zhang Guogan said was true, and he also knew that Zhang Guogan was not intentionally trying to oppose him.

Last year, these men followed Lu Xiang-sheng in Julu to fight against the heavy army of the Tartars who had entered the pass and looted. They were besieged in Julu, in Beizhili. At that time, the main force of the Guan Ning Army, led by the dead eunuch Gao Qiqian, was stationed dozens of miles away, but they were afraid to fight and watched helplessly as the allied army led by Lu Xiang-sheng was completely wiped out in Julu.

In that battle, only a few teams fought their way out and escaped. The team that Yang Zhen is leading now is one of them. That's how their "hatred" with the Guan Ning Army began.

Therefore, when these matters were discussed, everyone present, including Yang Zhen, was filled with indignation.

However, Yang Zhen was also well aware that this emotion could not be allowed to develop and spread, so at this moment, he immediately waved his hand to stop the crowd from becoming agitated.

Once the crowd quieted down again, Yang Zhen spoke loudly: "Gentlemen! In which battle did I, Yang Zhen, not stand with you?! In which of those matters did I, Yang Zhen, not face them with you?! I completely understand your feelings!"

"But no matter how many scores we have to settle with the Guan Ning Army, we can't do it now! No matter how much hatred or enmity we have with the Guan Ning Army, we have to settle our scores with the Tartars first! The Tartars killed my father and grandfather, humiliated my sisters, slaughtered my comrades, and destroyed my home! Have you all forgotten the deep hatred between us and the Jurchen Tartars?!"

After Yang Zhen said these words, the somewhat restless crowd in front of him fell silent once again, everyone gritting their teeth.

Most of the veterans under Yang Zhen's command were hereditary military households of Guangning Houtunwei. Guangning City and the Ming Dynasty garrisons near Guangning City are long gone, and the garrison of Guangning Houtunwei—Yizhou City in western Liaoning—was also destroyed by the Tartars.

These veterans, who came from hereditary military households in Houtunwei, Guangning, not only had nowhere to go, but their parents and relatives had also been killed by the Tartars long ago.

Speaking of hatred, it can be said that everyone present had countless blood feuds with the Jurchen Tartars.

"Zhang Guogan, you good-for-nothing bastard! Have you forgotten how your father, your second uncle, your third uncle, and all your cousins ​​died?! Now, only you and I, uncle and nephew, are left in our Zhang family. Have you forgotten the blood feud with the Tartars?!"

Yang Zhen's words had successfully stirred up Zhang Degui's painful memories. Seeing that Zhang Guogan was still stubborn and looked unconvinced, Zhang Degui was filled with anger and immediately began to berate his nephew, wishing he could slap him twice.

"Uncle! How could I forget! But—sigh—"

The man named Zhang Guogan picked up where Zhang Degui left off, sighed, and fell silent.

Zhang Degui's words not only prevented Zhang Guogan from bringing up the relationship with the Guan Ning Army, but also left the more than 180 good people in front of him speechless.

Yang Zhen knew, however, that the knot in his heart left by last year's battle would probably not be completely removed in a short time.

Thinking of this, Yang Zhen felt he couldn't let them complain any longer, so he took two steps forward, pointed to the flag fluttering in the distance, and said loudly:

"General Zu and his men will definitely not abandon Songshan and Jinzhou! Governor Fang has given us the designation of the vanguard! After we set off north, the main force of the Guan-Ning Army will follow! We are few in number, but we are the elite of the army! This time, we are heading north as the vanguard of the entire army!"

"Moreover, Jinzhou and Songshan are not unrelated to us. If Jinzhou and Songshan fall into the hands of the Tartars, we will have no hope of returning to Houtunwei or Yizhou! Don't you want to go back to your hometown and see our homeland again?!"

"Of course I want to! How could I not?! I dream about it all the time!"

As Yang Zhen finished speaking, a deep and somewhat weathered voice rang out in the silence, saying these words.

"Pan Wenmao! What do you mean?! Why are you stirring up trouble?! Do you also oppose the adults going north?! Have you forgotten how your whole family died?!"

This man named Pan Wenmao was the same old soldier surnamed Pan who was on duty outside the small drill ground that day. At this time, he had been assigned to Zhang Degui's artillery unit and was standing at the head of the first rank of the artillery unit.

Pan Wenmao, in his forties, was not much older than Zhang Degui. Upon hearing Zhang Degui's words, his face flushed instantly, and he stared at Zhang Degui, saying:

"Lord Zhang, you are my former superior! You know my temperament, Pan Wenmao. I am sworn enemies with the Tartars, and the hatred between my Pan family and the Tartars is no less than that between your Zhang family! Don't try to provoke me!"

After saying this, Pan Wenmao turned to Yang Zhen and said, "Sir! You don't need to elaborate on the grand principles of national and familial hatred. Which of these brothers here truly doesn't understand? They're just looking for an excuse to vent their frustrations! Without you, sir, these men would have died countless times already! In the past, their lives belonged to you, sir; now, their lives are yours! Just tell me what to do!"

At this point, Pan Wenmao glanced back at his adopted son, Pan happy, who had been making a ruckus behind him, and then continued, "If this time, we can really fight our way to the rear, and I, Pan Wenmao, can take this son I've adopted outside back to pay respects at our ancestors' graves and offer incense, then even when I die, I can meet my ancestors in the afterlife!"

"Pan Xizi! What else do you have to say?!" As soon as Pan Wenmao finished speaking, Zhang Degui immediately pointed to a tall, fierce-looking young man in the middle of the grenadier squad and said.

This Pan Xizi, whose real name is Pan happy, was the most boisterous among the few people who were making noise in the queue just now, and thus he had already caught Zhang Degui's eye.

Hearing Zhang Degui's words, Yang Zhen turned to look. He saw that the tall, fierce-looking young man had lost his earlier arrogant and complaining demeanor, and was now saying, his face red and his neck thick, "I'll listen to my father!"

This man named Pan Xi was probably around twenty years old at the time. He was an orphan adopted by the old soldier Pan Wenmao during their campaign.

Although he was naturally unruly and fearless, and he would ignore or disregard anyone else's words, he never dared to disobey Pan Wenmao.

After observing their behavior, Yang Zhen thought to himself that if it were the original Yang Zhen, he would probably have had plenty of ways to make these people willingly submit to his orders. His biggest shortcoming right now was that he didn't understand his subordinates well enough.

Next, Zhang Degui pointed out the other troublemakers who had been making a ruckus in the crowd and gave them a dressing down.

Now, the people in front of Yang Zhen finally quieted down. They all knew that being assigned to this advance battalion and following Yang Zhen north to rescue Songshan was a done deal, with no room for discussion.

Next, everyone looked at Yang Zhen, waiting for him to continue speaking.

Seeing this, Yang Zhen stopped wasting words and immediately said, "General Zu and the Governor have issued their orders; there is no room for delay or discussion regarding heading north to relieve Songshan!"

"I know everyone is worried that this northward rescue mission will be fraught with danger, but I want to tell you that since ancient times, fortune has always been found in peril! Moreover, we have a deep-seated hatred for the Tartars! Even if it's not for wealth and status, going north to kill the Tartars is exactly what we've always wanted!"

"If anyone still doesn't want to go, or doesn't dare to go! And only wants to desert! You can stand up now! I'll expel you from the camp! From now on, the world is vast, you go your way, I'll go mine. You and I, Yang Zhen, my rear guard, and my advance battalion will have nothing to do with each other anymore! —Is that so?!"

As Yang Zhen spoke, he kept his eyes fixed on the crowd in front of him.

Zhang Degui, Li Lu, Yang Zhanao, and their personal guards all stared intently at the formation before them.

Even Zhang Guogan, who had been arguing repeatedly, couldn't help but turn around and look behind him.

After a long while, the tense atmosphere finally dissipated, because everyone realized that no one dared to be a deserter at this moment.

Yang Zhen was actually sweating bullets. If any of the people in front of him were to actually quit, he really wouldn't know how to handle the situation.

Could he really kill all those who refused to do their jobs?

They had just sworn an oath to live and die together, to share wealth and honor, and now they were killing people in the blink of an eye. Their change of heart was faster than turning the pages of a book, which was a bit too much to bear.