The New Destiny of the Ming Dynasty

Yang Zhen's sweet dream was shattered. After being woken up by Zhang Guogan, he naturally couldn't lie down and go back to sleep.

Because the time to depart is approaching, and it should be time.

In the past few days, not only Yang Zhen himself has been exhausted, but everyone else involved has also been exhausted to the point of collapse.

They don't work 996, they work 707, day and night, non-stop.

In preparation for the northward rescue mission, Yang Zhen's men, including Zhang Degui, Li Lu, Pan Wenmao, Zhang Chen, Yang Shen, and Zhang Guogan, were all exhausted and none of them had a full night's sleep.

Both Zu Keyong and Xu Changyong were also completely manipulated by Yang Zhen, the commander of the provisional battalion.

These people were all secretly criticizing Yang Zhen. No one could understand how this reckless man who used to only know how to charge into battle had suddenly developed so many ideas and so many tricks up his sleeve!

Is it true that a dying person's words are always kind?!

Of course, no one would want to say something so offensive.

Needless to say, Zu Keyong, after being persuaded by Yang Zhen to drink several bowls of wine, patted his chest and agreed to help Yang Zhen arrange muskets, cannons and ammunition.

As a result, he not only offended his former colleagues such as Zu Dale and Wu Sangui, but many people also heard about it, and even Commander Zu began to have some opinions about him, thinking that he was very immature.

Zu Keyong himself was filled with regret, wondering how he had fallen for Yang Zhen's trap. Now, whenever he saw Yang Zhen, he was extremely cautious, wary of Yang Zhen setting another trap for him.

Even Xu Changyong, who was always busy with his own affairs and rarely involved in the affairs of the provisional advance battalion, was so exhausted by the problem of those three hundred-plus warhorses that he didn't get a good rest for several days.

Yang Zhen originally did not want to take so many warhorses with him to sea, and even sold his own warhorses to buy things. However, in order to win Xu Changyong's support for the strategy of going north by sea, he reluctantly agreed.

But soon after agreeing, Yang Zhen regretted it immensely.

Because after the large group went to sea, it was difficult to replenish fresh water and fodder.

Regarding the supply of fodder, the grain transport fleet on Juehua Island already had a share of the grain and fodder regularly supplied to the Ningyuan garrison. They only needed to reserve a portion of hay and horse feed, so it was not the most difficult task.

However, obtaining fresh water along the way will be difficult.

The advance battalion of about 600 people was actually not too difficult to manage. They would only be at sea for a few days or two at most, so the problem of drinking water would not be difficult to solve.

However, how do Xu Changyong and Zu Keyong solve the problem of drinking water for so many livestock?

Yang Zhen couldn't think of a good solution for a while, so he simply stopped thinking about it and instead resorted to cheating, telling Xu Changyong that either he shouldn't bring so many horses, or if he did, he should figure it out himself.

In just a few days, what solutions could Xu Changyong possibly come up with? He was so worried that his hair almost turned white.

Yang Zhen offered him another option, hoping he would bring fewer horses and turn the Mongol soldiers without horses into musketmen, under Yang Zhen's command.

Just then, Zukeyong also received two hundred ordinary matchlock guns, while Yang Zhen's musket team was suffering from a shortage of manpower.

Doing it this way is actually the best of both worlds.

However, Xu Changyong felt that Yang Zhen's suggestion might be "a weasel offering New Year's greetings to a chicken—with ill intentions," so he firmly rejected Yang Zhen's suggestion.

In the end, he himself went to Fang Guangchen, the son of Governor Fang, and after several attempts, he finally persuaded Fang Guangchen to plead with Yuan Shu on his behalf. He also reserved several large ships for him, specifically for transporting horses and water.

Moreover, in order to get the horses onto the ships smoothly, Xu Changyong led his troops to begin civil engineering work on a coastline at the mouth of the Ningyuan River starting early in the morning of the third day of the third lunar month.

He commanded his three hundred Mongol soldiers to cut down trees, dig ditches, and build platforms. They worked day and night for a whole day to finally build a simple dock, allowing horses to board ships directly via the wooden ramps and platforms they had constructed.

And so, from the first day of the third month to the fourth day of the third month, only a few days passed. However, all those who followed Yang Zhen on his mission to the north to rescue Songshan were working from dawn till dusk, day and night, exhausted to the point that each day felt like an eternity.

When the sun finally set on the fourth day of the third lunar month, the moment to set off north finally arrived. These people, who should have been filled with anxiety, all breathed a sigh of relief. They not only temporarily forgot the risks of heading north, but also felt a long-lost sense of ease.

Finally, I'm leaving Ningyuan!

On the fourth day of the third month, at dusk, the last rays of the setting sun shone on a coastline east of Ningyuan City. Yang Zhen's personal guard captain, Yang Zhan'ao, held high the banner of "Provisional Ningyuan Vanguard Battalion" and followed closely beside Yang Zhen.

Yang Zhen was talking to several people who had come to see him off.

The important figures in Ningyuan City, such as Governor Fang Yizao and Marshal Zu Dashou of Liaodong, did not come to see him off.

Even among Zu Dashou's military officers, not a single one came to see Yang Zhen, Zu Keyong, Xu Changyong, and the others off.

As far as Yang Zhen was concerned, since they weren't familiar with each other anyway, he didn't care whether they came or not.

However, this situation left Zu Keyong and Xu Changyong feeling very disappointed, with Xu Changyong grumbling and expressing extreme dissatisfaction.

When the two of them learned that the governor and the commander-in-chief were not coming, and even their former colleagues Zu Dale and Wu Sangui, who had a good relationship with them, were not coming to see them off, they felt very dejected.

Moreover, after several days of hustle and bustle, everyone was exhausted and too lazy to stand on the shore in the cold wind any longer. So, they took a small boat and boarded their own ship early in the morning to catch up on sleep.

The two of them, with a total of four hundred men and four hundred warhorses, spent a long time hoisting the blindfolded warhorses onto the ships along the dock platform that three hundred Mongol soldiers had painstakingly built over a day and a night.

These four hundred men and their four hundred warhorses alone occupied ten of the twelve large ships in the northward-bound fleet. For the next few days, each of them would live and eat with their warhorse.

As for the vanguard battalion of musketeers, artillerymen, and grenadiers led by Yang Zhenzhi, they didn't have much equipment, mainly firearms, and frankly speaking, they were all small firearms that didn't actually take up much space.

Even the ten most space-consuming tiger-squatting cannons and ten breech-loading cannons could be fully accommodated in the hold of a single large ship.

Zhang Degui's artillery corps, consisting of eighty men on the left and right flanks, also stayed with their twenty cannons.

"Commander Yang! It has been a great honor for me, Yuan, to have met a talent like you in Ningyuan City. My journey to Liaodong has truly been worthwhile! However, even after a thousand miles of travel, we must part ways. Farewell!"

Yang Zhen was deeply moved as he looked at Yuan Shu, the supervisor who had come to see him off. If it weren't for the chance encounter with Yuan Shu, and the fact that Yuan Shu had a great appreciation for him, his plan to sail north by sea would not have gone so smoothly.

In particular, given the extremely short preparation time, even if the plan to travel north by sea were to succeed, without Yuan Shu's strong support, they would likely still be completely wiped out due to their lack of preparation.

Therefore, Yang Zhen's gratitude towards Yuan Shu was truly from the bottom of his heart: "You flatter me, Physician Yuan! I am but a mere soldier, unworthy of such praise! If we can save Songshan on this northward journey, then we will surely meet again in the future! If this journey fails, my loyalty to the emperor and my dedication to serving the country will be enough to comfort our ancestors and martyrs, and I will have no regrets!"

Seeing the sense of melancholy in Yang Zhen's words, as if echoing the lines "The wind howls, the Yi River is cold, the hero departs, never to return," Yuan Shu felt a pang of sadness. After a moment of silence, he suddenly pulled a middle-aged man aside, pointed at him, and said to Yang Zhen:

"This man is named Yuan Jin. He was a subordinate of my late father when he was the governor of Dengzhou and Laizhou. He is currently the garrison commander of the naval camp in Tunliang City on Juehua Island. Although the naval camp does not have any decent warships and its troops are insufficient, so it cannot be of much help to you, it has no problem transporting troops and transferring provisions! He is in charge of the fleet that will transport you north this time!"

Having said this, Yuan Shu turned to the middle-aged man and said, "Brother Yuan Jin! This General Yang Zhen is the only friend I have truly valued since I took office in Liaodong! He will be in charge of this sea voyage north to rescue Songshan! I entrust this task to you!"

Upon hearing Yuan Shu's words, the middle-aged man named Yuan Jin quickly replied, "Young master, rest assured! Your friend is my friend! I, Yuan Jin, would go to great lengths for a friend! Besides, Yang Xie's northward expedition to rescue Songshan is a heroic act that affects the overall situation in Liaodong! It would be an honor for me to participate in this undertaking and await your orders!"

Having said his farewells, Yang Zhen felt he had said enough. Looking at the last rays of the setting sun in the west, he said to Yuan Shu, "Physician Yuan! It's getting late! If you stay any longer, Ningyuan City will be under curfew! Please return!"

Upon hearing this, Yuan Shuchong nodded to Yang Zhen and Yuan Jin, said nothing more, turned around and mounted the horse led by his attendant. From the horse, he clasped his hands in a fist salute to Yang Zhen, turned his horse around, and led his entourage towards Ningyuan City.

The middle-aged man named Yuan Jin watched Yuan Shu and his group walk away, then turned to Yang Zhen and said, "Commander-in-Chief! It's time for us to board the ship!"

"Wait a minute! Just a little longer! Some of my men haven't arrived yet! Once they get here, we'll set off immediately!"

No sooner had Yang Zhen finished speaking than Yang Zhan'ao, the captain of the personal guards standing behind him, suddenly pointed in the direction of the Ningyuan River estuary and shouted, "Sir! They're here! They're coming by water!"

Upon hearing this, Yang Zhen immediately looked at the Ningyuan River not far away. In the blood-red sunset, he saw a small boat drifting downstream and rushing into the river mouth.

With a smile on his face, Yang Zhen turned to look at Yuan Jin, the newly acquainted naval garrison commander of Juehua Island, and said spiritedly, "Brother Yuan! Let's go! We're setting off!"