The New Destiny of the Ming Dynasty

After finally reaching an agreement, the group returned to their respective camps to relay the orders and begin preparations for landing the next day to fight the Tartars again.

After seeing off the preoccupied Xu Changyong, Zu Keyong, and Yuan Jin, Yang Zhen returned to his camp atop the sandbar. But he had no time to rest; instead, he immediately summoned Yang Zhan'ao and Yan San and said to them:

"Tonight is of utmost importance to us! Now that the Tartars have discovered the clearing in front of the reeds, I fear they will send men back to investigate! We must be extra careful!"

At this point, Yang Zhen looked at Yang Zhan'ao and said to him, "Zhan'ao! After we finish eating, you'll have to make another trip! Take a few men and go back to where we're hiding today! Keep watch there! If the Tartars send anyone to check again, come back and report immediately! That way we can be prepared!"

Upon hearing Yang Zhen's words, Yang Zhan'ao thought for a moment, glanced at Yan San, and then said, "My lord! Should Yan San still come with me? You can't be without someone to protect you! Who will steer the ship when we set out tomorrow morning?"

Hearing this, Yang Zhen knew it made sense. He nodded first, then turned to Yan San and asked, "You're familiar with the men in Commander Yuan's naval camp. Which one is the most resourceful and quick-witted? Recommend one, and I'll go talk to Yuan Jin about it!"

Yan San didn't hesitate and immediately said to Yang Zhen, "Sir, do you still remember Guo Xiaowu? He's clever, a good swimmer, and although he's young, he's been making a living on the water for quite some time!"

"In that case! Zhan'ao, you now take my flag and go find Commander Yuan Jin! Tell him it's my order to summon Guo Xiaowu and a small boat. Tonight, you will go to the western reed marshes to stand guard. You will be in charge, and Guo Xiaowu will be your deputy!"

After Yang Zhen finished speaking, Yang Zhanao nodded in agreement, then turned and left, taking Yang Zhen's flag with him, to go and find Yuan Jin to borrow men and boats.

Next, Yang Zhen sent Yan San out to summon all his generals to his hut to discuss the matter of sending troops.

Before long, Zhang Degui, Zhang Chen, Li Lu, and Pan Wenmao arrived one after another.

Yang Zhen recounted everything he had seen and heard during his day's survey of the terrain, his thoughts and reflections along the way, and the plans he had discussed with Xu Changyong, Zu Keyong, and Yuan Jin in the evening. Finally, he said, "You all heard the cannon fire coming from the west just now. The Tartars will definitely launch a fierce attack on Songshan City tomorrow!"

"If we can hold Songshan City tomorrow, our mission will be a success! If we fail, our previous efforts and achievements will be greatly diminished! Moreover, the Tartars are about to launch a fierce attack on Songshan City, and we bear the mission of rescuing Songshan. We cannot sit here and stand idly by!"

After saying this, Yang Zhen looked at his loyal and staunch subordinates, and seeing that their expressions were relatively calm, he continued:

"Although Xu Changyong and I have agreed to send troops ashore after the tide recedes tomorrow morning, we are very different from them. We don't have horses, which makes it easier for us to get ashore. At the same time, once we are ashore, we will be heavily reliant on fortifications!"

At this point, Yang Zhen pointed to the ruins at the edge of the camp under the setting sun, and the trenches beneath them, and continued:

"See that? When we set up an ambush, what we rely on most is not warhorses or muskets, but building breastworks like this and digging trenches like this!"

"Especially these trenches, which we can call battle trenches in the future! They are most convenient for musketeer and grenadier units to use! When Xu Changyong's troops attract the Tartar cavalry, we can hide in the trenches and not have to worry about the Tartars' arrow rain or the Tartars' warhorses charging at us!"

"Moreover, once the enemy's 'Ten Thousand Enemy Cannons' and 'Dragon King Cannons' that we've buried in the sandy soil explode, the enemy will be in trouble, but we'll be fine! Even if they're right in front of us, as long as we get back to our trenches in time, they won't be able to hurt us in the slightest!"

Yang Zhen described to his subordinates a "wonderful" scene of fighting using trenches and breastworks, and then continued:

"Don't worry! As long as we complete all the necessary fortifications before the battle, we'll have a sure chance of victory! If the Tartar forces exceed our expectations and are too numerous to defeat, we still have a chance to retreat unscathed!"

At this point, Yang Zhen squatted down, picked up a dry twig, and drew his imagined "battlefield" on the ground in a crisscross pattern. Then, pointing to several lines leading from the "battlefield" to the reeds, he said:

"If things go wrong, we'll quickly retreat along these trenches into the reeds behind us. Once we're there, the Tartar pursuers won't dare to come after us! If they do, we can set up another defensive trench in the reeds just in case! After we get back into the reeds, we can continue firing to block the Tartars!"

"So rest assured! I, Yang Zhen, will not take risks when I'm confused and don't understand the situation! If I'm determined to fight, it must be because I'm confident! I won't fight if I'm not confident!"

Upon hearing this, Zhang Degui glanced at the others, and they all understood what the others meant.

These people had spent a considerable amount of time with Yang Zhen, and although their time with him varied, they had a fairly good understanding of his past personality. They were all wondering, "Didn't you used to attack recklessly and without any clear understanding of the situation?"

But they only think about it; they won't say it out loud.

Especially after the night raid on the Tartar's supply camp, their perception of Yang Zhen has changed considerably.

Moreover, they were used to obeying Yang Zhen's orders. They had fought in much more dangerous, tough, and arduous battles in the past, so why would they care about this one?

However, at this moment, Zhang Degui, who was familiar with Yang Zhen, finally spoke up and asked, "Sir! Just say what you want to say! We've been following you for so long, when have we ever betrayed you? You tell us what to do, and we'll do it without hesitation!"

The others realized what was going on when they heard this. Even though Yang Zhen hadn't said what he was going to do tonight, it had already made them a little excited.

Yang Zhen didn't keep them waiting long. Seeing that they had asked about the crucial point, he immediately said, "Because we need to prepare fortifications in advance, digging trenches and communication trenches, we must set off tonight! Otherwise, if we wait until tomorrow, after Xu Changyong and the others land, and if they attract the Tartars, and our trenches are not dug properly, and our 'Ten Thousand Enemy Cannons' and 'Dragon King Cannons' are not laid, then we will be in big trouble!"

Upon hearing this, everyone realized that what Yang Zhen had said before were all just his ideas, and only this last sentence was what they were supposed to do, and do immediately.

However, since Yang Zhen had made up his mind, they couldn't object. They all nodded and no one raised any questions.

Yang Zhen was genuinely moved to see his loyal subordinates accept his arrangements without hesitation and trust him without reservation.

However, this wasn't the time to be sentimental. Seeing that Pan Wenmao seemed hesitant to speak, he took the initiative and asked, "Old Pan! Is the gunpowder problem serious? Is there any progress today?"

Yang Zhen knew that everyone had worked very hard these past few days, especially Pan Wenmao, who was busy all day long, either directing a group of people to boil saltpeter or leading a group of people to mix gunpowder, with only one or two hours of rest and sleep time each day.

Yang Zhen didn't want to put his capable subordinates in such a difficult position, but he really had no other choice.

Fortunately, Pan Wenmao was also clear about his responsibilities and how important good gunpowder and gunpowder were to Yang Zhen and his advance battalion.

"Sir! We've managed to produce a batch of good saltpeter today! Once it's completely dry, carefully crush it into powder, and then we can continue making gunpowder! But we'll have to work through the night again tonight!"

After saying this, Pan Wenmao rubbed his face vigorously with both hands with a wry smile, and then said nothing more.

Yang Zhen thought for a moment, looked at him, and said, "The firearms in the camp don't all need to use new gunpowder! The new gunpowder should be used first by the musketeer and artillery teams!"

"Besides, didn't we have a batch of old gunpowder when we set off from Ningyuan?! Let's use it all this time! Those 'ten-thousand-enemy' cannons, 'Dragon King Cannons,' and hand grenades aren't like expensive firearms like muskets or cannons that we're worried about exploding. Those things are meant to explode anyway. Even if we use old gunpowder, as long as the pieces are big, there's enough of it, and we use plenty of powder, it'll still be powerful!"

"That's great! This will save us some trouble. The supplies and ingredients that came with the ship should be enough to last us through this!"