Late Ming Dynasty: Special Forces in 1645

After traveling for another three days, Li Chengming and Li Zicheng's group encountered Li Guo's troops in Yiling.

"Your Majesty, is it really you?"

Upon hearing of Li Zicheng's arrival, a young general hurriedly came out to greet him.

This young general was Li Guoguo, nicknamed "One Tiger," and was Li Zicheng's nephew.

When Li Guo saw that it really was Li Zicheng, he was so excited that he burst into tears and knelt down on the ground.

Li Zicheng stepped forward and helped Li Guo up, deeply moved, patting Li Guo's back repeatedly and saying, "Good nephew, good nephew!"

Although this defeat was not the biggest setback for the rebel army, it was the most dangerous one for Li Zicheng.

The Qing army was far more cunning and fierce than the Ming army.

Even when Li Zicheng was defeated by the Ming army and reduced to only eighteen horsemen hiding in a mountain ravine, he never felt as frustrated as he did this time.

So the moment Li Zicheng saw Li Guo, he felt that the weight that had been pressing on his heart had finally been lifted. With troops in his hands, he had the true nature of a hero!

"Your Majesty, who are these gentlemen?"

Li Guo then saw Li Chengming and his group. Seeing that these people did not seem to be Li Zicheng's subordinates, he asked the question.

Li Zicheng waved his hand and said to Li Guo, "I have decided to relinquish my imperial title. From now on, I am no longer the Emperor of Yongchang! Mr. Li is right. Those who achieve great things in ancient times have never been like duckweed without roots. Building high walls, stockpiling grain, and delaying the declaration of kingship is the true way!"

Then he introduced, "This is Mr. Li Chengming. Without Mr. Li and the others' help, I would probably have perished on Jiugong Mountain long ago. Nephew, you must treat Mr. Li well!"

Seeing how much respect Li Zicheng showed to Li Chengming and the others, Li Guo became curious about the origins of the assault team members, thinking to himself that for his uncle to speak so highly of them, it must be more than just a matter of saving his life.

Not wanting to ask for details at the moment, he could only clasp his hands in thanks to Li Chengming: "Sir, you saved His Majesty. I will forever remember this great kindness. Please come with me, and I will certainly treat you well!"

Li Chengming clasped his hands in a fist salute and replied, "Of course, of course!"

After exchanging pleasantries, the commandos followed Li Guo into the military camp.

Although it was called a military camp, it actually looked more like a refugee camp to the commandos and others!

Apart from a small number of elite soldiers who wore uniforms and armor, the rest of the soldiers dressed much like ordinary civilians. The only difference was that they carried a spear and had a different kind of imposing presence in their eyes.

The makeshift tents set up around the area were mostly occupied by families, including men, women, and children. Different people spoke different dialects, making it as noisy as a market!

The rebel army was called "bandits" for good reason. Wherever they went, they shouted the slogan "Eat their mothers, eat their mothers, if they still can't eat enough, there's the rebel king!" They then took a large number of starving people with them, killed officials, robbed wealthy households, and then moved on to the next place with their families, replicating the same pattern. With just these few simple tricks, they swept through most of the Ming Dynasty and ultimately buried it.

Therefore, it is not entirely wrong to say that the rebel army was like a group of refugees, as it was originally a group of people from the lower classes who could not get enough to eat.

Among them, able-bodied men carrying a long spear were considered soldiers, and often behind each soldier was a refugee family.

Li Chengming figured it would be difficult to find the elite troops he wanted, the kind who didn't have families to support and no worries about returning home.

After traveling for many days, the assault team members also wanted to take a break.

Li Chengming instructed, "Chen Qiliang, you're a clever lad. Go with me and watch over these warhorses. Ask those officers for some fine rations to feed them!"

Chen Qiliang, from the bandit stronghold, had never done anything evil and was quite clever, so they took him with them when they left.

The main reason was his strong desire to leave with them. In Chen Qiliang's own words, "Good sir, I have nowhere else to go. Can I follow you? I know how to serve people; all I need is a bite to eat!"

Li Chengming thought that this kid was quick-witted and there was no harm in bringing him along, so he agreed to let him leave with him.

As for the other bandits who also wanted to leave with Li Chengming, they were driven away by Li Chengming through a combination of scare and intimidation.

Those who committed serious crimes were all killed by Li Chengming. The remaining people were not good people, but they were not inherently evil either. Li Chengming could not kill them all at once, so he had to send them away and let them do good or evil as they pleased.

"Captain, this rebel army?" Commando Liang Zicheng couldn't help but say, "It's just...it's beyond backward; it's practically unlike an army!"

Li Chengming shook his head. He had read so many history books about this era, and he was shocked when he first saw this scene, let alone the other commandos who were not so familiar with this period of history.

Sniper Chen Shaoping sat on a chopping board that appeared out of nowhere and said, "We also saw the Qing army's military bearing from the drone; they were neat and orderly, with strict discipline. Compare that to these rebel troops who look like refugees..."

He shook his head as he spoke.

Observer Yan Huidong, who knew a bit about history, said, "You can't compare them like that. The Qing army was full of soldiers, while most of the soldiers here were family members and poor people who couldn't even get enough to eat. Besides, Li Zicheng had taken the elite troops of the rebel army and wiped them out. Li Guo only had second-line troops under his command."

The communications officer, Zhou Lei, noticed the problem: "Captain, it might not be easy to get the thousand elite soldiers you want. Most of the soldiers here have families with them. Are you going to take their families with you?"

Li Chengming said helplessly, "We'll have to choose carefully then. Although there are many of these family members, they are mostly women and children, with relatively few elderly people. Firstly, the elderly may not want to leave their hometown, and secondly, the elderly may..."

Li Chengming paused here before saying, "They probably died on the way."

Having witnessed countless human tragedies along the way from Jiugong Mountain to here, the assault team members still showed some reluctance upon hearing this.

It wasn't just the elderly; in every battle of the rebel army, in addition to the soldiers, a large number of their families also died!

This is the cruelty of chaotic times, which is why there is a saying: "Better to be a dog in times of peace than a human in times of chaos."

Too much sentimentality is useless. The commandos quickly adjusted their mindset and rested in the tent for a while before someone came to call Li Chengming and the others over.

The messenger politely said to Li Chengming, "The general has prepared a banquet and invites you gentlemen to come over for a chat and a few drinks!"

Li Chengming first waved for someone to go out and wait, then said, "We must be wary of others. We need to keep our equipment and ammunition with us at all times, but it's not appropriate to go out to eat fully armed."

"So, half of us will stay behind, and the other half will take pistols and go over there, keeping an eye on the walkie-talkies!"

The commandos nodded. Although Li Zicheng had been quite polite to them along the way, you can't judge a book by its cover. Li Zicheng had also seen the powerful weapons the commandos carried. Who knew if they would have any inappropriate thoughts after returning to the camp?

So it's best to be cautious.

Observer Yan Huidong said, "Captain, I'll stay behind. I'll deploy a small drone to scout out the details of this military camp later. If anything seems amiss, we'll come to your aid!"

Sniper Chen Shaoping said, "I'm not going either. If anything happens, I'll take over a high ground and eliminate a few enemy generals first!"

Machine gunner He Mingqiu: "Then I definitely can't go. If they all rush in at once, how can we survive without machine gun cover?"

Seeing that the demolition expert also wanted to stay, Li Chengming quickly said, "If you're going, strap some explosives to yourself and come with me!"

Demolition expert Huang Longkun: "....., and he even strapped explosives to his body. I could have just grabbed a knife and not died here."

Li Chengming: "Enough talk! Demolitionists, assault troops, communications personnel, come with me for a big meal. Those who don't go will stay here and starve. Let's go!"

As he spoke, Li Chengming, with a pistol tucked into his waistband and a walkie-talkie in hand, left the tent.

Hopefully, Li Zicheng and Li Guo weren't greedy and out of touch with reality.