Late Ming Dynasty: Starting with the overthrow of the county magistrate, a rebellion was launched to

"You wretched beast! Have I mistreated you these past few days? How dare you speak so rudely! Come here, cut his tongue out first!"

After Wang Chengzhu was arrested, he was taken directly to the Shaoyang County government office for questioning. Zhang Dayue grew increasingly angry, feeling that his sincere efforts had been met with such treatment. With a furious shout, he ordered Wang Chengzhu to be tortured thoroughly before anything else could be done.

Meanwhile, the signing room was surrounded by core members who had started the uprising with Zhang Da. Each of them had a grim expression and fierce eyes, vying to pry open his mouth and cut off his tongue.

"My lord, spare me! Spare me! It's all a misunderstanding! A huge misunderstanding!"

Seeing this, Wang Chengzhu was terrified. He immediately let out his last cry, struggled to his knees, and kowtowed repeatedly, his forehead hitting the bluestone slab with a loud thud.

"These past few days in Shaoyang, I have been reporting to Your Excellency the truth every day about your efforts to pacify the people and rectify county affairs. Every word I have spoken is praiseworthy; how could I possibly say a bad word about you? Didn't I show you everything before I reported to the emperor? Now, the imperial court's troop deployment is certainly to suppress that traitor Zhang Xianzhong; it's merely passing through Baoqing Prefecture, and has nothing to do with you, Your Excellency!"

Wang Chengzhu cried and tried to explain, but Zhang Da only glanced at him coldly, then looked up at Wang Tui beside him, his voice hard and cold.

"Tell me, is what you've discovered true, as he said?"

Since the initial pacification of Shaoyang County, Zhang Da dared not gamble on whether the imperial court would easily tolerate him. He had long ago dispatched Wang Tui, a meticulous and agile man, disguised as a peddler, to Changsha Prefecture and Xinhua County of Baoqing Prefecture to gather information.

Wang Tui took a step forward and said in a deep voice

"Brother, I disguised myself as a peddler and stayed in Changsha Prefecture for six days and spent four days in Xinhua County. I saw it clearly! The Changsha Prefecture's garrison has dispatched 500 soldiers, and also drawn 500 old and weak infantrymen from the Changsha and Hengzhou garrisons, as well as 500 civilian laborers, for a total of 1,500. They are all under the command of Assistant General Huang Chaoxuan. They are all armored and armed with guns. Their carts and horses are loaded with grain, muskets, and ladders, and they are rushing towards us."

Five hundred light cavalry under Zhou Fengqi, the deputy general of Yunxiang, were stationed outside Xinhua County. The light cavalry sent out scouts towards Shaoyang every day...

As soon as Wang Tui finished speaking, the signing room fell silent; Wang Chengzhu's explanations abruptly ceased. Zhang Da stepped forward and kicked Wang Chengzhu in the chest.

"Such a big commotion, am I Zhang Xianzhong?! Or is Zhang Xianzhong hiding in my Shaoyang County?"

Wang Chengzhu was kicked so hard he foamed at the mouth and lay paralyzed on the ground, unable to move. In his mind, he cursed Song Yihe, the governor of Huguang, and Huang Shu, the imperial inspector, to the bone.

If you're going to quell the rebellion, then quell it! What did you send me here for?

Just as he was panicking, Zhang Da squatted down, grabbed his neck, and said through gritted teeth, "I'm asking you, do you want to live, or do you want to die?"

Faced with a life-or-death situation, Wang Chengzhu dared not be defiant and hurriedly said, "I...want to live! This humble official...wants to live! Lord Zhang, spare my life! This humble official is willing to serve you like a dog or a horse!"

If you are heartless, don't blame me for being unjust!

"If you want to live, that's easy." Zhang Dasong released his grip and said coldly, "Tell me everything about the court's military tactics, the strength and weaknesses of your troops, and their habits of attacking cities and forming ranks. Furthermore, since you work in the governor's office, you know the Ming army's scouts and supply line guards. I'm asking you to help me plan the defense of the city. If you hold it, I'll spare your life; if you fail, you'll die before me, and you'll die a very, very horrible death..."

Desperate to survive, Wang Chengzhu immediately nodded repeatedly.

"Understood, understood. This humble official will certainly speak frankly and without reservation!"

Upon seeing Wang Chengzhu surrender, Zhang Da said no more and immediately gave orders.

"Everyone, follow me to the main hall of the county government for a meeting! We must decide on a strategy to defend against the enemy today!"

Soon, the main hall of the county government office gradually filled with people.

Since the uprising began at the end of August, the core members of Zhang Daqi's uprising had never been gathered together so completely—manpower was needed to control the four gates of the county town, the granary, the armory, and various places in the countryside. Everyone was doing their own job and rarely met.

Upon hearing that government troops were coming to suppress them, everyone dropped what they were doing and followed Zhang Da straight to the main hall of the Shaoyang County government office.

Inside the main hall, the crowd stood around the desk on both sides. Wang Tui had already spread the news that the imperial court had sent troops to besiege the area. The crowd whispered among themselves, and the atmosphere in the hall was extremely urgent and tense.

This time, it wasn't the easily defeated county garrison troops, but rather the governor's troops dispatched by the governor's office, along with garrison troops and even light cavalry from the Yunxiang border army...

Just as everyone was discussing, Zhang strode into the main hall and went straight to the main chair behind the desk, but did not sit down, but just stood quietly.

When Zhang Da arrived, the hall fell silent instantly. All the core brothers' eyes were focused on him, their eyes filled with longing—this seventeen-year-old boy had single-handedly planned the uprising and captured Shaoyang. Now, at this critical moment, could he still come up with a plan to defeat the enemy?

"Looks like everyone's here. It's been a long time since we've all gathered like this. You all look a bit heavier, but you all look great."

Contrary to his earlier angry and furious demeanor, Zhang Dayi first greeted them with a friendly smile.

"It's all thanks to Dalang's good fortune."

Everyone answered in unison

"Then let you all bask in my good fortune again today."

Zhang Da was also pleased to hear this, so he half-jokingly said the same thing, and then took out a piece of paper covered with writing from his pocket.

"Previously, we were just distributing land and money. We planned to wait until the county was stable before deciding on the official titles for everyone. Unfortunately, things didn't go as planned... Oh well, since everyone is here now, let's just make you all temporary generals for now."

After saying that, Zhang Da called out the names one by one from the list.

"Zhang Wen was appointed as the overall commander of the army; Zhou Wenqu was appointed as the chief coordinator of military affairs and logistics, working jointly with Sun Min; Li Er was appointed as the garrison commander of the east gate; Wang Tui was appointed as the scout supervisor; Sun Min was appointed as the supplies supervisor; Li Dan, Liu Binghuo, and Sun Liu were appointed as the garrison commanders of the south, west, and north gates respectively; Zhou Gou was appointed as the head of the local militia integration..."

Zhang Da recited the instructions incessantly. Because he had considered this matter for a long time, he had divided the responsibilities in great detail. Whether it was the former head of the household, the landlord, or even his own tenants, almost everyone received a temporary official position bestowed by Zhang Da.

"Alright, that's roughly it. Does anyone have any complaints or objections?"

In fact, after capturing Shaoyang, Zhang Da had already been thinking about the matter of rewards and honors. Everyone was somewhat aware of their own official positions, and besides, with the Ming army about to attack, no one cared about such things anymore.

Seeing that everyone was silent, Zhang Da nodded and continued.

"Very well, the official positions you have been granted today are stamped with the seal of the Prefect of Baoqing Prefecture. They are not high-ranking, and they are only temporary. However, if you can defend this city this time, I will have that old emperor, who is thousands of miles away, personally bestow upon you high-ranking official positions with his own seal! Bring Wang Chengzhu up to me!"

Having received Zhang Da's message, Wang Chengzhu walked into the main hall. This time he wasn't bound, but under the watchful eyes of the peasants he used to look down upon, it was no easier than being bound.

"In front of us, tell us again about the Ming army's strengths, weaknesses, and shortcomings. If you utter even a single falsehood, we will cut off your limbs right now and hang them in the four gates of Shaoyang."

Wang Chengzhu dared not conceal anything and quickly spoke the words he had already thought of.

"Lord Zhang, Huang Chaoxuan's five hundred Fubiao soldiers are brave but greedy and eager for quick victory. If they fail to capture the city after a long siege, their morale will collapse. The five hundred garrison soldiers are old and weak and are afraid of fighting. Not to mention the laborers. As for Zhou Fengqi's five hundred light cavalry, they are good at field battles but not at mountain sieges..."

"You bastard! I don't need you here to calm the troops down. Do you even want your tongue anymore?"

"Well... Ming army always started their sieges with crossbows and muskets, then sent garrison soldiers to carry ladders and lead the charge, followed by the provincial military battalion and militia to fill the trenches... They also loved to besiege cities and cut off supply lines, which were then guarded by only two hundred garrison soldiers, making them very weak..."

……

After Wang Chengzhu stammered for half an hour, Zhang Da and the others discussed for several more hours before finally determining some useful information.

"I'll trust you this time. There are dozens of firearms in the armory. Go and teach those who want to learn. As long as the city can be defended, this government will count your credit."

After Wang Chengzhu was driven away, the remaining people in the main hall were all Zhang Da's own men.

"Huang Chaoxuan is eager for quick success and instant benefits, and the East Gate is a flat road, which is convenient for him to deploy his troops and set up siege formations. I am sure he will attack the East Gate first - this is our main battlefield in the future."

Zhou Wenqu pointed to the East Gate on the map.

"The government troops are powerful and brave; we are mostly unable to stop them. I contact... hold three positions and release one, abandon external forces and delay internal ones, in order to wait for a change in circumstances!"

Zhou Wenqu's suggestion was adopted by Zhang Da and the others. Now that the general strategy had been decided, it was time to start arranging the specific tactics.

Zhang Da was more familiar with this matter.

So everyone bent down and crowded in front of the map, letting Zhang Da point it out.

From the east gate to the north gate, and then to the south and west gates, each location had a clear plan. Occasionally, someone would interject with a question, and Zhang Da would patiently explain. Everyone would either nod in agreement or add details, but no one raised any objections.

"Zhang Wen, you lead a hundred elite soldiers to guard the county government office. Charge wherever the situation is dire. If the east gate falls, you will be our last resort... Li Er will lead seven hundred elite soldiers to defend the crucial east gate. If the east gate falls, Shaoyang will surely fall... Wang Tui, you lead twenty scouts..."

The county government office, cramped due to the large number of people, was slowly giving rise to a formal military operation.