Chapter 1160: Retreat
Shizhu Pacification Commissioner Qin Liangyu announced the deployment of troops to relieve Chengdu.
Next, Kaixian Pacification Commissioner Ran Ke announced the deployment of troops to relieve Chengdu.
Following them were the Pacification Commissioners of Zhong County, Wanzhou, Pengshui Miao, Daozhen Gelao, Youyang Tujia, and Enshi...
Hmm? A strange place seemed to have slipped into the mix!
It turned out that while the Enshi region would later belong to Hubei, at this time in the Ming Dynasty, it was still under Kuizhou, Sichuan, specifically Jianshi County, Guizhou Badong County, and Shizhou Wei Military and Civilian Command. Therefore, Enshi was also covered by Gao Family Village's policies, and the Tujia and Miao Pacification Commissioners of the Enshi region simultaneously dispatched reinforcements.
These ethnic minority forces shared a common trait: they were all quite poor.
Consequently, their weaponry was not as diverse or sophisticated as that of Han Chinese troops, consisting mainly of long spears crafted from oiled wooden poles.
Depending on the type of wood used, the spear shafts varied in color.
Thus, there were White Pole Soldiers, Black Pole Soldiers, Yellow Pole Soldiers, Green Pole Soldiers, Brown Pole Soldiers...
Qin Liangyu, leading the White Pole Soldiers, stood at the forefront. She looked up at the vibrant, multicolored Heavenly Lord Banner fluttering above Cheng Xu's head and felt a strange sense of unease. "Instructor He," she remarked, "did you anticipate that today there would be all sorts of colorful spear-wielding soldiers, and so specially prepared a multicolored military banner?"
Cheng Xu spread his hands, initially intending to say, "Of course not."
Then, a sudden thought struck him, and he was startled: Could it be that the Heavenly Lord, years ago, already foresaw the emergence of these multicolored spear-wielding soldiers, and that this vibrant Heavenly Lord Banner signifies His intention to unite all manner of local forces?
The Heavenly Lord was truly formidable! He was indeed a true immortal, one who knew five hundred years into the past, five hundred years into the future, and even five hundred years in between.
Cheng Xu once again marveled at the Heavenly Lord's power!
He was unaware that, nearby, the mass-produced Heavenly Lord was currently taking a spear from a Yellow Pole Soldier, examining it closely from left to right. "Tsk, tsk," he mused, "so there are Yellow Pole Soldiers in addition to White Pole Soldiers? How interesting."
Gao Family Village's five thousand troops, having entered Sichuan, were now fully assembled. The three "idiot" generals, along with Zheng Gouzi, had also arrived, and together with a multitude of multicolored spear-wielding soldiers, they began their march towards Chengdu...——
In Chengdu, the roar of cannons echoed, and the siege had dragged on for several days without a clear outcome.
A grand, ancient capital city like Chengdu was indeed no easy target to conquer.
The ranger forces had set up their cannons and bombarded Chengdu for days, yet the city walls remained majestic and formidable, with not a single breach. Of course, the northern city gate of Chengdu was inevitably riddled with countless craters and pockmarks.
The Chuǎng Wang gazed at the colossal city before him, lost in thought. This city is too formidable; it won't be easy to breach.
And the imperial court possessed many such impregnable fortresses—cities like Xi'an, Luoyang, and Nanjing. As long as they couldn't capture cities of this caliber, they couldn't truly claim to have occupied a region...
In that case, they would simply have to continue their wanderings.
Perhaps, it's time we reevaluated our strategy?
"Chuǎng Wang Brother!" a scout rushed over, shouting, "Er Zhi Hu has arrived!"
"Er Zhi Hu?" Only then did the Chuǎng Wang recall that he hadn't seen Er Zhi Hu for days. After entering Sichuan, it seemed that when they were marching near Chongqing, Er Zhi Hu had led ten thousand men into the mountains, gotten lost, and hadn't been able to rejoin the main force.
He hadn't expected him to suddenly reappear now.
"Quickly invite Brother Er Zhi Hu in to speak with me," the Chuǎng Wang said, pleased.
Shortly after, Er Zhi Hu strode into the Chuǎng Wang's central command tent.
In the distance, cannon fire still boomed intermittently. A large group of ranger forces continued to strategize on how to fill Chengdu's moats, and the rumbling could be heard even within the central command. Er Zhi Hu approached the Chuǎng Wang, cupped his fists, and said, "Chuǎng Wang Brother, I've been searching for you for days and finally found you beneath Chengdu's walls. Ah, it truly hasn't been easy; this Sichuan is no place for people, with mountains everywhere."
The Chuǎng Wang chuckled. "Where have you been these past few days, Brother?"
Er Zhi Hu sighed. "Ah, it's a long story. After getting separated from you, Brother, I got lost, wandering through the mountains until I reached the outskirts of Chongqing. I thought of attacking Chongqing, and had arranged for a laborer inside the city to help me open the gates so I could sneak in. But then, a firearms unit suddenly emerged from the side! Their firepower was too immense. The local ruffians stationed in the Shu Kingdom barracks on Tieshan Ping were utterly decimated by their chaotic barrage, unable to even put up a fight with a single blade or spear before they were blown apart. I realized that army was beyond our strength, so I fled west, and by a stroke of luck, I stumbled upon you, Chuǎng Wang Brother."
Upon hearing this, the Chuǎng Wang was utterly shocked. "That firearms unit has entered Sichuan? Damn it, damn it all! Why do they always keep pursuing us?"
Er Zhi Hu responded, "Huh? Chuǎng Wang Brother, do you mean...?"
"It's them again!" the Chuǎng Wang exclaimed. "There's no mistaking it. They fought us in Shaanxi back then, then in Shanxi, followed by Yunyang and Henan—they're everywhere! And now they've come to Sichuan too."
Er Zhi Hu asked, "Is it the imperial court's Shenji Camp?"
"Definitely not," the Chuǎng Wang said, gritting his teeth. "It has nothing to do with the Shenji Camp. They are enemies of the Jin merchants, who have been secretly supporting us, hoping to use us to deal with them. But this army is even more formidable than the official troops, and I'm not foolish enough to sacrifice my life for the Jin merchants."
Er Zhi Hu was startled. "Then we should retreat?"
The Chuǎng Wang nodded. "We must retreat."
Er Zhi Hu argued, "But endlessly retreating isn't a solution. One day, we'll have to confront this army."
There was merit in his words.
The Chuǎng Wang frowned, pondering for a long time. "Into the mountains! On the Chengdu plains, we are no match for this army. The only way is to retreat north, into the vast mountains between Sichuan and Shaanxi. Firearms units are far less effective in forests than on plains. By using the rugged terrain, we can negate their range advantage. We'll force them into close-quarters combat within various narrow mountain passes, and then, perhaps, we'll have a chance to win."
No sooner had he decided on this strategy than a scout rushed over, shouting, "Chuǎng Wang Brother, the imperial court's reinforcements have arrived! They are carrying a multicolored banner."
"A multicolored banner? It's them!" The Chuǎng Wang made a decisive call. "Cease the assault on Chengdu! Retreat north into the mountains. Using the cover of the forests, we will wear down this firearms unit."
The cannons fell silent!
The ranger forces began their retreat northward.
Inside Chengdu, Ma Xianglin finally breathed a sigh of relief. The provincial governor and the imperial censor, their faces drained of color, slowly regained their composure. They quickly ordered the city gates opened to welcome the Gao Family Village forces into Chengdu.
Only then did the officials realize, to their astonishment, that the ethnic minority chieftains from eastern Sichuan had all arrived in unison.
Aside from Qin Liangyu, this group of chieftains had always kept to themselves, looking after their own affairs and rarely interfering with others' troubles. One could never hope to see them during ordinary battles, yet this time, they had arrived so cohesively.
The provincial governor's face was a mask of confusion. "Why? How were they persuaded to come?"
Comments