Chapter 566: It Might Be the Divine Mechanism Battalion
Xing Honglang's forces and Ma Xianglin's forces continued their westward advance.
Ahead lay Daning County.
Ma Xianglin gazed at the county town ahead with his single eye and let out a long sigh, saying, "Daning County is truly a pitiable place. In the third year of Chongzhen, when the Shaanxi bandits crossed the Yellow River into Shanxi, they had already ravaged Daning County once. Half the town's people were coerced into joining them, and its walls were torn down. I wished to come to their aid, but my forces were insufficient. I could only just manage to hold Puxian. I never expected Zijing Liang to dispatch three hundred fierce bandits to raid Daning at night and seize it with such ease."
Xing Honglang said, "Then the people in this town, I fear..."
Ma Xianglin nodded heavily.
The dilapidated county town was being washed by the heavy rain. With no city walls, the bandit army defending it had no natural defenses. Just like when Ma Xianglin defended Puxian, they had moved a jumble of stones, logs, and broken carts to form a makeshift perimeter outside the town, serving as crude fortifications.
Large numbers of bandit soldiers sat or squatted, sheltering from the rain beneath these jumbled defenses. On the highest rooftops within the town, several large banners were planted. Even in the downpour, a corner of each was caught by the winter wind, fluttering gently.
Ma Xianglin: "So many bandit flags. It seems there's more than one chieftain in there."
He squinted, trying desperately to see with his single eye, but even with his keen vision, he couldn't make out the characters on the flags from such a distance.
Ma Xianglin: "Oh? What is this? It looks a bit like some Western contraption."
Xing Honglang smiled. "It's not a Western import, it's made by our own glass artisans. It's called a 'telescope'."
The name was easy enough to understand. Ma Xianglin was quite curious. He took the telescope, and without needing instruction, immediately understood how to use it. "Heh, this thing is so convenient for a one-eyed man," he thought. "No need to squint the other eye closed anymore."
He took a look with his single eye. "Wow, those flags just got even further away."
Xing Honglang: "It's backwards, backwards!"
Ma Xianglin quickly flipped the telescope around and looked again. "Hmm? This time they're close! Amazing! I can see so clearly! I see a banner with the character 'Wang' on it – that's Zijing Liang Wang Ziyong's flag. And there's another one that says 'Chuǎng Wang', next to it is 'Fan Shan Yao', 'West Camp Eight Great Kings', 'South Camp Eight Great Kings'—"
After scanning around, Ma Xianglin was utterly captivated by the telescope. "This thing truly is a treasure."
It was still raining. Raindrops fell on the telescope, wetting the cylinder. Ma Xianglin hadn't paid it much mind before, but now that he realized it was a treasure, he couldn't bear to let it get soaked. He quickly wiped it on his clothes and respectfully handed it back to Xing Honglang with both hands. "General Xing, this precious item mustn't get damaged by the rain. Please put it away safely."
Xing Honglang was just about to reach out and take it, when she heard her husband, Gao Chuwu, grin and say, "This item, let's just gift it to General Ma."
"Ah!" Ma Xianglin was startled. "Such a wondrous treasure, for me? I wouldn't dare accept it."
Gao Chuwu: "General Ma is a pillar of the nation. In the future, you might even have to go to Liaodong to fight the Manchu. With this, it'll be even more convenient when dealing with them. Please, you must accept it."
Ordinarily, he was quite simple-minded and rarely spoke. Now, he had suddenly become articulate and eloquent. Xing Honglang and the others nearby immediately understood: the Heavenly Lord was teaching him what to say. The Puppet Heavenly Lord had been perched on Gao Chuwu's shoulder, making it easy to whisper instructions into his ear, word by word.
If it were ordinary valuables, Ma Xianglin would have refused to accept them even if it meant his life. But this telescope was no ordinary item; it genuinely offered immense help in battle. Ma Xianglin simply couldn't resist such a temptation. He reluctantly accepted it, carefully tucked it away, and then clasped his hands in salute, saying, "Today I have received such a great gift. I, One-Eyed Ma, have no way to repay it. This kindness, I will remember."
"A trifle, a trifle," Gao Chuwu grinned. "Next, we should reclaim Daning County."
Ma Xianglin frowned, asking earnestly, "General Xing, attacking a city is not like defending one; the difficulty is considerable. Moreover, the defending force numbers over a hundred thousand. How do you plan to attack? What strategy should we use?"
Xing Honglang: "Strategy? We don't need any strategy! We'll just charge straight in."
Ma Xianglin: "..."
Fine, if it's a frontal assault, then a frontal assault it would be. He was nicknamed "Zhao Zilong," "Little Ma Chao," and "One-Eyed Ma." When had he ever shied away from direct combat?
Gripping his white pole spear tighter, he shouted, "Sichuan White Pole Soldiers, we're going in hard! We'll lead the charge!"
The Sichuan White Pole Soldiers responded in unison, "Yes, sir!"
No sooner had he finished his oath, than Lao Nanfeng poked his head out from nearby. "General Ma, please don't charge forward recklessly by yourself again. The moment you rush out, our firearms will have to cease fire to avoid friendly fire. Your charge would only aid the enemy."
Ma Xianglin: "..."
His wife, Zhang Fengyi, burst into hearty laughter.
Lao Nanfeng continued, "And Sichuan White Pole Soldiers, don't charge upfront either. Just protect our firearm troops, and guard against any enemy charges. That'll be enough."
Hearing this, Ma Xianglin felt a slight displeasure.
The Sichuan White Pole Soldiers were famously valiant throughout the land, fearless in battle, sacrificing themselves for the country. They had never flinched. What sense was there in "don't charge upfront" or "protect the firearm troops"?
He truly wanted to argue back.
But he had just accepted a treasure from them. To immediately turn hostile and berate them now seemed rather improper.
"Never mind, never mind," he conceded. "Just for the sake of the telescope, I'll listen to their arrangements for this battle."
Ma Xianglin: "Very well! I shall observe how General Xing intends to fight this battle."
Xing Honglang waved her hand. The Gao Family Village Militia began to prepare...——
Meanwhile, in Daning County town.
Zijing Liang Wang Ziyong stood atop a tall roof. He had now reverted to using his real name, Wang Ziyong, no longer relying solely on his alias. This, of course, was because after inheriting Wang Jiayin's followers, he had become the greatest rebel chieftain under heaven, and had consequently become a little conceited.
With an army of over two hundred thousand at his command, why should he still use a fake name?
As for his "nine clans," heh, what use were they? If the imperial court killed them, then so be it. He'd just take another wife and sire a new nine clans.
Wang Ziyong's mood was not particularly good at the moment. Watching the Gao Family Village Militia drawing ever closer outside the town, he felt the pressure mounting.
"That army outside, they are inexplicably strong," Wang Ziyong told the bandit chieftains around him. "They're all using firearms, and their firearms shoot far and hit hard, even usable in the rain. What kind of strange army is this?"
From behind him, Chuǎng Wang (Gao Yingxiang) emerged, whispering, "It might be the Divine Mechanism Battalion from the capital."
The South Camp Eight Great Kings popped his head out. "I heard the Divine Mechanism Battalion had long since declined, how could they still be so powerful?"
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