Southern Ming Rebel Army

On the riverside outside Haining County, people were busy like ants, carrying or shouldering supplies with all their might.

On the river, countless bamboo rafts were quietly parked on the river bank like long dragons. The breeze blew over, and the bamboo rafts swayed gently, making a creaking sound.

On the other side of the river, several Qing soldiers and scouts were stopping to look into the distance, and after a moment, they left one after another.

A laborer who was carrying the items asked his companion in confusion: "What's in these? They won't let us see them, and they won't tell us."

The companion also had some doubts, and then said uncertainly: "Maybe it's food."

"That's not right. How can the grain be so heavy? Has it been soaked in water?" At this moment, his companion's hand slipped and the sack fell down. What flowed out from the gap was not grain, but sand. The two looked at each other in shock, then quickly closed their mouths, their doubts growing stronger.

Outside the city of Shaoxing, in the Qing army camp, Bolo listened to the scout's report with some doubt. Has this thief Meng gone mad? He actually dared to cross the river under his nose. Did he really think he could defeat him fairly after winning two battles?

"Something seems amiss," Bolo whispered, and then asked the scout, "Can you see if there are any armored soldiers preparing to cross the river?"

The scout nodded and said, "Reporting to the commander, there are armored soldiers, but from a distance, I can't tell how many there are."

After pondering for a moment, Bolo ordered: "Pass the order, the whole army is ready, all soldiers are not allowed to enter Shaoxing City again, the whole army returns to the camp, the scouts continue to investigate, and report immediately if there is any unusual movement."

Huang Sheng'er looked at the soldier beside him with some confusion, and then whispered: "Brother, didn't you say you were going to Haining? Why do we seem to be heading in the wrong direction? Why are we heading south?"

"Soldiers have to eat lunch, soldiers have to eat lunch. You are a soldier now, so you can go wherever you are told to go. Why do you think so much and worry about nothing?" the soldier said impatiently.

Huang Sheng'er thought about it and suddenly he got some idea. Isn't this just like a street thief? He bumps into a passerby's shoulder and takes the wallet away when he is not prepared. Is this a diversion? Huang Sheng'er thought about it.

At night, fishing at the ferry.

Night fell over the wide river, and a thin mist was floating over the sparkling water. The army was lined up on the river bank, the soldiers holding weapons, their expressions solemn and determined. Their armors gleamed coldly in the moonlight.

Meng Jun, Han Xiong, Meng Bizhi, and dozens of their subordinates were staying by the river. Meng Jun looked at the river and said firmly: "Success or failure depends on this one move. I will be the first to cross the river."

All the generals were horrified and tried to dissuade him. Meng Jun shouted, "If I don't cross first, how can I show my determination? In the past, the Overlord fought nine battles and won nine victories, defeating Zhang Han and bringing down the powerful Qin. Today I am willing to follow his example."

Han Xiong grabbed Meng Jun's armor and said sternly, "The commander-in-chief is the leader of an army. If he loses, the mountains will collapse. I, Han Xiong, am willing to lead the Kewu Town to cross the river first. If there is any change, it can still be saved."

All the generals advised him, and Meng Jun finally nodded and said, "In this case, Brother Han, the important task of crossing the river first will be entrusted to you."

The order to cross the river was given, and the flags were flying. The first boat left the river bank first and broke through the waves. Soldiers stood on the side of the boat, holding the oars tightly and paddling hard. Then, one boat after another followed, forming dozens of long dragons on the river.

In order to cross the river, all nearby boats were requisitioned, even the flower boats from brothels were forcibly requisitioned. A large number of trees were cut down to make simple ferries, and the river was densely packed with boats.

Han Xiong boarded the front boat, which was an ordinary ferry. With the breeze blowing on his face, Han Xiong was worried, wondering if Bolo knew about it. Now that things had come to this, he had no choice but to move forward. Han Xiong was a scholar, and as the sage said, "One should not speak of strange things, supernatural powers, or demons." But now Han Xiong was praying for the protection of the gods, hoping that everything would go well.

The generals at the bow shouted loudly, asking them to speed up. Their voices echoed on the surface of the river. Batch after batch of boats began to load soldiers and head towards the other side of the Qiantang River.

Finally, the first batch of boats arrived at the other side. The soldiers quickly disembarked, assembled in formation, and marched forward with vigorous steps.

As soon as Han Xiong stepped onto the shore, he immediately shouted an order: "Captains of all teams, gather your soldiers immediately!"

As his orders were given, the soldiers who landed looked around nervously. There was some confusion for a moment, with soldiers searching back and forth from time to time.

Han Xiong frowned when he saw this. He had made so many contingency plans, but when it came to actual action, there was still some confusion. After all, some ships were faster and some were slower.

Although there was some confusion, they were quickly assembled. Following Han Xiong's orders, the soldiers slowly formed a line. Then Han Xiong ordered the soldiers to move forward to leave space for the subsequent landing troops.

Time passed by minute by minute. It was already the morning hour and the sky was slightly brighter. The last batch of soldiers from Kewu Town had already boarded the ship. Meng Jun immediately ordered: "Heavy armor soldiers, scout battalion, board the large ship, Wuxing Town board the small boat."

Although the river here is not too wide and cannot be compared with the Yangtze River and the Yellow River, there are still soldiers falling into the river or their boats capsizing. The soldiers in armor are almost like having stones tied to their bodies and sinking. No matter how good they are at swimming, it is of no use. Those who are lucky are pulled up by their teammates behind them.

It's time.

Meng Jun was relieved to see that a large number of soldiers from the three towns had already landed and some small cannons were already in the middle of the river. He immediately ordered: "Changlin Town, board the ship!"

At this time, several scouts came running from a distance. They were Huang Cheng's scout cavalry. One of the three was shot in the back. When the soldiers along the way saw this, they all felt nervous. Everyone knew that the battle was not far away.

The scout rushed to Han Xiong, who was shocked and asked hurriedly: "What's going on? Is it the Eight Banners Army or the scouts?"

"Return to Handong Town. They were Tartar scouts. There were five of them. We lost three of them. One Tartar died and one was injured," the scout said quickly.

Han Xiong nodded and continued, "Have you found out where most of the enemy troops are?"

"Return to Tong Town, no," the scout shook his head.

After the scouts retreated, Han Xiong murmured, I hope it's not too late.

About two hours later, the Eight Banners scouts finally rushed back to the Qing army camp. Bolo was overjoyed and said, "Let's cross the river for a decisive battle. I admire Meng Jun's courage. Send out the order, and the whole army will set out to catch fish at the ferry."

From the Qing army camp, the eight banners emerged one after another, with 12,000 men from the Zhenglan Banner, 5,000 men from the Mongolian Yinlan Banner, and 50,000 men from the Green Camp. They rushed towards the place where Meng Jun landed with great momentum.