I was living at the end of the Ming Dynasty, and I dealt a brutal blow to the Eight Banners!

The reason why Tangchi Fort was built here back then was probably because the people below wanted to curry favor with a certain official in Gaizhou Guard.

Because the walls and buildings inside Tangchi Fort were built in a very simple manner, only the house where Zhang Jingchuan lived was made of relatively fine materials.

For no other reason than that there is a hot spring here.

This residence was built specifically for this hot spring.

Lord Zhang was soaking in the hot spring with his upper body naked, while Chen Yuanyuan nestled in his arms, occasionally putting a segment of orange into his mouth.

Chiyoko knelt beside the Marquis, massaging his shoulders, which the Marquis thoroughly enjoyed.

Behind the hot spring, there is a Japanese screen embroidered with a scene of Pinglu Hou wielding the Overlord Spear and charging into the Qing army formation.

Wu Guozhong, Xu Guoan, Cao Mingsheng, after Zheng Chenggong entered,

Stand ten paces away from the screen.

They bowed in unison:

"I pay my respects to the Marquis!"

Although there are embroidered paintings on the screen, if you look closely, you can still see the figure on the hot spring side through the screen.

However, none of the four looked up; instead, they kept their heads slightly lowered, their gazes directed downwards.

Their entry here was not only a symbol of their status, but also a sign of the Marquis of Pinglu's trust in them.

"Is everything ready?" Lord Zhang asked leisurely.

Wu Guozhong glanced at the three people on his left and right and said, "As long as the Marquis gives the order, the soldiers can set off north tomorrow."

"What's the situation on the Haizhou Garrison side?"

"Reporting to Your Excellency," Xu Guoan said, "there has been no movement from the Haizhou Guard."

“There are less than 50,000 Qing troops in Haizhou City, while we have gathered more than 60,000 troops here. If I were Hauge, I would not easily launch an attack,” Lord Zhang said with a smile.

“Father,” Zheng Chenggong said thoughtfully, “the Qing army couldn’t possibly have been unaware of our large-scale troop buildup. We should be cautious.”

With this remark,

Wu Guozhong, Xu Anguo, and Cao Mingsheng all turned to look at Zheng Chenggong.

That look in his eyes was like he was looking at a fool.

Xu Anguo pursed his lips and whispered a reminder, "If you can see it, how could the Marquis not know?!"

Zheng Chenggong was momentarily speechless.

The water splashed.

Lord Zhang turned around, rested his arm on the edge of the hot spring, and chin on his arm, looking at Zheng Chenggong through the screen.

He smiled and said:

"Mingyan, if you were the Qing army commander in Haizhou City, how would you deal with it?"

Zheng Chenggong's throat moved slightly, and he pondered for a moment before saying, "Haizhou City is the first line of defense for Shengjing. My godfather has gathered all the troops under his command and marched north. If I were the commander-in-chief in Haizhou City, I would certainly not attack without authorization. Defending the city is the best strategy."

"As long as I can keep my godfather occupied in Haizhou City, that will already be a great achievement. As for how to defeat the enemy, that's a matter for the princes in Shengjing City to worry about."

“Yes, well said!” Zhang Jingchuan nodded, then looked at Wu Guozhong and Xu Anguo and said, “Then let the First Army and the Second Army perform this play in Haizhou City.”

“Your subordinates understand!” Wu Guozhong and Xu Anguo nodded in acceptance.

"Do you really understand?" Zhang Jingchuan asked sarcastically.

Wu Guozhong glanced at Xu Anguo and said with a smile, "This time, I'll act as a prostitute and make sure that Hauge can't get enough of me!"

“Yes,” Xu Anguo chimed in, “If Hauge dares to stick his head out, I’ll give him a good whack with a rolling pin!”

"Hiss—" Wu Guozhong gasped, looking at Xu Anguo with a mocking tone, "Wouldn't that mean Hauge would be childless and without descendants?"

Xu Anguo frowned and quickly explained, "I meant the head on top!"

Zhang Jingchuan shook his head with a wry smile, looked at Zheng Chenggong, and said, "Mingyan, you and Cao Mingsheng will stay by my side and head north together."

Are they all heading north?

Zheng Chenggong was startled. Who would guard Gaizhou Garrison?

Before he could finish speaking, his godfather said, "Alright, it's the Winter Solstice today, let's all eat dumplings together. After we finish, everyone go back and get ready, we'll set off early tomorrow morning!"

"Alright!" Xu Anguo said with a smile, "The dumplings will be in the pot right away!"

……

Zheng Chenggong returned to the camp with a heavy heart.

When Miyamoto Musashi saw Zheng Chenggong return, he followed him into the camp.

Seeing his worried expression, I couldn't help but ask:

"Have you received a combat mission?"

Zheng Chenggong nodded, then shook his head.

"What do you mean?" Miyamoto Musashi couldn't help but ask.

Zheng Chenggong then recounted everything that the Marquis had instructed them to do.

"I don't understand, what kind of battle is this?" Zheng Chenggong felt it was absurd. "My godfather has gathered all his troops and marched north. If the Qing army sends an elite cavalry force to flank us, who will defend Gaizhou Garrison?"

“I just saw your lord’s personal guard. The bags hanging on their saddles looked like they had naan bread and dried meat.”

Miyamoto Musashi reminded him.

Reminded by Miyamoto Musashi, he remembered the guards he had seen inside the castle; the bags hanging on their horses were all bulging.

Cavalrymen would carry naan bread and dried meat into battle, but they wouldn't carry much if they were going into battle with a large army, at most two or three days' worth of rations. But that bulging bag contained at least ten days' worth of rations.

Moreover, this is the Royal Guard Battalion, which under normal circumstances does not have independent combat missions.

This is highly unusual.

The next morning,

It's just dawn.

Xu Anguo's Second Army and Zheng Chenggong's Japanese soldiers stationed at Tangchi Fort began to assemble and await orders.

When Zhang Jingchuan, wearing a red cloak and holding the Overlord Spear, led the elite cavalry of his personal guard out of the fortress.

The soldiers of the Second Army, in perfect unison, struck their chests with their right fists.

"boom!"

The sound was like muffled thunder, resounding and powerful.

"May the Marquis be victorious! May the Ming Dynasty be victorious!"

"May the Marquis be victorious! May the Ming Dynasty be victorious!"

All the soldiers were shouting at the top of their lungs.

The winter wind was biting cold.

But the eyes of the 20,000 Liaodong soldiers around them burned with a fiery intensity.

Her cheeks were flushed with excitement.

Shouts

It wasn't very neat; it was like endless waves, one after another.

But the sound and the momentum were truly awe-inspiring.

Even the five thousand Japanese soldiers on Zheng Chenggong's side were all horrified.

Miyamoto Musashi's eyes were momentarily glazed over; Japan had been defeated by such a Ming army.

No injustice!

Zheng Chenggong was deeply moved and could not contain his emotions.

Although he was leading Japanese soldiers, the atmosphere had been built up to this point, and he felt uneasy if he didn't shout something.

"Onboard!"

Zheng Chenggong raised his arms and shouted.

Then,

The five thousand Japanese soldiers behind him also began to shout passionately:

"Onboard load! Onboard load! Onboard load!"

When everyone is chanting the same slogans in the same tone, any slight difference in tone or words will stand out and seem out of place.

The shouts of the five thousand Japanese soldiers caused the soldiers of the Second Army nearby to frown and look at them with hostility.

Lord Zhang, who was enjoying the cheers of thousands of soldiers, heard the Japanese soldiers shouting "Banzai!"

I almost fell off my chair!

……