The Great Rebel at the End of the Ming Dynasty

Chapter 095 First Battle

After Fang Yongzhong and his men sealed off all the city gates, he hurriedly returned to report to Hong Chengchou.

At this moment, the rebel army marching south from the north could be clearly seen from the city walls.

Looking ahead, with his hands shielding his eyes, he saw smoke and dust rising everywhere, and the rebel army marching in a vast and imposing manner.

Two flags were being carried in the procession; one could vaguely make out the character "王" (Wang, meaning king) on ​​one side and the character "苗" (Miao, meaning seedling) on ​​the other.

Hong Chengchou carefully examined the area through his binoculars. The number of bandits who had come was quite large, appearing to be more than two thousand, with a follow-up force behind them, estimating to be around five or six thousand.

However, although these rebels came with great momentum, their marching was not very efficient. The entire army was disorganized, forming a long, haphazard line, and surged directly towards Hancheng, with no visible deployment on either side of the army.

"A thief is a thief!"

Hong Chengchou put down his telescope and sneered.

Although the bandits were numerous and powerful, he was neither worried nor afraid at this moment. On the contrary, he felt an excitement that made him eager to try.

Although it was Hong Chengchou's first time on the battlefield, he was not ignorant of military matters.

As a child, he lived a very difficult life due to poverty. He was fortunate to be helped by his uncle Hong Qiyin, who took him in as a disciple.

Hong Qiyin served as an instructor, and successively held positions such as principal and secretary in the Ministry of Revenue. Later, he was transferred to Yunnan, where he served as prefect of Dali, circuit intendant of Lancang, and circuit intendant of Erhai. He was eventually promoted to provincial surveillance commissioner of Yunnan and acting left provincial administration commissioner.

After retiring from officialdom and returning to his hometown, Hong Qiyin found joy in teaching in the countryside. He discovered Hong Chengchou, a poor young man from his clan, and took him as his personal disciple.

Hong Qiyin was not only skilled in literature but also in martial arts, and he had a deep understanding of military affairs.

Influenced by him, the young Hong Chengchou often read Hong Qiyin's books such as "Records of the Grand Historian", "Zizhi Tongjian", "Records of the Three Kingdoms" and "The Art of War" in his spare time, and showed remarkable insights in discussing history and military affairs with Hong Qiyin.

Therefore, Hong Qiyin specially wrote a sentence back then - "A family horse can travel a thousand miles, and a national stone can weigh ten thousand jun" - to give to Hong Chengchou as encouragement.

In Hong Chengchou's view, these rebel troops were not difficult to deal with; the key was that he did not have enough troops, or rather, he did not have a strong army.

Standing atop the city wall, looking out at the enemy's formation and performance outside the city, Hong Chengchou felt utterly disdainful and even sneered at them.

To put it bluntly, if Hong Chengchou had five hundred... no, just three hundred elite cavalrymen, that would be enough.

Although the invading bandits were numerous, their marching and fighting were completely disorganized and chaotic. Their ranks were arranged in a long, straight line with no cover on either flank.

Faced with such an army, if Hong Chengchou were to send an elite cavalry force to cut directly in from the flank, he could instantly shatter the enemy's formation, then launch a surprise attack, dividing their forces and preventing them from coordinating their attacks. Furthermore, with the infantry in the city bombarding them with artillery, forcing the enemy to break up, the combined forces of infantry and cavalry would surely achieve a crushing victory.

Thinking of this, a smile involuntarily appeared on Hong Chengchou's lips.

But that smile vanished in an instant. Hong Chengchou's calculations were correct, and his assessment of the situation was sound. Unfortunately, where did he get any cavalry? The men he brought, including the original troops from Hancheng, totaled only about thirty horses, and among them was the one he rode himself.

Even if all these soldiers were gathered together, they could only muster about thirty riders at most. Moreover, these men were not elite cavalry; they were merely infantrymen on horseback, far removed from true elite cavalry. Therefore, although Hong Chengchou saw through the enemy's weakness outside the city at a glance and devised the best tactical plan, he simply could not implement it in reality, which was undoubtedly a regret.

When the rebel army arrived in Hancheng, they found the four gates tightly closed and soldiers stationed on the city walls. Instead of rushing to attack the city, they chose a place to organize and assemble their troops.

On the city wall, Hong Chengchou watched with great interest as the rebel army outside the city haphazardly organized its troops, while his gaze also fell upon the two flags.

Based on Hong Chengchou's understanding of the rebel army, he could probably guess who this was, given the "Miao" character on the flag.

Wang Jiayin had a bandit leader named Miao Mei, and if he wasn't mistaken, the "Miao" flag outside the city belonged to him. As for the "Wang" flag, Hong Chengchou couldn't guess it at the moment, since there were quite a few bandit leaders with the surname Wang in the army. There were several, including Wang Jiayin, Wang Ziyong, Wang Zuogua, and Wang Zishun.

It's absolutely impossible for Wang Jiayin.

According to reports, Wang Jiayin is leading the main force of the rebel army in a fierce attack on Yan'an Prefecture. Wang Ziyong is Wang Jiayin's deputy. Since Wu Yangui's death in the battle across the Yellow River, Wang Ziyong has taken Wu Yangui's place in the rebel army.

If it were Wang Ziyong who came, the rebel army would definitely be much larger than the number before them. Therefore, Hong Chengchou deduced that the man outside the city carrying the banner with the character "Wang" was either Wang Zuogua or Wang Zishun. These two men were of similar status to Miao Mei, both being rebel leaders under Wang Jiayin.

In this way, with two banners standing side by side, plus the people who came, the possibility is extremely high. However, no matter who it is, it's the same for Hong Chengchou.

"Liang Jun!"

"exist!"

"Pass down the order: prepare for the defense of the city; all equipment must be in perfect working order!"

"Yes!" Liang Jun quickly responded and hurriedly led his personal guards to make the arrangements.

"Fang Yongzhong!"

"Your humble servant is here!"

"You don't need to go up to the city wall. Just arrange for able-bodied men to assist you from below. Also, how are the things I asked you to prepare coming along?"

"Reporting to Your Excellency, everything is ready," Fang Yongzhong hurriedly replied. "Ten pots of golden broth have already begun to boil, and the timber and stones from the demolished houses have also been brought down to the city walls and can be transported up at any time."

"Well done!" Hong Chengchou nodded in satisfaction.

Although Fang Yongzhong is a bit timid, he is still meticulous in his work.

"Go ahead, don't delay the important business."

"Yes..." Fang Yongzhong responded, hesitated for a moment, and couldn't help but ask Hong Chengchou, "Sir, do you think Hancheng... can be defended?"

"What? Are you scared?" Hong Chengchou's narrow, triangular eyes swept coldly over him. Fang Yongzhong instantly felt as if he were being stared at by a venomous snake, goosebumps rising all over his body. He hurriedly said, "It's not that this humble official is afraid, it's just... it's just..."

"Hehe." Hong Chengchou chuckled, his imposing aura lessening slightly, allowing Fang Yongzhong to finally catch his breath.

Then he heard Hong Chengchou's calm voice: "These mere bandits are nothing but chickens and dogs in my eyes. If they don't come, fine, but if they dare to attack the city, I will make sure they never return!"

"Your Excellency is truly mighty!" Fang Yongzhong hurriedly flattered him. Hong Chengchou was too lazy to argue with him, waving his hand to tell him to hurry up and make arrangements. With a major battle imminent, there was no time for such nonsense.

Hong Chengchou's prediction was correct. The rebel army outside the city had little patience. They had barely arrived in Hancheng, and before all their troops had even assembled, a man rode out from the ranks, reached a spot not far from Hancheng, and began shouting at the top of his lungs towards the city walls:

"Listen up, everyone in the city! My leader just said that the army has arrived. If you know what's good for you, open the city gates and surrender obediently! If you resist to the end, once my army breaches the city, we'll slaughter everyone in this city, men, women, children, and even chickens and dogs, leaving no one alive..."

"Hmph! How arrogant!" Hong Chengchou sneered, his gaze fixed on the loudmouth outside the city, his face icy.

"Who will shoot this child for me?"

"My lord, I'll do it!" As soon as Hong Chengchou finished speaking, a junior officer from the Beijing Garrison eagerly volunteered.

Seeing Hong Chengchou nod, the flag bearer excitedly rubbed his hands together and took out his powerful bow.

He first carefully assessed the distance between them, estimated it in his mind, drew an arrow, nocked it, and then drew the bowstring taut. With a "whoosh," the arrow shot out as the bowstring snapped back, piercing the sky and flying straight toward the man.

The arrow was shot quickly and accurately, catching the man outside the city completely off guard.

However, this cannot be blamed on him. He deliberately chose a place where ordinary arrows could not reach when he shouted, so there should have been no problem. Who would have thought that Hong Chengchou would have such a skilled archer by his side?

The guy was shouting enthusiastically when suddenly a black dot appeared in front of him, flying straight towards him at great speed. The tip of the arrow flashed a cold light in the sunlight, scaring him half to death.

Luckily, he was quick-witted. In order to save his life, he didn't have time to continue shouting. Besides, it was too late to dodge normally at this point. He quickly flipped over and, without caring that he was on horseback, lunged directly to the right.

Even so, it barely avoided a vital spot; the arrow pierced his left arm. His screams only came after he fell from his horse.

The man who had been shot had an arrow stuck in his left arm. His face was full of terror. He screamed and scrambled away, abandoning his horse and running back as fast as he could, clutching his left arm.

Seeing the enemy's disheveled appearance, Hong Chengchou on the city wall burst into laughter. He turned his head to look at the small flag, his expression full of satisfaction.

Although the arrow failed to kill the thief, it wounded him and forced him to flee in such a sorry state, which was enough. Upon witnessing this, the government troops in the city cheered and their morale soared.

Outside the city, the rebel army was furious.

They'd marched south all this way; where had they ever suffered such a defeat? Could a mere Hancheng possibly dare to block their army? Since they refused to surrender, then let's fight! Once we take Hancheng, we'll definitely burn the city's garrison commander alive to vent our anger!