Chapter 290: Everyone Arrives
Chapter 286 of "The Great Ming in the Box" opens with: The setting sun stretched the mountainâs shadow long and thin.Li Daoxuan held a Chinese meat... See what unfolds next!
The setting sun stretched the mountainâs shadow long and thin.Li Daoxuan held a Chinese meat pie in his left hand while his right pressed buttons outside the boxânorth, south, east, and westâstudying the terrain around Duzhucun for amusement.
Studying it, he soon spotted Cheng Xu and Xing Honglang seven or eight li south of the village. Each led a group, marching directly toward Duzhucun.
Seeing his little people always filled Li Daoxuan with joy. His finger tapped the ânorthâ button, scanning the path ahead of them for any sign of ambushed enemies, beasts blocking the way, or similar dangers.
The babysitting Deity was utterly devoted when protecting his own.
He tapped northward the entire way. The roads held no beasts or ambushers. Tap, tap, tap, and the view shifted back to Duzhucun village itself.
Just then, Li Daoxuan couldnât help but utter an âEh?â
There were people in Duzhucun!
And they were clearly not officials. Judging by their attire, they looked like⌠mounted bandits!
Roughly one hundred twenty men, each with a horse. Naturally, they werenât mounted now. Their horses grazed nearby while the men sprawled haphazardly across the village center, resting.
Li Daoxuan thought to himself: Whatâs going on? What bunch is this now?
Interesting!
This could lead to some inexplicable event unfolding.
His fingers frantically jabbed the buttons again, shifting the view. Soon, just over a li north of the village, he saw a large troop of officials. They flew no banner, but there was no doubtâthis time, it had to be Wu Zimian arriving.
A good show was coming!
Li Daoxuan lowered the lid over the box, making the low cloud representing him vanish. He entered full âspectator mode.â
Zao Ying and her one hundred twenty followers had rested for over an hour, eaten some rations, and finally regained their spirits. Being chased by Hong Chengchouâs household troops had terrified them out of their wits.
Who knew an official in Shaanxi territory could be so vicious!
Zao Ying stood up, slapping the dirt off her backside. âAlright, rested enough? Up! Get ready to move.â
Her subordinates began rising to their feet. At that moment, a lookout posted at the village entrance sprinted toward them. âLeader, leader⌠A big troop of officials one li north! Theyâve got tons of warhorses with them too.â
Zao Yingâs heart clenched. âHong Chengchouâs men caught up again?â
Hearing this, Li Daoxuan was mildly surprised: Oh? So you were the ones fleeing Hong Chengchouâs chase?
The lookout answered, âNot Hongâs people. But they deliberately hid their banner. Didnât identify their unit. Canât tell who they are.â
Zao Ying snorted a laugh. âOfficials, marching with banners furled? Seems this lot isnât any respectable sort either. Must be up to some shady business. Carrying loads of horses⌠I get it. Yansui General Wu Zimian. Wordâs been going around for daysâheâs selling a batch of warhorses.â
Li Daoxuan nearly laughed aloud. Was Wu Zimian that notorious? Xing Honglang had guessed it was him the instant horse-selling was mentioned. Now this mounted bandit leader hears âhorses,â and immediately figures it out too.
Wu Zimian was practically famous among both sides of the law! How could an official infamous for such shady deals not fear punishment from the court?
The lookout whispered, âBoss, should we avoid them?â
Zao Ying scoffed, âWhy avoid Wu Zimian? Heâs no Hong Chengchou. âGeneralâ? More like âSleazy Merchant Wu.â Letâs just talk to him. Maybe buy a few horses off him straightaway.â
Zao Ying and her group decided to stay put, settling down to wait right there in Duzhucun.
Before long, Wu Zimianâs large forces arrived.
This fellow was still quite cautious. The main army camp did not enter the village; he only sent a small team in first. Seeing Zao Ying and her companions, the leading servant shouted loudly, âWhat is three plus two?â
Zao Ying thought to herself, âPassword, huh? Good thing I already knew Wu Zimianâs contact password. This was no secret in the jianghu.â She replied loudly, âThirty-two.â
The servant was overjoyed. âGood, youâre the buyer.â
Zao Ying said, âHehe, I heard you have a batch of military horses for sale.â
The servant said, âExactly, no need for idle talk. Five hundred horses for thirty-five thousand taels of silver. Hand over the money, and we hand over the goods. Our general values honesty in business.â
Zao Ying said, âThe price is a bit highâŚâ
The two began bargaining.
Li Daoxuan watched this from outside the box and couldnât help but feel amused. âThis is a bit unfair, isnât it? I was the one who spotted these warhorses first; I want them! I can send small people all kinds of supplies; only living things are impossible to send. Where did this female horse thief come from? Poaching business?â
This was intolerable!
However, Li Daoxuan wasnât cruel enough to kill someone just because they snatched his business. Killing for such a reason would be too unreasonable; he couldnât do it.
His mind started churning. He thought, âShould I reach down and float Xing Honglang over here, so all three parties can bargain and compete for the deal?â
As this thought crossed his mind⌠suddenly, more people appeared from the northeast of the village!
And this time, there were many people, up to thousands. Their attire was chaotic: some wore officialsâ armor, others had on tattered burlap clothing, and still others wore silk merchant clothes, but with no merchant-like grace at allâthe outfits were clearly ill-fitting.
Li Daoxuan exclaimed in surprise. He saw that this new group flew a large flag with the big character âWangâ written on it. Wang Zuogua of Yichuan had arrived!
His arrival here wasnât strange. Since the peasant uprising in the early Chongzhen era, Wang Zuogua had been active around Huanglong Mountain.
Wang Zuogua looked completely different from when he first attacked Bai Family Fortress. Now, his aura seemed deeper, and his clothes were higher qualityâno longer ragged, but a set of Mountain-patterned Armor worn by a general, impressive and imposing.
Previously, he gave a sense of sheer ferocity, but now, that ferocity was tinged with a hint of craftiness.
He turned to his trusted general Miao Mei and asked, âWu Zimian is just up ahead?â
Miao Mei chuckled. âYes! He stopped at Duzhucun ahead and appears to be trading warhorses with someone in the village.â
A smug smile flashed across Wang Zuoguaâs face. âWu Zimian is worthless; his men are insignificant. But if we charge recklessly, heâll surely flee with the warhorses. Our two legs canât catch up to four.â
âMiao Mei, Feishan Hu, Big Honglang, each of you take one division. With my main force, surround Duzhucun from the four directions: north, south, east, and west. Ensure we seize those five hundred warhorses.â
The names of Big Honglang and Xing Honglang differed by only a single character. If the eunuch had chosen the names personally, he wouldnât have made two characters in the book so similar, but both were historical figures.
The eunuch could only sneer at the naming skills of those involved in the peasant uprising towards the end of the Ming Dynasty.