Daqin arrests alchemists, what does it matter to me as a qi refiner?

"I'm here!" Han Zhong stepped out of the line and answered loudly.

"Move the city defense equipment to Guangdefang in the east of the city. I will be stationed there. At the same time, send people to contact officials from counties, states, and counties near Jining to summon civilians to join the defense of the city. I want them to gather in the north city at 10:00 tonight."

"I obey your command!" Han Zhong knelt on one knee again and responded.

"Commander!"

"I have objections!"

As soon as Yang Ling finished speaking, Liu Xian stood up and said.

"Brother Liu, what do you think?" Yang Ling looked at the other party with a smile.

Liu Xian cupped his hands and said, "I think it is inappropriate for you to do this, because you are now the general of Linqu, and it is not appropriate for you to leave. Otherwise, if something goes wrong, Linqu City may be left without a commander."

Liu Xian's suggestions were quite reasonable, and many people nodded in agreement. Some even seriously considered Liu Xian's suggestions in order to find a more reliable solution.

"Haha, thank you for your concern, Brother Liu. But since I have been appointed as the governor, the post of Linqu garrison will be handed over to Deputy Governor Li Yan. I will just be in charge of the command, and the specific matters will still depend on him to complete. It would not be good if I stayed in Linqu."

After hearing what Yang Ling said, Liu Xian felt a little regretful, but he could do nothing about it. After all, everyone has their own aspirations, and not everyone is like Han Zhong, who is eager to follow Yang Ling and serve him every day.

"Then I would like to congratulate the commander-in-chief on his victory." After saying this, Liu Xian bowed and returned to his original position.

Yang Ling waved his hand and said, "Let's adjourn the meeting."

After Yang Ling finished speaking, he turned and walked down the city wall, and the others quickly followed him.

After Han Zhong caught up with Yang Ling, he pondered for a while and said, "General, Liu Xian's suggestion is not bad. I wonder what you think about it?"

"Don't forget what I once told you. What you see with your eyes may not be true, and what you hear with your ears may not be true. You can never believe what you see." Yang Ling said slowly.

"I understand. But Marshal, I think the third plan you mentioned is worth a try. After all, the people here are accustomed to obeying our orders. If they are not allowed to feel a strong sense of belonging, they may develop resistance. Therefore, we must take unconventional measures to turn this resistance force into the people of the Ming Dynasty. In this way, we can control this power and contribute to the revival of the Ming Dynasty." Han Zhong said.

"Well, please take care of this matter. I believe you will do a good job. I will wait for your good news."

"Yes, Marshal, please rest assured that I will fulfill your mission!"

"Okay, go ahead and do your work. I'll go back to my room to rest and wait for your good news." Yang Ling patted his shoulder and said with a smile.

"Go slowly, Marshal!"

Accompanied by his guards, Yang Ling came to the Linqu General's Yamen. Yang Ling rested for a while in the backyard of the yamen, drank a cup of hot tea to warm himself up, then returned to the house, took out paper and pen, picked up the brush and began to write a secret letter.

After writing the secret letter, Yang Ling put it into an envelope, called the guard over, handed it to him and said, "You must immediately deliver this letter to Jining Prefecture according to my instructions. Remember, act secretly and don't disturb anyone."

The guard agreed, then took the envelope and hurried away.

Yang Ling waited in the room for the guard's message. About two hours later, he saw the guard push the door open and report: "General, the letter has been delivered safely, and the messenger has returned safely."

"Well, you brothers have worked hard to make this trip. Go down and have a drink of water and something to eat. We will have to continue working later."

"Thank you, Marshal, for your reward."

After the guards left, Yang Ling waited for a while until the evening when he received a reply saying that Liu Xian had made all the arrangements and would launch the attack at 3 a.m. tomorrow.

At the hour of Mao the next day, Yang Ling and his generals arrived at Guangdefang outside the city early, ready to fight against the Qing army reinforcements from Jining.

Guangdefang was one of the most important fortresses occupied by Yang Ling's troops. It was located on the bank of the Huangpu River, only six or seven miles away from Jining City. Because the mouth of the Huangpu River was just three miles outside the city, they only needed to cross the river to attack Jining City.

The city walls of Guangdefang are relatively newly renovated. The battlements are paved with bluestone and the city gates are built with thick bluestone slabs, which are strong and reliable. The streets and alleys in the city are spacious and flat.

Although the number of residents in the city is small, they are well-organized and there is no chaos at all. It is obvious that Liu Xian has led the people of Linqu to adapt over the years and has maintained a good level of public order.

"Liu Xian, I'm Yang Ling, the general of Linqu. I'm stationed in Linqu by the order of the court. You are the commander of Jining Guard. I want to ask you a few questions. Please answer honestly." Yang Ling stood on the top of Guangdefang and shouted outside the city.

"I'm here!" Liu Xian's voice came from outside the city.

"I heard that there were deserters among the soldiers of Jining Guard. Have you found any yet?" Yang Ling continued to ask.

Liu Xian was silent for a moment and then said, "Reporting to the commander, I have already conducted a thorough investigation yesterday. There are indeed deserters, but they are still being gradually identified. As long as any trace of deserters is found, I will not tolerate it."

Yang Ling nodded in satisfaction and said, "That's good, but deserters can be big or small. If we forgive them easily, it will make the soldiers lazy and conservative. So I decided to severely punish these deserters and hunt down the relatives and followers behind them."

"I will keep the Marshal's teachings in mind!" Liu Xian responded respectfully.

"Liu Xian, I will temporarily detain these deserters. I will judge their crimes after you have verified the facts. Do you have any objections?"

"No, the Marshal can make the decision."

"Okay, then it's settled. Go and comfort the people in the city so that they won't be frightened."

"Yes, I'll take my leave!"

After Yang Ling sent Liu Xian away, he turned to Zhang Xueliang beside him and said, "Brother Zhang, your Northern Expedition suffered heavy casualties this time. I hope you can replenish the troops as soon as possible."

"Don't worry about that. As the elite of the imperial court, the Northern Expedition Army will receive excellent compensation for every lost soldier. We are currently recruiting new soldiers. I estimate that the new organization of our Northern Expedition Army will be ready in a while!" Zhang Xueliang said with a smile on his face.

"Haha, that's great! Then I will join forces with your Northern Expedition Army to kill all the Japanese pirates!" Yang Ling said with great pride.

"Okay! Then we'll drink three hundred cups and not go home until we're drunk."

"Brother Zhang, let's not go home until we're drunk tonight!"

Yang Ling and Zhang Xueliang were having a happy conversation when they suddenly heard hurried footsteps outside, and then they saw Liu Xian rushing in.

"I pay my respects to Marshal Yang and Marshal Zhang." Liu Xian knelt on one knee and bowed loudly.

"General Liu, what happened? Why are you so flustered?" Yang Ling asked curiously.

Liu Xian took a deep breath and replied solemnly, "I just received a letter from a carrier pigeon saying that the Japanese pirates have assembled and are heading towards Jining City."

"The Japanese pirates can't help themselves and are ready to fight." Yang Ling muttered to himself, with a bright smile on his face. He then turned to Liu Xian and said, "General Liu, pass the order immediately and prepare for battle."

After receiving the order, Liu Xian left quickly and then gathered everyone to deploy defenses.

"Everyone, the Japanese pirates are about to start attacking the city. All units must be prepared for battle and do not let down their guard." "I obey your command!" Everyone responded in unison and dispersed to set up defensive fortifications.

But soon, Yang Ling realized that this battle might not be as simple as he had imagined.

It turned out that the Japanese pirates had made more progress than he had expected. They camped five miles outside Jining City and then sent cavalry to raid Guangdefang.

The walls of Guangdefang were strong, but due to the lack of archers, the defenders could only rely on bows and crossbows to repel the enemy's attack. The two sides fought for more than half an hour but it was still difficult to determine the winner.

Just as Yang Ling was preparing to strengthen the defenses in the city, the sound of rumbling iron hooves was heard outside Jining City, followed by the sight of countless torches pouring out from the darkness. In the blink of an eye, the outside of Jining City was illuminated in a bright red color.

"The enemy is attacking, close the city gate quickly!" The soldiers guarding the city were so frightened by the approaching Japanese cavalry that they screamed at the top of their lungs.

"Quick! Close the city gate!" The commander of the defending army also shouted.

Then the gate of Guangdefang slowly rose up, and soon after, dense masses of Japanese pirate cavalry rushed to the city.

The Japanese pirates' cavalry did not stop advancing, but continued to push forward, constantly trampling on the chevaux de frise trenches built by the defenders, while pouring arrows into the defenders' array.

The defenders were unable to organize any decent resistance and were defeated under the crazy attacks of the Japanese pirate cavalry. They were forced to retreat to Guangdefang to avoid the battle.

The defenders of Guangdefang retreated hastily into the city of Guangdefang. The city gate was immediately blocked and all the defenders on the city walls hid.

Although the defenders of Guangdefang were defeated, the city did not fall. There was a road leading to Jining Prefecture in the southwest corner of Guangdefang. As long as the road was guarded, the cavalry of the Japanese pirates could be blocked. Therefore, the defenders only needed to hold on and wait for reinforcements. As for when the reinforcements would arrive, no one could say for sure.

However, the Japanese pirates seemed to know this and did not give the Guangdefang defenders a chance to breathe.

As the Japanese pirates got closer, the people in Guangdefang gradually noticed something unusual and kept gathering in nearby houses or streets to observe the situation.

On the streets of Guangdefang, Japanese cavalry galloped across the city and ruthlessly destroyed any shops they encountered along the way. Their swords chopped down goods, smashed glass windows, and even tables, chairs, and dishes were not spared.

The Japanese pirates' attack was fierce. The defenders in the city were defeated one after another and the city walls were in danger.

"Marshal, what should we do now? Should we send reinforcements immediately?" Liu Xian asked anxiously.

Yang Ling frowned and thought for a moment before saying, "Let's see what the situation is like first."

Then Yang Ling ordered his deputy, "Deputy General Wang, take two thousand troops to support Guangdefang!"

"Yes, sir!" Deputy General Wang responded and left.

When Liu Xian heard that Yang Ling had sent troops to reinforce Guangdefang, he was immediately delighted and said quickly, "Marshal Yang, thank you!"

"Why are you being so polite? I also want to wipe out the Japanese pirates as soon as possible. We brothers should help each other." Yang Ling waved his hand and said.

"Report!" At this moment, another scout ran in and reported in a hurry: "General, the Japanese pirate cavalry outside the city has rushed into the city!"

After hearing this, Yang Ling immediately shouted, "All soldiers, listen up! Get ready to fight!"

"Yes!" Everyone responded in unison, then took out their weapons and lined up neatly in front of the city gate.

Outside the east gate of Guangdefang, Japanese pirate cavalry poured into the city like a tide, quickly occupied advantageous terrain, and began to besiege the city. The Japanese pirate cavalry did not plunder everywhere like ordinary Japanese pirates, but instead headed straight for the tower of Guangdefang.

The tactics of the Japanese pirate cavalry were very clear. They would do their best to capture Guangdefang City before the defenders had time to set up defensive fortifications.

When the Japanese pirates' cavalry were still more than a hundred meters away from the city gate, the defenders had already set up crossbows at the battlements, put crossbow arrows on the bowstrings, and aimed at the Japanese pirates' cavalry, with the arrows flashing with a cold light.

"put!"

Whoosh whoosh!
Following the orders of several archers, dense rain of arrows poured out like locusts. Dozens of crossbow arrows pierced the night sky with a piercing whistle and fiercely nailed the warhorses of the Japanese pirates.

Puff, puff, puff! The pirates' horses screamed and fell down, blood splattered, and the pirates on the horses were crushed to the ground.

The charge of the Japanese pirate cavalry was affected. The leading cavalry waved their scimitars and shouted loudly, trying to stabilize the situation, but to little avail.

"Charge! Grab the food and the gold and silver treasures!"

The commander of the Japanese pirates saw that his cavalry hesitated, so he shouted to encourage them.

The Japanese pirate cavalry were immediately inspired upon hearing this, and continued to rush forward shouting, regardless of the damage from the arrows.

The Japanese pirate cavalry was extremely fast. In a flash, they had approached the city gate and were quickly closing the distance.

The commander of the defending army gave the order decisively, and the soldiers in the city gate immediately pulled the trigger, and countless arrows swarmed out like locusts.

The Japanese pirates raised their shields to block the arrows, and soldiers continued to fall in pools of blood. However, there were too many Japanese pirates, and they kept rushing towards the city gate.

The wooden boards of the city gate could not bear the weight and made crackling sounds, as if they could not bear the pressure and were about to collapse.

"Hold on!" roared the pirate commander.

"Hold on!" The defenders on the city wall shouted loudly and tried desperately to fill the holes with stones and sandbags.

The Japanese pirate cavalry outside the city blew their horns, and more cavalry rushed towards Guangdefang. The number of Japanese pirate cavalry was much larger than the defenders in the city, as many as 70,000 to 80,000 people, including a large number of cavalry.

"Shoot!" the defenders on the city wall ordered again.

Countless arrows were thrown out like a rainstorm.

The Japanese pirate cavalry raised their round shields to protect themselves during the charge.

However, the Japanese pirate cavalry outside the city did not completely rush into Guangdefang, because the defenders had too many bows and arrows, and their infantry soon suffered heavy losses and were knocked off their horses one after another.

The Japanese cavalry had to slow down and raise their weapons to try to fight with the defenders for control of the city and look for opportunities to attack the city.

However, the defenders in the city had been waiting for a long time. Seeing the Japanese pirates' cavalry slowing down, they immediately swarmed out of the city.

Upon seeing this, the Japanese pirate cavalry immediately drew their swords and rode their horses towards the defenders who were leaving the city.

The two torrents collided outside the city, immediately raising a cloud of dust. Countless men and horses neighed and rolled, blood and flesh flew everywhere, and the strong smell of blood filled the air.

Yang Ling stood on the top of the city wall and watched the fierce fighting outside the city. He couldn't help but secretly shook his head and sighed. Although these Japanese pirates were brave and good at fighting, they were still peasant soldiers after all, and were far inferior to regular troops. (End of this chapter)