Chapter 19: The Mad County Magistrate

  Han Youniang had never seen the beacon fire, but she had heard of it countless times and naturally knew what it meant to light up the beacon tower. The cruelty and savagery of the Tartars were like the Japanese devils in people's eyes today - a group of bloodthirsty beasts.

  Yang Ling was more surprised than frightened, having been influenced by too many films and TV dramas of later generations. In his opinion, the so-called "Tartars" were all rough and bold Mongolian warriors who were good at hospitality and generosity, perhaps brave in battle, but how could they be demonic soldiers who had lost their humanity?

  However, since they are still enemies of the two dynasties, he will not naively think that if someone breaks into the city, they will show mercy to their own subordinates. At this time, he hastily pulled up Han Youniang's hand and rushed towards the county government office.

  At this time, the city gate was closed tightly, and the residents inside had already rushed out of their homes due to the beacon fire. The Tartar prince Bayan Mergen led his troops in a surprise attack on the border, but it wasn't the first time they did so. However, most of the time they didn't dare directly attack strongholds like Jixing Post Station. They didn't have the capability to carry various siege engines over long distances for such high-walled cities. The Tartars wouldn't risk huge casualties just to plunder a city.

  However, small-scale battles usually do not trigger the use of beacons to send messages. Tonight's situation seems a bit unusual, as if the passes have been directly attacked, and these civilians can't help but feel panicked.

  The county magistrate of Min County, although doing a sloppy job as an official, was originally a military man. As soon as he heard the news that the Tartars had arrived, he rushed out from the back hall without even having time to put on his clothes properly.

  The garrison here has only 260 people, led by two battalion commanders. According to the rules of the Ming Dynasty, once a war breaks out, the highest administrative official in the local area is responsible for all military actions, and the military officer has no independent command power. Therefore, the county magistrate of Minxian has become the commander of the war zone garrison again.

  County Magistrate Min was an old hand at this, and immediately sent out scouts to contact the nearest post stations to gather more information. At the same time, he dispatched men on horseback to hurry back to the prefectural city to mobilize troops. Meanwhile, he also ordered someone to notify Commander Ma of the postal station, requiring all military personnel in the postal station to wear knives and guns, ready to provide support at any moment.

  Yang Ling watched in amazement, to be honest, these days he had been handling all the big and small affairs on behalf of County Magistrate Min, who was like a puppet himself. Yang Ling was grateful for County Magistrate Min's kindness, but deep down he looked down on him, yet unexpectedly, when it came to handling military matters, he was quite methodical.

  The county magistrate of Min County finished assigning tasks with a flourish, then let out a breath, adjusted his clothes and hat, and shouted to the back: "Where's my armor and big knife? Bring them quickly!"

  He turned his head and glanced at Yang Ling and Han Youniang, who was standing behind him, and smiled: "Damn it, this year is going to be a bad one. These Tartars came to plunder on New Year's Eve, they must have frozen many cattle and sheep in the big snow this winter, and they won't leave until they've had their fill of food."

  At this time, two servants came out, one carrying a lock and the other carrying a large knife. Because this was a third-rate county with harsh conditions, Magistrate Min's family members were not by his side, so it was usually these few servants who attended to him.

  Min County Magistrate didn't see outsiders, so he took off his official robe on the main hall and started changing clothes. Han Youniang saw this and hastily retreated to the side room to avoid suspicion. Min County Magistrate put on his armor, wore the county official's robe outside, stretched out his hand and snatched a big knife from the hands of the family servant.

  That knife weighs over forty pounds, and yet the County Magistrate of Min holds it in one hand. With a flick of his wrist, the heavy blade spins rapidly in his hand before slamming into the ground with a loud crash, sending shards of brick flying everywhere. Yang Ling's expression changes suddenly; although he knew that the County Magistrate was a military officer by origin, he had not expected him to wield such a heavy weapon.

  The county magistrate of Min County was dressed in a dignified manner, but as soon as he moved, the black tassels on his hat swayed back and forth. He also carried a sharp large knife, looking quite out of place. However, he didn't seem to care at all, and with an air of authority, he shouted towards the hall: "Go! Follow me up to the city wall!"

  A group of yamen runners who arrived one after another in the courtyard responded with a loud noise, and a large crowd of people rushed out in a hurry.

  Yang Ling walked out of the county government office, and the four red lanterns at the gate swayed gently in the wind and snow. At this time, the snow fell more densely, and large flakes of snow fluttered about, filling the sky and earth with a vast whiteness.

  The county magistrate led a group of people with swords and guns, rushing towards the city gate in big strides. The streets were filled with countrymen running around like ants on a hot pot, they didn't even have time to react.

  On the south gate, nearly a hundred officers and soldiers were watching intently below. This gate was opposite the main road from north to south, and the east and west gates were built on the mountain, making it unsuitable for war horses to gallop. Even if the Tartars came to attack, they would find it difficult to assemble large cavalry troops to attack the east and west gates, which were relatively safer, so only 70 officers and soldiers were stationed there, with a battalion commander riding back and forth on horseback to inspect.

  The garrison commander stood on the city wall, looking down at the county magistrate who had come in person with his men. He hastily ran over and knelt down on one knee, clasping his fists together: "Your humble servant Jiang Bin pays respects to Magistrate Min."

  Magistrate Min waved his hand and said, "Never mind, never mind, Commander Jiang, have the Tartars arrived?"

  Jiang Bin smiled and said, "Sir, the light from the lanterns doesn't reach down to the city wall, so it's not very clear. However, judging from the enemy's torches, there are at least a hundred of them. But please rest assured, sir, with me here, they won't be able to climb up."

  Yang Ling carefully sized up the general, this General Jiang was extremely handsome, looking to be only in his early twenties, with a robust build and a fierce expression, seemingly not taking the Tartar soldiers seriously.

  Yang Ling couldn't help but nod secretly. In his previous impression, the soldiers of the Great Ming were extremely weak. Otherwise, with the Great Ming Emperor leading the expedition personally, an army of 500,000 would not have been defeated by the Wa La Army led by E Chen, and even the emperor himself was lost. He also thought that when the officials of the Great Ming heard the name of the Tartars, they would turn pale with fear. Unexpectedly, here a county magistrate and a garrison commander were both commendable for their bravery.

  Mr. Min burst out laughing and said, "Let's go take a look." The group climbed up to the city wall, leaned against the parapet, and looked down at the bottom of the city. All they saw was darkness below, with over a hundred torches moving about, and strange cries echoing from the foot of the city wall.

  Below the city gate, a single arrow shot out, and more than 20 torches gathered outside, illuminating several figures in the distance shouting something towards the top of the city. Minister Min sneered: "A mere hundred or so people think they can take down my Ji Ming Yi?"

  "Sir, one of the scouting horses we sent out was shot dead by the Tartars, and the one that escaped came back to report that there is a fierce battle going on in the direction two and a half li away, it seems the Tartars are attacking there."

  Erli Ban, Wuli Tai and Xunluo Pu are the closest passes to Jiming Yi on both sides. However, if they want to attack Juyong Guan further, they must break through from Jiming Yi. So when Minister Min heard that the Tartars were mainly attacking Erli Ban, he knew that this time they would have a hard time crossing in the cold winter and regarded the Great Ming as their warehouse, coming to plunder grain and grass.

  So the Tartar soldiers under the city, eighteen or nineteen out of ten, only blocked the city gate to prevent troops from being sent to rescue the two-and-a-half-li relay station. Min Wenjian had not moved his sword and spear for more than two years, and his arms were so idle that they itched. As soon as he saw the Tartars galloping under the city wall, shouting and yelling, he was overjoyed. He turned to Jiang Baotong and said: "Jiang Baotong, prepare a war horse for me, and send forty men with me to drive out the Tartars."

  Jiang Ba had long wanted to lead a charge out of the city, but without an order from his superior he did not dare act rashly. Upon receiving the command, he was overjoyed and hastily ordered his subordinates: "Bring two warhorses at once! Archers on the city wall, prepare to provide cover! Liu and Li, the two scouts, lead your troops and follow General and me into battle!"

  Yang Ling was surprised to see that they dared to leave the city with only forty people, and Wang Ban, who was originally a personal soldier of Lord Min in the army, saw Yang Ling's surprised expression and chuckled: "Master Yang must not have seen Lord Min's bravery. Lord Min was originally a thousand general under General Du, the commander-in-chief of Datong, and his martial arts were unparalleled. When he eliminated the mountain bandits before, Lord Min only led a small team of soldiers and killed more than a hundred bandits on Niutou Mountain, causing them to flee in disarray. This time, we will surely win with our flags held high."

  Two cavalrymen and forty small schools went out of the city to fight against these Tartar cavalry riding high-headed horses? Yang Ling felt a little uneasy, but thinking that the 40-jin heavy chopping knife was used by Min County as if it were an arm, this big knife swung up at least one or two hundred jin, that martial arts must be quite good, even if not enemy come will not have any danger, just slightly put down his heart.

  The city gate creaked open, and the small city had no moat or drawbridge. On the gate tower, twenty archers drew their bows, waiting in ambush. Below the city, Commander Min and General Jiang led forty government soldiers to charge out of the city.

  In the forty-strong small school, there were twenty knife-shield hands and twenty long-gun hands, forming a goose-wing shape on both sides. Jiang Bin reined in his war horse and was about to shout loudly at the Tartars in front of him, but unexpectedly, Mr. Min controlled the reins with one hand, holding a big knife and walking slowly on the road for a moment, suddenly shouting loudly: "The bandit chief has offended my border, come quickly to die under my knife, charge!"

  He shouted and raised his knife over his head, his feet kicked the stirrups, and he galloped forward like a flying horse, rushing straight towards the more than ten Tartars who were wearing slanting animal hides and carrying bows and arrows on their backs.

  Jiang Bin's eyes widened in shock, he knew that this Mr. Min was originally a thousand general under the command of Du Ren Guo, the commander-in-chief of Datong, who was known as "Du Frenzy". He never bothered with tactics or strategies on the battlefield, nor did he understand how to coordinate multiple troops. Usually, as soon as the enemy and his army made contact, he would immediately lead a swarm of soldiers in a chaotic charge, fighting in a melee, wielding a heavy 60-jin broadsword that few people could withstand. He was truly a force to be reckoned with, capable of taking down anyone who stood in his way.

  However, the two armies clashed, and it was not a personal heroism that could decide the outcome of the battle. Although he was bloodthirsty and fond of war, and had personally killed many Tatar soldiers, he always suffered more defeats than victories. Every time he encountered defeat, he would furiously slash his helmet and armor to vent his anger. Unexpectedly, this County Magistrate Min and his General were of the same ilk.

  Jiang Bin's heart was racing with anxiety, if the county magistrate had any mishap, he would not mind losing his ten heads. At this moment, he didn't care that all his subordinates were infantrymen, and immediately swung his sword and shouted loudly: "Follow the master, kill for me!" Jiang Bin had extraordinary strength, excellent horsemanship, and wielded two three-foot-long cavalry sabers, holding a saber in each hand, relying solely on his legs to control the horse. He chased after County Magistrate Min Wenjian in a frenzy.

  Forty small schools followed suit, chasing after the horse's buttocks in a frantic pursuit. The night was dark and the road was slippery, with thick snow accumulated everywhere. In an instant, all formations disappeared without a trace, turning into a group of scattered soldiers.

  The county magistrate rode a good horse, an arrow's distance away, and in the blink of an eye he had already charged forward. He loosened the reins, raised his knife with both hands, and rushed straight towards the young man in his twenties surrounded by the crowd, "Capture the leader first", this county magistrate who didn't know many characters understood this principle.

  Under the torch, the young man wore a tiger skin robe, with a bow on his shoulder and a long spear across the horse's saddle. His mission was to harass the garrison inside the city, intimidate them, and prevent them from leaving the city to rescue the officials at Erliuban Inn, which was an extremely easy task.

  As soon as he arrived at the foot of the city, he ordered his men to hold two torches each and ride horses in the open space below the city, making a show of force to intimidate. He stood here shouting loudly, and he had some knowledge of the defending troops beforehand, thinking that there were not many soldiers in the city, and the county government was controlled by civil officials, who would not dare to come out of the city to fight under this situation, so he was a bit careless.

  It was also destined that he would be unlucky, today encountering the crazy county magistrate under the command of General Da Tong, who not only came out of the city to meet the enemy but also charged over alone. This Tartar general stood at a distance of one arrow from the city gate, and the soldiers under Min Wenjian came out just to fight, without even lighting torches. He was standing here completely unaware that the government troops had already come out of the city. Although County Magistrate Min shouted loudly below the city wall, because he himself was also loudly scolding the officials on the city wall, he didn't hear clearly and thought it was the Ming government soldiers on the city wall shouting back at him.

  At this time, the heavy snow was falling all over the sky. The magistrate of Min County rode a black horse, wearing a green official robe, and blended in with the night color. Although the horse's hooves were swift, all around were the Tartar cavalrymen galloping wildly, making empty threats. They wouldn't have noticed him until the Magistrate of Min County charged forward, holding his sword with both hands, and killed his way into the crowd. It wasn't until they were under the light of over ten torches that they realized this person was from the Great Ming.

  One side was completely unprepared, the other was galloping at full speed. As they drew near, the young man in the tiger skin robe suddenly widened his eyes in shock. He saw a horse rushing towards him, with a rider wearing a Ming dynasty official's robe. The front of the robe had a small yellow bird with outstretched wings that could be seen clearly. The rider was also wearing a black hat with a brim that shook up and down at an extreme angle, yet it still hadn't broken despite its elasticity.

  This official had a dark, swarthy face, small eyes staring round in amazement, and a full beard which covered his cheeks; his two hands were raised high in the air in a strange posture.

  The horse was as swift as lightning, and for a moment more than a dozen Tartars were unable to react. It wasn't until the pair of strangely postured hands swung down heavily towards the young man in the tiger robe, striking his shoulder and sending him tumbling to the ground, that the torches illuminated a gleam in mid-air, and they discovered that this Ming dynasty official was holding a large, coldly glinting chopping knife.