Chapter Sixteen: Fighting Author's Year Bright Moon ??txt ?? Traditional Chinese

  In the 14th year of Zhengde (1519), on July 22nd, both sides had assembled.

  On the night of the 22nd, Wang Shouren decided to attack first, and the time was set for the next day.

  On the twenty-third day, they arrived, but what was astonishing was that for a whole day, Wang Shouren's army did not make any moves, and the soldiers did not seem to want to go into battle. The lakeshore area was quiet and peaceful, with no signs of war.

  It's not surprising, according to Wang's habit, you want him to fight openly in the daytime, that's very difficult, launching a night attack is his personal style, this time is no exception.

  In the dead of night, the attack began.

  Wang Shouren personally commanded the battle, Wu Wending led the vanguard with a single horse, leading thousands of elite soldiers to advance towards the Ning Wang army camp under the cover of night. However, just as they were halfway there, they unexpectedly encountered the Ning Wang army, who were holding torches and forming neat rows, clearly having grown impatient from waiting.

  There's no way, Commander Wang has made too many sneak attacks, everyone knows he's cunning and treacherous. Duke Ning isn't a fool either, he anticipated that Commander Wang would launch another night raid, so he was well-prepared in advance.

  Looking at the dense enemy in front of him, Wu Wending was very calm and gave a decisive order - to retreat. The Ning Wang army naturally would not let go of this fat meat that was delivered to their doorstep, Zhu Chenhao immediately ordered a general attack, with tens of thousands of soldiers rushing towards Wang Shouren's camp along the west bank of Poyang Lake.

  Wang Shouren's army was defeated one after another, and he couldn't resist. Just as his side was about to win a complete victory, Zhu Chenhao began to feel complacent. But in an instant, he suddenly found that his own army had fallen into chaos!

  Wu Wendi's retreat is a trap.

  Wang Shouren analyzed the current situation and determined that the rebel forces were too strong to be defeated, so he intentionally sent Wu Wending to lead a night raid with only one purpose - to lure the rebels away from their own camp.

  And on the rebels' route of attack, he had already prepared a gift beyond their expectations.

  This gift was the five hundred ambushing soldiers led by Hu Yaoyuan, the vice prefect of Ruizhou. They had been hiding on both sides of the road. When Wu Wendian's army came fleeing, he did not respond to them. When the rebel pursuing troops arrived, he also did not intercept them. After all the rebels had passed through, he ordered his troops to launch a surprise attack from behind.

  The rebels were hot on their heels, but just as they thought they had escaped, a group of mysterious people suddenly appeared out of nowhere, hacking and slashing in the dark of night, leaving everyone bewildered and plunged into chaos.

  At this time, Wu Wending in front also stopped running, he reorganized his troops and killed again. Under the attack from both sides, the rebel army was in a state of panic and could only divide its forces to resist.

  But their troubles had only just begun. The two enemies in front and back were still not dealt with, when suddenly a killing shout came from the left and right wings of the army!

  This can be regarded as a souvenir given by Wang's commander. He was afraid that the rebels would not die cleanly, and ordered Dai De and Xu Xuan, the magistrates of Linjiang and Yuanzhou, to lead thousands of soldiers each to ambush on both sides of the enemy army, waiting for the opportunity to launch a simultaneous attack.

  In the pitch-black night, they were surrounded by people and beaten from all sides. The rebel brothers couldn't hold on any longer, those who ran fast escaped, while those who couldn't escape jumped into the lake. The rebels suffered a crushing defeat, losing their first battle.

  After the battle, the rebels had over 2,000 casualties and countless wounded. The number of people who jumped into the water and went missing has not been counted yet.

  Ning Wang failed and led his army to retreat to the east bank of Poyang Lake's Bayi Brain.

  Liu Yangzheng and Li Shi, who considered themselves smarter than others, finally learned a lesson from Commander Wang's ferocity and felt that things were not going well. They took the initiative to find Zhu Chenhao and racked their brains to offer suggestions, this time proposing retreat.

  However, Zhu Chenhao, who had always listened to and followed the advice of these two incompetent military strategists, refused.

  "I won't run away." He replied calmly.

  "When we rise up in arms, there is no turning back! Now that things have come to this pass, I will die in battle rather than retreat!"

  This mediocre and average-intelligence vassal king has finally regained the dignity left in his blood by his ancestors.

  The military strategists fell silent, they also understood this truth, it's just that the enemy they faced was too terrifying.

  Wang Shouren was skilled in the use of military tactics, with many cunning plans. In that era, his wisdom was almost unmatched. His will was firm, his heart as still water, and he could not be bought or compromised - seemingly a person without any weaknesses.

  Zhu Chenhao gazed coldly at the two silent and humiliated figures before him, finally opening his mouth to speak:

  "I have a way."

  Liu Yangzheng and Li Shishi suddenly lifted their heads.

  "Because I have something that Wang Shouren doesn't."

  What Zhu Chenhao said is money.

  Wang Shouren's secret to recruiting soldiers was to issue blank checks, promising high-ranking positions and rich rewards after the rebellion was put down. Zhu Chenhao, on the other hand, was vastly different; he gave out cash, real gold and silver.

  He brought out the wealth he had accumulated over the years and gathered those bandits who were greedy for money. He was very clear that to these people, words like benevolence, righteousness, and sacrificing one's life for justice were nonsense; as long as they were given money, they would risk their lives!

  Facing those greedy eyes and the treasure scattered all over the ground, Zhu Chenhao loudly declared:

  "Tomorrow is the final battle, everyone must fight with all their might!"

  Let's talk about something practical.

  "The one who takes the lead in charging forward will be rewarded with a thousand pieces of gold!"

  "A hundred pieces of gold will be awarded to anyone who is wounded!"

  His subordinates immediately became enthusiastic and morale was boosted, all expressing their willingness to fight to the death. (Money is a hard truth)

  Zhu Chenhao also issued an order at the same time:

  "The garrison troops of Jiujiang and Nankang have withdrawn from their defenses and are rushing here to reinforce!"

  After losing Nanchang, Ji'an and Nan'gan were his only bases, but things had reached the point where these could no longer be maintained.

  The coffin is all out, Wang Shouren, let's end this!

  The Final Battle

  In the 14th year of Zhengde (1419), on July 24, the second battle began.

  Zhu Chenhao attacked first.

  Wang Shouren stood on a distant arrow tower watching the battle. After the great victory of the previous day, he was already confident about the outcome of this war.

  So when the enemy came to attack, he was not flustered at all and still ordered Wu Wenheng to lead the vanguard to meet the enemy. In his view, this was just an ordinary attack and there was nothing special about it.

  But the soldiers who were fighting were surprised to find that this batch of enemies was indeed special, each and every one of them seemed impervious to swords and guns, many of them with bare upper bodies, holding knives and charging forward without dodging, their eyes seemingly shining with a golden light, their faces revealing crazy expressions, as if they had written on their faces the words "come and chop me".

  It's perfectly normal. Charging a thousand dollars for a charge and having a hundred dollars for an injury is more reliable than medical insurance. Who wouldn't do such a stable and risk-free business?

  It turned out that empty checks and loyalty reports were no match for real gold and silver, wealth and glory. After several charges, Wang Shouren's vanguard collapsed completely, with dozens of casualties, and the central army also began to fall into chaos.

  Wang Shouren's butt had just warmed up in his seat when he saw this chaotic scene, and he immediately shouted:

  "Where is Wu Wendi?"

  Wu Wendi was just in the position of the front army not far away, and the front line could not withstand it. He didn't panic, but picked up his sword and walked quickly to the forefront of the battle line, facing the retreating soldiers.

  Under everyone's astonished gaze, he drew out his treasured sword, pointed it at the ground and suddenly let out a loud shout:

  "This place is the boundary, those who cross it will be beheaded without pardon!"

  That's what they say, but on the battlefield, preserving one's life is most important. Some soldiers didn't know about General Wu Zhi's ruthlessness and continued to flee across borders.

  But Wu Zhi Fu, who was notorious for his ferocity, was not a name in vain. He not only had a loud voice and great courage, but his swordsmanship was also quite impressive, killing seven or eight fleeing soldiers in a row.

  In front of them were the rebel troops, behind them was General Wu's forces. After some deliberation, the soldiers decided to go and fight the rebels. After all, if they died in battle, the imperial court would at least recognize their names and give them a few pieces of silver as consolation money. If they died under General Wu's sword, they wouldn't get anything.

  The soldiers then regained their spirits and re-entered the battlefield, and the situation finally stabilized. The Wang Shouren army gradually gained the upper hand and began to counterattack. However, at this moment, a loud noise suddenly came from the lake! Countless stones and iron balls fell from the sky, and the vanguard was unprepared, suffering heavy losses.

  Mr. Zhu Chenhao is not entirely a useless person, he also observed from a distance, seeing that the situation was not good, and immediately ordered the naval fleet anchored in Poyang Lake to open fire on the shore, implementing firepower suppression.

  This kind of three-dimensional combat method, which combines the navy and army, is really effective. Not only does it cause massive casualties among soldiers, but it also has a strong psychological deterrent effect. After all, having iron balls and stones falling from the sky every now and then is indeed terrifying.

  The battle once again fell into a stalemate, at the critical moment, a superhero appeared.

  When many soldiers lost their will to fight and were preparing to retreat in fear, they were astonished to find that amidst the hail of arrows and stones, one man stood firm, grasping his precious sword, unmoving and unwavering, like a mountain.

  That person was Wu Wending.

  In an environment where arrows are flying horizontally, people's usual actions are to crawl and roll around in a flurry, relatively speaking, Wu Zhi's shape is quite handsome, in today's words, it's "cool".

  But on the battlefield, being "cool" comes at a price. Soon Wu Zhi Fu got his comeuppance, an enemy cannonball landed near him, igniting his whiskers (flammable material), extremely embarrassing.

  But a hero is a hero, and as the saying goes, a man should be tough on himself. Wu Zhi was quite ruthless in this regard. According to historical records, when his beard caught fire, he remained calm and composed, not moving an inch (his beard was burned, but he didn't flinch), continuing to command the battle.

  Here's a sentence, although the history books didn't mention what happened after the fire in order to maintain Mr. Wu Wenheng's image, I still believe that Mr. Wu put out the fire in time, after all, it was just for show, and there was no need to let the big fire burn his beard off. It's worth noting that although Mr. Wu was ruthless, he wasn't stupid either.

  The power of a model is indeed infinite, Wu Wendi's heroic actions greatly boosted the morale of the soldiers, they were united as one, braving the enemy's artillery fire, advancing bravely, blocking the enemy's attack, and the situation stabilized again.

  One side had a famous general commanding the troops, with high morale, while the other side had medical assistance and was not afraid of being beheaded. The two armies were locked in a stalemate on the shores of Lake Poyang, fighting with all their might, back and forth, with extremely heavy casualties on both sides.

  At this time, the sky was already near dusk, and the fight had reached this point. Both sides were exhausted, and victory or defeat was only a line away, just to see who could hold on until the last moment.

  Zhu Chenhao had already used up all his strength, but what comforted him was that Wang Shouren on the opposite side was also about to collapse. After all, he had more troops and warships, as long as he could hold on, he would surely win a great victory.

  But just as he was gazing out at the lake's surface on the opposite shore, he suddenly discovered a serious problem - Wang Shouren also had waterborne artillery ships!

  It's strange, why didn't he counterattack when the warship fired at him earlier?

  Before he could figure out what was going on, the warships on the opposite bank suddenly roared in unison. Commander Wang's cordial greetings were mixed with cannonballs falling from the sky, which sank Zhu Chenhao's deputy ship and damaged his flagship.

  Answer: 1. Commander Wang likes to play it cool and rarely engages in direct confrontation; 2. He has limited ships and ammunition, so he must observe the enemy's main force position.

  It's completely hopeless now.

  It can be said that "those who act unjustly, heaven also detests them", which roughly serves as a commentary on the current situation. Zhu Chenhao stared blankly at his soldiers retreating in defeat, starting to flee in disarray without any will to fight, and without any reaction.

  The big guns have been used, the money has been spent, all methods have been exhausted, and this is the outcome. He is now powerless.

  The battle ended with Zhu Chenhao defeated, beheading over 2,000 people, and drowning to death in the river exceeded 10,000.

  Short memory!

  It wasn't until now that I had to start admiring Mr. Zhu Chenhao, because although the defeat was already settled, he didn't plan to escape. Taking advantage of the late hour, he gathered all his ships and successfully retreated to the Xiashen shore of Poyang Lake.

  He decided to regroup there.

  The following plot may be very familiar, so please don't mind.

  As the land had been occupied by Wang Shouren's army, to ensure a stable foothold, Zhu Chenhao made a decisive and extremely wise decision - to connect the ships together with iron chains (to form a square array).

  Of course, he was very pleased with his decision, as it had many advantages, such as facilitating the transfer of infantry and preventing storms.

  This was during the Zhengde era, more than a hundred years had passed since the beginning of the Ming dynasty. The "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" had already been publicly published and was estimated to have been popular for many years.

  I am quite puzzled, since Mr. Zhu Chenhao is so wealthy, why doesn't he buy a copy back and take a good look? Either he didn't buy one or he bought one but didn't read it carefully.

  Mr. Zhu Chenhao, you're hopeless in this life, hopefully next life you can study hard and read books with a sincere heart.

  After finishing all these things, Zhu Chenhao finally breathed a sigh of relief. He stretched his muscles and went back to sleep.

  Wang Shouren did not sleep, while Zhu Chenhao was busy in the first half of the night, he sent someone to watch, after Zhu Chenhao finished his business, he started to be active in the second half of the night, and worked all night.

  Judging from later events, Wang Shouren must have read "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" and was quite familiar with it.

  July 26, 1519

  Zhu Chenhao got up very early because today he decided to kill a few people.

  On the flagship, Zhu Chenhao held a summary meeting of the war situation. He was extremely excited and denounced those who were greedy for life and afraid of death, and especially mentioned several people's names, implying that he wanted to take these few brothers who took money but didn't do things seriously.

  Before he could even shout "execute by beheading", a cry of surprise was heard from outside:

  "Fire! Big fire!"

  Last night, Wang Shouren made a clear division of labor, dividing the fleet into several parts. Dai Deru led the left wing, Xu Xuan led the right wing, and Hu Yaoyuan and others followed up, preparing to launch the final attack.

  Wu Wenyin and others were in charge of preparing firewood and boats under the command of Dai Li Gan Jiang.

  The following plot is really too clichéd, no need for me to say it, I believe everyone can recite it. The specific process is: ignite the ship and launch a fire attack - the wind helps the flames - set the enemy ship on fire - launch a general attack - the enemy army retreats.

  The ending is a bit different, Zhu Chenhao did not find his own Huarongdao, and seeing the flames in the sky, he completely lost the courage to resist, and obediently became a prisoner of Wang Shouren's army. Those who were captured with him included Prime Minister Li Shi and others, as well as those strong thieves from the families of Min Twenty-four, Ling Eleven, and Wu Thirteen.

  Zhu Chenhao, who did not read books or have a good memory, finally failed and paid the price for his actions. He had the ambition of Zhu Di in those years, but not his ability.

  So he can only go this far.

  Generally speaking, scoundrels will put on a show of strength even when death is imminent. Liu Jin was one example, and Zhu Chenhao was another.

  Zhu Chenhao, who was escorted off the ship, received high-level prisoner treatment - riding a horse. He didn't look like a prisoner at all and still put on the airs of a prince. He floated lightly into the military camp, saw Wang Shouren, smiled and greeted him:

  "This is all my family's affair, why bother you so much?"

  Wang Shouren did not smile. He glared at Zhu Chenhao and ordered the soldiers to pull him off his horse and tie him up.

  Wang Shouren will not forget that this affable man, for the sake of power and throne, killed Sun Bi, launched an unjust war, and caused the death of many innocent people. He is not worthy of sympathy.

  The ropes that bound him finally made Zhu Chenhao flustered, and he only now began to understand his current identity - not a king, but a prisoner on death row.

  Then he began to beg for mercy.

  "Mr. Wang, I am willing to remove all guards and be an ordinary citizen, can I?"

  The answer is very concise:

  "The law of the land is here!"

  Zhu Chenhao lowered his head, he knew what was waiting for him.

  Don't shed tears until you see the coffin! Mr. Zhu Chenhao, isn't it a bit too late to regret now?!

  On July 27, the Ning Wang rebellion was officially pacified. Zhu Chenhao had been preparing for ten years and launched a mutiny in Nanchang, but was quickly annihilated by Wang Shouren, the governor of southern Jiangxi. The whole process lasted thirty-five days.

  A month ago, Mr. Wang Shouren was unarmed and alone at night, he did not wait for or rely on central assistance (nor was there any), nor did he want central policies (no one gave him any). In an instant, he turned small millet into big rice and exchanged bird guns for cannons, thus pacifying the rebellion and becoming famous for all eternity.

  This empty-handed victory is a rare wonder, it can be said that there has never been such a feat in the past.

  In my opinion, what has supported him all the way and enabled him to achieve his great accomplishments is not only his extraordinary wisdom but also his unwavering conviction - the conviction of serving the country and saving the people, persevering to the end.

  The matter has finally been settled, the rebellion has been put down, and the people have been caught. More than 300 attendants were stunned, not one of them escaped (it was a water battle, how could they escape?). There is no need to post wanted notices, let alone bother printing playing cards. It can be said that it has saved resources for the country and laid a foundation for post-war reconstruction.

  Everything has come to an end. Wang Shouren had thought so.

  However, King Wang, who had always been correct, was wrong this time. On the contrary, everything had just begun.

  A truly deadly test is waiting for him ahead.