Wangjia Fork
Wangjia Fork was a modest fortress.
It could hardly be called imposing. Nestled among rolling mountains, it looked old, worn, and unremarkable.
The fortress had been built during the Hongwu era, back when Zhu Yuanzhang was still consolidating the empire. At the time, it had served as one of many small defensive strongpoints meant to guard against Mongol incursions from the north.
Now, however, it had fallen into different hands.
A band of rebels occupied the place.
The bandit chief was named Wang Chenggong. In the early years of the Chongzhen reign, he had joined the peasant uprisings that erupted amid famine, chaos, and rebellion across the northwest.
Years earlier, when the rebel forces surged en masse into Shanxi, those left behind in Shaanxi were quickly isolated and overwhelmed. Wang Chenggong, seeing no other option, surrendered to the authorities and lay low for a time.
But this year was different.
A faction of the Shanxi rebels had crossed the Yellow River from northwestern Shanxi and returned to Shaanxi territory.
At the same time, months had passed without rain. The land was cracking, the crops were dying, and another drought was clearly on the horizon.
Timing. Location. Popular resentment.
Everything aligned.
Wang Chenggong felt that Heaven itself was pushing him forward. If he didn't rebel now, then when would he ever rebel?
So he raised the banner once more.
Calling back his old comrades, he swiftly gathered over two thousand followers and seized the ancient fortress of Wangjia Fork.
Inside the fortress, his recalled subordinates crowded together in dense clusters. They were filthy, thin, and dressed in rags, their miserable condition betraying the hardships they had endured in recent years.
A subordinate edged closer to Wang Chenggong and whispered,
"Boss, we've gathered the men… but who knows when the government troops will show up?"
Wang Chenggong snorted.
"They won't come."
Seeing the doubt on the man's face, he continued confidently,
"Recently, the Mongol tribes have been raiding the border passes. Wang Cheng'en, the Regional Commander of Yansui, had his main forces transferred north to deal with them. Once he's gone, Governor Chen Qiyu is left with nothing but scraps."
No sooner had he finished speaking—
A scout came running in, panting.
"Report! The… the scraps are here!"
Wang Chenggong raised an eyebrow.
"Oh? Who is it?"
The scout laughed awkwardly.
"It's Assistant General Luo Xi."
Wang Chenggong broke into a grin.
"Let him come."
He didn't take Luo Xi seriously at all.
Soon enough, a tattered banner bearing the character 'Luo' appeared on the open ground south of the fortress, flapping weakly in the wind. Assistant General Luo Xi had arrived with a little over a thousand soldiers to suppress the rebels.
Wang Chenggong scanned them carefully and immediately recognized the truth.
Most of Luo Xi's troops were garrison soldiers.
Their faces were dull, their armor mismatched, their clothes worn thin. It was obvious they were poorly fed, poorly paid, and utterly lacking in morale.
They didn't look like soldiers preparing for battle.
They looked like men dragged out to die.
Wang Chenggong watched them the way one watched a street performance, relaxed and faintly amused.
At Luo Xi's order, the government troops charged toward the ancient fortress.
They charged half-heartedly.
"Loose arrows!" Wang Chenggong laughed.
From atop the battlements, the rebels released a volley of arrows.
With a shout and a clatter, the garrison soldiers immediately scattered in all directions. Formation collapsed. Discipline vanished.
In the blink of an eye, only about a hundred of Luo Xi's personal guards remained by his side, standing stiffly and staring around in confusion.
Wang Chenggong burst out laughing.
"Useless garrison troops!"
Luo Xi shouted angrily from below,
"You just wait! I, Luo Xi, will be back!"
Wang Chenggong couldn't even be bothered to reply.
He turned away, cheerfully continuing to organize his men, already thinking about practical matters: what two thousand mouths would eat next, and how this force might one day sweep across the realm.
Not long after, the scout returned again.
"Boss, the scraps are back."
Wang Chenggong frowned.
"Hm? Is this Luo Xi fellow not afraid of dying?"
"This time it's someone surnamed Shi," the scout said.
"He looks… much more formidable than Luo Xi."
Wang Chenggong climbed up to the battlements and looked south.
On the plain below, an army had appeared.
Their armor was clean and uniform. Their formations were neat. Every soldier stood straight, weapons held properly, posture steady.
Just one glance was enough.
These were not the same kind of troops.
Wang Chenggong's expression changed.
"Order everyone to prepare for battle!" he roared.
"These ones are hard bones to chew! Hard bones!"
Inside the fortress, two thousand rebels immediately sprang into motion.
Some grabbed bows.
Some dragged rolling logs and boulders into position.
Some heated water.
Others began preparing "golden juice."
Most of these men had rarely defended a city themselves. Usually, they were the ones charging walls, being pelted with stones and scalded by filth.
Now that it was finally their turn to do the pelting, excitement ran high.
One man laughed as he hefted a stone.
"Before, the government troops smashed us with rocks. Now it's our turn! Hahaha!"
"Boss says these government troops are tough."
"Tough my ass," another sneered.
"We've got walls. No matter how tough they are, they still have to climb up. One rock from me and a bucket of boiling water, and they'll scream like pigs."
"And my spear's coated in golden juice!"
"Hahahaha!"
The rebels were smug and relaxed.
After all, the government troops they'd faced recently had been laughably weak. Each victory only inflated their confidence further, dulling any remaining fear of battle.
Meanwhile…
Luo Xi stood before Shi Jian, practically in tears.
"Commander Shi, it's not that I didn't want to fight," he pleaded.
"But those garrison soldiers just wouldn't listen! The bandits fired one volley of arrows and every last one of them ran!"
Shi Jian didn't even look at him.
With a casual wave of his hand, he ordered the musketeers to halt, keeping them far from the city walls. At this distance, arrows couldn't reach them—and neither could muskets reach the enemy.
Shi Jian pulled out a telescope and carefully examined Wangjia Fork. From here, he could only see the battlements, not the interior layout.
"I've been inside that fortress," Luo Xi hurriedly added.
"It's full of narrow, winding passages. Very complicated. Attacking it directly will be difficult. Even Commander Shi's musketeers might—"
Shi Jian nodded.
"Mm. That's why bringing artillery was the right call."
Luo Xi's eyes widened.
"You brought cannons?"
"Yes," Shi Jian replied calmly.
"The artillery moves slower. We'll wait for them."
Luo Xi sucked in a breath.
He ran to higher ground behind the formation and looked back, only to see an artillery unit slowly emerging from a ravine. Several horses strained as they dragged a massive cannon carriage forward, inch by inch.
Luo Xi was utterly baffled.
Did this Commander Shi understand warfare at all?
Musketeers rushing ahead while artillery lagged behind? Wasn't he afraid of the cannons being cut off and ambushed?
Then he noticed Zheng Gouzi, calmly flying a sky lantern on a long string.
Luo Xi shook his head again.
Main force separated from artillery.
Someone flying a sky lantern on the battlefield.
This unit was a farce.
An absolute farce.
And yet…
These ridiculous people were terrifyingly strong.
How could that be?
Everyone waited.
After a long while, the artillery finally arrived.
The artillery battalion commander was grinning from ear to ear.
"We're here! We're finally here! Hahahaha! Is that the thing we're supposed to blow up?"
Shi Jian pointed toward the small ancient fortress.
"That one."
The artillery commander practically glowed.
"Brothers! Target in visual range! Set up the cannons! Quickly!"
The artillerymen cheered.
"Finally! Real combat!"
"I've been dying to blast something!"
"This beats shooting wooden targets any day!"
"Wahahaha! Wangjia Fork! Your artillery grandpas have arrived! Tremble!"
Each of them wore an expression bordering on madness, like lunatics released after ten thousand years of confinement.