The Ming Dynasty: Starting with bandits, it swept across the land.

Chapter 56 Guerrilla Tactics

Li Chengye had been preparing for Liu Yingyu's offensive for a long time.

Since Liu Yingyu assembled his troops in Shangzhou on the third day of the ninth month, Mao Hulu's troops set off the next day and passed through Shangluo Road on the thirteenth day of the ninth month.

Li Chengye, who was in Huanglong Mountain, 900 li away from Shangzhou, learned of Mao Hulu's troops' departure on the seventh day of the ninth month.

This was all thanks to Su He, an inside agent for the government.

After Su He led Li Luo and the other four back to Yanchang County, he orchestrated an accident: several constables who were out apprehending the families of thieves were killed on the way.

Li Luo and others seized the opportunity to fill vacancies and entered the county government office.

With Suhe as their inside man, they quickly gained a foothold. At the same time, after several investigations, they also found out the true situation of the Yanchang Grain Depot.

The grain in the granary was not embezzled by Magistrate Yu Shideng in a blatant act.

The officials of the Ming Dynasty were all those who came up through the imperial examinations. Some of them might not be good at practical matters, but they were by no means stupid. No one would directly steal things from the official granary and expect to get away with it.

However, the food deficit did indeed originate from St. Petersburg, and its root cause lay in the attempt to cover up the truth.

Due to the severe drought in the past two years, most of the people in Yanchang County have been unable to pay their taxes.

However, in order to improve his political record, Yu Shideng lied to his superiors, claiming that taxes had been collected in full.

During the Ming Dynasty, taxes were divided into "transport silver" (which was submitted to the central government) and "retention silver" (which was retained by local governments). In Shaanxi, counties were required to submit approximately 60% of their taxes to the central government.

Despite his best efforts, Yu Shideng only managed to collect half of the taxes due that year, but he transported almost all of them upwards, leaving only a small amount for the county government's food expenses.

Given the widespread drought and the fact that most prefectures and counties are unable to collect even 40% of their taxes, this is considered an "outstanding" achievement by the authorities.

Yu Shideng's plan was to get promoted based on his "top-performing" performance in the assessment for three consecutive years, and once he left office, the mess in Yanchang County would no longer be his concern.

Unexpectedly, Liu Yingyu urgently needed military rations to suppress bandits, and his lie was about to fall apart, which is why he panicked.

This matter cannot be stated openly.

While failing to collect grain is incompetence, it still demonstrates integrity; however, if there is grain in the accounts but no actual storage, then it is embezzlement.

Between incompetence and corruption, corruption has a worse reputation and is more likely to lead to death, especially since he was only faking corruption.

If someone is truly greedy, bribing superiors and subordinates might appease them; but if they are greedy in the accounts but don't share the profits with their superiors, this kind of "profiting alone" behavior will only breed resentment.

The former warehouse ambassador was a close confidant of Yusden, and the two had been working together for two years, now in their third.

He watched as the deficit in the accounts grew larger and larger, from the initial eight hundred shi to one thousand shi, and this year it has reached two thousand shi.

The warehouse ambassador felt that the lie could no longer be covered up and feared that he would be made a scapegoat after Yu Shideng was promoted and left. So he decided to expose the matter before Yu Shideng ran away.

Upon learning of this, Yu Shideng first sent someone to warn him not to cause trouble. When the warning proved ineffective, he resorted to underhanded tactics, fabricating a story that Suhe had "accidentally fallen into the water and drowned after drinking," which led to Suhe taking over as warehouse ambassador.

After learning the inside story, Li Chengye was also amazed. He never expected that someone would act in such a way in order to get a promotion.

At this time, he also received news that Mao Hulu's troops had left Shangluo and were heading north.

During this period, Wang Er also sent a messenger to invite him to join forces in Luochuan, proposing to attack Luochuan first, then attack Hancheng, plunder the wealthy families along the way, and make quite a scene.

But Li Chengye declined.

He felt that Wang Er was now somewhat overconfident, forgetting his previous crushing defeat and underestimating the Ming army. His own foundation wasn't even solid enough; attempting to conquer cities and seize territory would only lead to him being overwhelmed by the snowballing army along the way, leaving him nowhere to run.

That's exactly what happened.

On September 14th, Wang Er and Hong Jiliang joined forces at the foot of Luochuan City.

County Magistrate Jiang Lunchan, on the one hand, united with the local gentry to defend the county seat to the death, and on the other hand, appealed to Liu Yingyu for help.

Liu Yingyu immediately dispatched Mao Hulu soldiers to provide emergency assistance.

Wang Er attacked for two days but failed to capture the city. At this time, Mao Hulu's troops had quietly approached the vicinity of Luochuan and launched a surprise attack that night.

Wang Erjun suffered a major defeat, with nearly 7,000 men almost completely routed, while Mao's army lost only a few dozen men.

Li Chengye realized that waiting for Mao's troops to arrive in Huanglong Mountain was not a good strategy.

Based on what he had learned over the past few days, these Mao Hulu soldiers were like the Wudang Flying Army under Zhuge Liang during the Three Kingdoms period. They were composed of mountain people, skilled at running through the mountains, and used short swords, crossbows, and javelins. They were experts in mountain warfare.

Moreover, the Mao soldiers have fought for the Ming Dynasty for decades and have their own internal traditions. Their junior officers are mostly experienced veterans, and are by no means ordinary newly recruited soldiers.

If I were to hold out in Huanglong Mountain, I might not be able to withstand the attack.

In military operations, regardless of the number of troops, whoever seizes the initiative on the battlefield gains the upper hand.

Holding out in Huanglong Mountain would be tantamount to handing over the initiative to Liu Yingyu. We cannot sit and wait for him to attack; we must strike first.

So, on September 17th, Li Chengye led his team out of Huanglong Mountain and headed towards Yanchang County.

Yanchang County is located more than 150 li east of Yan'an Prefecture. The county seat is backed by Gaonu Mountain to the north, and surrounded by the Yan River and its tributary Xihegou on the east, west, and south sides. The Yan River not only connects Yan'an Prefecture with the Yellow River, but its valley passage is also the official route from Xi'an to Yansui Town.

To the west of the county is Ganguyi, and along the Yellow River to the east are several ferry crossings, including Matouguan and Liangshuian. These ferry crossings are vital passageways for people from northern Shaanxi to cross the Yellow River and enter Shanxi.

If Li Chengye were to occupy Yanchang County, it would be tantamount to severing the connection between northern Shaanxi and Shanxi, and also cutting off the transportation route from Xi'an to Yansui Town.

As a result, Liu Yingyu would have no choice but to attack, and would have no time to deal with Huanglong Mountain.

Before leaving, Li Chengye discussed with everyone and decided that Yang Chongwang and Master Qin would stay behind to guard the Nanniwan camp, leaving behind three hundred soldiers.

Li Chengye himself led three hundred soldiers and five hundred auxiliary soldiers, along with Liu Ye, Luo Dai and others, and another eight hundred auxiliary soldiers.

The main purpose of this mission was not to plunder, but to draw the enemy's attention. Therefore, although there were not many auxiliary soldiers, all the mules and horses that could be carried were brought along in order to move quickly.

"Master Qin, Brother Yang, I'm entrusting this old camp to you," Li Chengye said.

"Don't worry, Chengye, nothing will happen," Master Qin replied from the side.

"Chengye, don't worry, as long as I'm here, Nanniwan will not be lost," Yang Chongwang said.

"No, Brother Yang," Li Chengye said solemnly, "if the situation is truly undefendable, then there's no need to hold Nanniwan to the death. Just take your men and retreat. As long as we're alive, we can always fight back. These bottles and jars can be rebuilt then."

"Yes, I understand, Chengye." Yang Chongwang nodded in agreement.

At this moment, the essence of guerrilla warfare summarized by that great man of later generations came to mind for Li Chengye: when the enemy advances, we retreat; when the enemy camps, we harass; when the enemy is tired, we attack; when the enemy retreats, we pursue.

This guerrilla tactic is a powerful tool for the weak to defeat the strong.

And isn't my own attack this time a kind of guerrilla tactic of "besieging Wei to rescue Zhao," attacking what the enemy must defend?

After leaving Huanglong Mountain, the group traveled east for about five miles and came to a checkpoint.

Calling it a checkpoint is a stretch; it's more like a wooden fence blocking the mountain path, with seven or eight men in uniform guarding it.

Those people saw nearly a thousand men under Li Chengye's command emerging from the mountains from afar, and knew that the "bandits" in the mountains had come out. They were so frightened that they turned around and fled eastward.

Upon seeing this, Han Sanhu, who was at the forefront, immediately led more than ten of his men to gallop forward and intercept them.

The man inside was wearing a dark gray prison uniform, with a turban on his head, and had slanted eyes. Upon seeing Li Chengye, he immediately kowtowed repeatedly, pleading, "My lord, spare my life! My lord, spare my life!"

Li Chengye ignored his pleas for mercy and went straight to the point asking, "Who are you people? Why are you setting up a checkpoint here?"

Seeing the crowd standing around with knives, creating a tense atmosphere, the man knew that the person in front of him was probably the legendary ruthless and decisive bandit leader.

He knew that if he concealed anything now, he would likely be beheaded immediately, so he braced himself and told the truth: "I am the inspector of Fushi County. The magistrate ordered us to set up a checkpoint here to stop refugees from entering the mountains, for fear... for fear that they might join the bandits."

Upon hearing this, the people around Li Chengye burst into laughter: "Afraid the people will turn to banditry? The government refuses to provide disaster relief, driving the people to the brink of starvation, yet they're afraid they'll be forced into banditry? What a ridiculous joke!"

Li Chengye smiled and said to the man, "I see you're honest enough, so I won't kill you. Go back and tell the magistrate of Fushi County that I, Li Chengye, will go to Fushi County in a couple of days and ask him in person what exactly this 'preventing the people from joining the bandits' policy is all about. Now get lost!"

Upon hearing this, Han Sanhu stepped forward and kicked the man, yelling, "Get lost!"

After the man scrambled away into the distance, Li Chengye pondered for a moment and called out, "Sanhu."

"Please give your orders, sir." Han Sanhu stepped forward in response.

Since entering Huanglong Mountain, everyone has gradually standardized their way of addressing Li Chengye as "Zhang Panzi," a title that carries a hint of banditry.

Li Chengye instructed, "Take your cavalry and head towards Fushi County. Lead thirty brothers, carry many flags, and spread the word loudly that I, Li Chengye, am going to Fushi County in person. Make a big fuss."

You don't need to go far; a journey of about a day and a half to make a show of force will suffice. Our main force will head towards Yanchang County, and you can return to join us then.

"Yes!" Han Sanhu accepted the order and left.

Upon hearing this, Luo Dai laughed and said, "Brother Chengye, are you trying to bluff your way out so the authorities won't know where we really are?"

Li Chengye's tactic worked as expected.

The released inspector, still shaken, reported what had happened. Fushi County then heard rumors that "bandit" cavalry was attacking, causing them to be terrified three times a day.

The wealthy and powerful families in the surrounding area flocked to Fushi City for refuge, fearing that Li Chengye would come to confiscate their property.

For a time, the people of Fushi County were in a state of panic and unrest, and the county magistrate was at a loss for what to do.

Fushi County was the seat of Yan'an Prefecture. Although Prefect Zhang Nian was a weak scholar, he knew that it was crucial to stabilize the people's hearts at this time. He allowed the Yan'an Guard to enter the city, ordered the four gates to be closed and the whole city to be under martial law, and quickly sent letters to the surrounding areas for help.

While the entire city of Yan'an was on high alert, Li Chengye had already quietly led his troops to Yanchang County.

Yanchang County is surrounded by mountains on three sides and water on three sides. To prevent bandits from entering the county, Magistrate Yu Shideng even demolished the wooden bridge leading out of the city.

Upon inspection, Li Chengye found that the location of Yanchang County was indeed easy to defend and difficult to attack, but it was not impossible to take it.

On this trip, Li Chengye also brought six cannons. In addition to four small tiger-crouching cannons, there were also two three-general cannons. If they were brought close and fired at the city gate, they could still penetrate it.

However, his purpose in this trip was not to launch a direct assault on the city.

Although the official granary in Yanchang was empty, Yanchang County was not completely without grain; it was just that the grain was concentrated in the hands of powerful and wealthy families, and not in the hands of the government or the common people.

He divided his men into two teams, each with about four hundred men, dedicated to plundering the estates and granaries of gentry and wealthy people outside the city.

They acted swiftly, and after succeeding, they distributed some of the grain to the surrounding starving people on the spot.

For a time, wealthy families outside Yanchang County were filled with unease, while the poor people secretly rejoiced.

Inside the city, Su He, who had long been Li Chengye's inside man, was alarmed by the rapid escalation of the situation outside the city. He privately complained to Li Luo, "How did things get so chaotic? They said it was just burning granaries and settling accounts, but now they're looting everywhere. If the government investigates thoroughly, how can I escape responsibility?"

Li Luo advised in a low voice, "Master Su, please calm down. The person in charge of the warehouse knows how to act. This grand display is precisely to lay the groundwork for burning the warehouse. The bigger the rumors, the more likely it will seem like the work of bandits when investigated later, and the less likely the warehouse management will be suspected."

"Moreover, the more chaotic things are outside the city, the more overwhelmed Yu Shideng will be. How can he have the energy to bother you? Master Su, you just need to sit calmly in the yamen and wait for the right opportunity to act according to the plan."

Upon hearing this, Su He, though still uneasy, could only force himself to remain calm and nodded without saying a word.

The situation is developing in the direction Li Chengye had anticipated.

The Mao Hulu soldiers, who had only rested for one day in Luochuan County, hurriedly headed to Yanchang County again due to Liu Yingyu's urgent urging.

By the time they arrived, Li Chengye had already led his troops to retreat, detouring through Hancheng, and then turning back towards Luochuan halfway there.

Li Chengye's troops were almost all equipped with a mule or horse, allowing them to move swiftly. Although Mao Hulu's soldiers were elite, they could not keep up.

Their leader, Miao Cheng, was enraged halfway there and cursed Li Chengye, calling him a shameless villain who only dared to maneuver and not dare to engage in a direct confrontation.

This went on for nearly half a month, and Mao's soldiers were so enraged that they even beat the messengers who came to deliver messages several times because the messengers were too slow.

When the guards of Yan'an were ordered to come out to assist in the defense, Mao's situation improved slightly.

Although the Yan'an garrison did not dare to actively seek out and attack the enemy like Mao's soldiers, they were still capable of fulfilling their duties of guarding the city, setting up beacon fires, and providing early warning of enemy movements.

In this way, Mao Bing's efficiency in gathering intelligence increased, and Li Chengye's scope of activity was greatly reduced.

Through this maneuvering, Li Chengye also realized the limitations of his guerrilla strategy.

Or rather, it's a limitation of his current abilities.

He wanted to prolong and expand the war, but he dared not stray too far from the old camp at Huanglong Mountain, fearing that the Mao soldiers would stop pursuing and instead attack his base. At the same time, his interactions over the past few days had made him realize the elite nature of this Ming Dynasty mercenary army. If he were to engage them head-on, his casualties would be heavy, so he had to avoid battle.

The distance between them was difficult to grasp, and this tug-of-war made him quite troubled.

However, the team's morale was still very high.

Although most of the looted grain was distributed to the people along the way, the cattle, horses, and sheep seized from wealthy families were kept as military supplies, and almost every night when they set up camp, everyone was able to eat meat.

With practical benefits at their disposal, the morale of the troops remains relatively stable.

Seeing that this kind of pacing was not sustainable, Li Chengye, Luo Dai, Liu Ye and others discussed that they should take advantage of the enemy's unpreparedness to capture a key point and break the current stalemate that was about to be blocked.

At the same time, it will deter the opponent; otherwise, if we keep "wandering without attacking" for a long time, the enemy will gradually become less afraid.

His chosen target was Yanchang County.

Just as he was assembling his troops and preparing to march towards Yanchang, news suddenly came from the front: Mao's troops had actually withdrawn and returned to Shangluo Road.

This unexpected turn of events left Li Chengye completely bewildered.

To prepare for this operation, he not only assembled his own troops but also recruited several small bandit groups from the surrounding area who were struggling to survive due to the encirclement and suppression by Mao's soldiers and the Wei army.

Mao Bing's sudden retreat immediately disrupted his entire plan.