Fukanggan, however, possessed a modicum of intelligence.
Even when infuriated to the brink of losing his reason, Fukanggan had not forgotten to dispatch scouts to survey the surrounding area. Even the feeding of his vanguard troops was divided into two shifts, and his entire vanguard formation maintained a façade of looseness with a tight inner core of vigilance, constantly wary of a sudden surprise attack from Zhu Jinsong.
Unfortunately, no matter how many scouts Fukanggan dispatched, there was no movement within ten miles. Not to mention the rebel troops under Commander Zhu, not even a ghost could be found.
What did this mean?
Was it simply to intimidate this commander? Or merely to disgust this commander?
Fukanggan pondered this internally while eating.
He considered the talk of intimidation and disgust to be utter nonsense; Fukanggan himself did not believe such a notion.
Commander Zhu had erected so many markers along the road, seemingly imitating Sun Bin's ruse against Pang Juan. However, some of these markers were buried with explosive traps, while others were not. Combined with the text on the wooden signs, Commander Zhu appeared to be intentionally provoking him?
If Commander Zhu intended to provoke him, to make him rashly lead his troops forward and thus separate from the central army led by Agui, then what would Commander Zhu do next? Would he ambush him? Or engage in a frontal battle?
Judging by the accounts of Agui and Mingxing, Commander Zhu was a cunning and treacherous individual who would certainly not choose a frontal engagement. Therefore, only ambush remained as a possibility?
If Commander Zhu truly intended to ambush him, he should have patiently waited in ambush on the opposite bank of the Xiaofu River, waiting for his army to begin crossing before attacking them mid-river. He should not have provoked him beforehand.
At the very least, even if he separated from Agui's central army, he would not be too far away. Thirty li was the absolute maximum. Moreover, he commanded a full thirty thousand troops, and with Agui's more than ten thousand cavalry, as long as he could hold on for half an hour, thirty li was not a significant distance.
So, what was Commander Zhu's true intention?
Just as Fukanggan was contemplating these jumbled thoughts, the last scout sent to scout ahead returned with a whistle and bowed before Fukanggan, saying, "Reporting to Lord Fukanggan, three li ahead, there is another wooden marker like the previous ones. There are a total of three within ten li. Furthermore, this servant has also carefully scouted, and there are no ambushes within a ten-li radius!"
Fukanggan, for all his arrogance and disdain for Agui and Mingxing, never considered Zhu Jinsong to be a fool. His occasional mockery of his soldiers was merely to stabilize morale.
After all, the fact that he could reduce Mingxing and Agui to such a sorry state was enough to demonstrate Commander Zhu's capabilities.
Upon hearing the scouts' reports, Fukanggan's curiosity intensified, and he became even more vigilant.
After finishing his meal, Fukanggan led his large army towards Zichuan.
The first wooden marker, not detonated, had "Guess if the next one will detonate?" written on the back. xxs1
The second wooden marker, detonated, had "Surprise? Unexpected? Guess the next one!" written on the back.
The third wooden marker, detonated again, had "Continue guessing the next one?" written on the back.
Combining these previous markers, some detonated and some not, Fukanggan finally discerned a pattern: all the wooden markers had "Fukanggan will be buried here" written on the front. As for whether the markers detonated, there was no pattern whatsoever; it was completely random.
Fukanggan was both enraged and indignant, mentally dismembering Zhu Jinsong, that arch-rebel, countless times, yet he maintained a distance of about thirty li from Agui's central army.
However, when he reached the fourth wooden marker, Fukanggan, who had been able to maintain a semblance of composure, finally lost it.
The fourth wooden marker did detonate, but the back of the marker read: "Why didn't the old dog Qian Long arrange a marriage for you with his daughter? Could it be that you are truly Qian Long's bastard son?"
The fifth wooden marker did not detonate, but the back read: "This large green hat is quite warm. Fu Huan shouldn't be afraid of the cold in winter."
He couldn't hold it in anymore!
Who could possibly remain composed in such a situation!
Under normal circumstances, even though everyone in the world speculated about his parentage, those were mere whispers behind his back, and Fukanggan paid them little mind, feeling a vague sense of pride.
Now, this matter had been written on a wooden marker!
Even knowing that few of the Tartar soldiers behind him could read, Fukanggan still felt as if he had been stripped naked.
In his furious desperation, the matter of thirty li, twenty li, and Agui's military orders were all cast to the four winds by Fukanggan.
All that remained in Fukanggan's mind was a single thought: to follow this path forward, to follow these wooden markers, to find Commander Zhu, and to tear that unfilial scoundrel limb from limb!
It had to be admitted that Zhu Jinsong, as an arch-rebel from the seasoned players of the Ancestor's Stage, was exceedingly adept at striking at people's most vulnerable points.
Even more adept was Zhu Jinsong's beginner's guide to Fukanggan.
The sixth wooden marker, on the front, still bore the inscription "Fukanggan will be buried here." On the back, in addition to more words that struck at Fukanggan's heart, there was an extra line: "I intend to ambush you, you dog servant. Will you fall for it?"
By the time he reached the seventh wooden marker, Fukanggan's vanguard had already opened a distance of more than forty li from Agui's central army.
The seventh wooden marker was similar to the sixth, the difference being an additional line on the back: "It seems you, dog servant, have taken the bait? Friendly reminder, raising an army in anger is not a good thing~"
The content of the friendly reminder was so sincere, and the little wavy line after the "yo" so captivating…
"Damn your mother! If I don't skin you, I swear I'm not human!"
After cursing to the heavens before the seventh wooden marker, Fukanggan's rage still had no outlet.
In his fury, Fukanggan seemed to have completely failed to notice the distance between his vanguard and Agui's central army. Not only did he fail to send someone to notify Agui, but he also intended to press onward.
Fukanggan had thought that since Commander Zhu wanted to provoke him so badly, he might as well indulge him and show him his anger.
How many troops could Commander Zhu possibly have? Ten thousand? Twenty thousand?
Judging by Commander Zhu's continuous attempts to provoke him, the number of rebel troops under Commander Zhu's command was certainly not large. Even if, to be generous, Commander Zhu's ability to rally people was heaven-defying, and he had a hundred thousand rebels under his command, would that be enough?
But what good was sheer numbers?
War was not child's play, nor was it a competition of who had more people.
War was about who had the more elite army, who had better equipment, and who had more adequate logistics.
In terms of army elite status, among Fukanggan's thirty thousand soldiers, ten thousand were armored Bannermen, including two thousand cavalry Bannermen. The remaining twenty thousand Zhili Green Standard Army soldiers were also formidable fighters who had participated in campaigns against the larger and smaller Jinchuan and Burma. They were surely superior to those rebels at Menglianggu.
In terms of excellent equipment, Fukanggan did not believe that those rebels in their den at Menglianggu could produce any powerful equipment. The rifled cannons mentioned in the previous "Menglianggu Newspaper" were likely Zhu's tall tales.
As for logistics…
Let alone the fact that he was backed by the entire Qing dynasty, even if he did not rely on Mingxing for logistics, Fukanggan did not believe logistics would be a problem. After all, the Qing dynasty's officials and soldiers were always supplied wherever they went on Qing territory to suppress rebels.
Fukanggan felt that the advantage was theirs.
However, before Fukanggan could lead his army further, two horses suddenly sprang from the distant fields, each carrying a person on its back. They were now charging towards Fukanggan's location.
Fukanggan was utterly bewildered.
Where did these two people and these two horses come from? If they were pre-ambushed…
To pre-ambush in a field without being discovered by his dispatched Eight Banners scouts, the only way was to ambush the night before, disguise themselves, and remain motionless.
Fukanggan looked up at the sky and then at the surrounding land, confirming that it was indeed autumn, approaching winter.
To ambush in the fields the night before at this time of year, in this weather? Weren't they afraid of freezing to death?
As Fukanggan was still bewildered, the two distant riders drew closer. One of them grabbed a flintlock rifle from his horse, aimed slightly at Fukanggan's position, and then pulled the trigger.
With a bang, the personal guard beside Fukanggan fell from his horse. The two riders then reined in their steeds, and the man who fired the shot picked up a tin megaphone from his horse and shouted towards Fukanggan's location, "Dog servant Fukanggan! My master says he wants to use your dog head to mourn the people you have harmed. Prepare your neck and wait!"
After shouting, the two riders turned their horses and galloped away without looking back.
They ran?
Fukanggan touched his forehead and looked at his personal guard who had fallen from his horse, his life and death unknown. He suddenly felt a sense of confusion.
Who am I? Where am I? Who are those two people opposite? What were the Qing elite soldiers doing when the rebels opposite raised their flintlock rifles just now?
After glancing at the personal guards and Eight Banners soldiers around him, Fukanggan became more and more bewildered and began to question his life.
This commander was insulted?
And almost died just now?
And the elite soldiers of my Qing dynasty were still stunned and foolish?
Recollecting himself, Fukanggan flew into a rage and shouted, "Pursue!"
…
The sound of horses' hooves echoed from a distance. Liu Hemming cautiously poked his head out from the earth pit to observe, then quickly retracted it, and instructed the soldiers beside him, "Tell the brothers, the hunting dogs have succeeded. Now it depends on whether the Tartars will fall for it."
Having dared to rebel with the great leader since the beginning and killed Liu Juren, Liu Hemming had always believed his courage was sufficient. However, it wasn't until the great leader presented a new combat plan, aiming to completely eliminate Fukanggan, that Liu Hemming realized his courage was not that great, at least not compared to the great leader's.
Having the First Division lie in ambush beforehand was something Liu Hemming had expected. After all, since raising his army at Yuhuang Mountain, the great leader had a penchant for ambushes. He had ambushed the Yanzhou military provisions, then Mingxing, and then Agui. It could be said that the Menglianggu army was most skilled at ambushes, and the great leader would not fail to exploit this advantage.
In Liu Hemming's opinion, ambushing was one thing, but before the ambush, it would be best to wear down Fukanggan's thirty thousand strong army into small units through constant harassment, and then annihilate them.
However, Liu Hemming had never imagined that the great leader would employ the tactic of luring the enemy with a feigned defeat followed by an ambush, to eliminate Fukanggan's thirty thousand vanguard troops in one fell swoop.
Luring the enemy with a feigned defeat and ambush, these two tactics sounded simple, but only those who had truly experienced them would understand how audacious they were.
After all, war itself was a matter of risking lives. A single misstep could turn a feigned defeat into a real rout. Furthermore, the ambushing force was only ten thousand, while the ambushed force numbered thirty thousand. It was easy to imagine how risky such a tactic was to execute.
Liu Hemming felt sweat beading on his forehead.
Would Fukanggan fall for it?
If Fukanggan did not fall for it, then they would have to engage in a real, head-on confrontation.