Above the Northern Frontier, Thousands of Savages!

Northern Frontier!

Jianzhou Tatar territory!

A small tribe.

Several thousand Ming cavalrymen, caked head to toe in blood and grime, had already surrounded the tribe.

The several thousand Tatars in the tribe had all been gathered together.

Corpses lay everywhere around the tribe.

Looking at these Ming Army soldiers, every one of them had a quiver slung across his back, a bow hanging from his warhorse, and a long saber in hand.

Of course.

They were shrouded in blood and filth, reeking with a pungent stench like savages, yet every one of them exuded a savage ferocity.

Zhu Ying had led these soldiers through this foreign land beyond the Northern Frontier for over a month now, charging from place to place, killing, and fighting every day.

It could be said.

The battles Zhu Ying had led them through this time were more than they had seen in countless years before.

Now, the several thousand cavalrymen under Zhu Ying's command could truly be called battle-hardened troops.

"Commander."

"We slew more than five hundred enemies."

Wei Quan rode up beside Zhu Ying and reported respectfully.

Zhu Ying nodded.

After following him for so long, many things no longer needed to be specifically explained. A single glance was enough.

Zhu Ying swept his gaze over these Tatars, whose faces were filled with terror and hatred for him and the soldiers under his command. There was not a ripple of emotion in him.

War had always been this way.

There was no distinction between right and wrong.

If the Tatars had been allowed to break into Ming Dynasty cities and villages, their methods would have been even more ruthless.

Having lived two lives, Zhu Ying knew all too well just how ruthless these Tatars were.

"The same old rule."

"Anyone taller than the cart wheel, behead them," Zhu Ying said coldly.

"This subordinate obeys."

The many soldiers immediately moved.

They swung down from their horses.

Then dragged a cart out from the tribe.

"Spare us!"

"We're only commoners!"

"Spare us... don't kill us..."

What followed.

Was naturally wave after wave of wailing pleas for mercy.

But would Zhu Ying heed them?

Would these several thousand Ming soldiers heed them?

Without a doubt.

No one pitied them.

One Tatar man after another was dragged out by Zhu Ying's soldiers and measured against the cart wheel.

As long as he stood taller than the wheel, even by a single inch, he was cut down with one stroke.

This was also the Ming Dynasty putting what it had learned into practice.

After all, this was originally the method passed down among the northern frontier tribes. In the past, this was exactly how they had treated countless Han Chinese civilians. They had even been crueler—after beheading every man taller than a cart wheel, they would also violate the women.

In but a moment.

Several hundred more corpses covered the ground.

Zhu Ying took a small packet of medicinal powder from his robes and tossed it to Liu Lei beside him.

"Yes."

Liu Lei immediately accepted the order.

He went straight to the small tribe's water source and dumped the powder into it.

This was precisely the laxative Zhu Ying had obtained, and an especially potent one at that.

"Withdraw."

Zhu Ying shouted.

"This subordinate obeys."

All the officers and soldiers answered in unison, mounting their horses one after another.

Following Zhu Ying's lead, they continued galloping north.

Though their force numbered fewer than three thousand men, the horses traveling with them numbered nearly ten thousand.

These were the spoils Zhu Ying and his soldiers had won through battle, and the capital that allowed them to come and go freely through Jianzhou Tatar territory.

As the powder was thrown in, towering flames erupted from the tribe. The Tatars' grain and baggage were all set ablaze by the Ming Army. Anything they could not take with them was utterly destroyed.

Less than half an hour after Zhu Ying led his men away—

Clatter, clatter, clatter.

Clatter, clatter, clatter.

At the site of the Tatar tribe that had once been steeped in slaughter, an army of more than ten thousand Tatars swept in.

"Bastards!"

"We still came too late."

"Those damned Ming Army scum!"

"Damned Zhu Ying!"

As he looked upon the devastated, ruined tribe, Agunu's heart brimmed with hatred.

"General."

"This is already the fifteenth tribe of our people destroyed by the Ming Army. More than ten thousand of our tribesmen have been slaughtered."

"If this continues, our losses will only worsen."

A Tatar general spoke with hatred in his voice.

"What else can we do now?"

"Our cavalry has already been wiped out by those damned Ming soldiers. We simply cannot catch them."

"And now Great Yuan has no reinforcements left. The main force of the Ming Army has already begun attacking Great Yuan." Another Tatar general spoke heavily.

"Chase them. Keep chasing!"

"If I do not tear Zhu Ying to pieces and slaughter every last Ming soldier, how can I, Agunu, face the chieftain?" Agunu gritted his teeth.

"Commander."

"This makes fifteen Tatar tribes already."

"Haha!"

Wei Quan laughed loudly.

"That's right."

"By the Commander's order, I've already cut down fifteen enemy banners. The Commander said these would count as military merits once we return to the Ming Dynasty, so we can't let them go to waste." Zhuang Wei laughed as well.

"Brothers!"

"Don't lose those ears you cut off."

"Once we return to the Ming Dynasty, they'll be proof for your promotions and fortunes." Zhang Wu called out.

"Of course."

"Thousand Household Commander, I've already cut off more than thirty Tatar ears. Hahaha, promotion and fortune!"

"Damn, Zhao Si, you're fierce. I've only got fifteen."

"Hehe, following the Commander means killing enemies to our hearts' content—and getting promoted and rich besides. I'm following the Commander for the rest of my life. Wherever the Commander goes, I'll go too. I've served for six years, but I've never fought this freely before. Those damned Tatars invaded our Ming Dynasty. They all deserve to die."

"That's right."

"I too swear to follow the Commander unto death."

"Commander, this brother swears to follow you unto death."

"Me too."

"Follow unto death!"

"Commander, you can't leave us behind in the future. We all swear to follow you unto death..."

Warhorses thundered as the cavalry charged onward.

At this moment, these several thousand officers and soldiers were still deep in foreign territory, in a land of danger.

Yet every one of them maintained soaring morale, without the slightest fear.

Every soldier here had been utterly won over by Zhu Ying, their hearts filled with fervent devotion to him.

Listening to them, Zhu Ying smiled as well and immediately called back loudly, "Thank you, brothers, for your trust. Since I, Zhu Ying, have earned such trust from you all, I will lead you in fighting our way to the martial prestige worthy of Ming Dynasty soldiers. As I said before, Zhu Ying will not abandon a single brother. On the battlefield, Zhu Ying will always charge into the fight first. I will never hide behind my brothers, and I will never let any brother down."

"Swear to follow the Garrison Commander unto death!"

"Swear to follow..."

All the officers and soldiers shouted with fervent passion.

"Good!"

"Brothers!"

"It'll be dark soon."

"We'll keep up the forced march for another hour, then rest." Zhu Ying laughed loudly and spurred his horse onward.

"Yes!"

The many Ming Army soldiers shouted fervently.

Time flashed by!

Very soon, night fell.

Beneath the night curtain, there was no setting up camp—only bonfires gathered together. There was no feast of fish and meat either; Zhu Ying and the soldiers under his command simply sat before the fires, eating dry flatbread and drinking water.

PS: Please keep reading; my deepest thanks, mwah.