MLMD -Chapter 105 Our Mighty Ming (Part 2)

The thunderous shouts immediately lifted the atmosphere of the drill ground. Wei Tonghe, startled, stood up, and as he glanced around at the older officials, his face flushed with embarrassment. Too shy to sit back down, he had no choice but to casually walk behind Yue Yang and watch the exercise from there.

While Wei Tonghe was scared into standing, the provincial governor Xu Dingchen was stirred to rise as well. Although Xu Dingchen was not a military general, that did not prevent him from appreciating what he saw.

In the Ming Dynasty, provincial governors did not hold great military power, but each had a standard battalion under their command. As the only direct unit under a governor, every governor historically valued their standard battalion highly. Yet, even Xu Dingchen had never witnessed such a scene in his own standard battalion.

To Xu Dingchen, the first group of marching infantry had chests held straight and faces full of solemnity and dignity. Viewed from the platform, the formation appeared perfectly aligned both horizontally and vertically—a stark contrast to the typically sloppy and disorganized armies of the Ming.

“This Yue Zhenghong’s ability to defeat more than ten thousand bandits with just five hundred infantry is no fluke—he truly has real skill!” Xu Dingchen glanced at Wei Tonghe. He sensed that Wei Tonghe would probably lose the bet he made with Yue Yang yesterday. This Yue Yang might really have eight thousand elite soldiers.

“If Yue Zhenghong truly has eight thousand troops under his command, then this governor will have to look upon him with greater respect.” With that thought, Xu Dingchen mentally began planning to adjust his attitude toward Yue Yang.

While Xu Dingchen was pondering this, Feng Xiaoming led his thousand-man unit to the center of the drill ground, stopping in front of the earthen platform.

“All troops, halt!”

“Clang… rumble!”

At Feng Xiaoming’s command, the thousand soldiers stomped their feet forcefully and came to a complete stop.

But the display didn’t end there. From afar came the heavy, synchronized footfalls of another infantry formation approaching. This second formation also consisted of infantry, but instead of shields and spears, the soldiers carried matchlock firearms, each with gleaming bayonets glinting under the sun in a chilling display.

From within the formation, a strong voice suddenly roared: “Our Great Ming, mighty!”

All the soldiers shouted in unison: “Long live the Emperor! Long live! Long live!”

Another voice, hoarse from exertion, cried out: “All soldiers, victory!”

Countless weapons were raised as the troops bellowed: “Victory! Victory! Victory!”

The sheer force of the sound seemed to stretch for miles.

With each arriving formation, the local civilians’ excitement surged. They waved their arms and shouted along with the soldiers. The voices of tens of thousands were no trivial matter—their thunderous cheers shook the very sky.

Finally, when three thousand cavalry clad entirely in armor appeared, their faces hidden behind helmets, the drill ground’s atmosphere reached its absolute peak. Even the most rational observers could not remain calm in such fervor.

With the cavalry now assembled, all the troops were present on the drill ground. At that moment, Shunbao rode a crimson steed to the platform, saluted Yue Yang formally, and called out:

“Reporting to Commander! The garrison troops of Yingzhou City have assembled as ordered. The total expected number is eight thousand; the actual number present is eight thousand. I, Yue Shunbao, officer of the Second Battalion, report respectfully. Report concluded!”

“Good. Stand by!”

Yue Yang nodded slightly, then turned to Wei Tonghe: “Grand Secretary Wei, our troops are fully assembled. Please, verify the numbers.”

Wei Tonghe felt his face burn with embarrassment. Just yesterday, he had doubted Yue Yang, thinking he was inflating troop numbers for pay. Now it was clear that he had been made to look foolish. Counting the soldiers was straightforward—one formation equaled one thousand troops; eight formations meant eight thousand. Even someone slow with numbers could easily verify it.

Wei Tonghe had briefly considered that Yue Yang might have conscripted large numbers of villagers overnight to fill the ranks. But the thought vanished immediately. No one here was blind. Every soldier was young, strong, and disciplined—clearly well-trained. If temporary conscripts could exhibit this level of skill, the Ming Dynasty would have long unified Mongolia and swept through the Later Jin.

Seeing Wei Tonghe’s face shift between red and pale, Xu Dingchen quickly shot Yue Yang a meaningful glance: “Don’t go too far, young man. If you embarrass Wei Tonghe too much, there will be consequences for you later!”

Yue Yang understood immediately. Growing up in the modern world and having read countless bureaucratic novels, he knew the rules: show respect to elders and officials, especially in public. Now was the time to give Wei Tonghe face.

With this in mind, Yue Yang adopted a friendly demeanor and smiled at Wei Tonghe:

“Grand Secretary Wei, all the troops are present. They are eager for you and Governor Xu to inspect them. Please, honor us with your presence!”

“Hmph, this young man can speak well,” Xu Dingchen silently praised. Counting troops versus inspecting the army—though only a few words apart, the difference in meaning was huge. The former was insulting; the latter was an honor. Reviewing troops had traditionally been a privilege reserved for the emperor and high-ranking generals. Today, they, as the commander of the Central Palace garrison and provincial governor, had that honor—a brag-worthy event for life!

Xu Dingchen knew this, and Wei Tonghe, with his intellect, surely understood too. Xu Dingchen gave Yue Yang a deep, appreciative look. Without waiting for a response, he smiled and said:

“Grand Secretary Wei, since Commander Yue is so gracious, we cannot refuse. Let us inspect his elite troops together!”

“Hehe… If even Governor Xu says so, how could I refuse? Very well, we will follow Commander Yue,” Wei Tonghe replied.

Yue Yang extended his hand respectfully: “Governor Xu, please. Grand Secretary Wei, please.”

As Xu Dingchen and Wei Tonghe mounted their horses, two waiting steeds had been prepared. Accompanied by Yue Yang, the three rode slowly toward the formations.

For Xu Dingchen and Wei Tonghe, this was their first experience inspecting an army, and it was a completely different sensation.

As they passed each formation, thousands of soldiers’ eyes snapped to them. The trembling feeling they felt was unlike anything they had experienced before.

When they reached the center of a formation, Yue Yang suddenly shouted loudly:

“Our Great Ming…”

“Victory!”

“Our Great Ming!”

“Mighty!”

The deafening roar shook the surroundings like thunder, making Xu Dingchen and Wei Tonghe’s hearts race. A thrilling, intoxicating shiver rose from deep within.

After completing a full circuit and returning to the platform, Wei Tonghe wiped the sweat from his brow and smiled wryly at Xu Dingchen:

“Governor Xu, today I finally understand what it means to have a strong army. No wonder throughout history, so many renowned ministers and generals were intoxicated by commanding thousands of troops to expand territories. This feeling… it’s just… incredible!”

Hearing this, Yue Yang bowed to Wei Tonghe:

“Grand Secretary Wei, I trust you have seen that I have poured everything into building this elite force. There is simply no more I can invest. Moreover, maintaining an army should be the court’s responsibility; it would be improper to have me carry it alone.”

“Ha ha ha…”

This time, Wei Tonghe laughed heartily, waving dismissively: “Alright… as I promised, I won’t go back on my word. Tomorrow, I will issue an imperial order through the Taiyuan Military Commissioner to allocate twenty thousand jin of grain monthly, along with weapons and equipment. As for pay… let’s start with ten thousand taels of silver. More than that might be difficult.”

“Your generosity humbles me, Grand Secretary!” Yue Yang was overjoyed. Although the army had already earned Xu Dingchen’s acknowledgment as a provincial governor, Xu Dingchen did not control the military. His approval alone meant Yue Yang’s force was at best a provincial unit. But with Grand Secretary Wei’s backing, this army had officially received the court’s recognition. Receiving regular pay from the government meant it was now a legitimate, registered military force. Its status and identity were entirely different.

The review ceremony concluded. Yue Yang had initially planned to showcase cavalry maneuvers like cutting and thrusting, but with civilians surrounding the drill ground, the horses could not run freely. The demonstration was canceled, and the exercise ended at noon.

Unexpectedly, news of the drill spread quickly through the civilians and scholars watching, eventually reaching the entire Yingzhou Prefecture and even Taiyuan and Datong. People everywhere learned that Yingzhou now had a remarkable elite army—the successor of the unit that had once defeated over ten thousand bandits with five hundred infantry—created by an officer named Yue Yang.

After the exercise, Xu Dingchen returned to the prefectural office with Zheng Fakui and Tang Xueying. Once inside, he said to Tang Xueying:

“Xueying, it seems we can no longer underestimate Yue Zhenghong. From now on, treat him with more respect, understand?”

Tang Xueying remained silent for a long while, then clasped her fists and said:

“Student will keep that in mind…”