Zuo Liangyu was a native of Linqing in Shandong. He was thirty six years old, and he could not read a single character.
In the late years of the Ming, it would not be an exaggeration to call him the most infamous villain the court had produced. He slaughtered civilians to pad his military merits, built private armies, openly defied imperial orders, and committed every possible dishonorable act without restraint.
The utterly wicked, shameless feudal warlords portrayed in later novels and films were, in many ways, modeled directly after men like Zuo Liangyu.
At this very moment, he was leading a massive force eastward toward Huashi Town.
His army was a complete hodgepodge. Three thousand were genuine imperial soldiers. The remaining seven thousand were "pacified" rebels gathered from various defeated factions.
He had never reported these rehabilitated rebels to the court. Instead, he quietly kept them as his personal troops.
Zuo Liangyu surveyed the terrain ahead, then motioned to a messenger.
"Go inform Supreme Commander Lu that our army has reached its position."
Before the messenger could even turn to leave, a scout galloped in from the distance.
"Report, General. Your subordinate has just received urgent news. The Dashing General has offered a reward of one hundred pounds of gold for Gao Jie's head."
"What?!" Zuo Liangyu shouted. His voice leapt several octaves. "How much did you say?"
The scout swallowed.
"One hundred pounds of gold."
Zuo Liangyu leaned forward sharply.
"Are you certain it is one hundred pounds, not one hundred taels?"
The scout answered firmly.
"Confirmed."
Zuo Liangyu burst into laughter.
"Damn it all. If I miss this fortune, I would not deserve to be called a hero."
One of his trusted personal retainers poked his head out from nearby.
"General, Gao Jie has already surrendered and is now under He Renlong's command. Surely we cannot still earn that hundred pounds of gold?"
Zuo Liangyu sneered.
"You must learn to be flexible. So what if Gao Jie has been pacified? We simply will not use imperial troops to deal with him. We still have seven thousand pacified rebels, do we not?"
The retainer's eyes lit up immediately.
"Understood. I will lead the seven thousand pacified rebels to kill Gao Jie. You, General, can lead the three thousand imperial soldiers to deal with Lu Xiangheng."
Zuo Liangyu chuckled approvingly.
"That is how one thinks. Stay with me and you will learn not to be so rigid. Do not draw such clean lines between imperial soldiers and rebels. Whoever helps us make money is our friend."
The retainer bowed and hurried off to carry out the plan.
Zuo Liangyu then waved lazily at the messenger.
"Go ahead. Take your time informing Lu Xiangheng. Just tell him that I am in position, that all three thousand of my men have arrived. Tell him I am earnestly carrying out the Supreme Commander's orders."
He laughed loudly to himself.
The four contingents of imperial troops were now "all" in position.
Lu Xiangheng was overjoyed. Although Zuo Liangyu had arrived somewhat late, the encirclement was finally complete. This was the perfect opportunity to annihilate Zhang Xianzhong's West Camp forces in one decisive blow.
"Attack!"
With Lu Xiangheng's order, the southern army he personally commanded surged forward toward Huashi Town.
At the same time, Cao Wenzhao and Cao Bianjiao advanced from the west. He Renlong and Gao Jie pressed in from the north. Zuo Liangyu's forces moved from the east.
Inside Huashi Town, Zhang Xianzhong was shocked when he saw the encirclement tightening.
"Damn it all. We are finished."
Yet at that very instant, a sudden and absurd twist occurred.
From the northeast, a force of roughly seven thousand rebel soldiers appeared out of nowhere. Instead of avoiding the imperial troops, they charged straight toward He Renlong and Gao Jie's units.
As they rushed forward, they shouted at the top of their lungs.
"Traitor Fan Shan Yao. How dare you betray us. Your grandfathers are here to take your dog's life."
Gao Jie was following behind He Renlong when he heard the roar. He turned sharply toward the northeast, panic flashing across his face.
"Who is coming?"
Subordinates shouted back one after another.
"We do not know."
"They are not flying any banners."
"No idea which faction they belong to."
"Definitely not the Dashing General or the Roaming King."
Gao Jie was completely bewildered.
Meanwhile, the so called rebel soldiers saw He Renlong's and Gao Jie's banners clearly. They ignored He Renlong entirely and charged straight at Gao Jie.
"Gao Jie is here."
"Fan Shan Yao is here."
"Seize Gao Jie."
"Capture him alive."
Every rebel soldier's eyes burned as if they had been carved into the shape of coins. They rushed forward without fear of death, charging like madmen, as though dying meant nothing and they would simply stand up again afterward.
Gao Jie shouted in disbelief.
"What in the blazes is going on?"
His troops hastily turned to engage.
He Renlong's contingent was dragged into the chaos as well. With no choice, they turned and fought.
The northern defense line of the imperial army collapsed almost instantly.
Trapped inside Huashi Town, Zhang Xianzhong saw this and shouted joyfully.
"Heaven helps me. Charge north."
As the West Camp rebels surged northward, He Renlong's and Gao Jie's forces were attacked from both front and rear. Disorder erupted at once, and the carefully constructed encirclement was shattered.
Lu Xiangheng was frantic.
"How could this happen? Pursue them. Surround them. Do not let them escape."
Cao Wenzhao and his nephew Cao Bianjiao were also alarmed. They spurred their horses and charged recklessly toward Zhang Xianzhong's fleeing forces.
But it was already too late.
The rebels retreated while firing volleys of arrows. Cao Wenzhao and Cao Bianjiao had pursued too aggressively. Several arrows struck their horses. The mounts screamed and collapsed, throwing uncle and nephew to the ground. Both were severely injured and lay unable to rise. Their subordinates rushed in desperately to save them.
Lu Xiangheng pushed northward, intending to pursue Zhang Xianzhong relentlessly. But he was blocked by the rebel force attacking Gao Jie. He could not simply abandon He Renlong and Gao Jie to be overwhelmed, so he was forced to divert his troops.
The battlefield descended into total chaos.
Before long, another roar erupted from the north. The Dashing General and the Roaming King had arrived.
The moment they appeared, they shouted in unison.
"Fan Shan Yao. Hand over your dog's head."
They led their armies straight into the fray.
The chaos intensified even further.
The massive melee raged on, its duration unclear.
Lu Xiangheng looked left, then right, and his heart sank. The imperial forces were steadily losing ground. Rebel ranks seemed endless, while the imperial side had already lost a crucial fighting force with the serious injuries of Cao Wenzhao and Cao Bianjiao.
He Renlong was no strategist. He only knew how to charge headlong. His nickname, Mad He, was well earned. In a battle of this scale, his reckless assaults were utterly ineffective.
Gao Jie was now fighting purely to survive. Rebel soldiers swarmed him from every direction. Staying alive was already a struggle. Turning the tide was out of the question.
Zuo Liangyu also appeared to be fighting fiercely, but his actions achieved almost nothing.
The entire battlefield now rested on the desperate resistance of Lu Xiangheng's Tianxiong Army.
Just as the situation grew utterly dire, a thunderous rumble of hooves erupted from the north. A massive force of border cavalry charged onto the battlefield.
"Lao Huihui."
The moment Lu Xiangheng recognized the banners, he knew the battle was lost for the day. The Tianxiong Army was already stretched to its limit. With the addition of border cavalry, there was no chance of holding on.
"Retreat."
Lu Xiangheng had no choice but to order a temporary withdrawal.
The four imperial contingents retreated in four separate directions.
Large groups of rebels, however, continued to chase Gao Jie relentlessly, slashing their way northwest.
Lu Xiangheng watched this scene in disbelief.
"The rebels are not pursuing me, the Supreme Commander of Five Provinces. They are instead hunting Gao Jie without pause. Why?"
He clenched his fists.
"Is Gao Jie truly that important?"