Chapter 131: Testing the Waters

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The greatest fear in any matter is failing to reach a consensus, but now that even the supervising general Pan Yuanming aligned with everyone’s opinion, the situation naturally became easier: “Let Zhu Ding test the mettle of the Zhenjiang bandits!”

Zhu Ding was one hundred percent dissatisfied with this arrangement: “Those Zhang brothers always act like this—when it comes to big matters, they don’t dare to gamble. They always want to seize all the benefits, but there’s no such good thing in this world. It’s just a few thousand Chaohu bandits; if we can’t wipe them out in one round, we’ll get them in three or five!”

Several military officers beside him expressed strong agreement: “That’s right, it’s not like we haven’t faced the Chaohu bandits before—just that simple!”

“Li Pusheng and Lady Jinhua are veterans, and we’ve gained the upper hand in several encounters!”

“Adding one more officer like Liu Yuanpan only means more victories for us!”

Zhu Ding dared to say this because he had recently made significant progress in recruiting defectors. The river bandits and some Yuan navy soldiers who escaped from the Deputy Commander’s water base were now under his command. Besides capturing warships, he had also purchased dozens of various warships from Fang Guozhen of Taizhou. With this strength, he felt confident in his invincibility.

However, while Zhu Ding was full of confidence, someone below reminded him: “Commander, General Zhang Shide wants us to test the Zhenjiang bandits first. This is no easy task. It’s difficult to assemble our troops, and we can’t afford to lose too many men to the Zhenjiang bandits!”

Zhu Ding hesitated once again. Although Zhang Shide had explained everything clearly in his letter and even suggested maintaining a defensive posture, Zhu Ding felt they couldn’t always be passive. After all, the Zhenjiang bandits were the strongest navy on the Yangtze River, and if they kept on the defensive, they would only become more passive.

His cousin's reminder was right: this was their capital, and it couldn’t become a mere test stone for the Zhenjiang bandits. If losses were too great, a foolproof plan was necessary. Just as Zhu Ding was racking his brain, a shout came from outside: “The Chaohu bandits are coming! The Chaohu bandits are coming!”

The Chaohu bandits arrived so quickly?

Zhu Ding suddenly thought Zhang Shide’s advice wasn’t bad after all. Though his own strength was not weak, their priority was to hold off the Chaohu bandits for the first victory. He immediately said, “Perfect timing—as the saying goes, when soldiers come, generals block; when water comes, earth floods. I want to see what kind of magic the Chaohu bandits possess.”

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But once he boarded the water base, Zhu Ding gasped sharply, and his subordinates immediately became cautious: “What do we do now?”

“Is this the navy of Liu Yuanpan from Zhenjiang?”

“They come with ill intent—Commander, we must have a foolproof plan!”

“We need to think fast. Chuzhou and Chaohu are two Red Turban bandit factions; how did they end up joining forces?”

For the first time, Zhu Ding and the civil and military officials witnessed the strength of the Chaohu navy. From the watchtower of the water base, a dense array of warships of all sizes stretched as far as the eye could see—fishing boats, cargo ships, Yuan dynasty navy-standard warships, and some warships crafted by the Chaohu navy themselves.

Zhu Ding had always thought his navy wasn’t too weak, but now he suddenly realized they were insignificant compared to the Chaohu navy. The enemy’s warships were orderly and moved with ease, clearly a battle-hardened navy, unlike their own hastily assembled fleet, which was on a completely different level.

Therefore, Zhu Ding made the correct decision immediately: “Hold the line! As long as we hold, it’s a complete victory. If we hold the water base, it’s a total triumph!”

At this moment, Zhu Ding dared not speak of a decisive victory over the Chaohu bandits. The enemy’s strength was simply too great, and he had no thought of a frontal challenge: “Don’t worry. Holding the line means victory. No matter how powerful the Zhenjiang bandits are, they won’t break through our water base!”

At last, Zhu Ding gained some confidence. Regardless, these water bases had been reinforced several times, some even employing over ten thousand civilian laborers, turning them into fortified cities. They were equipped with countless fortifications and defenses that even the finest elite troops in the world would find impossible to breach without great loss of life, time, and resources.

At least they could hold out for ten days or half a month. Zhu Ding quickly pulled out Zhang Shide’s letter and glanced at it, finally breathing a sigh of relief.

Zhang Shide never expected him to fight the Chaohu navy to the death. He just told him to call for reinforcements if they couldn’t hold out. Not only would Zhang Shide rush to aid him, but he would also immediately seek help from Zhang Shicheng. With these water bases held firm, there was no problem.

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Yet Liu Yi’s perspective was entirely different: “Zhu Ding’s water bases may have cost some effort, but since I’m here, I intend to take them all today. Tomorrow, the Jiangyin waterways must be ours!”

Although Liu Yi’s words were somewhat arrogant, the officers below felt he was qualified to say so.

The Chaohu navy had been resting and gathering strength at Zhenjiang for months in preparation for today. Zhao Pusheng spoke first: “Rest assured, Officer Liu. Today, our forces will achieve complete victory. Not a single ship of Zhang’s will remain on the Changzhou waterways!”

Liu Yi nodded confidently: “Very well, Marshal Zhao, you will be my vanguard today!”

Zhao Pusheng laughed heartily: “Officer Liu, you’re mistaken. Today, I’m not the vanguard—I’m the main attack. Taking care of Zhu Ding’s ragtag force is enough for me, Zhao Pusheng. Burn their ships!”

“So many fire ships?”

Although Zhu Ding’s side had considerable experience dealing with fire ships, seeing so many of them caused panic among everyone. Such a large number of fire ships meant that all previous experience was useless. The Zhenjiang bandits were clearly pulling out all the stops. Not only did they deploy countless fire ships, but many of their warships looked extremely strange and ominous.

Therefore, all hope was placed on generous rewards to find brave souls: “Quick, bring out all the silver! We need people willing to risk their lives for untold wealth. Whoever dares to fight to the death, gold and silver won’t be a problem. What’s that flying in the sky? Get out of the way!”

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