The Great Ming in the Box-Chapter 248: Let’s Chase Him Out
Li Daoxuan stood by as a complete spectator, assuming Li Ying would lead his troops westward after being “exposed by the Donglin faction for avoiding battle”—even if just for show.
But he quickly realized he’d overestimated the man’s character.
After leaving the county town, Li Ying tilted his head, pondered for a moment, then chuckled. “We’ll head north to Fengyuan Town. That place is ideal too—connected northward to Yan’an Prefecture. Stationed there, we can advance or retreat flexibly while staying far from those Donglin mad dogs.”
His deputy whispered, “General, our provisions are scarce. Since we failed to secure grain in Chengcheng County, the coming days will be tough.”
Li Ying snorted. “The main road to Fengyuan Town runs through populated areas. We’ll just forage along the way.”
The deputy chuckled darkly.
True to their word, they marched north along the official road…
Soon, they spotted a small roadside tea shop. Li Ying pretended not to see it, but his deputy waved a command. Soldiers stormed inside, smashing and grabbing everything of value—meager coins and food included. The shopkeeper cowered in the back room, trembling, too afraid to intervene.
The officials pressed northward. Not far ahead lay a small inn. The deputy waved again; another unit charged in to loot and destroy…
Watching their rampage unfold, Li Daoxuan felt rage simmering inside. Were this happening in Gaojia Village, he’d have already struck them down with a slap.
This Guerrilla General Li Ying clearly needed discipline!
A divine slap as punishment?
No. He couldn’t handle everything personally. Matters his followers could resolve should be left to them.
Besides, this man was walking experience points—perfect for his people to practice combat skills against. Chances to battle proper officials didn’t come often.
Li Daoxuan blew sharply toward Li Ying’s forces.
A gale howled, nearly toppling Li Ying. Alarmed, he steadied himself while his soldiers swayed helplessly.
“No more looting!” he bellowed. “This place reeks of sorcery—the wind’s targeting us! Move! On to Fengyuan Town!”
The officials quickened their pace, not daring further mischief.
Li Daoxuan tossed pinches of flour before the owners of the ransacked tea shop and inn.
Neither knew where it came from but sensed divine protection. They knelt and kowtowed skyward.
Li Daoxuan’s finger flicked, shifting his vision back to Gaojia Village.
Two moods coexisted there now.
Ordinary villagers remained blissful—farming, laboring, studying as usual.
But the militia, led by Cheng Xu, was preparing for battle, polishing weapons and brimming with zeal.
Searching the crowd for Gao Yiye, Li Daoxuan found the girl—freshly returned from the county town—already restored to cheerfulness. She sprinted along the field edges with Gao Sanwa, Young Master Bai, and Third Miss.
“How sure are you about the ghostly fire?” Gao Yiye shouted.
“Positive!” Gao Sanwa insisted. “Right over that slope. Floats out nightly, glowing eerily—terrifying!”
Third Miss gasped. “Should we go? What if ghosts devour us?”
Young Master Bai scoffed. “Impossible! How could ghosts haunt where the Deity resides? It must be a physics phenomenon I’ve yet to study.”
The four teenagers thudded up the slope but circled fruitlessly; daylight revealed no ghosts.
Seeing their playfulness wane, Li Daoxuan spoke. “Yiye, find Cheng Xu. Deliver my command.”
Gao Yiye jumped up with an “ah” sound: “Yes, I’ll go right away.”
“Rest assured, it won’t take many words, you’ll be back to see the will-o’-wisp before dark.”
Gao Yiye: “Deity, will there really be a will-o’-wisp?”
Li Daoxuan smiled: “The will-o’-wisp should actually be called phosphorescent fire; it’s not a ghost, but a chemical phenomenon. Hmm, now that I think of it, Young Master Bai and Third Miss are almost ready to learn ‘Junior High Chemistry.’ Tomorrow, I’ll have the woodcarver start making that book.”
Gao Yiye: “Wow, if I tell this to Young Master Bai, he’ll surely be very happy.”
Li Daoxuan smiled with an expression kind and paternal, like that of an old father.
However, when Gao Yiye ran to Cheng Xu, Li Daoxuan’s expression suddenly turned fierce. Roaring like a fierce dragon, he said: “Cheng Xu, gather the troops and prepare to handle someone.”
Cheng Xu hurriedly cupped his hands toward the air: “Are we dealing with the rebel band in Guyuan?”
“Not at all!” Li Daoxuan said with a stern face: “We’re dealing with Guerrilla General Li Ying.”
Cheng Xu, hailing from years of grassroots struggle, had mostly heard of famed figures in the Shaanxi officialdom, especially among military ranks. Hearing Li Ying’s name, he frowned: “Has that guy been appointed Guerrilla General and come to us now? Hey, are we going to teach him a lesson? I get it, I get it…”
Li Daoxuan: “What do you get?”
Cheng Xu said: “Li Ying is notorious for lax military discipline; he’s useless against enemies but a master at extorting money and plundering commoners. Most military officials in Shaanxi are more or less aware of this. Some civil officials have impeached him multiple times, but it all got suppressed by Provincial Governor Hu Tingyan. Hey… Provincial Governor was likely bribed well by Li Ying… At times I suspected half the wealth Li Ying robbed from commoners ended up in Provincial Governor’s pocket.”
Li Daoxuan felt somewhat speechless, but not at all surprised.
Cheng Xu rushed with pride and shouted at the militia: “You wastes, remember what Instructor said to you last time? What did Deity organize you for?”
The five hundred militiamen replied in unison: “To fight for the common people!”
Cheng Xu laughed with a “heh”: “Alright, now your chance has come. Guerrilla General Li Ying has arrived in Chengcheng County. That fellow named Li Ying, though an official, has always acted like a bandit—oppressing good civilians and looting commoners’ wealth. Deity has just issued a divine decree, ordering us to expel that villain Li Ying out of Chengcheng County.”
Everyone froze momentarily, feeling a bit scared.
In the past, they fought bandits; it was honorable warfare with no inner burdens. This time they actually had to fight officials? Were they truly rebelling?
This… this…
While they hesitated, Ground Rabbit suddenly burst into loud laughter: “Finally, finally, hahaha, Mr. Rabbit knew we’d end up fighting officials sooner or later. Hahaha, Mr. Rabbit already hated those officials who oppress good civilians. Hahaha, at last I can uphold heaven’s justice, hahahaha.”
He swiftly drew his ancestral sword.
That sword had long been ground to a gleaming silver.
He held the sword and swung it wildly with a “swish swish swish,” showing no trace of form, because he still hadn’t gotten any sword technique manual and knew no sword skills.
But this didn’t hinder his performance. He raised the long sword, looked up to the sky, and laughed: “I’ll use this move, the Celestial Rabbit Sword, to slay all the wicked officials!”
Spurred by his commotion, the previously hesitant militia suddenly rushed with pride, especially soldiers from Qingjian County who roared: “Right! Kill all those shitty officials who oppress good civilians!”
Only Cheng Xu sarcastically remarked: “There are good people among the officials too. Why all this roaring excitement over nothing? That stupid rabbit, your Celestial Rabbit Sword is just a random slash—stop acting like it’s some grand technique.”
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Chapter 248: Let’s Chase Him Out
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