Chen Qiyu was not entirely without troops.
The former Yansui Commander, Wu Zimian, that notoriously corrupt official who had once sold horses to Gao Family Village, fell ill and died shortly after Hong Chengchou took office. He passed away before the court could even move against him.
As a result, the court transferred Wang Cheng'en, originally the Shaanxi Commander, to serve as the new Yansui Commander.
After Wang Cheng'en took up his post, Chen Qiyu worked closely with him to suppress the bandits, and for a time, the situation remained barely manageable.
But not long ago, Mongolian tribes from the Hetao region suddenly launched a westward invasion. They struck Yansui's border forts and plundered Lingzhou, Hengcheng, Yansui, Xichuan, and several other areas. Supreme Commander Hong Chengchou personally led troops to resist the Mongolians and took Wang Cheng'en with him.
With Wang Cheng'en gone, Chen Qiyu was left with nothing but his personal guards and a mixed assortment of garrison troops.
In the early years of the Chongzhen Emperor's reign, at the start of the peasant uprisings, such garrison troops could still suppress bandits with some success.
But now it was already the sixth year of Chongzhen.
The bandits' combat strength had improved by leaps and bounds, while the garrison troops had long since decayed. The gap between the two sides was obvious.
Chen Qiyu was completely panicked, his mind momentarily blank.
At that moment, a subordinate stepped forward.
"Governor, we still have one person we can rely on."
Chen Qiyu asked urgently,
"Who?"
The subordinate replied,
"Commander Shi Jian, one of Wang Cheng'en's trusted generals. He is stationed at Dragon Gate Ferry on the Yellow River under orders from the Ministry of War. I heard he achieved great merit and was appointed Hejin Garrison Commander by the court. If we lead the garrison troops to stall the bandits and send a messenger to Commander Shi, he may be able to rush over in time to reinforce Yanchuan County."
"He belongs to the Shaanxi army," Chen Qiyu objected. "How can he come to Yansui?"
The subordinate explained patiently,
"Supreme Commander Hong Chengchou is on our side. His authority covers Shaanxi, Gansu, Yansui, and Ningxia. Shaanxi troops fall under his command. As long as he states afterward that this was his direct order, there will be no problem."
Chen Qiyu's thoughts raced.
Hong Chengchou would certainly be willing, and indeed obligated, to back this decision, since Yansui was also within his jurisdiction.
"Very well," Chen Qiyu said decisively.
"Send someone immediately to summon Commander Shi."
A messenger was dispatched at once, galloping toward Dragon Gate Ferry to request reinforcements.
From where he started, the shortest route to Dragon Gate Ferry was straight through Huanglong Mountain.
The messenger looked up at the towering mountain range, and a sense of unease rose in his chest. But when he noticed the long, winding gray mountain road, his confidence strangely returned.
With such a fine road, crossing Huanglong Mountain should not take too long.
The only issue was that the hard surface looked rough on the horse's hooves.
Then he noticed something unexpected.
Beside the cement road, a dirt path had been carefully preserved. It was clearly meant for horses.
Delighted, the messenger spurred his horse and galloped along the dirt path parallel to the cement road.
In the blink of an eye, he had already covered more than ten li.
Ahead, a peculiar little building appeared by the roadside. Three characters were written on it: Yangou Station.
The messenger had never seen such a strange building standing alone on a mountain road. He could not understand it at all. What puzzled him even more was the odd vehicle parked in front of it, with two characters painted on the side: Eighty-Six.
Inside the vehicle sat a driver and several passengers, all staring at the galloping horse with curious expressions.
Both sides found the other equally strange.
But the messenger had no intention of stopping. With a whoosh, he sped past the vehicle and continued racing forward.
The driver exclaimed,
"Whoa, brothers, that horse looks like it's challenging us."
The passengers were labor reform prisoners who often rode this route while working on the roads. They were very familiar with the driver and burst out laughing.
"He's looking down on you, isn't he? Saying your Eighty-Six solar bus can't outrun a horse. That's why he just flew past you, leaving you eating dust."
The driver was hot tempered and hated being looked down on. He slammed the steering wheel.
"Damn it. Fine, fine. Let's see just how fast he really is."
These days, Gao Family Village's solar buses were designed for single person operation. The driver pulled a switch with his left hand, and the sunshades instantly retracted, pushing the solar panels to maximum output.
He released the brake, turned the wheel, and the Eighty-Six bus surged forward in pursuit of the warhorse.
The labor reform prisoners were thrilled. They were not worried about crashing at all. Instead, they cheered wildly.
"Eighty-Six takes the heights!"
The driver shot a cold glance at the water cup on his dashboard and snorted inwardly.
Charge.
The familiar racing anthem blasted out.
"Déjà vu, I've just been in this place before…"
The race began.
Hearing the strange shouts of "Eighty-Six takes the heights" behind him, the messenger turned his head. His heart jumped.
That bizarre metal beast was catching up fast.
"Looking down on me, are you?" the messenger fumed.
"I am a super courier who can travel eight hundred li a day, changing horses but never riders. When have I ever been overtaken by some strange contraption?"
"Hyah!" he shouted.
"Faster, faster!"
Horse and vehicle began a frantic chase.
At first, the warhorse held a clear advantage.
A horse's sprint speed was no joke, while the Eighty-Six bus had to slow down slightly at turns to avoid tipping over, making it impossible to unleash its full speed.
But that advantage did not last long.
A warhorse would inevitably tire.
And once Déjà vu started playing, the Eighty-Six had never lost.
The horse slowed, and the bus caught up.
The mischievous driver deliberately eased off, running side by side with the horse. One stayed on the cement road, the other on the dirt path.
A labor reform prisoner leaned out the window and mocked him.
"Well, well, rider, running out of steam? Weren't you so fast just now? How dare you race an immortal vehicle? Do you even know who bestowed this car upon us? Let me tell you. This is the Solar Divine Vehicle, a gift from Dao Xuan Tianzun himself. Showing off in front of it is disrespecting Dao Xuan Tianzun."
"Damn it…" the messenger panted heavily.
"I carry… an urgent mission… no time… to argue with you people…"
The labor reform prisoner blinked.
"An urgent mission? Tell us about it."
The messenger gasped out the news.
"Xue Hongqi, Yizuo Cheng, and Yizi Wang. Three bandit forces are attacking Yanchuan County. I must reach Dragon Gate Ferry to request reinforcements from Commander Shi Jian."
"Huh?"
The labor reform prisoners exchanged puzzled looks.
"Who are these nobodies?"
"We never heard of them back when we were bandits."
"Looks like the new really does replace the old."
The messenger froze.
"???"
At that moment, the small Dao Xuan Tianzun figurine hanging on the driver's chest suddenly spoke.
"Trouble again, right next to our territory?"
"The Dao Xuan Tianzun has spoken!" the driver exclaimed.
The labor reform prisoners instantly straightened up, their casual attitude vanishing at once.
The messenger, still on horseback beside the bus, could not see what was happening inside. He did not know who had spoken, only that the voice carried undeniable authority.
The Dao Xuan Tianzun issued a calm command.
"Invite the messenger onto the bus. Drive him for a stretch."