Chapter 151: Factional Strife

The bow-makers and kiln workers, with their entire families, were all carried off by Zhao Han — women and children together numbered over four thousand.

The elite surrendered troops, however, were very difficult to handle, mainly because they could not bear to leave their families.

Forcing the surrendered troops to come along was possible, but their morale would be anyone's guess — no one could say when they might turn their coats right before a battle.

So Zhao Han deliberately stayed several extra days, sending squads out into the villages to "bring in" their families. This delayed them a full sixteen days, and before they knew it, even the Lantern Festival had passed.

Boats were used to transport supplies; apart from those commandeered by Tian Younian, Zhao Han himself also seized over a dozen.

The aged and the very young children were all placed on the boats as well; everyone else advanced along the riverbank. After joining up with Fei Ruhe from Fenyi County, the entire procession now numbered over ten thousand, surging mightily toward the Gan River.

Arriving outside the county seat of Xinyu, Tian Younian went ashore in person and shouted up at the walls: "I am Tian Younian, Prefect of Yuanzhou, bound for Ji'an to suppress bandits — deliver grain and fodder at once!"

Suppressing bandits, his foot — they had tarried half a month in the prefectural seat, and word had long since reached Xinyu County; everyone knew the Prefect of Yuanzhou had turned bandit.

The County Magistrate of Xinyu could not afford to provoke them. Seeing the bandits dragging their families along and apparently just passing through, he immediately had the prominent households in the city prepare provisions. It was, in effect, buying peace: in half a day they scraped together a thousand shi of grain and threw in a merchant vessel as a gift, cautiously escorting the rebels out of their territory with all due courtesy.

After marching another two double-hours, dusk was falling, so they made camp by the river to rest.

A small boat rowed back, and a scout reported: "Commander, from here to north of Zhangshu Town, no trace of government troops has been found."

"Good. Go and rest," Zhao Han said.

Tian Younian frowned. "That makes no sense. Li Maofang and Wang Siren's army, after receiving my secret letter, should have reached Zhangshu Town long ago."

"Never mind that — let's just get back first," Zhao Han said, too weary to puzzle over whatever mischief the Governor was up to.

Four days later.

Zhao Han led the main force into Zhangshu Town, which was known as the Apothecary Capital of the realm — the distribution hub for traditional medicine across the entire south.

Zhangshu Town, Jingdezhen, Hekou Town, and Wucheng Town were together called the Four Great Towns of Jiangxi. Back in the day, it was at Zhangshu Town that Wang Yangming assembled his troops and marched north to suppress the Prince of Ning's rebellion.

The place was extraordinarily prosperous; the number of merchants in this one town exceeded even that in Zhao Han's own Ji'an Prefectural seat.

The merchants had long since learned of the bandit threat. Shops had shut their doors one after another, merchant vessels had fled north, and even the docks were nearly deserted.

The supply flotilla thereupon entered the Gan River and sailed south along the current, heading back to Ji'an.

Scouts in small boats were constantly rowing north to gather intelligence on the government troops. At last, on the ninth day, word came back: the Governor had taken his troops and run off to the Yangtze waterway.

"The roving bandits from the northwest must have surged into the Southern Metropolitan Region," Tian Younian guessed.

Zhao Han knew that old Zhu's ancestral tombs had been dug up, though he could not recall which year. He said with a smile, "The rebels may have gone to the Central Capital."

Tian Younian started, then nodded. "Highly likely!"

Several more days passed, and they had already crossed out of Xiajiang County's territory when a scout finally returned to report: "The northwest righteous armies have entered the Southern Metropolitan Region from Henan!"

This intelligence was badly outdated — while Zhao Han was still in Yuanzhou Prefecture, the roving bandits had already stormed Fengyang.

The Central Capital of Fengyang, garrisoned by several thousand troops, was taken by the roving bandits during the Lantern Festival: they sent three hundred soldiers in disguise into the city, who then opened the gates from within and seized it in one stroke.

Gao Yingxiang, Li Zicheng, and Zhang Xianzhong all had a hand in it. The imperial tombs were desecrated, the halls burned, and the Longxing Temple where Zhu Yuanzhang had once been a monk was put to the torch. The several thousand government troops at Fengyang were slaughtered even after surrendering, and over sixty eunuchs were killed as well. The roving bandits raised a great banner proclaiming the "Guyuan True Dragon Emperor" and drank their fill in high revelry before old Zhu's ancestral graves.

The one who declared himself emperor was Zhang Xianzhong, and it was likewise Zhang Xianzhong who had taken Fengyang City — Gao Yingxiang and Li Zicheng had been a bit slow getting there.

As for the Guyuan True Dragon Emperor, that was a legend of the White Lotus sect. Zhang Xianzhong, to win over the White Lotus sect, had usurped this imperial title, and it was over this that he fell out with Gao Yingxiang and Li Zicheng.

We're all brothers who rose in revolt together — if you suddenly proclaim yourself emperor, then what does that make me?

After that came an uneven division of the spoils, a scramble over the young eunuchs and the imperial musical instruments, and Li Zicheng and Zhang Xianzhong fell out completely.

Li Zicheng headed northwest, following the Yellow River upstream.

Zhang Xianzhong went south. At this very moment, he was besieging Quanjiao, intending to cross the river and take Nanjing to establish his capital.

…

Mid-second month.

The Jiangxi army of Li Maofang and Wang Siren had eagerly set sail, hoping to go and protect the Emperor's ancestral tombs.

Midway, they learned that Fengyang had already fallen and that the roving bandits were now attacking Quanjiao. So the two men disembarked by the Yangtze and marched overland to relieve Quanjiao — they could be counted as loyal to the throne and devoted to the country.

They had marched barely thirty li when word came that Quanjiao County seat was lost.

Li Maofang was utterly dumbfounded. He conferred privately with Wang Siren: "Jizhong, we should withdraw, or at least wait for reinforcements from friendly forces. The bandit host is overwhelming — I fear we cannot withstand them!"

Wang Siren said, "We cannot withdraw. We can fall back to Hezhou to rest and regroup, and quietly await the six-province grand army to come to our aid."

Both men were inwardly uneasy at this point, but pulling back midway would look far too disgraceful. Better to find a place to lie low; win or lose, they could still give the court an account of themselves.

The next day, the Jiangxi army began to withdraw, intending to take boats and retreat to Hezhou city.

But they were already marked. Roving bandit cavalry kept coming after them — at first only a dozen or so riders, but within half a day they had swelled to several hundred.

"How do the bandits have so many cavalry?" Li Maofang cried out in alarm.

Wang Siren said, "We can't keep retreating toward the river — head for the hills to the northwest!"

Five thousand Jiangxi troops, under the watchful eyes of the bandit riders, abandoned their baggage and quickened their march. The several hundred bandit horsemen harassed them ceaselessly but never committed to an attack — these were all mounted infantry, using their horses primarily for travel.

Just as Doupeng Mountain drew nearer and nearer, a thunderous rumble of hoofbeats suddenly erupted behind them.

Zhang Xianzhong had come in person, bringing He Yilong and Ma Shouying with him.

The three bandit columns together numbered a full three thousand cavalry, sweeping toward them with terrifying momentum.

"Run! The roving bandits are here!"

The two sides were still far apart, but the Jiangxi troops collapsed on the spot. Li Maofang and Wang Siren could not possibly rein them in and could only flee along with the routed soldiers.

This was not a battle — it was a one-sided slaughter. The bandit cavalry simply rode up and hacked away as they pleased.

The enemies Zhao Han faced in Jiangxi were goods of precisely this quality — utterly helpless when they ran into roving bandits.

Having fled into Doupeng Mountain, Li Maofang and Wang Siren counted heads, their faces ashen as death. Over five thousand troops had disembarked to suppress the bandits; after one muddled engagement, barely over a thousand remained.

"Two or three thousand cavalry — are these still roving bandits?" Li Maofang was stunned.

Wang Siren likewise said, "No wonder the court finds them so hard to exterminate — these roving bandits are fiercer than government troops!"

The previous year, the roving bandits had been encircled by government forces. After breaking free, Zhang Xianzhong had reflected painfully on the experience. Thereafter, whenever they took a town or city, the first thing they seized was not money or grain — they sent men to round up mules and horses.

Mules and donkeys were used to carry supplies; horses were used for long-distance raids.

If they encountered elite government troops, they would simply abandon the supplies and have the entire army flee on muleback and horseback.

Seven horses to three infantry — that was the ratio in Zhang Xianzhong's army.

They could not truly be called cavalry; strictly speaking, they were merely mounted infantry.

Moreover, Zhang Xianzhong had grown far more vigilant. Every time he made camp, he sent mounted scouts out in all directions, reaching as far as ten li!

How could the local militias of Jiangxi possibly defeat such ferocious bandits?

Even the government troops of the six northern provinces could do nothing against Zhang Xianzhong. Li Zicheng and Gao Yingxiang were following his example, plundering mules, horses, and livestock all along their route — valuables and goods mattered far less to them now.

Li Maofang and Wang Siren no longer entertained any thought of suppressing the bandits.

Following the mountain contours, they led a thousand-odd foot soldiers down the slopes at midnight, boarded their ships, and led the naval force back to Jiangxi.

Whoever wanted to suppress the northwestern roving bandits could go ahead — they, for their part, had no desire to come back.

As for Zhang Xianzhong, after capturing Quanjiao, recruiting soldiers, and reorganizing his forces, he took Shucheng three days later. At the same time, he dispatched a detached force and seized Lu'an as well.

Next he moved against Luzhou. When the initial assault failed, he plundered the residents outside the city walls and pretended to withdraw. Secretly, he sent several hundred men disguised as an education commissioner, scholars, household slaves, and servants. Many wore Confucian robes and carried books on their backs. Prefect Zheng Lixiang respectfully welcomed them into the city.

Yes, you read that correctly — the prefect personally welcomed the bandits into the city!

And just like that, Luzhou (Hefei) was gone.

After occupying Luzhou, Zhang Xianzhong immediately began training a naval force on Lake Chao, still intent on crossing the Yangtze to attack Nanjing and establish his own court. In the meantime, he even selected commoners who had castrated themselves to serve as eunuchs, just to get a taste of being emperor first.

It was at this very moment that the real government army arrived, sending Zhang Xianzhong fleeing in terror along the Yangtze. He suffered several defeats in succession and bolted from Huangmei County into the territory of Huguang.

This was the closest Zhao Han ever came to Zhang Xianzhong — Huangmei County was less than a hundred li from Jiujiang.

……

Zhao Han had no way of knowing, of course, that Zhang Xianzhong, far away in Luzhou, had actually helped him destroy the main force of the Governor of Jiangxi.

Such an enormous favor — how embarrassing.

He returned to Ji'an in the middle of the second month. Both civil and military officials came to the docks south of the city to welcome him.

"Meng'an, sir — long time no see," Tian Younian said, cupping his hands in greeting.

Li Banghua had no recollection of him whatsoever. Racking his brains, he said, "Your excellency is…"

Tian Younian replied, "Tian Younian, Prefect of Yuanzhou. When you, Meng'an, sir, served as Minister of War, I had the undeserved honor of being a secretary in the Ministry of Revenue."

"So it is Master Tian." Li Banghua was greatly astonished; he had never imagined that Zhao Han had managed to win over the Prefect of Yuanzhou.

Chen Maosheng stood to the side, his face dark and sullen.

Pang Chunlai gazed across the Gan River, paying no attention at all to the scene before him.

Zhao Han sensed the atmosphere was deeply strange. Something major must have happened, causing a rift between Li Banghua, Pang Chunlai, and Chen Maosheng.

After they returned to the Regional Commander's residence, Xiao Huan handed over a letter.

Zhao Han opened it and read — it was a suicide note.

It had been written by a female squad captain from the propaganda corps. She had once been a prostitute in Ji'an Prefecture before joining the propaganda corps. During the New Year period, the propaganda corps had organized performances in the countryside to bring cheer to the grassroots officials and peasant association members of the various towns.

She had lodged temporarily at the home of a town chief. This town chief was a juren who had joined the rebels. Because he had performed outstandingly in the land redistribution work and also possessed very high academic credentials, he had been rapidly promoted to town chief.

The scoundrel, seized by some inexplicable impulse, coveted the beauty of the female propagandist. Or perhaps, thinking that since she had once been a prostitute she would be indifferent to matters of the bedchamber, he violated her in the middle of the night.

The next morning, when the propaganda corps squad captain learned of the matter, he immediately seized the town chief and delivered him to the authorities.

County Magistrate Ouyang Zheng found himself with an enormous headache and could only transfer the case to the Regional Commander's residence, since it involved a town chief and the propaganda corps.

Li Banghua and Pang Chunlai quarreled over this. The female propagandist, brooding more and more obsessively, actually left a suicide note and tried to kill herself — fortunately, a close friend discovered her in time.

Chen Maosheng was furious. He demanded not only that the town chief be dismissed from his post, but that he be convicted for the rape of a woman.

The officials of the Jishui faction also closed ranks, arguing that a prostitute had no business pretending to be a chaste martyr, and that leaving a note and attempting suicide was nothing but a performance.

The conflict between the veteran faction and the Jishui faction erupted all at once.

Zhao Han sighed. "We've expanded too fast. Those scholars still cling to their old ways of thinking. It's time to execute a few!"

(End of Chapter)