Chapter 234: 232: The Rattan-Armored Legion and Zheng Zhilong

Outside Nanchang city, at the government troops' encampment.

The local Jiangxi government soldiers had already slipped away home in droves; just over three hundred remained. Those who had not fled were all guard-station troops with no family ties — if they ran home, their officers would only work them like slaves anyway.

Besides these, there were also more than sixteen hundred Guizhou rattan-armored soldiers!

The Guizhou Governor's own elite guard corps had a paper strength of only a thousand men, a quota fixed in the forty-third year of Jiajing.

But ever since supreme commanders and governors were first permitted to maintain personal guard troops, the numbers had been exceeded in all sorts of ways depending on the actual situation. When Weng Wanda fought the Mongols, for instance, his guard corps swelled to ten thousand at one point — he always drilled the troops first and informed the court afterward, and some supreme commanders and governors simply could not be bothered to inform the court at all.

Zhu Xieyuan raised and trained two thousand guard troops in Guizhou, a full thousand over quota. As long as he won his battles, the court could not be bothered to intervene.

These Guizhou rattan-armored soldiers had been left in Nanchang by Zhu Xieyuan primarily to garrison the prefectural city.

However, after Xiong Wencan became Governor of Jiangxi, a shortage of funds and grain sent the Guizhou troops' pay and rations into freefall. At least they could still eat their fill back then; once Xiong Wencan left, the Guizhou soldiers went from one full meal a day to one meal every other day.

If this went on, in two or three months at most, those thousand-odd Guizhou troops would certainly mutiny — or risk running outside the city to loot and plunder.

"H-halt… halt…"

The soldiers guarding the camp spoke in ever-weakening voices, backing away as they talked.

Huang Yao smiled. "The guard stations are redistributing land. I have come to send you home. There will be no more military households from now on — you can all become farmers, and no officer will dare bully you. When you get home, every man will receive his share of land."

The camp guards stared blankly for a moment, then dropped to their knees, sobbing, "Bodhisattva bless the General with a hundred years of long life!"

Huang Yao smiled. "Go back to camp and tell your comrades. Have them come and collect a dou of rice — that is your severance pay."

The camp guards broke into a run at once, shouting as they ran, "Everybody come out and get rice! Collect your rice and go home to get land!"

Faced with rice and faced with land, these soldiers had no resistance whatsoever. In an instant they transformed into ardent supporters of Mr. Zhao.

Never mind that they were in a camp outside the city, never mind that they numbered only three hundred and change — even if three thousand of them stood atop the city walls right now, they would throw open the gates and eagerly defect to the rebels.

The entire area around Nanchang Prefecture was under control; the Jiangxi provincial government could collect no taxes, so of course these soldiers went hungry.

All three hundred-odd guard-station troops received a sack of rice each, kowtowed to Huang Yao in unison, and then headed home jubilantly.

Huang Yao continued deeper into the camp, Fei Chun leading men with pushcarts right behind him.

The sixteen hundred Guizhou soldiers, while the guard-station troops were collecting their rice, had already donned their rattan armor and formed up in battle order, weapons at the ready.

These Guizhou soldiers had all once been slaves of the native chieftains; it was Zhu Xieyuan who had freed them. They acknowledged no court — they obeyed only Zhu Xieyuan's orders.

They likewise did not trust the Jiangxi rebels, thinking Huang Yao had come to slaughter them to the last man. Strangers in an unfamiliar land — this was Jiangxi — not one of the sixteen hundred Guizhou soldiers fled. They all formed ranks, resolved to fight to the death.

Looking at these Guizhou soldiers, visibly gaunt from hunger yet still utterly ready to fight to the death, Huang Yao felt deeply conflicted.

He had fought bloody battles for days at Lion Mountain, and the worst casualties he suffered came from a surprise attack by these very Guizhou troops. He both hated them and admired them — his emotions were tangled in a knot.

Fei Chun pointed at the carts behind him and said, "Take the grain, light a fire, cook a meal — fill your bellies first. Every man gets five hundred copper cash. Those willing to keep soldiering, come and collect it. From now on, you are Mr. Zhao's soldiers."

The Guizhou soldiers exchanged glances, and all began to relax their guard.

Huang Yao barked, "The man in charge, step forward!"

One Guizhou soldier advanced.

"What is your name?" Huang Yao asked.

The man answered in the Guizhou official tongue: "I was called Chihei before. Supreme Commander Zhu bestowed the name Chi Huchen."

Chihei meant "dog meat."

Slaves seized or bought by the Yi chieftains were all called chihei. Over time, Chihei even became a surname — many descendants of slaves were surnamed Chihei.

This Chi Huchen before them did not himself know which people he belonged to. He might be Han, might be Miao, might be Yi, might be Zhong — he had been captured by the chieftains when very young, and later recruited as a soldier by Zhu Xieyuan.

"Zhu Xieyuan has died of illness. Are you willing to serve Mr. Zhao from now on?" Huang Yao said. "So long as you obey, your rations will be ample and your pay issued on time. For those who want to settle down, you will also be given land. If you have what it takes, find yourselves wives at the matchmaking gatherings."

Chi Huchen ran back to confer with the officers, and a decision was quickly reached.

In truth, they had no other choice. With Zhu Xieyuan dead, they were like children without father or mother; drag on any longer and they would inevitably mutiny over pay.

"We are willing to be soldiers for Mr. Zhao!"

All thousand-plus men dropped to their knees, every one of them speaking the Guizhou official tongue, which by now was very close to the Ming official language.

That very day, they collected their pay and grain and ate a hearty, satisfying meal. The next day, they followed Fei Chun to Ji'an Prefecture.

ωωω⊕ t t k a n⊕ ￠ Ο

With this expansion of the army to sixteen thousand men, the Bureau of Military Affairs instituted another round of reforms.

Fei Ruhe commanded the Southern Division: forty-five hundred regular troops.

Huang Yao commanded the Northern Division: forty-five hundred regular troops.

Zhang Tieniu commanded the Central Division: four thousand regular troops.

Gu Jianshan commanded the Naval Division: three thousand regular troops.

The defense zones of the various counties in Ji'an Prefecture were reassigned to Zhang Tieniu's Central Division. That fellow knew nothing but fighting; military affairs were in fact all handled by his deputy, Liu Zhu. Liu Zhu was working hard to learn to read and write, had long since left illiteracy behind, and was no longer the blind fool he once was.

All sixteen hundred-odd Guizhou rattan-armored soldiers were incorporated into Zhao Han's personal guard, under the establishment of the Central Division's regular troops.

The parade ground outside Ji'an city.

Some of Zhao Han's personal slave-soldier corps had been sent out to serve as officers; the remainder were merged with the Guizhou troops, bringing the total to exactly two thousand.

Rattan helmets, rattan shields — after more than a year of soaking and curing, Zhao Han had produced some of his own as well.

These two thousand men before him wore rattan helmets, donned rattan armor, bore rattan shields, and carried steel blades as their weapons. Their armor was very light, yet highly protective — supremely useful when assaulting cities or attacking mountain positions. What was more, it suited long-distance raids; crossing mountains and ridges, fording rivers and streams, all was extremely convenient.

Zhao Han said, "None of you have families with you for now. Next year, when we go to southern Huguang, you will find that bandits have ravaged the land there. The number of able-bodied men has plummeted, but many women remain. The bandits, too, have carried off many women in their plunder — you can go to southern Huguang and start families. There is also plenty of ownerless land there; the landlords were all killed by the bandits. Drive out the bandits, and I will give you land, so that in the days to come you will have wives, fields, and children!"

"Long live the Regional Commander!"

"Long live the Regional Commander!"

The two thousand rattan-armored guardsmen roared with all their might, their faces alight with fervent longing.

They had no families; once they married and received land, they could rent it out to other peasants to farm. Zhao Han had not banned the leasing of land — he had only forbidden tenants from subletting it further.

…

The seat of Funing Subprefecture was at Xiapu, while Zheng Zhilong's grand mansion was at Jinjiang. For Fei Yinghuan to get a meeting with Zheng Zhilong was no easy matter.

The two had met for the first time the previous year but had not spoken in depth; Fei Yinghuan had merely expressed his admiration.

Jinjiang, Anhai Township.

The Zheng clan mansion here had taken three years and two months to build. It served not only as a residence but also as a military and trade base — in time of war it could be converted directly into a fortress.

"Master, a guest requests an audience!"

Zheng Zhilong took the visiting card and looked — it was actually the Prefect of Funing come calling.

He had a fairly good impression of this Funing Prefect. Passing by there by ship the year before, the man had voluntarily provided some provisions and fodder, and had even come aboard his ship in person to feast and make his acquaintance.

Zheng Zhilong strode quickly into the courtyard and went to receive him in person, clasping his hands with a smile: "Prefect Fei, your honored self graces us with your presence — I have failed to welcome you from afar, failed to welcome you from afar!"

"Brother Yiguan, I came unannounced — a presumptuous intrusion." Fei Yinghuan smiled as well.

The address "Brother Yiguan" delighted Zheng Zhilong immensely — no civil official had ever called him that before. He burst out laughing on the spot, took Fei Yinghuan by the arm and led him inside, ordering the servants: "Bring wine and meat at once!"

Passing through halls and chambers, the two men took their seats.

Zheng Zhilong asked, "Brother Fei has left Funing — have you been promoted again?"

Fei Yinghuan glanced behind Zheng Zhilong. "Please dismiss your attendants, Yiguan."

Zheng Zhilong waved his hand at once. "All of you, withdraw."

Wei Jianxiong left together with the Zheng household servants, closed the door behind him, and stood silent guard at the entrance.

Fei Yinghuan lowered his voice. "To tell you the truth, this brother has abandoned his seal and fled."

"Did you offend some treacherous minister at court?" Zheng Zhilong asked.

"No," Fei Yinghuan shook his head. "It is my son-in-law who is about to offend the Emperor."

About to offend?

So had he offended or not?

Zheng Zhilong was baffled. "Which worthy gentleman is your son-in-law, elder brother?"

Fei Yinghuan asked in return, "Has Yiguan heard of the rebel Zhao in Jiangxi?"

Zheng Zhilong said, "Of course I know of him. The Fujian Governor and the Fujian Regional Commander were ordered to Jiangxi to suppress the rebels, and that rebel Zhao smashed their entire army in a single battle. The Fujian Vice Regional Commander was also transferred to serve as Jiangxi Regional Commander, and he even bought twenty small Frankish cannon from me."

"That rebel Zhao of Jiangxi," Fei Yinghuan said with a faint smile, "is my son-in-law."

Zheng Zhilong thought his ears had failed him. He stared at Fei Yinghuan, blinking, and asked again, "That one in Jiangxi — is your son-in-law, elder brother?"

Fei Yinghuan nodded. "This winter, my son-in-law will seize all of Jiangxi, and next year he will send troops into southern Huguang and Guangdong. My identity was bound to come to light, so I simply abandoned my seal and fled. Before leaving Fujian, I made a point of coming to see Yiguan."

Zheng Zhilong's thoughts churned in a thousand twists and turns. If that rebel Zhao of Jiangxi really took Guangdong and southern Huguang, would he not then hold the territory of two and a half provinces?

Fei Yinghuan continued, "After my son-in-law takes Guangdong and southern Huguang, he will send troops to seize Fujian."

Zheng Zhilong's expression turned grave. The waters off Guangdong were his territory, and the waters off Fujian were his very heartland. If that rebel Zhao of Jiangxi truly could occupy Fujian and Guangdong, they would inevitably have to deal with each other often from now on.

"What counsel does elder brother have for me?" Zheng Zhilong asked.

Fei Yinghuan handed over a letter. "This is a personal letter my son-in-law wrote to Yiguan."

Zheng Zhilong was literate. At the very first line, he could not help but laugh. He and Fei Yinghuan addressed each other as brothers, and now Zhao Han in his letter addressed him as "elder brother" — there was no telling how to sort out the seniority.

Zhao Han wrote in the letter that the seas were of paramount importance. Once he sat upon the realm, he intended to drive the Red Barbarians from Luzon and Malacca. He would even strike as far as India, and Zheng Zhilong could be Grand Marshal of the Navy — on the seas, too, one could be enfeoffed as duke or marquis.

Zhao Han asked Zheng Zhilong directly: Duke Who Calms the Seas, Duke Who Guards the Seas, Duke Who Pacifies the Seas, Duke Who Opens the Seas — which of these titles would elder brother prefer?

That question set Zheng Zhilong's heart pounding wildly; suddenly his blood ran hot.

Although Zheng Zhilong had been co-opted by the imperial court and held sole dominance over the waters of southern China, his official rank was merely "Mobile Corps Commander for Coastal Defense."

That night, Zheng Zhilong tossed and turned. In the middle of the night he rose and wrote a letter, and the next day he had Fei Yinghuan deliver it to Zhao Han.

(End of Chapter)