Chapter 130: Returning to the City

"Forget it. If I am truly to be buried alive, I might as well end my own life beforehand. Being buried in the earth can also be considered 'returning to the earth for peace'."

Thinking this, Wang Dahai was no longer panicked. He honestly dug the pit and buried the corpses. After all the bodies were placed in the pit, Meng Yifan ordered them to fill it in, which made Wang Dahai heave a sigh of relief. It seemed he had overthought it; these rebels had no intention of burying all the captives alive.

Twenty minutes later, Meng Dayong and his men finished clearing the battlefield. They had captured a total of five Shenwu Great General Cannons that were still usable, twelve Tiger Crouching Cannons, and over four hundred Bird Guns.

With this equipment, Meng Yifan's soldiers could all be equipped with firearms. Meng Yifan did not waste the cannons and Bird Guns that had been blown up, either; he had them all dragged back into the city.

Some of these damaged weapons were not severely damaged, and Wang Dachui possessed superb skills and could repair them; those that were completely scrapped could also be melted down and reforged.

One does not know the cost of fuel and rice until one manages a household. Now that Meng Yifan had to train one thousand soldiers, he discovered that everything was in short supply.

For instance, making Bird Guns and cannons required iron and steel, but there were no iron ore deposits around Luolong County, which made things very difficult.

Most of the weapons currently used by Meng Yifan's soldiers were confiscated from the Luolong County government storehouse.

The portion they manufactured themselves was also made by melting down other ironware, but the ironware within Luolong County was limited. One couldn't just melt down the kitchen knives and iron pots the common people used for cooking, could one? That would be absurd.

Wang Dachui was a skilled craftsman, but without ironware, even a clever housewife could not cook without rice.

It was precisely because of this that Wang Dachui had only manufactured one Multi-tube Rocket Launcher, despite its immense power.

The Divine Machine Battalion was an all-firearm unit, and the firearms they used were all forged from hundred-refined steel. Even if they were blown up, they could still replenish the ironware that was in short supply in Luolong County.

There were also many cannonball fragments on the battlefield, and Meng Yifan ordered them to be collected as much as possible; after being melted down, they could be made into cannonballs again.

After the supplies were collected, Meng Yifan said, "Let's go, we are returning to the city."

More than nine hundred soldiers, shouting loud slogans, marching in neat ranks, and carrying an air of ferocity, returned to the city with high spirits and great vigor.

The Divine Machine Battalion had been completely wiped out; this news spread through the entire Luolong County city like a gust of wind.

The common people in the Refugee Camp who were loyal to Meng Yifan cheered and jumped for joy, and the soldiers' families were also very happy. However, according to the news sent back from the front, eighty or ninety of Lord Meng's soldiers had also been killed or wounded, which made the soldiers' families anxious, not knowing if their own men were alright.

Meng Yifan had long ago issued an order that if anyone serving as his soldier died in battle, he would be responsible for supporting the soldier's family. As long as Meng Yifan had a bite to eat, he would absolutely not let the families of his soldiers go hungry.

These soldiers' families also believed that Meng Yifan would keep his word, but no one wanted their own kin to die on the battlefield.

Every man who was a soldier was, for the vast majority, the pillar of a family. If the pillar collapsed, what hope was there for that family?

Wang Xiuzhi ran to the city gate in a panic, holding her son Zhang Mancang, her eyes fixed tightly on the returning troops, longing to see Zhang Shagen return at the first possible moment.

There were many military families like Wang Xiuzhi; they stood on both sides of the city gate, all hoping for their own men to return safely.

Meng Yifan led the army back to the city, and walking at the very front were carts carrying the remains of the fallen soldiers.

In this great battle, sixty-eight soldiers had died. Some soldiers' bodies were still intact, while others had been blown into fragments by cannonballs.

Meng Yifan ordered them to be collected as completely as possible, then carefully placed on the carts and handed over to their families.

Returning in great victory, Meng Yifan had originally been very happy, but seeing the families waiting anxiously outside the city gate, his heart became heavy again.

The trenches Meng Yifan designed had greatly reduced the soldiers' casualties, but how could there be no deaths in war? The Divine Machine Battalion was an elite unit, and their firearms were not mere fire pokers; casualties were inevitable.

When Meng Yifan was on Earth, he was merely a mercenary, risking his life for money. He was a lone wolf with no ties, so if he died, he died. But now, a large group of soldiers was risking their lives following him, and he had to be responsible for these people and their families, which made him feel immense pressure.

Meng Dayong patted Meng Yifan on the shoulder and said, "Yifan, don't blame yourself. You have already done well enough. If not for the trenches you designed, even if we had won this battle, the soldiers would have been nearly wiped out."

Meng Yifan nodded. He understood the principle that the success of one general is built upon the bones of ten thousand, but looking at the military families crying heart-wrenchingly outside the city gate, he still felt a bitter taste in his heart.

"Settle the families of the fallen soldiers well. Give each family fifty taels as a pension, and ensure their daily meals are delivered to their homes on time. During festivals and holidays, remember to send them rice and oil. We must absolutely not let the families feel cold-hearted," Meng Yifan said to Liu Dengke behind him.

"Lord Meng, rest assured, I will handle it well," Liu Dengke nodded.

"We must build a Martyr Cemetery outside the city to properly bury the remains of the fallen soldiers. We must also build a Hall of Heroes in the city, where the spirit tablets of the fallen soldiers will be enshrined to receive incense for generations to come," Meng Yifan said.

Hearing these instructions from Meng Yifan, Liu Dengke's eyes lit up. Meng Yifan was no simple man; if these measures were carried out, they would surely make the soldiers fight for him with absolute devotion.

Liu Dengke was an old scholar. Although his imperial examinations had been very unsatisfactory and he had wasted half his life, he was well-read, knowledgeable about the past and present, and widely experienced. Originally, he had not thought highly of Meng Yifan, thinking that this group of rebels would be wiped out by the imperial army before long.

The Thousand-man Unit of the Divine Machine Battalion had come to suppress the rebellion, and Liu Dengke thought Meng Yifan's group was doomed to fail. Yet, the result was that the Divine Machine Battalion was completely wiped out, which left Liu Dengke dumbfounded.

Now, hearing Meng Yifan's arrangements for the fallen soldiers, Liu Dengke was even more shocked.

Since ancient times, those who win the hearts of the people win the world. Although the strength of Meng Yifan's group was still very weak, judging by their current actions, they would surely gradually gather more and more support from the common people.

"Could Meng Yifan really succeed in his rebellion and become the supreme Emperor?" Liu Dengke could not help but recall that years ago, a fortune teller had said he could become a Grand Secretary and reach the pinnacle of officialdom. Could the words of that fortune teller really come true?

Thinking of this, Liu Dengke's heart burned with excitement. If he could become a meritorious official who followed the dragon, assisting an emperor to accomplish a world-shaking cause, then even death would be worth it.