Chapter 139: My Own Qi Shaobao

On the twenty-second day of the twelfth month, the Wendeng Battalion, led by the Five Armies Camp, entered the city through Yongdingmen. Outside Yongdingmen, the corpses of over ten thousand soldiers of the King's Relief Army lay strewn across the fields. Some troops from the Capital Camp were burying them, while wild dogs kept running over to gnaw on the bodies, and the Capital Camp soldiers, armed with blades and spears, drove them off without pause.

The soldiers of the Wendeng Battalion marched on in silence, watching the harrowing scene before them. Every sight along the way from Gu'an had been a vision of hell. The brutality of the Jianzhou Bandits only further ignited their fury.

After entering Yongdingmen, the entire army rested and reorganized in the barbican. The Directorate of Ceremonial, the Directorate of the Imperial Horses, and the Ministry of War all dispatched officials to receive them. The several capital officials who had previously come to verify their battle merits were also present. Although they habitually looked down on military men, this person had rendered great service at a critical moment and was certain to receive the Emperor's favor. Thus, they were all exceedingly courteous to Chen Xin. The Ministry of War had also mobilized grain, fodder, and tents, allowing the Wendeng Battalion to encamp within the barbican.

News spread quickly. The commoners of Jingshi heard that a force from Dengzhou and Laizhou had slain several hundred Jianzhou Bandits and flocked to the vicinity of Yongdingmen to see the excitement. The streets near Yongdingmen were packed with people. The Outer City Military Commission and the Embroidered Uniform Guard had to dispatch extra men to disperse the crowds and guard Yongdingmen, barring them from entering the barbican.

Most of the Wendeng Battalion soldiers were visiting Jingshi for the first time. The barbican was like a square courtyard, and the towering city walls and gate towers filled them with awe. At the same time, they looked around curiously at the numerous civil officials and Capital Camp soldiers surrounding them.

Listening to the clamor of the crowd outside, Chen Xin knew it was a deliberate publicity effort by the imperial court. They urgently needed a victory like this to restore their prestige. He spoke in a low voice to Lu Chuanzong and Dai Zhenggang beside him, "I never imagined our return to Jingshi would be a scene like this."

Lu Chuanzong couldn't help but smile. "Indeed. When we left back then, no one saw us off. Now, so many have come to greet us."

Dai Zhenggang said, "It's all because you led us, my lord. Otherwise, I wouldn't even know where I'd be doing hard labor."

The three were chatting when the Capital Camp officers and soldiers over by the gate tunnel all dropped to their knees. Chen Xin knew an important personage was arriving and hurriedly stopped talking to go and greet them. The other capital officials also rushed over in that direction.

A gaunt civil official, surrounded by a retinue of attendants, walked into the barbican. On the chest of his official robe was the rank badge of a second-rank civil official, featuring a golden pheasant treading on clouds and crying to the sun. The surrounding civil officials all knelt in salute. Chen Xin spotted Song Wenxian accompanying him at a glance and knew it must be Wen Tiren. Song Wenxian also saw Chen Xin among the crowd. His face was full of excitement, the beard on his chin quivering slightly. He knew the moment for the Wendeng Battalion to become famous across the land had arrived.

Chen Xin hurried forward and knelt. The moment Wen Tiren entered the barbican, he had been looking around, ignoring the civil officials filling the ground, his gaze solely assessing the military officers. Song Wenxian pointed subtly beside him. Seeing Chen Xin kneeling on the ground in full armor, Wen Tiren strode over and personally helped him to his feet.

Wen Tiren looked Chen Xin over carefully, then laughed heartily. "What a righteous and outspoken Battalion Commander! What a brave and daring Picket Officer!"

Chen Xin bowed and said, "Your Excellency Wen overpraises me. To slay bandits for the nation is the duty of us soldiers."

Wen Tiren turned to the group of civil officials beside him and said, "Unyielding before a strong foe, not arrogant in achievement — this is the true character of a man of our Great Ming."

The officials chimed in with a chorus of agreement, praising Chen Xin to the skies. Chen Xin, meanwhile, cautiously raised his head to size up Wen Tiren. He was in his fifties, gaunt in both face and build, his beard slightly dry and yellowed. Now, speaking eloquently among the officials, his bearing was very dignified.

Beside him was a man with a fair, clean-shaven face. He wore a five-ridged court hat and a bamboo-green yesa robe, with a red python design embroidered on the chest. The red inner collar showed at the neckline, contrasting rather handsomely with the bamboo-green outer robe.

Chen Xin guessed he must be a close attendant of the Chongzhen Emperor; otherwise, he would not have been granted the right to wear a python robe. Although overstepping regulations was now common in Jingshi, with even slightly wealthy households daring to order custom-made python robes, formal official occasions still adhered to the system.

Sure enough, Wen Tiren immediately introduced him to Chen Xin. "Picket Officer Chen, quickly pay your respects to Eunuch Cao. Eunuch Cao has attended His Majesty since His Majesty was still at the Xin Estate. He is the person closest to His Majesty."

Chen Xin immediately knelt again to pay his respects. Cao Huachun caught hold of him to help him up. Smiling broadly, Cao Huachun said in a sharp voice, "Indeed, one look and you can tell he is a valiant man. No wonder he could kill so many Tatars. His Majesty originally intended to send someone else, but I specifically begged His Majesty for the favor of coming first to see this brave warrior who does not fear the Tatars."

Chen Xin demurred repeatedly. After they had exchanged a few words, Wen Tiren and Cao Huachun whispered intimately to each other for a moment. The two then left the other civil officials behind and took Chen Xin to the gate tower of Yongdingmen for discussions.

Once inside the gate tower, Wen Tiren's expression darkened somewhat. He said to Chen Xin, "The original plan was to let your unit rest and reorganize for a day or two. But today, the Jianzhou Bandits are building shield carts and long ladders at the north gate, making a show of preparing an assault. The Ministry of War suggests transferring your unit to Deshengmen to overawe the Jianzhou Bandits. His Majesty has also approved it. Therefore, tomorrow your unit will proceed to Wumen to announce the victory, and then go directly to the walls of Deshengmen."

When Chen Xin first heard this, he thought they were going to be deployed outside the city. Only now did he relax. Defending the walls was nothing to fear. He agreed readily.

Wen Tiren was very satisfied with Chen Xin's attitude and nodded approvingly. The Ministry of War had indeed intended to send them out of the city for another battle. After Wang Qia was imprisoned, Shen Yongmao had just been appointed Minister of War. But Wen Tiren, citing the scarcity of battle-worthy troops, firmly opposed the idea. Chen Xin had already demonstrated considerable strength, and from the very beginning, he had pledged allegiance to Wen Tiren, even sending annual tributes. Such a capable and sensible man, Wen Tiren was determined to draw him into his own faction and cultivate him wholeheartedly. How could he let him go out and throw his life away for nothing?

Cao Huachun said, "In that case, allow me to explain tomorrow's arrangements to my lord Chen..."

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Early on the morning of the twenty-third, the drums and horns in the Wendeng Battalion camp sounded incessantly. The Capital Camp soldiers on the city walls watched the soldiers in the barbican with mouths agape. Their iron armor was stern and imposing, their formations strict and orderly. Following the officers' resonant commands, they assembled like machines, so uniformly that dozens moved as one. Wen Tiren, who had arrived early, watched from the gate tower and was also greatly astonished. The aura displayed by this army before him far surpassed that of the Capital Camp and the frontier armies. Cao Huachun praised, "Implicit obedience to orders — so this is what a strong army should look like. Your Excellency Wen, in my view, even the Four Guards Camp of the Directorate of the Imperial Horses is far inferior to this small Wendeng Battalion."

Wen Tiren said, "Eunuch Cao is right. The Ministry of War is responsible for everything from here to Wumen. I shall return to Wumen first to arrange the matters for the Ministry of Rites. Will Eunuch Cao accompany me?"

Cao Huachun said, "I shall go with you. It will also be convenient for me to report back to His Majesty."

Not long after the two departed, the Picket Officer's red flag of the Wendeng Battalion was raised. The soldiers of the Five Wards Military Commission immediately began clearing the streets. The guide officer from the Ministry of War also arrived first outside the gate tunnel. Both sides of the road were packed with onlookers, and the upper floors of the buildings along the street were also lined with people. Residents opened their windows one after another to crane their necks and look out.

Just as the hour of Si arrived, a great drumroll sounded within the barbican. Immediately after, the cadence of marching drums rose, and a resonant song rang out.

"Across the vast yellow sands, no man is seen, only the sounds of battle ring. Forests of spears and rains of arrows startle heaven and earth. How heroic are our soldiers! Their breath darkens the cosmos, their shouts terrify the gods! We pledge a single tear of a hero's grief, to sprinkle upon the battlefield and see the stains of blood..."

Amidst the singing, a big man clad in iron armor, guarded by two personal guard drummers, strode out of the Yongdingmen gate tunnel, holding a great banner high. The standard-bearer was Pu Zhuang, the personal guard who had been the first to capture a Jianzhou Bandit alive. Chen Xin had granted him the honor of standard-bearer. As he emerged from the gate tunnel, he raised his head high under the gaze of countless eyes, his scarred face full of excitement.

Behind him marched the soldiers of the Wendeng Battalion, arrayed by flag units. Their iron armor clanked, their military bearing strict and orderly. On the tips of the densely packed, upraised blades were impaled the heads of Jianzhou Bandits. The resounding military song continued to echo: "We sacrifice this mortal shell to be the shield and wall of our nation. Since ancient times, all men must die; why not become a warrior's ghost? Though the body dies, the name endures; though the bones decay, the blood still rings! Why fear arrows like rain? Our noble spirit crushes the dust of the campaign."

The onlooking crowd was initially awed by the Wendeng Battalion's imposing aura and remained completely silent. When about half of the Wendeng Battalion had marched out of the gate tunnel, a voice suddenly shouted, "Heroes!"

The crowd finally reacted, joining in the shouts: "Kill the Tatars!" "Heroes!"

The cheers merged into a tidal wave of sound that resounded through the outer city of Jingshi. Ever since the Jianzhou Bandits had invaded, they had lived in constant fear. Many had witnessed with their own eyes the successive defeats outside the city. Over a month of mental oppression and high tension had brought many to the brink of collapse. Finally, today, an army of the Great Ming had not disappointed them. Long-suppressed emotions suddenly erupted. The people of Jingshi cheered the Wendeng Battalion with frenzied abandon, venting their feelings without restraint.

The soldiers of the Five Wards Military Commission strained to hold back the crowd, preventing them from rushing into the middle of the street. The Wendeng Battalion's singing was drowned out by the cheers. The flag unit commanders had to shout themselves hoarse just for the soldiers to hear a few commands.

Chen Xin's central guard unit also marched out of the gate tunnel. The Picket Officer's flag flew high, bearing the six large characters "Wendeng Battalion Picket Officer Chen." The cheering reached its peak. Riding his horse, Chen Xin smiled and cupped his hands to the people on both sides. Countless hands waved toward him. The scene before him was almost like the entrance of a superstar he had once seen.

The joyous atmosphere spread with the advance of the Wendeng Battalion. Over six hundred Jianzhou Bandit heads were held high and displayed to the people of Jingshi. Although tens of thousands of Ming troops had died just outside Yongdingmen, six hundred Jianzhou Bandit heads were already a rare victory. The bloody battle at the Hun River might have exceeded that number of casualties, but the Ming army had ultimately been annihilated and had not recovered any heads. This time, especially, it was a great victory amidst despair, making it all the more precious.

The Wendeng Battalion's column detoured to Xuanwumen to enter the inner city, then proceeded from Xuanwumen to Qipanjie, and entered the Imperial City through Damingmen, stirring cheers all along the way. Half of Jingshi boiled with excitement. They finally halted at Wumen, south of the Forbidden City. This was the site for presenting captives and announcing victory. According to the original statutes of the Collected Statutes of the Ming, presenting captives was done at Wumen, while announcing victory was done directly at the court assembly. Chen Xin had no captives this time, but the Chongzhen Emperor wished to make a grand spectacle. Therefore, after deliberation between the Ministry of Rites and the Ministry of War, the ceremony was conducted according to the protocol for presenting captives below the palace gates.

On the Imperial Way before Wumen, the Giant Generals of the Embroidered Uniform Guard had already set up the ceremonial guard along the east and west sides. To the south of the Imperial Way was the grand orchestra of the Imperial Music Office. Before the gate tower of Wumen, the Master of Ceremonies from the Court of State Ceremonial and the proclamation officer were positioned separately. On the east side stood the high-ranking civil and military officials and envoys from tributary states. Ordinary civil and military officials were led by ushers to a position slightly east of south on the Imperial Way, standing facing each other from east and west.

The Wendeng Battalion had marched all the way and now stood in the ranks for military officers west of Wumen. Chen Xin arrived at the front, and an usher quietly briefed him on the points to note for the upcoming ceremony.

The sound of bells rang out from within the Forbidden City. The usher said, "My lord Chen, His Majesty has arrived at Fengtianmen. You may now make your final preparations."

Chen Xin hurriedly acknowledged. Seeing the solemn scene before him, he felt even more nervous than when going into battle. No wonder these emperors wanted such grand displays — it was all to intimidate people. That was why imperial cities were so magnificent, and government offices also had to be built a bit grandly, to first overawe those conducting business with sheer presence.

As soon as the bells stopped, the orchestra of the Imperial Music Office began to play grand music. It continued until a figure dressed in the Emperor's regular court attire appeared at the central bay of the Wumen gate tower. The grand music ceased, and all the officials present performed four full prostrations.

After the prostrations were complete, the soldiers piled the Jianzhou Bandit heads onto the Imperial Way at Wumen. Chen Xin personally placed the banner of the Jalai on top of the pile of heads. Next, the usher led the officers from the Wendeng Battalion, from flag unit commander and above, to kneel below Wumen. Wen Tiren stepped forward and loudly reported the victory memorial to the Emperor. After that was finished, the Minister of War requested an imperial decree to confer rewards. Chen Xin's post was immediately promoted to Mobile Corps Commander of Dengzhou Garrison, acting as Guard Commander. Then followed five more prostrations and three kowtows.

Chen Xin performed everything meticulously and finally breathed a sigh of relief. After the Master of Ceremonies bade them rise, Chen Xin made a hand signal toward Huang Side on the west side.

A moment later, the two thousand soldiers of the Wendeng Battalion roared in unison: "Ten thousand hearts as one, advance and never retreat! The vital trust of the capital region, we shall not fail Our Emperor!"

Wen Tiren stole a glance at the Wumen gate tower. The Chongzhen Emperor was nodding slightly. Wen Tiren felt secretly pleased with himself. Yesterday, he had slightly modified the Wendeng Battalion's usual slogans to please the Emperor.

The ceremony concluded quickly. The Wendeng Battalion was to withdraw from the Imperial City and deploy to Deshengmen, north of the inner city, for defense. Chen Xin, however, was taken by Wen Tiren into the Forbidden City for an audience with the Emperor.

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The Chongzhen Emperor received Chen Xin in the Qianqing Palace. As Cao Huachun had instructed him the day before, Chen Xin prostrated himself on the floor and did not raise his head.

A very gentle voice came: "Minister Chen, please rise."

Chen Xin carefully stood up, keeping his eyes lowered and waiting for the Emperor's questions.

"Minister Chen, you marched a thousand li to aid the King and have rendered such great merit. According to the Ministry of War's report, all the heads are genuine barbarian heads. That honesty alone is already rare."

Chen Xin said loudly, "It is entirely thanks to His Majesty's great fortune and protection, and Your Excellency Wen's strategic planning. I, your humble minister, dare not claim credit."

The Chongzhen Emperor smiled. "Minister Wen has his merit, and you have yours. There is no need to be overly modest. Without the strong army you trained, how could there have been that day's victory? The Ministry of War's memorial says the Wendeng Battalion has been in arrears of pay for a long time, and only received three months' back pay from the Dengzhou and Laizhou Circuit just before marching to the King's aid. How could these soldiers then exert themselves to fight to the death? Minister Chen, do you have any good solution?"

"Your Majesty is perceptive. I, a lowly man, have no other skills. These soldiers are all simple and honest men. From the day they entered the camp, I, your humble minister, have taught them to be loyal to the sovereign and to share Your Majesty's burdens. Thus, every man understands the great cause. On the battlefield, their spirit is stronger than that of the Jianzhou Bandits. Coupled with Your Excellency Wen's effective guidance, we were fortunate to achieve this small merit. As for the pay arrears, it is indeed as Your Majesty says. Since I arrived at the Wendeng Battalion over a year ago, I have not seen a single cent of monthly pay. Fortunately, when we suppressed the Wenxiang Sect, we seized some illicit silver. With the approval of the Circuit Intendant of Dengzhou and Laizhou, we distributed part of the military pay."

Wen Tiren, standing nearby, heard Chen Xin mention "Your Excellency Wen's" contributions in every sentence and grew increasingly satisfied. His ally Zhou Yanru also nodded slightly at Wen Tiren, indicating that this man was not bad.

The Chongzhen Emperor laughed heartily a few times. Chen Xin seized this opportunity to quickly raise his head and glance. The Chongzhen Emperor was not dressed extravagantly, merely in the Emperor's regular attire. His face was very fair and clean, with a small beard on his chin, but one could still tell he was very young. His demeanor was extremely cheerful. Smiling, he asked Chen Xin, "I hear from Minister Wen that the Wendeng Battalion uses the methods of the late Qi Shaobao to train its troops?"

Wen Tiren stepped out from the ranks and said, "Your Majesty, according to what your servant learned yesterday from questioning the troops in the camp, although the Garrison Commander of Wendeng Camp is diligent in his duties, he is not skilled in the matter of drilling troops. It was all handled single-handedly by Chen Xin."

Chen Xin deliberately spoke modestly: "In reply to Your Majesty, the vicinity of Dengzhou is the hometown of Qi Shaobao. Your servant has heard Qi Shaobao's illustrious name many times, and therefore purchased several military texts authored by Qi Shaobao, studying them with great concentration, and gained some small insights. The Garrison Commander saw that your servant took pleasure in this pursuit, and so entrusted all troop-drilling affairs to your servant. In reading Qi Shaobao's military texts, your servant not only admires the brilliance of his military methods, but even more admires his heart of loyalty to the sovereign and devotion to the nation. Only by possessing both could there be a peerless famous general like Qi Shaobao."

Chongzhen rose from his seat and said loudly, "Well said! Minister Chen is one who has read and understood his books, unlike some who are full of classics and learning yet take none of it to heart. Minister Chen possesses such insight, and his talent is also extraordinary. In the days to come, Minister Chen need only devote himself to his work, and he shall surely become Our Qi Shaobao!"