Chapter 216: Sweeping Clean

A man bound tightly with ropes was held high by a group of soldiers in green uniforms. They came from the mountainous area to the south, and the man they were holding seemed to have already lost consciousness.

A burly man in green clothes carried a gilded helmet, strutting proudly at the front, constantly calling soldiers over to look. His face was smeared with blackish mud, two hand-culverins and a Qi-family saber hung at his waist, a dagger was strapped to his thigh, a powerful crossbow was slung across his back, and two Jianzhou Bandit heads dangled from his bootlaces. A few branches stuck in his clothing had been forgotten and not removed.

A large crowd of combat soldiers pressed around, cheering continuously. Quite a few seized any opening to land a punch or grab at them. When they reached the bondservant captives, several Special Service soldiers threw that man to the ground with a thud. The burly man in the lead ran over, grabbed two bondservants by their queues and dragged them forward, pointing at the unconscious man on the ground and asking, "Who is this?"

The man on the ground was covered in blood and filth, and the two bondservants could not recognize him for a moment. A soldier roughly wiped the man's face clean, and both bondservants trembled as they said, "It is, it is the Banner Lord of the Plain White Banner, our master."

Several Ming soldiers of the Special Service simultaneously breathed a sigh of relief. They had been hiding on the island conducting reconnaissance and had not participated in the main battle. After the Later Jin army scattered, they had fixed their eyes on that Plain White Banner's Kakeduli. Once he fled into the mountain forest, they launched a surprise attack on him and several of his guards. Now they had finally confirmed they had not caught the wrong man. The surrounding Ming soldiers cheered in unison, while the Jianzhou Bandit captives turned ashen-faced. Their defeat could be said to be utterly thorough — even their commander had been captured.

Liu Pojun arrived with the central army guard and the night scouts. He knew this Banner Lord was extremely important — alive was worth more than dead. He took custody of this captive and sent that Special Service squad, who had been eating dead birds for days, off to rest.

Lu Zhi and the others arrived quickly. He was even more cautious than those Special Service men, grabbing over a dozen bondservants and supernumeraries to take turns confirming. Only when he himself was certain beyond any doubt did he laugh heartily with satisfaction. With this captive, this battle was finally complete.

Zhang Dao's eyes shone as he looked at the captive on the ground. He said respectfully to Lu Zhi, "My lord Army Supervisor, my lord Chen, this man is a Banner Commander, of utmost importance to the Jianzhou Bandits. There are still Jianzhou Bandit remnants on the island. To prevent them from launching a night raid to snatch him back, I humbly propose that he be imprisoned on Pi Island. I will personally guard him and ensure nothing goes wrong." After he finished, he glanced at the surrounding Dongjiang officers, but only one spoke up in support.

Hearing this, how could Chen Xin possibly place such an important person in the hands of the Dongjiang garrison? With a face full of smiles, he said, "Mobile Corps Commander Zhang is considerate. I thank you for your kind offer. However, Pi Island has many people and prying eyes, and there are also Liu Xingzhi's Jianzhou Bandit remnants there. Furthermore, since the Wendeng Battalion was able to capture this man, we can naturally ensure no one snatches him away. It is equally foolproof."

Zhang Dao's greed was showing plainly. Chen Xin's words carried a double meaning and a veiled barb, and by addressing him by rank, he reminded Zhang Dao that his rank was insufficient to steal battle honors. Zhang Dao was also thick-skinned and merely said flatly, "My lord Chen, there is no need for such courtesy. You and I are both troops under Deng-Lai command, and we should naturally help each other out."

Chen Xin nodded repeatedly. Lu Zhi waved his hand and said, "Assistant Regional Commander Chen speaks most rightly. The Jianzhou Bandits on the island have already scattered. He shall be held here for now. Once the remnants are swept clean, Lord Chen shall personally present the captive before the palace gates and behold the imperial countenance. This is the supreme glory for a military man. As long as all you officers work diligently, I will certainly treat everyone equally and will never swallow up your military merits."

Night fell, and the sky was full of stars.

From the Wendeng Battalion's encampment came the intermittent wails of wounded soldiers. Chen Xin, accompanied by the central army staff officers and Lu Chuanzong, inspected the sentry posts one by one. There were eight combat groups on duty, plus over twenty concealed hidden sentries. By the time Chen Xin finished his inspection, no Jianzhou Bandits had come to harass them.

After returning to the central army tent, Lu Chuanzong followed him in with a face full of gloom. Chen Xin smiled and pointed to one of the only two chairs, letting Lu Chuanzong sit, and said to him, "Still brooding over the matter of the Banner Lord?"

Lu Chuanzong turned his head and said indignantly, "My lord, what the Special Service did was not honorable. My First Division suffered hundreds of dead and wounded, while they secretly went and caught the big fish. If the First Division hadn't routed the Jianzhou Bandit main force, could they have caught that Banner Lord? What's more infuriating is that when one of my pursuit squads arrived, they argued with them a bit, and that Special Service captain actually beat up my banner captain."

Chen Xin nodded repeatedly, and only when Lu Chuanzong had finished did he say, "The matter of the fight will be handled by the military judge. However, the man was captured by the Special Service — that is beyond doubt. But what you say is also reasonable. Without the First Division routing the Jianzhou Bandits, there would have been no way to capture the enemy chieftain alive. When battle merits are assessed, I will naturally consider the First Division. This time the First Division performed outstandingly, worthy of being the backbone of my Wendeng Battalion. Chuanzong, you have done well these past few years. I remember all your contributions."

Lu Chuanzong had followed Chen Xin for a long time. Hearing Chen Xin speak this way, he could only accept it. After sulking for a while, he said, "I just can't stand how arrogant those people are, always doing sneaky things. If they have the skill, let them go earn merit on the battlefield."

Chen Xin laughed in spite of himself. "The Special Service is indeed somewhat arrogant, but they are originally meant to do sneaky things. If those few dozen of them went to fight head-on in a battlefield engagement, they might not even match a single combat soldier platoon."

This time the Special Service had sent a total of two squads. Before the battle, they had respectively completed the luring at Xuanchuanpu and the reconnaissance of Shenmi Island, providing strong support for the final victory. Their performance could be said to be very conspicuous. Lu Chuanzong now understood their role, but he still always found them an eyesore.

After finishing the matter of the Banner Lord, Chen Xin asked Lu Chuanzong, "What are the casualties of the First Division? Can it still continue fighting?"

"The two arquebusier squads on the left and right wings had nineteen killed and over sixty wounded. The two killer squads of the division had twenty-three killed and over thirty wounded. Finally, the Third Division — the Third Division's Seventh Platoon was the left-wing roving troops, with over ten killed. The Eighth Platoon in the central army position had thirty-seven killed. The killer banner alone had twenty-four killed and seventeen wounded. The killer banner is basically crippled."

Chen Xin walked over and patted Lu Chuanzong on the shoulder, offering a few words of comfort. The First Division had a total of around a hundred killed and over a hundred wounded. Since they had won the victory, many of the wounded would survive, so their vitality was not greatly damaged. The Jianzhou Bandit wounded, on the other hand, only received finishing blows.

In truth, the heaviest losses were not even among the combat soldiers. That peasant-soldier company's firearms detachment and pikemen had both lost over half their number — they were the ones truly crippled.

Chen Xin was just about to discuss the gains and losses of the battlefield with Lu Chuanzong when Liu Pojun reported in a low voice at the door that a Dongjiang Garrison Commander, Shang Keyi, had come to visit.

Lu Zhi was staying on the shore at the north of the island. The Dongjiang garrison officers had not returned to Pi Island — they were either on their ships or staying on the shore. Coming now, they were probably here to buy heads or to pledge allegiance. Chen Xin thought for a moment and replied, "Let him wait." He turned to Hai Gouzi, who was standing behind him, and said, "Go and call the trading company people here."

Then Chen Xin hastily gave Lu Chuanzong instructions to go alone to inspect the wounded and check on the captives. Transactions with other garrisons were all done in the dark, and Chen Xin did not want the Wendeng Battalion men learning this set of practices.

The trading company people arrived quickly. Only then did Liu Pojun lead an officer in. That man knelt directly on the ground and kowtowed to Chen Xin, saying, "I am Shang Keyi of the Dongjiang Garrison, paying my respects to my lord Chen. I have long admired your lordship's martial might and have always hoped to meet you in person. This time I have finally fulfilled my wish."

"General Shang is too courteous. What martial might? It is merely some luck. I, on the other hand, have heard that General Shang participated in the capture of Sarhu City in the first year of Chongzhen."

A quarter of an hour later, Shang Keyi received a promise of thirty heads. Moved, he told the shopkeeper that from now on, all smuggled goods would be purchased from the Four Seas Trading Company, and all bartered mink pelts, fox pelts, eastern pearls, ginseng, and the like would be sold only to the Four Seas Trading Company.

Shang Keyi had just left. Chen Xin was already utterly exhausted. He had been mentally tense since the previous night and had only slept soundly for just over a shichen. Today he had been under even greater tension and was already completely worn out. He was about to drink some water and rest when Liu Pojun again reported at the door that Dongjiang Mobile Corps Commander Mao Youzhu had arrived. Chen Xin could only rub his cheeks vigorously, rouse his spirits, and say, "Invite him in."

The night passed peacefully. Only a small number of Jianzhou Bandits tried to steal the boats at the foot of the hill, and two were shot dead by ground crossbows set by the Special Service. After that, no one came again. The soldiers all got their rest.

Chen Xin, however, did not sleep long. People from Dongjiang came one after another, seven or eight in total, and they came at intervals. He also had to put on an amiable appearance and receive anyone who came to pay respects.

Chen Xin was constantly woken by the duty officers, then he would squeeze out a smile and go discuss business with those Dongjiang garrison men. Just as he saw one off and drifted groggily to sleep, an officer would come calling again. In one night, he gave away over a hundred heads and also established strategic cooperative relationships with those several Dongjiang officers.

Early the next morning, the Pi Island naval forces again sortied in full strength and arrived at the north shore of Shenmi Island, rendezvousing with the large ships that had stayed there overnight. The Wendeng Battalion's naval camp also dispatched two No. 2 Fujian junks and five small warships, loaded with two largely intact combat soldier platoons.

Chen Xin struggled out of bed. First he convened a meeting of the officers. Zhang Dong, who had just rushed over from Pi Island, also attended the meeting. Chen Xin arranged for them to continue the aftermath work today: first, continue sweeping the mountain forests for remaining Jianzhou Bandits; then, screen the captives and tally battle merits; also, compile detailed casualty statistics on their own side, which needed to be sent back to Weihai as soon as possible so the training unit could immediately select personnel from the reserve troops and begin training.

After arranging these matters, Chen Xin took his personal guards and boarded the Deng-Lai naval forces' Fujian junk. Once aboard, a group of Dongjiang garrison officers came over one after another to pay their respects. Chen Xin exchanged polite greetings with each of them, and they were all very familiar with one another.

After meeting Lu Zhi, Chen Xin offered his usual flattery. Lu Zhi had slept very well the previous night and was full of energy in the morning. Coupled with the joy of good fortune, his face glowed with a ruddy light, forming a stark contrast with Chen Xin's ashen countenance.

Today he would lead three naval camps to sweep Xuansha Island, and then jointly bombard the Jianzhou Bandit camps along the Xuanchuanpu shore. This task was both awe-inspiring and free of danger. Repelling the enemy troops was also a great achievement — truly a matter of immense profit for minimal investment.

"Set out!" After finishing the discussion, Lu Zhi stood at the bow and waved his hand grandly. The great drum on the command ship sounded, and nearly two hundred vessels of every description headed north together, surrounding Xuansha Island so tightly not a drop of water could get through. The various ships had a total of ten red-barbarian cannons, plus over a hundred general cannons, falconets, and similar artillery pieces. They all bombarded the island indiscriminately, blasting the trees on the island's small hill until branches and leaves flew in all directions.

After this thorough bombardment, several hundred Dongjiang soldiers aboard fishing boats swarmed onto the island. Buoyed by the previous day's victory of the Wendeng Battalion, the various officers' confidence seemed to have increased considerably, and many officers led their retainers into battle personally.

There had originally been nearly a hundred Jianzhou Bandits on Xuansha Island, but they had all heard the commotion of the battle on Shenmi Island the day before. Judging by the later appearance of the Ming naval forces, it seemed the Later Jin had lost, so most of the people on Xuansha Island had taken advantage of the dawn to flee.

By noon, the Dongjiang garrison had annihilated the twenty-odd Jianzhou Bandits on the island. They raised the Jianzhou Bandit heads high on the tips of their spears, showing them off incessantly along the shore.

Although the number of heads was small, it was still a minor victory. Lu Zhi led the naval forces from one victory to another. After finishing with Xuansha Island, they went directly to Shenmi Island on the Korean shore. Here was Kakeduli's original main camp, which still contained at least over a hundred armored soldiers and over a thousand support troops. However, it was two or three li from the shore, making it very difficult for the red-barbarian cannons to reach.

Lu Zhi paid no mind to this and had all the ships' cannons open fire together as usual, bombarding the shore indiscriminately. The fire arrows were also launched simultaneously. Thousands upon thousands of fire arrows streaked across with a shriek, painting the sky full of crooked trails. Gunpowder smoke hung thick over the sea surface — it was truly awe-inspiring.

This bout of commotion drew the attention of the Jianzhou Bandits at Xuanchuanpu and Shekoupu. Soon, cavalry appeared atop the distant hills. Judging by the dust cloud behind them, their numbers were at least in the hundreds. This time the Dongjiang garrison did not dare to go ashore, just as the Jianzhou Bandits did not dare to engage them in naval battle.

Chen Xin also had no intention of going up. He would not take a battered division to face the Jianzhou Bandits' cavalry, especially after a bitter battle. In fact, this bitter battle was the best kind of training. The soldiers who survived were a precious asset. He would pull some of them out and assign them to the officer training course, the training unit, the peasant-soldier company, and other posts, letting their experience and morale drive the Wendeng Battalion to a higher level.

Fortunately, Lu Zhi had not planned to go ashore either. Once all the ships' cannons fell silent, Lu Zhi gave the order to withdraw, planning to come back and continue the bombardment the next day. While on the ship, he finished writing his memorial to the throne based on the recent battle results. He called Chen Xin down to the lower deck, his demeanor treating Chen Xin entirely as a trusted confidant. Chen Xin felt no particular aversion to the dead eunuch, as long as he refrained from overly intimate gestures.

Lu Zhi took out the memorial to the Emperor and indicated for Chen Xin to read it. Chen Xin put on an expression of being overwhelmed by favor and read it respectfully. Most of what was written inside was true, yet also half-truth and half-falsehood. The enemy kill count was doubled. After the process had been polished by the staff secretaries, the combat became even more soul-stirring — even Lord Lu had been in grave danger. The battle results were even more impressive. Borrowing from predecessors, Lu Zhi wrote that a cannon shot struck the tent of Huang Long, and a great Jianzhou chieftain was seen falling from his horse, whereupon a group of Jianzhou Bandits wailed bitterly and carried him away. Because they feared Lord Lu's military might, they then fled. As for who exactly was hit, it was of course impossible to verify.

Writing it this way was perfectly safe and steady. Perhaps in a few days some Jianzhou Bandit leader would have the bad luck to drop dead, and then this merit of his would become even greater. After all, everyone dies eventually. Although this could not be counted as solid, verifiable battle merit, earning some reputation was no problem. In this day and age, reputation could ultimately be converted into silver. Especially now, with all those heads from yesterday, all his memorials had gained persuasive power.

Chen Xin had learned a new trick. With genuine sincerity, he said to Lu Zhi, "My lord's talent is unmatched. Not only is your strategy superior, but even your writing is so brilliant. With our Emperor, the Sage Son of Heaven, on the throne, great talents naturally appear in the world — and it turns out they are embodied in your lordship..."