Chapter 245: A Show of Force

Outside Qingzhou Prefecture in Shandong, a dark mass of refugees gathered a li from the Wendeng Battalion encampment. They were all waiting for the Wendeng Battalion to distribute porridge. Many of the refugees had even followed them all the way from Jinan Prefecture.

Dozens of Wendeng Battalion soldiers set up large cauldrons, cooking porridge under a few crude shelters. As soon as the aroma rose, the crowd stirred. Over a hundred soldiers moved to the edge of the crowd to maintain order.

Several instruction officers moved through the crowd, gently asking the refugees to line up. These men were amiable and put on no airs, making them the most respected people among the refugees.

Zhao Xuan called out to those around him as he walked: "Don't push, everyone. There's porridge for all. Our Lord Chen has said that even if the battalion soldiers go hungry, the common people must be fed. Right now, he's gone to ask the Provincial Governor for some grain. No matter what, he'll find a way to give everyone a path to live."

An old man with two children suddenly knelt beside him, grabbed Zhao Xuan's trousers, and with tears streaming down his face, cried out: "Lord Chen is a truly upright official! We are all wretched souls. We don't dare hope Lord Chen will save useless people like us, but we beg Lord Chen to take these two children away. At least give them a mouthful of food. They can do any kind of work." With that, he kowtowed repeatedly.

The refugees around them echoed the sentiment, pushing their own children forward. They had seen many soldiers before. Originally, they thought that soldiers who looted but didn't kill were already good soldiers. But this Wendeng Battalion completely opened their eyes. Not only were they strictly disciplined, but they absolutely never harassed the civilians. They hadn't even conscripted laborers, and they set up porridge tents every day to distribute food. This allowed these refugees to see a sliver of hope for survival in their despair.

Zhao Xuan smiled and raised his hands to quiet everyone. He was in his element doing this work now, finding it quite fulfilling, completely different from his old life of swindling. Moreover, he used to be very timid, but now he felt very safe in the army, which made him perform even more outstandingly. Before this departure, Huang Side had already told him that he would be given even greater responsibilities in the future.

"Everyone listen carefully. Lord Chen personally instructed that as long as our Wendeng Battalion has food, you will have food."

The refugees erupted in cheers. The old man from before sobbed, "Lord Chen is a living bodhisattva." After saying this, he loudly asked again, "Sir, Lord Chen's compassion is good, but don't let our battalion soldiers go short. Fighting those rebels is still important."

Zhao Xuan nodded repeatedly, his expression grave. "To find food for everyone, Lord Chen sold his own family's heirloom jade. If he can't get grain today, he'll go to the grain shops and buy some. Everyone, old and young, women and children, will all have food. As for our battalion soldiers, eating a little less is nothing. Even on empty stomachs, we can still defeat the rebels and will certainly avenge all of you fellow countrymen."

"Heroes of Wendeng Battalion! Heroes!" The refugees' emotions surged.

After the refugees' voices subsided, the old man loudly declared, "With such a good official, this old man has a request. I wish to follow the army to Wendeng and follow Lord Chen from now on. Whatever Lord Chen assigns me in the future, this old man will do his utmost to repay Lord Chen."

Zhao Xuan still wore a smile. He had always regarded Chen Xin as his idol, even learning his smile to an eighty-percent resemblance—a typical professional smile. He said to the surrounding refugees, "You are thoughtful, old sir. Our place in Wendeng has always been mountainous and barren, but it has two good things: good officials and good soldiers. The good official is Lord Chen, who truly has the heart of a bodhisattva. Whenever he sees people suffering, his heart cannot bear it. He goes everywhere opening up wasteland and seeking superiors, fighting to the death to find land for these suffering people, so they can settle down and make a living. Everyone who arrives in Wendeng has a house to live in and land to farm. In a year or two, the land is distributed to each household, and everyone can eat their fill. All of us battalion soldiers are such people, including this official himself. Everyone can ask around. When this official first arrived in Wendeng, I was just as poor as everyone else. Now, not only do I have food and clothing, I've also married two wives."

"Speaking of good soldiers, our Wendeng Battalion not only can fight, but we never disturb the people. During the busy farming season, we sometimes even help the common people with their work. In all of Wendeng, there isn't a single bandit. Why? Because they've all been driven away. You don't need to keep a dog at home, and you can sleep at night without closing your door."

Zhao Xuan's voice was very magnetic. The surrounding refugees listened quietly. Many people's eyes shone with an unusual light, their mouths hanging wide open, as if that happy life was right before their eyes. They made up their minds to go to Wendeng.

At that moment, the porridge was ready. A group of mess soldiers called everyone to eat. The refugees immediately abandoned Zhao Xuan, the upright official, grabbed their bowls and chopsticks, and surged over to line up.

Zhao Xuan was slightly embarrassed. Turning, he saw the old man still beside him. He put away his smile and said, "You did well for your first time. When you get to Wendeng, you can get land first, at least a Platoon Leader position. Work hard from now on. Remember one thing: everything we have is given by Lord Chen."

At this moment, the genuine upright official had already arrived inside Qingzhou Prefecture. He was in Yu Dacheng's tent, putting on a surprised expression. "The Provincial Governor means that whether or not to attack Li Jiucheng's rebels depends on my own judgment?"

"Absolutely not." Yu Dacheng shook his head vigorously. "Lord Sun sent another urgent letter yesterday, saying he has sent someone into the rebel camp. The rebels have the intention to surrender, and he instructed me absolutely not to press them too hard."

Chen Xin asked Yu Dacheng, "Then what does Lord Yu think this subordinate should do?"

Yu Dacheng stroked his beard. Chen Xin was quite famous in Shandong. Yu Dacheng also had ears in the court and knew the Emperor thought highly of him. Coincidentally, he himself had just suffered a defeat, so although Chen Xin was a military man, Yu Dacheng could only treat him politely. With a kindly expression, he said, "If they can be pacified, naturally pacify them. Although your Wendeng Battalion is not afraid of the rebels, Li Jiucheng and Kong Youde are also strong troops from Denglai. Once a fight starts, people will inevitably die, which would be unfortunate."

Chen Xin originally had no intention of pursuing and fighting Kong Youde to the death right now. Hearing Yu Dacheng's words, he feigned hesitation.

The other Shandong military officers in the tent all watched him intently. These men had all been terrified out of their wits by Li Jiucheng, especially the parties involved, Shen Tingyu and Tao Tinglong. That day, Li Jiucheng had gone on a killing spree, chasing them for over ten li. The Shandong Personal Battalion had lost over half its strength, so much so that now they trembled at the mere mention of Denglai.

Men like Shen Tingyu had never fought the Jianzhou Bandits either. Seeing that Li Jiucheng and Chen Xin both belonged to Dengzhou Garrison, they assumed Kong Youde's men were on par with the Wendeng Battalion. They heard the rebel force numbered over three thousand, and along the way, they had absorbed prisoners and desperadoes from various cities, now totaling over five thousand. Adding the forcibly conscripted laborers, they were nearing ten thousand. The Wendeng Battalion outside the city only had about two thousand men. Therefore, none of them wanted the Wendeng Battalion to provoke Li Jiucheng again. If Chen Xin lost the battle, it might drag everyone else down.

Yu Dacheng was the same. The defeat of his Personal Battalion had also broken his courage. But the court demanded that the Shandong Provincial Governor and the Denglai Governor attack from front and rear, so he had to make a show of it. Now that he had entered Qingzhou Prefecture, he was unwilling to leave the city again. He just kept sending out scouts. Once it was confirmed that the rebels had left Qingzhou Prefecture, entering the jurisdiction of the Denglai Governor, he could rest easy.

Seeing Chen Xin still considering, Shen Tingyu came over to advise: "General Chen, Lord Sun made it very clear. All battalions and cities along the Denglai route are forbidden from attacking Li Jiucheng's force. Violators will be severely punished. Since entering Qingzhou Prefecture, Li Jiucheng hasn't attacked any cities or seized any territory. If General Chen were to pursue and attack them, it might cause the common people to suffer again. Even if you win, it would be a crime of disobeying orders. General Chen is under the Denglai Governor's jurisdiction; you must think thrice."

The others also spoke up. The Prefect of Qingzhou was the loudest. Kong Youde's force had likely looted enough in Jinan Prefecture. After entering Qingzhou Prefecture, they hadn't attacked the city, only looting nearby grain, cattle, and horses along the way. For the local officials, as long as the city was safe, matters among the common folk could be covered up.

Chen Xin no longer took Sun Yuanhua's military orders seriously at all. Having acted enough by now, he put on a dejected look and said to Yu Dacheng, "Then it must be so. This general will accompany Lord Yu. As long as Li Jiucheng doesn't provoke us, this general won't provoke him either."

Yu Dacheng let out a sigh of relief. "That's right. Lord Sun writing this letter shows he has a well-thought-out plan. We'll follow them all the way to Dengzhou, coordinating with the Dengzhou main army from front and rear. The rebels will surely be helpless, and thus the rebellion can be quelled."

Chen Xin said with an admiring expression, "With your lordship devising strategies from the command tent, how could the rebels possibly commit more evil?"

Yu Dacheng accepted the flattery readily and greatly praised Chen Xin a few times. Although Shen Tingyu was useless at fighting, he was quite good at networking. He came over to chat warmly with Chen Xin. The other Personal Battalion officers all took their cues from Shen Tingyu's expression and also gathered around.

Only Assistant Regional Commander Tao Tinglong of the Wude troops maintained an arrogant demeanor, unable to stand seeing Chen Xin being courted. He watched coldly from the side.

With the Wendeng Battalion accompanying him, Yu Dacheng felt much safer and began calculating how to write the victory report to the court later, allocating more credit to himself.

Chen Xin, however, suddenly said to Yu Dacheng, "Lord Yu, this subordinate has one more matter. The consumption of provisions on the march has been enormous. The army doesn't have much left. I ask Lord Yu to allocate some to settle the soldiers' hearts."

Yu Dacheng was taken aback. "This... grain..."

He turned to look at the Qingzhou Prefect. The Prefect cleared his throat and said, "My lord, General Chen's Wendeng Battalion belongs to Denglai and can only be considered a guest army. The funds and provisions for guest armies are supplied by their home territory."

Chen Xin said bluntly, "The Prefect is somewhat mistaken. The regulations for guest army provisions refer to monthly pay and base grain. Marching rations en route are also designated to be provided by the local area."

The Qingzhou Prefect's expression changed slightly. His prefectural granary indeed didn't have much grain left. As soon as Yu Dacheng arrived, everything had been requisitioned and given to the Personal Battalion and the Wude troops. Now there was nothing left. He could only stall, saying, "That would still require stopping for a full day. Tomorrow at this time will only be one full day. The day after, we might not even be in Qingzhou anymore."

Chen Xin's expression turned cold. In truth, he had enough provisions. The Trading Company had pre-purchased a batch of grain in Qingzhou, which was currently being escorted out of the city by two bureaus of combat troops. He was just asking for some extra along the way. But the Prefect's attitude displeased him greatly; it was clearly an attempt to welch.

Yu Dacheng actually had the same idea. With little grain in the city, his own Personal Battalion naturally came first. He said to Chen Xin, "General Chen, look, the local authorities also have their difficulties. If military provisions are insufficient, just eat a little less each day. We're not marching urgently anyway, so we won't get tired."

"Your lordship is perceptive. The rebels this time are all veterans from the former Dongjiang Garrison, all Liaodong people. Coincidentally, my camp also has many Liaodong men. Hearing that the Denglai and Dongjiang troops have revolted, their morale was already unstable. If they also lose their food, this general cannot guarantee there won't be trouble."

Hearing this, Yu Dacheng realized it was an open threat. The surrounding officers were all somewhat dumbfounded. This Chen Xin had been so respectful just moments ago; why had he suddenly become so domineering?

Assistant Regional Commander Tao Tinglong of the Wude troops stood up and cursed, "Fine, you Wendeng Assistant Regional Commander! How dare you speak to his lordship like that? Could it be that all officers in Denglai are like you? No wonder there are rebel soldiers."

Chen Xin coldly surveyed the room. Shandong was the direction he intended to develop in the future, especially Qingzhou, located between Jinan Prefecture and Denglai. With fertile land and open trade routes, it was a juicy piece of meat that made Chen Xin's mouth water the most.

His domineering act this time was actually to use the opportunity of Kong Youde's rebellion to give the Shandong officialdom a show of force, to avoid being obstructed everywhere. Moreover, Yu Dacheng's future looked bleak. Perhaps the court was already impeaching him, and he would likely be removed from office. This was the perfect time to make some people change their attitude.

He did not answer Tao Tinglong's words, only saying to Yu Dacheng, "This general meant nothing else by it. It's just that there are indeed many Liaodong people in the camp. Without food, these soldiers won't recognize anyone. If something happens then, no one will benefit."

Yu Dacheng pointed a finger at Chen Xin, finally suppressing his anger. He was now truly afraid of more mutinous soldiers. He turned to look at Tao Tinglong and Shen Tingyu. Shen Tingyu quickly said, "My lord, my subordinate's camp also lacks provisions."

Yu Dacheng pointed at Tao Tinglong. "You will allocate one hundred dan of grain to Vice Regional Commander Chen."

Tao Tinglong said urgently, "My lord..."

Yu Dacheng was also angry inside, but now he was helpless. He just scolded, "Say no more. First give one hundred dan to Vice Regional Commander Chen to relieve their emergency. Prefect Liu, you go with him."

Tao Tinglong was so angry his face turned bright red. He glared fiercely at Chen Xin twice, then led the way out. The Qingzhou Prefect, looking somewhat embarrassed, gestured for Chen Xin to proceed.

Chen Xin smiled and took his leave of Yu Dacheng. Coming out, he called for the hundred-plus personal guards and cavalry accompanying him and followed behind Tao Tinglong to the Wude troops' camp inside the barbican at the north gate.

The Wude troops had been routed just the same at Ruanchengdian and now only had a thousand men left, a considerable portion of whom were forcibly conscripted laborers. Seeing over a hundred cavalrymen approaching imposingly, they all showed fearful expressions.

Tao Tinglong walked angrily to a corner of the city wall, where the oxcarts and horse carts he had looted were parked, all loaded with grain. Most of it had been looted along the way, and a portion was supplied by Qingzhou Prefecture. Beside the carts crouched some conscripted laborers.

He said to the Squad Commander on guard, "Measure out one hundred dan."

Chen Xin's voice rang out, "No need to measure."

The Qingzhou Prefect said in surprise, "Vice Regional Commander Chen, Lord Yu said one hundred dan. If we don't measure it out, how do we hand it over?"

Chen Xin waved a hand at Hai Gouzi behind him. "Everything here together is exactly one hundred dan. Haul it all outside the city."

"Your fucking ancestors! There's over a thousand dan of grain here! You want to rob me..." Tao Tinglong roared, drawing his waist saber. Before he could even swing it at Chen Xin, a flash of fire blazed before his eyes. The bang deafened him and made his vision swim.

Tao Tinglong recoiled in terror, stumbling backward. He had not even seen where the firearm was — how had it suddenly fired? The shot threw the surrounding Wude soldiers into chaos. A dozen cavalrymen from the Wendeng Battalion rushed the city gate, swiftly taking down the soldiers on guard. The other riders dismounted and drew their weapons.

Only when the white smoke cleared did the Prefect see clearly: Chen Xin casually tossed a short gun to the personal guard behind him, then drew another from the waist of a different guard and aimed it at Tao Tinglong.

The Qingzhou Prefect trembled with fear. "My lord Chen, this must not be done," he stammered.

Chen Xin said flatly, "The Provincial Governor ordered you to provide one hundred dan. Here is one hundred dan. If you refuse to hand it over, you are defying a military order. I shall enforce military law on behalf of the Provincial Governor. This next shot will not be aimed at empty air."

Tao Tinglong's heart and gall were frozen with terror. The surrounding Wude soldiers had long since fled far away, and the civilian laborers had simply dropped to their knees. Though Chen Xin had only a hundred or so men, not one of the nearly one thousand Wude soldiers dared step forward to confront him. With no one to rely on, Tao Tinglong could only look to the Qingzhou Prefect for help.

The Qingzhou Prefect caught his meaning and said hurriedly to Chen Xin, "We will transport it, we will transport it at once. I shall have the laborers unload the grain immediately."

"No need." Chen Xin put away his gun and said flatly, "I will take the ox-carts, the horses, and the laborers as well. One hundred dan of grain is very difficult to transport — how can it be done without carts?"

The Qingzhou Prefect turned to stone in an instant. (To be continued.)