Chapter 368: It

After the battle on the Huan River, Dengzhou Garrison killed over three thousand roving bandits. They did not take many prisoners. Tens of thousands of bandits fled through the hills, yet those who surrendered still numbered over three thousand. Most were elderly and youths too exhausted to run; the rest were ordinary refugees recently abducted.

The family dependents, women, and children beneath Linxian's walls also mostly escaped. Those who did not run were largely abducted women, over a thousand of them. Among the bandit horde they lived in a state of constant violation, shared among the various bandit pickets, and at the slightest displeasure would be boiled and eaten. So although they also feared the government troops, they were unwilling to run any farther, because there could be no life worse than the one before. Most of them did not flee.

Chen Xin sat with his feet propped up in the main tent, resting. In this battle Dengzhou Garrison's losses were very light — total casualties under a hundred, with thirty-some killed in action. Although he was loath to take prisoners, a crowd of people still came forward to surrender. Those women were the most troublesome; they were clearly victims and had never harmed anyone.

"Captured gold and silver total one hundred ten thousand taels in value, ninety thousand of it from their encampment. Grain, one thousand two hundred shi. Horses, six hundred forty. Mules, seven hundred ten. Mule carts and wagons, over seven hundred. Swords and spears, two thousand five hundred pieces. Various types of armor, three hundred sets, most tattered and unusable."

Wang Mafu was reporting the consolidated battle results. In the past, fighting the Jianzhou bandits had always been straightforward, with few opportunities to make money like this. On the contrary, the two operations against mutinous troops and roving bandits had yielded quite a bit.

Chen Xin smiled. "Quite a lot. Let the scout cavalry pick horses first — try for two horses per man. Then have Old Fourth Zhong go select horses for one company. All other horses turn over to the quartermaster. Anything that can pull a wagon, hitch it up. Anything else?"

"Foreign Affairs Director Song has reached Linzhang County. He sent someone from the intelligence station to ask for Your Excellency's itinerary. He wishes to hurry over and travel with the army."

"Director Song is in Linzhang?" Chen Xin asked, surprised.

"He learned the Dengzhou deployment time from the Ministry of War. He originally went to Linqing to wait, but was delayed in Jingshi. By the time he reached Linqing we had already set out. He followed as far as Linzhang and dared not go any farther forward."

"This is truly timely rain. Send twenty scout cavalry to fetch him, and bring extra horses."

Chen Xin finished speaking and sat up. "Has there been any report from the hidden line planted on Geng Zhongming's side?"

"Geng Zhongming's retainers pursued for a while. Then the bandits scattered silver, and the retainers all ran to grab it. Geng Zhongming cursed them once, but later there was silver all over the road. Geng Zhongming couldn't hold back either; he feared that if he kept chasing, our men would pick it all clean. They all stopped. They likely scooped up around seven thousand taels. What Geng Zhongming later reported to my subordinate was five thousand taels — he should hand over a portion to us. Other than that, no unusual activity." Wang Mafu paused. "Zuo Liangyu, on the other hand — both our scout cavalry and Geng Zhongming secretly reported that he killed civilians to claim merit, and seems to have deliberately let Zhang the Bandit escape. Later they also intercepted Xie Zikuai. In the end they didn't catch any major ringleader either."

Wang Mafu observed Chen Xin's reaction. Chen Xin actually knew Zuo Liangyu very well. Ever since he was screwed over that one time in Liaozhen, Zuo Liangyu fought entirely on his own terms. Like the roving bandits, he plundered and press-ganged. In the end he was practically an official roving bandit, repeatedly committing shocking atrocities. The imperial court had formally reprimanded him over a dozen times. Yet they could do nothing to him. His army had become his private army. Like Zu Dashou, he absolutely refused to enter the capital or leave his troops, and Chongzhen dared not send Embroidered Uniform riders to arrest him.

Later he only grew stronger the more he fought. When Cao Wenzhao, Deng Qi, Meng Ruhu, and the other bandit-suppression generals of that cohort all died, he was still alive and well. The Emperor could only beg him to fight. He was a typical late-Ming warlord, just like Zu Dashou — one used the Jianzhou bandits to blackmail the court, the other used the roving bandits. It was no surprise at all that Zuo Liangyu would do such a thing now. The other Ming armies differed only in degree.

Chen Xin was silent for a moment, then asked, "Has Zuo Liangyu come by?"

"Not yet, but he sent relay riders saying he would come once he had settled the troops in his camp."

Chen Xin knew what Zuo Liangyu was coming for. Before the battle, Zuo Liangyu had already hinted as much to Chen Xin. He shook his head and changed the subject. "Mafu, do you think it's suitable to establish a fortified settlement in Linxian?"

"In reply, my lord, your subordinate finds this place excellent. As for Linxian itself, it is ringed by mountains on four sides, yet the plain in the middle is favorable for military farming. The Longlu Mountains and other Taihang peaks can provide relatively abundant water sources. Had the roving bandits not come, the common people here could have made a living. As for location, this place sits at the junction of three provinces, yet is not a major thoroughfare, so it draws little attention. At the same time, there are roads leading to Shanxi…" Wang Mafu paused. "…and Northern Zhili. To use my lord's phrasing, it allows us to project troops in all directions and exert Dengzhou Garrison's influence."

Chen Xin smiled and nodded. Although he had decided to establish an exclave outside Dengzhou and Laizhou, he had no detailed plan. It was only after arriving in Linxian that this intention took shape. He had never thought it through before, nor was it convenient to discuss with the garrison's officers. That was why he felt Song Wenxian's arrival was timely rain. Now the area around Linxian had been devastated by the bandits. Much farmland lay abandoned. The smaller rural gentry were mostly dead; the big ones, however, were largely still around. The gentry around the Taihang region liked to rally their clans and build stockades — quite different from Dengzhou and Laizhou. He did not know how other parts of Henan compared.

"One more point: there is a water route here connecting to the Grand Canal. Supplying from Linqing would reduce wastage." Chen Xin slapped his thigh. "Then this is the place. This will be our first step. Build just a few for now, and keep a low profile. But we still lack a pretext. Perfect timing to go deliver gifts. Bring the Foreign Affairs people along."

…

Chen Xin walked out of the main tent and headed toward Lu Zhi's encampment. Wang Mafu followed and asked, "My lord, shall we bring the guard detachment?"

Chen Xin hesitated, then nodded. Wang Mafu quickly went to instruct the duty guard officer. The fifty-some guards on standby swiftly fell into position. Chen Xin reached the gate of Lu Zhi's camp. The soldiers did not stop him, only sent someone to report. Tactfully, Chen Xin did not walk fast; he slowly dawdled to Lu Zhi's doorway, then stopped and waited to be summoned. The guard officer carefully observed the surroundings — nothing out of the ordinary.

Chen Xin did not actually believe the imperial court or civil officials would move against him now. The intelligence stations in various regions had also detected no signs of it. Still, in the late Ming there were many cases of generals being killed. In case the intelligence had gaps, one could not be unguarded.

A moment later, a young eunuch led out a pretty, peach-blossom-faced youth, who was still adjusting his clothes as he walked, a patch of fair skin exposed at the chest.

Chen Xin thought it was a woman at first and was just lamenting that a beauty had been ruined by a damned eunuch, when a glance revealed an Adam's apple. Earlier he had faintly heard the Haiyan-accented Kunqu tunes; now it seemed it was this person. Lu Zhi had always liked young boy singers. Back when he first came to Dengzhou, Chen Xin had once gifted him one. It looked like this interest and hobby had not changed. But he could not imagine what sort of disgusting scene it would be — Lu Zhi listening to opera while molesting this pretty youth. He couldn't help glancing a few more times at the boy singer.

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The youth's face was pink. Seeing Chen Xin sizing him up, his eyes shifted like autumn water, and he cast Chen Xin a smiling, flirtatious glance. That gaze gave Chen Xin goosebumps all over. He pursed his lips and looked away. Seeing that Chen Xin had no interest whatsoever, the boy singer turned his dewy eyes toward Wang Mafu. Wang Mafu immediately turned his head aside.

The boy singer gave a light snort, tossed his head, and walked off. Once he was far away, Wang Mafu said in a low voice to Chen Xin, "These few boy singers were captured by Lord Lu in Xie Zikuai's camp. Also… Lord Lu's personal guard squad commander came to the rear camp. He wanted to pick several dozen women from our prisoners to take away. The duty picket officer drove him off. Before leaving, he nearly came to blows with our duty banner captain. My lord, what do you think — should we just let them have them?"

"No. The duty picket officer did nothing wrong," Chen Xin said firmly. "Remember this. This is not about women; it is about the army's morale. Some random squad commander comes and wants to take people away — does he think my barracks is a marketplace? If anyone dares come make trouble at the camp gate again, no matter who it is, detain them first. I will bear the brunt with Lord Lu myself."

"Understood."

"Eunuch Lu invites Lord Chen in to speak," a young eunuch called out in a shrill voice.

Chen Xin gave his thanks and nodded to the Foreign Affairs staff officer accompanying the army behind him. That staff officer was very familiar with people of this rank; he would handle the division of spoils. He hurried a few steps forward and gently tugged the young eunuch's sleeve, saying intimately in a low voice, "Young Eunuch Zhang, you must be worn out lately. But tonight you'll still have to make another hard trip…"

Young Eunuch Zhang wore an ambiguous half-smile and began chatting and laughing quietly with the staff officer.

Chen Xin walked straight into the tent. He saw that Lu Zhi was already sitting upright and solemn. He loudly declared, "Army Supervisor, your subordinate general comes to request instructions on our movements. I have disturbed your rest — a crime, a crime." He made a show of kneeling to salute. Lu Zhi hurried over to support him, and Chen Xin rose with the motion.

Lu Zhi was not embarrassed at being caught dallying with a boy singer. He had never been decisive about such matters; it was always Chen Xin's ideas. He could only say, "Then what strategy does General Chen have? Tell me, and we shall discuss it together."

"Your subordinate has over a hundred wounded and sick. Bringing them along is extremely inconvenient. Moreover, there are still many scattered bandits around Cixian. Your subordinate would not feel at ease sending them back. If Your Excellency does not object, your subordinate wishes to rest and reorganize the troops here."

Lu Zhi asked, "Rest for how long?"

"One month."

Lu Zhi's mouth fell open. Had it been any other general, he would have loosed a torrent of abuse already. But he did not dare do so with Chen Xin. His current position relied heavily on Chen Xin's military merits, and the two had always gotten along well. He could only ask gently, "Why so long?"

"Lord Lu, look: these wounded and sick have suffered damage to their qi and blood. If they catch an external pathogen on the road, their lives could be in danger. Your subordinate thinks of how their families are all waiting for them to return home. Your subordinate led them on an expedition a thousand li, and always hopes to lead them safely back. To die in battle is to die a worthy death; to die of illness on the road is truly hard to bear."

"This…" Lu Zhi now had no idea what Chen Xin really wanted. He could only say, "General Chen leads troops like his own sons — no wonder every man in Dengzhou Garrison gives his life. However, the roving bandits are still wreaking havoc everywhere. In a single day they flee a hundred li. The urgency of war is like wind and fire; we absolutely cannot wait a month. I feel that General Chen could dispatch a unit to escort them, while our main army rests briefly and then continues pursuing the bandits."

"It's just that there are still bandit remnants nearby. Who knows when another band might come over from the Taihang Mountains. There are also many scattered deserters in the mountain forests here. If we leave them in Linxian, your subordinate fears they will face reprisals from these violent folk. But what Lord Lu says also makes sense — military matters cannot be delayed… Then your subordinate will leave a force here to guard them until they recover."

Lu Zhi thought it over and said, "That would be acceptable. But don't leave too many troops, or we may lack the strength to deal with the bandits."

"Your subordinate obeys. I will leave only one company here. However, regarding the county magistrate of Linxian — he may worry about guest troops staying long. I must trouble Lord Lu to help explain." Chen Xin finished and waited for Lu Zhi's reply. That county magistrate had come once before. Chen Xin had asked him for grain and he gave none. The moment Lu Zhi stepped in, he immediately provided it. Eunuchs were far more effective than military officers.

As long as Chen Xin was willing to march, Lu Zhi was satisfied. Hearing this, he said crisply in his shrill voice, "I will handle this matter. A mere county magistrate has the duty to defend his territory, yet he cowered in his shell and let the common people fend for themselves. Now we have helped him wipe out the bandits and saved his life and property. If he dares raise obstacles, I will impeach him straight to the Directorate of Ceremonial."

…

Two days later, the screening of prisoners was complete. The refugee prisoners who had only recently been coerced in Shanxi were kept — over five hundred in total. They were all people who, under mutual denunciation, had committed no serious misdeeds. Chen Xin did not select based on whether they were able-bodied; he valued that they had been coerced only recently, occupied the very bottom rung among the bandits, had not enjoyed any of the bandits' plunder dividends, and had no record of atrocities.

Also kept were those over one thousand women. Virtually none were willing to leave on their own. Chen Xin had originally planned to select some and train them as nurses, but later discovered they were physically very weak and utterly incapable of long-distance marches. They could not accompany the army at all. He had to leave some medical corpsmen in Linxian to instruct them, serving as a field hospital for Henan. All the rest could only participate in farming.

What gave Chen Xin the biggest headache was that many of the women were pregnant, some several months along — clearly carrying the seed of the roving bandits. In any era of China, this would bring discrimination and make it very hard to integrate into ordinary society. But Chen Xin could not manage so many things. He could only hope that these women and refugees would find solace in each other within this relatively closed community.

Before Chen Xin broke camp, General Zuo Liangyu of Kunshan finally arrived at Chen Xin's camp. He brought several large carts with him. Among them were also gifts for Lu Zhi. Had it been an ordinary army supervisor from another garrison, Zuo Liangyu would not have paid him any attention — Zuo Liangyu had one in his own army too, named Xie Wenju. But Lu Zhi was different. Over the past two years, relying on Dengzhou's military merits, Lu Zhi had deeply earned the Emperor's regard, and he had a close relationship with Chen Xin.

Zuo Liangyu understood the key point very well. He went first to Chen Xin's main camp to request an audience. Chen Xin personally received him at the camp gate.

The moment Zuo Liangyu saw Chen Xin, he dropped to his knees with a thud and said in a voice like a great bell, "Thanks to the Junior Tutor's masterful planning, your subordinate also achieved considerable gains. While filled with gratitude and admiration, your subordinate heard that the Junior Tutor's marching provisions were not yet ample, and has specially escorted five carts of captured army provisions. Though hardly worthy of your notice, it is your subordinate's heartfelt gesture. I hope Your Excellency will not disdain it."

Chen Xin declined briefly, put on a show of reluctance, then accepted. Zuo Liangyu's method of sharing spoils was not bad — sharing some army provisions was common practice. There would certainly be silver bags inside. He called Wang Mafu over and gave a few instructions. Wang Mafu personally took receipt of the grain carts and sent them to the general transport unit for processing. There he would not say they were gifts from someone else; he would only tell the quartermasters that these were newly captured, keeping ordinary soldiers far from these transactions.

Chen Xin led Zuo Liangyu slowly into the camp, strolling as they chatted idly. "I heard that when General Zuo intercepted those bandit chiefs like the Eighth Great King, they fought like cornered dogs. Seeing that the General is unharmed, I am relieved. Thinking on it now, General Zuo's skill at shooting left and right is a unique art unmatched across the Nine Frontiers. It was absolutely impossible for those bandit chiefs to harm the General."

Zuo Liangyu did not know what Chen Xin meant by these words. He could only say cautiously, "Your subordinate is ashamed and unworthy of Your Excellency's undue praise. I failed to intercept and kill any of the bandit chiefs."

Chen Xin smiled and waved his hand. "The roving bandits race like the wind. Defeating them is easy; exterminating them is hard. This matter cannot be rushed."

Zuo Liangyu's heart settled upon hearing this, but then he heard Chen Xin continue, "May I ask how many heads General Zuo took, and whether they have been reported?"

"The heads have not yet been fully counted. Your subordinate estimates it is less than half of Your Excellency's number," Zuo Liangyu said very astutely. A warlord like Zuo Liangyu also most respected the strong. He had heard of some of Chen Xin's exploits. Given his current situation, he absolutely could not afford to offend this man.

Over the past few days he had killed a great many. Many scattered refugees had been cut down by his men. Including the civilians killed for merit, the head count reached over three thousand. He no longer needed to kill civilians for that purpose. But the main force this time was Chen Xin; Zuo Liangyu could not very well exceed Chen Xin's head count. So when Chen Xin hinted as much, Zuo Liangyu said it was half of Chen Xin's, figuring Chen Xin would likely accept.

Sure enough, Chen Xin nodded and said, "So General Zuo took over fifteen hundred heads."

Zuo Liangyu immediately followed up, "Exactly, my lord, you are most accurate."

Chen Xin stopped before the main tent entrance, turned his head to look at the towering Zuo Liangyu before him, and recalled the first time he had seen Zuo Liangyu in Jizhou. Back then, Zuo Liangyu had still carried a certain arrogance, his military fame largely coming from his unique skill of rapid-firing with both hands. Now he too was slick and slippery; it seemed he had truly been tempered by experience.

Chen Xin wore a professional smile and said flatly to Zuo Liangyu, "This official has over two thousand captured bandits in camp. I had intended to interrogate them one by one, but the language barrier with my Dengzhou garrison troops makes it difficult to get clear answers for the moment. This official will trouble General Zuo to screen them on my behalf. Lord Zuo has fought successive bloody battles with the bandits recently and your losses must be considerable. There are also some weapons and such here; this official will gift them to the General, and I ask General Zuo not to refuse."

Zuo Liangyu hurriedly gave his thanks. What he lacked most was weapons, and those refugees would be used as cannon fodder to be expended. Chen Xin feared too many people, but he did not.

Chen Xin pointed eastward and said, "Brother Zuo, should you lack anything in the future, do not stand on ceremony. This official knows many merchants in Denglai and has connections all along the Grand Canal. If Brother Zuo wishes to purchase anything, just say the word — anything at all."

Hearing Chen Xin's final emphasis, Zuo Liangyu immediately understood that Chen Xin meant weapons, saltpeter, sulfur, and the like included. He had known before that the Wendeng Incense business was run by Chen Xin; now, hearing Chen Xin's words, he began to reassess Chen Xin's true strength.

Then he heard Chen Xin say leisurely, "Brother Zuo, if you have anything to sell, just say the word as well. In a couple of days, this official will introduce you to someone. You may contact him directly thereafter."

Zuo Liangyu could now only listen, nodding obediently. At that moment, Wang Mafu came chasing after them from behind. He stood at attention and saluted, saying, "My lord, a military dispatch."

Chen Xin turned and asked, "Where from?"

"His Excellency Xuan, Provincial Governor of Henan." Wang Mafu glanced at Zuo Liangyu.

Chen Xin said, "It's no matter. General Zuo is no outsider. What urgent matter does His Excellency Xuan have?"

"His Excellency Xuan orders our garrison, the Changping troops, and the Sichuan Army to proceed to Huixian after clearing out the remaining bandits. He will personally go to Weihuifu to oversee the grand bandit-suppression campaign."

ps: Requesting monthly tickets.

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