Chapter 373

"Eighty li of flatland, all country roads, and twenty li of mountain terrain with no paths, just gullies and ravines — we must cover it all in one night. Each man carries only five days' worth of dry rice; leave behind everything unrelated to combat, all packs and baggage stay in camp." Zhong Lao Si was shouting to the group of company commanders and banner captains below. "Anyone who is ill or physically weak, or who cannot see at night, is temporarily transferred to the Third Division of the Guard Battalion to stay behind. Swap out those among them who can march at night."

At the Second Thousand-Headquarters camp, Zhong Lao Si had summoned all officers from Company Commander up and was briefing them on the operation.

Following Chen Xin's orders, all soldiers with night blindness were left with the Guard Third Division defending the main camp, and soldiers from that unit who could march at night were swapped in. Fortunately, the militia battalion soldiers had all been selected from across the entire fort-village system, so their physical condition was far better than before. Drawing on his own general knowledge, Chen Xin had added pig liver mixed with carrots and other foods to their diet to treat night blindness, so the proportion of night-blind soldiers was not high. And the standardized drill manual ensured that Dengzhou Garrison could bring its combat power to bear.

Several platoon leaders and banner captains jotted notes in their booklets. Once they finished writing, Zhong Lao Si continued: "The target of this operation is a major bandit chieftain. The entire main force of our Dengzhou Garrison will move. The chieftain's base is on the side of Xiuwu County near Mount Taixing, his camp two li from the forested mountain zone and one hundred li from our current camp. A friendly force has already gone ahead. To avoid arousing suspicion from the bandit cavalry, they will attack a local stockade that colludes with the roving bandits — in reality, this is to screen against reconnaissance by the surrounding bandit horsemen. They will pitch camp outside the stockade and make a show of building siege equipment to assault it the next day, using that as cover for our real objective. We begin the march after dark. No torches allowed."

Zhong Lao Si glanced up at the sky. There was not much cloud. Starlight and moonlight should provide some illumination tonight.

"According to the intelligence distributed by the battalion staff, this major bandit chieftain's camp has other roving-bandit camps on its east, south, and west sides. Only the north side is clear. The bandits' farthest outlying pickets are at five li. We are going straight for this chieftain. All infantry will march at night. The initial stage is flatland along the edge of the mountain zone, until we reach a point twenty li east of Zijin Liang. From there, other bandit groups are encamped, and we will need to enter the foothills on the southern slopes of Mount Taixing. The cavalry will stay concealed near that position. The infantry will move through the mountain gullies to a point due north of his camp and lie hidden on its northern side. If we are not detected, we will launch the assault half a shichen before dawn."

"Our Thousand-Headquarters' task is to attack the west side of the enemy camp. That means we have to march a bit farther. Attacking the front alongside us is the Third Thousand-Headquarters of the Fifth Battalion. Our two Thousand-Headquarters will carry out the central push. The two divisions of the First Thousand-Headquarters will deploy on the outer flanks of the two square-formation Thousand-Headquarters and execute a rapid converging assault. Once the attack begins, the cavalry will rush over at speed to pin down the various surrounding bandit groups."

As always before a battle, Zhong Lao Si did not mind repeating himself. He gave his final instructions to the officers: "We are a small force facing a great foe. Remember the key points of the raid. The attack must be sudden. Do your utmost not to alert them before we close in. No bugles, no drums. All orders are to be passed by word of mouth. The unified attack signal is birdcall number one. All four companies will spread out in a single line, deploy on a broad front, and push forward fast. Every banner captain and squad officer must keep the battle line as steady as possible. Constantly watch the Thousand-Headquarters banner for position and speed. Detached squads will be commanded independently by their detachment leaders, ranging ahead of the main formation and not bound by its constraints — they just push forward, as fast as they possibly can. Once the main formation enters the camp, it may be impossible to keep formation, but you are not to halt and re-dress ranks. The overriding priority is speed. Give the bandits no time to organize their men. Do not stop until you have punched through their main camp. If you meet a counterattack, take orders from the nearest officer on the spot. No one stops attacking or advancing unless they hear the assembly call. We've been here over a month, and so far we've killed hardly any of the bandits' elite troops. Those refugees — I don't even want to kill them. Fighting the Tatars never left us feeling this stifled. Today is our best chance. Seize that dog-spawned Zijin Liang and make him kneel before Lord Chen and beg forgiveness."

"Understood." The assembled subordinates nodded in unison, excitement gleaming in their eyes.

On the twentieth-something day of the lunar month, the moon rose late. The night sky was full of starlight, softly illuminating the dark mountain silhouettes to the north, range after range. By the light of the stars, an army of over three thousand men marched along the edge of the vast North China plain. Their forms were masked by the backdrop of the northern mountains; unless observed at close range, this quietly hurrying army was very hard to spot.

No one carried torches. Marching by torchlight at night across open flatland could be seen from a great distance, so they had to advance by starlight alone. Those wearing mail had put the armor on over their inner garments, then covered it with their red uniforms. Bright helmets and spear blades were all wrapped with spare leg-wraps to prevent any reflection.

The two divisions of the First Division were at the head and tail of the column respectively. They had deployed their four sub-units into an irregular diamond formation, with the rearmost unit trailing slightly behind. This marching formation could rapidly transform into several different battle formations — simple and direct. It was the formation the Qi army had used in the north, nothing like the fancy Plum Blossom formations of the capital battalions.

In the center were the two square-formation Thousand-Headquarters. Once this large formation reached its attack position, it would need no further adjustment; crossing the southern slope, it would already be in battle order. The cavalry and all the scout riders, on the other hand, were leading their horses on foot at the very rear. The horses' hooves were wrapped in thick cloth, because they would not be entering the mountain zone. Once they reached a point twenty li from the objective, they would conceal themselves in the nearby hills to avoid being spotted by the bandits' outlying pickets if they continued forward.

At the very front were the Special Service Unit, combined with picked men drawn from the scout riders. They had left their horses behind and were advancing on foot as well, serving as the army's vanguard and guides, communicating with one another using bird and animal calls. This trick had been learned from the Jianzhou bandits, summarized by Wu Jianzhong and the genuine Jurchen he had brought with him. After Chen Xin was alerted to it, he devised a set of communication signals for the combat troops; the Special Service Unit set their own.

In the middle of the column, Guan Dadi could not see what was happening up front. As a non-commissioned officer and veteran in his squad, he had to help the other squad members and assist the officers in keeping an eye on the soldiers' condition. Already one man along the way had stepped into a hole and twisted his ankle and had been left behind on the road.

It was not until just before they set out that the banner captain had briefed them: today they were going to seize a major bandit chieftain. The soldiers were all very excited. After all, they felt they were a strong army, but apart from the battle at Linxian, they could not even find the bandits' shadows. Every time, the bandits fought once and then fled, leaving behind a mass of clueless refugees. Dengzhou Garrison could neither kill them nor take them prisoner, and often had no choice but to let them run. These people would immediately throw in with other bandit groups. Everyone in Dengzhou Garrison, from top to bottom, had been holding in their frustration, wanting to teach those bandits a harsh lesson.

After setting out, they alternated between fast and slow, mixing normal pace with quick march, and rested three times along the way. Guan Dadi estimated they had already covered fifty li. Marching on the flatland was not too tiring, but after another thirty li they would enter the mountain zone. By then, marching while carrying such a long pike — even with load-bearing gear — would be extremely grueling.

Guan Dadi noticed over twenty corpses faintly visible on the left side of the road. They were probably a small band of refugees or bandits who had been cut down indiscriminately by the Special Service Unit. Guan Dadi had not heard a single sound earlier. Now, looking carefully, he saw the bodies were not far apart — a sign that the Special Service Unit had struck with extreme speed. Those men had not even had a chance to flee, which made Guan Dadi click his tongue in amazement.

It was said that the Special Service Unit had once wanted to recruit Guan Dadi, but Zhong Lao Si had blocked it and refused to let him go. Later, when the Special Service Unit heard that he had not even learned fifty characters, they did not raise the matter again. So Guan Dadi felt a bit of regret and longing in his heart.

"The Special Service Unit really is formidable." Guan Dadi stared at those corpses once more and thought to himself.

They continued on like this for roughly another ten li. Up ahead, they suddenly halted. Company Commander Zhou Shao'er came running over, gave a few whispered instructions to the banner captain, then headed back toward the arquebusiers' position.

The banner captain came over and said in a low voice: "Everyone stand by. No talking."

Guan Dadi stood on tiptoe and looked ahead. In the distance, there was actually the glow of campfires. His heart immediately leaped into his throat.

Bucktooth was observing a campfire a hundred paces to the south through his spyglass. Beside it was a small river; he could see the glint of flowing water. Several bandits, still not asleep, were raping a woman. Nearby, some refugees were gathered around watching the excitement. This bandit group had appeared suddenly; this camp had not been here when he had passed through earlier.

This bandit group was not large. They were over two li from the hilly zone. Fortunately, they had not occupied the river crossing point, which was about one and a half li away. These men were extremely lax — they did not even have outlying pickets. Bucktooth had crept to within a hundred paces and they had not noticed a thing.

Bucktooth put away his spyglass and asked Zhang Wei beside him: "Where has the main column reached?"

"Xiao Er just came to report — three li from here. They should have halted by now." Zhang Wei clicked his tongue. "They're less than one li from the crossing point. If they're discovered... maybe we should enter the mountains now."

Bucktooth turned and aimed his spyglass toward the mountains. The mountain shadows were pitch black. The bandits had no spyglasses; as long as they did not walk toward the mountain edge, they probably could not see anything.

Bucktooth was deeply torn. He did not know the terrain in these nearby mountains. If they entered the mountains, they might very well be unable to reach the objective before dawn. It would be best to continue marching across the flatland and enter the mountains at around the twenty-li mark. But if they really were discovered, once this bandit group raised a clamor or scattered, it could very easily alert bandits elsewhere. This involved whether the operation could succeed, and even more, it concerned the safety of the entire army of over three thousand men — especially since Lord Chen himself was with the army.

He quietly withdrew, returning to the river crossing point two li back. Over a dozen Special Service Unit members were dispersed there on guard. Two staff officers from the central army had just returned. Bucktooth crouched down and asked them: "What did Lord Chen say?"

"Lord Chen said: Squad Leader, you know the situation best and you're at the very front. He asks you to boldly judge whether it's feasible. The order to march is yours to give."

"Me?" Bucktooth stared in astonishment, mouth agape. Chen Xin had actually handed him such enormous authority.

One of the staff officers said: "Lord Chen said time is short and sending messages back and forth is inconvenient. He wants you to analyze and decide boldly. He will not hold you accountable after the fact."

Bucktooth lowered his head. The two staff officers waited in silence. After a moment, Bucktooth raised his head and stared at the two men. "I've decided the main column will continue forward. We might be discovered here, but if we enter the mountains, we may not reach the attack position on time. Exposed in broad daylight before tens of thousands of bandits — the risk to the army would be even higher then. Even if we are discovered here, we can still withdraw intact. I'm going to stay at the very front the whole way. If I get killed, remember to tell Lord Chen the reasoning behind my decision."

The two men nodded. Bucktooth called over several squad members and gave low-voiced orders: "Our Special Service Unit will send out one squad to set up a warning picket to the south. If any scattered bandits really do come this way, quietly take them out. Now, here's the marching method. For now, only infantry cross. The cavalry horses tend to neigh when crossing rivers, so they'll wait until the infantry are far ahead before crossing. If we are discovered, do not engage — just head east. This bandit group won't figure out who we are right away, so it won't necessarily alert the other large bandit groups. Near dawn, the cavalry will rush to the battlefield at speed. By the time they arrive, the infantry will already have begun the attack, and the bandits won't have time to send word. Now, for the infantry: at the river crossing, one division crosses at a time. The main column waits one li away. Once that division is across, the next division crosses..."

When Chen Xin, in the rear element, received Bucktooth's decision, he too breathed a sigh of relief. The operation could still continue after all. But the cavalry would have to be left behind. If Chen Xin was going to accompany the infantry, he would have to leave his horse behind as well.

The forward elements began moving in succession. A good deal of time had been lost here. Chen Xin kept looking up at the sky. Zhu Daichun hesitated for a moment, then said to Chen Xin: "My lord, this bandit group appeared out of nowhere, and we don't know if there are more ahead. This expedition is, after all, a lone army penetrating deep behind enemy lines, and now we must leave all the horses behind. Your subordinate is constantly worried for your lordship's safety. I would like to request that you return to the main camp and quietly await good news."

Chen Xin shook his head. "The general is the army's courage. This is not about just one battle — this time, I must go. No horses? Then we walk. If even the commanders cannot do it, on what grounds can we demand the soldiers do it in the future?" He turned to Wang Mafu and stretched out his hand. "Give me my gag-bit."

Wang Mafu took out Chen Xin's gag-bit. Chen Xin accepted it and bit it between his teeth. Seeing his resolute attitude, Zhu Daichun and the others said no more. One after another, they took out their own gag-bits, bit down on them, and awaited orders. At last, it was their turn to move. Chen Xin led the way forward. (To be continued...)