Chapter 449

Inside the Linxian base, all sorts of tenant households were running about. Some Zongjia were shouting loudly, ordering them to go to the warehouses to collect weapons and uniforms.

Inside the battalion headquarters meeting room, however, it was very quiet. A cluster of heads was gathered around a map.

"Everyone speak up." Zhong Laosi straightened up and said to the group of officers, "Fighting Tatars is more satisfying than fighting roving bandits, but with over a thousand li between us, how should we make the march?"

Zhou Shaoer braced both hands on the table and looked up at Zhong Laosi. "The Military Orders Department hasn't even sent a command, and we're mobilizing on our own. This doesn't seem to quite conform to military regulations. When Lord Zhu left, the authority he gave you only allows for maneuvers in Yubei. To the north, you can't exceed the northern border of Wu'an; to the east, you can't exceed the western border of Great Ming Prefecture. If you go now, you'll have marched all the way into Shanxi."

Zhong Laosi waved his large hand. "When a general is in the field, he is bound by nothing."

Zhou Shaoer still shook his head and said, "Linxian's provisions and military equipment are in the hands of the Quartermaster Department. If you exceed this scope without a troop transfer order, that Squad Commander from the Quartermaster Department won't give you anything."

The Military Judge of the Long Qibing's Company Headquarters also said to Zhong Laosi, "And there's the branch office of the Judge Advocate Department. The moment you try to seize quartermaster supplies, before you even start moving, he can arrest you."

Zhong Laosi interrupted impatiently, "On the matter of supplies, I'll go talk to him myself. I'm at least a Deputy Battalion Commander; it can't be that I can't even mobilize a single Company Headquarters."

The Indoctrination Officer also stood up. "Deputy Battalion Commander Zhong, if you transfer troops in violation of your authority, our Propaganda Department will also not agree..."

"Enough!" Zhong Laosi slammed a palm on the table. "Whose damn side are you people on anyway? The Tatars have struck into Shanxi, and you're still harping on that piece of paper from Zhu Daichun. He didn't say we can't fight if the Tatars come."

The Military Judge glared at Zhong Laosi. "Lord Zhong, an order is an order. You are restricted to south of Wu'an, so you can only be south of Wu'an. If you transfer these troops away, what if a band of roving bandits comes and sacks Linxian? I'm not going to mess around with you. If you insist on going to Shanxi, I'll go right now to the Judge Advocate branch station. I may not be able to arrest you, but the Judge Advocate Department can."

Zhong Laosi and the Military Judge glared at each other. The Indoctrination Officer hurriedly squeezed between them. "Gentlemen, I say let's not quarrel. Lord Zhong has a point; military affairs are always urgent. The Tatars are right now plundering the common people. Tell me who wouldn't be anxious, so Lord Zhong isn't wrong..."

Zhong Laosi immediately said to the Military Judge, "Did you hear that? It takes an Indoctrination Officer to understand reason."

The Indoctrination Officer quickly continued, "But the army has its rules. Without rules, nothing can be accomplished. The Military Judge is also fulfilling his duty, so the Military Judge isn't wrong either..."

Zhong Laosi turned his head to look at the Indoctrination Officer. "Stop trying to smooth things over. Give me a straight answer: what exactly should we do?"

The Indoctrination Officer said calmly, "Dispatch a fast horse to request instructions from Lord Zhong. It's not that far anyway; a fast horse round trip is only a matter of a few days."

Zhong Laosi roared angrily, "Can military intelligence wait that many days? Do you know how many people the Tatars can capture in a single day? Every extra person they capture means one more person farming in Liaodong, and our brothers in Liaonan will have to face one more armored soldier. Damn you all, you..."

Zhong Laosi rolled up his sleeves and moved closer. The Indoctrination Officer hastily retreated backward, saying loudly, "Zhong Laosi, I'm telling you, if Zhao Xuan hadn't repeatedly persuaded me, I never would have wanted to come to your Long Qibing Company Headquarters. And you still dare to hit people. Go ask around in every department, who's willing to partner with you, Zhong Laosi."

"So what if I hit you? You two worthless curs, letting the Tatars go unfought, and doing nothing but opposing me." Zhong Laosi indeed went over to grab the Indoctrination Officer by the collar.

Zhou Shaoer and the other company commanders hurriedly rushed over to block them. The meeting room was in chaos. The two scouts from the Intelligence Bureau who had come to deliver the message stood dumbfounded at the side. Normally they thought the Action Teams were fierce, but even they were well-behaved within the Bureau. Today, seeing these combat troops about to fight even their own people, and during a meeting at that.

With great difficulty, the crowd finally separated the two. Zhong Laosi was still cursing furiously. The Indoctrination Officer was so angry his face was completely red. He pointed at Zhong Laosi and said, "Fine, you Zhong Laosi. Although we are one rank lower than you, our Military Law and Indoctrination systems are under direct vertical control. No one cares how you fight battles, but if you want to violate military law, there's just one word: no."

"That's two words." Zhong Laosi cursed at the Indoctrination Officer. "And you're supposed to be from the literacy class. All day you just follow Huang Side around listening to storytelling. Look at you, you can't even count two words clearly..."

"Zhong Laosi, without our agreement, you can't take a single soldier away. Try it if you don't believe it." After a bout of arguing, the Military Judge and the Indoctrination Officer threw down a harsh parting remark and left angrily. The military council could not continue. The company and squad commanders looked at each other in dismay. Zhong Laosi paced back and forth in the room, cursing incessantly. He also knew that once the Military Judge had spoken, the officers below all understood that Zhong Laosi was not in the right. No one dared to carry out this order, including his diehard supporter Zhou Shaoer. Truly, he could not take a single soldier away.

The two scouts from the Intelligence Bureau came over and asked Zhong Laosi, "Lord Zhong, are we going or not in the end? Lord Zhang is still waiting at Zhangjiakou."

"How can I go without provisions? Get lost." Zhong Laosi vented his anger on the Intelligence Bureau. Still not satisfied after cursing, he continued, "Your Bureau Chief Zhang happens to be surnamed Zhang, so Zhangjiakou must be run by his family. It's fitting he stays there."

Seeing this man's bad temper, the two scouts shrank to the side and said nothing more.

Zhou Shaoer muttered for a while with the Company Headquarters' quartermaster, then pulled Zhong Laosi over and scolded, "Chief Zhong, you bastard, have you forgotten the lesson from Dengzhou again? You haven't been quiet since Weihai. Look around the whole army, which officer can stand you? If you were a bit smarter, you'd be a Battalion Commander by now. Look at Fan Shouye, now acting Battalion Commander. Back then, he was just a pikeman like you."

"I just can't stand these people, taking a chicken feather as a token of authority. If Lord Chen were here, could he forbid me from fighting the Tatars?"

Zhou Shaoer said in a low voice, "Keep your voice down. They are just doing their duty. If you try to force them, it's only natural they'd turn on you. Actually, we don't need to do it this way. We can think of other methods."

"What method?"

"Take a close look at Zhu Daichun's letter of authorization. It only mentions combat troops, it doesn't say anything about reserve troops..."

Zhong Laosi's eyes shifted, and he asked in a low voice, "What stratagem do you propose?"

"Propose your mother. A big oaf like you still trying to imitate Romance of the Three Kingdoms. We move the reserve troops to the front, have them set up forward stations, carrying grain to arrange supply points along the way. Once Zhu Daichun's order arrives, our Long Qibing will advance at full speed with light packs. Besides, didn't you say we can go to Wu'an? We'll just move the Long Qibing to the northernmost part of Wu'an first. It won't be much slower. This is all within your authority. Can that Military Judge and Indoctrination Officer let out a fart about it?"

"We still need a reason for that. Otherwise, if the Quartermaster Department won't give me army provisions, how can the reserve troops set up forward stations?"

Zhou Shaoer chuckled slyly. "Aren't you the Deputy Battalion Commander, and also in charge of combat training? We haven't conducted our winter field training yet..."

"Haha, good one, Zhou Shaoer. Tomorrow I'll make you a feather fan. Remember to bring it with you onto the battlefield from now on." Zhong Laosi laughed heartily and said smugly to the two staff officers, "You two, go right now and dig out the last winter field training plan. Change the training location to Wu'an. Also the winter combat training plan, the one with Zhu Daichun's signature on it. The Quartermaster Department also has it on file. I'd like to see them dare refuse to give us army provisions."

The two staff officers were stunned for a moment, then immediately grasped Zhong Laosi's meaning and hurried out the door. Zhong Laosi suddenly remembered something and shouted loudly at their retreating figures, "Include field training for the reserve troops. Also, keep the plan brief. I want it in two hours."

He turned his head and bellowed at the other officers and staff officers, "All of you, come over. We'll continue studying the route."

The group of officers gathered around curiously. Zhong Laosi said to the two scouts, "I don't have a sand table for that area. You two come over and explain to me. I can only go as far as Wu'an right now. What's the shortest route to Xuanda?"

One scout was more familiar with the northern region. He came over and pointed at the map. "My lords are all cavalry. If you want good roads, don't enter the Dabie Mountains. From Wu'an, enter Zhending Prefecture, cross through Zhending Prefecture to Baoding's Daoma Pass, or take Zijing Pass to enter Shanxi. Daoma Pass is where the watercourse exits the mountains. Zijing Pass is on the Juma River course. Apart from Juyong Pass, they are considered relatively easy passes to travel. Once over the mountains, you're in Datong Prefecture. It's roughly a thousand li to Datong or Zhangjiakou."

Zhou Shaoer looked at the map and said with some worry, "If the roads through these two passes are easy to travel, then what if the Jianzhou Bandits happen to be coming through these two passes to break into Beizhili? Wouldn't we run right into them head-on?"

Zhong Laosi asked the scout, "Are the river courses wide?"

"Neither is considered wide. The cart and horse road runs right alongside the river course."

Zhong Laosi pointed his finger at the map and said to Zhou Shaoer, "Lord Chen once said that passages through large mountains are mostly built along the banks of natural rivers. Some are just dried-up old riverbeds. True winding mountain roads don't become checkpoints. If it's a narrow river course, we don't need to fear an attack by their main army. At least the Tatars can't outflank us."

Another company commander raised his hand and said, "Deputy Battalion Commander, what if we run into the Tatars and retreat, but the garrison at the pass won't open the gate for us? Especially if the Tatars are chasing right behind us. That pass won't be guarded by our own Dengzhou Garrison people."

"This..." Zhong Laosi thought for a moment. "Damn you, that's a good question. I'll have to get the Reserve Company Headquarters to follow us to the pass and guard it. First, to provide logistics; second, to seize control of the pass."

Zhou Shaoer shook his head and stared helplessly at Zhong Laosi. "Deputy Battalion Commander, fighting this way, don't you think that before we even fight the Tatars, we'll end up fighting a bunch of our friendly garrisons? Besides, even if we reach the pass, we can't transport that much grain and fodder all the way from Linxian. What do we do about the supplies coming up from the rear?"

Zhong Laosi laughed heartily. He grabbed the scout beside him and pulled him close, saying right in his face, "My provisions will last twenty days at most. Your Intelligence Bureau and the Trading Company are in cahoots. I was called out by that scoundrel Zhang Dong to rescue Xuanda. Once we enter Beizhili, your Intelligence Bureau is responsible for contacting the Trading Company. If there aren't enough provisions, I'll just have to turn back and go home."

The scout hastily agreed. Zhong Laosi released him and turned to look at the group of officers. Pointing his finger at the border area between Baoding and Zhending Prefecture, he said, "Then we'll take Daoma Pass. Zhu Daichun dragged away all the miscellaneous horses. We have no horse carts. Conscript all usable horse carts and handcarts. Even the Long Qibing's horses will be pulled out to hitch to carts and haul provisions. The auxiliary troops and the Reserve Company Headquarters will set out first, setting up supply points along the way. The Long Qibing Company Headquarters will march on foot to Wu'an..."

Just then, the main door banged loudly. Everyone turned to look. The Military Judge and Indoctrination Officer who had just left came back in, leading personnel from their respective departments. They were the heads of the Judge Advocate Department and Propaganda Department branch offices stationed in Linxian. The few of them entered, all staring at Zhong Laosi with unfriendly expressions.

Zhong Laosi glanced sideways at them, raised his head, and continued loudly, "The entire unit will march on foot to Wu'an... to conduct winter long-distance march field training."