Chapter 227: Section 42: Returning Home

By the Emperor's decree, the southern gate of the Forbidden City swung wide open. As Huang Shi strode out through the Great Ming Gate, eighteen eunuchs behind him simultaneously lashed their ceremonial whips with all their might, while the Emperor himself ascended the gate tower and stood watching him depart. Once outside the imperial city gate, Huang Shi turned and made a final prostration toward the tower, then shouted with all his strength, "Your Majesty, your humble servant takes his leave now."

The Tianqi Emperor, in his square-crowned dragon robe, gazed down at the broad imperial way below. Both sides of the road were lined with the imposing Feathered Forest Imperial Guard. Beyond these palace guards, resplendent in their gold helmets and silver armor like heavenly soldiers, stretched a vast dark mass of countless commoners from the capital. Word of Huang Shi had long since spread, and the people who had rushed here had been waiting for ages — none wanted to miss such a spectacle. An Emperor seeing off a general was a rare sight indeed!

The moment Tianqi appeared on the gate tower, the commoners knelt as one toward the Son of Heaven, their voices rising like a prayer to the gods. As if stirred by this overwhelming, mountain-toppling roar of acclamation, the usually somewhat bashful Tianqi broke into a beaming smile — ruling all under Heaven, with subjects in the millions, a surge of heroic pride rose in the Emperor's breast. Smiling, he intoned, "On the day of triumphant return to the capital, We shall personally loosen the general's battle robe."

The words the Emperor spoke softly were loudly repeated by the two eunuchs behind him, then by four, eight, sixteen, thirty-two... By the time they reached the foot of the Forbidden City, they had become the thunderous chant of thousands upon thousands of the Feathered Forest Guard, a sound that halted the drifting clouds and filled the space between heaven and earth, like the roar of a god rolling down from the firmament.

After the third kowtow, Huang Shi rose and walked to the warhorse led forward by the imperial guards. He vaulted lightly into the saddle and galloped toward Jin Qiude and the Changsheng Island personal guards waiting in the distance...

Though the imperial guards frantically beat gongs to clear the way, countless commoners still surged forward along both sides of the imperial avenue, desperate for a closer glimpse of Huang Shi. Many broke through the cordon lines on either side, holding high incense and candles as they called out their blessings to Huang Shi: "Lord Huang, when you go, you must drive back the eastern slaves and keep the people safe!"

People who had just heard the news and were rushing in from the far corners of the city gathered in ever-growing numbers, shouting their approval at Huang Shi with all their might. In every era of history, the people have always needed a hero to guide them, and deep in their hearts they strive desperately to idealize him. With his dazzling achievements, Huang Shi had captured even greater renown than Mao Wenlong had in the original history. Just as countless literati in the Tianqi era had sung the praises of Mao Wenlong for striking deep behind enemy lines, Huang Shi, who had now taken Mao Wenlong's original place, had become the focus of the common people's attention. When this man of countless legends appeared before them, a feverish fervor spread through the capital's citizens. Even Huang Shi, who in his previous life had witnessed the frenzy of celebrity-chasing many times, found himself moved to brimming tears by the boiling scene before him.

Huang Shi saw one merchant after another, struggling and grappling with the government office runners responsible for keeping order. Even as the runners and soldiers pushed them back, they waved the objects in their hands and shouted toward Huang Shi, "Lord Gongbao, we've heard the Dongjiang Army's pay is insufficient — we humble folk wish to contribute, we wish to contribute!"

In normal times, to stir the crowds, storytellers always described the Dongjiang Army as clad in rags, with empty bellies, lacking even padded coats in the bitter cold of the northeast. Over time, the common people had come to believe this narrative without question. The people lining both sides of the street were all stirred with emotion, one after another digging out bits of broken silver or a few copper coins, wanting to do their part for the soldiers fighting bitterly behind enemy lines.

Ninth Master had arrived long ago. In the crowd, he held high a large five-tael silver ingot and tried to push his way toward Huang Shi, but he too was blocked and pushed back by the government office runners. Though Ninth Master shouted until his throat was nearly raw, his voice was swallowed up in the sea of people. His clothes were torn in several places, but he was utterly oblivious. His heart was filled with joy — this day had truly not been lived in vain. To think he had actually seen Lord Huang Gongbao! Watching Huang Shi gradually ride into the distance, he mustered every last ounce of strength and let out a final bellow: "Lord Gongbao! This humble one, Zhu Lei, will shut down his business here in Beizhili tomorrow and go to Shandong! This humble one will go transport goods for Dongjiang Town — I'll go tomorrow~~~~~"

After leaving Beijing, Huang Shi and his men rode at full speed, changing horses every ten li, racing straight for the Bohai Sea. Upon reaching Tianjin Guard, the local official informed Huang Shi that after receiving their orders, they had immediately commandeered a good number of civilian seagoing vessels. Forty large ships with sufficient crews were already en route, and one dedicated fast boat was waiting for Huang Shi's party...

The sixteenth day of the twelfth month, fifth year of the Tianqi reign. Changsheng Island.

The island now had one hundred fifty thousand inhabitants, eighty thousand of whom were able-bodied males. The reason Huang Shi had concentrated so many people on Changsheng Island rather than in the newly recovered Fuzhou was precisely to prevent the military households from all turning to farming. Under Bao Jiusun's direction, these people had already built four more windmills and another kiln on Zhongdao. These facilities would be ready to begin operation once the rivers thawed next year. In previous letters reporting on the work to Beijing, Bao Jiusun had also confidently informed Huang Shi that he planned to erect two more windmills after the start of spring — the sites had already been chosen, and the reservoir was to be expanded as well.

Huang Shi jumped off the small boat and returned to his base of operations after an absence of four months. Very soon, Wu Mu, Zhao Manxiong, and Bao Jiusun hurried to the old camp to pay their respects. To Huang Shi's surprise, the brothers Zhang Minghe and Zhang Guanshui were also on the island. Ever since the Vanguard Battalion had voluntarily offered to accept reorganization, the Zhang sworn brothers had been treating themselves as core insiders, calling out "my lord, my lord" with even more familiarity than the old hands of Changsheng Island.

And Huang Shi now indeed regarded them as core insiders, because in terms of both officer-soldier composition and command structure, the Vanguard Battalion was now no different from the Firefighting and Rocksteady Battalions. To draw closer, Zhang Guanshui had privately suggested to Zhang Minghe that they change the battalion banner — an idea that coincided perfectly with the latter's own thoughts. The Vanguard Battalion's newly altered banner now also featured a venomous snake identical to those on the Firefighting and Rocksteady Battalion banners, the difference being that the Vanguard Battalion had changed the background to a treasured sword — comparable to the cloud pattern of the Firefighting Battalion and the green mountain of the Rocksteady Battalion.

Though he did not see He Dingyuan and Yang Zhiyuan, Huang Shi first briefly explained the purpose of his return, then told the roomful of subordinates that he hoped to launch the campaign before the fifteenth. The large fleet of seagoing vessels from Tianjin Guard had arrived at Changsheng Island almost on Huang Shi's heels and could set sail at any time. After speaking, Huang Shi asked Zhao Manxiong, "What is the combat readiness status of each battalion? Where are Mobile Corps Commander He and Mobile Corps Commander Yang?"

At this question, Zhao Manxiong, who had remained behind, immediately looked utterly dejected. He first glanced at Wu Mu, who was standing beside Huang Shi — the latter was already flushed bright red. With a mournful face, Zhao Manxiong said, "Reporting to my lord, these two questions are in fact one and the same. Eunuch Wu sent Mobile Corps Commander He, Probationary Company Commander Zhang, and the Rocksteady Battalion to Fuzhou. They also took half of the iron armor with them — that is, one thousand three hundred suits."

Huang Shi turned in astonishment to Wu Mu, who was shrinking off to one side. This was the first time the Army Supervisor had directly interfered in military operations since coming to the island. "Eunuch Wu, what is the meaning of this?"

Ever since Huang Shi had stated his objective, Wu Mu's face had been ashen as death. He knew he had botched his assignment yet again. Seeing Huang Shi's question directed at him, Wu Mu shrank his neck back, his face full of shame, and said, "Marshal Mao ordered the Dongjiang Left Wing to go on alert. I thought Changsheng Island naturally faced no threat, so I dispatched the Rocksteady Battalion to Fuzhou to assist in the defense. Also..."

Wu Mu stole a glance at Huang Shi's expression, scratched his head, and continued haltingly, "I also used General Huang's official seal to order the troops in Jinzhou, Lüshun, and other places to assemble at Fuzhou for coordinated defense."

Since Huang Shi had entered the capital, his Assistant Regional Commander's seal had naturally been kept by the Army Supervisor. As soon as Wu Mu heard that the Later Jin had mobilized one hundred sixty niru, he deemed the military situation urgent, so Eunuch Wu made a prompt decision and dispatched the elite troops of the Dongjiang Left Wing to Fuzhou. Ever since Wu Mu had sent that memorial, Tianqi had grown angry, and Wei Zhongxian had written a letter roundly cursing Wu Mu. Although Wu Mu felt very sorry toward Huang Shi, he also felt a small measure of secret delight — he thought his chance to show his mettle had arrived, and the glorious example of Tong Guan, Prince Tong, seemed to be beckoning to him right before his eyes.

"If General Huang had returned just one day earlier, they would not yet have left. It was just a coincidence." Wu Mu haltingly found an excuse for himself, then squeezed out another piece of bad news like toothpaste from a tube: "I had heard that 'when the great army moves, provisions go first,' so I had Mobile Corps Commander Yang escort all the reserve military rations to Fuzhou as well."

Seeing Huang Shi's expression grow darker and darker, Wu Mu hurriedly added, "Battalion Commander Deng's artillery unit hasn't been entirely shipped out yet. There should still be quite a bit at the Beixinkou dock waiting to be loaded onto the boats!"

"Send someone to call Deng Ken back, and have all the cannons that have already been loaded onto the ships brought back down." Huang Shi immediately dispatched a personal guard to deliver the message, then consoled Wu Mu: "Eunuch Wu, this is not your fault. Deploying the main army to Fuzhou for defense can also be considered a prudent course of action."

"Yes, yes, I was also thinking of sharing General Huang's burdens." Wu Mu rubbed his hands together uneasily, a relieved smile spreading across his face. "Was I not also afraid that the Jianzhou slaves in Gaizhou might launch a sneak attack?"

"Are there still Jianzhou slaves in Gaizhou now?" Huang Shi shot a suspicious glance at Zhao Manxiong. He recalled that in October, Zhao Manxiong had reported that the Later Jin had essentially abandoned Gaizhou, and by November it was practically an empty city. The Later Jin had moved all the inhabitants of Gaizhou city and its surroundings to Haizhou.

Zhao Manxiong glanced again at Wu Mu, whose face was now red enough to play Guan Yu, and said sheepishly, "Reporting to my lord, essentially none — at most fifty Han army scouts."

Wu Mu's neck flushed an even deeper red. He protested, "I was also afraid of an ambush, so I sent Commissioner Li to scout the true situation in Gaizhou."

"An ambush? What kind of ambush?" Huang Shi felt he was growing more confused the more he heard, and was beginning to grow anxious.

"Reporting to my lord, Eunuch Wu devised a plan," Zhao Manxiong said, drawing out his tone — the very cadence made it clear he was full of grievances about Wu Mu's plan. "It was Probationary Company Commander Chen and Probationary Company Commander Zhang who helped Eunuch Wu think of it. They said that if Nurhaci really has gone to Liaoxi, we should mobilize the twenty thousand troops of our Left Wing to attack Gaizhou, which is garrisoned by fifty men. Probationary Company Commander Chen called this move 'the fierce tiger pouncing on the rabbit.' Your subordinate could not out-argue Brother Chen, so Eunuch Wu used the seal."

During this period while Huang Shi had been away from the island, Wu Mu had been exceedingly pleased with himself, throwing his weight around. But he could also see that while Zhao Manxiong and his lot were outwardly respectful, in their hearts they did not think much of his command abilities. This made Eunuch Wu feel a hundred twenty thousand parts aggrieved. He felt that his performance over the past few years had been consistently excellent — he had always been very calm, very brave, had not shied from arrows and stones on the front lines, and had even eaten alfalfa alongside everyone else. According to the military treatises, he clearly ought to have won the unanimous love and esteem of officers and soldiers alike.

Previously, Wu Mu had not minded not receiving fervent adoration — he also admitted that he was far inferior to Huang Shi. But after Huang Shi left, still not receiving sufficient adoration was something Wu Mu found hard to fathom. After several consecutive nights of insomnia, he believed he had found the reason: arbitrarily redeploying the rear guard during the Fuzhou campaign had been a major blunder.

Since Eunuch Wu had analyzed this as the reason everyone looked down on him, he had been straining every nerve, determined to fight a battle that would redeem his reputation. After reading in the Dongjiang dispatches that the Later Jin was sending troops to Liaoxi, Wu Mu had been constantly mulling over how to win the officers' and soldiers' heartfelt respect by recovering Gaizhou. To guarantee a victory, Wu Mu had driven the unlucky intelligence chief Li Yunrui out into the Gaizhou wilderness in the dead of winter to scout enemy movements. Not only that, he had presumptuously drawn in every soldier he could pull and concentrated them at Fuzhou. Had the military rations not simply been insufficient, he would have originally wanted to send the Firefighting Battalion to Fuzhou as well.

"I was afraid the Jianzhou slaves would wheel around for a counterstrike!" Wu Mu detected the sarcasm in Zhao Manxiong's tone, and his own voice rose in pitch. "I wanted to absorb the lessons of the Fuzhou campaign. Sunzi said: 'In ancient times, those skilled in warfare first made themselves invincible, then awaited the enemy's vulnerability. Invincibility lies in oneself; vulnerability lies in the enemy. Therefore, those skilled in warfare can make themselves invincible, but cannot make the enemy certain to be vulnerable. Thus it is said: victory can be...'"

"Eunuch Wu has done very well..."

Seeing Wu Mu's face full of grievance, apparently about to continue quoting the classics at length, Huang Shi hurriedly cut him off and began to console him. He had spoken only a few sentences when he saw Deng Ken burst in.

"General, please allow me to..."

Deng Ken gave Huang Shi a vigorous, warm embrace. After releasing his arms and stepping back, he said with slight embarrassment, "My apologies, General, I forgot this was a military meeting." He studied Huang Shi for a moment, then suddenly blurted out a very traditional Chinese greeting: "General, you've gained weight."

Huang Shi could not help but smile at this, and a warm glow seemed to spread suddenly through his heart. "Deng Ken, you've gained weight too." In this era, when doing outdoor work in winter, one would smear thick grease on one's hands to prevent frostbite — Deng Ken was naturally no exception. As Huang Shi wiped off the grease Deng Ken had smeared onto his armor, he asked about the artillery situation.

"General, the four three-pounder bronze cannons were already shipped to Gaizhou yesterday. The two six-pounder bronze cannons have not yet been shipped — your humble subordinate has already ordered them brought back down."

"Fortunately, there are still two." Huang Shi nodded happily, then glanced at Bao Jiusun beside him. "Didn't you say you were going to cast new cannons? Are they ready?"

Deng Ken and Bao Jiusun cried out simultaneously, "They're ready."

The two exchanged a smile, and Bao Jiusun fell silent. Deng Ken excitedly informed Huang Shi that the new wrought-iron three-pounder cannons had been completed. The first batch of crucible steel produced on Changsheng Island had all been processed into cutting tools, and the hydraulic boring mill had naturally been fitted with refined steel boring cutters as well, so Changsheng Island could now cast cannons using wrought iron instead of bronze.

Using wrought iron to cast cannons did indeed cause some problems — for instance, the accumulated expertise in bronze cannon casting was considerably affected. But neither Huang Shi, Bao Jiusun, nor Deng Ken had the slightest doubt that using wrought iron was the correct path. After all, wrought iron was far cheaper than bronze, and the cost of a three-pounder cannon had now been reduced to thirty percent of the original.

In addition, Deng Ken had replaced many of the wooden components on the gun carriages with wrought iron ones and had added quite a few iron mechanisms. Although this led to a certain increase in cost, it greatly reduced the weight of the carriages and made the cannons easier to use. The newly tested wrought-iron three-pounder cannon weighed only three hundred jin, with room for further weight reduction, and was far more nimble to operate. Both Deng Ken and Bao Jiusun believed this cannon could fully keep pace with marching infantry.

Since this type of cannon could provide fire support for the infantry, Deng Ken and Bao Jiusun considered the super-heavy arquebus Huang Shi had previously demanded unnecessary. Deng Ken even insisted that the weapon Huang Shi had imagined was simply a one-pounder cannon. Moreover, first, Deng Ken opposed placing the artillery under infantry command, believing it would burden the artillery with extra, cumbersome infantry training whose effectiveness was uncertain — professionalized artillery was the proper path. Second, Zhao Manxiong and He Dingyuan were even more adamantly opposed to having more than four cannons per thousand men in the establishment. They both feared this would cause the Changsheng Army to lose the cold-steel combat tradition it had built since its founding, leading unit commanders, like so many other Ming army officers, to lose their aggressive drive and offensive spirit.

With this nearly unanimous opposition from the senior officers of Changsheng Island before him, Bao Jiusun boldly took up his brush and, with one sweeping stroke, executed Huang Shi's large arquebus project, throwing his full support instead behind Deng Ken's casting of the wrought-iron three-pounder cannon. Six had now passed inspection, their weights ranging from an early five hundred jin to the latest three hundred twenty-odd jin.

"Recalling the Rocksteady Battalion from Fuzhou will probably take several days, and we likely don't have much time. Loading the troops onto the ships will take about another day. Even if everything goes smoothly at sea, we'll need at least three days to reach Juehua and disembark. Unloading the ships will also take considerable time, and then the troops must rest for one to two days to recover their strength." Huang Shi recalled that the dispatches said the Later Jin main army would set out from Haizhou for Liaoxi on the fifteenth. The Later Jin vanguard might already have crossed the Sancha River — the time left to him was not much.

"The Rocksteady Battalion's five infantry companies are to prepare for embarkation immediately. Load the cannons on as well." After giving the order, Huang Shi turned to look at Zhang Minghe and Zhang Guanshui. Zhao Manxiong had just reported that the Vanguard Battalion still had two infantry companies on the island. These two companies had just completed training, and Zhang Minghe had come to Changsheng Island this time precisely to take them away.

"Commissioner Zhang, I wish to make use of your..."

Before Huang Shi could finish, Zhang Minghe bent forward and, with a ringing voice and clasped fists, declared, "My lord has but to command, and your humble subordinate will serve unto death."