Chapter 100: Peace of Mind

The night was deep, a full moon hung high in the ink-blue sky, its silver light flooding the earth and illuminating the entire plain with bright clarity.

The north gate of Shouzhou stood wide open, a long winding black ribbon stretching into the city under the moonlight—Shandong's government troops were entering. There was no clamor of men or neighing of horses; every soldier, including the laborers of the baggage camp, held a wooden stick in his mouth, while the war horses wore bridle bits. Nearly five hundred riders were split into several groups, not marching in formation, to avoid making any loud noise.

Huang Degong and Liu Zhiyuan stood atop the city wall, quietly watching this somewhat weary army file into the city. Five thousand government troops plus two thousand laborers driving carts and carrying loads—from the moment the vanguard entered Shouzhou until now, over two shichen had passed and still not all had entered.

As the commanding general, Huang Degong had entered the city first to liaise with Liu Zhiyuan and the others, and to understand the specific situation inside and outside Shouzhou. He declined the banquet Liu Zhiyuan had arranged, hastily ate his meal, and then, with his personal guards, inspected the three campsites arranged by the prefectural office. All three were near the south gate, on wide, flat ground. Seeing that large quantities of flour, vegetables, and firewood had been piled at each site, huge water vats filled with clear water, and each camp had ten freshly slaughtered pigs, live fish, and several sacks of salt, Huang Degong felt quite satisfied. Marching continuously in the sweltering heat, the soldiers, though they dared not complain openly, harbored considerable resentment in their hearts. Tonight, as long as they had a good meal and then slept soundly, by the time they rose tomorrow, all their discontent would vanish like smoke.

After communicating with Huang Degong's personal guards, Liu Zhiyuan immediately dispatched Wang Wei to select campsites, after which Wang Wei led a large number of able-bodied men to begin preparing the needed supplies for the army. When the gentry and common folk within the city heard that reinforcements had arrived, they once again vied to donate grain and goods. The prefectural office drew on official treasury silver to purchase dozens of pigs and large quantities of live fish for the army to eat. These people had come to risk their lives—what were a little silver and food compared to that? As long as it could preserve the lives of the entire city, even greater expenditure was worthwhile.

Soldiers were already arriving at the campsites in succession under the leadership of their officers. Because the baggage camp brought up the rear, the soldiers who arrived first could not set up tents, and the utterly exhausted men simply found any spot and lay down fully clothed, their weapons and bows placed beside them rather than arranged neatly by unit.

This march was unlike the one from Shandong to Fengyang, when armor and weapons had been handed over to the baggage camp. Because they had now entered the roving bandits' area of activity, although scouts had ridden out several dozen li ahead, Huang Degong still had the soldiers march fully armored and equipped as a precaution. This made the troops, who had grown accustomed to traveling light over the past twenty-plus days, feel somewhat unaccustomed, so although the marching distance was similar, their fatigue was even greater.

After inspecting the camps, Huang Degong came to the south gate city wall, took a look at the bandits' camp, then went to the north gate. He had not been standing atop the wall long when Liu Zhiyuan also came looking for him. After exchanging pleasantries, the two said no more, silently watching the army marching in the moonlight together.

Liu Zhiyuan was the first to break the silence, speaking up: "The bandits outside the city are menacing, with several hundred thousand men and horses. If they launch a full-scale assault, General Huang, are you confident you can hold?"

Huang Degong smiled slightly, his yellow teeth beneath his bushy beard glinting faint gold in the moonlight: "Your Excellency, this time it's not a question of holding or not holding—it's a question of how to badly wound the Dashing King!"

Liu Zhiyuan was startled and hastily asked: "What do you mean by that, General Huang? Surely you don't think that with a few thousand men under your command, you can badly wound several hundred thousand bandits? And the Dashing bandits and the Daring bandits, the strongest fighters among the roving bandits at that? That seems a bit too arrogant!"

Huang Degong shook his head: "Your Excellency, do not misunderstand—this humble officer is not so arrogant as that! I just observed the bandit camp. Your Excellency, forgive my bluntness—the Dashing bandits and the Daring bandits have overreached themselves!"

Liu Zhiyuan nodded: "Indeed so! The bandits have been at Shouzhou for several days, and aside from letting their troops plunder the countryside, they have not gathered to attack the city. Only today did they send men to attack, and those sent did not seem to be elite troops—they broke at the first strike. This officer, along with Messrs. Wang and Xu and Guard Commander Li, have been utterly baffled. General Huang has served in the army for many years and has seen much of warfare—can you enlighten this officer?"

Huang Degong wore a puzzled expression and said frankly: "This humble officer hasn't figured it out either! Word has it the bandits have over two hundred thousand men and horses—why do they mass south of the city rather than dividing their forces among the four gates to attack together? If they truly did that, Shouzhou would likely fall in an instant! Yet the Dashing King only sends men against the south wall, and even then only as a feint! Could the bandits be waiting for something?"

Liu Zhiyuan shook his head: "If you can't figure it out, then don't bother. Just now you spoke of badly wounding the Dashing bandits—surely you must have some reliance, General? Could it be Governor Chen's reinforcements?"

Huang Degong looked around, lowered his voice, and said mysteriously: "If it were only this humble officer's troops and Governor Chen's men, holding the city would be no problem, but badly wounding the bandit army would be beyond our strength! Not only because the bandits are numerous, but also because the Dashing King's subordinates have many elite cavalry. Most of our men are infantry, and our cavalry is weak—in open battle we would likely be no match for them!"

Liu Zhiyuan rolled his eyes inwardly, thinking: Do you even need to tell me? Don't I know what the Ming government troops are like? When they meet weak bandits they pursue and hammer them; when they meet strong bandits they scatter and collapse!

Seeing that Liu Zhiyuan was growing impatient, Huang Degong hurried to the main point: "Let this humble officer tell you, Your Excellency—when I was ordered to rush to Shouzhou, Governor Chen told me that Commander-General of Military Affairs for Five Provinces, Lu Xiangsheng, Governor Lu, had already led his forces to completely annihilate the enemy besieging Chuzhou and was on his way to Shouzhou!"

Liu Zhiyuan's heart gave a violent leap. Forgetting all official dignity in an instant, he grabbed Huang Degong's robe with both hands and asked repeatedly: "Is what you say true? Don't deceive me! Governor Lu is coming? It's truly Governor Lu?"

Huang Degong gently pried Liu Zhiyuan's fingers loose, thinking to himself: This old fellow has quite a grip! I'm thick-skinned and tough, but he pinched me sore! Aren't civil officials supposed to be too weak to truss a chicken? Could this old man be a martial artist?

"Your Excellency, don't be anxious! Don't be anxious!" Huang Degong said with an ingratiating smile.

Liu Zhiyuan paid no heed to his discourteous action. At any other time, a civil official gripping a military officer's arm was a gesture of intimacy; if the military officer objected, it would be deemed an insult to scholarly dignity and absolutely warrant a memorial of impeachment.

He cleared his throat, clasped his hands behind his back, and continued asking: "Is what General Huang says true? As this officer understands it, Governor Lu has spent the past half year farming military land in Henan—when did he suddenly come to South Zhili?"

Huang Degong said: "Last month, upon receiving word that the Dashing bandits were streaming south, Governor Lu led his troops out of Henan, and at the same time issued this humble officer a dispatch ordering me to reinforce Fengyang. When I came to the rescue from Huaiyuan, I sent men to make contact with Governor Lu, so I know he is already on the road here!"

This time Liu Zhiyuan was finally completely at ease. Shouzhou now had not only Huang Degong's force of over five thousand, but Fengyang's reinforcements of nearly six thousand would likely arrive soon as well. Though he did not know how many government troops Lu Xiangsheng had under his command, Lu Xiangsheng's formidable reputation for skillful and valiant fighting was already enough to settle people's hearts.

Huang Degong was not finished. He continued: "There is more good news Your Excellency may not know: behind the Dashing bandits, a Liaodong cavalry force is also dogging their heels! This humble officer judges that the reason the roving bandits have not dared to attack in full force is their fear that the Liaodong government troops will strike their rear while they besiege the city! Once Governor Lu and Governor Chen arrive, when five bodies of troops strike together, the defeat and destruction of the two hundred thousand bandits outside the city can be expected!"

Liu Zhiyuan was secretly overjoyed. First, Shouzhou could be preserved—he and his family would be spared, and the people of Shouzhou would avoid devastation. Second, Shouzhou would soon become the focus of the court's attention; tens of thousands of government troops would meet two hundred thousand bandits here in battle. If this battle ended in a great victory, his name would, as expected, appear before the Emperor, and when the Ministry of Personnel later assessed merit, this would be a rare qualification, laying a solid foundation for future promotion.

The pessimistic mood of facing doom under the bandits' overwhelming pressure was swept clean away. He said with a smile: "This officer has long admired Governor Lu's reputation, but regrettably never had the chance to meet him. This time I shall finally have the fortune to see the most skilled warrior among our Ming civil officials—truly delightful! General Huang! In your view, if the bandits attack tomorrow, what form will it take? And how should the government troops respond?"

Huang Degong pondered for a moment, then spoke: "If tomorrow the bandits attack half-heartedly as they did today, then let the Shouzhou guard station troops engage them. If the bandits send elite troops in a fierce assault, this humble officer will naturally dispatch a portion of my men to assist, but the guard station troops will remain the main force. My men's role in the fighting is mainly to prevent the bandits from breaching the city."

Liu Zhiyuan asked, puzzled: "The guard station troops' fighting ability is worrisome, and the able-bodied militia are untrained. If the bandits mass their forces for a fierce attack, even with your men assisting, I fear the casualties would be enormous! Why not use the reinforcements to replace the local troops and militia in defending the city? Could it be that you wish to preserve your strength?"

Huang Degong countered: "Has Your Excellency forgotten what this humble officer said earlier? This is a perfect opportunity to badly wound the roving bandits! Right now, Governor Lu and Governor Chen have not yet arrived. If my troops suddenly appear and the bandits' fierce assault is checked, given the bandits' nature of being adept at swift flight, the Dashing bandits and the Daring bandits would very likely abandon Shouzhou and flee! If the bandits turn to other prefectures and counties, even if Governor Lu and Governor Chen arrive with their main armies, the bandits will have already fled elsewhere, and the government troops can only continue to pursue. Tens of thousands of troops consume incalculable grain and silver every day; moreover, the bandits' movements are erratic, and they plunder in all directions to sustain themselves. The government troops, by contrast, can only rely on the provisions they carry themselves. The outcome would inevitably be the bandits running rampant, the people suffering catastrophe, and the government troops exhausted from ceaseless pursuit—in the end, still unable to surround and annihilate them!"

Liu Zhiyuan felt deeply ashamed upon hearing this. He had only been thinking of reducing casualties among Shouzhou's soldiers and people, and had instead overlooked the fundamental goal of suppressing the bandits. Truly, he had read the sages' books in vain—he was inferior to a mere military man in vision and breadth of mind.

He saluted Huang Degong and said: "This officer was thinking along the wrong lines! General Huang is the one who plans for the greater picture! Now we must show weakness to the enemy, so as not to startle the bandits into flight. This officer offers his apologies to General Huang!"

Huang Degong's fondness for Liu Zhiyuan rose sharply in his heart. He knew the nature of civil officials—each one looked down from on high, believing that having read the sages' books made them capable of anything, never deigning to regard military officers with any respect. In their eyes, soldiers were synonymous with crudeness and the source of calamity. The man before him was truly an anomaly among civil officials.

He hurriedly returned the salute: "Your Excellency is merely anxious to protect your territory—a local chief official naturally cares most about the lives of the soldiers and people under his charge. Your Excellency must not do this—it overwhelms this humble one!"

Liu Zhiyuan continued: "Then the matter of defending the city, this officer entrusts entirely to General Huang! I only hope that this time we can take the Dashing King's head, to assuage His Majesty's wrath!"

Huang Degong laughed heartily: "This time I shall not disappoint Your Excellency! Once all the armies have assembled, this old Huang will cut down the Dashing King's head amidst ten thousand troops!"