Chapter 130: Soldiers and Bandits

Outside the capital, in the great camp, the central command tent was ringed by a group of Eastern Depot agents.

"Duke, do you understand His Majesty's intent?" Cao Huachun, the Eastern Depot Director, dismissed his attendant agents and asked solemnly.

After hearing Cao Huachun out, Zhang Shize rose together with the camp Governor-General Dong Qi, Assistant Regional Commander Qi Zhengyuan, and a batch of new army commanders, frowning as he asked:

"How could His Majesty have such an idea?"

"Does the Duke truly not know, or is he pretending not to?" Cao Huachun sneered, then seeing that Zhang Shize looked genuinely puzzled and not as if he knew, explained:

"That rebel Liu Zeqing left in Shandong is a great scourge. With the court's two great victories this time, the reputation of the capital and camp new armies has already been established."

"His Majesty's intent is to send military pay into the hands of Shandong's officers and men, and seize this opportunity to dispose of Liu Zeqing."

Zhang Shize first nodded without hesitation to accept the task, then with a pensive expression followed Cao Huachun out of the tent.

After all, this Liu Zeqing was not like Jiang Xiang or Wang Chengyin—the various government armies in the Shandong region had long been beyond restraint, and many civil and military officials had died there without clear cause.

The former court had none of the present Capital Camps, camp armies, or the loyalist relief forces that had answered the summons from all regions; it neither dared to inquire nor dared to intervene—truly chaotic.

Gazing at the dozens of carts of silver, Zhang Shize nodded and said:

"I have heard much of this Liu Zeqing's affairs. Zuo's camp has gathered several hundred thousand men beyond the court's control, but Liu's force numbers only tens of thousands—that is worth attempting."

Cao Huachun relaxed upon hearing this. At that moment Dong Qi reached out, touched the wheel of a cart, crouched down, and asked:

"For this mission to Shandong to distribute pay, has His Majesty issued a decree for the camp army to go as well?"

Part of the reason for the victory at military pay and provisions was the valor of the criminals imprisoned in the Jiazi Camp. Since then, the Chongzhen Emperor had decreed that the officers and men of the Jiazi Camp who had rendered meritorious service be pardoned of their crimes, granted silver, and permitted to return to their homes.

In truth, although the soldiers of the Jiazi Camp accepted this silver, most were men of the capital. Having rendered merit to atone for their crimes, they were already men of distinction—who would go home to idle away their time?

Besides the Jiazi Camp, the main force of the newly formed camp army included the Yizi Camp, which Imperial Son-in-law Gong Yonggu was responsible for recruiting and drilling, plus the various guard troops of the capital region integrated in recent days—totaling close to forty thousand men.

Although the newly formed camp army was inferior to the Capital Camps in combat effectiveness and every other respect, Dong Qi was still very confident. He harbored no selfish motives, knowing full well that everything came from Chongzhen, who could take it all back with a single decree.

Moreover, his own family and those of his subordinates were all in the capital. In such troubled times, one naturally had to strive to go out and earn some merit.

Cao Huachun, however, shook his head and said:

"The capital region is still unstable. His Majesty has other arrangements for the camp army and the Tengxiang Four Guards. This time only the Capital Camps and some relief forces will march."

Cao Huachun's words carried hidden meaning. He first glanced at the horizon, then added:

"But at this moment, the Embroidered Uniform Guard's orders should already have reached the Shandong chiliarchy! Next, this old servant must convey His Majesty's oral edict."

Zhang Shize and Dong Qi exchanged glances, and together with the new army commanders, knelt on one knee.

"Oral edict of the Great Ming Emperor: Let the Duke of Ying remember—when the enemy retreats, advance; when the enemy advances, retreat. Do not fight the enemy head-on. Preserve strength and shatter the enemy's morale above all. Liu Zeqing's subordinates were once ministers of the Great Ming as well."

"Your ministers shall bear this in mind!"

Shandong, Linqing Prefecture.

At the start of the year, Liu Zeqing, as Regional Commander of Shandong, together with Tang Tong, Huang Degong, and others, had received the court's summons to defend the throne in succession.

Though the various government armies in Shandong had all heard of the court's summons, everyone sought only self-preservation; none dared to act rashly, all intending to wait and see.

At the time, Liu Zeqing was stationed in Qingzhou Prefecture. As the court's duly appointed Regional Commander of Shandong, this fellow's conduct upon receiving the summons was passable—he first gathered his troops around Qingzhou, claiming he would swear an oath and march to defend the throne on an auspicious day.

The eunuch delivering the decree probably also felt Shandong was a den of tigers and wolves, and did not bother checking whether Liu Zeqing was putting on an act—having delivered the decree, he left without pause.

But no one expected that Liu Zeqing harbored no good intentions at all. After gathering troops in the Qingzhou area for over two months, seeing the Chongzhen Emperor frantic over the situation of the southern bandits taking captives, he made straight for Linqing instead.

Indeed, at that time the court was busy preserving itself and had no leisure to attend to Liu Zeqing's force of soldiers who were also bandits.

The journey from Qingzhou to Linqing required crossing the entire Jinan Prefecture. Since the court's back-pay distribution had not yet reached the Shandong region, Liu's force had gone years without pay—and with Liu Zeqing suspecting the court of deliberately withholding Shandong's pay—they began plundering the people without any restraint.

Liu's tens of thousands of government troops, wherever they passed, were indistinguishable from the roving bandits—their impact in fact even greater.

At a time like this, whether Li Zicheng, Zhang Xianzhong, or Dorgon—anyone with even a slight ambition to contend for the realm—had all begun, without prior agreement, to restrain their subordinates. Everyone knew that at the very least they must win over the people's hearts on the surface.

Under the Chongzhen Emperor's decrees, the present Ming court held the advantage of timing, and its actions were in fact also measures to win the loyalty of soldiers and commoners alike.

Liu Zeqing was not even the equal of Zuo Liangyu. In history, Zuo Liangyu had at least entertained thoughts of 'cleansing the side of the sovereign,' but Liu did not—like Wu Sangui, he harbored the intention of sitting back to watch the outcome, the better to become a lackey of whichever side won.

When Liu's force arrived at Linqing Prefecture city, the defending Assistant Regional Commander Liu Konghe, having heard of Liu Zeqing's deeds along the way, was both terrified and enraged, and refused Liu's force entry into the city on grounds of court decree.

Liu Zeqing, confident in his tens of thousands of troops, recklessly ordered his men to besiege Linqing Prefecture city. Roughly three months ago, at considerable cost, Liu's force finally breached Linqing Prefecture city.

Immediately after, the Assistant Regional Commander Liu Konghe, who had defended the city with valor, and the prefect were both killed by Liu Zeqing. The two thousand-odd court officers and men defending the city were slaughtered to the last. Liu Zeqing then falsely claimed a great victory over bandits, presenting the severed heads as proof of merit.

Liu's force had been stationed there for several months now, and the Linqing region had become a realm of ghosts.

Wherever Liu's government troops passed, the people wailed across the land. Any woman of even slight beauty had to fear being raped. Even if households barred their doors and windows and never ventured out day or night, the soldiers would still search house by house for loot.

Liu Zeqing's various deeds were almost identical to Zuo Liangyu's—and viewed from the seventeenth year of Chongzhen, the impact was even greater than Zuo's camp.

Beyond this, there were rumors that many of Liu Zeqing's earlier merits had been seized by abuse of authority from Shandong military commanders such as Wuding Prefecture Assistant Regional Commander Qiu Lei and Yanzhou Regional Commander Mou Wenshou—the merits he had actually earned himself were few indeed.

Yet even so, few civil and military officials in Shandong dared to submit memorials impeaching Liu Zeqing for his arrogance and tyranny, for everyone knew that although Liu Zeqing's unruliness did not match Gao Jie's, doing so would still only bring death upon oneself.

Since many years past, the court had only ever dealt with powerless civil officials without office; against a powerful regional commander like Liu Zeqing who held heavy troops, it would never strike hard.

Liu Zeqing understood this well—the tens of thousands of troops under his command were his very life and fortune. Without these troops, he would be no better than a local bandit, and who would treat him as Regional Commander of Shandong?