Chapter 1353: Great Righteousness Moves the Heart

When the main force of the Zhao Family Army's First Brigade marched east into Qingzhou Prefecture, Northern Zhili finally settled down. Yet the reactions from the various prefectures and counties were deeply disheartening. Hejian and Zhending Prefectures, which bordered Shandong, barely stirred; the gentry and common folk lived in peace and contentment. But wherever government troops were garrisoned, chaos reigned — utter pandemonium. Some gentry even sent bitter complaints to the court. When asked why, the answer was always the same: they feared the government troops would exploit the turmoil to loot and pillage.

Some lamented: who exactly is the government, and who are the bandits? The bandits pass through without disturbing a single blade of grass, observing rules and laws in every matter. Yet the government troops are like brigands — burning, killing, looting, stopping at no evil. The common people, naturally, have drawn their own conclusions.

Shandong and Northern Zhili are neighbors, and news travels fast. When the bulk of the Zhao Family Army entered Dengzhou Prefecture, everyone was stunned. The Deng-Lai Garrison already had very few government troops left. Many soldiers had been directly sold off by their commanders to the Zhao Family Army as farmstead tenants. The soldiers themselves were willing to farm and eat grain — far better than being slaves in the army. There was hardly any resistance left there. Moreover, the gentry and powerful families of Deng-Lai welcomed the Zhao Family Army with the utmost enthusiasm. They had been tormented terribly over the years by the guest troops from the Liao Garrison. Whoever could replace them — anyone would do.

What exactly are these Xuzhou people doing? Some who fancied themselves as understanding the great trends of the realm all said Zhao Jin was a fool. The court's forces in the north had already been battered and their vitality gravely wounded. Why not seize this chance to contend for the realm, instead of stalling in Shandong? Wasn't that just sitting back and letting the court recover its strength, only to have to struggle again later? As for dispatching his most elite troops to the worthless Dengzhou Prefecture — that was even more baffling.

This Zhao Jin of Xuzhou is relying on his youth and recklessness. Such a temperament truly makes it hard to be optimistic about his future. Things may be smooth sailing now, but perhaps one stumble in the future and he'll never rise again.

When Chen Sheng's First Brigade reached the Dengzhou military port, and the five military camps from Dongchang Prefecture, the Second Cavalry Regiment from distant Xuzhou, and the fleet transporting supplies, provisions, and equipment all arrived at the Dengzhou military port — then everyone understood. The Zhao Family Army's First Brigade was going to launch a northern campaign against the Liao Garrison, to reclaim the Han people's ancestral homeland.

From the very beginning, the news that they would cross the sea, land in Liaodong, and reclaim the Liao Garrison had never been concealed. But no one believed it. Why go to Liaodong? That place is separated from the interior by the sea, a bitter-cold land beyond the passes. How could it compare to the dazzling world within the passes? And there were still the wolf-like, tiger-fierce Jianzhou Tartar slaves over there. Who would do such a thankless, profitless task — especially the always shrewd and calculating Zhao Family Army of Xuzhou?

But now, even those who had not believed were forced to believe. Otherwise, why assemble nearly ten thousand troops and close to a thousand ships of all sizes there? If this were a deception or a show, there'd be no need for such an enormous display. It seemed they truly intended to launch a northern campaign against Liaodong.

Once the news was confirmed as true, the entire realm was instantly shaken. On the roads of Shandong and Northern Zhili, fast horses and messengers raced back and forth. Many sent this news out in all directions, to every province under the Great Ming's heavens, letting their kin and friends know.

What was this? This was Great Righteousness!

The Liao Garrison was indeed a border garrison of the Great Ming, but it was also Han land. The Great Ming could not reclaim it, suffering repeated defeats and humiliations at the hands of the Jianzhou Jurchens. So for Xuzhou to send troops and reclaim it — this was of the same nature as when Zhu Yuanzhang raised his army, drove out the Mongol Yuan, and established the realm.

The dynasty Ming people most liked to compare theirs to was the Song. During the Song, the northern borders saw constant trouble — the Liao Kingdom, the Jin Kingdom, all the way to the Mongol Yuan. And during the Ming, the northern borders had few days of peace either, from the Oirat Esen at the start, to the later Chakhar Little Prince, and then the Tumed Altan Khan. Each posed a massive threat to the Great Ming. But Ming people took pride in never ceding land or suing for peace. No matter how desperate, they would fight on, dragging things out until the other side declined and collapsed. Thus they never repeated the disasters of the Two Songs. But now, here were the Jurchens again — the same Jurchens who once called themselves the Jin Kingdom — routing the Ming army and seizing a vast border garrison. Yet the court could do nothing, only holding out and stalling in the Liaoxi Corridor. Never a word of victory, only defeat after defeat. In every heart lurked a hidden worry: could the story of the late Northern Song be replaying?

The Zhao Family Army of Xuzhou, which had repeatedly defeated government troops within the passes and even threatened the capital, was loathed and hated by most as a great brigand of the nation. The Jianzhou Jurchens outside, the Xuzhou rebels inside — one external, one internal — pinning down the court's forces so they could not attend to both head and tail, causing the realm's situation to fester ever more. Everyone thought these Xuzhou bandits were simply exploiting the crisis at the border garrison to send troops and seize tangible gains.

All these views, every single one, vanished like smoke before this news. If the Zhao Family Army sent troops to Liaodong, fought fierce battles with the Tartar slaves, and reclaimed national territory — if Zhao Jin of Xuzhou could accomplish this, while the Tianqi Emperor Zhu Youxiao in the capital could not — then who should hold the realm's legitimacy? Who should hold the Mandate of Heaven? Who should protect the rivers and mountains and the altars of state? That truly could no longer be divided by the labels of "government" and "bandit." It would be something worth pondering.

The literati of the realm, especially those of the north, roughly understood Zhao Jin's attitude toward scholars — it was probably the greatest contempt shown since Confucian scholars first entered officialdom. All the preferential treatment the court currently gave them would vanish. Naturally, they harbored a bone-deep hatred for Zhao Jin. But upon hearing this news of crossing the sea for a northern campaign, though they would not switch their allegiance, their hatred did diminish somewhat. The more one has studied, the more one understands Great Righteousness, the more one knows the historical records and allusions. Though the Jianzhou Jurchens had not yet invaded the interior, everyone knew what the Jin Kingdom and the Mongol Yuan had done. They knew what kind of miserable suffering would come at the start. And they understood the current situation even better than the common people — they knew the rot of the government troops, knew how dangerous things truly were.

Before, no one had expected the Zhao Family Army to do anything, viewing them as merely bandits with slightly better rules. But now, everyone suddenly felt less panicked. With a strong army like the Zhao Family Army protecting them, they need not worry about being ravaged by the Tartar slaves, need not worry about the colors of Huaxia changing.

If the scholars thought this way, the common people's views were even simpler. The Great Ming extorted and levied harsh taxes, ravaging the localities, and then suffered defeat after defeat outside. Now here came a force that observed rules, and moreover took the initiative to go out and fight, striving for national victory. How could such a power not be better than your Great Ming? Such a power naturally deserved support, and was worth supporting. And among the Liao Garrison refugees in Dengzhou and Laizhou Prefectures, gratitude toward the Zhao Family Army's actions brought them to tears.

The local gentry of Shandong harbored deep loathing for the soldiers and civilians who had fled from the Liao Garrison. The troops and refugees from the Liao Garrison had indeed committed outrages in Shandong. Yet they too longed to fight their way back, to return to their homeland, to avenge their suffering kin and fellow villagers. The discrimination and hardship they had endured over these years in Shandong only intensified this desire. But the court could not deliver. At first, there may have been illusions, but after all these years, those illusions had scattered. Many had even fallen into despair, knowing it was impossible. Who could have imagined that the Xuzhou people — always regarded as rebels — could do it?

At first, they were stunned, thinking it utterly absurd. But upon serious reflection, they realized there truly was hope. Everyone knew in their hearts just how rotten the government troops had become. And everyone had also witnessed just how strong the Zhao Family Army was. If such a mighty army crossed the sea, perhaps it could deal a painful blow to those wolf-like, tiger-fierce, insufferably arrogant Jianzhou Jurchens. Perhaps it truly could retake Liaodong. If so, then everyone could go home.

Once they thought this through, their perception of the Zhao Family Army underwent an earth-shaking transformation overnight. The Liao Garrison soldiers and civilians in Dengzhou and Laizhou Prefectures immediately burst forth with tremendous enthusiasm. They all surged toward the Dengzhou military port. Those who had some confidence in their courage and martial skills wanted to enlist. Those without the courage to fight wanted to help in whatever way they could.

Baskets of food and jugs of drink — ten thousand people following like a shadow. This was the scene when Qi Jiguang and Yu Dayou fought the Japanese pirates in the southeast back in the day. And now, today, it was seen in Dengzhou Prefecture — and seen with an army of "rebels."

The gentry and commoners all had their choices, and the merchants saw opportunity. The Zhao Family Army's reputation varied elsewhere, but in commercial circles it was exceedingly good. They paid according to price, dealt fairly. For an entity of Cloud Mountain Trading's stature, such conduct was no longer necessary — yet Cloud Mountain Trading did it even better than others. Not to mention the endless stream of money-making ideas from Xuzhou and Cloud Mountain Trading: liquor, market fairs, ironware, maritime trade, even their methods of establishing ports and collecting taxes. Others were doing these things too, but no one did them the way the Zhao Family Army did — in a way that let people earn so much.

When the great army headed for the Dengzhou military port this time, although some preparations had been made at Dengzhou Prefectural City, the sudden, urgent movement still left supplies somewhat insufficient. Their own allocation was already too late. Cloud Mountain Trading simply scattered silver directly, even purchasing at prices higher than the market rate. Paying in ready silver, and at higher than market price — with profit to be made, why wouldn't everyone earn? Moreover, everyone in Cloud Mountain Trading, from top to bottom, was spreading the word: this expedition to Liaodong held limitless commercial opportunities. A great fortune was to be made.

Everyone understood the intent behind spreading this news — it was simply to draw people into contributing money and effort. But this news was no deception. To the knowledge of Shandong's merchants, there were already magnates who dealt in Liao goods who had poured their entire fortunes into supporting the great army, betting everything on this one venture. If they won, the mountains of gold and seas of silver that would follow were perfectly imaginable. With such examples before them, everyone naturally rushed to follow. Some even treated this as a share subscription, hurrying to buy in, lest they regret it later watching others grow rich.

Every stratum of society viewed the Zhao Family Army's northern campaign against the Liao Garrison with either benevolent detachment or full-throated support. Only the officials of the Great Ming felt complicated emotions. Officials of Liao origin had already begun resigning from their posts. The panic-stricken officials in Shandong, meanwhile, did not know what choice to make. The great trend of the realm was now clear to see. If the Zhao Family Army pacified Liaodong, then there would be little suspense about the future. But if this sea crossing encountered some twist of fate or risk, then their vitality would be gravely wounded, and the outcome — who would prevail — would remain uncertain. Many recalled the old story of Kublai Khan dispatching a fleet to conquer Japan. A great storm had led to the total annihilation of that force. Would something like that happen this time? No one could say for sure. After all, the sea was full of wind and waves; anything could happen.

The news that the Zhao Family Army was boarding ships, crossing the sea, and launching a campaign against the Liao Garrison had been confirmed. This confirmation was delivered as quickly as possible into Wei Zhongxian's hands. Upon reading it, Wei Zhongxian's face turned the color of dead ashes.

Thank you, everyone.