Chapter 843: This Is a Great Merit

The Jin family, the Cui family — both were top-tier great households in Yutai County. Now they were all eagerly contributing grain and men, helping out and currying favor. But what truly shocked everyone came later. These two great households had only been in the camp for three days when every single person they sent in was arrested. Even their family estates were raided by the wolf-like, tiger-fierce men from Xuzhou. What made people not know whether to laugh or cry was that they were then sent to the yamen for sentencing. The charges quickly spread: cultist demons, plotting rebellion — execution by immediate beheading!

The common folk knew nothing of autumn assizes; they only knew that here, execution by immediate beheading meant over a dozen were cut down like melons and vegetables in an instant. The rest were all taken to Xuzhou to do hard labor. These Xuzhou men were truly ruthless, and everyone was trembling with fear.

"Sister Lan's people and Nie Hei's side set a trap together. They left secret marks over by the stable warehouse, and the Jin and Cui people really took the bait. They even sent men to wait outside the camp. That's how we confirmed they were spies sent by the Smelling Incense Sect. We searched them and their belongings, and found weapons stockpiled in their homes. Some had even brought poison inside." Liu Yong reported in a muffled voice.

Zhao Jin stood on the open ground downwind of the camp. The air there was thick with the smell of quicklime and medicinal herbs. Over a dozen corpses lay there. These bodies did not belong to the local Jin or Cui families, but to the Xuzhou martial horsemen who had followed them into Shandong.

"Under interrogation and search, the witness testimony and material evidence were all conclusive. The Jin and Cui families are indeed followers of the Shandong Smelling Incense Sect. They said they were acting on the orders of their sect master, waiting for an opportunity to rise up. They also confessed that no one else was willing to come; only their two families, being right in Yutai County, could not refuse." Liu Yong continued.

Zhao Jin's expression was grim. He looked at the corpses on the ground and said, "If these Xuzhou heroes could choose how to die, I wager they would rather fall on the battlefield than die senselessly at the hands of these stupid, ignorant sect followers!"

"Master Jin, orders have been passed down. Without permission and without a group of at least three, no one may enter the villages at will to replenish food and water or to lodge overnight." Tao Gui, standing nearby, spoke up. He was a cavalry company commander and came from the outlaws of the rivers and lakes. He had been responsible for liaison this time.

After saying this, Tao Gui glanced at the expressions of Ji Xiang and Liu Yong, then added, "They were careless too. The truly seasoned veterans all brought their own full supplies of food and water and camped out in the wilds. These men were not lacking in archery, horsemanship, or martial skill, but they fell short in caution and prudence. They went into the villages to flaunt Xuzhou's might and take the chance to extort favors. They never imagined that most of the villages here are followers of the sect. Going in like that, they were just delivering themselves to the enemy."

Many of the Xuzhou martial men attached to the Zhao Battalion went out and never returned. They were only discovered because the Internal Guard's eyes and ears planted in the area found horse tack, weapons, and fine horses for sale. In a place like Yutai County, how could there be such well-kept gear? Upon investigation, it turned out to belong to those vanished Xuzhou cavalrymen. These men, out on screening and scouting duty, thought the villagers were harmless, no match for their own martial prowess. They went in to ask for food and water and gather news, never expecting to be ambushed and murdered.

After three bodies were found, Zhao Jin simply withdrew all the Xuzhou martial men who could be pulled back and screened them. The twenty-odd truly seasoned ones were sent out. The rest were formed into a single unit. Four hundred militia were also transferred from Xuzhou, paired with the Internal Guard's eyes and ears and manpower, to search the villages and stockades in parts of Yutai County and Jinxiang County. As a result, these dozen-plus corpses were uncovered. There were still a few missing outside, and no matter how you thought about it, they were in trouble.

What was even more infuriating was not this. A few villages were followers of the Smelling Incense Sect, who believed the Zhao Battalion was a demonic scourge come to ravage the land. But the majority of the villages were purely murdering for profit. Seeing that the mounts and tack were worth money, and that the men were traveling alone, they figured that in the chaos of war, no one would care, so they simply committed murder.

"All those who participated are to be escorted back to the estate to do hard labor. After the fighting is over, the villages these people belong to will also be entirely relocated to the Kong Family Estate to do hard labor. From the estate guards at the Kong Family Estate, and from the estate guards in Pei County and Feng County, select those with good performance and let them come to Shandong to establish families and careers." Zhao Jin's tone carried a hint of grim severity.

Liu Yong, standing by, solemnly acknowledged the order. Zhao Jin paused for a moment, then spoke again: "These lessons must be made clear to our household troops. Although they strictly follow regulations and will not slack off, they absolutely must not be careless. What lies before our eyes are all lessons."

"Please rest assured, Master Jin. Our household cavalry are all diligent and cautious in every respect. They would never be so careless." Tao Gui, standing to the side, said loudly.

"Those who know how to spy and scout, and possess superb horsemanship, are all of Tatar origin. They are unfamiliar with the roads. Those familiar with the roads cannot match the horsemanship of those born on the steppe. Can we even find thirty who can handle both? You still need to train hard!" Zhao Jin showed Tao Gui not the slightest courtesy. Tao Gui's expression immediately turned awkward.

"All these men are to be counted as killed in action. Their pensions must be paid in full. If their family's sons wish to join the Zhao Battalion or Cloud Mountain Trading, we must accommodate them as much as possible." Zhao Jin said in a deep voice. Liu Yong beside him quickly acknowledged.

Zhao Jin was silent for a moment, then let out a long breath and said, "Right now, Shandong is enemy territory. We must be cautious everywhere."

Before the people beside him could respond, a personal guard came running quickly. He stopped ten paces away and announced loudly, "Master Jin, scout Cai Huajun has an urgent military report of the highest priority."

"Cai Huajun?" The name was familiar to everyone. Tao Gui's expression changed even more, and he quickly said, "He's back. We thought something had happened to him."

Cai Huajun had also been considered missing. No one had expected him to push forward so far. Zhao Jin nodded. Tao Gui had vouched for Cai Huajun with his own life and family's safety back then, because when they roamed the outlaw world, this Cai Huajun had looked after his fellow townsmen very well, and they had always remembered it in their hearts. The reason Zhao Jin remembered him was that this Cai Huajun was connected to that Licentiate Cai. His background and experience were simply too unique to be forgotten.

"Bring him to see me!"

When the Zhao Battalion's core discussed matters, few outsiders could be present. This time, however, was different from the others. There was an extra person who greatly surprised everyone — or rather, two extra people at once. They were the foreigner Louis and his servant. Even the composed Chen Sheng could not help but glance over several times.

"Are you certain those were cannons?"

"If this lowly one speaks even half a false word, then may I..."

"I'm not asking you to swear oaths! Can you draw them?"

A strange look crossed Cai Huajun's face. He wondered what exactly drawing them was supposed to mean, but he complied nonetheless. Using a tree branch, he sketched a rough shape on the ground. Unable to draw, it was naturally crooked and twisted, but the general idea came through.

Zhao Jin's face was utterly solemn. He opened a notebook, picked up a charcoal stick, and roughly sketched a few strokes on it. Although he had no artistic training either, he had drawn his memories in notebooks since childhood and had become practiced. Before long, the body of a cannon was outlined.

"Is this it?"

"Master Jin is incredible, drawing so true to life. This is exactly it." Cai Huajun knew how to behave. He offered a word of flattery first, then nodded in confirmation.

He thought that would be the end of it, but unexpectedly, Zhao Jin's drawing did not stop. He continued to sketch on that paper, then called over the foreigner and his servant. With the help of an interpreter and stiff Mandarin, he drew a few more things. Then he called Cai Huajun over and asked, "Did you see any of these?"

Cai Huajun looked over. It was a pair of large cart wheels, looking like wheels removed from a cart with the axle attached beneath. There were grooves on them, and a curved "tail" on the axle. He recognized every single item in the drawing individually, but put together, it looked confusing. He shook his head.

Zhao Jin used the charcoal to draw a circle around the pair of large cart wheels, then asked in a deep voice, "Did you see this? Did you see any removed cart wheels, or any stacked together?"

Being this close, and Cai Huajun being a man of courage, he could naturally see that Zhao Jin was tense. He could not fathom why, but he had a thought in his heart: this time, he might have truly rendered a great merit. Thinking this, his face, however, was very certain as he shook his head in confirmation: "This lowly one was very close and saw clearly. There were some large wooden planks and a few big wooden crates, but I did not see the kind of thing Master Jin is describing."

A trace of relief flickered across Zhao Jin's face, but it was immediately replaced by solemnity as he asked, "Is everything you've said true?"

Cai Huajun was well prepared for this question. He asked a question of his own, then brought in his spoils of war one by one. Before returning to camp, he had, of course, changed back into the Zhao Battalion's uniform. Seeing the weapons, armor, and identity papers of a Ming army scout, along with the Ming army warhorses confirmed by the cavalry, everything Cai Huajun said was verified.

Inside Zhao Jin's tent, the way everyone looked at Cai Huajun changed. Their eyes were filled with admiration. Not only had he scouted back critical intelligence, but he had also taken two heads and seized horses on his return.

"If, after this battle is over, the intelligence you reported is confirmed, then you will have rendered a great merit. I know what you want. When the time comes, the Cai family may return. But from now on, your Cai family members must practice martial arts more. Even those who study must go to Cloud Mountain Trading to learn bookkeeping and work. Furthermore, with your skills, it would be too great a pity for you to idle at home. Come out and work for me. There will be a position worthy of you."

Hearing Zhao Jin's promise, Cai Huajun felt a wave of relief in his heart. Yet the words "come out and work" gave him some difficulty. But in this setting, there was no room for refusal. After hesitating a moment, he solemnly performed a grand salute of thanks.

"From this moment on, the Xuzhou volunteers following us are to be organized into a company. You, Cai Huajun, are the company commander. You will first be placed under the Personal Guard unit. Ji Xiang and Liu Yong can both command you!" Zhao Jin immediately announced the arrangement.

Just a moment ago, he was nothing more than a martial man of the rivers and lakes, and suddenly he was a company commander in the Zhao Battalion. Such a promotion was truly rare. Even Chen Sheng, Shi Manqiang, Ji Xiang, and Liu Yong were somewhat stunned and puzzled. They thought, it was true Cai Huajun had merit, but seeing a few cannons and killing two government scout cavalrymen — was that really worth such a promotion?

Cai Huajun also understood the weight of such a promotion. No matter how much he might have wanted to decline, he respectfully knelt and kowtowed in thanks.

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