Chapter 875: A Gathering of Scholars and Warriors, Yet None of Use

"They say merchants prize profit and make light of parting, but it seems to me they don't even fear death anymore. Do they not know this gang of Xuzhou barbarians just rebelled, and the court will sooner or later strike again?" These words came from the prefectural magistrate's yamen — said to be a lament of Prefect Tong Huaizu himself.

Merchants chase profit, but merchants are also shrewd. Given the current state of the Great Ming, anyone can see that the court will settle for any vague pacification it can get and will absolutely not commit to a costly, all-out war. Otherwise, the situations in the southwest and northeast would be impossible to salvage.

The merchants swarming in from every direction had already given the Zhao Battalion's various branches a colossal headache. Heaven only knew who was a real merchant and who was a fake. Yet doing business meant welcoming guests from all quarters — you couldn't shut your doors and refuse to see anyone. Even more so at a time like this, you couldn't put on a show of being so jittery it looked like you were facing a formidable foe.

The Internal Guard, Cloud Mountain Trading, and even the younger cadets from the Cadet Corps were mobilized and deployed throughout He Village and other key locations. Meanwhile, security at the household troop encampments was also tightened. At several camps, anyone who approached within a hundred paces was seized. Punishments ranged from fines to flogging, meted out from light to severe without the slightest ambiguity.

If it were only these merchants and their retinues, it actually wouldn't be hard to handle. After all, businessmen prize harmony for the sake of profit; their conduct and dealings are generally manageable. Those in disguise or harboring ulterior motives were easily exposed, and quite a few underworld types who tried to set traps and run schemes were caught because of it.

But what truly troubled and vexed the Internal Guard and every branch of the Zhao Battalion was not the merchants, but the scholars and warriors who came flocking from all over.

The news of the Zhao Battalion's rampage at Duanhe, their defeat of the government troops, and the court's subsequent pacification had not spread very far. But many people in Shandong and South Zhili knew of it, and plenty in the neighboring provinces of North Zhili and Henan knew as well — and those were already the largest provinces under heaven.

Without actually rebelling, they had defeated government troops and forced the court to appease them. The Zhao Battalion in Xuzhou could, by a stretch, be considered a power unto itself. Nowadays, for anyone under heaven who wanted to practice martial arts and join the military, hereditary officers from the Guard-Battalion system blocked the way above. Without a rank of Battalion Commander or higher, it was hard even to become a company commander. Meanwhile, the civil examination path to officialdom had begun to be monopolized by the powerful gentry. At the local level, there might still be many openings for licentiates, but by the time you reached the provincial graduate level, your pedigree and family background already mattered. And when it came to the metropolitan graduate level, the gates were truly barred to those of humble origin.

The realm was vast, and how many frustrated men of talent were there? Those who felt full of ambition and ability, yet could find no glory or wealth in the court or government, naturally sought it elsewhere. Going to the steppes to throw in their lot with the Mongol tribes meant not only enduring bitter cold and hardship, but also bearing the infamy of a Han traitor. Xuzhou thus became a very good choice. At the very least, many people from Xuzhou itself and the four surrounding provinces wanted to come and take a look.

Martial practitioners without official rank usually drifted through the underworld. Scholars without examination degrees were often just wild eccentrics, while those with degrees had even greater ambition and aspiration. The appearance of these people in He Village and Xuzhou was the Zhao Battalion's real trouble. Heaven only knew how many among them were sincere, and how many government agents and spies were mixed in — and they were extremely hard to detect.

"Most of these people are reckless braggarts and wild scholars. They come here merely to sell themselves — there's no need to pay them too much mind. But if there are a few among them with genuine talent and learning, they could be of great use to us. Even if some are merely useful in some way, we should try our best to keep them. At the very least, we cannot let other forces in Xuzhou and the surrounding area recruit them away." On this matter, Wang Zhaojing's opinion was firm.

Although Zhao Jin did not quite agree, the others held a very unanimous view. Everyone felt that Xuzhou lacked talent. The household troops, militia, and trading company managers, all rigorously trained according to the rules, did things inflexibly, strictly by the book. Such people were adequate for getting things done, but now that the Zhao Battalion's sphere of influence was growing ever larger, perhaps they needed more outside talent to improve the current situation?

As for Wang Zhaojing's final point, no one had any objection. Whether scholars or warriors, anyone who would travel all the way to Xuzhou to try their luck was certainly no law-abiding, contented sort. If others recruited them, they would surely stir up a great deal of trouble.

Fortunately, the various powers in Xuzhou and elsewhere were now sensible enough. They knew there were certain boundaries to observe carefully, and no one was foolish enough to do something as stupid as tugging on a tiger's whiskers.

Yet these scholars and warriors arriving from all directions were perfectly capable of stirring up trouble on their own. Among the scholars, there were indeed many wild eccentrics. Quite a few submitted utterly incoherent policy essays and memorials. Some imitated Zhuge Kongming's Longzhong Stratagem, titling theirs the "He Village Stratagem," advocating first seizing the fertile lands south of the Yangtze, then raising troops to march north and seize the realm. Others directly urged Zhao Jin to ascend the throne, declaring that Xuzhou was a place of coiling dragons and crouching tigers, and that proclaiming himself emperor there would draw men from all directions to his banner. Still others fabricated their own historical records, claiming that when Zhao Jin was born, villagers witnessed heavenly auspicious signs descending — fragrant blossoms drifting down, radiant flames shining in all directions — and that He Cuihua, before she conceived, had dreamed of a black dragon entering her bosom...

At first, Zhao Jin enjoyed reading them. He didn't have much entertainment normally, and it was rare to find something that made him laugh out loud like this. These essays were so absurd and amusing that Zhao Jin couldn't stop laughing, which made Zhao Feng and Zhao Long at home especially eager to crowd around. Though they understood nothing, they would giggle wildly along with him.

But after reading too many, he truly grew sick of them. In the end, he simply tossed them over to Wang Zhaojing and Ruhui. Only if they deemed something worthwhile would it be sent back to him — but so far, not a single piece had made the cut.

While the scholars were like this, the warriors caused even more trouble. Anyone who could afford a weapon and bring traveling funds to Xuzhou was not from a poor family. Northern warriors, in particular, often loved to drink. Han Well Famous Liquor was considerably cheaper in Xuzhou than elsewhere. After a couple of ounces of drink, they often lost control — blades were drawn, bloody brawls erupted. Some perhaps even intended to use this to show off their martial prowess, so the fights became utterly unbridled, even resulting in deaths.

To deal with these lawless warriors, the Zhao Battalion showed no courtesy whatsoever. They directly deployed the cavalry company and household troops. Those who refused to submit to discipline were killed on the spot. Those captured were not simply ordered to leave, but were directly seized and sent to work at various farm estates. Once this harsh hand came down, things quieted down considerably at once.

Because of this, the Zhao Battalion's resting and refitting cavalry company was pulled out and put on standby, ready to deploy at any moment. Compared to these ruffians, mounted warriors from Xuzhou, Pizhou, Guide Prefecture, and Huai'an Prefecture who came to offer their service were generally received and assigned to the Xuzhou Volunteer Militia's ranks. Arranging for these local warriors served a dual purpose: on one hand, it was a means of control; on the other, it was a way to draw in the families and connections behind these local martial men. As for these foreign desperadoes, they were simply far too uncontrollable.

However, behind the scenes, the Internal Guard's covert lines were still making contact in a controlled manner. After all, these desperate, death-defying warriors were indeed of great use to the Internal Guard, and the likelihood of spies lurking among them was even greater.

By the time November arrived, the amnesty and pacification were beyond any doubt. Although no one knew exactly what agreement Xuzhou and the court had reached, this state of ceased hostilities was certain to last for a very long time.

As most people judged, the trouble in the southwest — deep in the heartland of Sichuan — once ignited, would be very difficult to quell. The She clan had now established a dynastic title and set up a Chancellor's Office. A great many southwestern chieftains had responded in kind. Government troops suffered repeated defeats; prefectures and counties fell. The situation was already becoming somewhat unmanageable. With chaos there, Yunnan, Guizhou, and even Huguang would become unstable in turn. A full quarter of the Great Ming realm was in danger — the court was bound to prepare for war in grim earnest.

Meanwhile, in the Liao garrison region, Military Commissioner Xiong Tingbi and Grand Coordinator Wang Huazhen were locked in ceaseless infighting, and the two of them were further entangled in the open and covert power struggles of several grandees at court. No clear decision could be reached on anything. Under such circumstances, even without any particularly sharp insight, one thing was clear: as soon as the Jianzhou Jurchens made their move, the Great Ming would surely suffer another defeat, and would then have to pile up troops and resources to respond.

With such turmoil and chaos raging in the south and the north, who could spare any attention for Xuzhou? Besides, Xuzhou had not rebelled, nor had it driven out the government officials or garrison troops. On the surface, it looked no different from ordinary times. There was certainly not going to be any all-out assault. This ambiguous state of affairs would likely persist for a very, very long time.

Moreover, by November, the news had traveled far enough, and enough people knew of it. Many had also observed the situation and drawn their conclusions. Xuzhou grew even livelier...

Unlike the earlier desperadoes who came to try their luck, the warriors arriving now possessed genuine skill. There were deserters and renegade officers from various places, martial-trained sons of local strongmen, ambitious figures from the rivers-and-lakes underworld, Mongol men from the steppes who came south as lone sellswords, and even disciples from the Shaolin Monastery in Henan. All came to take a look, seeking a path to official standing, hoping to see if they could find wealth and rank in the future.

Aside from those roving, itinerant underworld types who were always coming and going, the arrival of this class of warrior made everyone in the Zhao Battalion, from top to bottom, a bit tense. These men all possessed real skill. They could keep their composure normally and wouldn't stir up trouble lightly, but once they did make a move, people would die. And if this lot were to raise a clamor and riot, the destructive force would be beyond what could be guarded against elsewhere.

To deal with sudden outbreaks of chaos, in addition to the cavalry company, the Zhao Battalion specifically rotated four companies on garrison duty, and the militia and patrolmen were all on high alert.

Yet at this time, whether it was the Internal Guard or Cloud Mountain Trading, everyone's eyes were gleaming. Among these later arrivals, there were far too many usable and capable figures. Of course, they also had to keep their eyes gleaming and watch closely to see if there were any spies or infiltrators among them. Interestingly, the Xuzhou prefectural magistrate's yamen had even recruited several dozen men from among them — though all these men were registered under Zhao Shiyi's name and were not hired by the prefect.

Around the sixteenth of November, a document from the Ministry of War arrived in Xuzhou, stating that the original garrison commander posts in Xiao County and Dangshan were to be abolished and the previous arrangements restored.

This could not exactly be called a provocation or a sudden volte-face by the court. Given the current situation, there was no reason to swallow their pride and make concessions everywhere else, only to still let the elders of the Xuzhou rebels control the local government troops. Although the county garrison commanders were of little real use, having those titles hanging there was very unsightly. The matter had not been raised during the peace talks, so they simply changed it outright. For this reason, the Grand Supervisor of Grain Transport, Eunuch Cui Wensheng, even wrote a private letter to explain.

Thanks to the Qidian friends "Zui Hou Wen Kai Hong," "Cheng Shi Zhong De Ji Mo," and "Wu Long Tie Guan Yin" for their tips. Thanks to all readers on Qidian and Chuangshi for your subscriptions, monthly tickets, and tips. Thank you, everyone.