Chapter 972: A Pledge of Loyalty?

According to the craftsmen, this stone-catapult was something every city with over twenty thousand people ought to have, because it could be built using only timber and operated by manpower alone. Its range was very long and its power immense. Yet in the Shandong region, only four cities had made preparations for them: the provincial capital Jinan, the great canal-side commercial hubs of Jining and Linqing, and Ziyang, the seat of Yanzhou Prefecture. Dengzhou Prefecture was equipped with cannons, while the other places were simply too poor to bother.

The stone-catapult was quickly assembled, its joints driven tight with wooden wedges and bound with rope. It was clear that the Smelling Incense Sect had also prepared and arranged for this. The laborers clambered up and down with practiced, highly skilled movements, but no matter how skilled they were, erecting such a machine still took considerable time.

However, they were currently cleaning up the battlefield, so time was plentiful. They simply assigned men to clear out the open ground within the catapult's range.

Zhao Jin knew this stone-catapult was a trebuchet. It had existed since ancient times and was strengthened during the Mongol Yuan era, but he had never expected to see one beneath the walls of Jining. Moreover, trebuchets normally had to be set up in advance before they could fire and were typically used in sieges. He hadn't expected the Smelling Incense Sect to have this sudden inspiration, wanting to use the device in field combat.

The fully assembled "stone-catapult" was essentially a giant lever, with a massive frame and a counterweight. One end was loaded with a clay projectile for launching, while the other had thick ropes that required roughly thirty-some men to haul.

"Doesn't it fire stones?" someone asked.

"This thing uses stones for attacking cities. For defending cities and field battles, clay projectiles are still the best," the craftsman replied with an ingratiating smile.

At the shouted command, those several dozen men hauled on the ropes, raising the counterweighted end. It was then locked into place with a catch, and a wooden mallet struck the catch. The clay projectile was hurled outward with tremendous force.

The clay ball, nearly a foot in diameter, was flung out, flying almost two hundred paces before slamming heavily into the ground and kicking up a cloud of dust.

The firing of this clay projectile stirred some commotion across the now-quiet battlefield. Seeing this, the men around Zhao Jin all changed color. The range was actually that far.

"Come with me and take a look," Zhao Jin spoke before anyone could continue thinking.

When they reached the spot where the clay projectile had landed, everyone clicked their tongues in shock. It had burst across a huge area, a zone over a zhang square, all covered with the splash marks of the clay ball.

"We really do need cannons. Otherwise, if they set one of these things up, we'd suffer terribly!" Shi Manqiang spoke up.

With the range of their firelocks and bows, they could only barely cover a distance within ninety paces. But this stone-catapult could fire from beyond that range. If several clay projectiles were dropped on them, let alone the archers and firelock retainers, even the tight spear square formations would be directly smashed apart.

Liu Yong bent down and picked up a piece of the clay. Despite the tremendous force of the throw, the projectile had not completely disintegrated into loose soil upon impact; it was quite hard.

Everyone could estimate the kind of casualties it could cause. Even a shard of dirt the size of a fingernail could likely punch a bloody hole in an unprotected human body.

"... Good sirs, this is a method passed down from ancient times. The clay projectile must be made from both dry and wet clay. Dry sandy soil is mixed with cooked glutinous rice and kneaded into balls. After they're dried in the sun, several dozen fist-sized dry clay balls are mixed with wet clay to form a large clay ball. When fired, it bursts apart and injures the enemy..."

The craftsman's explanation was very detailed. The onlookers who had gathered all sucked in breaths of cold air, each feeling thankful that they had brought cannons this time. Otherwise, the casualties would truly have been devastating.

"It's not as terrifying as you imagine. Even if we hadn't brought cannons, the moment we saw this thing being set up on the battlefield, we would have immediately ordered a charge. If our Zhao Battalion's square formations crashed into them, they couldn't hold. In our tactics, the cannon has two major uses: one is to counter the enemy's cannons, and the other is to prevent the enemy's cavalry from forming up to charge. Though here, neither applies."

Such tactics, explained by words alone, left everyone only half-comprehending. Only in actual combat could they be deeply understood.

The refugee prisoners on the battlefield were gathered together and put to work under guard. As the sky gradually darkened, the prisoners, having recovered somewhat from their terror and panic, began to grow restless. After all, it had been from morning till night, and they were already ravenously hungry. Before the battle, they had heard the Smelling Incense Sect's preachers proclaim that if they did not fight to the death and were captured by the Xuzhou troops, death was certain—that they would be tortured in every conceivable way before being killed. Although there had been no beatings or scoldings since their capture, no one knew what would happen next. Even if these Xuzhou troops didn't kill them outright, starving them to death like this would be a torment worse than death. Waiting to die, and not knowing the manner of death—this fear made it impossible for anyone to stay calm.

Just as this unrest was about to erupt, many heads appeared on the battlements of Jining, craning to look. They too could guess that chaos was brewing and wanted to see if there was any opportunity.

However, when one grain transport barge after another docked, and the prisoners were driven to unload sack after sack of grain, and great cauldrons were set up on the battlefield to cook porridge, and then each prisoner received a bowl of porridge—the entire battlefield fell completely silent.

Since they were willing to give them something to eat, and could give them something to eat, then they wouldn't kill them. In these times, grain was a precious commodity. If they were giving out grain to eat, then they wouldn't kill. Grain was far more valuable than human lives.

"... Each person gets one bowl of porridge a day. Those who labor and do hard work can have extra. Don't let them eat their fill, but don't let them starve to death either. Everything else will wait until they reach the resettlement areas. What are you laughing at..."

"... Saying that some people will definitely think Big Brother's arrangement is cruel, that these refugees have it too miserable. But they won't realize that by doing this, we are actually giving them a path to survival..."

Although the city gates were shut, battle results continued to trickle in. After the fighting here ended, the Smelling Incense Sect's rebel army had retreated into the city in disarray and, for a time, didn't know how to react. But after a brief regrouping, they immediately sent messengers to other places calling for help. The city gates were impassable, so they could only lower men by rope from various points on the battlements. The Xuzhou mounted retainers and militia volunteers were no idle men. They roamed around the city, killing every messenger that came out. As for the water gate connecting Jining to the canal, those who dove out had no path to survival either. Men on the straw boats simply stabbed down with fishing spears and long pikes.

Anyone could guess that this sort of sending messages out of the city would not stop. After dark, this game of cat and mouse would continue.

At night, the various regiments and large companies of the Zhao Battalion did not relax. They remained in a wartime state, resting in shifts. The remaining enemy within Jining had not yet been annihilated, and the tens of thousands of prisoners were not settled. Trouble could erupt at any moment.

"... If we're talking about men I can be completely at ease with, I have about three hundred here. It always feels awkward to say this. The brothers from the Xuzhou Three Guards are also our own, having followed us through life and death all these times..."

"... No, we must demand absolute certainty. Being able to follow us against government troops is one thing..."

The central command tent was brightly lit. Only the regiment commanders and large company commanders were present. Even Zhao Jin's personal guards were on watch outside, and they were supervised to ensure the guard retainers did not come too close.

Zhao Jin said they would select the most trustworthy retainers from each unit. Everyone went through the men one by one according to their own rules and judgment. The sons of the Xuzhou Guard who had joined earlier were acceptable, but those who came later were not. The early joiners were all from poor families, men of bitter background who had toiled like oxen and horses for the guard officers. The later ones often came from decent family circumstances, having joined because they saw a promising future. It wasn't that these latter men were not loyal and devoted, but to guard against risk, they could not be included.

As the discussion went on, Chen Sheng, Shi Manqiang, and Ji Xiang all showed some dissatisfaction. Lu Da and Zhang Hubin also had objections. With so many retainers under their command, all having followed them through life and death, it felt deeply uncomfortable to sit here debating who could be trusted and who could not. Yet everyone also knew this matter was of grave importance and could not tolerate the slightest error.

By the time things were roughly settled, the night was already deep. A retainer came in to report: "Ma Chonghao requests an audience."

When Zhao Jin had led the main force out from Xuzhou, he had specifically named Ma Chonghao of the Internal Guard Unit to come along. However, Ma Chonghao had not come to fight with the main force. Instead, he was with the Xuzhou militia volunteers and local auxiliaries, responsible for the supply column. Had it been anyone else, there would likely have been complaints and grumbling. But Ma Chonghao faced it all with an amiable attitude and devoted himself fully to the task.

"Master Jin, Zhou Baolu, the Assistant Regional Commander of Xuzhou, entrusted this subordinate to bring a message. He says, for the sake of past friendship, please give him a path to live. If that is truly impossible, his own life does not matter, but he begs you to spare his entire family, old and young. To have this subordinate bring the message, he even specially gave me a jade pendant, saying that with it, one could withdraw several thousand taels of silver from the silk and satin firm in the Qingjiang Great Market." Ma Chonghao reported with a smile, producing a jade pendant as he spoke.

Zhao Jin shook his head and laughed. "He's really letting his imagination run wild. This time I came to give him a great merit. What is he thinking?"

"Perhaps he feels that Master Jin intends to do great things, and that this time you will completely tear off all pretense with the government and the imperial court," Ma Chonghao added with a grin, not particularly taboo about the subject.

Zhao Jin did not respond. Ma Chonghao glanced at the men in the tent—only Niu Jinbao and Sun Dalei were present. Lowering his voice, he said, "Master Jin, for what you are about to do this time, please bring this subordinate along."

Hearing this, Zhao Jin raised an eyebrow and asked, "What is it that I'm about to do?"

"This subordinate does not know. However, this subordinate feels that if I can go and do this thing, then afterward, Master Jin and everyone will be able to regard this subordinate as one of their own," Ma Chonghao said. His attitude was humble and respectful, but the content of his words was something else entirely.

Zhao Jin narrowed his eyes and watched him for a moment, then smiled and said, "This matter cannot tolerate the slightest mishap. If you show even the slightest sign of being off, you will die on the road. You must think this through clearly."

"This subordinate has thought it through very clearly. But if I go along this time, then the next time there is a great northern campaign like this, I won't be left watching the supplies. I should be going with everyone to fight, or defending a key location."

"Fine, then you'll come along."

Zhao Jin's crisp and decisive answer this time actually made Ma Chonghao pause for a moment. But among the members of the Zhao Battalion, he had always been one to act at ease and unconstrained. He immediately grinned and asked, "Master Jin is about to do such a great deed, and you aren't afraid I might harbor disloyalty and cause a great disaster?"

"You're too capable. It's too much of a pity not to use you to your full potential. This time is the set moment, and it's worth it," Zhao Jin replied with a smile.

At these words, Ma Chonghao showed no particularly intense reaction. A trace of emotion flickered across his face, and in the end, he simply bowed deeply with a solemn salute.

Note: Information on the trebuchet can be found in Song Yingxing's *Tiangong Kaiwu* (The Exploitation of the Works of Nature). Interested friends may look it up.

Thanks to "Wu Liulang, Yuan Heng Li Zhen, Sui Xin Zi Wo 0, Ha Qian Fei Fei" for their tips. *Great Ming Warrior* needs everyone's subscriptions, monthly tickets, and tips. Please support us generously.