novelAbuy Chapter 62 Mountain Wind
Chapter 62 Mountain Wind
Unlike Shi Weiping and Liu Yingyu's proactive planning, Hu Tingyan in the governor's office was as anxious as an ant on a hot pan.
Even Lu Pan, his top strategist, lost his composure at this moment.
"Lord Wei... no, that eunuch Wei," Hu Tingyan's voice trembled, "was actually ordered to commit suicide by the Emperor on his way to Fengyang! If he had been able to live out his days in Fengyang, we might still be able to live peacefully. Now that he has been ordered to commit suicide... what... what are we going to do?"
Lu Pan harbored considerable contempt for his employer: when he needed him, he would address him as "Your Excellency, the Ninth Prince," but when he no longer needed him, he would simply call him Wei the Eunuch.
Despite his disdain, he was now in the same boat as Hu Tingyan; if his master fell, he, as the advisor, would suffer no benefit. He forced himself to remain calm and began:
"Master, this is no time to sit idly by and wait for death. You must do something to fight for a chance of survival."
"What can we do now?" Hu Tingyan asked in bewilderment.
"Yes!" Lu Pan said with certainty. "The new emperor has ascended the throne and is working hard to purge the eunuch faction. The Donglin gentlemen are also waiting for an opportunity to counterattack. If we do nothing, that will be the real dead end."
What you need now is to immediately do something 'real' that is visible to everyone, both in and out of government, and that cannot be denied!
This will demonstrate your talent and hard work, so that even if... the higher-ups want to punish you in the future, they will have to consider your contributions and hard work.
Hu Tingyan grasped at a straw: "Then what practical things should we do?"
"Do what has the highest consensus between the government and the public right now!" A glint of light flashed in Lu Pan's eyes. "Does the Grand Master still remember the cabinet's court meeting a few days ago?"
The Grand Secretary ordered the Tongguan Guard to send troops to annihilate Wang Er and his associates in northern Shaanxi. Even the Donglin faction, though unwilling, expressed their support.
What does this tell us?
This demonstrates that from the Emperor to the Grand Secretaries, and even among the Qingliu faction, the attitude towards the "bandit suppression" is consistent—suppress them if possible, and even if power is insufficient at the moment, absolutely do not allow them to grow in strength and threaten the foundation of the local gentry and common people!
He leaned closer and whispered, "It's too late to curry favor with the Donglin Party now, but the matter of suppressing bandits is the righteous path that no one can criticize!"
Moreover, the emperor is young, which is precisely the time when military achievements are highly valued.
If you can achieve outstanding results in this matter, the Emperor may very well look at you differently. With this military merit, the situation in the future might be able to turn around.
Hu Tingyan felt a surge of warmth in his heart, as if he had seen a light in the darkness:
"Is...it really so?"
"Absolutely true!" Lu Pan said firmly.
"well!"
Hu Tingyan abruptly stood up, his panicked expression replaced by a desperate ruthlessness. "I'll give the order immediately to mobilize the elite troops of the Fu Biao Army! Someone! Summon Wang Lian to see me! Quickly, summon Wang Lian!"
Wang Lian was actually not very confident about Hu Tingyan's sudden change of course and strict order to suppress the bandits.
However, he was promoted from a centurion by Hu Tingyan and was considered a confidant of the governor. If Governor Hu told him to go east, he would naturally not go west.
He then announced to the officers in the pacification camp the military order to send troops to suppress the bandits.
Compared to other Ming troops—whether border troops or garrison troops—the Fubiao Battalion, being directly under the governor's office, was considered the governor's personal guard, and its treatment and pay were always the most generous.
Therefore, when the military order was issued, all units obeyed and made preparations without any major problems.
Upon hearing the military order to suppress the bandits, one man in the camp was particularly excited.
His name was Zhao Huan, and his father was Zhao Shouren, who was killed in Qingshi Village.
A few months ago, he was shocked to learn that his hometown had been robbed and his family had been massacred. He then vowed to wipe out the thieves.
He asked for leave to return to his hometown to investigate, only to find that the thieves had already fled without a trace.
Although unwilling to believe that all the thieves had escaped, and wanting to investigate further, the villagers unanimously said that the thieves had already fled far away.
Because of his status as a government soldier and his consideration for his fellow villagers, he could only give up in resentment, even though he had doubts.
Not long after, he heard that his father’s killer, “Li the Thief”, had joined Wang Er.
In the past few months, although Wang Er was defeated, Li Chengye's gang did not disperse. On the contrary, their momentum grew stronger, and they even captured Yanchang County.
This fueled his growing hatred, and he repeatedly requested permission to fight, but his requests were always rejected.
Now that he had finally received the order to go to war, Zhao Huan felt as if all the pent-up emotions in his chest had been released, and he felt extremely relieved.
He immediately urged his men to quickly prepare their weapons and don their armor, determined to be the first to march to Yanchang County and tear Li Chengye to pieces to appease his father's spirit in heaven.
The news that Xi'an Prefecture was about to send troops to suppress the bandits quickly reached Zhang Nian, the prefect of Yan'an Prefecture.
Holding the document sent from Xi'an, he couldn't help but mutter repeatedly, "Good, good! Finally, we're going to wipe out those bandits!"
Since the fall of Yanchang County, he had been living in constant fear, worried that the rebels would first capture the county seat and then the prefectural city.
Therefore, he ordered the Yan'an Guard to assemble its troops to defend the city and supplied them with provisions every day, which made the already strained treasury even more strained. However, he had no choice but to do so, which really pained him.
Now that the governor is finally going to send troops, he can finally breathe a sigh of relief.
An official beside him asked, "Sir, when will the governor's troops arrive? If they arrive quickly, could we send these guards back to camp first? That way we can save some provisions."
Zhang Nian calculated, "The governor has ordered the mobilization, and troops still need to be deployed. It will take at least ten days for them to arrive in Yan'an Prefecture. It won't be too late to let the guards return to camp after the bandit suppression is over. Although it will consume more food and supplies, it will be safer in the end."
The subordinate official quickly flattered him, saying, "Your Excellency's wisdom and foresight are beyond the reach of this humble servant."
Although Zhang Nian felt the flattery was a bit forced, he did not refuse it, because he also felt that his arrangement was indeed appropriate.
Just as the Ming Dynasty was making intensive preparations for the next round of bandit suppression, Li Chengye was strolling around Yanchang County.
This was the sixth day since they breached the city, and every household on the street still kept their doors tightly shut.
Although he posted notices to reassure the people and did not impose exorbitant taxes upon entering the city, the residents clearly did not trust him.
However, Li Chengye thought about it again and felt that this was the right thing to do.
The lives of those city dwellers with houses are still better than those of farmers outside the city. Even in years of severe drought, they can still manage to get by.
Their group broke through the city walls, arrested the local officials and magistrates, and completely disrupted the city's original order.
The Chinese people have a long-standing tradition of preferring to be dogs in times of peace rather than people in times of chaos, so it's normal that the people in the city don't side with him.
But he knew that in order to grow and expand, he had to win the hearts and minds of the people.
In the past day or two, many refugees from outside the city came to join his army after hearing of his banner.
This is because when they came last time, they distributed the grain they had robbed from wealthy households to the people outside the city. These people knew that Li Chengye was not an ordinary bandit and was willing to help the poor.
Therefore, they flocked to seek refuge with him.
But those outside the city know of his kindness, while those inside the city do not. What should be done?
He shared his thoughts with Liu Ye, who was standing beside him. Liu Ye felt a headache coming on, since he had been studying military books and martial arts classics since childhood, and had only skimmed through the Four Books and Five Classics when he got older.
Nobody taught him how to win the hearts of the people!
Li Chengye, the shopkeeper, hadn't read many books, but he acted with a sense of benevolence and righteousness. Originally, he was quite satisfied with this, after all, it's easy to find ruthless people in this world, but it's rare to find someone who is both ruthless and benevolent.
But when the other party asked him this, he was a bit at a loss.
Then Liu Ye made a suggestion: "How about we continue distributing grain?"
But he immediately denied it as soon as he said it.
First of all, the amount of grain they obtained this time was not as much as they had imagined, totaling only four or five thousand shi. The majority of it had been distributed to Zheng Guangqiu and others who had accompanied them in the siege, leaving them with only a little over a thousand shi. After deducting the food and drink for their brothers, there was not much left.
Furthermore, when the grain was being distributed, the city dwellers addressed them as "Master" or "Sir," but if the grain ran out and the government troops returned, those city dwellers who received the grain would then curse them as bandits.
He shared this concern with Li Chengye, who agreed that it made sense.
He had thought of these things too.
Ultimately, they are still seen as bandits by the people. With a knife to their throats, people can only applaud them, especially since they have been given grain.
Having finished their conversation, Li Chengye lost interest in shopping and returned to the county government office, where he gathered his subordinates to discuss the matter.
Luo Dai, Han Sanhu, and the others were busy with their own affairs when they heard that Li Chengye had summoned them and rushed over. When they heard that the meeting was to discuss how to win over the hearts of the people, they all stared at each other, at a loss for what to do.
Ultimately, people like Han Sanhu are skilled at wielding knives and charging into battle; but asking them to explain how they win the hearts of the people is a bit of a stretch.
When farmers in the fields are starving and on the verge of death, if you give them a bite of food, they will be extremely grateful and even willing to risk their lives to follow you.
But most of the people in the city run small businesses. They have some money and a way out. They are not desperate. Why would they easily follow them?
At this moment, Li Chengye suddenly remembered an article he had seen in his memories from later generations.
It says that the destitute peasants are the most determined group in the struggle, and they have a natural will to fight.
The residents of those county towns had certain limitations, because they owned some of their own production assets and relied on landlords and officials for their daily livelihoods, making them extremely susceptible to the reactionary influence of those people.
However, urban workers, like landless peasants, are also in a precarious situation.
You need to win the hearts of the people, but you have to be selective about who you win the hearts of.
We can try to win over the hearts and minds of the peasants and urban laborers and apprentices, but we shouldn't even think about winning over the families of officials, landlords, and gentry.
If one's strength grows in the future and one is able to establish a separate territory, those smart people within the system will see a promising future and naturally come to join one.
Even if I, as a bandit, treat people with respect, I won't get a good result.
Moreover, Li Chengye had not forgotten why he rebelled in the first place—wasn't it because of the oppression by landlords, wealthy families, and government officials?
Once Li Chengye figured out who his potential base of support was, he was no longer troubled.