Chapter 1074 - Refugee Recovery Team
"I've already sent scout cavalry to search toward Huang County," Zhu Mingxia said. "After capturing the city yesterday, the rebels are conducting organized looting, burning, and killing in the county seat. Most villages and stockades near the walls have been broken. A first wave of refugees has likely already formed. If we move out now to recover them, we'll encounter at most scattered small groups of roving rebel cavalry—not the main force."
Lu Wenyuan remained uneasy. "But a large refugee group moves very slowly—perhaps two or three kilometers an hour. And the column will stretch long..."
"It doesn't matter. As long as I maintain military order, the recovery team can act as a cohesive whole. Should we encounter a large enemy force, I'll immediately close formation to resist. Huang County seat isn't far from here—you can reinforce at any time."
Zhu Mingxia and Lu Wenyuan agreed on communication protocols. Then he jogged all the way to the drill ground, where the recovery team had already assembled according to his orders.
The recovery team resembled an armed caravan more than a military unit. Zhu Mingxia had invested considerable effort in planning large-scale armed refugee recovery operations in Shandong—especially regarding how to protect slow-moving, numerous refugees. He had developed several different plans, experimented with various troop organizations and equipment configurations. Eventually, a system emerged.
This system drew roughly from the wagon-train concept employed by Eastern European armies in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. Since the Hussite Wars, Eastern European forces had universally adopted wagon forts. Initially, baggage wagons served simply as mobile fortified bastions—defensive shelters during encampment. Over time, these evolved into wagon forts capable of fighting while moving. The armies of the Cossacks, Poland, and Russia grew increasingly skilled in this tactic through their conflicts with the Tatars. When attacked, the large wagon convoy deployed firearms and long spears from vehicles on the army's flanks to counter high-mobility Tatar light cavalry, covering the movement of foot infantry, non-combatants, and baggage.
The system was not universally applicable—it worked effectively only on the flat terrain of Central and Eastern Europe. Though Huang County's territory consisted of hilly ground, considerable flat land stretched along the coast, and rivers were few. Wagon forts could indeed prove useful here.
Zhu Mingxia, however, lacked a proper supply of large wagons—and even if he possessed them, he could not find enough oxen to pull them. So his wagon fort was composed of Purple Lightning handcarts, somewhat similar in purpose to the wagon fort Sun Yuanhua had created. But Sun Yuanhua's version had relied on an immature firearms system. Whether his light artillery or bird guns, all suffered from slow loading, short range, and poor accuracy. Of course, Europe faced the same problems, but the tragic firearms habits of the Great Ming army—firing as soon as enemy charges began, then fleeing—meant that the astonishing quantity of firearms Great Ming possessed never effectively fulfilled their potential.
Zhu Mingxia had no such problem. Not only did he command sufficient excellent firearms—far superior to the British Brown Bess that had devastated the Eight Banners elite in 1840—but his army had undergone rigorous training.
Finally, he possessed a secret weapon: several "typewriters" removed from naval warships had been temporarily mounted on Gale-style two-wheeled handcarts. Once this weapon opened fire, even hundreds of Manchu Bayara charging together could be suppressed.
The recovery team comprised three main components. First, the Guard Team, responsible for armed protection, composed of Northbound Detachment army soldiers. Second, the Civil Affairs Team—all local-dialect speakers, most of them recently recovered refugees. Civil affairs personnel worked continuously to comfort refugees and maintain order within refugee ranks. Third, the Transport Team. They brought vehicles and livestock to transport the old, young, women, and children, accelerating the entire group's march. Zhu Mingxia's instruction to them was clear: load nothing—prioritize loading people, especially children and women.
The Transport Team and Civil Affairs Team consisted primarily of Qimu Island Village Braves. Everyone carried a standard machete; some also bore standard spears, capable of close combat when necessary. Though Lu Wenyuan felt long spears were rather cumbersome, Zhu Mingxia believed them highly useful. First, spears in formation could effectively counter cavalry. Second, they served as walking sticks—invaluable when traversing snow—and could be assembled into stretchers when needed.
Beyond weapons, each recovery team member carried three portions of rations and drinking water to replenish refugees on the march. Bulk portable rations, of course, traveled on the Transport Team's vehicles and livestock. To facilitate eating while walking, the rations consisted of biscuits from the relief supplies—similar to rice crackers, baked from a mixture of rice flour, sweet potato flour, salt, and sugar. The texture was crisp and loose, easy to digest, requiring little water when eaten. Providing safe drinking water to a large mass of refugees during march was extremely difficult.
The recovery team carried a radio station, transported on a Lingao-made military four-wheeled light carriage, maintaining constant contact with the base. Given its value, a cavalry squad was specially assigned to protect it.
Zhu Mingxia scrutinized the recovery team assembled on the drill ground. Everyone was dressed neatly in complete cold-weather clothing. Though most refugees could not obtain adequate garments and survived barely through fires, anyone selected into the Village Brave Team received cotton padded jackets, cotton trousers, cotton hats, and gloves.
He randomly inspected equipment, checking that puttees were securely tied. Northbound Detachment soldiers wore warm military boots, but village braves had to make do with reed catkin straw sandals.
Even so, this was considered fortunate. How many refugees had walked hundreds of li barefoot through bitter cold to reach Qimu Island?
Clothing conditions were his primary concern, especially for the Northbound Detachment. Though Northerners had been drawn from across the army to reinforce the unit, Southerners still predominated. Since winter's onset, frostbite had caused significant personnel losses.
"Have the troops eaten breakfast?" Zhu Mingxia asked Huang Xiong, who followed closely during the inspection. Huang Xiong served as a company commander in the Northbound Detachment. Because he too came from the former Dengzhou military, his company had been selected as the Guard Team's backbone, and he served as its captain.
"Report to Head—we have eaten!" Huang Xiong raised a hand in salute, wearing his gray military greatcoat.
"How is the men's condition?"
"Report to Head—very high!"
"Can we set off immediately?"
"Report to Head—anytime, anywhere!"
"Very good." The soldiers had thoroughly lightened their loads. Except for weapons, ammunition, and cold-weather clothing, they carried only one day's rations and water. The military flag remained in camp. Per instructions, they also carried no identification documents or papers. Zhu Mingxia had issued orders that all soldiers killed in action, together with their weapons and equipment, must be recovered—abandoning or burying them on the spot was forbidden.
He continued inspecting for a while without finding any major problems. Just then, scout cavalry returning from outside brought fresh intelligence: a group of two to three thousand refugees was moving toward Qimu Island. No large rebel activity had been detected nearby.
"The rebel main force is operating around Huang County. Part of them are transporting looted materials and grain to Dengzhou," the scout reported. "They've abducted large numbers of women and young adults to go to Dengzhou—making the young adults carry materials."
"Are there small rebel groups active nearby?"
"Report: No. Small groups are mostly active around several towns near Huang County. No one is coming toward the coast."
"Your mission was completed very well. Go rest first," Zhu Mingxia ordered.
"Troops—prepare to set off! Departure in fifteen minutes!"
At 08:00, the armed recovery team—more than four hundred strong—moved out through the Willow Palisade. The troops advanced in column formation. The cavalry company deployed three times the usual number of search riders ahead. Beyond providing early warning of enemies, they were also tasked with discovering refugee groups in time. If they encountered small groups of refugees, the cavalry would lead them directly to the main force.
From Qimu Island to Huang County seat, the straight-line distance was just over twenty kilometers. Well-fed people in good health could walk it in seven or eight hours. But considering the refugees' condition, the journey would require at least two days. Zhu Mingxia decided to risk advancing to within approximately ten kilometers of the Huang County seat. To facilitate reception, he planned to establish a village at the journey's midpoint as a temporary camp. Personnel and grain would be left there as a reception point where refugees could rest overnight. At current temperatures, a night in the open would kill many refugees. He wanted to minimize the death rate as much as possible.
This camp would also receive scattered refugees along the road without requiring them to undertake a long march.
The troops moved across ice- and snow-covered land. Though the weather was clear, the severe cold created major difficulties. The heavily loaded handcarts required several village braves pulling ropes to advance each one. Zhu Mingxia ordered the organization recovery team to follow at the very rear of the column. He felt the Northbound Detachment posed no problem, but large-scale straggling in the newly formed Advance Column remained a real concern.
The land of Huang County outside Qimu Island stretched bleak and lifeless. After more than ten li, not a sound of chicken or dog could be heard. The villages they passed were dilapidated, completely devoid of living souls. Dead bodies appeared from time to time on roads and in open fields—mostly frozen or starved to death.
Zhu Mingxia did not ride but walked in the middle of the column. He carried an SKS-D equipped with a 30-round magazine. Unlike many Senators who disdained semi-automatics, he felt genuine affection for this weapon.
The cold wind stung his face, but Zhu Mingxia did not feel cold at all. He stopped periodically to check map and compass, ensuring their route did not deviate from the path he had chosen.
(End of Chapter)