Chapter 2072 - The Army Must Be Patient

Zhang Bailin nodded. "Who doesn't think that way? Otherwise, what the hell are we risking our lives for?"

"Second point: The Second Generation once said the military must be patient. Applied to our circumstances, it means 'the Army must be patient.' I'm Army too, but I endorse this statement wholeheartedly. It's determined by our current environment." Xi Yazhou paused, letting the words settle. "You may disagree with my view, but from D-Day to the present, we've never faltered militarily. Our battles have been resounding victories—'invincible and unstoppable,' as they say. It's not that we as individuals are brilliant or heroic. It's that we have the Council of Elders as a system backing us. You don't deny this fact, do you?"

Zhang Bailin wore an unconvinced expression, but could find no rebuttal. Without the Council of Elders, there would be nothing. No one in either Army or Navy dared deny this fundamental truth.

"Third point: When conditions and circumstances change, so naturally will the situation. Over the past few years, every expansion of the Army has been connected to shifts in our strategic position. This mainland campaign—ten battalions might be enough to conquer Guangdong, but ten battalions certainly can't conquer the whole country, let alone other regions. No matter how capable the Navy is, they can't sail their warships onto dry land."

Zhang Bailin snorted through his nose but said nothing more.

Xi Yazhou continued: "The Guangdong campaign is both a test and an opportunity for us. I think the opportunity outweighs the test." He glanced at his watch. "It's getting late. You should return to your unit." Seeing Zhang Bailin about to rise, he added: "As a current and former soldier, let me also remind you: among Elders, idle talk in private is fine—but actions must not be reckless. The Council of Elders has discipline too. Let the past be a lesson. Off you go."

Watching Zhang Bailin's retreating figure, Xi Yazhou rose, tugged at his uniform shirttail, and began pacing the office with his hands clasped behind his back. The army had entered Guangzhou. Mayor Liu had arrived in grand style, borne in like some mandarin emperor in his great sedan chair. All the accumulated headaches of Guangzhou would naturally keep him busy.

Guangzhou had been taken peacefully. What came next would not be so simple. Xi Yazhou knew perfectly well that given the current situation, the march to receive cities wouldn't pose much difficulty—much like the operations around Guangzhou: at most, an armed parade. Roll up to the walls and call for surrender, and whether garrison outposts or military stations, all would capitulate at the mere sight of them.

Seizing Guangdong—even Guangxi—posed no great challenge for him as Huanan Army Commander. As long as he controlled the tempo of his troops and supervised logistics properly, the rest would be determined by the army's marching speed.

What worried him now was the counterinsurgency war to come.

Beyond the Pearl River Delta, Guangdong was mostly mountainous terrain, with Han and Yao peoples intermingled and ethnic tensions running high. Among the Han themselves, the Cantonese, Teochew, and Hakka networks were bitter rivals. Rural areas were dominated by clan-based villages, with local gentry entrenched everywhere. The complexity of the situation was unprecedented since the Council's landing.

The General Staff had prepared seventeen or eighteen contingency plans for the Guangdong campaign. Only three involved combat against Ming forces. Over a dozen addressed counterinsurgency operations. The problem was that although Xi Yazhou had personally participated in drafting these plans, he knew in his heart they were largely theoretical exercises—paper tigers with little practical value.

The foundation of counterinsurgency—the County National Army—existed only on paper. In Xi Yazhou's and others' opinions, each county's National Army should comprise at minimum a "battalion" structure: three companies plus support units. But due to budget constraints, most counties could only afford an oversized "company."

What good was a 120-man company? Even small county seats in Hainan with only a few thousand registered residents maintained thirty or forty men in their "strong-arm squads." A hundred-odd men could barely handle basic guard duties for the county seat and key transport hubs. Any riot would stretch them to the breaking point. Besides, the combat effectiveness of these hastily assembled National Army units was negligible. They'd be lucky to manage guard duties. If serious trouble arose, regular forces would have to intervene—and then the regulars would be constantly running from one crisis to another, putting out fires.

Xie Peng entered. "General, the boat is ready. The captain asks when we'll depart."

"Immediately." Xi Yazhou put on his cap and buckled on his saber. Rather than fretting here, better to get to work quickly and solve problems through action.

Xi Yazhou's vessel was moored at the dedicated pier below Da Shijie. This was the Octopus, the inland paddlewheel steamboat originally built specially for Guo Yi. Since the start of the Guangzhou campaign, it had been transferred to the municipal government as a VIP ferry. Its specially designed shallow draft allowed it to reach most navigable points on the West and North Rivers. The Hong Kong shipyard had rushed modifications a few months ago: armor plating to resist firearms and arrows, anti-boarding nets to prevent enemy jumping parties, and a five-barreled Hotchkiss-style hand-cranked rotating cannon installed at both bow and stern. An Army Major General's pennant fluttered from the mast.

On the pier, armed guards stood in formation. The moment Xi Yazhou emerged from Da Shijie's door, a bugler sounded the call, and the entire guard presented arms with crisp precision. Xi Yazhou—wearing a thin wool officer's cloak and resting his hand on his command saber—returned the salute before boarding.

Three blasts of the steam whistle echoed across the dock. The paddlewheels began to turn slowly, churning the muddy water. Sailors hauled up the anchor, and the Octopus glided away from the pier.

Because the Octopus had been built on a tugboat's hull with powerful engines, the ever-thrifty Joint Logistics command—heedless of "military dignity"—had attached five passenger barges behind it. These carried not only the Huanan Army's headquarters staff but also civilian administrators bound for Foshan and Sanshui, logistics officers, and various other naturalized cadres.

Though the cities along the route had been taken, the countryside remained unsecured. River routes had always been plagued by bandits and river pirates, so the entire barge train was heavily guarded. Not only did every naturalized officer and cadre carry a sidearm, but each passenger barge also maintained five marines on watch at rooftop sentry posts. The Pearl River Detached Squadron had dispatched one river gunboat as escort.

The first stop en route to Sanshui was Foshan. In the Ming and Qing eras, Foshan was renowned for its flourishing commerce and industry, ranked as one of "the Four Great Towns Under Heaven."

Though Ming-era Foshan was not quite as prosperous as it would become during the Qing, it was already a "great town" that ordinary small counties could not hope to rival.

Its geographic position was advantageous, with transportation by land and water extending in all directions. Since ancient times, it had been a place of developed agriculture and industry, with merchants converging there like iron filings to a magnet. Ancient records stated: "All manner of treasures flow north and south, with Foshan as the hub, and commerce flourishing ever more." It had become the primary commodity distribution center for the entire Lingnan region. The booming trade drove handicraft industries. Smelting, ceramics, and textiles were all highly developed here, and traditional Chinese medicine also thrived—medicinal ingredients from both within and outside the province gathered here for sale.

Because this was Guangdong's largest commodity distribution center—with a market that could influence the Two Guangs and even the whole nation—both the Mountain and Sea Routes of the Council's commercial network had established branch offices here, handling procurement, sales, and remittances. Thus, the Elders were quite familiar with the place. They had made numerous purchasing trips: the Industrial Sector had bought large quantities of pig iron and copper materials; the Ministry of Health had procured medicinal ingredients; smaller purchases were beyond counting.

The Council of Elders naturally intended to nurture this golden goose carefully. As soon as Guangzhou fell, the Left Column had dispatched a task force by boat, striking Foshan with lightning speed. The local collaborators led by Lin Ming rose in response. Without a drop of blood spilled, the Ming dynasty's Foshan Fort was taken. The action was so swift that local merchants still hadn't figured out what was happening before "Great Ming Foshan Fort" had become "Great Song Foshan Town."

Though the banners on the walls had changed, the common people—as long as they could live in peace—naturally had no objections. The marketplace was noticeably quieter due to the "passage of troops," but the wharves and streets still presented a harmonious scene of commerce proceeding as usual.

Xi Yazhou had not originally intended to linger in Foshan, but Director Hong's plan called for establishing an ordnance factory here, leveraging local metal-smelting and processing capabilities to provide weapons repair and ammunition manufacturing for the Two Guangs campaign. He changed his mind and decided to take a look.

The advance units that had reached Foshan had already pushed westward. At the dock to greet him was the company commander of the Foshan Company of the National Army. Foshan's status was exceptional, so it had been accorded county-level treatment and assigned a full company of National Army troops.

"Sir!" The company commander saluted with great excitement. "Company Commander of the Foshan Company, Guangdong Regiment, National Army—Second Lieutenant Cao Qing, reporting!"

"At ease." Xi Yazhou returned the salute. "Has the town mayor arrived?"

"Not yet, sir!" Cao Qing made an effort to stand ramrod straight. "I've received word—should be any day now!"

(End of Chapter)