Chapter 2164 - Tempered into Steel

The speaker was a Fubo Army sergeant. Recognizing he couldn't afford to offend the man, Yang Erdong clamped his mouth shut. Moments later, another Fubo Army detachment arrived—their collar insignia differed from Lieutenant Mi's unit. He wondered silently where this new force had originated.

Before long, Mi Longtao and the Left Detachment returned as well. The troops came back radiant with victory, escorting captives and hauling miscellaneous spoils. The bandits fleeing the village hadn't covered three miles before running straight into Mi Longtao's ambush. Over seventy prisoners taken; the rest now lay scattered as corpses across the paddies.

Mi Longtao practically glowed, lavishing praise on Zhu Si for "fighting brilliantly." The Lizui assault had been clean and decisive—bandits driven from the village in record time.

"To be honest, I didn't entirely trust your company initially—but you're a genuine talent, brother!" Mi Longtao's commendations seemed boundless. "I know you're commanding a hastily assembled motley crew, yet they charged into battle like veterans. That's top-tier performance. This result, brother, represents your tremendous contribution."

Overwhelmed by such praise, Zhu Si quickly deployed humble deflections—everything owed to Mi Longtao's "excellent strategic vision," while he'd merely "executed orders firmly." Though Mi Longtao didn't acknowledge the comment directly, his smile blazed brilliant enough. Yang Erdong and several others burned with quiet indignation: those tactics had originated entirely from Captain Li, yet this Zhu Si was shamelessly appropriating credit.

Indignant though they were, they remained mere soldiers. Years steeped in the culture of "one rank higher crushes you to death" ensured they dared not speak freely. Still, they couldn't resist muttering complaints in private.

After the bandits' ravages, Lizui harbored no residents beyond a handful of abducted women left behind. Darkness approached, and since the location proved difficult to defend and lay far from the West River, Mi Longtao ordered immediate withdrawal to Xugang.

Inside Xugang, security remained stringent. Though the Fubo Army had secured victory, tension from recent events persisted. After nightfall, the streets emptied save for joint militia and National Army patrols. Torches and lanterns blazed at every intersection and bridge; barricades bristled everywhere.

Countless refugees from surrounding settlements had fled to Xugang for sanctuary. Though Master Xu fretted over food supplies with the Ausländer present, he dared not openly expel anyone. The displaced sheltered in temples and ancestral halls.

With the bandit threat still nebulous, maintaining combat readiness meant no dispersing squads into houses—troops concentrated outdoors instead. The Wuzhou Company settled again on the threshing floor. Several bonfires crackled to life; heavy night dew meant wrapping in blankets.

Xugang sent elderly men and women to assist with water boiling and cooking. With the siege lifted and bandits annihilated, this dinner constituted a "victory feast": not merely sufficient rice, but chickens, ducks, and fresh fish besides.

After a full day of continuous marching and combat, camaraderie among initially estranged comrades deepened significantly. First-battle nervousness evaporated. The soldiers stacked spears and gathered around bonfires, wolfing food while boasting about individual accomplishments and others' foolish blunders—especially the unfortunate souls who'd gone missing during the landing. They'd wandered mountains and riverbanks, exhausted and terrified, barely managing to grope their way to Xugang. One had actually burst into tears upon spotting the Fubo Army sentry at the village entrance.

In fairness, they couldn't be blamed. Getting lost in unfamiliar territory with bandits prowling meant a self-evident fate. During Wuzhou training, they'd heard abundant tales of bandit atrocities. Stragglers, isolated Fubo Army soldiers, lone naturalized cadres... once fallen into bandit hands, death came certain.

Li Pudun demolished the rice in his mess tin like a whirlwind, then returned to the pot and ladled another full measure of vegetable soup.

"Careful eating so much—you'll burst," Luo Mao laughed.

"Wuzhou food was abysmal. Meat's a rarity." Li Pudun smacked his lips. "That gruel was killing me..."

From departing the Guangzhou recruit camp through completing Wuzhou training, the National Army's staple had been "military rations"—predominantly unconsumed refugee relief supplies produced during the Engine Operation. Only starving refugees wouldn't scorn them.

"Uncle, this place of yours is rather nice!" Sated, Li Pudun radiated contentment.

"Without the bandits, it wouldn't be terrible," the old man replied, face bitter. "This bandit trouble means we can't farm peacefully, dare not harvest mulberries, didn't raise silkworms this year. Lost tremendous income, yet our apportioned expenses increased substantially. Life is harsh!"

"Once we eliminate the bandits, life improves, correct?" Luo Mao offered. "The bandits don't seem formidable—pretty weak, actually."

"Sir! You wield guns and cannons—naturally you're fearless. But for common folk, merely hearing 'Great Heaven's Second' feels like encountering ghosts. Though we recruited militia, they're green boys who haven't fought or spilled blood. Without your arrival today, Xugang would've suffered catastrophic disaster!"

He described how bandit turmoil drove neighbors to Xugang—the largest, strongest settlement locally. The village now sheltered several thousand people, predominantly women, children, and elderly. He recounted nearby bandit atrocities, voice thick with indignation and sorrow.

"The dead and wounded, those robbed and violated... though strangers to me, unknown personally—when I consider it, they're ordinary folks like myself who eat, labor, sleep each day. Days pass one by one. Life is bitter, yet at least survivable... Now they're harmed indiscriminately—some lose entire families. Merely thinking about it feels terrible. Common people don't hope for fine clothing and delicacies, just peace! Yet even peace proves so difficult!"

Hearing this, the soldiers sighed repeatedly. Luo Mao quickly consoled him: "Uncle, don't grieve. The Fubo Army is here! Once we exterminate these bandits, everyone can naturally live stably."

"Had the village truly fallen to bandits today, it would've been massacre... such sin..." The old man sighed with profound gratitude. "You've genuinely performed good deeds, accumulated great virtue. Surely blessings await you..."

"You're too kind." The men felt somewhat embarrassed. Yet simultaneously, military honor and responsibility stirred within them for the first time. During political study in the training team, officers had repeatedly taught: "The Fubo Army is the people's own army, cornerstone of defending the country and protecting the people." Everyone merely listened then. Now they suddenly understood—precisely why they'd come here to fight.

"Password!" the threshing floor sentry suddenly challenged.

"Pursuit!" Li Dong's voice answered. The soldiers energized instantly, rising as one. In today's battle, the Right Detachment had earned repeated distinctions. Li Dong's authority now stood firmly established among the troops.

Li Dong and Zhu Si had just attended the officers' conference hosted by Mi Longtao in the Xu Ancestral Hall. Beyond Mi Longtao's Fengchuan forces and their Wuzhou Composite Company, a Sanshui company had also reached Xugang.

This company originally constituted an expeditionary force prepared to reinforce Lianzhou and Hezhou: one Fubo Army infantry platoon plus one National Army squadron. Originally destined for brief rest at Fengchuan County seat before proceeding along the Lian River, they'd received new orders en route. Latest intelligence revealed major bandit concentrations at the Fengchuan-Yu'nan county junction; they were redirected to join the encirclement operation. Consequently, this detachment reached Xugang under fresh orders to rendezvous with Mi Longtao's forces.

Due to this operation, Zhu Si's Wuzhou Composite Company was relieved from patrol escort duties and placed under Mi Longtao's command for clearing operations.

Captured prisoners underwent interrogation by probationary officers accompanying the expedition, yielding valuable intelligence. According to one leader's confession, they'd assembled from disparate locations merely ten days prior. The leadership consisted primarily of local strongmen and bandit "Stronghold Chiefs," responsible for providing pay, grain, and some firearms. Members included local ruffians and bandits, but predominantly scattered Ming army deserters. A Yao contingent existed as well.

"This confirms the intelligence department's theory that current bandit uprisings are politically motivated—someone's secretly inciting and supporting them from behind," Mi Longtao stated at the meeting. "It appears now that convergence trends are emerging between the Yao rebellion in the Eight Row Yao territories and the bandit disturbances throughout the West River basin."

The situation remained tense; the suppression operation demanded urgency. At this moment, Zhu Si attended the combat conference inside the ancestral hall while Li Dong received orders to return, reorganize troops, and prepare for combat.

His mood was anything but relaxed. Today the Composite Company's performance had proven eye-catching, earning unanimous commendation from Mi Longtao and others at the combat conference. But casualty figures told an uglier story: the entire squadron suffered six dead and over twenty wounded. With the Composite Company totaling merely one hundred twenty-odd men, actual casualties exceeded ten percent—deeply unfavorable for a green unit's morale.

Combat had exposed numerous problems. He'd initially suggested Zhu Si convene a company-level after-action review, but Zhu Si showed obvious disinterest. Besides, he needed to remain at headquarters discussing operational details with Mi Longtao and others—so he'd instructed Li Dong to conduct this meeting instead.

In truth, Li Dong had just spent time listening to soldiers' conversations from the shadows. This variety of "eavesdropping" revealed troops' genuine thoughts and morale most faithfully. Having heard their discussions now, he felt his earlier concerns somewhat superfluous. The soldiers apparently hadn't wavered—if anything, their combat appetite had intensified dramatically compared to previous days.

So battle truly does temper troops into steel! Li Dong reflected. In Wuzhou, regardless of training strictness, the men's shipboard behavior had remained unreliable in countless ways. Yet after today's full day of fighting, they'd become markedly calmer, more controlled—like actual soldiers.

(Chapter End)