Chapter 2236 - Taking Up the Post
"Director Zhou," Huang Chao summoned the Lianzhou Prefecture Office director. "Arrange a boat immediately and assign a squad of National Army. Tomorrow at dawn, escort Bi Da to Yangshan to assume her post."
Zhou Liangchen was secretly astonished. He had heard the day before that the Australians had suffered a defeat in Yangshan—the County Magistrate had nearly lost his life. Rushing a new official to take up the post was expected. But at this critical juncture, Elder Huang was appointing a woman—and a Li aborigine at that! The Australians certainly didn't limit themselves when it came to personnel!
Though inwardly skeptical, Zhou Liangchen was shrewd enough. Bi Da might be a woman and a Li tribesperson, but she was an "old naturalized subject" the Elders had brought from Qiongzhou—on the same level as Wang Chuyi or Fu Debang. Her standing in the Elders' eyes was naturally not something a newcomer like himself could compare to.
So he immediately positioned himself appropriately. "A boat is easy—there's a supply convoy going to Yangshan tomorrow. County Magistrate Bi can travel with the convoy. As for the escort, do they stay on or return after delivery?"
"Return after delivery, of course. What I'm short of right now is soldiers..." Huang Chao clutched his hair. Bi Da might have her assignment, but she was a commander without troops—he had nothing to give her.
"I have a few household retainers," Zhou Liangchen said quietly. "All brave fighters. I could send them with County Magistrate Bi. They're not fit for the battlefield, but as escorts—running errands—they'll do."
This reminded Huang Chao: Zhou Liangchen did have about ten retainers—brought from his hometown. Not bad fighters either. Not long ago, when Zhou Liangchen led a bandit-suppression expedition, his retainers—though armed only with spears and sabers—had outperformed the newly reorganized National Army troops converted from Ming deserters.
"Fine. Pick four to accompany County Magistrate Bi." Huang Chao nodded.
Early the next morning, Bi Da set out with her four "guards." Her boat was part of a logistics supply convoy. The convoy captain had offered her a seat on the steam tug—noisy, but armored and armed, far safer. Bi Da declined. The engine noise made it hard for her to think; her head ached. The smell of coal smoke and lubricating oil made her nauseous. Nearly five years with the Australians, and she still couldn't get used to these machines.
She chose one of the towed cargo boats—apparently loaded with grain. A makeshift berth had been set up for her in the hold; she could have rested and slept there. But Bi Da didn't like the cramped, stifling cabin. She preferred to sit in the "watchtower" at the stern—a steel shelter so small it could hold only two people, but able to stop enemy musket balls and arrows. The view was excellent.
The convoy moved downriver with the rumble of the tug, the blue Pole Star flag fluttering from every stern. Mountains stretched endlessly on both banks—peak after peak, as far as the eye could see. The slopes were lush with forest; in the valleys, green paddies and villages dotted the landscape. The North River wound through these mountains and valleys.
In July, northern Guangdong was blazing hot. Every surface in the steel watchtower was scalding to the touch. But Bi Da didn't mind. She had endured far worse. Once, to recruit "raw Li" in the depths of Limu Mountain and the Taiwan aborigines, she had followed work teams into impenetrable primeval jungle—tangled vines underfoot, impassable thickets, sun filtering through only in flecks. The jungle was utterly airless, so hot you could barely breathe. Now, though the steel overhead was scorching, the watchtower was open on all sides, and river breezes blew through, refreshing body and mind.
The river scenery stretched to the horizon; even on a scorching summer day, it lifted the spirits. But Bi Da's feelings were complicated. Though not exactly gloomy, something was nagging at her.
The source of her disquiet was this "appointment." She had never wanted to "hold office"—much less shoulder such a heavy burden. Tasks the Elders gave her she always completed gladly. But that was limited to simple work. Whether chatting with people or mobilizing the masses—whatever she was asked to do, work was a pleasure for her, a way to forget her homeland and pass the time. But she had never wanted to be "in charge"—not even as a "team leader." Alone, she felt she feared nothing; right or wrong, it was her own affair. But once you held a position, it was no longer just your concern—it was the whole team's, the whole department's. You could only succeed, never fail.
Years ago, when she attended basic cadre training, Instructor Dong Weiwei had been puzzled by her resistance to promotion, her refusal of responsible positions, her insistence on remaining a rank-and-file staffer. After much hesitation, Bi Da had said:
"The Elders have said more than once: with great power comes great responsibility. I cannot bear that responsibility."
"Why can't you? You're not who you used to be." Dong Weiwei had tried her best to persuade her. Bi Da was not only a Li tribesperson but a woman—though not "ignorant," she was authentically a "young girl." Her identity alone had landed her on Du Wen's "priority cultivation" list. And her practical work ability was solid: she had participated in nearly every "Li-Miao mission" on Hainan, traveling deep into Limu Mountain to meet with "raw Li" whom even "cooked Li" rarely contacted, doing painstaking groundwork. Her performance was outstanding.
"If I make a mistake, it's not just my problem—others get dragged down." Bi Da said.
"How can anyone not make mistakes? As long as your intentions are good, people can forgive mistakes..."
"Some mistakes ruin a person's entire life—how can they be forgiven?" Bi Da lowered her head. Once, she had been falsely accused of being a jinmu—a forbidden woman—and had nearly lost her life. Though she had escaped with an Elder's help, she had become a wanderer in a foreign land. Kind as the Elders were, caring as her comrades were, the injustice buried deep in her heart still haunted her: I did nothing wrong—why must I roam so far from home?
"Precisely because you are a person of integrity, you need to take up responsibility! Only then can you best protect everyone." Dong Weiwei patted her shoulder. "With great ability comes great responsibility."
Now, she thought of those words again, chewing them over.
With great ability comes great responsibility. Do I really have such ability? She asked herself, feeling dread. The largest area she had ever independently overseen was a single immigrant village on Jeju. Now an entire county had been entrusted to her, and she had no room for error...
Her heart felt heavy. She pulled out the crumpled Yangshan Basic Overview again. Last night, she had already read the thin booklet several times and studied the latest Intelligence Briefing repeatedly. Her Chinese reading comprehension was poor; understanding the material was an effort. But after several passes, she grasped the general picture of what she was about to inherit.
The convoy reached the Yangshan County wharf on the second day. The dock was heavily fortified—sandbag walls, watchtowers, surrounding trenches. The White Horse Squad soldiers escorting the field hospital stood with loaded rifles; the atmosphere was tense. Luo Yiming had received word that the Acting County Magistrate was coming and was waiting anxiously at the dock. But when he saw the new arrival was a young woman, his face fell. He assumed she was a women's-affairs cadre.
"What's this? Didn't the new County Magistrate come?"
"I am the new Acting County Magistrate, Bi Da." She said.
"What—you are the new County Magistrate?!" Luo Yiming was an old naturalized cadre; he had seen plenty of women cadres and was no "rookie" who would gape at a female official. But the new County Magistrate before him was at most twenty-three or twenty-four. Though her expression was steady and experienced, the whites of her eyes still had a youthful tinge; wisps of baby hair stuck out at her temples. She really was a "green teenager"!
"Yes, I am." Bi Da nodded. "You must be Yangshan's Security Section Chief Luo Yiming. Here is my letter of appointment."
"Yes, yes—I am." Luo Yiming's jaw nearly hit the floor. Has Director Huang lost his mind, or could he simply not find anyone? Sending a young girl to be County Magistrate?! True, the Council valued promoting women cadres, but women rarely held important roles in the Council's bureaucracy. Apart from certain professional departments, female cadres were mostly low-ranking. There had never been a woman who held a county magistrate's position—not even among the female Elders of the Council.
With Yangshan's situation hanging by a thread, Director Huang was pulling this stunt! Sweat beaded on Luo Yiming's forehead. He couldn't help muttering: "Ridiculous!"
He said it in his home dialect; Bi Da naturally didn't understand. But the "disapproval" written all over his face told her clearly: she wasn't the person he had been waiting for.
"Let's go." Bi Da said. "I imagine there's a lot of work waiting for us."
However dissatisfied, Luo Yiming couldn't change the situation on the spot. And there was no time to voice objections. Since that was the case, he would just have to shoulder more of the work himself and prop things up for now.
"I've arranged accommodation. You've had a long trip—take a break, freshen up. After lunch, I'll call a meeting of all county cadres."
"I rested last night." Bi Da said. "Let's walk around Yangshan County first. You can brief me along the way."
(End of Chapter)