Chapter 2237 - Boosting Morale
The request was perfectly reasonable. Luo Yiming escorted the new female County Magistrate on a circuit of the city walls while she questioned him in detail about the situation in Yangshan.
"The situation is very bad." Luo Yiming spoke heavily.
The prestige the Fubo Army had earned liberating Yangshan had been wiped out by this defeat. Particularly damaging was Wang Chuyi's crippling injury, which Sun Dabiao had loudly proclaimed as "slain in battle." He had cut off the head of a dead National Army soldier, preserved it in lime, and hung the head-box at Dalang Market. Though Wang Chuyi hadn't lost his head, he was gravely wounded and still in critical condition—unable to come out and deny it.
Local villages and hamlets—Yao and Han alike—had begun to doubt the newly arrived "Great Song" in the county seat. How long could this blue starry flag really last? On top of that, bandits flying the "Great Ming" banner were spreading the word everywhere: "The officials are coming back!" The situation, which had been more or less pacified, was once again precarious.
"Many of the Han villages in the county are clan settlements. Whether they side with us will make or break our foothold here. Though they've officially switched allegiance, they're stalling on every request we make. Things are very unfavorable."
This stonewalling had left the already weakened Yangshan county government paralyzed—their orders went no further than the county seat. Under the original plan, the county was to rely heavily on village militia for bandit suppression and restoring order. Now those villages had slammed their doors. The county couldn't mobilize their able-bodied men or collect grain. Luo Yiming watched helplessly as Sun Dabiao and his "official bandits" paraded through the countryside, brazenly flying the Great Ming banner, openly levying grain and conscripting men from village after village. The bandit forces snowballed larger by the day.
"Most worrying is that bandits are now flowing in from other counties. Someone seems to be coordinating them. Everyone we've sent out comes back saying—" Luo Yiming took a deep breath. "Our situation is extremely unfavorable. Morale is shaky; there have been desertions. If this weren't such a remote place—if men weren't afraid of being beheaded by bandits on the road—we'd probably have lost half by now."
Bi Da rested her hand on a battlement and gazed outside. "How many troops do we still have?"
"One National Army squadron, plus about thirty survivors from the shattered Second Squadron and the Yao squadron. And a few dozen wounded who can't fight yet." Luo Yiming said. "There's also a Li-Miao Mountain Company in the city and a White Horse Squad platoon escorting the field hospital—but we can't command those..."
"Director Huang has authorized me." Bi Da said. "The Mountain Company is now under county command."
"Really?! That's wonderful." Luo Yiming's worried face relaxed slightly. Frankly, he had little faith in the National Army squadron—only a few months old—for anything beyond defending the county seat.
"Yes. With that company, we can do a great deal." Bi Da had already drafted a plan of action on the boat. "How are the Yonghua Yao? Still stable?"
"No problem. Pan Tianshun wants to return to Yonghua—says he'll raise forces there to fight Sun Dabiao..." Luo Yiming gave a brief summary of Pan Tianshun's situation. "I think the Yonghua Yao are still reliable. They lost many at Dalang Market and are sworn enemies of the bandits."
Bi Da shook her head. She wasn't so optimistic. It was true the Yonghua Yao had a vendetta with Sun Dabiao, but that didn't mean they were loyal to the Council. Though she wasn't Yao, she knew exactly how headmen and chiefs thought. They never trusted any government—never took officialdom seriously. They lived by a simple principle: when the officials are strong, submit; when the officials are weak, cause trouble. Now that the Council's position in Yangshan had weakened, they might not join hands with Sun Dabiao—but the odds of rebuilding an alliance with the Eight Ranks Yao were rising fast.
"Is Pan Tianshun still in the county seat?"
"He was eager to leave, but he's got a leg wound and can't travel." Luo Yiming said. "He'll head back to Yonghua once he's healed."
"Comrade Luo, once he leaves, I don't think he's coming back." Bi Da said. "He may go raise troops to fight Sun Dabiao—but whether he'll return is another matter."
"You mean...?"
"Pan Tianshun is unreliable." Bi Da looked out at the wilderness beyond the walls. "If we can just keep them from rejoining hands with the Eight Ranks Yao, that's already a win."
This made Luo Yiming nervous. "You're saying...?"
"Mm." Bi Da's mood dipped. On the boat, she had run through the county's situation many times. Each time, the difficulties seemed insurmountable—no obvious place to start.
Suddenly, a cannon roared a few li away. Fire flashed and a column of smoke rose. Startled, Bi Da strained her eyes: it looked like a village.
"It happens almost every day now." Luo Yiming was used to it. "Bandits harassing villages near the county seat. Forcing them to hand over grain..."
"Don't you send troops to help?"
Luo Yiming smiled bitterly. "If we sortie in force, they run the moment they see us—they've got spies planted right below the walls. If we send a small party, they ambush us there—killing or wounding a few is worth it to them. We only have so many men; we can't afford this attrition. Fortunately, they don't commit large numbers either—just harassment. One cannon shot and they scatter." He signaled, and someone lit a "Great General Cannon" on the wall. The boom and dense smoke followed.
"Let's go to the county government." Bi Da said. "I want to meet the key cadres."
"There are two Elders at the field hospital—shouldn't you report in first, brief them...?"
"I have nothing to brief them on yet. As for reporting in, I can do that after the meeting." Bi Da said.
Luo Yiming inwardly clicked his tongue: This Li barbarian woman really is barbaric!
Bi Da then convened all National Army officers at platoon level and above, along with every naturalized cadre in the county and the activists among the retained Ming personnel.
The arrival of a new County Magistrate dispelled some of the gloom. Not only did all those who should attend show up, but You Ciren—still hospitalized—came as well. Only Zhen Huan was absent: he was on wall duty.
"Comrades, I've got a preliminary grasp of the county's situation. It's grim." Bi Da said. "It's like being an animal caught in a trap. Everyone's anxious..."
She saw that most of the attendees were in low spirits. She was anxious too—but she didn't have the Elders' gift for a few magic words that could lift everyone's mood. She had watched that skill countless times but had never learned how to hit that nerve in just a few sentences. She thought a moment, then suddenly smiled.
"Look at you! Heads hanging, dejected. One lost battle and you've forgotten how to act like men? You resent Director Huang for sending a woman to be County Magistrate—then show me you can act like men!"
Luo Yiming hurried to say, "That's not it at all! Man or woman, we absolutely obey the Council's orders." He turned around. "Right, everyone?"
A ragged chorus of agreement. A few faces brightened.
Bi Da spoke sincerely. "Comrades! Elder Huang entrusted me with this post of Acting County Magistrate. I came empty-handed—shoulders carrying a mouth, nothing more. I brought no troops, no supplies. I'm counting on your help and support. Give me guidance, pitch in with ideas—only by working together can we hold our ground in Yangshan, keep the bandits from pushing us out, and eventually govern this county the Council's way."
She glanced at the cadres in the room. Suddenly she felt more grounded. She continued:
"You've been in Yangshan for a while now. Some of you are locals. Whether you came from Hainan, Guangzhou, or were born here, we're all in the same boat with the Council of Elders. We all came from hardship—pulled out of the sea of suffering by the Council, sent to school, shaped into people, given food and proper clothes, made cadres. Now the Council needs us. We can't shrink back at the first difficulty. Isn't that right?"
"That's right!"
"Our situation is difficult. But it's not hopeless. The Mountain Company has been placed under county command—an elite unit; mountain warfare and bandit hunting are their specialty. They're small, but used well, they're more flexible and effective than a big force. Besides, we've got two Elders right here in the county—they can guide us at any time. And the field hospital and White Horse Squad they brought—other counties couldn't beg for such things! What is there to worry about?"
This speech genuinely brightened quite a few faces—With Elders in Yangshan County, what's there to fear? Even if the sky falls, the Council won't abandon Yangshan!
"County Magistrate, just tell us—what do we do next? We're with you!" You Ciren was the first to declare. The rest echoed.
"You're all looking at me, hoping I've got some brilliant plan. I already said—I came to Yangshan with nothing but four guards—and those were loaned by Zhou Liangchen. I'm a woman; I grew up in a mountain village—limited experience. When I was sent to study, my head always hurt, so I didn't learn much. I've worked for the Council a long time, true, but I've never been a county magistrate—I was only a village head in a temporary posting. But look how many of us there are. Many of you are well-read, experienced, with lots of practical work under your belts. Many hands make light work. Put your heads together—who knows, maybe we'll find a good solution."
(End of Chapter)