Chapter 88: The Sweet Harbor Tempest - Burning the Temple

Xu Yingjie said, “This equipment hasn’t been tested in combat yet. I heard there was an operation in Leizhou, so I brought it along. You can all rest assured, the weapons have been tested many times. They are quite mature.”

Chang Shide said, “We have an operation coming up. Some of these things can be tested.” He turned to look at Bei Wei.

Bei Wei nodded. “Good.”

“As for the others, the sleeve arrow concept is not bad, but it feels a bit dangerous,” Chen Tianxiong mused. “It can be an emergency weapon for my subordinates. I need five sets of chainmail vests. I have my own protection, but the others at the sugar factory don’t. I’ll take them for them.”

“We can’t make too many chainmail vests right now due to material constraints. We only have two sets. I brought four sets of sleeve arrows, which we can equip our men with first.”

In the middle of the night, the moon had already moved to the west, hidden by floating clouds. Everything on the ground was in a state of semi-darkness. The dew on the ground had already dampened the clothes of the group of people gathered in the courtyard. The sweat on Li Yunsheng’s body felt a little cold in the breeze.

Seeing that the moon had passed its zenith, he felt uneasy and kept looking towards Xuwen County.

Li Yunsheng was one of the few native members of the special reconnaissance team that Bei Wei had brought from Lingao. Like the army and navy, the special reconnaissance team had also begun to recruit native soldiers. The recruitment standards were particularly strict. First, they had to be orphans with no ties. Second, they had to be young; anyone over fourteen was not accepted. Those with a tendency to wander, slow reactions, or who were too clever were all rejected. Finally, they had to pass a series of physical and skill tests. They were truly the cream of the crop, selected from a hundred. Apart from drill and cultural classes, which were handled by the military and political school, the rest of their training was conducted within the special reconnaissance team. They ate, lived, and trained with the transmigrator members of the team to foster a strong sense of belonging and camaraderie.

Bei Wei instructed his team members, “You must treat the cadets as your own sons and brothers! They are not only the future seeds of the special reconnaissance team but also the future guards of the transmigrator regime!”

These cadets had only been training for three months, and their missions were mainly reconnaissance. This was Li Yunsheng’s first time on a solo mission.

He had disguised himself as a betel nut vendor and had been calling out his wares all the way from Xuwen County to Haian Street. To avoid suspicion, he continued until the afternoon, finally circling around to the Zou Heshang Temple. Using the pretext of selling betel nuts, he had surveyed the entire area, inside and out. As per his training, he memorized the building structure and all the entrances and exits. Afterwards, he returned to Haian Street and rested in a dilapidated temple. He only came out after it was completely dark and waited at the crossroads.

According to the plan, at midnight, Chief Bei would personally lead a team to meet him, and then they would act based on his intelligence.

As he was getting anxious, a line of figures came walking swiftly along the ridge of a field. Faintly visible on their arms were white cloth strips—the recognition signal. He quickly asked:

“Password?”

“Eradicate!” It was Bei Wei’s voice. He had indeed come in person.

The team consisted of fifteen men, some from the group Bei Wei had brought from Lingao last time, and some new arrivals. They were full of spirit and courage. Xu Yingjie had also come along to observe the effectiveness of the weapons in the field.

They gathered in a circle, hiding in a mass grave by the roadside. Li Yunsheng reported the intelligence he had gathered during the day and drew a rough map of the Zou Heshang Temple on the ground with a branch and small stones.

According to Li Yunsheng’s description, the Zou Heshang Temple was quite large, with four courtyards in total.

“The ruffians are all gathered in the halls and under the eaves of the first courtyard,” Li Yunsheng gestured. “So after dark, the temple keeper closes the gate to the second courtyard. The main gate is closed later. Besides the main gate, there is a back door, but it doesn’t connect to the front courtyard.”

Based on his intelligence, Bei Wei quickly formulated a plan. He divided the fifteen men into four groups, assigned each group its combat tasks, and then strictly laid down the rules: “This is near Haian Street. Unless absolutely necessary, do not fire. Use knives and crossbows to resolve the battle as much as possible. Do not leave anything behind!”

“Move out!” Bei Wei pulled down his hood.

With Li Yunsheng as their guide, they walked with Bei Wei at the front, following the vegetable gardens, wheat fields, small ditches, graves, and trees on the outskirts of Haian Street, until they reached a collapsed pavilion north of the Zou Heshang Temple. The team members quietly took cover and observed the temple. Under the moonlight, obscured by floating clouds, the surroundings were clearly visible.

The temple gate was half-open, and two ruffians, probably drunk, were sleeping soundly on the threshold. Faint lights could be seen from within.

Bei Wei carefully observed the surroundings with the only infrared binoculars they had. Although the Zou Heshang Temple was in Haian Street, it was actually at the end of the street. The area was very desolate, with vegetable plots and mass graves everywhere. Only the open ground in front of the temple looked somewhat decent, with many small stalls set up—now it was midnight, and the stalls were naturally empty.

A few minutes later, the temple gate suddenly opened, and two men came out, each carrying something on their backs. They looked around furtively and then headed towards their hiding place.

The two men slipped to the edge of the vegetable garden, and seeing no one around, they straightened up and walked over nonchalantly. Just as they reached the corner, two team members who had been hiding there pounced from behind, grabbing them around the waist. The two ruffians were shocked. They were about to shout when their throats were seized. They were dragged behind a grave, the tips of daggers pressed against their chests.

The two ruffians, terrified, fell back against the grave. Thinking they were being robbed, they begged for mercy, “Spare us, Your Majesty! We have a few taels of silver on us. It’s all for you.”

“No talking!” a team member brandished his dagger.

“Are you Zhao Jijiao’s men?”

The two men exchanged a glance, seeming to have realized who their attackers were. One of them had already lost most of his fear and said with a sycophantic smile, “I was wondering who it was. So it’s Huanan’s—”

With a flick of his wrist, Bei Wei’s dagger plunged into his chest. The man’s eyes widened in disbelief, and he died instantly.

A foul smell immediately filled the air. The other man had lost control of his bladder.

“Are you Zhao Jijiao’s man?”

“Yes, yes, I am.”

The terrified ruffian quickly answered, no longer daring to put on his usual nonchalant gangster act.

“What are you doing out in the middle of the night?”

“Going to set fire to Huanan.”

A search of their belongings confirmed this. Each man was carrying a bundle of firewood soaked in oil and had a tinderbox.

“Who sent you?”

“It was… it was our boss.”

“Zhao Jijiao?”

“Yes, yes, it was him.”

“Who gave you the money for the arson?”

“Zhao Jijiao said it was from Third Master Zhu.”

“How much did he give?”

“We don’t know. Zhao Jijiao handles all the money. We get one tael for each arson attempt. If we burn something down, we get another ten taels!”

The pay was quite good. Bei Wei listened to the interrogation. Third Master Zhu, you are truly generous.

“Where is Zhao Jijiao?”

“He’s… he’s in the front hall, gambling.”

“How many people are inside?”

“About twenty.”

“Are they all inside?”

“One of them went out to set a fire yesterday and hasn’t come back! And a few others are out drinking.”

“How many haven’t come back?”

“Three or four. People come and go. I don’t know everyone. Please have mercy, sir!”

“Does Zhao Jijiao have any acquaintances or friends outside?”

“Just a whore he’s fond of. He goes to see her sometimes.”

Seeing that the interrogation was more or less over, Bei Wei nodded. The interrogator pushed his dagger forward, finishing him off.

They stripped the bodies and threw them into a deep pit in the mass grave, where unclaimed bodies were often discarded. The group then headed straight for the Zou Heshang Temple. Bei Wei left one man on guard outside the temple and led seven men to climb the north wall using a human ladder. They walked along the top of the wall, climbed a large pine tree, and slipped into the back of the first courtyard of the temple.

The front hall was small and rather dilapidated, a stark contrast to the halls behind it. A high courtyard wall separated the front and back. This was because the first courtyard had long been a gathering place for beggars, idlers, and ruffians. To give these people a place to shelter from the wind and rain and to avoid trouble, the first courtyard was abandoned during the renovation. The three courtyards behind it were directly renovated and expanded. With the gate between them closed, they formed a self-contained unit.

From the windows of the front hall, light shone out, and the sounds of gambling and drunken ramblings could be heard. This group certainly knew how to enjoy their nightlife.

At the base of the gable wall, piles of dry firewood and baskets of clear oil were stacked, along with bamboo torches from a general store. The heads of these torches were treated to ignite easily and burn for a long time.

Bei Wei and his men followed the gable wall and approached the door. Squatting in the shadows, they looked inside. The front hall had no statues left, only an empty pedestal and an incense table. A group of people was gathered around, shouting and yelling while gambling. The floor on both sides was covered with straw, where some people were sleeping.

Along the walls were many clubs of various sizes, their weapons. Causing injury with a blade was a serious crime, and the ruffians were very legally aware. They would never be caught with such evidence, so they only ever used clubs when committing violence.

He quickly confirmed that Zhao Jijiao was in the crowd. To catch the leader, he had to be eliminated. He withdrew, raised his hand, and gave a signal. Two team members quickly rushed to the main gate, silently dispatched the men sleeping on the threshold, dragged their bodies inside, and threw them at the base of the gable wall. Several others were busy around the area.

“Go!”

The four windows of the hall were smashed simultaneously, and four incendiary grenades were thrown in. These were the Molotov cocktails of this time, renamed Xu Yingjie cocktails in recognition of his great self-sacrifice in concocting this disgusting mixture.

The porcelain bottles shattered on the ground, and flames immediately erupted. This fire not only burned at an extremely high temperature but was also highly adhesive. It could even burn on a steel plate until the fuel was exhausted, making it much more effective than simply throwing torches.

One of the first few grenades landed on the straw bedding, and the flames shot up instantly. Before the people inside could react, a second batch of grenades was thrown in. One landed directly on the gambling table, and the burning mixture splashed onto the people, immediately setting them on fire. Screams of pain and cries for help filled the air.

“Quick, put out the fire!”

“It’s burning, it’s burning!”

“Get water!”

In the chaos, more bamboo tubes were thrown in. They burst on the ground, and a gray powder exploded everywhere. The choking smell of pepper made everyone inside cough and sneeze, and the scene became even more chaotic.

“Someone’s crashing the party! Grab your weapons!” Zhao Jijiao reacted quickly. He kicked over the burning table, covered his nose with his sleeve, and quickly broke away from the crowd to grab a club. Just then, a large, dark object was thrown in through the window. It landed at the base of the wall and shattered, splashing a liquid all over him.

Zhao Jijiao licked it. It was oil!

This was the very clear oil he had bought to set fire to Huanan!

His mind raced. This was giving them a taste of their own medicine. It had to be Huanan’s men!

They’re trying to burn us alive!

At this thought, Zhao Jijiao was terrified. He forgot about grabbing a club and shouted, “Everyone, run! Huanan’s men are—”

Before he could finish the word “here,” more grenades were thrown in. One landed right next to him. The splashing, high-temperature flames ignited the surrounding clear oil. He screamed as he was engulfed in flames.

The quickest had already run to the door of the hall, only to find that it was already on fire. Sometime during the chaos, dry firewood had been piled up at the entrance and was now burning fiercely. The bravest tried to rush out but were shot back by the men waiting outside with crossbows. The man hit by the arrow fell directly into the fire and, with a final scream, stopped moving.

The dry firewood and clear oil piled at the base of the gable wall were ignited. The sea breeze fanned the flames, and the entire front hall was soon engulfed in fire.

The fire grew larger and larger. The screams and cries for help were carried far by the wind, but it was some distance from Haian Street. It was the middle of the night, and the local fire brigade would not dare to go out alone.

Bei Wei listened. In the distance, the emergency fire gong was ringing loudly. The local militia must be assembling.

It would take at least five minutes to run here from Haian Street. By the time they had assembled and set out, his men would be long gone.

Bei Wei asked, “Has the fire spread to the back?”

“No,” a team member reported. “There’s some distance, and the wall between is a fire-break wall. They probably anticipated a fire in the front courtyard when they built it.”

“Hmm,” Bei Wei grunted. That was for the best. It wasn’t about protecting historical relics, but the Zou Heshang Temple had been jointly repaired by the sugar merchants of Haian. Burning it down completely would be too much of a shock for everyone.

“Did anyone come out from the back?”

“I hear some movement, but no one has opened the door! It seems someone is pouring water on the door from behind!”

This was a measure to prevent the fire from spreading. That they didn’t come out was a relief to Bei Wei. He didn’t want to kill unnecessarily.

Seeing that the fire was now very large and the sounds from inside had gradually died down, he waved his hand. “Withdraw!”