Chapter Eighty-Three: Consecrating the Flag and Starting the War

At this time, the sky was already bright. The main civil and military officials and local celebrities of Qiongzhou Prefecture and Hainan Circuit arrived one after another. Sedan chairs and horses arrived continuously. The area around the earthen platform became a gathering place for gauze hats and square scarves. They must have felt very honored and excited to be present at today’s grand ceremony. While exchanging reserved greetings, they stretched their necks to look around, waiting for the appearance of the commander-in-chief.

On the earthen platform, two tiger-skin chairs had already been placed. One was the seat of He Rubin, the general-in-chief of Guangdong, and the other was the seat of Zhao Ruyi, the Left Political Commissioner and Sub-prefect of Hainan, who was also the military supervisor.

Suddenly, a blast of horns sounded, and the retinues of He Rubin and Zhao Ruyi began to enter the drill ground. The two dismounted in front of the earthen platform and ascended the platform, surrounded by a large entourage.

Around the earthen platform were He Rubin’s personal generals, personal guards, and family retainers, numbering three or four hundred in total. They were all wearing helmets and armor, with their swords and spears neatly arranged, ready for battle. He Rubin and Zhao Ruyi, surrounded by their generals and staff, had already taken their seats in the armchairs in the center. He Rubin was leaning sideways and saying something to Zhao Ruyi. Zhao Ruyi, on the other hand, sat impassively, slightly raising his long, thin face, stroking his three strands of beard, and only nodding slightly, appearing cold and conceited. On their two sides, according to the custom of civil on the left and military on the right, stood two rows of higher-ranking civil and military officials and staff. As usual, they all stood with their hands down and their breath held, putting on a respectful and solemn appearance.

On the drill ground, many troops had already gathered. The local gentry who had been invited stroked their beards and let out cries of amazement. They whispered and pointed at the various flags fluttering on the drill ground, and no one could figure out how many troops there were.

The older ones among them could still vaguely remember the grand occasion of the government army crossing the sea to suppress the pirates during the campaign against Ma Shi in the Wanli era. This time, it seemed no less than that of that year—the government army was said to have 50,000 troops crossing the sea.

Apart from He Rubin’s town standard and family retainers, and a part of the provincial and commandery standards, a total of four commandants and one guerrilla general of the Guangdong Ming army had arrived in Qiongshan: the commandant of Chaozhou, the commandant of Qiongya, the commandant of Leilian, the commandant of Chaozhou, and the guerrilla general of the Guangdong training troops.

These five generals were different from the empty-headed vice-generals, commandants, and guerrilla generals that were becoming increasingly common in the late Ming Dynasty. They were all genuine military officials with their own defense areas and titles. Basically, all the main forces in Guangdong, except for the commandants of the east and west mountains who were defending against the Yao, had been mobilized. The officials, gentry, and common people of Qiongzhou had not seen such a formation for decades.

Gou Chengxuan watched from a distance on the hillside. His position was high, and he could see very clearly. While he was watching, he heard someone shouting repeatedly,

“Injustice! Injustice! I am a good commoner!”

He was slightly startled and turned his head. It turned out to be a few prisoners who had been stripped to the waist, tied up, and covered with torture marks. They were being escorted by a few soldiers and driven towards the drill ground. They stumbled along, shouting as they went.

“I am just an ordinary merchant. I only went to Lingao to buy some needles and thread. I beg your lordship to spare my life!”

“I am not a spy, I am wronged, I am wronged!”

Gou Chengxuan thought they had caught a spy, but the old soldier behind him whispered: “They are being taken to be beheaded to consecrate the flag.” Then he sighed, “I heard they are all small merchants who were arrested because they had been to Lingao.”

“Oh, so they were doing business with the bandits! They deserve to be killed!” Gou Chengxuan suddenly screamed. If it weren’t for so many people being greedy for the small profits of the bandits, how could the bandits have become so rampant and gathered more than ten thousand men? He had heard that when the Gou family village was breached, many people from the Salt Field Village had also gone to help the bandits move their military equipment. After the fortress was breached, they had a share in moving the property of the Gou family village and even dismantling the houses. This time when he returned to Lingao, he must slaughter the entire Salt Field Village, leaving no one alive! He thought to himself, not even the women should be allowed to live!

“Although it’s a bit of an injustice, they brought it on themselves!” a voice said from not far away. Gou Chengxuan turned his head and saw that it was Qian Taichong, a staff member of Zhao Ruyi. Gou Chengxuan quickly flattered him: “What you say is absolutely right, brother!”

Qian Taichong snorted coldly. He did not think much of this former scholar. He did not go to the drill ground today—his title was too low, and he had no official position. If he went to the drill ground, he could only stand far away and wait on them. Qian Taichong was a proud person, how could he bear such contempt? He might as well just watch the fun in this central army camp.

He had always had a high opinion of himself. He knew that Zhao Ruyi was willing to hire him as a staff member not because he admired his moral character and literary talent, but because he had to give face to the introduction of a fellow countryman. When he first arrived in this southern barbarian land of Qiongzhou, before he could think of any measures to show his skills and make people look at him in a new light, he was sent to Guangzhou by Political Commissioner Zhao—obviously, he was not taken seriously.

In several meetings on the strategy of suppressing the bandits, Qian Taichong had been eager to try, wanting to offer a few plans to win the admiration of others. But he had no military experience to speak of, nor had he read any military books. Even if he was just talking on paper, he was not up to the task. He could only talk about things like popular sentiment and the hearts of the people, which made everyone very annoyed with him.

He was originally too lazy to bother with people like Gou Chengxuan, but he was determined to make a name for himself in the post-war affairs of Lingao, so he had to be polite to this rare native of Lingao.

“They are just greedy for some small profits, so they go to Lingao to do business. To insist that they are spies of the bandits is indeed a bit too much,” Qian Taichong said. “However, as the saying goes, the common people in the countryside fear punishment, so they must be intimidated with severe punishment! If they are allowed to follow the trend and seek profit without being punished, other foolish people will regard the government as soft and easy to bully, and will follow their example. In less than a year and a half, the hearts of the people will surely change greatly. Before the bandits even rebel, Qiongzhou will no longer be ours!”

He spoke with such heroic spirit, and Gou Chengxuan could only listen respectfully. He very much agreed with the point that the common people feared punishment and pursued profit. He was just thinking about what to say to please him when the sound of the signal cannon sounded again.

The few prisoners just now were pushed and shoved to the foot of the flagpole on the drill ground. These common people, some were small merchants who traveled to and from Lingao, and some were people who had carelessly said a few good words about the bandits in Qiongshan. They were all arrested as spies of the bandits.

They were ordered to kneel down. A few executioners came over. With the sound of the signal cannon, a few bloody heads fell to the ground one by one and were placed at the foot of the flagpole.

Immediately after, twenty-four large military drums began to beat. The sound of the drums was low and deep, and the rhythm was simple and unadorned, but it had a power that was awe-inspiring. When the drumming reached a climax, even the heavens and the earth seemed to shake. With the soul-stirring sound of the drums and the sudden sound of the horns, a red flag was raised on the commander’s platform.

The army, which had gathered in the distance like a dark cloud, began to move slowly. Like the faint rumble of thunder before a storm, the sound of the soldiers’ footsteps became magnificent. The executioners with their large swords, the archers with their bows and arrows, the spearmen with their long spears pointing diagonally to the sky, the musketeers carrying three-eyed muskets and muskets… one team after another, they marched forward in a certain formation, with neat steps. Countless flags fluttered in the dust kicked up by the soldiers.

The horns wailed, and the drums rumbled. The troops participating in the military review were the most elite part of the Ming army crossing the sea, a total of seven thousand men. Their armor was neat, and their equipment was excellent. They had a bit of an overwhelming momentum.

This was the first time in his life that Qian Taichong had participated in such a large-scale military review. He couldn’t help but feel excited, and his heart also trembled slightly with nervousness. He clenched the fan in his hand and stared at the marching troops in the dust.

This army is still capable of fighting! Qian Taichong thought, the court still has elite soldiers and good generals. The government troops he had seen on his journey as a private secretary were either tired and lazy soldiers or arrogant and fierce generals. Now that he saw such an elite force, he was greatly relieved about this suppression of the bandits and felt that victory was only a matter of time.

“Everyone is saying that the bandits’ discipline is strict and their formations are neat. I don’t think it’s that great. They may not be able to defeat the elite troops under the command of General He!”

“Yes, apart from their guns and firearms, the bandits are not skilled in striking and marching. They are just relying on their strong ships and sharp cannons,” Gou Chengxuan was also shocked by this impressive grand review. Half of what he said was to flatter Qian Taichong, and half was his true thoughts. Seeing the great momentum of the army, Gou Chengxuan felt that it was no problem to wipe out all the ugly bandits.

After the military review, a yellow flag was raised on the general’s platform, and the drums rumbled again. All the soldiers suddenly let out a deafening shout. With a sound of a gong, the drill ground immediately became silent again.

“They are going to practice formations!” Qian Taichong said excitedly.

In a short while, a commandant hurried to the commander’s platform and presented a booklet of formations to Zhao Ruyi with both hands.

The drums beat rapidly again. The troops, which were originally arranged in a square formation, began to run rapidly, and the square formation turned into a long snake-like column in a flash. Qian Taichong saw that this change in formation was not only rapid, but also orderly and not chaotic at all. He couldn’t help but secretly exclaim: “Good!” General He was indeed a veteran general, and his troops were indeed elite!

Then, with the changes in the gongs, drums, and flags, these thousands of troops constantly changed their formations and practiced formations. The sound of the drums rose and fell, and the formations also changed again and again. Sometimes it was a long snake formation, sometimes a two-element formation, sometimes a taiji formation, sometimes a chain formation, sometimes a wheel formation… they changed more than a dozen styles in a row. Thousands of soldiers in helmets and armor, carrying weapons, ran back and forth in the dust for almost an hour.

Qian Taichong’s eyes were opened, and his interest grew higher and higher. A heroic and奮發 feeling arose in his heart, and he couldn’t help but shout: “Please go up to the Lingyan Pavilion for a while, if a scholar becomes a marquis of ten thousand households!”

Gou Chengxuan was startled by him, thinking that he had gone mad. He quickly moved a few steps away.

The drill continued.

…

Just as they were watching with fascination, on a mountain not far away, a large high-power telescope was also watching the lively scene on the drill ground.

One after another, telegrams were continuously transmitted to the field army headquarters in Maniao via radio.

“The total size of the enemy army is 22,000. The main force is about 8,000.”

“The enemy army includes about 2,000 village braves.”

“Twenty Hongyi cannons.”

…

A camera with a high-power telephoto lens filmed the entire training process of the government army. That night, He Ming and all the officers above the battalion level in the headquarters in Maniao watched the video U-disk sent by the special reconnaissance team members. Two team members had rushed from Qiongshan to Chengmai on foot at a rapid pace, and then Yu Zhiqian had personally driven a motorcycle to deliver it to Maniao.

As the spectacular military drill appeared on the screen, everyone gradually became engrossed and began to discuss:

“So spectacular! What ancient costume blockbuster, it’s a hundred thousand miles away!” Dongmen Chuiyu said in amazement.

“Yeah, just the scene of beheading is very spectacular. Five people’s heads fell off at once! It’s just like killing a chicken!”

“He Rubin’s main force is still very elite! The formation is not bad, but it’s still not neat enough.”

“This large-scale group exercise is far worse than North Korea’s.”

…

After everyone had discussed for a while, they believed that the individual quality of the Ming army was still acceptable, and the overall morale of the army was not bad, but the content of the training was obviously outdated and old-fashioned.

“They are still playing with formation changes like group exercises. In fact, things like the long snake formation are not very useful even in this time and space. They are purely formal. As for things like human pyramids and somersaults, they are basically the same as acrobatics.”

“No matter what they practice, according to the people in the Grand Library, after the grand military review and flag consecration, the dispatch of troops is just around the corner. We should also move out,” He Ming said. “Tomorrow, breakfast will be supplied according to the A-class standard! We will set off at 6 a.m. sharp. Now let’s synchronize our watches,” he said, raising his hand.

“Everyone, go and rest quickly. There are still a few hours before dawn to have a good sleep. We have many things to do in Chengmai tomorrow. Dismissed!”

At 5:30 in the morning, He Ming got up from his straw mat and put on his clothes. The orderly brought him water to wash his face. After washing his face and brushing his teeth, he quickly ate the porridge brought by the orderly. As soon as he finished breakfast, he immediately ordered: “Beat the drums and blow the horns!”

Immediately after, the drummer on duty outside his tent beat the drum to give the order. In an instant, the sound of military horns and war drums resounded through the sky. The entire Maniao camp boiled with activity.

Five minutes later, the drumbeat for “loading the carts” sounded. In an instant, the tents of the officers and soldiers were all taken down and rolled up. Ten minutes later, the vanguard beat the combat march drum—the 1st infantry battalion had already set off.

The soldiers marched continuously for five hours, and the stragglers were picked up by the rear guard. At noon, they took a short break by the roadside to eat lunch. Everyone ate dry rations. Twenty minutes later, the troops continued to advance. At more than five o’clock in the afternoon, the sea breeze brought a mouth-watering aroma of food.

The navy’s ships had sent the field kitchens to the Chengmai main camp a few hours in advance. Now on the leveled ground, the field kitchens were puffing out wisps of green smoke, and the tightly covered insulated pots were giving off the aroma of rice and “stew”—the latter was a stew of various vegetables and meat.

The exhausted soldiers smelled the aroma of the food and their spirits were lifted. They quickened their pace and came to the pre-set camp.

After the staff department had decided on the plan for the battle of Chengmai, the other companies of You Laohu that had been left in Maniao all moved to the foot of Chengmai County town and formed an encirclement of Chengmai. The engineering team began large-scale battlefield construction activities, and a camp that could accommodate ten thousand people was already ready.

Tian Liang led his company into the camp. He had been promoted to second lieutenant in this expansion of the army. Although it had been less than three years from his enlistment to becoming a second lieutenant, which was like riding a rocket in the eyes of the Transmigration Group, in his opinion, his promotion was already as slow as it could be.

Of the same batch back then, the fastest, Ruan Xiao’er, was already a navy second lieutenant. Even among the same batch of people who were promoted to corporal in the army, many had long since been promoted to army second lieutenant, but it was never his turn to be promoted to an officer.

An officer was of course better than a non-commissioned officer. Not only was the treatment a grade different, but the status when going out was also different. Just the clanging officer’s command sword hanging on the waist would make everyone on the street take a few more glances. Tian Liang had always wanted to be able to hang a command sword and go to the Bairen General Hospital to see Guo Fu. In his heart, he had long regarded Guo Fu as his wife.

But in the past two years or so, apart from a few chance encounters on the road, he had not seen this partner who had once wandered and begged with him again, and he had not even spoken a word to her. Tian Liang felt that every time he met Guo Fu, she was more beautiful than before. Especially that slim-fitting blue dress, which outlined her exquisite figure, had kept Tian Liang awake for several nights.

He began to feel ashamed of himself, feeling that he was just a small non-commissioned officer and was not worthy of Guo Fu. He was more eager than ever to become an officer.

Although Tian Liang’s desire to be promoted was very strong, he also knew that his learning ability was too poor. He couldn’t even memorize a copy of the “Infantry Drill Manual,” and his military skills assessment was always at the bottom. If it weren’t for this expansion of the army, who knows when his eternal sergeant rank would end.

He was not afraid of fighting the government army at all. Tian Liang had been in the Fubo Army for more than two years and clearly knew that the Fubo Army’s advantages were far beyond what the government army could compare to. The soldiers under him had been trained for a considerable period of time, were familiar with their weapons, and were full of confidence in this powerful weapon. They had also been repeatedly brainwashed by Wei Aiwen and others, and had been instilled with a strong sense of “not forgetting the well-digger when drinking water,” and deeply understood that defending the Lingao regime was defending their own interests. And the widely publicized stories of the government army’s defeats in Liaodong and the interior, as well as their robbery and killing of the innocent for merit, made the soldiers both hate and despise the government army.

After being promoted to an officer, the first time he hung a command sword and put on the officer’s epaulets, he excitedly went to the Bairen General Hospital to find Guo Fu, only to be told that Guo Fu had already been transferred to Sanya.

This news made him depressed for a long time. He knew that Sanya was at the southernmost tip of Hainan Island, several hundred li away from here. Even by boat, it would take seven days. He was a soldier, and without leave, it was impossible to go to such a faraway place.

So he had to give up the idea of meeting Guo Fu.

This time, when he was going to fight the government army, he decided to make a merit no matter what, get a medal, preferably a third-class merit or above. This way, his salary could be raised a bit, and with the bonus for the third-class merit and his own savings, he could probably afford a down payment…

While he was lost in thought, he had completely forgotten the work at hand. It was not until the company’s orderly came to ask why the work of unloading the tents had not yet begun that he panicked and quickly led his men to arrange it.