Chapter 347: Freedom of Action

“We must remain neutral. Kong Youde’s rampage through these three eastern prefectures has already made him infamous. Both the gentry and the common people hate him to the bone. We absolutely cannot associate with him. Let alone an alliance, even the fact that we have an agreement with them must be kept secret. This political integrity is very important. Little Lu, I’ll leave the haggling with Kong Youde to you. We must reiterate our position. Besides, that fox is a chronic turncoat. What’s the point of bringing him over?”

After receiving the reply this time, the Dengzhou side responded quickly. A few days later, a messenger arrived: since the Deer Villa Master was unwilling to form an alliance, they would not insist. They agreed to guarantee not to attack the areas designated by the Villa Master, but the Qimu Island side could not interfere with their combat operations and supply lines. In addition, they demanded ten thousand shi of grain.

“…Furthermore, Commander Kong also asked me to convey to the Deer Villa Master that your side should not send out large detachments of troops to roam around Dengzhou and Laizhou. Just keep to your fortresses to avoid accidental conflicts…”

Lu Wenyuan had originally intended to act profound, but upon hearing Dengzhou’s demands, his face gradually contorted, and then he couldn’t help but burst out laughing, much to the astonishment of the messenger.

“Go and tell Kong Youde,” Lu Wenyuan said after he finally calmed down, “whether it’s war or peace, it’s all up to him. I have nothing more to say. You may go.”

The messenger departed in embarrassment. Zhu Mingxia immediately ordered the special reconnaissance team and scouts to move out together, constantly sniping at the rebel transport convoys on the Huang County main road. The convoys transporting Hongyi cannons and ammunition from Dengzhou to Laizhou were constantly subjected to sniper fire on the post road. Many oxen and horses were killed or wounded, forcing the convoys to frequently halt and wait for replacements. The accompanying gunners and soldiers, not knowing when a bullet might fly out and take their lives, walked with trepidation, scattering and hiding at the slightest disturbance. The transport convoys couldn’t even cover four or five li a day. In the end, there were even incidents where soldiers refused to leave the city to escort the convoys.

If they had used only coerced refugees, their deaths would not have mattered. But without enough rebel soldiers to guard them, the refugees would scatter as soon as they got far from the city. For a time, the transport line from Dengzhou to Laizhou was completely cut off.

The rebels then switched to sea transport. Lu Yang’s naval detachment constantly patrolled the waters off Dengzhou, repeatedly sinking and capturing ships departing from the Dengzhou naval base for Laizhou.

Lu Yang had initially thought this would be a difficult task, but it turned out the rebels’ sailing skills were poor. They mostly hugged the coastline. With the guidance of local fishermen familiar with the routes, Lu Yang’s detachment set up observation posts and temporary anchorages on several small islands off the coast of Dengzhou, controlling the shipping lanes in and out of the port.

All ships entering Dengzhou and those heading for Liaodong were allowed to pass as planned. But any ship heading for Laizhou was captured. Those that refused to surrender were sunk. Although the cargo was confiscated and the ships and crews were released, the detachment’s ability to board them whenever and however they pleased threw the rebels in Dengzhou into disarray. Moreover, once the sea route was cut, the rebels’ communication with the various islands of the Dongjiang garrison would be completely severed, let alone any attempt to recruit them—this was a matter of life and death for the Dengzhou rebels. Therefore, a few days later, a new messenger arrived from Dengzhou, and the two sides reached a non-aggression pact on Lu Wenyuan’s terms. The northern detachment gained the freedom to operate in the local area.

As a means of identification, any units or individuals sent out from Qimu Island, as long as they flew the Qimu Island flag or wore a red armband with the Qimu Island mark, would not be intercepted or interfered with by the rebels. In return, Lu Wenyuan guaranteed not to intercept ships entering or leaving Dengzhou and not to obstruct or harass rebel movements.

As for the Laizhou issue raised by the messenger, Lu Wenyuan’s answer was simple: the south gate of Laizhou and Hutouya on the coast were off-limits. They could attack the other gates as they pleased. If they could take them, it was their skill. If not, they couldn’t blame anyone else. In return, Lu Wenyuan guaranteed that Lu Zeyang would not attack or harass the rebels from outside the city.

Despite the harsh and almost unreasonable conditions, the rebels, who had already become fully aware of their opponent’s strength, agreed completely—after all, this Deer Villa Master didn’t want their heads or their cities.

Thus, the northern detachment began to move about freely and boldly throughout the entire eastern three prefectures. Especially in the areas near Dengzhou where the government’s authority had completely collapsed, the refugee collection teams were active everywhere, gathering and recruiting refugees and spreading the news that Qimu Island was a safe haven.

A large number of refugees flocked to Qimu Island from all over. Even those in fortified villages that had not yet been breached were persuaded by the refugee collection teams, amidst the growing threat of the rebels, to move their entire families to Qimu Island. For a time, the entire Qimu Island area was overflowing with people. Fortunately, after the beginning of the second lunar month, the sea around Qimu Island had thawed, and the docks, which had been severely affected by the ice, resumed their original capacity. The ships that had mainly sailed between Jeju Island, Taiwan, and Hong Kong began to head for Qimu Island. The Engine Forward Command in Hong Kong had issued an order for a full-scale population transfer from Shandong.

To reduce the complexity of coordinating the population transfer and to make full use of the ships, ocean currents, and wind directions, Suo Pu, who was organizing the shipping in Hong Kong, ordered all H800 ships transporting refugees from Qimu Island to sail to Jeju Island. They would unload the population on Jeju Island, rather than the previous practice of transferring some to Jeju and some to Gaoxiong.

The short distance between Qimu Island and Jeju Island meant a short voyage, which minimized the physical demands on the refugees. This meant the refugees didn’t need a period of recovery; a simple replenishment of food and water was enough before they could be shipped from Qimu Island. This greatly reduced the demand for housing and supplies on Qimu Island. During the peak of the refugee transfer, refugees brought in from outside only needed a brief health check before they could board the ships directly.

The refugees would undergo “purification” processing on Jeju Island. After a 60-day quarantine, they would be transported by ship to Gaoxiong. Currently, Gaoxiong already had over ten thousand immigrants from southern Shandong and Zhejiang. Due to the almost non-existent infrastructure on the island, it was unable to accept any more population inflow for the time being. The “purification” period on Jeju Island served as a buffer for construction in Gaoxiong.

Considering the ocean currents and wind directions, the coast of Northeast Asia had a southward cold current with a speed of about 2 knots. Near the Taiwan Strait, there was the powerful northward Kuroshio Current, with a speed of about 4 knots. Therefore, the fleet could take advantage of the cold current when sailing south and follow the Kuroshio Current when sailing north.

This way, there was no need for other transit points from Jeju Island to Tainan or Lingao. A steamship, with a speed of 8 knots plus a 2-knot current, would make 10 knots, covering over 240 nautical miles a day. It could reach Tainan from Jeju Island in 3 days and Lingao in 5 days. The H800 and other sailing ships, though slower, had a speed of at least 4 knots. Sailing north with the Kuroshio Current, their speed would be 6 knots. Maintaining 6 knots for 10 hours during the day and 4-5 knots for 14 hours at night, they could cover over 100 nautical miles a day. The journey from Tainan north to Jeju Island could be completed in 7-8 days. Sailing south along the coast, with the 1-2 knot boost from the cold current, the journey from Jeju Island to Tainan would take about 10 days.

After a few days of rest in Taiwan, the refugees would be redirected according to the weekly dynamic population demand schedule compiled by the Planning Commission.

To further reduce turnaround time, the Engine Forward Command set up a dedicated population transfer center in Gaoxiong for direct population allocation. Besides those who stayed in Gaoxiong, the majority were transported to Hainan and distributed to Lingao and other counties on the island, including the Sanya Special Administrative Region. Even Hong Kong, which was not short of population, received a small number of people from Shandong.

This was the first time the Executive Committee had introduced a large number of northern people. The Executive Committee requested that they be distributed as widely as possible to various places to gradually build up an “immigrant society” in Hainan and Taiwan, avoiding an overconcentration of any single dialect group and breaking down the original village and clan-based societies.

A red sun leaped out from the sea. The JS-14 transport fleet, already loaded with refugees the previous day, raised its flags and set sail. Zhu Mingxia was on the flagship. The military situation in Shandong had largely stabilized. As the detachment commander, he felt it was necessary to check on the other part of the northern detachment: the Jeju Island detachment.

Although the Joseon army on Jeju Island had been completely destroyed, full control over the island’s interior had not yet been established. Considering the possibility of future pacification warfare, Zhu Mingxia decided to start specialized training in this area as soon as he arrived on Jeju Island.

To strengthen control over Jeju Island, this voyage, in addition to refugees, also transported a portion of the local militia formed on Qimu Island. These militia units would be formally incorporated into the northern detachment on Jeju Island, given the designation of the Jeju Island Advance Column, and receive standard military training. After completing their training, they would become a garrison force temporarily stationed on Jeju Island. The General Staff planned to later use a small number of northern detachment personnel as a core to form the Jeju Battalion of the National Army from the Jeju Island Advance Column, serving as the local standing army.

In addition, the horses, donkeys, mules, and cattle acquired in Shandong, which were difficult to feed on the island, were all loaded onto the ships this time, except for some warhorses, and transported to Jeju Island.

After a three-day voyage, the JS-14 transport fleet smoothly entered Chaotianpu. Since the northern detachment occupied Jeju Island, the transformation project of the island had immediately begun. This place was to be the anchorage for the Second Fleet, the Senate’s horse farm, a transit station for refugees, and would also undertake future trade activities in Northeast Asia and serve as a logistics base for military operations. All of this required ships for transport. So now the entire port area was in a state of chaos: the naturalized citizen construction teams that had accompanied the northern detachment were working overtime on infrastructure, with the “labor service teams” formed from the island’s commoners and government slaves serving as laborers.