Chapter 436: Retreat

On the matter of official expenses, Qian Shuiting was indeed cautious to an almost pedantic degree. Having been educated in the United States, he knew that in democratic politics, no issue is too small. If a true “grand democracy” were to emerge, they would strip you down to your underwear. In the right circumstances, someone would even expose the fact that his own housemaid had drunk a glass of plain water from the Executive Committee’s office.

Qian Shuiting chuckled. “Saving on office expenses is the Senate’s principle, after all!”

“Alright, let’s cut the empty, grandstanding talk.” Shan Liang could no longer find any new bombshells to drop regarding living standards, as the elders’ quality of life had improved rapidly after the “housemaid revolution.” He had come this time with a different purpose.

“I saw that military and political proposal on the BBS—the one about someone wanting to kill Zhu Dadian…”

Qian Shuiting shifted his backside in the chair, thinking, “Here we go again.” He had grown tired of hearing about this matter these past few days. The worst part was that as the Speaker, he couldn’t explicitly take a side and had to patiently listen to everyone’s long-winded speeches.

“Lü Zeyang wanting to assassinate Zhu Dadian, the matter itself is of no consequence. Who cares if a Ming bureaucrat dies,” Shan Liang stated his position clearly from the outset. “But from this incident, I feel that the deployed elders are becoming more and more a force unto themselves…”

As he spoke, he kept his eyes on Qian Shuiting, trying to gauge his reaction. Sure enough, Qian Shuiting’s unnatural smile made him realize the Speaker shared similar thoughts.

“The tendency of deployed elders to act independently has been getting worse since the Chang Shide incident at the Leizhou Station.” Shan Liang had come prepared, with a whole “essay” already composed in his mind. This essay was not written by him alone, but was more of a “collective creation.” “According to the previously announced plan, the purpose of ‘Operation Engine’ is to acquire the population of Shandong. From this perspective, isn’t the leadership of the Shandong Front Committee somewhat confusing their objectives?”

Qian Shuiting remained silent.

“Occupying Qimu Island was for a transit base, but occupying Zhaoyuan was not part of the plan, was it?” Shan Liang said. “Without the authorization of the Senate, they have greatly expanded the local militia and created a de facto occupation of parts of the Shandong coast… Such a major strategic move is no longer a simple tactical action like Lü Zeyang’s initial entry into the southern suburbs of Laizhou to assist in the defense.”

Shan Liang continued, “Do the deployed elders still have the Senate in their hearts? They do whatever they want, and then call on the Senate to clean up their mess! They create a fait accompli and then demand resources be thrown into it. As long as they have achievements, whatever they do will be retroactively approved in the end. If that’s the case, what’s the point of having the Senate as a rubber stamp?!”

Qian Shuiting’s eyebrows raised slightly.

“The incomplete reckoning of the Chang Shide incident is what led to this situation. I don’t think we can let this continue. The number of deployed elders is increasing, and the power they wield is far greater than what Chang Shide and his group had with just a sugar factory. Some have become veritable local lords, holding both military and political power. If we don’t nip this in the bud now, it’s hard to say if a Kwantung Army-like monster won’t emerge in the future.”

Qian Shuiting’s expression turned serious.

“This Zhu Dadian affair doesn’t even need to be discussed—because the proposal is wrong from its very premise!” Shan Liang’s voice rose a few decibels. “The original purpose of Operation Engine was to exploit the Deng-Lai incident. Assassinating Zhu Dadian to prolong the incident was never part of the original plan. What kind of proposal is he making? This is a typical case of acting independently and talking to oneself!”

Qian Shuiting asked, “So what is your suggestion?”

“Right now, Operation Engine is in its summer hiatus, and work on all fronts is not too intense. I think it’s necessary for the Senate to hold a hearing on Operation Engine. We need a comprehensive report on the organization, implementation, and completion status of this operation, and at the same time, we need to review all existing problems. Serious problems must be dealt with sternly. For certain elders, we can consider reassigning their posts.”

Qian Shuiting was silent for a few minutes, then said, “Are you planning to submit a proposal on this issue?”

“Of course. I am very willing to be of service,” Shan Liang said with a slight smile, deliberately emphasizing the words “be of service.”

“It’s so hot…” Lü Zeyang wore a bamboo hat and a single-layer robe of cotton-linen blend, the coolest attire available locally. It was the special summer uniform for the Shandong front, organized by Minister Hong: a cotton-linen blend with a bamboo hat. In contrast, the local militiamen wore coarse hemp jackets and tattered straw hats, looking rather shabby.

He held a newly delivered order in his hand.

Fan Shier waited on him like a lapdog, eager to curry favor with this “Regiment Commander Lü” who seemed to have a “boundless future.” In his mind, with such merits in Laizhou, after this chaos was over, the court would surely reward him with a position like company commander or something similar. If he could serve under him as a minor leader, his future would be much better than running a half-dead small restaurant outside Laizhou city.

The weather was hot, and Regiment Commander Lü’s appetite was not good. Fan Shier had prepared cold noodles with peanut sauce, served with light side dishes for him.

Since Xu Congzhi’s death in battle and Zhu Dadian’s appointment, the rebel attacks on Laizhou were no longer as fierce as before. It seemed they had realized that no matter how fierce the attack, they could not take Laizhou. Since June, the rebels had withdrawn their main force, leaving only a part of their troops to continue the siege. The scouts Lü Zeyang sent out reported that the rebel blockade around the city had begun to weaken. Although the remaining forces might still number ten thousand, the main rebel force, formed from former Dongjiang troops, had mostly left Laizhou. The rebels now besieging the city were mostly incorporated former Shandong garrison troops, southern troops, and remnants of defeated government forces. Only Kong Youde, with his two thousand cavalry, remained outside Laizhou, both to monitor the other rebels and to control the access routes.

According to the judgment of the Shandong Front Committee, the rebels had failed to take Laizhou after a long siege and had discovered that the Huangxian area was gradually being controlled by the Senate. They were already planning to find another way out.

The rebels’ long siege of Laizhou was primarily to “break out.” Only by breaking out of the small coastal area of Dengzhou and Laizhou, which was bordered by the sea on one side and mountains on the other, could the rebels have greater room for maneuver and continuously expand their strength. Any peasant army uprising would inevitably begin with mobile warfare, growing stronger and striking the enemy while on the move. The same was true for the Deng-Lai rebels.

Now that there was no hope of capturing Laizhou, and since the rebels’ “breakout” through the Laizhou route was hopeless, the rebel commander Li Jiucheng had to find another breakthrough point. Qixia and Pingdu were their most ideal breakthrough points.

Although the topography had changed over time, the general terrain remained the same. Looking at the map, these two places were still where national and provincial highways passed in the 21st century. Whether they captured Pingdu or Qixia, the rebels could break out of Deng-Lai and directly enter the richer and wider western three prefectures.

Furthermore, once they entered the western three prefectures, if the situation was favorable, they could go north to Hebei, west to Henan, or south to Nan-Zhili. If the situation turned unfavorable, they could still retreat back to Deng-Lai.

Since the main rebel force had already found another route and Zhu Dadian had arrived in Qingzhou, the Front Committee believed that the possibility of Laizhou falling was not high, and there was little point for Lü Zeyang to continue staying in Laizhou. It was better to transfer him to the newly built Zhaoyuan Fort to serve as a mobile force. The order Lü Zeyang was looking at contained this content.

“Finally leaving,” Lü Zeyang stretched. He had fought in Laizhou for a considerable period and had developed a “deep friendship” with the local people, officials, soldiers, and even the rebels outside the city—anyone who had crossed him had “died a heroic death.” Now that he was told to go back, he felt a little reluctant.

However, it was now summer. He had eaten his fill of sea cucumbers and mackerel dumplings, and there was nothing new to do here. Sun Yuanhua’s position had also stabilized. Moreover, according to private letters from his colleagues in the finance department, many people in the Senate were criticizing him, saying he was “not attending to his proper duties” in Laizhou. And after he proposed to get rid of Zhu Dadian, some people wanted to “take his head to console the loyal officials and martyrs.”

“Orderly!” Lü Zeyang sat up from his bamboo couch.

“Sir!” An orderly ran in. This young man was not one he had brought from Lingao, but was recruited locally in Dengzhou. To increase the combat effectiveness of the local militia, he had used all his soldiers as commanders for them.

“All units, assemble!”

Lü Zeyang’s withdrawal took a full day. He first went into the city to bid farewell to Sun Yuanhua. Although Sun Yuanhua was surprised by his sudden withdrawal, he had relied on him to hold the south gate all this time, and there was even the highlight of the great victory at the south gate. Although he was slightly worried about his withdrawal, Lü Zeyang assured him that the most dangerous time for Laizhou had passed, and he was relieved. Over these days, his judgment of the Australians had become almost superstitious—he even felt they were sent by the will of God to save and guide him.

He also had to exchange pleasantries with the gentry, civil and military officials in the city. Although they had different thoughts, they had at least been in the same boat. General Yang, Colonel Peng, and others praised the firearms of his troops to the skies and were eager to get some “Australian firearms” from him. Selling arms was the established policy. So Lü Zeyang’s application was quickly approved. One hundred Nanyang-style rifles were shipped from Lingao, each with 50 rounds of ammunition and percussion caps, but no bayonets. The selling price was 20 taels of silver each. There were also 10 officer-model smoothbore percussion revolvers with ivory grips, each with 50 rounds of ammunition and percussion caps, priced at 45 taels of silver each.

The Senate certainly didn’t need this 2,000 taels of silver; it was just a feeler for the arms trade. In the late Ming, the warlords were the ones with money. Not making a good profit from them would be a disservice to the elders of the Industrial and Energy Committee.

Yang Yufan bought 50 rifles in one go—he actually wanted to buy them all, but others wanted to buy them too, so he had to share. Zhang Tao and the others then bought the remaining 50. The pistols were naturally snatched up as well.