Looking north towards the rivers and mountains

Chapter 219 Tactics

The body was buried not far away, just by the lake in the south of the city.

Several strong men dug it out, then, covering their noses, cautiously chopped off its head and took it.

What's baffling is that just two slightly rotting heads caused an uproar among the thousand archers in Xia City.

It wasn't fear, it was nausea.

Without changing his expression, Zeng Yi, a seafarer, took a wooden spear and impaled his head on its tip.

Tie Niu followed suit. Unable to find a wooden spear, he simply snatched the long spear from the archer beside him and lifted his head up.

The archer was like a wooden figure, showing no reaction from beginning to end.

Shao Shuyi nodded to the two of them, then turned to He Shuo and asked, "Do you have any muskets?"

He Shuo shook his head.

"Where's the crossbow?"

He Shuo shook his head again.

"armor?"

He Shuo shook his head again.

Shao Shuyi sighed and said, "Alright, I won't ask anymore, that's settled. But could you spare a few dozen or a hundred people to go around to the back of the mountain? That's all I ask."

He Shuo thought for a moment and said, "That's fine, I'll go and let them know."

The prefect, Zhang Yang, sat under the shed and witnessed the entire event.

He subconsciously felt that he should do something, after all, he was the commander-in-chief after Ma Yuanchong was injured, but he was at a loss and had no idea what to do, so he could only give up and comfort himself that his duty was to govern the local area, not to lead troops into battle.

A moment later, Chen Zi, the patrol inspector of Chengjiang, arrived.

He first bowed to Zhang Yang, then said in a low voice, "Cao She, you've finally arrived. This gang of bandits is quite troublesome."

Chen Zi and Shao Shuyi had been to the opera together and were relatively familiar with each other. Shao Shuyi didn't stand on ceremony and asked, "What exactly is the situation with the bandits?" "These bandits should have come from Chuzhou. They first went to Zhenzhou and tried to rob the salt merchants, but failed."

He crossed the Yangtze River southward to Zhenjiang Road, where he killed a family of four while searching for food and water. He was pursued by the authorities and then went east to Changzhou.

They then robbed a wealthy merchant named Zhang in Jinling, demanding money. For some reason, Zhang's eldest son refused to pay and instead attracted the arrival of the patrol inspector to arrest him. The thieves then killed Zhang, along with one patrol inspector and six archers, before fleeing eastward.

Upon reaching Qinwang Mountain, they killed five more people for robbing food and water. Now it seems they intend to occupy the mountain as bandits and not leave.

Chen Zi spoke at length, basically explaining the origins of the thieves.

"How do you know so much?" Shao Shuyi asked in surprise.

"A wounded thief was captured in Changzhou, and information was obtained through interrogation."

"How did you figure out you wanted to take over the mountains and become bandits?"

"Actually, this is just my guess," Chen Zi said. "They're always wandering around like this, they'll be wiped out sooner or later. They wanted to become local bandits back in Changzhou, and now that they've arrived at Qinwang Mountain, they probably want to stop and rest."

Shao Shuyi hummed in agreement. Which bandit doesn't want to be a local strongman? Do they really think wandering around is fun? During this process, people will constantly fall behind for various reasons. If you can't replenish your manpower locally, the team will only get smaller and smaller, eventually reaching the point of collapse.

"Cao She, we must fight well this time." Chen Zi whispered again, "You've seen it yourself. The archers from the patrol office are fine for catching local bandits, but they're struggling against these fierce thugs from Huainan. After Judge Ma was injured, the prefect personally took charge. If we are defeated by the bandits, no one will be spared."

"With just one official document from the Darughachi, even the prefect will be implicated, and we can only go home and farm. Even you, Cao She, will encounter many troubles if you want to start a business."

Shao Shuyi didn't speak, but just looked quietly at Qin Wangshan.

Chen Zi's words are very true.

Rights and obligations are equal. Although this statement sounds a bit like dark humor in Jiangyin at the end of the Yuan Dynasty, it is not incomparable.

If you help the government solve its problems and help corrupt officials keep their positions, they will tacitly allow you to do certain things, such as bullying the market, seizing water transport business, or selling smuggled salt, but you will need to share the profits with them.

To put it bluntly, he, Shao, is now following in the footsteps of his predecessor, Zhu Chen.

Others have already reached their peak, while he is still on the way.

"You just said to send people around the back of the mountain, and I think that's a good idea," Chen Zi continued. "I've sent the Chengjiang clerk with two guides, five archers, and a hundred able-bodied men to take the detour, but their morale is low, and they might not be able to fight back. Cao She, you'd better send another group of men with you."

Shao Shuyi pondered for a moment, then nodded and said, "Okay."

After saying that, he turned around and called Bian Yuanheng, saying, "Brother Wu, you take our team and set off with the people from the Chengjiang Patrol Office, detour around the back of the mountain, and launch a surprise attack on the bandits."

Bian Yuanheng listened quietly for a while, then asked, "How do we fight?"

"Just let the thieves know you're here," Shao Shuyi said. "Take it easy, you guys."

"I understand," Bian Yuanheng said. "Brother Cao, rest assured, a general is the courage of the soldiers. With me here, what are a few bandits worth mentioning?" After saying that, he was about to leave.

Shao Shuyi grabbed him and said earnestly, "Among the hundreds of us, no one needs to show off. Although we haven't known each other for long, we get along quite well. You are a kind-hearted person, and we will share wealth and honor in the future. Why risk your life? After we go around to the mountain, we can just shout and cheer. As long as we can shake the morale of the bandits and weaken their fighting spirit, that will be enough."

Bian Yuanheng gently patted Shao Shuyi's hand, a hint of emotion in his eyes, then gently withdrew his hand and smiled, "Just watch me." With that, he led the newly formed team, using the city walls and woods as cover, first heading east, then turning north, to meet up with the guide and archers, and circled around to the back mountain.

At the same time, Shao Shuyi stopped wasting words, first bowed to the prefect, borrowed twenty real archers, and then led them to a corner of Xia City, ordering them to sit on the ground and conserve their energy.

He then addressed the crowd, saying, "The Huai bandits are brutal. Since crossing the river, they have burned, killed, and looted all the way, sparing not even the elderly, the weak, women, and children. Some people call them 'heroes,' which is utterly wrong. True heroes protect their homes and uphold justice. If the people of Jiangyin are filled with fear and flee in all directions, causing thorns to grow in the fields and villages to turn into ruins, what will you eat? What will you use? How dare you still flaunt your power in front of others?"

He paused briefly, allowing everyone time to process what he had said.

Li Fu sat at the front, silently wiping his ring-shaped knife.

After a moment, he said, "Brother Cao, although I am working for the government today, I can't find fault with what you said."

After saying that, he continued to wipe the knife with his head down.

Behind Li Fu sat more than ten men, all serving archers from the Ma Tuo Sha Patrol Office. However, because they were isolated in the countryside, the prefecture had not mobilized them. Nevertheless, after receiving Shao Shuyi's order, they took off their blue robes, changed into coarse linen clothes, gathered their weapons, and came by boat. Li Fu's men, upon hearing Shao Shuyi's words, immediately felt they made sense.

They have to spend the money they earn, otherwise why work so hard?

Since money is needed, there must be people to make clothes for them, raise livestock for them, grow crops for them, build houses for them, and produce tea and wine for them...

If order is disrupted, their good days will inevitably be ruined. They won't even have money to spend, and their lives will plummet. They'll really suffer a huge loss. After Li Fu finished speaking, Gao Daqiang chimed in, "Brother Cao, I've long wanted to meet the bandits of Huai. In the past, we mostly fought in the streets and alleys, making it difficult to use my ebony spear. Today, I'll test the strength of the Huai bandits."

Behind him sat more than ten people, each with a different expression, but their thoughts were largely the same as those of Li Fudui's men.

Salt trading and transporting goods were their main livelihoods, supporting their families, which clearly required a stable environment. If the situation became turbulent, less salt would be sold, goods would have nowhere to be transported, and where would the money come from?

Brother Cao's words are true; these bandits from Huai are here to ruin their good days.

They're not fighting for the government, they're fighting for their own interests, so there's nothing more to say, just fight.

Shao Shuyi glanced around, taking in everyone's expressions, and then said, "The old rules still apply. Those who are injured will receive medical expenses, and their wages will continue to be paid. For those who unfortunately die in battle, I will handle their funeral arrangements and provide an additional five ingots as compensation. You don't need to worry about your families' livelihoods. As long as I am here, your families will always have enough to eat. In the future, when the company recruits workers, we will give priority to your families, so you have nothing to worry about."

After saying this, he looked at the twenty archers who had been borrowed and said, "My name is Cao Luo. You may have heard of me. Since you're going into battle together, there's nothing more to say; we're all brothers. If any of you unfortunately die, I'll take care of your funeral arrangements. I'll make sure you leave with dignity, and your family will receive an additional three ingots of silver as compensation. I mean what I say!"

The archers were agitated.

As legitimate archers of the patrol bureau, their lives weren't actually that bad, but Cao She's words were inspiring.

"Cao She." An archer suddenly asked, "If I die, my son is still young and may not be able to join the patrol office. Will he be able to work for you in the future?" "Yes! What's your name?" Shao Shuyi asked.

"Shi Wulang".

"I understand." Shao Shuyi nodded and said, "After this battle, we will all be brothers. My brother is dead, how can I not take care of his family? Don't worry!" Shi Wulang nodded happily and gripped the bow in his hand tightly.

"I never expected Cao She to be so particular," sighed the archer, who looked to be in his forties. "In the past, whenever I saw my superior, I would bow and scrape, kneeling and flattering him. Over the past twenty years, my back has almost become hunched. But what good is a hunched back? The official looks down on you more and more, thinking you're ugly. No matter how good your archery is, you'll be stuck as an archer for life. Cao She, I don't want your compensation. I just want to ask you one question: can I be your brother?"

Shao Shuyi laughed heartily and said, "In my eyes, a skilled archer is a first-rate hero. Who dares to insult him?"

Having said that, he strode over, grabbed the middle-aged archer, and, facing the crowd, asked with a smile, "Was his archery good?"

The archers from the patrol unit nodded subconsciously. They were all comrades who knew each other well; they generally knew who was skilled and who wasn't. "He's my brother," Shao Shuyi patted one of the archers on the shoulder and said, "When you go into battle, you'll all rely on him. Take a good look at your savior."

Dozens of eyes immediately turned towards them.

Upon hearing this, the middle-aged archer's body trembled involuntarily, and a hint of pride appeared on his face, which was usually adorned with a fawning smile.

Shao Shuyi held his hand tightly and laughed, "I need to rely on you too."

After saying that, he looked at everyone and said, "Once we're on the battlefield, I'll stand there. I won't leave, and neither will my brothers. We'll go into battle together and come back together. Anyone who dares to desert is not my brother. Military law is not child's play. Even if the government can't punish us, I will go to their homes and demand justice for my brothers."

These words immediately made everyone tremble with fear.

Shao Shuyi's gaze swept around repeatedly. After a moment, he waved his hand and said, "Check the equipment and await the order to attack."

"Yes," dozens of people responded in unison.