Chapter 2188 - Dividing Forces at Huaiji

Very few villages received such treatment. Local big households proved tactful. In the midst of Yao chaos, what ordinary villages worried about most was safety, so they weren't averse to this "rectification." As for money and grain levies: it was the same in any dynasty—what the Australians demanded wasn't necessarily more outrageous.

For common people, who levied money and grain in the county seat didn't matter. Having a local official, knowing the "Emperor" still existed, they felt assured and wouldn't panic. Some "village worthies" with ideas, seeing Great Song troops arriving to patrol so quickly, also had their initially eager thoughts fade considerably.

Some weak villages further requested the National Army send troops to garrison for countryside protection. Naturally, with current stretched troop strength, this couldn't be done. They only helped establish village militia, distributing some weapons and captured Ming army firearms. Fortunately, almost every village in this area had a stockade; slightly strengthening self-defense capabilities would allow them to hold out for considerable time.

"Public Security Rectification" carried out simultaneously on both internal and external lines achieved great results. Especially after extensive establishment of village militia, the Baojia system, and mutual security guarantees among villages, bandit activities were greatly curbed. Some large outsider bandit groups couldn't maintain their position locally and fled one after another. Local bandits either disbanded after suffering military strikes, disintegrated under pressure, or went dormant in mountain strongholds in remote areas—the Sui River Detachment couldn't attend to them for now.

Huang Chao's plan was rushing to Huaiji immediately, then advancing to the Sanlian (Three Lians) area. But the local security situation forced Yang Zeng and his Sui River Detachment to stay between Guangning and Huaiji a few more days. By the time they officially decided to set off for Lianzhou, it was already late May.

Before departure, Huang Chao and Yang Zeng held a small meeting. Though the Lianyang area was called one region, and the three cities of Lianzhou, Lianshan, and Yangshan weren't far apart, all three were located in Northern Guangdong's high mountains and lofty ridges. Traffic between them wasn't easy. To rebuild order in this zone, the Sui River Detachment had to coordinate well.

According to rules, Yang Zeng was unit commander with power to decide the unit's action plan. Even a Senator couldn't interfere with his military command authority. However, this Public Security Rectification activity's guiding principle in the Lianyang area was thirty percent military, seventy percent political. Even if Huang Chao wasn't a Senator, Yang Zeng had to solicit his views on the action plan.

Yang Zeng's plan: he would personally lead the detachment's main force, leaving the water route and taking the mountain road to attack Lianshan County seat.

Attacking Lianshan, suppressing Yao was secondary; the main purpose was occupying the Lianshan County seat stronghold. To prevent the Ming army in Hezhou from capturing Lianshan, thereby advancing to Huaiji and Guangning to threaten Zhaoqing, or occupying Lianzhou to the east then going south along the Lian River to threaten Yingde, or even the Guangzhou area further south. So for the South China Army, the Yao chaos was always a skin disease; the real great enemy remained the Guangxi Ming army controlled by Xiong Wencan.

Once Lianshan was controlled, the possibility of the Guangxi Ming army entering Guangdong to intervene in Yao chaos was completely cut off. Simultaneously, it blocked the Guangxi Ming army's infiltration routes into the Northern Guangdong region. It benefited the security situation of entire Guangdong.

From a political level, whether the Yao chaos in Northern Guangdong could be properly handled concerned whether the Senate could stably and effectively rule entire Guangdong, and also determined whether there'd be an experience model to learn from when facing more complex ethnic issues in the three southwestern provinces of Sichuan, Guizhou, and Yunnan in the future. Therefore, winning hearts was the primary indicator, and also the only indicator, for all political and military work in pacifying this Yao chaos.

Among the currently targeted three cities, Lianshan County was surrounded by mountains, with no large rivers flowing through. The Senate's water transport advantage was zero in Lianshan. Because Lianshan was inconvenient to supply, Yang Zeng only intended to take three Fubo Army companies and two National Army squadrons to attack Lianshan. After taking it, only one Fubo Army company and those two National Army squadrons would be stationed there as a stronghold defending against the Hezhou Ming army and a pivot for pacifying the Northern Guangdong Yao chaos. Then he'd take two Fubo Army companies and traverse mountains all the way east to Lianzhou.

Lianzhou would serve as another pivot. The terrain around Lianzhou was relatively flat, and the Lian River, a North River tributary, had abundant water flow, connecting Yingde, Yangshan, and Lianzhou all the way. Supplies were more convenient. After capturing it, it would serve as base camp for pacifying the Yao chaos. As for Yangshan, as a transit station on the Lianzhou-Yingde line, it must be restored as soon as possible.

So after simple discussion, Yang Zeng and Huang Chao decided to split forces into two routes. Yang Zeng would lead troops north to strike Lianshan; Huang Chao would take the Li-Miao Company, a National Army battalion, and two squadrons, totaling over 600 people, east to restore Yangshan. After restoring Yangshan, the two would meet in Lianzhou.

In Huaiji County, ground infantry preparing to set off for Lianzhou were assembling. Huang Chao reviewed them briefly. By Fubo Army standards, only the Li-Miao Company could be considered to have neat military bearing; the others looked like peasant uncles who'd just put down their hoes no matter how one looked.

If the superior was willing to replace the shrimp soldiers and crab generals under him (except the Li-Miao Company) with a Fubo Army company, he'd be a million times willing. Back then, he'd led a Fubo Army platoon, combined with some familiar Li and local village braves, to completely eradicate bandit troubles in Lingshui, including bandits and hostile Li forts.

At this moment, Yang Zeng had already led the team climbing among mountains for most of the day. Though he'd been in the army for many years and had long exercised abundant physical strength, this was the first time leading troops walking in the middle of such large-scale mountains. The team of over six hundred was hidden without trace among the mountains. Yang Zeng had to send a messenger every 15 minutes to keep the unit's front and rear from disconnecting. At this time, Yang Zeng understood why Yao chaos in Liangguang during the Ming Dynasty was so difficult to handle. Indeed, nature was an army's greatest enemy. Endless mountain climbing consumed the unit's energy endlessly. The modernized Fubo Army could still maintain itself in this situation, but the National Army was already full of problems. The National Army's physical strength had reached a critical point, and stragglers began appearing.

Seeing noon sun high, Yang Zeng ordered the whole army to stop marching, rest in place for lunch, and wait for stragglers. Before departure, Huang Chao and Yang Zeng agreed whoever arrived in Lianzhou first would treat the other to a meal. Yang Zeng knew he was destined to pay for Huang Chao's meal. For one, his marching route was almost entirely mountainous terrain, while Huang Chao, as long as he traversed a patch of mountains, could largely march along flat land of the Lian River bank afterward. If they waited for the boat convoy reinforced by the North River Special Task Fleet at Yangshan City, the subsequent journey would just be taking boats.

Though the terrain was complex, Yang Zeng wasn't too nervous. This action would be an armed parade to a greater extent. According to Yang Zeng and Huang Chao's prediction, Yao people who heard news would likely withdraw from Lianshan City, and the Fubo Army could occupy Lianshan City without fighting. Then, Yang Zeng would lead the army east to control Luming Pass, occupy Sanjiang Market, and then arrive at Lianzhou.

The whole process would take about five days, so every soldier carried five days of dry rations, and every company and National Army squadron had to take turns carrying loads, carrying another five days of dry rations. Yang Zeng couldn't say for certain when supplies sent from Guangzhou would arrive under Lianzhou City, nor could he ensure whether Huang Chao could successfully restore Yangshan. Yang Zeng chewed Grassland Series dry rations tasting like wax, while looking at a flag Huang Chao gave him before departure. It was a Chinese-style long pole flag, with ten characters densely written in small regular script: Great Song Western Route Army and Horse Grand Marshal Zhu.

According to Huang Chao, for various works to be carried out smoothly, the momentum must be huge enough. Against those Yao who feared nothing, regardless of one's own strength, one must pretend to be very strong. A bluffing big flag was very useful.

So Huang Chao also made a big flag for himself, inscribed: Great Song Lianyang Recruitment and Pacification Commissioner concurrent Prefect of Lianzhou Military Affairs Huang. Looking at this flag, Huang Chao had a good addiction to pretentiousness. Simultaneously, he also hoped this flag could convey a message to those ill-informed Yao: though they weren't the Great Ming government, they were also a regime willing to negotiate.

He announced to officers and soldiers under him that the whole army would set out after dawn tomorrow, heading for Yangshan County in the northeast. He also emphasized the marching route was mostly mountain roads, asking everyone to prepare mentally and materially, especially shoes.

Huang Chao's intended operational plan wasn't attacking Yangshan County seat directly, but advancing to Yonghua Township of Yangshan County first, pacifying that place, then besieging the point to strike the reinforcements, waiting for an opportunity to ambush returning Yao.

The residents of Yonghua Township were mainly Yao. In the 6th year of Wanli, Yangshan Magistrate Zhao Wenzheng personally went deep into the Yao mountains, successfully registering the Yao of Baimang, Laoya, Shaotuo, Sankeng, and other Yao stockades into household registers, and set up Yonghua Township. This was one of the few deeds of successfully pacifying Yao in the history of various places in Liangguang.

However, judging from limited intelligence, the Yao occupying Yangshan County seat were mostly from Yonghua Township, with a small part from other Yao mountains in Yangshan. The Yonghua Township Yao didn't belong to the Eight Row Yao system; they belonged to Flatland Yao. The Yao of this township mostly lived in river valleys between mountains. Though the land wasn't fertile, it wasn't barren either, and output was passable. Their economic level was much better compared to other Mountaineer Yao who wandered outside the Great Ming government system and lived in big mountain hollows. As registered government commoners, Yonghua Township Yao had always been law-abiding; there was really no reason to rebel.

This group of Yao rebelling must have their compelling reasons. If he could strive to settle the Yonghua Township Yao riot in one battle and recruit and pacify them as soon as possible, he could exclude this group of Yao from the Yao chaos camp. Next step would be solving the Eight Row Yao.

If operated well, it was even possible to utilize the power of the Yonghua Yao—the mountain company led by Company Commander Zhen was too few in number, far insufficient to cope with the local geographical environment. He calculated establishing a Yao mountain company for his own use. Even without training and with poorer combat power, at least they could serve as reconnaissance troops. Fighting in such big mountains, intelligence was much more important than troop strength.