Chapter 116: Officials and Civilians Like Mortal Enemies

With Hong Chengchou’s warning, the vanguard became somewhat more restrained. However, this only meant they limited themselves to looting without killing. As the main force entered Yichuan County, they set up camp in a village. A large estate covering over a dozen mu of land managed to escape disaster for the time being by offering five hundred taels of silver and two hundred shi of grain. This was only because the master of the estate was a relative of the Prefect of Xi'an.

As for the wealthy households in the surrounding area, they were not so fortunate. He Renlong’s men brutally smashed open the courtyard gates and ransacked the properties. The masters were driven out, and any women of notable beauty were inevitably subjected to abuse. Other villagers were also heavily exploited, and the poultry they had painstakingly raised were all extorted by the soldiers. By the time Hong Chengchou’s main force arrived, He Renlong’s men had already expertly cleaned up the scene, keeping the women and victims under guard. He Renlong greeted Hong Chengchou respectfully at the village entrance, providing the best mansion for his rest, complete with maidservants to wait on him. Afterward, he returned to the camp and executed all the captive victims, decapitating them and picketing the heads to prepare for reporting merit later. Such crimes were too numerous to record, but since the families of the victims had been wiped out, the remaining villagers were filled with hatred yet dared not provoke the soldiers.

When soldiers pass, it is like a comb; when bandits pass, it is like a fine-toothed comb. Bandit raids were merely savage looting, and some could still survive, but when government troops pillaged the people, no one could escape. Hong Chengchou was not ignorant of these actions. However, he understood that the imperial court could not even pay the soldiers' salaries. To stop the looting now would be to block the soldiers' means of livelihood, which would incite resentment within the ranks. At that point, let alone fighting a war, if a mutiny occurred, he himself would be in danger. An army is not easy to manage, especially an army that is owed pay.

The main force soon approached the Yichuan county seat. Suddenly, a local militia of over a thousand men appeared from nowhere and blocked the vanguard. He Renlong, who held the local militia in utter contempt, ordered his cavalry to charge and break their formation, killing several men. However, instead of being frightened away, the militia, fueled by righteous indignation, surrounded them. Fortunately, they were not enemies, and the militia did not press the attack to fight to the death. Even so, this gave Hong Chengchou a great shock, and he hurriedly ordered Li Yi to abandon his supply train and lead his troops to link up with him to rescue He Renlong.

Li Yi led the Suijin Army to join the three hundred men of the standard battalion. The six-hundred-strong force advanced slowly. It was not that the soldiers were not in a hurry, but the situation was unclear, and the troops needed to conserve their strength for the battle to come. The six hundred elite soldiers pressed forward, immediately exerting pressure on the local militia, who formed up and retreated. Li Yi, observing from the side with his cavalry, noticed that although the militia’s formation was scattered and their weapons were a motley collection, they were filled with a surge of courage born from the resolve to protect their homes.

The encirclement was broken, and He Renlong retreated with his cavalry in a disheveled state. He had been careless, leading only his cavalry in the charge, and had not expected the locals to fight with such disregard for their own lives, causing him to suffer a loss.

A meeting was called at the command tent to discuss military affairs. As Li Yi arrived at the tent, he saw He Renlong approaching with an angry expression, glaring fiercely at him. Hong Chengchou sat in the seat of honor, his face calm.

Assistant Prefect Yang spoke up: "The opposing side has sent representatives claiming to be the Yichuan Militia. They are accusing us of harming the people and looting, and they want us to leave Yichuan County."

He Renlong cursed angrily: "These insolent peasants! We are here on orders to suppress bandits, yet they attack the main army. This is lawless, no different from the rebels themselves. In my opinion, they are just the rebel soldiers of Wang Zuogua; we should just kill them and report the merit."

Assistant Prefect Yang looked up at Hong Chengchou and continued: "The Yichuan Militia was recruited and trained by the local Yichuan government; we must not act rashly."

He Renlong sneered, "That’s perfect then. We’ll kill them all, and we can make a fortune. Besides, once we pass Yichuan, we enter Hancheng. Letting the lads see some blood and winning a big victory will boost morale, will it not?"

Upon hearing this, Hong Chengchou appeared somewhat tempted. He looked toward Li Yi and asked, "Li Yi, what is your view?"

"My Lord, Battalion Commander Li has the heart of a Bodhisattva; he is so fond of fasting and chanting, I fear he doesn't have the stomach to kill," He Renlong said coldly.

"Whether I have the stomach to kill or not, didn't Battalion Commander He witness that at the gates of Mizhi City?"

He Renlong’s eyes widened as he glared at Li Yi in fury. Li Yi remained unmoved and continued, "Battalion Commander He should know well whether the Yichuan Militia’s demand for us to leave is a deliberate provocation."

He Renlong stood up abruptly and shouted, "Li Yi, what do you mean by that?"

"Exactly what I said."

"Li Yi, if you have the guts, say it clearly. These insolent peasants blocked the army and attacked government soldiers; are they not rebels?"

Li Yi let out a cold laugh, "Battalion Commander He has been extorting wealth from the people lately; it seems you look more like a rebel than they do."

"Li Yi, how dare you insult me!"

He Renlong gripped his waist blade and pulled it halfway out. But when he saw Li Yi’s ice-cold gaze, he suddenly remembered that he was no match for Li Yi and froze in place. Fortunately, Assistant Prefect Yang intervened to smooth things over: "We are all comrades-in-arms, why damage our harmony?"

He Renlong took the opportunity to step down, sheathing his blade with a 'clack' before sitting down with a cold snort.

Hong Chengchou looked at Li Yi and asked, "Then what do you think we should do?"

Li Yi cupped his hands and said, "If a conflict breaks out now, the infighting between the army and the local government will only invite ridicule, not to mention that killing each other would be a loss that outweighs any gain. My humble opinion is that we should negotiate and have the militia stand aside so we can proceed to Hancheng."

Hong Chengchou thought for a moment and said, "If that is the case, then you go and negotiate."

Li Yi was slightly taken aback; shouldn't this task be left to the civil officials?

"Lord Commissioner, I can certainly go to negotiate. But for the rest of the march, we must ensure the troops commit no offenses against the people."

Hong Chengchou pondered this and nodded: "I grant this request. With a major battle imminent, it is indeed time to strictly enforce military law to prevent the petty-minded from taking advantage of us."

The latter part of this sentence was intended for He Renlong.

Li Yi accepted the order and took Buyan and his men with him to the front of the Yichuan Militia. The militia members looked at Li Yi’s group with undisguised loathing and hatred. When government soldiers view the people as mere weeds and bandits, the people view the soldiers as their mortal enemies. Between the people of the Ming Dynasty and the government troops, there was no bond of water and fish; only suspicion and hatred.

Just as he felt he was about to be killed by the glares of the militia, a man of about fifty, dressed in the robes of a Taoist and possessing a scholarly, ethereal air, stepped forward. He radiated a deep sense of literary culture; it was clear at a glance that he was a scholar. The militia was protecting their land and people, which coincided with Li Yi’s own thoughts.

Li Yi dismounted, walked up to him, and cupped his hands politely: "I am Li Yi, the Defense Officer of Suijin Town in Mizhi County. May I ask who you are?"

The elderly scholar let out a cold snort: "I am Wang Zheng of Jingyang County, a successful candidate of the imperial examination in the second year of the Tianqi reign."

Li Yi was slightly startled; he had not expected this elderly scholar to be a Jinshi.

"Elder Wang, the army is on its way to lift the siege of Hancheng, and military affairs are urgent. Why did you have the militia block the army’s march south?"

Although elderly, Wang Zheng spoke with firm conviction as he accused: "You are government troops; how can you plunder the people all along the way? In these past few days, countless villages have been harmed by you, leaving homes broken and families destroyed."

It was indeed the evil wrought by He Renlong. Li Yi did not hesitate at all and explained directly: "Elder Wang, the standard battalion of the main army is under the command of Lord Hong, the Grain Intendant and Commissioner. Their military discipline is strict. As for my own men, we have only just formed our ranks and would never dare to engage in such acts."

"Then the ones who just attacked us and slaughtered the innocent—were they not your men?"

"Those troops belong to Battalion Commander He Renlong and his border soldiers."