Chapter Thirty-Six: Pursuing and Suppressing the Roving Bandits

Huang An knew that he had to appease Battalion Commander Zheng at this moment; otherwise, if Zheng reported him for inciting a mutiny, he would be in serious trouble. Although the rank of Assistant Regional Commander was not necessarily a high-ranking official position, there were many eyes on it. Furthermore, his seat was still warm; if he were to lose it now, the money he had spent to purchase the office would have been thrown down the drain.

"Reporting, my lord! A detachment has arrived outside the camp, led by a Company Commander who claims to be acting under the orders of the Regional Commander," a messenger said, running to the command dais to report.

Upon hearing this, Huang An realized it must be the team of archers the Regional Commander had mentioned. However, he did not dare let these archers enter the camp at this moment. Once they stepped inside, the recent mutiny could no longer be kept hidden. Huang An knew that although the mutiny was not severe, concealing it required Zheng's cooperation.

"Master Zheng," Huang An said, "the men sent by the Regional Commander have arrived. I must ask for your help in keeping the earlier incident quiet. If word of this mutiny reaches the Regional Commander's ears, while I will certainly be found guilty, you will not be able to escape the blame either."

"Are you threatening me?" Battalion Commander Zheng squinted slightly.

"I wouldn't dare," Huang An said, holding up a finger. "As long as you agree, I am willing to concede ten percent of the spoils from this bandit suppression mission to you."

Zheng pondered for a moment and said, "It's a deal."

Relieved by the agreement, Huang An turned to the messenger and said, "Invite the Company Commander sent by the Regional Commander into the camp." The messenger trotted off to deliver the order.

Zheng turned to his subordinate company commanders and said fiercely, "No one is to speak a word of what happened today. If anyone asks, just say that some soldiers failed to report after the three rolls of the drum, and military law was enforced."

"Understood, sir," the company commanders replied in unison, bowing their fists. Personal guards then descended from the dais to arrange for the corpses to be cleared away.

Soon, the Company Commander from the Regional Commander’s camp arrived at the dais with two hundred archers. He knelt on one knee, cupped his hands, and said, "This subordinate pays respects to both commanders."

"Ah, Company Commander Xu! I hadn't expected the Regional Commander to be so generous as to send you. With you here, our chances of hunting down the remaining bandits are much greater," Huang An said with a smile, helping Xu to his feet.

After standing up, Xu glanced at the bloodstains under the dais that had not yet been fully cleaned. "Commander, has there been an execution here just now?"

Battalion Commander Zheng chuckled and replied, "We beat the assembly drums this morning, and after three rolls, there were still soldiers who had not arrived. We had no choice but to make an example of them by executing those who were late."

"I see. My apologies for the intrusion," Xu said. "I wonder when you both plan to pursue the remaining bandits? The Regional Commander is worried they might escape, so he specifically instructed me to pass a message: he hopes you will set out as soon as possible."

"Since you have brought the archers, I see no reason why we cannot set out now," Huang An said, turning to Zheng. "What say you, Master Zheng?"

Although Zheng was dissatisfied with Xu using the Regional Commander’s name to pressure him, Xu was, after all, a personal guard of the Regional Commander, and it would be unwise to offend him too deeply. He nodded and said, "Then let us depart."

The order was given, and the company commanders returned to their units to march out of the camp. With the thousand-strong Northern Battalion and the two hundred archers brought by Xu, the force left the Quanshan Mountains in a grand procession. It was the third quarter of the Mao hour (approximately 6:45 AM), and the weather was still cool.

Scouts were sent ahead of the main force to search for traces of the rebels to the south. The official army, burdened by heavy supplies, moved slowly; an hour later, they had only covered a dozen miles when the scouts returned to report.

Company Commander Xu, who had been riding at the rear, trotted up to Huang An and Zheng. "Commanders, the scouts report that the rebels camped at Zhuju Mountain last night and are now heading toward the Yangyuan County seat. If we increase our pace, we have a good chance of catching them before nightfall."

Zheng, riding on horseback, shielded his eyes from the sun and looked at the sky. "Commander Xu, I understand your eagerness to earn merit, but you must realize that in this heat, the troops cannot march indefinitely. Even if you can take it, the soldiers below cannot."

"But..." Xu began, only to be interrupted by Huang An.

"Do not be anxious, Commander Xu," Huang An said. "I have brought the supply train from the main camp. It does not matter if we do not catch them today; as long as we keep pressing on, I believe we will catch them eventually. A ragtag mob of bandits cannot possibly move faster than our army."

Xu’s expression grew serious. "I came to you both to suggest that you abandon the heavy supply train, take only one day’s rations, and speed up the pursuit."

Zheng’s face darkened. "Commander Xu, do you know what you are saying? Without supplies, what are the men to eat and drink? Do not forget that we are crossing borders to suppress bandits without authorization; we have no right to requisition grain from the locals."

"Rest assured, sir," Xu replied. "Before I left, the Regional Commander provided me with a letter for the Magistrate of Yangyuan. Once we reach the county, the Magistrate will naturally provide the army with provisions."

"Can you guarantee that the Magistrate will provide them?" Zheng countered.

Xu replied, neither humble nor arrogant, "If you do not wish to trust my word, can you not trust the word of the Regional Commander?"

Huang An, seeing the two were about to clash, quickly smoothed things over. "Master Zheng, since Commander Xu carries a letter from the Regional Commander to the Magistrate of Yangyuan, let us follow his advice this once: keep one day's rations and send the supply train back to the main camp."

Seeing that Huang An had spoken, Zheng let out a cold hum, knowing he could not object further. After all, Huang An was a fourth-rank Assistant Regional Commander, and with Xu holding the Regional Commander’s letter, further opposition would mean offending two superiors at once.

Seeing Zheng’s tacit agreement, Huang An ordered the supply train to leave behind one day’s rations and return to the camp. Freed from the burden, the army’s pace quickened, though the heat forced them to halt for a rest by midday.

Zheng took a few gulps from his water skin, plugged it, and tossed it to a guard before stripping off his armor to lie in the shade. Huang An walked over, sat down beside him, and asked, "Still angry?"

Zheng lay on the ground, fuming. "Who does he think he is, trying to order me around? If the army doesn't get grain in Yangyuan, let’s see how he explains it!"

"He is a personal guard of the Regional Commander," Huang An said, taking a sip from his own water skin. "Commander Xu represents the Regional Commander. His urgency suggests the Regional Commander is pressing hard from behind."

Zheng sat up. "I don't understand. The main force of the rebels is already trapped in the Quanshan Mountains. Why does the Regional Commander want us to cross the border to hunt them? Moving an army across the border without orders is a capital offense. Is he not afraid of losing his head?"

Huang An smiled mysteriously. "That is where you are mistaken. Our Regional Commander has his eyes on the position of Deputy Regional Commander of Datong. It is only because he lacks military merit that he has had no opportunity. Now that this group of rebels has delivered themselves to his doorstep, how could he let them go? The more heads, the better."

Zheng realized the truth. "No wonder the position of Deputy Regional Commander has been vacant for so long. It seems someone behind our Regional Commander has been exerting pressure."

"So, let us just follow orders," Huang An said, patting Zheng on the shoulder. "He gets the office, and we get the wealth."

Zheng mused, "I previously thought you were the one who persuaded the Regional Commander to hunt these bandits. Now it seems he had his eyes on them all along."

"Otherwise, how could a lowly Assistant Regional Commander like me persuade him to mobilize the entire Tiancheng Garrison?" Huang An looked toward the direction of Yangyuan County and added, "Do you not feel that the leader of these fleeing rebels is no ordinary man? I fear we might be on a wild goose chase this time."