Chapter 60

The two thousand troops allocated to Chen Qing by the Privy Council were a local army, temporarily stationed in the southern part of the city. They were usually responsible for guarding the city gates, patrolling for security, or transporting supplies.

This local army had a total of six thousand men, and the Privy Council had selected two thousand soldiers for Chen Qing. There were no officers above the rank of battalion commander, and after the bandit suppression, they would return to their respective units.

The camp consisted of five rows of brick houses, nearly two hundred rooms, surrounded by a wall, and there was a parade ground as large as a football field.

Chen Qing arrived at the camp with Huyan Tong and four other subordinates, only to find the entrance crowded with vendors selling food and warming wine on small tables.

Dozens of stalls were filled with soldiers drinking and playing finger-guessing games, and by the nearby river, there were over a dozen pleasure boats, each with a long queue of soldiers waiting.

Chen Qing rode through the crowd of vendors on a horse borrowed from Han Shizhong. Although it was not as magnificent as his own horse, it was still quite good.

The surrounding noise and bustle made everyone exchange glances, hardly believing this could be a military camp. In the Western Army, such indiscipline would result in the commander being beheaded and displayed.

Huyan Tong, who had more experience, explained to the others, "Local armies are mostly like this. They have low pay and low morale, and soldiers just serve to get by. The Imperial Guards receive double the pay and better benefits, so their discipline is slightly better."

"Commander, should we call them in?" Zheng Ping whispered.

Chen Qing shook his head, "Let's go in and see first!"

There was no one guarding the camp gate, so they entered directly. The camp was deserted, with no soldiers in sight. They walked through several rows of houses, which were all empty.

Just as they were wondering, a loud voice came from a room ahead, "Big! Big! Big! Give me a big one!" followed by the laughter of many people.

Chen Qing walked over and saw a room full of people, three layers deep, surrounding a small table. Several officers were rolling dice, and the table was covered with copper coins.

Chen Qing was finally annoyed. They were either gambling, whoring, or drinking and eating—this was the army he was supposed to lead to suppress the bandits?

"Go and beat the drum to gather the troops!"

Zheng Ping ran to the drum and began to beat it.

"Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!" The drumbeat was intense, a hundred and eight beats to gather the troops. Any soldier who deliberately did not show up or was late would be beaten or even executed.

The drumbeat was deafening, audible for miles. The soldiers were stunned, and soon chaos ensued. Soldiers drinking and eating jumped up and ran to the parade ground, and those queuing for the pleasure boats scattered. Soon, the red-faced gamblers emerged from the rooms, staring in surprise at Chen Qing and his men.

"I am Chen Qing, commander of the Western Army's reconnaissance camp!"

Chen Qing introduced himself to the two thousand soldiers. The only thing that satisfied him was that all two thousand soldiers were present, though many were a bit late. Chen Qing did not want to punish them today.

"From today, I will be your commander, and our mission is to suppress the army of Zhang Kui in Muzhou!"

As soon as Chen Qing finished speaking, the soldiers were in an uproar. They were to fight Zhang Kui? Would they survive?

"General Chen, you're not... joking, right?" a battalion commander asked nervously.

"Would I joke about this?"

Chen Qing's voice became stern as he addressed the two thousand men, "Many of you think that fighting Zhang Kui means certain death. Is he more terrifying than the Jurchens? I, Chen Qing, led a thousand soldiers to resist tens of thousands of Jin troops in Guanzhong and Longzhou, winning battle after battle and killing countless enemies. A mere Zhang Kui has frightened you so much. We are all Song soldiers; why is there such a huge difference? In times of national crisis, do you only know how to eat, drink, and whore? Do you lack even the most basic military spirit?"

Several battalion commanders lowered their heads in shame, and the two thousand soldiers were silent. Chen Qing then said slowly, "I will never force anyone. If you do not wish to fight Zhang Kui with me, you can leave now. If you are willing to fight with me, I promise that after we suppress Zhang Kui, I will distribute all his wealth to you. I, Chen Qing, will not take a single coin!"

With a combination of kindness and authority, no one left.

Chen Qing then divided the two thousand men into four camps, leading one himself, while Huyan Tong, Liu Qiong, and Zheng Ping each led one. He also selected fifty capable soldiers to form a reconnaissance camp, led by Zhao Xiaoyi.

At this time, the Military Equipment Supervision and the Craft Supervision sent supplies and three hundred carts to assist in their transportation.

Despite Chen Qing's mental preparation, he was still disappointed when he saw the supplies. There were no bed crossbows, no divine arm crossbows, and no siege weapons. There were only five hundred semi-old military crossbows and five hundred city defense bows, five hundred semi-old shields, two thousand flags, tens of thousands of arrows, a thousand stones of rice and flour, salt, and some dried meat, several hundred strings of coins, and two thousand sets of old leather armor, dozens of chainmail and copper helmets.

The soldiers were currently wearing cloth armor, wearing conical hats, and holding spears and war knives. The cloth armor was ineffective, not even stopping ordinary arrows, so they needed to wear leather armor. Although leather armor could not stop military crossbows, it could at least withstand ordinary arrows.

After putting on the armor, it was already dark. The various supplies were not unloaded from the carts. After resting for two hours, Chen Qing led the two thousand soldiers and three hundred carts, setting out for Muzhou in the southwest.

......

The day after Chen Qing's army left, good news spread in Lin'an. The Western Army had defeated the Jin troops at Dasha Pass, killing tens of thousands of enemies, and the Jin commander, Wanyan Moli, was killed. The Song people, both military and civilian, desperately needed such uplifting news. Even in distant Guanzhong, the city was jubilant, with fireworks and celebrations.

In fact, Zhang Jun had already reported the battle at Heshangyuan to the emperor via pigeon. This was the formal military report.

Zhang Jun himself had also arrived in Lin'an, preparing to report to the emperor.

Zhang Jun, with years of experience in the bureaucracy, was well-versed in the rules and the unwritten rules of the court. He did not send the formal report alone but accompanied it with his own arrival, using the victory at Heshangyuan to enhance his report.

Otherwise, by the time he reported, the excitement of the victory would have faded, reducing the impact of his report.

When Emperor Gaozong heard that Zhang Jun had arrived, he immediately summoned him to the imperial study. Accompanying the emperor were the chancellor, Lu Yihao, and the two vice-chancellors, Qin Hui and Fan Zongyin, as well as the head of the Privy Council, Li Hui.

After the formal greetings, Emperor Gaozong granted Zhang Jun a seat and smiled, "After the initial defeat at Fuping, I said that victory and defeat are common in war. The Jin troops were at their peak, so defeat was normal. But your resilience afterward was commendable! You killed Wanyan Loushi and defeated the Jin troops at Heshangyuan, with their commander also killed. Although it was the merit of generals like Wu Jie and Wang Yan, it is more important that you, as the commander, were competent in deploying troops. This proves that I did not make a mistake in appointing you to manage Sichuan and Shaanxi."

"We in the Western Army are deeply moved. This great victory is due to the emperor's blessing. Without the emperor's determination to revive the Song, the morale would not have been so high, and even the most capable generals would not have succeeded. We have taken advantage of the emperor's rising momentum."

This flattery was well-received, attributing the final credit to the emperor.

Emperor Gaozong was genuinely pleased, feeling that he could influence the distant west from the southeast.

At this moment, Chancellor Lu Yihao asked, "I see in the report that the first merit is given to General Wu Jie, the second to General Wang Yan, which I understand as they were the main commanders. But the third greatest merit is given to Commander Chen Qing, which confuses me. What did a mere camp commander do to rank third?"

Privy Councilor Li Hui suddenly said, "Is this the Chen Qing who killed Wanyan Loushi?"

Emperor Gaozong's face showed recognition. He had felt the name was familiar, and it was the brave general who killed Wanyan Loushi.

"Is he ranked third because he killed Wanyan Loushi?"

Zhang Jun bowed and said, "Your Majesty, his merit is not for killing Wanyan Loushi, but as I wrote in the report, he led a thousand and five hundred Song soldiers to resist thirty thousand Jin troops at Arrow Pass. Although they were almost all killed, they held the pass, preventing the Jin troops from advancing south. This created the conditions for the main Song army to defeat the Jin at Heshangyuan. If the Jin troops had advanced south, the outcome of the battle would have been uncertain. Therefore, although he is a humble camp commander, we all agreed that he is the true first merit."

Everyone nodded in agreement, and Emperor Gaozong was deeply moved, "It is because of loyal and patriotic soldiers like these that the Song dynasty can continue to exist under the iron hooves of the barbarians."

Lu Yihao frowned slightly, "The name Chen Qing seems familiar. Where have I seen it? It's not from the Wanyan Loushi incident, but recently."

Zhang Jun smiled, "He should be in Lin'an now. I recommended him to study at the military academy."

Emperor Gaozong suddenly understood, "I know now!"