White-robed Minister

0003 [A makeshift team]

Patrol inspectors were usually drawn from local militia, with local soldiers serving only as temporary replacements.

It wasn't until Wang Anshi's reforms, which led to the large-scale reduction of the Xiangjun (garrison troops) system, that local soldiers became the main force of patrol inspections.

The patrol post in front of us is full of conscripted able-bodied men, waiting to be trained as local soldiers.

There were no stockade walls, no watchtowers.

The open space was piled with a lot of straw and bamboo poles, and able-bodied men from all around had to use those materials to build their own shacks.

The straw huts served as barracks.

There wasn't even a designated place to defecate; they knew to find a patch of grass to poop, but they simply urinated anywhere on the ground. The air was thick with the stench of urine!

Xu Lai raised his hand to cover his nose.

Then, feeling that this was unnecessary, he simply put his hand down, figuring he'd get used to it anyway.

In the center of the islet, there is a relatively large shack.

A table was placed in the open space in front of the shack.

An official was dozing off at his desk, with a wine pot at his feet.

Xu Lai and his group walked over and immediately smelled a strong odor of alcohol. After calling out several times, the clerk finally woke up with a yawn.

The clerk seemed still slightly intoxicated and too lazy to grind more ink. He moistened the brush with his tongue and said, "Report the names and villages."

The able-bodied men crowded together to register.

Xu Lai was filled with questions; it really was just registration and record-keeping, without any other procedures.

Extremely irregular!

There are two types of soldiers: long-term and short-term.

Long-term soldiers would be classified as military personnel, and might even be tattooed. They would receive a monthly stipend, as well as uniforms and shoes.

Short-term soldiers are required to sign a contract. Although they do not need to be officially enlisted in the military, they are issued a service certificate and are entitled to resettlement allowance and clothing. Upon discharge, they receive vouchers (subsidy certificates) and can collect money and goods upon returning home.

But at this moment, there was nothing at all.

What kind of makeshift troupe is this?

When it was Xu Lai's turn, he clasped his hands in a salute and said, "May I ask your honorable name, sir?"

The clerk immediately laughed and said, "This is the first time I've heard someone call me 'sir.' You're quite clever and quick-witted. My surname is Yu, so just call me Yu Tiesi."

The clerks were common low-ranking officials, found in both county offices and patrol offices.

Xu Lai introduced himself and his village, then continued to ingratiate himself, saying, "Yu Tiesi's calligraphy is really good, just as beautiful as that of the scholar in our neighboring village. That scholar even passed the imperial examination."

Yu Tiesi smiled knowingly: "You can read too?"

Xu Lai said, "I recognize some."

Yu Tiesi seemed to want to slack off, so he handed the brush to Xu Lai: "Write a few words for me to see. If they are useful, you can help register and record any more able-bodied men who come to work in the future."

For Xu Lai, who holds a master's degree in Chinese linguistics, writing is a piece of cake.

Xu Lai took the brush and bent down to write down his information.

Yu Tiesi nodded in approval and said, "Your handwriting is quite good, so this seat is yours."

After saying that, Yu Tiesi got up and left, handing over his work to Xu Lai, and went into the shack to sleep during the day.

The able-bodied men from Qingxi Village all looked at each other in bewilderment.

Everyone was temporarily conscripted to be soldiers, but in the blink of an eye, Xu Lai became a clerk.

Xu Lai was also completely confused.

He just wanted to get close to this clerk and find out some information to prepare for what was to come.

What's with making me responsible for registration?

Is it really that casual?

After Xu Lai finished registering all the remaining partners, they went together to build the shack.

As evening approached, several more able-bodied men came to report for duty.

Seeing that Xu Lai was a young boy dressed in coarse cloth clothes, they were curious but dared not ask too many questions, and honestly gave their names and origins.

Yu Tiesi finally woke up, stretched, and walked out of the shack. After yawning, he shouted, "Why isn't dinner served yet?"

"They're here, they're here."

The cook brought over a special meal: fragrant rice and salted fish.

This is Yu Tiesi's dinner.

The food for the able-bodied men was terrible; each person received a bowl of thin porridge, which contained grit. This stuff was not filling at all, so everyone had to take out their own dry rations, break off a small piece, and eat it with the porridge.

"Sanlang, your porridge is even thicker," said his cousin Buchao. "When I was putting the rice in the pot for you, that guy stirred it a few times at the bottom."

Xu Lai smiled and said, "I can read and write, so I can help Yu Tiesi with the registration and record-keeping."

"Reading does have its benefits," Bu Chao remarked.

It was nearly dark when they finished eating. Yu Tiesi called Xu Lai over: "Go and walk around and tell those newly arrived able-bodied men that they are not allowed to make noise or wander around at night. Anyone who disobeys will be punished with a beating!"

Well, this guy is slacking off again.

Xu Lai finally understood that apart from the clerks and cooks, there were no regular soldiers here.

They were all conscripted men!

Yu Tiesi was in a state of debauchery, unwilling to manage affairs, and just drifting along.

Xu Lai, wielding a chicken feather as a command token, called upon his fellow villagers and, armed with weapons, began patrolling the camp to relay orders.

After completing the lap, we returned to our shack.

Yang Peng, a fellow villager, said, "Sanlang, you're really impressive! We're benefiting from your success. Tomorrow when we're served dinner, could you tell the cook to make our porridge a little thicker?"

"I'll give it a try," Xu Lai replied ambiguously.

That guy Yu Tiesi, he's lazy and sleeps during the day, but at night he sits by the river watching the moon.

Seeing that Xu Lai was diligent in his work, that the roster was accurate, and that his night patrols were quite professional, he simply gave up and refused to do anything himself.

Xu Lai lay in the shack, swatting mosquitoes.

Damn it, the weather has already turned cool, but these mosquitoes just won't stop.

There's no bed to sleep on; I just lie on straw, and there are bugs crawling around in the straw. I reckon I'll get lice in a couple of days.

Xu Lai gripped his broadsword, not daring to fall asleep.

Judging from the performance of these able-bodied men, if a salt bandit were to launch a surprise attack, the entire army would be routed in no time. He had to escape faster than the others and jump into the river to survive.

The able-bodied men only obeyed half of the orders relayed during tonight's patrol.

No one was wandering around at night, but there was a constant murmur of voices everywhere, chatting animatedly and even laughing out loud.

They're pretty carefree.

But what choice do able-bodied men have?

Since we've already been conscripted, worrying and fretting are useless; being optimistic is actually better. It's just a matter of staying here, waiting for the conscription to end so we can go home, or running for our lives if the salt bandits come.

……

I woke up naturally in the morning, and no one came to roll call or drills.

Xu Lai walked out of the shack carrying a broadsword and immediately saw someone urinating.

After walking for a while, there was a commotion ahead, as if people were arguing and fighting.

"Make way, make way!"

Yu Tiesi rushed over, pushed through the crowd, and demanded, "Who's causing trouble?"

A ragged, burly man said, "The manure I collected these past two days, which I was going to dry and take home to fertilize my fields. He stole it from me last night!"

Another strongman said, "Why should it be your shit? Try yelling a few times and see if the shit responds."

These two guys were pushing and shoving each other, exchanging insults.

Xu Lai was both amused and exasperated.

The first fight in the military camp was actually because someone stole feces.

Yu Tiesi grew increasingly irritated as he listened: "Those two bastards, drag them out and give them five strokes of the military rod. Throw their shit into the river, and from now on, no one in the camp is allowed to pick up or hide shit! Xu Lai, you lead the executioners."

This wretched place doesn't even have military judges; they have to put together a makeshift enforcement team to punish people with military batons.

After temporarily serving as a registrar, Xu Lai became a military judge. He called over a few fellow villagers, dragged the two men to be beaten with a cane, and quietly instructed them, "Hold back a bit, don't hurt them."

The troublemaker was quickly subdued, his pants were pulled down, and he was spanked.

Even more outrageous, while being beaten, the man cried and wailed, "Don't throw your shit into the river! You can use it to fertilize the fields! Give me back my shit! Give me back my shit..."

Xu Lai initially found it amusing, but then felt a pang of melancholy and sorrow.

People's lives are full of hardships.

Take my own family as an example. If we have enough manure, we can open another mulberry orchard, and our economic situation will improve rapidly.

For ancient farmers, excrement was indeed a very precious commodity.

After dealing with the fight, the able-bodied men dispersed.

Apart from Yu Tiesi and the cook, the rest of the people did not have breakfast.

If you're really starving, just eat some dry food yourself.

Xu Lai's stomach was rumbling. He broke off half a multigrain pancake and chewed it as he went to "work".

Only six new able-bodied men arrived all morning.

Xu Lai, utterly bored, held his calligraphy brush. Seeing Yu Tiesi approaching, he couldn't help but ask, "Tiesi, aren't you going to form squads? It would be easier to manage that way."

Yu Tiesi said, "The able-bodied men haven't all arrived yet, and the officers haven't come either. Let's wait."

Xu Lai then asked, "Isn't the military camp going to be repaired?"

Yu Tiesi retorted, "How can we repair it? Who will do the repairs? We can't find a single piece of timber, not even a hoe. Are we going to dig the earth and build the fortress by hand? These able-bodied men are all starving. You expect them to build fortifications?"

Unable to contain himself any longer, Xu Lai asked a pointed question despite their brief acquaintance: "Why... treat this so lightly?"

"Heh," Yu Tiesi sneered, "When the officers come another day, you can go and ask them. I also want to know why such important military matters are treated so lightly!"

Xu Lai carefully observed the other party's expression and found that Yu Tiesi was not angry; in fact, there was a hint of resentment on his face.

Xu Lai continued, "This sandbar is strategically located, controlling three waterways: northwest, northeast, and south. If we simply establish a stockade here and add a few patrol boats, those salt bandits will be unable to use the waterways. If any salt bandits do appear during this campaign, our place will be the first to be attacked."

"You think you're so smart? Even a fool could see that." Yu Tiesi said irritably.

Xu Lai said no more.

Just by looking at Yu Tiesi's reaction, you can tell there's more to the story.

They were truly major salt smugglers, mainly causing trouble in Yingzhou, Lianzhou, Shaozhou, Xunzhou, Nanxiong and other places. They plundered county towns, killed officials, and the commotion they caused often alarmed the imperial court, creating a life-or-death situation between soldiers and bandits.

The banditry in Qingyuan County was slightly less severe, as the bandits mainly came from Lianzhou, crossing mountains and valleys. This group of salt bandits was not large in scale.

Therefore, the patrol inspectors of Qingyuan County and the salt bandits were not mortal enemies; there was room for cooperation between them.

They colluded with officials and bandits to engage in smuggling, agreeing not to rob within the territory of Qingyuan County—in fact, they occasionally plundered villages, but they would not rob important places such as docks and customs, otherwise the patrol inspector would be dismissed for his crimes.

This year, an imperial edict was issued, and the crackdown on salt bandits was unprecedented in its scale. The officers of the Qingyuan County Patrol Office dared not openly disobey the imperial order, so they simply found ways to shirk their duties.

Moreover, the various arrangements made by the imperial court gave them room to slack off.

This was a joint operation by Jiangxi and Guangdong, with Cai Ting, the Jiangxi Provincial Judicial Commissioner and Salt Commissioner of Qianzhou, in charge.

How could a Jiangxi provincial judicial commissioner command Guangdong soldiers?

Yu Tiesi stood up and gazed at the distant river, then sarcastically remarked, "Don't ask what you shouldn't ask. The higher-ups have their own arrangements. We poor folks just need to follow orders."

Xu Lai thought to himself: This guy is really resentful.

It would be strange if they weren't resentful.

A makeshift patrol post was set up, with no fortifications whatsoever, only able-bodied men who would collapse at the slightest provocation, and it was likely to become a prime target for bandits. No officers or high-ranking officials showed up; they just threw him, a low-ranking clerk, over there.

That was bad enough, but they didn't even provide building materials, so Yu Tiesi had no way to build a camp.

Damn it.

All the superiors are just slacking off, so why can't we, the Yu Tie Si, slave off too?

Just then, Yu Tiesi, who was gazing into the distance, saw a fleet of official ships coming from the south.

The official ship was getting closer and closer, and the flags on board could be seen clearly.

Yu Tiesi was taken aback at first, then beamed with joy and became more enthusiastic than ever before: "Form ranks! Form ranks! Take up your weapons and line up in formation, follow me to welcome Commander Ma!"

-

(Thanks to the following gentlemen for their generous donations: Black-Clad White-Shirt, Relaxed Pine, Sacrifice to the Saint, and Crunchy Crispy Pastry.)

(Also, I apologize for misspelling Pal3's name yesterday.)