Chapter 7 Shipbuilding

  The sun was high, and Anqing city was in a state of solemnity.

  Wearing numbered jackets and white cloths wrapped around their heads, the Shan Tang miscellaneous workers drove mule carts, expressionless, slowly advancing on the streets, one by one picking up the corpses along the way, neatly stacking them on the mule cart. After a night of wind, these corpses had long been frozen stiff, presenting themselves in strange and bizarre postures, with severed limbs and shattered skulls, making people unbearable to look at.

  In addition to the charitable organizations, the city's police and yamen runners also carried out post-disaster relief work. They held in their hands hastily printed notices from the Revolutionary Military Government, posting them along the streets and gathering the heads of each street and neighborhood to convey the orders of the Anqing City Defense Command. They were ordered to calm the people on each street and alley, organize able-bodied men to patrol the streets, capture spies, and intimidate troublemakers.

  The distant sound of gunfire came from the west of the city, which was the revolutionary army's western expeditionary force still fighting, but the information inside and outside the city was cut off, and it was unknown how the battle was going.

  The south of the city also transmitted the rumbling sound of cannons, which was the artillery of the revolutionary army in the city fighting a cannon battle with the Qing army's gunboats on the Yangtze River. The southern part of the city occasionally rose up black smoke, which was the shells that fell into the city. The residents of the south were no longer dare to stay at home and fled to the north to avoid the artillery fire.

  The citizens, who had been trembling with fear all night, quietly opened their doors and looked out onto the street through the cracks. The streets were filled with refugees, adults crying and children wailing, a pitiful sight that tugged at one's heartstrings. It wasn't until they saw the patrolmen carrying foreign swords walking by that the citizens finally breathed a sigh of relief. Since even the police and officials had taken to the streets, it meant that order had been restored in the city. In any case, it was now possible to go out and buy rice and flour.

  Although there were still some corpses that had not been cleaned up on the streets, the common people could no longer care about many things. The heads of each household took out bags of rice and went out the door, facing the cold wind, walking quickly with their heads down along the street corners, heading to the nearest rice shop. In their hearts, they prayed that the rice shop would not close or raise prices. After all, no one knew when the chaos in this city would stop. If possible, they wanted to go out as little as possible and buy enough rice and flour for a few months, so that the whole family could lock themselves indoors.

  When people rushed to the rice shops amidst the sound of gunfire, they were surprised to find that not only were the doors of these shops wide open, but there were also two soldiers standing at each entrance with foreign rifles, and on the most conspicuous shopfronts, a notice was posted with the same content:

  "Proclamation of the Revolutionary Military Government of the Republic of China! A new era has begun, and all things are renewed. It is hoped that the military and civilians of the entire city will unite as one to build a republic together! In order to calm the minds of the people, from today onwards, all rice shops and flour shops in the city are strictly prohibited from closing their doors or suspending business, and the prices of rice and flour must not exceed yesterday's prices. This proclamation must not be torn down arbitrarily. Those who violate this order will be regarded as enemies of the revolution! Anyone who opposes our revolutionary army is a running dog of the Manchu Qing dynasty, and their property will be considered enemy property and will not be protected by the Revolutionary Military Government! This order takes effect immediately! Commander-in-Chief of Anqing City Defense, Duan."

  This notice was issued by the Garrison Commander Duan Zixian, but in fact it was Zhao Bei's opinion. Considering that Anqing had just been recovered and stabilizing the people's hearts was the top priority, Duan Zixian readily accepted Zhao Bei's opinion and issued this notice, while also agreeing to supply official grain to the grain merchants in the city at a fair price.

  The common people stood in front of the notice, discussing and speculating, feeling bewildered, anxious, and helpless. Various emotions were intertwined, leaving them at a loss for what to do. Some ignorant people had only just learned that Anqing City had changed hands, and the former "Daqing Governor" had become something called the "City Defense Commander". They also wondered what this "revolution" was all about. People only vaguely knew that last year, after the police academy's armed uprising was put down, Xu Zhuangshi, who had planned the "rebellion", kept muttering the word "revolution" before his execution.

  "Last year was a big fuss, and now it's continuing to be a fuss. In my opinion, this world is going to change."

  An old man with a dignified appearance clasped his hands and sighed, and only then did the crowd come to their senses. Whether it was the "Grand Qing Inspector" or the "City Defense Commander", as long as the common people had enough food to eat, that was enough. They rushed into the shops, amidst the shouting of the shopkeepers and clerks, in a chaotic scramble to buy rice and flour.

  "Neighbors, neighbors, please make way! Don't push and shove! This rice and flour are not in short supply. The commander of the city garrison has said it himself: as long as the official granaries remain open, whenever we go to buy grain, they will sell it to us. Everyone can buy some, everyone can buy some! Don't push! My small shop can't hold so many people." The owner of the rice shop shouted hoarsely, but at a time like this, who would still listen to him?

  Just as the people fighting for rice and those selling rice were in a state of chaos, Zhao Bei, the mastermind behind it all, sat upright at the front desk, seriously watching the clerk write while occasionally raising his head to loudly scold the people at the back of the queue who were not used to lining up.

  He is recruiting and buying horses here, expanding his troops.

  As the Western Expeditionary Army outside Anqing City was advancing smoothly, the Qing army's camp on the south bank of the Yangtze River remained still, and the city's defense affairs were entrusted to Duan Zhixian. As a result, Zhao Bei had some spare time, except for arranging personnel to assist in patrolling the streets, suppressing the local situation, and further restoring normal order within the city.

  Although he had handed over the post of Left Wing Commander, his troops did not hand over all of them. Now there are still more than 200 people directly under his command, all of whom were new military officers and soldiers who had charged with him to the Governor's Mansion. He wanted to take these people away and contact the Hubei and Jiangsu New Army in Taihu County. In addition, he also planned to continue expanding his forces. After all, in a chaotic world, strength is paramount, and if the team is not expanded to 500 people, then the military equipment he picked up would be useless.

  "What's your name? Where is your hometown?"

  Zhao Bei asked a tall and sturdy young man standing in front of the enlistment platform, who like everyone else, had come to join the army for food. Slightly different from others was that this person wore mourning attire and still had tears at the corners of his eyes.

  "Big shot. Local." The young man raised his head and looked at Zhao Bei.

  "What's your surname?"

  "Vermilion."

  "Zhu Daniu. Why join the army?" Zhao Bei looked at the registrar as he wrote down his name and hometown.

  "Revenge!" The young man's answer was also somewhat different from others.

  "Oh?" Zhao Bei's gaze fell to the youth below, carefully examining him for a few moments. He saw that the young man had an angry face and his tightly clenched fists were still trembling.

  "Who will you take revenge on?"

  "Find the imperial dog official to avenge!" The young man spread his hands and wiped the corners of his eyes. "The imperial dog official burned my family's boat, burning my parents alive, I want to kill the dog official to avenge them!"

  "Are you a boatman?" Zhao Bei saw the young man nod, and signaled to the secretary to record this person's occupation. He specifically instructed that it must be written clearly that this person had a deep blood feud with the Qing court. Among his newly recruited subordinates, there were many who were also from a boatman background. Because the Qing army burned their boats when they retreated, cutting off their livelihoods, many people came to join the army with hatred in their hearts. For such people, Zhao Bei was especially welcoming. In his view, only those who had no other options would persist in following him, even if it meant going through thorns and hardships without giving up.

  "As far as you know, are there any other ships hidden around here?" Zhao Bei asked again.

  Zhu Daniu thought for a moment, shaking his head: "Only some small boats that escaped from the upstream port of Gangkou are hidden. A few days ago, the imperial dog official Qiu Cao Xin's army also forcibly requisitioned many civilian ships, but they are all still moored in the area of Luoma River."

  "Small boat? A small boat will do. Can you help me get a dozen or so of these small boats? I need them by tonight."

  "Got it! I know those boat captains." Zhu Daniu nodded his head.

  Zhao Bei pointed to the side and said: "Go there to measure your height, and then I will have a military uniform made for you. After measuring your height, receive your military pay, four taels and five mace of official silver."

  "Thank you, General." Zhu Dabull thanked him and walked to one side of the platform, where an officer measured his height.

  The revolutionary army's uniforms are currently insufficient, and Zhao Bei has decided to rush the production of some uniforms and distribute them to his own troops, but for now, it is still not possible to do this.

  Not only were the military uniforms insufficient, but the revolutionary army's weapons were also extremely scarce. When Xiong Chengji went on a western expedition, he took away most of the guns and cannons, leaving behind less than 2,000 modern rifles in the city. In addition, there were several thousand old-fashioned muzzle-loading guns stored, with only six field guns, two mountain guns, and four field guns, operated by an artillery team, set up on the rooftops of several foreign merchant buildings in the south of the city, specifically to suppress the Qing army's gunboats on the Yangtze River. Fortunately, those two gunboats were small ships, with too few shipboard cannons to form a suppressive firepower, and they also did not know the location of the revolutionary army's artillery positions. Otherwise, it would have been impossible to intimidate the enemy with just six infantry guns.

  It seems that the Qing naval fleet is still hesitant, otherwise the shells would have flown to the north of the city long ago and wouldn't have only exploded in the south. Anqing city is not big, the large-caliber naval guns on the warships are enough to cover the entire city.

  In order to arm themselves as soon as possible, Zhao Bei suggested that the city defense commander Duan Zhihuan gather all the blacksmiths in the city and order them to make long spears and large knives with all their might. In order to make up for the shortage of spear handles, all the small and large woodworking shops in the city were searched, and even the wax gun handles used by the martial artists in the opera troupe were taken away to make up for the number. People armed with cold weapons are always more powerful than those who fight with their bare fists.

  Apart from making cold weapons, Duan Zhixian also ordered the collection of all the firecrackers in the city. The apprentices and masters of the firecracker shops were also summoned to make landmines using firecrackers and iron cans. After last night's fierce battle, the revolutionary army, from the commander-in-chief to the ordinary soldiers, developed a strong interest in this powerful close combat weapon. Considering that the explosive power of black gunpowder was not strong enough, Zhao Bei suggested putting iron nails in the iron can to increase its lethality. Duan Zhixian happily accepted this suggestion, after all, Zhao Bei's reputation for "one shot to determine the fate" was well-known outside, and he trusted the bombs designed by him.

  Zhu Dabull finished measuring his height and walked up to the platform to receive his military pay.

  Zhao pointed to the black and thick braid behind Zhu Daniu's head, saying: "Zhu Daniu, now that we've joined the revolution, shouldn't you cut off this Qing dynasty pigtail of yours?"

  Zhu Daniu looked at Zhao Bei's bald back of the head, then glanced at the secretary's flowing shoulder-length hair, raised his hand to touch his own braid, and hesitated to ask: "To be a soldier for the military master, must one cut off their braid?"

  "Cut it or not, it's up to you! But let me tell you beforehand, if you cut your braid, you'll be a regular soldier. Every month, in addition to the four taels and five mace of military pay, you'll also get an extra half tael of 'shaving money'. If you don't cut your braid, you can only join the 'Revolutionary Guard', which only pays two taels of silver per month, with no shaving money. And when the military funds are tight, you won't even get paid. You decide for yourself."

  Zhao Bei walked up to Zhu Da Niu, patted him on the shoulder, and only then noticed that he didn't seem to be wearing a cotton-padded jacket. He took off the woolen coat he had stolen from the government office and put it on the slightly shivering young man.

  The so-called "regular army" and "revolutionary guard" were just Zhao Bei's own organizational structure, which had not yet been reported to Commander-in-Chief Xiong Chengji for approval. However, according to Xiong Chengji's intention, after the revolution, he would order all military personnel and civilians in the city to immediately cut their queues and shave their hair. But this was opposed by the majority of people in the command center, so it was abandoned. After all, the city had just been recovered, and the people's hearts were not stable. If they acted rashly and triggered a civil uprising, it would not be what the revolutionaries wanted to see. Not only could the common people's queues not be cut immediately, but also the revolutionary soldiers' queues had to be considered carefully. However, since the revolution had already taken place, it was inappropriate for these queues to still be hanging on the back of the revolutionary army's heads. Therefore, Zhao Bei took the initiative to use "haircut money" to attract revolutionary soldiers to voluntarily cut their queues. As for those who were unwilling to cut their queues or were hesitant, Zhao Bei did not force them, after all, he did not want to trigger a military uprising - such an uprising had occurred during the Xinhai Revolution. However, those who refused to cut their queues could not be incorporated into his elite troops.

  What is called "imperial lineage" refers to being loyal and devoted to oneself. If even hairstyles are not willing to approach oneself, how can they be considered imperial lineage? Of course, considering that this trip is to coordinate with and mobilize the new armies of Hubei and Jiangsu to respond to the uprising, perhaps this braid can still be used, but cutting it all off doesn't seem quite right either.

  "Cut! I'll cut!" Zhu Daniu touched his overcoat and felt a surge of heat in his heart.

  "Very good. You are a true revolutionary. Revolution requires sacrificing everything!" Zhao Bei said with a smile. By using this method of cutting off queues, he had expanded his own direct troops to nearly two hundred people, almost the size of two teams. For his direct troops, he naturally wouldn't be stingy, and the best and newest rifles were equipped for these queue-less officers and soldiers. The only machine gun was also controlled by them.

  "Now, you immediately go and find a ship for me. You must find a ship that can hold 500 people before nightfall. This is my order, take it and leave the city." Zhao Bei assigned the task to Zhu Da Niu.

  Zhu Daniu retreated at the sound, but refused to take away that cotton-padded jacket. Zhao Bei had no choice but to let him be. Just as he turned back, he saw Wu Zhenhan rushing over with two soldiers and several yamen runners. Due to the needs of his mission, Wu Zhenhan had not yet cut off his queue, but had coiled it up and tucked it into his military cap. The queues of new army officers were generally shorter, and when covered by their caps, they were hardly noticeable.

  Those yamen were the remnants of Anqing City's defeated government. Due to the Qing dynasty's new policies at the end of the empire, a police system was established and the yamen were eliminated, leaving them without a livelihood. They harbored resentment in their hearts. When the revolutionary army arrived, they didn't need to be summoned; they automatically joined forces and came to "pledge allegiance to the revolution". Moreover, as soon as they arrived, they presented a "grand gift" to Xiong Chengji: they captured over ten of the former governor Enming's personal bodyguards and executed them in front of the governor's mansion. Since they were local bullies with some influence and connections, the military government took them in and ordered them to assist in maintaining order within the city.

  "How is it?" Zhao Bei hastily went forward and asked.

  "We've gathered fifty large vehicles." Wu Zhenhan stood at attention and saluted. Originally, Xiong Chengji had planned to transfer him to his own command, but he politely declined, only willing to follow Zhao Bei, who in turn promoted him as his deputy.

  "Fifty vehicles?" Zhao Bei furrowed his brow. According to his plan, when going to mobilize the new army troops in Hubei and Jiangsu, he should bring at least a team of 500 people. Considering the heavy luggage and ammunition carried by the army, transportation tools were indispensable. From Anqing to Taihu County, the most convenient way was to take the waterway. A small river called "Luoma River" flowed into the Yangtze River not far from the west of Anqing City, although the river was not large, but it could be navigated by small boats. In fact, the Qing army's heavy troops participating in the autumn exercise were also going to Taihu County via that river.

  However, considering that the Qing army had burned down the boats, Zhao Bei had to make two preparations. If he couldn't gather enough boats, he could only take the land route and follow a simple horse road to Taihu County, which would require many vehicles. He ordered Wu Zhenhan to lead the yamen runners to requisition vehicles from the wealthy households in the city.

  However, fifty carts were too few. Now most of the carts in China are two-wheeled and have a small carrying capacity, which cannot meet the carrying needs of a 500-man army for ten days. The straight-line distance from Taihu County to Anqing City is approximately 200 miles. Even at the speed of an emergency march, it would take at least one or two days, and considering that the autumn exercise troops may not be able to respond to the uprising, enough food, fodder, and ammunition must also be prepared on the escape route, and of course, they could no longer run to Anqing.

  "Those big shots look down on us, they don't take the revolutionary army seriously. If you ask me, we should just kill one to warn a hundred!" A nearby official urged.

  Zhao looked at the man slantingly and said, "Revolution is to unite the majority and isolate the minority. Now that the revolution has just achieved initial victory, whether it's officials or gentry, they are all watching with bated breath. The more so in such times, the more cautious we must be. If we can't mobilize them, then let's spend money to buy vehicles from them! I don't believe that a big city like Anqing can't even scrape together 100 large carts."

  The words had barely fallen when a voice shouted from behind: "Sir, the ships are assembled, the ships are assembled!"

  Zhao Bei turned his head to look, and saw that the person who was shouting was none other than Zhu Daniu, who had just left not long ago. Judging by the time, he probably hadn't even stepped out of the city gate yet.

  Dai Zhu rushed over and Zhao Bei hastily asked: "You didn't leave the city, how did you manage to gather enough boats?"

  Zhu Daniu panted and said: "As soon as I arrived at the city gate, I saw people outside shouting to enter the city, but the soldiers guarding the city did not allow them to enter. There were many people among them that I recognized, all of whom were from humble origins running ships on the Yangtze River. I ran out of the city and asked them, only to find out that their boats had been seized by corrupt officials last night and taken to the south bank. Early this morning, while the officials were still asleep, these boatmen quietly sailed their boats upstream, avoiding the warships, and hid in the reeds on the north bank. They wanted to return to the city to look for their families but couldn't enter. I asked clearly, and there were nearly twenty big and small boats."

  "Are you telling the truth? Are there really twenty ships?" Zhao Bei grabbed Zhu Daniu's shoulder.

  "That's right. Wrong, you chop off my head." Zhu Daniu raised his hand and wiped his neck. "I told those guys that as long as they were willing to come ashore, I'd let them into the city. Those boats are moored at the mouth of the Mule River, hidden quite well."

  "Alright, alright! You've done a good job on this matter. Not only will I not behead you, but I'll also give you an official position." Zhao Bei said with a smile, casting a glance at Wu Zhenhan beside him. "Baishan, take the men to Beicheng first and find those ships. Then let the sailors enter the city to reunite with their families. If they're willing to join our righteous army, recruit them; if not, don't force it - we've already recruited many sailors anyway. Oh, and don't forget to ask them about the movements of the Qing army on the southern shore."

  "Then when are we leaving?" Wu Zhenhan asked hastily. As the deputy, he was still very clear about Zhao Bei's mission.

  "Set off as soon as possible! Completing the task early is beneficial for both the revolution and us. You go find a boat, I'll arrange for the transportation and loading of the luggage. In any case, we can't give up this opportunity, whether this revolution succeeds or not may depend on us." Zhao Bei said with deep meaning, turning his head to gaze westward.

  There, black smoke billowed and cannon fire rumbled. The Qing army entrenched in the west of the city was still stubbornly resisting, but its decline had already appeared. If everything went smoothly, there would be no need to wait until nightfall for the western passage to open, and Zhao Bei could set off.

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