Chapter 84: Restoring Military Discipline
Leigong Mountain Military Camp.
In the blink of an eye, more than half a month had passed. The four thousand veteran soldiers had already mastered the essentials of the three-stage volley fire, and had learned to throw the handled Dragon King Cannons as well. Whether in units of a thousand or a hundred, these men could quickly form firing lines and, under the command of their centurions and squad leaders, conduct volleys in turn.
Regrettably, live ammunition drills were not possible!
The number of flintlock muskets and handled Dragon King Cannons brought to the camp was limited, and gunpowder was extremely scarce. These supplies were allocated by the Ministry of Works, and Datong had no gunpowder workshops. Even if Wang Pu had silver to spend, he could not buy more.
Fortunately, these four thousand were all seasoned veterans, well accustomed to bloodshed and the roar of gunfire and cannon. Even without live fire training, they would not be at a loss on the battlefield, nor panic or break ranks.
What comforted Wang Pu further was the individual quality of these four thousand men. They were either battle-hardened veterans who had crawled out from heaps of corpses, or infamous bandit chiefs with countless lives to their names. Whether in horsemanship, marksmanship, close combat with cold steel, or the use of firearms, all could only be described as superb!
They not only possessed formidable combat skills, but also a cold and tenacious will.
As long as Wang Pu could fulfill the public promises he had made, and as long as he could stir a resonance in their hearts—make them truly consider themselves his soldiers—there was no doubt these four thousand would become a fearsome elite force!
Whether facing rebel bandits or the Jianzhou Jurchens, both would be ruthlessly crushed by such troops.
Yet, not all was ideal. While Wang Pu was satisfied with the combat prowess of these four thousand, their military discipline was a constant headache! The eight hundred bandits were accustomed to the unrestrained life of robbing and pillaging. The three thousand old veterans, long used to being routed, were lazy and dispirited to the bone. Even Wang Pu’s original two hundred retainers were no better in discipline.
Forging these four thousand into well-trained, strictly disciplined iron-blooded warriors would be no easy task.
But no matter how difficult, Wang Pu was determined to see it done. Without strict discipline, these men would become nothing but an unruly, arrogant force: the more victories they won, the more unbridled they would become. In the end, if Wang Pu himself could no longer control them, they would dig their own graves and bring about their own destruction.
Such armies were not rare in Chinese history—brave and invincible, but without strict discipline. When their military successes reached a zenith, they quickly faded into oblivion.
When Wang Pu had first struck deep into Liaodong with a handful of men, he had indulged the beastly instincts of his thousand retainers for the sake of survival!
But now, he would never do so again. What he needed was not a pack of wild wolves, but a corps of iron-blooded warriors, disciplined to the core!
Inside Wang Pu’s command tent.
Zhen Youcai entered, hunched over with his hands folded, and asked, “General, did you send for me?”
“Youcai,” Wang Pu frowned, “how many times have I told you? Don’t refer to yourself as ‘this humble one’.”
“Oh, right, right.” Zhen Youcai slapped his forehead with a wry smile. “Look at my memory! From now on, when seeing the General, I’ll address myself as ‘your subordinate,’ yes, your subordinate, heh.”
Wang Pu shook his head with a bitter smile and beckoned him over. “Come, have a look at this.”
Zhen Youcai stepped forward and saw a large sheet of red paper on the table. Down the center of the left side, three bold characters were written vertically: “Seven Articles.” On the right were seven rules, written out as follows:
First Article of Military Law: Disobeying military orders—death without pardon;
Second Article: Violence against fellow soldiers—death without pardon;
Third Article: Violating Ming women—death without pardon;
Fourth Article: Plundering Ming civilians—death without pardon;
Fifth Article: Gambling in groups—eighty lashes in public;
Sixth Article: Concealing spoils—eighty lashes in public;
Seventh Article: Trampling crops—eighty lashes in public.
After studying them carefully, Zhen Youcai spoke cautiously, “General, I’m not sure if I should say this...”
“Speak your mind,” Wang Pu replied.
Zhen Youcai said, “In my opinion, there’s nothing to dispute about the first, second, and sixth articles, but the other four seem a bit excessive. For example, violating women or plundering civilians—eighty lashes should suffice. As for gambling or trampling crops, twenty lashes at most, or perhaps no punishment at all.”
“No, you’re mistaken,” Wang Pu shook his head. “Military discipline must be strict, especially regarding the violation of Ming women and the plundering of Ming civilians. These must be punished severely. Do you know why, Youcai?”
“Please enlighten me, General,” Zhen Youcai replied.
Wang Pu said, “Mencius once said, ‘The people are most important, the state comes next, the ruler is least.’ The people—what are they? They are the foundation of our Ming dynasty! What we eat is planted by the people, what we wear is woven by the people, and what we use is forged by the people. If we do not protect the people, we sever our own roots!”
“General, you are wise,” Zhen Youcai said solemnly. “I spoke out of turn.”
No sooner had Zhen Youcai finished speaking than Xiao Qi entered and reported, “General, there’s trouble.”
“What’s happened?” Wang Pu asked.
Xiao Qi replied, “Scarface and Big Beard, each with a squad, were playing polo and gambling at the foot of Leigong Mountain. They trampled the nearby villagers’ wheat fields. When a young farmer protested, Scarface’s men tied him up and gave him a severe beating. Scarface even threatened to burn down their village.”
“Bang!”
“Outrageous!” Wang Pu slammed the table, rising in anger. “Gambling, trampling crops, bullying Ming civilians—three major military laws broken at once! They must be tired of living!”
Xiao Qi was puzzled. “General, what three laws?”
Wang Pu roared, “Have Tang Sheng, Monk Zhang, and all the centurions assemble outside the camp gate at once!”
“Yes, sir!” Xiao Qi replied and hurried off.
At the foot of Leigong Mountain.
Big Beard and Scarface had just finished their polo game. Having spent over half a month on the mountain, these unruly soldiers had grown restless with the daily grind of training. Today, at last, they had a day off, so each led a group down the mountain for a game of polo.
The wheat fields used for their game were now a mess; the tender green shoots had been completely destroyed. Under the old locust tree at the edge of the field hung a young farmer, stripped to the waist in the bitter cold, his body covered in bruises.
Big Beard, having lost the match, spent some silver to buy ten pounds of braised beef, several bags of peanuts, and five pounds of wine from the village store. He and Scarface were feasting and drinking when a trusted aide suddenly ran up and reported, “Bosses, a large troop seems to be coming down from the mountain.”
“Oh?” Big Beard and Scarface looked back indifferently, and sure enough, clouds of dust were rising on the road from the Leigong Mountain camp, and the distant thunder of hooves could be heard. At least several dozen riders by the look of it.
“Damn,” Scarface scratched his head in confusion, “who could that be at this hour?”
“Who cares?” Big Beard said unconcernedly. “It’s not like it’s the General. Drink up.”
“True enough.” Scarface nodded, raised his bowl, and called out, “Come on, let’s drink.”
They had barely taken a few sips when their men began to shout, “The General! The General’s coming!”
“The General?” Big Beard and Scarface were stunned. They looked back and saw Wang Pu, clad in heavy armor, leading several dozen riders galloping toward them. Neither had noticed the General’s thunderous expression. Scarface laughed, lifted his bowl, and strode toward Wang Pu, calling out, “Ha, General, you’ve come at just the right time! Here, let me drink to you!”
Wang Pu did not dismount, but rode straight up to them.
At this point, the dozens of riders behind Wang Pu also drew near. Scarface and Big Beard realized with a jolt that Zhen Youcai, Tang Sheng, Monk Zhang, and the other centurions were all present—nearly every officer above the rank of squad leader in the camp!
Scarface now noticed Wang Pu’s grim expression and asked nervously, “General, what brings you here...?”
Wang Pu rode up to them, pointing with his riding crop at the young farmer hanging from the tree, and said in a cool, measured voice, “Release him.”
Scarface hastily complied, instructing two retainers, “Go, untie him at once.”
“Wait!” Wang Pu barked at the retainers, then said sternly, “You—do it yourself.”
“Yes, sir, right away.” Scarface dared not hesitate. He ran over, untied the young farmer, then, after a moment’s thought, removed his own bearskin cloak and tried to drape it over the man’s shoulders. Unexpectedly, the farmer, full of spine, threw the cloak to the ground.
Scarface flew into a rage and swung at the man’s face, but the farmer dodged easily and, in the same motion, kicked Scarface in the buttocks, sending him sprawling in the mud. When Scarface clambered up, his face was flushed purple with humiliation.
“I’ll cut you down, you little—!” Scarface roared, reaching for his sword.
“Enough!” Wang Pu’s sudden shout froze him in his tracks. He dared not disobey the General’s order and could only glare fiercely at the farmer before slinking back to Wang Pu’s side, muttering, “General, the lad doesn’t know what’s good for him. I only wanted to rough him up a bit, nothing more, heh.”
Wang Pu ignored Scarface. Pointing with his crop at the ruined wheat fields, he said, “All those responsible for trampling the fields, step forward.”
Big Beard, Scarface, and the retainers who’d come down for polo all turned pale. Now they realized the General was truly furious. Still, they stepped forward and lined up before Wang Pu’s horse, heads bowed, unable to meet his cold gaze.
Without warning, Wang Pu’s riding crop lashed down on Big Beard’s face with a sharp crack, leaving a vivid bloody welt. Big Beard blinked in shock, then straightened up and stuck out his chest.
Crack! With another crisp report, Wang Pu’s crop struck Scarface across the face, the welt intersecting his notorious scar in a cross, making his visage all the more fearsome.
Crack! Crack! Crack!
The whip’s sharp reports rang out as Wang Pu rode slowly down the line, lashing each man’s face in turn, one blow for each, sparing none. When the last stroke was delivered, he rode back to face Big Beard and the others, asking in a low voice, “Do any of you refuse to accept this punishment?”
Big Beard and Scarface raised their heads and answered in unison, “We don’t accept!”
“Good. Own your deeds—speak your mind, like men!” Wang Pu nodded, then turned to Zhen Youcai. “Adjutant Zhen, read aloud the Seven Articles of Military Law I have just enacted!”
Zhen Youcai rode forward and proclaimed:
First Article: Disobeying military orders—death without pardon;
Second Article: Violence against fellow soldiers—death without pardon;
Third Article: Violating Ming women—death without pardon;
Fourth Article: Plundering Ming civilians—death without pardon;
Fifth Article: Gambling in groups—eighty lashes in public;
Sixth Article: Concealing spoils—eighty lashes in public;
Seventh Article: Trampling crops—eighty lashes in public!
When Zhen Youcai had finished reading, Wang Pu continued, “Since this is your first offense, and occurred before the Seven Articles were announced, I have only lashed you each once. But if you ever offend again, you will be dealt with according to military law—no leniency! Don’t think that being my personal guards gives you any special privileges! In my army, everyone is equal and everyone must obey the rules!”