Chapter 47: Eternal Blessings

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On the twelfth day of the twelfth month in the first year of the Qianfu era, the Tang army was defeated at the Bai Zhu River.

On the thirteenth, the defeated troops looted Tang'an.

On the fourteenth, the Nanzhao army crossed the Xie River, divided its forces, and raided in every direction, overrunning Jinyuan, Tang'an, Shu Prefecture, Xinjin, and other places.

The people of the surrounding countryside and the scattered remnants of the army fled toward Chengdu. At that time, Yang Qingfu, the commander of western Sichuan, moved his camp once more, this time to Shuangliu. He sent two hundred men from the Courageous and Resolute Corps to gather the fugitives, but the soldiers refused to report for duty and instead tried to make their own way back to Chengdu. Yang Qingfu seized and executed Liu Mingxiong, a commander from Fengxiang, along with seven others. The armies were thereby cowed into order.

Meanwhile, Zhao Huaian brought his Bao Yi Corps into Shuangliu to withstand the Nanzhao advance.

Western Sichuan had entered its coldest season.

...

Wrapped in a padded coat, Zhao Huaian walked through Shuangliu with Zhao Liu and Old Mo, searching for firewood.

There was truly no other choice. Ever since Commander Yang had moved his troops to Shuangliu, gathered the fugitives, and strengthened the defenses, the city had been packed beyond capacity.

The local magnates from the villages near Chengdu had poured into Shuangliu with their retainers. Those with greater influence and connections in Chengdu had taken their belongings and gone straight there instead.

They had done the same thing four years earlier. Four years later, fleeing once more inspired little emotion beyond a sigh at the hardships of the dynasty.

After all, the Nanzhao people could carry off only grain. They could not take away the land or estates. Once the imperial army arrived, it would be time for the magnates to return home.

By then, a master would still be a master.

Aside from those magnates, some of the scattered soldiers had also tried to join their retinues and escape back to Chengdu. After a number of them were killed, however, such attempts became much rarer.

But what had truly happened was not something outsiders could know.

Most of the people in Shuangliu, besides the magnates, were refugees. They had been the first to withdraw into the city. Later, when Yang Qingfu arrived, he had also tried to drive them out, but for fear of provoking a riot, he had continued to restrain himself.

The direct consequence of so many refugees pouring into Shuangliu was that the city had run out of fuel. The warmth and cooking of an army more than ten thousand strong required enormous quantities of firewood, yet no woodcutter dared venture beyond the walls into the nearby forests.

Thus firewood grew dearer by the day even as it grew scarcer. Every day, great numbers of people froze to death.

Zhao Huaian, Zhao Liu, and Old Mo were now heading toward the Assault Corps to look for Xianyu Yue and ask him to arrange for some firewood to be sent to their camp.

Zhao Huaian's Bao Yi Corps was camped in the northwestern corner of Shuangliu, beside several local militias that had escaped with Bean Fatty and the others.

They had crowded together for warmth. Zhao Huaian alone possessed useful connections, so the others had given him a few gifts and asked him to find some way to help them through the inner city.

Ah, these were truly difficult times.

Zhao Huaian, Zhao Liu, and Old Mo walked along a dirt road. Every so often, they saw the frozen bodies of the dead lying beside the gutters, stripped bare.

Shuangliu was in complete disorder. No one was coming to collect the corpses.

Looking upon that vision of the end of the world, Old Liu sighed.

“The bodies are frozen stiff in the ditches. Won't there be an epidemic when spring comes?”

Zhao Huaian was equally dispirited. He gave a low grunt.

“Who has the leisure to worry about spring? If the gates aren't opened soon so people can gather firewood, everyone will freeze to death.”

The three sighed again and fell silent.

But what good was it not to look? The strong stench of blood hung on both sides of the road, refusing to disperse even in the bitter winter cold.

The suffering of the common people was no longer a literary exaggeration. It was reality.

Shuangliu was not a large city. From the northwestern corner to the government offices in the inner city was barely two miles, and soon they came upon a great standard bearing the insignia of Yang Qingfu, commander of western Sichuan.

As Yang Qingfu's personal guards, the Chengdu Assault Corps had been quartered in the two wings of the county government compound. Xianyu Yue was in one of the courtyards on the eastern side.

Just as Zhao Huaian was about to approach, he suddenly saw a long line of people on the road to the south, more lively than a market.

Zhao Liu loved a spectacle. He hurried over and squeezed into the crowd.

Zhao Huaian paid him no mind. Taking Old Mo with him, he prepared to go to the county offices.

The four roads around the government compound were already lined with chevaux-de-frise. Several armored guards stood there with weapons in hand, watching the passersby like hawks, especially the southern road, where the crowd of idlers was thickest.

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Zhao Huaian approached a military clerk wearing a red headcloth and saluted with clasped hands.

“Comrade, I am Zhao Huaian, commander of the Bao Yi Corps. May I ask whether Commander Xianyu Yue of the Assault Corps is within the offices?”

As Zhao Huaian spoke, Old Mo had already handed the other man their credentials and command token.

The clerk in the red headcloth glanced at them, then looked back at Zhao Huaian. After scrutinizing him for a moment, his expression brightened.

“Unfortunately, Commander Xianyu has just gone to the headquarters to discuss some affairs. Perhaps Brother Zhao could come back later?”

Zhao Huaian fell silent.

As expected, even a minor official could be difficult to deal with. The man had not even introduced himself, which showed that he did not regard Zhao Huaian very highly.

Smiling, Zhao Huaian took the clerk's hand. Two tiny gold ingots had already slipped into the man's palm.

“Comrade, I truly have an urgent matter. Could you go into the offices and ask whether he is there?”

The clerk smiled, nodded, and gave a few instructions to several other functionaries beside him before returning to the government compound.

The man was crafty. He had not said whether he would ask or not. Afraid that the clerk would return and be unable to find him, Zhao Huaian could only stand foolishly where he was.

As the cold wind swept past, Zhao Huaian thought of everything he had seen along the way, and a certain realization grew ever stronger in his mind.

When he and his nominal elder brother, Xianyu Yue, had once talked through the night with their feet sharing the same quilt, Zhao Huaian had said that his family background was too poor and that he had to attach himself to a powerful patron. Now he had experienced the truth of those words firsthand.

To get anywhere within the system, one truly needed a background.

Zhao Huaian stamped his feet and thought:

“I wonder how Old Wang is getting on with that matter.”

Old Wang was Wang Duo, who had followed Zhao Huaian during their flight. After entering the city, he had originally intended to report to the central army of his camp, but the military governor, Niu Cong, was not in Shuangliu at all, so Wang Duo could only remain there temporarily.

Zhao Huaian had then entrusted him with the task of examining the military register and seeking out seasoned warriors from the frontier commands who were skilled at training troops.

At the Battle of the Bai Zhu River, the Bao Yi Corps had been able to kill the enemy commander and seize his banner only because they had caught the enemy off guard. In a real clash of strength, however, they were still inadequate. Now that they had reached Shuangliu and had some time to spare, Zhao Huaian wanted to train them properly.

He did not expect them to become the equal of the Yan-Hai Army, but they should not fall too far short of it.

He had previously thought that Chen Fahai could handle the training, but Chen was only one man. They still needed more helpers.

And now, with the military organization in Shuangliu in chaos, it was the perfect time to recruit talent. The method was simple enough: pay them.

A fully trained warrior received twenty strings of cash a year. An outstanding junior military clerk earned roughly sixty or seventy strings. Zhao Huaian had previously captured eight hundred strings of cash, and he intended to use it to recruit capable warriors.

Just as he was thinking about this, Zhao Liu came running over.

Having just finished watching the spectacle, he announced as soon as he arrived, “Zhao, there is a huge temple across the road. The monks are very kind. They are handing out porridge at the gate.”

Zhao Huaian was surprised, though he did not dwell on it.

“Even great monks can include good men,” he said admiringly.

As he spoke, Zhao Huaian saw Wang Duo approaching with four men in hemp clothing, all talking and laughing. He quickly raised a hand and called out:

“Old Wang, over here!”

Wang Duo looked over at the sound of his name. He had not expected Zhao Huaian to be there. He hurriedly said something to the four men beside him, and all five came trotting over in short steps.

Wang Duo was just about to introduce them when a scream suddenly erupted from the crowd lined up to the south.

Then Zhao Huaian and the others saw a fat monk stagger out, clutching his throat as blood sprayed between his fingers. He tried to say something through his ragged breathing, but in the end he collapsed helplessly to the ground.

The instant the fat monk fell, a tall man wearing a bamboo hat forced his way out of the crowd. He casually threw the blade in his hand into the ditch and strode away down the street.

No one along the way dared to stop him.

When the cry from the crowd reached the temple, a squad of warrior monks rushed out with swords, spears, and staves in their hands. The moment they saw the fallen monk, their expressions changed drastically.

They seized an old man who had been waiting for porridge and cursed him furiously. After receiving some information, they ran in the direction where the bamboo-hatted man had disappeared.

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The remaining two monks carried the fat monk's body into the temple, shouted at the crowd to disperse, and brought the great cooking pot inside.

When the refugees saw that the porridge distribution had ended, they cursed bitterly, but in the end they had no choice except to leave.

...

Zhao Liu saw this and cursed as well.

“That coward is a disgrace to his ancestors. The monks were doing a good deed by giving out porridge, and he still killed one of them. His heart must be black.”

But Wang Duo, who had just arrived, sighed and told a different story.

The temple across from them was called Yongzuo Temple, a famous great temple in Shuangliu. It had once housed a statue of the Buddha of Universal Law presented by the imperial family, and could therefore be considered half a royal temple.

Wang Duo told Zhao Huaian that Yongzuo Temple was now the only place in the city with firewood and grain. It possessed several hundred acres of estates outside the city and more than a thousand tenant farmers. It was even wealthier than Shuangliu County Temple.

Moreover, Yongzuo Temple was not merely a great landowner. It also operated pawnshops, mills, and oil presses, and even engaged in lending money at interest.

Yongzuo Temple was genuinely rich.

After saying this, Wang Duo lowered his voice and shared another piece of news he had heard in the city.

“I heard this, though it is only something I heard. When the refugees entered the city this time, Yongzuo Temple took over quite a bit more farmland.”

Wang Duo said nothing further, but Old Liu, who came from Qishan village, understood at once.

The lively old Qin warrior fell silent.

It was then that one of the four men Wang Duo had brought with him spoke. He had thick brows and large eyes, and wore no official headcloth, only a yellow band tied around his forehead.

“That man had a fierce spirit. He possessed the bearing of the early Han. Men like that are rare nowadays.”

Intrigued, Zhao Huaian saluted with clasped hands.

“May I ask who you are, sir?”

The man with the yellow headband hurriedly bowed.

“To answer Commander Zhao, my name is Gao Renhou. I was formerly a squad commander in the western Sichuan army. Having heard that Commander Zhao wished to train troops, I have come especially to lend my assistance.”

Zhao Huaian understood at once. These four must be the military-training experts Wang Duo had found through the army register. All four were dressed in coarse hemp garments, which suggested that their fortunes had not been good. He quickly beckoned to them.

“Come. Let us return to my camp and warm ourselves with some wine. It is bitterly cold.”

With that, Zhao Huaian took the four men by the arm and prepared to return to camp.

Zhao Liu, standing beside him, was puzzled.

“Aren't we waiting here for Young Master Xianyu?”

Zhao Huaian replied morosely, “When can't I see my elder brother? But how could I let Old Gao and the others freeze here?”

He said this and led Gao Renhou away.

Zhao Liu stood stunned for a moment behind them, then suddenly understood and cursed under his breath.

“Fine, fine. You miserable fool. So you were just putting on a show and wanted me to play along?”

He turned dark-faced and left with Old Mo.

The moment they had gone, Xianyu Yue emerged from the county offices, led by the military clerk in the red headcloth.

When he saw that no one was there, the clerk froze. He was just about to explain when Xianyu Yue shook his head.

“Don't blame yourself. My second brother is angry with me for being his elder brother.”