Chapter Twenty: Recruiting Troops and Assigning Duties

With the weaponry secured, the next priority was recruitment. According to the law, raising a private army was a capital offense. Therefore, the process had to be conducted in secret, and the best source of manpower was the group of refugees he had recently taken under his wing. With Li Duo’s assistance, a rough structure for a unit composed of these refugees—all surnamed Li—was quickly established. Amidst the clamor and commotion, the men gathered in small groups. Chen An stood on high ground, surveying them with a glance, before calling Zhang Xiaojing, Wu Ergou, and the others to his side.

"Chen An, is something on your mind?"

Chen An shook his head. "Though these men have potential, they lack discipline. We need to intensify their training."

"Don't worry about that. Xiao Jing and I will start drilling them immediately."

"I fear we won't be granted that much time," Chen An said in a low voice.

"You mean..."

Chen An glanced at Zhang Xiaojing, who had stopped mid-sentence, and nodded. "If I’m not mistaken, the likes of Wang Jiuyang will not let this go."

"What is there to fear? They are just losers who have already been defeated," Wu Ergou said dismissively.

"Regardless, we must be prepared," Chen An explained. "Xiao Gui, I am placing these men under your command for now."

"All two hundred of them?" Wu Ergou was exhilarated, not expecting a sudden promotion.

"Are you unwilling?"

"Willing, I am more than willing!"

"I repeat: you are my old companions and my foundation, and your burden is heavy." Chen An urged him repeatedly, "Ergou, you must ensure everyone masters the Mandarin Duck Formation. When the time comes to face the enemy, I do not want to see a disorganized rabble."

"Understood!"

By the time Chen An had finished making all the arrangements, it was nearly dawn. However, upon returning to his quarters, he found Li Duo still waiting for him.

"Not asleep yet?" Chen An asked softly.

"No, I was worried you might be hungry, so I boiled a bowl of porridge for you," Li Duo said with wifely devotion.

"It will be hard on you for a while. I told Ergou to leave two thousand taels of silver with you. Organize the men to buy more wine and meat; they need to be well-fed to have the strength to train."

"Very well."

Li Duo accepted the silver notes Chen An handed her. In that moment, they looked every bit like a pair of newlyweds.

***

At the Huyang County Magistrate’s office, Shao Qiang, his manhood severed, lay on a grand armchair wrapped in blood-stained undergarments. He was petulantly toying with a white jade pendant he had just confiscated, muttering to himself. Recalling the humiliation he had suffered, he grew agitated and raised the jade pendant high.

"Clack!" He smashed it onto the floor. The pendant, worth tens of taels, shattered into dust. "Chen An! I will peel your skin off, inch by inch!"

Without the influence of his masculine hormones, Shao Qiang’s voice had taken on a shrill, effeminate tone. Every time his swollen groin twitched, hatred churned in the depths of his eyes like a black tide. Although he had survived, his manhood was gone—a source of profound shame for a man so obsessed with women. He had only taken a new concubine half a month ago; this was condemning her to a living widowhood.

As if misfortune weren't enough, just as Shao Qiang was drowning in his misery, the door was kicked open. Seeing Wang Jiuyang stride in brazenly, Shao Qiang knew trouble had arrived again.

"What! Are your men all fools? What are they good for!" The already irritable Shao Qiang gave Wang Jiuyang no face at all.

The heavily burdened Wang Jiuyang, in turn, began to blame Shao Qiang. "You have the nerve to speak! This is all your fault for provoking that Chen An! The armor and weapons I spent a year painstakingly managing are gone!"

Shao Qiang clutched his crotch and roared, "That Chen An ruined my fortune and severed my lineage! This grudge is irreconcilable!"

The two exchanged glances, malice intertwined in their eyes. Wang Jiuyang toyed with the gold-inlaid silver dagger at his waist, the token for mobilizing five hundred elite troops rustling in his sleeve. "The troops have arrived—a hundred cavalrymen." He glanced at Shao Qiang’s festering wounds, a sinister smile curling his lips. "Whether or not we get revenge depends on you."

After a brief hesitation, Shao Qiang snapped, "Go, tell all the yamen runners to muster at noon tomorrow. Follow me to Huyang Mountain! We are going to exterminate the bandits!"

High in Huyang Mountain, two Li family soldiers hurried over to Chen An, who was busy drilling the troops, carrying a young girl between them. Chen An froze when he saw her; she was none other than the girl he had saved from the yamen runners not long ago.

"What are you doing here? What happened?" Chen An asked.

***

"You must leave... those government soldiers are coming to capture you... the man who likes me is the cook at the magistrate's office, he is preparing rations... I heard them talking."

After hearing the girl’s fragmented account, everyone realized the situation was dire.

"Should we leave now?" Zhang Xiaojing asked.

Chen An shook his head. "We are currently in the shadows while the enemy is in the light. If we rashly descend the mountain, we will likely be caught in the open."

"Then what should we do?" Wu Ergou looked worried. "The troops haven't finished training; if we fight now, we won't have any advantage."

The two hundred new recruits were mostly refugees who had only just put down their hoes; their hands were still trembling as they gripped their spears. Everyone looked at Chen An with anxiety, hoping he could provide a solution. After a long silence, Chen An spoke four words: "Lure the enemy in!"

At noon, a dark mass of silhouettes appeared on the forest path. Shao Qiang rode in front on a single-wheeled cart, his bloodshot eyes fixed on Chen An’s temporary camp. "Burn everything, kill everyone! Leave no one alive!"

"Fire!"

A dense volley of arrows flew, though most were blocked by the trees in the forest. Shao Qiang sneered, "Prepared, are you? Even if the gods themselves came down, none of you will escape today!"

Wang Jiuyang’s prairie cavalry charged from the flank, only to fall into the abatis Chen An had set up in advance. As the cavalrymen fell into the mud, trying to scramble to their feet, they were struck down by rolling stones and logs. The battlefield quickly descended into a stalemate. However, relying on their superior numbers, Wang Jiuyang’s cavalry soon broke through the final line of defense.

"Hahaha! Chen An, I’m going to chop you up to serve with my wine!"

"Attack!"

Chen An gave the order, and the counterattack began! While the cavalry held the advantage on the open plains, their effectiveness was severely hampered in the dense forest. Once Chen An’s Mandarin Duck Formation was deployed, the two sides were instantly locked in close-quarters combat. The prairie cavalry, long accustomed to arrogance, naturally looked down on these refugees.

"Hmph, all show and no substance. Watch me skewer you with one thrust!"

Zhang Xiaojing gripped his long saber and led the charge, while two other recruits protected his flanks as instructed. Killing in battle sounded easy, but when truly facing the prairie cavalry, it was impossible not to feel a surge of panic.