Fei Qiang was knocked to the ground by a young and handsome military officer, blood filling his mouth and a broken tooth rattling within. He heard the officer command:
"Clear out everything in this shop and seal it off. Anyone who dares to slander Mr. Zhou will face consequences. Who is in command at the front lines here?"
"It is Captain Wang."
"Send this guy to Captain Wang immediately." the officer oredered, "Let Captain Wang send him to the front lines. While everyone else is fighting to protect our people and country, this person is still chasing after the money."
Ignoring the pain, Fei Qiang crawled quickly over to the officer side, pleading:
"Sir, please spare me. I am just a craftsman. I have never held a gun."
The officer replied coldly:
"No problem. Once you're on the battlefield, you will hold a gun. Don't worry about your family. We'll take care of them. As for your property, it will be donated to the national reconstruction in the name of Mr. Zhou."
Upon hearing this, Fei Qiang struggled to his feet, wiping the blood from his mouth and said:
"How do you dare to arrest me? Do you know who I am doing business with? It is the Yang family."
The officer raised an eyebrow, saying:
"Oh, the Yang family? Which one in the Yang family? Tell me."
Fei Qiang declared confidently:
"Young Marshal Yang Chen."
"Do you know who I am?" the officer said, his tone sharp and unyielding, "I'm also surnamed Yang, Yang Zaihua, th Young Marshal's adjutant. Actually we've met each other once at Zhou Di's shop. Of course perhaps you didn't dare to face the Young Marshal and me directly. It was seldom for me going into the shop. Maybe you don't know me but I can recognize you immediately. Don't you know that Mr. Zhou is a close friend of the Young Marshal? It is Mr. Zhou who has been doing business with the Young Marshal, not you, Fei Qiang. In fact, the Young Marshal does not even know who you are. Even before entering your shop, I didn't know either. And now you have the audacity to talk nonsense to Sun Jiancheng, slander Mr. Zhou and steal his material. The Young Marshal is furious about this. After I'm done punishing you, I will go to Qudu and have a 'nice' talk with Sun Jiancheng, with my fists . Now what do you want to say?"
Hearing this, Fei Qiang's face immediately turned pale. He knelt down, repeatedly kowtowing, and begged desperately:
"Adjutant Yang, please spare me. It's my fault. Please! I was momentarily blinded by greed. Please, Adjutant Yang, please speak kindly of me to the Young Marshal. I beg you! Please spare me, Adjutant Yang, Please! I swear I will never dare to do this again. Please don't send me to the battlefield as it was very hard for me to escape..."
Before Fei Qiang could finish his pleas, Yang Zaihua barked at his soldiers:
"What are you waiting for? Drag him away and hand him over to Captain Wang. If he tries to escape, treat him as a deserter and shoot him on the spot. If he does his job well, make sure his reward is delivered. But don't give it to him directly, instead to his family. This is the order from Young Marshal."
"Please, sir, I will never dare to do it again, please, sir ...."
The soldiers dragged Fei Qiang away but his pleading was still echoing.
When Fei Qiang reached the front lines, terror consumed him. His legs trembled as he he was forced to hold a gun. When he stood up, a bullet pierced his heart, killing him instantly. Shortly after, his family received the compensation promised.
Meanwhile, Yang Zaihua was scolded by his father, forcing him to return to the front lines. Yang Chen, no doubt, had won another victory. Yang Zaihua spotted Zhao Dayou, a bearded and burly officer, and teased him:
"Captain Zhao, it has been over two years since I last saw you. You're looking even more handsome."
"Don't call me Captain Zhao anymore." Zhao grumbled, "Now I'm a company commander but what's the use? Now my 'company' is down to the size of a battalion. I'm waiting for the Young Marshal to replenish my troops so I can get back to the front line and kill those sons of bitches."
"Don't worry." Yang Zaihua replied with a smirk, "There are plenty of new recruits ready to replenish your ranks but it will take some time for you to train them properly. It is better for you to be prepared."
"Why are they only recruits now? Can't you give me more veterans so I can head straight to the battlefield?"
Yang Zaihua shrugged and replied:
"You still have a battalion under your command, don't you? Take them and start gathering your regiment. But fortunately these recruits have already been training for a month, unlike the soldiers who aren't completely green. That's much better than soldiers fresh out of recruitment."
With that, Yang Zaihua handed him a letter. After reading it, Zhao Dayou chuckled and said:
"Thanks. I will be on my way to reassemble my regiment. Please tell the Young Marshal that I promise him that I will go to the front line with my well-trained unit within a month."
Yang Zaihua smiled and patted Zhao Dayou on the shoulder before entering the tent. Inside, he found Yang Chen lying on a camp bed, wrapped in a blanket, seemingly asleep. Yang Zaihua knew more about how much effort Yang Chen poured into every battle. In order to secure victory, Yang Chen must have spent several days and nights analyzing various pieces of information obtained, strategizing with the commanders and the chiefs-of-staff and meticulously crafting plans without rest.
Before every engagement, Yang Chen had reviewed tactics carefully and comprehensively, painstaking considering every potential scenario and drafting contingency measures day and night. Since the invasion by the Wasoku and the devastating loss on his own territory, Yang Chen had grown even more meticulous in his planning. He would spend countless hours studying maps, jotting down various potential emergencies and challenges and devising precise solutions. He then discussed these strategies with his commanders and chiefs-of-staff, ensuring all angles were covered and errors minimized on the battlefield. His dedication was unwavering, driven by a determination to turn the tide of war and defend his homeland at all costs.
Yang Zaihua didn't want to disturb Yang Chen's rest so he quietly stepped out to prepare some food for him. Just then, a messenger rushed in, holding a telegram. Yang Zaihua quickly gestured for silence and took the telegram from the messenger, who left immediately. Glancing at the message, Yang Zaihua walked over and gently nudged Yang Chen, saying:
"Young Marshal, Young Marshal, there is a telegram from the Grand Marshal."
Yang Chen took the telegram and Yang Zaihua handed him a book that had been lying beside Yang Chen's pillow. It was a book on naval construction that Yang Tianhu and Yang Chen used as a codebook for their telegrams. Normally they selected a certain book as a codebook for encrypting their communication. Yang Chen decoded the telegram quickly and said:
"Give me the map of the western region in the Chen family."
Yang Zaihua hurried to retrieve the map for Yang Chen. Yang Chen examined it, murmuring to himself:
"Uncle Sun and his men have taken Liangcheng. It is here but why? what tactic did they take use of? Liangcheng is in the middle of the northwest region, closer to the Feng family's territory. To the north of Liangcheng is the desert and the Gobi, stretching all the way to the northern border of the Feng family's territory. Once someone enters this area, no one can survive without water. Liangcheng is not only the largest city in this region but also an important hub. To the south of Liangcheng, it connects to the northern part of our territory. Actually most of this area is just vast stretches of sand with only a few patrols stationed there. It would have been easy for Uncle Sun to occupy the sandy terrain. Oh, I understand now. The troops stationed there belong to the Chen family, currently under the control of Chen Shubing. Chen Shuyu must have first detoured into the territory of the Feng family. Then, working with Feng Quan'an, they launched an attack on Liangcheng from the west. Chen Shuyu is kind-hearted, wanting to give them an escape route by driving them out through the east of Liangcheng. But Uncle Sun isn't as lenient like Chen Shuyu to this troop. He must have sent a team to lie in waiting for the retreating troops. Yes, it must be like this. This is exactly what my father was conveying in the telegram."
As expected, under the leadership of Chief-of-staff Sun, the combined forces of both troops of Feng Quan'an and Chen Shuyu wiped out all the Chen family troops near Liangcheng, successfully opening a passage between the Yang family and Liangcheng. Then the three troops began advancing slowly eastward. Along their way to the east, unexpected, Chen Shuyu recruited a small group led by his younger brother, Chen Shuzhang. Till now Chen Shuyu finally learned what had happened back home:
The trouble began with Chen Yutian's desire to take a new concubine. He always felt that his current wife and concubines were too old, particularly after the death of his youngest concubine, who was also Chen Shuzhang's mother. With the era being peaceful and prosperous they enjoyed, Chen Yutian wished to find a young and fashionable girl from Shengjing. So he told his son, Chen Shubing, who had grown infatuated with the wealth and charm of the Wasoku people in Shengjing. Upon hearing this, Chen Shubing quickly found a young, gentle and beautiful Wasoku girl for his father. When Chen Yutian saw her, he was instantly captivated by her beauty and soon took her as his concubine.
When Chen Yufeng later informed Chen Yutian, his brother, about the Wasoku's invasion, Chen Yutian was evasive, distracted by his new concubine. Seizing this opportunity, the Wasoku offered to help Chen Shubing take control of the other three families and establish dominance over the entire Midlands, particularly targeting the Yang family's army in the east. In Fact, Chen Shubing had always harboured jealous of the title of "Young Marshal" held by Yang Chen. When heard the Wasoku's proposal, he readily agreed. To achieve this, he racked his brains and finally came up with a plan: he would summon the other three families in Liaozhou under the guise of a meeting and then eliminate them all. Chen Shubing immediately set off to Liaozhou to present his plan to Chen Yutian.
However, Chen Yutian, enraged by the treacherous scheme, fiercely rebuked him. Ignoring Chen Yutian's objection, Chen Shubing pressed forward with his plan. When Chen Yutian tried to stop him, he discovered suddenly that the entire Liaozhou had already been controlled by Chen Shubing, thanks to the influence of his concubine, Chen Shubing's mother, and her brothers. Furious at his father's resistance, Chen Shubing murdered Mrs Chen, Chen Shuyu's mother, intending to use her death as an excuse to invite the other three families to Liaozhou.
When Chen Yutian saw his son's descent into cruelty, Chen Yutian feared for the safety of his youngest son, Chen Shuzhang so he had no choice but secretly arranged for Chen Shuzhang to flee with a small group of loyalists overnight. Luckily, Chen Shuzhang managed to escape. The next day, upon discovering his youngest brother's escape, Chen Shubing launched a search operation under the pretense of rooting out spies. In the chaos of the search, there were a few secret intelligence points from the Yang family to be exposed and one of Fang Yu's persons was shot and died while trying to flee.
These events further pushed Chen Yutian to the brink. Consumed by rage and disappointment, he suffered a stroke and collapsed. Despite Chen Shubing's announcement of Mrs's Chen, the obituary did not play any role because the other three warlords just sent their representatives to pay their respects, suspecting ulterior motives. Meanwhile, Chen Shuyu, a route to Liaozhou for the funeral, received intelligence suggesting that Chen Shubing planned to assassinate him so he abandoned his journey and returned to his barracks in the west, vowing to uncover the truth about his mother's death. Thus, Chen Shubing's plan was thwarted.
The Wasoku people were indifferent to Chen Shubing's failed plan, considering him as useless. Without informing either Chen Shubing or Jin Quan, they launched a large-scale invasion of the Chen family's territory. However, their advance was met with fierce resistance from Chen Yufeng, resulting in significant casualties among their vanguard troops. As a result, the Wasoku leadership ordered Chen Shubing to quickly eliminate Chen Yufeng.
Chen Shubing wrote a letter to Chen Yufeng, falsely claiming that Chen Yutian had suffered a stroke and urgently wished to see him. Although Chen Yufeng knew it was a trap, out of concern for his brother, he set off for Liaozhou. Along the way, he was secretly captured by the Wasoku people. Even Chen Yufeng's wife and sons were unaware of his fate. Meanwhile, Chen Shubing pretended to be a dutiful nephew and try to save Chen Yufeng's life while ensuring the safety of Chen Yufeng's family. At the same time, he began issuing orders to all Chen family's troops to lay down their weapons and allow the Wasoku armies to occupy the Chen family's territory without resistance.
However, the Wasoku government had already issued an order that their troops could enjoy three days of unrestrained looting and violence upon entering any area. This led to massacres across villages and towns. When Chen Shubing heard about these atrocities, he attempted to negotiate with the Wasoku authorities. In response, they issued a harsh warning, accusing him of meddling in Wasoku's internal affairs. Fearful of retaliation, Chen Shubing didn't dare to protest further.
Initially, Chen Shuzhang didn't have fled far from Liaozhou. Later Chen Yutian secretly sent his staff to inform him of the situation and urged him to escape as quickly as possible. Chen Shuzhang had no choice but fled westward with his group, intending to seek out his eldest brother, Chen Shuyu. However, the entire territory had already been controlled by Chen Shubing and the Wasoku people, forcing Chen Shuzhang spent more time to hide himself and his group. Occasionally he launched attacks on the Wasoku patrols. These small victories inspired some local youths to join his group, eventually growing into a force of several hundred people over time.