The Soldier of the Red Mansion

Chapter 219 Opportunity or Crisis?
The city walls of Datong Ancient City are thick and heavy. Unlike the white walls and black tiles of Jiangnan, the houses in Datong are mostly gray, which further highlights the solemn atmosphere that a military city should have. Horses make crisp hoof sounds on the stone brick streets.

Shi Ping and the others followed their general closely, while Wang Xin kept an eye on the soldiers along the roadside.

The soldiers in Datong mainly came from various parts of Shanxi, and even from Baoding. The furthest were from Shandong. There's an old saying that soldiers from Shandong are generals from Yulin. Militiamen often wore uniforms. The Yangzhou Battalion that I formed in Yangzhou was also a militia.

"Crash."

Suddenly, when they came across a noodle stall, a group of soldiers overturned the stall and started beating the vendor. A crowd quickly gathered around. Some people were just watching the spectacle, some were indifferent, and some were just curious and asked questions.

"Bahhhhh."

Wang Xin rode over on horseback and shouted, "Stop!"

The soldiers who were just attacking people stopped immediately. When they saw who it was, they realized that the newcomer was not only riding a horse, but also had personal guards and was dressed in military officer's uniform, so he looked like a guerrilla general.

Wang Xin demanded, "What's going on?"

"He insulted us," a leading soldier said first. Looking at the beaten stall owner, he was probably in his thirties or forties, a man with elderly parents and young children to support. His face was bruised and swollen, and his mouth was bloody. Hearing the soldiers' accusations, he lowered his head and remained silent.

Wang Xin understood, "But we can't hit people."

After dismounting, Wang Xin walked over, and Shi Ping and the others did the same in an instant. They were all agile and skilled, and it was obvious that they had martial arts skills. The key was that all of these guards were like this, and their actions alone stunned everyone.

"Who is this person?"

Is there such a person in Datong?

Whispers arose among those around him, speculating about Wang Xin's identity. One clever person guessed, "Could it be General Wang from Yanmen Pass? I heard he has returned to Datong."

The soldiers who had been causing trouble started to panic. The leader, though still trying to maintain his composure, had unfocused eyes and didn't dare to look directly at the others, clearly lacking confidence. When Wang Xin asked the boss, the soldiers began to feel fear.

The boss shook his head, taking the blame upon himself. As he spoke, he even cupped his hands to the soldiers who had hit him earlier, saying ingratiatingly, "It was my fault for being rude and offending you gentlemen."

Wang Xin shook his head.

Since the boss has chosen to let things go, there's no need for me to stick my neck out. I'm not a god who can solve everything.

Wang Xin waved to someone behind him.

Shi Ping cleverly pulled out a money bag from his pocket. Wang Xin took it. The bag contained not only loose silver but also copper coins. One hundred coins were strung together with a red string, and two hundred coins were two small strings of cash. He took them out and handed them to the shopkeeper.

The boss looked bewildered, unsure of the general's intentions, and the people around him fell silent.

Ignoring the opinions of those around him, Wang Xin looked at the shopkeeper with a gentle smile and said softly, "It was wrong for the soldiers to hit people. Although it's not under my jurisdiction, as a general, I can't stand idly by. So, consider these two hundred coins as your compensation. I wonder if that's enough?"

The shopkeeper was startled and instinctively waved his hands repeatedly, saying, "No need, no need."

Seeing the shopkeeper's expression, Wang Xin said no more. He handed the shopkeeper two small strings of cash, then walked up to the soldiers, who all stepped back.

The general's actions clearly indicated that he was serious, and everyone was secretly lamenting their bad luck.

The leading soldier, however, was full of resentment and stared straight at Wang Xin as if he had a lot to say. When Wang Xin suddenly reached out, the soldier hesitated for a moment, but then stopped himself from running away. However, he closed his eyes and waited for the slap to fall.

"Snapped."

Wang Xin patted the soldier on the shoulder.

The soldier opened his eyes and saw the smiling general, who was not the one he had imagined who was going to punish him. He lost his composure and didn't know what the general was going to do. He stood there like a wooden statue.

The crowd around them grew larger and larger, with people at the back standing on tiptoe to see.

“It’s wrong to beat up civilians. Don’t do it again next time,” Wang Xin said with a smile. Then he took out another hundred coins and handed them to the soldier whose clothes were covered in patches and holes, and instructed him, “Take the brothers out for a meal.”

The leading soldier accepted it in a daze, while his companions were even more incredulous, as if they were dreaming.

"I remember, you can't hit ordinary people. If I see you like this again, I won't let you off the hook."

Wang Xin said no more, turned around and mounted his horse. His attitude suddenly became stern on horseback, and an invisible aura of authority emanated from him, making him seem like a god of war. Not to mention the soldiers, even the onlookers around were completely silent.

General Shi Ping and the others mounted their horses, and the next moment, as if in unison, they all leaped onto their horses in perfect unison.

The timing, the tacit understanding, the actions—everything about them was telling people something.

Without waiting for a reply, Wang Xin rode away on horseback. The crowd had already made way for him. Shi Ping and his personal guards followed behind the general as usual, keeping their eyes and ears open, but they did not find anyone they needed to be wary of.

"May I ask your honorable surname, General?"

The leading soldier behind him could no longer contain himself and shouted loudly at the departing figure.

Wang Xin did not answer and walked towards the governor's office.

Because I wasn't very happy, what I saw today was just a small, ordinary thing, and the fact that the onlookers were used to it already said it all.

Wang Xin didn't know of any better way to deal with this situation.

Replace him with an honest official? The trope of an honest official has been sung for over a thousand years, and people still worship him and expect him to govern everything. This only shows that he is hopelessly weak, even worse than a street vendor.

Datong is very poor, much poorer than Jiangnan. The soldiers are from the bottom of society, and so are the street vendors. They hurt each other. Should I punish the soldiers or help the street vendors?
This is why Lin Ruhai promised to train him to become an official, but he himself was unwilling to take the position.

It's better to be a soldier.

Protecting one's home and country at least gives one a clear direction and tells one what to do.

And becoming an official?
Wang Xin had no idea what he should do.

Conquering the world is easy, but governing it is difficult. When Wang Xin was young, he couldn't understand this saying. Why was governing the world more difficult than conquering it? Later, Wang Xin came to understand it himself.

Governing the world is truly difficult; it's so difficult that even the world's wisest people haven't found a solution. Replacing officials with ordinary citizens might actually lead to even greater corruption—that's a fact.

So we should stay grounded.

They didn't talk about ideals or grand principles, but only about doing the right thing, starting with small things around them, such as resisting Japanese pirates, developing Yangzhou Island, and guarding Yanmen Pass.

He never uses slogans to tell his subordinates what to do, but leads them to do things.

Wang Xin knew that in many other places in Datong, there were countless similar situations to what he had encountered today. People needed to be fed, and if they weren't fed, they couldn't reason with others. Since they couldn't manage their own affairs, they could only manage what they saw.

But the more things were like this, the more Wang Xin realized that he was doing the wrong thing.

Because of his actions, more people will rely on the upright and just official. Knowing that it is wrong, they are unwilling to make mistakes. He is indeed not ruthless enough to be a hero.

Shortly after.

The office of the governor and censor.

An official came to announce, "Your Excellency, General Wang Xin has come to request an audience."

"Invite him in."

Zhang Wenjin had been waiting for a long time and did not put on airs. He met Wang Xin immediately. When Wang Xin saw Zhang Wenjin again, he smiled and cupped his hands, saying, "I have not yet congratulated you on your promotion, Your Excellency."

Zhang Wenjin didn't care

After taking control of Datong, even Hu Liyong sent a generous congratulatory gift, but this person was the only one who didn't send one.

Was he unaware of the rules, or was he doing it on purpose?

Zhang Wenjin was well-informed and knew this person's character, even his behavior in Yangzhou. He was very flexible in Yangzhou, and everyone was satisfied with him. However, after he went to the Beijing Garrison, he became increasingly ignorant of the rules.

Zhang Wenjin didn't care about the reason for this person's change; he only knew that this person was a troublemaker, so it wasn't surprising.

The more capable a person is, the more temperamental they are. In that case, just ignore them. They're just a warrior; there's no need to reason with them. If they know the rules, give them tasks; if they don't, just leave them alone.

However, the situation changed. For the sake of his own future, Zhang Wenjin smiled kindly when he saw Wang Xin and reminded him, "When you returned to the capital this time, I had Zhai Wen write a letter to the court and put in a good word for you."

"Thank you, Your Excellency." Wang Xin cupped his hands in thanks.

Zhai Wen's memorial to the court was something he and Zhang Wenjin had agreed upon beforehand, and he was simply asking Zhai Wen to tell the truth. He had nothing to hide, but now he was too lazy to waste words with Zhang Wenjin.

Seeing that Wang Xin's attitude was good, Zhang Wenjin breathed a sigh of relief and said, "You should already know about what happened outside the pass. What do you think we should do?"

Wang Xin nodded, and without hiding anything, expressed his thoughts: "The affairs of the Hetao region cannot be rushed; we can only proceed slowly."

Zhang Wenjin frowned. This was not what he wanted. He retorted, "If the rebellion of the barbarians cannot be quelled quickly, it will likely escalate and become a future problem. How can we proceed slowly?"

Wang Xin shook his head.

Datong is different from ordinary prefectures. Ordinary prefectures are mostly inhabited by civilians, while Datong is a military town mostly inhabited by soldiers. These soldiers are not from Datong, but come from the surrounding or even more distant areas.

According to the military register, Datong should have 120,000 soldiers.

These 120,000 soldiers were certainly beyond the capacity of Datong to bear, and were instead jointly borne by the imperial court and Shanxi. Shanxi provided manpower and resources, while the imperial court provided money and provisions, which in turn came from the entire Great Zhou.

Things are different now. The imperial court has no money or grain, and local problems are hard to change.

Datong is lucky to have 30,000 to 50,000 soldiers now, while the Hetao region has a population of at least 120,000, and possibly as many as 150,000.

When Datong was powerful, they were naturally considered familiar troops. But Datong's current situation, including Feng Yong's transfer which disrupted the long-standing balance, and other factors, means they are no longer considered familiar troops.

Wanting a quick victory is an irresponsible idea.

Moreover, sometimes, a crisis can also be an opportunity.

At this time, it becomes clear who the loyal ministers are and who the treacherous ministers are.

(End of this chapter)