Qing Yao

Chapter 402 A real person is a real person
The battles were incredibly boring.

With only cold weapons and a few muskets, the salt bandits had no chance of breaking through the fortifications built by the Qing army. No matter how fearless they were, they could only be sent by the Qing army to their long-desired vacuum hometown.

The leader of the sect, Yang Biao, was a bright spot in this desperate charge. This thirteen-year-old desperado, who had risked his life to smuggle salt with his elders, was stabbed in the abdomen by a spear that suddenly appeared while climbing the Qing army's wooden fence.

The excruciating pain in his abdomen did not deter Yang Biao; instead, it fueled his inner ferocity. He severed the spear shaft with a single stroke and, disregarding the spearhead remaining in his abdomen, resolutely continued climbing upwards.

This scene caused several Qing soldiers who had noticed Yang Biao to turn pale.

Zhao An, who was some distance away, also saw Yang Biao, the first person to climb to the top of the wooden fence, and couldn't help but ask Xie Hongwu, who had remained silent the whole time, "Who is that person? How can he be so fierce?"

Xie Hongwu squinted and looked again, confirming that the acting governor was referring to Yang Biao, whom his elder brother valued most and who even treated him better than his own younger brother.

"Pity."

Zhao An shook his head slightly. If a fierce man like Yang Biao could be used by him, his courage and audacity alone would probably be no less than that of Yang Yuchun under Fukang'an.

Unfortunately, he was a fanatical follower of the White Lotus sect.

Zhao Anjing kept his distance from anything in the world that was associated with religion.

He didn't want the Eternal Mother to become the ruler of the Chinese land.

The failures of the White Lotus Rebellion and the later Taiping Rebellion were inextricably linked to the word "religion."

Because it is incompatible with traditional Chinese thinking.

Zhu Yuanzhang, who successfully established the Ming Dynasty in history, only used the White Lotus sect as a shell and did not actually turn the Ming Dynasty into a White Lotus kingdom. This shows that people of insight, or rather the traditional scholar class, are naturally opposed to religion.

Therefore, no matter how powerful the White Lotus fanatics are, Zhao An cannot afford to provoke them.

As for the White Lotus Sect, they can only be used, not cooperated with.

Yang Biao, whom Zhao An considered a pity, was pinned to the wooden fence by two sharp arrows that pierced the air the moment he climbed over it.

"The Eternal Mother, the Pure Land of Emptiness! The Holy Ruler brings peace to the world, and the sun and moon usher in a new era."

At the end of his life, Yang Biao stared blankly at the sky with his unfocused gaze, repeatedly murmuring the beliefs for which he had given his life, until everything went black and he fell silent.

Yang Biao's death was like the last straw that broke Xie Hongyi's back. This self-proclaimed White Lotus Marshal, a major salt smuggler, was also wounded several times, his entire body soaked in blood.

Watching helplessly as his old brothers, who had followed him through thick and thin for years, fell in pools of blood, this chivalrous thief, known to the poor people of northern Anhui, felt an inexplicable surge of endless regret.

If he hadn't believed in the White Lotus Sect, would these old brothers have ended up like this?

His eyes subconsciously searched for his "introducer" to the church, but there was no real person in sight.

As soon as the first wave of arrows from the Qing army fell, the Taoist priest Liu, protected by several trusted disciples, quietly retreated to the safest area at the very edge of the battle. Gazing at the carnage ahead, he muttered incantations, whether he was praying for the souls of the dead or for his own safety.

Ultimately, knowing he could not break through the Qing army's defenses, Xie Hongyi suppressed his grief and ordered a retreat.

The Qing army strictly followed Zhao An's orders and did not take advantage of the situation to launch a surprise attack, in order to prevent being lured deeper into the enemy's territory and ambushed.

When Xie Hongyi led his remaining troops back to the ridge in a disheveled state to take stock of their numbers, the immense sorrow almost broke him.

Of the more than 1,500 brothers who came down the mountain, less than half returned alive, and their morale had completely collapsed. The disastrous defeat in the "Battle for Water" was like the final hammer blow that shattered the salt bandits' illusions. What Eternal Mother, what Holy Lord and Heavenly Soldiers—all turned into laughable bubbles in the face of death and thirst.

Zhao An still did not forget to win hearts and minds, and sent Chen Zhijie and others to the foot of the mountain again to persuade them to surrender. No promises were needed, just enough water would be enough.

This time, the effects came quickly.

That very night, a dozen or so salt bandits, parched beyond endurance, staggered to the Qing army camp. Without hesitation, they threw down their dulled weapons, knelt down, and kowtowed repeatedly, their cracked lips uttering the only plea: "Water, water, please give us some water!"

The Qing army strictly followed Zhao An's orders and did not mistreat the surrendered bandits, providing them with both drinking water and food.

The next day, these surrendered bandits went down the ridge and shouted to persuade them to surrender.

Seeing that the situation was hopeless, many salt bandit leaders led their withered and listless subordinates down the mountain.

At Wulong Ridge, the trees fell and the monkeys scattered.

Even the most fervent faith vanishes in the face of harsh reality.

Seeing people coming down the mountain to surrender one after another, Xie Hongwu felt a mix of emotions. He finally mustered up his courage again and asked to see Zhao An. He knelt down and pleaded, "My lord, I would like to go up the mountain again to persuade my brother to surrender. My brother is now at his wit's end and may be able to change his mind."

Looking at the man before him, who was suffering greatly, Zhao An thought for a moment and then nodded in agreement: "Go, tell your brother that as long as he comes down the mountain and surrenders, I will spare his life."

The implication is that one should forget about official positions and power.

"Thank you, sir!"

When Xie Hongwu climbed Wulong Ridge again, he saw that his elder brother seemed to have aged twenty years overnight. He felt a lump in his throat, tears welling up in his eyes, and choked out, "Brother, stop being so stubborn. Come down the mountain with me for the sake of the brothers who are still alive!"

"Second brother, you shouldn't have come."

Exhausted, Xie Hongyi slowly raised his head and shook his head slightly. "So many brothers have lost their lives because of me. If I were to follow you down the mountain and live a life of ignominy, how would I have the face to meet them in the afterlife?"

After saying that, he waved his hand weakly, "Go back and tell your Lord Zhao to thank him for not killing my brothers."

Seeing this, Xie Hongwu knew that his brother's heart was dead and all persuasion was in vain. After hesitating for a long time, he finally sighed and turned to leave the Hall of Righteousness.

Behind him, his older brother suddenly called out to him.

"Go and bring the person who is being held captive to Second Master so he can take him down the mountain."

Xie Hongyi gave the order to one of his older brothers who had just bandaged him.

"Yes, Marshal!"

After the old man nodded and left, Xie Hongyi gestured for his younger brother to come closer and said in a deep voice, "Brother made a mistake and ended up in this situation. It's too late to say anything now. Since you've become an official of the Qing Dynasty, just be content with your post. Don't be sad for your brother, and don't even think about avenging him. It's all your own fault, and you can't blame anyone else."

At this point, he suddenly grasped his younger brother's hand, his eyes slightly red, and said, "That Baili Yunlong is Lord Zhao's confidant. Taking him back is the last thing I, as your elder brother, will do for you and for our Xie family."

"elder brother!"

Xie Hongwu choked with emotion, about to speak again to persuade him, when the old brother who had gone to fetch the men rushed into the Hall of Righteousness in a panic, his face full of anger, saying: "Marshal, Master Liu has taken Baili Yunlong away, saying he wants to go down the mountain to negotiate with the Qing demons! That damned Master Liu is clearly a coward who is afraid of death and is going down the mountain to surrender!"

(End of this chapter)