1848 Great Qing Charcoal Burners

Chapter 178 True Colors Appearing
While buying grain from the Qing army in Ma Ping, Liuzhou, Peng Gang did not place all his hopes on Qin Dingsan and Zhou Fengqi.

As soon as Luo Dagang and Qiu Zhongliang set off, Peng Gang began planning to attack the county seat of Luorong County and the small town of Luzhai in the north.

According to intelligence provided by scouts, there were not many Qing troops stationed in Luorong County and Luzhai Town.

There were only two hundred or so Green Standard Army soldiers and five hundred local militiamen in Luorong County.

Luzhai Town didn't even have a regular Green Standard Army; it only had three or four hundred local gentry organized for self-defense.

Given the current size and strength of the Left Army, attacking Maping City would be a stretch, but attacking Luorong County and the small towns of Luzhai would be relatively easy.

The amount of grain and salt in Luorong County and Luzhai Town was certainly not as much as in Maping, the capital of Liuzhou Prefecture, but even a small mosquito is still meat.

Moreover, Luorong County and Luzhai Town are hardly worth mentioning.

After capturing these two places, it shouldn't be a problem to gather enough food for the Left Army to enter the territory of Guilin Prefecture.

Based on the actual situation in Luorong County and Luzhai Town.

Peng Gang selected three infantry battalions—the Second Battalion, the Seventh Provisional Battalion, and the Eighth Provisional Battalion—as well as a heavy artillery company to accompany him to attack Luorong County.

As for Luzhai Town, it doesn't even have city walls, and there are only three or four hundred local militia members in the town.

Peng Gang only dispatched the First Battalion, the Provisional Eleventh Battalion, and the Mountain-Splitting Artillery Company to attack Luzhai Town. This force was led by Lu Qin, the First Battalion Commander.

This can be seen as giving Lu Qin a chance to train by commanding troops independently.

Lu Qin finally got the opportunity to lead troops independently. Although it was just to attack a small town called Luzhai, and the opponent was only three or four hundred local militia, Lu Qin still cherished this hard-won opportunity to lead troops in battle independently.

"I guarantee I'll complete the mission!" Lu Qin excitedly assured Peng Gang that he would definitely succeed in attacking Luzhai Town.

"Do I need you to guarantee that?" Peng Gang rolled his eyes at Lu Qin.

"Two infantry battalions and a mountain-splitting artillery company, that's more than 1,700 combat personnel. If you can't even handle three or four hundred local militia, you might as well quit your job as battalion commander!"

"We must take Luzhai Town with minimal casualties, and as quickly as possible, control the shops of the grain and salt merchants, seize the granaries of the local wealthy households, and maintain order in Luzhai Town. Understand?"

Peng Gang has higher expectations for Lu Qin.

When the Left Army entered Xiangzhou, the prefect of Xiangzhou, Yu Sizhao, committed suicide because the action was not swift enough. The city of Xiangzhou lost order, and many grain shops and granaries of wealthy households in Xiangzhou were looted by the rioters.

Peng Gang does not want the same thing to happen in Luorong County and Luzhai Town.

Upon hearing that Peng Gang was going to send troops to attack Luorong County, Yang Huwei, the former commander of the Qingjiang County garrison in Guizhou who had not yet left the command tent, expressed his willingness to help the Zuo army to trick the city gates of Luorong County.

Since joining Peng Gang's service, Yang Huwei has not returned to the battlefield.

Yang Huwei wanted to take this opportunity to prove himself and earn the qualification to lead troops into battle.

Li Rui, the former general of Guzhou Town, also wanted to take this opportunity to leave the prisoner-of-war camp, saying that he could also trick the city gate of Luorong County into opening.

Li Rui was captured in the Battle of Mocun.

Yang Huwei surrendered voluntarily during the Battle of Sanlixu.

In terms of loyalty, Yang Huwei is definitely superior to Li Rui.

Li Rui used to be a general, and such a big event as the capture of a general must have spread throughout Guangxi long ago.

Yang Huwei was just a captain before, and a captain in a guest army. Not many people knew or cared that a captain had been captured.

Moreover, the Qing troops in various regions were already poorly informed.

After weighing the options, Peng Gang decided to give Yang Huwei a chance to prove himself, allowing Yang Huwei to lead more than 120 soldiers from the Qian Camp to change into Green Standard Army uniforms, wear straw hats to cover their heads, and carry their waist tokens, and to march north with the army to Luorong County.

When the soldiers of the Guizhou Camp had already cut off their queues and were wearing sun hats, Yang Huwei instructed Wang Zhi to go to the prisoner-of-war camp and cut off more than 120 queues from the prisoners who had not cut their queues, and to fix the queues inside the sun hats to avoid them being exposed too early.

After changing his clothes, Yang Huwei made a point of tightening his sun hat.

To complete the charade, Peng Gang summoned Li Rui and Chang Sheng, two prisoners who had held high-ranking positions in the Guizhou Green Standard Army, to help forge a transfer order for Xiang Rong.

One of them had served under Xiang Rong, and the other under Zhang Bilu; they had both seen the governor's transfer order and seal.

With the assistance of Li Rui and Chang Sheng, several experienced seal engravers in the camp copied the design and carved a seal for the Hunan Provincial Military Governor using a radish. They then forged a transfer order for Xiang Rong and submitted it to Peng Gang for review.

After reviewing the forged transfer order, Peng Gang handed it to Yang Huwei and asked, "Does it look like one?"

“Except for the seal being a bit blurry, this transfer order looks exactly like the real thing, it’s hard to tell the difference!” Yang Huwei didn’t expect Peng Gang to be so thoughtful and meticulous, even forging Xiang Rong’s transfer order for him, and forging it so convincingly.

"Let's go. Whether we can easily take Luorong County depends on the performance of your Qian Camp," Peng Gang said earnestly, patting Yang Huwei on the shoulder.

"If the Qian Battalion performs well in this battle and manages to trick the city gates of Luorong County into opening, I will grant the Qian Battalion an official designation and let you lead it in battle."

The Left Army lacked professional sword and shield soldiers, while the Guizhou Army had many who were skilled in sword and shield techniques.

Peng Gang had long intended to use prisoners of war from the Guizhou army as the core to form a special sword and shield battalion.

"Your subordinate will certainly not fail in your mission!" Yang Huwei carefully put away the forged transfer order and followed Peng Gang toward Luorong County.

Outside the east gate of Luorong County, the night was as dark as ink.

Two dim yellow lanterns on the city wall swayed alone in the night wind, their light as small as beans, barely illuminating the deep shadows at the end of the official road ahead.

"The troops are coming!" On the city wall of Luorong County, several Green Standard Army soldiers on lookout duty suddenly realized what was happening and raised their torches to illuminate the source of the sound not far away.

Dozens of lights appeared at the end of the official road, with a jumble of foot soldiers and horses, flags waving, and a group of about a hundred men emerged from the darkness.

The leading officer, dressed in Green Standard Army uniform, had not even reached five zhang (approximately 10 meters) from the city gate when he reined in his horse and shouted loudly towards the east gate tower: "Luorong garrison, listen to my command! I am Yang Huwei, a Qianzong (a military officer) of the Guizhou Qingjiang Green Standard Army. I have been ordered by General Xiang to rush to Luorong ahead of time to set up camp and assist in the defense. Quickly open the gate and welcome me and my brothers into the city!"

Upon hearing this, the officer on night duty at the city wall was so startled that he rushed to the parapet and took a closer look at the more than one hundred men below.

Soldiers from other provinces often passed through Liuzhou Prefecture when entering Guangxi. This officer on night duty had also seen soldiers from Guizhou before, and judging from their attire, they did indeed look like soldiers from Guizhou.

Short-haired men had already entered Liuzhou Prefecture, and there had been no news of reinforcements coming to garrison the area recently. The officer on night duty dared not be careless and peeked out to probe, "You say you are the Assistant Commander of Qingjiang in Guizhou? You are here to assist in the defense of Luorong on the orders of Commander Xiang? Why is there no prior ultimatum?"

"Military intelligence is of paramount importance, and orders must be issued first. Wouldn't issuing an ultimatum beforehand delay military operations? I, the commander, have a transfer order for the military headquarters right here!" Yang Huwei flipped his hand and pulled out a crumpled transfer order from his pocket, holding it up high and speaking loudly.

Seeing the other party calmly pull out the transfer order, even though they were far apart and it was dark, making it impossible to clearly see the words and seal on the order, the guard on night duty had lowered his guard somewhat. However, he, a mere guard, dared not make a decision on such a major matter as opening the city gates, so he hurriedly sent someone to the county office to summon the magistrate of Luorong County to decide whether or not to open the city gates.

Zhang Ruying hurriedly reached the top of the East Gate, took the lantern from his family members, and squinted to examine it closely.

Judging from their attire and flags, this group of people is indeed in good order and is definitely dressed in the uniforms of the Guizhou Green Standard Army.

However, the short-haired cult bandits had already set up camp in Jiangkou Town, and the fate of Luorong County was a matter of life and death for Zhang Ruying. Zhang Ruying still dared not be careless or negligent and easily opened the city gates to let the people into the city.

Zhang Ruying asked in a deep voice, "I am the magistrate of Luorong County. What is this Qian Rong's name? Why did he suddenly come to Luorong in the middle of the night? Why was there no prior notice?"

"Greetings, Your Excellency! My name is Yang Huwei." Yang Huwei answered calmly with his hands clasped, not forgetting to flick his somewhat cumbersome braid.

"Your Excellency, the General has dispatched troops and horses to Pingcheng. We have learned that the rebels have moved north from Xiangzhou, seized Jiangkou Town, and are approaching Luorong County. The situation is urgent and the military situation is critical. Therefore, I have been ordered to come to Luorong to set up camp and assist in the defense. The situation is urgent and there is no time to prepare a written report. I hope Your Excellency will understand."

“Cult bandits are known for their cunning, especially the short-haired ones. Yang Qianrong, I have offended you in many ways. May I have your transfer order and your identification badge with me?”

As the Taiping army approached Luorong, the county town's defenses were weak, and Zhang Ruying desperately hoped that reinforcements could enter the city to help with the defense.

Normally, he wouldn't speak so politely to a mere centurion.

"Your Excellency, please wait a moment!"

Yang Huwei took a cloth bag, stuffed the transfer order and his waist token into the bag, and with all his might, threw it up onto the city wall.

Zhang Ruying took the cloth bag from the night watchman who had picked it up and untied it.

He reached into the cloth bag, took out the transfer order, and unfolded it to examine it. The crumpled order read, "Yang Huwei, Assistant Commander of Qingjiang County, Guizhou Province, is to go to Luorong to raise grain and assist in defense." The signature was indeed that of Xiang Rong, the Military Governor of Hunan Province.

However, the seal was rather vague, and Zhang Ruying still had doubts.

As for the waist tag, he was certain it was genuine.

Zhang Ruying was still not at ease with just the waist tag.

The short-haired rebels repeatedly defeated Xiang Rong and Zhou Tianjue. It is said that even Li Rui, the general of Guzhou Town in Guizhou, was captured by the short-haired rebels. The short-haired rebels must have seized a lot of the waist badges of Guizhou Green Standard Army officers.

Zhang Ruying called out to Yang Huwei below the city wall, "The order is vague and hard to understand. If Yang Qianrong is truly here to assist in the defense of Luorong on the orders of General Xiang, could you send a few of your personal guards up the city wall so that I can question him personally?"

"Stop being so fussy! You're treating me like a thief!" Yang Huwei roared. "I'm here to help you defend the city, not to put up with your bullying!"

This magistrate is far too cautious and suspicious. In the past, after seeing the transfer order and the official token, he should have opened the city gates to welcome them into the city long ago.

“The cultists are cunning, so we must be careful. I hope Yang Qianrong will understand.” Zhang Ruying apologized to Yang Huwei while ordering three ropes to be lowered.

"I'll let you question me one last time. If you keep nagging like this, I'm not putting up with it anymore!" With that, Yang Huwei waved for Wang Zhi behind him to take four personal guards upstairs.

Wang Zhiyi understood, and led four clever and mentally strong veteran soldiers to grab the ropes lowered from the city wall and descend into the city.

"Where are you all from?" Zhang Ruying, speaking with a Beijing accent, lowered his guard and greeted the angry Guizhou soldiers with a smile.

Although Zhang Ruying disliked the arrogant and fierce guest soldiers, there was nothing he could do. The local soldiers were unreliable, and to defend the city, even he, the county magistrate, had to humble himself and appease these guest soldiers.

"This humble servant is the battalion commander of the Qingjiang County garrison in Guizhou."

As Wang Zhi spoke, he took out his waist tag to prove his identity.

The other four veterans also introduced themselves.

"This humble servant is Zhao Changzhong, a native of Qingjiang."

"This humble servant is Li Wuliu, a native of Guiyang."

"I am Deng San, a citizen of Qianxi Prefecture, and currently a personal guard of Commander Yang."

"Yao Dacheng, a native of Qingjiang, has been following Commander Yang for more than five years."

As they spoke, Zhang Ruying raised his lamp to take a closer look. He saw that all four men were wearing Green Standard Army uniforms with the words "Qingjiang Xie" sewn on them. All four men had dark skin and natural expressions. Zhang Ruying's suspicions were no longer as strong as before.

However, Zhang Ruying still hadn't completely dispelled his doubts and would chat with these personal guards whenever he had a spare moment.

The soldiers answered fluently, speaking with a thick Southwestern Mandarin accent, interspersed with authentic Guizhou and Sichuan dialect phrases such as "Ah-yo," "Yes," "No," and "I don't think so," without any hesitation, so it was definitely not an act.

Although Zhang Ruying was from Daxing County, Shuntian Prefecture (Beijing), he had been serving in Guangxi for nearly a year.

Over the past year, he had been welcoming and seeing off soldiers from various provinces, and he had become somewhat familiar with the slang used by soldiers in the Southwest Army. He felt that what the men said made sense and sounded authentic, and their accents were completely different from those of the Guangxi people. His doubts gradually dissipated, and he confirmed that these men were indeed from Guizhou, not Guangxi. He had already made up his mind to let the more than one hundred "Green Standard Army soldiers" outside the city enter the city to assist in the defense.

Outside the East Gate, Yang Huwei, tense and uneasy, tried to appear calm and kept urging and threatening Zhang Ruying to open the city gate as soon as possible, otherwise he would stop serving and go back to find Xiang Rong, putting pressure on Zhang Ruying.

Zhang Ruying's doubts had dissipated, and he said loudly to Yang Huwei outside the city, "Yang Qianrong, I have offended you greatly. Please forgive me. Since that is the case, military affairs are of utmost importance. I will open the gate now!"

After speaking, Zhang Ruying ordered the door to be opened.

Upon receiving the order, the gatekeeper hurriedly lowered the drawbridge.

Seeing that his plan had succeeded, Yang Huwei was secretly delighted and couldn't help but reveal a smug smile in the night. He put away the two flintlock guns that Peng Gang had lent him and led more than a hundred men into the city through the east gate.

Zhang Ruying personally carried a lantern to the vicinity of the East Gate to welcome the Guizhou army reinforcements. Seeing that the Guizhou army was well-dressed and marched with practiced steps, he felt greatly relieved and said with a smile, "General Xiang has taken precautions and sent Yang Qianrong to provide assistance in advance. There is hope for Luorong now."

However, Yang Huwei was exposed after entering the city.

These 120-plus soldiers from the Guizhou Camp had practiced left-wing infantry drills for several months. Their entry into the city was so orderly and disciplined that there wasn't even any unnecessary noise.

The Liuzhou Foreign Affairs Committee member on night duty immediately sensed something was wrong. Walking so neatly, so energetic, so disciplined—was this still the DPP?!

Even the Admiral's standard battalion doesn't have as much discipline as these "Guizhou Qingjiang Green Standard Army"!

The night watchman noticed that Yang Huwei had two short self-propelled flintlock pistols tucked into his waistband, which made him even more certain that his judgment was correct and that these people were not the Green Standard Army of the Qingjiang Brigade at all!
Self-propelled flintlock pistols are forbidden items for the Green Standard Army! How could a Green Standard Army captain dare to swagger into the city with a self-propelled flintlock pistol tucked into his arm!

"Close the door immediately! They are not members of the Guizhou Qingjiang Green Camp!"

The night watchman, realizing what was happening, quickly exposed Yang Huwei and the others' identities and ordered the door to be closed.

(End of this chapter)