1848 Great Qing Charcoal Burners

Chapter 29 Shangdongtang (Part 1)
"I'm afraid of running into Director Wang's militia patrolling the mountains. Those two were lucky to run into us. If they had encountered Director Wang's militia, they would have been beaten to death. This area of ​​the mountains belongs to Director Wang."

“Wang Tuandong? Don’t all the mountains around here belong to Master Qiu?” Peng Gang had always thought that the mountains around here belonged to Qiu Gusan.

“Most of the mountain area in Pingzai Mountain belongs to Master Qiu and Director Wang. Honglianping is the boundary. South of Honglianping is Master Qiu’s mountain area in Guixian County, and north of Honglianping is Director Wang’s mountain area in Mengchong, Zijingshan, Guiping County.” When Director Wang was mentioned, Carpenter Qin couldn’t help but show a bit of fear. He reminded Peng Gang.

“Wang Tuandong occasionally sends out militia, which are actually his family’s servants to patrol the Zijing Mountain and Heping Mountain areas. This man is extremely petty and vindictive. If you encounter anyone from the Wang family in the future, be careful. It’s not easy for you to make a living in the mountains at such a young age. Be accommodating.”

North of Honglianping, across the mountain ridge, lies the famous Zijing Mountain.

Could the head of the militia in Mengchong, Zijing Mountain, be Wang Zuoxin, an early rival of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom?

Although Wang Zuoxin was an obscure figure in history, Peng Gang still has some impression of him as the first villain to appear in the TV series about the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom.

"Could it be Wang Zuoxin, a student from Mengchong in Zijing Mountain?" Peng Gang brandished his spear, clearing away the thorns blocking his way to avoid being scratched.

"Exactly." Carpenter Qin nodded. "I never imagined his bad reputation would spread to your county."

"Old Tan, as the saying goes, a scholar can't reason with a soldier." Peng Gang joked, "You're a regular soldier in the Green Standard Army, but I saw your voice tremble a little when you mentioned Wang Zuoxin. Are you, a soldier, afraid of a pedantic scholar?"

The Green Standard Army soldiers were also divided into cavalry, combat soldiers, and garrison soldiers according to their rank and treatment. Qin the carpenter was definitely not a cavalry soldier. As for whether he was a combat soldier or a garrison soldier, Peng Gang really didn't know.

"He's no ordinary scholar. He commands hundreds of militiamen, and even the county magistrate has to give him a second thought. The only ones who can deal with him are probably those charcoal burners from Zijing Mountain who've joined some kind of sect and have nothing to lose. I've heard they're constantly getting into fights and brawls." Carpenter Qin glanced down at his uniform and said self-deprecatingly.

"I'm just a carpenter in Green Standard Army uniform, not a soldier."

As Peng Gang walked forward, he chatted with Qin the carpenter, and he could faintly smell the stench of urine.

The further you go, the stronger the smell of urine becomes.

He subconsciously glanced down at Xiao Guoda and Qin the carpenter's crotches; neither of them had wet their groins, so it wasn't from their urine.

"There's someone nearby!" Peng Gang stopped in his tracks and exclaimed in surprise.

Hearing that someone was nearby, the three men tensed up instantly, instinctively gripping their weapons and remaining on guard.

Although Qin the carpenter was a soldier, he was the least timid of the three. Peng Gang's exclamation startled him so much that he reflexively ran back.

The Green Standard Army soldiers are indeed a bunch of cowards, unreliable!
Peng Gang cursed under his breath, and just as he was deciding whether to run away together, a dark gun barrel was already pointed at him ten steps away.

Through the gaps in the grass and trees, the burning fire rope was clearly visible.

Then came a loud shout that echoed through the mountains and forests.

"Drop the gun! Don't move!"

The gun is faster than seven steps away.

What if this gun was a crudely made musket from the Qing Dynasty?
How about we take a gamble? Bet that the musket's spread won't hit a moving target more than ten paces away?

The stakes are high; you're betting your life.

A large fir tree just a step away gave Peng Gang immense hope.

The other party seemed to have ill intentions. He didn't know their identity, and if he lost his gun, his life would be completely at their mercy, with no ability to resist whatsoever.

He disliked the feeling of having his fate in the hands of others.

Peng Gang could clearly feel his heart racing; he had never felt such a heart-pounding sensation before.

In a flash, Peng Gang steeled his heart and, based on his experience of serving two years of compulsory military service in his previous life, instinctively dodged behind a cedar tree.

If the other party were armed with a modern automatic weapon, he would have been dead countless times at a distance of ten paces.

Surprisingly, no shots were fired.

Puzzled, Peng Gang cautiously peeked out to check the situation and saw the other party cursing and frantically blowing air into the ignition hole and pouring ignition powder back into the medicine pool.

After confirming that the other party was alone and had no other helpers, Peng Gang mustered his courage, picked up his gun, and charged towards the other party.

Rather than sit back and wait for death, it is better to take the initiative.

This was his only chance to take advantage of the opponent's reloading time and eliminate him.

He didn't want to gamble on whether the musket in the opponent's hand would misfire again with its next shot.

When Peng Gang rushed out of the bushes and saw that the other person was wearing a baggy Green Standard Army uniform, he hesitated for a moment.

But he still thrust forward without hesitation.

The other party seemed to be a veteran. When he saw Peng Gang charging towards him with a gun, he immediately dropped the fire poker in his hand and quickly drew his sword to fight back.

The Shundao is a wide-backed short knife with a blade length of less than 50 centimeters and an upturned tip, resembling a miniature version of a broadsword. This knife is specifically designed for mountain warfare and is suitable for close combat and cutting through thorns.

The Green Standard Army in the Guangdong, Guangxi and Hubei regions were heavily equipped with this type of short-bladed weapon.

During the suppression of the White Lotus Rebellion in the Jiaqing era, the Hubei Green Standard Army modified the Shundao (a type of halberd) by attaching it to a long pole, turning it into a simple hook-and-sickle spear.

Every inch is longer and every inch is stronger!

Seeing that the other party had pulled out a short blade less than half a meter long to defend himself, and that the mulberry wood spear in his hand was at least two and a half meters long, Peng Gang's confidence increased greatly.

"Master Peng! Stop! He's one of our men, Commander Xie of Shangdongtang!"

"Zhou Songqing! Sheath your knife right now! He's not a bad person!"

Just as Peng Gang's spear was only a step away from the musketeer, the voices of carpenter Qin and another unfamiliar voice suddenly rang out behind him.

That arquebusier was indeed a soldier from Shangdongtang. At this moment, Peng Gang had no time to stop and put away his gun. The huge inertia carried him forward, and he couldn't stop. Peng Gang could only tilt the gun to the right and let it plunge into the grass, which was only three palms' width away from the arquebusier.

It turned out that the smell of urine came from the Green Standard Army musketeer's body and matchlock. The matchlock on the guy's back was probably soaked in urine, and the smell was extremely pungent.

Peng Gang and the musketeer named Zhou Songqing collapsed to the ground simultaneously, panting heavily.

Carpenter Qin, his uncle, and two other Green Standard Army soldiers in uniform rushed over. Seeing that neither of them was injured, they breathed a sigh of relief.

Peng Gang looked at the two Green Standard Army soldiers. The one who appeared to be the leader had a cow-tail knife at his waist, and the other soldier beside him was a Green Standard Army musketeer.

"The grass was thick and the forest was dense, so I didn't see you clearly and mistook you for villains, almost causing some injury. I'm sorry." The Green Standard Army soldier in the lead was probably a high-ranking soldier, either a cavalryman or a combat soldier, whose status was higher than the two musketeers. He apologized to Peng Gang.

"I heard from Carpenter Qin that this gentleman has come to pay his respects to Commander Xie?"

“Exactly.” Peng Gang nodded, looking the three Green Standard Army soldiers from Shangdongtang up and down.

In recent days, Peng Gang has seen many Green Standard Army soldiers, from those stationed at Bitan Flood to those stationed at Qishixu and Guixian County.

Without exception, those Green Standard Army soldiers were either busy making a living or smoking opium.

Occasionally, you might encounter a few Green Standard Army soldiers on duty, but they all look listless and sleepy, with a slouching posture and gait, showing no signs of being soldiers.

It's no exaggeration to say that the security guards in later residential communities were in better spirits than these Green Standard Army soldiers.

Although the three Green Standard Army soldiers in front of me also looked malnourished, their mental state was clearly much better than that of the other Green Standard Army soldiers patrolling the pond.

At least their weapons showed little rust, indicating that they were well-maintained and frequently used.

The Green Standard Army squad leader and the arquebusier named Zhou Songqing exuded a murderous aura.

It seems that what the garrison soldiers at Bitan said was true.

That Captain Xie from Shangdongtang might really have some skills.

The fact that he could get his subordinates to patrol the mountains was something that most officers in the Qing Dynasty's military outposts probably couldn't do.

"Ms. sir?"

Hearing this title, which was quite inconsistent with Peng Gang's previous behavior, Zhou Songqing, who had just extinguished the fire rope, was very surprised.

How could a scholar possess such courage and reaction?
After exchanging greetings with the three soldiers from Shangdongtang, Peng Gang followed them to Shangdongtang.

Shangdongtang was very small, with a total of eleven soldiers, including Xie Bin, who was assigned to the task.

Its scale is far smaller than that of Bitanxun, which is located at a crucial point of water and land transportation.

However, as a pond, Shangdong Pond is already a relatively large pond.

Most of the guard posts in the Qing Dynasty had between three and eight soldiers. Guard posts with more than eight soldiers could be considered large guard posts.

The scene in Shangdongtang was one of extreme poverty and backwardness.

The village was occupied by about twenty small, ugly thatched huts with mud walls and thatched roofs.

Several barren sloping fields were reclaimed outside the pond to grow sweet potatoes, corn and indigo grass. Barefoot soldiers and their families could often be seen working on the barren fields.

Although Bitan Floating Village is small, it is located at a key point of water and land transportation, and is home to two or three hundred households.

The soldiers stationed at Bitan Flood Control Station could still do some small business with their shrewd garrison commander and collect some tolls.

Even if all else fails, one can still open a small shop or take on odd jobs to supplement their income, just like blacksmith Wu and carpenter Qin.

Shangdongtang is located beside the narrow path leading from Pingzai Mountain to Zijing Mountain.

Pingzai Mountain and Zijing Mountain are both poor and impoverished places, and few merchants would choose to take this unprofitable and dangerous mountain path.

Only a few mountain dwellers who sell charcoal and indigo will choose to take this route.

These impoverished mountain people couldn't squeeze a single drop of profit out of them.

The soldiers stationed at Shangdongtang had very limited means of making a living; they could only cultivate a small plot of land to make ends meet.

They barely managed to make a living by relying on the income from farming and the meager rations issued by the imperial court.

Xie Bin, the foreign affairs officer of Shangdongtang, is the highest military officer here. He has a small, independent courtyard with four thatched houses, where he usually works and lives.

Compared to his boss Chen Xingwang's small, well-equipped courtyard in Bitanxun with its blue bricks and black tiles, Xie Bin's residence and office were far more shabby.

Xie Bin's courtyard looks shabby, but it is the most decent building in Shangdongtang and even within a radius of twenty miles. It can at least be considered a relatively comfortable farmhouse.

Upon entering the courtyard, Peng Gang saw a soldier carrying lead weights.

Lead weight refers to a lead block marked with its weight.

The arquebuses used by the Green Standard Army and the Eight Banners in various regions of the Qing Dynasty had different shapes and calibers. Therefore, the Qing army preferred to distribute lead pellets to the arquebusiers in each garrison, and let them be responsible for melting, casting and grinding the lead pellets into lead bullets that matched the caliber of their arquebuses.

Half a century ago, during the Napoleonic Wars, musketeers in various European countries were also responsible for grinding their own lead bullets. This practice was quite common at the time.

Today, highly industrialized countries such as Britain, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, and the Philippines are able to directly issue soldiers lead bullets of the appropriate caliber, eliminating the need for soldiers to grind the bullets themselves.

Although the Qing Dynasty had experienced the painful lessons of the Opium War, eight years had passed since that war that marked the beginning of a century of decline for the Chinese nation.

The Eight Banners and Green Standard Army, which were part of the imperial court's established military force at the end of their service term, remained unchanged, without any positive changes.

(End of this chapter)