1848 Great Qing Charcoal Burners

Chapter 49 Get Rich with Me
"You guys? You want to give me a seventh-rank officer's hat? Have you hit your head on a doorpost or gone mad? My future is none of your business!"

In the small courtyard of Shangdongtang, Xie Bin stared at Xiao Guoda as if he were a madman.

If it weren't for the fact that Qin the carpenter's account was almost identical to Xiao Guoda's...

Xie Bin had long regarded Xiao Guoda as a madman who was deliberately trying to make fun of him, and beat him out of the yard with a bunch of sticks.

The news that about twenty teenagers who were charcoal burners had driven off Zhang Zhao's old bandits from the Heaven and Earth Society was too shocking and unbelievable.

Xie Bin was willing to believe that they had repelled ordinary members of the Heaven and Earth Society.

After all, the ordinary members of the Heaven and Earth Society were still essentially ordinary people, just a bunch of scoundrels, not worth mentioning.

The old bandits around Zhang Zhao were not civilians, but pirates who had fought their way out of mountains of corpses and seas of blood. Half of them were old pirates who had roamed the coast of Guangdong Province and even Southeast Asia before the 20th year of the Daoguang Emperor's reign.

Let alone the group of charcoal burners in Lianhuaping, even the fierce soldiers of Shangdongtang, whom Xie Bin had carefully trained, would not have much of a chance against Zhang Zhao's old bandits, let alone launching a counterattack after being ambushed.

Just as Qin the carpenter was about to say a few words in Peng Gang's defense, Xiao Guoda stopped him.

"Foreign Minister Hsieh's reputation is widespread in Pingzai Mountain. I originally thought you, Foreign Minister Hsieh, were a rare hero in the Green Camp, but I didn't expect you to be such a cowardly and useless fool."

Despite all his words, Xie Bin remained unmoved. Xiao Guoda, anxious and disappointed, couldn't help but mock Xie Bin in desperation.

"Provocation won't work on me," Xie Bin said coldly.

"General? You dare to say that?" Xiao Guoda had been worried about the situation at Lianhuaping the whole way, and he spoke recklessly.

There was no point in saying more, so Xiao Guoda turned around and made a gesture to leave without looking back.

“Brother, Xiao Guoda is deceiving us, and there’s no reason why Carpenter Qin would join him in deceiving us.” Hou Jiyong said, watching Xiao Guoda’s resolute departure.

"Both of them had bloodstains on them. The last time I drank with him in the yard, he didn't have this much murderous aura."

"You think I can't see what you can see? He did kill some bandits last night, and probably more than one."

Otherwise, where would a mere commoner like me get the audacity to speak to me like this? Xie Bin seemed to be weighing something, remaining undecided.

"It's true that the charcoal-burning boys from Honglianping killed off Zhang Zhao, the old bandit. They not only killed some of the old bandits, but also captured some alive, otherwise they wouldn't have known that they killed Zhang Zhao's old bandits."

"Then why are you still unwilling to lend a helping hand?" Hou Jiyong asked, puzzled.

"If Zhang Zhao really wipes out Honglianping, our only source of income will be cut off. Suppressing the old bandits of the Heaven and Earth Society would be a great achievement."

Hou Jiyong was concerned about the low-priced coal from Honglianping. Over the past three months, the low-priced coal provided by Honglianping to Shangdongtang had truly improved their family's life.

Hou Jiyong didn't want such a stable and legitimate way of making money to be cut off by Zhang Zhao.

Of course, the most important reason was that the military merit of eliminating Zhang Zhao was too tempting.

"You've been following me for many years. You believe they only have five or six old bandits?" Although Xie Bin's heart was as pounding as Hou Jiyong's, he still had to be more cautious in his actions.

"Call them both back; I need to question them."

Zhang Zhao's head alone was worth eight hundred taels of silver. Even if the reward money passed through several hands, the actual amount of silver that ended up in his hands was still considerable.

It could equal his income for more than ten years without eating or drinking. It would be impossible not to be tempted.

Zhang Zhao and his gang of old bandits looted Jiangkouwei and fled into Pingzaishan; their belongings must have been quite substantial.

Furthermore, Zhang Zhao is not like the unknown Wang Ermazi. If Zhang Zhao, this old bandit, can be killed, Chen Xingwang, a mere garrison commander, cannot claim such a great achievement by himself.

If things go well, replacing the seahorse badge on my chest with a rhinoceros badge will be a piece of cake.

Thinking about this, Xie Bin was extremely tempted.

However, he needs to know the truth about Lianhuaping.

“This concerns my brother’s life, Xiao Guoda. If you truly want to save your nephew and his wife and children, tell me the truth.”

Xie Bin stared intently into Xiao Guoda, who had been brought back.

"Your nephew's wife and children's lives are lives, and so is my brother's life! Don't try to outsmart me!"

"Are you willing to lend a hand?" Xiao Guoda felt a little uncomfortable under Xie Bin's intense gaze.

"I'm willing to help within my power!" Xie Bin finally stated his position, continuing to stare at the hesitant Xiao Guoda. "The situation is urgent! Don't hesitate! Every second you delay increases the danger to your nephew and his wife and children!"

"Twenty people! Not one more, not one less. If I'm lying, just consider me a bandit and chop off my head to claim credit!" Xiao Guoda pointed to his head and assured Xie Bin.

Twenty veteran bandits were a bit unexpected for Xie Bin, and they were quite a handful.

However, it's not like we can't fight; it's worth a shot.

Xie Bin had a very frustrating time working under Chen Xingwang over the years.

He was, after all, a martial arts graduate, and he wanted to turn his life around. He didn't want to live a muddled and miserable life under Chen Xingwang, who came from a family that had donated money to become a graduate. He wanted to stay in the small town of Shangdongtang for the rest of his life.

He's willing to take a chance if an opportunity comes his way, even if there's only a 50% chance of success.

"Old Hou! Tell all the able-bodied men in the village to grab their gear and assemble in my yard! Today I'm going to lead everyone to gamble for a fortune!"

Having made up his mind, Xie Bin was filled with pride and rallied his troops.

"Got it!"

Hou Jiyong was also filled with excitement, rubbing his hands together to notify the men of Shangdongtang to assemble.

Xie Bin looked down on the lowly outsourced commander of Shangdongtang, but he had his eye on him.

If this matter succeeds, Xie Bin will be promoted, and Hou Jiyong will also be able to change into a new suit with a seahorse patch.

From a lowly soldier, he rose to become the head of an external affairs team.

Although Shangdongtang only had ten soldiers and one external commissioner, Xie Bin held great prestige there. He could not only mobilize the soldiers but also recruit all the able-bodied men in the area for his own use. Hearing that Commander Xie was going to lead everyone to try their luck and get rich, the young men of Shangdongtang, who were desperate for wealth and power, flocked to him and gathered in front of Xie Bin's courtyard to await orders.

Xie Bin selected eighteen able-bodied men, issued them weapons, and incorporated them into a team of ten soldiers. He then had Xiao Guoda lead the way, and the group marched towards Honglianping in a grand procession.

When Xie Bin and his group were about to arrive at Honglianping, Peng Gang and Zhang Zhao had already been waiting from dawn until noon.

After two remaining bandits fell into a pit and were stabbed, and another lost his footing and fell down a steep cliff and was riddled with bullets by the young men of the group, the remaining bandits led by Zhang Zhao became much more obedient and dared not continue to blindly attack the charcoal burning site.

With ammunition exhausted and no cannons available, the remaining bandits, who held the terrain advantage, were helpless against the charcoal-burning boys below the steep cliff.

Let's keep the offensive going.

It was barely possible to descend the steep cliff.

Once they went down, twenty long spears made of mulberry wood, three muskets, and a cannon were waiting in full force for them to fall into the trap.

If I don't continue, my stomach is growling with hunger.

The remaining bandits had no choice but to push stones and logs down into the charcoal burning area and throw torches to vent their rage.

Apart from burning down a water room near the steep cliff that supplied hot water, the remaining bandits did not achieve any significant results.

"Half an hour has passed since noon, surely General Xie isn't going to cancel his arrival?"

With no movement around the mountain area for a long time, Xiao Guoying worried that Xie Bin and his group would not get involved in the Honglianping matter.

"It doesn't matter if they don't come, we can just keep waiting."

Peng Gang remained calm and instructed Zhao Hanwei and her two aunts, who were busy in the kitchen, to bring out today's main dishes for the remaining bandits to enjoy in front of them.

Let's crush the spirits of the remaining bandits.

Having just made a fortune, Peng Gang acted like a big shot for the first time, slaughtering three roosters used for crowing and breeding and stewing a pot full of chicken soup.

All fifty pounds of cured meat in the stock were put into the pot, one pot was stir-fried with potato slices, and another pot was stir-fried with dried bamboo shoots.

Whether Xie Bin comes or not, Peng Gang doesn't really care.

The current situation is that the remaining bandits on the mountain cannot come down, and he has neither the will nor the ability to fight up and eliminate Zhang Zhao's remaining bandits.

Since that's the case, let's just lie low and wear down Zhang Zhao's gang.

Anyway, the grain stored in the warehouse can last for half a month if we eat as much as we want.

Zhang Zhao and his men weren't herbivores, so he didn't believe that Zhang Zhao's band of bandits could survive on the mountaintop for half a month, eating grass roots and tree bark.

At first, the three women, including the aunt and Zhao Hanwei, were very afraid of the bandits and even tried to escape from the charcoal burning site.

But since the stalemate began last night, they have realized that the thieves have not gained any advantage over the young men at the charcoal kiln, and they have lost their fear of the thieves.

He realized that the bandits who sounded so intimidating were nothing special, and he was no longer afraid of the bandits on the mountaintop who only talked tough.

They now even dare to calmly and composedly serve hot food to a group of young men right in front of the bandits.

The group of young men ate meat and drank chicken soup with gusto, not even wanting to eat sweet potatoes anymore, their mouths greasy from all the food.

The young men in the second group kept glancing at the young men in the first group who were eating and drinking ravenously and in a very unsightly manner, as if they were afraid that the young men in the first group would not even leave them the leftovers.

"Don't be greedy, yours is still warm in the pot. Don't eat what they left over. Let it simmer a little longer, and it will be even more fragrant and flavorful," Peng Gang said to the young men in Group Two who were eagerly anticipating the meat and constantly swallowing their saliva.

With Peng Gang's words, the young men in the second group felt reassured and dutifully remained at their posts.

Although Peng Gang is very strict, he always keeps his word and has never broken his promise.

They were willing to believe whatever Peng Gang said.

"A bunch of short-lived creatures!"

"You son of a bitch!"

"A shovel that produces pus and blood!"

The remaining bandits on the mountaintop could only watch helplessly as the charcoal burners below ate meat and drank soup, swallowing the saliva secreted from their salivary glands.

He was so angry that he pounded his chest, stamped his feet, and howled.

Having run out of ammunition and supplies, Zhang Zhao, who was still unable to take over the charcoal factory, was unwilling but had already begun to consider giving up.

They knew that continuing like this was not a solution.

Zhang Zhao, who had dominated Guangdong and Guangxi provinces for more than a decade and whose actions had repeatedly left the government helpless, never expected that one day he would be humiliated by a group of inexperienced young charcoal burners.

Just as Zhang Zhao was hesitating, unsure whether to attack or retreat, the fresh troops who had rushed from Shangdongtang, led by Xiao Guoda, had already avoided the trap and were quietly making their way to the hilltop where curses were raging.

However, the commotion caused by thirty people was simply too great.

The eighteen young men Xie Bin had chosen had limited experience in suppressing bandits, and the noise they made was inevitably noticed by the bandits on lookout.

The alerted bandits discovered a group of soldiers in uniform suddenly appearing at the foot of the slope, only thirty or forty paces away. Terrified, they shouted, "Government troops! Government troops! Government troops are attacking!"

No sooner had he uttered the cry than a heavy arrow, piercing through the wind, easily pierced the throat of the sentry.

"Damn it! That old bandit on lookout has ears sharper than a titmouse!"

Xie Bin, who had delivered a fatal arrow to the sentry from thirty paces away, felt no joy whatsoever; instead, he stamped his feet and sighed.

Seeing that he had been discovered by the bandits, Xie Bin, whose sneak attack had failed, threw aside his horn bow, drew his fish-head knife, and waved it at the remaining bandits on the hilltop: "This group of old bandits escaped into the mountains from Jiangkouwei! They're full of gold and silver! Our chance to get rich has come! Brothers of Shangdongtang, follow me!"

(End of this chapter)