1848 Great Qing Charcoal Burners

Chapter 53 Brainstorming

"It was too dark at night, and there was not much to see. It would have been great if we could hang two big lanterns at the gate to illuminate the area in front of the guard tower." Hu Daniu, the surviving sentry of the East Gate, rubbed his aching shoulder and recalled the scene of being ambushed by bandits and archers that night.

"We can cut down some more trees outside the wall," Huang Dabiao from the second group added. "Cut down all the trees within fifty paces of the watchtower! Make sure the bandits and archers who want to sneak up on our sentry post have nowhere to hide! Beyond fifty paces, even a sharpshooter like Captain Xie would have a hard time hitting the target with one arrow."

“We can start not only from what we see, but also from what we hear,” Chen Xuyuan from Group One said.

"We can buy some bells, string them together and hang them outside. Whenever thieves pass by, they will surely ring the bells and make a noise."

“Team leader, deputy team leader, you have failed in your duties,” He Qingfeng from Team One said, mustering his courage.

"He Qingfeng! What do you mean by this? According to you, it means that my brother and I, along with Li Qi and Sanshui, are dragging the team down?" Lu Qin was already in a bad mood because his younger brother had just died. When he heard He Qingfeng from his group say that the group leader and deputy group leader were incompetent, Lu Qin flew into a rage.

"Team leader, that's not what I meant. The deputy team leader sacrificed himself to protect us. I have the utmost respect for the deputy team leader." Realizing what had happened, He Qingfeng quickly put on his armor.

Peng Gang, who was listening and taking notes, was immediately impressed. He Qingfeng was a promising talent. He could see the major oversight in the command hierarchy and dared to speak out about it in front of his superiors.

Peng Gang tried to smooth things over: "Summarizing past experiences is to learn from them and reduce future deaths. Lu Qin, you are the team leader, you need to learn to listen to your team members' suggestions and be tolerant. Qingfeng, please continue."

"Team leader and deputy team leader should assume the responsibility of command." He Qingfeng, emboldened by Peng Gang's affirmation, straightened his back and began to speak eloquently.

That night, the bandits only attacked the east gate, and the owner personally took charge of the east gate to stabilize the situation.

What if the bandits attack the west gate simultaneously? Can the team leader and deputy team leader, like the boss, play a role in stabilizing morale and effectively commanding the operation?

Lu Qin, Li Qi, and Chen Miao all remained silent.

The answer is obvious: the current team leaders and deputy team leaders do not yet have the ability to independently command operations and take charge on their own.

They can't reach Peng Gang's level.

As for Huang Dabiao, who shone brightly in the first battle, it was just reckless courage. In small-scale battles, Huang Dabiao was able to show off his outstanding personal martial arts skills.

In larger battles, Huang Dabiao's role becomes less significant.

Furthermore, Huang Dabiao learned all his skills from his late father over seven or eight years.

Peng Gang lacked both the ability and the time to train a large number of experts like Huang Dabiao.

"That's right. I hope you will all be able to stand on your own in the future."

Peng Gang nodded firmly; this was his expectation for all members of Groups One and Two. He made a special mark on He Qingfeng's name. "Who else wants to raise their hand to speak?"

"Our formation and spear techniques are not refined."

"Being too nervous in front of the enemy caused distorted movements."

"We don't have enough muskets. If everyone had one, we could kill or wound at least a dozen bandits in one volley! One volley would be enough to drive them back!"

"And cannons! The mountain-suppressing cannons played a huge role in repelling the bandits!"

"It's a pity it's made of wood. If only we had real iron cannons."

"With our cannons, we wouldn't be afraid of a hundred bandits!"

Because Peng Gang usually treated the young men as human beings and did not treat them as his mountain slaves.

These young men visibly became much more confident and lively, raising their hands to speak and expressing their opinions.

They shared their opinions one after another, offering suggestions for the defense of the mountain area.

Even Xiao Guoying, Peng Gang's uncle who used to think he was a good-for-nothing, has gradually changed his attitude.

He now also supports Peng Gang's training of mountain guards and listens to the young men's speeches from the sidelines.

Just because you don't provoke others doesn't mean they won't provoke you. This is a dog-eat-dog world, and weakness itself is a fault.

After the summary meeting concluded, Peng Gang, who had gained a great deal, put away his notebook, clapped his hands, and dismissed the meeting, telling the younger generation to go and rest.

One person gathering firewood won't make a strong fire, but many people gathering firewood will make a big fire.

An individual's time and energy are limited, making it impossible to be thorough in every aspect and inevitably leading to oversights. The wisdom of the collective is truly boundless.

Not long after the meeting ended, the noisy and jarring sound of gongs rang out again.

The sound of the gong came from the direction of the east gate.

Peng Gang's heart tightened. Could it be that bandits had come to his door again?

Having gained experience from the first battle, Peng Gang was much more composed this time.

Although the lost personnel have not yet been replaced, Shi Dakai and Shi Zhenlun are still at the charcoal burning plant.

With the help of the Shi brothers and their thirty or so men, dealing with dozens or even hundreds of bandits would be a piece of cake.

"Why are you banging a gong in the middle of the night?" Shi Dakai, who was awakened by the sound of the gong, walked quickly out of the dormitory of Group 1.

"Bandits are attacking." Peng Gang, who had already assembled his troops and was standing guard at the east gate, said to Shi Dakai.

Upon hearing that bandits were attacking, Shi Dakai was startled and quickly organized the Shi family's men to join Peng Gang in resisting the bandits.

The ones who came were indeed bandits, specifically bandits from the Heaven and Earth Society's boat army.

Before 1842, the Guangxi boatmen were merely a peripheral armed force of the Guangxi Heaven and Earth Society, with mediocre combat capabilities and were just ordinary water bandits who could not cause any great trouble.

In the 22nd year of the Daoguang Emperor's reign, Britain occupied Hong Kong and took measures to ensure the smooth flow of trade routes.

Based in Hong Kong, the British Indian Navy used its powerful ships and cannons to wipe out the pirates who had been active along the coast of Guangdong and even in Southeast Asia since the late Ming Dynasty.

The British, after all, made their fortune through piracy, and the local pirates were no match for the British Indian pirates. So they went upstream along the Pearl River system to seek refuge in the interior, venturing all the way from Guangzhou to Guangxi.

According to the Jiangning Treaty, the British were not allowed to enter Guangxi to pursue and capture pirates, thus giving the pirates who fled to Guangxi a chance to catch their breath.

The defenses of Zhenjiang in Youjiang, Guangxi, were weak and poorly equipped. The naval camp consisted of only four large ships and eighteen small ships, and the firearms were outdated. They were no match for the well-equipped and battle-hardened pirates.

The Guangdong pirates who entered Guangxi were a devastating blow to both the local government troops and their fellow pirates. They were able to take over and integrate almost all the river bandits in the Youjiang River basin, thus achieving re-employment in Guangxi and becoming the most powerful Tiandihui armed force in the province.

Without exception, all the well-known boat captains, such as Luo Dagang, Tian Fang, Zhang Zhao, and Qiu Ersao, were former Guangdong pirates.

Xie Bin was a man of great self-esteem, even though he had personally killed Zhang Zhao and joined forces with Peng Gang to eliminate the old bandits in Zhang Zhao's boat army.

However, Xie Bin still admitted that the old bandits in Zhang Zhao's boat corps were very strong. If they hadn't been so exhausted and thirsty, let alone the young and strong soldiers of the boat corps on Dongtang.

Even Li Dianyuan's personal guards, the deputy commander of Xunzhou, might not be able to defeat Zhang Zhao's remaining bandits.

This time, it was Luo Dagang who came to visit.

Luo Dagang's destination was the same as Zhang Zhao's, whose head had already been separated from his body: to go to Qianjiang to seek Qiu Ersao's help and avoid the storm.

The battle of Jiangkouwei severely damaged the boat fleet, leaving only Qiu Ersao's force intact.

The Green Camp has already blockaded the Xunjiang and Qianjiang rivers, so Luo Dagang dares not travel by water and can only travel by land to Lema.

Taking the route through Honglianping is a shortcut to Lema.

(End of this chapter)