Sweep Yuan

Chapter 48 Disputes Arise in the Rear

Chiguan Hall, Chulan Station.

When the envoy from Xuzhou arrived, Li Wu, along with Wen Sijiu, Tian Changcai, and other military officers stationed at the post, greeted him. However, the harmonious atmosphere of the meeting lasted only a quarter of an hour before a dispute arose over whether to assist General Han Si in sending troops to attack Suining.

"Commander Li, this is General Han's order. Even your deputy commander has to obey. Do you dare to disobey?!"

The messenger's extremely aggressive attitude successfully provoked the single-minded Li Wu.

"I can't read, and I don't know General Shenhan or General Re. I just obey Third Brother's orders. Before Third Brother gives the order and I die, no one the hell is allowed to leave Chulan Station!"

"Hmph! You've got guts! Just you wait!"

As the saying goes, the tough are afraid of the stubborn. Although the messenger was tough, he was afraid that Li Wu might suddenly decide to cut him with a knife. He left behind this harsh statement, stomped out of the government office, and ran out of the station in a flash.

Although Shi Shan's men belonged to the Xuzhou Red Turban Army, he was an outsider and a surrendered soldier, with impure roots, and was openly and secretly despised and ostracized by the Xuzhou Red Turban Army's core members.

After its reorganization, its troops became an independent system. Even Wen Sijiu, whom Zhao Jun had previously sent to "assist" Shishan, was marginalized. This time, he was left in Chulan as the commander of the supply battalion.

Li Wu's cavalry force was smaller than the sparsely staffed Third Infantry Battalion, but as Shi Shan's confidant, he also held the position of commander. Before the expedition to Suzhou, Shi Shan made it clear that Li Wu's opinions should be the primary consideration for all important matters concerning the Chizhou campaign.

Normally, Wen and Li didn't get along very well, but they could still manage. However, today Li Wu acted recklessly and angered Han Si's messenger, which could very likely trigger a conflict between the two factions. Wen Si Jiu disregarded his own suspicions and gently advised:

"Commander Li, General Han Si killed several people in his younger days, and he has many desperate men under his command. His position in the upper echelons of our Red Turban Army is also quite extraordinary. How about—"

"What?!"

Li Wu was in a fit of anger and rudely interrupted Wen Sijiu.

—You didn't dare utter a word in front of the messenger sent by Han Si, but now you're stammering at me. You really are a spy sent by Zhao Junyong to do bad things!

"Third Brother led his men in a life-or-death struggle in Suzhou, and this Qiu Mao Han Si won't give us anything, he just wants us to provide manpower and supplies to attack Suining. What exactly is this guy up to? Damn it! Does he really think we are surrendered soldiers who deserve to be filled into trenches and sent to our deaths?!"

Wen Sijiu was sprayed with insults, but because of his special status, he couldn't continue with this sensitive topic.

Chen Cheng didn't want to get involved, but Tian Changcai was distracted, so he had no choice but to step in and smooth things over.

"Commander Li, Xuzhou has dispatched a large army to attack Suining, and Chulan Station is a necessary stop on their route. We have openly defied General Han's wishes. What if he leads his army to attack Zhanchi along the way? How will we respond?"

"how?"

Li Wu glanced sideways at Chen Cheng, then glared fiercely at Wen Sijiu, raised his voice, and said:
"Third Brother sent us to stay in Chulan precisely to deal with these bastards who only know how to cause trouble behind the scenes and take advantage of others. If a real fight breaks out, let alone the cavalry and infantry, even the supply battalion will have to go. Commander Wen, what do you say?!"

"this?"

At this point, Wen Sijiu was caught in the middle, unable to please anyone.

Heaven help me, although he was sent by General Zhao, he had no connection whatsoever with General Han. The reason he advised Li Wu was purely for the sake of the overall situation of the Red Turban Rebellion in Xuzhou. After all, they had already joined Marshal Li in the rebellion, so they should concentrate their forces against the common enemy. Why make a fuss over who should send troops? If the conflict escalates or even leads to a clash, wouldn't that be courting death?
However, Li Wu is not very bright. When he gets carried away, he doesn't care about Han Si or Zhao Si. His position as "supervisor" is awkward, and the more you try to persuade him, the more agitated he becomes.

Wen Sijiu, unwilling to add fuel to the fire, could only try to get Tian Changcai's support by giving him a meaningful look.

Although Tian Changcai was promoted to commander, most of his subordinates were villagers from other villages. Two of his capable clansmen were transferred by Shishan to other camps as squad leaders. However, he was unhappy that Deng Li, who was incompetent at everything, was assigned to him as his deputy.

He was initially unwilling to get involved in the conflict between Wen Sijiu and Li Wu, but seeing Li Wu's stubbornness and fearing that this fellow might actually fight General Han and endanger his own life, he had no choice but to step forward and advise him:
"Commander Li, please calm down. General Han wants to attack Suining, and he has at least several thousand men. Our small force can't possibly defeat him—"

The infantry, cavalry, and supply battalion that Shishan left in Chulan checked and balanced each other. Although Li Wu disliked Wen Sijiu, he was still quite polite to Tian Changcai, who usually didn't cause much trouble.

Unexpectedly, this guy turned out to be a complete opportunist when faced with a major event, which infuriated Li Wu.

"What are you two cowards afraid of? We're Red Turban Army soldiers who received equipment and official positions from Marshal Li. If Marshal Li doesn't give the order, this scoundrel Han Si dares to lay a finger on us!"

Wen Sijiu looked at Li Wu in surprise, never expecting that this blockhead had such a meticulous side.

But he was even more aware that the Red Turban Army in Xuzhou was a complex faction within its upper echelons, and that none of the generals were benevolent men or women; if you really angered them, they were capable of anything.

However, given his position, he couldn't openly criticize the Xuzhou leadership; he could only offer a tactful reminder:

"The Marshal is a very righteous man, and he will certainly not allow General Han to do something that would harm friendly forces. What I'm worried about is that some of the commanders below might take this opportunity to instigate General Han to attack us."

If they resort to force, and we're so far from Xuzhou City, even if something happens here, the city won't know, and Deputy Commander Shi in Suzhou will be even less likely to know. Perhaps we should—"

"Old Wen, I often bicker with you, but I understand your good intentions today. Thank you!"

Li Wu understood the unspoken meaning in Wen Sijiu's words, and his tone softened considerably, but his attitude remained resolute.

"But it's nothing. Before my third brother went out to fight, he specifically told me to keep an eye on Chulan. I only listen to my third brother. He didn't tell me to cooperate with anyone, so I just guarded Zhanchi. If you're still worried, think about how to persuade Han Si not to mess with us!"

Wen Sijiu, Chen Cheng, and Tian Changcai exchanged wry smiles, forced to admit that Li Wu's words were indeed reasonable.

Although they did not approve of Li Wu's tough stance against friendly forces, they also knew that they could not persuade Han Si, since the other party's appetite was too big, and he wanted all the manpower and resources of the Red Army, including them.

The two sides are not on equal footing, and the weaker party has no right to negotiate.

He only hoped that Han Si could delay sending troops for a few days, preferably until Shishan finished fighting Suzhou and returned to Chulan with his troops. Then he could deal with these thorny issues on his own.

Unfortunately, things did not go as they had hoped.

Three days later, before news of the outcome of the Battle of Suzhou could be received, a large army arrived from the direction of Xuzhou.

(End of this chapter)