Late Ming Dynasty: Special Forces in 1645

After defeating the Jin army at Ehu Town, Li Chengming did not rush to Qianshan City.

After the Jin army was defeated, the fleeing soldiers scattered all over the mountains and plains. The restoration army had to chase and intercept these fleeing soldiers. By the time they finished dealing with the fleeing soldiers, the sun was about to set.

Wang Tizhong's former troops also surrendered to the Restoration Army.

Li Chengming also had a headache dealing with this group of over five thousand former subordinates of Wang Tizhong.

It was impossible to incorporate all of Wang Tizhong's former troops into the Restoration Army. The Restoration Army followed an elite force strategy and couldn't accept just anyone.

But it's not realistic to send them all away. After all, there are five thousand people. If they are not restrained, they can cause trouble wherever they go.

As the Restoration Army experiences more and more battles, there will be more and more troops surrendering in organized units.

This handling of Wang Tizhong's former troops will provide a reference for the future, and will also let the outside world know the Xingfu Army's attitude towards surrendered troops, so it must be done with caution.

Li Chengming summoned the four surrendered captains, exchanged pleasantries with them, and then said, "If you sincerely want to join the Restoration Army, I have a few principles:

First, the four of you will no longer be able to lead your original troops for the time being. You will need to study at the military academy of my Restoration Army for a period of time before you can return to the army. However, I can guarantee that your rank will not be lower than that of a battalion commander.

Secondly, I will send people to reorganize your troops. I will send the old, weak, sick and disabled back to their hometowns with travel expenses. I have looked at your troops and at most only half of them can be kept.

Third, our Restoration Army has its own military discipline and regulations, which must be followed after joining the Restoration Army; otherwise, the Restoration Army will also deal with the corresponding military law.

Fourth, those who think my conditions are too harsh may lead their troops away now. I don't care where they go, but they cannot remain within the territory of Xinzhou Prefecture!

He Mingqiu, who was standing nearby, added, "Fenshui Pass also belongs to the territory of Xinzhou Prefecture." This meant that they could not surrender to the Zheng family.

Sure enough, after hearing the conditions offered by Li Chengming, the four captains' expressions changed. Although they had no other choice but to surrender, if they did not surrender, the Restoration Army would simply have to put in some effort and would eventually defeat and capture them.

However, they did not join the Restoration Army without seeking anything in return. In their view, Li Chengming would at least allow them to lead their original troops without weakening their strength. Based on this, other conditions could be discussed gradually.

Who would have thought that Li Chengming would immediately transfer them away from their original units and reorganize their troops, which was emotionally difficult for them to accept.

The main reason they were willing to surrender to Jin Shenghuan was that their troops would not be reorganized.

This rebellion against Jin Shenghuan was also because Jin Shenghuan and Wang Deren conspired to kill several of their captains and then reorganize their troops.

As for their loyalty to Wang Tizhong, that's just a facade. They do have feelings for Wang Tizhong, but they're not that important to them.

The three captains stood up, as if to say something, but were stopped by Yuan Daguang, who said, "Aren't General Li's conditions a bit too harsh?"

Yuan Daguang had dealt with the Restoration Army before, and he was the mastermind behind this defection and surrender to them on the battlefield. Therefore, he had to stand up and say a few words.

Li Chengming picked up his teacup, took two sips, and then put it down. He said calmly, "These are the rules of my Restoration Army. Even I cannot easily break them. Moreover, I have given you a choice. If you cannot accept them, you can lead your troops away. I will not stop you."

The four captains looked at each other, wanting to say something, but unable to find the words.

Although the conditions were harsh, Li Chengming allowed them to leave freely, so what could the four captains say?

Does he not want to agree to Li Chengming's conditions, but still want to stay shamelessly?

Finally, Yuan Daguang had no choice but to step forward and say, "We thank General Li for his rescue. As for whether or not we should agree to your army's conditions, please allow us to go back and think about it carefully!"

Li Chengming said, "No problem, no problem. Go back and think it over carefully, and then give me your answer tomorrow."

The four captains bowed to Li Chengming and said, "General Li, farewell!" Then they said to He Mingqiu, who was sitting silently to the side, "General He, farewell!"

After seeing off the four captains, Li Chengming said to He Mingqiu, "Give them enough rations for one meal, no more and no less. Just calculate their food intake as half that of our Restoration Army soldiers."

He Mingqiu nodded and said, "I'll make the arrangements right away!" Then he asked in confusion, "Captain, I just don't understand. These former subordinates of Wang Tizhong first betrayed Li Zicheng, then Wang Tizhong, and now they've betrayed Jin Shenghuan. They're even worse than traitors who have served three masters. They had nowhere else to go, so they surrendered to our Restoration Army."

They said they were surrendering to our Restoration Army, but if it weren't for our Restoration Army's protection, they would have been wiped out by Jin Shenghuan long ago. In fact, they are the ones who owe our Restoration Army a debt of gratitude. Why should the captain give them the freedom to choose to come and go?

"If they choose to leave, these bandits will probably go back to harming the people again..."

He Mingqiu spoke at length, clearly having held it in for a long time.

Li Chengming smiled and said, "That's why I asked you to allocate them enough food for one meal."

We'll treat them to a meal to show the Restoration Army's benevolence and righteousness, and also to let them know that if they don't join the Restoration Army, this meal is their only reward. If they choose to leave, we'll send troops to 'politely escort' them out of the country. If they become too hungry to endure the hunger and resort to looting the people within the territory of Xinzhou Prefecture, then we can take action with a legitimate reason!

Upon hearing this, He Mingqiu was so shocked that he couldn't speak for a moment. After a long while, he said with admiration, "Captain, your move is really... brilliant! It seems like you've given them a choice, but in reality, they have no choice! If word gets out, people will say that our Restoration Army is benevolent and righteous."

Reputation may not seem useful in the short term, but in the long run, it can bring unexpected benefits.

Li Chengming wanted both fame and fortune!

......

Yuan Daguang and the other three returned to their tent. One of them, a centurion named Cheng Xinguo, said, "We can't stay here any longer. Li Chengming is clearly trying to get rid of us."

Another commander, Wang Buyi, said, "Offering such conditions means either they want to drive us away or they're aiming to completely annex our army."

Third-ranking officer Chen Hongbo said, "We have a total of 5,000 troops. We can get by anywhere. Apart from the Restoration Army, we can join anyone. We can live a life of luxury anywhere!"

Yuan Daguang, the most opinionated of the four, slowly shook his head and said, "We have all seen the strength of the Restoration Army. Its strength is by no means inferior to that of the Manchu Eight Banners Army. How could Li Chengming, the founder of the Restoration Army, be a simple person?"

Wang Buyi asked, "What are you trying to say?"

Yuan Daguang said, "I think this matter is definitely not simple. If you were Li Chengming, would you let us leave so easily? But I haven't figured out exactly what's wrong yet."

The other three thought about it and agreed that it made sense, nodding solemnly.

The four men were only commanders of a thousand men, and each commanded a little over a thousand soldiers. They had never been in charge of a task on their own, and they couldn't see the big picture. So they hadn't realized that Li Chengming could control them by focusing on supplies.

When they sent men to ask the Restoration Army for food, and only received enough for one meal, they suddenly realized what had happened.

"The Restoration Army is really going too far!" Except for Yuan Daguang, the other three all cursed loudly.

Captain Chen Hongbo said, "No! I have to go find Li Chengming and demand an explanation."

Qianzong Chen Xinguo said, "I'll go too. I can't swallow this insult either."

The two were arguing about going to see Li Chengming when Yuan Daguang slammed his hand on the table and shouted, "Enough! Just because Li Chengming looks so friendly on the surface, do you think he's easy to talk to? This is all his arrangement."

"We haven't even decided to join the Restoration Army, so why should he allocate us such a large amount of supplies?"

Chen Hongbo said, "If we hadn't jumped over here, would Li Chengming have been able to defeat Jin Shenghuan so easily?"

Yuan Daguang said loudly, "Similarly, the Restoration Army also sheltered us after our defection, didn't it? At most, we are even. Do you think it's possible for the Restoration Army to owe us a favor because of this?"

"If we go to him now, won't we just be humiliating ourselves?"

Chen Hongbo asked, "Then what do you suggest we do?"

The other three looked at Yuan Daguang, waiting for him to come up with a solution.

After a long silence, Yuan Daguang finally said, "It's impossible for us to surrender to the Qing. Although the rebel leader is still alive, we can't go back. Surrender to the Ming? We've fought against the Ming army for so many years, and now we're surrendering to the Ming? What kind of logic is that?"

Wang Buyi said, "So, you're saying we're really going to surrender to the Restoration Army?"

Yuan Daguang countered, "Why not? The Restoration Army has risen from humble beginnings to its current state in just a few months. Since its formation, it has never suffered a defeat and often defeats enemy forces several times its size with a small force..."

The story of the rise of the Restoration Army had already spread far and wide. Yuan Daguang had heard about the various deeds of the Restoration Army and had personally witnessed the process of Jin Shenghuan's 50,000-strong army being defeated several times.

After hearing Yuan Daguang's words, the other three also fell silent.