Volume One, Chapter Thirty-Nine: Leading My Own Troops on a Raid for the First Time

In the valley where Li Shandao was stationed, ever since the new reward system was established, the two marches and one fire of troops had been drilling with soaring enthusiasm, and everyone's initiative had greatly increased.

After drilling for several consecutive days, the training of banners and drums had progressed from the squad level to the march level, and even the march-level drills had become proficient.

At the three-day minor inspection, Li Shandao strictly fulfilled the reward schedule, distributing all the prizes for those with outstanding performance on the spot.

The enthusiasm of the troops for training grew even higher.

With banners and drums recognized and formations formed, the next steps were the practice of martial arts and tactical arrays.

From this point on, the training no longer consisted of a single activity all day long; instead, it was changed to forging strength and teaching martial arts in the mornings, and practicing tactical arrays in the afternoons.

Regardless of whether it was the morning or afternoon training, Li Shandao led by example and participated fully. Compared to the previous days of practicing only banners and drums, the martial arts and tactical drills were noticeably more exhausting. After three or four days of continuous drilling, although Li Shandao's physique was young and robust, he inevitably found it somewhat difficult to bear. The moment his head touched the pillow at night, he would fall fast asleep, and the once-enjoyed midnight sound of the flute naturally became much rarer.

As the training approached the tenth day—the day of the major inspection—Li Shandao was summoned by Xu Shiji that morning.

By nearly noon, he had returned to the valley.

Wang Xuda asked, "My lords, must we all send out footmen to exact tributes within these few days?"

"Indeed."

Wang Xuda puzzledly said, "Although our stronghold has never ceased exacting tributes, it is rare to dispatch so many men at once."

"This is a decision made by the stronghold. I suppose Lord Zhai and the others must have their own considerations, which are not for us to know. Brothers, are you willing to accept the decision I have made on your behalf?"

If, when he was first assigned under Li Shandao's command, Wang Xuda's respect for Li Shandao was largely superficial, then after the battle with Luo Shixin, Wang Xuda's respect was no longer just skin-deep. After all, anyone had to admit that the courage to "lead from the front and charge into the enemy ranks at the head of one's men" was not something just anyone possessed.

Therefore, Wang Xuda immediately replied, "We are the lord's men, and naturally we obey only the lord's commands."

Chen Jing'er flashed a grin and said, "What fun is there in staying behind to guard the stronghold? With no tributes to be gained and being drilled by the lord every single day until we're half-dead, it's certainly not as pleasant as following the lord down the mountain to exact tributes."

Li Shandao laughed heartily and said, "Since none of you have any objections, let us pack up and head down the mountain tomorrow. We can take this opportunity to test our forces in the field and see how the fruits of our past eight or nine days of training measure up, and whether we have made progress compared to the last fight against Luo Shixin."

The men respectfully agreed in unison.

Training in the valley every day was indeed both tiring and stifling. When the order to descend the mountain the next day was announced, the hundred-odd men eating lunch in the valley cheered, their joyous shouts shaking the air. After the meal, even during the afternoon array drills, everyone's spirits were vastly elevated.

The night passed quietly, with bright moonlight over the valley and the fragrance of peach blossoms floating in the air.

Early the next morning, leaving Kang Sanzang, his little slave, and Guo'er in the valley, and having reported to Xu Shiji, Li Shandao mustered his troops and led them out of the stronghold.

As mentioned before, the areas raided by Wagang primarily consisted of two regions.

One was along the Tongji Canal in the territories of Xingyang Commandery and Liang Commandery to the southeast; the other was along the Yongji Canal in the territories of Ji Commandery and others to the west.

Between these two regions, the former was distant but boasted heavy merchant traffic; the latter was closer, but had sparse merchant travel.

The raiding area assigned to Li Shandao by Xu Shiji was naturally the former.

Indeed, a great many footmen had been dispatched down the mountain this time. In Xu Shiji's Phoenix Sub-stronghold alone, which had a total force of less than two thousand men, nearly a thousand footmen spanning over a dozen marches were assigned by Xu Shiji to head down. Li Shandao's march was among the earliest to leave the stronghold.

Emerging from the valley, climbing to the hilltop, and descending to the stronghold gate, Li Shandao presented his exit token. Huang Junhan inspected it and immediately opened the gate, letting them pass out of the mountains. Knowing this was Li Shandao's first time leading a raid independently, Zhang Yeyi personally escorted him for a stretch, wishing him instant success and a bountiful harvest. Li Shandao was deeply grateful, fished out four or five gold beans, and presented them to him as usual—a minor token, insignificant in value, but serving to express his good intentions.

Once outside the mountains, they crossed the Yellow River and reorganized their ranks. Li Shandao leaped into the saddle, took the lead, and guided the hundred-plus men winding their way southward.

Passing by the county seat of Weinan in the afternoon, Li Shandao ordered his troops to halt temporarily and find a place to rest, dispatching Qin Jingshi, Zhang Fusheng, and a few others carrying valuables back into the city. The valuables carried by Qin Jingshi and the others had all been taken from the distribution of spoils a dozen days prior. Li Shandao had not kept all of those spoils as reward funds; what was due to Qin Jingshi and the others had been duly distributed to them. Having previously found no opportunity to send anyone back to Weinan, he seized this chance to order Qin Jingshi and his companions to sneak back into the city and distribute these valuables to their respective families.

After waiting for about an hour, Qin Jingshi and the others returned one after another.

Li Shandao had also sent some valuables to his own family. Qin Jingshi reported, "Eldest Young Master Li was at home and, hearing that Second Young Master is now outside the city, couldn't sit still and insisted on coming out with us to see Second Young Master. I had to use all sorts of persuasion to talk him out of it." He then pulled out a blade and handed it to Li Shandao, saying, "The Eldest Young Master said that since the Second Young Master is in the stronghold now, licking blood from the blade's edge, you cannot be without a fine weapon for self-defense. This dagger was specially commissioned by him from Wang the Blacksmith, forged from the finest steel, and he ordered me to bring it to the Second Young Master."

Taking the dagger, Li Shandao pulled it halfway from its scabbard and inspected it. It was indeed a fine dagger, and when he tested the edge, it radiated a chilling qi.

Sheathing the dagger again, he hung it from his belt and smiled, saying, "My elder brother usually looks for Wang San just to forge farming tools. Suddenly asking him to forge a dagger must have given Wang San quite a shock." He ordered Wang Xuda and the others, "Rouse the lads and let's resume our march!"

Facing the sun, they pressed onward and camped out in the wilderness as night fell.

Traveling by dawn and resting by night in this manner, two days later they entered the territory of Suanzao County at the northernmost edge of Xingyang Commandery.

Wagang maintained eyes and ears in all the counties of Xingyang and Liang Commanderies. These informants could be divided into two categories: those dispatched by the main stronghold and those sent by the various sub-strongholds. Li Shandao was not qualified to use the informants of the main stronghold, but he was permitted to use those of the Phoenix Sub-stronghold. Before entering the borders of Suanzao County, Li Shandao had already sent Qin Jingshi, Cheng the Lame, and others, in accordance with Xu Shiji's instructions, to enter Suanzao territory ahead of time to locate the sub-stronghold's resident informant.

Waiting for a little over half a day in a small grove, Qin Jingshi and the others led a man toward them from afar.

"Please rise," Li Shandao said, sizing him up. Seeing that he was around twenty-four or five years of age with clear brows and bright eyes, he asked, "What is your honorable surname and full name?"

"This lowly one is Dong Gou'er, the third among my siblings. The commander may simply call me Dong San."

"Are you a resident informant of the stronghold stationed here, or an external operative?"

"Have you read Elder Brother Xu's warrant?"

Dong Gou'er replied, "Replying to the commander, I have."

"How could this lowly one dare accept these! Gathering intelligence is this lowly one's basic duty. Rest assured, Commander, whenever there is news of traveling merchants, I shall certainly report it to you in a timely manner."

Li Shandao signaled Gao Chou'niu to forcefully cram the gold beans into the man's hands, saying, "Should we achieve a harvest, there will be additional rewards for you, worthy brother." He then asked, "Now that we have arrived in Xingyang, let me ask you, my good brother, are there any merchant caravans worth targeting passing through recently?"

"Commander Nie," he referred to Nie Heitan. Nie Heitan had also led men down the mountain this time. Truth be told, he had set out from the mountain a little later than Li Shandao's march, but his troops consisted entirely of Xu Shiji's direct, elite forces, with half of them mounted and the rest riding mules or donkeys. Consequently, his traveling speed was extremely fast, and as a result, he arrived in Xingyang a day earlier than Li Shandao's march, reaching the place yesterday afternoon.

On the road to Xingyang the day before yesterday, Li Shandao had run into Nie Heitan. They too numbered around a hundred men—the size of a single march—yet kicking up dust on horseback, their momentum was vastly different from his own contingent. Catching up from behind, Nie Heitan exchanged a few words with him before spurring his horse onward, leaving them far behind in the dust. At the time, Gao Chou'niu had been filled with envy, muttering repeatedly: When would they all have mounts of their own?

There was certainly no competing with Nie Heitan, and Li Shandao did not feel this was any great pity. He asked, "Are there any other merchant caravans?"

"Merchant caravans in Suanzao territory are originally scarce. The caravan that Commander Nie went to ambush came from the Yongji Canal, which is why it passed through Suanzao. Aside from this caravan, this lowly one has heard of no other large merchant groups passing through this area recently. The southern counties of Yangwu and Yuanyang border the Tongji Canal, and there is much more merchant traffic over there. How about this: this lowly one can send men to Yangwu, Yuanyang, and other counties to scout for the commander?"

Li Shandao said, "That would be marvelous! I am obliged to you, good brother."

Having sent Dong Gou'er away, Li Shandao and his men temporarily camped in the grove.

After waiting for more than a day without news, just as most of the men were growing restless, the few gold beans Li Shandao had given Dong Gou'er finally proved their worth. As dusk approached that day, Dong Gou'er hurried back once more. Upon seeing Li Shandao, his face beamed with joy as he announced, "Congratulations, Commander!"

"Oh? There is news?"

Hearing this, Li Shandao and the others were overjoyed.

"There is only one minor issue..." Dong Gou'er frowned.

Li Shandao asked, "What is it?"

"What are your thoughts and advice on this, good brother?"