Everyone was deeply moved when they saw this scene, especially several businessmen who came to Jinling from afar to do business. They were already in tears when they thought about leaving their parents' hometown and coming to a place thousands of miles away to pursue some petty profits, and how long they hadn't seen their parents.
A chilly autumn wind blew, bringing with it the bloody smell that permeated the battlefield, enveloping everyone and creating a solemn and cold atmosphere.
Just when everyone present was silent and sighing under the heavy atmosphere, Zhao Chengxiao came hurriedly, bowed to Lin Shuhan, and then said to Qiu Yizi, "Sir, you are here. The Japanese pirates attacked our army just now, but we have defeated them..."
Qiu Yizhi took this opportunity to calm down his excitement and said, "I saw what happened just now from the top of the city wall. Brother Zhao, you fought well! You killed the Japanese pirates and made them flee in panic, which is a great achievement."
Zhao Chengxiao shook his head and said, "Although the Japanese pirates are fierce, it's a pity that they fought too foolishly. If I had more soldiers, I would have been able to annihilate them all, and I wouldn't have had to wait for more than half of them to escape and cause trouble later."
Qiu Yizi smiled and said, "Brother Zhao, you are being too hard on yourself. Some things in this world can be done, and some can't be done. I think if Brother Zhao leads these new recruits to victory in their first battle, it will be enough for them to benefit from it for the rest of their lives. Oh, I was just about to ask Brother Zhao, how many casualties have been suffered among our family members after this fierce battle?"
Zhao Chengxiao replied, "I was just counting the number of people. I didn't come to disturb you because you were talking to Meng Hong and the others." As he spoke, Zhao Chengxiao stretched his head to count Meng Hong and the people around him, and then checked their injuries, and said, "Your Excellency, I have just counted them. Among the 18 personal soldiers and 200 militiamen I brought, there are 122 people with minor injuries like Meng Hong, and about 18 or 19 people who are seriously injured and need to recuperate for more than a month. There are no deaths in the battle."
Zhao Chengxiao was halfway through his words when Qiu Yizi was already overjoyed - with the fighting strength of the Japanese pirates, it was already very rare for them to escape unscathed after a hard battle. Now, these 200 new soldiers recruited from Shanyin County, without the command of a commander, were able to survive without any casualties. This was truly a result that could not be better.
Zhao Chengxiao continued, "Four or five of the war horses were injured by Japanese swords, but fortunately none of them were seriously injured and can be used in battle at any time. However, the rattan shields were broken by the Japanese pirates in more than a dozen places, and more than 20 Japanese swords were broken. They need to be replenished immediately, otherwise the brothers will have to fight the Japanese with bare hands..."
Qiu Yizhi immediately smiled and said, "These are all trivial matters, Brother Zhao, don't worry."
After saying that, he turned to Liu Qing and said, "Liu Jiedu, can you please take out a few rattan shields from your arsenal?"
This was not a big deal, so Liu Qing of course agreed to it.
Qiu Yizhi added, "Also, Liu Jiedu, you have seen that our army is equipped with Japanese swords, and now some are damaged and there is no place to replace them. However, I see that there are many swords and knives left by the Japanese pirates on the battlefield. How about letting me handle the cleaning of the battlefield?"
Liu Qing was startled when he heard this and thought: Japanese swords are long and sharp, and are famous all over the world. It costs a huge amount of gold and silver to buy them. The best quality Japanese swords are hard to come by. Even the current emperor often uses them to reward meritorious generals.
He also thought: There are so many swords left on the battlefield. Since Qiu Yizi, the emperor's adopted son, wants them and uses the legitimate reason of replenishing military supplies, I certainly cannot refuse. However, if I could ask him for a few, it would be the best, whether for my own use, as a reward, or to make friends with my colleagues.
Liu Qing then said with a calm face: "Today's victory was achieved by your soldiers. It is only natural that you should deal with the spoils and achievements. Can you please pick out a dozen or twenty ugly Japanese swords so that I can reward my brothers?"
This is a trivial matter. Qiu Yizi nodded and agreed, and then said: "I am too busy cleaning up the battlefield, and I don't have the energy to take care of other things. Today's battle is a big one, and I must report it to the emperor and General Cui immediately. I will leave this matter to you."
Liu Qing was secretly delighted after hearing this: being the chief writer of a battle report may seem like a trivial matter, but the important issue of how to distribute the credit lies in it - take Liu Qing for example, he did not participate in the battle under Nanjing City at all, but with his brilliant writing skills, he could naturally attribute the credit for commanding the battle and ensuring logistics to himself.
Liu Qing thought again: "Although Qiu Yizhi is young, he is highly valued by the emperor. He is always with him whether he goes north to attack the Turks or goes south to suppress rebellions. Therefore, Qiu Yizhi is very familiar with military affairs. In addition, he is very smart. How could he not know the tricks in writing battle reports? Did he deliberately give this credit to himself?"
Liu Qing's idea was indeed good. Before he could agree, Qiu Yizhi said, "But it's the same thing. Now the Japanese pirates have been killed temporarily by us. Now our soldiers are tired and our friendly troops have suffered heavy casualties. With these three reasons, I hope that Liu Jiedu can show mercy and let these people enter the city for recuperation and treatment."
This sentence put Liu Qing in a dilemma: if he refused, after all, Qiu Yizi's identity was there, and the three reasons he put forward were difficult to refute, not to mention that he had given himself the real benefit of declaring his military merits; but if he agreed, after all, the governor Qian Feng and the wealthy businessmen who financed him had not yet agreed, and it would not be a good idea for him to act on his own.
Liu Qing had no choice but to run to the merchants again and discuss with them: "Everyone, the Japanese pirates outside the city have been defeated by the reinforcements. It is unreasonable to stop them outside the city. Besides, they are now injured and sick. Even if they want to rob the people, they are powerless. Can you please agree to let them enter the city to rest for my sake?"
After witnessing this bloody battle, most of the merchants had already softened their hearts. After the Jiedushi General's persuasion, how could they not give in
So the leader He Jiu said, "Okay, okay. In my opinion, our business has been slow these days because of the harassment by the Japanese pirates. Many warehouses are empty and it would be great to use them to house the injured. I'm just afraid that the governor will not agree."
Liu Qing was delighted when he heard this, and he patted his chest and said, "I will go and talk to the governor. As long as you agree, it will be fine."
Therefore, Qiu Yizhi took the lead and selected about 100 lightly wounded soldiers from his 200 local warriors, and patrolled outside Jinling City with 18 personal soldiers to prevent the Japanese pirates from taking the opportunity to counterattack. He also asked several leaders of the reinforcements to select strong and healthy soldiers, and selected about 300 soldiers, and handed them over to Zhao Chengxiao to command the specific matters of cleaning up the battlefield.
As for Qiu Yizhi, he considered that the matter of resting in the city involved multiple relationships with the Jiangnan Governor's Office, the Jiedushi Office, the merchants, and the injured reinforcements, and could not be resolved without his mediation. Therefore, he personally led the injured soldiers of his army to settle in Jinling City.
Most of the people in Jinling did not see the battle between the reinforcements and the Japanese pirates. They only thought that the reinforcements of more than 10,000 were killed and wounded by less than 1,000 Japanese pirates before the Japanese pirates were driven away. Judging from the results of the battle, it was a great defeat. Therefore, when the people saw the thousands of wounded and bloodstained soldiers entering the city, they thought they were defeated soldiers retreating into the city. Instead of welcoming them, they sneered at them.
The soldiers who retreated into Jinling finally managed to escape from the murderous city. How could they care about the strange looks from the people in the city? They lowered their heads and supported each other, just following the front and heading deep into Jinling City. They had just experienced a fatal disaster, and now seeing the scene of Jinling City with flowers blooming and fire boiling, they felt as if they were in another world.
The vacant warehouse that He Jiugong mentioned is right next to the canal.
These warehouses were built very spaciously, enough for the injured and sick who retreated into the city to live and recuperate. All the baggage that these people and horses brought with them when they came was lost, not to mention clothes and bedding, not even a pot for cooking and boiling water was left.
Clothing and bedding were easy to deal with - now was the end of midsummer and the beginning of autumn, the weather was neither too hot nor too cold, and it was comfortable to lie down on the floor in the warehouse; however, eating was a big problem.
So Qiu Yizhi found He Jiugong and said, "Didn't Jiugong just say that the Jinling business community has raised some silver to reward the troops? I see that these soldiers have just been defeated. If we reward them, it will be unclear whether we should reward or punish them. Why don't you work harder and use the silver to buy meals every day. It doesn't need to be too sumptuous, just make sure they are well fed and well-drinked. How do you think?"
Before He Jiugong agreed, the two merchants who were accompanying him immediately agreed, "Your Excellency's idea is very thoughtful. Let us do it!"
He Jiugong turned his head to look at them, then turned back to Qiu Yizi and said with a smile: "Sir, these two opened a restaurant in Jinling City. We used the money we raised to provide them with food. This is a big business, and they might be able to make a lot of money!"
The two merchants heard this and waved their hands in panic, saying, "Jiu Gong, you are joking. Why do we want to make this money when there are so many other things to earn? If we tell others, will we still be able to do business in Jinling?"
Qiu Yizi said, "I'm sorry to trouble you. It's reasonable to make some money here, but the food must be sufficient. I have just told He Jiugong that we don't ask for good quality, but we just want to be full. You are now supplying military supplies. If you cut corners and use inferior materials, I will use military law to punish you!"
These words made the two businessmen shudder and they immediately agreed obediently.
Qiu Yizhi nodded with satisfaction, and looked around again. Seeing that it was getting late and the stars in the sky were already dim, he said to He Jiugong: "Jiugong, thank you so much today. It's getting late now and we are all tired. Why don't we go back and rest first, and I will come to thank you another day?"
He Jiugong listened to Qiu Yizhi's polite words, took a few puffs of cigarette happily, and said with a smile: "Young Master, you are too kind. The Zhou family is an imperial merchant, and we share weal and woe with the Han Dynasty. Of course, we should do more for the court."
He lowered his voice again, pulled Qiu Yizhi a few steps closer, and whispered in his ear: "Sir, although my eyesight is dim, my heart is clear. All the other reinforcements outside the city have suffered defeat, but the group of people under your command have won a solid victory. The treatment for the troops is naturally different. How can they stay in this warehouse? Sir, I have specially arranged a residence for them, right by the Qinhuai River, and the expenses will be raised by a few of us, so that the brothers can have fun..."
Qiu Yizi looked at He Jiugong's cunning expression and couldn't help laughing: "Hahaha! Jiugong is thoughtful. But I have recruited and trained these militiamen with great difficulty. They have just won a victory, are they going to be lost in the glamorous world of Nanjing?" (To be continued)