Chapter 38 The Grand Army Lacks Provisions

That same night, Huang An and Battalion Commander Zheng received an urgent order from Regional Commander Li Kaiyang to step up the suppression of the bandits.

The personal guards sent by Li Kaiyang remained in the main camp to oversee the military operations. As soon as dawn broke, Huang An and Battalion Commander Zheng gave the order to break camp and hit the road, accelerating the pursuit of the fleeing rebels.

Along the way, the soldiers suffered terribly. Some fell behind on the road, while others suffered from heatstroke and were unable to keep up with the main force. Huang An left behind a Captain to take care of the wounded and round up the stragglers, while the main army continued their march under the scorching sun.

After a grueling forced march, they finally arrived at a location some ten miles outside the county seat of Yangyuan County just before nightfall.

The government soldiers were utterly exhausted, leaving Huang An with no choice but to order a camp set up on the spot, while dispatching scouts in all directions to search for any traces of the rebels.

The troops discovered debris discarded by the rebel forces, confirming to Huang An and the others that the rebels had fled toward the Yangyuan County seat. However, once they reached the vicinity of the city, all traces of the rebels vanished completely.

Huang An sent his personal guards to inquire about the rebels in nearby villages, but they failed to obtain any information whatsoever; the villagers in the surrounding hamlets were entirely unaware of any rebels.

Deeply unsettled by this outcome, Huang An hastily summoned Battalion Commander Zheng and the two personal guards sent by the Regional Commander to consult on the matter.

None of them could guess where the rebels had fled or how they had seemingly vanished into thin air, leaving them with no choice but to pin their hopes on the returning scouts.

Having marched all day, the soldiers and their horses were utterly weary and worn out, and the camp was littered with men sprawled across the ground to rest.

"Captain Xu, the army carried only a single day's rations, which were completely exhausted this morning. I must trouble you to make a trip to Yangyuan County and have the magistrate dispatch some provisions to the main camp." Lacking a supply train to replenish their provisions, Huang An could only pin his hopes on the handwritten letter carried by Captain Xu to secure grain from Yangyuan County.

"Rest assured, Your Honor, I shall lead men to the county seat right away." Clutching the letter within his tunic, Captain Xu departed the camp and headed straight for the Yangyuan County seat.

Huang An turned to Battalion Commander Zheng and said, "I must trouble you to inform the captains below that provisions will arrive shortly, and ask them to pacify the men under their command."

Battalion Commander Zheng nodded and left the tent to summon the captains in the camp.

Only Li Kaiyang's personal guard and Huang An remained in the tent. Huang An spoke up, "Things have reached this point, so I shall speak plainly."

The personal guard replied, "Please speak, Your Honor."

Huang An pursed his lips and said, "I suspect that band of rebels never came to Yangyuan County at all. The discarded items we found earlier were likely left behind intentionally by the rebels precisely to lead our army in the wrong direction."

The personal guard furrowed his brows and asked, "Your Honor means to say that we have lost their trail."

As a personal guard who had served by the Regional Commander's side for many years, he naturally understood what his superior was thinking; otherwise, he would not have been dispatched to oversee Huang An and Battalion Commander Zheng's camp.

According to his estimation, the escaped rebel leader was very likely to have joined forces with the bandits within Yangyuan County. Even if they had not merged, given the size of this rebel faction, important rebel chieftains were bound to be among them. Even if the main leader had escaped, capturing one of these key chieftains would still constitute a major military achievement.

"Yes," Huang An nodded.

Hearing such a definitive reply from Huang An, the personal guard had no idea what to do.

With the main rebel leader escaped and the other faction mysteriously missing, he had no idea how to account for this to the Regional Commander upon their return.

"Haven't the scouts returned yet? Perhaps they will bring back news of those rebels." The personal guard could only pin his hopes on the dispatched scouts.

Huang An shook his head slightly and said, "We had better make preparations early. Should the scouts return empty-handed, the army cannot linger indefinitely within the borders of Yangyuan County, as this is, after all, the territory of Xuanfu."

"Let us wait for the scouts' report first." Having run out of ideas and well aware that the army could not remain long in Yangyuan County, the personal guard could only hope that the scouts would find the trail of the vanished rebels.

Over an hour passed. As the sky grew progressively darker, the sounds of commotion from the camp gradually drifted into the large tent.

"Go and see what is happening in the camp, and why the noise is so loud." Seated behind his desk, Huang An instructed his personal guard.

The guard acknowledged the order and left the tent.

Before long, the guard returned and reported, "Your Honor, soldiers in the camp are making a clamor and demanding food, causing a disturbance for Your Honor."

Huang An frowned and asked, "Did I not have Battalion Commander Zheng and the captains go to pacify them? Why are soldiers still rioting in the camp?"

The personal guard replied, "The men have marched all day without a single bite to eat, and their stomachs have long been empty. Relying solely on verbal appeasement cannot keep them calm for long."

Huang An stood up from behind his desk, stepped forward, and asked, "Has Captain Xu not returned yet?"

"He has not," the guard shook his head.

Huang An paced back and forth inside the tent several times before abruptly stopping. "Go and tell Battalion Commander Zheng to inform the soldiers that provisions are currently on their way from the county seat to the camp. Then head toward the county seat to meet Captain Xu and see how far along he is."

"Understood." Acknowledging the command, the personal guard was about to leave when he saw Battalion Commander Zheng and Captain Xu walking in from outside the tent.

Seeing this, the guard remained inside.

"Captain Xu, have you brought the grain back?" Huang An anxiously inquired upon seeing him.

Captain Xu wore a sullen expression as he replied, "Upon receiving the letter, the magistrate of Yangyuan County not only failed to prepare any provisions, but he even had his bailiffs throw this subordinate out of the county yamen."

"You mean to say that not only did you fail to bring back grain, but you didn't even get to see the magistrate of Yangyuan County?" Huang An's face sank.

With no provisions at this juncture, those starving soldiers were bound to riot.

Battalion Commander Zheng wore an expression of rage as he said, "I told them long ago that we shouldn't have sent the supply train back. Now look—once the soldiers below start rioting, we'll just be waiting for a camp mutiny!"

Captain Xu lowered his head in silence.

Huang An interjected, "Now is not the time to assign blame. We must consider how to procure provisions and pacify the men."

Suppressing his anger, Battalion Commander Zheng said, "I do have an idea, except..."

"Report!"

Before Battalion Commander Zheng could finish, the scout sent to gather intelligence on the rebels rushed into the tent.

The personal guard dispatched by Li Kaiyang hastily asked, "Any news of the rebels?"

The scout replied, "There are no traces of rebels within a radius of more than ten miles. Villagers in many of the settlements are completely unaware of any rebels ever visiting Yangyuan County."

"This is truly pouring oil on fire." Huang An grabbed handfuls of his hair in frustration, then suddenly looked at Battalion Commander Zheng and asked, "Commander Zheng, what were you going to say just now?"

Battalion Commander Zheng answered, "I have a plan that can not only resolve the food shortage, but also settle the matter of the rebels all at once."

"You intend to slaughter the innocent and claim false military merit!" Huang An blurted out.

Battalion Commander Zheng nodded and said, "At present, this is the only way to solve the army's provisions problem and deal with the rebels in one fell swoop."

Huang An lowered his head in silent contemplation.

Neither Captain Xu nor the monitoring personal guard sent by Li Kaiyang uttered a word.