nucmednet Chapter 400 The Might of the Border Troops
Chapter 400 The Might of the Border Troops
The starving people, looking at the corpses lying scattered on the ground and then at the heavily armed soldiers, calmed down. As long as the green hills remain, there will always be firewood to burn. Food is important, but preserving life is even more important; dying of hunger in the face of food is the most tragic thing.
The starving people had stopped, but a bloodthirsty Qiongzhou soldier seemed oblivious and still raised his bayonet to stab a retreating starving person. Su Chutui tried to stop him, but it was too late.
At this moment, the man on horseback saw this scene, gripped the back of his sword, and with a "whoosh," hurled his waist sword like a javelin, hitting the soldier's rifle with perfect accuracy.
With a loud clang, the enormous impact sent the rifle flying two meters away, tearing the soldier's hand and leaving his arm numb and trembling.
This hostile attack alerted all the soldiers, who quickly drew their loaded bullets, prepared to load them, and fired at the man. With a clanging sound, the soldiers loaded the bullets, tamped them down with a ramrod, and then simultaneously aimed at the man.
After throwing away his only weapon, the man sat on his horse, watching the Qiongzhou soldiers load bullets with his bare hands, but he showed no fear. He simply gripped the reins tightly and watched quietly in this direction.
The situation suddenly changed, turning from a conflict between starving people and Qiongzhou soldiers into a standoff between the soldiers and the mounted men.
The soldiers awaited Su Hongtu's order to riddle the man who dared to attack the Qiongzhou camp with bullets, but Su Hongtu delayed. Although the soldiers' fingers were already on the triggers, ready to fire at any moment, strict discipline forbade them to fire without orders; they could only continue to wait.
Su Hongtu wasn't angry; instead, he watched the man with great interest. This man's horsemanship was so superb, and his actions—from seizing the horse, driving away the starving people, to stopping the soldiers from indiscriminate killing—were swift and decisive. This was something a farmer toiling in the fields couldn't possibly do; he must be a man with a story.
Seeing that the man did not make any further moves after stopping the soldiers, Su Hongtu concluded that he did not have any real hostility towards them, so he ordered: "Turn your guns and aim them at the starving people in front of you, and maintain order."
The soldiers were somewhat confused, but they obeyed orders without hesitation and immediately pointed their guns at the dark mass of starving people in front of them.
Having endured two years of rebellion, the starving people of Shandong had long been familiar with the firearms of both government troops and rebel forces. They knew these things were called muskets, and that once loaded with lead bullets, they could kill an ox, let alone a person. Seeing the government troops point their muskets at them, the starving people timidly took a few steps back. Their fear of muskets far exceeded their fear of cold weapons such as swords and clubs.
Seeing the starving people yield and the situation brought under control, Su Hongtu breathed a sigh of relief. He didn't want the situation to worsen, whether it was a massacre of the starving people or death at their hands. Although dozens of starving people had died, the lives of his own few dozen and the nearly one thousand starving people on the other side were saved, which was a stroke of luck amidst misfortune.
He raised his voice and shouted, "Fellow villagers, we had no choice but to use our weapons against you just now. As long as you follow our instructions, we will never kill innocent people indiscriminately. The reason we set up soup kitchens in Qingzhou, Laizhou, and Dengzhou is to save you, not to kill you. Now, if you do as I say, you will not only save your lives, but everyone will also be able to drink hot soup."
The carrot and stick approach was very effective. After the starving people were beaten and brought back to their senses, they all showed joy when they heard the soldiers guarantee that everyone would have porridge.
Su Hongtu continued, "Now, the elderly and children, step forward and take a bowl of porridge first. After you've received it, step aside. Then it's the women, and finally the able-bodied men under forty. Take the porridge in this order. Anyone who dares to disrupt the order will be killed without mercy!"
A commotion arose in the crowd. The elderly, women, and children were overjoyed, while the able-bodied were somewhat annoyed. Usually, when there was food, they were the first to enjoy it, with the women going last, and the elderly and children only getting the leftovers. Now, the order had been completely reversed.
One of the able-bodied men asked indignantly, "Sir, since the government is going to provide us with relief, shouldn't we be fed first? The old, weak, women, and children can't lift a finger or do anything. If we're well-fed and watered, we can still do our part for the government. How can we feed them while we starve? Besides, with so many of us, your dozen or so pots are almost empty. If each of us takes a sip, the pots will be empty. If we wait until the old folks are all full and the pots are empty, what will we eat?"
Su Hongtu sneered. In Lingao, even the elderly and children could find a place to use their talents. The arsenal was filled with elderly and frail women who worked on gunpowder and loaded bullets. Children were sent to Baicao Academy to be the seeds of education, and they would all be of great use in the future. Women were one of the main labor forces, and there were thousands of female workers in the textile factory! There was absolutely no reason to keep only the young and strong and abandon the old, weak, women and children.
He glared at the young man who had stepped forward and coldly replied, "Human life knows no distinction of rank or status. We provide relief to the starving people equally. If you're willing to follow orders, step back and make way for the elderly and children. If not, come forward and taste the bitterness of lead. There isn't enough porridge right now, but we can cook more. You have the strength to charge at the soldiers, can't you wait for the next pot of porridge?"
Seeing the dark muzzle of the gun, the young man shrank back, shrinking into the crowd and lowering his head.
At this moment, the man also jumped off his horse and said to the starving people, "What this soldier said makes sense. Everyone should follow the arrangement. The old, weak, women and children should line up first, and the strong should line up at the back. Be patient, it will be your turn eventually."
He was the leader of one of the starving people, and his words carried considerable weight. With the threat of dozens of muskets, the starving people stepped forward first, placing the elderly and children at the front, while the able-bodied men stood obediently at the back.
People have a herd mentality; seeing these people take action, another group of starving people followed suit.
Su Hongtu sent people to bring back the cooks who had fled not far, and had them distribute the porridge. People lined up orderly to receive the porridge, and order was restored at the porridge stall.
After arranging these matters, Su Hongtu walked up to the man and asked, "Brother, what's your name? You seem quite skilled; you don't look like a farmer. How come you're hanging out with these starving people?"
The man admired Su Hongtu's actions and, upon hearing this, clasped his hands in a fist and replied, "Sir, you have a keen eye. My name is Ma Wei, and I am indeed not from a peasant background. My ancestral home is Gansu, and I originally served in the Xuanfu garrison. As for how I mingled with the starving people, that's a long story."