The 14th Battalion of Wang Qing's bandit army was stationed outside Luzhou City and belonged to the Third Small Army.
Wang Qing's army followed the Song system, with 100 people forming a capital, 500 people forming a battalion, and the 2,500 people forming a small army.
The highest official of the capital is Du Tou.
The highest officer of the battalion is called the battalion commander, also called the military commander.
The highest officer of a small army is called the commander of the military capital.
The third small army has five battalions, from the 11th to the 15th.
Most of the people in this third small army are veterans, including bandits and refugees. They have fought many battles and are the most ruthless in their raids.
However, these people were fine on the battlefield, but once they were stationed, they were in a mess. No one believed the battalion commander's words, and they could not suppress the soldiers below. As for the capital, they were useless.
The leader of the third small army is called Pan Zhong. He was born in the green forest. He has some martial arts skills and is good at using a mountain-cutting sword. He is a greedy drinker on weekdays. He would rather hide in the camp and drink and have fun than take care of the military below.
He was the only leader in the entire Third Army who had some prestige. The battalion commander and the commander could not share the burden with him, so they simply let him go. As long as he could go to the battlefield, everything else was free.
The five battalions below are all good at making money. They are the weakest among the veterans in fighting, and the strongest among all the thieves in making money. They are very famous under Wang Qing's command.
Zhao Tong led his two thousand men out of the city and went straight to the Third Army. The Third Army was stationed in the north of the city, with five battalions arranged side by side.
Yu Shunshui was leading the way, pointing to one of the camps and saying, "General, that's the 14th Battalion!"
Zhao Tong squinted at the camp, but there was no one standing guard in front of the gate, and he could hear the noise inside from a distance.
Yu Shunshui said: "General, there is no one in front of the door. They are either drinking or gambling inside. If you go in now, you will definitely be caught!"
Zhao Tong glanced at the soldiers behind him. They were all eager to try, and their eyes were a little red.
He smiled and said: "My sons, listen to my general's orders. After entering the camp, arrest all five hundred people. Don't let any of them go!"
The soldiers all said yes, and Zhao Tong nodded and said: "Enter the camp!"
As soon as he finished speaking, the two thousand soldiers behind him rushed over. Whether they were calculating or not, two thousand men were enough to capture five hundred people. Zhao Tong was not worried about any accidents.
The tent in front immediately became chaotic. Zhao Tong looked at Yu Shunshui who was impatient, dismounted and said: "Follow me, general, and go in and take a look!"
Yu Shunshui nodded hurriedly: "Your Majesty, General!"
When they entered the first main stronghold, they saw that it was already a mess inside, with wine jars and gambling utensils thrown on the ground, and the soldiers of the 14th Battalion who were held up with swords and guns were not convinced at all and were all yelling curses.
Zhao Tong frowned, Yu Shunshui observed his words, and immediately stepped forward and gave the person who scolded him the hardest a big slap in the face. The person was beaten until his mouth bled, and then he restrained himself.
Zhao Tong looked around and said, "Where is the battalion commander of the 14th Battalion?"
This tent is a big tent. Logically speaking, the battalion commander needs to sit here every day. But now, let alone the battalion commander, he can't even see his head. The big tent has become a place for the soldiers to have fun drinking and gambling.
No one spoke below. Those soldiers from the 14th Battalion looked at me and I looked at you, all of them were scratching their heads.
Yu Shunshui shouted: "The general was ordered to inspect the internal and external military camps and asked where the command of your camp is. Who dares not to answer?"
These people still didn't speak. It took a long time before the drunkard muttered: "What the hell is a general doing on inspection? How come I didn't see him when I was fighting on the battlefield!"
Zhao Tong heard this and said calmly: "Kill everyone who comes!"
"Ah?" As soon as these words came out, everyone was stunned. Although they knew that Zhao Tong had the right to kill first and then show off, they didn't expect him to be so direct and cruel.
Among the two thousand soldiers led by Zhao Tong, there were four Dutou. One of them followed into the tent. Hearing this, his heart trembled, but he didn't dare to disobey the order. He gritted his teeth and shouted: "Obey the order!"
He stepped forward and chopped off the head of the treacherous soldier with one knife. Seeing this, the other soldiers also stepped forward and killed him indiscriminately.
Seeing that the situation was not good, the soldiers of the 14th Battalion were about to shout "spare my life", but they were not quick with their swords. In just a moment, they were killed in the big tent and the blood flowed like a river.
Zhao Tong looked at his men and said, "Take these heads and go to each tent to arrest people. Anyone who disobeys will be killed!"
The soldiers received the order and left the camp one after another. After about a quarter of an hour, they brought out all the people from the 14th Battalion and gathered them outside the tent.
Almost all of these 14th Battalion soldiers were disheveled and drunk. Some of them were unconvinced even after seeing the heads. They clamored to win back their lost money. They were obviously crazy about gambling.
Zhao Tong glanced slowly and said, "Which one is the battalion commander?"
Yu Shunshui hurriedly stepped forward and grabbed one person, saying: "General, this is the guy. When we found him, he was messing around with a little bitch. The bitch yelled ugly and was chopped into pieces by the villain!"
Zhao Tong looked at the battalion commander and said, "Do you know your crime?"
The battalion commander didn't dare to argue at this moment. He just said: "I know the crime, I know the crime."
Zhao Tong said: "Tie him up!"
Then, he looked at the soldiers: "Do you know your guilt?"
Some of the soldiers lowered their heads and said nothing, while others looked to the side. Although they knew that Zhao Tong really killed people, they always thought that there were hundreds of people standing here, how could they dare to kill them all, but no one answered.
Zhao Tong sneered and said, "Yu Shunshui, where is your neighbor?"
Yu Shunshui pointed at a person in the front team and said, "General, that's the one with the pointed head!"
Zhao Tong said: "Get him out and have him and the commander write down the charges together!"
Yu Shunshui immediately jumped forward and pulled out the pointed-headed bandit. The bandit scolded Yu Shunshui for eating inside and outside.
Yu Shunshui stretched out his hand and slapped him: "I ate from Prince Huai's food for the general's errand. I have never eaten from you, but I remember clearly when you scolded the Privy Councilor."
The pointed-headed thief was stunned when he heard this, and then his scolding voice couldn't help but lower.
Zhao Tong said: "This person's confession should be more detailed. He should reveal all the deeds that the Fourteenth Battalion has done in daily deception. If he has something to hide, I will not kill him here, but just give it to the Privy Councilor directly!"
Upon hearing this, Yu Shunshui immediately said "yes", and then slapped his sharp head again: "Did you hear what the general said? If you write well, you may save your life. If you write poorly, I will send you to the Privy Council for questioning!"
The sharp head's expression immediately changed. He was not afraid of death on the battlefield. The worst he could do was to have a big scar if he closed his eyes. But if he went to the Privy Council, he would be punished. If he could not live or die, how could he be happy?
Yu Shunshui looked at his expression and suddenly whispered: "We are old neighbors. We escaped from our hometown together. How can I really harm you? You should write a good confession and tell the truth about what happened in the military camp. Then I will report it to you." Please tell me a favor in front of the General. You don’t have to go to the Privy Council. I might as well take this opportunity to be promoted to an official position.”
The sharp-headed bandit army didn't know that Yu Shunshui was half-coaxing and half-deceiving at this moment, but he had no other way, so he said: "I can't read, how can I write a confession?"
Yu Shunshui said: "You just dictated it, and when the time comes, the drawing will be done. With so many people watching, how can I hide it from you!"
The pointed-headed thief had no choice but to nod, and was then taken aside to make a confession.
At this time, Zhao Tong glanced at the soldiers behind him and said loudly: "My sons, the Fourteenth Battalion has violated military regulations. There must be evidence hidden in the tent. Let me, the general, search the tent!"
When the soldiers heard this, they immediately became excited and ran towards the tents.
At this moment, a roar suddenly came from the distance of the fence: "Where are you soldiers from? How dare you search my camp!"
(End of chapter)
