Tortured by the dilemma, Jiang Suo became a deserter. Once when the Hong Kong Marine Corps was conducting water navigation training at the Pearl River Estuary, he deliberately fell into the water, then dived far away and climbed ashore.
He took off his Fubo Army uniform, threw away all his belongings, and stole a set of clothes in a nearby fishing village. He never thought about what he was going to do after becoming a deserter, or whether he was going to take revenge. He didn't think about anything. Just like this, it disappeared into the night aimlessly.
Jiang Suo knew very well what would happen to deserters. In particular, he still "escaped from the battle". He begged all the way to Guangzhou - knowing that the Senate was on the verge of seizing Guangdong, he went all the way north, just to stay far away from the Senate.
Jiang Suo originally did not want to defect to the government. It was impossible for a penniless man like him to be received by an official. Even if he was met, he would be suspected of being a spy and might be pushed out and killed. In his hometown, the head of the local village would chop off the heads of passers-by just because they were "acting suspiciously."
Jiang Suo knew a little about the roads in Guangdong. The old team leader took them to Guangdong through Wuling. Now he plans to take the old road and go north over Wuling to escape as far as possible.
However, as soon as he reached Nanxiong, he was caught by a group of officers and soldiers passing by on the official road to carry goods.
The goods were all in wooden boxes, which were very heavy. The porters carried them on their backs and traveled day and night. If Jiang Suo hadn't been eating and drinking in the fishing village in the past few years and was in good shape through fishing military training, he might have died of exhaustion in a few days.
Jiang Suo wanted to find an opportunity to escape. But the officers and soldiers guarded them very strictly. If they were caught escaping, they would be beheaded. He couldn't find a chance.
If one day, a porter hadn't fallen down and smashed the wooden box, scattering the items inside, maybe Jiang Suo would have died of exhaustion on the road.
What fell out of the broken box were several brand new Nanyang-style rifles!
Although Jiang Suo had never been in the National Army, he had seen this kind of rifle more than once. This gun is inferior to the minigun used by the army. Not only does it have a shorter range, but its accuracy is also poor. Only the national army and police use it. But for ordinary bandits and pirates, this gun is already a terrifying weapon.
How could the Ming army have this thing? !
His surprised expression immediately caught the attention of the leader. While camping that night, Jiang Suo was tied to the ground with a rope by two soldiers and escorted in front of the leading officer.
"Do you know this gun?" the officer leading the team asked in a deep voice.
Perhaps because of the torture of many days of hard work, Jiang Suo's desire for survival was not too strong. He nodded and said: "This is a Nanyang rifle."
Hearing the words "Southern Rifle", the officer's brows jumped and he said: "Who are you?!"
Jiang Suo made no secret and immediately revealed that he was an Australian deserter.
"So, you are a soldier of the Kun thief."
"yes."
"Well..." The officer stared at him, let out a long breath, and said, "Can you use this gun?"
"What's so difficult about this?" Jiang Suo said, "To the Australians, this gun is just a second-class firearm used by the National Army."
"In that case, you can load it and let me see." After saying that, he asked the servants to untie him.
The guards around him immediately untied Jiang's rope. Jiang Suo had no regard for life and death at this moment. After three clicks, he loaded the ammunition, put the gun to his shoulder, took a brief aim, and pulled the trigger.
This shot knocked out the incense head twenty feet away.
The officer's eyes suddenly glowed, and he whispered: "Okay!"
From that night onwards Jiang Suo was no longer a coolie.
"My surname is Yi, my name is Haoran, and I serve as Zan Hua in the office of Governor Xiong." The officer's attitude was very kind, without the master's pretentious power at all, "You know the details of Kun Jun, and If you are willing to serve the imperial court, your future will be immeasurable. The situation in Guangdong is now extremely critical. This time I return to Guangdong to bring back these firearms."
Jiang Suo didn't know how the Nanyang rifles got into Master Yi's hands, but he knew it must be a secret, so he said nothing
"...Although the gun is good and easy to use, it's a pity that no one can use it as well as you. Kun Thief deserves to be known as a good soldier, but it's a pity!"
When he said it was a pity, he looked at the night sky in the northeast direction, his eyes full of sadness.
"If the Australians are willing to serve me, the Ming Dynasty, why worry about the Donglu being destroyed and the rogues being unjust! Unfortunately, it's too late now!"
Yi Haoran took him back to Zhaoqing. Along the way, Jiang Suo learned that the staff master was originally from Liaodong and had a reputation as a scholar. However, he is more interested in the art of war than the Four Books and Five Classics. He has read over and over thousands of military books from past dynasties such as "The Art of War" and "The General Essentials of the Military Classics" by Sun Tzu, so much so that he can recite them by heart even with his eyes closed. He failed in many trials and his family was tired. Yi Haoran had to support his family and taught in a military general's home in Guangning. Although they don't make much money, the family lives a stable and happy life.
When he was forty years old, the imperial army was defeated by Nurhachi in Sarhu. All the cities in Liaodong fell one after another, his boss died in battle, and Guangning withdrew from the town. He took his family to flee to the pass, and his wife and children were separated along the way. He finally settled in the capital, leaving him alone.
Finally, he still had a few teachers, friends and relatives in the capital. After asking for help, Yi Haoran found a job with Yuan Chonghuan, who was about to leave the country, relying on his advantage of being from Liaodong and "knowing soldiers". Under the guidance of Yuan Chonghuan, he had a life experience of ups and downs, witnessed the short-lived victory of Liaodong, and also saw the battle between Yuan Chonghuan and Mao Wenlong. After Yuan Chonghuan was arrested and imprisoned, Yi Haoran, who had nowhere to go, relied on this qualification to defect to the resurgent Sun Chengzong, and followed him to regain the four cities in the pass. Then he saw him being ostracized and retired due to illness. Yi Haoran, who was over fifty years old, received a letter of "eight lines" from Sun Chengzong and defected to Xiong Wencan, the governor of Guangdong and Guangxi.
Xiong Wencan had many staff members who were recommended based on their reputation. Naturally, they would not think highly of him as a talented scholar. They only supported him with some money and food every month and allocated a room for him to live in. I don't ask him to do anything on weekdays. Yi Haoran also enjoyed his leisure time and played around. He was already there, but he discovered that Guangdong was not a paradise without war. A few years ago, Wang Zunde mobilized the entire province to attack the Australians, but was defeated in Chengmai. The bandits invaded the Pearl River estuary and the city of Guangzhou almost fell.
This battle also caused an uproar in the court at that time. Tens of thousands of officers and soldiers were killed and many generals were lost. However, I later heard that the "Kun Bandits" were defeated under the walls of Guangzhou and fled by boat on the sea. Just spreading chaos along the coast of Qiongzhou is no longer enough to cause trouble.
However, he soon discovered that this was not the case. Not only did the Australians not retreat, they actually controlled the entire Qiongzhou Prefecture and even had their camp outside Guangzhou. It's just that they don't rob or kill, and everyone can find peace, so that the past can be covered up. The Guangdong officialdom is completely "fearful of Kun thieves" towards the Kun thieves. They ignore everything about the Kun thieves and just treat them as if they don't exist.
Yi Haoran knew that Kun's thieves were "already established" and would become a big problem in the future. He visited people who had witnessed the Battle of Chengmai and several battles with the Australians at the Pearl River Estuary. He soon realized that the Kun bandits were a more dangerous opponent than Jianlu.
After many failures, he has seen all the hypocrisy of official circles, but he always has a feeling of loyalty to the king and the country; in addition, he has seen too many wars, and if he wants to protect the people from the harm of life, he must be able to win the war.
"To have peace in the world, we can only end wars with war." Yi Haoran said on the boat to Zhaoqing, "Thieves are also human beings, and soldiers are also poor common people. They rely on nothing more than strong ships, strong artillery, and well-organized troops. As long as the imperial court can make up its mind to refine its weapons and train a new army, it will not worry about the undefeated bandits."
Yi Haoran didn't have the airs of a master, nor the pretense of being condescending when a superior asked for advice. When he talked to Jiang Suo about himself, the general trend of the world, and his views on the "Kun thieves", All calm. And when Jiang Suo talked about the Australians and Fu Bo's army, he was very clear about it.
Two people with very different ages and status got to know each other during the conversation along the way. When he arrived in Zhaoqing, Jiang Suo already knew that these weapons were indeed obtained from the Kun thieves. Xiong Wencan spent a lot of money to buy a batch of Nanyang rifles and ammunition from Fujian and Shandong. Prepare to equip your own servants. Because of the long distance, Yi Haoran, an "idler", got this job.
Back in Zhaoqing, Yi Haoran paid his errand and quietly reported the matter to Xiong Wencan. It attracted great interest from Xiong Wencan. He secretly summoned Jiang Suo and praised him for "forsaking darkness and turning to the light". After some questions and answers, although I had some criticisms about Jiang Suo's "disobedience and rudeness" and thought that he had "been in the habit of being a traitor for a long time," he was familiar with "Kun Qing" and was good at "Kun Qi". , still praised him very much, rewarded him fifty taels of silver, and awarded him the military position of sentry officer in the Chinese army, specifically responsible for the training of servants.
Yi Haoran's status in Xiong Wencanmu has been greatly improved because of his ability in doing things, especially taking in a "talent" like Jiang Suo. After several conversations, Xiong Wencan discovered that Yi Haoran not only knew the military, but also had a unique analysis and view of Kun Qing, and he gradually began to rely on him. This time, it aroused the strife of Chang Qingyun, the "number one person in charge". In order to balance the relationship between the two parties and strengthen his own combat power, Xiong Wencan sent Yi Haoran to Guangxi to train the new army. Jiang Suo followed him and was promoted to Qianxong in Guangxi.
Although this new army of only 500 people was not all armed with Nanyang rifles, Xiong Wencan spent a lot of money to arm and train it. At this time, Jiang Suo was leading this group of troops to guard Bangshan on the other side of the Guijiang River in the west of Wuzhou City. Since it is unjust to assassinate an appreciative leader from behind, and it is also unjust not to avenge Qingxia, then he should just do it in an upright manner. Let's make grudges on the battlefield!
