Chapter 54: Until the end of February

Chapter 54: Toward the End of February

"Quiet!" Yang Zheng let out a roar, startling everyone into silence.

"I imagine there has long been resentment between your two villages," Meng Changqing said. "And because of the rules here, your conflicts have been exacerbated. Now, I do not care what old or new grudges you hold, nor do I care which county or village you come from. I only ask you one thing: are you citizens of Great Liang?"

"Yes," came a few scattered responses from within the crowd.

Yang Zheng roared again, "Louder!"

"Yes!"

"Since you are citizens of Great Liang, will you still be alive the day the Yan army's iron hooves crash through these walls? Now that there is no major battle at the border, you think life is stable and that you can just live like this forever, with nothing to worry about but your daily chores. Go back and ask your elderly parents: once the Yan army breaks in, what becomes of the common people? Entire villages are slaughtered, rivers run red with blood; they commit every atrocity imaginable—burning, killing, and looting. What are we, the people of Great Liang, in the eyes of the Yan army? We are nothing more than running livestock, playthings to be slaughtered for their amusement."

Meng Changqing raised his voice: "Did the Imperial Court build this wall for fun? Did they do it to torment you, forcing you to build walls in the dead of winter? Is that possible? Does the Court not know how to balance its books? With over thirty thousand people, the grain consumed by your labor alone is measured in tens of thousands of piculs. Ultimately, the goal is to ensure you are well-fed so that you are willing to put in the effort to build this wall. Once this wall is complete, the soldiers will be able to stop the fiercest Yan cavalry right here. Only then will Liangzhou have an extra layer of protection, and only then will you have an extra measure of safety. You think that digging, moving, and tamping this earth every day is merely for three meals of millet and the piling of a dirt wall. But what are you truly doing? You are contributing to the defense of Great Liang. You are building a peaceful life for your families and your descendants."

"Now, I am asking you to set aside the past and focus solely on building this wall. Are you willing?"

"We are willing!" someone led the cry, and the hundred or so people below immediately raised their hands and shouted, "Willing! Willing!"

"Get to work!"

At Meng Changqing's command, the commoners grabbed their tools from the corners of the wall and worked with renewed fervor.

The six new guards approached Meng Changqing to greet him.

Meng Changqing immediately assigned them tasks. "Go inside and find those who are seriously injured. The medicinal ointments and cotton cloth have been brought in. Have them apply the medicine before they return to work."

"Yes, sir."

Once the matter was settled, Meng Changqing turned around.

Yang Zheng followed at his side. "You are merciful, My Lord."

"I am not merciful. Merciful people cannot be officials." Meng Changqing mounted his horse. "Brother Yang, observe for a while longer. If things truly settle down, you should go back and rest as well."

Back at the yamen, Bafang immediately went to the corners to add charcoal and checked the warming pans inside the bedding. "Young Master, they are still hot; there's no need to change the water. Give me your padded jacket, and I'll dry it by the fire."

Meng Changqing took off his jacket but did not lie down on the bed. Instead, he picked up a book and began reading by the candlelight.

Bafang leaned in to look and realized it was one of the Four Books and Five Classics. "Young Master, you're still not sleeping? Reading these in the middle of the night?"

"I took a walk and couldn't sleep; I'm trying to induce some drowsiness." As he spoke, he began to recite, swaying his head slightly.

"Hey, Young Master, since you can't sleep, why don't we chat? Back at the wall, why did you say you weren't merciful?" Bafang guessed, "Is it because an official must make his subordinates fear him?"

"Not necessarily," Meng Changqing said. "I was simply telling the truth."

"But you didn't even punish the rioting commoners; you even reasoned with them."

"What did I tell you before?" Meng Changqing asked Bafang.

"What?"

"Did I not tell you that one should not bypass their immediate superiors when handling matters?" Meng Changqing explained. "My subordinates are the guards. I have already punished the guards. The new guards will inevitably be more cautious than the previous ones, and they will only become stricter, not looser, in managing the commoners moving forward. And it won't just be these two groups; once word spreads, every group will watch more closely than before. If I had punished the commoners directly, it would have been an unrefined way to handle the situation."

Bafang gave him a thumbs up. "It has to be you, Young Master. Your wits are more than I could learn in a lifetime."

"Did Laicai tell you?"

"Tell me what?"

"Don't give cheap flattery." Meng Changqing handed the book to him and lay down on the bed. "Read. Leave when I fall asleep."

Following that night's disturbance, the guards indeed became much stricter. Whether it was going to the latrine or drinking water, everything had to be reported in advance. The efficiency of the commoners' work also increased, and in the blink of an eye, it was the end of February.

By this time, the temperature had risen, and the snow on the ground had mostly melted. At times during midday, the temperature could clearly be felt to be above freezing.

As Meng Changqing watched the weather grow warmer, his brow furrowed more frequently.

At this point, only thirty-five *li* of the wall had been built, leaving nearly five *li* of distance to the walls of Hongjia County.

The soldiers on the wall were patrolling more frequently. The troops coming from Weishan Pass had increased their patrols from once a day to three times a day. The patrols on the Hongjia County walls were also focusing more heavily on the side facing Beishan County.

Everyone knew in their hearts that although there were still eighteen days left of the two-month period Meng Changqing had set, the Yan army would certainly not wait eighteen days.

Hua Rujin of Hongjia County was so anxious that he ran to his county's garrison every few days, watching the troops drill daily and sending people from the prefectural yamen to repair the official roads. He was waiting; once the Yan army arrived, his local garrison could provide immediate support to Beishan County.

Mao Chunfang had even written an official document to Wei Fangyun, stating his willingness to move his county's garrison to the walls of Beishan County.

Wei Fangyun felt this was unfeasible. Yangmen County itself did not have many troops; in previous years, if the Yan army engaged in siege warfare, it was usually the garrisons from Weishan and Hongjia counties that came to assist. The current gap in Beishan County's walls was too large; if the Yangmen garrison moved there, they would only be walking into a death trap. It would serve no purpose and would result in a loss of troops familiar with the local terrain, which was simply not worth it.

Currently, there was no good way to help Beishan County; they could only hope the walls would be completed before the Yan army arrived.

During this period, Wei Fangyun had to visit Beishan County almost every two days. Looking at that gap in the wall, he was equally anxious.

"If you had arrived a month earlier," Wei Fangyun said to Meng Changqing, "we wouldn't be facing this predicament."

Meng Changqing didn't say it aloud, but he thought to himself that if he had arrived a month earlier, he wouldn't have known the Crown Prince would pull such a stunt, nor would he have expected to end up in such a desolate wilderness.

"Uncle, can't we find a way to keep the Yan army occupied so they can't focus on us?" Meng Changqing asked.

"If there were a way, we would have used it long ago." Wei Fangyun felt a headache coming on. "Your intuition was correct; Weishan Pass truly cannot spare much manpower. If the Yan army attacks, we can only rely on the defenders of Hongjia County."