Fu Xinci felt a pang in her heart upon hearing this. Three villages were virtually wiped out, and half of the county town was destroyed.
How many lives were lost?
Thinking of the vibrant lives that had vanished, Fu Xinci wished she could devour them whole.
As for those filthy invaders, they should be kicked into the sea to feed the fish.
Those damned Japanese pirates, she now desperately wished to raze their stronghold to the ground, preferably to the point where it disappeared below the horizon.
Ah, how she longed to have heavy weaponry right now, perhaps cannons capable of sinking the entire island of those dwarfs.
Fu Xinci was troubled for several days, even the base commander from Longcheng disappointed her once.
The base commander had said, "Even if we could find cannons, we couldn't trade them to you."
Fu Xinci was dejected. The base commander was right; the items were too massive for them to transport.
Fu Xinci remained depressed for days.
...
Originally, due to the strategic coastal location, no sentry posts were established, only patrolling soldiers.
Following the recent Japanese pirate raid, Qi Yuanshan decided to set up sentry posts along the coast for safety.
The sentries for these posts would be provided by Qi He's squadron, on a year-round rotation.
Qi Yuanshan informed General Liu of this decision during their monthly report on the thousand-household garrison's work, also requesting additional soldier quotas.
The reason was simple: his thousand-household garrison was already stretched thin, with no spare soldiers to man the sentry posts.
Furthermore, Qi He's squadron was originally an auxiliary unit; only after these two successful engagements against the Japanese pirates did they receive formal establishment.
Upon hearing Qi Yuanshan's request, General Liu, while happy for them, fell into deep thought.
After a long pause, General Liu finally spoke. "The large-scale invasion by the Japanese pirates this time caused varying degrees of damage in many areas of Liaodong. It is worth noting that your thousand-household garrison is the only one that not only remained undamaged but also completely annihilated the enemy."
Mentioning this, Qi Yuanshan puffed up with pride, his posture straightening involuntarily, making his tall frame appear even more imposing.
General Liu, full of admiration, couldn't help but step forward and gently punch Qi Yuanshan's shoulder, saying with praise, "I knew you wouldn't disappoint me. Both of these engagements against the Japanese pirates were fought beautifully by your thousand-household garrison."
After General Liu finished speaking, Qi Yuanshan suddenly jolted awake, a feeling dawning on him that General Liu was setting a trap for him again.
Seeing Qi Yuanshan's guarded expression, General Liu chuckled, "What are you thinking? Am I that untrustworthy?"
Qi Yuanshan: ...
Seeing that Qi Yuanshan did not respond, General Liu decided to initiate the conversation himself.
"It's like this. During the large-scale Japanese pirate invasion, the first squadron that engaged them fought bravely, with only one survivor out of eleven."
Qi Yuanshan had heard of this before; he had remarked at the time that survival in such circumstances was a great fortune.
General Liu continued, unperturbed by Qi Yuanshan's silence, "This survivor was protected by his father and second uncle, who sacrificed themselves with all their might." Even though he had witnessed countless bloody battles, the scene still evoked a sense of tragic heroism in him.
A soldier's mangled corpse lay sprawled over another soldier's body propped against the mountain wall; parts of their flesh and bone had been dismembered.
It was only when the soldiers clearing the battlefield discovered the body leaning against the mountain wall that they found a small hole behind it. Within the hole, a severely wounded and unconscious soldier was curled up.
It took five days for the military doctor to revive the severely wounded soldier.
Upon waking, he revealed his identity: Meng Yuting.
Meng Yuting only remembered fighting the Japanese pirates and losing consciousness after being gravely wounded; he knew nothing of what happened afterward.
When he learned from the soldiers who rescued him about the events that transpired after he lost consciousness, tears welled in his eyes as he declared that the two soldiers who shielded him must have been his father and his second uncle.
The story of the Meng family was common knowledge throughout Beijiang.
During casual conversations, many people used the Meng family's misfortunes as a sarcastic joke.
Some even made a special trip just to catch a glimpse of the once-esteemed Duke of Meng, now in his sorry state.
They say misfortune lingers for a thousand years, yet Meng Qinghong, dragging his frail body, surprisingly endured his illness in Beijiang.
In the blink of an eye, several years passed, and no one expected that the eldest and second sons of the Meng family would die on the battlefield resisting the Japanese pirates in such a tragic manner.
When Meng Qinghong heard that both his sons had died, their bodies gruesomely mangled, and his eldest grandson severely wounded, who would be permanently disabled even if saved, he spat out a mouthful of blood.
Muttering, he said, "Retribution, retribution."
"It is said that Meng Qinghong did not survive that night."
As General Liu uttered his last sentence, he seemed unsure of his own feelings.
Truthfully, as a general, he desired skilled fighters in his army.
Yet, he dreaded the casualties his soldiers suffered.
Qi Yuanshan listened to General Liu's rambling without uttering a word.
The sudden silence made the atmosphere in the room rather oppressive.
Finally, General Liu broke the silence. "Yuanshan, I need to discuss something with you."
"General, please speak."
"That Meng Yuting injured his leg. His status prohibits retirement; he must die in the barracks or on the battlefield."
"Yes, subordinate understands."
"Since you are short of a few soldiers, why not transfer him and a few other soldiers who retired from this campaign to you?"
"Yes. Subordinate obeys."
Qi Yuanshan accepted them without any displeasure.
Habitually, General Liu patted Qi Yuanshan's shoulder again and said, "I know this is difficult for you, but it's the only way. By giving them to you, they still have a chance to live."
"General, subordinate understands."
"Yuanshan, I cannot let the soldiers who followed me feel disheartened, so please bear with me."
Qi Yuanshan was surprised that General Liu had changed his mode of address.
Being naturally reticent, he dared not speak further, fearing that any ill-chosen words might cause further trouble for the general and himself.
General Liu understood his character well; otherwise, he would not have entrusted these ten disabled soldiers to him.
Qi Yuanshan stayed at the General's mansion for three days. Upon his return, he brought back ten soldiers and the ashes of Meng Qinghong and his two sons.
Madam Li, perhaps overcome with grief, stared blankly at the three urns, uttering not a word.
Young Madam Li also seemed dazed, sitting on the ground without crying or making a sound, while Madam Liu, cradling Meng Qiming's ashes, had fainted from crying several times.