Chapter Fifty-Nine: Tempted by Gain

“Brother Lu, what do you say?... This concerns everyone’s lives, you must be cautious.” Song Bangde saw that Jiang Tong and the others insisted on rescuing the captives, knowing that Lu Qing was close to them, so he wanted him to step in and suppress these Night Raiders, lest trouble arise. He was self-aware; though he was the highest-ranking officer among these defeated soldiers, few truly regarded him as their chief. If he played the role of commander and forced the Night Raiders not to save anyone, it would only backfire. After all, these men were not under his direct command, and they were all daring desperados, skilled and fearless. Without a clear chain of command, they wouldn’t heed him. Lu Qing, being close to them, would be far more persuasive.

Song Bangde tossed the issue to Lu Qing, who was deeply troubled. He wanted to save people, but how to settle them afterward was a deadly question. As Song Bangde feared, the trouble after rescue would likely be greater than not rescuing at all.

It was a thorny matter. If they chose to save people, most would object; if not, Jiang Tong’s group would be dissatisfied. It was truly a situation where neither choice pleased anyone.

Lu Qing hesitated, unable to decide. He glanced several times at Eunuch Guo, who offered no opinion. Clearly, he wanted no blame, for watching hundreds of women fall into the hands of barbarians without intervention was hardly honorable.

Lu Qing sighed inwardly. Reason forced him to make a decision that favored the survival of the majority, even if it was cruel. At this moment, there was no other option. If they lingered any longer, they wouldn’t make it past Jin Family Fortress tonight, and who could predict what would happen at dawn? The place was only seven or eight miles from the fortress, easily discovered by the enemy’s scouts.

Just as he was about to voice his difficult decision to bypass the fortress and not rescue the women, a cold voice sounded from behind: “For those saying not to save them, let me ask you: if your own family were among those women, would you rescue them or not?”

As he spoke, Zhou Yunyi walked into the crowd. “Chief Song, if your daughter were in the hands of the barbarians, would you rescue her or not?”

“Flag-bearer Lin, if your wife were among those women, would you rescue her or not?”

“Brother Lu, I don’t know if you are married or have sisters, but I do have a sister. If she fell into their hands, I would brave fire and blade to save her, even at the cost of my life—because she’s my sister, my family!”

“When you talk about not rescuing, have you considered that if your relatives were captured, others might also stand by and do nothing?”

“No matter how it’s discussed, we must save them—not for anything else, but because we are men, and soldiers of Ming’s Xuanfu!”

Zhou Yunyi’s words shamed the crowd, Lu Qing’s face reddened; he couldn’t utter the words to abandon the women.

Putting himself in their place, how could anyone truly be unwilling to rescue? But they had escaped with great difficulty, hoping to slip past Jin Family Fortress under cover of darkness. If the rescue delayed their southward flight, it would be a small matter; losing their lives here would be a terrible loss. Zhou Yunyi’s noble speech rang true, but after all, their own families weren’t among those women. To risk their lives for strangers was something anyone would carefully weigh.

People are selfish. In these times, lofty words rarely move anyone to risk their life; at most, they provoke a blush of shame.

Zhou Yunyi saw most still unwilling to save the captives, his heart chilled, angry to be among them.

Aside from Jiang Tong’s group, few were willing to help. Most remained silent as time ticked by. Suddenly, Lu Qing spoke: “Actually, if we really go to rescue those women, there might be benefits.”

Benefits?

Everyone was drawn to his words, turning their gaze to Lu Qing.

Flag-bearer Lin asked, “Brother Lu, what benefits do you mean?”

“The barbarians in the fortress all have horses. If we kill them, we can take their mounts, making our journey south much easier. And...” Lu Qing hesitated, then continued, “Think about it: the barbarians have sacked many towns and fortresses, looting much wealth. They won’t carry it all south; they must store it somewhere. Since Jin Family Fortress has a hundred barbarians left behind, aside from guarding the captive women, they must also be guarding the spoils. If we take the fortress, the wealth will be ours....”

“Yes, that makes sense! How did I not think of it?” Lin’s eyes gleamed greedily, he spat fiercely and said, “This is worth doing. I’m flat broke—no reason not to take the money!”

“If there’s real fortune to be made, who wouldn’t agree?”

“Saving people and getting rich, two birds with one stone—count me in!” said Qin Fourth.

“If I’d known there was money to be had, I’d have rushed in with my blade long ago, no need to wait!”

...

Sure enough, noble words could not compare to the lure of riches. Hearing that capturing Jin Family Fortress meant wealth, the defeated soldiers grew excited, eager to act.

“If we can seize more horses, I’m not against rescuing people.”

Song Bangde also deliberated only briefly before agreeing. The barbarians holding Jin Family Fortress numbered barely over a hundred, while they had more than eight hundred men. Even if weapons were few, their odds were good. Most importantly, those horses were valuable—if they had mounts, their journey south would be smooth. As long as they avoided the enemy’s main cavalry force, they’d escape. To gain both riches and a bright future as elite troops, why not?

Moved by the prospect of treasure, no one thought further about how to settle the rescued women. They didn’t mention it, and neither did Lu Qing. It remained a thorny issue, best handled step by step; if it came to it, they might still have to abandon most, but then it wouldn’t be so agonizing as now, at least not watching them fall victim to the barbarians.

Eunuch Guo, seeing Lu Qing persuade the defeated soldiers with wealth to attack Jin Family Fortress, left in a huff. Lu Qing saw this, but could only let him go—there was no explaining.

Seeing the crowd in a rush to attack the fortress, Lu Qing quickly stopped them: “We can’t just charge in. Quality is better than quantity. There are only a hundred or so barbarians inside; we don’t need so many men. Too much commotion will alert them, and a hard assault will mean casualties—not worth it.”

Song Bangde agreed, asking, “Then what do you suggest, Brother Lu?”

Lu Qing thought for a moment and said, “Let’s each lead a company of a hundred men inside; the rest will stay here.” He then addressed the eager defeated soldiers, “Brothers, don’t worry. After we take the fortress, those who go will get more, those who stay will get less—but no one will be disappointed.”

Hearing this, the unarmed soldiers fell silent. Though the odds were good, people would die in the assault. Without weapons, how could they fight the barbarians? They might lose their lives before seeing the riches. Now, staying put but still getting a share, even if less, was fair—they hadn’t risked themselves.

Without delay, Lu Qing and Song Bangde assembled two armed companies, plus Qin Fourth and a dozen others, totaling 260 men. The rest stayed to await news.

Before setting out, Lu Qing found Eunuch Guo, who had left in anger. Before Lu Qing could apologize, Guo waved his hand impatiently and said, “No need to say anything. I know you’re soft-hearted, can’t bear to see those women suffer. I don’t blame you. Saving people is always good. I’m not truly against it, just worried about delaying the audience with the Emperor. Since you’ve decided, I won’t stand in your way. Just be careful.”

Guo’s words surprised Lu Qing; he’d expected a scolding, but the eunuch was surprisingly reasonable. Lu Qing responded gratefully and led his men out. On the way, he realized why Guo was so easy-going: first, Lu Qing had saved his life, and Guo couldn’t travel south without him; second, Guo was no longer the powerful eunuch guarding Datong, but a refugee—he had no authority to assert, and could only acquiesce.

...

Driven by the lure of treasure, 260 defeated soldiers set out with blades and spears to storm Jin Family Fortress. Unexpectedly, the capture was easy. When they arrived, the gates were not even closed, merely ajar. The fortress was brightly lit, the enemy soldiers busy with drink and debauchery. Amid their lascivious laughter rang the screams of women.