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Chapter 619: An Ancient Rebel Stronghold

Bai Yuan watched the approaching troops with a cool, appraising gaze.

Jiang Cheng, sensing Bai Yuan's displeasure and eager to prevent any escalation, hurried forward, a placating smile plastered on his face. "Officer," he began, "these are all common folk affected by the floods. They're simply sheltering here from the rising waters."

The leading officer's face was etched with impatience. "Why are so many of you massed here? Are you gathering to stir up trouble?"

Jiang Cheng replied with a forced chuckle, "They can only get food by gathering here."

He gestured towards Bai Yuan. "This gentleman is from the Bai clan of Shaanxi, a great philanthropist. Through a stroke of fate, he found himself passing near Luoyang. Seeing the common people suffering, he set up a gruel distribution to aid the suffering here."

While it was rare, gentry distributing gruel during famine years did occasionally happen. The officers heard this and didn't express doubt. They glanced at Bai Yuan, noticing his pristine white robe, both dashing and haughty, and a flicker of apprehension crossed their faces.

The officer clasped his hands and offered a stiff bow to Bai Yuan. "So it's Mr. Bai from Shaanxi. Your reputation precedes you, sir."

Bai Yuan scoffed. "My reputation precedes me? Nonsense! This is the first time you've heard my name, isn't it?"

The officer was speechless.

A casual politeness, and he's already getting quite full of himself. The officer felt a surge of annoyance, but the more arrogant Bai Yuan became, the less the officers dared to offend him, fearing they had unwittingly crossed someone far beyond their authority. Now, the officers were the ones forced to plaster on smiles. "Mr. Bai, you jest. Ahem... we merely heard of a gathering here... and came to investigate. Since Mr. Bai is present, we are reassured..."

The military officer turned, intending to make a quick exit with his troops. He figured he'd check Bai Yuan's true influence first, then come back to deal with him.

Bai Yuan called out, "Hold on!"

The officer's steps faltered. He turned his head stiffly and asked, "Does Mr. Bai have any further instructions?"

Bai Yuan drawled, his tone meticulously formal, yet dripping with condescension, "The massive floods in Mengjin County have submerged thousands of li of land. I wouldn't mind if I didn't see any soldiers rescuing people; I'd accept that rescuing people isn't your duty. But with bandits running wild, plundering and preying on the helpless—surely that's something soldiers *should* be dealing with, isn't it? As a soldier, you have the duty to eliminate bandits. Why haven't I seen you come out to eliminate them?"

His voice carried an air of unmistakable superiority. The officer's heart pounded with an unpleasant tremor. He thought to himself: Could this man be an Imperial Censor, perhaps, sent by the Son of Heaven himself to scrutinize the provinces? If he were to denounce me in the capital, I wouldn't even know how I'd met my end.

At this thought, the officer’s bravado completely deflated. He stammered awkwardly, "Well... ahem... as for those pirates... we've been diligently working to suppress them. Yes, yes, extremely diligently... It's just that those pirates are hiding in Xiaolangdi, where waterways crisscross, inlets abound, and bandits can hide everywhere... Well... we're... simply outmatched..."

Bai Yuan bristled, "Excuses! I don't want to hear your excuses. All I see are common people tormented by pirates, their misery heartbreaking to behold."

The more ferociously Bai Yuan spoke, the more the officer crumbled. He didn't even dare meet Bai Yuan's gaze. Cupping his hands, he bowed deeply, then shuffled backward. "I will return at once, muster my troops, and go to Xiaolangdi to eliminate the bandits, to provide Mr. Bai with a satisfactory resolution."

Having spoken, he scrambled away, and his detachment of soldiers disappeared from sight in moments.

Bai Yuan snorted dismissively. "A collection of useless cowards."

Jiang Cheng whispered, "Mr. Bai, your stern words have intimidated him for the moment, but once he investigates and discovers you aren't a high official, he might return with a considerably nastier demeanor next time."

Bai Yuan nodded. He, of course, grasped this perfectly.

Yet, he remained unfazed. "If that fellow really dares to cause me trouble, I'll simply put a bullet in him."

Jiang Cheng jumped in surprise. He thought to himself: Mr. Bai is truly formidable; he actually dares to shoot an official?

Bai Yuan abruptly shifted his tone. "What kind of place is that Xiaolangdi? Can you tell me about it?"

Jiang Cheng asked, a hint of bewilderment in his voice, "Why does Mr. Bai ask?"

Bai Yuan replied, "The Qichuan Ferry and Yongji Ferry are too small."

In fact, Li Daoxuan had long since recognized that the Qichuan Ferry and Yongji Ferry were no longer sufficient.

Both of these, after all, were merely "ancient docks," typically just small coves by the river. They were fine for mooring a collection of ancient wooden boats.

But trying to dock the "divine ships" provided by Li Daoxuan was proving woefully inadequate.

Just a few of Li Daoxuan's modern vessels, when placed into the box, would pack the old docks to bursting, leaving no space for anything more.

Furthermore, Li Daoxuan's "gunboats" carried over a dozen cannons. Leaving them exposed on the riverbank like that was hardly prudent. Merchant ships traveling north and south could easily spot these gunboats, which was extremely detrimental to military confidentiality.

He had already discussed this with Bai Yuan, asking him to consider the problem and separate military and civilian docks.

When Bai Yuan heard the officer mention that "Xiaolangdi's waterways are intricate and provide excellent hiding places for pirates," his interest was piqued. Wouldn't such a location be perfectly suited for establishing a discreet military harbor?

However, it was quite far from Gao Family Village.

No, no, no. Though it was distant now, when Gao Family Village truly asserted its dominance over the land in the future, this important area in the middle reaches of the Yellow River would become the very heart of Gao Family Village's power. It was absolutely worth developing, and starting to plan early was no issue at all.

Jiang Cheng quickly began to describe Xiaolangdi...

It turned out that Xiaolangdi was a notorious "rebel haven" in the central Yellow River region.

As early as the late Eastern Han Dynasty, when the Yellow Turban rebels were stirring up trouble, they had chosen Xiaolangdi as their base. The Yellow Turban rebels built a "Yellow Turban Fortress" there, using the complex hydrological conditions to evade government troops and plunder merchant ships.

Through successive dynasties, pirates in Xiaolangdi persisted, and the problem was never truly eradicated.

After listening, Bai Yuan rejoiced inwardly.

Li Daoxuan also rejoiced inwardly upon hearing this.

This truly was an excellent location!

Gao Family Village's navy was already struggling to fit at Qichuan Ferry and needed to expand to new territory. An ancient, renowned pirate den, however, was an utterly prime location. Seizing it from the pirates and establishing a fortified base was entirely feasible.

It would be even more convenient than when Xing Honglang first built her water fortress in Yongji!

It was a bit far, but Xing Honglang's dock in Yongji was also quite distant at first, and wasn't it managed successfully?

Moreover... the more than ten thousand flood victims currently present conveniently provided the initial workforce for building the water fortress. Truly, everything was perfectly in place.

The Heavenly Lord spoke. "This is a workable plan!"

Bai Yuan was overjoyed. "The Heavenly Lord also approves? Then I shall proceed without hesitation."

Jiang Cheng also rejoiced. "Building a water fortress here, won't it be quite close to my home?"

Bai Yuan smiled. "Perfect, I recall you're quite knowledgeable about sailing. In the future, for this water fortress, Brother Jiang, please lend a hand in its management."

Jiang Cheng said, "Count me in."

With the plan settled, the next step was to choose a site. They unfurled a map and studied it thoroughly. Eagle Beak Mountain in Xiaolangdi, with the ruins of the Yellow Turban Fortress below it, was the optimal site for the new base.

"Before building the fortress, first clear out the pirates here," the Heavenly Lord declared. "That escaped pirate must be found and made to pay for his acts of exploiting the disaster and brutalizing the populace."