Chapter 1001: Steam Engine Malfunction
The main rebel force could once again focus its attention on the Gao Family Village Militia.
However, before their cannons could even be positioned, the drumbeats of battle echoed once more from the south.
Shi Kefa had arrived. He commanded only five hundred militia and a motley crew of useless, ragtag soldiers, yet the militia's new-style flintlock rifles boasted a formidable firing rate, unleashing four rounds in ten breaths—a speed so unbelievable even Emperor Zhu Youjian would doubt it.
The rebel soldiers on the southern periphery were immediately routed, scattering in every direction.
The Dashing General paused, momentarily stunned, then roared again, "Who will intercept Shi Kefa?"
Earlier, no one had dared to face He Renlong; now, finding someone willing to confront Shi Kefa was an even greater challenge.
The Dashing General scanned his surroundings, but no one stepped forward.
As a result, Shi Kefa, with just five hundred men, danced around the massive army of hundreds of thousands, moving as if through an unmanned territory.
This spectacle incensed the Dashing General, who inwardly cursed, "A rabble! Just a disorganized mob!"
The speaker voiced the Dashing General's unspoken thoughts directly, seemingly unconcerned about offending anyone.
Everyone turned to see it was the West Camp Eight Great Kings (Zhang Xianzhong).
Since the South Camp Eight Great Kings had already fallen in battle, only the West Camp Eight Great Kings remained among the roving bandits. Thus, everyone now simply referred to him as the Eight Great Kings, dropping the "West Camp" prefix to avoid accusations of padding their numbers.
One rebel chief growled, "Eight Great Kings, mind your words! Who are you calling a rabble?"
The Eight Great Kings rolled his eyes. "You, me, all of us here! Hahahaha, a rabble, every last one!"
He clapped his hands and burst into laughter. "This whole rabble wants to earn those hundred catties of gold, yet cares nothing for victory or defeat. Fine, fine, you all go chase your gold; I'll be the one to intercept Shi Kefa."
With that, the Eight Great Kings gestured to his subordinates, Sweeping King and Peaceful King. "Let's move."
The three divisions of the Eight Great Kings, Sweeping King, and Peaceful King broke away from the main camp, advancing south. Sweeping King and Peaceful King were the same rebel forces who had recently colluded with the Huangmei water bandits to attack Anqing Prefecture. They, too, had old scores and new grievances to settle with Shi Kefa.
Their combined army was immense, tens of thousands of men pressing southward.
Shi Kefa's five hundred flintlock riflemen couldn't possibly hold against such numbers, so he was forced to retreat south temporarily, engaging the three armies in skirmishes.
The Dashing General, seeing the southern flank finally contained, breathed a sigh of relief. Good, now he could focus entirely on Gao Jie...
But before he could issue his next order,
the drumbeats suddenly sounded from the southwest. Governor Lu Xiangheng had arrived!
Lu Xiangheng led the Tianxiong Army, General Zu Kuan, Guerrilla Commander Luo Dai, and Henan Relief General Zuo Liangyu—a considerable force indeed.
Upon seeing their arrival, the Dashing General knew the situation was dire.
His side had no one left willing to split off and fight; truly, they were just a disorganized mob. How could they possibly stop Lu Xiangheng?
The rage over his stolen wife, ignited moments ago by Gao Jie, finally began to cool.
From the southwest, battle cries shook the heavens as Lu Xiangheng's Tianxiong Army cut into the roving bandit horde like a sharp blade. Wherever they went, the rebel soldiers scattered, heads in hands, daring not to resist.
The Dashing General sighed. "Looks like I won't be taking Gao Jie's head today. Ah, well, retreat."
The roving bandits received the order and began their withdrawal.
They once again showcased their "advantage" of poor organization: seventy-two bands of roving bandits scattered in seventy-two directions. Even immortals would struggle to net them all in one go.
The Dashing General and Li Zicheng led their forces into the Dabie Mountains, while Geli Yan and others hid in the Yingshan region, and the Eight Great Kings vanished into the Huoshan region...
The once-arrogant and massive rebel army of hundreds of thousands vanished instantly, leaving behind only tens of thousands more labor reform prisoners for the Gao Family village labor reform camp.
Xi'an, Chang'an Automobile Factory.
A grimy light armored car was brought into the workshop.
A large group of workers swarmed it, wrenches and pliers and all sorts of tools going to work. In mere moments, they had dismantled it into a pile of scattered parts.
Next, the engineers extracted its "soul"—the steam engine.
With the utmost speed, it was delivered to the "steam engine assembly workshop" and placed before Bin Sheng, the workshop director.
"Director Bin," the armored battalion soldier who accompanied the vehicle saluted Bin Sheng. "This armored car participated in the bandit suppression operation and performed admirably near Lu Prefecture. However, during the final decisive battle, the steam engine suffered a severe malfunction and conked out. We expended considerable effort to transport it back, and we hope the steam engine assembly workshop can identify the problem with this engine and resolve it. We wish to avoid similar incidents on the battlefield in the future."
Bin Sheng nodded and returned the salute. "On behalf of all the workers in the steam engine assembly workshop, I apologize to the armored battalion. We will swiftly find the problem, fix it, and ensure that such malfunctions are minimized in future production."
The soldier was taken aback, surprised that the director was so responsible, even solemnly apologizing to him...
No blaming others?
He didn't know that Bin Sheng also came from a military background, and his loyalty naturally lay with the soldiers. When such an incident occurred, Bin Sheng naturally believed the problem originated in the factory. How could he possibly shift the blame?
The armored battalion soldier left, still a little dazed.
No sooner had he departed than Bin Sheng's expression darkened. *Damn it! This steam engine actually has flaws. If I steal flawed technology back to the Later Jin dynasty and it breaks down, wouldn't the Emperor make an example of me? No, no, I must ensure it's perfected before I bring the technology home.*
He immediately called a review meeting, summoning all the workers from the steam engine assembly workshop.
Bin Sheng's face was grim as he roared from the platform, "Do you know? This steam engine was assembled right here in our workshop. But it broke down on the battlefield!"
His voice rose by an octave. He bellowed, "It conked out!"
"Do you realize how dangerous it is for our front-line soldiers when it breaks down? If it fails in the thick of battle, the soldiers inside become fish on a chopping block for the enemy."
"If it breaks down during a long-distance transfer, it has to be abandoned. If the enemy captures it, our military secrets will be leaked."
"If it breaks down during transport, our allies on the front lines will go hungry."
Bin Sheng's furious voice was clear even in the adjacent workshop. "I don't want to assign blame to any one person. This is the collective responsibility of our entire workshop, every single worker, including myself, the director."
"I want you to dismantle this steam engine immediately, find the problem, and then, for the next ten thousand, no, a million, a hundred million steam engines we produce, ensure that this problem never reoccurs."
Bin Sheng thundered, "Do it now! This is the most crucial task for this workshop at this very moment."
The workers were filled with shame by his impassioned speech.
With shouts of determination and self-reproach, the group swarmed around the steam engine.
"I've found the problem! I've found it! This part has a slight deviation."
Bin Sheng was overjoyed. "Excellent! Resolve it immediately."
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