BSI Chapter 62 Alliance with Herbal Tea
Chapter 62 Alliance with Herbal Tea
Chen Feng was actually quite helpless.
Throughout history, how could a lone individual ever rise to power in a rebellion?
Liu Bang had his old brothers from Pei County who would follow him through thick and thin, the Li Tang dynasty had the strong support of the Guanlong nobles, and even Zhu Yuanzhang, who started with just a bowl of rice, had the support of the nobles of Huaixi.
He and his junior sister ended up in Luzon, with no power behind them and no trusted confidants. They could only strengthen their ties with their subordinates by taking on disciples, a bond that is valued by the Chinese.
And Pang Li, this young man, is indeed a rough gem!
At only fifteen years old, he achieved excellent results in the All-Army Military Competition, winning fifth place in mixed martial arts and first place in shooting in less than a month of learning combat skills. Such talent deserves to be passed on to others without reservation.
"Master, please accept my bow!"
Pang Li knelt down with a thud, raised a cup of cold tea on the table high with both hands, and kowtowed three times in succession with an uncontrollable tremor in his voice.
Frang was startled by this sudden action and asked in confusion, "Chen, what kind of mysterious ritual are you performing?"
Chen Feng chuckled and shook his head, first taking the cup of cold tea, then looking at the kneeling boy: "Do you know the significance of me drinking this cup of tea?"
"Understood!"
Pang Li stood ramrod straight, his eyes red-rimmed yet burning with determination. "From this day forward, I, Pang Li, am the inheritor of Master's teachings and beliefs! Through mountains of knives and seas of fire, at Master's command, I will not hesitate for a moment!"
"Good! Good! Good!"
Chen Feng laughed three times, then tilted his head back and drank the herbal tea in one gulp.
"Master, please accept my bow again!" Pang Li kowtowed once more, his forehead covered in dust.
Chen Feng stepped forward to help him up, patting his strong shoulder muscles: "Every evening, I will spend half an hour teaching you martial arts. During the day, you will learn Western techniques from Frank. Don't waste this talent."
"Yes, Master!"
Pang Li answered loudly.
After discussing training matters with Frank, Chen Feng asked Pang Li to summon Qian Biao.
Five days earlier, he had selected five elite soldiers from the army, given them some training, and sent them to Manila and Malolos to establish the rudiments of an intelligence department.
"General, you wanted to see me?" Qian Biao stamped his wet shoes at the door, wrung out the rainwater from the corner of his clothes, and then strode into the stone house, clutching an oil paper package tightly in his arms.
"Any news from the men we sent out?" Chen Feng tapped the table with his fingertips.
"I was just about to report to you."
Qian Biao carefully took out the letter from the oil paper package, opened it and said, "Maloros sent back a message that the Independent Army used the city as their base after capturing it, but their leader, Aguinaldo, was not in the city at all. After the American army brought him here, he turned around and fled back to his hometown, Cavit, Cavite province."
Damn it!
Chen Feng cursed inwardly: He was coaxing his soldiers to live and die together, but he himself had slipped away to the safest place first.
However... after the Cavite naval base was captured by the US military, the local Spanish colonial troops had already fled, making it much safer than Malolos, where the war was still raging.
"The current head of Malolos is Antonio Luna."
Qian Biao pulled out another letter and continued, "This person is of mixed Spanish and Indigenous descent, comes from a wealthy family, and is a Doctor of Pharmacy from the University of Madrid. He joined the Pennywise revolutionary organization Catipunan in 1896, was captured by the colonial army in 1897 and exiled to South America, and only escaped back last month."
With an intelligence agency, things are definitely different.
Although they haven't yet touched on core secrets, they've at least figured out the background of the enemy's leader.
This guy is no ordinary person; he earned a doctorate.
Furthermore, he had followed Punnis Powell, and his political views must have clashed with Aquinado's, so perhaps he could find an opportunity to exploit this.
While Chen Feng pondered, Qian Biao added, "There is no important intelligence in Manila at the moment. The colonial army is holed up in the city and waiting for reinforcements. However, prices have skyrocketed, and many poor families have run out of food."
This was expected.
The US blockade of the ports cut off maritime trade. Luzon relied on exports for its economy, and all the factories shut down. The poor people lost their livelihoods and naturally could not afford to buy food.
Chen Feng's heart stirred, and he ordered, "Now that we have a foundation, we can continue to expand our army. Send more people to Manila, secretly promote the Free Army's mission and benefits, and recruit those Chinese who have nowhere else to turn."
"clear!"
Qian Biao put the letter back into his pocket and hid it close to his body. Suddenly remembering something, he whispered, "General, the three American prisoners that Zhang Xiuwu brought back last time have been on a hunger strike for three days and are insisting on seeing you."
"I've forgotten about these three."
Chen Feng patted his forehead, got up and walked out of the stone house, heading straight for the back mountain.
Marilyn and her two siblings were Americans. To avoid running into Frank and his group and causing unnecessary trouble, he specially imprisoned these special prisoners in the back mountain.
The back mountain is no longer the desolate place it once was.
Large tracts of forest were felled, and more than a dozen wooden houses were built along the stream, serving as both garment workshops and living quarters for the female workers.
Marilyn and the other two were locked in the deepest building. Two soldiers with guns were at the door. When they saw Chen Feng coming, they immediately stood at attention and saluted.
Chen Feng nodded in acknowledgment and pushed open the creaking wooden door.
The room was dimly lit. Marilyn was huddled in the corner, her once-shiny blonde hair now a mess, plastered to her face, and her silk shirt stained. When he entered, she jumped to her feet and roared in broken but furious Mandarin, "Chen! You broke your promise!"
Peter and Jack behind her also stood up, their eyes filled with resentment and exhaustion. Three days of fasting had left them pale and their lips chapped.
Chen Feng touched the tip of his nose, walked to the wooden table in the center of the room and sat down. His fingertips traced the rough surface of the table, and he chuckled, "I did promise to give you some travel expenses, but I never said I would let you leave."
"You...you..." Marilyn trembled with anger, her chest heaving violently, unable to utter a single word for a long time.
Chen Feng sat leisurely on the stool and said slowly, "It's impossible for you to leave now unless you work for me for three years. After three years, not only will you receive the promised travel expenses in full, but I will also pay you three years' wages according to the military pay of Free Army soldiers."
"Don't... even think about it..." Marilyn gritted her teeth, making a grinding sound, and forced out the two words.
Peter had learned some Mandarin during this time, and although he spoke haltingly and haltingly, he could understand most of it. He quickly and urgently said in English mixed with Mandarin words, "Chen! Let us go! Marilyn's mother... is seriously ill! She needs a lot of money! It's nothing to you! You have over 800 kilograms of gold!"
Jack chimed in, speaking rapidly in English: "That's right! Your platoon leader, Zhang, promised us that if we fought the Japanese together, he'd give us a gold brick! You can't go back on your word!"
Chen Feng stroked his chin, pondered for a moment, and then said, "I can have the Zheng family wire $2000 to your mother through an American bank in Manila. That's enough for her medical treatment and recuperation. As for you, you either work for me for three years, or you stay here and be locked up for three years, doing labor reform with prisoners every day. The choice is yours!"