The anti-Qing movement began with the looting of the Eight-Nation Alliance.

The cook, along with three soldiers, carried two steaming wooden buckets to the gate of the military camp. Upon seeing this, the starving people quickly gathered around, and immediately adults shouted and children cried.

"Don't push! Line up! There's enough for everyone. The elderly, women, and children, please go to the front!" Zhang Tieniu roared, leading a few soldiers forward. After some kicking and shoving to drive the able-bodied men to the back, they finally managed to form two crooked lines.

Smelling the aroma from the wooden barrels, the starving people in line craned their necks to look ahead, constantly swallowing their saliva.

At the head of the line was a thin, elderly woman who shakily handed over a chipped, broken bowl.

The cook stirred the contents of the bucket with a large ladle and then ladled out a large bowl of mixed vegetable soup for her.

"Thank you! Thank you!" The old woman held the bowl with both hands, repeatedly expressing her gratitude. Seeing soup spilling out from the crack, she quickly reached in to lick it.

"Auntie, be careful, it's hot. Go eat over there!" The head cook nodded with a smile.

"Next!" Soon a child handed over a black wooden bowl.

The cook was the most experienced; he prepared two large buckets of soup, ensuring that everyone among the starving people could get a bowl.

"As long as we're still here, we'll distribute leftovers every evening at this time, giving priority to the elderly, women, and children. Okay, everyone disperse! Don't crowd around the door."

"Squad Leader Zhang, this is the suggestion you made to the higher-ups, right?" The cook took out a cigarette and offered one to Zhang Tieniu, then lit one for himself.

"I just felt sorry for them, and we happened to have some leftovers, so I reported it to the company commander and political instructor." Zhang Tieniu nodded.

"You don't have any objections to what I just did, do you?" The cook nodded.

“How could that be! To be honest, before I joined the army, my family rarely ate this kind of vegetable soup more than a few times a year! Haha!” Zhang Tieniu shook his head.

"You're very good!" The cook stubbed out his cigarette, then led his men, carrying wooden buckets, into the barracks.

"Back to camp!" Zhang Tieniu stubbed out his cigarette and, as usual, put it in the cigarette case.

At dawn, just as the sky began to lighten, the bugle call sounded in the military camp. The soldiers quickly got up, dressed, and rushed to the parade ground fully armed.

The soldiers, having quickly formed ranks, began their routine training. The space here was limited, and it wasn't convenient to go outside. Today's training consisted only of running and marching drills.

At eight o'clock in the morning, the county magistrate arrived at the military camp on time with his men. Jiao Long personally welcomed the three into the camp.

"Your new army is really working hard! I heard you get up to train as soon as it's light?" the county lieutenant said as he walked.

"It's not exactly tough, just routine morning exercises! The training intensity here is already quite low." Jiao Long didn't want to talk much about military matters, so he casually gave a few words and led the three of them to the company headquarters.

"Company Commander, the County Lieutenant has arrived with the County Garrison Commander and the Head Constable!"

"We, your humble servants, greet Lord Mo!" The county constable and his men hurriedly stepped forward to pay their respects.

"Haha, gentlemen, please don't stand on ceremony, have a seat! Xiao Dong, quickly brew a pot of tea." Mo Biao stood up and invited them to sit down.

"I won't waste any more time on nonsense! We're here to suppress bandits, so please explain the bandit situation in the county!" Mo Biao just wanted to finish this operation as soon as possible so he could head to the next county, so he didn't have time to waste with them.

“There are three bandit groups in our county!” After exchanging glances, the three men spoke up, with the garrison commander in charge of the city speaking first.

"One of these groups is Zhang Bazi from Yang'ao Mountain. I heard that he is a remnant of the Taiping Rebellion and has gathered more than 300 people to occupy Dutou Peak in Yang'ao Mountain for more than 10 years."

"This man is ruthless and has a group of desperate men. They often go down the mountain to rob, kidnap, and extort. In particular, he has a cavalry of more than a hundred men, each of them riding fast horses and carrying long swords, making them feared by all."

"I once led troops to encircle and suppress them, but we suffered a defeat and lost more than a hundred brothers." At this point, the commander blushed.

"The other group is Zhao Da Nao from Peiwei Mountain. He used to be a tenant farmer of the Kong family, but he killed a member of the Kong family because he resisted rent. He then led the entire village, young and old, to flee from Yanzhou to our place."

"This man's evil deeds are not obvious. He only occasionally goes down the mountain to rob merchants and travelers. He usually only takes money and does not kill them. I heard that they also cultivate land on the mountain. However, he has taken in a large number of runaway slaves. The entire mountain stronghold is said to have grown to more than 500 people."

"The last group was a band of horse bandits, the number of whom is unknown. All that is known is that the leader was a scholar named Jiang Shan, who was also from Yanzhou. Because he was framed by his classmate back in his hometown, his family was destroyed and he fled after killing his classmate in a fit of rage."

"Later, they gathered a group of bandits somewhere and specifically targeted local powerful families. They committed numerous major crimes in several nearby prefectures and counties. However, this group of people appeared and disappeared without a trace. They were very mysterious."

"Because this Jiang Shan likes to wear all white, and is said to be handsome. He is known in the martial arts world as Jiang Xiaobai. He is fond of robbing the rich to help the poor, and has a great reputation among the people."

"Several prefectures have joined forces to search for him many times, but he is extremely cunning and has always managed to escape. To this day, we still do not know where his stronghold is or how many men he has."

After finishing speaking, Qian Zong shook his head in shame!

After discussing for a while, Mo Biao and Jiao Long nodded and said, "Jiang Xiaobai has vanished without a trace, and we are unable to eliminate him. Let's wait until you find him in your area before making any further plans!"

"Right now, our primary concern is dealing with Zhang the Scarface and Zhao the Big Head. I wonder if you are familiar with the mountains and forests where they are based?"

“I once led troops to besiege Zhang Bazi, so I am quite familiar with the terrain there,” Qianzong Wang Kai quickly replied.

“I once secretly observed Zhao Da Nao’s stronghold and know the terrain there very well,” the constable, who had been silent until now, said.

"Okay! Then please mark the location on the map and tell us in detail about the conditions along the way, the roads and rivers."

Two hours later, after Wang Kai and the constable had talked themselves hoarse and drunk two pots of tea, Jiao Long finally let them go.

"Thank you all for your cooperation. We have decided to send troops in two days. Our first task is to wipe out this Zhang the Scarface. We would appreciate it if Commander Wang could send someone to guide us."

"It is my duty, and I will personally lead the way for you two gentlemen," Wang Kai said excitedly. This Zhang Scarface was his biggest worry; he had long wanted to get rid of him and avenge himself.

"To prevent the bandits from escaping, I hope the three of you will keep our deployment a secret. If the bandits escape, it will be difficult for any of us to explain ourselves!" Jiao Long warned again before leaving.

"We will certainly remember this!" The three county constables quickly agreed.

These are Lord Shen's newly formed troops. If they return empty-handed because of them, their official positions will likely be in jeopardy.