Chapter 002: Armored for Slavery

In response to this, Zhao Qiang could only feel indignant in his heart and helplessly accept everything. Each day, he obediently followed the group to work, returning to the wooden hut where dozens of people huddled together to sleep deeply until dark, only to emerge again before dawn, living this monotonous routine day after day. During this time, he never thought of anything else, as the heavy physical labor left him no time to consider other matters. The only things he knew and had to do were to work, sleep, and then work again upon waking. The Kangxi Emperor was scheduled to visit Yongling for a memorial service the day after tomorrow, so early in the morning, Zhao Qiang and the other young men were driven by the Qing army to the banks of the Songhua River, several miles away from Yongling, to fell the last batch of trees to be transported to Yongling. Unexpectedly, they encountered the Kangxi Emperor who was boating on the Songhua River. Suppressing his hatred for this Manchu emperor, Zhao Qiang decided to continue playing the role of the honest Zhao Qiang as usual.

In order to prevent others from noticing that something was amiss, Zhao Qiang behaved just like the old Zhao Qiang, being honest and never speaking loudly. He never complained about being tired while working and did whatever he was told. He remained silent in the face of the Qing soldiers and the overseers' beatings and scoldings, unlike the reckless Wu Si from earlier. This is why the old man had such remarks about Wu Si.

When Zhao Qiang discovered that everything around him had changed, his first thought was that it was impossible, believing he was dreaming. It was only when he realized that the people and objects around him were real that he had to confront reality. He had considered escaping, but being in unfamiliar territory with strict Qing military guards made it impossible to flee. He thought about emulating those time-travelers in novels, raising a banner to rebel, but most of the thousands of former Wu soldiers around him were already despondent, merely surviving day by day. The shadow of their defeat loomed over them like a nightmare, leaving them with no courage to rise up and rebel again. Unable to escape and unable to rebel, Zhao Qiang could only continue to obediently toil alongside these former Wu soldiers while secretly searching for a suitable opportunity to break free.

Even so, they endured great suffering from mhetushucom.com. Many perished during the long and arduous journey of exile, and after reaching the border, thousands of the elderly and weak succumbed to the severe cold, freezing to death in this desolate land. Compared to those who have already died, Zhao Qiang is much luckier. However, when compared to the other exiled officials and commoners, as well as the surviving former troops of the Wu army, he is even more fortunate. As long as they do not cause trouble, once they encounter the Emperor's great favor, they can return to the inner territories and resume their previous lives, with some even being reinstated to official positions. Compared to those who have already died, Zhao Qiang is much luckier. However, when compared to the other exiled officials and commoners, as well as the surviving former troops of the Wu army, he is even more fortunate. As long as they do not cause trouble, once they encounter the Emperor's great favor, they can return to the inner territories and resume their previous lives, with some even being reinstated to official positions. In contrast, these surviving former troops of the Wu army and the people of Yunnan will never be able to enter the inner territories again, for the edict of Emperor Kangxi is very clear: the former troops of Wu, having long been rebels and failing to change their evil ways, shall not be pardoned even if they encounter a general amnesty.

The term "armor-clad person" refers to those captured by the Qing army during their campaigns, including both Han and Mongolian individuals. Like the Aha (Han and Korean people), they served as auxiliary soldiers during wartime and worked as household servants for their masters during peacetime. However, the status of armor-clad individuals is somewhat higher than that of the Aha; some were incorporated into the Han Eight Banners or Mongolian Eight Banners, possessing their own residences and books, and those with significant military achievements could own their own slaves. This time, the Qing court relocated the former troops of Wu to the frontier, and more than half of them were assigned as slaves to these armor-clad individuals. According to the Qing court, Zhao Qiang and his companions were considered part of the Wu rebel faction, and all officials of the rank of deputy general and above, as well as adult males over the age of sixteen, were to be executed. The remaining individuals, regardless of age or gender, were to be exiled to the frontier, condemned to suffer for generations, with their descendants unable to rise again. However, Zhao Qiang was merely a bodyguard for Wang Pingfan and held no other official position, and since he had voluntarily surrendered, he was not executed during the initial large-scale purge of the former Wu troops by the Qing court. Later, Kangxi may have felt that too many people were being killed, and out of some compassion, he issued an edict to relocate the remaining tens of thousands to the frontier as slaves, condemning them to a life of hard labor for generations. It was in this way that Zhao Qiang managed to survive by a stroke of luck.

It was the twenty-first year of the Kangxi reign, more than a year since the end of the Three Feudatories Rebellion. During this time, Zhao Qiang, like most of the former soldiers of the Wu army, had become despondent, numb to various forms of oppression, living like cattle or horses, toiling day and night at hard labor, enduring beatings and scoldings from armored masters and banner soldiers, leading a life filled with hunger and satiety, unaware of when it would come to an end. Due to Kangxi's eastern tour to pay respects at the Yongling Tomb, Zhao Qiang, along with thousands of young soldiers from the Wu army, was summoned to repair the tomb. Unexpectedly, last month, while constructing the hall frame at the Yongling, an accident occurred; a large beam fell squarely and knocked Zhao Qiang unconscious. When he awoke, he had transformed into another Zhao Qiang, one that did not belong to this era.