Chapter 32 Team Justice
Zhang Xuanning wore a mask and looked like a man in his thirties. He followed his captain He Wu and waited outside a military tent. At this time, dozens of soldiers were all holding their breath, not daring to move at all. It was obvious how strict the military discipline was.
During the Sui Dynasty, the government offices that commanded the imperial guards were Twelve Prefectures, and their personnel were later recruited from the "bans" of various places. Later, the Left and Right Beishen Prefectures were added, and the Left and Right Imperial Guards were also added, so there became Sixteen Prefectures (Sixteen Guards).
It was precisely because various places took turns sending key personnel to reinforce the Sixteen Guards that Zhang Xuanning, the deputy captain, was able to join them.
And where he was at the moment was the Zuo Xiaowei, which had 6,000 cavalrymen, most of whom were used to fight. With his current rank, he could not see the general, but could only see the general in charge of the Zuo Xiaowei.
They greeted everyone in front one by one and left in a short time. When Zhang Xuanning saw that it was almost his turn, he withdrew his gaze and waited at the door.
"I'm here to see the general." It didn't take long for him to be summoned. As soon as he entered the door, he hurriedly followed He Wu and performed a great ceremony. The armor on his body rustled. Although there was no need to perform a great ceremony when wearing armor in the army, it was still necessary to perform a great ceremony when paying respects to the commander-in-chief for the first time.
"Well, are you He Wu?" The general, who was sitting and handling official business, did not call out, but just flipped through the documents.
"It's me." He Wu didn't even dare to raise his head in private.
"Well, you have been in the army for eleven years and beheaded forty-three people. Not bad. Do a good job in my army!" The general was busy and of course could not summon him more often. He immediately said, "Are you Shi Wuji? You have only been in the army for half a year and you have beheaded thirty-two people?"
"Yes, I'm here to see you, General." Zhang Xuanning didn't dare to have any sense of equality like modern people. At this time, if he dared to raise his head in private, although it might not be a disaster of death, it would be a serious crime of being punished with fifty sticks.
"Well, everyone, get up!" said the general.
At that moment, the two of them said in unison: "Yes, thank you, General."
After saying that, they kowtowed again, and then the two stood up. Only then could they slightly raise their heads, but their hands had to be put down, their bodies had to be slightly bent, and they could not look directly at the general. However, with the peripheral vision of their eyes, they could almost see the general opposite them.
It turned out that this general was only in his thirties, his face was even a little pale, and he looked a little drunk, but there was a gleam of light in his eyes from time to time. He was wearing a general's robe and was guarded by soldiers, which made him look majestic.
The general's gaze fell on Zhang Xuanning for as long as a minute. Everyone immediately turned their eyes to him. This was a very strange thing. A deputy of fifty people was only able to hold an official position below the ninth rank. Normally, he should not be given so much attention.
No one spoke at the moment, everyone held their breath. For a moment, it was so quiet that you could hear a pin drop.
"You have only been in the army for a short time, so you cannot be promoted as usual. However, according to your record, you killed 16 horse bandits with one horse and one person, so you were promoted for this. Well, it seems that you are good at martial arts?"
"I dare not accept the general's approval. As a soldier of the Great Sui Dynasty, I will naturally obey the orders of my superiors. I would rather die than disobey them. I will not hesitate to sacrifice my life for the country." He didn't know how Hou Xibai compiled his personal resume, and who recommended him to cause the general to say so, but such a statement should not be wrong.
The most taboo thing in the army is to be self-righteous and disobey orders. Now I have been promoted to a second-rate master. Although the army is large, there are only a few who can reach this level. After all, the first-rate masters are the heroes and generals of a region. This general is only about second-rate!
The general must have known something and was very satisfied with his statement. His face relaxed and he said happily: "I am very happy that you have this intention. In my army, we employ people based on their talents and select people based on their merits. As long as you work hard and are loyal to the court, I will not treat you badly."
"Thank you, General. Thank you, General. I will do my best to kill the enemy and serve you and the court." Zhang Xuanning knelt on the ground again hurriedly. It was a very rare thing for a third-rank general to say this.
Everyone agreed, but they started to have all kinds of guesses about him.
The general withdrew his gaze and said happily: "Well, you are so loyal and diligent, I am very happy, I will give you more orders, all right, you two can leave now."
The two of them knelt down and kowtowed: "Yes!"
At this time, a man nearby stood up and said, "Humph, one man and one horse, killed sixteen horse bandits. I wonder if the horse bandits are incompetent, or if Captain Shi Zheng really has outstanding martial arts skills? I'd like to see it."
When the general saw this, he smiled and said, "What does Commander Xiang have to suggest?"
His tone was very gentle, obviously directed at him.
"It's easy. Just fight with me and you'll know." Captain Xiang swept a sharp look across Zhang Xuanning.
The general was slightly stunned when he heard this and looked at Zhang Xuanning.
"Your Excellency is the Guoyi Duwei. How dare I fight with you? This is a capital crime in the army." Zhang Xuanning said as he quickly took a step back.
Under the guards, there were Zhechoufu , each with about a thousand people. Each had a Zhechou Duwei as the chief, and two Guoyi Duwei on the left and right as deputies. Therefore, Guoyi Duwei was already a military officer of the sixth rank, which was very different from Zhang Xuanning's current rank.
"Humph, this is my proposal, what's the crime? If you can fight me for fifty moves, I have a position under me as the captain, so I'll let you take it, what do you think?" Captain Xiang said, then turned to the general and said, "Please make the decision, General."
The general pondered for a while, then smiled and said, "Okay, our army values military merit and bravery the most, so I'll grant you what you said."
Once the general said this, the matter was settled.
Everyone's attention was immediately drawn to these two people. As for the team leader He Wu, a man who relied on his seniority rather than his martial arts skills, of course, he did not attract any attention.
A thought flashed through Zhang Xuanning’s mind: was this a test or a gesture of goodwill?
If his martial arts skills were not good, he should not be hacked to death on the spot, because with Hou Xibai's arrangement, he would not be too weak, at least he would have some concerns, especially when he had no hostile enemies. But it was hard to say - and even if his martial arts skills were very good and he won the duel, he would definitely not dare to hack and kill his superiors in the army, even if they had agreed to a free fight.
Therefore, if he showed his strength, he would become a subordinate of this Guoyi Duwei, and it seemed that this Guoyi Duwei was also the general's confidant. Was it a sign of recruitment? After all, if he was really a second-rate expert, he would still be valued in the army, and he would be recruited if he could be recruited.
After thinking it through, he immediately responded: "I will obey the general's orders. Commander , please forgive my crime."
After saying this, his temperament changed immediately, and everyone could feel a chilling murderous aura emanating from him. No matter what, a second-rate master has already become one with his body and mind. Although he is still some distance away from the limits of human beings, he is already considered a strong man.
With this murderous and decisive temperament, the original aura of compromise and tolerance of the subordinates was swept away.
The general was shocked, but also happy at the same time. It turned out that he had the aura of a second-rate master. He originally found it strange. Second-rate masters were already very rare. If someone recommended him, why would he need to be a small soldier or officer? He would also be a brave general in the army. You should know that the leaders of the four major families were only first-rate masters.
It can be seen that the information on qualifications, that this person wants to practice swordsmanship with the army, is somewhat credible. If this person can be recruited? Thinking of this, he waved his hand and said decisively: "Let's start the war!"
At that moment, everyone immediately made room for the two to enter. Of course, the guards behind the general were also on high alert. After all, the newcomers might threaten the general, although the possibility of this was very small.
Captain Xiang snorted coldly. Of course, he was not afraid at this moment. He had no burden in his heart. He had already drawn his long sword and pointed it slightly. Everyone present felt a chilling murderous aura pressing down on them.
He had been in the army since he was a child. Over the past ten years or so, he had naturally killed countless people and his swordsmanship was honed through that.
Zhang Xuanning knew that the army was different from the underworld, so he took a deep breath and drew his sword.
The collision of their energies immediately aroused murderous intent. Captain Xiang shouted loudly, straightened his waist, and slashed the enemy with his long sword. Suddenly, an atmosphere of bloodshed on the battlefield was formed within a few feet.
Colleagues around him immediately cheered.
Zhang Xuanning also rushed forward and swung his long sword. There was a loud bang and both of them took a step back.
The people around cheered again. Although they didn't know the inside story, they were all veterans of long battles. They knew that although these two swords looked simple, they were actually typical of the most fierce sword techniques in the army. If there was a difference, the victory or defeat would be decided immediately, and the result would be defeat at any time. Just this one sword showed that Zhang Xuanning had a strength similar to that of Captain Xiang.
"Okay!" Captain Xiang only felt his wrist go numb and a surge of internal force rushed up. Although he was brave and courageous, the internal strength he learned was not top-notch. Let alone first-rate, it was not even second-rate. There was an essential gap in internal strength. However, he had been in the army for more than ten years, and his confidence and killing power were strong. He turned his waist again, combined the power of his body and sword, rushed forward, sank his wrist, and made another move.
The knife was swung in one go, full of murderous intent. It was indeed the work of an expert in the military with his swordsmanship.
Zhang Xuanning was already hit hard by his attack. He was still a little inferior to himself, both in internal strength and swordsmanship. However, he had been in the army for a long time, so his murderous aura and decisiveness were better. He then slashed several times with his sword, displaying his domineering swordsmanship, which was combined with his grand and exquisite swordsmanship.
The general frowned when he saw it, knowing that the battle was almost over. However, no one else had such an expression. Seeing the two men fighting each other, either killing or blocking, both were impeccable and each showed their abilities, they shouted and cheered.
Captain Xiang slashed more than ten times, but he was already feeling exhausted. This was the shortcoming of the swordsmanship and internal strength of the army. They were powerful, but not as durable. He immediately glared, gathered all his strength, stepped forward half a step, and slashed with his sword. The sound of the sword whistling and sharp, carrying the power of fighting in the midst of thousands of horses and troops, was his greatest move. He once had a record of cutting an enemy cavalry in half with one sword.
The shouting of the onlookers suddenly stopped. This was very surprising. When competing with colleagues in the army, there was no need to use such a deadly move. Even the general's face changed.
Zhang Xuanning also shouted loudly, and gathered his long sword with full momentum, and rushed forward fiercely. The two swords collided, making a loud noise, which even alarmed the guards more than ten meters outside.
After the fight, everything stopped. Zhang Xuanning retreated half a step and bent his body to resist, while Captain Xiang pressed down his sword, keeping it half an inch lower.
At this time, the general looked up to the sky and laughed loudly, saying: "Well, the winner has been decided, please put down your swords, Captain Xiang won, and he will be rewarded with ten taels of silver. Shi Wuji is also brave and commendable, and he still won honor despite his defeat. I will promote you and make you the captain of the team, and you will be under Captain Xiang."
Of course he knew that although it seemed that Captain Xiang had the upper hand, in fact, Captain Xiang had reached the end of his strength, while Zhang Xuanning still retained a lot of combat effectiveness. However, the military was strict from top to bottom, and it was totally unacceptable to let the superiors accept defeat publicly. What he was doing now was in accordance with the rules, and he felt somewhat satisfied.
Zhang Xuanning put away his sword, knelt down, thanked the general, and half-knelt on the ground: "Your humble servant greets you, Lord Commandant!"
Captain Xiang was also a shrewd man. He put away his sword and said, "Captain Shi is truly a brave man. I am lucky to have a subordinate like you."
All of a sudden, his colleagues cheered loudly, but no one paid attention to He Wu, who was also the captain and Zhang Xuanning's superior just a moment ago. After being happy, the general said, "Okay, if there is nothing else, you can withdraw. Captain Xiang, you can take Captain Shi to his team to make arrangements."
"Yes, I'll go right away." After they were out of the door, Captain Xiang said, "Captain Shi, you're really good."
Zhang Xuanning heard his friendly tone and knew that he had the intention to comfort her, so he quickly stepped forward to express his gratitude. No matter what, he had to say some polite words.
After leaving the general's camp, there are other barracks. From time to time, I encountered teams of Zhao soldiers who were training. Only then did I realize that not knowing the formation was all bullshit. Although the Sui soldiers did not specifically learn the modern standing method, their basic formation was still quite neat - think about it, if there were no rules at all, how could they form a formation and not be defeated or chaotic on the battlefield.
Captain Xiang walked side by side with him. Of course, as he was his superior, he took half a step ahead. Zhang Xuanning did this deliberately. He would take half a step back while walking and not walk side by side.
In ancient times, the hierarchy was strict. Although this is a detail, if you don't pay attention to it, it will immediately make people feel that you are arrogant and even have rebellious intentions, which can often lead to fatal disasters.
Etiquette and law are the first core of ancient society. If you don't understand this, going back to the past will be a dead end. It is ridiculous to clamor in ancient times that we are brothers, so there is no need to kneel. As for democracy, it is not even worthy of being a joke. It is simply scum and lunatic.
Captain Xiang smiled and said, "I have a team of 50 cavalrymen under me. With your martial arts skills, you will be able to suppress them if you serve as the captain. Well, do you have a personal companion? I can make some arrangements for you."
"Come with me, there are three of them." Zhang Xuanning said hurriedly.
"Well, I'll be your personal guard, and one of them can be made a sergeant, how about that?" In ancient times, when fighting on the battlefield, personal guards were a must, otherwise who would trust their backs and left and right in a hand-to-hand fight? This is completely different in modern times, having personal guards is a practical need in battle.
The modern military system is more focused on long-range operations, and the guards are not so picky. Only guards can be dispatched, and the superiors are not allowed to select their own confidants. This is a completely different environment. In ancient times, if you recruited all of someone else's guards, it was simply forcing people to die. It would be strange if they didn't rebel.
Therefore, even for someone of Zhang Xuanning's rank, it is natural for him to have a few personal guards, and his superiors must make arrangements for him and allow him to have his own.
"Thank you, Captain."
"It's nothing, just a common thing. I'll take you to your team!" Having said this, they had already turned to the camp under the jurisdiction of Captain Xiang. Therefore, when they passed by, all the soldiers and officers saluted solemnly, which made Zhang Xuanning feel the power of life and death in the army.
When the two men arrived in front of a small camp, they saw soldiers everywhere inside and outside, and war horses nearby. When they saw Captain Xiang, they immediately came forward to await orders.
Captain Xiang said coldly: "Call everyone to me."
Not long after, all five firemen came forward and they were divided into five groups according to their fire. Captain Xiang said, "According to the general's order, this is your team leader."
"Greetings, Captain." Both the soldier and the fire captain stepped forward and knelt. This was the only way to meet the chief officer for the first time.
After the ceremony, Captain Xiang said with a smile, "This is Deputy Captain Tao, your deputy. If there is anything in the team, you can ask him. I will be leaving now."
"Farewell, Sir Captain!" This time even Zhang Xuanning saluted. After he left, the deputy captain Tao acted respectful and said, "Sir Captain, we are new here. Please allow me to introduce our team to you."
Zhang Xuanning stood up straight, nodded and smiled. From then on, this group of people became his subordinates.
