Volume 1: A Stranger in a Foreign Land Chapter 18 Capital
Yang Ge was ultimately unable to escape Shen Fa's clutches.
He followed Shen Fa out the door before he even finished eating the pot of pickled fish.
"That's it!"
Shen Fa led Yang Ge into a secluded alley, pointed to a nearby house and said, "This is our Embroidered Uniform Guard's secret post in Luting County. It will also be the base for your troops in the future!"
Yang Ge looked at this house, which was old but still had the towering blue brick walls that vaguely showed the grandeur of a wealthy family. He muttered to himself that the Embroidered Uniform Guards were indeed wealthy and powerful.
The two walked to the side door of the house. Shen Fa stepped forward, grabbed the door knocker and knocked gently.
"Here it comes..."
"Squeak."
The door opened, and a big, fleshy face with thick eyebrows and big eyes stretched out from behind the door. When he saw Shen Fa, he quickly clasped his fists and saluted: "Boss, you're back."
Yang Ge, who was standing behind Shen Fa, took a look and saw that it was Fang Ke.
"Um."
Shen Fa responded indifferently, and the two of them crossed the threshold one after the other.
Fang Ke closed the door and quickly followed Yang Ge's footsteps. With a smile on his face, he lowered his voice and greeted him: "General, have you eaten?"
Yang Ge waved his hands with a frustrated look.
The three of them passed through the hanging flower gate and entered the courtyard.
A group of strong and sturdy men were already waiting in the courtyard. When they saw the three people coming in, they all bowed to Shen Fa, who was walking in front, and said, "Your humble servants are here to greet the captain."
Yang Ge looked at the physique and movements of these people, and always felt that these people seemed to have some military background.
"Get up!"
Shen Fa raised his hand slightly and responded calmly.
"Thank you, sir!"
The soldiers stood up, held their heads high and chests puffed out, trying hard to look straight ahead.
But everyone couldn't help but glance at Yang Ge, who was following behind Shen Fa, with gratitude out of the corner of their eyes... They all knew that this was their new boss, the savior who saved their lives last night, and the benefactor who saved their family from being demoted to pariahs and exiled to Lingnan.
Yang Ge was also looking at these soldiers. Apart from the few who had hit their heads in his house before, there were more than twenty people, and the total number should be around thirty.
"They will be yours from now on!"
After Shen Fa took a look at the soldiers in the yard, he turned sideways and said to Yang Ge, "Fang Ke has been with me for two years. He's quite smart and alert, but he's a little clueless when it comes to carrying out missions. I'll let him stay here as a small flag officer to hone his skills. You can ask him about anything in the guards. If he doesn't know, feel free to ask me!"
"As for these killers, they are still under investigation. You can train them harshly. If there are any useless or undisciplined ones, you should beat them or kill them if necessary. You have already taken on such a big responsibility for them, you can't let them drag you down again!"
"Alright, there's still a lot of things to do in the Guards. I'll be leaving first. Please report any subsequent matters directly to me!"
As soon as he finished speaking, Shen Fa was about to leave.
In front of so many people, Yang Ge couldn't act as casually as he did at home. He hurriedly clasped his fists and bowed, saying, "Your humble servant respectfully bids you farewell!"
Shen Fa, who had already taken two steps, stopped when he heard his hesitant greeting, turned his head to look at him, then waved his hand and strode out the door.
Yang Ge could see clearly that this guy was clearly laughing...
'Fuck you!'
Yang Ge cursed in his heart, but with a smile on his face, he waved to Fang Ke: "Fang Ke, please see the master off for me!"
Fang Ke clasped his fists and quickly followed Shen Fa out.
Yang Ge turned around and looked at the soldiers with an expressionless face.
The soldiers looked at him with gratitude for a moment, then lowered their heads unconsciously.
After a while, Fang Ke came back quickly, stood beside him, clasped his fists and said, "General, these brothers were screened overnight by the guards. They are all from good families with clean backgrounds and come from the frontier army. Later, after the guards are done with this busy period, there will be another 20 to 30 people sent to our side to make up the difference!"
The military system of the Wei Dynasty was that 5,600 people formed a guard, 1,120 people formed a thousand households, 112 people formed a hundred households, and there were two general flags and ten small flags.
According to the organization of 51 people per general banner, Yang Ge's banner was still short of nearly half of its troops .
"Border troops..."
Yang Ge repeated this word several times in his heart, and his eyes finally relaxed slowly.
"Okay, everyone, look up and look at me!"
He said listlessly.
All the soldiers raised their heads quickly and looked at him with burning eyes.
"Stop talking nonsense!"
"First, if there is anyone who doesn't want to work under me, please step forward now so that we can part ways amicably!"
Yang Ge tried his best to cheer himself up and asked loudly, "Don't worry about having nowhere to go if you don't work for me. I will ask Fang Xiaoqi to find another way out for them!"
The soldiers didn't move at all, not even blinking!
"Second, if you like wearing official uniforms and brandishing swords and guns, step forward and I'll give you a good job!"
The soldiers were in a commotion for a while, and finally two of them thought this might be a good opportunity, so they bravely stepped out.
Seeing this, Fang Ke shook his head speechlessly.
Yang Ge didn't care that Fang Ke was speechless. He turned around and said to him, "Send these two gentlemen back. Ask the guards to find them good jobs where they can wear official uniforms and wield swords!"
“Plop!”
The two people who stepped out of the line were so frightened that their knees weakened and they fell to the ground: "Sir, we know we are wrong..."
Yang Ge hardened his heart and didn't look at the two men, but just waved his hand.
Fang Ke understood, stepped forward, and dragged the two men, one in each hand, as if they were dead pigs, and strode out... He knew that the captain who said he was leaving was actually waiting outside the door!
The two men's cries, like they were crying for their father, echoed in the courtyard for a long time. The soldiers, who had felt a little relieved just now, now stood stiffly, not daring to look Yang Ge in the eyes.
Yang Ge folded his arms and glanced at the soldiers with an expressionless face. His ambiguous gaze made the soldiers' scalps tingle!
After a while, Fang Ke hurried back to the courtyard and clasped his fists towards Yang Ge, saying, "General, those two have been sent back to the guardhouse!"
Yang Ge nodded, lowered his arms, and let out a breath.
The huge stone hanging in the hearts of the soldiers suddenly fell to the ground with Yang Ge's words.
"Okay, let's get down to business now!"
Yang Ge slowed down his tone and said gently, "There are three things to know when working under me."
"First, listen to instructions."
"You must do whatever I tell you to do, and you must absolutely not do anything I tell you not to do. If you don't want to listen, I won't do anything to you. I just ask you to go back to where you came from."
"Second, be able to endure hardship."
"I know you may have made a living by fighting and killing in the past, but in the future you may do many things that have nothing to do with fighting and killing. If you want to wear official uniforms and wield official swords to show off your power, my temple is too small to keep you here!"
"Third, don't get into trouble!"
"I don't need to explain why everyone is here. Don't be reckless in the future. Think more about your wives, children, and elders. Don't get carried away and think your life is a lost cause. If you really encounter something you can't handle, feel free to come to me. If I can't handle it, you can always ask the higher-ups. We are doing official business, not personal vendettas!"
"Do you understand?"
All the soldiers responded in unison: "We obey your orders!"
Yang Ge waved his hands repeatedly: "From now on, unless you are wearing official clothes and holding an official sword, don't call me humble official or sir . Wouldn't that clearly tell others that we are all officials' family members... From now on, when we meet in private, call me Yang Xiaoge, and when we meet here, call me Dongjia."
The soldiers said: "Yes, Boss (Young Master Yang)."
As soon as he finished speaking, all the soldiers turned around and looked for the bastard called "Young Master Yang".
Yang Ge almost lost his composure and quickly turned to look at Fang Ke: "What arrangements have the Wei Li made for us?"
Fang Ke replied, "Master, we are an independent banner directly under the command of the Thousand Household Master. We are the personal guard of the Thousand Household Master. The Thousand Household Master wants us to take over the patrol and arrest work in Luting County as soon as possible."
Yang Ge tilted his head to look at this sturdy fellow with thick eyebrows, big eyes and an honest face, and said in his heart: "You can't judge a book by its cover, and you can't measure the depth of the sea by a bucket."
What is a confidant?
The favor that Shen Fa was too embarrassed to mention was made clear by this guy in just a few words!
But then again, how smart is Yang Ge? Can he be responsible for such a big responsibility?
Yang Ge pondered for a moment and asked, "Are there any other hidden agents in Luting County right now?"
Fang Ke nodded: "As far as I know, yes."
Yang Ge felt slightly relieved when he heard this. Even though he was an outsider, he knew that Luting County, as the gateway to the capital, was definitely a battleground for intelligence work.
If such an important position is handed over to him without giving him any time to prepare, wouldn't that be forcing him to do something he is not supposed to do?
He turned around and looked at the soldiers in the courtyard who had stood up straight again, their heads held high. He thought for a long time before saying, "I'll give you two tasks."
Fang Ke quickly clasped his fists and said, "Master, please give me your instructions."
Yang Ge: "First, get all the brothers to join the boatmen pulling the oars on the Bian River. When you can pull like a hard worker, come back!"
He did not hide it, and all the soldiers in the yard heard his words. For a moment, everyone's face showed bitterness.
Fang Ke followed Yang Ge's gaze and looked at them for a while, then nodded in agreement, "The boss is indeed very thoughtful. Just look at the energy in these brothers. Anyone who sees them knows that they are from a military background!"
This is what Yang Ge meant.
As the saying goes, a great man hides in plain sight. The fake assassin wears a suit, sunglasses, gloves, and a silenced pistol, while the real assassin only needs overalls, a polo shirt, a white mask, and a homemade pistol...
"The second thing!"
Yang Ge continued, "Please ask the captain for me to get some public, unimportant patrol and arrest files from the guards so I can learn from the experience of our predecessors... preferably from many years ago, completely closed cases. Please don't bring files related to the current situation. I can't afford the responsibility of leaking secrets."
Fang Ke looked at Yang Ge in surprise and nodded, saying, "I'll report this to the captain right away."
Yang Ge nodded and waved his hand, saying, "Alright, I'll leave this to you. Draw up a list and send it to me. The list should detail the life stories and abilities of all the brothers, including but not limited to their martial arts, weapons, military experience, education, personality traits, and family situations. The more detailed, the better!"
"By the way, from now on, unless it's an emergency , you can only come to my house to find me!"
Fang Ke wrote them down one by one and nodded in agreement.
Yang Ge said hello to the soldiers and left quickly as if he was escaping.
Fang Ke watched Yang Ge leave, wondering in his heart, how could such a capable person be willing to be a waiter who was ordered around?
…
Yang Ge left the alley as soon as he could.
Fang Ke appeared in front of Shen Fa right after.
"Did he really say that?"
Shen Fa put down the teacup and straightened up in surprise to confirm.
Fang Ke clasped his fists and said, "Your Excellency, not a single word has been changed!"
Shen Fa slowly sat back in his chair, staring at the blue sky outside the window with unfocused eyes, feeling very surprised.
In his past interactions with Yang Ge, he knew that this was a talented person who was well-educated, sensible, and knew when to advance and retreat.
But Yang Ge was able to arrange the work and buy time in such a stable and orderly manner despite being forced to do so, which really gave him a big surprise!
He was originally worried that Yang Ge was young and soft-hearted, and had no experience in military service, and might not be able to suppress the murderous elements from the border troops, so he went to support him.
Now it seems that he was worrying too much...
In his heart, he pushed Yang Ge to be promoted to general flag as both an opportunity and a test for Yang Ge.
If Yang Ge took office, he would show off his power by relying on the power in his hands, or he would concentrate on honing the military strength of those killers.
No matter how high Yang Ge's martial arts talent is, he will only be a high-level fighter in the future...
"Someone come!"
Shen Fa suddenly spoke.
A young servant in green clothes quickly stepped inside and said, "Boss."
Shen Fa took out a token from his waist and said, "Take my handwritten order and quickly go to my office to get the sealed... Now, go directly to the Dingzi room of the Northern Pacification Office's case library and get a copy of the hundreds of patrol arrest files here and hand them over to General Yang Ge!"
Fang Ke, who was standing by with his head bowed, couldn't help but frown when he heard the three words "case library", and couldn't help but frown again when he heard the two words "hundred and ten".
After Shen Fa finished speaking, he mustered up the courage to clasp his fists and whisper, "Sir, will it be possible to go to the archives to get the files..."
Shen Fa waved his hand and said nonchalantly, "To do business, of course you need to invest money... Don't tell him that those files are from the archives. He won't accept them if you tell him!"
Fang Ke had no choice but to respond: "I obey your command."
Shen Fa leaned on the armchair, one hand supporting his chin, the other tapping the armrest, and whispered to himself: "Yang Ge, Yang Ge, how many surprises do you have waiting for me..."
…
"You won't believe it!"
Yang Ge sat on the steps of his small courtyard, gently stroking Little Yellow's head. He muttered to himself, not knowing whether to be happy or sad, "I still feel like I'm dreaming. Yesterday, my father and I were still worried about eating meat, and today, Dad has become an official..."
"Logically speaking, this should be considered a good thing, right?"
"But I always feel like I've taken the wrong path, and I'm getting further and further away..."
"What do you think, Xiao Huang?"
Xiao Huang raised his head and licked his cheek enthusiastically.
Yang Ge reluctantly pulled the dog's head away: "Okay, okay, I know you will always be with me!"
