Chapter 536: Old Qian has his own way of training troops

Chen Wuji wrote a very long letter and sent someone by express horse to Guangyuan Prefecture.

He couldn't figure out this matter, couldn't ask anyone else, so he could only ask Xu Zengyi.

After sending the letter, Chen Wuji collected the blank imperial edict sent by the Emperor, as well as the seals of the previous heads of Nan Jun's military and political affairs, and put them all away.

His subordinates had just gone through a round of rewards, and the new posts for Qin Feng, Cheng Zhiheng, and others were being drafted; there was no need to bring these out at this time.

Let's wait for the next round.

Or wait until they take over Qingzhou, then these things will truly deserve their names at that time.

When the time comes to bring them out, everyone up and down will be imperially appointed.

Whether to speak or not, this face-saving business has been completely taken care of.

In the afternoon, Chen Wuji went to the military camp outside the city to connect with the soldiers.

By the way, he also tested the current abilities of Qian Fugui's and Chen Baojia's two units.

As the saying goes, the quality of the troops reflects the quality of their commander.

Qian Fugui's forces still consist mainly of the original Tianchi Pass militia under Wu Bu Yong and Qian Yong's units, which remain the most elite; although they have suffered losses and been replenished several times, these two units have long exceeded a thousand men, but their overall spirit remains as it was back then.

This force is practically a carbon copy of Qian Fugui himself.

Every single one is a vanguard.

Even in friendly sparring drills, they all rush to be first, going all out as if trying to kill each other.

They don't value their own lives, and they treat others' lives as worthless.

Seeing that formation gave Chen Wuji a creepy feeling on his scalp.

The drill caused hundreds of casualties—this is pretty brutal, damn it.

"Fugui, during the drill, still have your men hold back a bit—look at those new recruits' faces, green and white; don't let them all desert after today's drill," Chen Wuji shouted.

"Yes!"

Qian Fugui instantly stood ramrod straight, shouted at the top of his lungs, then strode down from the viewing platform, mounted his horse and circled the drill field, bellowing: "You all damn well watch your strikes—this is a drill; if you maim or kill someone, I won't cover medical costs, nor care about your wives and children!"

"Anyone who dares to strike without restraint, I'll seize his wife and children and take his land! This is a drill, a drill—do you understand?"

Chen Wuji: …

Damn it!

The troops under Wu Bu Yong, who were locked in combat with Yang Tiejiang's forces on the drill field, instantly ceased fighting, their faces fierce as they shouted at the opposite side: "Surrender and you won't be killed; otherwise we'll beat you to death or cripple you, seize your wives and children, and take your land!"

Chen Wuji:???

Wait, did he just miss something?

What Qian Fugui just reminded them of seemed to be the drill, right?!

Provoked by Wu Bu Yong's troops, a regiment of Yang Tiejiang's soldiers instantly flared up.

"Damn it, kill one and it's worth a laborer, kill a pair and it's worth a commandant—get killing!"

"Damn it!"

The two forces collided violently on the drill field.

Before Qian Fugui shouted, they were fighting fiercely but still observing some form.

But now there is no form at all, just pure reckless bravery.

Fortunately they were wielding wooden sticks; if they had real swords and spears, today likely hundreds would have died.

"Qian Fugui, get over here!" Chen Wuji roared angrily.

"I'm here, sir!"

"What's going on?"

"Reporting, my lord, when narrow paths meet, the brave prevail; I fear no death, and it will be others who die!"

"This is a drill!"

"My lord, I shouted, it's a drill."

"Then why are they fighting even more fiercely?"

"The other side refuses to surrender!"

Chen Wuji: …

Damn it!

Qian Fugui's argument was so sound that Chen Wuji couldn't think of a rebuttal for a moment.

Not being able to rebut was fine, but he actually couldn't figure out how to solve this problem for a moment, as if he'd fallen into a paradox.

Is it wrong for the troops to be fearless of death?

No!

Since the enemy refuses to surrender, the troops become even more fearless of death—is that wrong?

Even more not wrong!

Is it wrong for Yang Tiejiang's regiment to refuse to surrender?

That certainly isn't wrong either.

Then who is at fault?

Chen Wuji rubbed his temples, really wanting to say, "Alright, it's my fault."

"The drill should stop at the point of contact; whoever causes casualties, I'll clean up from top to bottom!" Helpless, Chen Wuji simply unleashed his ultimate move: "You lot carry out this routine, and then don't blame me for exercising final authority."

Qian Fugui glared, his blood surging as he shouted a reply, but standing at the edge of the viewing platform, he bellowed: "By the lord's order, whoever causes casualties will be dealt with from top to bottom—steady your hands, don't go all out, don't risk your lives!"

The soldiers were howling, already locked in combat.

Whether Qian Fugui's shouting was heard by them, nobody knows.

This drill was so brutal that the onlooking new recruits turned even paler.

These Soldiers are those who have newly entered the Lìng about a month ago; their backgrounds differ, and the only common point is probably their battlefield experience.

They are a bunch of fledglings who have never experienced life-and-death battles.

It would be odd not to be frightened facing a life-and-death battle with a group of old birds.

After two ke, the bell tower sounded the gong, and this Martial Drill ended.

What made Chen Wuji slightly relieved was that no one died.

But many were wounded; when leaving the field, almost one in ten was so injured they could not walk and needed to be carried down.

"The Soldiers are trained quite well, but it's like they're missing a screw in their heads!" Chen Wuji said to Qian Fugui, quite speechless.

He couldn't say that Qian Fugui had trained the Soldiers poorly.

Such fearless Soldiers are rare.

Fostering such an aura that influences the whole army is even rarer; one more step and it could become the army's spirit.

Qian Fugui managed to train his subordinates to this extent in such a short half year; Chen Wuji couldn't help but admire.

This kid shows off on the outside, but inside he really has something.

What happened on the Martial Drill field should not affect his overall judgment of Qian Fugui and this unit.

Punishing them for these things would be putting the cart before the horse.

Since we can't punish, let's reward them.

Reward both sides.

Thus, everyone's morale evens out.

Chen Wuji stepped down from the Observation Platform and first checked on the condition of the wounded.

Fortunately both sides were wielding wooden sticks; if they had been real knives and guns, Yang Tiejiang's brigade Bīngmǎ would likely have suffered more than half casualties.

Lao Yang isn't here; his subordinates took quite a beating, and they're pretty tough.

"Any complaints?" Chen Wuji asked Zhao Erhei, the Brigade Commander.

Zhao Erhei firmly shook his head, "Reporting to my lord, our skills are inferior, we have no complaints; we fought with all our might, we just lost. It's no big deal if the soldiers broke a few bones; the blood and tears shed on the Martial Drill field are to avoid blood and tears on the battlefield."

Chen Wuji nodded, "All good; later each will receive five hundred wen and get two days off."

"Thank you, my lord, for the reward!"

Qian Fugui walked over with an embarrassed look, "My lord, the losers get a reward; shouldn't the winners get something too… otherwise it seems a bit hard to justify."

"Seven hundred wen each, three days off, get lost!" Chen Wuji shouted.

"Yes, your humble servant will scram!"