Chapter 29: No Battle-Dress

On the other side, seeing that the nine squads ahead had all finished marching, Hei Fu grinned and said, "Look, those fellows are far beneath us."

"Indeed."

"Without comparing, we'd never have known we could march this well."

Everyone deeply agreed. Without these past several days of grueling training day and night, they truly would never have known that a formation could be made to look like this! With that, the group gained a few more degrees of confidence.

Just then, Centurion Chen on the earthen platform waved his banner — it was Squad Gui's turn to take the field.

"Whatever you do, don't panic. Just do it the way we trained every day…"

Holding the bamboo pole high as a marker, Hei Fu spoke softly to the men behind him. He could see their nervousness. Even though they had taken part in similar grand reviews in the past, those had all been just going through the motions. This time, they were charging straight for the top prize, so their mindset was completely different.

"I'm not panicked. I just need to fart but don't dare let one go. It wouldn't be good if the two County Lieutenants heard it…"

Ji Ying's muttering came from the back. That guy was a real character; a single sentence had everyone struggling not to burst out laughing, and their nervous tension vanished without a trace.

Suppressing their laughter, the group began marching in place to Hei Fu's rhythm. After straightening the formation, they slowly advanced forward…

The steady pat-pat-pat of their unified steps was unbroken. The earthen platform where the two County Lieutenants sat drew closer and closer, so close they could clearly make out the faces of the people on it.

Centurion Bin's face was full of shock. Over the past few days, he had been absent on official business and had not witnessed Squad Gui's subtle, gradual progress. Now, suddenly seeing this formation marching toward him with uniform steps, his eyes were filled with disbelief. And the words he had spoken to Hei Fu that day still rang in his ears.

"If Squad Gui can take first place, then right here on this drill ground, I'll do three hundred forward long-jumps and three hundred upward high-jumps!"

As things looked now, that scenario really might come to pass!

"This is bad…" Centurion Bin clenched his teeth, staring fixedly at Hei Fu, at Squad Gui, wanting to pick out every single mistake they made!

And yet, although the men of Squad Gui were so nervous their hands and feet had gone numb, Hei Fu's training these past days, and the rod blows Dongmen Bao had dealt them, made everyone accurately swing their left and right feet, arms swinging naturally forward and back, marching in lockstep with rigid precision.

Only when they reached the front of the earthen platform, after Hei Fu bellowed a loud "Halt!", did they plant the left foot a half-step forward, both legs straight, the right foot swiftly drawing in beside the left, slamming together with a heavy thud, producing a crisp, unified stomp…

"Right face!"

Hei Fu, bamboo pole in hand, was the first to execute a standard right-face turn. Glancing sideways, he saw that although every man was so tense his face was red and his neck bulging, no one had fallen out of line, and no one had turned the wrong way.

"The hardest hurdle is cleared…"

He let out a long breath, then continued shouting commands, having the men perform the "sit and rise" and "advance and retreat" maneuvers right in front of the two County Lieutenants and the centurions on the platform. Although Centurion Bin up on the platform had his eyes bulging wide, not a single man in Squad Gui made a mistake.

Centurion Bin was burning with impatience, and the face of Left County Lieutenant Yun Man, who knew the inside story, was growing darker and darker. But in the eyes of Right County Lieutenant Du Xian, Squad Gui's performance truly left him marveling in amazement!

From the moment Squad Gui marched forward in unison, Du Xian had sensed it — this squad was different from any unit that had come before. Uniform and orderly, they marched up in crisp formation and halted in crisp formation. Compared to the nine squads before them with their chaotic, messy footwork, this was a feast for the eyes. One had to understand that, whether in practical matters or aesthetics, the people of Qin had a particular fondness for regularity and precision.

Especially the squad leader at the head, Hei Fu — a big fellow, head held high, his bearing, his confidence, completely unmatched by the conscripted soldiers and county soldiers present. He could only be compared to the "Sharp Warriors," the elite troops of the Qin army, that Du Xian had seen back in the Guanzhong heartland!

"I never imagined that in Anlu County, among the conscripted soldiers under my command, there would be such a figure!"

Before Du Xian could finish his exclamation, Squad Gui had already completed all the maneuvers. With a shout of "Rise!" from Hei Fu, they stood up in unison from their crouching posture. Whether it was Mu, the tallest of them, or Zhi, the shortest; whether it was the fierce-looking Squad Leader Dongmen Bao or the most bashful Little Tao; even Uncle Chao, who had gone through who knows how many terms of corvée service — every one of them raised his head and puffed out his chest, standing straight as a green pine!

By regulation, Hei Fu should have led the men in a left turn and marched off at this point. But unexpectedly, Hei Fu shouted again: "Battle cry!"

Before the men on the platform could react, the men of Squad Gui put their hands behind their backs and roared out in unison:

"Who says we have no battle-dress? We share your robe and gown. The king is raising his host; I shall sharpen my spear and blade!"

…

"Who says we have no battle-dress? We share your robe and gown…"

Squad Gui had already finished their drill demonstration and departed, leaving behind only a field of footprints. But Right County Lieutenant Du Xian still murmured this verse to himself, and said with emotion, "This 'No Battle-Dress' song, shouted in the Chu accent, truly has a flavor different from that of the Guanzhong and Longshang regions."

Although as early as Lord Shang's reforms, they had "burned the Songs and Documents to make the laws clear," that book-burning had little impact. By the time of King Huiwen of Qin, many Qin noble houses kept copies of the Songs and Documents; it was just that the authorities did not encourage it.

Moreover, though Qin banned the Songs and Documents, the "Airs of Qin" was the sole exception, for these were originally folk songs of the Qin lands from the Spring and Autumn period. That song "No Battle-Dress" in particular had been sung across the lands of Yong Province for centuries. Because of its bold, stirring melody, it had practically become a military anthem of Qin. As for that line "Valiant Qin, together we face the nation's peril" — that was merely later generations adding superfluous touches, taking the already vigorous and spirited Qin air and injecting a dose of melodrama. In truth, it never existed at all.

As a result, Right Lieutenant Du Xian's impression of Squad Gui grew even more favorable. Not only was their formation orderly, reaching the standard of county soldiers… No, they had far surpassed county soldiers. Probably only the Commandery soldiers of Nan Commandery garrisoned at Jiangling City could compare.

With this, Right Lieutenant Du Xian became increasingly curious about Squad Gui's squad leader, Hei Fu, and immediately ordered Centurion Chen to summon the man over.

"Gongshi Hei Fu pays his respects to the County Lieutenants." Hei Fu hurried over and stood below the earthen platform, bowing with clasped hands respectfully toward the Right and Left County Lieutenants.

Left Lieutenant Yun Man wore an unpleasant expression. Right Lieutenant Du Xian, however, broke into a smile and said with admiration, "What a fine warrior! Come up onto the platform and speak!"

Once Hei Fu stood before them, Du Xian asked with a genial smile how old he was, where he was from, and how he had managed to train Squad Gui so excellently…

Hei Fu trotted out his convenient late father as usual, saying all his skills had been passed down from him. But when the Right Lieutenant asked how a rural commoner household from Nan Commandery knew the song "No Battle-Dress," Hei Fu shifted the credit onto Centurion Chen.

"This was taught by Centurion Chen. That Squad Gui has achieved today's performance is also no credit of this humble man, but rather the result of Centurion Chen's effective guidance!"

"Is that so?" Right Lieutenant Du Xian looked toward Centurion Chen.

Centurion Chen was momentarily stunned, but then he caught on — Hei Fu was claiming credit on his behalf!

By regulation, if the training of the conscripted soldiers satisfied the County Lieutenant, the officer in charge of training, Centurion Chen, would be "granted three xun" — that is, rewarded with thirty days of service merit. This was recorded in every Qin official's merit ledger; once enough service merit was accumulated, there was a chance for promotion. Although the performance of the earlier squads today had been unsatisfactory, Squad Gui's single run-through had completely turned the situation around. Seeing that the Right Lieutenant was full of praise for today's grand review, why not accept this credit and enjoy the benefit?

So Centurion Chen cautiously acknowledged the claim: "I venture to inform the County Lieutenant: whenever Hei Fu encountered something he did not understand, he often came to consult me. This song 'No Battle-Dress'… was indeed taught to him by this subordinate official!" After speaking, Centurion Chen glanced at Hei Fu and gave him a slight nod. This lad was decent, knowing to share credit with his superior officer.

"Good, excellent!"

Right Lieutenant Du Xian had no further doubts. Slapping his thigh, he said, "This ten-day drill review, all you gentlemen have seen with your own eyes. Who excelled and who was inferior needs no words from me…"

He paused and turned his gaze to Left Lieutenant Yun Man, smiling. "What does the Left Lieutenant think?"

"The Right Lieutenant shall decide." Yun Man wore a smiling face outwardly, but inwardly he was cursing up a storm.

"I never thought that today, that rustic village brat Hei Fu would make a name for himself!"

But the Left Lieutenant was a cautious man. Although he deeply hated Hei Fu because of the case involving his nephew, the Chief of Huyang Village, he also knew that since the county's chief military officer, the Right Lieutenant, had already made the decision, it was truly not worth openly clashing with him in public over this matter…

"Hahaha, since the Left Lieutenant also has no objection, then for today's grand review, Squad Gui is first…"

"Right Lieutenant, wait!"

However, there was someone who could not read the room, and blundered forward, interrupting the Right Lieutenant's words.

Right Lieutenant Du Xian's expression instantly stiffened. He swept his gaze over — the speaker was none other than Centurion Bin!

Centurion Bin was unwilling to fulfill his promise and become the laughingstock of the entire county. He had been staring intently the whole time, hoping Squad Gui would make a mistake. Unfortunately, Hei Fu had given him no opening. It was only now that Centurion Bin had finally found a fault to pick!

He did not notice the Right Lieutenant's irritated expression, nor the Left Lieutenant's warning glances, and even less the knowing smile exchanged between Hei Fu and Centurion Chen. He rashly stepped forward, pointed at Squad Gui, and declared excitedly:

"It has always been the rule in military formations that the older men go in front and the younger men in the rear. Gongshi Hei Fu, you dared to swap them at will — you've got some nerve!"

(End of chapter)