Chapter 1546: Father and Son, Different

"Salute!"

At the command, the thunderous drumbeats of the military band erupted, and the soldiers, led by their officers, shouted in unison.

"Long live the Emperor, ten thousand years, ten thousand ten-thousand years! Long live the Crown Prince, a thousand years, a thousand thousand years!"

The simultaneous cry of several thousand people merged into a trickling stream, then shot straight into the clouds, as if heaven and earth themselves trembled at the sound.

After this shout subsided, Chen Sheng waved his hand again.

"Liaodong Army, total victory!" With another shout, the soldiers raised their spears and muskets high; the forest of gleaming spear-tips flashed a chilling, intimidating light, and then the weapons were withdrawn once more, as if nothing had happened at all.

A force of several thousand men, following the commands of Chen Sheng and the officers at every level, moved with absolute discipline — like an arm directing its fingers. Though this was an inspection, the bloody aura of slaughter still surged forth to meet them.

"So this is what they mean by battle-hardened elite troops?" the Crown Prince thought to himself.

He had often visited his imperial father's military camps and seen plenty of Imperial Guard formations. But while he had witnessed the neat, well-drilled ranks of the Imperial Guard, he had never seen in them the fierce, valorous spirit these soldiers carried.

Seeing it today, he — who had always studied in the academy and rarely witnessed such martial displays — found his legs trembling slightly.

Looking out, row after row of soldiers were all watching him, their faces, whether simple or resolute, filled with fervent reverence.

This fervor and reverence, he knew well, was not directed solely at him. The man these soldiers revered as a god was his father, that peerless hero of the age. He suddenly felt immensely proud to have such a father.

If only to avoid tarnishing his father's mighty name, he must be a worthy Crown Prince of the Great Han, never relaxing for a single moment.

With this thought, he expended tremendous effort to overcome the fear welling up inside him and stood ramrod straight.

At that moment, under the watchful eyes of the entire army, Marshal Chen Sheng, Duke of Ji, bowed deeply. "Your Highness the Crown Prince, the Third Brigade of the Liaodong Army is fully assembled and awaits your inspection!"

"Marshal, you have labored." The Crown Prince helped the Marshal up, then raised his head and looked toward the soldiers standing in solemn readiness.

He wanted to say something to these soldiers, but suddenly his mind went completely blank. He could not utter a word.

"Soldiers, you have worked hard! The Great Han is proud of you!" He, who normally prided himself on his quick wit, could only manage such a bland, unremarkable remark after struggling for a while.

Yet this encouragement was enough to send the soldiers close enough to hear him into ecstasy. Under their officers' strict orders, they could not salute, so they could only respond to the Crown Prince with a thunderous shout. "We thank Your Highness the Crown Prince!"

The soldiers farther away could not hear the Crown Prince's words clearly, but when those near him shouted, they joined in, the cry spreading like a wave. "We thank Your Highness the Crown Prince!" rose and fell in succession, once again surging into the clouds.

Accompanied by the Marshal, the Crown Prince walked along the military formation, inspecting the soldiers' ranks. Each time he passed a unit, an officer from the Third Brigade would introduce which unit of the brigade it belonged to and recount its heroic battle achievements. Each time, he would slow his steps slightly, patiently observing the soldiers' formations and equipment. Had the inspection time not been limited, he would have liked to stop and speak with these soldiers.

But time was limited after all, so he could only make a cursory tour, admiring the polished, gleaming weapons and the spirited, high-morale horses as he slowly walked forward.

The formation of several thousand men seemed very long, stretching as if to the horizon, but even the longest road has an end. Led by Chen Sheng and a group of officers, the Crown Prince finally reached the end of the formation.

Here, too, stood a formation, but its composition was very strange. Judging by the insignia on their uniforms, there were high-ranking battalion and regiment commanders, ordinary low-ranking officers, and even common soldiers mixed in. And Zhao Song, the previous brigade commander of the Third Brigade, stood conspicuously as the last man, dressed in a brand-new uniform, standing tall and proud within the ranks.

The Great Han army placed the utmost emphasis on discipline and hierarchy, and such a motley formation would not normally appear. But today's arrangement had a reason — these were all soldiers who had recently performed meritorious deeds, and today the Crown Prince would personally award them their medals, as the final part of the inspection.

The Crown Prince stopped and walked up to this formation.

The first person he approached was a soldier. This soldier was very slight of build and looked very young. He was about the same height as the Crown Prince, a mere youth himself, with dark skin and hands covered in rough calluses. When the Crown Prince walked up to him, though he forced himself to stand straight, his body trembled slightly. He was clearly agitated to the extreme, as if still unaccustomed to being the focus of the entire army's attention.

This soldier, who looked so frail, had actually performed an exceptional deed of valor and was to be decorated by him? Was there some mistake? A flicker of doubt passed through the Crown Prince's mind.

"This is Liao Xiaoshuan of the 25th Battalion, 8th Regiment. Two months ago, he and his company comrades went to the Khorchin tribe to mop up Mongol remnants. During the pursuit, he and several comrades became separated from the main force. The others either suffered frostbite or other injuries. He, alone with his gun, dug himself in and held his ground, stubbornly defending the position for two days and two nights under the enemy's siege, saving the lives of his comrades. After returning, the brigade evaluated the merits and decided, in recognition of his bravery, to award him the First-Class Sunflower Medal and promote him to Squad Leader."

The Crown Prince knew that in the Great Han army, the Sunflower Medal was made of iron and divided into three grades, specifically awarded to low-ranking squad leaders and soldiers who fought on the front lines, to commend exceptional bravery in battle.

The First-Class Sunflower Medal was the highest grade and was not lightly awarded. That his brigade had decided, after discussion, to award it to him showed how bravely he had fought and how perilous the difficulties he had overcome were.

Incredible! The Crown Prince's earlier doubts were instantly swept away, his heart filled with admiration for this soldier.

"Squad Leader Liao... truly a young hero! Fighting desperately, protecting your comrades, shedding blood and sweat for the nation," the Crown Prince said, looking at the soldier with heartfelt praise. "Keep up the good work!"

As he spoke, someone beside him handed over a tray, upon which lay a gleaming iron medal in the shape of a sunflower.

However, being praised so by the Crown Prince, this soldier did not appear all that excited. Instead, he trembled even more violently, as if he felt he did not deserve such a great honor.

"Your Highness... I... I didn't think about all that back then. I only thought I couldn't let my brothers fall into the Mongols' hands... I didn't think about anything else." He dared not look at the Crown Prince, appearing extremely ill at ease. "When it was coldest and I was most exhausted, I... I also thought about running, or surrendering, thought about just giving up... But when I thought that my brothers might be killed by them if I surrendered, so... so in the end, I gritted my teeth and endured! In the end... in the end, I felt I couldn't hold on anymore. If... if... I'd been besieged for one more day, I... I might have run..."

As he spoke, a tearful note crept into his voice.

"Liao Xiaoshuan, what are you saying?" This candid confession shocked not only the Crown Prince but also made the nearby officers' faces change drastically. "What are you saying this for, in front of His Highness!"

In the officers' view, awarding him the medal was the brigade's decision. Whether it was appropriate or not, once decided, it was appropriate. But for him to expose his own shortcomings in front of the Crown Prince, saying he was unworthy of the award — was this not bringing shame upon the entire brigade?

The others waiting to be decorated also stirred restlessly. They had never imagined someone would tell the Crown Prince at a time like this that he had thought of running and was unworthy of the medal.

"I didn't want to say it at first. I wanted to just take the honor back home and wait for my land grant..." Under his superior's harsh scolding, Liao Xiaoshuan burst into tears. "But... I was truly afraid in my heart, afraid of deceiving Heaven! The Emperor gave the realm peace, gave my family food to eat — that is a debt of gratitude as vast as the sky. And now His Highness the Crown Prince has come personally to award us medals... I... I can't go against my conscience and let His Highness's goodwill be tarnished, or let the other men's medals be tarnished! I thought about it all day. I wanted to just keep it hidden, but I couldn't go against my heart. Now I've finally mustered the courage. Do whatever you want with me — I won't utter a single word of complaint! Your Highness... I... I have let you down! Let the Emperor down!"

As he spoke, he could not hold back his loud sobs, filled with both guilt and fear.

The Crown Prince was utterly stunned by this scene and for a moment did not know what to do.

He turned his head and looked at the officer accompanying him.

"Your Highness... he... he... My apologies!" The unexpected turn of events made sweat bead on the officer's forehead. "We'll take him back first and question him properly. Your Highness, please proceed with decorating the others."

Then, the officer waved his hand, signaling soldiers to take him away.

Just as the soldiers reached Liao Xiaoshuan's side, the Crown Prince finally came back to his senses.

"Stop! Don't take him away!"

"Your Highness?" The officer was somewhat baffled.

"Don't take him away. I will award him his medal. He shall still receive what he has earned." The Crown Prince said sternly.

"This..." The officer hesitated.

"When protecting one's comrades and fighting the enemy to the death, what one thinks in one's heart is unimportant. What matters is that one persevered and did it. He resisted alone for two days and two nights — that is already exceptionally rare and commendable. If we don't honor this, then whom do we honor?" The Crown Prince stated his reasoning. "Besides, in such circumstances, how many people would not be afraid, would not waver? That he dares to speak the truth is better than anything. Many people speak far more beautifully, but when it comes down to it, they might not measure up to him."