Chapter 94: Following the Army on Horseback

  Xikang Dagu, situated in the northwest of the Chinese mainland, has a vast territory and a broad land. Its territory stretches from west to east across Xinjiang, Gansu, Qinghai, Ningxia, Shanxi, Shaanxi and other places, and even occupies a large area of Inner Mongolia in the north. From the current four-country form, if only considering the territorial area, it can be ranked first.

  However, the northwest is bitterly cold and the north has many deserts, so in terms of national strength, it is actually inferior to Dongqi, which has the smallest land area. The population is around 10 million, only one-tenth of the current population. For over a hundred years, the Western Chu imperial family had planned to expand eastward several times, but either they were suppressed by the joint efforts of the Three Kingdoms, or they were defeated by the Southern Chu and Dongqi, or they were ambushed by the powerful Northern Qin. As a result, in the past century, despite the bravery and martial prowess of the Western Chu imperial family, they have not achieved any success in their plan to expand eastward. On the contrary, due to years of war, they have consumed a great deal of national strength. Nowadays, even the Southern Xiongnu people, who are being pursued and attacked by Qin's flames from the north, dare to come to the throat of Western Chu's northern territory, the city of Flame Emperor, to show off their military prowess.

  Due to the sparse population, the recruitment of soldiers in Xiguan was not as strict as that in North Qin. As long as they had a residence permit and were recommended by local officials, they could join the army.

  The White Swallow County was just attacked by the Mu Lian people, and the entire family of the former Magistrate was killed. The new Magistrate is not aware of the situation. Under Qing Xia's sugar-coated cannonballs, he easily opened four letters of recommendation and sent A Mo Ye to be taken care of at his mother's house. Qing Xia also instructed the villagers to bring a message to Yang Feng when he arrived, then took three young men and went to the Great Camp of Yan Di City.

  As soon as they arrived at Yan Emperor City, several people were stunned by the spectacular scene of dense crowds at the city gate. There were at least tens of thousands of northern barbarians standing at the city gate, waiting for the selection of Xichuan. Qing Xia and others had traveled long distances to come here, thinking that with the recommendation letter, they would easily be selected, but looking at the situation now, it didn't seem so easy anymore.

  "Cough! Baby, why aren't you at home drinking milk? What are you doing here?" A group of rough and boorish men suddenly shouted loudly. Ke Duo's brow furrowed, about to rush forward, when Qing Xia abruptly stretched out a hand to stop him, not saying a word, only casting them a sidelong glance with a faintly disdainful and contemptuous expression.

  That group of sturdy men suddenly became furious, this group of people had nothing to do after eating their fill, and were originally troublemakers who would stir up trouble even when there was none. At this moment, seeing that neither male nor female youngster looking down on themselves, how could they still hold back? Just as they were about to go forward to teach him a lesson and show off, suddenly outside the city gate, a sharp bell rang out, and everyone turned their heads in unison, only to see a twenty-something silver-armored general walking from the high castle tower, wearing a sword, draped in a large red cloak, standing majestically on top of the castle.

  "If I can be as majestic as him one day, that would be great." Bambur gazed at the castle in a daze, daydreaming about the day he would ascend to a high position.

  Qing Xia furrowed her brow slightly and thought to herself, "Is this really Yan Hui? Why is it a bit different from what people outside say?"

  "Excuse me, sir," Xilin Chen, with his keen senses and sharp intuition, noticed Qing Xia's furrowed brow and pulled on the arm of a burly man standing nearby who looked somewhat friendly. He asked in a low voice, "Sir, is the general upstairs General Yan Huiyan, the Pacifying General of Western Chu?"

  That tall man saw Xi Lin Chen's humble and polite demeanor, and hastily replied in a low voice: "No, General Yan would not personally come to the Flame Emperor City to select soldiers. This time, it is Shi Xing, the eldest son of the Shi family from Wenhua City, who has come. If we are selected, our army will become the Shi family's army from now on."

  "What? Isn't it the Yan family's army?" Nakudo was taken aback, asking in a low voice, with a hint of discontent and regret.

  That big Han smiled and said, "At a glance, you are outsiders. In the past few years, the Western Sichuan recruitment has been dominated by the Yan family army, but the Yan family army has always claimed to be invincible with 10,000 people. How could they easily select barbarians like you into the army?"

  "Isn't this a deception?" Bambur thought to himself, eager to join the regular army of Xichuan and go into battle to make achievements and avenge his mother.

  That big Han saw that these children were only fourteen or fifteen years old, and smiled: "How can it be considered cheating? General Yan is the Town General of Western Sichuan and also the Grand Marshal of the Army, the entire Western Sichuan army can also be called the Yan Family Army."

  Bamboo and Na Ke Duo looked dejected, looking very disappointed. Qing Xia heard a few people talking and couldn't help but turn her head to look at this rough-looking man, only to feel that his words were elegant and didn't seem like a barbarian. The man saw Qing Xia staring at him, smiled and bowed to Qing Xia, saying: "I'm Meng Tinglu, this young brother has good eyes, I'm not a barbarian."

  Qing Xia saw that he hadn't spoken yet, but he already knew what was on his mind. Indeed, it wasn't simple. Smiling, he nodded and said: "Xia Qing!"

  At this time, the man on the city tower began to mobilize before the war. Qing Xia saw that he was eloquent and spirited, and unexpectedly felt a few points of joy. The Xichuan imperial family sent such a person as the commander, so this time the emperor's city recruited soldiers, it will not have any big actions, at most it is just doing some escorting grain and opening roads for transportation. This is more in line with her wishes, if she can make these two children give up their desire for revenge earlier, it would be even better.

  Although Qing Xia is not a person who holds grudges, she always starts from reality when dealing with people and things. In this world, using one's own strength to fight against a country will never have a good outcome. The Mu Lian Department is a branch of the Xiongnu people, and for many years, under the joint siege of Chun Jun and Xi Chuan, they still lived comfortably like fish in water. How could two young children who had just left their hometown possibly deal with them? Letting them train in the military camp would be good, so that they can understand human emotions and worldly affairs earlier, and realize how unrealistic their own thoughts are, and also live a more peaceful life earlier. She owed a great debt of gratitude to Mu Yi Hua's family, and no matter how arrogant and selfish Xue Da Lie was, he would leave home to join the army because of his own reasons. Emotionally and rationally, she couldn't let Ban Bu Er and Na Ke Duo be reckless, so she once again stepped into this chaotic war situation, hoping that this time, everything would go smoothly and peacefully.

  After the mobilization meeting, it was time to start selecting. Four people recommended books, with a clean and simple personal history, young age, and Xilin Chen also learned medical skills, so they were easily selected.

  Received name tags, entered military registration, several people were assigned to form a group with six others and asked to elect a squad leader on their own, and report it up.

  Bamboo and others were thinking of choosing Qing Xia, but when they arrived at the designated location, they found that they had been assigned to the same group as those big men from before. Those people took one look at the new recruits and started shouting loudly. Because in wartime, a team is a single combat unit, with shared rewards and punishments, Qing Xia and the others were young, except for Ke Duo who looked strong, the other three looked thin and weak, so naturally those people didn't want them.

  Shouted a few words, was scolded by Da Wu Chang for a few words, and didn't speak again, but the eyes looking at Qing Xia and others were full of ferocity.

  Bamboo and Na Ke glared at each other, Xilin Chen seemed to be unaware, slightly tilting his head, also didn't know what he was thinking about. Qing Xia closed her eyes to rest, not even looking at those big men. In a short while, it was time to distribute the military uniforms.

  Received their own military uniforms and weapons, they came to the designated barracks to rest. The ten of them were divided into three barracks, when Qing Xia and a few others arrived, the other six people had already taken over two rooms each, occupying all of them.

  His eyes were bloodshot, his chest heaving with rage, a look that could kill. Qing Xia patted him on the shoulder and nodded at Xi Lin Chen before walking in alone.

  Among the three, she was slightly more at ease with Xilin Chen. Ke Duo was too aggressive and lacked wisdom, a typical impulsive fool who didn't have much to offer, so he could be ignored. Banbul was clever but would panic when faced with big things and liked to follow the crowd, which made him a loser in the military camp. Only Xilin Chen, although it was impossible to tell what he was thinking about all day, was definitely not a simple person, just like how he followed along this time to join the army, he was someone whose depth couldn't be fathomed.

  Three people stood at the door, pricking up their ears to eavesdrop on the sounds inside. However, after a long time, there was no movement inside, and just as Keduo couldn't hold back any longer, he suddenly heard a muffled thud, followed by military uniforms and armor being thrown out one after another. Then came weapons and luggage, mixed with several men's muffled groans and cries. Keduo was anxious to open the curtain for fear that Qing Xia would be at a disadvantage. Suddenly, a black shadow was flung out, landing on the ground with a thud, raising a large cloud of dust. Before everyone could see clearly what it was, another figure was thrown out, crashing into the crowd that had gathered to watch.

  Two men over seven feet tall were beaten until their faces were bruised and swollen, with blood all over their faces, and they crawled up from the ground with pitiful cries.

  With a rustling sound, the curtain was lifted by someone, and Qing Xia walked out without looking back, entering another tent. Another muffled thud followed, accompanied by the ejection of two burly men with similar fates. Qing Xia said to Banbur and Nakduo: "You guys go live in that tent, I'll live in this one with Xilin." Then, as if nothing had happened, he patted his hands, lowered his head, and walked inside.

  Bamboo and the others were stunned, never having thought that the gentle and warm Qing Xia would be so fierce. The people around them saw that such a small person had such abilities and were amazed. In less than an afternoon, the news of a small soldier in the Flame Emperor's military camp taking down four large men with his bare hands spread throughout the entire camp. Qing Xia also became the first junior officer to be promoted through combat achievements.

  In the army, how to live, Qing Xia naturally understood more deeply than others. They were young and had just arrived at the camp, so they couldn't avoid being bullied by others. Only by using thunderous methods to intimidate these people could they avoid future harassment. At this moment, she sat on the felt of the tent, lightly sharpening her sharp dagger, listening to Bamur and Nakdu's endless complaints, thinking that if it was always like this in the army, it wasn't so bad after all.

  "It's too much! We joined the army to fight and kill, but instead we're being treated like ordinary laborers, escorting grain and fodder. What a waste of our talents!" Bambur said angrily. Xilin Chen quickly brewed a pot of strong tea from the leaves he carried with him and handed it to Nakudo with a smile. Seeing Nakudo hastily shake his head like a rattle drum, Xilin Chen laughed and drank the tea himself.

  "Xia Qing, what are you calculating?" Once in the military camp, Jing Ma Agu could no longer be called, and when Xia Qing was looking for Yang Feng in Baiying County, she had to use the name Xia Qing. They thought this was Xia Qing's real name, so they continued to call her that way.

  Qing Xia drew a diagram on the ground with his dagger and said, "I'm calculating how much food a soldier needs per day, how much food 200,000 troops stationed at Bailing Plain need per day. If the army runs out of food, how many days can the remaining food last? How many days will it take for the army to mutiny? What scale will the mutiny be? What kind of loss will the country suffer? We have 10,000 soldiers transporting grain and fodder, and we need to escort the carriages. How long will our convoy be on the main road? If the enemy wants to ambush us, how many people do they need to send to succeed?"

  "Xia Qing, how could you help the enemy with their calculations?" Na Ke Duo frowned and said in a deep voice.

  Qing Xia smiled faintly and said, "Since we're idle with nothing to do, let's just play around."

  "Oh!" Bambur suddenly shouted, pointing at Qing Xia and saying: "I told you, you're changing your tune, this grain transport is no trivial matter, it's a big deal, someone might come to intercept us, let's be careful and guard against it!"

  Qing Xia laughed and scolded: "Look at your lazy appearance, you've learned a few four-character idioms and can't wait to use them in every sentence."

  Bamboo scratched his head and smiled wryly.

  "Is Xia Qing here?" A loud, gong-like shout suddenly came from outside the door. Ke Duo lifted the curtain and stuck his head out, shouting loudly: "What's going on? He is!"

  The man outside said: "General will check the number of people soon, and then we'll be on our way. Hurry up and pack your things."

  Qing Xia's eyebrows rose slightly as she thought to herself, "Originally, we were supposed to set out tomorrow, but it's already so late today. It seems that this journey won't be too peaceful after all."

  She suddenly turned her head and looked at Xilin Chen, who was sitting on the mat with a leisurely expression, and said in a low voice: "This time, the four countries' hunting meeting is set up on the White Deer Plain in Xichuan. Many old generals from Nanchu have returned. Aren't you afraid of running into familiar people and exposing your identity?"

  Xilin Chen slightly turned his head and looked at Qing Xia with a faint smile, saying: "Chu Li will also go, aren't you afraid of being discovered by him, Summer Qing?"

  Qing Xia's eyebrows rose, and she gazed at Xi Lin Chen with a sharp gaze. Xi Lin Chen calmly finished his last sip of tea and said indifferently: "I don't know Lin Mu Bai, that painting was something I picked up from the bedside in the central military camp when I escaped that night."

  Having said that, he turned around and began to tidy up his belongings.

  Qing Xia was taken aback for a moment, how could she have forgotten that apart from Lin Mu Bai, Chu Li also had one.

  Outside, life is in turmoil, on the White Deer Plain, smoke and flames are rising, an invisible great war is about to unfold.