Chapter Thirty: It is glorious to be a soldier, shameful to be a deserter

  Everyone in the tent was stunned, and only then did they realize that they were no longer ordinary civilians, but had boarded Xu Wei's pirate ship. After twenty military rods were administered, there was not a single sound outside, and the officers inside the tent could imagine that nearly five hundred soldiers must have been frozen in silence like cicadas in winter. Perhaps many people began to regret coming to join this commotion.

  A moment later, Yang Yan, dressed in military uniform, stepped into the tent. This guy couldn't hold back his nature and had already picked up a few things from the pile of rags to wear on his body, holding a broken gun rod, with not a single thread out of place, his face expressionless. After reporting what had just happened to Xu Wei, he sat upright, eyes fixed straight ahead. Looking at him like this, no one dared to greet him, because there was only one outcome - this guy would definitely say "Be serious! We're soldiers!"

  "Alright, brothers! The Jingwei battalion is formed and all officers have been appointed. I don't want to waste words, let's see the real skills on the battlefield. Headquarters has informed us that those bandits we chased away a few days ago have regrouped and are hiding in Baimagou, raiding villages. Tomorrow morning, after a full meal, the whole battalion will set out for battle." Xu Wei stood up and said seriously.

  What! Didn't we just form our team today? We haven't even trained yet, and now we have to go into battle? The tent is in a mess, and with a force of less than 500 men, you want to send us out to fight already? Isn't this a bit too rushed?

  "The troops are untrained, no different from ordinary people. To send them to fight like this, isn't that...?" Zhang Qing almost thought Xu Wei was joking. But military matters were not child's play?

  Xu Wei shook his head and said solemnly, "I have no way out either. The higher-ups are urging us to hurry up, saying that we can't afford to keep idle people around. Everyone go back and make arrangements, tomorrow morning we'll march into Baimagou."

  Some people still wanted to say something, but when they saw Xu Wei's cold and stern expression, the words reached their lips and were swallowed back.

  When the five battalion commanders conveyed the orders to the entire camp, those who were really frightened were the lazy and idle people who had been relying on Xu's family for food! Those rascals who had been lingering in Xu's house without leaving thought they could follow Xu Wei, get a few full meals every day, and receive some silver coins every month. When the bandits came, they would just shout a few times, drag their weapons around, and that was it. They didn't expect Xu Wei to take the initiative to go to battle! Those who were only looking for a meal also began to waver. Last time, the bandits who invaded Xiajin County had several thousand horses, while we had less than 500 people. What's the point of fighting? We haven't even eaten a few kilograms of imperial grain, but we're going to lose our lives. It's really not worth it.

  The most ridiculous ones are the young men who rushed to join Xu Wei from the county, they heard that Xu Wei was recruiting soldiers and didn't think deeply about it, thinking it's like before, gathering a group of people to fight. But now it's going to war! Although fighting is only one word different from fighting, in reality, it's heaven and earth apart. When we fought, we never killed anyone, right? And most of the time, there were familiar faces on both sides, just exchanging some polite words and that's it. Forget it, let's hurry back home and play house instead.

  That night, at least fifty or sixty people from the Jingwei camp got up in the middle of the night to urinate collectively. Who would have thought that Xu Wei had sent Yang Yan leading twenty or thirty young men from Xujiacun to patrol around the wheat field, each carrying a large knife and shining with cold light? It was terrifying to behold, and thinking of escaping was futile, as they would be going into battle the next day. Even those who didn't need to urinate ended up wetting their pants.

  The next morning, just as the sky was lightening up, hundreds of people were still dreaming of Zhou Gong. Suddenly, the sound of gongs and drums filled the air! The squad leaders yelled at the top of their lungs in front of each tent, shouting so loudly that the new recruits were stunned, running around like headless flies, you wearing my jacket, me pulling your pants, all mixed up.

  There's nothing to do during the day, and at night there's still nothing to do in Xujiayuan village. A lazy fellow stands far away on the edge of the wheat field, watching this chaotic scene with a sneer. What kind of army is this? The imperial court's military is useless, but at least they look like something. You're simply no different from bandits. Relying on you to fight wars is really wasting the taxes I pay to the emperor. If I use it to feed pigs, at least they'll gain a few pounds of meat.

  Xu Wei dressed neatly, holding a sword, came out of the tent, and shouted loudly: "The whole camp gather!"

  His loud shout was full of energy and the whole camp heard it clearly. The effect was immediate, but it only made things more chaotic...

  After great difficulty, the several hundred men all rushed out of the military camp and were rounded up by the five battalion commanders. Xu Wei stood on a stone millstone, his eyes scanning over this disheveled army, but he didn't get angry.

  After the five of them finished checking and reporting the number of people in their unit, Xu Wei ordered: "After breakfast, set off immediately and head to Baimagou to annihilate the bandits."

  Although I knew the news last night, after being ordered to say it out loud, many people were still scared and wet their pants. It's all over, this time we're done for, why did I have to get involved in this mess? Otherwise, as soon as the war starts, let's escape, you Xu Wei may have three heads and six arms, but you can't take care of both east and west at the same time, right?

  "You all joined voluntarily, no one forced you, but before we set off, I'll ask again, who wants to quit? Now stand up and let me know!" As soon as Xu Wei said this, the people below started discussing heatedly. Those soldiers who had been thinking of leaving were consulting with each other, hurrying to leave, or else they would lose their lives!

  The five of them shouted loudly and stopped him just in time.

  At this time, the villagers of Xujiazhuang almost poured out of the village, surrounding the wheat field and making it impossible to pass through. Those who had made up their minds to leave didn't have a problem. But those who were hesitant and couldn't make up their minds began to worry that if they left in front of so many people, wouldn't they be proving themselves cowards? How could they live with themselves afterwards?

  Just then, Commander Xu shouted loudly: "I want the Iron Bone Regiment to be made up of bold and daring warriors! No cowards allowed, no idlers tolerated! Those who want to leave, come before me now, put down your arms and get out!"

  A man lives by his face, a tree lives by its bark. Those who were hesitant and wavering heard Xu Wei's words and saw the situation, thinking to themselves: "Forget it, let's just go for it. Either way, we're doomed. Who knows, maybe we'll get lucky, kill some bandits, earn a few taels of reward silver, and our family will have something to eat."

  But there were also those with thick skin like city walls, who had long seen through the worldly ways and jumped out of human feelings, swaggering with their heads down, walking out of the team, coming to Xu Wei's face, lightly putting down their weapons, and walking towards the village. A short distance, walked exceptionally hard. The reason was none other than that there were hundreds of contemptuous eyes in front of and behind him, making him wish he could tuck his head into his crotch.

  "Hey, aren't those three kids from the Zhou family? They usually seem quite bold, but..."

  One after another, some people walked out of the team and put down their weapons in front of Xu Wei, enduring the contempt of thousands of people, and left on their own. Those from the county or who had escaped from other places were slightly better off, but those from nearby villages were all acquaintances, who didn't know each other? They were pointed at, whispered to, and felt that they had never been so humiliated in their lives. Some even walked halfway back, unable to bear it, shouting "You've lost your head!" wanting to rejoin the team, but Xu Wei flatly refused. Today you can leave the team without even seeing a single enemy hair, how can your comrades trust you when the real battle begins?

  ...........

  The first update is here, where are the recommendation tickets and collections?