Chapter 24: Deputy Commander of Zizhou Militia

  This chapter has been revised and increased by over a thousand words, brothers take another look.

  .......................................

  Yang Yan rushed into the house first, originally with a smile on his face, but after seeing the situation in the hall, he immediately rushed back out. Zhang Qing followed and also looked at it with a black face, but when she saw Xu Sanjie secretly wiping away tears, her husband Fan Jing pulled a long face, guessing a few points in his heart. Fan's old father had worked in Yan'an Prefecture in his early years and had made an engagement between the children of Xu Taigong. Later, Xu Taigong was forced to resign, but Fan's father rose all the way up, serving as a fourth-grade official in the Ministry of Rites. Fan's mother had wanted to cancel the engagement, but Fan's father firmly refused, and after Xu Sanjie married into their family, her life was naturally not easy. Only after giving birth to a son did things improve, but Fan's mother and son looked down on the Xu family from the bottom of their hearts.

  Xu Wei heard the sound of footsteps outside and immediately said to Xu Wangshi: "Fourth sister, take your sister and child inside." Xu Wangshi hastily responded with a "yes" and carried the child and eldest sister into the inner hall. Xu Wei's brother-in-law Fan Jing slapped the table and shouted: "Leave the child with me!"

  Xu Taigong also relaxed and ignored his son-in-law, pulling Xu Wei: "Let's go." The two father and son walked towards the guest hall in sync. As soon as Xu Wei stepped out of the door, he suddenly turned back to the two brothers and said, "Keep an eye on him, don't let him leave this side hall."

  As soon as he entered the main hall, Mr. Xu saw the county magistrate accompanying a man wearing a crimson official uniform, followed by five or six attendants carrying instruments. According to the imperial regulations, officials of the sixth rank and above wear crimson everyday clothes, so this person must be the "high-ranking official from the Daming Prefecture" who was just summoned.

  "Congratulations, sir!" County Magistrate Huang Qianshan of Xiajin, courtesy name Maohé, from Shaowu, over 40 years old, not considered tall among northerners, and still half a head shorter than Xu Taigong. But his warm smile, like a spring breeze, showed no sign of the dignity of a county official.

  Xu Taigong's expression was somewhat gloomy after experiencing what had just happened, and he asked: "Where does the joy come from?"

  Huang Qianshan turned sideways and introduced him: "This is Zheng Ying, the military commander of the Daming Mansion." In the Song Dynasty, on the road, in the prefecture, and in the state, there was a position called "Military Commander". The governor at the prefectural level was responsible for the garrison, training, military affairs, and errands of the lower-ranking troops. Those who held the position of Military Commander were called "Jianya" if they had shallow experience.

  That Zheng Jianya seemed to be somewhat surprised by Huang Qianshan's flattering tone, because throughout the Song Dynasty, the civil officials were valued more than the military officers, and there was a clear distinction between their status. Even if a military officer had a higher rank than a civil official, they would still not take you seriously. Therefore, Zheng Jianya first nodded to Huang Qianshan and then bowed his hands to Xu Taigong, saying: "I have long admired you."

  Xu Taigong saw that he was being polite to a seventh-rank county magistrate, but was so perfunctory with himself, and his heart was not pleased. But thinking of the conflict with Zhang Zhifu the other day, and also thinking of Xu Sheng who was also working in the same prefecture, he nodded and said: "Please sit down, both of you, and have some tea."

  The guests and hosts sat down, the servant woman served tea, exchanged a few pleasantries, said some official words, then Huang Jian asked: "I don't know if your son Xu Wei is at the government office?"

  Xu Tai Gong put down his tea cup and pointed at Xu Wei standing beside him: "This is it."

  That Zheng Jianyu had long noticed the young man standing beside him, seven feet tall, with a remarkable appearance, though he didn't speak, yet drew people's attention. But looking at this child's age, not yet weak crown, the battle report described the war achievements, isn't it fake? Thinking of Xu Sheng's return to Xiajin this time, isn't it intentional false reporting, wanting his younger brother to take office?

  At this thought, he decided to probe further and asked: "To suppress the rebels is the responsibility of the imperial court's regular army. In the past, they did not demand much from local troops. You are still young and have not yet reached adulthood, how can you bear to take such risks without hesitation?" Earlier, when he arrived, he had heard Huang Zhi County mention that Xu Wei was once a notorious little tyrant in Xiajin, who usually specialized in doing good deeds, fighting fiercely, and competing with evil people. This time, his achievement is truly unexpected.

  If Xu Wei is really as Huang Zhi County said, then he must have shown some weakness in his response.

  Xu Wei, however, did not hesitate and lightly laughed: "Born here, grown here, ancestral foundation, every inch of land must be protected." Although it was a short sentence, it was loud and clear, the people in the hall heard it and became solemn, even Xu Tai Gong turned his head to gaze at him with an expression of approval.

  That Zheng supervisor suddenly thought of the eight characters "ancestral foundation, every inch must be preserved" and recalled that the previous time the army attacked Liao, they had intended to recover the sixteen states left behind by their ancestors in Youyun, but instead suffered a disastrous defeat. At this point, he felt extremely ashamed, looked at Xu Wei for half a moment, and then bowed his head again to Xu Taigong: "The old man has no mediocre sons, congratulations are in order!"

  Mr. Xü was polite for a few words, and then saw Zheng Jian take out an object from his bosom and hold it in his hand, saying seriously: "Xu Wei led the local soldiers to defeat the enemy and rushed to Xiajin to rescue them, which was a great merit. The court has verified this through the Bureau of Military Affairs and reported it to the Ministry of War for filing, and Xu Wei has been appointed as the Deputy Commander of the Zizhou Militia with a reward of 200 taels of silver." After finishing speaking, he handed over the object in his hand to the attendant behind him to give to Xu Wei, saying "This is an official document issued by the Ministry of War, and Vice Commander Xü needs to verify and receive it on the spot."

  Xu Wei took the official document, took a look at it, and found that it was just a piece of paper with "Appointment of So-and-so as So-and-so" written on it. The signature at the bottom was that of the Minister of War, stamped with the large seal of the Ministry of War. Wait a minute, Deputy Commander-in-Chief of Zizhou? Not to mention how big an official the Deputy Commander-in-Chief is, if I accept this appointment, do I have to go all the way to Zizhou to take office? If so, I'd rather not have this official position. Originally, I had made up my mind not to join the army, just to avoid being restricted and controlled. Now you're kicking me all the way to Zizhou to be some kind of Deputy Commander-in-Chief, how can I still operate in Hebei?

  That Zheng Jian saw Xu Wei staring at the official document in a daze and asked: "Deputy Xu, is there a problem?"

  Xu Wei hadn't even responded when the old man urged him, "Just take it and be done with it." After a pause, he added in a soft voice, "He's just an idle official, doesn't care about anything."

  Xu Wei breathed a sigh of relief and put away the official token, smiling: "No problem."

  Zheng Ying nodded and exchanged a glance with Huang Qianshan. The two stood up simultaneously and said to Xu Taigong, "Since the matter is settled, we have official duties to attend to and dare not linger. The official robes and Zhu Ji's belongings will be sent over by someone on a designated day. We bid farewell."

  Xu Taigong had always disliked this kind of welcoming and sending off, just as he was about to see the guests off, he heard Xu Wei laugh and say: "It's a lot of trouble for both of you to come all the way here, the weather is hot, please take a short rest, have a cup of cool tea, and it won't be late to leave after lunch."

  Zheng Jianyu and Huang Qianshan exchanged a glance, neither confirming nor denying. Xu Wei continued: "This time we are grateful for the two of you to take care of us. If we don't even eat a mouthful of rice or drink a cup of wine before leaving, how can our Xu family bear it?"

  The two men were pleased with Xu Wei's words, which were both righteous and dignified. Huang Zhixian agreed, "Since Ninth Brother has shown such great enthusiasm, we will take the liberty." Xu Wei immediately invited the two to the rear courtyard's cool pavilion for tea, ordering servants to bring some fresh fruit. Originally, Xu Taigong was the head of the household and should have been the one to host this gathering, but Xu Wei knew his father's temperament all too well - if he wasn't careful, he would offend someone. So he pushed off the responsibility, saying that his father was unwell, which suited Zheng and Huang just fine. Xu Taigong had a peculiar personality and an arrogant attitude, unlike Xu Wei who understood human relationships and worldly affairs.

  Xu Weizheng accompanied the two superiors in conversation, when he suddenly heard a quarrelsome voice coming from ahead. He said without batting an eyelid: "The two seniors please sit for a moment, I'll be right back."

  "Ah, Jiulang has something to attend to, no need to call us over. Zheng Jian escorted him to Xiajin, and as the local official, I'll take care of receiving him." Huang Zhixian had two reasons for doing this: one was that Xu Wei had achieved merit and been promoted to office, and the other was that he saw Xu Wei knew how to get along with people and understood social norms, so he intentionally tried to win him over.

  Xu Wei thanked him and rushed forward, turning out of the inner hall, and saw Zhang Qing retreating outside the main hall, Yang Yan blocking the side hall door, and arguing with his brother-in-law Fan Jing.

  "Get out of the way! I'll take the child back to Zhending myself!" Fan Jing pointed at Yang Yan's nose and shouted loudly.

  Yang Yan didn't say a word, staring straight at him, not giving an inch. Fan Jing was about to erupt when he saw Xu Wei approaching, and all his anger was vented on him: "Xu Jiu! You dare to detain me, you're not afraid..."

  Xu Wei pointed outside the guest hall with a straight face and said: "The door is over there, get out!"

  Fan Jing's face turned red with anger, and he didn't expect his young uncle to speak like this. After a moment of silence, he coldly snorted: "Just because you're an eighth-rank official who can only afford sesame seeds and green beans, you dare to be so arrogant? Humph! Let me tell you, return my child quickly, and we'll just be relatives as usual. Otherwise, I'll go back and report this to your father..."

  Xu Wei has a noble guest behind him, where does he have the time to grind with him? Impatiently said: "Get out, get out, get out! When will you understand and come back to apologize to your father-in-law?"

  Fan Jing was furious! I apologize to him? A demoted fifth-grade military officer, what's the big deal? If it weren't for my father arranging this marriage back then, would I have married a woman from your family who doesn't understand poetry or needlework, a coarse and unrefined village woman?!

  "Xu Xiuping! Hand over the child to me immediately..." Fan Jing shouted loudly in a fit of rage, Xu Wei's face changed! He stepped forward and grabbed his collar, pulling him out of the hall like a small chicken, all the way to the door, and with great force, he flung him outside! What strength did he have? He sent Fan Jing flying, leaving him disoriented. With great difficulty, he managed to get up, hopping on one foot and shouting: "You're all dead men!"

  When he arrived, he brought several attendants. Seeing the high-ranking official being dragged out by his younger brother-in-law, they didn't understand what was happening and didn't dare to make a move. At this moment, hearing the high-ranking official's shout, they knew that things had taken a turn for the worse. One of them, who was bold and had practiced martial arts for several days, stepped forward to grab Xu Wei. Before he could even move his hand, Xu Wei opened his five fingers and slapped him with a loud crack, causing stars to appear before his eyes and blood to flow from his nose. Adding a kick, the man was kicked out of the door. The rest of them looked at each other, and no one dared to come forward again. They stuck close to the wall, bypassed Xu Wei, and quickly protected their master.

  "Xu Jiu! Listen up, about today's matter..." Fan Jing's face turned iron-green with rage, his finger pointing at Xu Wei with a threatening tone.

  Xu Wei didn't wait for him to finish and shouted loudly: "Brothers!"

  "Yes!" Outside the Xu family gate, hundreds of onlookers gathered, among them many brothers who had fought shoulder to shoulder with Xu Wei. They responded to his shout with a thunderous "Yes!"

  Fan Jing saw that things were not going well, and in her heart she was already disappointed. With a resentful expression, she stared at Xu Wei for a moment, then turned around and walked out of the village without saying a word. Along the way, she suffered the disdainful glances of the villagers from Xu's family village. What kind of thing is this? Xu's third daughter is our village's number one beauty, marrying you is your good fortune, yet you look down on her like a dog! Now that you have such an awesome brother-in-law, Nine Lang, you're in for it!