Chapter 72: Rapid Expansion (Part 2)

  Running with a load is not that simple, it's a big test for both physical strength and willpower. Gu Zhenhua specially arranged for two people to cooperate, which is to test the team's coordination spirit. Even when running, one can see a person's character.

  Out of over 1,300 people, only more than 700 completed smoothly, and the rest were all eliminated, and could only take salted food back home.

  "Get out, all of you!" Hu Shan pulled out a few panting men from the crowd and said coldly: "Go, take your salt rations and get lost."

  "General, what's going on here? The little people have finished, and you see that many of them are lying down, proving that my physical strength is better than theirs."

  "Hmph!" Hu Shan sneered, "Don't think that Grandpa didn't see it. When carrying the wooden stakes, you guys took the light ones and dodged the heavy ones, letting your teammates carry more. You kind of opportunistic and cunning guys, once on the battlefield, won't even hesitate to sell out your brothers! Get lost!"

  Xiao Congming was seen through by Hu Shan and could only hang his head in shame, honestly taking the salt away.

  At this time, Gu Zhenhua also arrived at the side of Kang Dali, who had just finished running. This young man was not tall, but he was exceptionally sturdy, with arms almost as thick as other people's legs, thick eyebrows, big eyes, and thick lips. He looked like a straightforward and honest person, and at first glance, he seemed to be a good candidate for the army.

  A wooden stake, weighing nearly a hundred catties, this kid can carry it and run like flying, simply a fierce cow, the army needs such guys.

  "Kid, interested in joining the An Guk Army?"

  "Sir, I don't want to be a soldier, can you give me a little more salt?"

  "Hum, don't want to be a soldier, what's the excitement about." Xie Bin snorted and said: "Don't want to be a soldier, take your ten kilograms of salt and get out of here."

  Gu Zhenhua waved his hand and smiled: "A few kilograms of salt is not a problem, our army has occupied Tianjin, those traitorous merchants will all be dealt with, and we'll also distribute food to everyone. But you still need to give me a reason, why do you want more salt?"

  Kang Dali immediately got up from the ground and knelt down in front of Gu Zhenhua.

  "Thank you, sir!" Kang Dalin said with gratitude and tears: "I'm a hunter from the mountains, I have a younger brother at home who likes to read books. My parents died early, and nothing was left in our family. I just wanted to earn some money so that my brother could go to school."

  "So you're thinking of using salt to exchange for money and use it as tuition fees, right?"

  "That's right, sir! In these few years, I've hunted tigers and killed bear cubs. If I had just a bit more, it would be enough to give the master a New Year's gift!"

  Xie Bin was also slightly surprised and couldn't help but ask: "Youngster, are you really daring to fight with the tiger?"

  "Haha, what's there to be afraid of? The tiger was caught with a trap, but the bear was really fought, and I still have claw marks on my back!"

  Xie Bin also showed a surprised expression, carefully sizing up Kang Dali, making Kang Dali feel somewhat uneasy.

  "Kid, a pinch of salt is nothing. If you pass the full test, you can get ten taels of settlement fees, which is enough for your brother to go to private school."

  "Is what you're saying true?"

  Xie Bin nodded without hesitation: "Of course it's true, not only that, the treatment of Anguo Army is also the most generous. If you can become a soldier, there will be no problem for your brother to go to school."

  At this time, Gu Zhenhua also smiled and said: "You let your brother read books, the idea is not bad, but the Qing dynasty will strike back soon. Do you want to make your own brother read books and serve the Qing dynasty?"

  As soon as Man Qing was mentioned, Kang Da Li's eyes turned red and his fists clenched with a cracking sound.

  "It's impossible. My father died at the hands of the Tartars, if I were to surrender to them, wouldn't that be betraying my father? Even in death, he would go mad with rage."

  "Well said, bring your younger brother along too. Anguo Army will also set up a school to teach everyone to read and write."

  "Ah!" Kang Dali was overjoyed and immediately thanked him: "Thank you, sir! I'll kowtow to you!"

  "Don't kneel anymore, remember that every soldier of the Anqing Army is a man who stands tall and proud, all this bowing and scraping has been abolished!"

  Kang Dali was also excited to get up from the ground, he had never heard of an army running a school before, it was like a pie falling from the sky, and in an instant, his fatigue was thrown away, and he waited eagerly for the next test.

  After the load-bearing run, they also tested long jump, weightlifting, 100m dash, to ensure that every soldier's endurance and explosive power were qualified. Then, there was an intelligence test, which was a pioneering move in recruitment.

  Even Li Xu and others raised objections, thinking that it didn't matter if the soldiers were a bit foolish, on the contrary, those who were more foolish would listen more honestly. However, Gu Zhenhua firmly opposed it, as he was responsible for training future military officers, and only the most outstanding young people should be selected.

  Of course, what is called an intelligence test would not be as complicated as in later generations. It mainly includes simple arithmetic addition and subtraction, distinguishing left from right, reciting a sentence, and repeating it.

  These are easy for later generations of primary school students, but in the late Ming dynasty, they were not yet. Among more than 700 people, more than 300 were eliminated in the intelligence test, leaving only about 400 people.

  For this number, Gu Zhenhua was quite satisfied. To know that Yuan Shikai was practicing the Beiyang Army in Xiaozhan during the late Qing dynasty, just a simple left and right turn would take all his mind and several months to practice. It is clear that the quality of the people at the end of the Ming dynasty was higher than that of the Qing dynasty.

  Gu Zhenhua smiled and said to the more than 400 people who had passed the test: "Brothers, congratulations, you have already set one foot in the door of the Anguo Army. There is only one last hurdle waiting for everyone, that is, you must personally hold the ghost head knife and behead those Han traitor prisoners. To become a true warrior, you must undergo the trial by blood. Only after passing this test can you be considered a top-notch man!"

  Gu Zhenhua, when recruiting soldiers, calculated accurately, letting new recruits take charge of killing people. Not only could this make them mature quickly, but also, by killing traitors, it was equivalent to submitting a letter of surrender, and they could only follow Gu Zhenhua wholeheartedly.

  Of course, these young men still don't understand the deeper meaning, they just think it's a great honor, and one by one, they rub their fists and palms, eager to give it a try.

  Gu Zhenhua led them personally to the stakes where Yuan Rong, Lou Guangxian and other captives were tied up. From a distance, they saw that these guys were already piled high with green stuff, the strong pungent smell made people frown.

  The people of Tianjin are also a bit tired, all chatting in groups of three or five, especially with great curiosity about Gu Zhenhua and An Guojun. This army's measures for dealing with traitors are strange, and its methods of recruiting soldiers are also strange.

  One after another, young people led by the salt officials returned with their heads hung low in dejection, and talked about all sorts of unbelievable tests. Suddenly, the enthusiasm of the people on the scene was ignited, and everyone discussed it eagerly.

  The little guys who finally passed the test walked over in a neat queue, their bodies covered in sweat and mud, each one slightly disheveled, but without exception, they all puffed out their chests high, with pride and self-satisfaction in their eyes, being able to pass such a strict test means they are the best among their peers.

  When they reached the front of the wooden stakes, applause erupted from the crowd.

  Gu Zhenhua said loudly: "The mission of the An Guo Army is to protect our homes and defend our country. The Tartars and Han traitors are all our enemies. What you need to do today is to kill the Han traitors, use their blood as a witness to your joining this army!"

  Gu Zhenhua finished speaking and there was another round of applause. At this time, Hu Shan and others had already brought over the knives, guns and other weapons and handed them over to these young people.

  "There are over 200 of them, you'll still be in pairs, one stabs the chest, the other chops off the head, whoever can't do it, get out immediately!" Hu Shan loudly instructed.

  "Who comes first?"

  "Me!" Kang Dali rushed forward in three strides, and at the same time, another little black kid burst out of the team, shouting loudly: "And me too!"

  This little black kid is also short, very sturdy, small eyes are not big, very spirited, rolling around, revealing a clever and resourceful spirit.

  Seeing him rush out, a person in the crowd burst into loud laughter. It was Zhao Tuhou himself. He grinned from ear to ear, glanced at the people around him and laughed loudly: "Did you see that? My old Zhao family's kid is really something, just like his dad!"

  "Zhao Butcher, stop putting gold on your face! You've spent your whole life slaughtering pigs, but you don't have a heroic son like mine!"

  "Without me, there wouldn't be you, ask him if he dares to compare heroism with me?"

  One sentence made everyone laugh loudly, Zhao Tian and Kang Dali both wanted to grab this quota, and the two people were also staring at each other.

  "With great strength, just now if I didn't help you, you wouldn't have passed that math test."

  "Hmph, even if I owe you a favor, there's no need to rush to repay it."

  "Stop whispering!" Hu Shan shouted loudly: "You two, one by one, chop off Yuan Yu-zong and Lou Guang-xian's heads!"

  "Roger!"

  Kang Dali rushed towards Yuan Yu Zong, and after wrestling with the beast, he had already practiced quite a bit of skill. One knife stabbed into Yuan Yu Zong's chest, and with a press downwards, suddenly there was a big split open, and all the innards spilled out.

  Just as Yuan Yu-zong let out a blood-curdling scream, Kang Da-li swung his sword with great force and beheaded him. The head rolled dozens of feet away, stopping right at the feet of the onlookers. Someone picked up the head and laughed loudly: "Fellow villagers, let's kick this dog's head to pieces!"

  Zhao Tian's method was even more ruthless than Kang Dali, first chopping off the two arms of Lao Guang and throwing them into the crowd, instantly someone rushed over to grab them.

  "You old masters, eat the traitor's flesh and drink his blood!"

  The bloodthirsty excitement stimulated everyone's nerves, after beheading Yuan Yu and Lou Guangxian, the others also lined up to kill one by one. Some were not killed with a single shot and had to be stabbed five or six times, while some were not beheaded with a single knife and had to be hacked repeatedly several times.

  Among more than 400 people, there were about 30 who could not bear the pressure and collapsed one after another. Gu Zhenhua was also merciless and directly fired them.

  In the end, more than 380 people passed the test and became the first batch of formal new recruits of Anguo Army.

  The attraction of food and salt, the thrill of beheading traitors, quickly ignited the enthusiasm of Tianjin citizens. By the next day, the number of young and strong men who signed up had more than doubled.

  The villagers nearby, the sons of the military households in the garrison, and the boatmen on the Grand Canal all came. The number of people who passed the test exceeded one thousand!

  The troops of An Guojun are also expanding rapidly, and the name list is as thick as a big stack. Gu Zhenhua was particularly excited.