Chapter 41: Enduring Trials

  In the morning, when the first ray of sunlight shone into Ye Xinyi's spacious bedroom from outside the window, Ma Fei and Li Guoting, who had not slept all night with excitement, wearing the beautiful stand-up collar grey student uniform that Ye Xinyi had found for them, looked around the room. When they saw that it was already bright outside, the two of them could not hold back their excitement, sat on the sofa, anxiously waiting for Ye Xinyi.

  Before long, the sound of Ye Xinyi getting out of bed came from the inner room. After a while, Ye Xinyi combed her hair and changed into another outfit before walking out of the inner room.

  Yeh Xin-yi couldn't help but burst out laughing at the sight of Ma Fei and Li Guo-ting wearing the school uniforms she had found for them.

  "You two wear these clothes and really look like junior high school students." Ye Xinyi laughed.

  "Really? Are we really like middle school students?" Ma Fei calmly looked at the student uniform on his body and said.

  "Yes, it is. Hehe." Ye Xinyi puckered her mouth.

  "Thank you, Miss Ye." Li Guoting didn't know what else to say to Ye Xinyi, so he just thanked her.

  "Don't be polite, you sit down first, I'll go take a look if Father is in." Ye Xinyi said as she turned around and walked out.

  In the living room downstairs, Ye Tuanzhang was wearing a military uniform and holding his military cap, preparing to go out.

  Yexinyi saw this and went forward to ask: "Dad, where are you going?"

  "Oh, my daughter, what's wrong, aren't you sleeping in? Haha. Then just stay at home, I'm going to the headquarters for a meeting." Commander Ye turned his head and smiled at his daughter.

  "Dad, what about that thing I told you last night?" Ye Xinyi asked.

  "What's up?" After a night had passed, Captain Ye seemed to have forgotten what Ye Xinyi had told him about Ma Fei and Li Guoting joining the army.

  "Dad, you forgot again. You never put your daughter's affairs in your heart." Ye Xinyi pouted.

  "What's going on? Look. I'm busy, and I just can't remember." Captain Ye patted his shiny bald head and said.

  "It's about those two classmates of mine who are going to be soldiers. Didn't you agree last night?" Ye Xinyi said discontentedly, looking at her father.

  "Oh, that thing. Just call them over. I have a meeting to attend." Team Leader Ye said, and then left the house under the escort of the guards.

  Ye Xinyi and others, after their father left, immediately returned to their own room, facing Ma Fei and Li Guoting who were anxiously waiting for news, said: "My dad went to the command center for a meeting. There's no one at home. You two come quickly."

  Ma Fei and Li Guoting followed Ye Xinyi out of the room and came to the living room downstairs.

  "Remember, later when my father comes back, if he asks you which school you're attending, just say it's Chongqing Yucai Middle School. Don't get it wrong." Ye Xinyi reminded Ma Fei.

  "Yucai Middle School. I've been there," said Ma Fei.

  Ye Tuanzhang, accompanied by his guards, hastily arrived at the headquarters from home. Today, the headquarters convened a meeting of all officers above the group level to convey the content of the secret military conference recently held by Wu Peifu in Luoyang.

  The meeting was not long, about an hour or so. After the transmission was finished, the Garrison Commander did not arrange any tasks, but only stipulated that the military deployment meeting would continue in the afternoon. Then it was announced to disperse.

  As soon as he returned from headquarters and stepped into his living room, Ye Xinyi, who had been waiting in the living room, came forward to greet him.

  "Dad, is the meeting over?" Ye Xinyi asked, walking forward and taking her father's arm.

  "It's open. My daughter, you're waiting for me at the door so early. What's going on?" Director Ye patted his daughter's small hand on his arm and asked.

  "Dad, those two classmates you were talking about have come to our house," said Ye Xinyi to her father.

  "Oh." Captain Ye turned his face and immediately saw Ma Fei and Li Guoting.

  Ma Fei and Li Guoting were sitting on the sofa waiting when they suddenly heard a heavy footsteps coming from outside the door, they guessed it was Ye Xin Yi's father, who was a regimental commander in the garrison command, had returned, so they quickly stood up from the sofa, standing respectfully in front of it, waiting for Regimental Commander Ye to ask questions.

  "Uncle is well." Ma Fei saw Ye Tuanzhang and immediately bowed to greet him.

  "Hmm." Captain Ye responded with a single grunt, then walked up to Ma Fei and Li Guoting. Two bright, piercing eyes scanned back and forth across the faces of Ma Fei and Li Guoting, as if trying to see through their thoughts.

  Li Guoting felt a little flustered when he saw such a high-ranking official staring at him at close range for the first time. However, thinking of his deceased parents and sister, as well as his unavenged grudge, his emotions quickly calmed down again. Having experienced so many things on this journey south, Li Guoting also gained the courage to not be afraid of anything. Seeing Captain Ye standing in front of them, staring at them, he quietly suppressed the unease he had felt when he first saw Captain Ye, and calmly accepted Captain Ye's scrutiny with a composed face.

  "Are both of you ideal classmates?" After a moment's scrutiny, Captain Ye began to speak.

  "Yes, Uncle, both of us are studying at Chongqing Yucai Middle School." Ma Fei replied respectfully.

  Commander Ye took another look at Ma Fei, seeing that he was tall and handsome. The student uniform on him added a bit of scholarly air. He started to like this young man. He then took another look at Li Guoting standing beside Ma Fei. Although Li Guoting wore the student uniform that Commander Ye had given him, it still looked a bit awkward, but overall it was suitable and didn't seem out of place. However, this young man looked quite honest, with a rustic simplicity and honesty about him.

  "Alright, alright. I heard from Xinyi that you two want to join the army?" Captain Ye asked again.

  "Yes, Uncle. We came all the way from Chongqing to Hankou by boat just to join the army," said Ma Fei.

  "Then why don't you go read books instead of becoming soldiers?" Leaf Team Leader asked again.

  "Uncle, reading books and being a soldier are both ways of serving the country. Being a soldier is the best way to serve the country." Ma Fei replied again.

  "Good, well said! Haha!" Captain Ye stretched out his hand and gave Ma Fei a loud slap on the back, laughing as he spoke.

  This slap was quite forceful, slapping Ma Fei's shoulder so hard it ached. His body tilted to one side and one foot involuntarily took a step back.

  At this time, Captain Ye turned his gaze to Li Guoting: "Young man, how old are you this year?" Captain Ye asked.

  "Ah, Uncle... I'm eighteen this year." Li Guoting became nervous again. At first, he didn't know what to call the plump Ye Tuanzhang in front of him. Fortunately, his brain wasn't stupid, and Ma Fei's earlier greeting taught Li Guoting the term "Uncle". He had never called an elder that before; in their hometown of Fengshuping, they would address elders as "Dabo" or "Dashu", and older ones as "Daye", but he had never heard of anyone being called "Uncle". He also didn't understand what the difference was between "Uncle" and "Dabo". However, seeing Ma Fei greet Ye Tuanzhang that way made Ye Tuanzhang very happy, so Li Guoting followed suit and started using the term "Uncle" to address Ye Tuanzhang.

  "Eighteen years old, good. Good." Captain Ye was also quite satisfied with Li Guoting.

  "What's your name?" Ye Tuanzhang asked Li Guoting with a piercing gaze.

  "My name is Li Guoting." Li Guoting stood up straight and answered loudly.

  "Li Guoting. Good name. Afraid of fighting?"

  "I'm not afraid." Li Guoting replied again.

  "Team Leader Ye turned his gaze towards Ma Fei: 'What's your name?'"

  "Uncle, I'm Ma Fei." Ma Fei stood at attention and replied.

  Leaf Team Leader looked at Ma Fei, suddenly thought of something, and asked: "You said you came from Chongqing. Then I'll ask you, in Chongqing there is a Ma You San, who is the president of a certain association, do you know him?"

  "Uncle, Ma You San is my uncle. He's the vice president of the Chamber of Commerce. Do you know him, Uncle?" Ma Fei asked hastily.

  "Oh, Ma You San is your paternal uncle. Haha, we've known each other for a long time. Alright, alright. So I'll ask you, if you want to join my army, it's a matter of risking your head, aren't you afraid?"

  "Uncle, I'm not afraid," Ma Fei said with a pat on his own chest.

  "Not afraid? Haha——." Captain Ye burst out laughing again. Suddenly, he turned around, pulled out the box gun hanging from his waist, raised the gun and aimed it at Ma Fei and Li Guoting.

  "Dad!" Ye Xinyi, standing beside her father, didn't think that he would suddenly pull out a gun and point it at Ma Fei and Li Guoting, his face changing color, hastily trying to step forward to stop him.

  Just then, Ye Tuanzhang's hand moved slightly, and he pulled the trigger. "Bang!" A gunshot rang out, and a bullet shot out of the black barrel, flying towards Ma Fei and Li Guoting.

  Li Guoting and Ma Fei were also shocked by Ye Tuanzhang's sudden move. Before the two could react, the bullet that shot out of the barrel had already passed through the middle of Ma Fei and Li Guoting's heads and hit the wall in the living room behind them.

  "Haha——haha——." Captain Ye looked at Ma Fei and Li Guoting's shocked expressions, burst out laughing: "Good job, enough courage. I like soldiers who are not afraid of death. Good, I want you two now, in a moment, ask Deputy Officer Liu to take you to the new recruit regiment to report."

  "Thank you, Uncle. Thank you, Uncle." Ma Fei bowed his head in gratitude.

  "Uncle, there's another classmate who enlisted with us," Ma Fei said, taking a glance at Ye Tuanzhang's expression.

  "Oh, and there's one more person, where is he?" Captain Ye asked.

  "He's called Zhao Erhu, and he's still at the inn up ahead," said Ma Fei.

  "Why didn't you call him to come with you?" Captain Ye asked.

  "He fell ill and didn't come with us," Ma Fei said.

  "Then you two go bring him over. Go to the new recruit company together." As he spoke, Captain Ye turned around and walked upstairs.

  "Thank you, Uncle." Ma Fei was delighted in his heart and immediately turned around to bow and thank Captain Ye. Then, he said to Ye Xinyi, "Thanks to you too, Xinyi. My brother and I will go find our third brother now."

  "En. You guys go ahead. My father has agreed, so it's all right." Ye Xinyi smiled and said to Ma Fei.

  "Big brother, let's go find Third Brother quickly." Ma Fei reached out to pull up Li Guoting and headed outside. When they reached the door, he also bid farewell to Ye Xinyi before leaving Ye Tuanzhang's mansion with Li Guoting to look for Zhao Erhu.