Chapter Forty-Four: Provoking Trouble

  After resting for two days in the camp, Liu Ze led his team back to Phoenix Valley. As for this action, Liu Ze made a summary:

  "First of all, I would like to congratulate the 500 members of the Tianzhi team who participated in this action. You have carried forward the spirit of 'fearing neither hardship nor death', overcome countless difficulties and completed this task with flying colors. This wilderness survival training is also a test, under extreme adverse conditions, it is a comprehensive examination of your survival skills and willpower. All members stood firm in the face of difficulty, not one person backed down, facing hunger and death, you bravely took the lead without hesitation, I am proud of you!"

  "Secondly, the team spirit demonstrated in this action is also worthy of praise. The organizational and commanding abilities shown by each captain were outstanding. Five hundred team members, after a 400-mile arduous journey, not one member fell behind, not one person died - what a miracle! Many team members were injured or ill, but with the help of their comrades, even being carried on stretchers, they completed the task. Everyone for me, I for everyone, without teamwork and cooperation, no one could have completed this action alone. Unity is strength."

  "Of course, even the best results cannot cover up mistakes. Most teams made serious mistakes when they first entered the forest, such as indiscriminately killing wild animals, littering and discarding food, and failing to properly handle leftover fires. The consequences and harm caused by these actions are self-evident. It was precisely because of your carelessness at the beginning that you later faced food shortages, and even caused a massive forest fire, which not only destroyed the ancient forest but also nearly led you into an irreparable disaster. You must remember that nature is not something to be exploited without restraint; cherishing and using it rationally is the best strategy."

  "I'd like to commend the captain of Team 9, Fei Yan. You may not agree with this, wondering how a woman could achieve such success, and maybe you think it's just luck. But no! Success always belongs to those who are prepared. She is meticulous and farsighted, anticipating the difficulties ahead when others were discarding leftover food in the forest, she collected them, cut them into strips, and dried them over fire to make jerky. On the return trip, while you were struggling to survive on tree bark and grass roots, each member of Team 9 had three pieces of jerky to eat every day. It was precisely because of this food that Team 9 was able to complete this 'journey through hell' smoothly."

  Everyone's eyes were cast on Fei Yan, who was sitting in the first row. At this time, Fei Yan looked a bit shy, with a flush rising to her pale face, completely unlike her usual heroic and vigorous demeanor.

  Liu Ze stood up and handed a dagger to Fei Yan, saying: "This dragon-scale dagger can cut through gold and jade, its sharpness is unmatched. As the reward for winning this mission, I grant it to you!"

  As soon as the dragon scale dagger appeared, a low murmur of amazement erupted from the crowd. The dragon scale dagger was over half a foot long, with a body covered in red gold dragon scales, a single-edged blade, and two blood grooves. Under the moonlight, the blade emitted a blue-green glow, exuding an aura that sent shivers down one's spine, mysterious and unpredictable, capable of vanquishing any obstacle. This dagger was forged by the renowned swordsmith Ou Yezi. Liu Ze had stumbled upon this dagger in a market in Luoyang and had immediately taken a liking to it, purchasing it for a thousand gold coins, only later discovering that it was the dragon scale dagger.

  Fei Yan stood up and cupped his hands, saying: "Such a precious thing, what virtue or ability does Fei Yan have to dare accept it?"

  "Swallow, this dagger suits you well." Liu Ze's eyes showed a hint of approval.

  Fei Yan knelt down on one knee, took it with both hands and said: "Thank you, sir!"

  "The Journey to Hell" has come to an end, but for the Tian Team, the cruel and rigorous training has just begun. High-intensity physical training and dense course schedules have left even the team members who have just been reborn from "The Journey to Hell" struggling to keep up. Fortunately, although the training is tough, they no longer have to go hungry, as Liu Ze has ordered an improvement in the Tian Team's food standards, changing from two dishes and one soup to four dishes and one soup, with no change for other personnel.

  Summer quietly passed, autumn cicadas chirped loudly, and the harvest season arrived again. Su Shuang Zhang Shi Ping sent over several batches of fine horses, each time with 30 to 50 or 180 horses, and the cavalry in Feng Huang Valley gradually took shape.

  Under Liu Ze's guidance, the blacksmiths created a more advanced bellows that, when used with high-quality smokeless coal, greatly increased the temperature of the furnace fire. This allowed for the creation of even higher-quality weapons. For cavalrymen, Liu Ze designed a type of saber with a narrow and long blade and a slightly curved tip, similar to the Japanese katana of later times. The handle was long enough to be held in one hand or grasped with both hands, making it convenient for cavalrymen to wield on horseback. The single-edged back of the knife was thicker, ensuring that even if used with great force, it would not break easily like a sword. The narrow and long blade also eliminated the clumsy feeling of using a ring-handled saber. Combining the agility of a sword with the sharpness of a knife, Liu Ze named this new design the "Willow Leaf Saber".

  Gaoqiao saddles and stirrups were also fully equipped with cavalry after improvement. Compared to the last time in Liaoxi for the Gong family, it was naturally much more advanced. Liu Ze changed the wooden stirrup to an iron stirrup, which greatly improved both practicality and durability.

  Having once witnessed the elegance of White Horse Yi Cong, Liu Ze now had a sense of expectation in his heart, to create an invincible cavalry that would be his greatest dream.

  The training of the Heavenly Corps has also become regular, and Liu Ze finally breathed a sigh of relief. He counted with his fingers that it had been more than a year since he left Zhuo County, and he didn't know how his parents were doing. His older brother Liu Bei followed Gongsun Zan and he didn't know what kind of situation he was in now.

  Quyang is only a hundred or two hundred miles away from Zhuo County, and it can be reached in one day by fast horse. But Liu Ze was busy every day, and even the time to return home for one or two days couldn't be squeezed out.

  Liu Ze and Zhang Fei were making plans to return home, Zhang Fei was carefree, his parents had passed away, he had no brothers or sisters, and his family property had been sold off long ago. As he said, whether he went back or not made no difference. However, since big brother wanted to go back, he naturally followed along as well.

  Just as they were about to set off, a bad piece of news came from Yangquan: a group of unidentified people had appeared at the coal mine, stirring up trouble and disrupting production. The miners got into an argument with them, and many were beaten up. Now the coal mine has completely come to a standstill. Hu Liu had no choice but to send someone to report to Liu Ze and ask him to handle it.

  Winter is approaching, and at this critical moment, someone is causing trouble, obviously trying to occupy the coal mine. Liu Ze didn't dare to be slow, and he quickly rushed to Yangquan with Guan Yu and Zhang Fei on horseback. The plan to return home for a family visit had to be put on hold, but Liu Ze still ordered people to send the prepared gifts and several hundred taels of gold back to Zhuoxian.

  With swift horses and whips, Liu Ze arrived in Yangquan in just two days. As soon as he entered the coal mine, he heard a hubbub of voices inside, shouting and quarreling. He saw Hu Liu and several comrades who had stayed behind desperately guarding the coal heap, while on the opposite side were many people wearing city clothes, rushing to grab coal with big carts and iron shovels.

  Zhang Fei was furious, and without waiting for Liu Ze to speak, he rode his horse over, whipped out his whip, and with a few loud cracks, chased away the coal thieves, who fled in disarray. As he beat them, he cursed: "What kind of scoundrels are you, daring to cause trouble on Zhang Yeye's turf!"

  Liu Ze jumped off his horse and stopped Zhang Fei, saying to those people: "What kind of people are you? In broad daylight, you dare to rob recklessly. Is there no king's law?"

  A man in his thirties, dressed sloppily, walked up from behind and looked at Liu Ze with a slanted gaze: "The law? Let me tell you, I am the law! Judging by your appearance, you're the master of this house. Listen, I'm warning you now, get out of here within three days, or else..." He grabbed an iron hoe and snapped it in two with a loud crack, "See that? That's what'll happen to you!"

  Zhang Fei's anger was burning, and he rolled up his sleeves, ready to give him two loud slaps. Liu Ze calmly stopped him, saying with a straight face: "This mountain was bought with real gold and silver, there are deeds and documents as proof. You think you can just dismiss me with these few words? That's not quite right, is it?"

  That rascal used one finger to point at Liu Ze's nose and said: "I'll tell you, it won't hurt, we're also acting on the orders of Imperial Envoy Zhang, you'd better behave yourself, or else you'll be forced to drink a penalty cup!"

  Liu Zedong suddenly understood that these guys were so arrogant and lawless because they had the backing of Zhang Rang, a eunuch in the imperial court. He sneered to himself and reached out to grab the wrist of the thug. The thug was startled and tried to struggle free, but Liu Zedong's hand was like a steel hoop that wouldn't budge. "What do you want to do?" he asked urgently.

  Liu Ze sneered: "What's one pickaxe? I'd like to see if your arm has a pickaxe knot!"

  As he spoke, a dark energy burst forth from his hand, and the thug's arm let out a crisp cracking sound, followed by a blood-curdling scream like a slaughtered pig. The thug cried out in pain while begging for mercy: "Spare my life, sir! I didn't know any better, I offended you, spare my life!"

  Liu Ze kicked him to the ground and said, "No matter what background you have, no matter who is backing you, it's not worth making me give up everything. You're not even qualified to make me let you off scot-free! Get out of here!"

  Those rascals saw that Liu Ze and others were not easy to mess with, so they quickly ran away in a flurry.

  Zhang Fei burst out laughing and said, "Can't tell that Big Brother is usually gentle and refined, when he gets angry, he's not one bit worse than me. I just whipped him a few times, but Big Brother, you came out with a single move and broke the guy's arm into two pieces, how ruthless!"

  "He who does not infringe upon me, I will not infringe upon him; he who infringes upon me, I will certainly infringe upon him!"

  "Listening to what that scoundrel Fang said, it seems that these people still have a backstage, and they won't give up easily." Guan Yu felt that things were not so simple.

  "Not bad, listening to his words, it seems that the boss behind the scenes is actually the eunuch Zhang Rang."

  "But isn't that Zhang Rang, the Central Regular Attendant who even the Emperor addresses as 'Honorable Father'?" Guan Yu had also heard about the evil deeds of the Ten Regular Attendants.

  Liu Ze nodded, Zhang Fei cursed repeatedly: "This scoundrel's hand is indeed long, and it has actually reached this poor and remote place."

  "The ten eunuchs colluded with each other, monopolizing land and property, oppressing the people, and acting lawlessly. It's likely that last year when coal was in high demand in Luoyang, Zhang Rang and others had already coveted it, so they took action to seize it."

  "I'm afraid he won't succeed with this plan and will resort to another treacherous scheme." Guan Yu furrowed his brow, somewhat worried.

  Liu Ze smiled and said: "When the troops come, we will resist; when the flood comes, we will dam it. Let's wait and see what happens." Then he ordered someone to clean up the scene and resume production.