Chapter 3 Zhou Yu's Auspicious Encounter

  Winter has arrived, and in this cold season, Zhou Yuji has returned.

  As soon as he entered the house, Zhou Yuji went to the old lady's room to pay his respects, and then... it seemed that Zhou Huchen was in trouble. Because, as soon as Zhou Yuji entered the capital, he had just finished handing over his duties at the Ministry of War, and as soon as he left the gate of the Ministry of War, he was blocked at the door. According to convention, his own son Zhou Huchen had caused trouble again, and it wasn't just anyone, but a marquis's family, the Sun family of Huaining, and even beat up the young master of the Sun family.

  Fuming with anger, Zhou Yuji was ready to teach a lesson to this son who never knew when to stop.

  "Give it back to me!"

  "Yes, Mother." Zhou Yuji stopped in his tracks. He could ignore anyone's words at home, but he didn't dare disobey the old lady's words. It was the old lady who had raised him with hardship and bitterness after her husband's death, and it was the old lady who had used her connections to help him get to where he was today.

  "I know Little Tiger has caused trouble again, but you don't know that he was seriously ill recently! He was in a coma for half a month, and his body just recovered. It's lucky we can still see him, so don't be too hard on him!"

  "Xiao Hu is ill! Why didn't you inform the child?" This was really unknown, Zhou Yuji had just led his men back from Shandong, but the old lady had been protecting Zhou Huchen for many years. Zhou Yuji thought it might be an excuse, but he could only respond with his mouth.

  "Shandong is in such a mess, and you're busy directing the suppression of bandits, so no one notified you. Luckily, Buddha protected us! Xiaohu was so seriously ill, but finally recovered! Go take a look at him, just say a few words will do!"

  "It's Mother, be frugal!" Zhou Yuji was a filial son. He was well-behaved in front of his mother, just as Zhou Huchen was well-behaved in front of him.

  Zhou Huchen digs a pit, Zhou Yuji wants to bury him. This is already a habit. This son never lets him worry, but it seems like he's never suffered a loss before. He has gained experience from fighting his way out. Truly worthy of being born into a military family.

  As soon as Zhou Yuji walked out of his mother's room, Mrs. Liu came to greet him. The couple smiled and exchanged greetings, and then Mrs. Liu brought up the same topic again. This time, Zhou Yuji finally believed her - their usually robust little tiger had fallen ill to such an extent. Fortunately, it was nothing serious, just a close call, which made Zhou Yuji feel relieved.

  Accompanied by his wife Liu, Zhou Yuji quickly entered the East Kuaiyuan, which was the residence of Zhou Huchen.

  It's unbelievable! Zhou Yuji entered the courtyard, saw from a distance that the door was open, and inside, Zhou Huchen, who had always been lazy about reading, was actually reading a book! This is a rare sight in a thousand years! The son who had always disliked reading was actually reading with great enthusiasm. Zhou Yuji and his wife entered the courtyard, but Zhou Huchen didn't notice them, still engrossed in the book in his hand. Later, Zhou Huchen's actions left Zhou Yuji stunned - he picked up a pen and started writing, his focused expression completely genuine.

  Zhou Yuji's mouth was agape, he knew Zhou Huchen could read, but it seemed like he didn't recognize many characters. Because those invited gentlemen also didn't know how many times they were driven away by Zhou Huchen's methods. Due to this reading matter, when Zhou Huchen was young, he hadn't been beaten less, and even more than the beatings he got from causing trouble. Today, Zhou Yuji finally opened his eyes, the sun rose from the west!

  "Little Tiger! Your father is back! Come quickly to welcome him!" Zhou Hu's mother, Liu, was also worried about her son, so she hastily called out to Zhou Hu.

  He lifted his head and saw two figures in the courtyard. Zhou Huichen put down his pen, stood up, and obediently walked out of the room to stand before Zhou Yuji. He bowed: "Greetings, Father! This time you must have won a great victory again!"

  Calmly looking at this troublesome eldest son, he had indeed lost some weight. Several months apart, it seemed like he had also grown taller. "Hmm, come in!" Several months apart, almost yin and yang separated, thinking that maybe they would never see their son again, Zhou Yuji's anger dissipated.

  Entering the house, Zhou Yuji sat upright and straight. This year, he is forty-one years old. His facial features are as straightforward as his personality, giving people an exceptionally firm impression. He has a thick, black short beard, a lion nose, wide eyes, a tall and robust body, with a natural air of majesty.

  Zhou Huchen stepped forward again and knelt down in a dignified manner to pay his respects.

  "Alright, go get the book you're reading." Zhou Yuji was somewhat curious and wanted to take a look at what this slightly strange son of his was reading: "Yes, father."

  Zhou Huchen was reading "Ji Xiao Xin Shu", which was actually one of Zhou Yuji's hidden books. Zhou Yuji didn't know many characters, and "Ji Xiao Xin Shu" had a total of 18 volumes, he himself couldn't even finish reading it, it was something Zhou Yuji used to decorate his study, and also something he was still learning from, unexpectedly his son took an interest in it.

  "The New Book of Effective Disciplines" was written by Qi Jiguang, the Ming dynasty's crown prince and a renowned general. The book emphasizes the importance of selecting soldiers, training them, leadership, rewards and punishments, and military equipment. Qi Jiguang advocated for strict discipline in the army and proposed a three-part approach to establishing a military camp, selecting soldiers, and training them. He also formulated six effective measures for rectifying the military. Although Zhou Yuji couldn't understand it, he continued to draw lessons from it because he had staff officers in the military who were helping him.

  The illustrations of weapons, flags, formations, and postures in the book are very useful. Zhou Yuji would not copy them mechanically, his army is different from Qi Jiguang's, so for the selection and organization of soldiers, training, combat and formation, various laws and regulations, rewards and punishments, various military equipment and gunpowder manufacturing and use, beacon towers, flag signals, etc., all aspects of building an army and fighting a war are only used as reference, and he has benefited greatly from them.

  "In the face of a sudden battle, people's courage fails first, how can one govern an army?" Zhou Yuji opened his mouth with some surprise and curiosity, seeing that his son liked to read military books, he obviously wanted to test him:

  Zhou Huchen was overjoyed, it seemed that these days of reading hadn't been in vain. Zhou Yuji's inquiry was his own opportunity!

  "Returning to the father, Qi Shaobao's governance of the army is by no means ordinary, and his military achievements speak for themselves! A powerful army must have strict military discipline, of course, this also requires good equipment, strict training, and sufficient food and pay to support it. And what about the soldiers? They not only need these necessary conditions but also a kind of cohesion. Training an army is like twisting them into a rope, as long as they are full of confidence in their superiors and the army, the soldiers will go all out to fight! Unity and cooperation! This is the essential quality of a strong army!"

  Zhou Yuji's inquiry still carries a hint of cultural flavor, but Zhou Huchen's response is simply plain talk throughout. However, this response makes a lot of sense!

  Zhou Huchen undoubtedly brought a surprise to Zhou Yuji. This son, who hadn't been seen for several months, seemed to have made significant progress.

  It's heartwarming to see a smile on Zhou Yuji's stern face: "You answered very well! My little tiger has grown up! This time, I've received definite news that someone has already petitioned the Emperor to promote me to General, but... it still needs to wait! The Great Ming is now plagued by bandits and rebels everywhere, and even Songjin in the north is being besieged by the Eastern Barbarians. The national situation is precarious! Chancellor Chen (Minister of War Chen Xinyi) has no time to attend to this matter, so I can only wait!"

  This was an expected thing, Zhou Yuji's military achievements were outstanding, and in the past few years, he had been fighting in the south and north, almost without defeat. Just recently, Zhou Yuji had just thoroughly eliminated the notorious bandit Li Qingshan in Shandong with Huang Degong, Liu Zeqing, and Shandong General Li Yunhe under the leadership of Minister of War Zhang Guowei. As for Zhou Huichen, Zhou Binghan's name has some origin, it was given to him by Minister of War Zhang Guowei not long ago.

  He is about to be promoted, Zhou Huachen knew this week. If not for this promotion, there would be no fierce battle between Zhou Yuji and Jian Nu later on, and no tragic sacrifice of Zhou Yuji at the Ningwu Pass. Just as Zhou Huachen was about to flatter Zhou Yuji a few words, before he could speak again, Zhou Yuji suddenly remembered his son - as the son of a general, he would definitely have to take command in the future. His subordinates were very familiar with Zhou Huachen now, so it was a good opportunity for him to get familiar with military affairs, and he quickly added that.

  "Oh... right, if I get promoted to General, our little Tiger will also benefit from the privilege and at least become a guardian, or even an honorary deputy commander. Now that the army is in a period of reorganization, Little Tiger can go to the military for some training. The officers in my army are all seasoned veterans, he'll definitely learn something useful that he can use later! In a few days, I'll take you to the military to get familiar with it."

  "Yes, congratulations Father! I understand, Xiao Hu will definitely not disappoint Father!" Zhou Hu Chen almost shouted out loud, this was something he had been expecting all along!

  Zhou Huchen is imagining that 'banner of command', does it really work? Will it have a rallying effect? Will there really be an aura of royal dominance that can summon the masses?!