diymy Chapter 60: Returning to the Basics
Chapter 60: Returning to the Basics
"In that case, let's have a contest."
Chen Yuan clapped his hands and said.
"But how can any competition be without a prize?"
Xu Wen smiled and held up two fingers.
"How about twenty suits of armor?"
A commotion broke out inside the tent.
Twenty suits of iron armor—that's quite a prize.
Although the private possession of armor is officially prohibited, with violators being treated as treason, this prohibition clearly cannot restrain these increasingly powerful local magnates.
If a household doesn't even have a few suits of armor, how can it be considered a powerful family?
Chen Yuan looked at Li Sheng, who clasped his hands in greeting.
"Respect is not as good as obedience."
The news spread, and in less than the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, the open space outside the tent was filled with people.
The powerful local magistrates and their retainers, along with the village officials and soldiers, formed layers upon layers, with many people craning their necks to peer inside. Several busybodies had already begun to whisper amongst themselves.
"Who is the Xu family sending to fight? I heard it's the Xu family's top warrior, named... Xu Hu?"
"Yes, that's Xu Hu. I heard he can wrestle a bull barehanded, lift a 200-pound stone weight above his head and circle the arena three times without even breaking a sweat."
"What about Li Sheng? I heard he's quite capable, having killed Yellow Turban rebels."
"What's so special about killing bandits? Xu Hu has killed Qiang people on the frontier battlefield. I think this contest is going to be a close call."
The buzz of discussion was loud, and most people were not optimistic about Li Sheng.
After all, Xu Hu's reputation had been known in the county for several years, while Li Sheng was just a newcomer who had only recently emerged.
The two had already stood in the center of the field.
Xu Hu is as his name suggests; he is broad-shouldered and thick-waisted, and when he stands there, he looks like a wall.
He was shirtless, revealing his muscular physique. He spread his arms wide, his ten fingers as thick as radishes, and grinned, revealing two rows of yellow teeth.
"So you're Li Sheng? I've heard you're quite capable. Come on, let me see."
Li Sheng stood opposite him and walked forward empty-handed.
In the military, duels were often fought to determine the winner.
He looked Xu Hu up and down and nodded.
The onlookers spontaneously made way for each other, and a buzz of discussion filled the air.
Many people are betting on Xu Hu, after all, this strong man's reputation has been known in the county for several years.
Xu Hu shouted and pounced forward.
He opened his arms, wanting to hug Li Sheng tightly. With his strength, once he had a hold on him, the other party would have no chance to break free.
Li Sheng did not back down.
He ducked low and slipped under Xu Hu's arm. Xu Hu missed his target, stumbled, but quickly regained his balance and pounced again. This time, he pounced even faster, his palms slapping out like fans.
Li Sheng dodged to the side, avoiding a direct confrontation, and then used his left hand to grab Xu Hu's wrist while his right hand gripped his elbow, twisting his body sharply.
The way of fighting is not about having great strength, but about using the opponent's strength.
Xu Hu felt as if his arm was pinned by an iron rod, and his center of gravity involuntarily shifted forward.
He tried to steady himself, but Li Sheng's leg had already slipped between his legs and gently twisted it.
With a loud bang.
Xu Hu collapsed to the ground like a mountain of flesh, raising a cloud of dust.
He tried to get up, but Li Sheng was already straddling his back, one hand locking his throat and the other holding his wrist. Xu Hu struggled twice, but couldn't budge.
Quiet.
The entire open space was so quiet that only the sound of the wind blowing through the tents could be heard.
Li Shengsong let go, stood up, and patted the dirt off his knees.
He glanced down at Xu Hu on the ground, then looked up at Xu Wen in the crowd.
He clasped his hands in a fist salute, his voice not loud, but it clearly reached the ears of everyone present.
"Thank you for your generous gift, Commander Xu. I will gladly accept it."
Although Li Sheng didn't say it explicitly, Xu Wen's face twitched, but he ultimately didn't say anything.
The onlookers then came to their senses and burst into a buzz of discussion.
Chen Yuan sat in front of the tent, clapping his hands and laughing so hard that his eyes narrowed into slits.
……
Military life is always monotonous. After the competition the day before yesterday, Li Sheng returned to his normal military life.
The iron armor that Chen Yuan and Xu Wen had promised was distributed to Li Sheng and his men the very next day.
The brothers under Li Sheng were quite excited when they put on the armor for the first time, after all, as mentioned before, a suit of armor was a life.
However, after the excitement comes the heavy burden.
The iron armor was much heavier than the leather armor they wore before; it weighed about 20 to 30 jin (approximately 10 to 15 kilograms) more.
This took them several hours to familiarize themselves with, a bittersweet experience.
Normally, armies don't wear armor when marching or fighting. The armor is stored in a special place and is only temporarily put on when the battle begins. Otherwise, wearing armor weighing dozens of kilograms would exhaust the soldiers before the battle even starts.
After acclimatizing for three to five days, the troops in Xiapi County finally set off northward.
The sound of horns echoed over the camp, deep and lingering.
Each battalion began packing up tents, loading wagons and bundling grain; the sounds of men shouting and horses neighing filled the air, creating utter chaos.
Military campaigns are not as interesting as novels and storybooks. They involve more of the unseen organization and management, such as calculating the consumption of food and fodder, selecting campsites, and building toilets. These are all crucial skills that are not taught in general military books.
This knowledge was often only passed down to military families who made a living through martial arts.
Li Sheng observed carefully. Since no one taught him, he learned through practice, for practice is the best teacher.
His team of nearly two hundred men, which he pulled out from Siyang Township, was ultimately different.
Although his core team made up less than half of the total, through Li Sheng's long-term training and by learning and adapting to the actual situation of the Han soldiers, his team became one of the best in the entire military camp.
Although it still can't compare to the retinues of those powerful clans, it's not far off.
As Chen Yuan rode his horse past Li Sheng's ranks, he couldn't help but take another look.
He didn't speak, but simply nodded slightly, then spurred his horse forward and gave a loud order.
"Set off!"
The troops moved slowly, heading south out of the camp gate, then turning north and proceeding along the official road.
The march was not fast.
Moreover, once outside the county seat, the road gradually became bumpy and uneven. On both sides were large tracts of barren fields, the soil cracked, the wheat seedlings sparse, and weeds growing rampant.
Li Sheng walked in the middle of the group, his eyes sweeping over the barren fields by the roadside.
He did the math in his head: such land would be lucky to yield two bushels of grain per mu (a Chinese unit of area, approximately 0.165 acres), and after paying taxes, his family wouldn't even have enough to eat. No wonder so many people preferred to become refugees; the people were on the verge of starvation.
After a full day's march, as dusk approached, the army finally arrived at the southern border of Xiapi.
A dozen or so miles further north lies Xiapi, a state occupied by the Yellow Turban rebels.
Chen Yuan reined in his horse, looked around, and ordered the army to halt its advance.
"Set up camp!"
The personal guards rode horses back and forth between the camps to relay orders.
Li Sheng chose a high ground near the official road, which was slightly elevated, offered a wide view, and was backed by a nearly dried-up ditch.
He directed the team to park the oxcarts on the perimeter, forming a makeshift barrier.
The twenty elite soldiers were divided into four groups, each guarding one of the four directions. The rest of the men were cutting tree branches, digging stove pits, and setting up tents in an orderly manner.