Chapter 73: This Is A Rebel Too?
“The martial competition venue is at the Captain’s Mansion in Chuyun City. Unlike the civil competition, which happens only once every three years, you can go anytime you want.
Defeat infantry, and you become infantry. Defeat spear infantry, and you become spear infantry. Defeat light cavalry—oh, the sheep you mentioned—and you become light cavalry. Defeat Thunder Smoke Beast heavy cavalry, and you become Thunder Smoke Beast heavy cavalry, and you can also obtain the Gongshi rank.
If you’re skilled enough to defeat the Thunder Smoke Beast heavy cavalry centurion, you become a centurion and advance to Shang Zao rank. If you feel confident enough to defeat the Thunder Smoke Beast commander, that’s impressive—a Zanniao Title will be yours, and the army will provide you with a house, servants, and ten pounds of gold.
As for us, we can formally become your vassals, the kind acknowledged by government officials, not like these nameless vassals we are now.”
Feng An was highly skilled at gathering news. After being out for two hours, he had already inquired about the various rules of the martial competition in Chuyun City in great detail.
Seeing that Yun Ce wanted to praise him, Feng An quickly waved his hand and said, “These rules are engraved on the wooden board at the entrance to the training ground of the Captain’s Mansion, so you don’t need to praise me.”
Yun Ce smiled and said, “How has the martial competition been these past few years? How many people have advanced to Gongshi rank, how many to Shang Zao, and how many to Zanniao?”
Feng An proudly raised an index finger toward E Ji, An Ji, Liang Kun, and the others who had gathered around, shaking it left and right as he said, “For infantry, Gongshi, Shang Zao, Zanniao—not a single one. Not just this year—the last person to obtain Gongshi rank was five years ago, and now he’s a ten-man general in the Thunder Smoke Beast heavy cavalry of the Captain’s Mansion.”
Liang Kun quickly asked, “What’s the trick behind it…”
Feng An shook his head and said, “I haven’t heard of anything shady. After all, you replace exactly the person you defeat. No one has heard of anyone deliberately losing to the opponent—they all fight to the death.
1 Liang Kun glanced at Yun Ce and said, “What does the young lord think?”
1 Yun Ce frowned and said, “Don’t talk to me in this formal reporting style from now on. Talking like before was so much better. Do you have to speak in this inhuman way?”
1 Feng An opened his mouth several times, then finally smiled and said, “It’s still good to observe some propriety. When King Huo first entered the military, he was willing to mingle with the soldiers. He was brave in battle, often charging ahead and retreating last. Do you know what happened later?”
1 Yun Ce thought for a moment and said, “His deputy general wanted to replace him.”
1 “Huh? How did you know?” Feng An was very surprised. He didn’t remember ever telling Yun Ce this story.
1 Yun Ce smiled and said, “For a general, the people he should most unite with are his command staff, not mingling with the lower-level soldiers. Over time, the general loses his due authority, the soldiers lose their reverence for the general, and meanwhile, his command staff will think that since the general always charges ahead and retreats last, he’ll eventually fall in battle.
1 So, the deputy general wants to deliberately get him killed. There are too many ways to do it.
1 Tell me, how was Huo Qubing schemed against?”
1 Feng An cupped his hands toward the east, then said, “That was during King Huo’s campaign to pacify the Gui Fang. At the time, facing the Gui Fang’s eighty thousand elite cavalry, King Huo planned to charge the formation with three thousand Thunder Smoke Beast heavy cavalry from the center army to pierce the enemy lines. Once the enemy army was in chaos, the left and right armies along with the remaining center army would all press forward to completely annihilate the Gui Fang’s eighty thousand elite cavalry.”
1 Hearing this, Yun Ce sighed and said, “He personally led the troops to charge the formation?”
2 Feng An spread his hands and said, “That was unavoidable. The Gui Fang’s eighty thousand elite cavalry were the cream of the crop. King Huo was invincible under heaven—he was the Great Han’s sharpest spear. Without him leading, those three thousand heavy cavalry couldn’t achieve the goal.
2 So, he charged the formation and fought for two hours before piercing the enemy lines. He also killed the Gui Fang’s Bear King, causing great chaos in the enemy army. But by his side, only fewer than five hundred men remained. Just as he waited for the three armies to press forward, he found the three armies standing firm.
2 Thus, in that fierce battle, legend has it that King Huo single-handedly on horseback angrily cut down twenty thousand heads.”
2 Seeing Feng An withholding the key part, Yun Ce understood that Huo Qubing had killed Great Han troops, slaughtering twenty thousand of them. The situation was clear, but he really wanted to know how he single-handedly created the feat of killing twenty thousand on horseback alone.
2 Seeing Yun Ce not asking for a long time, Feng An said, “Do you know what King Huo did?”
2 Yun Ce snorted and said, “I don’t know what Huo Qubing did exactly, but I know that battle must have been a crushing defeat for him.
2 Alright, save the rest of the story for after I participate in the martial competition. You all rest well too. Tomorrow’s civil competition has Zhang Min’s help, but you still need to show some literary talent—don’t let Zhang Min complain later that she helped two idiots and keep asking me for benefits.”
2 Feng An and Liang Kun were somewhat excited. Although both hoped to pass relying on their own true talents, the two tacitly did not mention Zhang Min.
2 It seemed the two of them knew very well that without Zhang Min’s help, they couldn’t pass.
2 In the evening, Zhang Min came again. Her stomach was still bulging, causing her legs to splay outward when walking. Even so, she walked over, probably enduring many strange gazes along the way.
3 “This martial competition is your closest chance yet at the Zanniao Title. To encounter such a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, I have to say your luck is extremely good.”
3 Yun Ce now had some tolerance for Zhang Min’s ever-changing way of speaking. After E Ji undid his long hair, he sat on a wooden stool to wash his hair, not planning to fall into Zhang Min’s trap.
3 “Do you know, I have news—that captain participated in the battle to annihilate the Pig King and Bear King a while ago. Although he killed the Pig King and Bear King, he was clawed in the stomach by the Bear King’s Xiong Pi, sustaining heavy injuries that still haven’t fully healed.
3 I see your martial arts are good. Challenging this commander at this time will surely lead to victory. Then, the coveted Zanniao rank won’t it be easily within reach?”
3 Yun Ce immersed his head in warm water, ignoring Zhang Min’s temptation. This woman always said that E Ji, Feng An, Liang Kun, and the others were descendants of criminals, with criminal blood flowing in their veins.
3 After this time getting to know Zhang Min, she was the real ruthless one. The scars all over her body were proof—who else’s good woman would charge forward facing blades and spears, swords, halberds, axes, hooks, forks, and a sky full of arrows?
3 Resulting in scars everywhere in front, yet gleaming white like jade in the back?
3 Such a person doesn’t even value her own life—how could she care about others’ lives?
3 She spoke easily, but Yun Ce had heard from Doggy that although he was clawed once by the Bear King’s Xiong Pi, it was to seize the chance to kill Xiong Pi. In the end, he survived, while Xiong Pi was cut into pieces. Yun Ce didn’t want to become that unfairly dead Bear King.
3 Yun Ce ignored her, and Zhang Min didn’t feel awkward. Somehow, she suddenly noticed E Ji taking a large grayish lump and smearing it on Yun Ce’s hair. After smearing, it foamed up. Rubbing it a bit, Yun Ce’s hair was washed very clean.
4 Taking a bit from Yun Ce’s hair and smearing it on her hand—it was sticky and slippery. Washing her hands twice like E Ji and rinsing with water, then lifting her hand, she inexplicably felt her hand was much whiter and tenderer.
4 Yun Ce finished washing his hair and, while wiping his wet long hair with a cloth, said to Zhang Min who was holding the soap and unwilling to let go, “This thing is called soap—it’s very good for cleaning and bathing.”
4 “I’m taking it.” Zhang Min was as unreasonable as ever.
4 Yun Ce continued, “E Ji always wants to buy a big house and decorate it to her liking, preferably with many diligent and pretty maidservants serving her.
4 Look, giving you this thing and the secret recipe—can you fulfill E Ji’s wish?”
4 Zhang Min held up the soap and sniffed it under her nose, looking at Yun Ce and saying, “It has a fragrance.”
4 Yun Ce handed the cloth to E Ji and said, “The fragrance type can be adjusted, or you can choose your favorite scent.”
4 Zhang Min said incredulously, “This was invented?”
4 Yun Ce nodded.
4 Zhang Min looked at Yun Ce and said, “Women should like this thing a lot. It’s much better than using bean powder that makes hair sticky.”
5 Yun Ce raised his hand and said, “Men’s hair is also very long.”
5 “Since you know it’s a good thing, why give it to me?”
5 Yun Ce sat dejectedly on the wooden stool and said, “A child hiding gold in his arms while walking through a bustling market—what’s his fate? His fate is mine.”
5 Zhang Min continued sniffing the soap randomly. After sniffing enough, she returned it to E Ji, sighed, and said, “This thing is too good, and I am another such child.”
5 Yun Ce took the used piece of soap from E Ji’s hand and placed it in Zhang Min’s hand, saying, “It should be fine for you to use yourself.”
5 Holding the soap, Zhang Min finally said to Yun Ce, “Whether you like it or not, tomorrow in the martial competition, Zhou Chengming will step in to compete with you. If you don’t reach his expected level, he will kill you without hesitation.”
5 “Why?”
5 “He doesn’t want people to know that Wu Tong once misjudged someone.”
5 “Is it this Wu Tong who made you let go of the hatred between us?”
5 Zhang Min shook her head and said, “Not entirely, but we all trust Wu Tong. He hasn’t been wrong up to now, and this time I hope he hasn’t misjudged either.
6 Your soap, I’ll also inform him by flying letter. He should have a way to handle your soap and by the way fulfill your greedy young lord’s wish.”
6 Watching Zhang Min leave, Yun Ce said to Feng An who was hiding nearby observing her, “What did you see?”
6 Feng An said in a grim voice, “She trusts Zhou Xiaowei and also trusts Wu Tong. Zhou Xiaowei trusts Wu Tong even more, so I think these three are in cahoots, and not with the government officials.”
6 Yun Ce thought of Miss Hong and Pei Chuan whom he encountered right upon entering a populated area, and couldn’t help suspecting in his heart—could everyone who has deep dealings with him be rebels?
6 Tomorrow, he had to take a good look at this Zhou Xiaowei, lest he crash headlong into a highly armed rebel group.
6 Before fully understanding this world, he didn’t want to become a rebel everyone shouts to beat.
6 Moreover, based on Earth’s patterns of rebellion, those who become rebels first never meet a good end.
