Pingyang Fu of the Red Chamber

Chapter 831: The Beijing Camp Beats the Drums to Gather the Generals
Anhu Camp,

The drums and trumpets sounded,

Resounding through the sky,

After Zhang Jinyu entered the camp, he led the captain on duty and his personal soldiers to walk around the training ground and barracks. Maybe he had heard too many rumors that the Beijing camp was now full of master soldiers.
However, there were almost 50,000 soldiers currently training in battle formations in the training grounds. The fatigue on their faces was unmistakable; they must have been training for a long time.
"How long have you been training soldiers this way?"

The captain following closely behind him waved to his many subordinates. Many soldiers fell behind and disappeared in an instant. Zhang Jinyu knew clearly that they must have leaked the news, so he did not take it seriously.

"My Lord, since the transfer order from the Ministry of War arrived, several commanders have started training in rotation, and they have also cooperated with the commander-in-chief of the Imperial Guards to check the arsenal and military preparations."

at this time,

Many generals who had arrived were informed one after another. When they got to the reviewing platform, Zhang Jinyu had someone bring a chair from somewhere, covered it with a woolen blanket, and sat on it with his broadsword. His personal soldiers lined up behind him, and the generals below stood in line from east to west in the order of arrival.

The entire training ground was in complete silence, with only the messy footsteps of the soldiers. The generals on the stage were all fully clothed and equipped with weapons. They looked in good spirits. In the large cauldron in the center, after one stick of incense had passed, another soldier would light another one. Now, it had been three sticks of incense.

I estimate half an hour.

The last stick of incense had already burned out without a trace. Zhang Jinyu smiled when he saw it, looking at the generals and lieutenants below. It was really true that seeing them in person was better than hearing about them. There were generals everywhere and lieutenants were as numerous as dogs. But it was also true that among the hundreds of thousands of troops, only less than half could stand up, and there were even more standing under the stage.
It seems that there have been regulations for a long time, but there is obviously a large open space on the westernmost side. Some people are so bold that they don't come even when the drums are beaten to gather the troops. This is not right.
"Three incense sticks have passed, and almost all the people who can come are here. This is my first time to come to the Anhu Camp. I just want to get to know the generals. If there are any who don't know me, now is the time to get to know them. Do you know all the transfer orders in the palace?"

As soon as Zhang Jinyu finished asking, the generals below replied in unison;
"My Lord, I know."

"Well, that's good to know. From today on, all units in the Beijing camp must train their men and horses every day, familiarize themselves with the military equipment, eat three meals a day, and transport food from Tongzhou if there is a shortage. Don't slack off."

Zhang Jinyu scolded with a cold face, stood up, and the generals below sang in unison, clasped their fists and bowed, which was quite impressive.

Zhang Jinyu glanced at the big cauldron. The incense had burned out. Since it had burned out, he started to count the number of people to see who hadn't arrived. However, at a glance, there should be quite a few people who hadn't arrived yet.
"Where are the Central Guard, the Left and Right Guards?"

"I am Ma Cheng, the Central Guard, Feng Zhuang, the Left Guard, and Song Jin, the Right Guard. I am here to greet you, Lord Marquis!"

Three people immediately responded and stood up.

Zhang Jinyu's eyes flashed coldly, and he immediately ordered,

"Count all the generals to see if there are any who are not here."

"Yes, Lord Marquis."

Right there on the scene, three rows of generals, one in each row, started counting. The generals below did not dare to talk to each other casually, and could only rely on their intuition to feel that someone was in trouble.
Zhang Jinyu was also afraid that the people below would fool him, so he looked at Eagle Strike Sima and asked;

"Sima Yingji, the camp will bring the roster over."

"Yes, Lord Marquis."

Eagle Strike Sima Lu Kang swallowed his saliva, his eyes wandering, obviously knowing that Luo Yunhou was serious, he responded, went to the central army tent, took back the roster, and handed it over.
"My Lord, the roster has arrived,"

"Um,"

Zhang Jinyu took it and flipped through it. There were quite a few, but he hadn't seen the figure of Yang Shixiong yet. This man was really arrogant and domineering. Seeing that the three of them had counted several times but still hadn't finished, his face darkened and he asked;

"Can you three count?"

The three of them immediately wiped the sweat off their foreheads and came back to report.

"My Lord, I counted the three of us three times, and there are three people missing?"

Central Guard Ma Cheng's forehead was sweating, and he stood there at a loss. Zhang Jinyu didn't even look up, and asked casually,

"Which three?"

Ma Cheng glanced at the two people on his left and right. They both lowered their heads. He had no choice but to speak for himself.

"My Lord, yes."

Before he could even open his mouth, he was interrupted by Marquis Luo Yun. Looking at the expressions of the three men, it was obvious that the two generals of the left and right guards did not want to offend anyone, but the Marquis could not let them do so.
"Go to one side. The left guard says one person, and the right guard says one person. Start."

Zhang Jinyu's words were not to be rejected, and the generals below were shocked. It seemed that he was not easy to deal with. They secretly turned their eyes to the two guards, only to see that they were a little dumbfounded. It was the left guard Feng Zhuang who was smarter and replied;

"My Lord, General Dingdong had something happen at home, and General Song Yutian hurried back to the Marquis Chengyi's residence. It has been two days."

"Who did you ask for leave from?"

"Uh, I don't know."

Zhang Jinyu thought quickly. The Chengyi Marquis's Mansion was Song Daichun, his son. It had been two days since he left.
"Ningbian, remember this."

"Yes, Lord Marquis."

Ning Bian held the memorial in one hand and the brush in the other, dipped it in the ink on the table and wrote it down. Zhang Jinyu flipped through the roster, but there were too many names, so he only looked at the generals' names.
"continue!"

"Yes, Lord, and General Yang Shixiong of Dong'an, in the future,"

Song Jin, the right guard, swallowed his saliva and quickly told the number of people to be checked. It didn't matter what he said. The other generals looked a little anxious and looked around hurriedly. They didn't see Yang Shixiong yet. Hu Shoucheng couldn't stand it and shouted;
"Report, Lord, I have something to say!"

This shout startled everyone around, and those who knew the details secretly broke into a sweat.

"Well, tell me."

Zhang Jinyu closed the roster and had a rough idea of ​​the number of generals.

"My Lord, Yang Shixiong is not in good health and is still resting in the tent, so I will not be here for you in the future."

"Did you report it, or keep any documents?"

Zhang Jinyu didn't care about his poor health at all. The army has its own rules. When asked by Marquis Luo Yun, Hu Shoucheng was speechless. Although he received the imperial edict, the Marquis was not in the army, so how could he ask for leave? He gritted his teeth and replied;

"My Lord has not been in the army. How can I ask for leave?"

Interesting, this is considered a complaint to me. Zhang Jinyu threw the roster on the table, raised his head and stared at Hu Shoucheng.
"General Dingbei, what a great title. You guys can go to the Jiaofangsi to drink, but you can't go to the Marquis' Mansion to ask for leave. If everyone is like you guys, the camp will be in chaos. Otherwise, if you don't want to be the general, give it up and I will submit the memorial for you. Is that okay?"

Hu Shoucheng's face turned red after the questioning. He wanted to say something else but was pulled back by Duan Wenyuan behind him.
"Please forgive me, my Lord. What we did was a bit rash."

"Yes, my lord, I have no other intention."

Seeing that the others had given in, Zhang Jinyu waved his hand without paying attention to them.
"The country has its own laws, the family has its own rules, and the military camp has its own orders. I will not pursue the previous matters until I come back, but now that you are here, don't make excuses. If you can do it, then do it. If you can't do it, I will not keep you."

He glanced at the generals below. At this moment, a group of soldiers came hurriedly from the west. Their formation was in disarray, and their flags were scattered. The leading general had a crooked helmet. His fat figure trotted all the way to the high platform. Looking at the generals standing on the podium, there was complete silence. The words he had thought of before coming could not be said.

In his panic, his feet slipped, he stumbled, and fell to the ground, with the helmet covering his eyes.

Zhang Jinyu glanced at the man who came. He was simply disgusting. A dignified general was so boastful. A defeated general was just like this. He ignored him and continued to ask;
"Go on,"

"Yes, and the Wing Guard Sima Shan Changyong has led his troops to Tongzhou to get military supplies. And, and," Right Guard Song Jin hesitated, glancing at the newly arrived General Han. How could he mention his name when he saw him right in front of him?
Han Zhiwei seemed to have been informed, and quickly stood up, ran over, with a smile on his face, bowed and said;
"I, Han Zhiwei, greet you, Your Majesty. I was delayed by something and am late. Please forgive me, Your Majesty."

Han Zhiwei also gave it his all, with the smile of a servant, hoping that the marquis would forgive his fault and let him go. It was rumored in the past that Marquis Luo Yun was very strict in disciplining his army, but if the same thing happened to him, it would be bad.

At this time, everyone was holding their breath, waiting for the Marquis to speak.
No idea.

not far away,
Yang Shixiong, who arrived late, had a cold face, was dressed in iron armor, and had a tall and strong figure. He walked up slowly from the reviewing platform without any hurry.

He walked down the steps from the stage to behind Han Zhiwei, holding a rifle in his hand. After he stood firm, he smashed the spear hard on the ground. The iron claw at the end pierced through the wooden board of the stage with a "bang", and sank into it, fixed there.

Yang Shixiong raised his head and said nothing. Looking at this aura, he almost said, "I don't accept it."

In this way, other people haven't reacted yet, but Han Zhiwei was scared to death. He turned around and saw that it was Yang Shixiong. His face froze and he cursed in his heart, "What a blind man! Luo Yunhou obviously wanted to kill a chicken to scare the monkeys. To provoke him at this time is like hanging himself, looking for death. If you want to die, don't drag me with you."

"General Yang, the Marquis is here, beating the drum to gather the generals. You are late, why are you so arrogant? If you don't know, you will be the chief general."

General Han Zhiwei of Changning did not have a good tone at all and ridiculed Yang Shixiong in front of his face.

Yang Shixiong himself, on the other hand, only glanced at General Changning with a look of disdain on his face, almost too lazy to pay attention;
"Who do you think you are? If you come late, you will be punished. If you come early, you will just stand there. How can you be like a slave and bow down to him?"

"you,"

Han Zhiwei was furious and didn't give him any face. He rolled up his sleeves and was about to take action, but was stopped by the nearest Xuanwei General Li Zongbao.

"Generals, please calm down for now. The Marquis is here, so please don't act recklessly."

It would be better to call it a reminder rather than a scolding. He has already violated military law and is making trouble here, which is an even greater crime.

Zhang Jinyu saw that the main person had arrived, so he just came to watch the fun. It must be said that Yang Shixiong was a handsome man. After putting on the armor, he really had the demeanor of a vanguard general. However, his temper, tut tut,
And the fat man next to him, interesting, no wonder everyone likes lackeys, speaks nicely, has good eyesight, and knows how to do things, he smiled and opened his mouth and said;

"Since you are all here, the army has issued orders and drums have been beaten to gather the troops. It has not even been three incense sticks of time. Without telling me the reason, I will give you thirty blows of the cane. Do you have any complaints?"

"Thank you, Lord Marquis."

Yang Shixiong spoke in a stiff voice, and actually took off his armor in public, revealing his muscular back. He looked arrogant, and it was obvious that he did not take these military sticks seriously.

Seeing Ning Bian's frosty face, he immediately waved his hand, and several personal soldiers of the Marquis' Mansion walked over and tied up Yang Shixiong. It was not until the rope was around his body that Yang Shixiong realized something was wrong and shouted;
"If you want to beat me with a stick, then beat me with a stick. Why do you want to tie me up with ropes?"

He was still struggling hard, but as soon as he moved, several soldiers from the marquis's mansion hit him with the handles of their swords. After a few hits, Yang Shixiong knelt on the ground in pain. He was tied up and then hung up along the flagpole of the general's platform. Two soldiers picked up whips and started whipping him left and right. After each whip, his skin was torn and blood was flowing. It was really scary.

Seeing that something was not right, Han Zhiwei knelt on the ground and swallowed his saliva. This was a beating to death, especially the whip, which was covered with beef tendons and could not be touched at all. His face turned pale with fear and he could not utter a word.

At this time, the faces of the generals were not looking good. General Duan Kaiyuan of Dingxi saw that Yang Shixiong was beaten with cold sweat on his face. He knew that he was going to fail, so he stepped out of the line.

"Spare the life."

"My Lord, everything can be discussed. Please show some mercy. General Yang was confused for a moment and committed a crime that should be punished. However, my Lord, friendship does not apply to him outside the law. For now, let's keep him alive. If he doesn't change, it won't be too late to beat him again."

Duan Kaiyuan was also gambling. Since Marquis Luo Yun took over the Beijing Camp, something must have happened. Perhaps in the near future, the soldiers of the Beijing Camp would be needed. Although Yang Shixiong was arrogant, he was promoted from a low-level general and had outstanding military achievements. He was also a warrior. It would be a pity if he was defeated.

Seeing Duan Kaiyuan stand up, the others couldn't help but feel a little sad, and all pleaded for mercy.

"My Lord, please spare him this time. If he does it again, you will kill him."

"Yes, Lord, all mistakes have their origins. General Yang was training his troops in the rear camp, which was too far away, so he arrived the latest."

"My Lord, please show mercy."

Generals, military officers, and lieutenants all came to plead for mercy, which surprised Zhang Jinyu. He really has good relationships with people. Then he looked at Yang Shixiong who was hanging up. His face was covered with cold sweat. He was whipped five times from behind, but he didn't say a word. What a dare!

Looking at Han Zhiwei who was still kneeling on the ground, he was already a little bit dumbfounded by fear, but his goal was achieved. He nodded and raised his hand, and the guards withdrew their hands.

"You are all right, but military orders are military orders. If you make a mistake, you will be punished. If you make a contribution, you will be rewarded. Three sticks of incense will do it. If you have the will, it is never too late. I whip him today to tell him that if he disobeys the law, someone will watch over him. If he is on the battlefield, it will not be solved by whipping him. If he does not change, you will not be asked to submit a memorial. I will write a memorial for you tonight, and you can go home and hug your child tomorrow. How wonderful."

Zhang Jinyu turned around and sat down again, waved his hand, and put the man down first. Seeing that the Marquis listened to his advice and heard his arbitrary decision, how could the generals dare to say anything more?

"Every word the Marquis said makes sense. I am not doing this for him. In the past few days, since we received the document from the Ministry of War, none of us have returned to the capital. We have all been in the Beijing Camp to train our subordinates. We dare not stop for days, for fear of delaying the Marquis's important matters."

General Dingnan Yin Renchang quickly responded to Marquis Luo Yun's words. Not only did he admit his mistake, he also simply and clearly recounted what had happened in the Beijing Camp in the past few days. In fact, he and Duan Kaiyuan both thought so. For no reason, no matter what happened in the Beijing Camp, it did not need Marquis Luo Yun to lead it. It could only be said that the Beijing Camp might need to be mobilized in the future, and time was pressing. Perhaps something big might have happened in the south, but as for what kind of big thing it was, it was really hard to say!
Therefore, the training of the Beijing camp, which had been somewhat slack, was pulled out here. Every day, the five armies took turns to exercise and rest, and count the military equipment and food. However, no one expected that Marquis Luo Yun would suddenly come here to beat the drum and gather the generals at this time.

Seeing that the eyes of several people were firm and they didn't seem to be lying, and looking at Yang Shixiong who had been beaten and put down in a horrible state, he didn't care about these things in his heart. Killing the chicken to scare the monkey is useful, but it can't be overdone. A slap in the face, a sweet date,
Zhang Jinyu touched his chin and looked at the generals in front of him. They were really extraordinary. They could see some things in advance. They were worthy of being the four generals. They were also outstanding among the nobles. It was not an exaggeration to call them heroes.

"The merits and demerits are equal, but a military order is a military order. No matter what the reason is, if you were on the battlefield and you were fighting on your own, let alone an army of 400,000, even 800,000 would be a pile of loose sand and vulnerable to attack. What I want is a military order. Let's just forget about this matter and take good care of your injuries."

Look at Han Zhiwei kneeling on the ground. Even though the villain said good things, he still needs to be beaten with a stick.

"General Han has sincerely admitted his fault. I am not ruthless. Take him away and give him twenty beatings with a stick."

"Yes, Lord Marquis,"

Several personal soldiers came over and dragged General Han away. Then, the sound of sticks was heard, accompanied by muffled groans.

"Everyone, I came here today to give you some instructions. From today on, the Beijing Camp must practice every day, familiarize yourself with the battle formation, and prepare enough food and grass in the camp. It is said that the soldiers in the Beijing Camp are the masters' soldiers, but I don't believe it. However, if anyone has diarrhea at a critical moment, don't blame me for being ruthless."

His sharp eyes swept over all the generals, and they immediately straightened their faces and shouted loudly;
"Yes, Lord, I will obey your orders."

"Disband."

After leaving his words behind, as the sound of sticks from the audience ended, Zhang Jinyu led his troops on horseback and galloped out of the camp.

The generals were left staring at each other on the stage, at a loss.
"General Duan, what the Marquis just said, is the Beijing camp going to send troops?"

"Yes, General, where are the troops needed? How many soldiers are needed?"

"Can we get some military merit?"

The other generals immediately gathered around and asked questions in unison.

Only a few commanders looked solemn and said nothing. It seemed that the situation might be the same as ten years ago. The army led by General Wang Jie had either suffered a defeat or was in a stalemate and could not move south. Or, the city of Linshan County was lost and could not be captured after a long siege. The people of the Taiping Sect were not small fry or scattered soldiers, but elite soldiers and armor.

At that time,
The White Lotus Sect is in danger, and it is unclear whether the Beijing Army's dispatch of troops will be a blessing or a curse.

The group of people in front of me were full of excitement, thinking about military merits, but they didn't know that military merits were earned by risking one's life, not by getting by.
Amid the noise,

Han Zhiwei, who was beaten in the audience, lay on the bench and finally wailed and cursed;

"You are all poor people. You may not survive for a moment on the battlefield. Yet you are still thinking about military merit. You just had the courage. No one asked for mercy for me!"

(End of this chapter)