Ming Dynasty: Summoning game players at the beginning

Chapter 154 Carrying a knife but not an umbrella on a rainy night

Several veterans came into the house one after another carrying gifts of various sizes, and were shocked to find Hu Dawei already inside.

Yang Guozhu looked Hu Dawei up and down, frowning and squinting his mouth in disbelief.

Hu Dawei, who has never been interested in the ways of the world, has suddenly come to his senses?

The gifts on the table were piled up like a mountain, and the generals chose chairs to sit down.

As more and more people filled the small guest room, there weren't enough seats. Li Mu glanced around, straightened his neck, and shouted outside, "Someone, come and find some seats for the generals."

Lieutenant General Chen suddenly realized that he was the lowest-ranking official in the room, so he quickly waved his hand and said politely, "It's okay, it's okay, I'll just stand there."

Li Mu gave up his seat and retreated to the bed. After some persuasion in a gentle voice, Lieutenant General Chen reluctantly sat down.

At this time, a player came into the room without any props in his hand. He walked straight to Li Mu's ear and whispered a few words.

Li Mu said in a voice that only the players could hear, "Go ahead."

After Li Mu's "housekeepers" left, the six veterans stared at each other, and then each of them smiled meaningfully.

The combined age of these people is longer than the Ming Dynasty. Half of them have gray hair, and there is even a sixty-year-old veteran with white hair and beard.

Li Mu couldn't help but complain that the aging problem among the senior military officers of the Ming Dynasty was really serious, and most of the famous young generals died in battle.

There is a gap in the inheritance of martial virtues between young and old people. No wonder the combat experience of the military corps in the late Ming Dynasty became increasingly poor. Whenever they commanded more than 5,000 soldiers, they would be stretched to the limit, and if they commanded more than 10,000, there would be chaos.

Several veteran generals first asked about the injured Li Mu's well-being, and then discussed their respective performances on the battlefield.

They exaggerated their heroic battles, which were truly fierce and thrilling life-and-death battles that made people's blood boil. Then they naturally turned the topic to the Black Flag Army.

Some people praised the bravery of the Black Flag Army, some thought the Black Flag Army's artillery was sharp, and some wondered how Li Can could afford to support so many auxiliary troops. He probably couldn't afford to support them even if he just collected empty salaries and sucked the blood of the soldiers.

Li Mu listened solemnly, and heaved a sigh of relief as he suddenly realized something. It turned out that this group of people came here to "seek advice".

"The method of training and strengthening the army is not difficult..."

Li Mu's words were half true and half false. He learned from Qi Shaobao's "Ji Xiao Xin Shu" about military training. To make guns and cast cannons, he paid the craftsmen enough wages and let them earn more for more work. To strengthen the army, he gave the soldiers enough food and water and provided them with more training.

As for the large expenditure on training and strengthening the army, the natural way is to increase revenue and reduce expenditure: internally, put an end to the practice of drawing empty salaries from soldiers, and externally, find ways to do more business.

When the generals heard this, they all looked at each other in bewilderment. These methods of training troops were all old and common principles that had been talked about for a long time.

This is like parents persuading their children to read more and learn more knowledge, so that they will become pillars of society in the future.

But everyone understands the general principles, the real problem is whether you can learn the entire set and stick to it for a long time.

Suffering for one year and suffering for ten years are two different things. The latter is ten times more difficult than the former.

The generals and soldiers thought that nephew Li Xian had some "secret method" that he had not told them yet, and they would not dig deep to get to the bottom of it.

"My dear nephew, you're actually doing business to subsidize military expenses?"

Hu Dawei was shocked. Ordinary generals would just take the military pay to fill their own pockets.

Brigadier General Li, on the other hand, not only puts his heart into doing business, but also pays out of his own pocket to subsidize the soldiers. He is so loyal to the country that he is simply the loyal and brave Qi Shaobao reborn!

"Commander Li is loyal and brave for the country, but that eunuch Gao Qiquan is still making sarcastic remarks! The soldiers are completely disheartened!" Hu Dawei slammed the table unwillingly.

"Who says it's not true? You are loyal and brave for the country, but he says you are not greedy or noisy, and have great ambitions. You are free and easy and enjoy life, but he calls you vulgar, arrogant, and lawless. Anyway, we will be called soldiers anyway." Lieutenant General Wang stared at the floor unhappily.

"Hmph! I've always disliked that eunuch. If the commander-in-chief hadn't been there, I would have really wanted to chop him to pieces!" Brigadier General Chen's face flushed red and his neck became thick. He used his right hand like a steel knife and slashed fiercely at the neck of the eunuch that appeared in the air.

"That eunuch is the emperor's pride. If you kill him, you're committing rebellion! You only have a few soldiers under your command. If the imperial army comes to encircle and suppress us, can you resist them?"

"So what? Can't we say that the court is unfair? We military generals have been trampled under the feet of those sour literati for so many years. Now there are eunuchs who are pointing fingers and making the soldiers feel uncomfortable. I've had enough of this humiliation!" Lieutenant General Chen cursed several times.

"What are you talking about! If your treasonous words were heard by the imperial court, the imperial guards would come to arrest you." Liu Qin frowned, as if he was deeply afraid of the imperial court's authority.

"What are you afraid of! The people here are brothers who have fought side by side. If you and I don't tell anyone, who will know?" Hu Dawei poured himself a pot of tea and drank it all in one gulp.

Li Mu lay on the bed, quietly observing the expressions and tones of the generals.

The generals were full of complaints and resentment, but they were still some distance away from exploding.

Li Mu thought to himself that he could try to win them over.

"The injustice between superiors and subordinates is a long-standing problem in the imperial court, and it will not be eradicated overnight. Although warriors like us serve our country, we should also find ways to protect ourselves."

"Do you have any good ideas, nephew?" The veterans all looked at Li Mu lying on the bed. The latter struggled to sit up halfway.

"I heard that several scholars in Jiangnan founded a literary society called the Fu Society. In recent years, the Fu Society's reputation has grown increasingly resounding, with a single literary society gathering thousands of scholars and scholars, making it quite a lively occasion." Li Mu paused before continuing, "Why don't we follow their example and establish a martial arts society, so we can form a strong alliance and support each other."

"Great!" Hu Dawei was the first to respond. More friends meant more opportunities. Yang Guozhu and Chen Shiyou also nodded. The others were hesitant. Liu Qin warned with concern, "Our Ming Dynasty has always valued literature over military service. Literary societies and banquets are a leisurely and elegant pastime. If we, the warriors, also formed a clique and established a society, I'm afraid the Emperor and the other gentlemen would be displeased."

"Then we should form a secret society and keep today's events to ourselves," Yang Guozhu added.

"Why not swear an oath of blood?" Chen Shiyou stretched out his hand in front of the generals, with a small knife resting on the fingertips of his left hand.

"What do you think?" Hu Dawei glanced at the hesitant people, and the others looked at each other, as if they had made up their minds.

"Alright! I'll form a secret alliance with you all today!"

The veterans took out their knives, cut their fingers, and smeared their noses and mouths with the blood.

Li Mu dragged his injured body out of bed, pulled out the sword hanging beside the bed, and stabbed the ground with the tip of the sword. Seeing this, everyone reached out to grab the handle of the sword.

Li Mu, the most educated of the seven, spoke up to cheer them up, "Today, the seven of us swear an oath of blood to support each other and fight against injustice, for the sake of the people of the world, and for the sake of rectifying the vast mountains and rivers.

From today on, I will strictly discipline my subordinates. I will not kill innocent people to claim credit for my achievements, I will not bully the people, I will not trample on the crops, and I will treat the soldiers and the people with kindness...

Anyone who breaks the oath and harms the people is no longer a member of our society, and we brothers will spit on and kill him."

"What's the name of this club?" Hu Dawei asked.

"Seven of us are united in purpose and help each other, so let's call it 'United Concern Society'."

……

At nightfall, a sudden rainstorm enveloped the entire county.

Soldiers patrolling the streets retreated to the eaves to avoid the rain, and the muddy stream formed by the rain washing away the sludge converged on the street.

A luxurious inn was brightly lit. All the guests in the inn were driven away by the bigwigs, leaving only a powerful eunuch and one or two hundred personal soldiers and Jinyiwei who protected him.

Gao Qiqian and several of his staff stayed in the best guest rooms, while the Imperial Guards and their personal guards stayed next door. The lesser-ranked warriors could only take naps in the corridors or take shifts on guard duty in the lobby downstairs.

The candles in the guest room were lit, and several staff members were working hard to write a report to the emperor by candlelight.

The young eunuch served Gao Qiquan candied fruits, milk and other sweet cakes and drinks. While the latter was enjoying himself, he did not forget to give his staff some harsh words.

The humiliating scene of the generals forcing the emperor to abdicate was still deeply imprinted in Gao Qiquan's mind.

He is not a tolerant person and never waits for hatred to grow overnight.

Even if these damn arrogant soldiers have made great achievements, if they offend Gao Qiquan, they will be in big trouble.

He had served the emperor as a eunuch for several years and knew the emperor's temper very well.

It is not okay to directly slander the heroes, as it will trigger the emperor's rebellious psychology.

You have to follow the emperor's thoughts, praise these soldiers and congratulate His Majesty on his great fortune.

Then, with a few subtle, sarcastic remarks, he intentionally or unintentionally hinted that these soldiers were unruly, allowing His Majesty to discern the "true meaning" hidden between the lines. Only the "conclusion" reached by His Majesty himself could be as solid as a rock.

It is said that everything that is prosperous will inevitably decline, and that great treachery may appear loyal. A "good man" praised by everyone will definitely arouse the emperor's suspicion.

At that time, Gao Qiquan would take the opportunity to say a few subtle malicious words. Even if he failed to kill these soldiers, he would at least send them to the imperial prison and torture them severely to vent his hatred.

Especially the fierce soldiers of the Black Flag Camp were unreasonable and domineering. He swore that even if he did nothing else in this life, he would fight the Black Flag Camp to the end.

Even if Lieutenant General Li and his guilty soldiers knelt before him and kowtowed three hundred times to apologize, he would not forgive them!

He wants them to die without a burial place, and even their ancestral graves will be dug up clean!

Listening to his staff reciting the draft reports over and over again, Gao Qiquan always asked them to send them back for rewrites, as none of them touched his heart.

Just as Gao Qiquan was cursing the soldiers with gritted teeth, he suddenly heard a noise coming from the corridor outside the house.

There was a muffled whooshing sound, and the human voice suddenly stopped, followed by the sound of sticky cartilage creatures crawling on the ground, as if something was approaching.

"Go and take a look." Gao Qiquan secretly cursed these guards for not being attentive, not staying on duty honestly at night, and actually making noise for him.

The young eunuch who had served Gao Qiquan for a long time also became arrogant. He opened the door and started scolding towards the corridor.

However, the guard at the end of the corridor lay quietly at the stairs with several arrows stuck in his chest.

Suddenly the young eunuch saw some strange militants wearing straw raincoats, conical hats, and their faces covered with black cloth.

They held steel knives in their hands, and the rainwater on their straw raincoats and hats kept dripping onto the floor, making a faint dripping sound.

"Ah! There's an assassin!" The little eunuch just howled when a crossbow arrow pierced his throat.

(End of this chapter)