The prince is more stable

Chapter 730 Purge Dissidents
The drill ground erupted in uproar, and the soldiers were shocked.

Seeing blood gushing from Zhong Cheng's shoulder, the soldiers rushed over.

Zhong Cheng's face was pale as he clutched his shoulder, but his eyes were fixed on Zhe Keshi, who was a hundred paces away, his gaze filled with intense anger and murderous intent.

Zhe Keshi was a veteran general who had taken countless lives, and he showed no fear in the face of Zhong Cheng's gaze.

You dare to kill me with your eyes?

More and more people gathered around, and soon a soldier turned around and hurriedly reported to Zhao Xiaoqian.

Injuries to soldiers are common during drills, especially when soldiers are fighting one-on-one. Someone will inevitably lose control and accidentally slash or break the opponent's bone.

Under normal circumstances, once the generals understand the whole story, they generally will not punish the soldiers unless someone is killed.

So Zhe Keshi remained indifferent, and even winked at Zhong Cheng with a grin.

Zhao Xiaoqian arrived quickly, and the soldiers who were watching automatically made way for him.

"What's going on?" Zhao Xiaoqian asked with a stern face.

Zhong Cheng immediately showed him the still-bleeding gunshot wound on his shoulder, glaring at Zhe Keshi with a face full of resentment.

Zhao Xiaoqian took a close look and said calmly, "Who did it? Step forward."

Zhe Keshi walked up to them. Just moments ago he had been all smiles and laughter, but now, standing before Zhao Xiaoqian and Zhong Cheng, his expression suddenly changed. He looked remorseful and regretful, and his eyes even reddened.

"This humble servant deserves to die. Just now, while leading my soldiers in shooting practice, I accidentally missed the target. Commander Zhong happened to be standing behind the straw target, and I accidentally hit him. Please punish me, Your Highness!"

Before Zhao Xiaoqian could speak, Zhong Cheng angrily said, "Are you really sure you didn't mean to? The straw target wasn't originally behind me; you ordered your soldiers to secretly move it over here!"

Zhe Keshi was extremely aggrieved. This seven-foot-tall man was now like a baby who had made a mistake and was afraid of being beaten. Zhao Xiaoqian was disgusted by his appearance and almost couldn't help but step on his face and grind it hard a few times.

"Your Highness, I truly did not mean it... General Zhong, in front of all the soldiers, I apologize to you. No matter what, it was my fault today. I'll give you this hundred or two jin of meat; do with it as you please."

What quick reflexes! He seized the moral high ground with lightning speed. Zhao Xiaoqian couldn't help but secretly praise him.

Zhe Keshi looks tall and strong, like a reckless and impulsive Zhang Fei, but I never expected him to have this side to him.

The question was thrown to Zhong Cheng, and Zhe Keshi tearfully left behind the word "morality".

In front of his soldiers, Zhe Keshi bluntly declared that he would do as he pleased, and had previously explained that he had indeed meant no harm.

So here's the question: if the other person did it unintentionally, how could Zhong Cheng have the nerve to actually chop him up with a knife to get revenge?

Forget about revenge; even if he were to break a single hair, Zhong Cheng would be branded as narrow-minded, making it even harder for him to survive in the army in the future.

But Zhong Cheng wasn't willing to suffer this in silence; he'd already been shot! Was he really just going to let it go like this?
Zhong Chengchao and Zhao Xiaoqian clasped their hands in a fist salute, choking back tears, and said, "Your Highness, please handle this matter according to the rules. I will have no objections."

Zhao Xiaoqian raised an eyebrow.

What the hell... Did they throw morality in my face?

You're so clever!
What can Zhao Xiaoqian do?
He was certainly quick-witted and rejected the morality thrown at him.

Upon hearing this, Zhao Xiaoqian immediately looked troubled: "Since General Zhe didn't do it on purpose, it's not appropriate to call for a fight..."

As he spoke, Zhao Xiaoqian looked around at the soldiers and raised his voice, "Brothers, what do you think we should do?"

Silence fell over the surroundings. Zhong Cheng opened his eyes wide in surprise. Zhe Keshi's lips curled slightly, and he quickly lowered his head, maintaining his aggrieved and regretful expression.

After a long silence, one of the soldiers cautiously said, "Since it's a misunderstanding, and we're all comrades who have shared life and death, why don't we... let it go?"

Once someone took the lead, many soldiers immediately chimed in, "That's right, General Zhe didn't do it on purpose."

"Mistakes are inevitable in both training and the battlefield. If we punish everyone for it, who among our brothers will dare to fire a gun in the future?"

"The punishment should be the general paying for Commander Zhong's medicine. We are all comrades in the army; we must not damage our harmony..."

The soldiers around him chimed in, all advocating for world peace and that the military should be filled with love.

Zhong Cheng felt increasingly disheartened as he listened.

No, I got shot! Are you just going to let it go like this?

If the bullet had moved even an inch, I would be dead!

Such a serious and egregious incident, and you're just going to let it go?
What does it matter that I was shot? Just bad luck?

The soldiers around him continued to urge him to give up the matter, but Zhong Cheng's eyes suddenly reddened for some reason. The kind voices around him sounded somewhat like he was surrounded by enemies.

Zhao Xiaoqian remained calm and silently observed Zhong Cheng's expression, a cold smile creeping onto his face.

You bastard, you actually dare to seek fairness and justice on my turf? How naive of you!

After listening to advice from all sides, Zhong Cheng finally gave up.

He now knew that he had taken the bullet for nothing. If he didn't forgive Zhe Keshi now, then he would be the one who had made a mistake today. "Your Highness, this matter... is over," Zhong Cheng said, feeling aggrieved.

Zhao Xiaoqian said with considerable surprise, "Give up? This... General Zhong truly has a magnanimous heart, a real hero!"

As he spoke, Zhao Xiaoqian quickly turned his head and glanced at Zhe Keshi.

Zhe Keshi immediately understood his meaning, stepped forward, grasped Zhong Cheng's hand, and shook it vigorously: "...Thank you!"

Zhong Cheng: "…………"

Zhe Keshi patted his uninjured shoulder, grinned, and said, "Only today did I realize how magnanimous General Zhong is. No doubt about it, I've accepted you as my brother. From now on, we'll live and die together on the battlefield!"

Zhong Cheng's eyelids twitched.

No, you would never live or die with me. On the battlefield, you'll only relentlessly stab me in the back...

Zhao Xiaoqian looked around and said coldly, "The matter is over, why are you still standing around? Get out of here and get back to your training!"

"Summon the army doctor to treat General Zhong's wounds."

Seeing that Zhe Keshi was still putting on a show of brotherhood in front of Zhong Cheng, Zhao Xiaoqian was furious. What was the difference between this and getting a good deal and then acting innocent?
Zhao Xiaoqian kicked Zhe Keshi in the backside and said coldly, "You get out too!"

Zhe Keshi laughed heartily, covered his buttocks, and ran away.

…………

Is this the end of it?

No, it's not over yet.

The accidental injury incident at the training ground was just the beginning. In the following days, some people in the army began to secretly target Zhong Cheng and other generals.

As Zhao Xiaoqian said, Zhong Cheng and his ilk were not qualified to be his opponents at all. He didn't even need to say a word; his subordinates would naturally take care of everything for him.

The emperor's decree and the Privy Council's appointment were not that important in this army, at least not as important as Zhong Cheng and the others imagined.

They thought that once they entered the Yanyun garrison, they would be like imperial envoys, untouchable and unassailable. They believed that all they needed to do was ruthlessly purge Zhao Xiaoqian's cronies and openly seize and usurp Zhao Xiaoqian's military power to successfully fulfill the emperor's instructions.

But Zhong Cheng and his men ultimately forgot that this was Zhao Xiaoqian's territory. On this territory, the soldiers didn't even recognize the imperial court anymore, so why would they recognize these outsiders?

Even a fool knows what they're here for. Who would treat them well? Who would betray His Highness the Prince for them?

On the second day of training, one of Zhong Chengtong's generals suddenly stepped into a trap filled with barbs. The unfortunate general stepped in, and his foot and thigh were immediately riddled with barbs. He screamed in agony as his soldiers took him to the rear army for treatment.

Zhao Xiaoqian was furious upon hearing the news and immediately ordered a thorough investigation. However, the investigation turned into an unsolved case, and the only conclusion reached was that the trap was set by a hunter in the vicinity. The matter was later dropped.

Then, another general was shot in the back by an arrow while leading his troops on a night patrol of the camp. He was saved by the doctor after several attempts.

As for the person who assassinated the general, it was too dark to catch them, and the matter eventually became an unsolved mystery...

In the following days, several of Zhong Cheng's generals ran into trouble, and all the cases turned out to be unsolved mysteries with no clues whatsoever.

Of the more than thirty generals who came from Bianjing, seven or eight have already fallen, and it seems that the operation against them has not stopped.

Zhong Cheng and his men were living in constant fear. Now, let alone brainwashing the soldiers and undermining Zhao Xiaoqian's military power, they were even struggling to ensure their own safety. They walked around the camp with their backs tucked between their legs, fearing that they might inexplicably encounter a Song Dynasty version of "Final Destination".

The mission brought from Bianjing has now completely collapsed.

Finally, Zhong Cheng couldn't take it anymore. If things continued like this, his entire group would be wiped out.

So Zhong Cheng took the initiative to approach Zhao Xiaoqian and requested an audience outside the commander's tent.

Zhao Xiaoqian let him in and saw that he looked aggrieved, but his eyes were full of righteous indignation as he looked at him, just like a loyal minister facing a treacherous minister.

Zhao Xiaoqian frowned, pointed at him from his chair, and said earnestly, "I'm glad you took the initiative to come to me, but I don't like the look in your eyes right now. You'd better change it a little."

A simple sentence, yet it seemed to contain a terrifying pressure. Although Zhong Cheng was unwilling, he still couldn't help but slow his gaze.

Looking at the young man sitting calmly in front of him, who was even a few years younger than him, Zhong Cheng had to admit that this person was indeed extraordinary. The emperor placed his hopes on them and wanted to strip him of his military power. It has to be said that this idea was very naive.

Now Zhong Cheng knows that even if they joined forces, they are no match for Zhao Xiaoqian.

From his initial high aspirations to now being trapped in a dangerous situation, Zhong Cheng, nearing thirty, has been taught a harsh lesson by this treacherous society.

"Your Highness, may we stop?" Zhong Cheng asked directly as soon as they met.

Zhao Xiaoqian asked blankly, "Stop what? What are you talking about?"

Zhong Cheng lowered his eyelids and sighed, "Your Highness, why pretend to be confused? These days, with all the unexpected incidents and assassinations targeting us, do you really think it's just a coincidence?"

Zhao Xiaoqian raised an eyebrow: "General Zhong, are you overthinking this? Yanyun Xijin Prefecture has not been recovered for long. This place was once the Nanjing of the Liao Kingdom. The Khitans have been operating here for over a hundred years, and their power is deeply rooted. They are extremely hostile to our Song army. Assassinations targeting our Song soldiers are not uncommon. This is not targeting you."

(End of this chapter)