Republic of China, 1922: Rise from the Post-Zhili-Fengtian War

After he finished speaking, he lowered his head again.

The soldiers behind him also lowered their heads, none of them uttering a sound, like a group of chicks that had been left over.

Gu Cheng didn't speak, his gaze lingered on Li Dazhu's face for a moment, then swept over the soldiers behind him.

His gaze finally fell on Li Dazhu's rough hands with large knuckles, and then moved away.

"Did someone give you your names?" Gu Cheng asked.

Li Dazhu was taken aback for a moment, then scratched his head: "Register? Nobody told us to register. We just heard about the exam and... we thought we'd come and see. We didn't know we had to register first."

A soldier behind him muttered quietly, "Our company commander said this exam is for educated people. We can't read, so it's a waste of our time."

Gu Cheng paused for a moment, then nodded and didn't ask any more questions.

He turned and glanced at Gao Tianqi, who immediately understood his meaning and quickly stepped forward: "This exam isn't just for those who can read. If you can count and understand the map above, you can also be selected—"

Gu Cheng chimed in, "Wait a minute, Li Dazhu, aren't you literate? I heard from Old Mu that you attended a private school for three years."

Li Dazhu paused for a moment, then scratched his head: "Yes, I did go to school, but I'm afraid I've forgotten everything after being in the army for so many years. I've been handling a gun every day for years, and I haven't even touched a pen more than a few times."

Gu Cheng frowned and glared at him: "How could you, as a platoon leader, manage your daily work if you couldn't read or count? Distributing military pay requires checking names against lists, right? How could you be completely illiterate and unable to do numbers?"

Li Dazhu didn't dare to say a word, and rubbed his fingers along the seam of his pants a couple of times.

Gu Cheng didn't press him for answers; he just looked at him, waiting for him to obediently tell the truth.

After a moment of silence, Li Dazhu finally spoke: "Master Gu, to be honest... we all submitted our names, but we haven't heard anything. We heard from the brothers in the regiment that there's an exam today, so we thought we'd come and see if we could make it."

The soldiers behind him nodded in agreement, their eyes clearly filled with anticipation.

Gu Cheng turned around and glanced at Gao Tianqi.

Neither of them spoke, but Gao Tianqi's expression was already quite unpleasant.

He took a deep breath, his voice still relatively calm, but noticeably stiff: "I have extra test papers. I'll have someone take you to take the test right away."

Li Dazhu was taken aback, and quickly waved his hand: "Chief of Staff, this...we didn't register, can we still take the exam?"

Gao Tianqi glanced at Gu Cheng, and seeing that Gu Cheng didn't object, he said, "They can take the test. If I say they can take the test, they can take the test." He turned and called out towards the classroom door, "Xiao Gao, take these brothers to the empty seats at the back and give them curlers."

The group of people were stunned, as if they couldn't believe their ears.

Li Dazhu opened his mouth as if to say something, but then swallowed it back. In the end, he simply nodded heavily to Gu Cheng and Gao Tianqi, then turned and followed the guard toward the classroom.

After the group had walked away, the smile on Gu Cheng's face gradually faded. He turned to look at Gao Tianqi, his gaze turning cold.

"What happened?"

Gao Tianqi scratched his head in distress: "Jingchuan, I really didn't know about this. Chief of Staff Shen handled the registration, and he also compiled and reviewed the lists submitted by each battalion and company. I was only responsible for preparing the exam papers and arranging the exam venues; I didn't get involved in the preliminary review."

Gu Cheng stared at him without saying a word.

The wind blew through the branches and leaves of the old tree, blowing a few withered leaves to the ground, where they swirled and landed on the bluestone pavement with a soft sound.

"Is this dereliction of duty?" Gu Cheng finally spoke. "These 100 people are chosen from truly capable individuals. Li Dazhu is a platoon leader, literate, and a skilled commander. He's not on the list. You say you don't know?"

Gao Tianqi didn't argue, but lowered his head: "I did neglect it. I should have checked the registration summary again."

Gu Cheng took out a cigarette from his pocket, lit it, and slowly smoked it, the smoke dissipating gently in the sunlight.

"An oversight? This isn't an oversight, it's a loophole. Out of 100 people, 30 were chosen as officers. The list missed someone, and that someone was a veteran like Li Dazhu. Tianqi, think about it, how many others were missed?"

Gao Tianqi was silent for a moment, then said in a hoarse voice, "I accept the punishment."

Gu Cheng stared at him for a while: "This isn't about punishment. Will punishing you solve the problem? The most important thing right now is to find out exactly what happened. Besides, if our brigade can manage such a convoluted situation with a hundred people, who knows how much more trouble they've been causing behind the scenes—"

Go find Shen Yi today and ask him about the list. Who submitted it, who rejected it, and why they were rejected—ask him one by one.

Gao Tianqi quickly replied, "Yes!"

He turned to leave, but Gu Cheng called him back.

"Fine, call him over here, I'll ask him myself."

…………

The two remained silent as the car bumped along the dirt road back to the brigade headquarters.

The autumn wind blew in through the half-open car window. Gu Cheng leaned back in his seat and closed his eyes to rest. Gao Tianqi sat in the front seat, glanced at him in the rearview mirror, wanted to say something, but swallowed it back. She just silently turned her head and looked at the street scene rushing past outside the window.

The car stopped in front of the travel agency.

Gu Cheng pushed open the car door, straightened his clothes, and was about to walk inside when the sentry in the gatehouse quickly came to greet him, stood at attention, and saluted.

"Mr. Gu, Miss Jiang has arrived and is waiting for you in the side hall. She says she has something for you."

Gu Cheng paused, nodded, and walked towards the side hall. Gao Tianqi followed behind him, the two of them crossing the courtyard one after the other.

At this moment, Jiang Yingrong was sitting in a chair, holding a cup of tea in her hand, but she did not drink it.

On the table was a small bamboo basket containing several items, covered with a clean cotton cloth, revealing a corner of golden-yellow cakes that emitted a faint fragrance of osmanthus.

She wore a plain riding outfit, her hair neatly pulled back, exuding a blend of strength and gentleness.

Seeing Gu Cheng enter, she put down her teacup and stood up, her smile clearly somewhat forced: "Jingchuan, you're back."

Gu Cheng sat down in the chair opposite her, his gaze falling on the bamboo basket on the table: "This is..."

Jiang Yingrong pushed the bamboo basket forward: "Hey, isn't it almost Double Ninth Festival? My brother asked someone to bring some seasonal snacks from Fengtian."

As she spoke, she lifted the cotton cloth, revealing some pastries, topped with a few red dates and osmanthus flowers. The aroma was sweet and refreshing, enough to make anyone's mouth water.

Gu Cheng glanced down at the items, then looked up again: "Brother Chao Liu, you're very kind. Please tell him thank you for me."

Jiang Yingrong nodded, but did not reply.

Her gaze fell on the plate of cakes on the corner of the table, as if she were looking at something very far away. The expression on her face gradually faded, as if something was pressing down on her. She clearly had something to say, but she didn't know where to begin.

Gu Cheng noticed: "Sister Rong, what's wrong?"

Jiang Yingrong looked up at him, her eyes showing a hint of weariness.

"Jingchuan, your brother was mistreated at the General Staff Headquarters."