knife

Chapter 105 From now on, we are truly one family.
With a thud, Xiao Dongwei knelt down in front of Xiao Changche, which startled Xiao Changche.

"Cheqi, I was wrong, please punish me."

Xiao Changche frowned: "You commanded well this time, achieving the greatest results with the least cost. Even Li Dachui's few unruly subordinates are very respectful of you. Where did you go wrong?"

Xiao Dongwei's face was flushed. He looked up at Xiao Changche and stammered, "Qi Che, I've really lost face this time. I lost a drinking contest with a young girl."

"Drinking?" Xiao Changche's voice suddenly rose several octaves, and he said sternly, "You dare to drink during military duties?"

"I just wanted to earn more money for you, Cheqi!" Xiao Dongwei said aggrievedly, "I really didn't expect that little girl to be such a heavy drinker?"

Xiao Changche pointed at Xiao Dongwei and poked him several times, almost poking Xiao Dongwei's forehead. He was angry at Xiao Dongwei's lack of ambition and his lack of wisdom.

This is what it truly means to lose both the battle and the morale.

This time, he has truly lost all face.

You, Xiao Dongwei, are supposed to be a respectable man, yet you chose to gamble with a young girl, and what's worse, you lost the bet.

Xiao Changche closed his eyes and let out a long sigh.

Besides the warehouse supplies that Xiao Dongwei lost, there's another bet!

He bet Li Dachui that Xiao Dongwei would never drink alcohol during military service, and if he lost, he would have to change into women's clothing and dance.

"Go on, go on!" Xiao Changche waved his hand dismissively.

Xiao Dongwei's one eye was filled with disbelief: "Chancellor, you haven't said how you're going to punish me yet?"

As I said, whether it's a beating or being put in solitary confinement, there will always be a result that puts people at ease.

It would be unsettling if this were left hanging there all the time.

It might flare up anytime it remembers!

"You're thinking of the bigger picture!" Xiao Changche waved his hand and said, "Besides, we're all on the same side from now on. Their things are our things too. It's nothing special. What you lost, I'll just ask Li Dachui to get it back!"

"Is Li Dachui so easy to talk to now?" Xiao Dongwei looked at Xiao Changche: "That guy used to have such a hateful face like a creditor. If you wanted to get anything out of him, you don't know how much of his filth you would have to endure!"

“Now that we’ve said that, we’re family!” Xiao Changche said angrily. “Don’t talk about Li Dachui like that again. If it weren’t for him this time, I would have been dead. We owe him a debt of gratitude.”

"Yes!" Seeing Xiao Changche's anger, Xiao Dongwei immediately nodded repeatedly. It was just a matter of being more amiable to Li Dachui in the future, right? Wait, wait! A thunderclap suddenly echoed in Xiao Dongwei's mind, and his single eye blazed as he stared intently at Xiao Changche. The General of Chariots and Cavalry's attitude was off. What exactly happened between them on this trip?
Did it merely save the rider's life?
"Cheqi, that guy didn't do anything to you, did he?" Xiao Dongwei asked cautiously.

Xiao Changche looked at Xiao Dongwei, his willow-leaf eyebrows gradually rising, and the murderous intent in his phoenix eyes growing stronger.

"What do you think that guy will do to me?"

The voice was so cold it sounded like it was coming from an ice cellar.

Xiao Dongwei, who was extremely familiar with Xiao Changche, immediately took a few steps back and said with a forced smile, "Chancellor, what can that guy do to you? You're the one who has to deal with him. I'm leaving!"

Upon hearing the last three words, Xiao Dongwei jumped up, turned around, and stormed out the door.

A cup came crashing down from behind, hitting Xiao Dongwei squarely on the back. Xiao Dongwei caught the cup with a quick backhand and then vanished without a trace.

Fortunately, the cyclist was injured this time, otherwise he would have had nowhere to escape.

I'll ask Fang Xiaomao later and see if I can get anything out of that guy.

Xiao Dongwei had a gut feeling that something must have happened.

Riding your own car incorrectly is very wrong!

Lost in thought, Xiao Dongwei was startled by a familiar voice. He looked up and saw Li Dachui, the very person he had been pondering.

"Young Master Li!" Xiao Dongwei greeted him with a beaming smile. "You've arrived?"

"Yes!" Li Dachui nodded. "Is the car here? I made an appointment with her to come and treat his injuries at this time every day for the next few days."

"Yes, yes!"

Seeing Li Dachui push the door open and enter without even saying hello, Xiao Dongwei's one eye twitched a few times.

"Healing?"

The General of Chariots and Cavalry was seriously injured. Although outsiders did not know, his confidant found out immediately. But wouldn't the close contact involved in treating the wound expose the secret of the Chariots and Cavalry?

He suddenly looked up.
Suddenly, I had a realization.

I'm afraid it was exposed a long time ago, right?

No wonder the driver had that expression.

Between them...

Xiao Dongwei scratched his head, feeling that this was completely unexpected.

That can't be true!
Inside the City of Aquarius, the former Yan family mansion now has a new owner.

Inside the council hall, two seats were arranged at the head of the table, one on the left and one on the right, occupied by Li Dachui and Xiao Changche. Below them, their subordinates were also clearly divided, sitting on either side. Below them, the two leaders were two scholars.

One is Zhang Ruo, and the other is Mao Daxian.

Mao Daxian looked at Zhang Ruo with a smile, and Zhang Ruo was also sizing him up.

The fact that Mao Daxian ranks above Gu Xiaoman and Fang Xiaomao among Li Dachui's subordinates speaks volumes about his status. Judging from Li Dachui's experience, this man is probably no pushover either.

Having joined forces to take over Baoping Prefecture, it's only natural that they'd now divide the spoils.

Li Dachui glanced at Xiao Changche, and Xiao Changche nodded.

He coughed lightly, and everyone's eyes fell on Li Dachui.

Mao Daxian's smile widened, while Zhang Ruo's brows furrowed.

This stance clearly indicates that Li Dachui is in charge.

Although Zhang Ruo had only been under Xiao Changche's command for a short time, he already knew the man very well. He was a truly arrogant and domineering warrior who looked down on everyone, so it was quite strange that he was willing to let Li Dachui take the lead in this matter.

You have to understand that in these kinds of situations, whoever takes the lead always benefits.

Unless, they had already reached some agreement and reached a consensus.

The two had been absent for some time, but yesterday they appeared together in Aquarius City.

One of them was deathly pale, clearly suffering from internal injuries, while the other was on crutches, having broken a leg.

Both of them were injured.

Zhang Ruo was even more certain that the two of them must have gone out to do something.

It's not surprising that they reached some consensus during this period.

For someone like Xiao Changche to back down, Li Dachui is truly a remarkable figure.

"As you all know, our capture of Baoping Prefecture has angered Commander Linghu. He is actively mobilizing troops, and tens of thousands of soldiers are currently gathering," Li Dachui said. "In order to deal with this crisis, I discussed with Xiao Cheqi and we made some decisions."

It's a decision, not something to be discussed with everyone.

"From now on, our two families will be a true alliance, not the loose alliances of the past that only formed when there was trouble and broke up when there was no trouble. From now on, our two families will be one, inseparable, sharing both prosperity and adversity. I hope everyone understands this. I don't care if some of you have had conflicts in the past. If so, that's your private matter. Anyone who puts personal matters before public affairs will be dealt with according to the rules."

Everyone responded solemnly.

After pulling off this heist together, their relationship became quite special, especially when facing the threat from Commander Linghu.

"From now on, all military affairs of the alliance will be under the responsibility of Xiao Cheqi. As everyone knows, I have three battalions under my command: Heaven, Earth, and Man. The Heaven battalion is my personal guard, the Earth battalion is stationed at Helan Plain, and the Man battalion has been fighting on the front lines. From now on, all three battalions will be handed over to Xiao Cheqi. Fang Xiaomao, Gu Xiaoman, and Xia Zhi, you three, tell everyone about your assets!"

Gu Xiaoman stood up first and said with a smile: "The Human-shaped Battalion is divided into six military command posts: Metal, Wood, Water, Fire, and Earth, as well as a standing army. If all the troops in each command post are conscripted, there will be three thousand people, for a total of eighteen thousand soldiers."

The room immediately erupted in commotion, and the faces of the generals, led by Xiao Dongwei, changed color.

Fang Xiaomao continued, "The Tianzi Battalion has three thousand men, including three hundred heavily armored cavalry and the rest light cavalry. The three hundred Tianzi Battalion members that everyone usually sees are actually different each time they come out."

Xia Zhi said, "The 'Human' Battalion is a heavy infantry unit with 3,000 active duty soldiers from Helan Plain. If needed, we can mobilize around 10,000 men."

Xiao Dongwei swallowed hard.

"These troops are not usually assembled. There aren't many full-time soldiers among them. To be honest, only the officers are full-time. The soldiers usually have their own professions. I don't pay them salaries. I just allocate land to them, reduce their taxes and corvée labor, allow them to have servants, and allow them to keep the spoils of war. Xiao Cheqi, from now on, these people are all yours! Say a few words!"

Xiao Changche nodded: "Dongwei, why don't you tell us about our belongings too!"

Xiao Dongwei stood up, looked at everyone, and said, "Our army has a total of 3,000 cavalrymen and more than 10,000 warhorses, as well as more than 5,000 auxiliary soldiers. The cavalrymen are all off-the-job, while the auxiliary soldiers usually serve the army in the form of corvée labor. We are paid, but we are very poor and usually support ourselves through war."

"We won't be poor anymore! Now that we have Baoping Prefecture, our soldiers can follow the model of the Heaven, Earth, and Man Camps and distribute land, cattle, horses, and servants to them!" Xiao Changdao said.

Li Dachui continued, "The military affairs of Baoping Prefecture are under the jurisdiction of Xiao Cheqi, and the political affairs will naturally fall to me. However, we have already sent people to Chang'an to lobby beforehand, so our official status is not yet fully determined. Although the court is currently weak, a formal title is still very important. The arrangements to come are only tentative, Mao Daxian!"

Mao Daxian stood up with a smile: "My lord!"

"You will first serve as the Chief Secretary, and you will be in charge of all government affairs!"

"I dare not fail my lord's trust."

"Scholar Zhang?" Li Dachui looked at Zhang Ruo with a smile.

"Give your orders!" Zhang Ruo was very excited. The emergence of a powerful new military group capable of countering Linghu Ye was a truly unexpected boon for the Qin Dynasty. Its existence not only restrained Linghu Ye but also provided more power to fight against the Northern Yuan.

Having spent these days outside the Great Wall, he has finally gained a clearer understanding of the harm caused by the Northern Yuan.

"I'm sorry to trouble you to serve as a junior official for now, mainly in charge of financial affairs, which is your forte. I wonder if you would be willing to condescend to this position? I imagine the court will have other plans for you in the future. How about we wait until the court gives its opinion before discussing anything else?"

“Zhang Ruo is just a convict. How could he be unwilling to do something for the people beyond the Great Wall?” Zhang Ruo stood up and cupped his hands to Li Dachui and Xiao Changche, saying, “If you two need anything in the future, please feel free to give me your orders!”

(End of this chapter)