Tiger Guards

Chapter 47: Force Gongming
After the meal, more than thirty riders set off north.

People had been sent in advance to gather boats at the ferry crossing, and Xu Huang on the other side was also prepared.

In the ruins of the community, Xu Huang welcomed Zhao Yan to the main seat.

Zhao Ji wore the common half-body armor with two crotch pieces, carried a painted bow on his back, and had a long sword and quiver hanging on each side of his waist.

He placed his left hand on the hilt of his sword, stood behind Zhao Yan, and glanced at the several military officers behind Xu Huang.

After killing people in succession, Zhao Ji's gaze had become fundamentally different from before. He could figure out the order of attack at a glance.

Xu Huang and others also crawled out of the pile of dead bodies. Although they did not feel that mysterious murderous intent, they felt very uncomfortable.

After Xu Huang greeted him, he asked Zhao Yan with a smile, "The warrior behind Lord Zhao is quite impressive. How come I haven't seen him before?"

"This is my great-nephew, Aji."

Zhao Yan immediately beamed. He leaned slightly to the side, raised his hand, and motioned Zhao Ji to take two steps forward. He then addressed Xu Huang, "Gongming, you may not know this, but my nephew committed a crime years ago and fled to Hedong. He was protected by the Pei family and was able to marry and have children. When the court recruited new Tiger Guards, my nephew, who had been living in seclusion in Jishan, volunteered. Thanks to Gongming's reminder the night before, the Tiger Guards were able to ambush and defeat the invading Xiongnu!"

Zhao Yan bowed to Xu Huang and said with emotion, "My nephew has a strong character, similar to his father and brother. It is a testament to God that we have met. "

Xu Huang stood up and bowed in return, "I dare not. This is my duty."

After Xu Huang sat down, Zhao Ji did not express his opinion, but instead retreated to his original position.

Zhao Yan did not think it was strange. Considering Xu Huang's background, it was not worth it for him to urge Zhao Ji to perform the ceremony in person.

So he pretended nothing had happened, and then said, "Li Le colluded with the Xiongnu to attack the Huben, which is tantamount to treason. In accordance with the emperor's secret decree, I will lead the Huben south to protect the emperor. Will Gongming obey the decree?"

Xu Huang looked embarrassed. At this time, Zhao Yan's followers untied the cloth bag they were holding, and inside was the cleaned head of Li Le. Their eyes widened with horror.

Xu Huang was startled, and the military officers behind him retreated in shock.

A military officer couldn't control his emotions and suddenly drew his sword. This unusual movement caused the guards on both sides outside the house to draw their swords.

Xu Huang also quickly stood up and stretched out his arms to stop the people behind him, turning around and shouting: "Don't be rude!"

The officer who had drawn his sword sheathed it, and the other officers also released their hands from the hilts.

After carefully examining the head and confirming it was Li Le's, Xu Huang said, "Lord Zhao, I have fewer than 300 newly recruited soldiers, untrained and lacking equipment. I'm afraid I won't be able to obey the imperial edict. Furthermore, I was ordered by General Yixing to return home to recruit soldiers. Many of the soldiers admire General Yixing's kindness and prestige. If I were to march south in compliance with the imperial edict, the soldiers would be in an uproar, which would be difficult to suppress."

At this time, Zhao Ji coughed twice and looked at Xu Huang: "So, Commander Xu is unwilling to obey the imperial edict?"

"By order."

Without hesitation, Xu Huang replied, "The soldiers are rebellious, and I cannot control them."

In order to successfully recruit soldiers, Yang Feng promised a lot of things. If they overthrow Yang Feng, they, the core members of the old team, will be lucky not to be implicated. How could they possibly keep the promises made during the recruitment?

"Since you have received the imperial edict, leave the rest to me!"

Zhao Ji turned to look at Zhao Yan and said, "Lord Zhao, those in the camp who refuse to obey my orders will be treated as rebels!"

Zhao Yan noticed the officer behind Xu Huang reaching for his sword hilt again, so he said, "Captain Xu may not know this, but the Xiongnu attacked the night before last, and last night the powerful marquis family tried to seize the Tiger Guards' food, fodder, and weapons, all of which were destroyed by the Tiger Guards. My nephew has killed no fewer than fifty of them."

Xu Huang didn't believe it, and neither did the military officers behind him.

The man who first drew his sword drew his sword again: "Brother Gongming, didn't you see what happened when Wang Yun killed all the people in Liangzhou?"

Zhao Ji stared at him and said, "The court is in danger, and the emperor has fled to Hedong. He is in need of patriots. How could he be so unwise as Wang Yun?"

The other man gasped, glaring, "I just don't believe it! We brothers have fought for the imperial court, and so many have died! When we arrived in Hedong, you despise our backgrounds and wish we were all dead!"

He continued to shout, "I would rather die than go. I would rather surrender to the Xiongnu!"

Seeing that he was just standing there inciting the crowd, Xu Huang's expression changed. He bowed to Zhao Yan and said, "Lord Zhao has also seen that the officers and soldiers in the camp are disunited, and it is not something I can control."

Zhao Yan looked calm, as if he was used to seeing military officers drawing their swords and shouting in front of him. Even his long-time attendant was not surprised.

He simply asked, "Since Gongming is willing to obey the imperial edict, how many officers and soldiers can he persuade to march south to fight the bandits?"

Xu Huang bowed deeply, "I beg Lord Zhao to forgive me."

Zhao Ji slowly drew his sword, ignoring the red-faced, black-faced, and white-faced games, and stared at the officer holding the sword: "I understand your concerns. I'm also worried that you might cause trouble after we go south. Whoever doesn't want to go, draw your sword and duel with me!"

Xu Huang looked up at Zhao Ji and said, "I am a former subordinate of the general. How could I raise an army and defect? Even if there was a clear decree from the emperor, why would I do this?"

The bottom line of being a person and doing things cannot be crossed. You can do things within this line, but you really cannot cross it.

As a county official born in a humble family and having been coerced by Yang Feng and others, Xu Huang had to pay special attention to his personal image and morality.

Zhao Ji glanced at Xu Huang and said, "I'm not trying to be difficult. You must cross the river and head south before nightfall today! The common officers and soldiers are ignorant, and this matter has nothing to do with them! Anyone who doesn't want to go, draw your sword and fight me!"

"Lord Zhao can guarantee that if I die in a sword fight, my family and clan will not be implicated."

"Humph! You are the nephew of Lord Zhao. Who among us would dare to be so cruel?"

Another officer also slowly drew his sword: "We respect Lord Zhao's loyalty and bravery. If you continue to be so presumptuous, don't think we are easy to bully."

Zhao Ji walked forward slowly, his back to Zhao Yan. "Lord Zhao, the patriots of Hedong are of strong character, and words cannot sway them."

"Just fight with swords to decide the outcome, but don't take any lives."

Zhao Yan looked at Xu Huang and asked, "What do you think, Gongming?" Xu Huang turned to look at the other officers, exchanged glances, and said, "Perfect."

Zhao Ji also looked at Xu Huang and asked, "Should we gather the officers and soldiers here and duel outside the house?"

"To avoid accidentally injuring Lord Zhao, I will go and gather the officers!"

A military officer spoke loudly. Seeing no rebuttal from Zhao Yan, he bowed, turned around and walked away quickly. As soon as he left the house, he shouted, "Gather the officers and soldiers!"

Tang Xian at the door did not see Zhao Yan's rebuttal, and just smiled indifferently at the guards around him.

These selected warriors are brave men from various counties, and at this moment they are all smiling at each other.

Soon, more than 300 people gathered, many armed with weapons, and surrounded the house. The military officer quickly entered the house, bowed deeply, and said, "Lord Zhao, officers and soldiers, assemble."

The sword-wielding officer tilted his head and smirked at Zhao Ji. Zhao Yan stood up and said, "It just so happens that I, too, would like to see Aji's swordsmanship. Please come in, Gongming."

"Please come in, Lord Zhao."

Xu Huang turned sideways and stretched out his arms. Zhao Yan, not afraid of being held hostage, passed by Xu Huang. Other military officers also stepped back to make way.

These military officers followed Xu Huang and surrounded Zhao Yan as they walked out. Zhao Ji also walked out with a sword in hand.

Han Shu came forward, holding the captured horse-slaying sword in his hand: "Captain?"

"Just a sword duel."

Zhao Ji didn't even unhooke his bow, but walked straight to the center of the field. He turned to look at the military officers and asked, "Will you all come with us?"

"Don't be mad!"

The military officer who first drew his sword couldn't wait to step forward, and when he arrived at the scene, he did not forget to observe Zhao Yan and Xu Huang.

Without hearing them speak, he stared at Zhao Ji and said, "Getting level 50, isn't that killing innocent people to take credit for it?"

"You should be thankful for Xu Gongming's politeness."

Zhao Ji raised his sword and stepped forward. The opponent held the sword in both hands, stabbed and pressed forward, trying to force Zhao Ji to retreat.

Unexpectedly, Zhao Ji did not stop, but swung his sword diagonally and arrived first, as fast as the wind.

With a crisp clang, the opponent's long sword was cut off, and Zhao Ji's sword landed on the opponent's shoulder: "You owe me a life."

The man's face immediately turned red, and he just stared at the sword in Zhao Ji's hand, his eyes red and panting.

Zhao Ji turned his head to look: "Who else? Come together, let's finish the battle sooner and cross the river sooner!"

Originally there were only two military officers who drew their swords, but now three more of them did.

The officer in front of Zhao Ji threw the broken sword to the ground, stepped back a few steps and said to his companions, "His sword is very sharp. We must not be careless."

At this time, Zhao Ji sheathed his sword, unsheathed it, and threw it to Han Shu beside him: "Exchange swords."

Han Shu stretched out his arm, grabbed the scabbard, drew out his own sword, and stepped forward to hold it upside down.

Zhao Ji pointed his sword at the five people on the field and said, "Come on."

These five people had no grace at all. On the left, two people were marching in a circle with swords in hand, while on the right, three people were advancing side by side with swords in hand.

Zhao Ji also moved in a roundabout way, holding his sword and engaging the three men in battle.

When the other two came to attack, Zhao Ji moved quickly and the simple formation of five people immediately dispersed.

They couldn't catch up with Zhao Ji at all, and if they chased him at a fast pace, they would expose loopholes in their defense.

Zhao Ji had strong explosive power in his legs, and he only fought with one or two people.

Xu Huang also noticed that with this burst of strength, he didn't think Zhao Ji could hold out for long.

If they fought desperately in battle, with this kind of explosive power, no one on the field could withstand Zhao Ji's second sword.

Zhao Yan could also see that Zhao Ji's swordsmanship was exactly the family swordsmanship.

He couldn't help but look worried, and saw Zhao Ji familiar with the movements of the five people. Suddenly, he burst out with sword in both hands, no longer dodging, and rushed forward.

He swung the sword in his hand repeatedly, and in the blink of an eye he shuttled between several people.

He chopped off the swords of four people in a row, and when he faced the fifth person, his sword broke under the weight.

Before the fifth person could react, he was kicked down by Zhao Ji who passed by.

Zhao Ji took a few steps back, looked at the broken sword in his hand, and swung it back, nailing it to the ground.

He turned his head and squinted at Xu Huang: "Captain Xu, do you want to compete in long-pole weapons?"

Xu Huang's face was tense as he saw the Tiger Guard hand another horse-slaying sword to Zhao Ji.

"Aji, don't mess around."

Zhao Yan frowned and scolded Xu Huang, saying, "I'm sorry to have embarrassed you, Gongming."

(End of this chapter)