Tiger Guards

Chapter 698 Cannot Stop
As dawn broke, Zhao Ji's banners—the White Tiger, the Golden Eagle, and the Stag—once again stood tall in the central command tent.

At the same time, on the command platform of the central army camp, the black and white long banners symbolizing Zhao Ji's command began to wave.

As the long banners waved, the inspectors, captains, commanders, and lieutenants of the various camps in the Pingyang camp began to assemble at the central camp.

Inside the spacious yet somewhat cold military headquarters, Zhao Ji sat in the main seat, toying with a pair of wrought iron balls in his right hand. These were recently made at his request and had already been delivered to the central army camp.

When Zhao Ji returned from his secret trip, he discovered these little gadgets.

Playing with these iron balls can effectively distract him from his distracting thoughts... and can also effectively train Zhao Ji's self-control.

Previously, when someone committed murder, there was a procedure of summoning guards, dragging them out, and beheading them.

But now, in a fit of anger, he flung out an iron ball... and almost no one could dodge it.

Therefore, Zhao Ji needs to maintain a higher level of self-control, but at this moment, the two iron balls spinning in his right palm have already had a deterrent effect.

Every mid- to high-ranking military officer who entered the main tent was extremely wary. If they were hit by this iron ball, no matter how wronged they were, they would have nowhere to voice their grievances, and their great ideals and ambitions would all come to naught.

No one would question Zhao Ji's courage and decisiveness, and no one would overestimate their own importance.

The Pingyang camp has a force of 60,000. Even if half of them were to die, let alone a mid- to high-ranking military officer, they could be immediately replaced and replaced.

The Jin army today is different from what it used to be.

The third drumbeat outside the military headquarters was coming to an end, and the final beat of the drum gradually faded away.

Chief Secretary Zhang Hong rose and bowed, saying, "Reporting to the Grand Tutor, all seventy-eight officers who were supposed to be in the camp have arrived."

Zhao Ji then stopped striking the iron ball with his right hand, opened his eyes, and looked at the middle and high-ranking military officers in the hall, who were divided into two groups on the left and right. At this moment, they all had their heads down, and no one dared to meet his gaze.

"This humble general pays his respects to the Grand Tutor."

Apart from Zhang Hong, Jia Xu, and Pei Xiu, the other seventy-five people took a half step back, knelt on one knee on the cushion, cupped their hands to Zhao Ji, and kept their heads bowed.

"When the court announced the great victory in Liangzhou, I think you all knew that I had secretly gone to Liangzhou. The battle in Liangzhou was not difficult, but an internal traitor leaked the information, and we almost failed."

"I will not punish anyone today. If anyone is implicated by the thieves, go back and write a confession to me. Then, follow my instructions, go through some hardships, and this crime will be wiped clean, and the confession will be returned. Otherwise, you will be executed without mercy."

Zhao Ji looked around and smiled, "Look up and look at me."

Some of the officers who came from the Tiger Warriors, as well as the Xiongnu nobles and righteous followers, resolutely raised their heads and looked at Zhao Ji, accepting his scrutiny.

At the same time, these people unconsciously observe each other, look at each other, and understand each other perfectly.

Soon, everyone else looked up as well, many of them doing so reluctantly to accept Zhao Ji's scrutinizing gaze.

Seventy-five people may not seem like a lot, but at this moment, they really aren't many.

Zhao Ji's gaze was interpreted in different ways by different people.

After a dozen long breaths, Zhao Ji smiled and said, "I ask that you all write a letter immediately and hand it here. If you want to confess, you should seize the opportunity. I do not intend to investigate further, so those who knew about the crime but did not participate should not waste their ink exposing others. Later, I will speak with each of you individually to dispel any doubts or misunderstandings."

Upon seeing this, Pei Xiu stood up, cupped his hands, and said, "I accept the order."

Under his leadership, the seventy-five mid- to high-ranking military officers reluctantly shouted in unison, "We obey!"

Zhao Ji nodded, then looked up at the skylight.

Wei Ji led a group of clerks forward to distribute paper and writing materials. Some of the military officers were quite agitated, practically on the verge of exploding, but no one was in the mood to laugh or mock them. At this moment, a military captain who had risen from the ranks of the righteous army raised his hand, and Zhao Ji looked over: "What is it?"

"Grand Tutor, I don't know many characters, and I can write even fewer."

"Write whatever you like. If you have a clear conscience, you can hand it in after writing your name."

Zhao Ji patiently explained, "I did this only to save face for some of you who were forced into thievery."

"I understand."

The officer, who came from a background of rescued border residents, immediately answered. He picked up a pen and wrote down his fairly neat job title and name on the paper. Then, he blew on the ink, held the paper with both hands, bowed, and stepped forward to present it to Zhao Ji's desk.

When Wei Kai saw how reckless this guy was, he immediately wanted to reprimand him. He felt that this behavior was too offensive to Grand Tutor Zhao, and that these people should not have such close interactions with Grand Tutor Zhao.

Zhao Ji disagreed, picked up the paper and examined the handwriting: "The writing is acceptable, but you need to study patiently. You became an official at the age of twenty-eight, and you are only now beginning to learn literature, laws, and mathematics, which is too late compared to others. However, if you achieve something, you can serve as a role model for your descendants."

"Here."

The man bowed deeply, his emotions running high, yet he seemed reluctant to leave: "This humble servant takes his leave."

"Yes, return to camp and command the troops. If there is any unrest tonight, have the troops hold their ground and the unrest will subside by tomorrow."

"Here!"

This time, the response was arrogant and haughty. He even raised his chin and looked back at the few emotionally unstable military officers, looking smug and rather conceited.

As he left, more officers who considered themselves innocent and loyal rose up and handed in blank papers.

Zhao Ji wanted to take them all at once, giving the military officers who were forced into the situation a chance. But the truly innocent military officers were already furious, so how could they possibly cover up for these people who were called partners but were actually enemies?

As a result, some people had no choice but to submit blank confessions.

It is obvious that by submitting a confession, Zhao Ji will have leverage over the case, and he will have grievances if his merits are delayed or reduced in the future.

Having submitted a confession, this matter may not be completely wiped clean, but at least it can save his life and allow his family to maintain a relatively decent life.

However, if one is stubborn and insists on resisting to the end, without even a willingness to admit guilt or show sincerity, then one will truly die, and one's relatives, former officials, or the person who recommended one will also be implicated.

As the last confessing officer walked out shakily, Zhao Ji sighed with regret to Jia Xu, who was warming himself by the fire in the hall: "Strategist, since they believed my words of pardon, why did they follow the rebels in the first place?"

Jia Xu turned to Zhao Ji, bowed slightly, and replied in a gentle voice, "Reporting to the Grand Tutor, in life, relatives and friends can be both good helpers and sources of trouble."

"Yes, human relationships are like a forest; if a fire breaks out in the forest, who can escape unscathed?"

Zhao Ji responded and put the pair of iron balls in his right hand back into the wooden box. He was truly disappointed that he couldn't use these treasures to crack the foreheads of some people on the spot.

Unexpectedly, all the suspected traitors confessed honestly, which left Zhao Ji feeling helpless.

Whether it was Su Ze before, Jia Xu who stayed behind at the camp, or Pei Xiu, they were all actively trying to prevent the situation from escalating.

Pei Xiu even took the initiative to suggest wiping out the thieves in the Pei family manor. Such a great sacrifice was made to nip the 'Gua Man Chao' in the bud.

This left Zhao Ji feeling somewhat helpless, but since the matter had already begun, there was no reason to stop or give up halfway.

(End of this chapter)