Tiger Guards

Chapter 9: Death of a Person

"You mean, Redan was frightened to death?"

"Exactly. He stole Aji's boots and must be punished. After a few beatings, we lied to him, but Ruidan was so timid that he was frightened to death."

Inside the barracks, Pei Xiu was helpless to explain, as the villagers were waiting outside the door for a conclusion.

Hu Ban looked at Zhao Ji and Wei Xing behind Pei Xiu and asked Wei Xing, "Zi'ang, did you also beat Rui Dan?"

"Yes, I was about to make a move when Sergeant Zhao stopped me. Sergeant Zhao only gave Rui Dan ten lashes, and after that, he was worried that Rui Dan would harbor a grudge and seek revenge against my brother, sister, and nephew, so we resorted to threatening words."

Wei Xing glanced at Rui Dan's body, which had already fallen cold and stiff on the ground. "I can't believe this guy had the guts to steal Captain Zhao's leather boots, yet he's so unfazed."

The death of a recruited Tiger Guard made Hu Ban feel quite troubled.

He casually glanced at Rui Dan's terrified face with his eyes wide open, and then asked Zhao Ji: "Aji, you only whipped him ten times?"

"It was only ten lashes. I was afraid of attracting patrolling soldiers, so I silenced him first."

Zhao Ji held the same attitude. "The military officer knows that my family lives at the foot of the mountain. The area around us is open and sparsely populated, making it a good place for bandits to come and go. Rui Dan, even in the camp, was so unruly and disrespectful of the law when he enlisted. If he causes trouble after returning home, without us, it won't be my fault alone."

Hu Ban did not express his opinion after hearing this. He squatted in front of Rui Dan's body, unbuttoned Rui Dan's clothes, and saw an obvious fist mark and bruise on the chest.

Pei Xiu turned around and saw it, then looked up at the dilapidated roof that was blackened by cooking smoke.

Wei Xing gritted his teeth secretly and glanced at Zhao Ji's right fist.

Zhao Ji was unmoved. A person who dared to blatantly steal valuables from his superiors while accompanying the army would be a disaster if he stayed in the army, and would be another disaster if he returned home.

Rui Dan was a small family in the county, and their situation was not much better than that of the Zhao family.

Isn’t today’s Rui Dan a reflection of myself?

Things like theft can be caught red-handed or they can be framed.

How can there be a world where right and wrong are so clearly defined?
If people are punished with yellow or red names for committing crimes, there will be few white names in this world.

Hu Ban checked Rui Dan's whip wounds again. Most of them were on her legs due to rolling and dodging.

Hu Ban stood up slowly, his expression solemn. "I won't say anything else. I'm going to see Sima Wang. Just say that when Rui Dan was feeding the horse, the horse got startled, suddenly jumped up and kicked out with its hoof, killing him. That way, we can explain it to the county."

As he spoke, his eyes fell on Pei Xiu's face. "It's unfortunate that Rui Dan died. As comrades, we can't just sit there and do nothing. You all know his family's situation. Donate some money and I'll have someone send it to his home. If you become rich in the future, don't forget what happened today."

"Yes, I will do as the sergeant says."

Pei Xiu agreed. He knew some inside information. This plan of recruiting tiger soldiers was very important.

Not to mention one Rui Dan, even if there were ten of them, no one would care if they were eliminated from within.

If you really rely on killing people to get promoted, how long will it take?

Everyone is gambling with their lives, and they are not gangsters or old soldiers who can't even control their hands. It's better for everyone if they die early.

Hu Ban did not delay any longer and went to see Wang Zhi again.

The death of a volunteer Tiger Guard also alarmed Wang Zhi. This was not a Tiger Guard from another county, but a Tiger Guard from the hometown of Pei Mao, the Imperial Censor.

Wang Zhi wore a red robe with black patent leather armor over it, a sword hanging from his waist, a pair of green patent leather shoes on his feet, and a light green cloak.

He was a very young man, with a fair face and no beard, and a handsome appearance.

He briefly examined Rui Dan's body, noticing the obvious fist marks. He nodded slowly, "This horse's legs are quite powerful. We must be careful feeding it next time to avoid such incidents."

Seeing that no one present had any objections, Wang Zhi asked Hu Ban, "Sergeant Hu, should we transport him back to his hometown or bury him nearby?"

Hu Ban bowed and said, "Sima, when the men of this county left home, they had great ambitions in their hearts. Few return home, so it would be better to bury them nearby."

"Well, there's a graveyard five or six miles south of the camp. Let's bury him there."

Wang Zhi handed a bamboo tablet to Hu Ban and said, "Send five men out of the camp to complete this task."

"Here."

Hu Ban took the pass to leave the camp with both hands and bowed again. Wang Zhi looked around at the thirty or so people around him and his eyes fell on Pei Xiu, who stood there and did not follow Hu Ban's example.

In just half a breath, the eyes of the people brought by Wang Zhi and the tiger guards in the camp met.

"Haha~!"

Wang Zhi shook his head and smiled, pinched the corner of his cloak with his right hand, and turned to leave.

Pei Xiu also smiled. He became the squad leader because Hu Ban had no other choice but to give him this position temporarily.

When more recruits arrive at the camp and the reorganization of the villages and teams is carried out, Pei Xiu can become the village chief.

When a higher unit organization is needed, Pei Xiu can serve as the military marquis Qu Chang.

These are temporary organizations during the march, and only after arriving in Hanoi County will the real official positions be given.

It was impossible for Pei Xiu to be a mid-level military officer; even the position of military secretary would be a humiliation to the Pei family.

Who is Wang Zhi? Who is Hu Ban?
Being able to resist calling him "Seventh Brother" is already Hu Ban's greatest dignity.

Seeing Wang Zhi and his group walking away, Hu Ban handed the token to Zhao Ji: "Rui Dan is Aji's man, Aji, you take the people to bury him."

"Here."

Zhao Ji took the token with both hands, turned his head to look at his own team, and his eyes fell on the faces of Yang Ji and Lu Chun. "Yang Ji, choose three people to follow me out of the camp. Lu Chun will stay behind and cooperate with the military officer."

Lu Chun looked depressed, bowed and answered in a low voice, while Yang Ji directly chose three people with whom he had a good relationship.

Although they were going out to bury someone, it was also a good thing for them to be able to take a walk outside the camp.

Rui Dan was quickly loaded onto the horse's back, and Zhao Ji led his own horse to lead the men out of the small camp.

There were only five soldiers on duty at the camp gate. These soldiers were seconded from the Jiangyi garrison and they looked at the dead man on horseback with suspicion.

The horse thieves we guard against at night are these county soldiers.

The soldiers in the camp let Zhao Ji go. After leaving the camp, he jumped on his horse. Yang Ji also had a horse and followed closely behind.

The three accompanying Tiger Guards could only walk, one of them led the horse carrying the corpse, and the other two each carried tools.

Zhao Ji adjusted his sitting position, holding the reins in his left hand and the iron halberd in his right hand, observing the distance and nearness.

The camp is located ten miles southeast of Jiangyi, close to Zijin Mountain.

It was originally a temporary backup military camp. There were no patrolling knights outside, not even any sentries.

Yang Ji also pretended to observe, and when he rode his horse to catch up with Zhao Ji, he suddenly whispered, "Aji, I heard that Rui Dan stole the boots when he was wrestling with someone..."

"I guessed it too. Was he instigated by someone to wear my boots?"

Zhao Ji said indifferently, "Rui Dan lost his father at a young age, and his mother was reluctant to discipline him. As he grew older, he wanted to attract the attention of the villagers, so he behaved erratically, indulged himself in wantonness, and loved to brag. He thought I wouldn't care about this matter, so he took it without asking."

Then he turned to look at Yang Ji and said, "I don't care about these boots, nor do I care about Rui Dan's life or death. Thousands of miles away from home, some of us seek fame, some seek justice, and some seek profit. Many are destined to die outside. If we want to reduce the number of deaths, we must pay attention to military law. For Rui Dan, it's just a matter of dying sooner or later. No one cares about the truth, so you don't need to say anything more."

"Yes."

Yang Ji agreed, and after a brief silence, he said, "Aji, you have changed a lot."

“Experiencing death can change people profoundly.”

Zhao Ji looked ahead at the gentle slopes of the mountain. "Haven't you noticed? Rui Dan is dead. The atmosphere in the camp is different too. It's more like soldiers."

"Yeah, it's different."

Yang Ji nodded and wanted to say something else, but felt it was meaningless.

Just like the familiar friends in the camp, we had endless things to talk about.

Whether it was quarreling or debating, there was endless energy to argue; but now it seemed as if it were frost.

(End of this chapter)