My Portable Ming Dynasty

Chapter 272 Rectifying the Academic Atmosphere
Su Ze gave the order, and Li Rusong dared not delay. He immediately rushed out of the school building and snatched the assembly call from the bugler.

Originally, the Ming Dynasty used drums as military signals, but after Su Ze proposed using bugle calls for mobilization, Qi Jiguang promoted this method in the new army and it proved quite effective.

The bugle could be carried at all times, so each team only needed one bugler to quickly relay orders from superiors.

The bugle call was loud and clear, though not as penetrating as the sound of drums, but it was far more convenient as a signal on the battlefield.

Li Rusong was from a military family, and the military supervisory office adopted a militarized management system, using bugle calls to assemble every day. He quickly learned to blow the bugle.

As the bugle call to assemble sounded, some commotion broke out inside the military prison.

According to the rules of the Military Academy, whenever the bugle call to assemble sounds, the students of the Military Academy must put down what they are doing and assemble at the place where the bugle is sounded.

However, it was clear that this system was not well implemented. After the time it takes for an incense stick to burn had passed since the bugle sounded, only a few martial arts students came to the school building.

After the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, Su Ze took the roster from Chen Liang and began calling out names.

Su Ze coldly announced his name, and he would tick off the names of those who did not respond. After the roll call was completed, those who did not come to the assembly were all sons of noble families led by Zhu Shikun.

Su Ze put the roster into his sleeve, then quickly pointed out several names, all of whom were martial arts students who had just disrupted class discipline by joining Li Rusong in making a fuss.

Su Ze asked:

"What is the motto of our martial arts academy?"

Su Ze asked several people in a row, but none of them could answer. When it came to Li Rusong, he said loudly:
"Reporting to the Dean of Studies, it is 'Refining skills and honing techniques, ensuring orders are obeyed without question!'"

Su Ze looked at Li Rusong. Everyone was a spoiled brat, but some people could remember the school motto.

Moreover, Li Rusong did indeed fight on the battlefield. He fought alongside his father, Li Chengliang, when he was fourteen years old, and was a valiant general in the original timeline.

Su Ze said, "The school motto was personally appointed by His Majesty. If you can't even remember the school motto, should I report this to His Majesty?"

The martial arts students panicked.

They came to the Imperial Military Academy to inherit their family's military positions. If the emperor were to strip them of their hereditary positions in a fit of anger, they would likely commit suicide immediately to meet their ancestors, their souls scattered.

"You are first-time offenders. Go back and copy this five hundred times as punishment. Send it to me tomorrow."

Although they escaped punishment, the punishment of copying the school motto five hundred times still made these children of military officers turn pale.

Li Rusong suppressed a laugh, and Su Ze glanced at him before saying:

"Li Rusong was punished by copying it a thousand times."

"My lord! Why am I being punished so severely?!"

Su Ze said coldly:
"They can't remember the school motto when they make mistakes, but you can remember the school motto when you make mistakes. That's knowingly making a mistake."

"'Strict obedience' means obeying the instructors' orders within the martial arts training center. Openly disrupting classroom order will naturally be severely punished!"

Upon hearing this, Li Rusong immediately lowered his head.

He, a son of a military family, had actually lost his mind and argued with a Hanlin scholar of the court.

Li Rusong also understood why his father had placed Su Ze among the top on the list of people he couldn't offend.

A little while later, the sons of nobles who had received the news, including Zhu Shikun, the younger brother of the current Duke of Cheng, jogged to the front of the school.

Su Ze called out the name again and then said, "Li Rusong violated the school rules by leaving the school without permission. What should be done?"

Li Rusong stammered as he said:

"A first offense is punishable by ten strokes of the cane, a second offense by fifty strokes of the cane."

Su Ze nodded and said:

"You few go and carry out the executions."

The children of vocational school graduates who had just disrupted the class looked terrified. They were told to go and beat up the children of noble families.

But looking at Su Ze's murderous aura, if they didn't resort to torture, they feared that the flogging would fall on them.

As expected, Su Ze said:
"Those who are unfavorable in the punishment will be guilty of the same crime!"

Hearing this, Li Rusong knew he had no choice but to proceed. He picked up the bamboo cane from the back of the classroom, the instrument used for flogging.

Flogging is a form of punishment in which a person is struck on the back, buttocks, or legs with a bamboo stick.

This is the lowest level of the five punishments, but for these sons of noble families, the humiliation outweighed the physical pain.

Sure enough, several arrogant noble sons showed expressions of dissatisfaction, but Zhu Shikun, who was in charge, pretended to be obediently accepting the punishment, so the other noble sons did not make any rash moves.

Su Ze said coldly:
"Those who are unwilling to abide by the rules of the Martial Arts Academy can leave now. Those who are not students of the Martial Arts Academy will not be punished."

Such a good thing has made several sons of noble families eager to try their luck.

But Zhu Shikun took off his outer garment, obediently lay down, and said:
"Dean of Academic Affairs, the student is receiving punishment."

Su Ze nodded, signaling Li Rusong to go and carry out the execution.

Did I become the Duke's younger brother?

Although Li Rusong is fearless, what happened today almost made him faint.

Let alone Li Rusong, even his father Li Chengliang would probably feel weak in the knees if he stood here.

Despite seeing Su Ze's expression, Li Rusong still held the bamboo stick. He gently said "sorry" to Zhu Shikun, and then began to whip him forcefully.

Zhu Shikun bit down, but on the seventh bite, he still let out a terrible scream.

Li Rusong looked at Su Ze, and seeing Su Ze's cold eyes, Li Rusong continued to strike him three more times before putting down the bamboo stick after the punishment.

At this moment, Li Rusong realized that he was completely soaked, and this execution was more torturous than being tortured.

Li Rusong and Zhu Shikun set an example, and a strange scene appeared in the martial arts academy: the sons of hereditary nobles with mournful faces beat the sons of meritorious nobles, and the screams of the sons of meritorious nobles echoed throughout the academy.

After everyone had received their punishments, Su Ze summoned all the martial arts students to the school building.

"It is my fault for neglecting the affairs of the Military Supervisory Office. Instructor Chen and all the instructors have worked hard."

Su Ze bowed to the group of martial arts instructors, who were so startled that they quickly returned the bow.

Su Ze then said:

"The establishment of the Military Academy is to cultivate talents for the country, and it is a national policy for a hundred years."

"For this reason, His Majesty personally appointed the chief supervisor and the Duke of Dingguo as the deputy supervisor, also to clarify the status of you, the Emperor's disciples."

“Your parents and elder brothers sent you to the Military Academy in the hope that you will learn something and serve the Ming Dynasty.”

"But what about you!?"

Su Ze raised his voice, and all the martial arts students present lowered their heads.

"Li Rusong!"

"The students are here!"

Li Rusong instinctively stood up, and Su Ze continued:

"As you said in class, do you think Instructor Chen and the other instructors are inferior to you?"

“Students don’t dare!”

Su Ze said lightly:
"A competition will be held in the Martial Arts Academy in five days."

Everyone looked at Su Ze.

Su Ze said:

"All the students of the Martial Arts Academy were divided into two groups: fifty sons of nobles and twenty instructors in one group, and two hundred and five sons of hereditary officials in another group, to compete in a contest at the Martial Arts Academy training ground."

"Li Rusong, how about you take command?"

Li Rusong was stunned; he hadn't expected Su Ze to group them like this.

It should be noted that these fifty sons of noble families were all good-for-nothings; they were only there to coast along at the military academy and had absolutely no fighting ability. Even among the instructors, who were veterans, there were only about twenty of them.

Twenty men leading fifty useless bastards, while our side has two hundred and fifty men?

It seems like we have a huge advantage no matter how you look at it.

Su Ze said coldly:

"I will invite important court officials to attend, so you should prepare accordingly."

"If you win, I will ask His Majesty to replace the instructors."

"If you lose, you will have to copy the new book of military strategy three times."

After saying this, Su Ze and Shen Li drifted away.
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In the following days, Su Ze indeed came to the Martial Arts Institute every day.

Su Ze's job is to enforce discipline.

He would randomly appear in the classroom to punish students who did not follow the rules.

Su Ze would also have people sound the assembly call in the middle of the night for roll call, and those who failed to assemble on time would be punished.

After three days, the students of the martial arts academy felt like they were in prison, yet they dared not utter a single complaint.

The reason is simple: these children of hereditary nobles witnessed the attitude of the children of meritorious officials.

That day, after Su Ze punished several sons of noble families, some of them climbed over the wall and went home at night to complain.

Among them was Liu Jinchen, the son of Liu Shiyan, the Earl of Chengyi, who had just been restored to his former title.

Liu Jinchen was favored by his father from a young age, and he was one of the very few heirs of noble families to be sent to the Military Academy.

Liu Jinchen originally thought that his father, who always doted on him, would stand up for him, but he did not expect that after hearing the whole story, Marquis Chengyi Liu Shiyan would "arrest" his son on the spot and then escort Liu Jinchen back to Wujian.

After sending Liu Jinchen back, Liu Shiyan, in front of everyone, enforced school rules at the entrance of the Martial Arts Academy, whipping Liu Jinchen fifty times.

Liu Jinchen's pig-like screams echoed throughout the entire military prison, and the other meritorious officials who were escorting their own sons back could only follow suit and carry out the executions when they saw Liu Shiyan beating them so violently.

After this incident, these sons of noble families understood.

Even their fathers didn't dare to offend Su Ze.

Even if these sons of noble families had no right to inherit, they were still normal people who were sent to the Military Academy.

They grew up in the power arena, so of course they understand the game of power dynamics.

Even his biggest backer, his "family," couldn't defeat Su Ze, so he had no choice but to obediently admit defeat and follow the rules of the martial arts academy.

To be punished like this for merely violating school rules, if he were expelled from the martial arts academy, he would probably be expelled from his entire family.

This is the most unacceptable thing for these sons of noble families.

This change in attitude quickly spread.

The day after tomorrow is the day Su Ze challenges them. Today, after class, Li Rusong pulled a few people aside to discuss the challenge.

Li Rusong suddenly said, "Dean Su's plan is brilliant!"

"What did Brother Li say?"

Li Rusong said:
"The instructors brought along the sons of meritorious officials and made us fight them. If we win again, we'll definitely make enemies of these sons of meritorious officials!"

Then everyone remembered that the execution had already created enmity with the sons of nobles.

Although Su Ze gave the order to carry out the execution, it was executed by a member of a hereditary official family.

They witnessed the disgraceful state of those sons of meritorious officials being beaten, and while they dared not cause trouble for Su Ze, they knew to target the sons of hereditary officials.

Even the way Zhu Shikun looked at him seemed off.

Li Rusong strongly suspected that Su Ze did this on purpose, in order to sow discord between the two groups.

Li Rusong is right. Everyone at the Martial Arts Academy wants to make friends, not enemies.

These sons of meritorious officials will try to sabotage me in the future; even if I inherit their hereditary titles, I won't be able to stand it.

"Su Hanlin's plan is too cunning!"

"Yeah, isn't this asking us to deliberately lose?"

Li Rusong was the kind of person who was arrogant yet cunning. He was the quickest-thinking person, which is why he became the leader of the hereditary noble families.

Having figured this out, he gritted his teeth and said, "We're bound to lose, but we can lose gracefully. We can win first and then surrender!"

"It suppressed the instructors' arrogance while also saving face for the sons of meritorious officials. The head instructor is busy with official duties and can't possibly keep an eye on the martial arts academy every day, can he?"

Everyone nodded in agreement, agreeing that Li Rusong's plan was feasible.

After devising a plan to focus on the instructors, Li Rusong briefly outlined the combat strategy.

His battle plan was also learned from Li Chengliang, which was to use infantry as frontal bait and then use mobile cavalry for a surprise attack.

The drills on campus did not use firearms, but only wooden armor and swords. The artillerymen switched to practicing crossbows and provided support from behind the infantry lines.

Li Rusong was very confident because his father had fought the Jurchens in the same way and always won a great victory.
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the other side.

Flogging was a form of punishment primarily for rehabilitation. Unlike being hit with a cane, one could recover quickly after being hit with a bamboo cane.

The only one who can't move right now is the unfortunate Liu Jinchen.

His father, Liu Shiyan, the Earl of Chengyi, used too harsh a bamboo cane; Liu Jinchen can only lie down now and cannot participate in this exercise.

Chen Liang glanced at the sons of these meritorious officials.

If he had a choice, he would rather not bring these sons of meritorious officials along.

Chen Liang and his officers were all elite soldiers under Qi Jiguang, and these twenty men were confident that they could defeat two hundred members of the hereditary official class.

However, Su Ze required him to bring these sons of meritorious officials along, so Chen Liang had no choice but to obediently train them.

However, after Su Ze's reorganization, the sons of meritorious officials have become much more obedient.

Even Zhu Shikun, who was in charge, practiced diligently, which made Chen Liang quite pleased. He gradually began to teach Chen Liang the key techniques for the battlefield.

Relationships between people are built through interaction, and Chen Liang also discovered that not all of these sons of meritorious officials were incompetent.

Some of them also possess military talent, but as the second son of their families, they need to conceal it.

The sons of meritorious officials also discovered that these instructors were indeed capable.

Chen Liang, a veteran of countless battles, can tell battlefield stories that are invaluable military experience and extremely exciting war tales.

Chen Liang served in the army in Zhejiang and fought in battles in Zhejiang, Fujian, Shanxi, and the grasslands, gaining a wealth of life experience.

Once both sides calmed down, these sons of meritorious officials discovered that learning could actually be enjoyable.

They were all young and active, and being able to learn the art of warfare was a privilege that even the sons of noble families would never have dared to dream of in the past.

Willing to teach and willing to learn, Chen Liang brought out the Three Talents Formation, which was commonly used in the War of Resistance against Japanese Pirates.

The reason for not using the Mandarin Duck Formation is that practicing this formation requires battlefield coordination, and Chen Liang only had five days, so he chose the easier Three Talents Formation.

Formations aren't actually anything particularly sophisticated.

The formation breaks down the tasks that everyone needs to do on the battlefield and imprints them into one's instincts through repeated practice.

When soldiers arrive on the battlefield, they remember to do their jobs well, obey the commands of their superiors, and are not defeated by the brutal battlefield. This is the function of the battle formation.

Chen Liang arranged the sons of nobles into a Three Talents Formation, while he and his instructors used a Mandarin Duck Formation.

After two more days of training, the day of the duel that Su Ze had agreed upon finally arrived.

(End of this chapter)