Ask the mountains and rivers

Chapter 153 Competing for Strength (Part 1)

The training ground outside Pei Family Village was originally an open space. At first, more than two hundred women from the Pei family practiced there every day. Later, as more and more refugees joined, the training ground expanded and widened.

Pei Yun took 500 men with her, and Gu Lian took 200 men. Pei Qinghe also recruited 700 new soldiers from among the refugees. The total strength remained at around 2,000.

One hundred men form a battalion, and two thousand men form twenty battalions in total. Each of the twenty leaders leads a battalion in formation, and the drills performed by each battalion are different.

The new recruits practiced formations and drills, while those running in perfect unison practiced drawing their swords. The veterans practiced sparring and combat. There was also a group of archers who specialized in archery.

On his first day leading his troops, Sun Cheng's training consisted of morning exercises. Running laps around the training ground allowed him to clearly observe the training progress of each battalion.

The more I look at it, the more amazed I become.

He had spent over a decade in the military and was intimately familiar with military drills. The Pei family army was primarily composed of direct descendants of the Pei clan, with recruited refugees forming the main force. It had only been a fully-fledged army for about two years, yet it already possessed the imposing presence and confident demeanor of an elite force.

Pei Qinghe wandered between each camp, stopping from time to time to give pointers and even personally instructing the people.

It's no wonder that everyone in the Pei family army is completely convinced of Pei Qinghe's abilities. This army was entirely built by Pei Qinghe himself.

The soldiers following behind Sun Cheng, after witnessing the intense training in the training ground, gasped in astonishment and completely abandoned their pride as regular soldiers of the imperial court.

After practicing for an hour, you can rest for the time it takes for an incense stick to burn.

There were several buckets of hot water beside the training ground, but they had already cooled down. Pei Qinghe scooped up a bamboo tube of cool water and drank it all.

Sun Cheng also came over to get some water to drink.

"Sixth Sister is truly skilled at training troops." Sun Cheng exclaimed sincerely, "No wonder she has trained such an elite force in just three years."

Pei Qinghe chuckled: "The Captain Sun I know is not the kind of person who would flatter or fawn."

The familiar old way of addressing each other quickly bridged the distance between them. Sun Cheng couldn't help but laugh: "Sixth Miss knows me. I really don't know how to flatter or fawn; I'm just telling the truth."

After exchanging a few jokes, Pei Qinghe said, "The Pei family army holds monthly drills and martial arts competitions, with all twenty battalions taking turns to compete. The top three in the competition receive rewards, while the bottom three are punished."

Sun Cheng didn't care about the punishment; he only asked what the reward would be for the top three in the competition.

Pei Qinghe smiled knowingly: "The third battalion, which ranks in the top three, can eat meat for three meals in a row."

This reward is the most tangible and the most motivating.

Sun Cheng was also tempted. After learning that the martial arts competition was only half a month away, he immediately started thinking about training his troops.

Pei Qinghe was eager to see Sun Cheng's abilities, so she didn't interfere too much with Sun Cheng's troop training. When she went to Sun Cheng's camp, she would just take a look and then leave.

Feng Chang was also keeping a close eye on Sun Cheng's training exercises.

Ever since Gu Lian led her troops to Quanzhou County, Feng Chang has been holding a grudge.

It wasn't that he held a grudge against Gu Lian. In fact, though he wouldn't admit it, he was secretly impressed. Gu Lian was ruthless to others, but even more ruthless to herself. Originally a weak woman with no background, she managed to hone her martial arts skills in just three years. She never hesitated to kill bandits or barbarians. During her trip to Bohai County, she displayed both courage and strategy.

Gu Lian had the advantage of being a woman and also enjoyed Pei Qinghe's trust. Leaving aside the gender advantage, Gu Lian had taken the initiative, so Feng Chang had nothing to say. Sun Cheng's appearance suddenly made Feng Chang anxious about the insecurity of his position.

Sun Cheng was a proper sixth-rank military officer appointed by the imperial court. He had studied military strategy and had led troops in battle. Feng Chang's proudest advantage was nothing special in front of Sun Cheng and was not worth mentioning.

Then, watching Sun Cheng train his troops, one could see that he had a very methodical approach. Pei Qinghe praised him several times in front of everyone, and the competitive Feng Chang couldn't stand it, so he immediately joined in the extra training.

Wang Erhe was sore all over from the training and complained incessantly: "Boss Feng, have you taken the wrong medicine these past few days? Training us so hard, aren't you afraid of ruining us?"

Wang Erhe and Feng Chang were from the same hometown and had been traveling together since the day they fled famine. Later, they escaped into the mountains together and then went to Peijia Village together. Their friendship was so deep that it was closer than that of brothers.

Feng Chang slapped Wang Erhe on the back and said with a laugh, "With a build like yours, if you don't train properly, how will you ever be able to take up arms and go into battle?"

Wang Erhe grimaced as he was slapped, and chuckled in a low voice, "I know you're going to compete with that Sun Cheng. Actually, I'm not convinced either. We've been in Peijia Village for over two years, fighting alongside Sixth Sister to get to where we are today. Why should someone who came later climb over us?"

"We'll have a martial arts competition in a few days, and we'll beat Sun Cheng to a pulp first."

Feng Chang was not so optimistic: "Sun Cheng is indeed good at training troops. The Sixth Miss doesn't even need to give any pointers; she just lets him lead a battalion in drills every day. I've observed him, and his skills are truly impressive."

The more he talked, the more anxious he became, and he couldn't help but sigh: "I used to be a private tutor, good at writing and painting. I only started practicing martial arts after I entered Pei Family Village. In terms of skill, I am definitely not as good as a martial artist who has practiced for many years."

Wang Erhe was taken aback and looked at Feng Chang: "I was just joking, you really took it to heart!"

Feng Chang pursed his lips and whispered, "I lost to Gu Lian once, I can't lose to Sun Cheng too."

Wang Erhe coughed and lowered his voice, saying, "Speaking of Gu Lian, I actually have an idea. How about we send someone here to be Gu Lian's husband, to break her will... Oh dear!"

Feng Chang withdrew his leg, sneering, "I should have seen through it long ago. You keep mentioning her, you've been eyeing her for a while now. If you want to go, just ask Sixth Miss, but Gu Yidao has to give his approval first. With your physique, do you think Gu Yidao would even look at you?"

Wang Erhe, his thoughts exposed, stopped pretending and, while rubbing his leg, replied confidently, "So what if I have this ambition? You and Gu Lian are rivals, trying to outdo each other. I don't have such grand ambitions; I just want to be her son-in-law. Last time, when the Sixth Miss was selecting soldiers, she didn't choose me. When the opportunity arises in the future, I'll beg the Sixth Miss to let me go to Quanzhou County."

Feng Chang rolled his eyes in exasperation, ignoring Wang Erhe's budding romantic feelings, and focused all his attention on how to train his troops to completely suppress Sun Cheng.

Sun Cheng was the same.

The competitive spirit among men doesn't need to be spoken aloud; they both know it in their hearts.

Pei Qinghe observed the subtle struggle between Sun Cheng and Feng Chang but remained silent.

Before they knew it, the day of the martial arts competition arrived.

On this day, people of all ages from Pei Family Village came to watch. Even Steward Shi put down his account books and abacus to join the commotion. He even brought a bag of melon seeds, a bag of dried meat, and half a bag of rice candy.

Pei Xuan and Pei Feng immediately sidled up to them.

Shi Yan kept half a bag of melon seeds and gave the rest to Pei Xuan and Pei Feng.

Shi Yan is witty, humorous, generous, and thoughtful in his words and actions. The Pei family, young and old, all like him. Otherwise, would Pei Xuan and Pei Feng really accept snacks from just anyone?
Pei Qinghe glanced at the three people squatting together watching the commotion, found it amusing, quickly looked away, and loudly announced the start of the martial arts competition.

(End of this chapter)