My older brother said I'm invincible.

Chapter 280 New Army
Having just received a reward, Li Xuanba was someone no one dared to offend easily.

However, Li Xuanba did not become arrogant and conceited because he received the reward. He remained humble as always. Sitting among the crowd, Li Xuanba said earnestly, "I am able to fight in heavy armor thanks to Yuan Zhizhai's previous assistance. I truly admire your methods of training troops."

Yuan Li chuckled and waved his hand, "I wouldn't dare say that. It's all thanks to General Li's bravery. I've trained so many soldiers, and I've never seen anyone as brave as him."

Li Xuanba looked at him seriously and said, "His Majesty said he wanted to establish the Xiaoguo Guard and appointed me as its commander. Although I have read some military treatises, I have no idea how to train and command them. After I told His Majesty about this, His Majesty thought that we should also appoint a Guoyi Langjiang to assist him in training and other matters."

"If Yuanzhizhai doesn't mind, could you please serve as my Righteous General and help me train the new army?"

Yuan Li trembled and looked at Li Xuanba in disbelief.

"I am a general, this is..."

He looked at Sima Dekan, who smiled and said, "If Your Excellency wants to promote you, why are you looking at me? Why don't you bow and thank me?"

Yuan Li abruptly stood up and bowed to Li Xuanba, saying, "Thank you for your patronage, my lord! I will never forget your kindness. If you ever need anything in the future, please just give the order, and I will never disobey!"

Yuan Li's face turned red, and he was quite excited.

Just by looking at his surname, you can tell that Yuan Li is an old Xianbei from Guanzhong, as Yuan is the surname of the Xianbei royal family.

Li Xuanba quickly helped him up, saying, "There's no need for that."

Sima Dekan breathed a sigh of relief. This time, Li Xuanba went out to fight with Chen Leng, and he was accompanied by Yingyang Prefecture from another region. This made Sima Dekan and other old Guanzhong people a little worried, fearing that Li Xuanba would become too close to Chen Leng from now on.

Chen Leng's official position remained unchanged; he still led the Left Office. However, due to his promotion, Sima Dekan could no longer challenge him, and the gap in their status was widened. If Li Xuanba continued to be close to him and associated more with those southerners, the Guanzhong people would suffer.

It seems that this lord still remembers us fellow villagers from Guanzhong! When it comes to helping others, he always thinks of his own people first!

Li Xuanba himself didn't realize that after his conversation with Yuan Li, the atmosphere of the entire banquet changed. The people present were no longer restrained, and their expressions became much more relaxed. Sima Dekan even said directly, "It seems that His Majesty has decided to let us handle the establishment of the Xiaoguo Guard, without going through the Ministry of War."

Sima Dekan looked at Li Xuanba, cleared his throat, and lowered his voice, "My lord, how should this list be divided?"

"point??"

Li Xuanba was somewhat puzzled, so Sima Dekan quickly explained, "If you have any warriors you admire, we can promote them exceptionally to help the country. If you have many people to recommend, we will recommend fewer."

Li Xuanba immediately realized what was happening and said seriously, "His Majesty attaches great importance to this matter. It is absolutely unacceptable to recommend people who are not qualified."

Sima Dekan smiled and said, "My lord, there's no need to worry. The people we recommend here are definitely not unworthy of their titles; they are all our own people! Ordinary people couldn't withstand the training here."

"But."

Li Xuanba frowned, looking somewhat hesitant.

Yuan Li said, “General, you may not know this, but this is how military garrisons in various places operate. It’s not easy to become a soldier. Without an introduction, you can’t get into the military garrison at all. Your Excellency is still young. In my opinion, we should not rush to recommend you. We should wait until we return to Luoyang and talk to your father and brothers before making a decision.”

Sima Dekan echoed, "There are some things that even if we tell you, my lord, you won't understand. If we ask the Duke, you'll find out."

"Okay, let's talk about it when we get back."

When are we going back?

"It'll be soon, probably this month."

Sima Dekan then cautioned, "My lord, many people may come looking for you in the coming days. You'd better be careful and avoid meeting them."

Yuwen Mansion.

Inside the study, Yuwen Shu abruptly threw the documents in his hand away, and without any politeness, pointed at Yuwen Huaji in front of him and cursed, "Get out! Don't try to disgust me with these things again!" Yuwen Huaji looked at Yuwen Shu in astonishment, daring not to speak out in anger.

He was already over forty years old, but Yuwen Shu still scolded him like a child, showing no mercy. Yuwen Huaji lowered his head and picked up the papers on the ground. After picking them all up, he looked up at his old father.

"Grandpa, why don't you agree?"

“These are all our own close relatives. Although the Xiaoguo Guard is nominally under the Right Palace now, it will definitely break away from the Right Palace in the future, or even become an independent Imperial Guard, one of the Sixteen Guards. This is an excellent place for them. You have helped Li Yuan with many things. If you want to arrange for a few people to go in as captains or something, would Li Xuanba dare not recommend them?”

Yuwen Shu stared at Yuwen Huaji for a long time, then asked with a sneer, "Do your cronies even deserve to serve in the new army?"

"Grandpa, these aren't my cronies. These are all capable people. Look at this Zhao Xingshu!"

"His wealth is in the hundreds of millions! He said that as long as you can help him become a general, he is willing to give you sixty manors, thirty residences, and twenty fine horses as a token of his gratitude!"

Yuwen Shu's anger subsided slightly, and he held out his hand. "Give it to me."

Yuwen Huaji handed the numerous lists to Yuwen Shu again. Yuwen Shu picked up the lists and looked at them repeatedly for a long time before hesitating.

"There's no problem with his Guanzhong origin. Since he can send fine horses, he must own a horse farm. Ask him for a few good horse farms so you can take a look. If they're of good quality, I'll recommend him for the position of Zhechong Langjiang."

Yuwen Huaji was overjoyed and quickly bowed in gratitude.

Yuwen Shu then looked at the others and asked, "These people are not from Guanzhong, so we don't need any money. Take them away. Did these people offer any gifts?"

"Yes, sir. These men, though not as capable as Zhao Xingchu, are not mediocre either. They don't ask for much; they only wish to be appointed as captains. What do you think?"

"Ah."

Yuwen Shu handed the list to his son, saying, "Then go and collect the gifts. I agree."

Yuwen Huaji asked, "Should we inform Li Xuanba?"

"Ah."

"Do I need to inform Li Xuanba before I do anything? Can Li Xuanba recommend a General of the Vanguard?"

Yuwen Shu glared at him. "Let me tell you, there are five vacancies for the position of Zhechong Langjiang in the Left and Right Offices. You can agree to any of the other Zhechong Langjiang positions, including the vacancies under their command, but don't even think about the position of the First Zhechong Langjiang in the Right Office. Even if someone only wants to be a fire chief, you are not allowed to agree to it!!!"

Yuwen Huaji was puzzled. "Father, if the Zhechong (military force) is to be established as a separate prefecture in the future, the First Zhechong Langjiang (military general) will definitely be the commander-in-chief, and the positions under him will be the most prestigious. If we don't intervene, then they will be divided up by Li Xuanba and the Right Prefecture."

"Fool. This first general might have to go to the battlefield with you in the future. When the Right Minister and Li Xuanba promote people, they will at least promote some good men from Guanzhong. But the people you promised are all useless good-for-nothings and incompetent. Do you want me to lead this bunch of good-for-nothings to the battlefield in the future?"

"Going to war??"

Yuwen Huaji was somewhat astonished. "The world has been pacified, where is there any war? Besides, with so many soldiers in the Eagle Banner Prefectures across the land, why would the Imperial Guard be mobilized?"

Yuwen Shu stared at his son with a stern face.

"If you don't leave soon, there's going to be a battle going on in this study."

After driving away his good-for-nothing son, Yuwen Shu lowered his head and began to calculate the bribe that the man had promised to send. After doing the calculations for a few moments, he was overjoyed. He thought that he might be able to make a fortune from the formation of the new army. The emperor was currently very happy, and even if he knew about it, he wouldn't care about Yuwen Shu's attempt to make money.

However, I still need to send someone to remind Li Xuanba not to follow the example of those bad people, accept bribes, and promote incompetent fools.

Next year, there will likely be a great war, which will be an opportunity for me. If I can achieve another great feat, why should I worry about not being able to be as famous as He Ruobi, Shi Wansui, and others? If I can destroy Goguryeo and then defeat the Turks, it wouldn't be impossible for me to become the "Wei Qing" of the Sui Dynasty.

(End of this chapter)