Thrown out of the house, the wet nurse enters the noble household and becomes a person of high statu

The northern border, the Iron Horse Pass.

This small town is located at the northernmost edge of the Great Wei Dynasty. Outside the city gates lies a vast wilderness, and beyond that lies the territory of the Northern Di.

Pei Yaojun stood below the city gate, dressed in a gray cloth outfit with a sheepskin vest over it, his hair haphazardly tied back.

Anyone who saw him would think he was a traveler on a long journey, and would never associate him with the dashing and spirited Master Pei who used to make a ruckus in the capital.

The wind whipped up sand and dust, which stung his eyes, so Pei Yaojun raised his hand to rub them.

The recruitment office was located on the west side of the pass, and it was a simple shed.

Under the shed was a broken wooden table, and a man who looked like a military officer was dozing off on the table, snoring loudly.

A wooden sign stood nearby, with the words "Recruiting Soldiers" written on it in charcoal pencil, and a line of smaller characters below: "Monthly salary: two taels; death in battle compensation: thirty taels."

Pei Yaojun walked over and tapped on the table.

The military leader was still asleep.

He tapped it again, this time with more force.

"Who is it...?"

The military leader groggily raised his head and squinted at Pei Yaojun.

Seeing that although he was tall, he was not particularly robust, and his face showed signs of fatigue from a long journey, he waved lazily.

"Get out of here! With your skinny arms and legs, the enemy could cleave you in two with a single strike."

Pei Yaojun didn't say anything, but walked to the corner of the shed and picked up a bow leaning against the wall.

That was a stiff bow, a standard type commonly used in the military.

The bow is made of mulberry wood, and the bowstring is rough.

He weighed it in his hand and then tested the tension of the string with his fingers.

The military leader sneered, "Can you even pull them apart? If you can't, then hurry up and..."

Before he finished speaking, Pei Yaojun had already nocked an arrow.

The bow was quite powerful; an ordinary man could barely draw it halfway, but he drew it to its fullest extent, the bowstring taut and almost snapping.

The military leader woke up from his nap.

Pei Yaojun let go.

With a whoosh, the arrow pierced the air and embedded itself deeply into the straw target thirty paces away.

There was a moment of silence in the shed.

The military officer looked Pei Yaojun up and down, his gaze completely changing.

He rubbed his hands together and pulled out a booklet and a pen from under the table.

"What's your name? Where are you from? How old are you?"

"A man from the capital, twenty-one."

Upon hearing the words "capital," the military leader raised an eyebrow. "Capital, huh? What are you doing here?"

Pei Yaojun didn't respond.

The military commander didn't continue. "Don't want to say? Fine, at least tell me your name!"

"Pei San".

After registering him, the military officer took out ten taels of silver and threw it to Pei Yaojun, saying, "Take your enlistment fee. I'll have someone take you to Dongying to report for duty and arrange accommodations later."

Pei Yaojun took the silver and stuffed it into his pocket.

Although Dongying was called a military camp, it was actually a cluster of low-rise mud-brick houses.

Some worn-out military uniforms were drying in the courtyard, and several soldiers were squatting in the corner sunbathing. When Pei Yaojun came in, they all looked up and sized him up.

A man who looked like a corporal came over, handed him a uniform, and pointed to the room furthest to the side.

"There, eight people share a room, find an empty bed yourself."

The room was narrow, with two rows of bunk beds against the wall, covered with dry straw and tattered felt.

There are already seven people living in the house.

"Is this new guy?" the man near the door asked.

Pei Yaojun nodded, walked to the only remaining empty bed, and threw his things onto it.

The man who had just spoken to him walked up to him. "My name is Wang Hu. We'll be sharing a room from now on, so let's look out for each other."

Pei Yaojun turned aside to avoid his hand and tidied up the bed.

Wang Hu's smile froze.

The atmosphere in the room became subtle.

The others lowered their heads and pretended to be busy with their own things.

Wang Hu was a notorious troublemaker in the camp; he was strong and had a violent temper, and most new soldiers had to "take care" of him.

"What, you look down on me?"

Pei Yaojun ignored him, tidied up his bunk, and began to take off his shoes and change into his military uniform.

After being ignored time and time again, Wang Hu's face turned completely dark.

He grabbed Pei Yaojun by the collar and pulled him up from the bed.

"I'm talking to you!"

Pei Yaojun looked up at him, his gaze filled with an oppressive aura.

Wang Hu felt a sudden chill, but with everyone watching, he couldn't back down, so he forced himself to shout, "Are you mute?!"

"Let go."

Wang Hu gripped even tighter. "What if I don't let go?"

The two men faced off, while the others held their breath, waiting to see how the conflict would end.

Just then, a whistle blew outside, signaling that dinner was served.

Wang Hu let go and glared fiercely at Pei Yaojun.

"Kid, let's talk about this tonight."

The dinner at the military camp wasn't very good, but it was still edible.

Pei Yaojun took a portion and ate it silently.

Wang Hu sat opposite him, munching on a pancake while staring at him with an unfriendly look.

At night, the lights in the barracks were turned off.

Pei Yaojun lay on the bed, staring out the window with his eyes open.

From his angle, he could see the stars outside.

The stars in the North are so bright, much brighter than those in the capital.

There was a noise coming from the bunk next to him. Wang Hu got off his bunk and walked over to him.

"stand up."

He didn't lower his voice intentionally; the lights had just been turned off, and everyone in the room was awake.

Pei Yaojun sat up, looking quite impatient.

"That matter from earlier today isn't over yet."

Wang Hu was burly with a face full of fat and a scar on his left eyebrow that distorted when he smiled.

"I'll give you two choices: either kowtow to me and admit your mistake, or from now on, in this house, if I tell you to go east, you can't go west."

two……"

He clenched his fist, and his knuckles cracked.

Pei Yaojun stood up.

He was half a head taller than Wang Hu, but not as muscular.

The two stood face to face, like a bear and a leopard.

"I choose three."

Wang Hu was taken aback. "What three?"

"I'll beat you to the ground."

A collective gasp filled the room.

The smile vanished completely from Wang Hu's face, replaced by a furious rage. "You're asking for death!"

He swung his fist, aiming straight for Pei Yaojun's face.

Pei Yaojun dodged to the side, but Wang Hu's fist grazed past his ear and slammed into the earthen wall, sending up a cloud of dust.

"Hiding?" Wang Hu sneered, "Hiding is for cowards!"

He lunged forward again, throwing both fists to block Pei Yaojun's escape routes.

Pei Yaojun stopped dodging and raised his hand to block, and the two arms collided.

The room immediately descended into chaos.

The others jumped off their bunks, some dodging and others running out to call for help.

Wang Hu and Pei Yaojun got into a fight.

They fought from one end to the other, knocking over wooden tables, kicking over water buckets, and smashing several dents into the earthen wall.

Wang Hu was indeed very strong; every punch he threw was powerful and heavy.

But Pei Yaojun was no less powerful; he was more agile and his moves were more cunning.

After several rounds, Wang Hu had taken several punches to the face, and his nose was bleeding profusely.

Pei Yaojun is much better off.

Wang Hu wiped the blood from his nose, cursed, and his eyes turned red.

He lunged at Pei Yaojun again, grabbing his waist and trying to throw him to the ground.

Pei Yaojun felt rooted to the spot, and the two remained locked in a stalemate.

Wang Hu suddenly reached out and grabbed Pei Yaojun's left wrist.

With a sizzle.

The light green bracelet that Pei Yaojun wore on his wrist was torn off.

When he left the Duke's mansion, he didn't take many things with him, including a bracelet, although it no longer had the effect of repelling mosquitoes.

When he rested at night, he would touch the rope in his hand and think of the person who was thousands of miles away.

At that moment, the bracelet broke, and the silk threads scattered and fell to the ground.

…………