Duke of Zhenguan

"Uncle Cheng, why did His Majesty send me along?"

As Lin Chuan followed Cheng Yaojin out of Xiande Hall, he asked in a low voice.

"Kid, do you know how to lead troops into battle?" Cheng Yaojin glanced at Lin Chuan and teased him with a smile.

"No!" Lin Chuan shook his head speechlessly.

"So His Majesty didn't send you to lead troops to suppress bandits!" Cheng Yaojin said with a smile.

"Uncle Cheng, you don't need to tell me!"

"Your Majesty means that since the bandits suddenly appeared in Luozhou, Luozhou must be unclean. I will just lead the troops to fight, and the Hundred Cavalry Division will handle the rest!"

The group of assassins who formed the Hundred Cavalry Division were mostly former scouts of the Black Armor Army. They were all skilled at gathering intelligence and killing people, but it would be too much of a challenge to them to check accounts!

"Officials from the Ministry of Revenue are too obvious and not necessarily reliable, so I recommended you!" Cheng Yaojin said with a smile.

"Check the accounts? That's easy!" Lin Chuan said with a smile.

"Kid, checking accounts and mathematics are two different things. Besides, there are always people better than you, and there are always mountains beyond mountains. The world is so big, there are bound to be some formidable people out there."

Even the Second Master Yan of the Yan family wouldn't dare say that checking the accounts was easy; I, for I have made a solemn pledge to His Majesty!

"You better not let your guard down, kid. If you don't handle things well, Yuchi Laohei and his gang will laugh at me for the rest of my life!" Cheng Yaojin said irritably.

"Uncle Cheng, I have no doubt about your ability to lead troops, so why do you doubt my ability to audit accounts?" Lin Chuan asked, puzzled.

"Haha, I'm relieved to hear that!" Cheng Yaojin laughed heartily.

After leaving the palace, Cheng Yaojin gave the following instructions:

"Settle things at home, and I'll have Cheng Jiu pick you up first thing tomorrow morning!"

"Don't worry, Uncle Cheng!" Lin Chuan nodded.

It was only noon when they got home. Li and Er Ya were each carrying a hoe and tidying up the garden in the front yard.

Upon seeing Lin Chuan enter the room, Madam Li asked in surprise:

"Big Brother, why are you back so early today?"

"Mother, Uncle Cheng is leading troops to Luozhou to suppress bandits tomorrow, and I'm going with him, so I'll be back early!" Lin Chuan said nervously to Li Shi.

"Suppressing bandits?"

Li paused, put down her hoe, and asked in surprise:

"Aren't you on duty at the Ministry of Works? Why are you being sent on this bandit suppression mission?"

"It was Uncle Cheng who recommended me, saying he wanted me to go along and get some credit!" Lin Chuan explained.

"Leaving first thing tomorrow morning?" Madam Li asked softly.

"Hmm!" Lin Chuan nodded.

Li's lips curved into a forced smile as she spoke softly:

"I'll go pack your things!"

Lin Chuan hadn't expected Li Shi to be so indifferent. After Li Shi left, he chatted with Er Ya by the garden.

Since Lin Chuan's arrival, Er Ya has never gone hungry again. Her body is no longer as thin as a bamboo pole, her complexion has become rosy, and her personality has become much more lively.

After spending half a day at home, Lin Chuan got up early the next morning, before dawn. Just after finishing breakfast, Cheng Jiu arrived at his door to pick him up.

After seeing her son off at the gate, Li handed Lin Chuan a bundle containing clothes and shoes, her eyes red as she gave him instructions:

"My dear son, be careful in everything you do. I won't stop you from achieving great things, but you must take care of yourself!"

"Mother, I understand!" Lin Chuan nodded.

One man and one horse followed Cheng Jiu to the Right Martial Guard camp outside the city.

As dawn broke, the Right Guard camp was bustling with activity, and squads of armored soldiers patrolled the camp incessantly.

Lin Chuan followed Cheng Jiu through several checkpoints before finally arriving at Cheng Yaojin's command tent.

At this moment, Cheng Yaojin, dressed in armor, stood behind his desk, leaning on his sword.

In front of him stood a dozen or so Right Guard generals, all dressed in armor.

Lin Chuan glanced at it only once, then consciously stood in the corner to listen to Cheng Yaojin's reprimand:

"In this battle, we will not bring any infantry, but only one thousand cavalry. All the crossbows, oil, and arrows in the army's warehouse will be allocated to the cavalry!"

The cooks and supply troops must prepare two days' worth of rations and horse feed. We must depart at noon today and arrive in Luozhou before noon the day after tomorrow! Hurry and make preparations!

"Here you go!"

The generals in the command tent responded in unison and strode out.

"You showed up dressed like that?"

After everyone left, Cheng Yaojin took off his helmet and placed it on the desk. He glanced at Lin Chuan and said speechlessly.

"Uncle Cheng, I'm not in the military, what else should I wear?" Lin Chuan said awkwardly.

"Not before, but now. You are now the military registrar of the Right Martial Guard Army. Cheng Jiu, go and fetch a set of armor!"

Cheng Yaojin gave instructions to Cheng Jiu, who was standing to the side.

A moment later, Cheng Jiu returned carrying a brand-new set of armor. Cheng Yaojin waved his hand:

"Help him put it on!"

Cheng Jiu quickly helped Lin Chuan change into his armor. Although Lin Chuan was a bit thin, he was quite tall, and he looked quite imposing in the armor.

It's just a little unfamiliar; the armor Lin Chuan is wearing is the patterned mountain armor that only generals are qualified to wear, and it weighs about thirty pounds.

"That's more like it!"

Cheng Yaojin patted Lin Chuan on the shoulder, looked him up and down, then untied the horizontal sword hanging from his waist and tossed it to Lin Chuan:

"His Majesty bestowed this knife upon you a few days ago; you got a good deal, kid!"

Lin Chuan held the knife in both hands, smiling as he thanked him:

"Thank you so much, Uncle Cheng!"

"You'll have to thank me, kid! Although we're only going to face some petty thieves, just in case, you'd better have two people with you!"

After Cheng Yaojin finished speaking with a smile, he called out towards the outside of the tent:

"Zhao Fu! Zhao Gui!"

"General!"

Two towering men walked in from outside.

"These two brothers have been with me for over ten years. They may not have any other skills, but they're decent in hand-to-hand combat and with weapons. You're a man with a title, so you need someone to follow you. From now on, they'll be with you!"

After Cheng Yaojin finished speaking, he pointed at Lin Chuan and said to the two Zhao brothers:

"Follow me the way you followed me before, and follow him the same way from now on, understand?"

"Here you go!"

Without the slightest hesitation, the two brothers bowed and agreed.

Lin Chuan accepted the armor and sword without any pressure, but giving away two top-notch guards was a huge favor, and it wouldn't be appropriate to just say thank you verbally. Lin Chuan simply cupped his hands in thanks to Cheng Yaojin.

At noon, with everything ready, a thousand cavalrymen, one horseman and two riders, filed out of the Right Guard Camp, like a giant dragon heading straight for Luoyang.

They traveled during the day and camped at night, and by the evening of the second day, they had already entered the territory of Luozhou.

That evening, they set up camp in Xishan County, Luozhou. After riding horses for two days, Lin Chuan's thighs were chafed raw. After dinner, he sat in the temporary camp, grimacing, and cleaned his wounds with salt water.

Having just washed one leg, Zhao Fu walked in, cupped his hands in greeting, and said:

"My lord, the commander-in-chief requests your presence!"

Lin Chuan had no choice but to put on his clothes and armor and follow Zhao Fu to Cheng Yaojin's command tent.

Just as he entered the commander's tent, he heard Cheng Yaojin say in a deep voice:

"The Hundred Cavalry Division reports that they've found the robbers!"