Extreme Frontier Army: Starting from the bottom ranks, conquering the chaotic world

The threat of hunger and death caused the morale of these desperate men, who had only been incited by Lu Jing the day before, to begin to waver violently.

Shen Qingqiu hid in the shadows of the tent, lost in thought.

She knew all too well the ways of officialdom.

Using a bargaining chip that is impossible to refuse, they openly and legitimately divided and disintegrated the organization.

This completely severed Lu Jing from his soldiers.

As soon as Lu Jing gets the documents, the prestige he has built up in the Eighth Battalion will collapse instantly.

Once these hundreds of soldiers are gone as human shields, Gu Changfeng can make them disappear silently on the way.

"You can't accept it, you're dead if you do."

Shen Qingqiu screamed inwardly, but dared not utter a sound.

At that very moment, the image of Lu Jing's forceful slap on her last night flashed through her mind.

Her cheeks flushed, and she ruthlessly suppressed this absurd thought.

What time is it? You're still thinking about this madman.

Xu Youcai looked at the reactions of the soldiers around him and a smug smirk appeared on his lips.

Gu's advisor's cunning move was a stroke of genius, demonstrating a mastery of human nature.

No matter how good this kid is at fighting or how persuasive he is, he can only obediently bow his head in the face of absolute power and profit.

"Commander Lu, what are you standing there for?"

Xu Youcai took two steps forward and handed the beautifully framed document to Lu Jing.

"A wise man submits to circumstances. You're a smart man; you should know what happens if you go against Mr. Gu. Accept the documents, hand over the goods, and you'll be Mr. Gu's man from now on."

Lu Jing strode up to Xu Youcai.

Looking at the yellow silk document stamped with a bright red seal, he suddenly grinned and let out a low laugh.

The laughter grew louder and louder, eventually turning into unrestrained, boisterous laughter.

"Ha ha ha ha!"

Laughter echoed across the empty training ground, carrying an indescribable arrogance and mockery.

Xu Youcai felt uneasy at the laughter and subconsciously took half a step back.

"What are you laughing at!"

Lu Jing abruptly stopped laughing, and his right hand shot out like lightning.

Before Xu Youcai could react, the document representing the imperial court's authority and wealth was snatched away by Lu Jing.

"You're smart to know what's good for you..."

Xu Youcai was about to say a few polite words when his voice faltered.

Lu Jing casually unfolded the yellow silk document, crumpled it into a ball, then raised his right leg and stepped on the wooden stake next to him.

Under the horrified gazes of everyone.

Lu Jing bent down and took the exquisite document bearing the seal of the Northern Xuan Army's commander-in-chief, symbolizing the rank of a seventh-grade centurion.

He slowly and deliberately wiped away a patch of dark red blood and mud that was stuck to the edge of his leather boots.

The yellow silk fabric rubbed back and forth on the rough leather.

The bright red general's seal was covered in mud and water, and the tiny characters that read "promotion" and "reward" on it had been turned into a shoe-shining rag.

The entire room fell silent.

The skinny monkey had his mouth open, completely oblivious to the snot hanging from his lips.

The blind old soldier dropped his machete to the ground with a clang.

Shen Qingqiu leaned against the wooden tent post, feeling a wave of dizziness wash over her.

This is an official document stamped with the military seal!

In the rigidly hierarchical Great Yan Dynasty, damaging official documents was tantamount to disrespecting imperial authority, a capital offense punishable by immediate execution!

That madman, he actually used it to polish his shoes!

Xu Youcai's eyes almost popped out of their sockets.

He pointed at Lu Jing: "You, you, you're utterly rebellious!"

The voice was shrill, like that of a eunuch whose tail had been stepped on.

"That's the commander's seal! You madman, how dare you use official documents to polish your shoes! You're plotting a rebellion! You want your entire family executed!"

Lu Jing carefully wiped the mud off and then switched to the other foot.

Turn the document over and continue wiping the other boot.

"You think you can buy the key to high-level corruption with just a few pieces of waste paper?"

While wiping, he asked, "A seventh-rank centurion? One thousand taels of silver?"

He crumpled the blackened document into a ball and tossed it in his hand a couple of times.

"That old dog Gu Changfeng eats enough military pay each year to buy the entire Yanmen Pass. Now he thinks he can fob me off with this pittance scraped from between his teeth?"

Lu Jing swung it forcefully.

The mud-covered crumpled document landed directly on Xu Youcai's clean face.

"Snapped!"

Mud and water splashed everywhere.

Xu Youcai screamed and covered his face, backing away repeatedly.

The headscarf rolled off his head, and his once clean blue official robe was instantly covered in a foul stench.

"Does Gu's staff think I'm a beggar?"

Lu Jing's eyes were cold, and his smile was full of mockery.

"Go back and tell Gu Changfeng. My men haven't had a proper meal in three days. Is he trying to fool me with this piece of trash an insult to my intelligence, or an insult to the knives in my brothers' hands?"

These words completely changed the atmosphere of the entire soldiers' camp.

Those eyes, which were originally filled with suspicion and despair, suddenly ignited with a fervent flame.

Lu Jing didn't sell them!

Faced with the official position of a centurion and a thousand taels of silver, the man simply used the money to polish his shoes!

"Colonel Lu is awesome!"

The blind veteran let out a heart-wrenching roar.

"Damn these corrupt officials!"

"Brother Lu! We'll work for you!"

The skinny monkey jumped up and down, roaring, his face a mixture of tears and snot, completely engrossed in extreme excitement.

Hundreds of hungry soldiers took a step forward in unison.

The murderous aura that seemed to have rolled out from a mountain of corpses and a sea of ​​blood forced the four guards brought by Xu Youcai to retreat repeatedly, their hands on the hilts of their swords, their palms covered in cold sweat.

At this moment, the soldiers' morale was completely solidified.

Xu Youcai climbed out of the mud, half of his face was red and swollen from being hit by mud.

Looking at the soldiers around him who seemed ready to devour him, and then at Lu Jing, who remained unmoved by reason, he completely lost his composure.

The general's documents were useless, and the lure of high-ranking positions and generous salaries was ineffective.

This madman doesn't play by the rules at all.

"What...what do you want?!"

He roared in exasperation.

"The torn pages are in your hands. Even if you don't hand them over, Mr. Gu has ways to make sure you die a horrible death! Name your price! What do you want?!"

Lu Jing watched with satisfaction as the old man collapsed.

He lifted the freshly cleaned leather boot and stomped it on Zhao He's face, who was bound like a dumpling, pressing it down twice.

Then, meeting Xu Youcai's terrified gaze, he slowly raised his right hand.

Five fingers spread out in the biting cold wind.

"Release Zhao He, fine. But if you want that tattered page, you'll have to pay extra."

Lu Jing grinned, revealing a row of gleaming white teeth.

"First, I want all 50,000 shi of fine grain from your quartermaster's secret warehouse to be delivered to my Eighth Battalion's drill ground before sunset today."

"Secondly, I want five thousand sets of heavy armor, plus five thousand fine steel repeating crossbows, along with matching arrows."

"Third, I want Gu Changfeng to personally write a letter of self-reproach and post it on the gate of Yanmen Pass for three days."

At this point, Lu Jing paused slightly.

Xu Youcai was so engrossed in listening that his vision blurred and he almost spat out a mouthful of blood.

Fifty thousand shi of fine grain?

Five thousand sets of heavy armor and repeating crossbows?

This isn't extortion; it's a complete attempt to drain the entire Northern Xuan Army's coffers!

"You, you're dreaming!"

Xu Youcai's voice cracked.

"Mr. Gu would never agree to such an absurd request!"

"Wait, I haven't finished yet."

Lu Jing retracted four fingers, leaving only his index finger, and gently shook it.

"This is the fourth point."

He pointed to Zhao He, who was being trampled underfoot and whose eyes were rolling back in his head.

"Compile a list of Zhao He's entire family, along with his private accounts held in the bank, and send it to me."

Gu Changfeng would certainly not agree to the first three conditions.

Lu Jing didn't expect that old dog to actually deliver the grain armor and crossbows.

The exorbitant price was just smoke and mirrors, the self-criticism was just a hook; what they really wanted was Zhao He's private account.

As long as Gu Changfeng still wants to preserve the rotten core of the military supply department, he will definitely consider whether Zhao He, this pawn, can still be kept.

Lu Jing leaned closer to Xu Youcai, lowered his voice, and spoke with a chilling tone that sent shivers down one's spine.

"If there's not a single grain of rice, not a single crossbow, not a single name missing, I'll pack up that tattered page, along with all those 'special supply grains' preserved with human flesh that I saw in the secret vault yesterday, and send them all to the Censorate in the capital."

He patted Xu Youcai's stiff cheek.

"Go back and tell Gu Changfeng that I'm only giving him half an hour to consider."

Outside the camp gate, the formation of three thousand heavily armored infantrymen remained motionless.

The ballistae's arrows were still aimed at the Eighth Battalion's drill ground.