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

This isn't even pig iron; it's just scrap iron made from recycled smelting waste.

Use this thing to cut through the chainmail of the northern barbarians?

I estimate that with one slash, I can scrape off a layer of dirt from the other person, and then my own knife will break in two.

Gu Changfeng, that old dog, is really cunning.

He made a grand gesture in front of the entire army, generously distributing five hundred "new knives" to the Eighth Battalion.

When the men of the Eighth Battalion took these scrap metals to the front lines and engaged the northern barbarians, their weapons all broke apart.

Six hundred men were instantly turned into lambs to the slaughter, and the entire army was wiped out.

At that time, Gu Changfeng will be able to eliminate the Eighth Battalion without shedding a drop of blood.

They could also report a battle loss to the Ministry of War, and legitimately pin a death sentence on Lu Jing for "desperately demanding military equipment for personal gain, miscommanding troops in battle, and causing the entire battalion to collapse."

Even the compensation for survivors can be saved.

What a clever tactic of using someone else to do the dirty work.

A few dozen steps away, Ji Ruxue sat on the broken bench with a missing leg.

The worn-out bright red palace dress clung to her waist and back in the cold wind, outlining a slender waistline.

Watching this scene, I fell into deep thought.

"Sergeant Lu! These bastards in the main camp are trying to fool us with scrap metal!"

The blind old soldier reached out and touched the blade of the knife handed to him by someone next to him, and trembled with anger.

"I'm going to go and chop that delivery bastard to pieces!"

"stop!"

With a roar, Lu Jing slammed the worn-out knife in his hand onto the shaft of the mule cart.

The scrap metal knife broke in two, with one half of the blade flying out and embedding itself in the mud.

The blind veteran was so shocked that he stopped in his tracks.

Lu Jing coldly swept his gaze over everyone present.

"What's the point of cutting off a deliveryman? He's just a gofer!"

He pointed to the open boxes of scrap metal.

"Nobody is allowed to tell anyone about this! Just pretend nothing happened!"

"Brother Lu, are we just going to swallow this insult? Sending this junk into battle is just sending the brothers to their deaths!"

The skinny monkey was so anxious that he kept stamping his feet.

"Who gave you permission to use it in battle?"

Lu Jing kicked the skinny monkey.

"Go, take some men and seal all the boxes tightly, nail them shut! Seal them as they are, and move them to the rear warehouse and lock them up!"

"From today onwards, the knives have arrived, but each one must be inspected! Anyone who dares to open the box and steal one will have their wrist sawed off right now with this broken knife!"

Lu Jing's eyes were icy cold.

Although the soldiers were filled with rage, none of them dared to utter a word when they saw Lu Jing's murderous gaze.

Hundreds of people silently began to work, nailing the pried-open wooden crates back together.

Lu Jing threw away the broken hilt of his knife and turned to walk back to his tent.

Shen Qingqiu quickly followed.

The two entered the tent one after the other. Lu Jing plopped down on a broken wooden box, his face gloomy.

"You noticed?"

Shen Qingqiu nodded and sat down on the straw mat next to him.

"Five hundred scrap metal knives. Gu Changfeng is trying to wipe out his family line."

"No heir?" Lu Jing snorted. "The account book wasn't delivered, the knife is fake, this old dog is trying to renege on both sides. Does he think my memory is as fragile as his pile of scrap metal?"

She leaned closer than usual, her hair brushing against the back of Lu Jing's hand resting on his knee.

Lu Jing could smell the faint scent of soap on her.

"Since he dares to openly deliver scrap metal, isn't he afraid we'll take this knife and cause trouble in front of the commander's tent?"

Lu Jing stroked his chin: "Causing trouble?"

Shen Qingqiu gave a cold laugh.

"You've already signed the handover form. Once you leave the quartermaster's office, they'll have a hundred ways to pin the blame on you. They can say you switched the goods without permission, or that you mishandled them and they got damp and rusted."

She paused.

"But keeping the goods isn't entirely without its advantages. At least we have them in our hands, and once we trace their origin, they'll serve as evidence."

Lu Jing raised his eyes: "You also think it's of dubious origin?"

"There's more to this than meets the eye."

Shen Qingqiu leaned closer and lowered his voice even further.

"Did you see that patch of paint residue on the side of the box just now?"

"I saw it; it's red with black lettering, and it's been scratched off."

"That's the old sign for the Gyeonggi Armory."

Shen Qingqiu's eyes revealed a sharpness rarely seen in ordinary people.

"Six months before my father's home was raided, he received a letter from the Ministry of War requesting the write-off of funds allocated for a batch of obsolete military equipment in the capital region. At the time, he cursed in his study, saying that inferior pig iron had been mixed in during the smelting process, and that these were bad accounts that hadn't passed the Ministry of War's inspection, which had been sitting untouched for three years; sooner or later, someone would die."

Lu Jing's mind raced: "A defective product from three years ago?"

"Um."

Shen Qingqiu nodded.

"According to regulations, these things should all be melted down; they're too brittle even to make farm tools. But now, they've been repacked, oiled, and sheathed, brazenly infiltrating the Northern Xuan Army's armory."

Lu Jing narrowed his eyes.

"No matter how far Gu Changfeng's reach is, it can't extend to the capital region to scavenge scraps. The fact that this batch of scrap iron could travel over mountains and rivers to Yanmen Pass and even settle the military supplies account means someone must have paved the way for it."

Shen Qingqiu lowered his head and remained silent for a while.

"Besides the head of the armory, there's another place that can control the whereabouts of the batches of discarded items in the capital region."

Lu Jing looked at her: "Speak."

Shen Qingqiu raised her head and looked directly at Lu Jing.

"A place specializing in seizing files, apprehending hidden cases, and possessing connections to the highest levels of government."

Lanyue Pavilion.

Three words exploded in Lu Jing's mind.

A shady chain of interests has been uncovered.

The Jingji Armory was falsified, and Lanyue Pavilion secretly covered up and even participated in the resale. The high-ranking officers of the Beixuan Army embezzled military funds by taking scrap metal.

Lu Jing suddenly smiled.

He stood up and walked to the dilapidated wooden window of the tent.

Through the window, you can see Ji Ruxue sitting on the broken bench with a missing leg, just a few dozen steps away.

She was wearing that barely patched bright red palace dress, with her back to us.

Her shoulders were ramrod straight, still maintaining that haughty, princess-like demeanor.

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

"That old dog Gu Changfeng bet I was a roughneck who knew nothing about military equipment. Too bad, he doesn't know I have a living archive of the Ministry of Revenue with me."

He turned his head and looked at Shen Qingqiu.

"Looks like we'll have to ask that high-class 'hostage' lady."

Lu Jing pointed at Ji Ruxue's back.

"What percentage of the scrap metal from the Jingji Armory did Lan Yue Pavilion actually take as a commission?"

The voice just fell.

Ji Ruxue's originally straight back suddenly tensed up like a fully drawn bow.

The two hands, clasped together on their knees, were now locked in a fist.

Lu Jing slowly licked the corner of his mouth.