We'll have you impersonate the Crown Prince and create a prosperous era for the Great Qian Dyna

Zhou Tiancheng, however, completely disregarded their anger, smiled, waved his hand, and ordered everyone to disperse.

A bonfire was lit in the camp, and the prisoners were taken to a new area where their tents were rebuilt.

This time, they had to set up the tents themselves. In Zhou Tiancheng's words, if they didn't do a good job with the tents, they wouldn't be able to sleep tonight.

Between the prisoners and their families, the guards placed two wooden sticks, tied a rope to them, and then covered them with straw, lotus leaves, and other materials to create a screen.

In this way, neither the prisoners nor their families can see the scene on the other side.

Once everyone was settled and getting busy, Zhou Tiancheng then entered the family area.

Before we even got there, a group of elderly people with children came over.

"Thank you, Your Highness. We will definitely cooperate with you to perform the play well."

Zhou Tiancheng breathed a sigh of relief and smiled helplessly.

"Grandpa, were you hurt when I hit you earlier?"

The elderly man at the head of the group shook his head repeatedly.

"The guards used very skillful force. They hit loudly, but it didn't hurt. It just strained my voice. My throat hurt from shouting."

"The lime powder on my pants was very effective; it left a patch of ash with just one application. My son even cried. I have to thank His Highness the Crown Prince for disciplining my son."

Many people laughed when he said that.

Zhou Tiancheng smiled amicably and waved for Manager Liu to bring tea over, since everyone had worked hard performing.

When he turned around, he immediately saw Zheng Ye'er looking completely bewildered.

The girl had originally intended to say goodbye, since Zhou Tiancheng gave her such a disgusting feeling that she didn't want to stay any longer.

But when she saw Zhou Tiancheng and the group of family members looking at each other with such a friendly expression, she was completely dumbfounded.

Was it all just acting?

Zhou Tiancheng gave an awkward laugh.

"Um, I didn't mean to yell at you just now."

"I can apologize to you."

Zheng Ye'er felt much better, but she still glared at him fiercely.

After staring at her for a while, she couldn't resist her curiosity and subconsciously leaned closer to ask.

"Why are you acting? I almost misunderstood you!"

The family members looked at each other in bewilderment.

It turns out this young lady had no idea!

An elderly man at the head of the group stepped forward to explain.

"Miss, you may not know this, but we haven't seen them for a long time. His Highness the Crown Prince has given us this opportunity to meet and reunite. He also said that once the military training is over, his punishment can be reduced. We are grateful for His Highness's kindness. Please don't misunderstand His Highness!"

Behind Zheng Ye'er, Xinhua gave Zhou Tiancheng a deep look and began to explain on Zhou Tiancheng's behalf.

"Miss, His Highness the Crown Prince did this to establish his authority and change the lazy and disobedient attitude of those prisoners."

"Secondly, it also inspires their fighting spirit, motivating them to train more diligently and change themselves."

"In my opinion, after this training exercise, these prisoners will likely undergo a drastic personality change and start anew."

"Although the Crown Prince's methods are somewhat despicable, his actions do have a morally uplifting effect, which I admire."

Xinhua was Zheng Rong's confidant and one of Zheng Ye'er's own people.

Hearing Xinhua's explanation, Zheng Ye'er found it hard to believe, but she still tried to understand it.

It took her a while to realize why Zhou Tiancheng had scolded her earlier. He was trying to establish his authority, and if she interrupted him, his prestige would be diminished.

Having figured this out, Zheng Ye'er was no longer angry; instead, she felt somewhat ashamed.

"Your Highness, could you please inform me earlier next time such an arrangement is made?"

Zhou Tiancheng smiled but remained silent.

Are you kidding me?

If I had told you sooner, would it have had this effect?

Being misunderstood, and then the misunderstanding was cleared up, Zhou Tiancheng's confidence left a deep impression on Zheng Ye'er.

After all, that's how TV dramas are filmed.

He raised his head, feigning profundity.

"It's not that I don't want to tell you, Miss Zheng, your father sent you here because he wanted you to broaden your horizons. If I tell you everything, how will you broaden your horizons?"

Zheng Ye'er immediately pouted.

"Nonsense! You're clearly doing this on purpose!"

"Do you think that just because I misunderstood you, I'll look up to you? Let me tell you, you're dreaming!"

She turned and left, unaware that her ears were slightly red.

Zhou Tiancheng saw through it but didn't say anything, and followed Steward Liu back to his own tent with a smile.

Although it was already very late, the camp was still fully staffed.

Zheng Ye'er was also there, but her ears were a little red, and when she saw Zhou Tiancheng, her gaze was somewhat evasive.

Without wasting any words, Zhou Tiancheng went straight to the head of the table.

"It's getting late, so I won't waste any more time. I've already planned out the training for the rest of the session."

"Tomorrow's lesson will be all about military posture."

"As the name suggests, it refers to the posture of a soldier when standing, so that people can immediately tell that this is a soldier, not a beggar!"

As he spoke, Zhou Tiancheng walked out from behind the table, stood up straight, and adopted the standard posture of a modern soldier.

He set an example by himself, demonstrating the key points of standing at attention for these centurions in front of him.

"First, you must stand tall with your chest out and stomach in. Second, you must exert force, and keep your hands firmly against your pants without letting your guard down. Tomorrow, you can randomly check and ambush them, and then punish them."

"Physical punishment mainly consists of push-ups and planks, the purpose of which is to train their core strength..."

As Zhou Tiancheng spoke, Zheng Ye'er listened more and more attentively. She had never imagined that a soldier would have so many requirements.

But not only her, but also the centurions she brought with her stared wide-eyed.

Xinhua, in particular, listened most attentively.

When he heard that if one person performed poorly, the entire squad would be punished, Xinhua even showed a thoughtful expression.

When Zhou Tiancheng, his mouth dry, returned to his seat to drink tea, Xinhua finally raised his own question.

"Your Highness, what is the purpose of doing this?"

Zhou Tiancheng thought for a moment and pointed to his lazy sitting posture.

"Do you think there's any difference between my current energy and spirit and the energy I had when I was standing at attention?"

That's completely different.

Zhou Tiancheng was so lazy that he practically put his feet up on the table.

Zhou Tiancheng added a sentence.

"New General, you must understand that humans are herd-oriented creatures. When everyone around you displays this kind of spirit and energy, you will subconsciously follow suit and enter this state."

"This kind of atmosphere has a great impact on a person."

"When they constantly adopt this attitude and demand of themselves the standards of soldiers, they will gradually transform into true soldiers."

"Of course, we also need to instill some beliefs in them, but that's a long-term activity and not within the scope of this training exercise."

"But isn't the purpose of our training to transform them from ordinary people, from prisoners, into real soldiers?"

"I train them this way so that when the day comes to war, at least they will look like soldiers, not the rabble they were before."

Xinhua kept his head down and didn't speak, his mind filled with Zhou Tiancheng's explanation.

When Zhou Tiancheng announced that he was going back to sleep, Xinhua was still thinking.

It took him a long time to raise his head and ask Zheng Ye'er a question.

"With such talent, why is the Crown Prince called a good-for-nothing?"

Zheng Ye'er was completely confused.

"It's just a military posture, what does that have to do with anything?"

Xinhua shook his head.

"This isn't just about military posture, miss. You don't understand. What we call low morale means that everyone has their own ideas. An army like that can't win battles."

"But you can start by changing your posture. When everyone around you is working hard for an order, no soldier standing in it can resist the trend. That is the significance of the Crown Prince's training."