Three Kingdoms: Jiangdong is no longer a rat

Chapter 23 Gift of Sword
Seeing Xu Sheng and the other two walking towards him chatting and laughing, Yan Yi's heart, which had been in his throat, finally settled down and he breathed a sigh of relief.

It's done!

Finally, I have a historically famous general by my side.

Five thousand years of Chinese history, billions of lives, how much can a thin history book record? Those who can leave their names in history are not ordinary people.

Xu Sheng was known in history for his bravery, fortitude, and quick wit. In his first military campaign, he with fewer than 200 men resisted and defeated an attack by Huang She, commanding several thousand men. The subsequent Battles of Hengjiang, Dongkou, and Yiling were all victories over larger forces, demonstrating his skill at fighting against disadvantage and his ability to turn the tide in difficult situations.

Faced with Cao Pi personally leading the army to the south, among the generals of Eastern Wu, only Xu Sheng showed a tenacity beyond the reach of ordinary people. He set up a hundred-mile suspicious city around Jianye overnight, causing Cao Pi to lose confidence in crossing the river and eventually retreat. This shows that Xu Sheng was not only a brave general, but also a wise man.

What is even more rare is that Xu Sheng was one of the few advocates of war in Jiangdong, and he dreamed of attacking Xuchang, Luoyang and Chengdu.

This is a talented general who can stand on his own.

"Xu Sheng is willing to join the army with Zhao Cuo and follow the young prince!" Xu Sheng knelt on one knee and said with a fist.

Yan Yi admired him in his heart, but his face did not show it. He simply helped him up with the same attitude as he treated Zhao Cuo, and encouraged him: "Wen Xiang has shown his talent as a general by killing the bandit leader today. I hope you will cherish yourself!"

Xu Sheng looked up in surprise, and happened to meet Yan Yi's respectful gaze. He felt both excited and warm in his heart. He nodded heavily, stood up and walked to the stone lock. He lifted it and felt it was a little light, so he asked Chen Gan beside him: "General, do you have anything heavier?"

Everyone knew that he was going to go through the application process like Zhao Cuo, so they gathered around with great interest.

Chen Gan chuckled and took out a 60-jin stone lock and placed it on the ground: "No one has been able to pass this stone lock today, you might as well give it a try."

Most people looked at him with scrutiny and didn't think Xu Sheng could achieve it. After all, he was still young and his strength hadn't fully developed.

Only Yan Yi, Si Qing and Zhao Cuo had full confidence in him.

Zhao Cuo wanted to take the knife for Xu Sheng, but Xu Sheng shook his head, held the knife in his left hand, grabbed the stone lock with his right hand, and raised it twenty times at a moderate pace. After a brief pause, he raised it ten times in a row. When he put down the stone lock, he just took a slight breath.

Everyone around was stunned.

Xu Sheng walked to the target again, picked up a hard bow weighing 1.5 dan, pulled the bow to a full moon, and shot ten arrows in a row. Every arrow hit the target, and every arrow was in the center of the bull's eye.

The scene erupted into thunderous applause.

Even Fan Yan, who was recording the roster at the recruiting station, was drawn over. With a look of surprise on his face, he bowed to Yan Yi and said, "Congratulations, young master, on securing such a brave general!"

Yan Yi grinned from ear to ear, took off the sword from his waist and handed it to Xu Sheng: "This sword is called Feihong. Today I will give it to Wen Xiang to commend his bravery!" He also told the people around him about Xu Sheng's killing of the bandit leader.

Everyone showed a look of admiration and envy.

Xu Sheng declined, saying, "My contribution is so insignificant, how dare I accept the young master's beloved thing?"

Yan Yiqiang stuffed the sword into his arms and ignored him. Xu Sheng had no choice but to accept it. He held the sword in his hand and looked at it from time to time. It was obvious that he loved this sword very much.

Everyone returned to the stage. Yan Yi handled official business while chatting with Xu Sheng and others. Before they knew it, it was already the hour of Xu.

There were only about a hundred or two hundred people left in the audience, and the recruitment was nearing completion. Only six or seven people were still queuing in front of the stage, while dozens more were waiting at the appeals stage. After a while, Fan Yan entered the last applicant into the roster and came back with Chen Gan to report.

A total of 253 people were recruited.

Yan Yi was very satisfied and gave a few words of praise. He took out some money and silk to reward Li Chou and his subordinates, and ordered them to return to defend Renfeng Township and conduct strict patrols. He also asked Chen Gan to stay with thirty cavalrymen to maintain order, and then he and Fan Yan, Si Qing, Xu Sheng and others returned to Geqi Pavilion first.

After returning to the pavilion, he summoned Fan Yan aside and instructed him privately, "There will be considerable resistance to exempting refugees from taxes. Tomorrow morning, I will return to the city to discuss this matter with my father. As for the remaining matters concerning the recruitment of soldiers, I will trouble the general and Chen Gan to handle them."

Fan Yan pondered and said, "I will do my best to handle this matter, but I wonder how many people you can accept?"

Yan Yi had already considered this issue and immediately said, "Recruit according to the number of four songs."

Fan Yan secretly clicked his tongue. According to the current situation, recruiting four groups of people would not be a problem. If the three groups of elite soldiers prepared by Yan Baihu were included, in a few days, the number of people under Yan Yi's command would reach 1,400. This was too exaggerated.

Moreover, these 1,400 men are the foundation of an elite army. If they are trained well, their combat effectiveness cannot be underestimated.

As for how to deal with the extra food, fodder and military equipment, that was not his concern.

After finishing the matter of recruiting soldiers, Yan Yi called Xu Sheng, Si Qing and Zhao Cuo to his room, ready to have a long talk with them and sleep with them.

The cause was that on the way back to the pavilion, Xu Sheng reported to Yan Yi that he needed to escort his elder brother and sister-in-law back to Wu County before he could come to serve.

Filial piety and respect for one's father and brother are the absolute moral core of this era. Yan Yi certainly could not refuse and agreed readily. However, he couldn't help but feel a little worried. What if something unexpected happened and Xu Sheng changed his mind and didn't come?

Although the possibility is very small, just like a man and a woman in love, they will always feel uneasy if there is no actual relationship.

According to the descriptions in the historical novels that Yan Yi had read in his previous life, sleeping with feet touching in this era was an act that symbolized deep friendship and trust. Once they slept in the same bed, things were basically settled.

So they arranged to sleep with their feet touching each other.

After one night, the relationship really became much closer.

The next morning, after breakfast, Xu Sheng and the other two came to say goodbye to Yan Yi.

Yan Yi had already ordered people to prepare two war horses, each of which contained a bag of gold and silver, to be given to Xu Sheng and Zhao Cuo. He also prepared two carriages, one for Zhang Ying to ride in and the other to transport the coffin containing Shen Lian's body. He also prepared money and silk for Shen Lian's family.

Before leaving, Yan Yi pointed to an old man in a green robe who had just arrived at Ge Qi Pavilion and said to Xu Sheng, "This is Mr. Tang, the famous doctor from Wucheng. He has superb medical skills and can bring people back to life. I heard that you are suffering from a serious illness. Can you ask Mr. Tang to come over and take your pulse?"

Xu Sheng was so moved that he said goodbye to Yan Yi and went to Changshouli.

After sending Xu Sheng and the others away, Yan Yi summoned Du Qiu and said coldly, "You've made a lot of efforts these past two days. I won't pursue the matter of letting the criminal go. You should resign from your position as head of the pavilion and return home."

Du Qiu breathed a sigh of relief. Just losing the position of pavilion chief was already a great joy for him, so he hurried to express his gratitude.

(End of this chapter)