Opening a Tavern in the Tang Dynasty

Cheng Yaojin and Li Jing led a group of soldiers to the border.

In the border area, yellow sand filled the sky and the wind was howling.

Cheng Yaojin stood on the high slope, gazing at the hazy horizon in the distance. He said to Li Jing, "Brother Li, we have a heavy responsibility this time! We have to train these soldiers to make them more effective while also repairing the city walls. This is truly a considerable challenge."

Li Jing nodded solemnly, "Brother Cheng, that's true. But this wall is crucial to the peace of the border, and the training of our soldiers is crucial to victory in battle. Both are indispensable. We must plan carefully."

After saying that, the two of them walked down the slope and came to the middle of the soldiers who were training.

Cheng Yaojin shouted loudly: "My men, we come to the border this time, first, to repair the city wall and build an iron wall for our Tang Dynasty; second, to intensify training and let those foreign enemies know how powerful we are!" The soldiers shouted in unison, their morale high.

On the site where the city wall was being built, people were coming and going, and it was very lively.

Cheng Yaojin and Li Jing carefully checked the progress of the city wall construction.

Cheng Yaojin looked at the laborers carrying the stones and said to Li Jing, "Brother Li, the quality of these stones must be strictly controlled. If the city wall is not strong, all our work will be in vain."

Li Jing responded: "Brother Cheng, don't worry. I have arranged for someone to inspect the stones. Every piece must meet the standards."

They came to where the craftsmen were building the wall. Li Jing picked up a brick and said to the craftsmen, "Masters, this wall is a barrier to protect our Great Tang. You must work very hard. Every brick must be laid firmly, and the gaps must be filled with sufficient mortar. No carelessness is allowed."

The craftsmen nodded and continued to work hard.

On the training ground, soldiers were conducting various trainings under the command of their generals.

Cheng Yaojin demonstrated personally, brandishing his axe and shouting to the soldiers, "Look, when you strike with your axe, you need to have power and accuracy, just like this. There's no room for error on the battlefield. You must treat every training session as a real battle!"

The soldiers carefully imitated Cheng Yaojin's movements, and each move was full of power.

During the break, Cheng Yaojin and Li Jing sat together with the soldiers.

A young soldier asked, "General Cheng, General Li, can this wall really stop the enemy?"

Cheng Yaojin laughed heartily and patted him on the shoulder. "Boy, this city wall is no ordinary wall. Once it's repaired, the enemy will have a tough time breaking through. And with brave soldiers like you guarding it, it will be even more impregnable."

Li Jing also said: "The city wall is our first line of defense. It can buy us time and reduce the enemy's impact. But the most important thing is ourselves. We must cultivate strong skills to defend our homeland."

As time went by, the city wall grew higher and longer little by little.

The soldiers' training also began to show results. Cheng Yaojin and Li Jing looked at all this and felt very relieved.

However, difficulties also followed. The weather on the border was changeable. Sometimes strong winds blew down the newly built scaffolding; sometimes heavy rains poured down and destroyed part of the foundation of the city wall.

Cheng Yaojin looked at the construction site destroyed by the rainstorm, frowned, and said: "This horrible weather is really messing up. Brothers, don't be discouraged, let's start again." The soldiers and civilians did not complain at all and immediately started the repair work.

In order to cope with the impact of bad weather on training, Cheng Yaojin came up with some special training methods in the tent, such as simulating scenes of fighting in the rain to train soldiers' combat capabilities in complex environments.

One day, a spy came to report that a small group of enemy troops were spotted on the border.

Cheng Yaojin immediately gathered his soldiers and prepared to meet the enemy. He said to Li Jing, "Brother Li, this is a good opportunity to test the results of the soldiers' training these days."

Li Jing nodded, "Brother Cheng, don't be careless. We must ensure that nothing goes wrong."

When the enemy attacked, the soldiers responded in an orderly manner under the command of Cheng Yaojin and Li Jing.

They relied on the city walls, which had not yet been fully repaired, for defense while also taking the initiative to attack.

The soldiers' fighting ability surprised the enemy and they were quickly repelled.

This small victory boosted the soldiers' confidence. Returning to camp, Cheng Yaojin excitedly declared, "See, my men! Our training paid off! This wall is starting to work. As long as we keep working hard, the border will become increasingly secure."

Seeing how dedicated they were to border security, the people came forward to help.

Some brought food from their own homes, and some helped take care of the wounded soldiers.

An old man said to Cheng Yaojin and Li Jing, "Generals, you are the lucky stars of the Tang Dynasty! Once this wall is built, we will no longer have to worry."

Cheng Yaojin responded with a smile: "Uncle, this is what we should do. With your support, we are more motivated."

Li Jing also said with emotion: "This wall is not only made of bricks and stones, but also the hard work of the people and soldiers. We must make it a permanent guardian of the border."

After being busy for a while, Cheng Yaojin strode to the tent, picked up the water bag, pulled out the cork, held the water bag high, and drank a few big gulps.

The water flowed down the corners of his mouth and wet his clothes on his chest.

After drinking, he wiped his mouth happily and said, "This water really quenches my thirst. We still have to get back to work on the city wall and training!"

After saying that, he hung up the water bag and walked towards the direction where the city wall was being built.

Cheng Yaojin gazed into the distance and said to Li Jing, "Brother Li, look at this situation! God is truly blessing our Tang Dynasty! The enemy troops in the Western Regions have retreated. This is a great opportunity to repair the city wall. We must seize it."

Li Jing nodded in agreement. "Brother Cheng is right. This is a rare moment of peace, and we must make good use of it. Although the city wall project is massive and will take a long time to complete, as long as we don't stop working, it will eventually be completed."

Cheng Yaojin frowned. "Yes, this city wall must be built strong. But now that the enemy is no longer harassing us, the transportation of supplies will be smoother. We need to hurry up and get the materials for building the city wall here."

Li Jing looked at the civilians and soldiers working. "That's right. We still need to arrange the manpower properly. We need to ensure speed while not letting everyone get too tired. We need a reasonable arrangement."

Cheng Yaojin slapped his thigh and said, "Yes, we can't waste this golden opportunity. Once the city wall is repaired, we'll see how those Western Regions invade us. This is the key to protecting the Tang Dynasty's borders. We have to repair it no matter how long it takes."

Li Jing gazed into the distance with a determined gaze: "Well, every inch of this wall is related to the safety of the Tang Dynasty. We must make it an insurmountable natural barrier."