Chapter 159

The war drums were beating. Chu Xu and Lao Zhang stood on either side, looking at each other with solemn eyes. At a whistle, Lao Zhang took the lead in attacking Chu Xu. Chu Xu went to meet him and blocked his attack.

Lin Shuge sat in the distance and watched the competition in the middle of the martial arts arena. He asked, "Which round is this? Who won or lost?"

The soldier standing nearby said, "Master Lin, this is already the third match. The first match was about archery and horse riding, and Master Zhang won. The second match was about endurance, and Zuo Wei Chu won. Both masters won one match, and this match will be a direct competition of boxing and kicking."

It was a decisive match. No wonder the two fought so fiercely. "Old Zhang may look unreliable on weekdays, but he actually has real skills. He is worthy of being your brave general."

"Although Zuo Wei Chu looks weak, he should not be underestimated. It is worth your brother's careful teaching." Xie Chen replied lazily.

Lin Shuge narrowed his eyes slightly and whispered, "Are you asking for a beating?"

Xie Chen begged for mercy, "No, no, I was wrong, brother, let's continue watching the competition."

The two men on the field became more and more courageous. Lao Zhang changed his carelessness at the beginning and now punched with great force, attacking Chu Xu with punch after punch. Chu Xu quickly dodged to the side and used a grappling move to attack Lao Zhang's back, but Lao Zhang seemed to have expected this and did not dodge. Just when Chu Xu was about to touch his back, he leaned forward to attack Chu Xu's lower body, and Chu Xu could only dodge backwards in a hurry.

The weather was getting hotter and hotter, and the sun was so hot that people couldn't open their eyes, but the fighting in the martial arts arena was still intense. The cheering soldiers and officers on the side shouted loudly, as if they wanted to overpower the opponent outside the arena.

The two men fought for half a day but still could not decide the winner. Xie Chen stood up, picked up two ring-handled swords from the side and threw them over. "Take the weapons and continue fighting. However, swords are ruthless, so stop when you are done."

"Thank you, sir." Old Zhang took the knife with a light leap and said loudly. Chu Xu also said, "Thank you, sir Wei, sir Zhang, let's fight again."

In an instant, the two sharp blades collided with each other, sparks flew, and sharp metal collision sounds were heard from time to time. Chu Xu's swordsmanship was smooth and continuous, catching Lao Zhang off guard.

"Captain Chu is very good at swordsmanship." Old Zhang met his horizontal attack and sighed sincerely.

Chu Xu curled his lips and smiled, "Master Zhang, it's the same as before."

Before he could finish, the two of them faced each other again. Lao Zhang's sword skills were swift and fierce, and his sword moves were like the wind and his momentum was like a rainbow. After a few moves, he actually regained 10% of the advantage.

There were two men on the field, one was as nimble as the wind, the other as fierce as a tiger, and the fight was hard to determine. The soldiers and servants watching outside the field cheered and shouted continuously. However, this was the Pingxiang military camp with many soldiers, so everyone naturally hoped that their own men would win. After all, it would be embarrassing if they were defeated by Chu Xu, as the captain over there was sitting and watching.

Xie Chen didn't really care about winning or losing this match, and even yawned out of boredom. While everyone's attention was on the competition in the martial arts arena, he performed some sneaky tricks.

Lin Shuge slapped someone's hand away, glared at him as if warning, and asked curiously, "Zhongxuan, who do you think will win?"

Xie Chen propped up his chin with one hand, "Brother, do you really want to know? But brother was very mean to me just now. Thinking back to the past, brother was talking with others by candlelight at night, and he was very patient. It turns out that brother is just like the men in this world, he doesn't know how to cherish what he gets."

Lin Shuge: “…”

Lin Shuge was confused and didn't want to say anything.

Xie Chen failed to tease Lin Shuge, and seeing that he was angry, he focused on the martial arts arena, "Brother, don't look over there, I know who will win."

Lin Shuge turned around and stared at him, "So Lord Wei is here, I thought Lord Wei was possessed by something."

"Stop playing around with your brother. Captain Chu has been conducting assassination training?" Xie Chen put away his joking attitude and asked Lin Shuge.

"Yes, in order to fight against the Shaoliang tribe, the county officials and the people recruited by Pingxiang practiced sparring every day. At the beginning, Yang Yan was in charge, but later, when the county was busy, he handed it over to Chu Xu."

Although Chu Xu came from a farming family, he was very talented and with his daily hard training, his martial arts improved by leaps and bounds.

"That's it. He practices every day, and his swordsmanship is very skilled and his endurance is good, but his temperament is not as calm as Lao Zhang, and he is eager for success, so..."

"So he will lose?" Lin Shuge said what he had not finished saying.

Xie Chen motioned him to look at the martial arts arena, where Old Zhang swung his long sword and knocked the sword in Chu Xu's hand to the ground. A ring-handled sword with a cold glow was pressed against Chu Xu's neck. Old Zhang smiled and said, "Zhu Zuowei, thank you for letting me win. I'm lucky to win today."

Chu continued, "My skills are not as good as others. Thank you for your guidance, Master Zhang."

The soldiers who were surrounding him started to shout and rushed forward to throw Lao Zhang high into the air. Lao Zhang cursed, "I have to fight three games in a row. Watch out for my waist."

The soldiers didn't care what he said. Lao Zhang usually got along well with the soldiers regardless of their status. Now that he had won the competition again, he was carried by everyone to celebrate.

"Sir, I lost." Chu Xu glanced over there, picked up the knife on the ground, walked to Lin Shuge and said in a dull voice.

Lin Shuge opened his mouth to comfort him, but Xie Chen said, "Zhu Zuowei's swordsmanship is unparalleled. Although he lost to Lao Zhang, he has been in the army for many years and has more experience and temperament than you. As long as Chu Zuowei has more combat experience, he will definitely beat him one day."

Chu Xu's eyes instantly brightened up after hearing what he said, and he asked hurriedly, "Is what Lord Wei said true?"

"Of course. If Zuo Wei Chu doesn't mind, you can come to the military camp to compete with Lao Zhang and the others in the future." Xie Chen's tone was very generous and appropriate, as if he was a senior who was teaching the younger generation earnestly.

Chu Xu's face was full of gratitude, "Thank you, Lord Wei. I came here to ask for advice when there is nothing to do in the county."

"Well, dinner is served over there. Zuo Wei Chu, you've worked hard today, go eat first." Xie Chen stood with his hands behind his back, looking incredibly noble.

Chu Xu and Lin Shuge didn't say a word before being dismissed by Xie Chen with just a few words.

"Now I know why you said he was unstable." Lin Shuge held back and said nothing until Chu Xu left. "I think what Chu Xu lacks is not experience, but insight."

Xie Chen pretended to be dumbfounded, "What?"

Still pretending? Why on earth did I think you were simple and innocent before? You obviously have so many cunning thoughts.

"What did my brother say?" Lin Shuge didn't say anything, so Xie Chen asked again.

"Nothing. I mean Chu Xu has made great contributions today and deserves more rewards. I'll go back and think about what to reward him. He seemed a little concerned about losing the competition today." Lin Shuge raised his eyebrows and looked at Xie Chen, and said slowly.

Xie Chen's expression changed immediately. "Brother is really considerate to his subordinates. He wants to reward me even if I lose the competition? I never saw Brother thinking about me even when I won before. Brother also said that he looked like me. Could it be that he wants to..."

Lin Shuge listened to him bringing up the past, and immediately looked around. Seeing that there was no one around, he stopped him from speaking wildly, "What's the big deal?" He lowered his voice, "When have I not thought about you? Who can compare to you?"

Xie Chen was flattered by his words and said generously: "A batch of good swords have been forged in the camp recently. I will pick a good one and give it to Chu Zuowei, so you don't have to worry about it."

Lin Shuge felt amused when he saw that he obviously cared a lot but pretended to be magnanimous. He was really petty. It was such a long time ago, yet he still remembered it.

Xie Chen was excited, "It's a bit sunny now, brother, come in with me."

"Okay." Lin Shuge looked at the sun above his head. The soldiers and servants needed training, and other things also had to be done.

…

The autumn harvest was over, and most of the young and strong men in Qingquan County were recruited to build city walls and fortifications outside the city. Cement was vigorously mixed with sand and gravel, and then transported to the wall-building site, where soldiers were pouring the mixed cement into the built wall.

"Why are they building the city wall again? Are we going to have a war? Are the Huns going to attack?" Someone dumped a small cart of sand and gravel and asked the person next to him.

"What nonsense are you talking about? The adults over there said that the adults in the county ordered the repair of the wall because they saw that the repaired city wall was not strong enough. What is this for? Oh, right, it's for people's livelihood security. Don't you see that there are people repairing the road over there?" The person next to him wiped his sweat and said.

"I am worried too. My relatives told me that the people in the Duwei Mansion have fought several battles with the Xiongnu. I don't know what the situation is now, but I hope they don't live in peace like before."

"Alas, my life has just started to get better. The crops I planted are plentiful, and my wife and I can work during the slack season. My family is getting better and better. Please don't fight again."

When the people working around heard this, they all stopped what they were doing. Some people were optimistic. "What are you afraid of? We are all human beings. If the Huns really come, we will kill one if one comes, and kill two if two come. If the Duwei Mansion cannot defeat them, we still have the Wei Xiaowei. My home is close to the military camp, and I can hear the adults in the military camp training every day. We will definitely kill all the Huns who invade the border."

"That's right. We finally have a peaceful life, and we can't let the Huns destroy it. Do you think the county officials asked us to repair the city wall to prevent the Huns from breaking in?"

For a moment, everyone was silent, looking at each other, and then they all started working at the same time. Seeing their enthusiasm, the guards supervising the workers in the distance were startled and asked, "What's going on?"

A tall officer nearby replied, "They had a few words about whether the Huns would attack us, and this is what happened."

"Hun?"

"Do you think we're really going to fight?" the officer asked quietly.

"I dare not say, but recently some soldiers from the Duwei Mansion have indeed run here. I am afraid that the captain will take action immediately."

"Is it true?" the tall officer asked quietly.

"Why would I lie to you? Don't you see that Lord Lin is not only repairing the city walls and roads, but also that the county's granary has been storing grain since last year. Isn't this preparing for the war?"

The tall officer sighed, "Thank God, the man surnamed Ma was punished and the one who was replaced by the magistrate of Lin County was replaced. If that bastard official had been allowed to continue to serve as the magistrate of Qingquan County, he would have definitely surrendered the city if the Huns really came, and we would either become slaves or die."

"So, if we really have to fight the Huns, I will go too. It's worth it to work under Lord Lin even if I die fighting the Huns. It's better than dying at the hands of bandits. If you tell others, I died defending my country."

The two men looked at each other, and like the people over there, they worked even harder to carry the cement. So much so that when Yang Yan brought people over for inspection, he was full of questions. Why were they working so... ferociously, as if they wanted to kill someone?