Chapter 167 Choosing People
The person leading the group was the same Wang clan patriarch from last time. He had gray hair and shrewd eyes. He stood up and cupped his hands in greeting to Lin Changning: "My lord, I recently heard that the Right Guard of the Prince of Chu is recruiting some new people. My nephews and nieces are not talented, but they are willing to serve you."
As he spoke, the young man behind the Wang clan chief suddenly stepped forward, clasped his hands in a fist salute, and loudly proclaimed, "I am willing to serve you, sir."
The clan leaders behind Wang cursed his cunning inwardly, thinking how quick he was to interrupt. They also hurriedly stood up, while Lin Changning cupped his hands and said loudly, "We are the same!"
Lin Changning pressed down with one hand: "But wasn't it a few days ago?"
Another clan leader answered quickly: "The young men sent in a few days ago are not very useful, as you said. We will have no complaints no matter what punishment you give us. The young men sent this time are all literate and healthy. Please give us a chance."
Lin Changning clicked his tongue twice in his heart, his face practically bursting with laughter, but on the surface he remained calm and composed.
Looking at the group of old men and young people below, they couldn't help but wonder, could it be that this lord looks down on them?
They inquired around and found out that this official was a highly skilled swordsman. Yesterday, several troublemakers in the army with excellent martial arts skills were all beaten into submission, so he was probably someone with real ability.
Actually, all of these are secondary. The most crucial point is that the King of Chu is actually supporting this unknown young general. Yesterday, all the visiting cards they sent to the King's residence were rejected. Whether the visiting cards sent to the King's residence or to the Crown Prince's side were sent by the families of those who did not report for duty yesterday, they were all rejected.
Whether they were from aristocratic families or wealthy merchants, the amount of taxes they paid each year was enormous, not to mention the money that flowed into the Chu King's mansion every year and the grain donated to the Chu King's guards, which amounted to a huge sum of money.
Therefore, the Chu King's Mansion had always treated them as honored guests and had done most of the favors they could. This was the first time they had rejected all of their visiting cards.
If everyone else was rejected, that wouldn't be unacceptable. The key issue is that the Chu Prince's Mansion did accept the visiting cards from those small families who arrived on time yesterday.
This indicates that the King of Chu was warning them. The person behind this Commander Lin was none other than the King of Chu. A talented person who had won the King of Chu's favor could not be compared with the previous commanders.
Last night, almost all the prominent families in Taiyuan held a family meeting overnight. After discussion, the proposed solution was to send their family members to the Right Guard of the King of Chu.
Those spoiled brats shouldn't be allowed to go home either. After they're dismissed from their posts, they'll need to be given a good talking-to when they get home. Who knows, it might just be a great opportunity.
The message conveyed by this incident is very clear: Commander Lin is talented and has a promising future. The King of Chu values him, and he is also going to reorganize the King of Chu's Right Guard. Therefore, they can seize this opportunity to send their family members in and gain an advantage.
I've heard that this junior commander is currently unmarried and has no personal guards, so this is a great opportunity.
Yesterday, they learned that the family of this junior commander had been taken to Taiyuan and settled in the residence allocated by the King of Chu, and these people began to have designs on him.
Lin Changning looked at the anxious faces of the group below and almost burst out laughing inside. After a long while, he nodded and said, "The Right Guard of the King of Chu is indeed short of men right now. Thank you all for your generosity, but let me make this clear: the troops I manage are always very strict. If a violation of military discipline and failure to report for duty happens again, it won't just be 80 lashes!"
A group of people bowed in unison: "Rest assured, sir. Punish us as you see fit, train us as you see fit, we will not say a word. Even if we die in the military camp, it is our own fault."
A group of young men stared intently at Lin Changning, their eyes clear and bright, devoid of any trace of folly, lust, or greed.
Their eyes were filled with longing to join the army. Seeing that their master had finished speaking, the young men brought by Wang were the first to pledge their loyalty: "We are willing to serve you, sir!!!"
The young man behind him paused briefly, then added, "I am willing to serve you, sir."
Lin Changning looked at the group of Erlang below, who were quite different from the spoiled brats of the previous two days, and nodded in satisfaction.
With the matter nearly settled, Wang's team leader cupped his hands towards Lin Changning and said, "My lord, my son will remain at the military headquarters. We shall take our leave now."
Lin Changning smiled warmly and said, "Alright, I'll see you all off."
A group of people chatted and laughed as they left the military headquarters. Lin Changning rubbed the stiff smile on his face and regained his calm and collected demeanor. He glanced at the young noblemen in front of him and said, "Let's go, come with me to the training ground."
After saying that, he led the way towards the training ground.
A group of scions of prominent families looked around, and seeing Lin Changning about to leave, they quickly followed. Lin Changning had no intention of giving these scions any special treatment.
His personal guards were his talisman. If these young noblemen wanted to become like his personal guards, they would have to endure a lot of hardship. So let's start training from the bottom. After training for a while, he would select a few of them who were upright and had good martial arts skills to be promoted to personal guards.
Upon arriving at the training ground, a group of scions of noble families stared in disbelief at the soldiers, their brows slick with sweat, practicing their swordsmanship.
They knew most of these people; they were usually lazy and disorganized. But they were surprised to find that Commander Lin had already become quite capable on his second day in office. They couldn't help but feel that they had followed the right person.
Lin Changning beckoned to Lu Shan: "Incorporate them into the team, and let them start training now."
Lu Shan clasped his hands in greeting and led 17 young men from prominent families to their positions and join the ranks. The group received their assigned swords and quickly got into the swing of things. Lin Changning carefully observed the dozen or so people.
They discovered that these people showed no dissatisfaction whatsoever, and some of them seemed to have some skill, as their swordsmanship was quite standard.
Lin Changning stood on the training ground watching a group of people train, then strolled over to the Wang family member and asked, "What's your name?"
The Wang family member immediately stood at attention: "Reporting to Your Excellency, my name is Wang Yue."
Lin Changning rubbed his chin thoughtfully with his thumb: "Come on, chop a few more times."
Wang Yue nodded, picked up the longsword, and swung it a few times. Lin Changning glanced at the thin calluses on Wang Yue's hands and said, "You must be a martial artist. Judging from your sword-wielding style and posture, you seem like someone who practices martial arts."
Wang Yue replied neither humbly nor arrogantly, "I dare not deceive you, sir. I did indeed practice martial arts for two years."
Lin Changning nodded and patted the man on the shoulder: "Not bad, we'll practice extra tonight. I'll personally lead you through the training."
Wang Yue was overjoyed and clasped his hands in a salute to Lin Changning: "Thank you, sir."
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