"Let me tell you." Without waiting for Yang Fei to answer, Shen Yu gave the answer.
"First, being late for training will result in an additional twenty laps as a penalty after the lap training. Is that correct?" Strictly speaking, this rule is not a military regulation, but only a team punishment. However, Shen Yu insisted on including it.
"Second, anyone who disobeys orders will be beaten with the stick thirty times! Is that correct?" If two armies go to war and someone disobeys the commander's orders, he will be executed immediately!
"Third, anyone who makes irresponsible remarks about their superiors will be punished with thirty strokes of the cane! Is there nothing wrong with this?" This is similar to the charge of disobeying a superior's orders.
Don't think Shen Yu wasn't familiar with the military regulations just because he'd just arrived. When he went to the Northern Frontier Reserve Camp to see Pei Xuanqing, he borrowed a copy of the regulations from someone there and copied it down. He didn't want the trip to be in vain, did he? So before coming here, whether it was him, Bei Wu, or Wan Hesu, they had already memorized the military regulations word for word.
Shen Yu continued, "Although these three offenses only add up to twenty extra laps and sixty strokes of the cane, don't forget that there is another clearly written rule in the military regulations. If three or more military regulations are violated at one time, the offender will be expelled from the barracks and will never be recruited again after the punishment is carried out one by one!" So he didn't include the offense of Yang Fei being late for no reason.
"You can't expel me from the barracks!" Yang Fei was dissatisfied with the punishment. "General Li said that at the end of the year, there will be a vacant spot for me in the regular formation."
"So?" Shen Yu found it a little funny.
"So you're going to ask General Li for his approval before you expel me from the barracks?" He and Lei Yun were late because General Li had summoned them after breakfast. General Li had just said that if they helped to cause trouble for Shen Yu, he would take the fall. He had also promised that if the matter was settled, he and Lei Yun would each receive a spot in the regular ranks.
"Ha," Shen Yu sneered. "Not to mention that the reserve troops are now under my command, and I have legitimate reasons to punish you. Even if you were deployed to the regular troops, if you violated those three military regulations, I still have the right to expel you from the barracks. Also," he glanced coldly at the crowd, "don't forget that I outrank General Li. If I were to obey General Li's orders, wouldn't he be committing treason?"
He just couldn't believe it. Would Li Yongqing stand up for a chess piece? Even if he did, it would depend on whether he agreed or not!
No matter what he does, he won't get any good from Li Yongqing. So let's see who of the two of them is the one he can't afford to offend?
After hearing Shen Yu's treatment of Yang Fei, Lei Yun felt deeply moved. He quickly clasped his fists and pleaded for Yang Fei: "Sir Shen, considering that this is Yang Fei's first offense, can you please show some leniency and not expel him from the barracks?"
"No!" Shen Yu didn't give Lei Yun this face. "He's the captain, but he knew he was wrong and made a mistake. He did it on purpose. If I don't punish such a person, how can I punish others in the future?"
Yang Fei sneered: "I think you are a new official who is using me as an excuse. Well, I will quit as you wish!" After that, he took off the old military uniform that fell from the regular formation and threw it to the ground, then turned around and wanted to leave.
"Wait!" Shen Yu stopped him.
"Why," Yang Fei raised his eyebrows, "Master Shen, do you still want to use me as a target? I am no longer a member of the reserve team, so I am no longer under your control."
"Tsk tsk tsk," Shen Yu shook his head. "It's one thing you have a poor brain and can't remember the military regulations, but I didn't expect your ears to be weak too." He then explained, "I just made it very clear that anyone who violates three or more military regulations at once must be punished one by one and then expelled from the camp. Are you still thinking of sneaking away and avoiding those three penalties?"
"You, you are simply going too far!"
"There's no hatred or grudge between you and me. I'm just addressing the matter at hand!" Shen Yu looked at everyone and warned, "If anyone can't endure hardship, can't abide by military rules, and still wants to hang around like this, then immediately take off your uniform and leave the barracks with me! Otherwise, when I use military rules to punish you again, shut up and accept the punishment!"
Shen Yu noticed some of the good guys below with erratic looks, looking from one to another, and guessed that these people had already begun to think about leaving the barracks. Regardless of whether they left the barracks this time or not, he secretly took note of these people.
Seeing that no one stood up to leave with him for a long time, Yang Fei fanned the flames.
"What are you waiting for? Do you want to be kicked out of the barracks like me? Don't forget that we haven't had enough to eat these past few years. Wearing other people's hand-me-downs is one thing, but we had the chance to join the regular troops, but those who used connections and gave gifts got the first chance. If I had known this would happen, I might as well have gone home and farmed. I can't say I'll have enough food and clothes, but at least it's better than being humiliated here!"
He'd been in the reserves for two years, and last year, he had a chance to join the regular squad, but someone else snatched him away. He was later given the temporary captaincy as compensation, but so what? As long as he wasn't in the regular squad, he was looked down upon.
I thought that helping Li Yongqing this time would be a sure thing, but I didn't expect to run into a tough guy like Shen Yu.
"Okay! I quit too!" A big man roared and walked out of the team.
He cupped his fists towards Shen Yu and explained, "Don't be angry, sir, Assistant Garrison Commander. I have nothing against you. I just feel that with the current selection system, I won't have a chance of joining the regular squadron even if I stay here my whole life. It's better to leave early."
This guy had been here for three years, and had been rejected every time. He had originally planned to give it one more try at the end-of-year assessment, and if that didn't work out, he'd leave. Now that Shen Yu had given him this chance, he didn't want to wait any longer.
"Okay," Shen Yu nodded in understanding, "take off your uniform."
"I'll take it off right away."
With this person's start, several more people came out one after another, saying roughly the same thing to Shen Yu, then took off their military robes and stood aside. However, compared to Yang Fei's casualness, which was more like a way to vent his anger, the other people were very slow in taking off their military robes, more or less reluctant.
After all, the youngest among them had been here for nearly a year, and had already developed feelings for the military camp and this uniform, even though it was worn out and even ill-fitting.
Taking them off today meant that they would bid farewell to the military camp forever, and bid farewell to their dreams of expanding the territory for the Great Yan Dynasty and bringing glory to their family through military achievements.
"Anyone else?" After a while, no one came out. Shen Yu asked everyone, "If you don't leave this time, you'll have to wait until the end of the year-end assessment."
At that time, some people will join the regular team, some will be eliminated from the barracks, and some will choose to leave on their own.
After Shen Yu asked this question, no one stepped forward except for one person. He looked at the somewhat complacent Yang Fei and said coldly, "Don't be complacent too soon. It's your turn to be punished. Whether you live or die is uncertain."
Sixty blows from the military stick were not pleasant, and could very well kill him on the spot. Thinking of that outcome, Yang Fei broke out in a cold sweat, lowered his head and begged for mercy, "Sir, please have mercy! I have elderly parents waiting for me to return home to take care of them. If I'm crippled or killed, I'm afraid they won't be able to bear it." Having already taken off his military uniform, Yang Fei began referring to himself as "your Highness."
Shen Yu rolled his eyes at him in his mind. Wasn't he so arrogant just now? What had he been doing so far?
However, he did not say this, nor did he even respond. He said to everyone, "It's getting late, everyone should start training by running laps now." After that, he took the lead and ran around the old training ground.
Endurance is extremely important for killing enemies on the battlefield, so Shen Yu had no intention of canceling this training. Not only that, he also planned to increase the intensity of the training on the original basis.
After a circle, seeing that Yang Fei didn't move, he said coldly to Yang Fei: "Do you still want me to have someone escort you away?"
Yang Fei bit his back teeth and spat out two words: "No need!" and joined the running team. He still didn't believe it. How long could Shen Yu, a young man from the capital, hold on?
Shen Yu led his men to run in circles. Those who were punished for being late, except for a few who decided to leave, looked at Lei Yun. Seeing that he did not move, they did not dare to run with Shen Yu and the others.
When Shen Yu first made them stand in the corner as punishment, they didn't take it seriously, and were even secretly glad they didn't have to run around. But after seeing Shen Yu's methods, they became a little scared, afraid that one day they would be punished or even expelled from the barracks.
Yang Fei was doomed to be disappointed. There were many people falling behind, but Shen Yu did not scold them or force them. Instead, he continued to lead the charge. As he ran, he reached the reserve camp and the gong sounded for lunch.
It should be noted that compared to ordinary poor families who have two meals a day, military camps often have three meals a day because training consumes a lot of physical energy.
"We're going to eat. You stay here and do twenty more laps as a penalty." Shen Yu hadn't been as relaxed as he looked this morning. He'd managed to hold on for so long, and he hadn't forgotten to ask Yang Fei, who had been gritting his teeth, to take the punishment.
"I'll stay and watch him receive his punishment. Sir, please go eat first." It was Hu Yufeng who said this. He had run a dozen laps with Shen Yu earlier in the morning and was already exhausted and resting. Not wanting to disappoint Shen Yu, he volunteered to join the team after resting.
Shen Yu originally planned to keep Bei Wu, and since someone was willing to take on this task, Shen Yu was naturally happy to agree.
However, he asked Beiwu to cook for Hu Yufeng, and asked Beiwu to come back after eating to replace Hu Yufeng.
Shen Yu glanced at Lei Yun and the others who were being punished and said, "You should go have lunch too. If you're late for afternoon training, you'll continue to be punished by standing. If you're late three times in a row, you'll be kicked out of the barracks. We don't need soldiers who disobey orders here!"
"Yes!" Lei Yun and the others were as if they had been granted amnesty. For the first time, they felt that standing in the corner was more tiring than running laps.
It wasn't just their legs that were tired, it was their hearts that were most tired. It was really torturous to just sit there and watch others run.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com