Chapter 58: Misfire
Qian Qian nodded repeatedly and responded to Zhen Ruicai's words with a smile, but a closer look revealed that the smile seemed a little forced, and his wandering eyes also revealed a hint of uneasiness.
He was not worried about the Jinwu Guards, but was thinking about what Zhen Ruicai had asked him to do before to deal with Xie Qinjian.
All the people he sent were killed, even the two officers who escorted Xie Qinjian died, but Xie Qinjian disappeared without a trace.
After learning the news, he did not tell Zhen Ruicai immediately.
After all, if Zhen Ruicai knew that he couldn't even deal with Xie Qinjian, he would inevitably be punished.
So, he had the bodies of the killer and the policeman dealt with, and continued to track Xie Qinjian's whereabouts, determined to find him alive or dead, and wait for the matter to be resolved.
But today Zhen Rui suddenly came to the camp to inspect. After he hurriedly organized a team to deal with it, he couldn't help but worry that Zhen Rui would ask about this matter.
Sure enough, after watching the soldiers training, the two came to the central army hall, and Zhen Ruicai asked him about this matter.
Qian Qian pondered for a moment and then concealed the truth. "Don't worry, sir. It's all settled. The journey from the capital to Nanzhou is long, and we're bound to encounter bandits and wild beasts. No one will suspect us of his death."
Zhen Ruicai smiled with satisfaction and said, "Very good. You are very efficient and effective. Now I have only you who I can trust. I think you are still a fourth-rank official. After the military parade is over, I can ask for your promotion."
Qian Qian knelt down hurriedly, "Thank you for your reward, sir!"
Zhen Ruicai nodded and said, "Just focus on training the army these days." He stood up and walked out of the lobby.
Qian Qian sent him out of the military camp and watched him, supported by the palace soldiers, mount his horse and walk away with a thump. Only then did he look away and slowly exhale.
Fortunately, they managed to cope with it. As for the military parade... Qian Qian's eyes flashed with disdain. With the level of the Golden Crow Guards, couldn't they win with just some practice?
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Winter turned to spring, and after nearly half a year of hard training, the Jinwu Guards' formations had become extremely skilled and sophisticated.
Looking down from above, the team was as straight as an ink line in front, behind, left and right. They changed their formation from time to time, separated and gathered together, but the team was not at all disorganized.
During the training period, Chi Qi personally came to review the troops once. At that time, the soldiers were very excited and their footsteps were so powerful that the dust on the training ground was raised several feet high.
After watching the training, Chi Li had a private conversation with Zhao Yuzhang.
Zhao Mingyue was worried that her aunt would be scolded, but she didn't expect that after the conversation, the usually cold Zhao Yuzhang became excited and excited, which made Zhao Mingyue very confused.
What exactly did A Niang say to Auntie?
Zhao Mingyue asked Zhao Yuzhang, but Zhao Yuzhang refused to reveal it and only said that you will know on the day of the military parade.
So, Zhao Mingyue began to look forward to the arrival of the military parade.
After such a long period of training, and equipped with a rapid-fire musket, she was confident, if not certain, of winning the competition at the military parade.
Moreover, Liu Shen'ai later improved the first batch of firearms, each one better than the last and more powerful. He even developed a short musket that could be carried with him.
With the help of weapons, the power gap between women and men has narrowed. She doesn't believe that the Golden Crow Guards cannot win.
As Zhao Mingyue expected, the military parade soon arrived.
The main forces stationed near the capital all gathered at the foot of Mingfengtai on Mingfeng Mountain outside the capital. In addition to the Golden Crow Guard and the Left Eagle Guard, there were four other guards, namely the Left and Right Dragon Guard, the Left and Right Tiger Guard, with a total number of about 50,000.
The generals and their troops arrived a few days in advance and set up camp. Flags stretched for dozens of miles among the mountains and forests, and the sound of drums resounded throughout the wilderness.
This was the first time Chi Qie reviewed the army after taking power. This was not only to show her majesty to the people of the world, but also to test the army's loyalty to her.
However, with so many people gathered at the foot of Mingfeng Mountain, people need food and horses need grass, so naturally a lot of money is needed.
Fortunately, Chi Qi had just raided Li Xiang's gang, and the national treasury was sufficient, so this amount of money could still be taken out.
When the late emperor was alive, there were several military parades and military training sessions, and all the generals were familiar with the procedures. This year, Empress Dowager Chi also issued a clear decree requiring all armies to compete fairly.
First, the generals of each army led their troops to march in formation and drill, and were judged and scored by officials from the six ministries. Then the generals of each army competed in martial arts, and finally each army sent out twelve people to conduct small team attack and defense battles.
The winner gets ten points, the loser gets ten points, and finally the scores of all stages are added together to determine the winning army.
In the final victory, the soldiers of the army were promoted one level and received different rewards.
Regardless of the rules of the competition, the soldiers of these armies were full of confidence. Therefore, when they saw the flags of the Golden Crow Guards standing high in the mountains and forests, fluttering in the wind, they couldn't help but sneer.
"A group of female soldiers? Are they going to perform a dance for us?"
"I think they are just here to make fun of us. If they see the envoys from other countries, they will think that there are no people in our Darong Dynasty."
"I heard that the leader of the Golden Crow Guard is that crazy Princess Zhaoqing. I think she is really crazy!"
"Hahahaha... maybe they're trying to use a honey trap. You better be careful, don't be unable to walk when you see a woman."
"Go away, I'm not interested in women."
All in all, these five guards didn't take the Golden Crow Guard seriously at all. They either mocked them or laughed at them, and some even started to think of the "beauty trap".
Zhao Mingyue followed Zhao Yuzhang and led a team of soldiers to patrol the periphery of the camp. They happened to hear the mocking sounds coming from the soldiers stationed in a nearby camp, and their faces immediately turned red with anger.
She stopped and touched the short musket at her waist. "I really want to shoot them in the head!"
Zhao Yuzhang reached out and held her hand, saying calmly, "Just a few words and you've lost your temper? If you were on the battlefield and the enemy got provoked, wouldn't you lose your mind?"
Zhao Mingyue put down her hands, looking somewhat depressed. She was not feeling unfair for herself, but for her soldiers.
"When I think about the people guarding our country being this kind of people, I get really angry. Aunt, we female soldiers are no worse than them. Why should we be humiliated by them?"
"The one with the harder fist is the overlord, so let's beat them all down in tomorrow's game." Zhao Yuzhang said, his eyes darkening and revealing a cold murderous aura.
Suddenly, a sneer came from the front, "Hey, General Zhao is really arrogant for beating us all down."
Zhao Yuzhang looked up and saw Zhen Ruicai walking slowly towards him, surrounded by palace soldiers. When he was ten steps away, he stopped cautiously.
He smiled and said, "Princess Zhaoqing, are you dreaming too much? Do you still think you'll have the same good luck as you did in Tangzhou City? If you don't want to embarrass yourself at tomorrow's military parade, it's not too late to withdraw now."
Before Zhao Yuzhang could react, he saw a flash of fire and a loud bang. Stone chips flew in front of Zhen Ruicai, and everyone present was startled.
Zhen Ruicai fell to the ground with a thud. The palace soldiers hurried forward to help him up. They saw that the hem of his robe was burnt and there was a big wound on his leg, which was bleeding.
Zhen Ruicai's face turned pale with pain, and he was furious. He turned to look at Zhao Mingyue, but saw her smiling innocently. "Master Zhen, are you okay? I didn't mean to do that! It's just that this musket is not good, it always goes off accidentally. I didn't expect to hurt you this time. I'm really sorry."
It would have been fine if she hadn't explained. Once she did, Zhen Rui got even angrier. Did she think he was a fool? You were laughing so happily, who would believe you didn't do it on purpose?
But Zhao Mingyue was a princess and she apologized to him, so even though he was angry, he couldn't lose his temper.
"Humph! Since you guys insist on having your own way, just do it yourselves. I won't be the one to be embarrassed anyway!"
After saying that, Zhen Rui turned around with a pale face and limped back.
Zhao Yuzhang looked at Zhao Mingyue coldly. Zhao Mingyue immediately stood still with her hands lowered, whispering, "I was wrong."
Zhao Yuzhang walked over and patted her on the shoulder, "Well done."
Zhao Mingyue looked up in surprise, and then a brilliant smile appeared on her face.
————
The next day, the military parade officially began.
Chi Lu was wearing a golden armor and a helmet. She stood on the Mingfeng Terrace, leaning against the railing and looking down at the vast training ground in front of the terrace.
Suddenly, cheers came from both sides, "Long live Queen Mother Chi!"
She looked in the direction of the sound and was surprised to find that the distant hillsides and high ridges were covered with densely packed heads.
How come these people who came to watch the fun have already arrived before the army even entered?
The common people had no idea who was the emperor, and knew nothing about the disputes in the court. They just heard someone say that Empress Dowager Chi had ascended the viewing platform, and they started shouting.
But after shouting for a while, some people started to wonder: "Why can't we see the emperor?"
"The emperor is a consumptive who can't stand the slightest breeze. How could he possibly come out to show himself to you?"
Someone interrupted, "What do you know? The emperor is imprisoned by the empress dowager!"
Everyone was in disbelief, "What? Impossible?"
The person who spoke was not convinced and insisted: "How can it be impossible!"
If Mei Junrong were here, she would definitely recognize that this person is her adoptive father Mei Laoliu.
Ever since Mei Junrong joined the army, he had not brought any money home. Mei Laoliu had been living off his savings and complaining all day long. He bore a grudge against Empress Dowager Chi and Princess Mingyue, thinking that they had snatched his daughter away. He would hang out with people every day and spread rumors that seemed to be true.
"I'm telling you, my daughter is in the army, and you'll see her soon. Empress Dowager Chi is setting up an army composed entirely of women, which means she wants to be the emperor herself!"
"Nonsense! If an army is composed entirely of women, how can it be worth watching?"
"That's right, you tell lies without thinking. Go away and don't watch the parade in front of me."
On the Mingfeng Terrace, Zhen Ruicai and the officials from the six ministries had all arrived and stood respectfully behind Chi Lu. In addition, envoys from the Xiqi Kingdom, the Jinshi Kingdom, the Luohei Kingdom and other countries also walked up to the viewing platform under the guidance of officials from the Ministry of Rites.
Chi Li smiled and looked at Zhen Ruicai. "Envoy Zhen, you have been in charge of military affairs for many years, so you must have good command of the army. With you in charge of this military parade, I believe you will be able to show off our military might and intimidate foreign envoys."
Zhen Ruicai was full of confidence and said proudly, "Thank you for the compliment, Queen Mother. This is my duty."
Chi Li looked at the arrogance in his eyes, her eyes turned cold for a moment, and then she turned to look at Wu Wenxiu beside her, "Then let's get started."
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