Time flew by, less than two hours had passed.
The Sun family mansion was completely transformed, with pigs and sheep being slaughtered as if it were the New Year.
Gu Hu led a thousand armored soldiers to the Sun residence, and before the meal was served, he busied himself with preparations.
During this time, Gu Hu did not forget to introduce the ten centurions under his command to Sun Jian.
Sun Jian was quite puzzled. These people all had agile and steady steps, and they were obviously trained fighters. The lowest martial arts level was 68. How come they had only managed to become centurions after so many years in the army?
It seems that his father-in-law, Gu Yongchang, must have been an extremely charismatic person in his lifetime, and he cultivated many loyal and elite soldiers among his subordinates.
Soon the feast began, with Sun Jian sitting in the center, raising his cup to drink with many villagers and soldiers.
This group of people can be considered the first wave of soldiers I recruited after coming into this world. No matter what I do in the future, I will have more confidence and should win them over.
Anyone can brainwash someone.
That was Sun Jian's specialty.
Sun Jian's impassioned speech moved everyone in the audience, some even weeping and vowing to serve him to the death.
Seeing that the desired effect had been achieved, Sun Jian did not want to spoil the mood. He told everyone that there were no errands to be done today, so they could just drink and get drunk.
Everyone was excited and deeply moved, claiming that they had met a good master.
After several rounds of drinks, it got completely dark.
The thousand armored soldiers originally intended to sleep on the spot, but Sun Jian refused, citing the cold weather and the desolate night.
"Brothers! From now on, the Sun residence will be your home. How can anyone go home and sleep in the courtyard?"
Sun Jian told everyone that he had long ago ordered all the usable empty rooms in the mansion to be vacated, just enough for the soldiers to rest and live in, so that everyone could rest in peace.
These words moved even Gu Zijian, who was standing nearby, to tears, not to mention Gu Hu and the ten centurions.
The Sun residence is very large; with a few adjustments, it could easily accommodate more than a thousand people.
Sun Jian had already planned that in a few days, he would spend money to buy some houses around his residence to serve as campsites for his thousand armored soldiers.
In this way, the Sun family not only received impenetrable protection, but the soldiers also no longer needed to travel between two places every day.
Looking across the entire campaign, besides Sun Jian, who would dare to privately support an army? And who would dare to station an army near their own home?
It's true that the Da Gan regime implemented the Fubing system, but it was very restrictive.
Not only are there strict restrictions on troop strength and personnel, but also on their deployment and use.
Moreover, only high-ranking officials in each region had the right to recruit soldiers.
In contrast, Sun Jian was an exception.
Firstly, the soldiers and garrison troops are not on the same level of combat strength.
Secondly, Sun Jian could also recruit a group of soldiers from the local militia. If the number was properly controlled, it would be equivalent to having two groups of troops that he could mobilize.
And today they've gained over a thousand brave armored warriors in one fell swoop. Other forces that want to harm Sun Jian in the future will have to think twice…
Sun Jian knew that even though the situation was favorable, he still had to play it safe. After all, the emperor was no benevolent man, and being too aggressive would only arouse suspicion and bring him no benefit.
One must eat one bite at a time, and do things one step at a time.
...
The next morning, everyone in the Sun household was busy again.
Old Jiang and Gou Sheng were running their workshop as usual.
Sun Jian, also served by Gu Zijian, washed up and got up early.
According to Gu Zijian, Gu Hu led his soldiers to train outside the city early in the morning, and they should be back soon.
Sun Jian couldn't help but admire these soldiers; they were all incredibly resilient.
"Where's Lao Cao? Tell him to come with me. I need to visit the Imperial Estate this morning, and I also need to go to Governor Yao's residence this afternoon."
Sun Jian finished dressing and asked Gu Zijian a question.
Gu Zijian shook his head and looked at Chu Qingcheng, who was washing towels for Sun Jian.
"Sister Chu, is Old Cao at home?"
Chu Qingcheng has always managed all of Sun Jian's affairs, big and small, and clearly already has the demeanor of a matriarch.
Sun Jian rarely managed affairs, and most people would report to Chu Qingcheng when handling tasks or errands.
Chu Qingcheng shook her head. "He's not here."
"Early in the morning, Old Cao went to negotiate the houses around our Sun residence with silver notes."
"Didn't the Prime Minister instruct yesterday to have Old Cao get this done as soon as possible, so that the soldiers won't have to live in cramped quarters like this, fifteen people to a room?"
Sun Jian nodded; this old Cao really was efficient.
Since Lao Cao wasn't there, and Lao Jiang and the others were busy in the workshop in the backyard, I could only go to the imperial estate alone to check on the situation.
"Husband, shall I go with you?"
Gu Zijian spoke up.
"Yes, my husband, why don't you take Sister Zijian with you? That way I'll feel more at ease."
Chu Qingcheng also offered words of comfort from the side.
They are now aware that many hostile forces in the court are watching Sun Jian. Although the Sun family is safe for the time being, they still need to be careful everywhere except for the Sun family.
Sun Jian smiled wryly and shrugged helplessly.
He indicated that the two women's concerns were unnecessary.
I have at least 80 points of combat strength, okay?
If the opposing forces didn't have at least a hundred or so people, they probably wouldn't be able to do anything to him.
Zhou Wan'er walked over at this moment, her face full of excitement: "Husband, why don't you take the three of us with you? We haven't left the courtyard in a long time."
"Sister Wan'er, your husband is going to take care of important business..." Chu Qingcheng tugged at Zhou Wan'er's hand and whispered.
"What's wrong with that? He can do his thing, we can just go shopping." Zhou Wan'er pouted.
"If you can bring Sister Gu, why can't you bring us too?"
She was so bored from not going out for so long.
Sun Jian also forbade them from going out, saying that it was not safe outside.
Sun Jian pinched Zhou Wan'er's little nose. "Alright, next time. Next time I come back from the military camp, I'll take you all out to play."
"Alright, I'll do whatever you say, my husband!"
"Alright then!"
Seeing that the three women all nodded in agreement, Sun Jian couldn't help but shake his head inwardly. These ancient women were really easy to coax.
Just then, the sound of orderly footsteps came from inside the Sun residence.
Sun Jian glanced out the window. "It seems Gu Hu and the others have returned from their training exercise."
"I'll take Gu Hu with me. Anyway, it'll be these people farming the land in the imperial estate from now on."
After giving the three women a few instructions, Sun Jian left the inner courtyard.
When Gu Hu and the others saw Sun Jian, they all knelt down to pay their respects.
Sun Jian looked helpless; these people really valued etiquette.
After everyone stood up, Sun Jian briefly explained the matter that His Majesty had instructed him to go to the imperial estate with Gu Hu, who nodded in agreement.
"My benefactor, do you think we should bring some men with us on this trip?"
Sun Jian waved his hand, "No need. We're just going to check on the situation at the imperial estate today. Bringing so many people will only cause unnecessary trouble."
"Tell the brothers to go to the backyard and find Old Jiang. Tell them they've come to help, and Old Jiang will arrange things for them."
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