Chapter 15: I gave you the opening screen, but you seem to have a big objection to it?
At the gate of the military camp, two women suddenly appeared. They were Chu Die and Xun Yun.
Before the winter solstice, Chudie had already wrapped herself in a crimson fur quilt, but her lung disease had not yet improved.
Fang Yilan saw them from afar and went forward to greet them. Chudie bowed and saluted, saying softly, "General, I happened to see the notice you posted in the city, so I thought of bringing Xunyun here to give it a try."
Fang Yilan didn't respond immediately. Instead, she turned her gaze to Xunyun and asked softly, "Are you willing to participate?"
Xun Yun responded calmly: "As long as it is something that the young lady expects, I will do my best."
"So what do you think?"
Xun Yun looked up blankly, unable to fathom the deeper meaning behind Fang Yilan's words: "I don't have any ideas."
Zhao Huaixu walked over and said in a gentle voice, "General, why bother asking? There are some things that she will naturally take the initiative to do once she has figured them out."
Fang Yilan nodded slightly: "Then let's give it a try."
Seeing Xunyun flexing his wrist and walking towards the starting point, the crowd in the waiting area suddenly exploded, and all kinds of dissatisfied complaints were shouted.
"How can a mere maidservant, a woman at that, be qualified to participate in such an important competition? This is just nonsense!"
"That's right. If we lose, you'll still cry and say we won unfairly."
Many people around nodded in agreement.
Xun Yun turned around to meet the gaze of the person who had spoken first, and said coldly: "Whether you are qualified or not, let's fight and see the result!"
Fang Yilan said in a serious voice: "It is clearly written in the notice that this time, no one is recruited regardless of their social status, and there are no restrictions on gender. In my opinion, only ability is considered." Then he signaled Xunyun to start.
Xunyun said nothing, firmly grasped the two corners of the sandbag, and carried it onto his shoulders. There was no delay at all, as if the sandbag had lost all its weight.
The originally noisy crowd fell silent in an instant, waiting for her performance.
Xunyun lived up to everyone's expectations. He showed amazing endurance in the long-distance running segment without showing any signs of fatigue. His riding and archery skills as well as his physical flexibility were perfect.
By the time she reached the finish line, the incense stick had burned only three-quarters of its value. Fang Yilan's face also showed admiration.
Chudie opened the food box she brought, took out a piece of cake, and handed it to Fang Yilan: "General, Xunyun will be under your care from now on. She may appear cold on the surface, but in fact she is very grateful."
Fang Yilan took a bite of the Poria Cocos Cake and listened to Chudie's words, which were almost like entrusting an orphan to someone else, with a heart full of confusion: "I wanted to advise you last time. I know you have an old illness that is difficult to recover. But as long as you live one more day in this world, don't always think about entrusting her to others. You also know that she is most nostalgic for the old times, and she will be sad too."
Upon hearing this, Chudie was stunned for a long moment, as if waking from a dream. A smile mingled with tears in her eyes: "I was overthinking it, and ended up making a fool of myself, General. For the past few years, I've lived in hatred, ignoring the feelings of those around me. My behavior must be a real torment to Xunyun, who's staying by my side."
Seeing Chudie like this, Fang Yilan felt a little sorry. Although she didn't know her past, she still made a solemn promise: "But don't worry, I promise you, if anything unexpected happens to her in the future, I will take good care of her for you."
The tears that had been accumulating in her eyes finally rolled down. The expression on Chudie's face was not sadness, but joy. "With these words from the general, Chudie feels at ease."
At this moment, Xun Yun came over from the finish line, caught a glimpse of the tearful Chu Die, and glared at Fang Yi Lan fiercely. But thinking about what she was here for, she forced herself to swallow the question on the tip of her tongue.
Fang Yilan held the huge pot that had fallen from the sky, wanting to cry but unable to, so she had to stuff another piece of red bean cake into her mouth.
Seeing Xun Yun's success, the crowd became noisy again, like a stone thrown into a calm lake. Many people felt that this task did not seem that difficult, and they were eager to try and move forward.
But reality poured a bucket of cold water on them. Those who tried failed one after another. The scene was bleak, and not one out of ten succeeded.
Just as everyone began to wait and see, a familiar voice suddenly rang out from the crowd: "I'll do it."
Following the sound, Xiao Yue pushed through the crowd in front of him and strode out. Behind him, many brothers who had followed him from Qishan were cheering at the top of their lungs.
Xiao Yue has been trained by Huan Ying since he was a child. He has been going in and out of places with complex terrain like Qishan for many years. His strength is indeed not to be underestimated, but his riding skills are slightly inferior. During the journey, he has to deliberately slow down to avoid making mistakes.
The time it took him to clear the level was roughly the same as Xunyun's. When he got closer to the incense burner and looked at the length of incense remaining in it, his brow furrowed, clearly dissatisfied with his own performance.
Fang Yilan was about to call the next candidate, but when she glanced around the venue, she saw that Zhao Huaixu had already stood at the starting point.
Today, he is wrapped in a black tights. The fabric fits his tight and powerful body lines, outlining the contours of his undulating muscles, making his posture more upright.
His long hair was neatly tied high on his head, with a few strands of hair hanging down in front of his forehead. The pine green earring on the side of his ear was particularly eye-catching, emitting green light as he moved. He looked very heroic, completely different from his previous appearance.
Zhao Huaixu suddenly caught Fang Yilan's gaze and smiled faintly.
He looked just like the young men in bright clothes and riding horses on the streets of the capital.
Fang Yilan took a deep breath and tried her best to suppress the corners of her lips from rising.
"Tsk, look at him, he looks like a peacock with its tail spread out. A grown man wearing a woman's ornament, isn't he afraid of being laughed at?" Xiao Yue snorted coldly as he walked to the front of the stage. Halfway through his words, his eyes fell on Chu Die beside Fang Yilan, and his gaze suddenly froze.
"Why, you seem to have a big problem with the gift I gave you?" Fang Yilan glared at him.
Xiao Yue stretched out his hand and pulled it horizontally in front of his mouth, then chose to shut up.
At the start of the competition, Zhao Huaixu didn't rush to speed, but instead advanced slowly to conserve his energy. During the horseback archery segment, he drew his bow and arrow, but only just managed to grazed the edge of the target. The arrowhead lodged in the target, teetering on the edge and nearly missing it.
Fortunately, he kept his rhythm straight and finally reached the finish line before the incense burned out.
"I want to come too! I want to come too!" Zhuang Gu followed Lieutenant General Lin on horseback. He had just finished his patrol mission and didn't even have time to catch his breath as he rushed straight to the assessment site without stopping for a moment.
Zhuang Gu's performance was amazing, and he won the best result on the field.
Lieutenant General Lin stood aside with his hands behind his back. Although he did not openly praise, his raised chin and the pride in his eyes made it possible for anyone to see how happy he was.
Upon seeing this, Lieutenant General Wang snorted coldly and felt unwilling. He called up his capable men and sent them into the examination room one by one, wanting to compete with him.
Over the next few days, all procedures proceeded smoothly. After a round of screening, around two thousand people successfully passed the test.
Fang Yilan stood on the reviewing platform, looking at the group of elite soldiers below who were full of high spirits. His eyes flashed as he thought of a good name.
——Linqueqi.
Fang Yilan said loudly, "All warriors, please understand that there will be an assessment opportunity every year. Even if you successfully pass this year, don't think that you're done for now. You'll need to participate again next year. If you fail, you'll still be eliminated. Do you understand?"
Everyone below clasped their fists in unison: "Yes!"
*
After Huan Ying's last visit, Fang Yilan gradually came up with the idea of forming the Linque Camp in preparation for the attack on Liangzhou.
The situation in Liangzhou is completely different from that in Ningqiu. In Ningqiu, as long as the support route of the Xiling Army is cut off, the enemy will be isolated and helpless, and will no longer be able to fight back.
On the other hand, Liangzhou was a key fortress painstakingly built by the Xiling Army after it swallowed up the Ruining border. The terrain around it was open and flat, with no dangerous passes to rely on, leaving no room for the use of clever strategies. This battle was destined to be a head-on confrontation.
Moreover, the approaching winter was undoubtedly extremely disadvantageous to the attackers. Fang Yilan was still carrying a military order that was a matter of life and death, so he couldn't delay.
We have to find a way to lure the Xiling Army out of the city, only then will we have a chance of winning.
"Sister Chudie, Miss Xunyun, you are finally here!" Shuxue has always had a sharp eye. When she saw the familiar figure from afar, she immediately greeted them enthusiastically.
Fang Yilan heard the noise and walked out of the study.
Chudie bent her body slightly, covered her mouth with a handkerchief while coughing, and tried to raise the corners of her mouth, greeting everyone one by one with a smile.
Xiao Yue, who had been hiding behind the corridor's pilasters, unexpectedly poked his head out and pulled out a cylindrical object from his pocket. He quickly walked over to Chu Die and shyly handed the object over, whispering, "This is a folk remedy from the mountains. Put it under your nose and smell it; it should help you feel better."
A hint of surprise flashed across Chudie's eyes, and then she quietly thanked him, "I always feel that Master Xiao looks familiar, but I can't remember where he is. Thank you for your concern."
Xiao Yue's face turned slightly red, and he didn't respond. He scratched his head and ran away.
Fang Yilan looked up at the door. Chu Die was so frail and usually stayed at home, so she wouldn't have come so often unless she had something difficult to deal with. At first, she'd thought it was about Xun Yun joining the army, but now it seemed there was more to the story.
"Miss Chudie, you have visited me many times in recent days. I believe you have something important to discuss with the general? How about moving to the study and talking slowly?" The first person to speak was not Fang Yilan, but Zhao Huaixu who came following the voice.
Fang Yilan turned her head to look at him, her eyes clearly saying "You still understand me". Zhao Huaixu accepted the compliment calmly: "It's my job, so it should be done this way."
Chu Die looked at the two of them and couldn't help but chuckle, "I've never been able to hide these things from you two."
In the study,
Chudie slowly spoke: "General, Chudie dares to ask, are we going to attack Liangzhou next?"
Fang Yilan didn't show much surprise at this, and nodded slightly: "I have long been aware of Miss Chudie's ingenious thoughts."
Chu Die picked up the teacup on the table. The tea was still steaming. She sniffed the aroma and said slowly, "General, would you be willing to listen to a story from me?"
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