Lieutenant Zhao Kui was the first to react, taking a step forward and smoothly opening the wooden door of the general's study.
Outside, the messenger was excited and panting heavily.
Zhao Kui pressed on, "What did you say? The imperial court allocated seven million taels of silver for military pay?"
Um!
The messenger nodded emphatically and replied with certainty, "Reporting to the General and General Zhao, General He is personally escorting the military supplies and is on his way to Mozhou City."
"General He was worried that the Grand General was anxious, so he specially ordered me to ride back at full speed to report to the Grand General that the imperial court had allocated seven million taels of silver for military pay!"
The messenger, breathless, eventually managed to recount the whole story clearly.
The General He he mentioned was the escort officer in the Tiger Warriors' New Army, a military commander responsible for escorting grain, supplies, and pay.
Hahaha!
Upon hearing this, Wu Sanjia, the mighty general and commander-in-chief, could no longer contain his joy and burst into laughter.
His rugged face had shed its former gloom, replaced by an aura of domineering confidence.
The new army is invincible if its pay is not full; if its pay is full, it is invincible.
This is by no means just empty talk.
Wu Sanjia was confident that, with the generous military reward, the Tiger Legion would be able to replicate the great victory at Mozhou a month ago and once again inflict heavy losses on the rebels in Longcheng.
He immediately commanded domineeringly, "Deputy General Zhao Kui, listen to my order!"
"Your subordinate is here!"
Wu Sanjia said, "This general orders you to personally lead two thousand elite cavalry to meet the supply train. After receiving He Kui, return to Mozhou City at top speed."
"The seven million taels of silver allocated by the imperial court need not be registered or put into the treasury; just take it directly to the drill ground for me."
"With a major battle imminent, I, the general, will reward the troops on the training ground to boost morale!"
"Your subordinate obeys!"
......
Three days later.
Inside Mozhou City, at the training ground of the Tiger Warriors' new army camp.
Banners fluttered in the wind, and soldiers stood like a forest.
Apart from the Tiger Legion soldiers who were on duty and preparing for battle on the city walls of Mozhou, the rest of the Tiger Legion soldiers in the city gathered in the drill ground.
More than 100,000 soldiers, clad in armor and armed with swords, assembled in formation according to their different troop types.
At first glance, it was a vast, dark army, its momentum imposing and its presence overwhelming.
On the parade ground, the wooden reviewing stand was reinforced by soldiers overnight, and countless standard silver ingots of the Great Xin Dynasty were piled up on the reviewing stand into a small mountain.
The early summer sun shone brightly on the mountains of gleaming silver ingots, reflecting a dazzling light.
It's practically a mountain of silver!
Below the reviewing stand stood the general's personal guards, clad in fish-scale armor and wielding ring-pommel swords, faithfully guarding the silver mountain.
On the training ground, the Tiger Legion soldiers, lined up in formation, had already been drawn to the mountain of silver ingots piled up on the reviewing stand.
The vast majority of these soldiers came from impoverished backgrounds.
One might spend their entire life without ever having the chance to see an official fifty-tael silver ingot.
Moreover, it was a true mountain of silver made up of silver ingots.
The visual and psychological impact of this silver mountain on the rank-and-file soldiers of the Tiger Army is self-evident.
Soldiers in countless formations couldn't help but crane their necks and look up, their eyes never leaving the silver mountain.
Every now and then, he would raise his hand to wipe his eyes, as if afraid that he was dreaming or that he was seeing things under the sun.
If it weren't for military discipline and the constraints imposed by officers, these impoverished Tiger Warriors would probably have already rushed onto the reviewing stand, looted silver ingots, and divided up their pay among themselves.
It was just past 9 AM.
On the Daxin Tiger Army Training Ground, which can accommodate 100,000 people, the sounds of drums and horns resounded.
Amidst the deep, resounding beat of drums and bugles, hundreds of messengers roared in unison: "The General has arrived—"
As soon as he finished speaking, Wu Sanjia, the Grand General of the Great Xin Dynasty, clad in bright armor and with a ring-pommel sword at his waist, strode in with a powerful and majestic presence.
Behind him stood a group of Tiger Warriors generals, led by Vice General Zhao Kui.
They were all clad in armor and carried swords, their spirits high.
Wu Sanjia stepped onto the reviewing stand and stood right in the middle of Yinshan, becoming the focus of attention for more than 100,000 Tiger Army soldiers below.
Looking at the mighty army below the stage, Wu Sanjia was filled with excitement and heroic sentiments.
At this moment, he finally fulfilled his promise to his soldiers.
Furthermore, he must lead the Tiger Warriors to achieve even greater success and severely defeat the rebel army in Longcheng!
"Soldiers of the Tiger Army of the Great Xin Dynasty—"
Wu Sanjia roared, his voice shattering the heavens.
Below the reviewing stand, hundreds of military messengers roared in unison, repeating the general's words verbatim.
This was to ensure that every Tiger Warrior present could hear the General's words.
Wu Sanjia continued, "A month ago, right here, I solemnly promised all of you that in my Tiger Legion, there would never be any instances of soldiers being exploited or soldiers receiving pay without working."
"Furthermore, I assure you that you will receive your due wages and military rewards for killing the enemy, not a single copper coin will be shortchanged."
"Today is the day I, the general, fulfill my promise to you all!"
At this point, Wu Sanjia deliberately paused for a moment.
It's unclear whether it was out of excitement or because he wanted to give the messenger in the audience time to repeat his words.
A moment later, Wu Sanjia pointed to the silver mountain behind him and said again, "Soldiers, there are seven million taels of silver here!"
"After deducting the wages and military rewards that you are entitled to, there will still be two million taels of silver remaining!"
"Furthermore, this general has decided to combine the 200,000 taels of silver bestowed upon him by the imperial court with this amount, bringing the total to 2.2 million taels."
"This portion of the silver will be used entirely for military rewards!"
Wu Sanjia, panting heavily, shouted, "Soldiers, I'm sure you've all sensed the danger before the great battle!"
"Here, I have no intention of hiding anything from you soldiers!"
"That's right, we are indeed going to war!"
"Fight a major, fierce battle!"
With that, Wu Sanjia drew his sword, raised the ring-pommel sword high with one hand, and shouted, "A great battle is imminent, and I hereby declare—"
"From this day forward, the reward for killing an enemy soldier in my Tiger Legion will be increased from thirty taels of silver for each enemy head to fifty taels of silver for each enemy head!"
"Once you're on the battlefield, if you can behead one enemy soldier, you'll immediately receive a reward of fifty taels of silver."
"If you can behead ten enemy soldiers, you can immediately receive a reward of five hundred taels of silver!"
At this moment, in the Tiger Legion's ranks below the platform, a bold soldier in the front row near the reviewing stand suddenly spoke up and asked loudly:
"General, what if I could behead a hundred enemy soldiers?"
snort!
On the reviewing stand, Wu Sanjia sneered and shouted angrily, "Then you'd better get the hell out of here! This general hates boastful soldiers the most!"
Hahaha!
Upon hearing this, laughter erupted across the vast training ground.
The Tiger Legion soldier who had boasted about killing a hundred enemy soldiers scratched his head sheepishly amidst the laughter.
Finally, when the soldiers had finished laughing, they were done laughing.
Wu Sanjia then waved his hand, signaling the generals to quiet down.
He continued, "Soldiers, with a great battle imminent, I will not speak to you of empty rhetoric about soldiers being loyal to their country and dying on the battlefield."
"To this general, there is only one sentence, one promise—"
"The more enemies you kill during your lifetime, the greater your military reward."
"Even if you die on the battlefield, there's no need to worry. I will take care of your wife, children, and elderly parents."
After saying that, Wu Sanjia smoothly sheathed his sword.
Looking at the massive army of Tiger Warriors thronging below the stage, he smiled and said, "Alright, enough talk, brothers, line up to collect your pay and rewards!"
"General, you are mighty!"
"General, you are mighty!"
"General, you are mighty!"
Below the stage, the passionate Tiger Legion soldiers couldn't help but cheer from the bottom of their hearts.
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