Volume 1, Chapter 37: Deep in the Night, Under the Bright Moon, the Young Man Proves His Loyalty

Li Shandao was no saint. Having arrived in this era over two months ago, he had lived a life of celibacy; it was hardly surprising that, when faced with such a seductive posture from a beautiful young girl right before his eyes, he would harbor certain fantasies. Furthermore, as the saying goes, "Judge by deeds, not by heart." Whether a person is a gentleman or a good man is determined by their actions; if one were to judge solely by thoughts, there would be no one who is not wicked, and that is hardly worth mentioning.

That night, with Guo'er attending to him, Li Shandao felt thoroughly satisfied.

In the height of his pleasure, he gasped and praised her earnestly: "Good girl, as for talent, I never expected that those cherry lips of yours would be so adept. Tomorrow, I shall find you a bamboo flute. In our leisure, I shall sit and listen; it will be enough to cultivate the spirit."

The valley was bright with moonlight that night, and the room was filled with the fragrance of flowers. Such idle chatter, however, need not be recounted further.

The next morning, the training began once more.

Though he was quite exhausted from the night before, the memory of his brush with death on the battlefield a few days prior remained fresh. True to the resolution he had made yesterday, Li Shandao steeled himself and followed through. Before the drills commenced, he first toughened his resolve and strength, lifting the stone lock fifty times.

Once the training began, he no longer merely sat on the low platform to observe. With his hands behind his back, he patrolled between the two squads and the single fire team.

Compared to the training days before the battle, it was clear that Li Shandao was not the only one who had learned a painful lesson. Most of the hundred or so men in the two squads and the fire team had shed their lethargy, and their attitude toward the drills had become much more serious.

After a full day of training, the results were even better than the previous three days combined.

In just this one day, the first phase of training—commanding through drums, horns, and flags—was essentially mastered. The squad-level drills were now fluent, and tomorrow they could organize the squads into larger units to begin the second phase: training by squads and brigades.

That evening, Wang Zhande’s logistics services were also well-managed. He purchased high-quality meat early, and with Luo Zhong as the head chef and Kang Sanzang, his young slave, and Guo'er assisting, they boiled a large pot. Accompanied by vegetables and flatbread, the men, who had trained all day, enjoyed a hearty meal.

After nightfall, everyone returned to their huts and shacks to sleep.

In the distance, frogs croaked in chorus, and the sounds of deep slumber rose throughout the valley.

Once again, the moonlight was bright, the flowers were fragrant, and there was a unique charm to the night.

The following day, the second phase of the flag and drum training was conducted.

By the afternoon, two or three wheelbarrows appeared outside the valley, pushed by a few subordinates led by Liu Hu'er.

Li Shandao went out to greet them. It was Liu Hu'er bringing the rewards issued by Zhai Rang, along with the dividends from the previous ship raid—Kang Sanzang’s goods had finally been sold off two days prior. One cart was filled with rewards, while the other two contained his share of the spoils.

After thanking Liu Hu'er and seeing him off, Li Shandao ordered Gao Chounu and the others to push the carts into the valley.

Wang Xuda ran over, his eyes darting toward the carts, and asked with a sycophantic smile, "Master, have the rewards arrived?"

"Tell the brothers to stop training for now," Li Shandao commanded. He then stood on the low platform and ordered Gao Chounu and the others to line up the wheelbarrows in front of the stage and remove the felt coverings.

The troops, who were practicing flag and drum maneuvers by squad, paused their training and, led by Wang Xuda and Chen Jing'er, approached the platform. Everyone was drenched in sweat and covered in dust. Some stood on their tiptoes, like Wang Xuda, eager to peer into the carts; others merely glanced, showing less urgency.

When the whispering and buzzing died down, Li Shandao shouted, "Brothers! The rewards for our battle at the Weicheng sub-camp have been issued by Zhai Gong! Look, the first cart on the left contains them. The goods in the remaining two carts are not rewards from that battle, but the dividends from the time I followed Elder Brother Xu to intercept the tribute—before you were all assigned to my command."

Most of them had already seen clearly: the first wheelbarrow contained silk fabrics, strings of copper coins, some silver utensils, and five gold cakes. The second and third carts also contained silk and gold, but the total amount was certainly far greater than the first.

One might wonder, why would the reward for a battle be less than the dividend from a single tribute raid? Was Zhai Rang being stingy? In truth, no. There were two reasons for the larger dividend. First, the raid on Kang Sanzang was a rare, major job—so big that it required both Shan Xiongxin and Xu Shiji to lead it, just as they had led the engagement against Luo Shi-xin. A bigger job meant more profit and, consequently, a larger share. Second, Xu Shiji had taken a portion of his own dividend and added it to Li Shandao’s share—a fact Liu Hu'er had mentioned just moments before.

To prevent the men from feeling that the camp’s rewards were unfair, which might dampen their spirits for future battles, Li Shandao took care to explain these two reasons why his share was larger than theirs.

After finishing his explanation, he paused and looked around at the crowd again. Observing their expressions—from sudden realization to a lingering envy of his large share—he raised his voice and said generously, "Brothers, although these last two carts contain the dividends given to me by the camp, it is said that 'a thousand pieces of gold are but a hair, but loyalty is heavier than a mountain!' Compared to the loyalty we share as brothers, what are these mere worldly goods? I am willing to take them and share them among you all!"

Wealth moves the heart, and gold and silver dazzle the eyes. Who doesn't love silk and gold? Especially two carts full of it? The value was easily hundreds of thousands. If taken back to their hometowns to buy land and fields, becoming a simple wealthy man would be no problem. Had it been any one of them, they would likely have retired on the spot and returned home to enjoy the comfort. Yet, Li Shandao was willing to share these riches with them? Upon hearing this, the hundred or so men, including Wang Xuda, were astonished, unable to believe their ears!

Wang Xuda asked, "Master, you are willing to share so much wealth with us?"

Wang Xuda then asked, "May I ask, Master, how will the ten-day grand inspection be conducted?"

"We have two squads and one fire team. The ten-day inspection will be conducted by squad, in the form of a mock battle."

Wang Xuda said, "Master, do you mean the two squads will fight each other?"

"Exactly! The winning squad will be deemed to have performed excellently. From your squad leaders and deputies down to every single man in the squad, all shall be rewarded!"

Wang Xuda was high-spirited and replied, "Master’s method for this inspection is excellent! I shall follow your orders!" He then hesitated and asked, "Master, what about Brother Qin’s fire team?"

"When the time for the inspection comes, the brothers in Jingsi’s fire team will be divided and added to your two squads."

Wang Xuda’s doubts vanished. "Good! We shall do as you say!"

Chen Jing'er and Luo Zhong, of course, had no objections.

Li Shandao asked the hundred men below, and they all responded with a roar of agreement, accepting the order.

Thus, the training protocols were further refined, and the principle of "teamwork" was formally incorporated into the drills.

The rewards from the first wheelbarrow were distributed on the spot; everyone whose name was in the merit book received their share. Those who were injured or killed in action were compensated accordingly. As for those who had neither rendered merit nor suffered injury, they also received a reward, though it was much smaller by comparison.

The smallness of the reward did not matter; with the overflowing wealth in the other two carts serving as a foundation, the men’s enthusiasm for training was boosted even further.

After the rewards were distributed, the training continued.

Li Shandao called Kang Sanzang over and instructed him, "These two carts of goods are the dividends I received from selling your cargo. Facing you, the original owner, I must confess, I feel quite ashamed."

"However, upon reflection, I realized that I earned these riches by risking my neck; they were gained through my own hard work. Thinking of it this way, my shame is somewhat diminished."

Kang Sanzang opened his mouth and hurriedly changed the subject, "Yes, yes, it is all that you rightfully deserve, Master!"

"Sanzang, regarding the gold, silver, and coins from my share—we shall set those aside. But as for the silk and cloth, the mountains are often damp, and our valley lacks dry storage. Over time, I fear they will rot. You were a cloth merchant; you must have much experience in preserving silk and fabrics. You heard just now that these are very important—they are the prizes to be used in our training, and they must not be damaged. I am entrusting the task of storing these to you. Do you have the confidence to keep them well?"

Kang Sanzang felt bitter inside, with nowhere to vent, but he forced a smile and replied, "Rest assured, Master, I will do my utmost to keep them safe!"

"With your word, I am at ease." Li Shandao ordered Gao Chounu, Guo'er, and the others to take the gold and silver out of the remaining two carts and place them in the hut, while the remaining silk and cloth were handed over to Kang Sanzang on the spot, with him held responsible for their preservation.

With the rewards distributed and even greater wealth designated as future prizes, the training in the valley resumed with renewed vigor, the men’s energy levels doubled.

Meanwhile, on the southern slope of the mountain, in a house by the water, several men were currently quite troubled.

These men were none other than Li Mi, Fang Yanzao, and Wang Bodang.

Fang Yanzao paced back and forth in the room. He reached the doorway, poked his head out, and looked around. Seeing only the attendants of Li Mi and Wang Bodang, along with wild trees, tangled vines, and a murmuring stream, with no one else in sight, he pulled his head back and turned to Li Mi. "Li Gong, do not hesitate any longer! We have been in the camp for many days. Zhai Rang is but a rustic boor with no vision. Although you have explained the situation of the realm to him many times, he remains unenlightened. He is still indifferent toward you and has yet to give a straight answer, let alone say whether he is willing to accept you into the fold, let alone promote you! Furthermore, people like Wang Ruxin are greedy and possessive, harboring great hostility toward you. If we do not make a decision soon, I fear Zhai Rang will eventually be swayed by Wang Ruxin and the others, and will ultimately refuse to let you stay in the camp! In that case, haven't we come here for nothing?"

Li Mi hesitated and said, "That may be so, but Jia Xiong is the strategist of the camp and Zhai Rang’s confidant. If we rashly bribe him, and he turns around and sells us out, reporting our bribe to Zhai Rang, would we not lose our place in Wagang entirely?"

They had been in Wagang for many days, yet had not received a word from Zhai Rang confirming that Li Mi could stay. Fang Yanzao and the others were anxious, which led Fang Yanzao to suggest that Li Mi should bribe Jia Xiong to persuade Zhai Rang to accept Li Mi.

Jia Xiong was the strategist of Wagang and deeply trusted by Zhai Rang. If he were willing to speak for Li Mi, Zhai Rang would indeed be very likely to accept him. However, Li Mi’s hesitation was not without reason—Jia Xiong was, after all, Zhai Rang’s confidant. What if he betrayed them? What were their intentions in bribing the strategist? Zhai Rang might fly into a rage immediately.

Thus, even though Fang Yanzao had proposed this suggestion for two or three days, Li Mi remained indecisive.

Wang Bodang pondered for a moment and said, "My lord, I have a plan that can ensure we do not have to worry about Jia Xiong betraying us."

"What is the plan? Speak quickly."