Chapter 689: Chapter 286: Zhou Yuan’s Dilemma, Changbai Gully
It’s a pity that thinking is one thing.
Actually doing it is quite another thing.
Originally, according to Li Xuanling’s idea, he would be the New Army Captain, and the four colonels below would also be all taken by outsiders, but the Li Family members in the council weren’t willing.
In the month since the formation of the new army, the Li Family members in the council showcased their prowess, directly securing all four colonel positions.
Currently among the four colonels, not to mention Li Yuankai and Li Yuanqing, who are directly from the Li Family; Cheng He and Song Ning, although sons of Cheng Guang and Song Kang, are also grandsons of Li Tiancheng, making them the Li Family’s relatives by marriage.
Of course, Zhou Yuan as the Capital Commandant is still the highest commander of the new army.
The problem is, with four direct subordinates leading troops, all being from the Li Family, how much authority does he have left as the Capital Commandant?
From the four just questioning him, one can see some clues.
Not to mention, among the four, the only one who truly meets his standards is Cheng He.
Li Yuankai, Li Yuanqing, and Song Ning have only broken through the Cold Resistance Level for a few months at most, their strength is average, their experience outside is lacking, and worse, they have arrogant personalities with poor reputations in the camp.
"Take it slow, the leader made me this Capital Commandant, also under the pressure of those Li Family people, no matter what, I can’t let her trust down!"
Zhou Yuan sighed softly, moved to the army’s flank, and continued urging.
......
Three kilometers east of the convoy.
Seeing Cheng He gazing far into the surroundings, really searching around, Li Yuanqing shook his head and said, "Cheng He, you’re really scouting?"
In front, Cheng He paused slightly, turned his head with a look of confusion.
Seeing his expression, Li Yuanqing sneered, "Hou Hu has already switched to our Long Mountain, who in the whole of Longyou would dare have ideas against us now? Surely it won’t be that camp called Great Xia?"
He continued without waiting for Cheng He’s response, "Zhou Yuan, the New Army Captain, was appointed by the leader against all opposition. He’s afraid of messing up and being removed by the council, his excessive tension is understandable."
Hearing this, Cheng He bowed his head in silence for a moment, then looked at Li Yuanqing and said, "Caution is not mistaken, especially for a newly established army."
"Tch..."
Li Yuanqing sneered, showing disdain, "No matter how careful, this new Army Captain Zhou Yuan can’t last long either. As an outsider, trying to grasp military power, it’s a dream!"
Hearing this last sentence, Cheng He’s pupils narrowed slightly, but he kept his composure and replied calmly, "But he was appointed by the leader personally. I understand the abilities of Uncle Zhou, he has the strength, capability, and troop-leading skills. As long as the leader supports him, it won’t be easy for the council to remove him from the Capital Commandant position either."
His father, Cheng Guang, was one of the Longshan Eight Great Vajra along with Zhou Yuan, so by seniority, he indeed had to call Zhou Yuan Uncle.
Cheng He had a certain understanding of this Uncle Zhou Yuan.
Longshan Eight Great Vajra were the direct subordinates trained by Li Tianhua in the early years. Zhou Yuan, with Late-stage Cold Resistance strength, ranks first among the Eight Great Vajra. Not to mention, when Li Tianhua created the first Longyou Army, the first Commanding Officer was Zhou Yuan.
There’s not much doubt about Zhou Yuan’s ability and strength in the camp. In fact, if it weren’t for his outsider identity, he was clearly more qualified than the three Li Xuantiang brothers to lead the Longyou Army.
Li Yuanqing obviously understood this too. Hearing Cheng He’s words, he paused momentarily but quickly resumed sneering, "This has nothing to do with strength or capability. Zhou Yuan has failed to position himself properly. If he really stabilizes this Capital Commandant position, outsiders in the camp might all want a piece of military power once there’s a precedent, then what?"
He paused slightly and smiled at Cheng He, "Cheng He, you wouldn’t consider yourself an outsider, would you?"
Cheng He’s face paused and then shook his head, "Of course not."
Cheng He’s mother was Li Tiancheng’s second daughter, Li Xuanyue, making him a relative of the Li Family by marriage, so he wasn’t really considered an outsider.
"That’s good!"
Li Yuanqing nodded and continued walking forward.
Cheng He watched Li Yuanqing’s back for a while, a hint of disgust flashed in his eyes but was quickly concealed, then he called out:
"Enough, we’re almost four kilometers from the army, let’s go back and report!"
Li Yuanqing clearly had no intention of returning, waved his hand and said, "It’s hard to get away from the army and catch a breath, I don’t want to go back so early. Up ahead is Changbai Gully, Zhou Yuan wanted us to scout, might as well take a look."
Cheng He stood in place for a moment, looked back to see the army no longer in sight, a hint of hesitation crossed his face, but seeing Li Yuanqing already walking east, he still followed along.
Most of Longyou is plains, but it’s not all smooth paths.
For example, Changbai Gully is a typical example.
Changbai Gully is a deep gully east of Changning, extending north to south, with a total length of about a dozen kilometers, over twenty meters wide, and more than a hundred meters deep.
The characteristic of Changning Camp’s territory is its long and narrow north-south stretch. This Changbai Gully almost runs through half of Changning’s entire territory. To go east from Changning into White Abyss territory, one must either take the wooden bridge over the gully or detour north or south.
"Changning used to be really poor, a gully over twenty meters wide and they only built such a narrow wooden bridge. It’s no wonder they say it takes five hours, the army detours south, adding five or six kilometers to the journey for nothing."