Tang Yao, the second son of the affluent Tang family in Youzhou, claimed to be a illegitimate son and suffered humiliation since childhood. But this might all be nonsense. Although Zhou Fugui was still unaware of Tang Yao's true identity and his past, how could he not realize his identity was far from ordinary? Or perhaps...? In short, he was incredibly mysterious.
What kind of place was the Great Yan military camp? It was a place of extreme security. If ordinary people approached, they would be shot or killed. Yet Tang Yao moved in and out freely. Based on this alone, Zhou Fugui could tell his identity was extraordinary.
Even if Tang Yao were a supreme master, he couldn't move in and out so freely. No matter how high his martial arts, he couldn't withstand a barrage of arrows.
The jade token at Tang Yao's waist also corroborated Zhou Fugui's judgment.
"Who were we supposed to kill?" Zhou Fugui asked, his brows furrowed as he pondered his thoughts.
"Someone who could cause your entire clan to be wiped out." Tang Yao walked up to Zhou Fugui, looked at the sandalwood box in his hand, and chuckled, "But that matter is past. The reason was Princess Ziyue. Brother Fugui, you are truly remarkable, tsk tsk tsk, remarkable."
"Remarkable for what? No matter how remarkable I am, I'm not as remarkable as you," Zhou Fugui said, glaring at Tang Yao.
"I wouldn't dare compare myself to you, Brother Fugui," Tang Yao said, picking up the golden silk soft armor from the sandalwood box and asking, "Do you know what this is?"
"A jacket or a vest?" Zhou Fugui looked at the shining golden silk soft armor, feeling utterly puzzled. He didn't know what it was, only that it was beautiful.
"A jacket? A vest?" Tang Yao was speechless upon hearing this. He almost wished he could impale this ignorant person with his sword. He said with a wry smile, "You call the treasure of our Great Yan country a jacket or a vest?"
"The treasure of our country? What is it?" Zhou Fugui asked.
"The Ao Long Heavenly Silkworm Purple Gold Armor," Tang Yao replied. "It can defend against blades, spears, and arrowheads."
"Oh, really?" Zhou Fugui touched the Ao Long Heavenly Silkworm Purple Gold Armor, not entirely convinced.
"Really?" Tang Yao saw Zhou Fugui's skeptical look and said somewhat angrily, "Don't be ungrateful and reject someone's good intentions."
"Are you referring to Princess Ziyue?" Zhou Fugui asked.
"Who do you think?" Tang Yao rolled his eyes at Zhou Fugui and asked, "Do you know who the princess is?"
"A princess is a princess, who else could she be?" Zhou Fugui shot back, glaring at Tang Yao.
"Zhou Fugui, are you doing this deliberately?" Tang Yao's face darkened. "Princess Ziyue is known as the 'Ice Beauty' of our Great Yan, cold and aloof. Yet, with you, she's laughing and talking. Brother Fugui, you truly have something special. You've actually seduced Princess Ziyue? Many nobles and sons of wealthy families have tried in vain, but you, Zhou Fugui, have gotten there first!"
"Haha, my brother, stop joking..." Zhou Fugui couldn't help but shake his head and laugh. "The word 'seduced' is used improperly, brother. How exalted is the princess, and what kind of person am I? I am but a humble person from Youzhou, how could I dare to presume? Your words, brother, are a disgrace to the princess."
"Hmm, you know what's good for you," Tang Yao nodded. "Matters of Great Yan are higher than heaven and deeper than the sea. From now on, watch your step."
"Oh, Brother Tang, are you leaving?" Zhou Fugui said with great reluctance.
With Tang Yao as a "super bodyguard," plus the Ao Long Heavenly Silkworm Purple Gold Armor, Zhou Fugui's chances of survival would greatly increase.
"If I don't leave, are you going to treat me to drinks?" Tang Yao chuckled.
"Haha, mere wine and food, what's the big deal?" Zhou Fugui smiled and tried to persuade him, "Stay here. I will follow your lead."
"Forget it, don't be so self-deceptive," Tang Yao shook his head.
"Alas, it seems my brother is determined to leave?" Zhou Fugui sighed. "Where are you going? Why don't I host you for a night of drinking until we can't stop, and then a night of deep conversation?"
Upon hearing the words "a night of deep conversation," Tang Yao's face flushed slightly. However, wearing a human skin mask, Zhou Fugui couldn't see it.
"All feasts must eventually end..." Tang Yao ignored Zhou Fugui and turned to walk out of the tent.
"The river is shallow at the bank, I rein in my horse to pass by briefly. My riding clothes are damp from splashing water, my horse's hooves churn through the waves. Half the city emerges from behind the trees, the long forest lies straight by the river. Today, a knight-errant, unafraid of the wind and dust."
From outside the tent, Tang Yao's poem could be faintly heard.
"A good poem!" Zhou Fugui praised, but Tang Yao had already vanished.
He just left? A dragon that shows its head but not its tail. Zhou Fugui clicked his tongue and thought to himself, he hadn't even asked about his identity, whether he was male or female, and he's already gone?
Killing one person in ten steps, without leaving a trace for a thousand miles. After the deed, he brushes his clothes and departs, hiding his name deep within.
Is his ambition to be a chivalrous hero? Zhou Fugui secretly speculated.
Let him do whatever he wants, this mysterious person. Zhou Fugui stopped thinking about him and sat on the bed made of furs, gently stroking the cool Ao Long Heavenly Silkworm Purple Gold Armor.
Does the princess truly have feelings for me? Zhou Fugui thought to himself. That seems unlikely, doesn't it? Zhou Fugui still refused to believe it.
Perhaps she was merely being courteous to a worthy subordinate, or trying to win over a subordinate to make them fight for her? I must not misunderstand, Zhou Fugui thought again.
Even if the princess had feelings, and he also had feelings, their social statuses were too mismatched. In this world, how could a marriage be easily achieved? It was harder than climbing to heaven.
Whether she has feelings or not, a great battle is imminent. Whether I live or die is still unknown. Why am I torturing myself and agonizing over this now?
With this thought, Zhou Fugui tossed the sandalwood box and the Ao Long Heavenly Silkworm Purple Gold Armor aside, lay down on the furs, and fell into a deep sleep.
...
Several days later, the Yan army camp.
"White Tiger Camp, the entire army form ranks!"
What was bound to come, would eventually come. Days later, the Great Commander of the Yan army, Murong Bole, issued an order, commanding his vast army to capture the city of Guangling within three days, or all officers from Murong Bole downwards would be executed. Murong Bole himself would commit suicide to show his loyalty to the court and to the Great Khan.
This was a death order, a command of life or death, an order of no retreat. Therefore, all officers and soldiers from Murong Bole downwards received the order with solemnity and trepidation, as if walking on thin ice.
Zhou Fugui and the White Tiger Camp under his command dared not disobey the order. Thus, on this day, Zhou Fugui assembled nearly three thousand troops.
Three thousand soldiers of the White Tiger Camp formed an orderly formation, standing in the biting cold wind.
Spears and halberds stood like a forest, long sabers gleamed like snow, and a white tiger banner fluttered in the wind.
Zhou Fugui, fully armored, rode a majestic warhorse, his posture upright, slowly drawing his saber. He looked at the three thousand soldiers of the White Tiger Camp, silent, his expression a mixture of determination and hesitation, of melancholy and slight relief, his expression extremely complex.
The majority of the three thousand soldiers of the White Tiger Camp were conscripted Han soldiers, mostly from the sixteen prefectures of You and Yun. There were old, middle-aged, and young men. Old and young alike stood proudly before Zhou Fugui.
Fine wine from grapes, a jade cup under the moonlight, the pipa urges us to drink. Lying drunk on the battlefield, my lord, do not laugh; since ancient times, how many have returned from war?
Of these three thousand heads, how many could return to their homeland? How many of these three thousand heads would be buried here?
Zhou Fugui's hesitation and melancholy stemmed from this. His determination and relief came from the fact that this day had finally arrived, and Zhou Fugui had to lead as many of them as possible back to their homeland, to avoid dying in a foreign land and being unable to return even their souls.
"Gentlemen!" After a long silence, Zhou Fugui pointed to a pile of gold, silver, money, silk, and brocade laid out neatly beside him and asked, "What is this?"
Everyone was puzzled. If it wasn't treasure, what else could it be? Then what was the meaning of Zhou Fugui's question?
"It's gold and silver, treasures! Is the camp commander rewarding us?" The Jie man Buge rode, stroking his large mustache, asked with a smile.
Everyone laughed at this.
The rewards were naturally for the army, but not all of them could be distributed. If all were distributed, what would be left to motivate the troops in the future? Besides, rewards were usually given after the battle.
But to their surprise, Zhou Fugui nodded and said loudly, "That's right, it's gold, silver, and treasures. These things cannot be brought with you when you are born, nor taken with you when you die. What use do I have for them? Today, I will leave not a single copper behind. It will all be rewarded to you all."
"The camp commander is truly generous!"
"Your Lordship, won't you keep any for yourself?"
Everyone was overjoyed and praised Zhou Fugui profusely.
Most of them were forced to be here. The distribution of spoils in the Yan army was first for the Xianbei, Di, Qiang, and Jie peoples, and then for the Han army from Yan and Yun. Thus, very little reached their hands, and being able to eat their fill was a blessing.
But the gold, silver, and treasures that Zhou Fugui spoke of, which could not be brought with them when they died, were not something they agreed with.
If they fought desperately and gained nothing, wouldn't their efforts be in vain? Wouldn't they have risked their lives for nothing?
If they died in battle, so be it. But if they survived and brought back wealth, they could buy land, buy many cattle and sheep, and so on, which would greatly improve their family's situation.
"However, I have something to say," Zhou Fugui continued loudly. "We are all people who have left our homes. We have parents, brothers, and sisters at home. When the war begins, life and death are uncertain. The living can naturally return to their homeland, but those who die in battle should not have died in vain, having gained nothing, and their families receiving nothing. Therefore, I issue an order: the living must take the possessions of the deceased back to their homes, and they must bring back the ashes of the deceased, no matter how difficult. This is my first order, and any violation will be punished by heaven!"
"We obey the camp commander's order!"
"Camp commander..."
With this order from Zhou Fugui, everyone responded loudly, willingly accepting it. At the same time, it moved the three thousand soldiers of the White Tiger Camp to tears, many of them weeping with emotion.
This order from Zhou Fugui resolved their worries and settled their affairs.
He who wins the hearts of his army will surely be wholeheartedly supported by them. He who wins the hearts of his army can control the three armies. This has always been the case.
Zhou Fugui had won the hearts of his army.