The First Lackey Under The Empress

Tang Daren… Tang Ping… Who comes up with these weird names…

Inside the carriage, Zhao Du'an forcibly suppressed the urge to complain and flipped through the documents in his hand.

The papers detailed the basic information of the Shenji Camp's officers worth noting.

Ranking first wasn't Commander Shi Meng, but this "Young Duke"… but considering the Duke Zhenguo's status, it was understandable.

"Having someone in court makes it easier to get promoted." Zhao Du'an sighed.

He didn't know much about the Duke Zhenguo, but he knew he was one of the few top military officials in the Dayu Dynasty who held military power.

The title of Duke Zhenguo could be traced back hundreds of years.

The Tang family was also a military family for generations.

Completely different from useless nobles like Marquis Xiajiang.

However, the Duke Zhenguo was stationed in Xiping Dao year-round, far from the capital, so his presence wasn't high.

This generation's Duke Zhenguo originally had an eldest son, but he died unexpectedly. Afterwards, he had several daughters in a row, and finally, Tang Ping.

Therefore, the title of "Young Duke" was transferred from the deceased eldest son to him.

"With such a prominent status, he's just a chiliarch?" Zhao Du'an asked curiously.

Mo Chou snorted, looking like he was making a fuss over nothing, and said:

"The Duke Zhenguo family has strict rules, teaching the younger generations in the family as if they were governing an army. Even the future Duke has to be thrown into the army, starting from the lowest-ranking soldiers…"

Understood… Starting from a soldier and becoming a chiliarch, and in the Shenji Camp, such a safe imperial guard… This promotion speed is already like riding a rocket…

Zhao Du'an understood instantly and expressed his understanding of this behavior of top military officials' children coming to gain experience.

Flipping to the second page, Commander Shi Meng's resume… Average qualifications. Although he was also a military officer, he could only reach this position because of Xue Shence's promotion in addition to his military achievements…

In this case, it made sense that the dignified commander was less important than a chiliarch.

"Zhaorong specifically mentioned this person, wanting me to pay attention. Could it be that he doesn't like me?"

Zhao Du'an tapped the documents with his finger and couldn't help but ask helplessly:

"Just because I got rid of his subordinate? Zhang Changji?"

Mo Chou shook her head and said:

"It's not that serious. Although Zhang Changji was under his command, it's said that he didn't appreciate him either, and he was also connected to Prince Jing's mansion… He wouldn't be angry with you because of this.

To be precise, this Young Duke equally despises everyone he looks down on, and you just happen to be one of them."

"…" Zhao Du'an was unhappy:

"Hasn't he heard my story?"

Mo Chou said helplessly:

"He has, and he's heard too much. Well, this has something to do with your Thousand-Faced Divine Lord."

She briefly explained, and Zhao Du'an finally understood the reason.

Back then, the junior officer killed by the Thousand-Faced Divine Lord used to be in the Jing Camp, and it was said that he had good relationships. His brother also served in the Jing Camp.

Later, he witnessed his brother being assassinated. In a fit of rage, he scolded Zhao Du'an and was severely punished by the Zhao Ya's hounds.

The news spread and aroused the indignation of many comrades in the camp.

In addition, more than half of the people assassinated by the Thousand-Faced Divine Lord were military officers… This led to a considerable number of military officers being extremely dissatisfied with Zhao Du'an.

Therefore, many "embellished" words naturally spread in the major military camps and were learned by Tang Ping, further exacerbating this Young Duke's dislike for him.

"Is the junior officer's brother who caused me trouble also from the Jing Camp?"

Zhao Du'an supported his forehead and suddenly had the urge to turn around and return to the Zhao Prison to whip the Thousand-Faced Divine Lord to vent his anger.

Damn rebel… It must be intentional… He's already been caught, but he's still digging a hole for him.

Mo Chou sighed and said:

"The atmosphere in the military is different from that of civil officials. They value camaraderie extremely. Not to mention the military officers who have a good relationship with Zhang Changji, the Thousand-Faced Divine Lord's actions alone have caused many low-level military officers to have a lot of complaints about you."

Zhao Du'an asked in confusion: "Don't these soldiers have brains?"

Mo Chou smiled noncommittally:

"Do you think they're stupid? No, these pampered and unruly soldiers aren't stupid. Well… as far as I know, many people are indignant.

They feel that a good-for-nothing like you was promoted and rewarded by His Majesty just because of your face, while those who are stronger in martial arts and have more merits haven't been favored… It's extremely unfair."

Zhao Du'an suddenly understood.

He was originally just a small soldier in the imperial guards, but he rose to the sky in one step. What do the other officers and soldiers of the imperial guards think?

It's inevitable that they'll be jealous, it's human nature.

The so-called "fearing that a brother is suffering, even more fearing that a brother is driving a Land Rover"… The emotions of low-level military officers towards Zhao Du'an's promotion are much heavier than those of the civil official group.

Coupled with the trigger of the junior officer's brother being dealt with… It further fermented the hostility.

"Of course, there aren't that many officers who have ill feelings towards you."

Seeing his ugly face, Mo Chou added jokingly:

"To say that they look down on you is more like they think your martial arts are weak. Heh, just like the civil official group looks down on the crudeness of military generals, the military general group also looks down on the black hearts of civil officials…

In the military, only martial arts strength is admirable. They have always looked down on your insidious methods of dealing with people.

Therefore, if you want to gain a foothold in the Shenji Camp, even if your power and tactics are great, the reckless men in the army won't recognize you without martial arts strength that convinces them."

Martial arts?

Zhao Du'an's expression suddenly became subtle.

In fact, to date, there are only a handful of people in the capital who truly understand his progress in martial arts.

The Empress knows the most, followed by Zhang Han and Haitang from the Zhao Prison, and then the rebels of the Kuangfu Society.

No one else knows.

The last time he publicly took action was when he crippled Zhang Changji.

Therefore, in the minds of most people, Zhao Du'an's cultivation is still at the initial or, at most, intermediate stage of the mortal realm.

But little did they know that after the Empress's personal guidance, his martial arts were no longer what they used to be.

"So that's how it is…"

He murmured softly.

Seeing his appearance, Mo Chou thought he felt a lot of pressure. After hesitating for a moment, she still comforted him:

"Saying this is just to give you an understanding of the situation in the Shenji Camp."

The Jing Camp emphasizes strict military discipline. As the newly appointed Vice Commander, you don't need to worry too much. The military is not like the Pear Blossom Hall; insubordination is punished by military law. Even the son of the Duke of Zhen, he must abide by the rules.”

Zhao Du'an smiled, raised his hand, and lifted the carriage curtain.

Looking at the gradually appearing barracks in the early autumn air, he murmured in a barely audible voice:

“It would be better if they didn’t follow the rules…”

He didn't forget that he held the Emperor's promised Sword of Command.

...

...

The Divine Mechanism Camp.

Stationed in the southern suburbs of the capital, overlooking the bamboo forest from when he traveled through time.

It is surrounded by yellow earth walls, with camp houses and a large area of ​​training ground for military training inside.

When Zhao Du'an and his party arrived,

Shi Meng, the Commander of the Divine Mechanism Camp, had already led several officers to stand at the gate to greet them in person.

Seeing a few people getting out of the car one after another, this third-rank commander, who was particularly burly, dark-skinned, with needle-like hair, and with the appearance of a fierce general, immediately laughed “hahaha” and strode forward.

“Mo Zhaorong, Zhao Vice Commander... You two have finally arrived. Old Shi here has been waiting for a long time!”

Zhao Du'an got out of the car at this moment, standing side by side with Mo Chou, curiously looking at the fierce general walking over enthusiastically.

Mo Zhaorong represented the Empress, and at this moment, she looked dignified, smiled and nodded, and introduced the person to Zhao Du'an.

“General Shi has a great appearance, worthy of a great general.”

Zhao Du'an smiled and cupped his fists:

“I will be working under the General from now on.”

Shi Meng pretended to be displeased and said:

“What are you saying, Zhao Vice Commander? When you come to our Divine Mechanism Camp, just treat it as coming home. You and I share the worries of His Majesty, and we should treat each other equally, without distinguishing between high and low!”

A dignified third-rank military officer treated him, a fourth-rank officer, like this.

His posture can be described as very low.

The corners of Mo Chou's mouth raised slightly, nodding with satisfaction, thinking that this Shi Meng was indeed sensible, and there should be no accidents during today's job.

“Hehe.”

Zhao Du'an smiled, and didn't stand on ceremony with him, accepting it happily.

He whispered a few words to his two direct subordinates, Hou Renmeng and Qian Kerou, who followed behind.

The group then entered the camp in a mighty manner.

From afar, you could still hear the soldiers training in the large school field.

Shi Meng explained with a smile:

“It’s autumn, and this period of time is the time for training. Our Divine Mechanism Camp is fully staffed with five thousand, three thousand six infantrymen, one thousand cavalrymen, and less than five hundred rocket soldiers. They are divided into the Central Army, Left and Right Wings, and Left and Right Sentries... a total of five armies, each with one eunuch and one military officer...

“Heh, Zhao Vice Commander is here now, he is the Eunuch Supervisor... Today's training is for the Central Army... It's good to bring the two of you to see the military atmosphere, which is very different from the temples in the city.”

Zhao Du'an asked curiously:

“Why does the training only listen to orders, but there are no gunshots?”

“Gunshots?” The third-rank commander Shi Meng was stunned for a moment, with a puzzled expression on his face, and then said “Oh”:

“Zhao Vice Commander is talking about firearms, right? Today is just an exercise of infantry archers, so you can't hear it.”

Wait... shouldn’t the infantry of the Divine Mechanism Camp also use firearms? What are rocket soldiers... shouldn't they be cannons? Curiosity arose in Zhao Du'an's heart.

He didn't know much about the situation of the Great Yu Divine Mechanism Camp, and only guessed based on inertial thinking.

However, in order to avoid showing timidity, he only suppressed his doubts in his heart.

While speaking, the group bypassed the camp and the front suddenly opened up, which was a huge school field.

At this moment, flags were hunting around the school field, and armored infantrymen, either holding spears or bows and arrows, were practicing in square formations.

Some nearby middle and low-level military officers caught a glimpse of Shi Meng's arrival from afar, and ordered the infantry to stop, turn to this side, and line up to welcome the new commander.

“The Divine Mechanism Camp commander…”

“The squad leader…”

“The Central Army battalion commander… Greetings, Vice Commander!”

In the blink of an eye, a total of dozens of officers came running one after another, cupping their fists to pay their respects.

Zhao Du'an nodded with a smile, and together with Mo Chou, inspected the square formation of thousands of soldiers, feeling like an inspection.

Shi Meng smiled on his face and nodded slightly, thinking that his instructions had indeed worked, and these soldiers performed well.

At least make this Lord Zhao, who was handpicked by His Majesty, and is nominally a Vice Commander, but actually a “supervisor”, happy.

Things will be much easier later.

However, as soon as this thought arose, Shi Meng's eyelids twitched violently.

Hearing the sound of approaching horseshoes, his heart skipped a beat.

Zhao Du'an also heard the sound and raised his head, surprised to see a white-robed young general galloping out of the army from the far end of the school field!

This man rode a rare white horse, and on the horse was a young military officer wearing a white cloak and bright silver armor.

He was about twenty-seven or eight years old, with handsome features and sharp eyes. When galloping on his horse, his horsemanship was evident.

In the thunderous sound of horseshoes, the white-robed officer suddenly raised the iron bow in his hand, and took out three arrows from the quiver on his back, as if flowing water, and placed them on the bowstring.

Drawing the bow and nocking the arrow.

The horse galloped.

Clusters of smoke and dust rose from the ground.

“Swish!”

“Swish!”

“Swish!”

Three arrows turned into afterimages in the gallop, broke through the air, and accurately hit the scarlet bullseye of the three targets in the school field!

“Good!”

“Majestic!”

Someone cheered faintly in the military formation.

Accompanied by the low sound of drums.

The scene prepared to welcome Zhao Du'an seemed to have become a stage for this person to perform archery.

Shi Meng's expression changed drastically, and he cursed “ancestor!” in his heart, almost wanting to curse on the spot.

“General Shi, who is this…”

Unfortunately, Zhao Du'an turned his head to ask him with a smile on his face.

Shi, the commander, who was like a fierce general on the battlefield, but was actually meticulous, moved his lips and had to reluctantly smile:

“He is Tang Ping, a thousand households in the camp.”

That young duke?

Zhao Du'an raised his eyebrows.

At this time, the sound of drums gradually stopped, the white-robed officer reined in his horse and came to the crowd, jumped off his horse.

In Shi Meng's extremely ugly expression, he faced Zhao Du'an, bowed slightly, as if saluting.

But he held up a pair of iron-tired bows with both hands and said loudly:

“General Tang Ping, in accordance with military tradition, invites General Zhao to perform martial arts!”