My Words Were Just Drunken Talk!

The lively atmosphere in the air seemed to cool a few degrees at his words.

Zhang Xueming met his gaze without flinching and nodded frankly.

"Uncle Wu, I need a tough officer who truly understands horses and dares to charge into battle, someone who can help me lead a new unit."

Wu Junsheng snorted, lifted his glass, and drained it in one go.

He neither agreed nor disagreed. He merely beckoned to an adjutant standing not far away.

"Go. Fetch Ma Xiufeng, who's stationed in Hailun!"

The adjutant took the order and left.

Only then did Wu Junsheng turn his gaze back to Zhang Xueming, his eyes carrying a trace of scrutiny and amusement.

"That kid Ma Xiufeng is the wildest horse under my command—a real firebrand. If you can't rein him in, don't say I didn't warn you."

Zhang Xueming smiled but said nothing.

He knew Wu Junsheng was both putting him on notice and testing him.

Soon, a burly, dark-skinned officer strode over, following the adjutant.

He walked in a distinctive way, his legs slightly spread and his steps steady and powerful. Anyone could tell he'd spent years dealing with horses.

A lingering smell of gunpowder and dust clung to him, completely at odds with this banquet hall full of perfume and cigar smoke.

It was Ma Xiufeng.

"Governor-General, you sent for me?"

Ma Xiufeng gave a military salute. His voice rang out, rough-edged like a man from the northern plains.

His eyes swept over Zhang Xueming, with a hint of scrutiny that was hard to detect.

Clearly, he'd also heard of this Young Marshal, who had slaughtered Western bandits on the battlefield.

Wu Junsheng pointed to Zhang Xueming and spoke in a tone that brooked no argument.

"Ma Xiufeng, starting today, you and your regiment are being transferred to Fengtian. You'll join the Independent Guard Brigade and take orders from Brigadier General Zhang."

"That's an order!"

Ma Xiufeng's expression froze instantly.

He jerked his head up to look at Wu Junsheng, then glanced at Zhang Xueming, who stood calmly beside him. His eyes brimmed with disbelief and a trace of anger at the insult.

"Governor-General!"

His voice rose an octave.

"I'm a soldier who leads troops into battle, not some young master's bodyguard!"

"Isn't this Independent Guard Brigade just the Young Marshal's personal guard? I'm not going! If you want me to go, you'll have to shoot me!"

The moment those words left his mouth, the air around them nearly froze.

Wu Junsheng's face darkened on the spot. His enormous, fan-like hand rose, about to slap Ma Xiufeng across the face.

"You insolent bastard! You think you can defy me?"

"Governor-General Wu!"

Zhang Xueming reacted in the nick of time and caught Wu Junsheng by the wrist.

A calm smile remained on his face, as if he hadn't even heard Ma Xiufeng's offensive words.

"Uncle Wu, don't lose your temper. Why lay hands on one of our own?"

He turned to look at Ma Xiufeng, who stood there stubbornly, neck craned as if ready to take the blow.

"Commander Ma, let me ask you something."

"The last time you faced off against the White Bear Army at the border, did you see their Austin armored cars?"

Ma Xiufeng froze, unsure why he'd suddenly brought that up.

He nodded instinctively.

"I saw them. Those Iron Turtles had thick armor and could move fast, too. The way their machine guns rattled was pretty damn scary."

Zhang Xueming continued, "I heard that after you came back, you went on about it for days while drinking with the men. You said that if our Feng Army had those things, we'd have beaten those White Bears till they were crawling on the ground, right?"

Ma Xiufeng's face flushed in an instant, dark skin turning purplish red.

He'd only bragged about this to a few of his closest brothers under his command. How had word gotten all the way to the Young Marshal?

He rubbed his hands awkwardly, then stubbornly craned his neck and retorted, "I... I was just talking drunk!"

"Drunken talk?"

Zhang Xueming's smile grew wider.

"Then I'll give you a chance to stop talking drunk and tell the truth."

"I'm transferring you here not to act as anyone's bodyguard, but to help me build our own Feng Army Armored Corps!"

"I'm bringing you here to play with real Iron Turtles—Iron Turtles ten thousand times better than the White Bears'!"

Armored Corps!

Those four words made Ma Xiufeng's pupils contract instantly.

The heart that had been full of resistance at the thought of being transferred began to pound violently.

"You... you mean it?"

Ma Xiufeng's voice trembled.

"You really want to build those things?"

"Of course I mean it." Zhang Xueming's voice brimmed with unwavering confidence. "And what I'm building isn't some little toy like the White Bears' that can only scare people."

Meanwhile, he was calculating the money in his own little treasury.

The bandit chiefs' treasure caves had yielded plenty of good stuff during the campaign to wipe out the bandits: gold bars, silver dollars, antiques, calligraphy, and paintings. Converted into silver dollars, it was more than enough for him to make a major move.

The shabby Prussian tank production line in the system had been tempting him for ages.

The Great War was over, and Prussia was dirt poor. They were eager to cash in on all the outdated military technology in the system. It might be old stuff, but in this era—especially in the East—it would be a dimensional strike.

Spend a little, achieve a lot. This deal was a sure win.

"What I'll get you is the Germans' latest technology: real Land Battleships." Zhang Xueming looked at Ma Xiufeng and offered one final temptation. "You'll be the first regimental commander in the Kwantung Army to drive a tank. What do you say, Commander Ma? Are you in?"