Talk of Army Life on a Rainy Night

When the moon climbed above the branches, a sudden storm arrived, just as expected.

Fortunately, a firepit had been built inside the cabin back when it was constructed, so the two of them could cook and live indoors. Chicken and mushrooms simmered in the pot, while skewers of rabbit meat roasted slowly beside the fire.

Rain battered the cabin outside, and some dampness inevitably seeped through the gaps between the logs. But with the firepit driving away the chill, the whole room felt wonderfully comfortable.

Wang Dashan tore into a chicken leg while drinking chicken soup, his eyes still waiting for the rabbit skewers to finish roasting. He looked as though he had reached the pinnacle of life, utterly content.

Wang Qi, however, fell quiet for a moment before saying, "Uncle Dashan, a couple of days ago, while you were out relieving yourself, the old village chief from Wang Family Village at the foot of the mountain came by."

Wang Dashan paused, then said irritably, "Why bring up that old codger... He hardly ever comes looking for me, and this time he left without even waiting for me to show up. It couldn't have been anything good!"

But Wang Qi still had to finish what he had to say.

"The old village chief said a general has come to Langya Commandery to recruit soldiers. Apparently, he wants to recruit strong young men from the mountains here, men good at climbing mountains and crossing ridges, and train them into an army."

"He put my name down."

Wang Dashan's face instantly turned livid. He slammed his palm down on the stone block beside the firepit, shattering the bluestone in a frightening display.

"That old bastard! How dare he do this to us, father and son!"

He looked ready to charge straight back to the village and slap the old village chief dead on the spot.

Wang Qi hurriedly grabbed him and raised his voice. "Let me finish."

"From what the old village chief said, this is actually a good thing!"

"Sending someone else's son off to die as a soldier counts as a good thing?" Wang Dashan was still furious.

Keeping a hand pressed against his shoulder, Wang Qi continued, "That's because the recruiting officer said his is only the first round. He's recruiting infantry suited to the mountain forests to fight the bandits in the south."

"But once he's finished choosing his men, the next round will take one man from every five households outright. That will be a prewar levy to march north against the Hu People!"

Wang Dashan froze at that. "A nationwide levy? It's only been ten years of rest and recovery since the last great nationwide levy. The people still haven't recovered... How could His Majesty, His Majesty..."

He could not go on, looking flustered and at a loss.

Although he usually seemed crude, the knowledge revealed in those words was far beyond what a hunter from a remote mountain village should have possessed.

Wang Qi merely listened and let it pass, then said, "You know my situation. They call me your adopted son, but I'm really just an orphan you took in. Legally, I can't carry on the family's ancestral line... So if a great levy comes while I'm of eligible age, someone like me will definitely be among the first taken."

"So, Uncle Dashan, would you rather I went north to fight the Hu People, or south to suppress the mountain bandits?"

For a moment, Wang Dashan could not speak. He looked as though life had beaten him down.

Finally, he gritted his teeth. "At worst, I'll take you deep into the mountains! I've only ever had one wish in this life: to keep you safe and sound."

Wang Qi shook his head repeatedly. "Uncle Dashan, becoming fugitives would only bring disaster on the village chief's whole family. I don't want to see his home shattered and his family ruined because of me... Besides, I don't want to stake the rest of my life on these mountains."

Only then did Wang Dashan seem to resign himself to it. He sighed helplessly. "Your father had this same fault of being too kindhearted..."

"Let's not talk about him," Wang Qi interrupted.

His memories of his birth father in this life ended before he was six, but even during those six years, he could count their actual meetings on his fingers.

As a result, his feelings toward his birth father were practically nonexistent, and his far-too-mature mind certainly harbored no particular obsession with him.

So the man was dead, and that was that.

Wang Dashan knew his adopted son's temperament, too, so he said no more about the past.

He sat dazed for quite a while before speaking again. "In that case, joining this round of recruitment really is your best option."

"Going north to fight the Hu People would be too grueling and too dangerous. The battlefields there are too vast, and human lives count for too little."

"Fighting in the southern forests, on the other hand, doesn't require too many men. And with fewer men, the supplies, food, and treatment can actually be better."

Wang Dashan's analysis was surprisingly coherent. He clearly understood the finer points.

Wang Qi, however, wore a look of distaste. "I know, I know. Besides, not only is the north a long way away, but once you get there, you basically train for half a year and then go straight onto the battlefield."

"But the village chief said the general who came ahead of the others to recruit this time doesn't seem to be in a hurry to fight those mountain bandits and tribesmen. He intends to train his troops for a year before beginning operations, and the terms are pretty good, too."

Wang Qi relayed the information he had gathered from the old village chief.

But Wang Dashan's eyes suddenly shifted. "Did he say how many men they're recruiting this time, and what kinds of troops?"

Wang Qi nodded. This was all information posted publicly during recruitment. "They'll recruit three thousand combat troops in total: two divisions of saber-and-shield troops numbering eight hundred, four divisions of Spear Soldiers numbering sixteen hundred, and three companies of archers numbering six hundred."

After listening, Wang Dashan delivered a rather lofty assessment. "Conventional enough."

Then he added, "Since they're going to deal with the Mountain Yue, three thousand should be about right... But there's something I must warn you about..."

Wang Qi listened attentively and stopped interrupting.

"Your identity is unusual. Although I've covered it up in every way I can, you must still remember not to push yourself into the limelight and invite trouble. Blending into the army like this might actually be safer for you."

Wang Qi nodded... He was not simply some hot-blooded youngster. He could take such seasoned, prudent advice to heart.

"Fighting and killing on the front line is too dangerous, after all. I want you to find a way into those six hundred archers, but without standing out too much... I believe that won't be difficult for you."

Wang Qi nodded again, but this time he followed it with a question. "Why?"

Wang Dashan rubbed Wang Qi's head, finally looking rather pleased with himself. "Because archers are valuable, and they get the best treatment!"

Wang Qi was a little taken aback.

Then his adoptive father grew earnest and spoke solemnly. "Because although archers are valuable, they don't actually get many chances to shine. Promotion depends entirely on putting in the years... Do you understand now?"

Only after he put it that way did Wang Qi understand... On a battlefield, a whole crowd loosed their arrows together. When it came time to tally military merits, who would know whose arrow had killed the enemy?

Put that way, earning merit and promotion as an archer seemed both very difficult and very unfair.

But in return, archers also received the best protection, positioned at the very rear of the battle formation... As long as the army did not suffer a crushing defeat, their safety was assured.

With that revelation, Wang Qi looked at Wang Dashan as though he were a celestial being... This old fellow really was a crafty veteran who had mastered the art of keeping his head down and staying alive.