Chapter 1 Conquest

Chapter 1 Conquest

Chapter 1 Conquest
The sky cleared up after the rain and the western sky was filled with rosy clouds.

There were a few people standing scattered on the north bank of the Yi River, seemingly admiring the sunset.

One of them was a middle-aged man in a white silk robe with an elegant demeanor. He kept talking, his expression slightly excited, and his voice became louder: "Since Jiong has achieved success, he has been arrogant and extravagant, indulging in feasting and pleasure, building a large mansion, and destroying hundreds of public and private houses, which has disappointed people at home and abroad. In this matter, Zimei also suffered a loss. Sikong Zhengpi's nephew, why did he stop him from taking up an official post?"

The words were spoken passionately. Looking at his expression, his thick eyebrows were furrowed, his eyes were wide open, and his right hand was subconsciously clenched into a fist, looking like he was worried about the country and the people.

The man standing in front of him remained silent, just shook his head and sighed.

He was very familiar with this brother from the same family. He usually did nothing but enjoy idle talk. Worrying about the country and the people was definitely not his style. This time he came to persuade him to let his son go to work, and his words and expressions were so urgent. It seemed that he had a deep entanglement with Sikong.

"Zimei." Seeing that no one was talking, the middle-aged man took a deep breath and said, "Sikong has a mansion with many followers, all of whom are talented people of the time and have very high family backgrounds. If Yuan Gui's nephew is invited to serve as an official, he should interact with them more. With his talent, he will surely become famous among the gentry, which will be of great benefit to improving the family's reputation."

The person opposite seemed to be somewhat interested, and after a while asked, "Who are the officials in Sikong Kaifu?"

When the middle-aged scholar heard that there was a chance, his expression eased greatly. He subconsciously looked around and said in a low voice, "I heard that Pei State Cao Shangshu Fu has accepted the invitation of the Minister of Works and entered the palace as a military commander."

"What else?" Zimei was still waiting, but she didn't hear anything further, so she felt a little strange and asked.

The middle-aged scholar was a little embarrassed and said, "Liu Qia from Donghai is the left Sima."

"Dai Yuan from Guangling is the military advisor and chief priest."

"Mi Huang of the East Sea is appointed as the supervisor."

……

"After all, except for Minister Cao, they are all from humble families. I have never heard of Liu Qia's family background." Zimei sighed, and then laughed at himself: "How is my family better than theirs?"

"In this case, we should seize this rare opportunity," the middle-aged scholar advised.

Yu Zimei hesitated for a while, sighed, and said, "Let's go back to the house first."

The middle-aged scholar paused and casually agreed, "Okay, let's talk about it."

The group walked forward.

Behind the middle-aged scholar were several soldiers, all of whom were relatively young.

The leader looked only fifteen or sixteen years old, with a calm and even bold look in his eyes. He was not at all timid and inferior like the ordinary soldiers, which made Yu Zimei a little unhappy.

Sikong was really confused. Did all the people in the feudal state die? Even the young soldiers were recruited, which made him even more hesitant.

The soldier's name was Shao Xun. He seemed to be keenly aware of his gaze. He said nothing, but just walked silently. However, his face revealed an old look that was totally inconsistent with his youth.

System? It doesn't exist! Such a high-end thing is out of his reach.

His martial arts and horsemanship are good, but they are only experience and knowledge. He has no muscle memory at all. He has only partially recovered them through hard training, which is not easy.

To be honest, he wasn't quite sure where these abilities came from. They felt like they were his, yet they didn't feel like they were his.

God made me travel to this time, is he kidding me? Is he kidding me?
It would be better if you gave me a large sum of money, a noble family, and a bunch of beautiful women, so that I could live a carefree life, and then I would barely not be angry.

It’s just - forget it, the matter is done, there’s no point in talking about that.

The group of people soon entered a dilapidated house.

The house was not big, and it looked like it had belonged to a local tycoon. In today's chaotic world, officials and nobles could hardly protect themselves, so what could a local tycoon without any foundation count for?
There are so many houses in Luoyang that have changed owners repeatedly, and no one knows how the owners died.

There lived a family of more than ten people in the house, plus seven or eight guards and servants.

To be honest, it's a bit shabby and doesn't live up to their family status.

It’s all the fault of those Sima family beasts!

Yu Zimei led the guests inside, and his wife Guanqiu came out to greet them.

Shao Xun stayed in the yard, folded his arms and looked around.

He needs to be responsible for the safety of the middle-aged scholar named Yu Hua (ái). After all, he is a person that Sikong values ​​​​and wants to win over. If he still wants to make a living in this chaotic world, he has to work hard.

The four soldiers who came with him were all from Donghai. They were about the same age, about seventeen or eighteen years old. At this moment, they all looked at him with awe, then quietly dispersed and stood solemnly with their weapons in hand.

Shao Xun sneered.

These young soldiers were not very good at martial arts, so he gave them some pointers and corrected their wrong habits and movements, which immediately made them feel awed.

Of course, I am their direct squad leader, which is also very important.

In troubled times, people with ability can still make a living.

There were a few men in linen clothes in the yard, practicing martial arts in a serious manner.

Shao Xun took a look and showed no interest because the level was too poor.

He also saw several young men in brocade robes chopping wood, and a little girl running around handing people water and sometimes chatting and laughing. They looked very close, and must be brothers and sisters without a doubt.

Alas, as aristocratic family, they never thought that one day they would have to do rough labor, right?
Wait, there's more fun to come. Not only will you have to do hard labor, you'll also starve and even die.

Are you surprised that nobles and ladies were sold into slavery?

However, he immediately thought of himself and couldn't help but sigh.

His situation is not necessarily better than others, right? It may even be worse.

There were too many chaotic troops near Luoyang, and they were not under the same command and had their own agenda. If things went wrong, a fight would break out someday. Could he resist the situation alone?

Difficult to stretch.

"Do you want some water?" The little girl came over with her skirt lifted and a porcelain bowl in her hand and asked softly.

Shao Xun took a look at her. She looked about five or six years old, with bright eyes and white teeth, and she looked quite a beauty.

But what is most attractive about her is not her appearance, but her big black eyes, which sparkle with enthusiasm, innocence and curiosity, as if she had just been born into this world.

"No need." Shao Xun smiled and replied.

The little girl also smiled, with the corners of her mouth slightly raised and her big eyes curved like crescent moons, showing no anger or loss on her face.

She held the porcelain bowl and asked the other four soldiers one by one. The four of them waved their hands to refuse, and even looked a little at a loss.

Shao Xun secretly praised that the little girl was quite kind-hearted, which was rare in this society where the noble and the humble were clearly distinguished.

However, who would pity such a kind person in a chaotic world? If you encounter a cruel person, it's just a matter of a knife.

He suddenly felt a little irritated.

I can't even start a show, this is such a damn world.

He was just a soldier in Donghai, with the same status as the other four soldiers around him, without any background or family background, and in today's society, he was as lowly as dust and mud. Yu Hua, who he escorted, was a serious nobleman, but he didn't even look at him straight in the eye, and his attitude was very obvious.

The reality is that if you don't want to give up, there are actually very few options.

Like Shi Le, he joined the refugee leader Ji Sang in the hope of making a name for himself - for people without a good family background, joining the peasant uprising army was a very good way out.

But Ji Sang was not strong enough, and the peasant army was just a mob. There was a high probability that they would be beaten badly on the battlefield. They were in danger of death, and the outcome was unpredictable.

What about joining Liu Yuan? Not to mention whether he was willing to accept me, I myself was not too happy about it.

Come on, let’s just walk and see.

Sima Yue, the King of Donghai, had just been appointed as the Minister of Works not long ago and was in an awkward situation where no one was available, whether they were civil officials or military generals.

He even does not have the power over the military, and has recently been trying to recruit military households from other states to come to Beijing.

No one else is doing so badly.

"Whoosh!" An arrow flew out and missed the target...

A guard at the Yu Mansion put down his bow in despair and stammered in silence.

Seeing this, Shao Xun couldn't help but say, "Haven't you practiced this before? Lean forward, lower your left arm, and point your elbow inward..."

The guard seemed to be thinking about something.

Shao Xun stepped forward, snatched the bow, drew the bow and drew the arrow, all in one go.

"Swoosh!" It hit the bull's eye.

The guards looked at him stupidly, with complicated expressions.

"Did you see it clearly?" Shao Xun asked.

The guard shook his head.

Shao Xun slowed down his movements and shot another arrow right into the bull's eye.

"Haven't you seen it clearly yet?" he asked again, and without waiting for an answer, he shot the third arrow, which also hit the bull's eye.

The guards were numb.

"Forget it. This can only be achieved through more practice." Shao Xun shook his head, untied the bowstring, handed it over along with the bow tip, and said, "It's time to change the string."

After saying that, he walked back to the wall, leaned against it, and thought about things silently.

He had an instinctive familiarity with archery. Whether it was a walking bow or a horseback bow, when he touched it, every cell in his body seemed to cheer and leap for joy, and various movements kept churning through his mind.

Shooting on foot while wearing armor, shooting with the bow with both hands, shooting on horseback, shooting while lying down and shooting from behind, etc. He is so familiar with them as if he was a sharpshooter in his previous life.

But he has no memory of his previous life, and only his experiences in modern society.

Although the body I traveled through was a military household, he had only practiced archery a few times and his results were very average. He spent most of his time farming, so it was impossible that this skill was brought from this life.

After much thought, it might be talent, or maybe there are many unknown secrets involved.

Who cares! This is a good thing, right?

Even if I was a sharpshooter in my previous life, so what? I have no memory of it at all. This life is a new one. My body, personality, family background and social relationships are completely different. I am already a different person.

"What a great archer!" The people who were chopping wood in the yard stopped what they were doing, looked at each other, and showed surprise on their faces.

There are tens of thousands of troops in Luoyang's central army, and there are some excellent archers among them, but they are generally difficult to approach, as they are all controlled by the princes.

This branch of the Yu family is now in great decline.

If the main branch could barely be considered a noble family, then their branch could only be considered a minor family, and was in danger of slipping into poverty - if no one in the family could hold a high position anymore.

In today's world, Luoyang is no different from a den of wolves and dragons. The warriors who were not valued before can no longer be treated as servants if they have superb skills.

Small families like theirs even need to be won over by using the courtesy of guests, although they are mostly unable to attract this kind of elite soldiers - strictly speaking, guests are also servants, just of the highest level.

Pity.

"You were so fierce just now." The little girl came over again.

Shao Xun glanced at her and said, "What's the point of a man not being fierce?"

The little girl retorted: "Brother is not fierce."

"In a family, there has to be someone who is fierce." Shao Xun said, "What's your name?"

"You're a little rude." The little girl smiled and shook her head without saying anything.

Shao Xun also laughed.

"Why are you so bold?" the little girl asked. "I just talked to them, but they were hesitant and didn't dare to look me in the eye."

After saying that, she looked at the other four sergeants.

Shao Xun was also stumped by the question. This question was rather complicated and perhaps had something to do with social customs and traditions.

There is an invisible gap between the nobles and the common people. They are already two "species" and there is reproductive isolation.

Some people are used to being arrogant, while others are used to being servile. Hundreds of years have passed like this, and everyone has become accustomed to it, and even thinks that this is right.

It's totally off the mark! No wonder he was taught a lesson by Liu Yuan and Shi Le.

As for why I don't humble myself, is that something I can explain?

"Tell me the name and I'll tell you the reason." Shao Xun joked.

The little girl narrowed her eyes again, covered her mouth and laughed secretly, but still shook her head.

"Zimei, you will regret this, alas!" Shao Xun was about to say something when he heard a voice coming from the main hall.

Yu Hua was a little unhappy and walked out in anger, apparently failing to persuade him.

He didn't even look at Shao Xun and the other four, and walked straight out the door.

Shao Xun signaled with his eyes, and the other four people immediately followed. After a while, the group left Yu Mansion.

"Wenjun, it's time to practice the piano." A voice came from the main room.

The little girl responded and walked into the house, lifting her skirt.

(End of this chapter)