Cultivation Begins with Caring for Sister-in-law-Chapter 382: Princess Consort Huai Wants to See Him
After Chang En arrived at the Divine Brave Guard’s barracks, he once again faced an assessment.
It turned out that as Huai State gradually stabilized, Chen Mo began recruiting soldiers again. With ambitions to dominate the Four States, the previous troops were just not enough.
To this end, Chen Mo formulated a series of recruiting measures.
First, the requirements to join the Xianzhen Guard were pretty much non-existent. As long as one was a physically fit adult male under forty, they could join the Xianzhen Guard.
Of course, before joining the Xianzhen Guard, there was an assessment. Those who performed excellently could join the Divine Martial Guard, and those who were exceptionally outstanding could directly enter the Divine Brave Guard.
If one was a Martial Artist, there were not even age requirements, and they could enter directly.
The reason there was another assessment after entering the Divine Brave Guard was to prevent cheating during the first round of assessments.
"It’s quite simple. Here is a three hundred catties stone block. If you can lift it, you pass." Han Wu casually glanced at Chang En, seeing him somewhat sloppy and not caring too much.
But the next second, he was stunned.
Chang En effortlessly lifted the three hundred catties stone block once more.
It must be known that even Han Wu, who had become a Martial Artist, couldn’t lift it so easily.
"Are you a Martial Artist?" Han Wu asked.
"Yes." Chang En replied sincerely.
"Damn it, since you’re a Martial Artist, why didn’t the previous person report this?" Han Wu frowned, thinking that the previous recruiters weren’t thorough, then smiled and asked, "Brother, what grade are you?"
"I don’t really know my grade..." Chang En awkwardly scratched the back of his head and then honestly said, "While I was in the mountains, my master never told me, only mentioning that I was a Martial Artist, and that was it."
Han Wu: "..."
He somehow felt the person before him was a bit simple.
"Then come with me." Han Wu summoned his personal soldiers to handle matters here as he needed to take Chang En to another place.
Yet, Chang En indeed scratched his belly and asked, "Can I have a meal first? I haven’t eaten for almost two days now, and your notice said the army will provide meals and accommodation, with a monthly allowance."
Han Wu was startled, confirming that this person was indeed a little straightforward.
He had some mixed grain bread brought for Chang En to eat.
After Chang En was full, he took him to a plaza.
In the plaza stood a wooden pillar, made of Purple Sunken Wood, weighing a thousand catties.
He asked Chang En to try lifting it.
Not only did Chang En lift it, but he also carried it for a while, which stupefied Han Wu, who then became quite excited, thinking he had found a treasure.
He had Chang En taken to rest first, and then hurriedly took Chang En’s roster to see Sun Meng, reporting to the Marquis.
...
On another side, Chen Mo had the chef prepare a banquet of fine food and wine to welcome back Geng Songfu from Shu Residence.
"Mr. Geng, your trip to Shu Residence was indeed commendable, solving several troubles for me. When the news reached Huai State, it made Prince Huai, who gathered a large army in Jing County, hesitate to act rashly, giving me enough time to secure Huai State. This toast is for you." Chen Mo drank a toast to Geng Songfu.
Having traveled back and forth for over half a year, Geng Songfu, despite being quite young, cannot be said to have not endured hardships. In any case, this cup must be toasted.
"Marquis, you are too kind. This is my duty. You might not know, but Yang Xian is also having a tough time. This person is quite ambitious, especially since entering the Upper Three Grades early last year, he directly attacked Miao Yue along the Shu Residence border to expand his territory and military prowess, providing himself with more resources and wealth.
When I arrived at Shu Residence, he had just captured Miao Yue not long ago and was quite drained. He was eager for allies to stabilize his position. Coupled with the fact that I had some connections with him, forging an alliance didn’t take much effort."
With that, Geng Songfu stroked his beard and smiled, "However, I suspect that another reason it went so smoothly is the non-aggression pact between you and Prince Huai. If Yang Xian knew back then that Prince Huai tore up the treaty and invaded Qingzhou, he probably wouldn’t have dared to offend Prince Huai by allying with us."
"Hahaha." Chen Mo laughed heartily a few times, then drained his wine cup in one go, and said with a smile, "Seems we perfectly played on the timing."
"Even if he finds out now that you’ve thoroughly offended Prince Huai, he would probably still resolutely ally with us."
Truthfully, Geng Songfu was quite shocked by all the recent events.
Arranging a marriage alliance with the Wu Family.
Surprise attack on Huai State.
Killing Liang Xuan, capturing Wuguan, displaying Third Grade strength.
Securing Huai State and capturing the family of Prince Huai...
Geng Songfu realized he had vastly underestimated Chen Mo.
During his absence, Chen Mo silently accomplished so much.
Regarding this, Chen Mo was not modest and nodded. He had shown the world his strength, and now a strong ally was exactly what Yang Xian needed.
In recent times, good things have been happening one after another.
With the news of Huai State spreading, his name once again echoed throughout the land.
Many talents were actually coming to pledge allegiance to him during this period.
Even a few Middle-Grade Martial Artists were among them.
Quite a few noble families even extended olive branches, willing to support him with funds and grains.
Compared to the time when he occupied Yu State and Linzhou and almost no one came to seek refuge, now, it was growing exponentially.
"By the way, there’s one thing I almost forgot to tell you, Marquis," Geng Songfu said.
"Please go ahead, Mr. Geng."
"Yang Xian has a legitimate young daughter, who is fifteen this year. Originally, I proposed an alliance with Yang Xian by suggesting you marry his daughter. Fortunately, Yang Xian didn’t agree at that time. Had he agreed, finding out later that you married the legitimate daughter of the Wu Family would have been quite difficult to explain." Geng Songfu breathed a sigh of relief as he spoke.
"This... indeed would have been hard to explain. At that time, not only would it offend Yang Xian, but also the Wu Family." According to Geng Songfu’s timeline, if Yang Xian had agreed, the betrothal date would have been earlier than Wu Mi’s. Chen Mo then would have been playing with both families.
But he also understood Geng Songfu’s decision.
For an alliance, a marriage tie is indeed more solid.
"Now, I’m sure he deeply regrets it, haha." As he spoke, Geng Songfu couldn’t help but laugh a few times.
"Come, let’s drink together." Chen Mo raised his cup, toasting Geng Songfu, and after taking a sip, put down the cup and said, "Mr. Geng, you should stay in Huai State and help me govern it. I’ve already relocated the people of Qingzhou to Yu State, and now it’s Zuo Lianglun who is in charge."
"As you command, Marquis." Geng Songfu had no objections.
The welcoming banquet ended amidst laughter and joy.
After the banquet, Chen Mo was about to leave, but a guard from the residence where Princess Consort Huai was held reported that she wanted to see him.
Chen Mo suddenly became more energetic. After leaving her unattended for so many days, had the effect finally worked?
