Chapter 9

Wang Qi's recruitment test was very simple, after all, as long as his physique was not bad and his age was appropriate... No, even if it was a bit inappropriate, it didn't matter.

Moreover, his long arms were really perfect for archery. He was only sixteen years old, and when he grew a bit older and stronger, he would be able to handle a heavy iron bow with ease.

Thus, Wang Qi was directly listed as a "promising candidate" and was earmarked for special cultivation.

So that day, he was issued an identity badge, officially becoming a part of the army, and was then informed about some information about his unit.

The recruiter was a military officer surnamed Lin, a Pacifying Bandit Commander, who had been ordered to suppress the bandits in the Danyang region of Yangzhou, south of Xuzhou.

Wang Qi didn't know the extent of the bandit problem, and the military officer he talked to, Xu, didn't mention it either.

However, Wang Qi, familiar with the situation in the Great Peng Kingdom, sensed something amiss.

The greatest enemy of the Great Peng now was undoubtedly the northern barbarians. Since the unification of Central China, the Peng Kingdom had been ruled by three generations, and it was only under the current emperor's military prowess that they had gained the upper hand against the northern steppes.

The current emperor had been on the throne for thirty years, almost waging a small campaign every three years and a major one every ten. Although the once formidable northern barbarians had been worn down to the point of disbanding and reorganizing their khanate,

the Peng Kingdom itself had also suffered immense military and civilian losses.

Originally, Wang Dashan had said that after the incident ten years ago, the current emperor became obsessed with alchemy... Wang Qi had thought that the people of the Great Peng could finally have a decade of rest and recuperation.

But the third major campaign did not come late...

So, during the preparation for the third major battle against the northern barbarians, a small unit of three thousand men was specially selected to deal with bandits in the south...

It wasn't that Wang Qi looked down on the bandits. In fact, the bandits were people who had fled to the mountains to avoid war during the five-hundred-year Warring States period before the founding of the Great Peng. Strictly speaking, they were of the same origin as the people of the Great Peng who dominated Central China, but they had become accustomed to raiding from the mountains.

However, the bandits were only a minor issue, while the northern campaign was the national priority.

Unless there was something special in the southern mountains?

This discovery made Wang Qi particularly cautious, and he was prepared to "play it safe" if the situation turned bad.

This wasn't like playing a role in a game from his previous life; this was a real, dangerous world.

...

That day, Wang Qi was exceptionally diligent. He had already been selected, but he didn't show any arrogance.

Instead, he stayed on the training ground to help the veterans... He had already learned that the military officer who had tested him, Xu, would be the captain of the archer unit, managing two hundred men.

The newly recruited army was called the "Divine Archer Camp"... From the name, it was clear that it was centered around archers.

Although the archer unit was only recruiting six hundred men, or three units, their status was undoubtedly high... This was evident from the fact that the archer testing area was the only one on the training ground.

The other eight units of spear soldiers and four units of shield and sword soldiers seemed to exist only to support the archers.

Since the other units appeared to be expendable, Wang Qi naturally chose to be a competent but not outstanding archer.

As the recruitment day drew to a close with the sky darkening, Wang Qi had already become familiar with several veterans. He knew they were all personal soldiers or followers of Commander Lin, each with special skills.

Of course, he didn't know what those skills were, but what surprised him was that the registrar at the entrance, Zhao, was also a Confucian scholar... It was unexpected that a Confucian scholar would come to a military camp, which they considered the most vulgar place.

He didn't understand and didn't ask too many questions, as more questions meant more trouble.

At the end of the day, Xu gathered all the newly recruited soldiers from Langya County... Many of them only met their future comrades at this moment.

Wang Qi, of course, was among the archers, totaling 174 men. This number included not just today's recruits but all three days... Better to have fewer but better.

At the front, Xu, whom he was familiar with, was speaking.

"My name is Xu Sanlang. From now on, you will all be my 'Sanlang Unit.' Today, I won't introduce your squad leaders, team leaders, and decurions one by one. I don't have the time. You just need to remember that good performance will earn you extra rewards and a chance to be selected as a decurion."

"My 'Sanlang Unit' has a full strength of two hundred men, with forty decurions selected from among you... Train hard."

"Now, go get your food. Eat early and sleep early. We will set out early tomorrow to join the other units."

The first speech in the 'Sanlang Unit' ended briskly. As Wang Qi followed the crowd to the food distribution point, he carefully analyzed the information revealed in the speech.

Xu Sanlang had offered forty decurion positions to motivate the new recruits, while the lower-ranking officers were already in place.

If the other two archer units were the same,

then among Commander Lin's personal soldiers, there should be sixty decurions, twelve team leaders, six squad leaders, three captains, and at least one military adjutant skilled in archery.

He didn't know the situation with the spear and shield units.

Wang Qi, entering a new and unfamiliar environment, used his full mental capacity to analyze all the information around him, trying to piece together useful parts.

Currently, he was certain that... he must secure one of those forty decurion positions!

Moderation did not mean mediocrity; he just needed to avoid being the most outstanding and attention-grabbing one.

After making up his mind, he started eating the food he had taken... but he felt a bit uncomfortable.

It was just a large pancake with two scallions, a small dish of dipping sauce, and a bowl of vegetable soup...

Although these could fill him up, Wang Qi thought they lacked nutrition and were rough and unpalatable... So this was the hardship of being a soldier.

He already felt the difficulty. Thinking back to his life in the mountains with Wang Dashan, hunting for a living, he at least had meat every day.

At sixteen, Wang Qi was very concerned about his future development... He felt that his top priority now was to find a way to supplement his meals.

He couldn't help but frown.

At this moment, the benefits of having already become familiar with the officers came into play.

After the meal, his team leader and decurion came to the camp to identify their men... In fact, they were just assigning fifty men to each tent in advance.

His decurion and team leader had already been briefed on which promising candidates to pay special attention to.

So, his team leader and decurion immediately noticed the frowning Wang Qi, who needed special attention.