Chapter 036: The Town Edict, Setting Out, and Custom-Built Heavy Javelins!

Wang Erpang was not lying. His talent was indeed impressive; despite having lost weight, he was clearly broad-shouldered and thick-backed, with a constitution far superior to the average person.

"Brother He, I finally get it. If you don't practice martial arts and end up on the battlefield, you're nothing but cannon fodder!"

"I'm still a greenhorn, I don't even have a wife yet—I absolutely cannot die!"

Xia He knew the barbarian Wolf Guard must have left a psychological shadow on him. Nevertheless, he replied, "Look at your lack of ambition..."

Wang Erpang glanced at him with a resentful expression. Xia He had a beautiful wife at home; a well-fed man could never understand the hunger of the starving.

Once Wang Erpang finished his set of fist-posture exercises, Xia He tossed him an oil-paper parcel containing several steaming meat buns.

"Many thanks, foster father!"

Wang Erpang’s eyes crinkled into slits as he grinned. He grabbed a bun and devoured it in a few gulps, not even worried about choking.

"Brother He, it seems the higher-ups have sent someone down from the capital. The pomp and circumstance was even grander than our Battalion Commander!"

"Someone from the capital?" Xia He looked surprised. A military region comprised several garrisons, each overseen by a Battalion Commander in charge of hundreds of military households.

"They aren't here to serve in our garrison; it seems they’ve been appointed as the Town Magistrate."

"Ah, I recall the previous magistrate was killed by barbarians while traveling. The position has been vacant for so long—they’ve finally sent someone?"

It was strange; their small town had seen three successive magistrates die. Consequently, local law and order had been taken over by the garrison, though no major disturbances had occurred.

"How is the newcomer’s strength?"

"Seems a fair bit weaker than our Battalion Commander..."

Xia He did not understand the intricacies of these political maneuverings. However, just as he was deep in thought, a commotion broke out in the distance. Battalion Commander Fan strode over and stood on the high platform in front of the drill ground, and soon after, orders were given for them to fall into line.

From several dozen meters away, Xia He saw a handsome, clean-shaven young man standing beside Battalion Commander Fan. Judging by his attire and demeanor, this must be the Magistrate sent from the capital.

The whispers of the surrounding military households reached his ears. The Great Qin Empire established garrisons on the border to fend off foreign tribes, yet it feared that the garrison generals would grow too powerful and harbor personal ambitions. If a garrison was small, the role of magistrate was usually held concurrently by a military officer. But in a town like theirs, where displaced persons and commoners numbered in the thousands, the court had to send someone else to maintain a balance of power.

Major military strongholds were usually staffed by members of the nobility, while small border garrisons were often assigned either those from fallen noble families or those from aristocratic houses who were held in low regard and sought to earn merit from the bottom up.

Xia He stared at the arrogant young man on the platform. Was he the former or the latter?

"Gentlemen," Battalion Commander Fan said, looking at the crowd. "This is Magistrate Chai He, sent from the capital. As of today, he assumes the post of Town Magistrate."

After the introduction, the reaction from the military households was rather cold. Previous magistrates, relying on their noble status, had been arrogant and difficult to deal with, leading to poor relations between the two sides. The magistrate was an official sent by the court with the authority to manage some military and political affairs, but with the Ministry of Revenue constantly cutting military pay, who would listen to him?

Thinking of this, Xia He couldn't help but look strange, silently pondering: "Whether the previous magistrates were truly killed by the Southern Barbarians is perhaps open for debate!"

However, the garrison troops were notoriously unruly. Withholding military pay? Wasn't that just asking for death? The soldiers here would likely swallow him whole!

At that moment, Battalion Commander Fan changed the subject, his expression grave. "Brothers, recently, the Southern Barbarians have launched frequent raids, destroying our homes and fields, murdering women and children, and even committing the beastly act of slaughtering entire villages!"

"The imperial court is furious. Unfortunately, with the war on the border intensifying, there are no troops available to reinforce us."

"The Regional Commander has ordered us to hold back the barbarian invasion and protect this territory!"

"We shall mobilize after the spring thaw and wipe out all the barbarian tribes in the Liang Mountains in one fell swoop!"

"The time has come for the court and the people to test us!"

"In the coming days, you must train with all your might so you can kill the enemy on the battlefield!"

"When the time comes, if you accumulate military merit, titles and high office are not out of reach!"

*Whoa!* They were really going to war?

"Starting today, your monthly stipend will be doubled. Any report of barbarian movements that leads to effective action will be rewarded immediately, with no delays!"

The Great Qin Empire was far from as powerful as it had been decades ago, yet the Southern Barbarians had produced a figure like Wanyan Bi. Similar events were occurring in many small towns along the border.

...

"After the spring thaw?" Xia He muttered to himself, calculating.

Fortunately, it wasn't imminent. The war would be a long-drawn-out affair, and the core conflict was not on their side.

"Brother He, the selection for the Four Guards Warrior Battalion is after spring. It looks like we won't be able to avoid this, right?"

Reminded by Wang Erpang, Xia He remembered the selection. In other words, if nothing went wrong, they would inevitably participate in this battle.

"It's fine... Surely, they won't all be Wolf Guards?"

The Wolf Guards were fierce, and almost every one of them was a master of Blood Refining! If a hundred of them came, their garrison of only a few hundred would likely be unable to withstand them.

"How can this current strength be enough?" Xia He had only been able to kill that one Wolf Guard because the opponent was heavily wounded and he had launched a sneak attack.

"I must cultivate my Qi and blood as quickly as possible. I cannot delay any longer."

The combat power of the barbarians was unknown. If they truly couldn't hold them off and no reinforcements arrived, wouldn't their garrison be a lone, isolated force? If the garrison fell, the town would surely be slaughtered, and none of the commoners would escape!

"Erpang, do you know where the town's black market is?"

"The black market? Brother He, what do you want to buy?"

"Blood-replenishing soup. The medicine in the camp is too expensive."

"Brother He, you've already started preparing for Blood Refining!?"

Erpang was stunned. With his hard work and his decent constitution, he had only managed to progress his fist-posture to twenty movements. But Xia He had only been Skin Refining for how long, and he was already starting to refine blood? This speed was simply exaggerated.

"Let's go, Brother He, I'll take you!"

...

Guided by Wang Erpang, Xia He went to the black market. He took his three hundred taels of silver notes and exchanged one hundred and eighty taels for medicinal herbs for blood-replenishing soup. At six taels a bowl, that was exactly thirty bowls.

As for the remaining one hundred and twenty taels, he privately sought out Uncle Zhou. After explaining his needs, he went to the garrison’s blacksmith shop, planning to use the red gold he had earned as a reward to forge two powerful javelins.

"Javelins? That’s rare."

"Why not use a bow?"

"Bows are too expensive."

For a powerful bow, this bit of red gold wouldn't be enough.

"Fine. This five taels of red gold should be enough to forge a few arrowheads."

"But red gold is heavier than iron, so for the shaft, ordinary wood won't do."

"I suggest you find some variant Mysterious Gold Wood that is at least thirty years old—two fingers thick, at least three pieces. It can pierce iron armor!"