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This is a middle-aged man with a thin body and a withered face. His expression is full of decadence and depression, like a lone wolf at the end of the road, waiting for death.
Wearing the uniform of a military attaché from a hundred households, he mingled among the many soldiers, quietly watching Zhao Junchen hand out silver rewards and pensions to the soldiers.
Zhao Junchen personally awarded silver rewards and pensions this time, only to the lower-level military attachés and lower-level soldiers of the new warrior army. However, this man was obviously a middle-level military attache in the army, and his appearance here naturally attracted attention, so he was slightly It attracted Zhao Junchen's attention.
Zhao Junchen didn't pay much attention at first, but after Zhao Junchen glanced at this person, he found that this man looked vaguely familiar, so he couldn't help but take a closer look.
After the man noticed that Zhao Junchen was looking at him, his expression changed slightly and he immediately turned around and left.
At this moment, Zhao Junchen finally recalled the origin of this man's identity. He couldn't help but frown, and immediately shouted: "You are Zhang Cheng! Stop!"
After hearing Zhao Junchen's shout, the man's body trembled slightly, finally stopped, and slowly turned around to face Zhao Junchen, but he lowered his head and did not dare to look at Zhao Junchen.
On the other side, after hearing Zhao Junchen's shout, Niu Fude also noticed this man. After seeing the appearance of this man, he couldn't help but be stunned and said in surprise: "He is Zhang Cheng? How is it possible! Why is he Has it turned into this?"
At the beginning, in order to completely control the situation in Huamachi Camp, Zhao Junchen killed Shi Song, the former commander-in-chief of Huamachi Camp, and took over 3,000 private soldiers under Shi Song's command. Zhang Cheng was one of the leaders of Shi Song's private soldiers. .
Zhang Cheng was born as a martial artist. He was well versed in the art of war and was both civil and military. He was a rare talent among the Shaanxi-Gansu frontier army. In addition, he had always been diligent in doing things after joining Zhao Junchen, so he won Zhao Junchen's favor. Value and trust.
After Zhao Junchen formed the new army of war soldiers, Zhang Cheng quickly showed his superior abilities and was appreciated by the new army commander He Zhang. He was appointed as the commander-in-chief of the second battalion of the new army infantry. He became one of the core military attachés of the new war army.
However, although Zhang Cheng has great abilities, he has bad luck.
After the formation of the new army of soldiers, Zhang Cheng was ordered to lead two battalions of infantry to Gansu to attack those border generals who supported their own troops and disobeyed military orders. However, while Zhang Cheng was leading his army to attack the rebels, the Mongolian coalition suddenly invaded. The territory of Shaanxi-Gansu blocked Zhang Cheng's way back to Huamachi Camp, so Zhang Cheng and his two battalions of infantry could only stay in Gansu and were unable to participate in the subsequent war. They waited until the Weishui War was over before fighting with Zhao Junchen. The main forces converged.
As a result, Zhang Cheng and his soldiers lost the opportunity to kill the enemy and perform meritorious service. Naturally, they were not eligible to receive silver rewards for military merit and pensions for battle injuries.
Now, while most of the soldiers of the new war army were extremely excited because Zhao Junchen personally awarded them silver rewards and pensions, Zhang Cheng's two battalions of infantry did not appear in the army from beginning to end. In the playground, they just hid in the camp and complained about the injustice of God and bad luck.
Zhao Junchen's attention and appreciation for Zhang Cheng has not changed. He originally planned to summon Zhang Cheng in a few days to appease him, and Zhao Junchen also has plans to regain the Loop in the future. There will naturally be a lot of opportunities to make up for Zhang Cheng. loss of military merit.
But Zhao Junchen never expected that he would suddenly see Zhang Cheng on such an occasion.
What Zhao Junchen didn't expect even more was that Zhang Cheng had completely changed his appearance after not seeing him for a while.
In Zhao Junchen's memory, Zhang Cheng was handsome, tall and strong, and always had a calm and confident expression. But today, Zhang Cheng is so thin that he is almost skinny, his face is withered and gray, and his expression is even worse. He has lost his former calmness and confidence, and anyone can feel his depression.
Zhang Cheng has changed so much that it's no wonder that Zhao Junchen didn't recognize his identity at first, and it's no wonder that Niu Fude felt incredible.
After confirming Zhang Cheng's identity, Zhao Junchen walked quickly to Zhang Cheng, frowned and looked at Zhang Cheng again, and asked in a deep voice: "After the Weishui War ended, I received the news and learned that you I've come back, but I haven't seen you in the past few days. I thought you were resentful because you missed the opportunity to make meritorious deeds. I was still a little strange, thinking that you should not be that kind of narrow-minded person, but now I see you With such a haggard and emaciated appearance, you know that things are definitely not that simple! Tell me, what happened? How did you end up like this? Are you injured? Or are you sick? Why are you hiding from me? Imperial envoy?"
After hearing Zhao Junchen's inquiry, Zhang Cheng lowered his head and said tremblingly: "Being humble is useless! Being humble is too shameless to see the Imperial Envoy! The situation of being humble and humble is really unspeakable!"
Seeing Zhang Cheng's performance, Zhao Junchen frowned even more. He took a step forward and walked up to Zhang Cheng. He lowered his voice slightly and asked in a stern tone: "You are the first batch of border military attachés to follow this imperial envoy. Are you?" As a direct descendant of this Imperial Envoy, I have always been optimistic about you. What is there that you cannot tell me? What is going on? Tell me!"
Zhang Cheng's expression became even more shameful and dejected, and he whispered: "A few days ago, I received news that you, the Imperial Envoy, were about to have a decisive battle with the Mongolian coalition forces on the south bank of the Wei River, so I couldn't wait to lead the two battalions of soldiers under my command. Heading towards the Wei River, who would have thought that because they were rushing too fast, the horse under Beizi's command actually stumbled. Beizi fell from the horse and was trampled by the hoofs of the following cavalry. Two ribs were broken by the trampling...
...After the ribs were broken, one of the broken bones even scratched Beizi's internal organs. Since then, in just over ten days, Beizi has become like this, completely turning into a disease. Yangzi didn't even have a few ounces of strength in his body, and his former skills of bowing and horseback were completely lost. The soldiers under his subordinates also delayed their journey due to the sudden injury of their humble positions. They failed to catch up with the decisive battle on the Weishui River and missed the opportunity to make meritorious deeds...
... I have lost my martial arts skills, I am ashamed of the respect of the Imperial Envoy, and I have betrayed the trust of my comrades. This situation is obviously not suitable for me to continue to stay in the army. Fortunately, I am still a wealthy family, so I originally planned to I have been recuperating a little in the past few days and I am about to leave quietly. However, after I heard that your Majesty the Imperial Envoy was going to award awards to all the meritorious soldiers in the military training ground today, I thought that I had accomplished nothing in the past few years since I joined the army, so I couldn't bear it. I came over to take a peek, but I didn't expect to be discovered by the Imperial Envoy right away! "
When explaining, Zhang Cheng's voice trembled, and he didn't dare to look up at Zhao Junchen from beginning to end.
After hearing Zhang Cheng's explanation, Zhao Junchen finally understood Zhang Cheng's experience and mood.
If Zhang Cheng looks like this because he was injured on the battlefield, it is a soldier's fate worth boasting about; if it is because of a sudden illness, he can still complain about the unfairness of the sky and bad luck; but Zhang Cheng is so unlucky, all because of his own carelessness He fell off a horse and was trampled by a horse's hooves, breaking his ribs and injuring his lungs. In the end, not only did his comrades lose their military merits and Zhao Junchen's trust was betrayed, but he himself became a weak and sick man with no martial arts skills. I lost everything, but I couldn't blame anyone else for it, I could only blame my own incompetence.
Therefore, Zhang Cheng's mood can be imagined. Not only did his ambitions go down the drain, but his heart was also filled with self-blame and despair.
Under such circumstances, it was natural for Zhang Cheng to want to leave the army without seeing him.
Thinking of this, Zhao Junchen couldn't help but shake his head and sigh. He didn't expect that Zhang Cheng, whom he valued very much, would end up like this. He would leave the army for an inexplicable reason without making any achievements.
After a moment of silence, Zhao Junchen said slowly: "I can't blame you. When riding a horse and galloping, even the best rider cannot guarantee that he will not have an accident. Maybe just a stone on the road will turn his horse over. ...What did the military doctor say after diagnosing you? Is your injury life-threatening? Is there any hope of recovery?"
Zhang Cheng's voice became deeper and deeper, and he replied: "We have asked a military doctor to diagnose the internal organs that were scratched by the ribs. Fortunately, there are no broken bones left. Now the ribs have been reset, but the internal organs are injured and cannot be cured. The humble position is now not only He has lost all his strength, and will inevitably become frail and sickly in the future. A little exertion will endanger his life, so he must leave the army."
After Zhao Junchen was silent for a moment, he suddenly said: "Don't leave the army for the time being. A famous doctor in the world will come to Huamachi Camp in the next few days. If he treats you, even if he can't make you completely recover, he will be able to heal you." It should be able to eliminate some hidden dangers for you! You are a martial arts scholar and have experience in handling soldiers. You are familiar with military books and are both civil and military. You do not lack the knowledge and wisdom of a scholar, nor the courage and perseverance of a military man. You are a rare talent. , I have always admired your talents. It is such a pity to let you leave the army and live in obscurity forever..."
Having said this, Zhao Junchen pondered for a moment, seemed to have thought of something, and finally made a decision, saying: "Let's do this, you can leave the border army, but you will still work for me in the future. I will bring you to the capital in the future. A chance for you to stand alone and prove yourself!"
Hearing what Zhao Junchen said, Zhang Cheng's eyes suddenly lit up and he regained some energy.
He is also an ambitious person. If the famous doctor Zhao Junchen mentioned can indeed eliminate his hidden physical dangers, he will naturally be willing to continue to work for Zhao Junchen!
After seeing that Zhang Cheng's spirit was slightly lifted, Zhao Junchen nodded slightly and said: "It's not just you. Among the many wounded soldiers in the army, some have broken hands and some have injuries. Feet, they will no longer be able to hold knives and guns in the future. They are not suitable to continue to serve as soldiers, but it does not affect their daily lives. They must have the same thoughts as you to leave the border army to make a living on their own. You should pay more attention these days. Pay attention and ask them what they think for me. If they are willing to continue to serve me, you can gather them and organize them. They will return to the capital with me in the future. When I return to the capital, I will arrange a meeting for all of them. Let them have a worry-free job in this life!”
After hearing what Zhao Junchen said, Zhang Cheng's spirit was lifted again. He finally lost his previous depression and said excitedly: "Your Majesty, the Imperial Envoy is compassionate and still misses the disabled comrades in the army. I hold such a humble position." Here I would like to thank all the wounded soldiers for your great kindness and kindness!"
After saying that, Zhang Cheng was about to kneel down to salute Zhao Junchen, but he was supported by Zhao Junchen as soon as he bent down.
Zhao Junchen said warmly: "Your condition is not cured, so don't bother with it!"
Zhang Cheng didn't force himself, he just said solemnly: "I will never betray the trust of the Imperial Envoy again this time!"
After speaking, Zhang Cheng bowed to Zhao Junchen, then turned and left.
Looking at Zhang Cheng's back, a smile flashed across Zhao Junchen's lips.
In fact, Zhao Junchen's decision seems to be based on the consideration of the wounded soldiers in the army, but Zhao Junchen himself will only benefit more.
As the dust of the Shaanxi-Gansu War has settled, Zhao Junchen has gained a lot of military glory and reputation. It is foreseeable that Zhao Junchen's power and influence will inevitably skyrocket in the future.
For Zhao Junchen, the biggest shortcoming now is his lack of foundation and the lack of enough loyal subordinates under his command.
Zhao Junchen now has too many unknown secret plans that need to be promoted. It is inevitable that the stalls are too big. Jubao Trading Company is responsible for infiltrating the army, United Shipping Company is responsible for controlling Hui merchants, Tongji Temple is responsible for collecting intelligence, and Pingshu is responsible for controlling public opinion. Guilds, and the properties in various places used to resettle refugees, these matters are all confidential, but they all require a large number of manpower to handle trivial matters.
Previously, in order to advance many of his plans, Zhao Junchen could only draw manpower from the Zhao Mansion and "Yerongfang" most of the time. Now he is already unable to continue and is stretched thin.
Now, if a group of men can be taken away from the wounded soldiers of the new warrior army, it will solve Zhao Junchen's urgent need.
Most of these wounded soldiers injured their hands and feet, which did not prevent them from continuing to work for Zhao Junchen in the future.
The most important thing is that after Zhao Junchen bribed the soldiers many times, these people have become absolutely loyal to Zhao Junchen, and Zhao Junchen can rest assured to leave some confidential matters to them!
Zhao Junchen does not require them to be smart, nor does he ask them to be responsible for too important things. He only requires them to complete some seemingly insignificant tasks loyally!
For example, the United Shipping Company needs to arrange a large number of manpower to monitor the movement of goods on merchant ships; the large amount of land accumulated by Zhao Junchen during this period also requires a large number of manpower to organize refugees to farm, and the Jubao Trading Company also needs a large number of clerks. As Tongji Temple collects intelligence It also requires a large number of loyal and reliable manpower.
For Zhao Junchen, the most important thing is the word "loyalty".
Experience and insight can be cultivated slowly, wisdom can be selected slowly, but the word "loyalty" is the most rare!
In this world, smart people can be seen everywhere, especially the officials in the temple. They are all too smart, but there are very few loyal people. It is not an exaggeration to say that they are the rarest resource in the world.
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