“Is it amusing?” Bai Qingyan raised her eyebrows, her anger nearly uncontainable.
Were the people protected with their lives by her grandfather, father, uncles, and brothers, and hundreds of thousands of Bai family army soldiers, meant to be humiliated and mocked by them?!
The centurion was kicked backward repeatedly, and after steadying himself, he clasped his hands and bowed without daring to raise his head, his fists clenched so tightly his knuckles turned white.
Bai Qingyan kicked again, her voice rising: “Is bullying women amusing?!”
Before the centurion could steady himself, another kick followed, directly knocking him to the ground.
“Is the strong preying on the weak amusing?!”
The centurion stood up again, clasped his hands, and bowed, gritting his teeth without making a sound.
Wang Xiping, who had come upon hearing the news, hadn’t yet arrived when he heard Bai Qingyan’s voice blazing with fury, and he hurriedly called out: “General Bai… General Bai!”
Wang Xiping pushed through the crowd, glared at his subordinate centurion, then clasped his hands and saluted Bai Qingyan: “General Bai, please calm your anger. I’ve already heard about the situation! It’s Du Sanbao’s fault! However, Du Sanbao beheaded two Xiliang generals in the great battle at Wengshan, which counts as a great achievement. He inevitably got carried away, but fortunately, he only harassed a civilian woman and didn’t commit any grave error. Please spare him this once, General Bai!”
Seeing Bai Qingyan’s expression grow even darker, Wang Xiping hurriedly said: “General Bai, rest assured, I will make this Du Sanbao properly apologize to this young lady! Du Sanbao, what are you standing there for?!”
Centurion Du Sanbao stepped forward and bowed toward Ji Langhua: “I apologize!”
“General Bai, what do you think… why don’t we just let it go?” Wang Xiping always protected his subordinates.
Bai Qingyan gripped the sword at her waist tightly, suppressing the surging fury in her heart, her cold gaze falling on Du Sanbao whose eyes showed pleasure, full of murderous intent and imposing authority: “According to General Wang’s words, in the Jin army… soldiers can use merit to excuse faults, and can also use merit to offset crimes. Then today I shall execute this centurion here. Tell me, General Wang… with my merit from victory in Nanjiang, can I kill him or not?”
Hearing these words, Du Sanbao broke out in sweat on his forehead and knelt. Bai Qingyan was a killing god who dared to execute even surrendered soldiers. He said to Wang Xiping: “General Wang, this subordinate knows his error! General Wang, save me—I am your soldier!”
“You eat grain paid for by the people of Great Jin! You receive wages from taxes paid by the people of Great Jin! Touch your conscience and ask yourself, whose soldier are you?!” Bai Qingyan’s voice rang out firmly. “The nation has an army to protect the Kingdom and keep the people safe! For those in the military… fighting the enemy bravely is duty! Rewarding merit with rank and title… being enfeoffed as general or noble—is this so you can use your achievements to humiliate your people?!”
Wang Xiping opened his mouth…
“Where are the Bai family army soldiers?” Bai Qingyan gritted her teeth and called out loudly.
The wounded Bai family army soldiers who had been watching the excitement at the entrance immediately stepped forward, clasping their hands in salute.
“Seeing someone insult the people of our Jin nation, you, as elite Bai family army soldiers, actually stood by and watched?” Bai Qingyan asked.
The wounded Bai family army soldiers opened their mouths to explain, but thinking that they had indeed stood by and watched, they had no defense.
“Have you all forgotten why hundreds of thousands of our Bai family army brothers died?” She gripped her sword tightly, her blazing gaze sweeping over the wounded Bai family army soldiers. “Just months ago, when Feng City was besieged, the Bai family army brothers led by the Deputy Marshal held back the enemy to help the people of Feng City escape, dying in battle at Feng City with not one person retreating! General Swift Wind Bai Qingyu led fifteen hundred elite Bai family army soldiers into battle, fighting for the people’s chance at life, battling Xiliang to the death until not even bones remained! General Swift Courage Bai Qingming’s army defended Feng County to the death! All these Bai family army brothers died in battle, with not one survivor! Why?!”
The military camp fell into solemn silence.
Flames in the braziers flickered high and low with the wind, casting Bai Qingyan’s extremely somber expression in alternating light and shadow.
Bai Qingyan’s voice was filled with fury and rose high, with the momentum to overwhelm mountains and rivers: “Four words… Protect the nation, protect the people!”
Ji Langhua hugged the cloak in her arms tightly and wept aloud.
She remembered again those words Bai Qingming had said to her when he leaped down from his horse and wrapped her in this cloak…
If possible, Ji Langhua would willingly descend to the eighteen levels of hell to bring back General Bai Qingming.
She bit her teeth tightly: “Today, the people protected with their lives by our Bai family army, from marshals and generals down to brothers-in-arms, stand before you! Yet you… watched as our Jin people were humiliated! Are you worthy of the fallen Bai family army brothers? Do you deserve to be called the Bai family army alongside them?!”
“This Miss Ji is the daughter of a sitting physician in Feng County. Grateful for the Bai family army’s life-saving grace, knowing we were fighting fierce battles at the front to protect the people, she traveled specially from Feng County… only to use her medical skills to save a few more wounded soldiers who protect the people and the nation, to contribute her small part to this war! Even a weak woman knows to risk her life in gratitude! But what about you?! How do you treat the benefactor who bandaged and treated you?”
“This subordinate knows his error!” A wounded squad leader of the Bai family army had tears in his eyes as he knelt on one knee. “I willingly accept punishment!”
“This subordinate knows his error, willingly accepts punishment!”
“This subordinate knows his error, willingly accepts punishment!”
All the wounded Bai family army soldiers admitted their errors and willingly accepted punishment.
“Those who know their errors, go receive fifty lashes! Those who don’t know their errors… when your wounds heal, you may leave on your own! Those who don’t protect the people are not worthy of being soldiers! The people protected with blood and lives by hundreds of thousands of Bai family army brothers and Jin army brothers are always more important than our lives, and cannot tolerate any contempt or abuse from anyone!”
“Yes!”
The wounded Bai family army soldiers responded in unison.
“As for you…” Bai Qingyan turned back to pick up Ji Langhua’s veil from the ground and said to Du Sanbao, who knelt there not daring to raise his head, “Either take off that uniform and go home to farm, or go receive eighty military cudgel blows yourself. All your military merit from this campaign is voided, and you start over as an ordinary soldier! I remember your name… Du Sanbao! General Wang Xiping, I, Bai Qingyan, don’t tolerate any grain of sand in my eyes. I will tell General Zhang Duirui this person’s name. If you want to protect him, I hope you can bear the consequences.”
Wang Xiping broke out in a cold sweat and hurriedly clasped his hands in acknowledgment.
He looked up at Bai Qingyan’s back as she helped Ji Langhua up and entered the tent, his heart filled with mixed feelings.
He had overestimated himself. Wang Xiping had heard of the Bai family army’s strict military discipline, but he thought that having fought alongside Bai Qingyan, he counted for something in her estimation, so he came to plead, hoping Bai Qingyan would give him face!
Wang Xiping was not an unreasonable person. Although Bai Qingyan had just embarrassed him, her words just now were directed at the Bai family army, and he couldn’t help but feel stirred at this moment.
Who among them hadn’t had a passionate blood for serving the Kingdom and protecting the people when they first enlisted?
But over these years, it was always the Bai family army fighting on the frontlines, while these Jin army soldiers lived in comfort and luxury, maintaining grand appearances. The atmosphere had always been thus, and after being enlisted for a long time… Wang Xiping and these Jin army generals and soldiers gradually forgot their original intentions.
Wang Xiping’s hands clasped behind his back tightened slightly. From the corner of his eye, he suddenly saw Du Sanbao stand up, gnashing his teeth, and he frowned: “What, you’re still not convinced?!”