The Innocent Heart - Chapter 33

As Liu Che listened to Wei Qing’s description while experiencing the enthusiastic atmosphere on the training ground, he also looked at Huo Qubing, who stood beside him, unable to contain his excitement and eagerness to compete.

“Qubing, do you also want to step onto the field and compete with the most elite soldiers of Our Great Han?” Liu Che asked, half-jokingly, half-seriously.

Huo Qubing did not hesitate for a moment. He turned back, his eyes shining brightly as he looked at Liu Che and quickly nodded his head.

“Good! Wang He, proclaim My decree: the victor of today’s trial shall be rewarded with ten taels of gold and a set of armor!”

“Understood.” The eunuch Wang He quickly received the order and left. It was only then that the soldiers on the field realized that the noble Emperor had personally visited the military camp.

In an instant, everyone on the field stopped what they were doing and knelt on the ground, bowing heavily toward the place where Liu Che was standing—almost uniformly.

“Go on, Qubing. If you win first place, I will additionally reward you with a fine warhorse,” Liu Che reached out and pushed Huo Qubing’s back, showing his undisguised favoritism for this youth.

“Your Majesty, just watch closely!” Huo Qubing smiled confidently at Liu Che.

Because of Liu Che’s decree, the field, which was originally intended for testing, became even more fervent. However, to win first place among four hundred elite Han soldiers required not only extraordinary courage and excellent physical fitness from the participants themselves. It was also a considerable test for the assessors. After all, in ancient times, there were no timing devices like stopwatches, and the concept of time was much more vague.

As a result, after consulting with Wei Qing and Guo Chun, Guan Yueyao decided to use a group stage format: first, a relatively rough preliminary round to filter out a number of soldiers, ultimately determining the final champion. Fortunately, the time was still early, and the only event for the competition for the time being was the 1000-meter run.

As the event’s sponsor, Liu Che himself was very generous. After understanding the competition format, he waved his hand grandly, adding significant rewards for the top three finishers as well. Stimulated by the rewards, the soldiers’ enthusiasm was greatly mobilized.

Although participation was voluntary, with such generous compensation and the opportunity to appear before the Emperor, not a single one of the four hundred soldiers in the camp, except for one who had unfortunately sprained his ankle during the initial running test, failed to sign up.

The training ground occupied a large area. To save as much time as possible, Wei Qing decided to divide the four hundred men into ten groups, with forty men per group. Only the first-place finisher from each group could advance to the next, and final, round of competition.

Wei Qing and Guan Yueyao cooperated: Wei Qing handled the scheduling and organization of personnel, while Guan Yueyao, relying on his experience and memory, was leading several soldiers in setting up the racetrack.

“Yueyao, how is your side prepared? Can we start?” Wei Qing finished the work he was doing and stood beside Guan Yueyao, asking with a smile.

“No problem! Leave it to me!” Guan Yueyao nodded and patted his chest, giving the impression that he had everything under control.

Suddenly, Guan Yueyao’s hand felt warm; Wei Qing had seemingly slipped something warm into his palm. He looked down in surprise to see a cloth packet containing pastries.

“You were busy with preparation work at noon, and Guo Chun told Me you didn’t even get a chance to eat lunch. These are the cakes I had Guo Chun pack up. If you are hungry, eat some to tide you over; don’t starve yourself,” Wei Qing said, lowering his head, his face still holding a gentle smile, as he earnestly admonished him.

A trace of shyness and a flicker of joyful excitement arose in Guan Yueyao’s heart. He slightly lowered his head, gazing at the pastries in his hand, and nodded gently.

“Thank you for your concern, Lord Wei,” his tone was uncharacteristically obedient, and his usually boisterous voice unconsciously softened. He subconsciously avoided following Huo Qubing’s lead in calling him ‘Uncle’ or ‘Uncle-in-Law’. Even though this title felt more distant than the previous two, at least it didn’t make him feel that he was separated from the other by a generation.

“You are like Qubing, a junior I value. You don’t need to be so polite with Me,” Wei Qing did not mind the formality in Guan Yueyao’s address and reached out to pat his head, just as he did with Huo Qubing.

The dry, warm touch of Wei Qing’s hand on his head seemed to travel through his hair and scalp, reaching Guan Yueyao’s face, causing it to gradually turn bright red.

“Ah Yao! Uncle, what are you doing?” Huo Qubing’s voice suddenly rang out at this moment. Wei Qing withdrew his hand, and Guan Yueyao shot a disappointed glance at his friend who was approaching, only to find he was also looking at him with dissatisfaction.

“I was looking for you for a long time, why are you here?” Huo Qubing walked over and squeezed himself right between the two of them. At that moment, he couldn’t quite explain why he felt unhappy seeing his uncle and his friend so close.

“Lord Wei saw that I didn’t have time to eat at noon, so he brought me some pastries to tide me over,” Guan Yueyao assumed his friend was annoyed because he had spent too much time looking for him. He didn’t pay much attention, but rather carefully presented the packet of pastries to Huo Qubing with a hint of showing off.

Huo Qubing’s reaction was cooler than she expected; he just gave a faint “Oh.” Unfortunately, Guan Yueyao’s attention was not on Huo Qubing at this moment. He unwrapped the cloth packet, picked up an unknown pastry, and popped it into his mouth.

A rice-based pastry, sweet on the first taste, and also soft and sticky. Eating a bite like this on an empty stomach made one feel satisfied from their body to their heart. Guan Yueyao squinted his eyes contentedly, but in doing so, he missed the subtle small action of Huo Qubing standing beside him.

He hid his arm behind him; in the hand he was clenching, there was also a small packet of pastries.

“Alright, both of you prepare yourselves well. I must return to accompany His Majesty,” Wei Qing raised his hand to pat both juniors’ heads one last time before finally leaving without looking back.

“Qubing, do you want to try some too? The taste is really good,” Guan Yueyao picked up a piece of pastry and held it out in front of Huo Qubing.

Huo Qubing frowned and turned his head: “I don’t eat sweet cakes. These are things only women and children like.”

“Then I’ll eat it all! If you get hungry later, don’t blame me for eating alone,” Perhaps because sweets lift the mood, Guan Yueyao was in a good enough mood not to mind Huo Qubing’s attitude, happily stuffing another piece of sweet cake into his mouth.

“Oh, right, why were you looking for me? Are you ready for the competition?” Guan Yueyao suddenly remembered the most important matter. The competition was imminent. Huo Qubing was lucky enough to be drawn in the second group, which meant if he won the first round, he would have enough time to rest and adjust his body. Huo Qubing had already taken off the formal Shenyi he wore for the court audience and changed into short Bù (trousers/tunic).

“Nothing. I just came to familiarize myself with the field,” Huo Qubing said, his tone awkward and insincere.

“Put some effort into the competition later. You are my senior disciple; don’t end up running slower than these soldiers who haven’t received any training at all,” Guan Yueyao said, smiling as he patted his friend’s shoulder, half-jokingly.

“I know,” Huo Qubing paused. He wanted to refuse, but then he remembered that Guan Yueyao had indeed taught him many athletic techniques from which he had greatly benefited. The concept of respecting one’s teacher was very strong among the ancients, and he knew his friend’s words were just a casual joke. After hesitating for a moment, he finally gave a reluctant assent.

Although quite a bit of time was spent just on registration and drawing lots for the groups, once everything was ready, amidst everyone’s anticipation, the first running competition of Great Han finally commenced.

The Northern Army had tens of thousands of troops. With the Emperor’s presence, this competition, which seemed rather strange to outsiders, became particularly noteworthy. Many soldiers not belonging to the unit, along with generals who had rushed to escort the Emperor, crowded the periphery of the training ground and the stands, making it impossible to see clearly.

Since the Han Dynasty had neither a starting pistol nor a whistle, the war drums at the side became the tool used to signal the start.

Dong, dong, dong—as the three muffled, thunderous drumbeats faded, the soldiers of the first group sprinted toward the finish line with all their might. Liu Che and Wei Qing, sitting high up outside the field, chatted as they watched the actions of those on the field.

“This kind of activity is indeed interesting. It can liven up the camp atmosphere and stimulate the soldiers’ competitiveness,” Even from a considerable distance, the earth-shattering shouts from the training ground could clearly reach Liu Che’s ears.

“Your Majesty, this old minister believes that strict discipline and a clear hierarchy are the foremost priorities in the army. Having ordinary soldiers train and compete side-by-side with Centurions and other officers is truly… improper.” Without turning around, Liu Che knew the speaker was General Han Anguo.

Liu Che’s brow furrowed, and Wei Qing’s heart tightened, as General Han was unaware that this passionately progressing competition was the result of Liu Che’s own whim.

“General Han’s concern is not without reason, but I hear that General Li Guang also loves his soldiers like his own children, often eating and living with them, and the soldiers are willing to die for him. It seems that as long as there is a balance between slackening and exertion, nothing is truly beyond propriety,” Wei Qing spoke sincerely, and his tone was very gentle.

But General Han did not grasp Wei Qing’s good intentions. He already looked down on Wei Qing’s background, and now seeing him dare to contradict him by relying on the Emperor’s favor, he became even more annoyed.

“That is hardly the case!” He was about to argue thoroughly with this young junior when he suddenly saw Liu Che, standing before the two of them, abruptly wave his hand, signaling both generals to silence themselves.

At this moment, Liu Che had no patience to listen to the two generals’ “debate” on military leadership methods; he was completely focused on the field because Huo Qubing was about to compete.

It had to be said that Huo Qubing was an excessively dazzling presence among the crowd. The thirty-nine other soldiers in his group stood at one end of the training ground, but this did not cause him to blend into the masses. Although he was not the tallest or the stoutest among these forty people, his bearing was upright, and even from a distance, although his features were slightly blurred, his temperament remained outstanding. Upon seeing him, one could not bear to look away.

As the preparatory drum sound rang out, he adopted the starting stance taught by Guan Yueyao, staring intently ahead, awaiting the final drumbeat to drop.