Chapter Seventeen: Afraid of Thieves

  It's been ten days since the formal training of the Junzi Army began. The tenth day's training was no different from the previous nine days. In the morning, they did the Five Animals Play, heavy load marching, riding wooden horses and practicing standing postures. In the afternoon, they did pull-ups, regular marching and horseback sword fighting, ending with riding wooden horses again. The process was so dull that it made people want to scream, and the progress was so slow that it drove people crazy.

  Finally ended the tenth day of training, Tao Ying ordered the army to disperse. The exhausted nine hundred gentlemen soldiers rushed towards the cafeteria with cheers, while Tao Ji, the only deputy who could barely hold on under Tao Ying's command, walked towards the cafeteria with his head down and a dejected expression, carrying a whip without any energy. He didn't even invite his brother Tao Ying to join him for dinner. Seeing Tao Ji's appearance, Tao Ying first smiled, then thought to himself: "It's time to have a heart-to-heart talk with this kid, otherwise, not only will he want to leave more and more, but the morale of the gentlemen's army will also be affected."

  Hurrying to catch up with Tao Ji, Tao Ying quickly walked a few steps and patted Tao Ji's shoulder, saying: "Third brother, don't rush to eat, come with second brother, I'll take you to see some new things."

  "What's new?" Taokuiqiang, who was thinking of leaving the Junzi Army, asked in a spirited tone. Tao Ying didn't answer, but instead pulled up Taokui and walked away. Taokui had no choice but to follow, shoulder to shoulder, as they hurried towards the military engineering site at the rear camp of the Junzi Army, which was heavily guarded by the Dan Yang soldiers under the direct command of Tao Qian.

  Entering the construction site, Tao Yong borrowed ten carpenters from Cao Hong who were having lunch, and a large number of strange semi-finished products piled up in the original car.

  Next to him, Tao Yingzheng was about to pick up a semi-finished product for Tao Ji to see, but unexpectedly saw that Cao Hong, the number one confidant of his cheap father Tao Qian, was also on the construction site, and was whispering with several Dan Yang soldiers. Tao Ying couldn't help but ask in surprise: "General Cao, what are you doing here?"

  "Second Master? Third Master? How did you also come?" Cao Hong turned his head to see Tao Ying and Tao Ji brothers, hastily led several Dan Yang soldiers to pay their respects, "This general did not know that the two masters had arrived, and was remiss in welcoming them from afar. Please forgive this general's offense."

  "General Cao doesn't have to be polite, I also brought my third brother over to take a look." Tao Ying replied casually, and then asked: "General Cao, today..."

  "You're not in the city guarding your father, what are you doing here?"

  Cao Hong hesitated for a moment, looked around, and then pointed to the warehouse next door, which was heavily guarded by Dan Yang soldiers. He said in a low voice: "Second Master, please speak inside." Tao Ying knew that there must be some secret, so he nodded hastily and led Tao Ji towards the warehouse. Cao Hong also brought a Dan Yang soldier with him and followed them into the warehouse.

  In the vast warehouse, new wooden objects were piled up. Because it was late and no lights were lit, Tao Ji did not see clearly what those objects were. Cao Hong also did not let the soldiers come in to light the lamps, but instead pulled the Danyang soldiers to Tao's face and said in a low voice: "Second Master, I originally wanted to investigate this matter before reporting to you. Since it was coincidentally discovered by you, I will report first. Please prepare yourself."

  "What's going on? General Cao, please speak quickly." Tao Ying sensed a hint of danger.

  "Some people are plotting against the young master's new horse equipment." Cao Hong pointed to the Dan Yang soldier he had led into the house and said in a low voice: "This man is named Zhang Hu, a distant relative of Mo Jiang. Because of his caution and loyalty, Mo Jiang sent him to the young master's camp to guard the young master's request for strict secrecy.

  Good at gambling, and often losing, so he is often short of money, in the past

  During his rotation off-duty, his gambling addiction flared up again, and he went to a casino in the city to have some fun. As a result, he was targeted by someone who tried to use him to steal the sample of the young master's new horse equipment.

  "When did it happen? What was the specific process?" Tao Ying hurriedly asked back.

  "Yesterday afternoon," replied Zhang Hu, a soldier from Danyang, with a bow. "Yesterday afternoon, I was off duty and went to the gambling den for some fun. My luck wasn't good, and I quickly lost all my money. When I was feeling resentful, someone suddenly offered to lend me 1,000 coins to try my luck again. Unbeknownst to me, it was a trap, and I ended up losing even more at the gambling table. That person lent me a total of 3,000 coins, all of which I lost. Then, that person invited me for a drink, saying..."

  He doesn't want the little man to return the money, as long as the little man steals one of the new wooden objects made by the young master and gives it to him, the debt will be written off.

  "I wish to give the little person ten thousand taels of silver."

  "Is that so? 13,000 yuan for a new wooden artifact?" Tao Ji was somewhat surprised, and casually picked up one of the new wooden artifacts stacked in the warehouse. He found it to be a semi-circular wooden hoop, with a flat wooden board about half the size of a palm at the bottom of the semi-arc. Apart from being quite sturdy, there was nothing unusual about it. Tao Ji couldn't help but feel even more surprised, and asked again: "Just this broken wooden hoop, can it be worth so much money? And second brother, what is the purpose of making such a broken wooden hoop?"

  "Third brother, don't interrupt, I'll tell you later." Tao Ying waved his hand and turned to ask Zhang Hu: "Zhang Hu, how did you answer that person? Did he describe my horse's harness as it really is?"

  "Returning to the young master, although I have seen the two new horse gadgets secretly made by the second young master, General Cao repeatedly instructed that these two new horse gadgets are the second young master's heart and soul, and absolutely cannot leak out half a word. So I didn't tell the truth.

  Zhang Hu took the opportunity to report his merits: "I deliberately deceived that person, saying that the second young master wanted to make a very large wooden device, which couldn't be stolen, and it hasn't been completed yet, so I still don't know what kind of wooden device the second young master is making. Then that person gave me 3,000 coins and asked me to steal a draft drawing of the young master's wooden device for him, and after the matter is successful, he will thank me with another 10,000 coins."

  "Zhang Hu is a clever man." Cao Hong took over the conversation and explained: "As soon as he returned to the main camp, he immediately secretly reported this matter to General Mo. General Mo did not dare to be slow and hurriedly came to investigate this matter. At the same time, General Mo, in order to be cautious, specially wore casual clothes and came to this construction site in secret, so as not to alarm the enemy. Unexpectedly, he just happened to meet you, young master."

  "Where is that scoundrel from? Has he been found?" Tao Ying hastily asked again.

  "It happened suddenly, and Mo Jiang hadn't even had time to start investigating." Cao Hong replied: "But Mo Jiang has already carefully asked Zhang Hu, and Zhang Hu can confirm that the spy is a local from Xuzhou, because the spy spoke with a genuine Xuzhou accent, not fake."

  "Gentlemen, I can confirm that the person is from Xuzhou." Zhang Hu nodded in agreement: "You also know, sir, that our Xuzhou accent and Cao's Yan state accent are quite different. At first, I suspected that the person was one of Cao's spies, so I paid close attention to his accent. As a result, I found that his Xuzhou dialect is very authentic and fluent, not like an outsider pretending."

  "Authentic Xuzhou accent?" Tao Ying's eyebrows rose, and the image of a pair of brothers flashed through his mind. After a moment's thought, Tao Ying patted Zhang Hu's shoulder and said: "Very good, you have rendered great service to Xuzhou, I should heavily reward you. For now, it's not convenient to promote your official position, so I'll personally give you 10,000 coins as a reward. Once you help General Cao capture that spy, I'll report back to my father and ask him to promote you."

  "Thank you, sir." Zhang Hu was overjoyed and hastily made a bow to express his gratitude. Tao Ying again instructed: "Now you go out first, I have some words to say privately to General Cao and the three generals. Also, ask the brothers outside to send us a lamp." Zhang Hu complied and honestly retreated outside, then another Dan Yang soldier sent in a candle lamp, and also bowed

  The others withdrew and left Tao Ying, Cao Hong and Tao Ji alone in the room for a secret discussion.

  Also with the candlelight, Tao Ji only discovered that this warehouse was packed tightly with those semi-circular wooden hoops. Just as he was about to ask, Cao Hong on the side asked Tao Ying instead: "Second Master, I've always wanted to ask you again, why did you have so many strange horse harnesses made by the craftsmen in the army? What are these harnesses used for? And why do you want to keep this a secret? It's actually very simple, it's just a semi-circular wooden hoop with a piece of wood attached, what's the need for secrecy?"

  "It's precisely because the craftsmanship is too simple that it needs to be kept strictly confidential." Tao Yingxian sighed and then said: "Now that things have come to this point, I should also tell you all about the purpose of the new horse equipment, so that you'll have a clear understanding in your hearts and know how important these new horse equipment are."

  "Please instruct me, young master." Cao Hong replied. Tao Ji, who was standing beside him, also perked up his ears, his eyes full of curiosity.

  "Before I explain the purpose of this thing, I have to ask you a question first." Tao Yingxue raised an eyebrow and asked: "General Cao, Third Brother, you are both great generals with exceptional martial arts skills, proficient in all eighteen types of martial arts. But there is one thing, I don't know if you can do it - Can you ride on horseback and shoot arrows with a bow?"

  "It's too easy." Cao Hong and Tao Ji both burst out laughing, and Tao Ji proudly said: "Second Brother, it's not that I'm boasting, but even if I were riding a horse, within 100 steps, I can shoot ten arrows.

  "Red Heart Seven Eight Arrows."

  "My younger brother's martial arts skills are impressive, and I'm well aware of that." Tao Ying smiled and asked again: "So, my younger brother, and General Cao, can you ride on horseback at full speed while drawing your bow and shooting arrows?"

  "Of course." Tao Ji replied easily: "With both legs tightly clamping the war horse, you can free up your hands to pull the bow and shoot arrows, but this is too tiring and also too dangerous. If one's horsemanship is slightly worse, they might fall off the war horse at any moment."

  "Mo Jiang can also do it." Cao Hong smiled with some pride and said: "Second Master forgot? The reason why the master appointed Mo Jiang as the front tent lieutenant back then was because Mo Jiang shot three arrows in a row into the red heart while running on horseback during the martial arts performance, which made the master very happy and even heavily rewarded Mo Jiang."

  "Yes, Third Brother and General Cao are exceptional in martial arts. When they ride their horses at full speed and shoot arrows, it's definitely not easy to catch them." Tao Ying smiled again, but suddenly stopped smiling and asked: "So, Third Brother, General Cao, can you both ride your horses at full gallop while continuously shooting arrows behind you? And not just one or two arrows, but multiple arrows, all while riding your horses at full speed?"

  "Are you going to shoot forty or fifty arrows?"

  "Second Brother, are you trying to take Little Brother's life?" Tao Ji asked discontentedly: "One side galloping wildly on horseback, while turning his head back..."

  "Shooting forty or fifty arrows, you think I'm a god? Fighting like this, even if the person on the war horse is a god, they'll still fall off!"

  "Is the second master joking?" Cao Hong also said with doubt: "I've heard that there are powerful generals with high martial arts skills who can shoot arrows backwards on a galloping warhorse, but at most they can only shoot one or two arrows, and then they will be thrown off the horse."

  "Four or five tens of arrows, I'm afraid even the world's number one general Lü Bu, the Marquis of Wen, couldn't accomplish that?"

  "You can do it." Tao Ying raised the coarse stirrup in his hand and smiled: "Third brother, General Cao, if you equip this stirrup and the high-bridge saddle piled up in the next room, you will be able to shoot arrows backwards on a galloping warhorse.

  of

  "Arrows will kill the enemy, and absolutely won't fall off the horse."

  "This broken wooden circle is so mysterious?" Tao Ji came with interest.

  "Of course!" Tao Ying nodded vigorously and said seriously: "If you equip yourselves with stirrups and high saddles, it's not just that you can do it, but even my personally trained gentlemen soldiers can all do it."

  "Is it real or fake?" Tao's interest grew thicker, and he asked in a hurry: "Second brother, how does this work? Can I try it first?"

  "Of course you can try, but not now." Tao replied, "Let's wait until our gentlemen's cavalry is fully equipped, then we'll try together. At that time, I'll teach you how to use these horse fittings."

  Taoyi was overjoyed and hastily agreed. However, Cao Hong still had some doubts and asked again, "Sir, could it be that someone knows the extraordinary nature of this stirrup and is buying our soldiers to steal the sample and replicate it?"

  "Of course not. Besides me, there is absolutely no second person who knows the magical place of Ma Diao." Tao Ying shook his head and said in a low voice: "General Cao, did you notice that just now Zhang Hu said he deceived that spy, saying that our army was building a very large wooden device, which could not be stolen. The spy immediately believed it. This is enough to prove that our enemy hiding in the dark does not know what new wooden device we are building, let alone what use our new wooden device has."

  "Gongzi's words make sense. If the enemy had a slight understanding of our new horse gear, Zhang Hu wouldn't be able to deceive them." Cao Hong nodded and said with delight: "This also proves one thing, before Zhang Hu, the enemy didn't get any news about our new horse gear, Zhang Hu was just their first target."

  "I think so too." Tao Ying analyzed the same result, then Tao Ying smiled and asked Cao Hong: "General Cao, you are your father's confidant, in charge of your father's affairs.

  According to reports, in your opinion, which one

  "Who is most likely to be the mastermind behind the scenes of this meticulous work with Xuzhou accent?"

  Cao Hong blinked his triangular eyes, which were only slightly larger than green beans, and first looked at Tao Ying before lowering his voice to say, "Young Master, do you really want to know the answer? Are you not afraid..."?

  "It seems that General Cao and I are on the same page." Tao Ying smiled and said: "Since we both want to be together, then General Cao doesn't need to say anything, lest my hot-tempered third brother loses his temper and ruins Father's and General Cao's big deal."

  "Thank you, sir." Cao Hong bowed his hands and gave a sideways glance at Tao Yingyi.

  "Second brother, who do you say can't sit still? Is little brother that kind of person?" Tao Ji dissatisfiedly protested and asked with a puzzled expression: "Also, second brother, General Cao Hong, who is the mastermind behind the scenes that you suspect?"

  "Third Master, it's best you don't know for now. The master is afraid that you and the eldest master are too honest and trustworthy, so he doesn't dare to reveal anything to you yet." Cao Hong chimed in to help Tao Ying. Then Cao Hong turned to Tao Ying and said: "Second Master, their brothers have a vast influence in Xuzhou with many eyes and ears. It's not easy for your new horse equipment to escape their notice. Zhang Hu's lie will likely be exposed soon too. Please instruct us on how to proceed next."

  "Yes, it's not easy to deceive their eyes and ears." Tao Ying also deeply agreed, with her hands clasped together.

  "To maximize the power of stirrups and high-backed saddles on the battlefield, one must have matching..."

  The military tactics of the enemy, although that son of a bitch definitely doesn't know about this new tactic, will surely be exposed on the battlefield in the future, and if he equips his cavalry with stirrups and high saddles beforehand, their mobility will greatly increase, posing a huge threat to us. Therefore, we must think of a way to keep the secret of the stirrups and high saddles, at least temporarily deceiving that scoundrel, until the Junzi Army

  "Keep it from him until he's mature enough."

  "Gentlemen, it seems the only way is to strengthen our guard." Cao Hong interjected, "I will return to the city immediately and request an order from the lord, asking him to dispatch another 300 troops to protect the construction site."

  "No way." Tao Ying shook his head decisively. "Since that son of a bitch has already suspected our new horse equipment, the more we strengthen our guard, the more vigilant he will be and the more he will try to spy on us. Moreover, with more people protecting the construction site, the risk of leaking secrets is also greater."

  "It's also true, I'm not afraid of thieves stealing, but I'm afraid they'll remember." Cao Hong said with a frown.

  "Not afraid of thieves stealing, but afraid of thieves remembering?" As soon as Cao Hong said this, Tao Ying's eyes lit up and he slapped his thigh, saying: "I had forgotten about this trick! Since we can't hide it from that bastard and those two traitors, why should we hide it? Why can't we make the thieves forget? As long as they think our stuff is useless, they naturally won't remember this construction site either. Our new horse harness secret will be safe."

  "Sir, how can we make the thief forget?" Cao Hong asked.

  "Don't worry, let me think for a moment." Tao Ying waved his hand to signal Cao Hong to be quiet and carefully calculated for a while before saying with joy: "That Zhang Hu earlier, I really should reward him with another sum of money. He told that scoundrel's underling that the wooden artifact I made was very big and impressive, it was said too well this time. Now, I have a way to make the thief not bother me again."

  "What clever plan does the young master have? Does he need General Tao's assistance?"

  Cao Hong, who was secretly investigating, asked with good intentions.

  "Of course, we need to ask General Cao for help." Tao Ying said with a cold smile: "Since Zhang Hu told that traitor that I am making a very large wooden weapon, then I will really make such a weapon, specifically for those traitors to steal."