The Great Rebel at the End of the Ming Dynasty

Chapter 085 Big Guy

Upon closer inspection, Zhou Lun, who had stopped in his tracks, couldn't help but watch with great interest, secretly praising the sight to himself.

The stone lock weighed over a hundred pounds, which would be extremely difficult for an ordinary person to lift, and those with weaker constitutions would be unable to move it at all. But in that man's hands, it was as if it were nothing, and he tossed it around with ease.

This wasn't just about strength; it was also about skill. Zhou Lun knew he couldn't do that at all. No wonder this man was so fierce on the battlefield; he was truly extraordinary.

Thinking of this, Zhou Lun was secretly pleased. If he hadn't specifically asked Gao Yingxiang for this man, how could such a formidable figure have fallen into his hands?

Just as he was thinking this, he saw the man switch hands, grip the handle of the stone lock, and use the momentum of the falling lock to make a half-circle motion before throwing it with force. The stone lock actually soared high into the air, clearing over his head.

The onlookers gasped in surprise, but the man remained calm and composed. He nimbly stepped to the left, turned his body, and steadily grasped the stone lock handle in mid-air with his right hand. He controlled the stone lock's trajectory, tracing it in an arc in the air, and then crossed his left and right hands to reduce the force. Finally, under everyone's watchful eyes, he placed the stone lock firmly on the ground.

"well!"

Upon seeing this, Zhou Lun couldn't help but loudly praise it.

His words immediately drew the attention of the onlookers. When they turned around, they saw that Zhou Lun had arrived at some point and was watching from the outside. They were surprised and couldn't help but feel uneasy and nervous.

It's important to know that Zhou Lun is always very strict about training, especially at the old camp, where he has extremely high standards. On the training field, Zhou Lun is known for his ruthlessness, showing no mercy to anyone, even his closest relatives.

According to the rules he set, any violation would result in a warning the first time, running laps the second time, and a beating the third time. Throughout the old camp, not only the new recruits but also the old comrades who had followed Zhou Lun from the beginning had all been punished by him to some extent.

It's true that Zhou Lun was strict, but the treatment in his old camp was the best in the entire rebel army. You could say that there was no unit with better treatment in the whole rebel army. Leaving aside other equipment, just the fact that they had three full meals a day, with occasional meat dishes, was something that even the minor leaders of the rebel army couldn't match, let alone ordinary rebel soldiers.

"General!"

"Leader!"

"Sir...sir..."

In an instant, various titles and forms of address arose one after another. The crowd nervously bowed to Zhou Lun, while worrying about how he would punish them.

After all, the camp has its own rules. Instead of training, these people gathered together to watch people play with stone weights, which violated the rules set by Zhou Lun.

However, Zhou Lun was in a good mood today, seemingly pleased by the man's skillful handling of the stone lock. Or perhaps, he had already inquired with those around him while watching the spectacle and learned it was a break during training. Although these people had indeed violated the rules, Zhou Lun didn't intend to punish them too severely.

"According to the rules, you'll have to run five laps around the camp as punishment. You'll supervise this, Yi Gong. Go."

Zhou Lun glanced at these people, his face showing no anger, and said this indifferently.

Upon hearing this result, everyone felt a sense of relief.

Running five laps was quite strenuous, but most of the rebels were farmers and soldiers who were now well-fed and healthy in the army, so this amount of exercise wasn't difficult for them. As long as they weren't punished, they could do six or seven laps, let alone five! The crowd immediately agreed, and then they formed ranks, led by their squad leaders, shouting loud slogans as they ran around the camp.

"General..." The man, realizing he had caused trouble, was about to run away when he was stopped by Zhou Lun's guards and brought before Zhou Lun. Looking at Zhou Lun, the man felt uneasy and clasped his hands in a salute.

Zhou Lun looked at him and frowned slightly. The man was still wondering how Zhou Lun would punish him, the "culprit," when Zhou Lun simply took off his outer robe, took two steps forward, and draped the robe over him.

"Even if you're young and strong, you still need to take care of your health. What if you catch a cold while shirtless in the dead of winter?"

The man never expected Zhou Lun to drape his clothes over him so readily. Although his words carried a hint of reproach, they also revealed deep concern, which moved him deeply.

"General, today's events are all my fault. If it weren't for me..." The man was about to admit his mistake, but Zhou Lun stopped him halfway through his sentence.

"It's definitely your fault. Even if you're just fooling around in your free time, you can't break military rules. However, considering you haven't been here long, according to the rules, we'll just make a note of what happened today and give you a verbal warning. If you do it again, we won't let you off easily!"

"I understand, General Xie." Zhou Lun's words reached the man's ears clearly. A great weight was lifted from his heart, his face relaxed, and he clasped his hands in a gesture of sincere admiration.

Seeing this, Zhou Lun nodded slightly. He glanced around and beckoned the man to come with him.

They arrived at the military tent one after the other. Zhou Lun led the man inside and ordered someone to boil some ginger soup. He first gave the man a bowl to drink to prevent him from catching a cold. The same was done to those who had finished running outside; each person received a bowl, and no one was allowed to be left out.

Soon the ginger soup was served. The man held the bowl and gulped it down.

After he finished drinking and put down the bowl, Zhou Lun looked him over and asked with a smile, "Big Hao, how was the ginger soup? You seemed to enjoy it. Would you like another bowl?"

Hao Dage chuckled, not standing on ceremony. Although playing with the stone locks looked effortless, it had actually taken a toll on his stamina, and he was indeed quite thirsty after working up a sweat. He immediately nodded in agreement. Seeing his cheerful response, Zhou Lun laughed heartily and waved for someone to bring another bowl. Hao Dage then drank it down in large gulps.

"Hey Hao, you've been at my camp for a while now, haven't you?" Zhou Lun asked with a smile.

Hao Dage nodded in agreement, saying that he had been at the old camp for a month. Zhou Lun then asked him if he was getting used to life at the old camp and how he felt.

"Great! Of course it's great!" Hao Dage's face lit up with excitement when he heard this.

When Zhou Lun first asked him to come to the old camp, he was initially reluctant. After all, he was originally Huang Long's subordinate, and he had even been promoted because of the battle of Gao Hanling.

Huang Long gave him the position of captain. Don't underestimate a captain; in the rebel army, a captain can command a squad of people, which is equivalent to the level of a platoon leader or deputy company commander in later times. Hao Dage was originally just a common soldier in the rebel army, and suddenly he became a captain, skipping the sergeant position. Such a promotion is quite good.

Just as Hao Dage was thinking about working hard in the rebel army, making many contributions, and striving to become a squad leader or even a higher position as soon as possible, someone from above suddenly came to inform him that he would no longer be the captain. Because the rebel king had given orders, he was directly taken by Zhou Lun and was told to pack his things immediately and report to Zhou Lun.

And just like that, before the captain could even settle in, Hao Da Ge became Zhou Lun's soldier.

Moreover, after reporting for duty, Zhou Lun didn't give him any official position, directly assigning him to the old camp as a common soldier. In the old camp, Hao Dage had no friends, and his previous status as a captain was useless there. In addition, the training in the old camp was extremely strict and had many rules, so Hao Dage, who was new to the place, was extremely dissatisfied and even had the idea of ​​leaving and returning to his old unit several times.

But once inside the main camp, leaving wasn't so easy. Zhou Lun's main camp was unlike any other rebel army's; it had many rules and was heavily guarded. Unless Hao Dage planned to defect from the rebel army, he shouldn't even think about it.

There was no other way but to make the best of it. Hao Dage could only patiently stay in the old camp.

But this stay made him realize the difference between the old camp and other rebel armies.

It's true that the old camp has many rules and heavy training, but the old camp offers good benefits!

You should know that when Hao Dage was under Huang Long's command, although he had food to eat, he was never truly full. The rebel army didn't have much food to begin with, and those who joined the rebels were mostly ordinary people who couldn't make ends meet. Even in good years, when they farmed for a living, two meals a day were considered quite good.

In the past two years, Shaanxi has suffered from severe drought, resulting in a complete crop failure. In many places, people are struggling to survive. Let alone eating dry food, even thin gruel is a luxury. In some places, people have even started eating grass roots and tree bark to stay alive.

Hao Dage joined the rebel army because he couldn't survive. Although the rebels were engaged in rebellion, when people were starving, who cared about such things? After joining the rebel army, Hao Dage no longer had to worry about food. Even so, the rebels usually only ate two meals a day, half dry and half liquid. With Hao Dage's appetite, although he was still not full, he could survive.

This situation only changed completely after they entered Zhou Lun's old camp.

In the old camp, Hao Dage experienced the happiness of being well-fed and watered for the first time in his life.

The old camp provided three meals a day, mostly dry food, with no limits, and even meat every few days! Once this started, Hao Dage instantly forgot about leaving. Of all things, food was paramount. Being able to fill his stomach here—wasn't this exactly what he'd always dreamed of?

Besides, it's true that the old camp has many rules and strict requirements, but apart from some of the rules, the intensity of the training is nothing to a tough guy like Hao Dage. Moreover, the longer he stays and the more familiar he becomes with the old camp, the more he gets used to the rules and the less uncomfortable he felt when he first arrived.

Zhou Lun listened with a smile as Hao Dage recounted his experiences in the old camp, thoroughly pleased. He was very satisfied that the young man had come to accept the old camp, going from feeling out of place to now being so close to the brothers there.

"Big guy!"

"exist!"

"If I asked you to be the captain and lead a team, would you be willing?" Zhou Lun asked.

Hao Dage was stunned for a moment, then his expression revealed wild joy.

Being the team leader! That's an incredible opportunity!

Although Hao Dage had been a captain before, that was under Huang Long, while now he was the captain of Zhou Lun's old camp. Although both were captains, the significance of the titles was completely different.

Having been in the old camp for a month, how could Hao Dage not know its fighting strength? He might not be afraid of fighting two or three people, but if five or six people formed a squad, even someone as brave as Hao Dage would be in deep trouble.

This is just one squad. If you become the captain, you will directly command a squad of dozens of people.

Such a huge windfall had suddenly fallen into his lap; Hao Dage could hardly believe his ears. He looked back at Zhou Lun, his joy tinged with disbelief.