Chapter 22: Recruiting Soldiers

"Your Highness, we have arrived."

Gao Yin dismounted. The sun was mild today, casting a gentle, warming glow upon him.

His attendants had already set up tables and desks, and were moving through the Six Wards to the sound of gongs and drums.

"His Highness the Crown Prince has arrived in person! You are truly fortunate—come out and welcome this noble guest!"

Heads began to peek out from houses, followed by entire families. Hearing it was the Crown Prince, men and women, old and young alike, emerged to catch a glimpse.

"It really is the Crown Prince!"

"Heavens, a noble of such status right before our eyes? Am I dreaming?"

"His Highness is truly handsome. I wonder if he might fancy..."

The murmurs and gossip were incessant. Gao Yin remained unfazed, but his attendants were displeased. To be pointed at like this, as if they were watching monkeys—this was the Crown Prince!

"Rudeness! Everyone, kneel and pay your respects!"

Chastised by the attendants, the residents in the front rows knelt in trepidation, their knees covering the streets of the ward. It was only when the group of burly men hiding at the end of the street and behind the trees finally knelt that the wave of obeisance subsided.

Gao Yin said nothing; this was not an occasion for him to speak. He whispered to his attendant, Ding Pu, who stepped forward and announced in a booming voice: "The Crown Prince has long heard that the Six Wards are filled with brave warriors—men who can stand against a hundred, invincible in battle. Admiring this, he has come today to visit the Six Wards."

These words greatly boosted the pride of the people of the Six Wards. Once Ding Pu finished, several teams of attendants brought out various goods from the carriages—rice, melons, fruits, and vegetables—and began distributing them to the crowd.

Free goods were always welcome, especially when they came from a noble. Soon, praises filled the air, and many were moved to tears.

The Emperor had been mad for a long time, but fortunately, the Crown Prince possessed a human heart. If he were not the one to eventually succeed the throne, one could only imagine what would become of the Great Qi.

When the noise settled, Ding Pu continued: "The people of the Six Wards were once the Imperial Guards of Luoyang, protecting the throne with loyalty and valor. The Emperor selected the bravest among you, the 'Hundred-Guard Xianbei,' to campaign with him, and they have won many honors; today, they enjoy great wealth and state favor. Now, the Emperor has established the Grand Marshal's Office, and the Crown Prince has opened his own bureau to manage affairs. As it is newly established, the organizational structure is yet incomplete, and given the heavy responsibilities of the military and the state, we are now recruiting soldiers. Those willing to serve may come forward."

This caused a stir among the crowd.

"Hmph, is it for real?"

A group of men hiding under the trees peered at the carriages not far away, several of them sneering slightly.

"I suspect they only remembered us because the power of the Six Garrisons is so great!"

Most people in the Six Wards had served as the Luoyang Imperial Guards, living off the stipends of the old Wei dynasty. Though the Wei had fallen, some could not let go of the burdens in their hearts and refused to follow the ruler of Qi. Others were driven by hatred for the Qi ruler's cruelty and refused to serve him.

Yet, years had passed. Even the most loyal minister must eat, let alone these soldiers of the Six Wards. Times were no longer what they used to be; without working for the Great Qi, there were no stipends to be had. The most elite of them had become the "Hundred-Guard Xianbei," risking their lives for the Qi ruler, while those who did not join the army were left to do odd jobs, engage in trade, or simply become wandering swordsmen to make ends meet.

Among the hundred thousand, some thrived while others struggled, but generally, the best of them were living off the state, while the worst were left to fend for themselves.

Those who harbored resentment against the Great Qi for the fall of the Wei found it hard to find work within Qi territory, making their lives increasingly difficult. After years of this stalemate, their circumstances had not improved, and the Great Qi had not been toppled by the Wei people. Instead, the Qi ruler’s grip had only tightened through his conquests. Even as he began his reign of terror and oppression in the fifth year of the Tianbao era, the situation remained firmly under his control, leaving the anti-Qi faction feeling increasingly bitter.

When Liu Xiang rebelled this past May, they had hoped to see the Qi state fall into chaos, but he was suppressed in the blink of an eye. With Liu Xiang now being hunted down, they became even more hesitant, wondering if they should reconsider their stance.

After all, a man must eat.

When the Qi ruler first issued his call, he took the strongest and most valiant of the Six Wards. Those who remained were the second tier; they were only considered "brave" because those at the top of the food chain had left.

There was a sense of resistance, but also the fact that Gao Yang was notoriously strict, insisting on his philosophy of "one against a hundred." This led the remaining men to doubt their own abilities, and even the families of the Six Wards' soldiers began to resent those who had been rejected: "If you were truly capable, you should have gone to serve the Qi ruler long ago. Why linger here?"

When such things were said often enough, their "waiting for the right price" became a joke. Without talent, one could wait forever and never be sold, and their nostalgia and loyalty to the old Wei became little more than a convenient shield.

Incompetence was the original sin; everything else was just an excuse. Even those who genuinely missed the Great Wei and hated the current Qi were viewed as cowards running from reality.

Seeing the once-lowly Six Garrisons rise to become the new favorites of the Qi state, taking positions that were rightfully theirs—or even higher—while the Han clans of Hebei lived comfortably because they had lived on their ancestral lands and invested in Gao Huan, left the soldiers of the Six Wards feeling deeply unbalanced.

They were desperate for a path upward to prove themselves.

Now that the path was right before them, expectations began to stir in their hearts. Of course, admitting they were tempted immediately would make them look like opportunists, so they were the first to deny it and state their opposition.

"Why didn't they keep us on as imperial guards when the Qi ruler first took power?"

Naturally, the Gao family had their own power base and would not simply inherit the old Wei's guards without vetting them. But at that moment, no one cared to analyze that logic; they all nodded in agreement.

"And now they remember us? I bet they suffered a crushing defeat in Jiankang and realized their own incompetence!"

This remark made many snicker. The Qi ruler's madness was surely partly driven by the failure in Jiankang. They speculated maliciously that perhaps the people of the Six Garrisons, unwilling to let the Qi ruler claim more glory, had suppressed them or betrayed the troops on the southern expedition.

They felt smugly satisfied: the base people of the Six Garrisons were never to be trusted anyway. If the old Wei had been more vigilant, how could it have fallen?

"If the Qi ruler had used us back then, this disaster might not have happened. Those people simply didn't give their all!"

This drew nods of agreement. The tone of the conversation shifted from mocking the Qi ruler to hypothetical scenarios where they were given important roles.

After much boasting and self-aggrandizement, their indignation reached a peak. They wanted to loudly ask the Qi ruler why he lacked the eye to recognize talent and left such men as themselves to gather dust.

They had also listened to the attendant's speech. When they heard that a martial arts arena would be set up to test their strength and determine their appointment, some were eager to try, while others considered backing out.

They did not know if the Crown Prince's standards would be as harsh as the Emperor's.

However, this was a rare opportunity to get ahead. To master the arts of war and peace and sell them to the imperial household was, after all, a fine thing. Who knew if they would get another chance if they missed this one? Were they really to just muddle through the rest of their lives like this?

Moreover, the Grand Marshal's Office was newly opened. Getting in early to secure a position and a stipend would make for a good life later. If they could rise in rank alongside the Crown Prince, it would be no different from the days of the Great Wei.

By the end of the discussion, their voices grew quiet. They stopped speaking, but they had all guessed their companions' intentions. Though they felt a sense of contempt for the lack of integrity in others, they secretly felt the choice was not such a bad one after all.

Across the Six Wards, similar scenes played out in small groups. One by one, people steeled their resolve, stepped out from their corners, and prepared to answer the call.