Chapter 1 In the Square Below Thunderclap Cliff

In the square below Thunderclap Cliff, a large open area had been cleared in recent days. The earth had been leveled repeatedly, and then clumps of wild grass, still vibrantly green in this season, were transplanted onto it. After that, the grass was flattened and trimmed to a uniform height. The field of lush green grass looked full of life, captivating the eye.

Luo Ergan was one of the most outstanding warriors of the Leimao tribe. After joining the Jingyun cavalry, he had become a camp commander and was qualified to attend intermediate military meetings of the Yunzhou command to learn about the complex but exciting military and political affairs. But today, he was simply the captain and quarterback of his team.

From the moment it was introduced, rugby had been met with enthusiastic approval by all the Yunzhou armies. The sport, full of movement and collisions, made the warriors' blood boil, while the tactics and strategies employed in the game seemed to offer endless variations. Advancing yard by yard, the constant switching between offense and defense, and especially the frequent dramatic comebacks, made people addicted to it. Few in the Yunzhou armies knew exactly how this sport had come about, only vaguely knowing that it should have come from the higher levels of the Jinglue Manor, likely from a "flash of inspiration" by someone who remained hidden behind the scenes. This important figure was truly meticulous; from its inception, rugby had very strict and complete rules, even with very strict specifications for sports protective gear, greatly reducing injuries during the game. It should be known that the moves allowed in this sport alone were enough for the Yunzhou tribal warriors, familiar with wrestling and fond of it, to come up with countless variations. And the warriors of each arm of service had successively developed tactics suitable for themselves. Melee infantrymen were very fond of complex running back tactics that often confused even themselves. Comrades from the heavy infantry battalion preferred to advance solidly under the cover of a bunch of big guys. When defending, the heavy infantry battalion's warriors were solid and steady, leaving no opening for attack. As for the various cavalry battalions, artillery battalions, and longbow battalions, they all had their own preferences. But among all the camps, the Jingyun cavalry camp team led by Luo Ergan, under Luo Ergan's leadership, displayed the most varied formations. Luo Ergan was a good warrior on the battlefield, a good officer worthy of everyone's trust, and on the field, he was a first-class quarterback who repeatedly delivered game-winning plays.

This day was the final of the Southern Division of the first season of the Yunzhou Armies Rugby League. After winning this game, Luo Ergan's camp would enter the final four knockout stage. This season was too short; there had been almost no formal games before, and this final qualification had been selected from some of the camps with obviously stronger records. The official league would not start until next year. Luo Ergan didn't care about any of this; he only knew that since there was a competition, they had to win it. But when Luo Ergan took the lead in entering the field and calling his teammates to warm up, he clearly noticed something unusual today. Today, there were at least two hundred additional sentries and patrolling sergeants around the field, and the temporary stands erected on one side of the field made Luo Ergan understand that an important figure must have arrived. It should be known that today his camp was playing on the field, and under such circumstances, only a few people in the entire Yunzhou would bother to come and watch a game like this. And combined with the current situation, it was obvious that Ye Tao had personally arrived.

Luo Ergan didn't think that adding sentries and protective forces was unnecessary. As a camp commander, he knew that there were more than just one group of people lurking in Yunzhou who wanted Ye Tao and his family's lives. The intelligence bureau had recently uncovered many groups from different countries and different forces who wanted to put Ye Tao to death.

"Luo Ergan, Lord Ye Jinglue is looking for you." Sure enough, before the game, two guards, also from the tribe and familiar with Luo Ergan, came to call him over.

"How long is Lord Ye Jinglue staying at Thunderclap Cliff? Is there still time for us to have a drink together?" Luo Ergan asked as he walked with the guards.

"Lord Ye Jinglue is staying at Thunderclap Cliff. We Yunzhou are going to have some major actions. After the arrangements are made, Lord Ye Jinglue has to return to Danyang once," the guard revealed nonchalantly. "Luo Ergan, perform well. Maybe you'll get a chance to fight in a battle."

Luo Ergan excitedly asked, "Fight? When? Who are we fighting?"

The guard shrugged and said, "Don't know."

Luo Ergan wasn't angry either, he chuckled, but this news had already reached his heart. This guard was willing to reveal this much to himself, at the risk of his own. Ye Tao was indeed somewhat lenient towards the people around him, as long as these people knew not to touch certain bottom lines. And Luo Ergan had come to understand these days that Ye Tao would definitely not give himself a chance to fight because of his performance on the field. Ye Tao was not that kind of person. If his camp was chosen to do something, it would only be because his camp had done what it should do, and done it better than others.

"Luo Ergan, why is this camp commander of yours running onto the field himself?" Ye Tao asked with a smile.

"Playing ball is very enjoyable, and it's always better than standing on the sidelines and watching, right?" Luo Ergan replied with a smile, glancing at the camp commander of his opponent's heavy infantry battalion standing on the sidelines.

"Don't be arrogant, when you're beaten to the ground later, you'll have plenty of time to cry." The camp commander of the heavy infantry battalion was a member of the Dai family, Dai Hui. Being able to get such a good character as his name among the disciples of the same generation, it was conceivable that his status was not low. He naturally had enough tolerance to deal with Luo Ergan's level of provocation.

"Lord Ye Jinglue, please be a witness. How about we two bet on this game?" Luo Ergan thought for a moment and said, "Same old rules, washing socks."

Dai Hui touched his nose and said, "Bet, then bet. You haven't washed any fewer socks than us, what are you showing off for?"

Ye Tao looked at the two of them, who were both in high spirits, and asked, "Looks like you all really like playing this."

"My lord, if there were other more fun things to do, such as fighting, this wouldn't be anything. Now, we can only play this." Luo Ergan replied with a smile.

"You guys are really well-informed. I'm going to convene a meeting of Yunzhou's camp-level officers and above again, and you'll know then. Luo Ergan, you're the only camp commander who personally plays ball. I'll give you a prize today. If you can throw for over a hundred yards today, I'll allow you to pick ten bottles of wine from the cellar of the Grey Goose Winery, how about that?"

Luo Ergan's eyes lit up and he said, "It's a deal." Dai Hui, on the other hand, shrugged, looking indifferent. Unlike Luo Ergan, who was overly energetic, Dai Hui merely regarded rugby as a tool to regulate the moods of the soldiers and increase their training enthusiasm to some extent. He admitted that this trick was quite effective, but to make him take a sport as seriously as Luo Ergan did, even to the point of using it to gamble, he would respectfully decline. Dai Hui was more concerned about what kind of decisions would be made at the subsequent military conference. Compared to other troops, who could fight if they could and run if they couldn't, heavy infantry couldn't. The kind of nerves that wouldn't collapse under pressure in heavy infantry had to be cultivated in actual combat. If it wasn't because it seemed that Ye Tao, Tan Weixin, and even Dai Yun were very interested in various sports, Dai Hui would never have allowed his subordinates to spend so much time and energy on it. Although he didn't play himself, Dai Hui was actually quite perceptive of the tactics in rugby.

"Lord Ye, it's not fair to only give Luo Ergan a prize, is it?" Dai Hui said with a smile. "What does the lord plan to do for our side?"

"Look at your defense... I really don't understand the intricacies of it as well as you do. If your side wins this game, you can make a reasonable request, how about that?" Ye Tao said generously.

Dai Hui chuckled and said, "Then, my lord, when there's a battle, count our camp in, how about that? Our camp's training results are the best among the heavy infantry camps, that's not too much to ask, right?"

Ye Tao shrugged and said, "I can't promise you that."

Dai Hui's face immediately fell, but he immediately heard Ye Tao explain, "Because both of your camps are definitely entering the combat sequence. If I agree to your condition, then it would be taking advantage of you."

Dai Hui's heart was filled with joy, and he said, "My lord, although everyone has a little bit of news now, no one dares to spread it. Just give us a hint, which side are we fighting?"

"Xi Ling," Ye Tao said readily, "Which other side could it be?"

Both camp commanders happily returned to their respective teams. Luo Ergan was eager to get started, encouraging his teammates with enthusiasm; Dai Hui lightly dropped a sentence: "Our camp has a share in the battle, but if you guys lose today, all of you will stay behind." After a great battle, both camp commanders could get a prize from Ye Tao. Dai Hui's camp narrowly defeated Luo Ergan's camp by one point. But in today's game, Luo Ergan repeatedly had extremely penetrating passes, advancing far more than a hundred yards.

Not many days after this game, the champions of the four divisions of the Yunzhou Armies would hold a total of three knockout games again below Thunderclap Cliff, ending this somewhat hasty season. Accompanying the participating teams to watch the fun were fifty camp commanders and officers of various arms of service. Dai Yun and Tan Weixin also set off from Ningyuan and hurried all the way here. In Yunzhou, military and political affairs were always discussed together. Ye Tao's ideas had only been conveyed through letters to a few of the most important people, and such a complex opportunity required the full cooperation of all parties.

And this meeting was also Chen Kai's first time entering the core meeting of Yunzhou as the chief of the Third Civil Affairs Division.