The recruitment remained open for a full seven days. By the time it closed, they had received a total of one hundred and twenty-seven applications.
There had been quite a number of able-bodied men coming to enlist. Some villages had received the news late, and after hesitating and dawdling for a while, they arrived only to find that registration had already ended. They were beside themselves with regret.
For the next two or three days, people continued to come and ask about it, hoping to persuade someone to make an exception and let them register. How could that be allowed? Old Third Qian gave them all a thorough scolding before sending them away one by one.
After witnessing how strict the yamen was, the men who had missed the registration deadline no longer dared come begging for special treatment.
In the days following the closing of registration, Duan Yan led his men to tidy up the large plot of land in the town that Song Xuemu had designated as a training ground.
Everything was needed in a hurry. The commoners who had come to the yamen for service had all been assigned to build the town’s defenses, while there still were not enough men available to construct the training ground enclosed within the planned town walls.
With winter rain and snow, whether the wind blew or the rain fell, they could only conduct their work in the empty training ground for the time being.
After making such simple preparations, five days had passed since registration closed. On the sixth day, the able-bodied men who had signed up were to come for their evaluation.
Before dawn, Duan Yan had already brought his men to the training ground to check the equipment needed for the tests once more.
Third Son Qian was occasionally quite dependable. He had prepared sandbags, stone weights, and the like the day before, and after inspecting everything, they found that nothing was amiss.
Song Fengsui had risen early as well. He wore a padded winter coat beneath a windproof cloak lined with fox fur.
The pelt had been collected during one of their former hunting trips. Duan Yan had dug it out of the storeroom and specially had the tailor make it into a fox-fur cloak for Young Master Song to wear whenever he went out.
Though fur cloaks were warm and comfortable, their bulky shape was difficult to carry off. They either made a person look broad and burly, as if he had the shoulders of a tiger and the waist of a bear, or, if the wearer was too small, seemed to swallow him whole beneath the weight of the garment.
This cloak, however, was not the conspicuous white of a winter fox but an ordinary fox-brown. Yet on Song Fengsui, it looked neither bulky nor oversized. It fit him perfectly and lent him an air of distinction, making him look every inch the elegant young master of a wealthy household.
He had brought his medical chest and come with Duan Yan as a medic, in case anyone was injured during the examination. He also wanted to join in the excitement and see how the candidates would be tested.
The moment he entered the training ground, the yamen runners, Old Third Qian, and the men under Duan Yan all raised their eyes and stared straight at Song Fengsui.
As the saying went, fine clothes made the man and fine tack the horse. Song Fengsui already possessed a face whose beauty was rarely seen among ordinary crowds; he needed no splendid garments or ornaments to make him stand out.
Still, his usual plain clothes and simple dress made him seem more approachable—not so lofty, nor quite so eye-catching. But with only a little effort put into his appearance, the noble air about him became impossible to conceal, and he drew everyone’s gaze at once.
None of them received so much as a glance from Song Fengsui. Instead, they were first met by a sidelong look from Duan Yan, who wore a stern expression. They immediately shrank their necks and no longer dared stare openly, switching instead to furtive peeks.
Although it was not raining that day, the training ground was open on all four sides and the wind came howling through, enough to make anyone shiver.
Old Third Qian shouted from one end for Duan Yan to bring Song Fengsui over. A temporary shelter had been erected there for medical use.
Song Fengsui did not stand on ceremony. He slipped inside at once. However thickly he was wrapped, he still could not withstand the cold as well as those strong, robust men outside.
Old Third Qian glanced into the wind shelter at Song Fengsui. It was not the first time he had seen the man, and he had long known that Song Fengsui was gifted in both looks and talent. But only today did he catch a glimpse of the bearing he must once have possessed as the young master of a wealthy and powerful family.
He cast a sidelong look at Duan Yan and thought, Where did this deadbeat get such good fortune? Song Fengsui had actually taken a liking to him, and even the Song family was satisfied with the match.
It was rather difficult to make sense of.
But after thinking it over, Old Third Qian decided it was a good thing after all. At least it would save everyone from constantly worrying that someone might set his sights on He-ge, forcing the entire family to guard against suitors as if they were thieves.
His father had been terribly unsettled as well. Even when He-ge wanted to go out alone, he would fuss and object. He-ge had complained to him about such grievances more than once.
Now that Duan Yan, already a grown man, finally seemed ready to settle down, everyone could rejoice.
“Be quick about getting things ready! People will be arriving soon!”
By the hour of Chen, candidates began arriving at the training ground one after another, and quite a crowd of the men who had registered had gathered.
Seeing the sandbags, stone weights, swords, spears, bows, and arrows laid out around them, everyone began whispering among themselves. Their hearts filled with unease, for none of them knew exactly how they would be tested.
At a quarter past the hour of Chen, Duan Yan called the roll. Of the one hundred and twenty-seven men who had registered, one hundred and twenty-one arrived at the appointed time. The remaining six had either been delayed or withdrawn.
Whatever the reason, anyone who had failed to arrive on time was deemed to have failed.
There was even one amusing incident. A short, thin man came to the training ground, took one look at the sight before him, and immediately lost his nerve. He tried to sneak away through the outer perimeter, but the constables stationed outside stopped him, assuming he had come to cause trouble. After questioning him, they discovered that he simply did not want to take part in the examination.
Duan Yan did not make things difficult for him. He shouted to the others, asking whether anyone else wished to leave, and then let the man go in full view of the crowd.
This evaluation was neither complicated nor particularly difficult. It consisted of three main events.
The first was a long-distance run while carrying sandbags on both legs. The second involved throwing sandbags and lifting stone weights. The third was a test of courage.
The first two events were mainly simple tests of physical strength. At the outset, most people were more or less on an equal footing. Their different lives merely meant that some had greater strength, while others possessed better endurance.
Only after undergoing intensive training would the militia’s abilities truly improve. But if a person’s basic physical condition was already inadequate, it would be difficult for him to endure the training that followed.
Duan Yan first had the candidates draw lots. Each paper ball bore a number from one to ten, and those who drew the same number were placed in the same group. In other words, the one hundred and twenty men were divided into twelve groups.
For the weighted long-distance run, the members of each group had to circle the training ground five times. The last three runners in each group would be eliminated.
For the second test, the remaining eighty-four men would draw lots and divide themselves into new groups. They would throw sandbags and lift stone weights, with the two lowest-scoring candidates eliminated.
The final sixty men would advance to the courage test.
After Old Third Qian sternly announced the rules—that no cheating or harming others would be permitted during the evaluation—a bronze gong rang out, and the first test began.
The training ground filled with the thudding sound of running feet.
Inside the wind shelter, Song Fengsui took a sip of hot tea. Hearing the commotion outside, he hugged the warm water flask Duan Yan had filled for him and poked half his body out of the shelter.
At the sound of the gong, several candidates shot forward like arrows. The sandbags strapped to their legs seemed unable to hinder them in the slightest. However, the training ground was quite large. The candidates who surged ahead at the beginning possessed explosive strength, but their energy was quickly depleted. By the second or third lap, they had gradually slowed and were overtaken.
When the final lap arrived, several candidates who had initially fallen behind suddenly burst into speed. In the blink of an eye, they overtook those ahead of them and even seized places near the front of the rankings.
“These fellows certainly know how to calculate their strength, saving their energy for the final burst.”
Song Fengsui found it interesting and remarked to Duan Yan.
“Though it’s only a simple long-distance run, it’s enough to test a person’s character and endurance,” Duan Yan replied.
By the time the first group finished, all the candidates were drenched in sweat.
The three at the very back had their names recorded by the examiners. Without a word, they slunk away to the side, crestfallen.
Those waiting for their turn had watched the first group complete the run and were already making calculations of their own. In particular, after seeing that the candidate who had sprinted fastest during the first lap ended up being one of the final three eliminated, they all concluded that they must not expend all their strength at the beginning. Otherwise, they would have nothing left for the final lap and could only watch helplessly as others surged ahead of them.
The gong sounded again, and the second group began.
The third and fourth groups followed, and everything proceeded smoothly.
It was not until the fifth group that a candidate was overtaken by someone behind him during the final lap. Panicking, yet unable to speed up himself, he lost his head and resorted to a dirty trick, tripping the other candidate. A sharp-eyed bailiff overseeing the test caught him and dragged him out.
During the sixth group, another candidate fell through carelessness and scraped some flesh. After finishing the run, he came over to get some ointment for his injuries.
The most frightening incident occurred in the tenth group. Two candidates suddenly collapsed onto the field with a thud in the middle of the race. Whether they had tripped or what, no one knew. They still seemed capable of struggling to their feet, yet the moment they fell, they lost consciousness.
They were hurriedly carried to the shelter, where Song Fengsui examined them. Only then did he discover that both suffered from heart conditions. After administering emergency treatment and giving them medicine, he managed to save their lives.
Thankfully, preparations for rescue had been made in advance. Otherwise, something truly serious might have happened, and there would have been no way to answer to their families.
During the second round of testing, four candidates were found to have inflexible arms and be unable to exert their strength while throwing sandbags. When it came time to carry the heavy stone blocks, several more candidates were exposed for concealing back ailments and shoulder injuries.
Overall, things still proceeded smoothly.
After the two rounds of testing, half the candidates had been eliminated.
Those candidates were all deeply disappointed. The examinations had roused their competitive spirit, yet they had still failed to outdo the others. Naturally, they were unwilling to accept the result.
At that point, Old Third Qian came over. Instead of dismissing them, he separated out those who had cheated and those with health problems, then addressed the several dozen candidates who remained.
“Your performance in the two examinations was actually not poor. It’s simply that there is always someone stronger, and this time you were slightly inferior. The Chief Drillmaster does not wish to lose a single talented person, so he is willing to give you another opportunity.”
“Anyone with a special skill may now do their utmost to demonstrate it. If you can win the Chief Drillmaster’s favor, you may proceed to the final test—the test of courage.”
The eliminated candidates’ eyes lit up at his words. They all wanted to fight for one more chance.
The reexamination then began, while those who had passed the first two rounds were given a break in the middle of the proceedings.
After the reexamination, Duan Yan, Third Son Qian, and the director of the military bureau discussed the matter and selected ten candidates.
Four of them knew archery, two were skilled climbers, one had exceptionally keen hearing, another had unusually sharp eyesight, one could imitate voices through ventriloquism, and one was skilled at holding his breath underwater.
Although Third Son Qian and the director felt that the first few each possessed useful abilities and could indeed be recruited, their region was filled with mountains, and the ability to hold one’s breath underwater did not seem particularly useful.
Duan Yan, however, considered it a rare talent. Even if there were few occasions to use it, whenever the need arose, that person would stand out far more than an ordinary militiaman.
Thus, seventy people in total would participate in the test of courage.
The contents of the third examination were then announced to the candidates.
First, one person would stand atop a constructed platform while ten people waited below. The candidate on the platform would turn his back to the others and fall backward, to be caught by those below.
Second, the candidate would close his eyes while an examiner tested him with a blade.
“That doesn’t sound difficult. I thought they were going to drag in livestock and make us slaughter it on the spot.”
“With seventy candidates, where would they find enough live animals to slaughter for the test?”
The contents of the third round had not been revealed beforehand, so everyone had been uneasy, fearing some formidable ordeal. They had never expected it to consist of two such simple tasks.
For a time, the candidates acted as though they had everything under control, each feeling certain that he would pass.
One of the more mischievous candidates even approached Duan Yan and asked, “Chief Drillmaster, if all seventy of us pass, will all of us be recruited?”
Duan Yan gave a faint laugh. “Let’s wait until the assessments are complete before saying that.”
With that, the third round of testing began in earnest.
Before the candidates started, Duan Yan, as Chief Drillmaster, and Old Third Qian, as Deputy Chief Drillmaster, each performed the backward fall to demonstrate it for them. They turned their backs and fell straight down, while the people below caught them securely. Neither changed expression in the slightest.
The candidates found it even easier than expected and eagerly clamored to be tested as soon as possible. It was already past noon, and a light rain had begun to fall once more.
“Can this really test them?” Song Fengsui asked doubtfully after watching three or four candidates pass the examination in quick succession. “Isn’t it too easy?”
“These candidates are all commoners. None of them have ever undergone organized training before. As long as they have sufficient courage and meet the physical requirements, that’s enough. We can train them gradually afterward.”
Duan Yan patiently explained to Song Fengsui, “If we set the bar too high from the very beginning, wouldn’t we frighten everyone away? It’s rare to find someone outstanding right from the start. For now, we’re only looking for promising recruits.”
Although the examination appeared extremely easy, once they actually stood atop the platform and had to fall straight backward with their backs turned to the people below, they realized how uneasy it made them feel.
Very few were bold enough to leap down without the slightest hesitation. Some jumped only after steeling themselves, while others could not bring themselves to do it even after summoning all their courage. They twisted their heads around and claimed that they were unable to jump.
Watching candidates flee at the last moment during the very first test, Song Fengsui finally understood that courage was truly something some people possessed in painfully small amounts.
Twelve people were eliminated in that round.
The second test was easy in theory, yet even more difficult in practice.
Anyone with a clear mind knew that the examiner would not truly bring the blade down on them. They merely had to keep their eyes tightly shut and not open them.
Even though everyone understood that, when a sharp gust of wind swept over their heads and the cold edge of the blade drew near, many candidates still shuddered. Some were so frightened that they opened their eyes, while others trembled and dodged away.
It was an ordeal everyone knew would not injure them, yet a large number of candidates were still eliminated.
If they could not even cross such a simple threshold, what could they possibly accomplish later?
In the end, fewer than fifty people passed the examination.
However, after a comprehensive assessment, six candidates who should have been eliminated were selected to make up the full fifty.
Once Duan Yan called out the names of those accepted, he announced loudly, “Those who have been recruited will now be assigned to the militia. As an initial benefit, after reporting to the government office tomorrow, you may immediately collect half a month’s wages.”
The field erupted at once. Cheers rang out from every direction.
Naturally, this benefit belonged only to those who had been accepted. The eliminated candidates felt even worse when they heard that the recruits would also receive half a month’s wages in advance.
Seeing this, Duan Yan raised a hand and gestured for everyone to quiet down.
“Those who were not selected this time need not be disheartened. Though you did not make it into the first batch of militia recruits, the office will surely recruit more men in the future. If you are truly willing, do not slack off once you return home. Build up your strength and keep your bodies fit—just wait until the next round.”
“Chief Drillmaster, when will the next round of recruitment be?”
Duan Yan said, “There is no need for you to hurry. If things go quickly, you should see a second recruitment in two or three months. For now, go home and train properly. But I will give you a word of warning—do not fixate on the questions from this examination and train only for those. The next round will naturally have a different set of questions.”
“The office’s examinations are nothing more than tests of endurance, physical fitness, and courage. The form may change, but the essence will not.”
After hearing Duan Yan’s words, the eliminated candidates brightened considerably. Having another opportunity was good enough. They would return home and train properly; next time, they refused to believe they would be worse than anyone else.
The rain was visibly growing heavier, so Duan Yan did not continue speaking for long. He gave the order for everyone to disperse in an orderly fashion.
“You certainly gave them a fine speech. You comforted those who were eliminated while also encouraging them to train their bodies on their own. Whether or not they eventually become militia, it will do them no harm for the able-bodied men around the town to grow stronger.”
Song Fengsui remained beneath Duan Yan’s large umbrella as the two of them walked outside together to take a carriage home.
They had left before dawn, and now it was already late afternoon, yet they had still not eaten a proper meal. Song Fengsui had eaten two pieces of chestnut cake with tea in the shelter, so he was not particularly hungry.
He unfolded the oiled paper and took out a piece he had deliberately saved for Duan Yan. Raising his hand, he fed it to him.
After enjoying the treat, Duan Yan put an arm around him and tilted the umbrella farther toward Song Fengsui. “When there are ways to encourage the common people, one must seize the chance to use them. Otherwise, if you merely try to persuade them with endless earnest words, they will not listen—and may even come up with all sorts of strange complaints.”
Song Fengsui let out a soft laugh and whispered into Duan Yan’s ear, “Grandfather told me earlier to watch carefully how you selected the soldiers, so I could tell him all about it when we returned. I’ll praise you to him in a little while.”
Hearing this, a smile appeared in Duan Yan’s eyes. “Just don’t praise me too obviously. Otherwise, Grandfather will stop believing what you say.”
As they talked, the two climbed into the carriage. The matter of recruitment had come to an end, but now that they had soldiers, Duan Yan would have even less free time. He would have to lead them in training every day from then on.
The days grew colder by the day, and the New Year was nearly upon them. No one knew what the world outside was like, but everyone understood that to have a good New Year, one needed good rice and good meat.
With the war raging and passes closed in every direction, merchants had almost entirely disappeared. News no longer traveled, and there were no traders transporting goods along the official roads. Duan Yan feared that the several bands of bandits in the mountains, having no merchants left to rob, would turn their attention entirely toward the towns.
The period just before the New Year still required their utmost vigilance.
