White Tiger Guard

It was just after the New Year Celebrations at Kangning City, that Wuying finally set off for the Royal City, to join the White Tiger Guard. And much to his surprise, Yue Ling announced that she would going with him.

That particular announcement certainly pleased her Great-grandmother. Although it wasn't a very popular decision, when it came to her aunts and grand-aunts. Not that Yue Ling cared about their opinion. In fact, he had the suspicion that she was just making use of his signing up as an excuse to get away from them.

A decision that had his full agreement!

To tell the truth, the women of the Duan family was more annoying than he had thought possible. It was bad enough that they would drag Yue Ling away for hours on end. And keep tiring her out all day so that she would be too tired to hold a proper conversation. What was worse was they had to drag him into their bothersome little parties!

If that was not enough, they even got their wastrel sons to try to drag him off to their haunts in the City. To show him off to their friends, they said. Well, he had followed their lead once or twice. But it was clear that they were just wasting their time in pointless fun and games, so he soon gave up all pretense and claimed that he had to train.

Fortunately, he had Uncle Duan Jiu on his side. And all the young men who came to his door were quickly chased away with a brutal scolding by the burly Major. After he remained with the old man, working away at his sword and spear in his courtyard for about half-a-moon, none of the idiots bothered to come to trouble him any further.

Of course, their failure to involve him in their stupid leisure activities result in a wave of complaints from their sisters, mothers and grandmothers into Yue Ling's ear. Which was probably why she had made the decision to leave together with him.

"We should move a little faster. The road is wide, and our horses are clearly much better than the usual traders' mounts that we will come across. So we are likely to make good time. There are a few small towns along the way to Jiancheng City, so we should not have any difficulty finding an inn and such."

Yue Ling seemed to take control of their wagon and their guards the moment that they left Kangning City, reverting to her Young Master Ling persona. That was enough to put a smile on Wuying's face. As well as that of the six guards that they were forced to bring along. Which was something that he had not planned for.

He had actually thought to ride one of those mounts himself, all the way from Kangning to Jiancheng, so as to make the best time that he could. Wuying did not doubt that he would have a lot to learn, once he became a part of the White Tiger Guard, and he wanted to get through the selection process as quickly as he could.

But he couldn't do that now, could he?

"What do you intend to do, when you get to White Tiger Gate? It is not that far from Kongmin Town."

He blinked, and turned to look at his so-called wife. He had not been expecting something like that. Not from her. After all, they had barely managed to clear their time together, as a false married couple.

There were some that suspected that they had not consummated their marriage. But since she was from the Yue family, and not the Duans, her aunts and uncles were not allowed to interfere. Especially after her Great-grandmother had been so accepting of them, during the tea ceremony the day after.

Still, he had not expected her to bring up his future plans. Was she really that curious, about what he intended to do? She simply looked at him, with an obvious question on her face.

"Work hard towards a promotion, I suppose. A corporal or a sergeant would earn a lot more than a normal trooper. And they say that it costs a bit, repairing and replacing one's gear. So I shall have to be a bit frugal.

"I will write you, at Kongmin Town, once I have an idea of what I intend to do. No, I'll write you every moon. That way, it would look a lot better. Right?"

Yue Ling didn't answer at once. And lowered her head as if considering his proposal. But just as she looked up again, a loud noise outside the carriage drew their attention. And a quick look outside showed another wagon on the road, taking up half the trail at least.

"Iron bars and reinforced wood. That is some sort of prison wagon," Yue Ling said, after a quick peek through the window of the carriage.

"And the insignia on the same states that it is from An Ling Town."

"An Ling? That's a mining town, about two days to the South. They must be headed back to Kangning City, to make use of the Black Stone Bridge. It's the only one wide enough and sturdy enough, to handle the weight of a prison wagon."

Yue Ling nodded. But her face told a different story. There was more than a trace of anger in her eyes, and he was rather certain that she was upset.

"What is the matter?"

"An Ling Mining Town has a rather bad reputation, and we have more or less withdrawn our support for the place, my brother and I. It is ruled by a merchant council, more or less, through a money-mad mayor. And they force normal people, even children, to work in their mines for a pitance. No doubt, they have snatched another group of petty thieves, to be branded as their mine-slaves."

"Mine-slaves?"

"That is what they are, essentially. They would be forced to work in the mines, and be branded on their faces. That makes them no better than slaves, who have to live in the mines and extract the coal and ores for the fat merchants."

The fire in her eyes was more obvious then, and he could tell that she must have seen that with her own eyes, at some point. That was when what she said about Big Brother Baisheng and her withdrawing their support for the place started to make sense.

But what was that going to do for these young men here? Wuying decided that he would have to step up, if he wanted to change the direction that their lives were headed in. If only to make Yue Ling a little happier. It would make a pleasant change, after her time with her horrible aunts and cousins.

"Let me go talk to them. Perhaps ... we can work something out."

*

Getting the other wagon to stop for an early meal, with Yue Ling's guard contingent offering up some of their rations, certainly did the trick. And, Wuying hoped, put the pair of guards watching over the prisoners in a good mood.

It didn't take long for them to pull both their vehicles to the side of the road, so that they can have their food in peace. And that also gave Wuying a chance to talk to the pair of guards. Their uniforms weren't in the best shape, but he had certainly seen worse, at White Tiger Gate. And the pair was polite, and thankful for the free meal. Although their respect for the obviously rich and sybaritic young man was rather cursory.

Which was probably why they got a little upset, when he started asking about their prisoners. And what they had done to get themselves locked up like that. Naturally, he wasn't all that impressed with their answer:

"A goat? They are being sent to the mines because they stole a goat? And trampled over a farmer's fields? That seems a little harsh, doesn't it?"

"Of course its harsh! That is the whole point!" the guard sighed as he gestured at the men locked in the wagon, "They committed a crime, and they must pay. It is that simple. Don't tell me that you have difficulty understanding that!" His expression was obviously a sneer, and Wuying had to hold himself back from answering it with a fist to his face.

But the guard was supposedly on duty. And he could respect that. So he kept his voice even as he nodded back at him. "Just what are they supposed to pay then? What is the amount, I mean," he asked then.

"Don't even think of settling it for them! This isn't about coin! This isn't something that you can buy off with money! They have to pay for it through their labor! That is what is written in the town's laws!"

The other guard held up a hand then, and his voice was reasonably calm and even when he spoke. "That's enough, old friend. This young man merely asked us a question. And it is not as if he is asking us to break our oaths," he said quietly, before he turned to face Wuying. "The price that they owe the town for these ... misdemeanors is three gold coins. That's three gold coins apiece. They have damaged the fields, and the farmers there deserve some compensation."

"So, so long as they pay that fine, or whatever they wish to call it, they would be free to go?" He took pains to keep his voice steady, and free of the fear or anger that would have surely given him away as someone new at this.

"Yes. But I would ask you to consider: what would happen if they do go free? Right here and now? How long do you think before their hunger, their desperation, would drive them to commit a similar crime? Rather than that, why not save us the time and the effort? Of rounding them up again, I mean. So long as they are in the mines, they would get three meals a day, and a place to sleep. Yes, it would be in a dark and slightly uncomfortable place. But they would be fed, and have a roof over their heads."

Wuying ignored what the man was saying, and concentrated on the Law that he had been taught. The mining town of An Ling was a little different, but there were still parts of the King's Law that held for all in the Kingdom, regardless of where one was from. That much, he had learned while he was at Kongmin Town.

And he glanced back at the wagon that he had been sharing with his wife. It was more than a little new to him, treating Yue Ling like a woman. But she had asked him to help, and he wasn't about to let this pass without giving it his best shot. Although he was just off to join the Army himself. How he was going to deal with this was ...

Then he suddenly got it, and he turned back to smile at the pair that was in charge of guarding the prisoners. "How long do they have to pay off the town? I mean, that three gold-piece fine? I trust that it is not immediate, is it? There is a law that everyone gets about ten days to a moon to make good on such payments, isn't there?"

The pair of guards looked at him as if he had grown another head. "No. If I am not wrong, they will have thirty days to make good the payment. But surely ... Look at them now! They are hardly capable raising a silver piece, much less three golds! And half of them don't even have the strength to stand on their own! How do you expect them to be able to earn enough to pay such an amount? Three gold pieces is more than this lot can expect to earn in a year!"

"Not so. They will get five gold pieces as a signing bonus if they join the Armed Guard at White Tiger Gate. And if they join the army, in three days time, at the recruitment field at West Gate, they will get the signing bonus at once. That means they will have enough to pay off the debt that they owe. And they will have a place in the Guard! That's got to be better than working in the mines!"

One of the guards looked thoughtful at that, while the other blinked at his partner. Then he pointed at the ragged group behind him, in the wagon. "Are you kidding me? This lot wouldn't pass the Army's entrance exams! Not as they are now!" he scoffed.

"True. That is why my wife and I are willing to feed them with our men, at our camp, over the next three days, while we travel to the recruitment field. And maybe see that they get a little cleaned up too. That way, they would stand a chance! Besides, you will need to go South to the mines of An Ling anyway. What's a little detour towards the Inner Ring?

"And it's only a three day journey between this place and Jianchiang City."

The men looked a little thoughtful then, and he took the opportunity to lean a little closer. "Now, I'm not really that concerned about the laws of An Ling Town and all that. But my wife seems a little sympathetic to their plight, and I feel that they should have a better chance than heading back to where they would be chained up and forced to work in the dark. At the least, agreeing with the plan would save you a bit on food as you travel. And if the army doesn't want them ... Like I said, the short stopover isn't going to hurt your travel time that much, is it?"

And that seemed to be enough to make up their minds for them!

*

He was as good as his word.

At least, that was what the six rake-thin fellows could agree on. When they had the breath to even talk. Most of the time, they would simply collapse onto the hard ground panting away, after they were done with the drills he taught them.

And after two days of that, the two guards who were supposed to be watching them, Sergeants Wu Ping and Jiang Leli, stopped being so cautious, each time that he dragged the group out of their wagon for their practice session.

In fact, they seemed pleased that the runaways were putting in the effort to learn the simple arms drill. It showed that they were more than willing to join the army, rather than to be confined to the mines. And become a tattooed convict!

Of course, Wuying also took the opportunity to train as well. There was quite a bit that he missed, when he was stuck at Kangning City. Uncle Duan Jiu didn't have some of the more complicated training equipment lying around there, so he couldn't make use of that like he did back in Kongmin Town. So he had mainly stuck with his sword practice.

Which had already become a lot smoother than it had been, back when he started.

Although he did work up quite a bit of a sweat, after a proper workout session. Added to the drills that he was putting the six thin young men through, he was perspiring as well, by the time that he made his way back to Yue Ling's carriage, for his mid-day meal.

Yue Ling smiled at him as he climbed back into the coach, and she handed him a damp towel the moment that he sat down again. "Working hard, husband. I had thought that you were just going to hand this lot off to the ones handling the recruitment. I didn't think that you would be working with them yourself," she told him with a hint of a laugh in her voice, "Or is this just your way of getting yourself back into practice?"

He grinned back, and shrugged. "Just making sure that they get the basics, and frankly, it helps me to remember as well. It has been a while since I've joined the guards and such, at their simple drills. It helps. After all, I might be joining them in another two days."

"Oh? I thought that you would be with them at the recruitment field?"

Wuying shook his head at that. "That would certainly be helpful. To me, at least. But no, I've promised the Lieutenant - Lieutenant Yen Ah Man, that's his name! Well, I've sort of promised him that I would meet up with him and the sergeants first, before I hit the late morning sessions. Seems like they want to see how far I've come in the three seasons I've been away."

"Sounds to me like they just want to have a chance to bash you themselves!" she laughed out loud now, a familiar sound that he had not heard for a while.

Not since they arrived at her Great-grandmother's. And since they were married. He flushed a little at the memory. Before he quickly pushed it out of the way. It wouldn't do to be thinking about that now! Not when they were just a day away from Jiancheng City!

But Yue Ling was looking over the lean, ragged forms of the prisoners when he turned back to face her. And it seemed pretty clear to him that she didn't care for it.

"We should have a word with the people at West Gate about this. The town has been allowed to do as they pleased for a while now, but I have a feeling that they are bending, if not breaking some of the Laws. These people shouldn't have to live like this," she grumbled softly, as she waved a hand in her lap, so that they wouldn't spot her, from outside of the carriage.

"I will not disagree with that. But they are the ones who are running the town, and it would take a bit of clout to even get anyone in there to learn the details, much less effect a change. And you and I are not exactly in the King's Service. And your brother will need orders to look into this, before he can go charging in," he pointed out to her.

"So we should just let it carry on this way? And just accustomed to all the injustice here, like everyone else?" There was a fire in her voice then, and Wuying shook his head at her quickly, and waved a hand to warn her from raising it too loud.

Then he pointed at the other wagon behind them. "We might ask for the Uncles' help. They would know the right sort of people that would be interested in this. And whisper the right words in the right ears. That might get an Inspector sent out to An Ling Town, and find out what everyone needs to know. And orders from West Court would definitely hold precedence over a Law that is close to half a century old!"

Yue Ling chuckled. "I agree! And I know just who to write to, once we are at Jiancheng City. No. I had best pay her a visit, to convince her to play a hand. She should not have a problem, I think, gaining some sort of an advantage with this bit of information.

"And she is exactly the type of person who would take pleasure in destroying the merchants there too!"

"Destroy ... What do you mean, destroy?"

Yue Ling gave him a rather devious smile as she explained. "Financially. I meant destroy them financially. After all, they are merchants, and nothing hurts them as much as losing their gold and silver. You must have heard the saying? That they would rather lose their wives and their children, rather than a single copper coin? Well, I've learned that it is rather true."

But Wuying frowned when he heard that. He had known about the saying, and about the reputation of merchants. But he had not expected it to be as bad as that!

"Is that really true? You make them sound like they are worse than animals. Even dogs and cats look after their young. At least, for a time."

The young woman cocked her head at him, and nodded slowly. "Perhaps not all merchants are as bad. But the ones in the An Ling Mines certainly deserve to be compared to animals. They are about the worst that I have ever seen. Big Brother Baisheng had brought me there for a visit once, and they are about as bad as they can get."

Then she paused, and jerked her head in the direction of the two town guards who were guarding the prisoners. "Those two, on the other hand, aren't too bad. At least they have some good sense in them, and can still feel pity for these youngsters."

Wuying could not help but laugh, the moment that he heard that. "And how old are you? To call those people youngsters? It is true, they are only about fifteen to sixteen years old. But we aren't very much older, are we? Don't you think it's a little too much?" he asked with a grin.

Yue Ling giggled back, and waved a hand in his direction. "Since they are training under my husband, they can be considered your students. So that makes me their teacher's wife. So what is wrong with calling them youngsters?" she sniffed.

"Besides, I have a feeling that they will all do very well at the recruitment gathering, at West Gate Court."

Wuying turned back to look at the group, who were still sprawled on the ground next to the iron-reinforced wagon. And wondered if they would really be accepted into the White Tiger Guard. The Guard was short of men, which was why he was trying his luck with these boys.

Besides that, he was out to make his wife feel a little happier. It's the least that he could do.

*,

Two days later, they finally arrived at Jiancheng City, part of the Inner Ring that surrounded the Capital. And they quickly hurried through the place, to the wide field between that and the Walls of West Gate Court. The same place where the recruitment was being held.

Wuying smiled as he pointed at the flags that hung over the recruitment field. "There! That's where the army is holding its tests. And I think I can see the White Tiger flag out there as well. Come on! I will introduce you two to the sergeants there. If they sent Sergeant Nan or Sergeant Chang, I should be able to make this a lot smoother for everyone," he said to the pair that were at the wagon. Although his voice was clearly loud enough so that the occupants in the last could hear him. That should be the cue for them to tidy themselves up a little.

Sergeant Wu Ping was a little concerned about his focus on only one of the groups present. "Why the White Tiger Gate? I thought you said that this was going to be a recruitment for all of the troops here? As in, every unit in the Army?" he asked Wuying then, a frown marring his smooth brow, "That was what you said, wasn't it?"

But the young man only smiled as his hand waved in the air above them both, to cover all of the flags on display. And at the curious dearth of applicants at one of them. The one that hung over the White Tiger table.

"You can see just how popular they are, can't you? The White Tiger Gate Troop?" he asked the man almost conspiratorially, "That's why they are offering a signing bonus. The other units only have to worry about training and marching and looking good in uniform, but the White Tigers have to actually fight against the Shadows, at the Gate. That's why they are so ... unpopular. There are usually more deaths in that unit. And in a time like this, that usually makes them look worse than the others.

"But at Red Phoenix and Green Dragon, you would usually end up standing guard over wagons and storehouses and such. And that means that it doesn't pay as well. In fact, it is hard to get in there unless you have someone you know, or you have passed a rather stringent test. Either way, the White Tiger Gate is much easier. And it pays better!"

Then he laughed, and pointed at the said recruitment table that he had been talking about earlier. "There! It seems it is Sergeant Nan after all! This should be easier then. Here! Let me go and have a word with him!"

The White Tiger soldiers at the recruitment field were more than pleased to see him, which was sufficient to surprise the escort party more than just a little. Nor did they have to wait very long for him to outline the situation to Sergeant Nan and his group, who were laughing as they stepped over the wagon themselves, to look over the candidates that he had brought along.

"Six of them! You are recommending six of them to the White Tiger Gate?" one of the troopers laughed as he stared at the ragged-looking man standing just outside the wagon, "What did they do? Steal their lord's chickens or something? I think they could be a little better fed!"

Sergeant Nan snorted and waved the man silent. "What do we care? We are soldiers and we are more concerned if they can fight," he growled as he looked them over, "They look a little scrawny, but if you say that they know how to handle the basic drills, I'd believe you. We've been here all morning, and we've only managed to get two for the troop! If these six can commit to our training regime, we'll take them! What do you say, Wuying? Can they do that?"

Wuying laughed and waved a hand at the group, who were already standing a little straighter. "Hey! I'm the one who is recommending them to you, remember? I'm certain to tell you that they are good! The one selling the flowers will always praise their fragrance! But I have trained with them a little - just the basic moves. And only for four days. So you can test them out on that. But I think they'll do well enough at the Gate! And since I'm going to be joining you lot at the later session today, I'm not going to lie about that, now am I?"

The older sergeant laughed along with him. Before he turned to look at the pair of guards that had accompanied the wagon of men. "And you two must be the ones who were in-charge of watching over these reckless idiots, eh? Well, why don't you two join me at the table over there, and we can get the fines and the payments all out of the way? Wuying here tells me that each of them owes you about three gold coins. We should be able to settle that quickly enough!" he said as he waved for the stunned looking pair to precede him.

Wuying, on the other hand, headed back to the wagon. And his grinning wife. "I see that things have gone smoothly," Yue Ling said with a laugh, as she looked at the scene before her, "It seems your friends are taking care of everything, just as you had said they would."

"Well, they are a little shorthanded at White Tiger. I knew that! That's why I offered them the deal in the first place!"

* * *