Chapter 63 – One Month

“So this is the sea.”

Standing on the beach by the sea, Shen Leng looked far away. Even though he had a lot of conjectures about the sea and yearned greatly for it, when he was truly standing by the sea, he could not help but feel as though his mental state had opened up more and more.

He wanted to scream, he wanted to take a deep breath, even if there was a fishy smell amidst the sea breeze.

Ever since he killed those few scouts who laid in ambush, the rest of the journey was safe and sound. It seemed as though the people who wanted to kill him had temporarily given up on their plan. Nonetheless, Shen Leng did not let his guard down the entire time. He knew how strong his opponent was, and furthermore, he was still in hiding.

He took a deep breath, to the point he could not take in any more air into his lungs, and exhaled till there was no more air left in him.

“Where is the Qiuli Empire?” asked Chen Ran as he walked over to Shen Leng.

Shen Leng pointed in the southwest direction. “It’s roughly in that direction. But it’s very, very far away.”

Chen Ran started laughing. “Oh, distance isn’t of much concern. Our battleships are big enough, it’s not even difficult to conquer the ocean.”

Shen Leng shook his head, “Big doesn’t mean it’s useful. If it’s too big, it would become too passive.”

Chen Ran grunted. “I heard that every single person of the Qiuli Empire looks like black monkeys. I want to catch one and see how it’s like.”

Shen Leng laughed, “You want to catch one to be your senior brother like Sun Wukong?”

Chen Ran was speechless.

After the fleet arrived at Hujian, they stopped. It was not convenient for them to enter the southern border when it was not at the right time. A few Xiong Niu battleships were being serviced at the harbor. The soldiers finally got a few days to relax.

Until nightfall, Shen Leng had been standing by the sea. Chen Ran carried two rice bowls over and passed one to Shen Leng. “Why are you still here?”

Shen Leng grunted. “I’m thinking – I’m sure my parents have never seen the sea before. Even though I don’t know who they are, but it’s nice if I get to look a little more on their behalf…Master Cha and Mr. Shen have never seen the sea before either. I need to scrutinize and tell them about it when I’m back.”

Chen Ran was slightly overwhelmed. “In that case I should take a longer look at it and tell my father about it.”

Both of them sat down on the beach by the shore. They ate as they watched the waves. The rosy evening clouds filled the sky.

“General and the rest went to meet with the Hujian troops and Garrison E’s General Pei. Rumor has it that the deputy Xu Guangan is there too. I’m sure they will be having a luxurious banquet for dinner. I wonder what they will talk about.”

Chen Ran flipped the vegetables around the bowl. He did not have an appetite.

Shen Leng looked as though he did not care. He finished his rice and vegetables. “We are already here, but it’s not going to be easy for us to get some battleships from Qiuli Empire. Firstly, we have to wait for them to appear. Secondly, we need to coordinate with the local forces here. Thirdly, we have to see if the conditions of the sea are agreeable.”

He looked at the fisherman at the shore mending a fishing net. He got up and chatted with him. Not long later, they were chatting happily. The fisherman looked extremely excited and was fully into their conversation. Shen Leng must have had flattered him a lot.

After a long time, Shen Leng came back. Chen Ran asked why he left. Shen Leng smiled and replied, “I tried to understand the sea.”

“Understanding the sea? What’s there to understand? It’s just a body of water…just a little bigger than the river.”

Chen Ran laughed, “They’re all water. What’s the difference?”

Shen Leng asked, “Your pee is water too. Do you think it’s the same?”

Chen Ran asked, “Pee is water too? That’s amazing.”

“The high and low tides of the sea, how far we are from Qiuli Empire, how many days of voyage, when will the sea become harsh and violent…these are things we need to know.”

Chen Ran shrugged his shoulders. “I feel that you are thinking too much. Taking the ship out to sea, and fight a battle before going home. It is that simple.”

He pointed to the sea. “What is the difference between river water and sea water?”

Shen Leng smiled without saying a word. They walked towards the camp.

After resting for a day, Shen Leng dragged his troops out. When the other troops were sleeping in the barracks, Shen Leng had brought his men to the sea. He tormented them for about two hours and wore them out.

After having breakfast, Shen Leng started to make his subordinates wrestle in the shallow waters. Ultimately, they became a mess – waves kept splashing onto them. They could not stand steadily. How were they able to fight?

General Cen Zheng placed his hands behind his back as he looked over at Shen Leng from afar. He seemed to be admiring him. He heard footsteps behind him and the admiration in his eyes faded away.

Bai Xiu walked over to Cen Zheng. He smiled and said, “Young man, always full of energy.”

Cen Zheng asked, “They left?”

“Yes. They know how much His Majesty values this matter. Hence, they expressed that the local forces will spare no pains or effort to support us. However, there are some things beyond their control – such as when the Qiuli forces will appear, or where they are coming from, and where they will come ashore.”

“I mentioned to General Pei and borrowed 3,000 troops from him. He said he will make arrangements once he’s back.”

“Ok.”

Cen Zheng asked Bai Xiu, “What ideas do you have?”

“The locals have no idea what to do. Neither do I…apart from waiting for Qiuli’s fleets to appear, there is no other way.”

“Passive.”

Cen Zheng shook his head. “When leading the troops, the biggest taboo is to be passive.”

At this moment, Cen Zheng saw that Shen Leng managed to borrow a fishing boat that was dozens of meters long. He took seven to eight people on the boat and disappeared into the distance.

“What is he trying to do?”

A ray of light flashed across Bai Xiu’s eyes. “He’s somewhat unbridled. What if the waves overturn the boat in the sea? Who is going to save them!”

Cen Zheng replied, “Perhaps they want to experience death in advance, and find out how they can die in the sea.”

After he finished saying that, Cen Zheng turned around and walked off, leaving Bai Xiu behind in a daze. He looked at the fishing boat that was getting farther and farther away. His lips curled upwards.

“Getting exposed to death in advance?”

He did not know why he smiled so happily. He looked in the direction where the fishing boat disappeared and smiled with his eyes closed. The look in his eyes suggested that he admired Shen Leng, coupled with some other emotions.

After Shen Leng had trained his troops for half a day, Military Officer Wang Gendong brought his other two battalions to join them. They followed suit – they followed how Shen Leng trained his men.

Apart from their regiment, the other regiment did not leave the camp at all. They trained within the camp.

“They call that training?”

The soldiers who were training in the camp scoffed. “I think they’re more like playing under the guise of training.”

“Exactly. Look at them flopping around in the sea, they seem to be having a field day.”

“Just wait and see. Sooner or later the general will punish them.”

“But why do I feel that playing in the sea for a moment seems fun?”

“That’s why I said that they are practically not training!”

The military officer of this regiment was named Xing Shangxing. He was one of Cen Zheng’s old timers. Originally, Cen Zheng wanted to bring only his men to the south, but Zhuang Yong did not agree to his request, and transferred Wang Gendong’s regiment to him.

“Let them fool around. They are not the general’s soldiers. It’s not easy for the general to punish them. But this is not a good thing for them. Let them be undisciplined and indulgent. On the other hand, we need to train.”

Xing Shangxing reminded his men in a loud voice, “Take note of the formation! Take note of the formation! I said it so many times before – the soldiers’ battle formation is the key to defeating our enemies. Why are you people in such disorder!”

Wang Gendong brought Shen Leng and two other battalion commanders with him and passed by the camp. Xing Shangxing glared at them. “Military Officer Wang, you seem to be really happy training your soldiers.”

Wang Gendong grunted. “Not as happy as you, Military Officer Xing. Your subordinates are in such a great and steady formation. Respect.”

Xing Shangxing replied, “You are planning to go to sleep once the battle is over?”

Wang Gendong shrugged his shoulders. “The general asked us to go over.”

Xing Shangxing laughed. “I’m sure the general wants to compliment you for training the troops effectively.”

He looked at Shen Leng. “Especially you. You trained well.”

Shen Leng cupped his fist. “Thank you, military officer.”

Xing Shangxing was overjoyed. He thought to himself: This idiot doesn’t even understand what I’m trying to say and yet he thanked me. Hahahaha…

Wang Gendong brought the three battalion commanders with him and entered the big tent. Cen Zheng signalled for them to close the screen door.

“It’s been almost a full day – your men are either sitting on the boats rocking about or flopping about in the sea. What are you trying to do?”

He glared at Wang Gendong and asked.

Wang Gendong replied, “Battalion Commander Shen Leng reminded me that for the battles on the sea, we need to let the soldiers adapt to seawater. If they are unable to stand steadily on seawater, how would they be able to fight at close quarters? The waves in the sea are different from that of the river. The fishing boats we borrowed are used to allow the subordinates to walk as steadily in the face of sea waves as soon as possible.”

“Shen Leng reminded you?”

Cen Zhen looked at Shen Leng. “There are a lot of things you care a lot about, huh?”

Shen Leng replied, “I don’t care about several things – I only care about one.”

“Oh? What is it?”

“Taking all my men home alive.”

Cen Zheng looked furious. He slammed against the table. “You sure have a sharp tongue. In the entire Navy, you’re the only person who’s capable, right? You can even take your men back alive…what you mean is that I am not capable enough to bring my men back?”

Wang Gendong quickly explained, “General, he did not mean it that way.”

“You shut up!”

Cen Zheng grabbed something that looked like a book from his desk and hit it against Wang Gendong’s body. “I am not talking to you, and I did not give you the authority to speak!”

Wang Gendong stood at attention. “Understood.”

”Cen Zheng walked out from behind the table. He circled Shen Leng and said, “I remembered telling you before – I don’t like soldiers who fool around. Do you really think that you are very capable?”

Shen Leng stood there upright, but did not utter a single word.

Cen Zheng laughed coldly and said, “Not happy? If you are not happy, then show me what you got…don’t you think that you’re capable? Then let me give you a chance. Our mission this time is to bring a few of Qiuli Empire’s battleships back from the south. I heard that you were the one who suggested it to the commander, so it’s normal that I assign it to you.”

“I will give you one month’s worth of time. You find a way to get Qiuli Empire’s battleship back. Of course, if you admit that you are not capable enough, you can give up. I will not blame or punish you.”

“Alright.”

Shen Leng nodded. “Understood.”

Cen Zheng laughed out loud. “Alright, you’re a fella who does not know your limitations. I will wait for you for a month. Within a month, I don’t see Qiuli Empire’s battleship, don’t blame me for being merciless.”

Shen Leng asked, “I have a request.”

“Say it.”

“Nobody can interfere. I will think of a way on my own.”

Cen Zheng frowned. “Not even me?”

Shen Leng nodded. “Yeah, not even you. If you leave everything to me, and if I don’t complete the mission, it’s easier for you to punish me by then too.”

Cen Zheng was so mad that he went pale. “Alright, alright, alright. You’re one hell of a savage battalion commander…I will give you the authority. If you can’t complete the task when the time comes, I’ll see what you’ll have to say.”

Shen Leng did a military salute. “Thank you, general!”

Cen Zheng gestured. “Ok everyone, get out. I don’t want to see you people.”