Princess Xinyue, sitting beside her mother, beamed with pride upon hearing her praise for Xiao Chenzi.
"Fifth sister, it's a bit too early to be happy, the outcome of the duel is what truly matters," said the Third Princess, looking displeased at Xinyue's demeanor.
"Hmph, no need to even think about it, Xiao Chenzi will definitely win against Third Sister."
"Then I shall await the results with great interest."
The brief exchange between Princess Xinyue and the Third Princess was observed by the ministers.
The Empress appeared unfazed, and the ministers, feigning ignorance, kept their thoughts to themselves, secretly calculating their own interests.
By the time the inspection of the last two camps of new recruits concluded, their formations remained as orderly as ever.
This method of troop training left many generals in quiet admiration.
Training soldiers to be capable of fighting, killing, and charging was something many generals in the military command were confident they could achieve.
However, to make these energetic soldiers stand silently and motionless, maintaining formation for the duration of an incense stick, was something few generals felt capable of training.
For a moment, the military officials to the Empress's right became interested in Chu Chen, the young eunuch.
"Reporting to Your Majesty, the inspection of the new recruits in the main camp is complete. We request Your Majesty's review."
Ruan Yan, the Minister of War, bowed and reported.
"Camps Eleven and Twelve are rated 'Excellent,' Camps One, Three, and Five are 'Good,' and the rest are 'Fair.'"
"For every soldier in the court rated 'Fair,' they shall be rewarded with one hundred coins, permitted one day of food and wine, and three days of leave."
"As for the new recruits of the two princesses, they shall be rewarded at their own discretion."
The Empress considered for a moment and calmly issued the ratings and rewards.
"Your servant obeys Your Majesty's decree."
As usual, Ruan Yan, the Minister of War, relayed the Empress's words to the soldiers, who erupted in excited cheers.
The soldiers of Camps Eleven and Twelve, despite being rated 'Excellent' and not receiving immediate promised rewards, showed no dejection or discussion, remaining calm and taciturn.
When contrasted with others, they realized that the court's new recruits seemed to be poorly trained.
Yet, the court's new recruits always appeared this way during inspections. Why did it feel so different today?
The military officials looked at the court's new recruits with complex emotions.
Ruan Yan, the Minister of War, inquired, "Your Majesty, shall we proceed with the duel between the new recruits of the two princesses?"
The Empress nodded faintly, "Then let it begin."
After the court's new recruits retreated, the new recruits from the two camps moved towards the left and right sides of the training ground.
"Prime Minister, who do you think will win between the two camps of royal new recruits?" Ruan Yan, the Minister of War, asked softly as he returned to his seat.
"It's hard to say. I don't understand military matters. Based on their previous performance, it might be a draw," Prime Minister Chen Yuanliang replied with a chuckle. He then added, "Although the court's new recruits performed acceptably today, there are still areas for improvement. Master Ruan, you should provide feedback to those military officials later."
"Naturally," Ruan Yan nodded, understanding the Prime Minister's hint.
While the ministers on the high platform were discussing, on the training ground, Chu Chen was stopped by the deputy commander of the Third Princess's personal guards.
"Eunuch Chu! This humble subordinate, Zhou Cheng, greets Eunuch Chu."
"Is there something?" Chu Chen asked, slightly puzzled.
"Eunuch Chu, judging from the new recruits you commanded earlier, you seem to understand military matters. However, an inspection is different from a duel. A duel simulates actual combat, which is vastly different from solid basic training."
"You haven't been on a battlefield, have you? You haven't witnessed the carnage of bloody combat? Can the soldiers you trained defeat my soldiers who have been on the battlefield?"
"Rather than losing spectacularly later, it would be better for Eunuch Chu to find a more presentable excuse to concede directly. This way, you can preserve some face, and no one will see through the reality."
"Without an actual duel, this wouldn't diminish your prestige."
"What do you think of my suggestion?"
Despite Zhou Cheng's respectful demeanor, his words irked Chu Chen.
Without even a fight, he assumed Chu Chen would lose? Simply because he hadn't been on a battlefield, or because he was a eunuch?
Did eunuchs eat his family's rice?
"I don't think much of it."
Chu Chen didn't want to waste words. He flicked his sleeve and walked away.
What nonsense.
In an instant, both of them thought the same thing.
Soon, the main generals and soldiers from both sides arrived at their respective positions and donned their wooden equipment.
A cavalryman, holding a flag, galloped across the center of the formation and shouted, "The duel begins!"
"Raise the flag, advance!" Chu Chen and Zhou Cheng shouted simultaneously.
Two flags, three and a half meters high, bearing the inscriptions of the Third Princess and Fifth Princess respectively, were raised.
Immediately after, the formations of both sides began to advance.
Since this was a friendly military duel, metal weapons were naturally not allowed.
Both sides used wooden poles with bags of white powder attached as spears. If a soldier was hit and marked with white powder, they were to withdraw from the side, signifying their demise.
Commanders of the rank of Captain and above were different; they wore iron plate armor or full armor, and needed to be hit three or ten times to be considered defeated.
"Hmph, this eunuch truly hasn't been on a battlefield. This duel consists entirely of infantry, with no cavalry or ranged units, yet he has the tower shield soldiers at the forefront." Zhou Cheng sneered as he observed the opponent's formation.
When both sides were still thirty meters apart, Chu Chen suddenly shouted, "Halt the entire army! Tower shield soldiers, form shields!"
"What is this fellow doing?" Zhou Cheng was stunned and frowned, pondering.
There was a hundred-meter interval in the middle of the duel. Theoretically, both sides should advance more than forty-five meters before engaging in close combat.
However, Chu Chen was not following the usual pattern at all.
"General, should we also stop?" the副官 asked.
Zhou Cheng shook his head, "No need, continue advancing."
Soon, the soldiers of the two camps were only a few meters apart, about to engage in close combat.
At this moment, Zhou Cheng drew his sword and shouted, "Attack!"
"Kill! Kill! Kill!" With three shouts of "Kill," Zhou Cheng's front-line spearmen thrust their spears forward.
As expected, they were blocked by the tower shields in front. However, this was not an issue, as Zhou Cheng's camp was not entirely composed of spearmen.
He intended to have the swordsmen and shield bearers on the flanks attack Chu Chen's side.
Who knew that at this moment, the situation on the front lines suddenly changed.
As Zhou Cheng's spearmen thrust their spears and retracted them to prepare for a second strike, Chu Chen's tower shield soldiers suddenly shifted their shields to the side, creating a gap half the height of a person.
Immediately after, spears emerged from behind the opened gap, piercing the soldiers opposite and marking them with white powder.
"This..." Zhou Cheng was dumbfounded. Initially, he thought Chu Chen was merely trying to play defensively like a turtle, draining his soldiers' morale and stamina.
Who knew it could be played like this? No one had ever played this way on the battlefield before; it was always a direct clash of spears or swordsmen.
Chu Chen's soldiers achieved a swift victory and pressed their advantage. The tower shields closed the gap and then advanced, repeating the tactic before pushing forward again.