Chapter 105: Pride in the Heart

“Why not?” Xiahou Huan stared with his tiger-like eyes and said in annoyance: “Don’t tell me that, as your uncle, I would let you leave empty-handed after you worked so hard to build a legion?”

“Uncle, that’s not what I meant.” Lei Qing laughed dryly twice and said: “It’s just that this matter really gives Little Nine too much of an advantage over the Iron Cavalry Regiment. I really cannot do something like poaching from an elder who looks after me.”

“What kind of poaching is this?” Xiahou Huan glared and said: “The Iron Cavalry Regiment is just giving you an official name and status. For this Independent Regiment, recruiting soldiers and generals requires you to handle the operations and pay all the costs yourself. It is an army you built entirely on your own. If you temporarily attach yourself under the Iron Cavalry Regiment, naturally you must listen to commands and arrangements. But if you want to leave, naturally you can take your army with you. It’s clear, reasonable, and fair.”

Lei Qing sighed and shook his head, saying: “Uncle Xiahou, but recruiting soldiers for myself on your territory, I’m afraid this is really inappropriate, isn’t it?”

“No need for more nonsense, stop being so wishy-washy. That doesn’t look like your father at all. There are hundreds of thousands of people in my territory; recruit as many as you have the ability to. Don’t tell me you can take everyone away?” Xiahou Huan waved his hand and said: “This matter is settled. Take a look at this contract drafted by Mr. Gongyang. Are there any problems? If not, sign and seal it. From now on, we will handle public matters publicly and private matters privately.”

Lei Qing could not prevail against him, so he had to take the contract and read it carefully. It was indeed drafted by Mr. Gongyang; the handwriting was elegant and flowing, and the clauses were written in great detail, but they were basically quite favorable to Lei Qing.

After signing this contract, it was equivalent to Lei Qing using the Iron Cavalry Regiment’s territory and reputation to develop his own foundation and power. Although it was a great thing, Lei Qing still felt a bit guilty in his heart.

Of course, giving Lei Qing such good conditions did not mean there were no obligations at all. As long as Lei Qing stayed in the Iron Cavalry Regiment for a day, he needed to await the orders and dispatch of the Iron Cavalry Regiment. In addition, Lei Qing’s station was a border town called Yehe Town, which oversaw dozens of villages. Lei Qing had the obligation to guard this place and carry out administrative management. Of the taxes collected in Yehe Town, thirty percent had to be handed over to the Iron Cavalry Regiment, and the rest could be used for himself.

In addition, Lei Qing’s Independent Regiment had to complete various supplies on its own; the Iron Cavalry Regiment would not provide logistical support. If Lei Qing’s supplies were insufficient, he could purchase them from the Iron Cavalry Regiment, which meant paying money.

But even so, these conditions were still very beneficial to Lei Qing. He was essentially a small warlord attached to the Iron Cavalry Regiment, with a piece of territory thrown in as a bonus. The army he led was completely his own foundation.

“In that case, Uncle Xiahou, if you insist, then Little Nine will respectfully accept.” Lei Qing signed and sealed the document formally, then took out a ring and respectfully handed it over, saying: “Uncle Xiahou, Little Nine knows the Iron Cavalry Regiment has a big family and a big business, so there isn’t much good to give. Here is a Spatial Ring and ten thousand gold coins. Please do not refuse; this is your nephew’s token of respect for you.”

“This…” Xiahou Huan hesitated. Although he did not want to accept Lei Qing’s things, Lei Qing was generous, offering a Spatial Ring and over ten thousand gold coins right away.

The Spatial Ring went without saying; it was a strategic material and very expensive. Although the Iron Cavalry Regiment was powerful in combat, it was relatively poor. He wanted to refuse, but he really could not bring himself to do it.

Seeing him hesitate, Lei Qing said seriously: “Uncle Xiahou, you took me in and gave me such a good opportunity to develop. Meager supplies really cannot repay this friendship. You also know that your nephew made a killing at the Li Chamber of Commerce this time, so I am quite wealthy. Please do not refuse; just treat it as a gift from Little Nine to his elder. Otherwise, I’m afraid your nephew would have no face to accept Uncle Xiahou’s kindness again.”

“Alright, alright.” Xiahou Huan put away the gift and said with some embarrassment: “Nephew, Uncle was greedy for money this time. Our Iron Cavalry Regiment is strong in everything else, just a bit poor. We rely entirely on fighting wars and keeping the peace for others. Otherwise, we just have a few iron mines left to maintain expenses. Counting soldiers, relatives, and their families, there are nearly twenty thousand mouths waiting to be fed. Otherwise, I wouldn’t need to ask you for some tax money for guarding Yehe Town.”

“What Uncle Xiahou has done for your nephew is already enough to invite criticism; how could your nephew not give you some face?” Lei Qing said seriously.

“Good, then this time I’ll accept your tribute. Heh heh, does your Independent Regiment have a name yet? Calling it the Ninth Regiment doesn’t sound good.” Xiahou Huan became even warmer towards Lei Qing.

“When I subdued the bandits of Fierce Tiger Ridge before, I casually chose a name, the Black Flag Army.” Lei Qing said with a hint of embarrassment: “With just over a hundred men, it was somewhat boastful.”

“Heh heh, being a bit boastful is fine; it shows your ambition is great.” Xiahou Huan liked this nephew of his more and more as he looked at him, and praised: “The name Black Flag Army is not bad, it has enough ferocity. But since you are temporarily attached to the Iron Cavalry Regiment, let’s call it the Black Flag Regiment for now. When your power grows stronger in the future, you can call it an Army.”

“Yes, Uncle Xiahou.” Lei Qing responded respectfully.

“Since this matter has been decided, tomorrow morning, I will have Mr. Gongyang register you, establish your unit designation, and announce it to the world.” Xiahou Huan said with a smile: “You can start recruiting soldiers and establishing the Black Flag Regiment at any time. Within the Iron Cavalry Regiment, we will first lend you twenty Black Iron-rank fierce soldiers and three Bronze-rank team commanders to help you put on a show of strength and train new recruits. In a month, the Seventh Regiment currently stationed in Yehe Town will withdraw, and you will need to go and take over the defense.”

“Thank you, Regiment Commander Xiahou. This subordinate will remember.” Lei Qing gave a formal military salute.

Afterward, Xiahou Huan gave Lei Qing a few more instructions and began to teach him some military matters. Although the Lei Family was a famous military general family in Tianlan, Xiahou Huan started from scratch, and being able to achieve such a great career, he naturally had his own unique skills.

This teaching and conversation lasted a whole night. Fortunately, both were strong cultivators with impressive cultivation, so staying up all night was not a concern at all. Lei Qing also benefited greatly.

Afterwards, Lei Qing merely went back to his room to rest and regulate his breath for a short while before heading to the Iron Cavalry Regiment full of energy. Yesterday, Qin Wei left in a hurry, and the silver spear lent to Lei Qing had not been returned yet. Moreover, last night Xiahou Huan had repeatedly instructed him to definitely flatter Qin Wei properly.

After finding him by the training ground, Lei Qing said respectfully: “Thank you, Regiment Commander Qin, for lending the spear yesterday. I dare not say Lei Qing won because of this spear. But it indeed helped me greatly.” This was what Xiahou Huan taught him last night; he said Qin Wei had a rigorous and dull personality and hated people talking nonsense and buttering him up. When speaking to him, one must not play tricks.

“Mhm.” Little Spear Saint Qin Wei glanced coldly at Lei Qing, took the silver spear, and said: “I watched you use the spear last night; you have quite a solid foundation. Your Tianlan Lei Family started with martial arts, and there have been two Holy Ranks in between, so you can be said to have researched Fighting Techniques quite deeply.”

“I dare not accept the praise. Our Lei Family’s two generations of Holy Ancestors actually focused on sword techniques and treated spear techniques as secondary.” Lei Qing said neither humbly nor arrogantly: “Although our ancestors cleverly transformed sword techniques into spear techniques, in the way of the spear, after all, we cannot compare to the Great Snow Mountain Spear Saint lineage with its long history. My uncle once said that if we talk about spear users in the world, the Spear Saint lineage is mentioned first.” Lei Qing was being truthful here; the Spear Saint lineage was recognized as the ancestor of spears throughout the Pan-Continent. For thousands of years, the Holy Rank had never been interrupted. Given that a Holy Rank has an average lifespan of three hundred years, in over three thousand years, the Spear Saint lineage had produced more than a dozen Holy Ranks.

This point was extremely remarkable. Thus, although the Great Snow Mountain Spear Saint lineage was not comparable to the major Fighting Qi Holy Lands, nor was it one of the eighteen large forces with great momentum, its reputation was still extremely loud. There were countless people who wanted to join the Spear Saint lineage.

Facing Lei Qing’s flattery and praise, Little Spear Saint Qin Wei did not have much of a reaction, clearly having heard such compliments often. He just continued to look at him with a cold face: “Do you want to join my Spear Saint lineage?”

Lei Qing was stunned for a moment, then overjoyed. He hurriedly shouted: “Lei Qing pays respect…” His legs bent, and he prepared to bow down to establish the fact, lest Qin Wei regret it.

But how could Little Spear Saint Qin Wei be so easily fooled? He lightly flicked the silver spear in his hand, and it struck Lei Qing’s legs as fast as lightning with two snaps, stopping him from kneeling. With a look of slight dissatisfaction, he snorted coldly: “Stop playing little tricks. I know you think you’re smart and like to play little games. However, our Spear Saint lineage values being down-to-earth and behaving peacefully.”

“Yes, yes, Regiment Commander Qin is right to teach me. Lei Qing will keep it in mind.” Lei Qing did not dare to play any more tricks, lest he miss this good opportunity. Joining the Spear Saint lineage would not only allow him to learn profound spear Fighting Techniques but also add a force to his own power.

Because the Spear Saint lineage had always been sparse in numbers, including masters and disciples, there were rarely more than ten of them. Having few people naturally had its benefits, which was that they were very united. If one person was in trouble, their senior and junior brothers would come to help.

Seeming to really dislike the slickness in Lei Qing’s character, Qin Wei looked at Lei Qing from left to right, finding him quite unpleasing to the eye. Seeing him bowing and scraping, he frowned and said: “A person should stand like a pine and be straight like a spear. Towards those stronger than you, be neither humble nor arrogant. Towards the weak, have compassion in your heart. Also, don’t think that just because I accept you as a disciple on behalf of my master, you can rely on the power of the sect to do evil. Once you enter my sect, if I see you using the Spear Saint lineage’s Fighting Techniques and spear skills to do evil, I will be the first to not forgive you. And don’t dream of having your senior and junior brothers and Master protect you after you cause trouble.”

Lei Qing broke into a sweat; it seemed like he was being described as some heinous villain. He was also a person with pride in his heart. Although he longed for the opportunity to join the Spear Saint lineage, he hadn’t even started doing bad things, yet he was being picked on and scolded by this Little Spear Saint. His stubborn pride rose up, and he cupped his hands formally, saying: “Thank you again, Regiment Commander Qin, for the favor of lending the spear. This subordinate will keep it in mind and will definitely repay you generously in the future. If Regiment Commander Qin has no other instructions, this subordinate still has some things to do, so I will take my leave.”

……