Great Tang Idyll

Book 2: Chapter 48

Volume 02 Chapter 48: New Ideas To Add To The Training

The night was gloomy. On the sand dunes, the wind blew cold and the journey was difficult.

"Yong'yao, get up quickly, what happened to you?" When Zhang Xiao'bao and the two others slid down the sand, someone ran up to Han Yong'yao and asked while carefully helping him up.

"Uncle, I'm all right. My foot slipped and I fell." Han Yong'yao spit out the sand in his mouth and explained to his uncle. He didn't dare to tattle tale at this time. After he fell, he finally noticed that the Emperor's nephew was standing on the side. Luckily for him, the Emperor's nephew didn't see him clearly.

If his uncle learned what happened, he would be scolded at the very least, so it was not worth it. The only choice he had left was to catch up to them and find a way to retaliate.

Han Yong'yao, who had persuaded his uncle, continued to rush forward, but only to realize that his two calves were sore and hurt. He groaned in pain and uttered, "Those two little brats, they're so cruel. Don't you dare let me catch you two, humph!"

"No, we're not participating. We will be able to arrive at the final destination in the desert by the middle of tomorrow night, and then we will go back to see others harvesting. Xiao'hong and the others should be coming back soon. I wonder how many poultries died this time and how much we gained."

Zhang Xiao'bao whispered his reply. Li Xun followed beside them. He only knew that the two of them were talking, but he was unclear what they were talking about. At this time, he was also wearing shoes with small studs underneath. The shoes only had leather soles instead of the multi-layer soles1 though. Glue that was applied to multi-layer soles could not dry so fast.

He thought about the person who slipped and fell earlier, and Li Xun rejoiced that he had these shoes. He of course didn't clearly see Zhang Xiao'bao's and Wang Juan's leg sweeping move.

"Then what should we do about the situation here?" Wang Juan was still worried about keeping Li Xun busy .

"That's easy to deal with. Watch and cooperate with me." Zhang Xiao'bao whispered back, then he increased the volume of his voice and said to Wang Juan, "Juan'juan, do you know that there were things that were more fun than outdoor survival training?"

"Really? Did he actually tell you? Oh come on, how come he didn't tell me? Xiao'bao, tell me, what else is fun?" Wang Juan said in cooperation.

Li Xun was still thinking about the shoes. When he heard the two people's words, his ears perked up slightly and his eyes widened, as if he wanted to use his eyes to help him detect better.

Zhang Xiao'bao didn't disappoint him either. He said as he walked, "Of course there is something more fun. In addition to getting people to adapt to the environment, the most important thing about outdoor survival is to get scouts to detect and hear information more well. But it is not enough for scouts to possess only these qualities.

A qualified scout must know how to track, know how to hide, and also know how to use simple tools and materials found from their surroundings to make various weapons and small usable items. "

"Tracking? Hiding? Are you talking about hide-and-seek? I know about this. Whenever I play with you, you always hide behind the firewood. Aren't I great at tracking?" Wang Juan continued to cooperate.

"Hmm, yes, you're great. Next time, I won't hide behind the firewood pile anymore, I'll change a place. I'll hide in the water and this time you won't be able to find me, right?"

"Huh? Change a place? Are you planning to hide in the small river in front of the door? I know there is a deep spot in the river and it would be perfect for you to hide in. But how will you breathe?" Wang Juan suggested an idea, but at the same time, she expressed concern.

Li Xun wanted to laugh at first. He felt that Zhang Xiao'bao was too stupid. He hid in the same place every time, and now he told her where he would hide next time. He held back his laughter, and waited to hear what Wang Juan would say. He also agreed that this method won't work. How can people breathe underwater?

"Oh, that might really work. If I'm thirsty, I can just drink the water there too. Why didn't I think of this?" Wang Juan continued to play her role.

'Good idea.' Li Xun commented secretly. He was thinking that if the army's scouts could use this method, it would be simpler and easier to win. He wanted to praise them, but he was afraid that the two would stop talking, so he had to hold back and quietly listen.

Zhang Xiao'bao continued, "That's nothing. We can find some cloth, paint it the colors of various rocks, and then use it to cover our bodies and pretend to be a rock. We can also get a pile of leaves and cover ourselves with them. Even if we hide in a tree, it would still be hard for others to find us."

"Huh? Aiya, if you do that, then how will I ever find you. No, I'm never going to play hide-and-seek with you again." Wang Juan complained and stomped her feet.

"Why wouldn't you be able to find me? You know about the methods I want to use, so you can follow these methods to find me. In fact, it's very simple. Just try hard to figure out how to avoid others. Pretend that you're the one that is hiding, and then think about what would you fear the most. This kind of thinking would definitely be useful for you when you're looking for me."

Zhang Xiao'bao continued to talk to Wang Juan, and at the same time, he was also guiding Li Xun's train of thought. He wanted to make him think about how to hide from others and how to find others.

Wang Juan deliberately started saying nonsense now, "Lemme think. If I was hiding in the water, then my biggest fear is that the water dries up. If I'm hiding in a tree, then my biggest fear is that there are no more leaves on the tree. If you're the only spot with a bunch of leaves, then people will discover you, right?"

"Juan'juan is really smart. This is troubling now, you will definitely be able to find me in the future." Zhang Xiao'bao praised her.

Li Xun's expression was slightly stern just earlier, but now he was holding back a smile. The two children were really fun and silly. How could hiding and finding be that simple? Hmm, yes, he needed to think about it seriously. Later, he will find older children to do this, and he will ask some hunters about this too.

He planned to find some children to practice first, and when it's about time, he will tell his father about it. He would be able to help the country's soldiers achieve more achievements and he would be able to prove himself to be better than others.

Li Xun thought about things in his mind while he followed the two people. The more he thought about it, the more he felt that this was a good idea. He wanted to hear more about Zhang Xiao'bao's other good ideas, but he noticed that the two of them stopped talking and they were walking a lot faster.

Li Xun hesitated for a moment and he stopped. He waved to Li Xing, who was following him. It was unclear if Li Xing saw the Young Prince's hand gesture in the dark night or if he noticed that the Young Prince was standing still, but he still ran up to the Young Prince.

"Young Childe, are you...?" Li Xing thought that his Young Prince was cold. While speaking, he unbuttoned his clothes so that he could give it to the Young Prince.

"Don't move. Remember this, think of a way to find me some well experienced people---basically old hunters, people who made a living in the water, and coachmen that have driven carriages for over ten years. Find them, and give them a lot of money and get them to talk about how they were able to hide in their respective locations and how they tracked others. You absolutely cannot forget about this."

Li Xun stopped Li Xing's movements and spoke very quickly. He still wanted to catch up with Zhang Xiao'bao and Wang Juan.

Because of the coolness of the night in the desert, the children seemed to forget about their fatigue. They jumped and ran around again. They couldn't see the road, and they were covered by cool air. Each of them seemed to have a lot of physical strength.

Zhang Xiao'bao and Wang Juan were also running, but they didn't jump around. Jumping and landing wasted too much energy. They understood that these children were able to run this energetically now because of the darkness and temperature. When morning comes tomorrow, they would collapse from exhaustion.

Li Xun ran intensely for a bit, and he finally caught up to Zhang Xiao'bao and Wang Juan again. He tried his best to adjust his breathing rate. He didn't know what else they were going to say. Perhaps he will be able to hear more during their resting period tomorrow.

After running for this short period of time, the adults behind them couldn't keep up anymore. During the day, they relied on having greater perseverance than children to keep going. In the desert, regardless of your age, if you didn't exercise on a daily basis, you would be tired.

In addition, the recovery speed of adult bodies was not as fast as that of children. At this time, everyone's legs and backs were sore. They secretly wondered in their mind, who exactly are the ones being trained? Perhaps after enduring these few days, they will become stronger than before.

The only thing that made them feel reassured was the highly disciplined guards sent by Li Xun. These guards ran behind the children and stayed a short distance away from them to watch if any child couldn't keep going and then send the children off to receive medical treatment if needed.

"You two wait for me. I don't believe that two kids can run better than me. Wait for me to catch up with you two." Han Yong'yao was fat, and he never exercised before. He gritted his teeth and muttered while chasing after them with his eyes wide open. Right now, Zhang Xiao'bao and Wang Juan became his driving force to keep moving forward.

His uncle ran behind him for a while, but in the end, he had to give up. At the same time, he commented in his mind that it was good for his nephew to come here and it was indeed better than letting him laze around all the time. Yong'yao was really better than usual tonight, since he tried to work hard.

"It seems like he's catching up. I could tell as soon as I heard his pants." Wang Juan was running and she heard a panting sound from not so far behind. Sshe deduced that it was that new neighbor of theirs and then she spoke to Zhang Xiao'bao with a slightly surprised tone.

"There's no need to be scared. He can't catch up to us. There's a slope up ahead. We will charge up the slope and then after we slide down, we will lose him. It seems that hatred can also get people to improve."

Zhang Xiao'bao knew what Han Yong'yao's mentality was like at this time and he smiled as he talked. He took in two deep breaths in a row, and suddenly accelerated. Wang Juan followed closely behind him. Li Xun gritted his teeth and ran without thinking about anything else.

Translator's Notes

1. Multi-layer soles

This was an important creation in Chinese shoe making history. It is created by stitching over 30 layers of cloth together to form the sole of a shoe. The main advantage of this type of sole is that it is very resistant against abrasion and would take a long time to wear out. The sole is also very breathable in the heat, but also able to keep the feet warm in the cold.