Chapter 9: By the Balcony (III)

As soon as Li Kuo entered the barracks, he was struck by a strong smell of alcohol. The young man glanced around at the soldiers, his brows slightly furrowed. These guys were drinking in the barracks behind his back!
Although the wine jars and cups had been taken away, the soldiers couldn’t explain the redness on their faces or the sour breath coming from their mouths. Feeling guilty, they all hung their heads low, too afraid to meet their general’s gaze.
“Dou Qing, come here!”
Seeing his face flushed red, Li Kuo grew angry immediately and called out his trusted subordinate by name. “Did you drink?”
“General, I… we…”
Dou Qing’s face was red, and he didn’t know what to say. Even if he tried to deny it, the smell of alcohol in the barracks was an undeniable fact.
The young man had already read everything from his eyes. Pushing aside the dejected Dou Qing, he glanced across and quickly spotted the fidgety Pu Dachui.
“Dachui, what’s behind you?”
His sharp gaze seemed to pierce through Pu Dachui’s body as he demanded sharply.
“Nothing, I was just chatting with a few brothers.”
Pu Dachui waved his hands frantically, though his smile looked forced.
“Move aside!”
“Ah, General, I really…”
Pu Dachui kept waving his hands, but he didn’t move an inch.
“I said move aside!”
The young man’s voice was icy, making Pu Dachui shudder. Reluctantly turning around, he shrugged at the soldiers present, signaling his complete surrender.
The dice and silver on the table proved everything—they not only drank in the barracks but also gambled together!
The anger building in the young man’s chest erupted instantly as he shouted hoarsely, “Those who drank and gambled, step forward! Don’t drag your brothers into punishment too!”
Having fought side by side with the brothers of the Tongwu Barracks, Li Kuo already regarded them as family. That’s why he couldn’t stand seeing them degenerate in the slightest. He understood that they had just returned from battle in Longyou and wanted to rest and have some fun. If his brothers took leave together to drink and gamble in Chang’an, he wouldn’t say a word. But the barracks were still the barracks—if everyone acted on their own whims, how could there be discipline or combat effectiveness?
If he didn’t punish them now, such behavior would spread and destroy the entire Tongwu Barracks, and even the entire Shule Army.

Pu Da Chui was the first to take a step forward, followed by Dou Qing, Wang Xiao Chun, and a total of thirteen others who stepped forward as well. Although they openly violated military regulations, they still had some courage! Li Kuo felt slightly relieved, but his expression remained stern.

“The military regulations clearly state that drunkenness, gambling, and procuring prostitutes are forbidden! I’ve been away for just a few days, and you’ve turned the barracks into taverns and gambling houses. Are you planning to bring in some prostitutes from Beili to open brothels soon?”

Glaring at them fiercely, Li Kuo continued, “I can’t control or care about other armies, but our Tongwu Camp, our Shule Army, must not allow military discipline to be undermined! If this were wartime, your drunken state would make you easy targets for enemy forces launching night attacks!”

Having lived in Chang’an for a long time, Li Kuo was well aware of the discipline and conduct of the imperial guards. The imperial guards were mostly drawn from prominent families, carrying a strong air of arrogance. These wealthy young men had lived in comfort since childhood and had never endured hardship, so they naturally couldn’t stand the monotony and loneliness of the barracks. Drunkenness and gambling had become commonplace, and when they felt like it, visiting brothels and bringing back one or two women wasn’t unheard of.

But they were imperial guards who didn’t need to fight on the battlefield, so indulging in such behavior was somewhat understandable. But the soldiers under Li Kuo’s command were meant to fight the enemy head-on! The newly recruited warriors hadn’t yet integrated into the three camps, and if they saw their comrades in such a state and didn’t follow suit, becoming just as dissolute, one problem would lead to another. If this bad trend wasn’t curbed, it could ruin the Tongwu Camp and the entire Shule Army.

“According to military law, gathering in the barracks to drink and gamble should result in execution! But since it’s not wartime, and considering this is your first offense, I’ll be lenient. Each of you will be beaten with forty lashes. Any objections?”

Though his words were phrased as a question, there was no room for negotiation. After exchanging glances, everyone understood—once their general made up his mind, he wouldn’t change it easily. Although he seemed kind and gentle most of the time, that was because everyone did things to maintain his reputation. Once he really got angry, he wasn’t any less ruthless than the gods of thunder and lightning.

“I, Pu, have no objections!”
Pu Da Chui was quite carefree. It was just a few lashes—just endure them!

“Please punish me, General!”
Dou Qing replied in a humble voice, head bowed. It was all his fault, and it was shameful that the general still regarded him as a trusted subordinate.

“Please punish me, General!”

All of them were tough men; upon hearing this, they didn’t even blink. If they made a mistake, they must have the courage to take responsibility. If they shifted blame to their comrades at such a critical moment, how could they conduct themselves in the future? They were all strong men—there was no need to risk their reputation just to avoid a beating.

“Alright, forty lashes each. Execute them outside the gate!”

Li Kuo finally felt relieved. It was best if they said those words themselves.

Before long, the thirteen copper-armored officers who had gathered to drink and gamble lay in a row on the open ground outside the gate. Two soldiers armed with military sticks stood behind each of them. Such a spectacular scene naturally attracted many soldiers to stop and watch. Most of them were recruits from the Long March, who had never seen corporal punishment in the army before. This was their first time—how could they miss it?

Li Kuo stood at the gate, overseeing the execution. Though his heart ached, he had to make this decision. Without strict discipline, the army would be weak; without firm laws, the soldiers wouldn’t be intimidated. Strict governance was a principle every general must follow. Perhaps it was because he had been too lenient with them usually that such problems had arisen.

“Begin the punishment!”

Li Kuo waved his hand, issuing the order.

“General Pu, I’m sorry for this!”

The soldier in charge nodded at Pu Dachui. Pu was kind to him and had shown him favor many times. Though he didn’t know why he had offended the general today, military law was absolute—once a mistake was made, punishment was inevitable.

“Hehe, I’m tough enough, kid. Go ahead.”

Pu Dachui wasn’t worried at all and smiled cheerfully at him. Before his smile faded, he felt his armor lifted and folded behind him, and his trousers were quickly pulled off.

Seeing the soldier about to touch his waist, Pu Dachui panicked, “Hey, just beat me—why go through all this trouble? Hurry up and finish it. I still need to go back to sleep after this.”

The soldier hesitated and said, “Captain Pu, you don’t know—corporal punishment in our army always requires stripping off clothes.”

Pu Dachui shuddered at these words. What? Strip off clothes?

It took him a moment to understand, after which he shook his head and said with a bitter smile, “If I have to strip, then do it. But hurry up so I don’t have to expose myself too much.”

“Ah.”

Though the soldier’s heart ached, he had no choice. He reached for Pu Dachui’s underpants and, with a slight pull, tore off the white straps. The soldier pulled the underpants down to his knees, revealing Pu Dachui’s strong, dark buttocks.

Pu Dachui felt a chill on his buttocks as his underpants were stripped off. Though he was a carefree man, he still had his own taboos. Being punished with bare buttocks in front of his comrades was somewhat embarrassing for him. Burying his head in his arms, Pu Dachui didn’t dare look at the gazes of his comrades around him. The other twelve officers, though reluctant, had no choice but to agree to the executioner’s request and had their underpants removed as well. Soon, a row of buttocks in various colors and shades lined up outside the camp gate… “Put the sticks down!” Chen Chong, one of the soldiers, shouted. Several executioners placed the dark, flat-tipped military sticks on the officers’ buttocks. “Hit them!” At that command, the sound of whacking filled the air outside the camp gate, and the officers’ originally fair buttocks instantly turned pink. “Five!” “Six!” “…” “Ten!” After ten blows, their buttocks had turned blue. Some officers who couldn’t bear it even started screaming. If they didn’t scream, it was fine, but once they did, the executioners hit even harder. The men in the camp respected heroes the most and despised cowards. Crying and begging for mercy after just a few blows was truly shameful for a man. By the time half of the punishment was done, most of them already had bruises under their skin, with purple showing through the blue. Even a tough man like Pu Dachui let out a faint groan. “Twenty-one” “…” “Twenty-six!” “Twenty-seven!” The stick was raised high and slammed onto Pu Dachui’s buttocks, dragging slightly to tear through the skin and cause bleeding. There were also rules to following when using the sticks. If the force was applied so that it bounced off quickly, it might not seem serious on the surface but would cause internal injuries. As in the earlier case, a slight drag that scraped the skin might seem to cause a lot of bleeding, but it wouldn’t hurt the muscles or bones. These executioners were all experienced, so how could they let Pu Dachui and the others suffer? “Thirty-five!” “Thirty-six!” “…” “Thirty-nine!” “Forty!” After the last blow, the forty strokes were finally completed. After reporting the count, Chen Chong looked up to Li Kuo for instructions. Li Kuo, unable to bear to leave them like that, waved his hand and ordered his guards to help them back to their tents.