Chapter Thirteen: The Cold Wind (III)

Li Kuo’s gaze was icy and sharp, as if it could pierce through the thoughts of the Tianwei Army’s weapons officer.
Under Li Kuo’s stare, the weapons officer trembled slightly, but rather than losing his composure, he forced himself to lift his head and ask, “What do you want?”
“What do I want?” Li Kuo sneered. “I suppose that’s something you should tell me. Starting trouble, spreading rumors secretly, inciting rebellion among the troops—were these all your doing?”
“Nonsense!”
Hearing Li Kuo list his crimes, the weapons officer instinctively retorted. But clearly guilty, his response lacked conviction.
“It seems you won’t speak unless I help you! Someone, hold him down and flog him fifty times with a stick!”
Li Kuo shook his head and gave orders to his trusted subordinates. Immediately, soldiers from the Tongwu Camp stepped forward to subdue the weapons officer.
Seeing that Li Kuo intended to flog him, the weapons officer struggled to free himself from the two Tongwu soldiers holding his shoulders and shouted, “Why treat me like this? I’m not part of the Anxi Army—you have no right to bind me!”
He had already received orders from General Wu Fuhui of the Tianwei Army and certainly wouldn’t take Li Kuo seriously. Although Li Kuo held a higher rank militarily than Wu Fuhui, the Tang Army had certain rules—different armies were not subordinate to each other, meaning Wu Fuhui could ignore Li Kuo’s orders entirely.
This young man, barely eighteen or nineteen, was surprisingly stubborn. Today, Li Kuo intended to teach him a lesson and see how it would end!
Seeing his defiance, Li Kuo realized this rebellion was no accident—it must have been instigated by high-ranking officers in the Tianwei Army, taking advantage of his youth and lack of influence. The young man thought he had planned to flog the weapons officer dozens of times to assert his authority. If the man apologized and admitted fault, he might let it go to save face for Wu Fuhui. But since the man was so rude and defiant, Li Kuo had no choice but to be ruthless!
Determined to rectify military discipline, Li Kuo sneered, “Do you know why the Tianwei Army is going to Anxi? The Emperor ordered you here to assist my Anxi Army in suppressing the rebels in the Western Regions. With the rebellion of the Suiye Turkic tribes, General Gao placed you under my command. As the deputy commander of the camp, do you really say I have no right to bind you? Dou Qing, read out our Tang Army’s regulations to him!”
“As ordered!”

Dou Qing had long disapproved of this fire officer. With Li Kuo’s permission, he recited the rules he knew by heart: “Blowing the alarm at night without reporting, delaying the change of watches, issuing unclear commands—this is called dereliction of duty; the offender shall be beheaded. Expressing complaints, resenting the commander, refusing to obey orders—this is called inciting rebellion; the offender shall be beheaded. Laughing and mocking prohibitions, rushing through the military gates—this is called disrespecting the army; the offender shall be beheaded… The deputy commander of the camp oversees all generals and controls the entire army. He has the authority to execute without awaiting approval when necessary!”
Dou Qing listed twelve serious crimes punishable by execution in one go, then repeated the deputy commander’s duties in public, staring at the fire officer. “These rules are clearly written in our Tang Dynasty military regulations. You know exactly which ones you’ve violated! As for my commander, he was personally appointed by the emperor as the deputy commander of the camp. Even if it were your general, if he violated the military rules, my commander could still execute him!”
Only then did the fire officer realize the severity of the situation. He had thought Li Kuo was just trying to intimidate him, but it seemed he intended to enforce the rules strictly! If judged by the military regulations, given the number of rules he had violated, even ten heads wouldn’t be enough to execute him all.
But now he was trapped and had no choice but to grit his teeth and say, “This is nothing but allowing officials to act arbitrarily while forbidding ordinary people from doing the same! Everyone has been exhausted from days of marching, yet you won’t allow them to camp and rest. I’m just expressing what everyone feels—pleading on behalf of my comrades. But you won’t tolerate advice and instead want to abuse your power to kill me!”
Hearing his unreasonable arguments, Li Kuo sneered and said, “There are proper procedures for offering advice and for making petitions! Although I’m not very capable, I’ve never heard of a soldier who, while making a petition, deliberately incites rebellion among his comrades. You disregard your superiors, ignore the military rules, refuse to repent, and speak arrogantly.”
Li Kuo paused briefly before turning to Dou Qing and asking, “Captain Dou, according to the Tang Dynasty military regulations, what punishment should be given to this fire officer?”
Dou Qing took over and said, “Sir, he has violated nine military rules and shows no sign of repentance. He must be executed immediately without mercy!”
“Have you heard that? If you have any complaints, speak now. Don’t wait until you’re in the afterlife to say I didn’t give you a chance to defend yourself!”
Li Kuo spread his hands at the fire officer, his gaze so fierce it could overwhelm anyone.
The fire officer of the Tianwei Army had thought Li Kuo was just bluffing, but he truly intended to kill him. In his excitement, his speech became slurred. “You… you’re clearly abusing your power, using personal interests for public gain…”

“It seems you have nothing more to say. I, as the military governor, have urgent matters to attend to and no time for idle chatter. Someone, drag him away and execute him!”
A cold glint flashed in Li Kuo’s eyes as he waved his hand sharply, giving orders to those around him.
Li Kuo’s trusted subordinates stepped forward and grabbed the limp Tianwei Army commander from both sides, dragging him away.
“You can’t kill me! You can’t kill me! Ugh, ugh… My uncle is Bian Lingcheng, the military supervisor of the Anxi Army! You can’t kill me… General Wu, General Wu, please speak up for me! I did all this for you!”
When dragged to General Wu Fuhui’s side, the commander clung to General Tianwei’s thigh, pleading desperately, “General Wu, I did all this for you! Please speak fairly and help me out. He wants to kill me!”
Wu Fuhui’s pants were almost torn by the commander’s grip. He awkwardly pulled himself away and bowed to Li Kuo, saying, “General Li, although he violated military regulations, his crime doesn’t warrant death. Moreover, with war looming, executing soldiers right here might bring bad luck!”
He finally spoke up!
Li Kuo sneered inwardly but kept a friendly expression, waving his hand at Wu Fuhui and saying, “General Wu, you’re wrong. General Li Weigong once said, ‘Military discipline must be strict.’ This man ignored military rules, defied orders, and openly disobeyed my commands. Such a serious crime cannot be easily forgiven. As for the rule against executing soldiers before battle, it depends on the situation! The more intense the battle, the more necessary it is to eliminate those who disobey orders, so as not to burden the entire army!”
Seeing Li Kuo’s firm attitude, Wu Fuhui was at a loss and tentatively said, “But… but he’s the adopted son of Lord Bian. If you execute him, it might be difficult to explain to Lord Bian…”
“A prince who breaks the law is subject to the same punishment as commoners!”
Without waiting for Wu Fuhui to finish, Li Kuo cut him off decisively, “Never mind that he’s Lord Bian’s adopted son. Even if he were a marquis or prince, if he violates such military regulations, I will still execute him without mercy!”
“But… he…”
Wu Fuhui still refused to give up and argued stubbornly.
“Stop talking!”
Li Kuo waved his hand sharply. “General Wu, if you’re pleading for him like this, are you on his side?”
The young man raised his eyebrows, giving Wu Fuhui a fierce glance that made him shiver and instinctively take a step back.

“Governor Li, as you say, how could I possibly be on his side? Since you’ve made up your mind, I’ll say no more.”
Wu Fuhui didn’t dare speak further. With a bitter smile, he shook his head and let out a long sigh.
“What are you waiting for? Drag him down and execute him!”
Seeing that Wu Fuhui had given in, Li Kuo didn’t want to make things worse and ordered his trusted subordinates.
“No, you can’t kill me! I’m the adopted son of Lord Bian—he won’t let you off. General Wu, save me! General Wu, save me…”
The fire commander’s voice was almost hoarse from shouting, his cries filled with despair like those of a wounded beast.
But no one dared step forward to plead for him anymore; the entire army was utterly silent.
“Help! Help! I know I was wrong—please don’t kill me…”
The fire commander’s pleas grew fainter and fainter until a final, agonized scream brought an end to the tragedy.
The executioners were all soldiers from the Copper Armor Camp—how could they let that fire commander get away? In no time, they returned to Li Kuo with a wooden tray.
On the black tray lay a bloody head. Li Kuo glanced at it briefly before waving for them to take it away.
“I like to make things clear from the start!”
Li Kuo looked around at the soldiers of the Tianwei Army and said sternly, “Since General Gao has entrusted you to me, you must obey my orders! Military campaigns aren’t games—once an order is given, you must carry it out with all your strength. If you truly face difficulties, report them to the military advisor. I’m not heartless; as long as the reason is valid, I’ll do my best to help you.”
After a pause, Li Kuo changed his tone and said, “But if anyone disobeys orders and disrupts military discipline, I will enforce strict discipline and execute them without mercy! Did you all hear that?”
The soldiers of the Tianwei Army never expected such a young commander to be so ruthless. They were stunned and forgot to respond.
“Did you all hear that?”
Li Kuo scanned the crowd again, raising his voice.
“Yes!”
This time, the soldiers of Tianwei recovered from their shock and replied to Li Kuo, their commander, under the leadership of their own officers.
“Good!”
Li Kuo nodded and said loudly, “Since you’ve all heard this, from now on, if anyone breaks the rules again, no matter who pleads for them, I will not show any leniency!”