Translator: Ink Hub

Editor: Yoog

Luo Yu stayed hidden in his tent from the moment he returned to camp, never stepping a foot outside. He did nothing but constantly order items to be sent to his quarters—first a stove, then vats—tossing and turning for two whole days.

When Dong Chuan, Meng Hu, and Shen Li finally entered the military tent, they were all stunned by the sight before them. A strange object they had never seen before stood tall in the center.

The base was a stove supporting a large pot, with another pot resting upside down on top, looking like a giant skewer of candied hawthorns. A thin, long bamboo pipe extended from the side, connecting to a large vat.

“What… what is this thing?” Dong Chuan was bewildered. “Sir, you said you were going to get some good wine for Commandant Han. Why did you tinker around to make this?”

“Ah, Brother Dong, where is your eye for detail? This is clearly a cooking pot,” Meng Hu said, rubbing his hands with excitement. “As the saying goes, good wine needs good food. He must have stewed a pot of fine meat to give to Commandant Han, along with the wine. Brother Yu, how about I give it a taste first? It would be a waste if it didn’t taste good, right?”

Meng Hu leaned in mischievously and yanked off the lid, only to find the pot completely empty. He was dumbfounded. “Why is it empty? Who stole the food!”

“All you think about is eating! I am doing serious work here!” Luo Yu glared at him. “However, Meng Hu is right. This is indeed a pot. I’ve named it the ‘steaming wine pot,’ and it can brew the finest wine in existence!”

“Brewing wine with this?” Shen Li was incredibly curious, walking around the apparatus to inspect it from every angle. “You’re lying. I’ve brewed rice wine before. Where is the grain? Where is the yeast? You have nothing. How are you going to brew wine?”

“That is the magical part of this steaming wine pot. It needs nothing but pre-brewed rice wine or yellow wine. It simply performs a deeper level of purification, distillation, and filtration!”

“Purification? Distillation? Filtration? Brother Yu, what on earth are you talking about?” A string of unfamiliar terms left the three of them dazed. Their gazes toward Luo Yu became strange. It felt as if he were already drunk before the wine was even made.

“We only need to pour the purchased rice wine into this pot and boil it. This will create wine vapor. When the vapor rises and hits the inverted bronze pot above, it will liquefy and turn back into liquid wine. The distilled and purified wine will flow through the bamboo pipe into the vat. Then our wine is complete. It will definitely taste much better than the wine sold on the market!”

Luo Yu explained it all at length. He had tasted the wine of Great Qian; it used the most primitive brewing techniques and had a very low alcohol content. It was far inferior to the wine purified by a distiller.

Time was tight. He didn’t have the luxury to use raw grain to ferment and brew from scratch. Processing ready-made rice wine was enough.

If Xiao Shaoyou hadn’t mentioned that Han Shuo loved wine, he wouldn’t have remembered he possessed this skill. The construction of a distiller wasn’t overly difficult; it was just that people of this era didn’t know the method yet. When he brought out the distilled spirit, Han Shuo would surely be drooling!

The group grew more confused as they listened. They had no idea what Luo Yu was saying and certainly didn’t believe this contraption could produce good wine.

“Fine, you don’t need to understand it.” Luo Yu waved them off and looked at Shen Li. “The task of brewing will be handed to you. What you need to do is simple: pour the rice wine into the pot to boil, and then wait for it to flow into the vat. Keep pouring and boiling, then collect the purified wine.”

“That’s it? That simple?”

“That simple!” Luo Yu gave a grand wave of his hand. “Just you wait and see. Brother Dong, Meng Hu, let’s go. We’re going to check on the training! Oh, right, this method of brewing must be kept absolutely secret. If anyone dares to speak of it, do not blame the blade in my hand for being merciless!”

“Understood!”

Watching Luo Yu swagger away, Shen Li pouted her lips. I want to see exactly what kind of thing you can actually brew!

* * *

“One, two, three!”

“Kill! Kill! Kill!”

The campgrounds, which were not very spacious, were packed with people. All 130 brothers under Luo Yu had been divided into groups of three. They practiced their coordination and blade techniques every day, their shouts echoing incessantly.

For the past few days, the training had been managed by the two standard commanders, Dong Chuan and Meng Hu. The results were good, and the roars in the field shook the heavens.

The reason for the high morale was simple: Luo Yu had taken out his meager reward silver to buy meat for the brothers. They could eat meat almost every two days. Furthermore, he never embezzled the issued military rations. He couldn’t guarantee they were full at every meal, but he would never let them go to the battlefield on an empty stomach.

In the entire Yunyang Pass, which centurion would treat his soldiers this well?

“The boss’s method is truly effective. The coordination of the three-man groups is being refined quite well. Once we are on the battlefield, we’ll be able to hold our own against the Qiang rebels, hehe.” Dong Chuan was smiling. Anyone who had participated in the battle of Black Ditch Fortress understood the practicality of the Three-Three System. It concentrated the power of three people against one enemy. With proper offense and defense, they could remain almost unscathed.

“The practice is going well, and the coordination looks decent.” Luo Yu’s brow furrowed slightly. “But I feel something is missing.”

“Missing something?” Dong Chuan and Meng Hu were puzzled, not catching his meaning.

“Killing intent. We lack killing intent!” Luo Yu walked straight onto the drill grounds and shouted, “Stop! Everyone, stop what you are doing!”

Hearing the shout, everyone halted their movements and looked at Luo Yu blankly. They were practicing perfectly well, so why the sudden stop?

Luo Yu barked loudly, “The brothers have worked hard these past few days, and I see your blade techniques have improved. Now, I am going to increase the intensity! From now on, in your groups of three and your squads of nine, you will fight each other. Put away the blades and switch to wooden staves and shields.

“Remember this: I am not asking you to perform flowery moves. I want you to use every bit of your strength to defeat the opposition. Fight until they are all pinned to the ground. Aim for the head or strike the vitals. However you would kill an enemy on the battlefield is how you will practice now. No one is allowed to be soft!”

The soldiers’ expressions changed slightly. This sounded quite ruthless.

“Sir, is this appropriate?” Dong Chuan asked hesitantly. “No one knows their own strength. What if someone gets seriously hurt?”

This was what everyone wanted to say. They weren’t martial arts masters who could control their strikes to the inch. A wooden staff swung carelessly could easily break a comrade’s ribs.

“What are you afraid of!” Luo Yu’s expression turned fierce as he shouted coldly. “If you don’t even dare to endure a wooden staff now, how will you face the scimitars and warhorses of the Qiang on the battlefield? What is a broken rib or two compared to losing your life? Don’t forget, there are four thousand Qiang riders outside the city. Do you think you can defeat them just by shouting here?

“Keep dreaming! When the Qiang charge into the city, are we going to kneel and beg for mercy?”

The words “Keep dreaming” made everyone’s heart tighten. Because the Qiang hadn’t attacked the city these past few days, they had gradually stopped taking the threat seriously.

“Remember this!” Luo Yu roared. “This is a battlefield. If you don’t risk your lives, no one will survive. If you are a coward who fears death, get the hell out of here right now! Staying here only harms yourself and others! Practice like your life depends on it! Whichever squad is left standing at the end gets extra rations tonight. Whichever squad falls first goes hungry! If you have the skill, then beat down this big guy, Meng Hu, and make him miss his dinner! Weaklings have no right to eat!”

These were all men of blood and spirit, and they couldn’t stand being insulted like this. With a few roars, everyone’s faces turned red with eagerness.

Lu Qingyun, who had come from the Slave Court, was the first to pick up a staff and howl, “Brother Meng, come! Let’s exchange moves! You won’t be eating tonight!”

“Haha! Good lad, you’ve got guts!” Meng Hu rolled up his sleeves and laughed loudly. “Today, I’m definitely going to knock you flat on your face! Brothers, hit them!”

“Go!”

In an instant, the drill grounds were in chaos as everyone pounced forward, fighting in their three-man teams.

A smile appeared on Luo Yu’s face. “Now, this is more like it!”