"Marshal Feng fancies himself the savior of Shenzhou. He thinks too highly of himself. It is plain to see that he is but another petty Warlord. His army thinks he has the mandate of heaven! They are gravely mistaken. Marshal Feng is but a man like any of us, an arrow loosened with great precision will surely end him. And so we shall be that arrow! Today shall go down in infamy, as the Great Pacifier of the North shall be devoured by the Azure Leopards!"
All the men erupted into cheers at Captain Aicin's speech. The day had finally come. The day that their troop had been planning so long for.
Marshal Feng's convoy had arrived at Xiangyang yesterday. After a quick tour of the city, he was quickly brought to the military base about 50 kilometers west of the city. Stationed there were 15,000 soldiers. All ranging from being newly recruited or seasoned veterans, some of whom could still recall the battles fought between the first Republican armies against the Yan Dynasty. Such a massive base will not be easily shaken by a mere band of mercenaries. Thus Aicin had planned a different approach, he would only choose a select few lieutenants and infiltrate the compound.
Picking only five of his best men, his other troops were stationed for extraction or back at the Azure Leopard compound.
"I trust that you're all prepared for this then."
"Sir yes sir!"
After travelling for some time, the group reached a spot south of the base, where scouts had reported seeing regular patrol groups in the area. The group, wishing to stay hidden, remained on the edge of the forest. And by coincidence four men in the NPA's light blue uniform could be seen walking by.
Without a word uttered by their commanding officer, the men trained their sights.
"About 370 meters away. An acceptable range for dry shots, no need to infuse Chi."
Aicin watched his men steady their aim. Looking across the rice paddies, he could see the four men clearly. Three of them were messing around, but what seemed like their superior had his rifle in his palms.
"You may fire when ready."
A thunderous crackle tore through the sky as the men simultaneously fired. A split second later mfour bodies would crash onto the ground.
As my men turned to me, I immediately signaled them to advance. They quickly started moving across the rice paddies toward the corpses. I reached into my pocket and took out my jade pendant. Clamping the pendant between my hands, I began to pray to the beings above.
"Be free from hatred and ill-will, be free from fixed views. May the holy Dharma flourish for thee whence you reincarnate."
Why would a man of war, a man who profits off the suffering of others bother praying for his victims? It's not really too complicated. The men that I killed did not personally wrong me, they were simply just on the wrong side of a contract. And since I was the one who initiated their journey to the Bardo, it is only natural that I wish them luck on their way as well. It never hurts to wish for someone to be reincarnated successfully. Who knows, maybe in the future one of them will be an ally of mine. Though I doubt it. I've come across people who I can just sense have wronged me in past lives. And if killing a man is not the greatest sin, then I know not what is.
By the time I made it across the rice paddies and caught up with my men, the corpses had already been stripped of their uniforms and hidden away. Though it would have been best to give them a proper burial, there was no option for that right now. I must hope that my prayer would be enough to accompany them safely to the Bardo for now.
"Only four uniforms then. One of us is going to have to stay behind. Any volunteers?"
None of the men budged. No volunteers then. I should have expected this. It's hard for a seasoned mercenary to give up on a chance to kill such a huge figure. After all, a mercenary cares for fame as much as he does fortune, even if that fame derives from infamy. Although, what action is evil enough for infamy is debatable in Shenzhou's case.
Aicin let out an audible sigh.
"Careful Captain, you might alert the enemy."
Aicin shot his subordinate a glare. Of course it was Lieutenant Meng. He was always the more playful one, very skilled with Chi control, but with that natural talent came a bit of cockiness. And so Aicin decided on the volunteer that would be staying behind.
A slight smirk broke out, but was quickly contained. I turned to face Meng. Being the crafty boy he was, he immediately realised what was about to happen. To confirm his suspicions and alleviate the tension in Meng's heart, I nodded gently at him. I'm such a merciful superior.
"You should be grateful Meng. I heard from some Beixia recruits that German Officers would execute their subordinates on the spot for the slightest acts of insubordination."
Meng could only look at me with a face full of shock, daring not to say anything more. Meng looked around at his comrades, searching for any sympathy, but all of them were busy changing or pretending to.
"Huh. These uniforms are quite comfortable, I don't like the pale blue though. Brother Meng, you should really feel the texture of the cloth. No wonder so many men wish to join the NPA. I feel like an aristocrat in this uniform."
"Well you don't look like one at all brother Zhang."
"Oh come on. Don't be like that, I'm sure you'll be able to help assassinate the next warlord."
"If you guys do your job right, then I shouldn't need to kill anymore warlords and neither should you."
"Nah, I doubt it. The payoff for this job is huge, but I don't think it's possible for me to ever give up this lifestyle. I doubt my hands remember how to handle a scythe or an ox cart anymore. And I can't live the rest of my life doing nothing now can I? What would i do to pass the time."
"Has it ever come to you that there is more to life than just working. Personally, once you guys blow out Feng's brains, I want to buy myself a grand estate back in my hometown."
"In your hometown? You won't be able to go through two days before your house would be ransacked and raided by brigands!"
"Well you don't know that." Meng retorted in an angry whisper.
"Enough you two. Captain Aisin has finished changing, we should carry on with the plan now."
Of course it was Lieutenant Zhao, he was always the most focused and disciplined subordinate. I showed my thanks to him in a nod, his keen glance immediately registered my action and proceeded to bow.
I guess he was a little too disciplined sometimes. I would tell him to loosen up a bit, but it doesn't really matter at this stage. He's already so high up the company's hierarchy, so his work ethic must be working for him.
"Alright let's keep going then. Meng you stay and watch for hostiles."
Without another word the men began advancing, Meng acted without orders as well, immediately trekking back to the forest to stay on the lookout.