Chapter 43: You Are Soldiers from This Point On

An hour after Zi You and others arrived, the breathless and exhausted girls with their brothers climbed up the path.

Rong QiYan was carried by Rong YunHe. The little girl climbed halfway and fainted from tiredness. Two other girls also fainted from tiredness, WanRu and XiaoYa. They were carried by Uncle Jiang and Aunt Lan.

Zi You used acupuncture on the three girls and woke them. She fed them some sips of water. She then appointed Rong YunHe the leader of these children and let him line them up.

Rong YunHe was distracted and his face was surprised. Then he started to line them up.

Mu YingYi was startled. This boy had been trained well; he had been in the army.

Zi You remembered his father was a noble soldier. Her confidence in this female medical team increased a bit.

Rong YunHe's basic qualities weren't bad. Rong QiYan as his biological sister could certainly become a high-quality soldier like her brother in time.

Filled with confidence, Zi You went in the front of the crowd. She loudly shouted, "You must be curious why I bought all of you. I will tell you now. My goal is to form a female medical team. Because my grandfather and uncle are Great Yan's soldiers. Soldiers guard their homes and defend their homelands. They are the first line of defense in enemy invasion. If there is war, there will be casualties. I don't want to see my relatives and my soldiers lose their lives because of injuries. So I formed this female medical team. I want you to follow along and protect the lives of my loved ones when they are on the battlefield. Starting today, you will learn martial arts and medicine with me."

"Some might ask since it's a medical team, why the need to bitterly practice martial arts? Then I will tell you. Practicing martial arts is to protect your own safety and to better perform the task of treating the wounded. You are all slaves without liberty or dignity, so please cherish this opportunity I give you to begin a new life. Study hard and work hard. If you can achieve merit on the battlefield, my grandfather will definitely help eliminate your slave status. Are you willing? If you are unwilling, step forward. I will make other work arrangements for you. Are any of you unwilling to become a female doctor?"

"Is there any?" Zi You asked three times. No one stepped forward. A dazzling smile, like a cloud breaking through sunrise, on her face illuminated the whole mountaintop.

"Good. No one is unwilling. From now on, you are members of the female medical team. Wake up at mao shi [5-7 am] and exercise on the mountain for two hours. Then return back to the Manor for breakfast. Then study medicine with me from wu shi [11-1 pm] with lunch in between and rest. Wei shi [1-3 pm] to shen shi [3-5 pm], practice medicine in the first half and practice martial arts in the second half. Rest and dinner during you shi [5-7 pm]. Self-study during xu shi [7-9 pm]. Sleep by hai shi [9-11 pm]. Next, I will start to call out names. If it's your name, step forward and shout back. Understand?"

"Understand." The bashful little girls lowered their heads.

Zi You immediately shouted, "Answer loudly. Lift your heads and raise your chests. Remember, you are soldiers from this point on. Understand?"