Chapter Ninety: Not That Simple

The most direct and effective way to improve physical fitness is to combine a reasonably balanced diet with aerobic exercise.

For that reason, in the armies of the twenty-first century, recruit training in camp consists not only of learning military posture and improving the soldier’s bearing, but, above all, of all kinds of running drills.

Chu Yun’s main plan on this journey was to wait until rainy weather stranded them on the road before beginning training. Naturally, he could not take everyone out to run in the rain, so he taught the private troops a set of calisthenics instead.

Just as he had said, he intended to awaken every muscle in every burly man of the private force, to improve their physical condition across the board, and thereby make them stronger, faster, and more agile in their reactions.

As for whether the calisthenics would achieve the effect he wanted, he harbored not the slightest doubt.

High knees, side kicks, jumping jacks, burpees, and the like were movements humanity had refined over thousands of years.

After Chu Yun finished teaching the private troops the calisthenics and led them through one complete sequence, he found that breakfast still was not ready.

After all, he had already pulled out ninety of the more capable workers, and the rest, in order to help the people of Pingba Village learn how to make soy milk, tofu pudding, and tofu, were still doing it together with them. Naturally, the pace was slower.

So Chu Yun said, “Since breakfast is not ready yet, everyone follow me and do it once more.”

“Understood, my lord!”

The sixty burly men had already realized how formidable the calisthenics were, and no longer thought they were learning some kind of dance. All of them answered with great excitement and were about to begin again.

Not only them, but Bai Hao and his cavalry squad were also preparing to join in beside them.

However, Yang Liuer suddenly stepped forward to interrupt. “Husband, wait. Now that you’ve taught them the calisthenics, shouldn’t you tell the thirty ladies why you summoned them here?”

At her words, one of the thirty women immediately stepped forward in agreement. “Yes, my lord. What did you call us here for? We’ve been waiting here for quite a while.”

Ye Zilan quickly looked toward Chu Yun with curiosity. She had been especially eager to know what Chu Yun wanted with thirty women.

Chu Yun looked at the thirty women and immediately gave an embarrassed smile. “Just now I was too busy teaching them the calisthenics, and they were too foolish. They took so long to learn a few simple moves that I forgot about you all.”

The thirty women could not help but laugh. “Exactly. These men are far too dumb. Such simple movements, and they still took so long to learn them.”

The sixty burly men, hearing this, instantly grew awkward.

Chu Yun smiled faintly. “All right, enough small talk. Lord Bai Hao, your movements are very standard. Please lead everyone through it once for me. Yes, once. Whether the meal is ready or not, that will be it. I’m afraid they won’t be able to bear more.”

Bai Hao replied, “Of course, my lord. But how did you call the cadence just now?”

Chu Yun said, “One, two, three, four; two, two, three, four; three, two, three, four; four, two, three, four. After calling it twice, change the movement. Do you understand?”

Bai Hao nodded. “Understood.”

Then he turned to the sixty burly men and said, “My lord only wants you to do it once more because he thinks you can’t take it, thinks you’re not up to it. Do you accept that? Don’t tell me you really can’t do it!”

The sixty burly men stared blankly for a moment, then said, “We refuse to accept it! We can do it!”

Bai Hao said, “Then how many times will we do it?”

No one answered.

Bai Hao went on, “Then let’s do it at least three times. We’ll rest only after that, and then get ready to eat. How about it?”

“Fine, three times! The count gives us such generous pay. We can’t let the count think we’re useless!” the sixty burly men answered in unison, their voices rolling like thunder.

Seeing this, Chu Yun could only smile and shake his head.

Then he looked at the thirty women and said, “The reason I had people select you all was mainly so you could learn some nursing skills.”

“If, in the future, we go to war with others and someone is wounded, you can help me save lives and care for the injured. If anyone falls ill, you can also help look after them.”

“What I am going to teach you now is how to help someone up.”

At that, he looked at Yang Liuer. “Liuer, come over here and lie down in front of me. I’ll demonstrate for everyone how to help you up.”

Yang Liuer thought to herself that helping someone up was such a simple matter—did it really need teaching?

She did not understand why Chu Yun was doing this.

But when she saw how serious he looked, she still obediently lay down in front of him, cooperating fully.

Even so, someone could not help asking, “My lord, do we really need to be taught something as simple as helping someone up? Do we still need to learn this?”

Chu Yun shook his head with a smile. “Helping someone up is a great field of study, far from simple. Take the elderly, for example, or young adults, or children—their bodies are at different stages of growth and development, so the way we help them up should be different, because only the most suitable movement will make them feel most comfortable when they are lifted.”

“If it is an injured person, then using the most suitable method to help them up will prevent secondary injury when we lift them.”

“And if two injured people are both young, but the locations of their wounds are different, then the way we help them up must also differ. We must use the most appropriate movement to lift each one.”

“Now, do you still think helping someone up is a simple matter?”

The thirty women all nodded together, left with nothing to say.

Ye Zilan could not help sighing. “I never imagined that even such a simple motion as helping someone up could involve so much knowledge. Though I have also studied medicine, this is the first time I have heard of such a principle, the first time I have truly realized this issue. Count Chu Yun, you truly live up to your reputation as an heir of the immortals. You are extraordinary.”

Bai Hao echoed from the side, “Indeed, extraordinary! On the battlefield, many soldiers were not originally badly wounded, yet they died while being moved. Looking at it now, part of the reason must have been that the movements used to help them up were not standard enough, causing secondary injuries. If we had known this theory earlier and done better, more appropriate work in helping them up, many of our men should not have perished, should they?”

Chu Yun smiled faintly. “Since you now understand that helping someone up is not such a simple matter, then follow me carefully and learn.”

With that, he began teaching everyone which professional movements should be used for which kind of injured or ill person.

Yang Liuer also served obediently as his model, sometimes being treated as an elderly person, sometimes as a young adult, sometimes as a child, sometimes as someone with an injured left leg, and then as someone else again...