The disgraced official I took care of was actually Zhu Houcong's childhood friend.

Chapter 722

Yu Dayou is the oldest among the students who came to study at the military academy this year. He is already twenty-seven years old.

Yu Dayou was born in a village in Quanzhou Prefecture, Fujian Province. His father, Yu Yuanzan, was a centurion in the Quanzhou Prefecture Garrison. After Yu Yuanzan passed away two years ago, Yu Dayou succeeded his father as a centurion.

However, Yu Dayou was never complacent because of this. His goal was never to be a hereditary centurion who could just sit around and do nothing, but to make contributions to the Ming Dynasty.

Before becoming a centurion, Yu Dayou sought out renowned teachers to learn martial arts and military strategy. He studied under Wang Xuan and Lin Fu, both of whom were disciples of Cai Qing, the Imperial Academy Chancellor during the reign of Emperor Wuzong. Cai Qing had passed away more than 20 years earlier.

Yu Dayou received Cai Qing's true teachings from Wang Xuan and Lin Fu. After becoming a centurion, he studied diligently, learning archery and horsemanship until he could hit the bullseye every time. He also learned swordsmanship from Li Liangqin, the Fujian garrison commander. After mastering swordsmanship, even Li Liangqin was no match for Yu Dayou.

"With your swordsmanship, there is almost no one in the world who can rival you."

Li Liangqin was very satisfied with his disciple and did not hold back his praise.

Yu Dayou's original plan was to go to the capital to participate in the military examination in a few years. If he could achieve good results in the military examination, he could at least become a commander of a thousand households, and a commander of a thousand households in the capital, which would be closer to the emperor and more likely to be entrusted with important responsibilities.

Over the years, Yu Dayou has practiced martial arts while studying military strategy. His understanding of military strategy has reached a level that is beyond the reach of ordinary people. For Yu Dayou today, even commanding a million-strong army is as coordinated as commanding his own body.

Originally, Yu Dayou's goal was to make contributions to the Ming Dynasty, and most importantly, to wipe out the Japanese pirates. Yu Dayou was born in Fujian and suffered from the invasion of Japanese pirates for many years when he was young. Yu Dayou's father, Yu Yuanzan, was seriously injured when he participated in the anti-Japanese pirate campaign more than ten years ago and had not fully recovered in recent years.

The disease relapsed a few years ago, which led to his death.

Over the years, Yu Dayou had mastered martial arts and reached a high level in military strategy, but the Japanese pirates had disappeared. After making inquiries, Yu Dayou learned that the imperial court had appointed a commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, who was now the Duke of Dingguo, Zhou Hengqi.

Lord Zhou, with his several thousand soldiers whom he had trained, completely wiped out the Japanese pirates along the southeast coast in just six months. All the Japanese pirates disappeared and ceased to exist.

The pirates and Japanese pirates at sea were wiped out by General Lu Yunjin.

This General Lu has been following Lord Zhou since childhood, and it is said that Lord Zhou taught him military strategy.

Yu Dayou always knew that the problem of the Japanese pirates was never a simple matter of suppressing bandits. It involved too many interests and was too complex. From the Hongwu reign to the Zhengde reign, no one had been able to solve the problem of the Japanese pirates for so many years.

Originally, Yu Dayou thought that suppressing the Japanese pirates would be an extremely difficult process, and he might not even be able to complete it in his lifetime.

Yu Dayou was very confident in his own military strength and tactics, but he had no confidence in the gentry in Jiangnan or the officials in the court.

This Lord Zhou, however, was like a skilled butcher dissecting an ox. He first dealt with the officials and gentry in Jiangnan. Once these people were dealt with, the problem of the Japanese pirates was no longer a problem.

The more Yu Dayou learned about Zhou Chu, the more he admired the Duke of Dingguo and longed to see him in person.

Upon learning of the establishment of the Royal Military Academy and the appointment of Zhou Chu as its instructor, Yu Dayou set off for the capital without hesitation. Even just entering the military academy as a student and learning military strategy from Lord Zhou was far better for Yu Dayou than wasting his life in Quanzhou.