King of the Recruits

The King of New Recruits is a rousing military power fantasy. Li Tiezhu, a country boy, enlists without fanfare. At the nationwide military competition held once every five years, he makes a stunning debut, defeats the best of the reconnaissance company with his original “Mudskipper Fist,” wins the Bloodblade dagger, and becomes the army’s newest King of Soldiers.

Then, during a Red-versus-Blue military exercise, he leads a ten-man squad deep behind enemy lines and takes out three of the Blue side’s command centers in a single night. During a surprise raid at Broken Cliff Ridge, he even “kills” the Blue side’s commander-in-chief, who happens to be the father of Su Qing, the female soldier he has a crush on. Su Qing is the daughter of a division commander, brilliant in both academics and combat. As the two test each other, they fall for one another and begin a tug-of-war romance that crosses class boundaries.

Blending a comeback story, comedy, action, and tenderness, the novel is vivid and cinematic. Can Li Tiezhu uphold his glory as the King of Soldiers? How will he face the trials set by his future father-in-law? And what secrets does the mysterious Bloodblade dagger conceal? A soldier’s legend begins here.