knife

Chapter 437 Army Reorganization
Upon seeing the garrison under Ding Ergou's command, neither Quanxin nor Zhang Quanyi were in a hurry to continue their journey. After obtaining Ding Ergou's consent, their group joined forces with Ding Ergou's garrison and traveled together, as they were both heading to Baoping Prefecture for the grand review of troops.

The soldiers had to prepare their own weapons. There was an armory in Gongqin Town, but apart from crossbows and other weapons, nothing else was provided for free.

The soldiers needed to pay for it themselves.

Nobody wants to save money on this.

Moreover, this time it's going to be a major battle, with the goal of completely annihilating the Northern Yuan, so you can imagine how fierce the battle will be. Therefore, the armory is quite lively.

Damaged armor and weapons can be assessed for value here. After making up the difference, you can get a brand new set of armor.

Quanxin watched silently for a while. These standard armors were of very reliable quality and cost only about half the price of those inside the pass.

Light infantrymen mostly bought half-body armor, while cavalrymen mostly used chainmail. Kuli had several sets of heavy infantry armor, but no one wanted them.

Heavy infantry and heavy cavalry are standing armies; ordinary people simply cannot afford such equipment.

The reason the armory contains these items is simply because the Protectorate General believed that a powerful figure might emerge who would require heavy armor, and if the armory didn't have it, that would be undesirable.

The officials of the Zhechong Prefecture were extremely efficient. Soon, the armory was filled with old armor and weapons, and then new sets of equipment were delivered to the soldiers.

Besides weapons, there was another item that was very popular among the soldiers. Almost every soldier bought one from the quartermaster and kept it very carefully on their person.

This is a cloth bag, but inside are some essential medicines for the battlefield, all made by the large medical clinic under the Protectorate. And the doctors in the clinic all come from Changchun Valley.

There is a legend outside the pass that as long as you are still alive and hanging on by a thread, you can live if you are delivered to the old and young immortals in Changchun Valley.

Actually, the bag is mostly filled with first-aid medicines. If you are injured and the army doctor is not by your side, you can rely on these things to save yourself.

The veterans were very skilled at self-rescue.

However, there is indeed one pill among them that can give someone a breather. It is a pill that stimulates the body's potential. When a wounded person is in extreme danger, taking this pill can allow them to hold on for a while longer and see if anything changes.

In Li Dachui's view, this thing is a kind of stimulant.

If someone takes one of these pills and the medication wears off before they receive effective treatment, then there's basically no hope of recovery.

This cloth bag isn't cheap.

They actually asked for two hundred coins.

But it was clear that the soldiers were willing to spend money on these life-saving items.

By daybreak, the army had been completely transformed.

Weapons must be purchased at our own expense, but since we have assembled, the food will be provided by the Zhechong Prefecture.

The soldiers lined up, each carrying their own ration bag, about the size of a fist, long and narrow, divided into compartments, each containing a meal's worth of rations.

Quanxin opened the bag out of curiosity. Inside was fried rice and noodles, perhaps mixed with some beans or something similar. He dipped his finger in it and tasted it. It was salty, with other flavors as well. Upon closer inspection, he discovered that it also contained fine minced meat.

"This is the rations needed to get from Gongqin Town to the assembly point," Ding Ergou said. "After the assembly, when we form a formal military formation, the Protectorate will provide the rations, which will be much better than what we prepare ourselves."

Ding Ergou pulled a square object wrapped in oiled paper from his pocket and handed it to Quanxin. "Here, this is military rations provided by the Protectorate. This small piece can last a day. It takes a lot of time to make, seven steamings and seven dryings. One pound of grain can only yield two ounces of this ration. But when you want to eat it, you just need to break off a small piece, rinse it with water, and you have a big bowlful. It contains a lot of ingredients, so it's very filling. Most importantly, this kind of dry ration can be stored for a year. It's easy to transport and convenient to store, making it an essential item for travel and combat!" Holding this hard, brick-like object in his hand, he realized that he would probably have to use a knife to cut it off before eating. It was thoughtfully divided into compartments, meaning that one compartment was enough for one meal.

If a soldier carries a bag of these things, he probably won't have to worry about going hungry for a month or two.

What is the most important thing in war?
It's logistics.

If the soldiers and horses are not moving, the grain and grass will go first.

In many wars, the losing side is not due to a lack of fighting power, but rather because it is dragged down by logistics.

In places like the area outside the Great Wall, where both sides have a large number of cavalry, mobile assaults and harassment of supply lines are the most basic operations. Now that there is this kind of military ration, the dependence on logistics has been greatly reduced.

Moreover, Quanxin had previously noticed that the various kinds of livestock brought by these soldiers were mostly female, which could provide the soldiers with fresh milk.

Zhang Quanyi walked over carrying several medical cloth bags and said with a smile, "I had heard before that Protector Li was a master at making money, and now it seems that it is indeed true. What's even more ingenious is that the soldiers spend money willingly without the slightest reluctance."

"The soldiers are all looking forward to fighting. All the spoils on the battlefield belong to them," Ding Ergou laughed. "Even things they can't use can be sold to the Protectorate. After a battle, they can basically make a fortune. If they make a great contribution, there will be additional rewards. Even if they die, the compensation is extremely generous. The people outside the pass are inherently warlike, and with these policies as incentives, the soldiers' fighting enthusiasm is extremely high."

"How do you ensure the soldiers' discipline?" Quanxin asked softly. "Can you prevent them from causing disturbances?"

Ding Ergou coughed and chuckled, "We usually fight across borders. Since we're going abroad, we're definitely facing enemies."

They were all intelligent people, so they naturally stopped there; Ding Ergou's words had already made himself very clear.

With all the preparations done, the expense was reimbursed in one morning.

After a quick meal, the army set off immediately.

The army consisted of 1,200 men, but had nearly 2,000 livestock of various kinds.

"A hundred li a day!" Ding Ergou said, "This is the passing grade for the Protectorate's soldiers, but I set a requirement of 150 li a day for the Gongqin soldiers. In fact, the soldiers of other military prefectures are required to do the same."

Glancing at this army that used livestock for transportation, and considering their logistical support, it was indeed possible for them to travel 150 li a day.

As the troops marched on, around the time of their return, the Gongqin Town garrison encountered another, even larger garrison force—a force of three thousand men from Xuan'en County. The officer leading the force was clearly much more senior than Ding Ergou.

Therefore, Ding Ergou's garrison troops immediately merged into this 3,000-strong garrison force.

Both Quanxin and Zhang Quanyi noticed that after the two armies joined forces, there was no obscurity in command, and everything remained perfectly smooth and efficient.

This shows that even if the soldiers of the Beiting Protectorate do not know their generals, or the generals do not know their soldiers, it doesn't matter. As long as they follow the prescribed drill manual step by step, they can command an army that you have never seen before.

This is an absolutely remarkable achievement.

Moreover, this is a huge benefit for both of them.

Because the two of them knew virtually nothing about the army of the Beiting Protectorate, they had been worried about this all the way. But now it seemed their worries were unfounded; they only needed to thoroughly study the Beiting Protectorate's manuals and understand their operational rules to command the troops outside the pass with ease.

These things are not difficult for them.

(End of this chapter)