Tiger Guards

Chapter 734 Hindsight
Jincheng was where Zhao Yun's troops, who had withdrawn from Xiayang County, rested and grazed on both banks of the Yellow River outside Jincheng.

After the Hezhong region was named Xiayang County, it was only named Xiayang County.

The population here was either forcibly relocated from the rebels, leaving behind very few kind-hearted people.

Let alone supporting an entire prefecture, it couldn't even support a single county government.

When Zhao Yun withdrew his troops, he simply moved the last remaining registered households to the vicinity of Jincheng for resettlement.

Once the new governor of Xiayang County takes office, he will temporarily govern these migrants from Xiayang County.

When we will return to Xiayang County depends on how the situation changes.

During the reigns of Emperors Huan and Ling, as the Xianbei grew increasingly powerful, the phenomenon of relocating their administrative centers inland and southward became more and more frequent.

Even Zhao Yun, a native of Changshan in Ji Province, was aware of the migration trend from the border counties of Liang and Bing Provinces.

After settling these immigrants from Xiayang County, Zhao Yun's troops rested for three days before setting off for Yunzhong to take up positions on the front lines left by Xu Huang.

This time, however, the march was no longer by horseback.

Although Zhao Yun's troops could easily achieve a marching efficiency of 300 li in two days by riding two or three horses and traveling along a nomadic route without needing to set up camp, they were able to do so with only one person and two or three horses.

However, Zhao Ji had his own special arrangements for the movement of Zhao Yun's troops.

In any case, the western Hebei militia under Zhao Yun's command would be disbanded and regrouped after returning. Therefore, Zhao Yun, who was resting in Jincheng, was only responsible for one thing: selecting elite militia members from the army.

Two thousand elite knights were selected from among them who were willing to extend their service period, and then they were incorporated into Zhao Yun's main force of one thousand cavalry.

These three thousand cavalrymen will travel along the upper reaches of the Yellow River, going downstream from Jincheng to Wuyuan.

Meanwhile, in Wuyuan, a new batch of recruited and mobilized Shuofang volunteers have begun to assemble and will join Zhao Yun there to form a new army of ten thousand cavalry.

Currently, only Xu Huang and Zhao Yun have commanded or controlled armies of over 10,000 cavalry; Gan Ning and Zhang Liao have also briefly commanded or controlled other subordinate troops, with a scale exceeding 10,000.

For now, however, Zhao Yun and Xu Huang are still the second-best commanding units after Zhao Ji's troops.

Zhang Liao and Gan Ning each had seven battalions, commanding only about five thousand men, which was incomparable to Zhao Yun and Xu Huang.

While Zhao Yun was focused on selecting elite cavalry, Zhao Lian, the governor of Hexi, whose journey was slow, finally left Didao and entered Jincheng.

While Zhao Lian was fierce in his youth, managing to establish himself in Hedong and even build a small family, he ultimately had a cowardly side, as evidenced by his years of enduring humiliation and hardship.

If he truly desired a career in government and wanted to fight for a future on the battlefield, then when Dong Zhuo served as the governor of Hedong Commandery, he would have had the opportunity to be chosen by Dong Zhuo.

It wasn't just Dong Zhuo; during the Yellow Turban Rebellion, Emperor Ling was thrown into chaos. He lifted the ban on the party members and began to conscript the Three Rivers Knights and the Royal Knights, ordering them to bring their own armor, bows and crossbows, and horses, and assigning them to Huangfu Song, Zhu Jun, and Lu Zhi to quell the rebellion.

The main force that quelled the Yellow Turban Rebellion could almost be considered a newly established army.

The core members were the officials, who were the first batch of outstanding talents from various regions to enter officialdom after the lifting of the Party Prohibitions; the so-called Three Rivers Knights were the sons of powerful families in the three counties and their retainers.

For Zhao Lian, that was the prime of his life. If he was willing to serve the court and fight for a future, with Pei Mao as his guarantor, even if Zhao Lian could not enter the government and join the army as a court official, he could still become a Sanhe knight with his own retinue.

Zhao Lian did not participate, possibly due to various concerns. In any case, judging from his behavior, he was quite satisfied with his life at the time... lacking the courage to face life and death and a greater pioneering spirit.

It's still the same now. I originally wanted to lead two thousand elite soldiers to the four counties of Hexi, this lawless land, to make a name for myself and build a great career.

This was something Zhao Yan had tacitly approved, but unexpectedly, Zhao Ji completely disregarded Zhao Yan's promise and seized Zhao Lian along with his boat, as if he had chewed and sucked Zhao Lian dry, leaving not a trace of juice or flesh. Now, Zhao Lian is nothing but a skeleton. How could he possibly gain a foothold in the four prefectures of Hexi in such a state?
Therefore, on this journey westward, Zhao Lian took his first wife, Lady Tongxiang, on a leisurely and perfunctory trip, as if he wanted to travel and enjoy the beautiful scenery along the way.

Not only were his henchmen removed by Zhao Ji, but some of the strategists he had taken in were also wiped out.

Even the slowest person will learn something after suffering such a big loss.

Thinking of his lost retainers and strategists, Zhao Lian often felt so heartbroken that he couldn't sleep.

Thinking about it day and night, the more I think about it, the more I gradually guess some of the truth.

For example, it is highly likely that this was a scheme orchestrated by Zhao Yan and Zhao Ji; Zhao Yan first made a promise to Zhao Lian, forcing him to accept the appointment as the governor of Hexi under pressure, and then supported and encouraged Zhao Lian to gather his troops.

When this armed force of more than two thousand men was traveling south by boat and passed the Pingyang camp, they didn't even have a chance to disembark and escape before Zhao Ji wiped them all out.

More than two thousand people, most of whom were ruthless individuals with lives on their hands.

Removing this group of people was like removing Zhao Lian's spine.

In his youth, he relied on his strong martial prowess and considered himself his own source of confidence.

But now that he is getting older and his strength is declining, the troops and soldiers he has gathered in his hands are his source of confidence.

Compared to his three eldest sons, daughter, and more than a dozen young children, these brave soldiers were the foundation of his life!

After figuring these things out, Zhao Lian lost a lot of weight, and his temperament was no longer as fierce, domineering, and dissolute as before, but rather more sinister and melancholic.

When they passed through Jincheng, Zhao Yun's retreat of more than 10,000 Hebei militia members who were temporarily resting... became Zhao Lian's lifeline.

Upon receiving Zhao Lian's banquet invitation, Zhao Yun hesitated for a moment and said to the chief clerk who brought the invitation, "Both the governor of Hexi and I are important figures in the country, and it is not appropriate for us to have private dealings."

The chief clerk was greatly alarmed upon hearing this and lowered his voice to remind him, "General, the Governor of Hexi is the Grand Tutor's biological father. If we offend him now, there may be unforeseen disasters in the future."

Several of Zhao Yun's fellow villagers watched nervously from the side. Although they had also heard about the interception of the troops of the Governor of Hexi, they knew that the matter between father and son was not something they could interfere with.

Putting aside everything else, the Governor of Hexi was tyrannical and killed people. Without holding an imperial seal or being authorized by the court, the Governor of Hexi killed the county officials. Who would dare to punish him according to the law?

Therefore, along the way, the officials of the counties and prefectures along the route of the Governor of Hexi were all aware that two thousand troops had been intercepted, but no one dared to offend the Governor of Hexi.

If you push him too far, this Governor of Hexi will draw his sword and kill you, and your guards won't dare to stop him!
Zhao Yun frowned and pondered for a moment, then said, "Without an imperial edict, I should not privately associate with the Governor of Hexi. Issue my order: any officer of a thousand or above who privately associates with an outside official will be dismissed from his post; any officer of a hundred or above will be forbidden from leaving the camp immediately. Anyone who forcibly breaks through the camp gate will be treated as a rebel and executed on the spot! If any treacherous bandits are allowed to break into the camp, the officers on duty will be beheaded, and the soldiers will be stripped of their ranks!"

Looking at his stunned subordinates, Zhao Yun instructed them again: "I hereby issue this order to all camps and inform all officers and soldiers, high and low."

The group looked at each other helplessly, and could only cup their hands and say in unison, "Yes."

"Okay, let's call it a day."

Zhao Yun dismissed these core military officers and began to review the list of meritorious officials, selecting the valiant knights who had rendered meritorious service.

He wanted to recruit two thousand elite volunteers, and the criteria for judging elites could not be simple martial arts or tactical assessments.

Those who can achieve merit and survive on the battlefield, even if their personal martial arts skills are somewhat lacking, must have sufficient resources; this is the foundation of elite troops.

People who are dull and clumsy in ordinary times are like fish in water on the battlefield. This kind of elite is the kind of people Zhao Yun wants.

(End of this chapter)