A son who doesn't resemble his father? Love you, old man, see you at Xuanwu Gate!

Chapter 4: Strike first to gain the upper hand

"Orphans of fallen soldiers of the Great Han Dynasty, step forward!"

The first selection order was issued.

Wei Qing, Sima An, Ren An, and Gongsun Ao, among other generals, were startled and turned to look at Liu Ju in the center of the high platform.

Although I didn't understand its meaning, I was deeply shocked.

Upon hearing the call, the 80,000 soldiers sprang into action, and several thousand soldiers with solemn and sorrowful expressions stood at the front of the ranks, while the generals remained silent.

Years of war have resulted in the deaths of countless people in every county and the mourning clothes of every village in the Han Dynasty. Among those who follow in their fathers' footsteps, only one in ten succeeds.

One general's success is built on the bones of ten thousand; they rose to power by stepping over the corpses of their enemies and comrades.

The past events are still vivid in their minds, and many officers and soldiers had tears in their eyes.

Liu Ju took a breath and continued, "Good men from the six prefectures of Longxi, Tianshui, Anding, Beidi, Shangjun, and Xihe, step forward!"

Of the more than 70,000 people, several thousand more soldiers stepped out of the ranks.

Since the Han dynasty established its capital in Chang'an, the people of the northwestern six commanderies, skilled in horsemanship and archery, had become the most important source of soldiers, with tens of thousands of soldiers serving in the six northern army colonels.

However, once the selection criteria for sons from respectable families were announced, only a few thousand sons from families with clean backgrounds, who were neither merchants nor convicted officials, qualified. Their numbers were almost the same as those of the orphans of fallen soldiers.

The number of orphans of soldiers numbered between ten and twenty thousand, and sons of good families from the six prefectures far exceeded eight hundred. Liu Ju said again, "Those who are between fifteen and twenty-two years old, step forward!"

Half of the men moved forward again.

More than 90% of the soldiers were eliminated. Liu Ju ordered his generals to bring these people back, and then issued two selection orders to the remaining soldiers who were reorganized into formation.

"Put on your armor and take up your spears!"

"A half-day march, a hundred-mile raid!"

Armor and long spears weighed a total of thirty pounds, which some weak soldiers could not bear immediately. After running for a short while, their legs felt as if they were filled with lead and they could no longer take another step.

Looking at the predetermined route that was far away, they had no choice but to give up and were led back to camp by a captain along the way.

Along the way, more and more soldiers chose to give up, but even more were those who were unable to complete their mission.

Carrying a load of thirty pounds and traveling a hundred miles in three hours, even though Wei Qing deliberately chose a flat and easy route with low difficulty when planning the route according to Liu Ju's requirements, it was still not something that an ordinary person could accomplish.

By noon, less than 30% of the people had bypassed the Wei River and arrived before Liu Ju.

These two thousand men, in terms of physical fitness alone, are absolutely the elite of the world. With a little training, they would become a strong army. Liu Ju wanted to take them all down, but that was impossible. He could only streamline them further.

The food of the Han people is very simple. Their staple foods are millet, wheat, beans and sorghum, and their vegetables are sunflower, broad bean, scallion and leek. Among them, the most common dish is bean rice and broad bean soup.

The situation is slightly different in the army. In addition to two catties of bean rice per person per day, each person also receives half a liter of soy sauce.

Meat sauce, fish sauce, crab sauce, mustard sauce, peony sauce, wolfberry sauce, elm pod sauce, bean sauce... all sorts of sauces, half meat and half vegetables, were the side dishes for the soldiers.

It's not palatable, but enough to save your life.

The morning selection was completed, and the soldiers' mealtimes were staggered from those of the Northern Army soldiers. After completing their mission, the soldiers, who were both hungry and thirsty, entered the kitchen. The golden and tempting roasted meat, the fragrant fruits, and the rich and mellow hot tea instantly overwhelmed everyone, and their eyes gradually turned red.

But when he saw the warlords standing ready, his eyes cleared again, and he became calm and orderly. He sat down in front of the food, his mouth watering and his throat moving constantly.

"eat!"

Liu Ju gave the order, and his personal guards transformed into gluttonous beasts, launching a campaign to annihilate the food before them.

The selection process continued, but Liu Ju would appear before each meal, until he planted an idea deep in the minds of the eight hundred guards.

Following the Crown Prince means you'll get to eat meat! ...

Short weapon hall.

This is a hall filled with all kinds of weapons.

The weapon rack was filled with all sorts of short weapons, including not only the popular cavalry daggers and broadswords, but also the Wu hook from Wu, the battle axe from Han, the rapier from Yue, the iron shield from Wei, the cowhide shield from Zhao, the ring-pommel sword from Qi, and even the swords of the Rong and Di tribes... It almost encompassed all the commonly used short weapons in the world at that time.

Liu Ju watched as the skilled weapon users practiced various short weapons. Regardless of speed, their movements were all basic, unpretentious killing techniques.

A Wu hook-shaped sword, when swung diagonally, produced a sharp whistling sound.

The performance is over.

The skilled craftsman quietly stepped back a few paces and left the hall door slightly ajar.

Wei Qing watched Liu Ju moving among the soldiers, his vision gradually obscured by the weapons and equipment. "Ju'er, you've gathered a large number of powerful bows, arrows, warhorses, and... strongmen. Are you going to train those people in archery and physical strength?"

Not long ago, the grain transport official reported that His Highness had deployed 10,000 strong bows, 100,000 arrows, 10,000 warhorses, and 8,000 strongmen, with the arrows being replaced daily.

Including the unlimited supply of meat, fruit, vegetables, and tea, such weapons, equipment, and supplies could easily supply a 10,000-strong army, but only two thousand people were provided for.

Wei Qing's grain officer prepared everything as required, but also guessed some of his nephew's ideas. Regardless of the cost, he fed the arrows to create a divine cavalry archer guard capable of close combat.

"Ah."

What constitutes a passing grade?

Liu Ju stood in front of the weapon rack called "Nanyang Iron Official Workshop," reached out and flicked the "Ring-Pommel Steel Saber." The slight metallic hum pleased him greatly, and he replied, "Kills a man at a hundred paces, one against ten."

Wei Qing was startled.

He can kill with arrows from a hundred paces away, and fight ten against one within ten paces. He is adept at both long-range and close-range attacks.

Liu Ju took down the ring-pommel steel sword and walked towards the other ironworks shelves, saying as he went, "Uncle, besides the military, I need to trouble you with something else. Please conduct a comprehensive review of the two thousand people selected this morning, including their identity information, personal and family background, moral character, and other aspects."

The backgrounds of the orphans of soldiers and the sons of good families from the six counties are good, but that is only one aspect of the political vetting process. In the subsequent selection, he will eliminate those who are not qualified. What he wants is a personal guard with an iron will.

Wei Qing felt a chill run down his spine.

"Uncle, let me finish."

Liu Ju then said, "After the selection, all information and records of the eight hundred people will be 'separated' from the local area and even the imperial court. No one else, except me, can find out about my personal guards."

Wei Qing stared intently at Liu Ju, a wavering look in his eyes.

Liu Ju ignored him and instead selected the improved "juezhang crossbow" and "mirror-finish armor" from the shelves of "Liyang Ironworks".

The crossbow's range of two hundred paces was a further enhancement of the archery technique.

The fish-scale armor, weighing twenty pounds, is the ultimate enhancement to the knight's defense.

"Commander Yao has arrived!"

As soon as the guards at the hall entrance began to speak, a valiant young general strode in like a gust of wind and loudly proclaimed, "Uncle, His Majesty wishes to appoint Shi Qing, the youngest son of Wan Shi Jun, as the Crown Prince's tutor."

Wei Qing's expression changed upon hearing this.

　Note 1: Han Yili is approximately 415.8 meters in modern times.

　　Note 2: One liter in Han Dynasty is approximately 200 milliliters in modern times.
　　Note 3: One jin in the Han Dynasty was approximately 258.24 grams in modern terms.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)