Sweep Yuan

Chapter 128 Further Expansion of the Army, Aiming at Huaiyuan

Leaving aside the extraordinary archery skills of the Huaiyuan man, the mere mention of the name "Chang Yuchun" was enough to make Shishan take him seriously.

This is a formidable man who is said to be able to pacify the world with 100,000 troops. Now that he is under my control, there is no reason for me to let him leave.

Shishan immediately sent someone to invite Chang Yuchun to the city and personally filled his wine cup.

"Master Chang's archery skills are truly unparalleled in my life! He should be the champion of today's archery competition. Please drink this cup to the brim."

Chang Yuchun was about twenty-one or twenty-two years old. He was tall and long-armed, with a leopard-like head, piercing eyes, a swallow-like chin, and a tiger-like beard. He had an extremely fierce appearance and acted with great boldness. He took the wine cup, tilted his head back, and drank it all in one gulp. Then he handed the empty cup to the maid who came forward. Looking at the layout of the watchtower, he said loudly:

"I actually prefer close combat; that's what's really exciting—the impact of blades and spears piercing flesh! I'm skilled with all kinds of weapons, and I'm also adept at disarming opponents with my bare hands. It's a pity the watchtower is too narrow; I can't really do that. I'll go down to the city walls now and show the marshal what I can do."

After Chang Yuchun finished speaking, he turned to leave the city, but Shishan quickly grabbed him.

Not to mention the legendary reputation of this man who "bravely charged into battle and never suffered defeat" in later generations' memories, just looking at his physique and the divine strength to draw a powerful bow, Shishan can imagine Chang Yuchun's heroic figure charging into battle with a long spear, a broadsword, and other heavy weapons.

"With your superhuman strength, what weapon can't you wield? The awards ceremony is about to begin, let's get down to business first. Do you want a civilian reward or military merit?"

Chang Yuchun had already heard from the Marshal's Office staff in the viewing area that if the military and civilians competed together, the winner would be promoted to a higher military rank and awarded thirty strings of copper coins; if they wanted civilian rewards, they would only receive monetary and grain rewards.

"I heard that the Marshal is very strict in disciplining his troops and that the Red Flag Battalion is invincible. I admire the Marshal's reputation and came here to join him. Of course, I want to make military contributions."

"it is good!"

Upon seeing Chang Yuchun, Shi Shan was reminded of Xue Xian, who was equally brave and bloodthirsty and enjoyed getting himself covered in blood. Intending to offer some advice, he said:

"Our army's regulations are different from other militias; there are many rules and strict discipline. Now that you've joined the army, based on your performance in today's competition, you're more than qualified to be promoted to platoon leader. However, your desertion rate is a bit low. I'll keep you in the training battalion for now, so you can learn the flag and drum commands and become familiar with the Red Flag Battalion's regulations. What do you say?"

Chang Yuchun was born into a poor farming family, but he was born with superhuman strength. From a young age, he was unwilling to spend his life in the countryside. He earned money by doing odd jobs for others and learned martial arts from a master. He wanted to use his swords and spears to gain great wealth in this chaotic world.

Having heard that the Red Flag Battalion was extremely disciplined and had not committed any offenses after capturing Haozhou, and had even defeated tens of thousands of government troops in a grand battle, Chang Yuchun knew that this was an army he could join.

But before joining the army, he wanted to observe the Red Flag Battalion up close to verify whether the rumors were true.

Just by watching the competition today, he knew his judgment was correct—following Marshal Shi would lead to a promising future.

"Marshal, you can place me anywhere, but if there's another big battle, I have to be the vanguard for you!"

Shi Shan chuckled. "You've only just joined the army, and you don't even understand the specific organization of the Red Flag Battalion. You're already thinking about seizing the vanguard. Do you even know how many people are in the vanguard?"

However, truly talented people cannot be judged by common sense, nor can they be limited by common sense.

"Hahaha. With the current size of our army, a squad leader is not enough to be the vanguard. Just in time, the army is about to attack Huaiyuan County. You should familiarize yourself with the flags and drums and commands as soon as possible. When the troops are dispatched, you will be temporarily in charge of the 'labor camp'. If you can be the first to scale the walls, I will promote you to commander."

Although Chang Yuchun was originally from the countryside of Huaiyuan and had rarely been to the city, he knew Huaiyuan County better than outsiders. He didn't think it would be difficult for him to take Xiandeng with his abilities, and immediately asked:
"Is the Marshal telling the truth?"

Chang Yuchun was happy to hear about battle. Shishan knew that such a person was born to fight and risk his life on the battlefield. Forcing him to stay by his side to hone his skills would only make him less focused. Fortunately, the Red Flag Battalion had already laid a certain foundation, enough to assimilate most of the people. At worst, he could just keep a closer eye on them in the future and try not to let them go astray.

"No joking in the army!"

As they were talking, the archery competition ended, and Shi Shan arranged for Cao Zhen to escort Chang Yuchun down the city to receive his award.

Chang Yuchun was also a show-off who loved to cause trouble. He felt that he hadn't shown off his amazing archery skills enough, so when he went on stage to receive the award, he actually raised his right arm and waved to the soldiers and civilians watching the competition.

Finally, he even added his own "acceptance speech":
"Although I won first place today, target shooting is just a minor skill! A true man should rely on his own swords and spears to fight on the battlefield and earn riches! I have already pledged allegiance to Marshal Shi, and it won't be long before you all remember my name, 'Chang Yuchun'! Hahaha—"

Chang Yuchun, a new recruit who had just joined the army, had already made a name for himself with his excellent marksmanship, making all the other soldiers unable to lift their heads. He was already hated by many people. But he was not satisfied and boasted that "shooting targets is just a minor skill". Before he even took office, he had already left a bad impression on many people.

Feng Guosheng, who was equally competitive and combative, didn't care about these things. Instead, he was filled with fighting spirit and wanted to compete with Chang Yuchun.

However, after Yu Chun's outburst, the mentality of many spectators has also undergone a subtle change - the man from Huaiyuan was an ordinary citizen during the competition, but became a Red Flag Battalion officer when receiving the award.

The soldiers of the Red Flag Battalion were recruited from among the common people and could compete on the same stage as them, which was truly different from the government troops.

The atmosphere was very lively both on and off the field during the subsequent matches.

The entire competition lasted for nearly three hours, with tens of thousands of soldiers and civilians immersed in it, enjoying a rare entertainment "feast" for free, and allowing some of them to temporarily forget the precarious and chaotic world.

In fact, it's not just a matter of temporarily forgetting; there is still hope. Unfortunately, living in chaotic times, regardless of status, everyone only has one life, and all desires must give way to "survival."

The city of Haozhou, still under construction, was far from impregnable, and the Red Flag Battalion was still weak. However, Marshal Shi was skilled in both military and political affairs, and had already demonstrated his ability to bring peace to the people in troubled times. He was also able to attract heroes to join him, which was enough to give the people under his rule hope for survival.

"I am sixty-eight years old this year, and I have never seen Haozhou so magnificent as it is today. I doubt even when the pseudo-Yuan Shizu Emperor was alive, it would have been difficult to see such a lively scene in the capital. Heaven has sent a marshal to Haozhou, Huaixi will surely prosper, and the Han dynasty will surely be restored!"

Shi Shan felt a chill run down his spine from Huang Yanwen's low-brow flattery, but the gentry and wealthy families from Haozhou who were also watching the match from Tushan Gate echoed his sentiments, saying things like, "The Marshal's foundation is solid, and he will surely conquer Dadu one day."

After all, their fate was already deeply intertwined with that of Shishan, and it was difficult for them to turn back.

These people were somewhat apprehensive before, but today, they saw the tangible public sentiment reflected in the competition, and they vaguely felt that with Marshal Shi's methods, he might really be able to achieve great things. This strengthened their confidence in continuing to bet on the Red Flag Battalion.

Of course, in chaotic times, only these wealthy gentry and powerful families with surplus grain could have some sentimental feelings. The real lower class of society had no choice but to work to earn a living. They could enjoy themselves to the fullest today, but tomorrow they still had to repair the city walls or work to earn a living. Their happiness was just a fleeting pleasure.

Shi Shan didn't get any rest either; the day after the military-civilian competition was held, he announced a new reorganization plan.

The reorganization was not extensive, with two main changes.

I. Continue to expand the size of the military.

First, upgrade existing combat battalions.

Three battalions, namely Yi Yi, Yi San, and Yi Liu, were promoted to first-class battalions and respectively led the battalion of Yi Wu (commander Zeng Xing), Yi Liu (commander Han Cheng), and Yi Qi (commander Geng Zaicheng).

Second, four new Class B battalions have been added, and the adjusted organizational structure is as follows:

Battalion B1 (Commander Fei Ju, original location Wuhe County);
Battalion B2 (Commander: Tang He);

Third Battalion (newly added, commanded by Wang Bi)

The Fourth Battalion (newly added, commanded by Zhang Dan, after its formation, it will be relieved of its duties by the First Battalion).

Fifth Battalion (newly added, Commander: Li Song);
The Sixth Battalion (newly added, commanded by Sun Deyan);

Third, a new cavalry battalion was added, temporarily forming two cavalry squads with a total of 210 men, commanded by Feng Guosheng.

After the expansion, the Red Flag Battalion consisted of nine Class A battalions (including the Training and Guard Battalion and the Elite Cavalry Battalion), seven Class B battalions (including the Second Cavalry Battalion), one Combat Training Battalion, one Supply Battalion, and one Combat Support Battalion, with nearly 7,000 combat soldiers alone.

Including auxiliary troops, supplementary troops, and the Dingyuan troops, the total number was nearly 12,000.

With so many troops and so many different organizational structures, even with Shi Shan's abilities, commanding them all at once would be somewhat cumbersome.

In fact, Shishan already has a plan to establish a battalion-level or higher organization, and the combat training battalion has enough additional soldiers. However, due to the short training time, the current organization is still in the process of being integrated, and most of the mid- to senior-level officers need time to settle down. It is not advisable to make any major adjustments for the time being.

II. The Embroidery Battalion was established.

After the Red Flag Battalion captured Haozhou, the soldiers were constantly busy, but the survival crisis was much smaller than before. The differences in management level and discipline among the battalions began to emerge, and many problems were exposed during this period.

As the force grows larger, it is impractical to rely on Shishan to make all decisions, as this would also damage his prestige. Therefore, it is imperative to establish a dedicated agency to enforce military discipline.

The Embroidered Uniform Battalion was responsible for monitoring the daily conduct of its soldiers and the enforcement of military discipline by each battalion, and for judging and punishing soldiers who violated discipline. The personnel were transferred from some officers and soldiers of the original Second Battalion, and the commander was Zhou Twelve.

The Embroidered Uniform Camp is similar in name to the Embroidered Uniform Guard in the original historical timeline, but it originated from the Embroidered Uniform Guard of the Han Dynasty. It only supervises the military and does not spy on civilians. It is directly responsible to Shishan and regularly reports on the supervision log and the handling of soldiers who violated discipline.

The Red Flag Battalion was on the rise, and all the battalions were busy expanding and training. Even though they knew that the establishment of the Embroidered Uniform Battalion was adding a sword hanging over their heads, the soldiers' reactions were relatively normal, and there was no strong resistance.

Having experienced the previous incident, Zhou Shier fully recognized his own position and no longer tried to integrate into Shishan Yuancong's circle. Instead, he regarded himself as the Marshal's "lone minister." Knowing that his duties in the Embroidered Uniform Guard would inevitably offend his comrades, he happily accepted the position.

After reorganizing the army, a new great battle will begin.

All the information gathered from various channels confirmed that after Dong Tuanxiao's defeat, the surrounding cities adopted a defensive posture and dared not cross the border to provoke the powerful Red Flag Battalion. However, this was only a false calm before the storm.

The Yuan court would not give Shishan time to calmly reorganize his troops, nor would Shishan passively defend himself. Before the New Year, he launched an attack on Huaiyuan County.

(End of this chapter)