With 100,000 elite soldiers at the start, what should you call me?

……

Snapped!

A crisp gunshot echoed through the valley.

One hundred thousand eyes turned in unison to the direction of the gunshot, hands gripping gun straps, ready to draw their weapons and fight at any moment.

Before long, several soldiers appeared in everyone's sight, carrying two corpses, a prisoner, and two horses.

"Reporting to the commander, we spotted what appeared to be spies from other troops. After unsuccessful attempts to communicate, we shot and killed two and captured one!"

Looking at the terrified Qing soldiers in front of him, Li Tian guessed their identities.

Unexpectedly, the Qing army received the intelligence so quickly and sent spies to gather information.

Their movements were swift.

"Yu Qiang".

"arrive!"

Among the officers, a bald man stepped forward.

"Find a few brothers who know how to carry out executions and ask them for some information."

"Yes, Commander!" Yu Qiang smiled slightly, his evil bald head looking at the Qing army prisoner, who felt a chill run down his spine.

The two horses were an unexpected bonus. In this world, horses are an indispensable means of transportation, used for transmitting intelligence, transporting supplies, and even forming the composition of cavalry.

Currently, Li Tian's army has no military equipment or supplies other than an unlimited supply of Hanyang rifles.

Li Tian gestured to the others to take the horses away and tend to them.

He then continued to discuss the next steps with the nine army commanders.

Through initial investigation, it was found that the 100,000 elite soldiers under Li Tian's command were all well-educated, with literacy being a basic requirement. What surprised him even more was that there were quite a few professionals among the 100,000 elite soldiers.

STEM fields such as mechanical engineering, agriculture, computer science, and civil engineering.

Besides their loyalty, each of the 100,000 elite warriors possessed a unique skill!

These aren't just 100,000 suicide soldiers; they're practically the future of a nation!

"Continuing with our previous topic, let's first select and protect the science and engineering talents, and temporarily assign them some logistical work."

"Regarding the upcoming war, I have the following points to make."

Li Tian's expression turned serious; once a war broke out, people would definitely die.

Although it is said that a kind person cannot command an army, the soldiers under his command are all precious treasures, and he would be heartbroken if even one of them died.

"First, identify our enemy."

"Currently, we have almost no intelligence on the surrounding forces, but one thing is clear: there are two forces fighting each other."

"One is the Ming army and the other is the Qing army."

"My primary objective is clear: to help the Ming army fight the Qing army. Of course, if the Ming army is hostile, I don't mind fighting them together!"

Everyone nodded slightly, unanimously agreeing with Li Tian's point of view.

"Second, construct positions and defensive lines."

"I have decided to rely on Yunji Mountain and use its terrain to build a temporary base nearby."

Fifth Army Commander Kong Yunfei raised his hand; "Commander, this area is all mountainous and rocky. We don't have any tools, and it will take a long time to build a position. By then, the enemy may have already attacked."

"I'll make arrangements regarding the tools later," Li Tian said, gesturing for the other person to put their hand down.

The problem of 100,000 people is too complicated and needs to be addressed step by step. As the commander, he is responsible for overall coordination, and for details, he will make changes as needed after executing orders.

"Thirdly, regarding the food issue."

"To be honest, we, a hundred thousand people, have not a single grain of food or a drop of water. In less than three days, we will either die of thirst or starvation."

"Therefore, this issue is of paramount importance."

"Next, I will assign tasks to each army. Zheng Youren, Feng Wei, you Third and Fourth Armies are responsible for the outer defense line. Spread out your troops, collect intelligence on nearby villages, and draw maps. If there is a battle, use the terrain or villages to hold off the enemy."

"Kong Yunfei, Li Jie, your Fifth and Sixth Armies are responsible for collecting food, water, firewood, combustibles and other survival supplies in the vicinity. If necessary, you can borrow some grain from the villages."

"Lei Yunlong, Chu Gang, your Seventh and Eighth Armies are responsible for finding and making tools."

"The rest of the four armies, now follow me to the camp and start construction, responsible for setting up the camp and building fortifications."

After giving instructions, Li Tian's next step was to establish rules.

"The basic structure of the army has been formed, but military regulations are still necessary."

"First, arson, murder, looting, and rape are strictly prohibited; violators will be executed."

"Second, those who stand idly by and watch when allies are in trouble will be killed."

"Third, military orders are absolute; those who repeatedly violate military orders will be expelled from the army, and those who commit serious violations will be executed."

"Fourth, those who leak secrets will be killed."

"Fifth, obey any of my commands, with this as the primary principle."

"Please keep these five points in mind. I hope that some of you will be punished for making mistakes."

"Military regulations will be supplemented later, and details will be discussed later. Right now, the most important thing is to survive!"

"Yes, sir!" X10.

Upon receiving the order, the nine corps commanders immediately returned to their respective units to begin operations.

The Fifth and Sixth Armies, responsible for collecting food, had an especially heavy task; the success of their mission determined whether everyone would go hungry that day.

"Commander, the Qing prisoners have revealed some important information."

When Yu Qiang returned, he was clearly still eager for more. As soon as he revealed a little bit of his skills, the other party immediately spilled the information he had in his mind.

"Currently, there are 60,000 Qing troops surrounding Jianning Prefecture. The commander-in-chief of this Qing army is named Chen Jin, who is the newly appointed Governor-General of Zhejiang and Fujian."

"The battle between the Qing and Ming armies has lasted for more than three months."

"Before our army captured the Qing soldiers, they had already sent people to relay our intelligence back to headquarters."

"The 60,000 Qing troops consisted of 6,000 cavalry, over 50,000 infantry, 70,000 to 80,000 laborers, countless swords, spears, and arrows, a Shenji Battalion of 3,000 men, and over 80 cannons of various types."

Upon hearing Yu Qiang's report, a hint of surprise flashed in Li Tian's eyes.

The food problem might be solved by dealing with the Qing army!

The total number of soldiers and laborers was over one hundred thousand!

There must be a lot of food and fodder stored in the military camp!

"Reporting to the commander, a man claiming to be an envoy of the Ming army wishes to pay you a visit," a soldier reported as he entered the open-air meeting room.

The arrival of the Ming army envoy surprised Li Tian.

"Let him in."

Shortly afterward, two soldiers led a middle-aged man in.

Yan Ying looked around after she came in.

He felt something strange as soon as he arrived at the military camp.

There were no camp fences, no tents, no weapons, no stoves, and not even flags!

The only weapon they had was probably the gun that everyone carried on their backs.

But what's strange is that, despite not looking like an army in any way, everyone in this unit has a gun, and they carry out their missions in an orderly manner, just like an army.

As Yan Ying walked along, she felt something was strange, very strange.

"I am Yan Ying, the royal tutor of Yunxi Kingdom and a personal guard under Wang Qi."

"Greetings, General. May I ask your name?"

Yan Ying bowed to Yu Qiang, who looked older than her.

Yu Qiang quickly waved his hand; "This is our commander, I am just a corps commander."

Yan Ying was stunned for a moment upon hearing this, and then looked at the young and handsome Li Tian beside her.

What the heck? This pretty boy is your boss?

Although he couldn't understand the terms "commander" or "army commander," he understood the meaning: this young man was the leader of this group.

"My apologies, General. You are young and promising, and have the bearing of a champion marquis from the Han Dynasty. I was blind and failed to recognize you. Please forgive me."

Yan Ying quickly showered him with flattery and admitted his mistake, displaying a good attitude that made it difficult for anyone to hold his rudeness against him.

Li Tian smiled slightly, feeling great to be flattered, and decided to let bygones be bygones.

"I am Li Tian, ​​no match for the Marquis of Champion. General Yan, what brings you here today?"

Yan Ying: "I won't keep you in suspense, General Li. I've been ordered to come and tell you some good news."

"The Prince of Yunxi wishes to invite you to join our Ming army."

"To restore the glory of the Ming Dynasty is our inescapable duty!"