The rebel army's foremost master craftsman forged a million iron pylons!

Upon hearing Li Tian's words, General Chen's eyes lit up. He slowed his pace and asked, "What is the militia?"

"The term 'military training' is new to me, Brother Li, please explain in more detail!"

Li Tian then slowed his pace and, together with General Chen, explained in detail.

"The method of militia training is to gather able-bodied men from the surrounding villages and towns, train them, and in addition to doing farm work, they can also go hunting in the mountains and build fortifications for us! It's equivalent to a grassroots militia organization!"

"Besides that, you can also perform tasks such as driving away bandits and keeping watch!"

"Their salaries are the same as those of the rebel army!"

"The biggest advantage is that they don't have to leave their hometown and parents; they only need to defend their local area!"

"General Chen, think about it. The reason why the rebel army can't recruit people is that every household wants a male to help them. If a family has three sons, only two of them will go out to help."

"If there are two sons, then only one should be chosen."

"In any case, one of them will always have to stay at home!"

"Hmm~ That's how it is! That's how it is! No matter how chaotic the world is, there will always be some young people in the local areas."

General Chen nodded repeatedly as he recalled the time he recruited soldiers.

"General Chen, think again. Why is it that our righteous army, fighting battles everywhere, doesn't have any territory of its own?"

"The imperial army is too fierce; our rebel army can't defeat them!"

General Chen was furious whenever the matter was brought up.

The rebel army treated the people very well. The imperial court provided two taels of silver a month for the conscripted men, while some of them were slave soldiers who received no such support.

The rebels provided the people with four coins a month, often with meat, and even if they died, they received compensation.

But for some reason, the number of rebels dwindled with each battle.

"That's because the common people aren't of one mind with us. When we come, they lead the way for us, but when the imperial army comes, they lead the way for the imperial army."

Li Tian's words resonated deeply.

"They only followed our rebel army to make a living."

"what!"

Li Tian's words left General Chen speechless with surprise. He wanted to refute them, but he couldn't find a way to do so.

The rebel army was just beginning to rise.

Besides the large number of people.

In terms of training and equipment, they are inferior to the imperial army.

This was an inherent weakness of the rebel army, a problem that no one could solve.

"We formed the militia to solve these two problems."

Immediately afterwards, Li Tian's words exploded in General Chen's mind like a thunderclap.

"With the local militia, we have a steady stream of soldiers."

"Because the militia are protecting their hometowns, they are naturally willing to fight to the death, while the imperial court imposes countless exorbitant taxes."

"Within our righteous army's territory, we not only don't collect taxes, but we also give money to the people and help them harvest wheat and do farm work."

"Who do you think the people should follow?"

Secondly!

"With the militia, we have a continuous supply of logistics, and war is all about logistics."

"The stronger the logistics, the more resilient the front lines will be!"

"Most of the militia members are sons of local clans and people. Since they have joined the righteous army, they are serving in the local area and can take care of their families. How could the people not support us?"

"Thirdly, even if the imperial court is powerful and we withdraw from the territory, the local militia can still provide us with information and carry out sabotage and guerrilla warfare behind enemy lines!"

"Intelligence support! Logistics sabotage! Assassination and sneak attack!"

"To plunge the imperial army into a vast ocean of people."

"Wouldn't this permanently solve our problem of recruiting soldiers for our rebel army?"

Yes!

For a long time, two questions have been troubling General Chen.

First, the rebel army couldn't recruit enough people.

Secondly, even if the rebels recruited people, they might not be loyal to the rebels. If the rebels suffered a defeat, they would scatter in the mountains and fields, reverting to their status as farmers or refugees, resulting in a great loss of rebel personnel.

This is a headache for countless rebel generals.

Today, Li Tianyi's words had a profound, enlightening effect on General Chen.

This is not recruiting soldiers; it's recruiting local young men, their parents, and their clans into the rebel army!

It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that they scraped the ground three feet deep.

The land is lost, but the people are gone! Both people and land are lost!

People may be lost if land is lost, but both people and land can be preserved!

Although General Chen did not understand this principle, with Li Tian's guidance, he had vaguely grasped the basics of it.

General Chen quickly replied.

"I never expected Brother Li to have such a brilliant idea! Brother Li, please explain in detail how we should organize the militia!"

Li Tian's status in his heart has now risen even higher!

What a fine blacksmith! What a fine soldier! What a fine scout! What a fine strategist!

He's handsome! And he has a nice voice!

If the rebel army were full of such talented people, how could they not succeed in their great cause?

"No rush!"

Li Tian smiled slightly.

"Let me start by explaining the benefits of forming local militias for our righteous army."

"First, we need to win over the hearts of the people. The Great Wei has been at war for years, leaving nine out of ten houses empty, the people starving, and constantly harassed by mountain bandits."

"With the righteous army, these problems are no longer problems. Our righteous army will be stationed in one place for a long time, and we will have our own base!"

"If we can't defend the cities, then we'll retreat to the countryside and adopt a strategy of encircling the cities from the countryside!"

"Secondly, we need to expand our military supplies. With so many civilians supporting us, we can ask them to help us make cotton-padded clothes, manufacture weapons, and build fortifications. We absolutely cannot waste such a large workforce!"

"As for the method of setting it up, it's quite simple."

"General Chen, first help the people harvest the wheat in these surrounding villages! That will win them hearts and minds!"

"Then send people everywhere to post notices, recruit soldiers and form local militias; surely some people will join!"

……

"Brother, you're a modern-day Zhuge Liang!"

Li Tian's explanation progressed from simple to complex, covering topics from public sentiment to politics, from defense strategies to logistical support, with each point interconnected.

This isn't just a country blacksmith, he's practically a living Zhuge Liang!

General Chen was so excited that he became incoherent and grabbed Li Tian's arm.

"After hearing what you said, I immediately felt incredibly relieved. I was originally very confused about the future of the rebel army, but now, everything is clear!"

Don't worry, we'll proceed according to your plan today!

"If your plan succeeds, I will definitely recommend you to the Loyal and Righteous King for credit, and at the very least, I will give you a position as an advisor."

Li Tian smiled slightly and said calmly, "Then I'll have to trouble General Chen."

This method is a truth that was put into practice by great figures of later generations!

However, the development of socialism with Chinese characteristics still needs to be determined in light of the productivity and actual conditions of this era.

The task is arduous and the road ahead is long!

But Li Tian believed that this matter would absolutely not fail!

The knowledge stored in his mind was enough to drive a great leap forward in social productivity in this era.

But there is a very important prerequisite: that one must hold power!

"drive!"

As the saying goes, good news makes people feel refreshed. After listening to Li Tian's words, General Chen suddenly felt that the problem of manpower was no longer a problem at all, and that even the people in the surrounding villages could be mobilized.

For the Loyal Army, this was more important than winning a battle.

He couldn't wait to test Li Tian's idea.

General Chen spurred his horse, increasing its speed, and galloped towards Stone Village at breakneck speed.

Li Tian smiled slightly and spurred his horse to hurry over.

"drive!"

A dozen or so cavalrymen whipped up a gust of wind and headed toward Stone Village.

……

When General Chen arrived at Stone Village, the thousand militiamen he brought were still in the fields helping farmers harvest wheat. However, the wheat had already been harvested, and many soldiers were chatting and laughing under the shade of trees with the local farmers.

The villagers from Peach Blossom Village, who had been rescued by General Chen, were also talking to Li Demao, the village chief of Stone Village, under the big banyan tree.

"General Chen!"

As soon as General Chen and his entourage arrived, the rebel soldiers sitting on the ground immediately stood up and greeted General Chen.

"Hahaha!"

General Chen laughed and jumped off his horse. "Has the wheat harvest in Stone Village been completed?"

"We'll finish harvesting soon. After drying for a couple more days, we can thresh the grain!" A soldier laughed and handed General Chen a bowl of cold water.

General Chen drank it all in one gulp and then asked a question.

Have you been harassed by any parties?

The soldier laughed loudly, "Of course not! With General Chen here, which blind thief would dare to try and infringe upon General Chen's might?"

Just then, an old man led a group of refugees, walking unsteadily toward General Chen.

The person who arrived was none other than Shen Tao, the village chief of Peach Blossom Village.