Jinyang stands on the bank of Fen River, more than 20 miles east of the city. There is a military camp on the flat wilderness. There are several camps in a row, and the fences are arranged very rigorously. Around the camp, there are military flags on tall trees. In addition to the "Liu" flag, there are also more "Longqi" military flags.
Liu Zhiyuan ruled Hedong and was known as the leader of all towns. In addition to the bonus of "Wangye Dragon City", his greatest confidence came from the large number of "well-trained" troops under his command.
At first, Liu Zhiyuan was ordered to go out to control Hedong. When he was less than a year old, Shi Jingtang died. When the young emperor Shi Chonggui succeeded to the throne, he was at odds with the Khitan. The two countries suddenly started to use weapons to control the Khitan. Liu Zhiyuan was appointed as the commander of the northern camp. However, due to mutual suspicion between the emperor and his ministers, the name of control was empty, but there was no reality.
When the two countries were at odds, in order to protect the Khitans and the Shi Jin court, Liu Zhiyuan recruited troops in Taiyuan and established more than ten new armies such as Xingjie and Wujie. He also accommodated many stragglers from various states. Last year, they secretly annexed the Tuyuhun people in the territory, seized their property and livestock, and recruited their strong men. Their strength has expanded sharply.
Up to now, under the Hedong Jiedu, the newly established army, plus the original imperial guards of the Later Jin Dynasty, have more than ten armies, large and small, and more than 50,000 horse and infantry troops. They can be said to be strong soldiers and strong horses. Of course, these armies also have the distinctive characteristics of this era, with complex military numbers, chaotic organization, huge disparity in numbers, and varying combat capabilities.
There are various named armies under Hedong, such as Xingjie and Wujie, which are divided into left and right wings. Below them are several armies with nearly ten thousand soldiers. These two armies belong to Liu Zhiyuan's direct troops. After all, they were formed by him personally. They are well treated and have strong combat capabilities. As for those who have few soldiers, there are armies of three or four thousand, and there are also those who have even fewer soldiers. There are even soldiers with less than a thousand soldiers, but most of them are assigned to the defense of counties and checkpoints.
The Longqi Army is also a new army in Jiezhen. It is medium in size and has 3,000 soldiers. It is divided into three armies and has six battalions. It is permanently stationed in Taiyuan Prefecture and assumes part of the defense responsibilities around Jinyang. The soldiers came from different sources, and they were a mixture of Tibetan and Han people. There were strong men among them, and there were also weak ones. The changes in this army happened exactly after Liu Chengyou took charge of the army.
Initially, Liu Zhiyuan gave Liu Chengyou the command of the Longqi Army, but before he could do so, there were many criticisms from above and below. Some officials suspected that Liu Chengyou was young and had not shown any talent in martial arts before. He was worried that the arrogant soldiers in the army would be difficult to control, but Liu Zhiyuan suppressed them.
Later facts proved that the concerns of his subordinates were not unreasonable. The officers and soldiers of the Longqi Army were not convinced by the "baby army leader" assigned by their superiors, even if he was the son of the King of Peking. The strong have always been respected in the military, especially in this troubled world where force is paramount, fists are the last word.
When he first took charge of the military affairs, Liu Chengyou encountered great challenges. The officers despised him and the soldiers were suspicious. Although the subordinates did not dare to confront him due to their status, the silent confrontation and rejection made Liu Chengyou feel unusual. True. Military orders are difficult to understand, and the communication from superiors to subordinates is very sluggish.
In this era of military discipline, it is generally difficult to describe it with words such as "excellent", "good", and "good". In some cases, the worse the military discipline, the stronger the combat effectiveness.
However, the early Longqi Army's combat effectiveness was not very strong, and its military discipline was particularly poor. Generals are lazy and often violate laws and disciplines. Stationed near villages and towns, the sergeants below seemed to do a lot of things like oppressing good people, stealing people, and seizing people's property.
At the beginning, Liu Chengyou behaved in a Buddhist-like manner, being taciturn and saying little, letting things flow and just silently keeping what he saw and heard in mind. It was not until half a month later that Liu Chengyou had a clear understanding of the situation of the Longqi Army and decisively waved the big stick.
First of all, dozens of soldiers who violated discipline were arrested as examples and severely punished. If the circumstances were serious, their heads were directly displayed in public. These people all have one characteristic. Basically, they have been on the battlefield. They are strong, fierce, and unruly. They are the backbone of the army. Only these arrogant soldiers dare to act recklessly, and weak people rarely dare to violate laws and disciplines.
An officer asked and begged for mercy, forcing Liu Chengyou to release him. How could Liu Chengyou, who had been prepared long ago, be forced to act his own way again? And, in the second step, he slashed the knife at the disorderly officer. With his style, it is not difficult at all to find fault with some officers. Abuse soldiers, accept bribes, disobey military orders, defy military law...
In those three or two days, Liu Chengyou captured more than a dozen low-level officers such as captains and Dutou, and a battalion commander was also killed by him in the name of "the crime of slowing down the army." Even a military commander who could be regarded as a mid-level officer under his command was dismissed by Liu Chengyou.
His attitude was extremely tough and his methods were very cruel. From then on, all the soldiers in the army truly realized that Liu Chengyou, the "pretty man", was clearly a man-eating tiger. Under Liu Chengyou's tough actions, the whole army was in awe, and no one dared to look down upon him. Coupled with Liu Chengyou's indifferent face that he maintained all day long, it felt even more majestic and intimidating.
Liu Chengyou fought aggressively in the army, and complaints and reports about his "misbehavior" were constantly sent to the Peking Palace. Liu Zhiyuan's reaction to the dissatisfaction and complaints from below was very ambiguous. He only tried to comfort the officers and soldiers who had been wronged (provided they were still alive), and rewarded them with silk, silk, money and food as comfort.
In addition, Liu Chengyou was called back to the house to give some instructions, but there was no more. In fact, Liu Zhiyuan had always heard about the situation in the Longqi Army and had long wanted to rectify it. No matter what his initial intentions were when he was asked to take charge of Liu Chengyou, Liu Chengyou's actions during the process still surprised him. In addition to surprise, there may also be appreciation. This is probably one of the reasons why Liu Zhiyuan began to let Liu Chengyou formally participate in the military affairs of Hedong.
Under Liu Zhiyuan's "rebuke", Liu Chengyou self-examined himself and expressed that he knew his mistake. As a result, he restrained himself to an appropriate extent and no more urgent and severe measures were taken. After all, his goal has been achieved and the effect of establishing prestige has been achieved. As for General Longqi, after his appeal to no avail, he could only temporarily succumb to Liu Chengyou's "unruly power".
However, prestige is necessary, but it is not sufficient to rely on it. Liu Chengyou still understands the principle of giving both kindness and power. Continuing to use force and cruelty will not last long, but Liu Chengyou's mind is still very clear.
With his majesty established, Liu Chengyou began to show mercy. As a second-rate unit under Liu Zhiyuan's command, the Longqi Army's status was not high. This was fully realized in terms of treatment. Compared with the Xingjie and Wujie armies, it was not even the slightest bit worse. From Liu Zhiyuan's importance, we can also get a glimpse of it. The commanders of the first two armies were either Liu's same clan or close confidants. As for the Longqi Army, although there are many old people from the Liu family, they are more like a hodgepodge.
Considering this, Liu Chengyou began to think of ways to seek benefits for his soldiers. There is no shortage of food, wages, supplies, and military supplies. From time to time, there are also rewards of spirits, pork, and mutton. The ordnance, weapons, and armor uniforms are all of the highest quality.
After getting the benefit, most of the previous complaints immediately dissipated. Everyone in the Longqi Army, including Liu Chengyou, gradually felt that his cold face became cute. However, although the salary was increased, Liu Chengyou became more strict in governing the army, especially emphasizing military discipline. Under his repeated suppression, those thorns were slowly smoothed away.
As time went by, the sergeants gradually became familiar with and accepted this commander. He was born into a noble family, but he was not a dandy; although he was young, he was very experienced in dealing with matters; he was fair and strict, without any partiality. Although there is no tyrannical force, its majesty is more awe-inspiring. In addition, Liu Chengyou went to the grassroots from time to time, communicated with the team and the fire soldiers, and shared the same clothes and food, which greatly deceived some of the military's morale.
Because of his strict military management, Sergeant Long Qi secretly nicknamed Liu Chengyou - Jun Yanluo. When Liu Chengyou heard this, he immediately sent someone to find the soldier who first reported this title and offered him a reward of ten min, indicating that this "elegant title" was obtained well. Since then, the scholar's heart has become even stronger.
After military discipline was established and the morale of the soldiers returned, Liu Chengyou began to make trouble again. Not long ago, in order to improve the combat effectiveness of the Longqi Army, they began to eliminate the old and weak in the army, adjust the officer positions and use them according to their talents. There were several great competitions in the army, with the capable ones at the top and the mediocre ones at the bottom. The strong ones were officials and the weak ones were pawns.
After some actions, hundreds of brave men and low-level officers were promoted. These sergeants' favorability towards Liu Chengyou suddenly exploded.
Of course, where there is a leader, there is a leader below. Of course, those who were dismissed or demoted for "no reason" will not be convinced. But this time, there is no way to make a fuss. With the support of a group of vested interests and the secret endorsement of Liu Zhiyuan, Liu Chengyou can easily Ground pressure. Unable to avoid it, they killed three or two low-level officers who were drunk and defied Liu Chengyou's authority.
That is to say, Liu Chengyou dared to do this, and his identity as the prince of Peking gave him great confidence. If someone else had gone through such trouble, Liu Zhiyuan would have suspected that he had ulterior motives and would not have allowed him to stay if he had not been beaten by those generals. What Liu Chengyou did smartly was that all his actions were reported and explained to Liu Zhiyuan, and the rectification of the Longqi Army was always under Liu Zhiyuan's nose.
Under Liu Chengyou's vigorous management, the Longqi Army took on a new look, its combat effectiveness increased sharply, and its morale became increasingly strong. To this day, it has the demeanor of a strong military.
...
Since the beginning of spring, Liu Zhiyuan's troops, large and small, have stepped up their training. Under Liu Chengyou's order, the Longqi Army trained particularly hard, and with the reward and punishment mechanism he established, the officers and men worked particularly hard.
The sound of "haha" in the military camp lasted for a long time. When it was almost noon, the Longqi sergeants finished the training for the whole morning. Afterwards, under the leadership of the commander, they ate in batches based on the battalion. In the back camp, the smoke was still rising, and the cooks had already prepared a meal.
The soldiers in the military camp are very excited today. Six big fat pigs were brought in last night and slaughtered this morning. The shrill and sharp whines are so sweet... Every month, always For a day or two, Liu Chengyou ordered people to reward the army.
Bring several large pots half-filled with water to a boil, then add chopped pork cubes of approximately equal size, supplemented with onions, peppers, salt, and oil, increase the heat and cook until cooked through. Although the method is simple, it is a rare "deliciousness" for ordinary soldiers.
But even if the meat is divided, there are rules. The strong ones ate well, the middle ones were full, and the weak ones ate less and could only sip the broth... However, no matter what, after a tooth sacrifice, the soldiers all showed more or less satisfied expressions.
In a tent in the east village, dozens of soldiers gathered together in twos and threes, enjoying their lunch break. Among them is a low-ranking officer, sitting on a piece of linen cloth. Looking at the symbol of his military uniform, he is a captain. Dutou's surname is Li. He looks young, but is actually in his twenties. He has a stubble and a fierce look on his face. The skin is rough and the mouth is full of yellow teeth. The helmet is placed on the side of the buttocks. He has his legs crossed and is picking the remaining strands of meat between his teeth with his little fingernail in his mouth, with a contented expression.
