Bi Maokang has been to the military camp and seen what the Ming army was like.
The feeling that Houying gave him was completely different.
The most obvious thing is that there is a lively atmosphere everywhere in the back camp.
"How many days does your back camp have training?"
Zuo Mengeng knew what he was asking.
"Train every day, don't slack off."
Bi Maokang was shocked.
"We train every day, how can the soldiers bear it? Aren't you afraid of causing trouble?"
Zuo Mengeng pointed at the heroic soldiers and asked: "Mr. Dongjiao, look at these soldiers. They are well fed, warmly clothed, their military pay is paid on time, their families have food and clothing, and they know why they are fighting. You Say, will they still be unwilling to train?”
Why can't the Ming army train every day?
First, the generals are lazy and greedy for enjoyment.
The generals are not willing to endure hardships in the wind and snow, so how can they force the soldiers to do so?
Secondly, the food and clothing expenses of the Ming army soldiers were severely deducted. Even the soldiers in the early Ming Dynasty were seriously deficient in nutrition.
If the physical fitness is not good, the soldiers will definitely not be able to bear it if they practice every day.
Even if there is insufficient capital, Zuo Menggeng has never been stingy in terms of military affairs. The soldiers in the rear camp had three meals a day, and the meals were sufficient, so they were in good health.
Third, the soldiers of the Ming army were not possessed by thoughts.
They serve as soldiers simply because they are military households and cannot do anything else. Even if they are recruited soldiers, they are only here to serve as soldiers for pay and to fill their stomachs.
Since it's for yourself, why are you willing to endure hardships and hone your skills?
Zuo Menggeng knew too well how great an army with ideas was, so at the beginning of the establishment of the army, everything else could take a back seat, only ideological indoctrination came first.
This is also the reason why Hou Ying can practice every day and his strength improves by leaps and bounds.
Maybe others still don't know the significance of this, but Zuo Mengeng knows very well that as long as he is given one year, when the rear camp is fully equipped, it will be easy to defeat tens of thousands of troops with three thousand men.
Going forward again, there is another open space with about a hundred soldiers.
However, these people did not queue up, nor practice holding guns, nor did they practice assassination. Instead, they were surrounding a big car and talking enthusiastically.
Bi Maokang looked curious and walked over.
Zuo Mengeng introduced him.
"This is the logistics squadron of the General Logistics Brigade of the rear camp. There are only these people now. They are studying the problems of grain and grass transportation and engineering erection."
Engineering men are like this. Once they hear something they don’t understand, they will definitely ask.
"Engineering erection?"
Zuo Mengeng used the vocabulary of this era to explain.
"Build roads across mountains and build bridges when encountering water. When the army is marching, road conditions are very important, which greatly affects the marching speed and the transportation of food and grass. Therefore, the juniors set up such a military branch in the rear camp to perform their duties."
When he heard that transporting grain and grass had to be done by one's own army instead of using civilian men, Bi Maokang asked: "What are the benefits of this move?"
Zuo Mengeng explained it very carefully.
"Because they are specialized military services, what they have to do on a daily basis is to constantly study how to speed up transportation, how to reduce road consumption, and how to supply the entire army's consumption in the fastest and best way. Once these are done, the battlefield The soldiers on board don't have to go hungry or worry about other things, and can concentrate on fighting. With the supply of the army guaranteed, it will be easier to win the battle."
He also added.
"This move does not waste money and people."
When dynasties in the past went to war, it was also the time when the people suffered the most.
Not only did they have to abandon the work in the fields and waste the crops, but the court also refused to compensate them. Even transporting grain and grass for the army, they had to prepare their own dry food.
If you are injured, you will not receive any pension, and medical treatment will also be a burden.
In every battle, the casualties suffered by these civilians were no less than those of the troops on the front line.
Bi Maokang certainly knew what it meant to not have to recruit civilian husbands.
But with so many civilian and military officers in the imperial court, who would have thought of setting up a professional military branch for this purpose?
The two of them walked closer and were spotted by the soldiers, but no one was panicked.
Bi Maokang noticed that when the soldiers greeted Zuo Mengeng, the smiles on their faces were sincere and cordial.
This is a general who loves his soldiers like his own son and is deeply loved by his soldiers.
There is no doubt about the high prestige of such a general. On the battlefield, with an order, all soldiers will be willing to die generously for him.
Bi Maokang could already imagine the scene where Zuo Menggeng's flag was waved and thousands of troops went through fire and water to destroy the enemy.
Zhang Yan is also there.
"Qianzuo, we are following your prompts and are studying how to improve the cart."
He moved Zuo Mengeng and Bi Maokang to the cart and pointed it out to them.
"I asked an old carpenter to make a latch for the axle. Once the latch is removed, the two wheels can be removed."
A soldier demonstrated it, and it turned out that it was very easy to remove the wheels.
Bi Maokang was puzzled.
"The cart is used to transport grain and grass. Wouldn't it be useless if the wheels were removed?"
Zhang Yan didn't know Bi Maokang, but seeing Zuo Mengeng's respectful attitude, he didn't dare to neglect him.
"This old man doesn't know something. If you want to transport on the road, of course you need wheels. But if you want to cross the river, you need a bridge. But bridges are not always available, so we have to find a way to build a bridge ourselves. This big car It has been improved and the platform is larger and flatter. After removing the wheels, throw it into the water and it can be used as a raft."
Bi Maokang is from the south, so of course he has seen rafts. When you see the length and width of the cart, you know that it can carry people and cargo in the water.
"It's really a wonderful idea. If you encounter a river blocking your way, you don't have to stop."
Zhang Yan was very proud.
"That's not all. Qianzao said that it's not enough to use it as a raft. After all, the army marches back and forth only by rafts, which is slow and chaotic. So we guys thought about it, and in each vehicle Such hooks are installed on the sides of the carts. When the time comes, several or dozens of carts will be pushed into the water together, and these hooks will be connected together to form a pontoon bridge. People and materials can pass directly through it, just like marching on the road. "
It seems that they have remembered everything Zuo Mengeng taught them, used their subjective initiative, and created new gadgets.
Zuo Menggeng said this when he lectured the General Logistics Team for the first time.
"When you see the canal, as engineers, what do you think of first?"
"Of course we need to build a few more pontoon bridges to allow the army to pass through quickly."
The soldiers took it to heart and have come up with good ideas.
Zuo Mengeng was very concerned and asked, "Have you tried it?"
Sure enough, there is still a problem.
Zhang Yan said: "We tried it in the river and found that it was possible to walk on the pontoon bridge, but it was not possible to transport supplies. The pontoon bridge would sink."
Of course Zuo Mengeng knew why this was so.
No matter how big the car is, how big can it get?
With the area of the cart's board, ordinary people can still stand on it. But as long as it exceeds a certain weight, sinking is certain.
Zuo Mengeng couldn't think of a solution to this problem at the moment, so he could only give some ideas.
"Let's see if we can use screws to make the vehicle's shaft movable. When building a pontoon bridge, the vehicle's shaft can also be removed and placed in the water as a pillar?"
Nowadays, the shafts of large carts are all nailed. If they are made removable, their uses will naturally be increased.
A soldier said: "It's okay if the water is shallow, but it won't be of much use if the water is deep."
"This is just a stop-gap measure. It is unrealistic to build pontoons over large rivers."
Even in later generations, building pontoon bridges on rivers hundreds of meters wide was a problem.
He has another idea.
"Look back and think about it, if you can make some skin bags? Usually fold them up and put them away. When you want to make a pontoon, blow air into them and tie them to both sides of the pontoon."
People in Shaanxi can make sheepskin rafts, which can be used even on the surging Yellow River. Ordinary rivers are naturally no problem.
Although people of this era do not understand the principle of air buoyancy, they also know what Zuo Mengeng is talking about.
Everyone kept it in mind and continued the discussion.
Bi Maokang left with Zuo Mengeng, and was deeply moved when he saw the lively scene of officers and soldiers together.
"The general does not bully his subordinates, and they speak freely. Your army's appearance is extraordinary in the world!"
Zuo Mengeng walked aside and chuckled when he heard the words.
"Whether it is a general or a soldier, they are a whole on the battlefield. Only by uniting as one and exerting the greatest strength can we win. If the general treats the soldiers as slaves, the soldiers regard the generals as enemies. I am afraid that they have not yet fought against the enemy. , he himself was in disarray. Our army aims at the equality of officers and soldiers. Except for different positions, everyone’s status is the same."
True equality is impossible, but making soldiers feel respected and actively participating in military construction is definitely the only way to strengthen the military.
If Zuo Mengeng had said this before, Bi Maokang would have thought it was a fantasy. But now he has seen and felt it in person, and he has the most profound feelings.
