Winning a battle and then feasting lavishly, indulging in meat and wine, is a joy for all soldiers; it means they are still alive.
However, for the commander-in-chief, every great victory means to be careful, careful, and even more careful. If one wins first and loses later, it would be a complete tragedy. There have been those who initially won but then, due to carelessness, were defeated or even lost their lives, so it is even more important to be cautious after a great victory to maintain it.
After the group of officers left, only Chen Xi, Guo Jia, and a few other high-ranking generals remained in the large tent. Some matters still needed to be discussed, as for Xuu Chu, he had already gone to patrol the camp earlier. Zhao Yun would take over the patrol in the latter half of the night, such caution by senior officers was only needed after a significant victory.
"Looking back, Yuan Shao’s Army did not seem weaker than ours, and the will to fight was pretty much the same on both sides," sighed Chen Xi. "The soldiers under our command were rallied through both kindness and authority, especially the Qingzhou soldiers, who, aside from their lack of military discipline, could be considered top-notch in other respects."
"I’ve always been strict about military discipline, but given that they come from the Yellow Turbans, habits of ten years are hard to wash away in a short time. However, this is not a big problem. The greatest advantage of the Qingzhou soldiers is that we have given them everything they wanted, and they are willing to repay us with their lives," said Guo Jia with a dismissive gesture.
As far as Guo Jia was concerned, military discipline was not critically important. After all, the major infractions like killing, setting fires, and lootings had been eradicated among the Qingzhou soldiers; what was left were issues like turning over the spoils of war, which in Guo Jia’s view, as long as victory could be achieved, was not as crucial as winning itself.
Moreover, the reason why Qingzhou soldiers developed the habit of stowing away anything usable after a fight was entirely due to their fear of poverty from their past; otherwise, they wouldn’t be like this.
"Alright, let’s set aside military discipline. As long as they don’t harm the civilians, we’ll overlook these minor details. Anyway, the Qingzhou soldiers have the strongest will to fight," Chen Xi said with a wave of his hand, not wanting to fuss over it. Having lived as Yellow Turbans for ten years, poverty had instilled in them the habit to pocket anything useful. As long as they could win, that was what mattered.
"The fighting will of the Xuzhou soldiers is not good; they are obviously timid before a fight even begins," Zhao Yun said with a sigh.
"There’s nothing we can do about that. The leaders of two generations of Yellow Turbans all swore blood oaths to break away from being bandits, aware of the importance of this opportunity. We also granted them fertile lands and built homes for them, so these people will fight to the death," said Chen Xi helplessly, aware that this was the biggest advantage of his strategy at the beginning.
"As for the Xuzhou soldiers, there have been many years of peace in their homeland, and there is so much they need to experience," Guo Jia said with a dismissive shrug, lacking the harsh experiences and exposure to war, no amount of training would suffice.
"Yuan Shao’s Army has too many cavalry," Guan Yu said slowly.
"Indeed, our army is located in the Central Plains without a source of cavalry. Even with Jia Wenhe’s horse administration policies, it’s actually a countermeasure for the eventual campaign against the Northern Barbarians. Speaking solely of horses, our army really has no solution," Chen Xi said helplessly.
"Jia Wenhe’s horse administration is now operational, essentially to establish uncontested implementation after securing Jizhou and Bingzhou, including a response to the Northern Barbarians. Right now, it’s completely without value," Guo Jia sighed, "anyway, Yuan Shao has already restricted horse trade."
"This is also a problem," Zhao Yun frowned and said, "How about our navy going to Liaodong to transport horses?"
"That line is now basically blocked. I don’t know what Yuan Shao fed Gongsun Du, but now it’s very difficult for us to get good horses from Gongsun Du," Chen Xi waved his hand; he was stationed in Yanzhou and had a clear picture of these matters.
"Basically, from what I feel, our army and Yuan Shao’s Army are essentially evenly matched in terms of military strength. We have a slight advantage in the number of soldiers, but once we factor in the cavalry, we actually fall into a disadvantage. As for the large number of crossbows, Zichuan, how many have you stockpiled over these years?" Guo Jia also felt helpless.
In the past, Guo Jia had an endless fight with the Jizhou Army in Licheng and had a good understanding of Jizhou soldiers. And now, after a large-scale clash, he understood the Jizhou Army even better.
"As for crossbow bolts, heavy crossbows, and arrows, I’ve stockpiled them all. Although I only started in the past two years, I’ve prepared nearly four hundred thousand quivers," Chen Xi said calmly.
Over the years, Chen Xi hadn’t been idle. There had been annual work-for-relief programs, and while it wasn’t always about building infrastructure, producing items like spear shafts, arrow shafts, knife handles, and layers inside great shields was also an option. Aiming to be the strongest, he prepared for a direct confrontation with all Feudal Lords, and Mount Tai had been accumulating its resources.
"Alright, you can rest assured about the war weaponry. We have plenty of nurtured armor, great shields, and swords. The millions of Tuntian Soldiers have been supplied over many years; I’ve been stockpiling continuously. You can be confident about the weaponry—we definitely have an advantage," Chen Xi said with a smile. "You just need to focus on the war itself."
"Well, there’s not much to say, then. Without resorting to underhanded tactics, we are pretty much on par with the northerners, each with our own strengths and weaknesses. The greatest advantage of the northerners, the complete set of civil and military aristocracy, has already been neutralized by us," Guo Jia confidently said.
"Right, in terms of civil aspects, we have cultivated several hundred thousand scholars, and promoting thousands of lower-level officials is no difficulty at all. In terms of the military, we have millions of grateful Yellow Turbans. In either civil or military affairs, we have a certain edge," Chen Xi nodded, acknowledging the gradual buildup of strength.
What Chen Xi and Liu Bei had previously done was cast a wide net, creating several hundred thousand scholars. Although these people hadn’t studied for very long, there were some clever minds among them that were quite impressive. Although their knowledge wasn’t comprehensive, there was no problem in appointing them to minor official positions.
The elite education of aristocratic families was indeed terrifying, with long-standing traditions nurturing geniuses, but it paled in comparison to the sheer number of people educated en masse by Liu Bei and Chen Xi. Out of several hundred thousand, after three to five years, there would be more than a thousand capable individuals.
Given the official-to-civilian ratio of one to seven thousand at that time, the talent produced within three to five years was enough to manage a million people. The rest, a great number, could be dispersed into various industries. This was the key to Mount Tai’s prosperity. Moreover, the majority of these people were grateful to Liu Bei, which, needless to say, made them much more reliable than the descendants of aristocratic families.
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"But it still won’t be easy," Zhao Yun sighed. Having spent much time as a civil officer in Mount Tai, he had a clear understanding of Yuan Shao’s strength—just the population alone numbered ten million, plus a booming economy, and there had been few natural disasters in recent years.
"I’ve never thought it would be easy, but it doesn’t matter. As long as there are no major unforeseen complications, we will win," Guo Jia’s face showed a trace of scorn as he looked back at Jizhou. There, he had planted seeds of trouble that had already begun to sprout. (To be continued. If you like this work, welcome to Qidian (qidian.com) to vote for recommendation tickets and monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please go to m.qidian.com to read.)