PFC Chapter 4: Real Ancient Warfare
Chapter 4: Real Ancient Warfare
Liu Hu only told Wang Hou that Rongguo Gong Jia Daishan had taken a liking to him and wanted to take him to the army, so that Wang Hou could send a message home to let his family know he was safe.
As for the emperor, Liu Hu didn't mention him at all. If something were to happen, Liu Hu would probably have to be stabbed in two.
After Liu Hu finished giving his instructions, Jia Daishan had a guard escort Wang Hou back, and the group continued their journey towards Shenjing...
"Duke Rongguo, may I ask when I may see my mother?"
Ultimately, the emperor could not outmaneuver Jia Daishan. In the contest between Liu Hu becoming the Embroidered Uniform Guard or joining the army, Jia Daishan prevailed by advocating the righteous cause of the Northern Expedition, and thus brought Liu Hu under his command.
As for how to arrange things, it depends on Liu Hu's future development, but for now, we'll arrange for him to train with his personal guards.
Since I can't go back, I'm still a little worried about my family.
After all, spring plowing is just around the corner, and if the family's spring plowing is delayed, my mother's days ahead will probably be difficult.
In the original story, the first time the mother entered the Grand View Garden was because she couldn't survive and came to the Rongguo Mansion to seek help from two Wang family girls.
Unless someone is truly desperate and can't survive, no one wants to go through all that trouble to get their hands on someone.
That's why Lin Daiyu described Granny Liu as a "stinking maggot" in the original novel.
This means that even though Granny Liu had no direct connection with the Jia family, she still managed to sneak over and try to take advantage of them.
However, judging from the ending of the original work, Granny Liu was not the kind of person who only took advantage without giving anything in return. Her second visit to the Grand View Garden was to repay her kindness.
Even after the Jia family's property was confiscated, Granny Liu, who was over eighty years old, still tried her best to save Qiao Jie, the only daughter of Wang Xifeng who had given her 20 taels of silver.
This shows that Granny Liu is not a bad person. With such a mother, Liu Hu is not worried about her holding him back in the future, so he still cares about her.
"Don't worry, I've already sent someone to your home and instructed the people in my village to take care of you."
Hearing Liu Hu express concern for his elderly mother and younger sister, Jia Daishan, though still reserved, had a better impression of Liu Hu.
"He's a filial son!"
Having grown accustomed to the desolation of the north, Liu Hu was taken aback by the scene before him upon entering the capital city.
Crowds thronged, vendors hawked their wares, and scholars dressed in Confucian robes often gathered in restaurants and teahouses to discuss classics, compose poems, and engage in lively debates. The prosperity of the place was no less than the feudal golden age that Liu Hu had imagined.
However, the emperor, sitting in the carriage, only glanced at all of this before expressionlessly lowering the curtain and sitting back down.
Seemingly sensing Liu Hu's surprise, the emperor sighed meaningfully, "It appears to be a magnificent sight, like flowers in full bloom and oil poured on a blazing fire, but in reality, it's all glitter and jewels on the outside, rotten inside!"
"At least it's developing in a positive direction!" Jia Daishan comforted him.
Based on their previous conversation, Liu Hu immediately understood what was going on.
Speaking of which, that Mongolian turmoil almost wiped out the entire north.
In the south, the Mongols were driven out of the Central Plains by Taizu before they could cross the river.
The Great Zhou Dynasty rebuilt China, but it also inherited the mess left behind in the south by the Jiajing Emperor.
Although the Great Zhou Dynasty had quelled the Japanese pirate threat in the south, the south was still plagued by severe land annexation, numerous factions, and powerful merchants such as maritime merchants and salt merchants who wantonly oppressed the people, plundered their wealth, and were politically corrupt.
Although Emperor Taizu rectified a number of problems in Jiangnan, he made some compromises with the gentry and powerful families in Jiangnan in order to integrate the south and recover the north as soon as possible.
This led to Emperor Taizu issuing several edicts to relocate proletarian tenant farmers and displaced people from the south to the north in an effort to balance the gap between the north and south after expelling the barbarians and restoring China. However, these edicts were repeatedly obstructed by the gentry and powerful families in the south, and the results were minimal.
It can be said that during the reign of Emperor Taizu, apart from the initial expulsion of the Manchus and restoration of China, the remaining ten years or so were spent entirely fighting against the gentry and powerful families in Jiangnan.
It wasn't until the reign of Emperor Taizong that, taking advantage of the six Northern Expeditions, 800 million people were forcibly relocated from the south.
Even so, the population north of the Yangtze River is still only over 2000 million, nearly half less than during the Jiajing period of the Ming Dynasty.
Moreover, most of these people are concentrated in fertile areas such as the Heluo region and river plains of Shenjing.
In the early years of the reign of Emperor Taizu, a census was conducted on the population of the south, which showed that the south alone had more than 7000 million people, more than the total population of the entire country as officially counted by the Ming Dynasty.
The emperor may not have been entirely satisfied with the imbalance between the North and the South, but Liu Hu, drawing on historical experience, felt that it was just right.
The Great Zhou Dynasty is currently in the Little Ice Age, and the north is plagued by natural disasters. Even if the population of the north is filled up now, the burden on the court will be even heavier if a major disaster occurs in a few years, and the north is also prone to unrest.
However, Liu Hu could not say these things. After all, he was still just a peasant boy who had studied in a private school for two years. He might have some extraordinary qualities that would interest the emperor and the others, but he was still of low status and had little influence.
The seemingly prosperous scene before us is merely a facade, and it just so happens to coincide with the triennial imperial examinations.
"Young man, learn well from the Duke of Rong, and I await your good news."
When they parted at the palace, the emperor spoke warmly to Liu Hu.
"Do you know why His Majesty and I are interested in you?"
Liu Hu was looking forward to the Rongguo Mansion, after all, it was the setting of the Dream of the Red Chamber. Even though the Twelve Beauties were not there now, it would still be good to experience the scenery there in person.
"You don't know, young man!"
Upon hearing Jia Daishan's words, Liu Hu replied respectfully.
"During Emperor Taizong's reign, he launched six northern expeditions. Although he defeated the Tumed Mongols in southern Mongolia, Wu Xun's lineage also suffered heavy losses. Only a few of them remained, but they were too old to fight anymore. The few who could still shoulder the responsibility were about to retire, and there were few capable successors among the younger generation."
Jia Daishan had one more thing to say: just as the North and South need to be balanced, the current emperor also needs to balance military power.
Currently, almost half of the military power in the court is in the hands of the four kings, eight dukes, and twelve marquises of the founding lineage, while the remaining small half is in the hands of the Kaiping lineage, which rose to prominence during the Northern Expedition of Emperor Taizong. The only forces that the emperor can fully trust are the Imperial Guards under his command and Jia Daishan's Lantian Camp.
Although both the founding lineage and the Kaiping lineage are loyal to the current emperor, a qualified emperor, no matter how much he trusts them, still needs to be wary of them.
Although Jia Daishan was nominally part of the founding line, having grown up with the current emperor, he only maintained a superficial relationship with the other four princes and eight dukes; in his heart, he was a typical member of the emperor's faction.
Their interest in Liu Hu this time was simply a matter of casting a wide net; it wouldn't cost much in terms of resources. If they could actually find a talented general for the Imperial Party, they would be making a huge profit.
Ningrong Street, where the Rongguo Mansion is located, is east of the imperial city. Jia Daishan had already gotten into the carriage, which was handed over to the Jia family's coachman. Liu Hu also got out of the carriage and followed beside it, stretching his muscles.
My legs are numb from riding in a horse-drawn carriage for dozens of miles!
Before Liu Hu could react, the carriage stopped in front of a small gate after it turned onto a wide street.
"master!"
Jia Daishan jumped off the carriage, and the driver drove the carriage forward. Jia Daishan then led Liu Hu inside the gate.
"My lord!"
As soon as he entered, he saw a young soldier in his twenties, dressed in light armor, come over to salute him and glance at Liu Hu with curiosity.
Whose dark-skinned boy is this? Could he be the illegitimate son of the general?
"Brother Dun, this kid is in your hands now. He'll train with you from now on."
After saying that, he left without waiting for the soldier's reply, leaving Liu Hu and the soldier staring at each other.
"Uh..." In the end, people in ancient times were a little more thin-skinned. The soldier scratched his head and then said hesitantly, "My name is Jia Dun, Grand Tutor, Duke of Rong, Commander of the Lantian Camp and a centurion of personal guards."
"Oh, Commander Jia is a relative of the Duke of Rongguo! It's a pleasure to meet you!"
"I am Liu Hu, and I am honored to have been chosen by the Duke of Rongguo to join the army. I hope Brother Jia will take good care of me in the future!"
Although it is still unknown how Jia Daishan will arrange his future, it does not stop Liu Hu from emphasizing that he values him.
After all, when you're out in the world, you give yourself your own identity.
As expected, Jia Dun became much more enthusiastic after hearing Liu Hu's words.
"Haha, although my family and the Duke of Rongguo are of the same clan, we are almost beyond the fifth degree of kinship, hence the Twelve Houses of Jinling."
Jadun was polite, but he couldn't hide the smugness in his eyes.
"I also refused to stay at home and wait to die, so I came to the capital to ask the Duke of Rong for a future."
"Commander Jia has great ambition!" Liu Hu admired Jia Dun a bit. If he had connections, he would never have thought of joining the army.
Although the twelve branches of the Jia family in Jinling were distant relatives, they were still within the three degrees of kinship of the original Rong and Ning Dukes.
Even far away in Jinling, with the protection of his family property and the Ning and Rong mansions, he could live a very comfortable life and do as he pleased in Jinling.
After all, the saying "The Jia family of Jinling is not fake; their halls are made of white jade and their horses of gold" shows how wealthy the Jia family of Jinling is.
Even if the Jia family were later raided, as long as they didn't commit any crimes, it wouldn't affect these distant relatives.
Was the Jia family's final fate tragic? To be honest, in feudal times, it wasn't that tragic.
Although they suffered some hardship at the beginning when their families were confiscated and they were exiled, in the process, only Jia Yuanchun died under mysterious circumstances. None of the other direct descendants were killed. In the end, the innocent were released, and the guilty were later pardoned and their titles of nobility were restored to the Ning and Rong mansions.
So don't be fooled by how miserable the Jia family is in the original story. If you think about it carefully, even in their most impoverished times, they were still much better off than ordinary people. They just weren't as extravagant as before.
If he had that identity, plus his own special abilities, Liu Hu could definitely survive in Jinling forever, instead of risking his life to try and make a fortune in the army.
With Jia Dun's explanation, Liu Hu finally understood the Jia family's personal guard.
Now, Jia Daihua is the commander of the Lantian Camp and Jia Daishan is the commander of the Beijing Camp, and both of their offices have three hundred personal guards.
The salaries and armor of these personal guards were provided by the imperial court, but the Jia family would give some of them extra rewards during festivals. These rewards were a little more than their salaries, since the personal guards were the last line of defense for the general.
The personal guards were organized like other troops, with ranks of junior officers, general officers, and centurions. The personal guards did not have ranks above centurions.
These personal guards accompanied their commanders on campaigns during wartime and were responsible for the safety of the Jia family during peacetime. Jia Dun was one of the three centurions of the Rongguo Duke's personal guards.
"A standard centurion should lead 112 men, but we are personal guards, so we need to leave some vacancies."
As he spoke, Jadun sighed helplessly.
"By the way, since the Duke of Rongguo has only arranged for you to train with us, you'd better stay in the front yard when you're not busy."
Jia Dun then explained, "The Rongguo Mansion has three sections and five courtyards. The front courtyard, which is our courtyard, is connected to the other three sections. The western front courtyard is for the personal guards who do not have families in the capital to stay in."
"There's a small drill ground in the front yard on the east side. From now on, you'll practice military formations with us there every day."
"Just a military formation drill?" Liu Hu asked, looking at Jia Dun.
"Of course not. Besides military formations, there are also horseback archery, wrestling, and strength training. If you have a weapon you're good at, you can practice it there for a while."
"However, you can practice with weapons in peacetime so that you won't be unfamiliar with them on the battlefield."
"That's all?" Liu Hu was a little disappointed. Is this all the Duke's personal guards train?
"Is that all?" Jia Dun said, somewhat puzzled. "If you want to learn military strategy and tactics, just buy a copy of the Song Dynasty's 'Complete Essentials of Military Classics' and that will be enough. You can learn other more advanced military strategies from the Duke during wartime. Reading more military books won't help."
"The Duke once said: 'You can't become a general just by reading books. You can't become a general without getting your hands dirty on the battlefield.'"
In this timeline, General Qi died in battle in Huainan before he could write his military treatise, so the most widely used version is still the Song Dynasty's "Wujing Zongyao".
However, the "Wujing Zongyao" contains the troop deployment and formation of various military branches, including cavalry, infantry, and naval forces, as well as the application of firearms. It is much more comprehensive than the "Jixiao Xinshu" and is indeed sufficient for grassroots officers and soldiers.
"Isn't there anyone who teaches you some marksmanship or Taoist magic, like the Yang family spear technique?" Liu Hu asked unwillingly.
"Oh~" Jadun finally understood, and then said with a disdainful look, "Why learn those acrobatic tricks? They're useless on the battlefield."
"On the battlefield, what matters is strong armor and sharp weapons, speed, accuracy, and ruthlessness. Strong armor can better protect oneself, and sharp weapons can more easily kill the enemy. On the battlefield, as long as we are faster, more ruthless, and more accurate than the enemy, and we terrify the enemy, we will win."
"On the battlefield, there are spears everywhere and arrows raining down. Both the enemy and our side have armored soldiers. To play around with spears is just asking for death and often disrupts our own formation."
"Sun Tzu's Art of War, Chapter 1: Maneuvering, states: 'When the people are united, the brave cannot advance alone, nor can the cowardly retreat alone. This is the method of using the masses.'"
"Therefore, even the strongest individual martial prowess is useless against an army of tens or hundreds of thousands, unless you have the bravery and strength of a tyrant like Hegemon or Li Feihu, and you are leading armored cavalry in a charge."
Hearing Jia Dun's words, Liu Hu was a little disappointed, but still very surprised. Jia Dun, a mere centurion of personal guards, was well-versed in military strategy and spoke eloquently about it.
As expected of someone who came from the Jia family to make a name for himself, he is not to be underestimated!
"Commander Jia is right, I was being presumptuous!" Liu Hu said sincerely.
"Once you're in the army, if you want to survive, don't think about all that nonsense. The real battlefield is different from what's depicted in the novels." Jia Dun knew that Jia Daishan valued Liu Hu highly and didn't mind teaching him a little more.
"I have been following the Duke of Rongguo for six years and have seen many talented and extraordinary people. For example, there was a man who was known as the 'King of Spears in Hebei.' He wielded his spear just like Zhao Zilong in the Romance of the Three Kingdoms. However, when he faced armored soldiers in the army, three men cut him down."
"People like Overlord and Li Feihu have superhuman strength. Ordinary soldiers would be injured or killed if they were touched by a heavy weapon weighing fifty or sixty pounds. Even armored soldiers could be injured by their strength through armor. The few generals in history who could defeat ten thousand men were mostly like this."