Water Margin: Lu Bu sits on Mount Liang

While the envoys of Song State were still drifting on the sea, Qi State began to carry out military reforms. Some old and weak people were laid off and turned into garrison soldiers, retaining the elite. At the same time, a huge military camp was first built outside Liaoyang City. Hua Rong, who had already returned to Yinzhou, led his troops south again and moved into the newly built camp.

The Right General Niu Wenzhong left the seven tribes of Hesuguan and also returned to the heart of Dongjing Road. However, his captain Wanyan Zongjun looked unhappy and stayed in the military camp all day and dared not enter the city.

Later, the Liaodong commander from Chenzhou learned that the captain under him was afraid of running into Wanyan Zonghan, the newly appointed General of the Household of Fengyi who had been staying in Liaoyang Prefecture at that time. He was afraid of being caught and beaten if he entered the city, and in the army, at least he could not break into the barracks without permission.

Later, Wang De, who was stationed in Muzhou, went north to Liaoyang Prefecture. At the same time, General Pingxi Mi Sheng was ordered to go north, with two troops led by Jianzhong Captain Liu Yuan and Zhaowu Captain Chen Yun to guard Kaizhou and guard against the Goryeo direction. The other three troops and Mi Sheng's main force went to Liaoyang Prefecture to provide protection.

The deployment of troops was still being constantly adjusted. In the direction of Xianzhou, General Han Qinghe of the Left was ordered to begin building beacon towers and sentry posts. Xiao Haili led his troops south to Liaoxi Prefecture and urged the local garrisons to begin building defensive fortifications to support the defenders of Xianzhou.

In the second half of the last month of summer, General Wanyan Loushi of the West led his army to the area between the two states and stationed troops there. Teams of battle-hardened former Jin soldiers were ready to fight for Qi.

At the end of the same month, the garrison of Huanglongfu began to expand. General Pingnan Yuan Lang, General Suppressing Bandits Ma Ling, and General Pingbei Sun An successively led their troops northward and joined Du Fu in Huanglongfu. General Mingyi Wulindataiyu and General Wanyan Shitumen withdrew their forces to the old territory of the Wanyan tribe, responding to the north and south of Huanglongfu.

The three brothers of the Ruan family were in charge of guarding the inland river among the eight naval forces, while the other five led the troops to cruise along the coast. This marked the end of the troop mobilization. Only Li Ying and Jiang Jing were worried about the money and food all day long, while Liu Min and Yang Min were also very busy. Finally, the food and grass supply for nearly a period of time was secured.

In mid-summer, General Xi Sheng of Annan joined forces with General Bian Xiang of Andong and General Shi Wengong of Pingdong to form a defense line in Rongzhou. Under the influence of the intervention of the Pulumaoduo and Changbaishan tribes, the Shubin Prefecture on the eastern front began to tend to integrate into the State of Qi.

Just as the two sides were discussing how to submit, the ship carrying Ma Zheng and Gao Yaoshi entered the port of Yaozhou.

The ferry bridge at Yaozhou Port is crowded with large and small ships.

On the ship flying the flag of Song State, Ma Zheng stood by the side, watching the merchants standing in front of their ship and talking to the officials of the Shipping Department. An officer nearby was recording something with a book and paper, and soldiers with swords and guns walked past. Everything looked a little different from the Shipping Department of Song State.

After seeing merchants being dragged away crying and wooden boxes and sacks being carried off the deck by the officers, he finally spoke up: "What's going on over there?"

Pharmacist Gao stood behind him on the left, tiptoed to take a look and said, "I'm afraid he is doing private work." Seeing that Ma Zheng's expression did not change, he said, "Qi State has announced some things that are prohibited from being sold. I guess that merchant has committed a crime."

"It's so strict..." Ma Zheng shook his head: "If it's like this, I'm afraid this shipping company won't make much money."

He walked towards the wooden ladder and said, "Let's go. It's still a few days' journey from here to Liaoyang Prefecture. It's better to complete the official's order as soon as possible."

The others had no objection and hurried to follow. Liu Liang and Wang Mei, two generals of the Pinghai Navy, had to guard the ship and would not leave easily, so they sent twenty sailors as guards.

Just after getting off the boat, Ma Zheng, who had never experienced such a long voyage, was swaying and felt that he couldn't stand steadily. The sailor who was acting as a guard beside him hurried over to support him and said, "Be careful, commander."

"What's wrong with me?"

"You have been at sea for too long. You may not be able to adapt to the land right away. Don't worry, it will be fine soon." "So that's the case..." Ma Zheng looked up at the sky helplessly: "Then, let's find a place to stay and try the food here."

"Everything is up to Brother Zhongfu."

……

The weather in midsummer was warm enough. Children on the street were hitting each other with bamboo poles and wooden sticks. Some of them hit each other on the head and laughed. The wind blew the branches across the eaves of the restaurant. The open parasol of the old wine seller was blown to the side, causing a cry of surprise. A black cat stood on the roof, licking the fur on its palm. It looked at the pedestrians who came forward to help with the umbrella, turned around without saying a word, and disappeared on the roof.

In the elegant seats on the second floor, merchants in luxurious attire were drinking and competing with the people across from them, racking their brains to make more money. Rough and tough men of the martial arts world were drinking and discussing grudges with their friends. There were also business travelers from all over the country whispering about something.

Sometimes there was a noise coming from outside. Ma Zheng, who was sitting by the fence, tilted his head and looked down. He saw a group of soldiers wearing black military uniforms, standard leather armor, with swords on their belts and leading their war horses, walking out in groups of three or five.

Ma Zheng was jealous. It was no secret that the Song Dynasty lacked war horses. It seemed that any horse here could be used as a war horse. He even took a closer look. Several war horses passing by were hung with a strong bow, a riding bow, a quiver, an iron spear, and the swords on their waists and leather armor on their bodies. They were not inferior to the elite in the court. What was even more rare was the expressions on their faces, all of which showed eagerness and excitement.

"What are you doing?"

Ma Zheng looked at Pharmacist Gao, and the man stood up and said, "I'll go ask."

He hurried to the side and returned to his seat soon with a strange look on his face: "Today is the day for the palace soldiers to train."

“…Palace soldiers?” Ma Zheng paused with his hand that was holding the wine glass, and looked up at Pharmacist Gao in surprise.

"Yes, Qi has restored the military system of the Tang Dynasty. There is a Zhechongfu in the city, and there are captains who are specifically responsible for training soldiers. I heard that Yaozhou was rated as a superior prefecture, so there are thousands of people participating in daily training."

Ma Zheng's expression changed: "How often do you train?"

"During the busy farming season, we train once every half a month, and during the slack season, we train once every five days. We are lucky to be there today." Pharmacist Gao stretched his neck to look at the figures below, and said with emotion: "But if the winter is too cold, we can train once every ten days. If the road is blocked by rain or snow, we will be notified later."

"Oh..." Ma Zheng nodded, drank the wine in the glass in one gulp, and looked relaxed: "It seems that there is not much difference between our dynasty."

Pharmacist Gao rolled his eyes and said nothing, just accompanying Ma Zheng to eat and drink.

Not long after, the two of them, who had eaten and drunk their fill, returned to the back of the restaurant and rested in Yaozhou City that night. The next morning, Ma Zheng, who felt that he was "as stable as a rock", urged them to set off. The group, carrying the imperial edict, hurriedly headed towards Liaoyang Prefecture. (End of this chapter)