Tiger Guards

Chapter 64: Reject Parasitism
When the sky began to brighten, the Huben knights fed their horses and rode out of the camp.

There were more than 40 cavalrymen in each team. The dry food had been prepared long ago, and each person brought five days of dry food.

At the gate, Gao Chong held a torch and stretched out his arms to illuminate the way. Zhao Yan was wearing a bear fur cloak and had to squint to see more clearly.

On the flagpole at the gate hung the head of Ma Shizhi.

Zhao Ji followed behind, dismounted from his horse at the gate, his armor rustling as he bowed to Zhao Yan: "Lord Zhao, I am leaving now."

"Well, the day after tomorrow, Xu Gongming will lead 500 infantry and cavalry south to support your army."

"I understand."

Zhao Ji responded, raised his eyebrows to look at the hanging head, and bowed to Zhao Yan and Xu Huang, who also returned the greeting.

Zhao Ji turned to the front of the horse, raised his left foot and stepped on the stirrup, pushed off the ground with his right foot, and then he mounted the horse with a graceful and neat movement.

Pulling out the whip from the harness, Zhao Ji flicked it lightly and said, "Let's go!"

His fifteen mounted slaves followed in a crowd, followed by the cavalry led by Tang Xian.

After Zhao Ji drove his horse out of the gate, he controlled the horse to gallop lightly, and Han Shu and the cavalry slaves followed in a line.

He quickly passed one team after another and trotted two miles to the front of the team. Here, his flag officer Gao Yanglong was standing on the car holding the flag and moving in with the car.

A knight rode up ahead, reined in his horse, and called out, "Captain, Hu Qian of Beijiang and over a hundred other knights are waiting for us on the roadside, eager to join us in defeating the bandits!"

Upon hearing this, Zhao Ji spurred his horse away from the marching group and saw a few sparse torches on the roadside in the distance. "Got it. The marching order remains unchanged. Return to the group."

"Here!"

The knight had turned his horse around, and as a messenger during the march, he had a red flag on his back.

Soon Zhao Ji arrived at the place where Hu Qian and others were waiting. These people were leading their horses and waiting by the roadside.

There were a few dying campfires, and some people were sitting on the ground.

Hu Qian stepped forward and bowed, "Zhao Zhonglang, we all wish to follow the Tiger Guards, to defend the Emperor, and to defeat the treacherous ministers together!"

"It happened so suddenly, I'm sorry I can't agree to it."

Zhao Ji reined in his horse and observed the men, pointing his right arm towards the main camp behind them. "The enlisted Yulin knights from Xihe County will soon be arriving. They will be incorporated into Xu Gongming's army. If you are interested, you may join them and be incorporated into the Yulin."

"The Knights of the Imperial Guard?"

Hu Qian asked in a serious tone, there is no essential difference between those who were born in the Yulin Army and those who were born in the Huben Army.

Zhao Ji observed Hu Qian, "How to reorganize the army is a major matter for Lord Zhao, and it is beyond my knowledge. I have no room for you here, so please seek other places."

After saying that, Zhao Ji pulled the reins, lightly kicked the horse's belly and led the horse away.

Someone beside Hu Qian glared and whispered, "How rude!"

Another person pulled his arm and said, "If you join the Imperial Guards, you can still serve the court. Why should you be under their control?"

"Yes, the Yu Lin is no worse than the Huben."

Amidst the surrounding discussions, Hu Qian felt inexplicably disappointed, but the opinions of his fellow villagers were also important. He immediately turned to his companions and said, "Since that's the case, let's go into the camp and follow Lord Zhao's instructions."

"Yeah, get on your horses and go back to camp!"

Everyone responded, and Hu Qian also got on his horse, gathered the sons of the powerful people in Beijiang, and marched towards the camp.

On the other side, Han Shu approached Zhao Ji and asked, "Captain, can they really be incorporated into the Yulin Army?"

"There was still a chance yesterday, but it's too late today."

Zhao Ji couldn't help but smile as he spoke: "How can there be so many good things in the world? If they are happy, they will be incorporated into the Hedong Knights Camp."

Liu Xuan, the governor of Xihe County, tried his best to recruit and managed to gather more than 200 Yulin knights.

This group of Yulin knights walked and stopped, wandering along the north bank of the Fen River.

It was only after learning of Li Le’s death yesterday that he sent someone to contact Zhao Yan.

But after all, they were Yulin Lang who were conscripted according to orders. Now that they are willing to come, Zhao Yan will not turn them away.

The original plan was that this Yulin cavalry would be mixed with Xu Huang's more than 100 cavalrymen, and then brave and strong men would be selected from the county soldiers to form a mixed infantry and cavalry force of 700 people to march south.

Now with the addition of this group of powerful children from Beijiang, Xu Huang's reorganization has become more difficult.

But there is really no need to accommodate these people. Recruiting for the Tiger Guards and the Imperial Guards is already a huge risk, and now is the time to reap the rewards.

For the sake of his fellow county mates, Huben could accept it with a pinch of his nose.

But the lingering Xihe Yulin would not give in easily. Xihe County was one of the six Yulin counties, and the Yulin who had applied for the position were from the Yulin family. Li Jue was also from this group, but he belonged to Beidi County.

Therefore, in order to reorganize this group of people, there is no need for Zhao Yan and Xu Huang to be the bad guys. The Xihe Yulin, who have shed blood for the Han Dynasty for generations, will naturally stop the Beijiang scholars.

When Han Shu heard Zhao Ji's answer, he felt much more relieved.

Everyone is taking such great risks and working so hard, isn't it just to get ahead?
If we really recruit these people from Beijiang into the Huben, what about the sons of powerful families from other counties in Wenxi and Anyi?
Once this started, there was no stopping it.

There are more and more of these people, and naturally they snatch away the opportunities of Tiger Ben.

At this point, what happened to the villagers?
Those who come to rob you and bully you are your fellow villagers!

Not only Han Shu, but the worries of the surrounding Huben knights also dissipated.

Zhao Ji could also sense the emotional changes of these people. There were few orphans among the Tiger Guards. They all had families and weaknesses.

If people like Hu Qian were really recruited, not to mention the suppression of their talents and connections, the families of people like Hu Qian could also suppress and disintegrate the Tiger Guards at the local level.

No matter how angry or furious you are, you will have to bear it.

Since these people cannot parasitize or usurp the Huben Army, they may turn around and suffer some grievances and be incorporated into Xu Huang's Hedong Knight Camp.

Xu Huang's humble background and Bai Bo's background were flaws, and they couldn't suppress these people.

Probably before long, the Hedong Knights will be able to expel Xu Huang and become an independent armed force with its own political stance.

Zhao Ji was also helpless about these people.

It's not that we can't win, it's just that we lack time.

After going south to pacify the Baibo generals, we will consider expelling the Huns from the north.

During this period, it is necessary to unite various forces, and when Bai Bo is defeated, the Hedong Knight Camp will inevitably be formed.

After the court was rescued and regained its freedom, the first thing to consider was survival.

It is normal to reach peace with the powerful people in Hedong.

As for the Huben, they were previously abandoned pawns by the powerful people in Hedong, so it is normal for them to be abandoned pawns again.

This is undoubtedly good news. Who do the Tiger Guards hate the most?
It was definitely not the Baibo generals, nor was it Li Jue or Guo Si, but the sons of the top powerful families in the county.

Strictly speaking, the Huben are just their backups and thugs.

In the county's ecological circle, people like Hu Qian are tigers, and the Tiger Guards are wolves, dogs and foxes.

From this perspective, except for the Huben around Pingyang, most of the Huben have something in common with him, that is, they rebel against traditional cognition.

As the sun rose higher, Zhao Ji pondered and analyzed the deeper position of the Tiger Guards.

After marching for about twenty miles, the Huben team stopped by a shallow stream, slowed down the horses' speed, fed them the beans they carried, and let the horses forage for grass and water near the stream.

The Hu Ben guarding the Chidao Pass also came to greet them and told them about their inspection experience yesterday.

The people living near the Chidao Pass are mainly mountain people, who have developed the habit of avoiding soldiers since the Baibo Rebellion.

The Tiger Guards are patrolling the pass, and you still dare to go out to collect firewood and herbs... Who would believe you easily if you said you were not a spy?
Therefore, basically no living people were seen yesterday.

But this does not guarantee the success of the news blockade, as the Purple Gold Mountain to the east is not high and is easy to cross on foot; fortunately, it is difficult to cross on horseback and will also be inspected by the Huben camp.

Jishan Mountain to the west is tall and the mountain walls to the north are steep. It is difficult to cross them even on foot, let alone with a horse, unless you take a long detour.

Since the message has to travel a long way, it will naturally be transmitted more slowly.

Zhao Ji, however, was not one to be complacent. He gathered everyone and stated his opinion: "After we pass Beixiang, I'd like to send more scouts to avoid an ambush. What do you think?"

Among the other four, only Wang Qi had extensive combat experience. "Captain Zhao, are you planning to storm Han Xian?"

"Well, after passing Beixiang, the east bank of the Sushui River is beyond our control unless we hide during the day and move out at night. This will tire the soldiers, and it won't be conducive to the battle."

Seeing that Zhao Ji was worried about leaking the secret, Wang Qi said, "The people of Hedong have suffered from the Baibo for a long time. In my opinion, after passing Beixiang, the Tiger Guards will march forward in a large force. The villagers will see that I am a brave man and will make their own decisions."

Jia Tong agreed with Wang Qi's opinion and said, "Captain Zhao, we were able to kill Li Le because his officers and soldiers were disunited and lazy. Li Le also knew that his troops were disloyal, so he didn't dare to demand too much discipline. Compared to Li Le, although Han Xian is strong, how much stronger is he?"

Chang Mao also expressed his stance: "We are following the imperial edict to suppress the rebels and punish the rebels with obedience. Who can resist us?"

Seeing the high morale of the people around him, Zhao Ji also felt that he might have underestimated the influence of the court's righteousness, so he nodded and said: "Okay, after resting in Beixiang later, we will bypass the county and go straight to Han Xian in Nanxiang!"

"Here!"

(End of this chapter)