Northern Prefecture Rivers and Mountains

Chapter 402 Instrument

The spoils of war sent back to Pengcheng will later be appraised by merchants and converted into money and grain, which will be split 40/60 between the General's Mansion and the soldiers.

Liu Daogui originally intended it as a training exercise for the Wei Kingdom, but his men were very skilled at plundering and brought back more and more loot. With the help of the Jin people in Hebei, they even managed to capture Wu'an, Fanyang, and Guangzong counties.

They captured over 6,000 people, 40,000 head of cattle and sheep, and over 30,000 shi of grain.

Changsun Fei and Daxi Jin's cavalry marched south, but were blocked by Liu Guangzhi. The various commanderies' garrisons were also mobilized to defend against the Wei cavalry with their cities and fortified villages.

No matter how skilled these cavalrymen were, they were powerless against the heavily fortified city walls.

After two months, they only managed to capture the two cities of Bochang and Liaocheng, and it was only with the help of the Xianbei people from within and without that they succeeded.

Qingzhou had only been in our hands for a short time, so it was only natural that some people were inclined to side with Wei.

Just like the people of Jin in the north, although many were willing to serve as dogs for the Hu people, many others were loyal to the Jin dynasty.

This era was the time when the struggle between the Chinese and the barbarians was most intense.

However, in the cities of Yanzhou and Xuzhou, not a single slave household of Xianbei, Dingling, or Xiongnu descent rebelled. These people had long been accustomed to Liu Daogui's various systems, and many were close to becoming commoners, so they naturally did not want to give up all their previous efforts.

A rule that is unfriendly to them is always better than no rules at all.

Humans are inherently inclined to seek stability.

If the two sides continue to fight like this, the Wei state will suffer greater losses, and Changsun Fei and Daxi Jin will have no choice but to retreat to Hebei and defend it at all costs.

As the weather grew colder, Liu Daogui felt it was about time, so he ordered all the troops to return to Pengcheng.

The cities captured in Hebei were all abandoned, and all the people were relocated back to Qingzhou.

A few days later, the heavy snow arrived as scheduled, and the banks of the Yellow River returned to calm.

However, the soldiers were still busy.

The army held competitions in Cuju (ancient Chinese football), wrestling, and polo.
Jiju is polo, and like Cuju and Jiaodi, it originated from the Han army and became an aristocratic sport during the Cao Wei period.

Cao Zhi wrote in his poem "Famous Cities": "They swiftly and skillfully strike the ball on the ground, their movements nimble and ingenious."

We currently have over 20,000 warhorses at our disposal, and since they're just sitting idle anyway, we might as well use them to train the soldiers' horsemanship and combat skills.

Liu Daogui also specially set up prizes. In addition to money and food, the winning team also received military equipment such as armor, horse spears, and long swords for killing horses.

This type of lance was not standard equipment used by ordinary soldiers. Instead, it was made by repeatedly soaking mulberry wood in oil, drying it in the shade, and then wrapping it with glue and hemp rope. It was equipped with an eight-sided armor-piercing blade that had been hammered and refined over time. It was eighteen feet long and weighed nineteen pounds.

It takes up to three years to make, with a success rate of only 40%. It is expensive, complex, and can only be used by people who are strong and brave.

The long sword for cutting down horses was also an improvement made by the ironworks.

It is a weapon specifically designed to counter cavalry. It weighs around 15 jin (approximately 7.5 catties), with a blade length of four chi (approximately 1.6 meters) and a handle length of three chi (approximately 1.6 meters). It is about the same height as the average soldier and can be used by infantry, cavalry, and naval forces.

This type of knife was improved from the horse-slaying sword of the Han Dynasty.

The Book of Han records that Wang Mang sent Wu to defeat Dong Zhong by beheading a horse.

There are records of warhorses defeating cavalry during the Xin Dynasty.

The traditional ring-pommel sword had a short blade, which was fine for dealing with unarmored enemy troops, but its effectiveness was greatly reduced when dealing with the heavily armored cavalry of the Hu people, and it was also prone to breaking.

This type of horse-slaying sword is powerful and heavy. When used by infantry in conjunction with crossbows, it can inflict greater casualties on the nomadic cavalry.

It was nominally a competition, but in reality, it was a major training exercise.

Soldiers value honor above all else. The Tiger Guard includes soldiers from the Western and Northern armies, people from Jin, and also some Xianbei and Xiongnu people.

Normally, brawls would frequently break out, but with these formal competitions, the soldiers were extremely enthusiastic. Sparks flew as soon as they stepped onto the field, and they fought with all their might. After a match, bruises and swollen faces were common, and many had broken limbs.

Liu Daogui had long known their character, so all the participating soldiers wore leather armor and the military doctors prepared it in advance.

Even so, three people were still killed by being trampled by warhorses during the polo match.

The clash between the two cavalry was not much different from a real battle, especially since they were holding ball clubs. At high speed, a single charge could shatter a horse's head...

Despite the deaths, the soldiers' enthusiasm remained undiminished; on the contrary, their tempers flared even more.

Even Liu Yiwu was eager to try.

"Are you really going to go?" Liu Daogui looked his son up and down.

Liu Yiwu raised his head high, "Is this a lie? My son has been learning to ride horses for so many years, he's no worse than them, but he doesn't even dare to try on the racetrack. How will he go to the battlefield and fight against the barbarian cavalry in the future?"

Seeing that he said that, Liu Daogui nodded in agreement.

Liu Yiwu excitedly put on his leather armor, mounted his warhorse, picked up his polo mallet, and with a neigh, joined the cavalry.

As the son of a great general, Liu Yiwu was somewhat restrained by the soldiers on the field and dared not go all out. After a few attempts, he found it boring.

However, Liu Daogui secretly observed that his horsemanship was not bad either; he wielded a five-foot-long ball staff with great skill.

Their strength was no less than that of the veterans.

"This is boring." Liu Yiwu returned dejectedly.

"Since you are so brave, how about I transfer you to the Tiger Cavalry?"

The Tiger-Class Cavalry were the elite of the elite, imitating the linked-horse formation of the Southern Yan. Both riders and horses were clad in iron armor, except that they lacked the iron chains connecting them.

While chained units are formidable on the front lines, they are easily limited by terrain and obstacles, making them less effective than single heavy cavalry units.

In fact, Liu Daogui didn't value heavy cavalry much. The advantage of cavalry lies in long-range raids and flanking attacks. Flexibility and raiding ability are paramount, while everything else is secondary.

Heavy cavalry has too many limitations; when facing heavily armored infantry, they don't necessarily have much of an advantage.

"Thank you, Father!" Liu Yiwu was overjoyed.

"Let me make this clear from the start: you'll start as a lowly soldier and be subject to military law."

He'll be fifteen this year; kids from ordinary families usually join the army around that age.

The Han army was conscripted at the age of fifteen and could not return until they were eighty. The Tiger Guard was not so cruel. After the age of forty, they could retire to the second line and become supply soldiers or garrison soldiers. They retired at the age of fifty-five. If they were injured or disabled, they could retire early and the Zhechongfu would take care of them.

However, according to the current military system, Tiger Guard soldiers have at least 200 acres of land. The higher their military merit and rank, the more land they own. They can have three wives and four concubines at home, and depending on their rank, they can also support up to five slave households and ten lowly households.

The military merit system created by Liu Daogui was actually a way to cultivate a new group of small and medium-sized landowners through military achievements, making them beneficiaries of the Northern Expedition and thus firmly upholding it.

"I'll do anything for my son as long as he can join the army!" Liu Yiwu was fearless and daring.

"Ah Jing, he will be transferred to your command from now on."

Even so, Liu Daogui couldn't really ignore it, so he still asked Liu Huaijing to look after him.

"I accept the order." Liu Huaijing led the beaming Liu Yiwu away.

After a lively and bustling winter, the soldiers were even more energetic and spirited.

At the end of the year, Liu Daogui took out a large number of cattle and sheep to reward his soldiers. Even the soldiers of the various prefectures were able to get dozens of catties of meat and have a prosperous year.

(End of this chapter)