Chapter 51: A Gloomy, Rainy Sky—Perfect for Slaughtering on the Battlefield

The next morning, after several days of clear weather, Long County finally resumed the wintry appearance it should have had, with gloomy, drizzling rain and a biting chill lingering outside.

There was business to attend to outside today.

Therefore, Yun'er woke up early on his own. Knowing that Yun'er would be heading out again in a couple of days, Xinniang kept muttering discontentedly to herself.

Although they were taking the local braves and militia to fish in troubled waters, war was inherently a perilous business, regardless of its scale. Li Fu originally had no wish for Yun'er to go, but Jiang Guang, perhaps suddenly recalling the accidental live capture of Ma Yi during the previous skirmish, felt differently.

He always had a hunch that little Yun'er was a child of great fortune. Since ancient times, sagely monarchs were bound to carry their own auspicious destiny with them, so he proposed bringing Yun'er along.

He suggested that Yun'er could trail at the very rear, while he himself led Le Dan and a score of other men to guard Yun'er's flanks. Should their strength prove unequal to the situation, he could immediately spirit Yun'er away, ensuring absolutely that no harm would befall him.

As wandering knights and bodyguards, Jiang Guang and Le Dan specialized in the protection of their employers, giving Jiang Guang the confidence to make such a guarantee.

As it happened, Yun'er was also curious about how the offline sandbox simulation would play out this time. Furthermore, Yun'er truly regarded those local braves as part of the capital for his future rise.

Quality mattered more in an army than sheer quantity; once the core troops were well-tempered, subsequent expansions based on this foundation would continuously spread that elite martial atmosphere. If the foundation rotted from the start, the rest would merely be scattered sand. They might manage easy victories, but the moment they encountered even slightly difficult battles, the entire formation would collapse.

This was the first time these local braves were venturing out, and the original body of the host had been a deserter, so fear undoubtedly still lingered in their hearts. Thus, Yun'er could not set his mind at ease.

He had to go and keep watch.

Since Yun'er himself wished to go, and Jiang Guang added his persuasions, Li Fu finally nodded in consent.

After breakfast, Yun'er coaxed a smile from his mother before having a maidservant carry him to the entrance of the Li estate, where Li Fu was already waiting.

The militia had already donned their armor. In the front, about a dozen men were equipped with long sabers—the so-called long sabers being pole-mounted weapons weighing close to thirty-odd jin, which, when swung, could genuinely cleave a man in two. Moreover, being long and heavy, they were the bane of cavalry.

The only troublesome aspect was their excessive weight; the physical requirements for wielding them were very strict. Among the fifty or sixty militiamen and squad leaders, only these few were capable of using the long saber.

The rest of the men, much like Uncle Jiang and the others, were equipped with two horizontal sabers hung at their waists—one on each side—along with two close-combat daggers, a longbow, fifty arrows, and a short axe. These constituted the complete armament of all the militia and local braves. One could say that because Li Fu harbored secret rebellious ambitions, their weapons had been provisioned to the absolute maximum specifications permitted by the laws of the Liang State.

However, all of these had been quietly and privately purchased with Li Fu's own funds. In the current Liang State, when troops were levied for the battlefield, infantrymen were basically issued a light cotton-padded tunic along with a notched, dull-bladed horizontal saber, and that was the end of it. If you wanted to survive on the battlefield, you had to buy your own equipment if yours fell short; at any rate, whatever Liang State handed out was simply that meager. Not only were weapons and clothing failing to meet official standards, but military pay had shrunk to the point of being distributed only once every few months.

In some border defense regions, conditions were so rotten that active-duty soldiers were not even issued weapons; they had to rely entirely on wooden sticks, kitchen knives, and stones they picked up themselves. To put it bluntly, they relied on human lives to absorb the blows.

Although their numbers were not large, once everyone was fully arrayed in their gear, a fierce, murderous aura characteristic of seasoned soldiers instantly began to emanate from them at first glance.

Even Yun'er felt his heart skip a beat for a moment—this was what soldiers of this era looked like.

And these were not even veterans of a hundred battles, yet their momentum alone was already somewhat frightening. He could only imagine what an army of veterans tested in countless battles might look like in the future.

"Father, let's set off."

With a nod from Li Fu, Jiang Guang hoisted Yun'er into the carriage. They slipped out quietly through the gates of Long County and rendezvoused with the local braves who had been waiting for some time.

This was Yun'er's second time leaving the city.

Compared to the first time, the area just outside the city gates was now piled high with numerous blocks of wood and stones... and the houses that previously resembled a disaster-stricken slum were all scheduled for complete reconstruction.

In addition, numerous red banners had been strung up nearby, all inscribed with various slogans inciting grand construction efforts. Yun'er had previously even driven up the market price of red cloth on account of this.

However, instances of red cloth being stolen were discovered later on; after all, for those refugees who had only recently settled and possessed no property whatsoever, these strips of red cloth could all be turned into clothing.

That had been an oversight on his part.

Later on, aside from the entrance of Long County where red banners were still hung—since yamen runners frequently passed through there and theft was not a severe problem—the other village-building sites had all their slogans painted directly onto large, flat stones, walls, or wooden boards instead.

Looking around now, everywhere was filled with the vibrant, bustling traces of construction work.

Although the weather today was poor, Pei Guan's engineering teams and their men had long since been out there working. Meanwhile, in specially designated open spaces, massive cauldrons were roaring with fires as a dozen robust women busily prepared provisions.

Soon, these people heard the sound of armor clanking as the militia marched by. The common folk were initially somewhat frightened and instinctively wanted to hide, but upon seeing Li Fu on horseback at the very head of the column, and recognizing the familiar carriage in the middle with Yun'er peering out from it to look around, their fears subsided.

Lord Li and his family were good people, after all, so there was nothing to fear.

"Is Yun'er going out?" From a short distance away, Yun'er saw Uncle Lü waving at him with a good-natured grin.

Just behind Uncle Lü was the place where Pei Guan resided, with a wooden board hanging at the entrance bearing the inscription "Long County General Engineering Bureau"—a playful touch contrived by Yun'er, the characters of which he had even written himself.

"Ah yes, off to suppress bandits," Yun'er replied with a smile, waving back.

Uncle Lü immediately asked, "Does Yun'er want us to pick some men to go along? We've got plenty of strength and can help out a bit."

Lord Li's family were all benevolent people who looked out for the common folk; Uncle Lü did not want anything to happen to them. In his simple heart, he hoped Lord Li's family would live long and prosper, for such a good official was impossible to find nowadays.

Having settled down and caught a glimpse of hope, these refugees truly felt a heartfelt gratitude toward Yun'er's family. Moreover, they had already secretly discussed among themselves that once the large village here was built, they would pool their resources to construct a living shrine, where they would offer incense and make sacrifices during every festival to pray for the safety and peace of Lord Li's family.

As the carriage clattered forward, Yun'er hurriedly waved his hand to tell Uncle Lü not to trouble himself, raising his voice with a smile: "Don't bother, don't bother! My father and I are bringing plenty of men. You all just focus on your work and strive to build your homeland as soon as possible!"

"Understood!" Uncle Lü shouted back heartily.

As the group of militia members slowly marched into the distance, Pei Guan also emerged and watched them go for a long while before suddenly sighing, "Scholar Zhu, I've lived for the better part of my life, yet I've never seen such good people."

They were neither simple, foolish good-samaritans nor tyrants relying purely on coercion and authority; rather, there was a compelling quality about Lord Li and his son that commanded trust.

To live under the rule of such men was truly their great fortune.

Unaware of what Uncle Lü and the others were thinking, Yun'er simply journeyed onward and soon joined up with the local braves. It was worth noting that Deng Qiang was also among the militia.

During this period, he would frequently go down to the foot of Liling Township to train alongside the local braves.

Ever since the brief skirmish with Ma Yi, Deng Qiang seemed to have had his vital acupuncture points miraculously unblocked; he was utterly determined to sink roots among the militia troops.

Although he was the youngest, relying on his tall stature, considerable strength, and fierce temperament, he managed to command the deep respect of the others despite his tender years.

Yun'er had organized the militia units into groups of ten, known as a *shi*, led by a *shizhang*. Five *shi* formed a team of fifty men, led by a *dubo*. Deng Qiang was now the leader of a *shi*, not through any favoritism from Yun'er or Jiang Guang, but entirely by his own capability.

Sitting inside the carriage, Yun'er took a moment to observe Deng Qiang.

He had previously been a haughty youth, but now his facial features had acquired a distinct edge of resilience and sternness, and he even carried a faint aura of bloodshed about him. It seemed Li Bo's eye for talent was truly exceptional; his judgment had been spot-on—Deng Qiang was indeed destined to be a military commander, and perhaps even a lethal executioner on the battlefield.

"Move out!" Seeing that Li Fu had finished consolidating the troops, Yun'er gave the order to resume the march, and this time their pace was much faster.

They pressed on continuously for nearly three days, only for the weather to turn relentlessly foul once more.

The roads in this ancient era were truly atrocious; the ride was already bumpy enough to begin with, and now coupled with the relentless rain, the carriage soon became completely unusable. Li Fu and his entourage had no choice but to abandon the carriage on the main road and tightly wrap Yun'er in a rain cape. However, their destination was close; after marching for another half-day or so, they would plunge directly into the mountains where carriages could no longer go.

"How are you holding up, Yun'er?" Li Fu was hardly faring any better himself. In his youth, he had dabbled in the Six Arts of a Gentleman, but by now he had long since cast those skills aside.

Soaked to the bone and shivering uncontrollably, Li Fu still turned to ask anxiously after Yun'er, who was being carried in Uncle Jiang's arms. Yun'er was also thoroughly chilled, primarily because his entire body was damp and incapable of retaining any warmth.

"I'm all right."

Only then did Li Fu ease his mind slightly and ask Zhang Yu when they would arrive. Zhang Yu had been leading the way, constantly assuring them that it would be very soon, and that they were right upon the encampment of the White Horse Di tribe. Yet he had repeated this claim two or three times already. Li Fu sighed inwardly and fell silent.

Since the White Horse Di had brought along such a massive number of horses, there had to be a place where they stabled and pastured them. The location they had chosen was Guzhen Township. Because Guzhen Township was the settlement closest to the border line separating Liangzhou from the external tribes, it was naturally the ideal spot to hoard their horses.

Hampered by the continuous drizzle, Yun'er's party progressed with agonizing slowness.

Meanwhile, at the camp of the White Horse Di.

They had concealed a vast herd of horses in the mountains near Guzhen Township while their main force had entered the township itself.

The population of Guzhen Township was exceedingly sparse, numbering perhaps only two or three hundred people—inferior even to Liling Township. There was no helping it; being so close to the border between Liangzhou and the foreign tribes, they were invariably the first to suffer from arson, slaughter, and pillage, making normal population growth impossible. Here, there were not even prominent clans like the Zhao family; it was populated entirely by the elderly, the weak, the sick, and the disabled, all numb and dulled like livestock.

The men of the White Horse Di swaggered into the township openly.

The surviving villagers all hid within their homes, not daring to venture out.

At this moment, inside what barely passed for a decent mud-brick house in Guzhen Township, seven or eight men were gathered. They wore black cloth cotton tunics underneath, covered by animal pelts on the outside. Their hair was largely styled into small braids gathered tightly at the back of their heads, or else coiled up directly on top.

All seven or eight of them wore expressions of extreme impatience, and the gloomy, rainy weather only aggravated their irritability!

Suddenly, one of them broke out in frustration: "We sit here discussing day in and day out, yet not a single useful thing ever comes out of it! Two days ago, our scout who was captured managed to run back yesterday through a brush with death. Ma Yi was captured long ago, and now those Liang people and Qiang tribes are conspiring to ambush us and make off with our goods without spending a coin! Things have reached this pass entirely thanks to the brilliant efforts of our White Horse Di chieftain! Today, you must give us an explanation!"

The chieftain of the White Horse Di possessed a weathered, wind-roughened visage, yet his broad facial features were marred by unusually slender, slit-like eyes that made it impossible for anyone to guess what he was thinking.