Chapter 205 Military Building [Small Zhechong Mansion]
When the nobles below heard Su Ze's idea of Zhechoufu, their eyes lit up.
A Zhechoufu with 300 people is just the right size for a brigade. If there is someone to lead the daily training, it will be more than enough to carry out the tasks of suppressing bandits and defending the nearby areas.
But these are not important. What is important is the position that Su Ze offered.
The commander of the Zhechou Brigade was a military position, and the Zhechou Sima was an official in the county magistrate's office. These were not worth mentioning to a noble family with the surname Jia like the Longxi Li, but they were still very attractive to many small families.
Moreover, Su Ze not only offered military positions, he also promised to offer officials under the General Anxi's office to promote and reward brigade commanders who performed well.
Now Su Ze, the General of Anxi, has ten top officials in the imperial court under his command, but only three of them have been appointed: Su Cho, Hou Jing and Murong Shaozong.
In addition, Su Ze also has the power to command the military affairs of Hezhou and Liangzhou, and control the power of Longxi County. He can appoint one or two local officials if he wants.
This is the rising channel!
Seeing that the long-blocked upward channel was opened again, the powerful people in Longxi County were very excited.
It’s always better to have a goal than to have no way at all!
However, everyone still had many questions about Zhechong Mansion. The many nobles discussed for a long time, and finally asked Didao County Magistrate Li Kuo to come out and ask:
"General Su, how many Zhechoufu should be set up in Longxi County?"
Su Ze raised his finger and said:
"There are many bandits in Longxi County. I plan to set up thirty Zhechoufu."
There are 300 people in one government office, and 30 people is 9,000 people. This number is actually similar to the number of soldiers sent by the wealthy families in Longxi County now.
Li Kuo asked again: "What are the duties of the Zhechong Mansion?"
Su Ze said: "In the free time, we train the soldiers. In the busy farming season, we go back to our hometowns to help with farm work. If we encounter bandits nearby, we send troops to suppress them."
Finally, Su Ze said, "In times of war, the commander of the brigade will lead the troops to join the army."
Everyone nodded. This made sense. It was much better than gathering together near Didao. They could go home to help during the busy farming season.
Li Kuo was the magistrate of Didao County. He asked about civil affairs:
"May I ask General Su, does this Zhechoufu have the responsibility to govern the people?"
Su Liang also looked at Su Ze, waiting for his answer.
Su Ze said: "Of course not. Zhechoufu is a military government and does not take care of civil affairs. The Zhechou Sima is only responsible for conscription and logistics, not local affairs."
Su Liang nodded slightly. Civil affairs are the foundation of the court. If Su Ze touches the power of local officials, he will naturally be impeached.
But if they just set up a military office and arranged a few military posts, county magistrates like Li Kuo would not say much, and this would also reduce their burden on local defense.
Everyone reached a consensus on the general direction. After Li Kuo sat down, others began to ask about the details.
A noble family asked, "Where did the weapons and horses of Zhechongfu come from?"
Su Ze said: "Zhechongfu has set up a blacksmith shop and an armory. Weapons are provided by ourselves, but they need to meet the standard requirements of regular soldiers. If they do not meet the standards, they can be remade in the blacksmith shop in Zhechongfu."
"Among the thirty Zhechongfu, ten will be cavalry Zhechongfu. I will provide them with war horses, and the remaining Zhechongfu can provide their own war horses."
"The armor is sealed in the state capital's treasury. They are only armed when they go out to fight. The Zhechong Mansion only has leather armor."
Su Liang nodded. Su Ze’s plan was very thorough.
These powerful children already have weapons, and Su Ze’s requirement is to unify the standards, which is also a reasonable requirement, and he also provides blacksmith shop modifications.
There were thirty Zhechou Prefectures, ten of which were supplied with war horses by Su Ze, which meant that among the nine thousand Zhechou soldiers, three thousand cavalry and six thousand infantry were divided into training.
Not providing armor is to prevent the commander of the Zhechou Brigade from forming a rebellious separatist force. In fact, as long as the local civil power is separated, the Zhechou Mansion will not be able to secede.
In fact, this Zhechoufu is not a new idea.
Su Liang was reminded of the "County and State Commandant" of the Western Han Dynasty, which was actually such a system.
The Western Han Dynasty was more powerful than the Eastern Han Dynasty, and one of the reasons for this was the provincial and county military system.
The good families in the prefectures and counties of the Western Han Dynasty, under the leadership of the county and state commanders, practiced martial arts during the slack farming season, went back to farm during the busy farming season, and went to the front lines with their weapons and horses when the court needed to fight the Huns.
Su Ze's Zhechoufu was to transfer the good family boys who were concentrated in the prefectures and counties for training to the Zhechoufu. The advantage of this was that the Zhechoufu with 300 people would not form separatist regimes like the prefecture and county military system.
And these local armies composed of good families will definitely be more powerful than the current militia after sufficient training.
Moreover, Su Ze used military merit as bait to grant official positions, which made these powerful people in Longxi County more willing to work for him.
The more Su Liang thought about it, the more wonderful it seemed to him. Was it really as his brother Su Chao had said, that Su Ze's talent was a gift from heaven?
Otherwise, how could a humble boy from the Yulin family have such superb political skills?
It can be said that everyone enjoyed the meal very much. Su Ze reached an agreement on the spot with the wealthy families participating in the banquet, that each family would contribute manpower and food to raise funds for the construction of Zhechou Mansion.
When the banquet was over, Su Ze took Su Liang's hand and said:
"Jingshun, I have built a Zhechong Mansion near Didao. Will you come with me to take a look tomorrow?"
In fact, Su Liang was not planning to leave. He wanted to stay and observe Su Ze.
After all, his younger brother Su Chao has already served under Su Ze, so Su Liang certainly needs to continue to consider it.
The next day, Su Ze, surrounded by his personal guards, rode out of Didao City on horseback and came to a valley not far from Didao City.
This is the Zhechou Mansion that Su Ze built years ago.
[Zhechong Mansion] is a newly unlocked building in the system after Su Ze defeated Mozhe Dam and took control of Longxi County.
[Small Zhechongfu in Longxi County]
Building Type: Military Building;
Level: Small (300 people);
Purpose: Zhechoufu, a special military building for gathering troops in wartime and training in the slack season. A small Zhechoufu can appoint one [Zhechou Brigade Commander] and one [Zhechou Sima].
Building requirements: [Small Parade Ground], [Small Shooting Range], [Small Horse Farm] (optional), [Small Arsenal], [Small Granary]
Building function:
1. Entrusted training: Instructors can be set up in various military buildings to train relevant arms.
2. Entrust small military missions to carry out simple military tasks such as bandit suppression, vigilance, patrol, etc.
3. Conscription can be carried out on an emergency basis during combat periods.
This building was the basis for Su Ze to establish Zhechoufu in Longxi.
As long as a Zhechofu is established in Longxi County, Su Ze can use the system construction to master the training situation of these local Zhechofu, and then lead them to Qinzhou after the spring plowing.
The Zhechou Mansion that Su Liang saw was a thriving scene. Soldiers were training on the parade ground, and the laws in the Zhechou Mansion were strict.
Although Su Liang had never led soldiers, he knew that on the battlefield, soldiers who could obey orders were good soldiers.
In order for soldiers to obey orders, long-term training is required, and collective life together can also enhance the coordination of collective combat.
It was free training time. Su Ze brought Su Liang into the barracks and saw an old soldier with white hair and beard, standing straight and explaining what was happening on the battlefield.
"On the battlefield, the most important thing is to look at the flag. Look at your own flag clearly and follow your own team. That's half the battle."
The recruits didn't take it seriously. It was just following the team. What was so difficult about that?
The old soldier didn't say much. Soldiers who had never been to the battlefield naturally couldn't imagine what it was like. If they listened to the experiences passed down by these old soldiers, they might be able to survive on the battlefield. If they didn't listen, they would die, and there was no need to listen again.
The veteran continued, "On the battlefield, you must trust your comrades."
The old soldier raised a shield and said to the crowd, "If the cavalry charges, the horse hooker must believe that the shieldman in front of you will not retreat. You must use the hook when you can reach the horse's hoof to cut off the hoof."
The veteran added: "The spearmen must trust that their comrades can hook the horse's hooves, predict the enemy's fall from the horse, and use the spear to attack the fallen rider."
At this time, a new soldier said, "What if the shieldman can't stop him?"
The old soldier said: "On the battlefield, swords have no eyes. If the shieldman can't stop it, then go to the ground and ask him why he can't stop it."
"Hahaha."
Everyone burst into laughter.
The old soldier added: "We old soldiers like to kill those panicked recruits the most. Even if they are cowards, it is better to stay together than to run around alone."
The old soldier sighed and said, "I was told these principles by the old soldiers back then, but I didn't listen at the time. It was only after I learned the lessons on the battlefield that I finally understood these tricks."
The old soldier ripped open his clothes, revealing a wound across his waist and abdomen, and said:
"This is the lesson I learned from that battle. Every time I go to the battlefield, I will remember this scar."
When the new recruits saw such horrific scars, they all became serious. Nothing is more convincing than a veteran's scars. Scars are the veteran's most glorious medal of military honor.
The old soldier said, "I will repeat these principles over and over again. Now you must practice the battle formation, recognize the flags, and distinguish the drums and bells for advancing and retreating."
"It's better to practice more now than to lose your life on the battlefield."
At this time, the drum sounded again to gather the troops. The old soldier took the lead and stood up, and everyone followed him onto the parade ground.
At first, Su Liang was wondering why Su Ze allowed this old soldier to stay in the army.
Only after he heard the old soldier's words did he understand Su Ze's intention.
Veterans are the roots of a team. These veterans can pass on the spirit and characteristics of an army in the military.
Su Ze did not simply establish Zhechoufu, but also spread his own soldiers in these Zhechoufu, and trained more troops by having veterans lead new recruits.
Although the ultimate transformation of a soldier still requires experiencing the blood and fire of the battlefield, the system of Zhechoufu can reduce the bloodshed of soldiers on the battlefield and allow new recruits to transform into battlefield veterans more quickly.
Su Liang couldn't help but think, if such a Zhechofu was established in the entire Longxi area, if such a Zhechofu was established in the entire Guanzhong area.
Then how strong will Su Ze’s combat power be?
Su Ze looked towards the training ground. The [old Bai Li soldier] was training very hard, and the new recruits around him were also training with him in a very serious manner.
After checking the training progress of the parade ground, it turned out that the training progress of the entire parade ground was accelerated after the arrangement of the [Old Bai Li Soldiers].
Not only the veterans generated by the system, Su Ze also assigned some of the backbones with outstanding performance in his army to Zhechongfu. These veterans can also speed up the training speed in the parade ground.
Su Liang accompanied Su Ze to visit Zhechong Mansion. This military mansion with only 300 people was well organized.
Barracks, granaries, arsenals, although small, have everything you need.
Su Liang had already seen Su Ze's ability to command troops. When he left Zhechong Mansion, Su Liang said sincerely:
"General Su has such a skill in training troops, so why worry about unrest in Guanzhong?"
Su Ze said to Su Liang affectionately: "Jingshun, are you willing to stay with me and take care of the logistics of Zhechong Mansion?"
Su Liang looked at Su Ze in surprise. He didn't expect the other party to offer such chips right at the start.
Su Ze did not give an official title, and the job obviously came without a job title.
Now Su Ze is only an Anxi general, and he does not have many positions available. If he rashly gives them to an outsider like Su Liang, it will definitely cause others to hate the Su brothers.
Moreover, Su Liang has already been appointed as an official under Xiao Baoyin. If he accepts Su Ze's military position, he will be criticized.
However, Su Ze did not offer such a position, but instead offered a position in charge of the logistics of the Zhechongfu.
Zhechoufu was set up temporarily by Su Ze and had no rank, so the official in charge of Zhechoufu's logistics naturally had no rank either.
But this position is very important, and with the formalization of the Su Ze Zhechongfu system in the future, the value of this position will further increase.
Su Ze handed over such an important position to Su Liang, which showed his trust in his ability and also his trust in their brothers.
Su Liang thought again about how he was treated by Xiao Baoyin and made a decision right then and there.
"I will do my best to fulfill the general's trust."
Su Ze laughed loudly and said, "Emperor Chang said that the Su brothers have one dragon and one tiger. Today I have both the dragon and the tiger. The matter of Guanzhong is settled!"
On the same day, after returning to Didao City, Su Ze set up a Zhecho Cao under the military government and appointed Su Liang as the secretary, responsible for the construction of thirty Zhecho Caos in Longxi County.
This is when Su Liang's ability was revealed. He picked up the map and quickly divided it into thirty areas for Su Ze.
Seeing these crooked areas, Su Liang explained:
"The general has built the Zhechong Mansion. This is a public property and cannot fall into the hands of local nobles."
"So there can't be one dominant faction in Zhechong Mansion. We must have a mixed management system."
"My idea is that if a household sends out 100 soldiers, we should split them up so that they cannot dominate in one Zhechoufu."
"If we can mix Qiang and Han people in Zhechong Prefecture, and mix the wealthy and powerful people with the three long villages, there will be no chaos."
After listening to this, Su Ze was even more satisfied with Su Liang.
This is the importance of local scholars. Although Su Liang is not from Longxi County, he is from Guanzhong and has some connections with the families in Longxi.
Only locals can sort out the complicated relationships between these families and tribes, and work out such a complex and balanced plan so that no one dominant force will emerge in a Zhechoufu.
Next, Su Liang personally visited various places in Longxi to determine the location of the Zhechofu, transport supplies, allocate craftsmen, and summon local powerful people and the three leaders to discuss the number of troops. In less than a month, most of the thirty Zhechofu had been prepared!
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In February, Princess Nanyang's carriage entered Huayin, the capital of Huazhou.
(End of this chapter)