Chapter 4 Military System

  He went outside and saw that there were only two people in the courtyard, Zhu Wu and Wang Ping. Lu Qi walked over calmly, and when Wang Ping saw him coming, he immediately laughed and said: "You little devil is so eager to see a woman, if it wasn't for Zhu Wu stopping me, I would have kicked the door open long ago."

  Lu Qi glared at him and laughed: "Kick the door, this time you have to kick the door, I guarantee that you will not have a drop of wine every day."

  "Ah, you little scamp has gone against me!"

  Lu Qi smiled and ignored him, while Zhu Wu calmly said: "Lu Qi, the general has something to attend to, let's return to camp."

  Lu Qi nodded and the three of them walked out. As they did, he glanced back at the house, but the door was already closed and he couldn't see the young woman anymore. He nodded towards the house before turning to leave.

  As he walked out of the house and headed back, Zhu Wu said on the way, "Brother, is it true that you don't want to go back after leaving the army?"

  Lu Qi was taken aback, thought for a moment and nodded: "Yes, it's best not to return to the army in the future. I want to go back and filially support my mother, being an ordinary rich man is enough."

  Zhu Wu nodded and said in a low voice, "It's better if you can't come back. Life in the army is not easy to mix with either. Although we are all officials, the corresponding dangers are even more numerous. We have to smile like slaves when facing our superiors, and we also need to handle relationships well to win people's hearts. The most frightening thing is that the situation is changing rapidly, and if you stand in the wrong position in the official circle in the future, it will be a disaster for your whole family."

  Lu Qi hummed in agreement, but suddenly heard Wang Ping say with a tone of disapproval: "I'm telling you, Old Zhu, don't speak so frighteningly. We may have become officials, but we are still low-ranking military officers. Even if something unexpected happens above us, it won't affect those below. As the saying goes, 'soldiers follow their commanders,' we're just generals leading some soldiers, not big shots guarding a region."

  Zhu Wu said coldly, "Wang Ping, can't you keep your mouth shut for a bit? If Lord Hu and Commander Dui hear what you just said, you'll be in trouble. Remember, Wang Yong is now Commander Dui, so watch what you say."

  Wang Ping's face changed, and he hesitated for a moment before nodding solemnly: "Old Zhu, I know you're kind-hearted, and I'm treating you like brothers by speaking freely. To be honest, I'm reluctant to let Brother Lu go. After cooperating for so many years, things have been going smoothly with Brother Lu around."

  Zhu Wu and Yan Dao said: "I am also reluctant to part with Lu brothers, but people have different ambitions. Lu brothers miss their hometown deeply, and I think it is the right choice for them to return when they are free from worries. Moreover, I believe that even if Lu brothers go back, they will still come back within two years. This is a national affair, and it's not possible to stay away forever."

  Wang Ping nodded and said, "That's true, if there really is a major battle on the border, the army will definitely issue an order to summon him back."

  Lu Qi smiled and said: "Next time I come back, I'll still follow the two brothers to pass the days."

  Wang Ping smiled and said: "You're coming back to join us, but your official rank is two ranks higher than mine. You can't expect to give me orders when you get back."

  Lu Qi smiled and said: "That's natural, I'm back as the commander-in-chief's envoy, dare you defy the order?"

  "You little scamp, you dare to play official jargon with me now. You'd better be careful in the future." Wang Ping said with a smile, and the three of them chatted warmly as they returned to the Left Guard Camp.

  The Left Guard Camp is stationed in the western part of the town, and its main responsibility is to scout out enemy intelligence. It has a strength of 500 men. The Right Guard Camp's main responsibility is to guard the commander-in-chief, also with a strength of 500 men. Both the Left and Right Guard Camps are directly under the command of the commander-in-chief, and their position in the army is above that of the first rank.

  The military system of the Tang Dynasty was 500 soldiers as a battalion, and the number of battalions formed a brigade. The brigade was under the command of the Jiedushi (military governor), with the inner army directly under the Jiedushi and the outer army directly under the deputy Jiedushi.

  For example, the main army led by Lord Hu at this time is the Great Brigade Army, with a total of 20 battalions and more than 10,000 people. The Left Guard Battalion and Right Guard Battalion under Lord Hu's command belong to the directly affiliated elite troops and have the strongest combat effectiveness. The other 18 battalions are also divided into upper and lower battalions. The lower battalion has the weakest combat effectiveness and the simplest equipment. Most of them will be used as laborers and cannon fodder. For example, in a siege war, the soldiers of the lower battalion will have to risk their lives to build the siege road, and defense is also a task of digging trenches.

  The lowest military rank of a general is the commander of a brigade. The higher the military rank of the general, the stronger the combat effectiveness of the troops under his command. Because military supplies and high-quality soldiers are allocated according to the general's military rank, good combat weapons and food are only distributed to the upper camp and the main camp directly under the command of the commander-in-chief. However, as long as it is a brigade army, its commander can only listen to the direct military order from the commander-in-chief.

  The commander of the army can normally directly command two battalions of personal troops, and the army's marching marshal can directly command one battalion of personal troops. The governor can directly command four battalions of personal troops, and the deputy governor is three battalions of direct command personal troops. The so-called "personal troops" refer to the battalions that can follow the commander for a long time. If the governor wants to adjust the military strength under his jurisdiction, normally he can only transfer the battalions outside of Hu's personal troops. This military system was formed through prolonged war and is conducive to strengthening military power, but it also makes the authority of the commanding general extremely heavy.

  The organization within the camp was quite simple, with a main general, a deputy captain, a recording sergeant, a scouting team leader and deputy each one, ten explorers who also served as guards, five squad leaders and deputies who commanded 100 soldiers, the head of the soldiers was the fire chief, ten soldiers formed a fire unit, and the deputy was the lowest military officer.

  Lu Qi returned to the camp and slipped into his own quarters, closing the door carefully before taking out the precious pearl. As he gazed at the Moonlight Pearl in his hand, his heart couldn't help but skip a beat - this was a treasure worth a fortune! If he were to sell it, it would be worth at least several tens of thousands of silver coins. Lu Qi knew exactly what that meant. His eyes greedily fixed on the pearl for a while before he carefully wrapped it in a piece of cloth and hid it close to his body.

  The sound of horseshoes, Lu Qi rode alone, wearing a military officer's armor, with a long knife hanging from his waist, and a dusty face that seemed to be longing for home. It had been five years since he left home, and five years ago he was just seventeen years old. The Tang Dynasty government, in order to solidify its rule, had always implemented the policy of maintaining a strong military through the fu bing system and recruitment system. When the Yue Kingdom invaded the Tang Dynasty on a large scale, Lu Qi was inevitably conscripted into the army.

  This soldier has been in the army for over five years, relying on his father's oral teachings and martial arts experience to survive more than a hundred battles. He was given the opportunity to make a name for himself and finally left the military, returning home with honor. He is no longer an ordinary civilian, but a dignified official.

  Bang! Bang! The sound of gongs and drums, Lu Qi suddenly reined in his horse, just as he was about to enter the borders of his hometown, only to be confronted with trouble. As the last beat fell, dozens of men wielding clubs poured out from both sides of the road.

  Almost all of these people were shabbily dressed, and most of them held wooden sticks and kitchen knives. They made a loud noise and blocked Lu Qi's way.

  Lu Qi knew that these were all extremely poor and turbulent people, the Tang Dynasty court was weak and incompetent, humbly and humiliatingly seeking peace and surrender to the Zhou Dynasty in Jiangbei, and on top of that, corrupt and greedy officials, large landowners took advantage of their power to swallow up the land of ordinary people, who could not make a living and rebelled one after another. Lu Qi's father was disabled and retired from the army, deeply resentful of the Tang Dynasty court's inability to thrive, extremely disappointed and died of depression at the age of 75, so Lu Qi had hated the Tang Dynasty court since childhood and did not want to die for it in his bones.

  "Hand over your silver and leave the horse behind, I'll let you live." A tall and sturdy man shouted loudly while wielding a large stick.

  Lu Qi gave the man a cold glance, he had fifty taels of gold and one hundred and ten taels of silver on him, as well as a precious pearl. The gold and silver were all earned by risking his life, this time when he returned to his hometown, he had great use for them, how could he casually give them away? He couldn't afford to be generous either.

  The long sword came out of its scabbard, and the tip of the blade pointed at the man who was speaking, saying coldly: "Listen, I am also a native of Shizhen County, I don't want to harm you, let us pass."

  A bloody and sharp aura spread out, the rioters who blocked the way retreated in fear, the tall and strong man who was pointed by the knife tip was forced to retreat by Lu Qi's killing intent, his expression changed involuntarily.

  A cold snort, Lu Qi rode forward and threw a silver light in a parabolic curve to the ground. It was a piece of silver as heavy as ten taels. The rioters were stunned for a moment, but soon they forgot their fear and rushed towards the silver.