Chapter 6: The Change of the Feathered Forest Cavalry

  Although it was a joke, Zhang Liao did not dare to respond casually, because Liu Xuan's casual mention of the "Dragon Slaying Sword" was too shocking.

  All emperors like to regard themselves as the true dragon son of heaven, and take the dragon as a symbol of the emperor. The source of this is said to date back to the Yellow Emperor period, and was thoroughly developed in the Qin and Han dynasties. It can be said that the name "Dragon Butcher" itself is taboo.

  Liu Xuan would naturally not have thought of this, so the sentence just now was really just a joke. Moreover, his current identity is also very taboo for that Tú Lóng Dāo - after cultivating the heavenly dragon energy, he pays even more attention to such opposing names.

  What's more, the weapon he is currently casting may have unpredictable effects. If a joke really casts a divine sword that can break through his heavenly dragon energy, wouldn't he be making things difficult for himself?

  However, it seems that Zhang Liao's weapon in history is not very famous, and I don't know what kind of weapon Zhang Liao will finally refine.

  Additionally, Liu Xuan's tempering method does not mean that every weapon will be tempered into a special weapon. There is a high probability that there will be no change at all, and it will remain the same as before, only being more solid and sharp than ordinary iron, with nothing else added.

  It's also possible that Zhang Liao doesn't have this kind of luck and in the end only refines a common large knife!

  Liu Xuan felt that these things were completely unnecessary to worry about so much. Although he valued these civil and military officials, it wasn't like he had to manage every single thing they did - after all, he wasn't their father, and even if he was, he wouldn't be so overly controlling.

  Also chatted with Zhang Liao and asked about the current situation of the Feathered Forest Cavalry.

  Since the defeat of Li Jue and Guo Si, the Imperial Army, the Tiger Elite, the Feathered Forest and the Tiger Leopard Riders have all been strengthened - even the Trap Array Camp, which was affiliated with the Tiger Elite, has expanded to 1,000 men.

  Although the expansion does not necessarily represent an increase in combat effectiveness, after all, it also depends on factors such as soldier training, morale and equipment. However, having more soldiers is absolutely a good thing, at least when using people to mobilize, it will be more comfortable.

  In comparison, the Forbidden Army, Hu Bao Army, and Hu Bao Cavalry were several elite troops that Liu Xuan valued most, while the You Lin Cavalry was ordinary.

  Zhang Liao took command of the Youlin Riders, although he didn't achieve any great merit, but because the soldiers of the Youlin Riders, Liu Xuan could see him every day, he was able to observe the changes in this cavalry at close range.

  Cao Cao initially laid a good foundation for this army, and Zhang Liao did not discard the good things, but added his own understanding of cavalry troops on that basis - emphasizing mobility and survival capabilities.

  Zhang Liao's Youlin riders, cavalrymen did not wear heavy armor, but only wore some light armor to protect their vital parts. At the same time, each cavalryman carried a bow and arrow with him, and horseback archery had already become a compulsory subject for the Youlin riders. At the same time, the soldiers of the Youlin riders were not equipped with long spears, but with single-handed knives - this seems to prove that the combat style of the Youlin riders will not be like that of the Hu Bao riders, who charged recklessly without regard for their own lives.

  Liu Xuan saw everything with his own eyes, and he had also discussed these things about the Youlin Riders with Zhang Liao.

  "The bow and arrow are hard to grasp, why not use a crossbow?"

  Liu Xuan didn't have a deep understanding of the weapons used on the battlefield at that time, and he simply made suggestions based on some impressions in his mind. Zhang Liao explained on the spot why bows were used instead of crossbows.

  At that time, the crossbow used by the cavalry was not a large and wide infantry crossbow that required foot assistance to draw the string and shoot arrows, but a very light and portable hand-held crossbow. Although it was light and easy to carry, its power was really not impressive. Even slightly thicker armor couldn't be penetrated.

  Moreover, the range is extremely short, and the weight of the crossbow itself is light. In terms of lethality or range, it is far inferior to bows and arrows, so Zhang Liao chose bows instead of crossbows for the Imperial Guards Cavalry.

  Liu Xuan also considered letting the cavalry use infantry crossbows, as he thought that these soldiers would start practicing later, and even if the infantry crossbow was heavy and difficult to open, it wouldn't be a problem for the soldiers after they had practiced.

  But Zhang Liao soon told him: "The infantry crossbow is bulky and inconvenient for cavalry to carry and use, and there is not enough space on the horse to allow the rider to perform such a cumbersome process of loading the bolt, it's not as convenient and quick as the bow and arrow.

  Liu Xuan listened and only then understood that during this period, due to being constrained by technical issues, many of the ideas in his mind were not feasible. In that case, perhaps he should slightly adjust his plans?

  His plan was to start with a few elite troops and then gradually spread the practice of martial arts to the Imperial Guard, and eventually to the entire national army.

  As for switching from military to civilian, it's simultaneous, just applying some immortal family methods to civilian affairs. At present, only he himself can handle it, and those civil officials need to cultivate as soon as possible to master that pile of techniques.

  These techniques cover multiple aspects, including alchemy and elixir refinement. Even if Liu Xuan starts cultivating now, it won't be something that can be accomplished in a short period of time. Therefore, he can only take it slow. First, focus on military affairs, then wait for the talents under him to mature before starting to focus on civil governance.

  What is the means to increase grain yield, if he has enough subordinates who understand those means, he can immediately promote them to all counties, rather than just waiting slowly near Chang'an for this batch of grains to evolve on their own.

  It seems that a technical 'upgrade' is also necessary, because if this continues, an embarrassing problem will arise: the soldiers become strong enough, but the equipment can't keep up with the speed of the soldiers' 'upgrade', and they can only use unsuitable weapons to fight.

  "But this era is most lacking in technical talent!"

  Liu Xuan racked his brains, but couldn't think of any other talented individuals who were good at research. The only one he could think of was the future Prime Minister of Shu, Zhuge Liang, but that Zhuge Liang was still just a young kid and probably hadn't learned anything yet. Even if he found him, what use would it be?

  "Or cultivate it yourself?"

  He shook his head, isn't he cultivating talent now? However, when the imperial court is also worthy of using people, the talents who govern various places are not enough to use, where do they have time to specially cultivate this kind of talent?

  Many things were not as he had wished, and the difference between them was too great, so he simply did not participate, but quietly observed how Zhang Liao trained the Youlin riders, and also got to know about various aspects of things during this period.

  Of course, Liu Xuan would occasionally bring up some advanced things to satisfy his sense of superiority as a "Chu Zu", such as the kite tactics that swept across various countries in Eurasia, which he mentioned to Zhang Liao.

  "This tactic is nothing unusual, but I've never seen it used on such a large scale before..."

  Most northern nomadic tribes have a good horseback riding and shooting technique, so Zhang Liao had seen those grassland people use similar tactics to deal with them when he was in Pingzhou - but at that time, those barbarians were the minority, they instinctively thought it was a trick used by them under disadvantage. But today, as soon as he said this, he suddenly imagined what if a large cavalry uses this tactic...

  A rain of arrows is coming down from the sky, when I chase after them they turn around and run away, then as soon as I slow down there are large patches of arrow rain falling again...

  His whole body trembled, Zhang Liao realized that this tactic of only taking a beating without being able to fight back was terrifying. If you want to fight like this, you need to have a thick enough face, because it's really shameless.

  He stole a glance at the Son of Heaven, and was puzzled as to how the Emperor could have thought of such a shameless tactic. However, he couldn't help but admire the Emperor, for if this shameless tactic could be executed, then with enough space, it would be an invincible existence.

  However, the problem to be solved is not non-existent - first of all, archers are a type of soldier that is more difficult to cultivate in the army, and this method of warfare requires one more thing from soldiers, which is that they must also understand how to shoot while riding horses.

  Shooting arrows while riding a horse is vastly different from shooting on the ground, requiring much higher standards from soldiers, not only in archery skills but also in horsemanship.

  Fortunately, Liu Xuan came up with another 'invention', explaining the principle of stirrups, and Zhang Liao's eyes lit up immediately. He keenly realized that if this thing were to be made, not only would the power of cavalry be greatly enhanced, but also the requirements for ordinary soldiers to become cavalrymen would be significantly reduced.

  After saying all these things, Liu Xuan also secretly thought to himself: "Making glass, brewing wine and whatnot are not necessary for me to do, but this stirrup and 'kite tactics' have been figured out, it's not a waste of my trip to the Han Dynasty."

  Thanks to Liu Xuan's suggestions, the Feathered Forest Cavalry has undergone some changes - their armor is now lighter, with only a few vital spots covered except for the helmet. The design is basically a chest guard in front and a slightly larger piece of armor on the back, with each cavalryman's helmet adorned with a feather to signify their identity.

  Apart from the long sword at their waist, all the loads of each cavalryman's warhorse were used to carry arrows. However, according to Zhang Liao, this kind of Imperial Guard cavalry was not capable of going out for battles because they could not carry food. If the Imperial Guard cavalry really wanted to form a combat force, they would need at least twice or even three times as many horses as soldiers, specifically for carrying rations and water.

  Because of the combat method of the Youlin Cavalry, they were destined to not have a logistics supply team, and they could not burn, kill, and plunder like the barbarians unless they were deeply invading another country.

  When Liu Xuan took out the formula that enhanced the war horse's ability to carry heavy loads, Zhang Liao felt that these issues were not a problem at all.

  However, Liu Xuan was still dissatisfied because he felt that although the Youlin Cavalry had gained combat effectiveness, their appearance...

  "The Imperial Guards are the elite troops of the Great Han, their appearance absolutely cannot be too shabby. Looking at them now...” Liu Xuan gazed at these soldiers who were dressed even worse than the 'Bronze Saints', his heart filled with dissatisfaction. No matter what, he had to get new uniforms for the Imperial Guards."