Chapter 20: The Final Preparations Before Battle

  After several months of time, Ye Jiajun's strength has also been gradually expanded. At this time, Ye Xuan is also confident that at least in Hebei, Ye Xuan does not have to fear anyone.

  However, at this time, the more than 700 new recruits who were recruited also graduated from the new recruit regiment. Among them, a large number of new recruits passed the graduation examination of Ye Jiajun New Recruit Regiment and were assigned to Xuan Yuan Military Camp and Xing Tian Military Camp. However, nearly 100 people did not pass because the training was too difficult, but Ye Jiajun did not abandon these people either.

  Under Ye Xuan's request, he was assigned as an auxiliary soldier under Xiao Su's command. Normally, he was mainly responsible for transporting some supplies or patrolling around the villages controlled by the Ye family army, protecting the villagers who had defected to the Ye family army.

  Of course, these auxiliary soldiers generally do not go to the battlefield unless they encounter some special situations. In addition, although they also need to train during peacetime, the training volume is simply insignificant compared to the Xuan Yuan and Xing Tian military camps. Therefore, their food supply is also much worse than that of the Xuan Yuan and Xing Tian military camps, with only two meals a day.

  However, no one has any complaints. The treatment they receive is hard-won, and the food in Ye's army is not bad either. Even compared to the regular troops of the imperial court, their treatment as auxiliary soldiers is unmatched. They have two meals a day, each with dry rations, and once a week they can even eat meat. Compared to their past lives, this life is almost like flying on cloud nine. So everyone not only has no complaints but also cherishes what they have now, working diligently and honestly.

  Of course, in a team where there are diligent workers, there will also be those who are not. After a month, there were several deserters who did not see the big picture. The Ye family army was not polite to these few deserters and directly drove them and their families out of the territory.

  About a month ago, some soldiers who could not bear the hardships of Ye's military training chose to desert. After that incident, Ye's army was greatly warned by the killing of chickens and monkeys, and new recruits were warned that anyone who dared to desert would be severely punished with military sticks after being caught back. Their families would also be expelled from Hebei, and their future land allocation would be cancelled immediately. This news not only spread widely among new recruits but also among newly arrived civilians, making everyone secretly fearful. The example of the deserters had already been heard in every street and alley in southern Hebei, and no one wanted to lose this opportunity for themselves and their families to survive in a chaotic world.

  At present, all the newly compiled military households have a stable life with food to eat. The territory of Ye's army is constantly opening up wasteland and dividing fields, and mines are being built. It seems that everyone will be able to live a good life soon, so no one dares to imagine what would happen if they hadn't driven them away.

  At home, those who were in the Ye family army also wrote letters to their husbands and children, telling them to practice well and not to become deserters, which would be a shame. It's not just about losing face, but also about causing trouble for the family!

  After thinking about their past lives, many new recruits also felt stifled, for the sake of their families and their own stable happy lives, they too had to persevere.

  Of course, Ye Xuan also knew that a strong pressure policy would not work either. He found a few people with kind faces in each squadron to serve as psychological counselors, listening to the grievances of new recruits when they had nothing to do, and providing some comfort whenever possible. They said nonchalantly: "You young ones can't even hold on, think back to our time... how we..."

  But look at us now, how magnificent we are!

  The new recruits couldn't help but burst out laughing after hearing the veterans' miserable stories, thinking to themselves "so you guys got beaten up too", and their minds became more balanced. Of course, during training, these new recruits also became more diligent, every time they were about to give up, they gritted their teeth and persevered: if those old soldiers could make it through, why couldn't they?!

  During the military training, Ye Xuan often took his own Ye family army out for a stroll. When there was nothing to do, he would go and attack the various gangs in southern Hebei, taking their food to relieve the local people. In the face of the powerful Ye family army, these small bandits had no power to fight back.

  So soon, all the rods from various places heard the name of Ye's army and were frightened. In just a few days, these remaining rods also left Hebei Province with their families, which means that Ye's army had completely controlled the military power in southern Hebei.

  ……

  After dealing with the stick, Ye Xuan's gaze turned to the various strongholds on his own territory...

  Ye Xuan stipulated that each household in the village had to pay three-tenths of their grain every year on time, and also handed over some necessary defensive equipment. The rest of the armed forces were all disbanded and handed over to the Ye family army, in exchange for the protection of the Ye family army.

  Of course, at first, the various Zhuangzi were all opposed to Ye Jiajun's regulation, and among them, 10 large Zhuangzi even joined forces to oppose Ye Xuan. Ye Xuan was not polite and immediately shouted out the slogan "Down with the local tyrants and distribute land" and led the Ye family army to attack these 10 Zhuangzi.

  Because the Ye family army did things that were vastly different from those poles in the past, not only did they not harm the common people, but they also frequently opened their granaries to provide relief. What made the common people most grateful was that they gave them land to farm and did not exploit their labor, and taxes were not extremely high either. The common people all felt grateful and indebted, so the tenants no longer had any interest in sacrificing themselves for their lords.

  It is often the case that Ye's army has just surrounded a village, and as soon as they shout their slogan, the villagers immediately scatter in all directions, and there is little fierce resistance when they attack, after which Ye's army easily takes over the village.

  The rest of the Zhuangzi's big households saw the consequences of violating the Ye family army and were terrified, knowing that although the Ye family army treated the people well, they were not a benevolent ruler, especially Ye Xuan was a ruthless and decisive person. Therefore, they all expressed their willingness to pay taxes on time, disarm themselves, and follow the orders of the Ye family army...

  A month later, when Ye Jiajun's everything was on the right track, Ma Teng also had a move and seemed to be preparing for it. It seems that he is ready to attack Ye Jiajun.

  However, Ye Xuan was not afraid. He concentrated all his forces in Huangzhou County, which is located to the west of Tianlong Fort and to the east of Ma Teng's base. The three places can be said to form a line. If Ma Teng wants to truly occupy southern Hebei, he must first pass through Huangzhou County. And Huangzhou County has become a natural barrier in southern Hebei.

  Ye Xuan's elite troops were stationed here, preparing to meet Ma Teng's challenge. However, what surprised Ye Xuan was that after waiting for half a day, there was no movement from Ma Teng. It wasn't until he finally found out about Ma Teng's movements that Ye Xuan was shocked and angry, stomping his feet and secretly cursing himself as an idiot for setting up a completely useless "Maginot Line"!