Chapter 9: The Enthusiastic People of Baoding

  When Zhou Huachen brought back more than 300,000 taels of silver and over a thousand war horses to the capital's large camp, some bad news arrived.

  The Songshan that had been besieged by the Qing army for a long time was lost, and the governor Qu Minyang and the general officers Cao Bianjiao, Wang Tingchen, etc. all died. The news at this time was that Hong Chengchou had already sacrificed himself to the country.

  However, Zhou Dacheng knew that Hong Chengchou had surrendered and had already defected to the Qing. Later during the Southern Ming period, Hong Chengchou made great efforts to stabilize Jiangnan for the ruling class of the Qing and calm down the scholar-officials. The Chongzhen Emperor and his courtiers were all in a state of confusion, thinking that Hong Chengchou would surely die, believing too much in his so-called integrity. Due to Hong Chengchou's death, the Chongzhen Emperor was extremely grieved and suspended court for three days, with a grand funeral ceremony held according to the rules for princes and marquises, with sixteen altars set up on the seventh day. On May 10th, he personally attended the funeral and wrote "Mourning Hong Chengchou" to make it known throughout the country. When the ninth altar was reached, news arrived that Hong Chengchou had surrendered to the Qing, and the imperial sacrifice was stopped.

  After that, it was Zu Dashou's turn. Zhou Chongshi was very clear about these historical events. With the second surrender of Zu Dashou, the commander of Jinzhou, to the Qing dynasty, Tashan and Xingshan would also fall into the hands of the Qing army one after another. The Ming army's Jin-Ning defense line had actually ceased to exist, and Jian Nu's Liaodong military plan had been successful.

  This is Zhou Huchen's motivation. The wheel of history rolls on, carrying the heavily burdened Zhou Huchen into action once again.

  In the fifteenth year of Chongzhen, at the end of March, Zhou Yuji completed the recruitment documents and set off from Beijing again with Mo Xiancheng, a participant in the Imperial Guard. He brought 100,000 taels of silver and 200 cavalrymen to Baoding Prefecture.

  Baoding Prefecture is only over 200 li away from the capital, and for cavalry, this distance can be covered in just five or six days.

  In the season of spring warmth and blooming flowers, Zhou Huchen and Mo Xiancheng arrived at Baoding Prefecture City together.

  Although it's only a few dozen miles away from his hometown of Lai County, Mo Xiancheng cannot return home for the time being. He needs to submit the recruitment documents in Baoding Prefecture. Zhou Huchen is now a commoner and cannot take over this task. Mo Xiancheng must complete the preliminary work of recruiting soldiers.

  The recruitment documents were submitted smoothly, and the prefect of Baoding did not dare to take the lead. Now that national affairs are so difficult, it is no different from sending charcoal in the snow for someone to come to Baoding Prefecture to recruit soldiers, which can effectively alleviate some of the pressure on people's livelihoods for him and for the local area.

  When Zhou Huchen and Mo Xiancheng set up their formation outside Baoding City, recruiting soldiers and posting notices had just been posted, but before they reached the nearby county town, the drill ground south of Baoding Prefecture was already crowded with people. These sturdy young men from Baoding Prefecture were blinded by the generous terms: ten taels of silver for settling down, a guaranteed monthly allowance of two taels of silver, and food and clothing provided daily. At this time of disaster and famine, this was enough to make the vast majority of people reckless.

  Good men don't become soldiers, good steel doesn't make nails!

  The recruitment work went unexpectedly smoothly, and although he was prepared, it still surprised Zhou Huchen.

  The climate is warming, but now it's the season of sparse harvests. With years of disasters and famines, almost every household is short of food. This unexpected recruitment has revealed the severe impact of the disaster on the ordinary people's survival.

  Since Chongzhen took the throne, the disaster-stricken area has been expanding, and northern Zhili has also suffered from continuous drought. In these two years, rivers have dried up, crops have withered, and although it hasn't reached the point of cannibalism, Baoding Prefecture has still been in a severe drought and famine zone for several years.

  In just a few days, this small school ground has become a sea of people. The requirements for recruitment are not high, with an age range of 16 to 26 years old, as long as you have a household registration as proof, your place of origin is unlimited, and you can prove that you are a good citizen. People from surrounding counties, towns, and villages seem to be rushing here, making the recruitment successful even before it officially starts. The defending officer of Baoding Prefecture, surnamed Chen, had met Zhou Yujie once before, although they didn't have a particularly close relationship, but after all, he was an acquaintance. Seeing this situation, Chen immediately dispatched 200 soldiers to help Zhou Huchen maintain order.

  So many people came to respond, which was unexpected by Zhou Huchen, and it seemed that this was not all, those who were slightly farther away should still be rushing here.

  The recruitment work was originally scheduled to start on April 9, but due to the chaos at the scene, it had to be brought forward to April 5. The scene was too chaotic, with not only young men coming to join the army, but also their family members and onlookers, making the recruitment site a mess. There were too many people, and eating, drinking, and sanitation became major issues, putting great pressure on both the recruits and the soldiers maintaining order, forcing Zhou Huchen to start his recruitment work ahead of schedule.

  The sun had just risen when a house servant came out and began shouting loudly: "Be quiet! Everyone be quiet!"

  However, the scene was too chaotic, and nothing could be heard in the hubbub. Under helplessness, a soldier from the school grounds rushed over with a large bronze gong, and as the loud sound of the gong rang out, the scene finally quieted down slightly.

  Zhou Huchen jumped onto a table, stretched out his hand and shouted loudly: "Who can ride a horse!? As long as you meet the requirements, you can become a cavalryman! High monthly salary, five taels of silver per month, and food is guaranteed! Those who can ride horses go to the right side to sign up!"

  I will... I will...!

  It seemed that many people knew how to ride horses, and this treatment was simply crazy. As soon as Zhou Huchen's voice fell, those who claimed they could ride horses swarmed in the direction he specified. When the recruitment work really started, Zhou Huchen realized that he had made a terrible mistake.

  His subordinates were originally few who could read and write, and those household registrations were simply unrecognizable. As for conducting written registration, it was even more impossible. Zhou Huchen finally realized that although there were too many people coming to participate in the recruitment, with some unexpected reasons, he was still too inexperienced, and this time the organization and preparation work of the recruitment had not been done well. After Zhou Huchen made some promises, a small official on the drill ground called for several literate people to help, but there were too many applicants, which was simply ineffective.

  Then, the small official of that school grounds accepted another task and hurriedly rushed towards the city of Baoding Prefecture.

  The recruitment of infantrymen continued, and it can be said that it was chaotic. As for efficiency, there is no need to say anything, which would make Zhou Huchen despair.

  Slow down a bit! Zhou Huchen, who had been feeling a headache for some time, finally couldn't bear it and turned to leave.

  "Mount up! Let's go!" A soldier brought by Zhou Huachen commanded the people participating in the cavalry assessment. Several war horses were undergoing assessments at the same time, and the Zhou family's servants and soldiers were closely watching those mounting their horses. They weren't looking to see if you could mount the horse, but rather your skills after mounting it. Those who only knew how to ride a horse but lost control of it once they started running were completely unqualified. Cavalry is a type of soldier that requires bravery and riding skills, its requirements are very strict, and not just anyone can become a qualified cavalryman.

  When warhorses really run, people will constantly be thrown off the horse. This is a real warhorse with extremely fast acceleration. People who don't ride horses often can't control them smoothly. Warhorses are the most violent breed of horse. If someone makes them feel uncomfortable, they will play some tricks and it's easy to throw that person off the horse. That's the standard - a qualified cavalryman must be able to control the warhorse under him, but people who meet this requirement have only reached the first step. The subsequent combat training is the most important part.

  Ten are not stored in one, this is the assessment of cavalry, the requirements are too high, because riding a horse and cavalry are fundamentally not the same concept.