Chapter Twelve: The Journey

  In the 26th year of Zhengde, a military mutiny broke out in Qingyang, with internal chaos and external pressure from the Western Xia army. The situation was urgent.

  History of Qin

  No matter what the big shots in Beijing were thinking or doing, Zhao Shi had already set out on the road to Qingyang. This road was not scenic at all, with a long line of horse-drawn carts and pushcarts carrying military supplies and equipment winding along the muddy path. The melted snow mixed with mud made people suffer, and after several days, the new uniforms they had just received were stained with sweat and mud. The slow pace was unbearable for Zhao Shi, who valued speed and precision in his past life.

  This was the sixteenth day since he and the people from Zhaojia Village left the village. It took them three days to arrive in Pingliang, where they would complete their reorganization and training. In Zhao Shi's opinion, he and his men were just a group of migrant workers who could not be spared from hard labor. Everyone was given a knife, which was more like an iron bar than a knife, with most of them having rusty spots on the surface, looking like they would break easily. However, the one in Zhao Shi's hand was a real broadsword, given to him by County Magistrate before they left. As someone who loved knives, Zhao Shi naturally accepted it without hesitation. The broadsword looked similar to a Japanese katana from a past life but was slightly shorter, probably due to insufficient craftsmanship. However, it was much wider than a Japanese sword. Although Zhao Shi had heard of the fame of Tang Dynasty swords, he had never seen one before. Now, he finally saw the real thing. The blade was straight and flat, unlike Japanese swords which were slightly curved, making it more suitable for chopping. The edge of the blade shone with a cold light, extremely sharp. Although it couldn't compare to his tiger-tooth sword in terms of quality, it still made Zhao Shi love it so much that he didn't want to part with it.

  They are now organized into the third battalion of the fifth team of the Western Qin Army, with a system similar to that of the Tang Dynasty. Every ten people form a partnership, with one partner leader, every five partnerships form a team, with one team leader, and every two teams form a brigade, with one brigade commander. Two brigades form a regiment, led by a school lieutenant. Only at this level can they be considered to have entered the ranks of real officials. Above that are the upper, middle, and lower three departments, each consisting of several regiments, depending on the situation, with the chief official being the metropolitan governor. However, the Western Qin Army system also differs from that of the Tang Dynasty. The main strength of the Tang army was the Fubing, or territorial militia, while the other was the Bianjun, or border army, under the jurisdiction of the various frontier prefectures and garrisons. After the An Lushan Rebellion, the Fubing system declined to the point where the court had no reliable troops to use, so they had to grant large fiefs to the jiedushi, or military governors, who became increasingly autonomous. Therefore, the Western Qin Army system also underwent changes. One part of the Fubing had already become a professional standing army, detached from production, while another part consisted of able-bodied men recruited on a temporary basis, who were civilians in peacetime and soldiers in wartime. The various frontier prefectures only had enough grain for half a year, so if there was a war, most of the grain, fodder, and military equipment would be supplied by the standing army, which also served as a reserve force for the frontier prefectures and could act as a check on them.

  Zhao Shi now belongs to the temporary recruitment of the Forbidden Army, but his position as a team leader has already allowed him to enter the regular Forbidden Army ranks. He has 50 people under his command, and other team leaders are all transferred from the regular Forbidden Army. As for this child taking on the role of team leader, some people naturally don't think he's up to it. However, firstly, everyone was temporarily gathered together and didn't know each other well, so they weren't clear about his background. Secondly, most of the people in his team were from Zhaojia Village, and the villagers were all related to each other, able to stick together as one. Even if some young people felt uncomfortable, it's better to have one of their own as team leader than to let an outsider with no connection to them take charge. Lastly, there were also those old soldiers who came from the regular Forbidden Army. These men were already very dissatisfied with being sent to the Grain Protection Army, and they looked down on the power struggles here, so naturally they wouldn't come looking for trouble with a child.

  A lot of useful information was obtained by him, at this time many place names inside the pass were different from those in later generations, and it was impossible to know what they meant. But when he heard the names of Western Xia and Jurchen, everything became clear. The Western Xia was established by the Tang Dynasty's attached Tubo Qiang people, founded during Li Yuanhao's time, after experiencing the Khitan and Jurchen-established countries, it was finally destroyed by the Mongols, which is unmistakable. But what made Zhao Shi puzzled and cry laughingly was how a Western Qin suddenly appeared in between. The names of Later Zhou, Shu Han, and Southern Tang were also heard in Pingliang, Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms? But the Liao State established by the Khitan had already been destroyed, where did the Northern and Southern Song go?

  Zhao Shi had also read some science fiction books, which included a scientific argument about the parallel time and space theory. In different times and places, things would develop in various possibilities, and countless parallel time and spaces were created at this moment. In different time and spaces, similar people and objects would appear...

  When he couldn't explain all this, Zhao Shi could only believe that he had really arrived in a parallel time and space. This made people feel strange and confused, but for Zhao Shi, who felt that he couldn't go back to the past, none of this mattered much. His previous life was full of twists and turns, so his way of thinking naturally differed greatly from ordinary people. Perhaps ordinary people would have to ask others about their fate before deciding what to do next, or they might want to seize power or wealth, relying on their extraordinary knowledge that surpassed the times, planning to destroy Western Xia and wipe out the Jurchen people. But as for Zhao Shi? Maybe for him, no matter where he went, as long as he could still live, it was already the greatest blessing from heaven. As for whether he could live a life of his own? This kind of thinking had disappeared in his previous life when he was twenty years old.

  This is the land of Shaanxi, and at this time it should be called Guannei. With Chang'an in place, it's naturally Shaanxi. He has been here several times before, and also visited Xi'an, which was said to have a history of thousands of years even with bricks and tiles on the streets. However, Zhao Shi knew that the ancient Xi'an had undergone many changes and was not the same as the old Chang'an. But the land of Shaanxi has always been a strategic location in China, with convenient transportation and being surrounded by four passes, making it an invaluable place for military victories. Advancing or retreating, Chang'an is a typical "mountain city", and being able to come here seems to be his good fortune as well.

  。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。

  This team of people has about two or three thousand people, plus 200 cavalry and 600 infantry, nearly three thousand people, and the road that is not very wide is filled to the brim.

  These eight hundred soldiers belonged to the three inner temples of the Forbidden Army, and the military officer in charge was a woman. Her title was not low, she was a Fruitful and Brave Colonel. Zhao Shi had taken a few glances at her from afar, the woman's surname was Li, according to those old veterans of the Forbidden Army, it was a surname bestowed by the Emperor himself, she came from a big clan, reportedly a descendant of the Xiongnu tribe that surrendered internally in previous years, they used to be an independent army called the Wei Hu Military, later changed to the current military system, only then did they enter under the jurisdiction of the Temple Front Guard. What the woman's name was, others couldn't say clearly, however this woman had a tall and sturdy build, her appearance was quite heroic, high nose and deep eyes, her eyes slightly blue, indeed not resembling Han ethnicity.

  The Turkic tribe was once powerful in the early Tang Dynasty, and at that time, the Khitan, Shiwei, Xianbei and other ethnic groups all became its vassals. With an army of one million, it was indeed extremely powerful. However, it had bad luck and encountered the great Tang Dynasty, which was also the strongest Han Chinese regime since the Qin and Han dynasties. After several wars, the Tang Dynasty rose to power, while the Turks gradually declined and eventually disintegrated. One part remained in the northern grasslands, but became a vassal of the new overlord of the grasslands. Another part went west and established many khanates, which fought with the Western Regions for years and were eventually assimilated into the local population. A third part went north and can be said to have become ancestors of some Mongolians. Most of them surrendered to the Tang Dynasty and were assimilated into the Han Chinese.

  However, in Zhao Shi's view, no matter how strong and capable a woman is, she should not participate in war. This is not just his male chauvinism; men naturally have a protective instinct towards women, which can be fatal at critical moments. She would become a burden to the entire team. Moreover, women's willpower is relatively weak, especially on the battlefield where blood flows and the sound of gunfire is intense, it's easy for women to collapse, and this kind of thing is contagious. A team that loses its fighting spirit cannot fight again. Furthermore, women's experiences on the battlefield are far more terrifying than men's. Some people even use women as bait to lure in the enemy, causing many excellent and calm warriors to fall in places they shouldn't have. Women's natural weakness is ordained by heaven, so war is not suitable for them, let alone becoming the leader of 3,000 people.

  Fortunately, this team shouldn't be going to war now. This place is still the hinterland of Western Qin and there should be no enemy. Otherwise... Zhao Shi sneered in his heart, a group of mobs under the leadership of a woman charging forward, perhaps as long as the opponent kills this woman or captures her, the entire team will collapse.

  Zhao Shi didn't quite understand the concept of cold weapon warfare, and as someone who was accustomed to modern special forces combat methods, it was hard for him to imagine the shocking scene of tens of thousands or even millions of people engaging in close combat. Even Zhao Shi himself couldn't help but wonder if he would be able to survive in such a situation, and his conclusion was that his chances of survival would definitely not be high.

  What caught Zhao Shi's attention was not just these, the regular forbidden army wore cotton armor, with important parts such as the head having a helmet, the neck having a neck guard, and the front and back of the chest having iron-made protective gear. Especially those cavalrymen, half-body armor, Zhao Shi didn't go up to take a closer look, don't know what material it was made of, looked a bit clumsy but very sturdy, each holding a horizontal knife in hand, and on horseback they all carried bows and arrows, all with robust physique and full of vigor. Zhao Shi also knew that people in this era were much more physically fit than modern people, even if they were these elite warriors who had been trained for a long time, but after a few days without eating cooked food, their stomachs would definitely not be able to take it, let alone drinking water, where did they dare to directly gulp down river or stream water? That was simply playing with one's life. The most basic thing about surviving in the wild is that raw water must be filtered or boiled, but these people ate dry rations every day and drank cold water, yet none of them were sick, lively and active, even fewer had diarrhea, it could be seen that their bodies were very strong.

  The woman had five personal guards, one of whom was particularly eye-catching. His robust and bear-like physique seemed to be a replica of a tiger's, and even his ferocious gaze was very similar. Seeing this man, Zhao Shi thought of an ancient saying: "Originally a heroic figure, but unfortunately reduced to being a slave."

  But all these are other people's business, and Zhao Shi has always been less concerned about other people's affairs as long as they don't affect him. Although the road is a bit longer and he walks a bit slower, for someone like Zhao Shi, being patient is not a particularly difficult thing to do.

  At this time, Zhao Shi was wearing a faded and worn-out uniform, his face covered with sweat and mud. He sat in the middle of the fifth squad's circle, surrounded by five team leaders, and further out were his current subordinates. Zhao Gouzi and Shang Yanzu were sitting next to him, both of them already advanced in age. According to the Western Qin military system, one had to join the army at 18 and retire at 60. The two men, one over 50 and the other over 40, were still within the recruitment range. If it weren't for being fellow villagers from Zhaojia Village who could help each other out, they would have probably collapsed by now. But at this moment, they were also extremely exhausted, massaging their waists while complaining to the young men next to them about something. Zhao Shi was stroking the hilt of his horizontal knife with one hand, lost in thought. This was a habit he had developed from his past life, and it could be said that he was resting. His mind wandered aimlessly, thinking about all sorts of things, while his body relaxed to the extreme. He didn't engage in conversation with others, and the people around him knew this habit of his after spending time together. This squad leader may not have been very old, but he always had a stern expression on his face. Those who joined his squad thought that he was trying to establish authority through this demeanor because of his young age. But the 34 men from Zhaojia Village knew that Zhao Shi had been like this since he fell into the well that one time, and they didn't think it was strange at all.

  This was a temporary camp, and over the past few days, Zhao Shi had been carefully observing the military system of this era and the rules of marching, which had yielded some gains. However, this time setting up camp made him feel unusual. In the past, they would start their journey at dawn and only rest when it got dark, but today they stopped on a hill by the side of the road while the sun was still high. Previously, setting up camp was always done in an orderly manner, with the central army inside and the outer army outside, each with its own clear hierarchy. But this time, it was extremely hasty, with everyone gathering together loosely, and even the normally strict and disciplined imperial guards seemed at a loss for what to do, apparently because no one had given them any orders. The makeshift central command tent was bustling with activity, with people constantly entering and exiting, and some even rushed out of the tent and mounted their horses to gallop away. The atmosphere was tense, and naturally, others couldn't help but retire early to rest, but Zhao Shi had already sensed a few strands of ominous aura within.