Chapter 42: Sweat More in Peacetime, Bleed Less in Wartime

Shi Hu is brutally cruel, yet not stupid.

He knows very clearly what he is facing right now.

Losing the secondary capital, his trusted troops suffering a crushing defeat.

What is shaken is his own prestige; what is lost is the power to suppress the various departments.

He must use the most ruthless means to exterminate the Qihuo Army.

Only thus can he maintain his own prestige and suppress the restless ambitions of the various departments.

Shi Hu knows very well that not a single one of the people under his command, including his sons and grandsons, is a pushover!

Compared to that, the spring plowing in the various states amounts to nothing.

If people starve to death come autumn harvest, then let them starve — anyway, he won't be the one starving.

The Heavenly King's order spread everywhere, and naturally complaints filled the air.

Over here, the various local yamen are still arresting young women and sending them to Ye City.

Now they are even arresting men and women together.

The women are sent into the palace; the men either become soldiers or are made civilian laborers.

Throughout Later Zhao, all is misery and the people cannot survive.

Xiangguo City.

"Taiwu Hall has already been cleared clean."

Sun Dalang reported, "Nearby places like Taixue have also been demolished, clearing out a vast open space."

Lin Dao nodded slightly. "Go, let's take a look."

After the sprawling Taiwu Hall was burned to the ground, the wreckage and ashes have also been cleared clean.

Military households from all departments have been arranged to train here.

They are organized by squad, each led by their own squad leader, doing various drills.

The colonels supervising the training, seeing the Lord approach, stepped forward one after another to pay respects.

"I'll look on my own."

Lin Dao waved his hand. "Each of you attend to your own business."

He walked along the vast open ground, carefully observing the training condition of each squad.

After walking a while, Lin Dao's face showed doubt. "How come so few people have come to train?"

"I saw the military registers — the numbers are many."

The numbers on the military registers are of course many.

In reality, the able-bodied men in Xiangguo City are either registered military households or enrolled as auxiliary soldiers and civilian laborers in the army.

This is calculated in units of ten thousand.

Sun Dalang was slightly stunned.

He had arranged a splendid drill, intending to put on a good show before the Lord.

He never expected the topic would turn to this.

Collecting himself, he hurriedly replied, "Reporting to the Lord: all departments drill once every ten days; those coming to the drill ground today~~~"

"Ah?"

Halting his steps, Lin Dao turned around. "Train once every ten days?"

Sun Dalang hurriedly added, "Many military households are still nursing their bodies back to health; once they have strength, it will be once every five days."

Drill — the 'drill' is drilling, like a weekly report performance.

Training is daily training, mainly hammering the body and martial skills in their own camps.

Many people in Xiangguo City haven't had a good life for more than a few days.

After long-term starvation before, their bodies are depleted; they haven't recovered through eating yet.

Once every ten days, they can still endure.

Wait until their physical condition gradually improves, then it can be once every five days.

In the cold weapon era, troops drilling once every five days can all be called elite soldiers.

Lin Dao froze on the spot, speechless for a long time.

Training once every ten days — what can that train?

This training intensity can't even compare to student military training in the modern world.

"Then what do the soldiers do on ordinary days?"

"Bask in the sun?"

Sun Dalang also rarely heard the dissatisfaction in the Lord's words.

He hurriedly answered, "In the past when they couldn't eat, they mostly searched everywhere for food, or lay still to conserve strength."

This is the truth.

When they couldn't even eat, who would go train — and they had no strength to train.

Either they tried every way to get food.

Or they lay still to reduce consumption.

Train?

Are they afraid they won't die fast enough?

Lin Dao didn't speak, waiting for Sun Dalang to continue.

"With the Lord providing for us, eating our fill we naturally should train."

"Elite soldiers drill once every five days; on ordinary days each hammers their body and hones martial skills."

Common military households train once every ten days; normally they focus mainly on maintaining their bodies.

Elite soldiers were, even before Lin Dao arrived, still key troops receiving priority provisions.

Lin Dao provided abundant supplies to strengthen their physical quality.

As for common military households, before Lin Dao transmigrated, they were people waiting to starve to death.

Even after eating full meals for so long, they still need continued nourishment to regulate their bodies.

No way—the previous long-term famine had drained their bodies too much.

Lin Dao carefully considered: "Common military households can wait for now."

"According to their bodies, gradually increase from once every ten days to once every five days, then once every three days."

"More importantly, daily training cannot be neglected."

"On the battlefield, this is to save their own lives."

"Sweat more in peacetime, bleed less in wartime."

"As for the elite troops of the various departments."

He simply stated bluntly: "Once every day."

Sun Dalang beside him was shocked and couldn't help but interject: "Master, even for elites, once every day is too much to bear."

Lin Dao immediately shook his head: "I don't believe it."

Then he thought: these armies of the cold weapon era cannot be compared with the mighty forces.

He then caught his breath: "Once every day is concentrated training, training only half a day. The remaining half day can be used for physical exercise and tidying up quarters and such."

"Rest one day every five days."

He waved his hand forcefully: "Starting from today."

Since they eat Master's food, if Master orders extra training, then they can only undergo extra training.

'Pa pa pa pa~ pa pa pa~~'

Lin Dao came to the Hundred Foot Tower near the northwest corner of the Imperial City.

This place was originally where the Chanyu Court of Later Zhao was located, responsible for managing Hu People affairs, similar to the Governor-General's Yamen of the Qing, but it has now been demolished and requisitioned.

Approaching this place, he heard dense pa pa sounds incessantly.

This place is not the Female Camp, but where the Gongjiang Ying is located.

Coming out onto the street, Lin Dao saw hundreds of women constantly striking the cotton before them with wooden sticks.

Beside them were helpers carrying water buckets; after striking for a while, they poured the water from the buckets onto the cotton.

Repeating this, they beat the cotton into very thin cotton sheets.

"Master."

Jin Lian lifted her skirt hem, quickly ran over, and saluted.

Lin Dao asked with concern: "How is the cotton armor production progressing?"

"Rest assured, Master." Jin Lian smiled and replied: "Slave is watching; now we can produce over a hundred pieces every day."

"Come, let's go take a look."

Repeatedly striking the water-soaked cotton sheets, they are loaded onto large carts and sent next door.

Here are the craftsmen of the Gongjiang Ying, stitching many cotton sheets into very thick and sturdy cotton cloth.

Iron armor is embedded between two layers of cotton cloth, fixed inside and out with copper nails.

Picking up a set of cotton armor to examine closely, he pinched it hard with his hand.

Lin Dao signaled to Liu Hu following behind him: "Take it over and test it with bows and crossbows."

The cotton armor was fixed onto a wooden frame.

Guards holding bows and crossbows stepped forward, releasing arrows at different distances.

Judging by the effect, the defensive capability of the cotton armor is indeed not bad.

"Add a layer of simple plate armor on the outside; this defensive capability will improve by at least one level."

Lin Dao was very satisfied with this, waving his hand: "Extra meal!"

The female workers doing the work and the craftsmen of the Gongjiang Ying will all receive the extra meal reward.

The so-called extra meal is naturally wine and meat.

For people of this era, above the primal desire to eat their fill is being able to eat meat and drink wine.

Amidst everyone's cheers, Jin Lian carefully lowered her voice.

"Master, Slave has something to report."

"Mm." Lin Dao led her to beside the Hundred Foot Tower: "Speak."

"Last evening, a female worker off duty was attacked on her way home."

Lin Dao turned his head and stared at her.

Jin Lian hurriedly stated the result: "Fortunately, her shouting and struggling drew a patrol, and the thief did not succeed."

Lin Dao frowned slightly: "A military household?"

"Yes."

If it were a civilian laborer, they could be dealt with according to Jin Law.

If it were a military household, they are essentially his hereditary soldiers.

"I have always emphasized valuing military discipline." Lin Dao frowned: "Now that they are full and fed, they start thinking about women?"

"Although it was an attempt, this trend cannot be allowed to spread."

"Twenty military canings, and drive their families out of the city together."

Jin Lian first acknowledged the order, then added: "This person has no family, and is alone."

Lin Dao realized — so he was a bachelor.

Is this because they couldn't hold back after being well-fed and warm?

Understandable, but unacceptable.

Strict military discipline is the guarantee of an army's combat strength.

Once they act without restraint, that entire army will sooner or later be destroyed.

Lin Dao asked with some curiosity, "In the city interior, are there many without families?"

Jin Lian hurriedly nodded, "Recently there are many marrying, but even more without families."

Many marrying was because Lin Dao issued large amounts of rewards.

These military households carrying grain bags and carrying pork to propose marriage could basically all get wives.

The reason there were even more without families stemmed from the chaotic war era — the first to suffer misfortune were inevitably women and children.

Insufficient number of women, plus many military households and civilian laborers had no merit rewards.

They could only rely on handicrafts to relieve boredom, or simply hold it in.

Those who couldn't hold it in had to take desperate risks.

"This matter~~~"

This matter Lin Dao also found difficult.

He could bring all kinds of massive quantities of industrial goods.

But he couldn't bring thousands upon thousands of women.

Even if there were transmigration women who wholeheartedly wanted to transmigrate here for palace intrigue, willing to bestow themselves on countless bachelors, they still couldn't pass the spacetime barrier.

"I understand this matter."

Lin Dao signaled Jin Lian to go be busy.

He himself then stepped into the Hundred Foot Tower interior, thinking of response methods.

In this era reeking everywhere, wanting to solve so many bachelors' needs — this truly stumped him.

After wandering a circle inside the Hundred Foot Tower, Lin Dao decided to still take the previous path.

When all else fails, ask netizens~~~

Evening, returned to the Modern World dormitory.

Lin Dao sat on the chair, eating takeout and posting a thread.

Netizens' wisdom is all great, novel, and unprecedented.

"Why even ask, of course use inflatable ones!"

"The one above is outdated, now silicone is popular~"

"Actually cups aren't bad either, convenient to carry."

"These are all treating symptoms not the root, the best method is still to rob~~~"

Sudden enlightenment.

Yonghe Spacetime, Ye City.

Fierce and evil-looking officials burst into household after household.

Ignoring the crying and shouting, younger men and women were all bound and taken away.

As for the family's wealth and grain, it naturally went into their own waist pouches.

"I am a scholar wandering here." In one household, a young man faced the officials and responded calmly, "Before long I will gain a Noble's favor and enter office."

The official wearing official robes stared at him with a cold smile, "Gain a Noble's recommendation?"

"Not yet for the time being, but just need more time~~~"

"Take him away!" The official shouted a scolding, several clerks immediately stepped forward and bound the young man.

"What is your surname and given name? Where is your ancestral home?"

The young man full of furious anger, bit the bullet with all his might, "A man of Ju County, Beihai Province, Qing State, Wang Meng!"

(End of Chapter)