Chapter 79: Recruitment

Back in human territory, they should have moved toward the military fortress, which was only a few dozen miles away and could be reached in the blink of an eye. But Li Zhi didn't change his order; the troops still retreated toward Quyang according to Little Wei Yuan's command.

After fighting for a while longer, smoke and dust suddenly rose in the direction of Quyang County, and the ground vibrated slightly. The vibration was very rhythmic, clearly indicating that an elite unit was marching with uniform steps; otherwise, the ground wouldn't vibrate from such a distance.

Feng Yuanjun appeared, and Li Zhi and his personal guards were greatly encouraged. Magic-tool arrows flew as if they were free, forcing the Northern Liao cavalry to widen the distance.

As the reinforcements approached, the forest of spears in the smoke and dust could already be seen! This unit marched in a square formation, stepping forward, each step landing on the same beat; advancing like a forest, their momentum like a mountain!

It was impossible to see how many people were in the smoke and dust, but looking at the length and width of the square formation, there were at least a thousand people. When the Great Tang fought the Northern Liao, the elite infantry used long spears as a defense, with powerful bows and crossbows inside, and cultivators' magic arrows for long-range sniping, so they didn't fear field battles with the Northern Liao iron cavalry. This reinforcement unit was numerous, strictly disciplined, and had soaring momentum; let alone two Liao cavalry centurion teams, even six or seven would have to go around them.

Seeing strong reinforcements arrive and knowing they were already in human territory, the two centurions were unwilling to linger in battle and raised their hands. The two hundred Northern Liao iron cavalry stopped charging, widened the distance, turned around, and retreated back to the Liao domain.

After merging with the reinforcements, Li Zhi was surprised to see that they were not elite border troops, but a group of ragged farmers.

These farmers were arranged in a hollow square formation, with only the front row holding twelve-foot-long spears, while the back rows held sharpened wooden poles. Leading the troops was Fang Hetong, dressed in half a scholar's robe; he held a long sword, raised it in the air, and waved it rhythmically. Every time the long sword waved, the farmers took a step forward.

The flying smoke and dust obscured the formation; viewed from afar, they looked like an invincible elite force from their momentum, and only when walking closer could one see they were just a group of farmers.

Little Wei Yuan dismounted and greeted them, saying, "Brother Fang! How did you come?"

Fang Hetong raised his long sword, the tip glowing with a point of Daoist power, and the entire square formation stopped with a boom, hundreds of people acting as one. Only then did Fang Hetong lower his long sword and say, "I saw the signal arrow for help and knew you were in danger, so I hurriedly brought people to help. I calculated the range at which the Liao barbarians could perceive, then began to line up and advance, wanting to see if I could scare them away first."

Little Wei Yuan said, "This is too dangerous! What if the Liao barbarians had charged over?"

Don't look at the Shayang Village's three hundred civilian soldiers as having neat military appearance and soaring momentum; they were frail, lacked powerful crossbows and heavy armor, and didn't even have many decent military weapons. Once the Northern Liao cavalry really charged over, this unit would have no way back.

Fang Hetong said, "Not saving those in danger is not what we scholars do. If the Liao barbarians really charged over, at worst we would sacrifice ourselves for righteousness. If the Liao barbarians are not eliminated, the people will be on the edge of life and death every day. It's just dying sooner or later; there's not much difference."

Fang Hetong had long since put life and death out of his mind, and the three hundred civilian soldiers behind him were the same.

Li Zhi, watching from afar, was also moved and was about to spur his horse forward to make friends.

Who would have expected that even after urging it three or four times, the warhorse under his crotch remained motionless. Only then did Li Zhi remember that he was riding a Liao horse, and one that Little Wei Yuan had subdued. It was just that Li Zhi didn't expect the Liao horse to be so snobbish; it would let Little Wei Yuan ride it, but wouldn't move for him.

Li Zhi remained calm, as if nothing had happened, leaped off the horse, and walked to Fang Hetong, saying solemnly, "Brother Fang's righteousness is admirable; Li Zhi is impressed! Tonight I will set up a banquet, and we won't return until we're drunk!"

Fang Hetong appeared somewhat embarrassed and said repeatedly, "General Li overpraises me. Fang is just doing his duty; isn't that what we scholars should do?"

"Brother Fang cultivates himself, manages his family, and governs the country; you are truly a model for scholars!"

Fang Hetong hurriedly shook his head: "I am dull-witted, so I cannot speak of cultivating myself. I sold off my ancestors' fields and houses, so I won't speak of managing my family. I am now just trying my best to keep two or three villages safe, and I am powerless even in a single county, so how can I speak of governing the country?"

Li Zhi said, "From small to large, this is the Dao of heaven and earth. Sages also started from the humble; we may not be unable to reproduce the path of the sages."

Fang Hetong seemed moved.

The two exchanged a few pleasantries, and sand and dust rose in the distance again; looking at the direction, there should be other reinforcements. It was just that these reinforcements were coming from afar; if Fang Hetong hadn't scared away the Liao barbarians, by the time they arrived, Li Zhi's personal guards probably wouldn't have many people left.

Seeing the reinforcements, Li Zhi remained calm and ordered, "Send a signal, saying the strong enemy has retreated, and this general will rest in Shayang Village; ask them to gather in Shayang Village."

The personal guard captain immediately shot a signal arrow into the sky, transmitting the information.

Fang Hetong originally thought Li Zhi should rest in Quyang County, as Shayang Village had nothing. But Li Zhi had already made his decision, and he wouldn't oppose it, so he waved his long sword a few times and pointed toward Shayang Village, the tip of the sword glowing with Daoist power again. The three hundred civilian soldiers immediately changed from a square formation to a single long line and marched back to Shayang Village.

Li Zhi waited for Little Wei Yuan to return to the Liao horse together; after all, without Little Wei Yuan, that Liao horse would just stand there like a statue.

Little Wei Yuan looked at the Liao horse and said, "This horse can't be used anymore; we have to change to another one."

Only then did Li Zhi discover that the Liao horse had been hit by several arrows in its belly, each one deep to the feathers. Having suffered such injuries, it was still able to act as if nothing had happened and persist until now.

Echoing Little Wei Yuan's words, the Liao horse suddenly collapsed and died silently. A wisp of black Qi flew out from the Liao horse's body and returned to Little Wei Yuan. It was just that when Little Wei Yuan used the Heaven-Defying Madman, he had used two wisps of black Qi, but now only one returned; it was unknown whether the one that subdued the soul had disappeared or the one that drove the action was gone.

Li Zhi's personal guards gave up two horses to Little Wei Yuan and Li Zhi, then returned to Shayang Village. After mounting, Li Zhi looked toward the military fortress, his gaze cold: "Liao Jingwu..."

The military fortress was closest to the battlefield, and by reason and logic, the border army reinforcements should have arrived first, but now reinforcements from other counties were almost there, and the border army was still nowhere to be seen.

It was still twenty miles from here to Shayang Village; Fang Hetong led three hundred civilian soldiers on foot, and Li Zhi's personal guard cavalry followed behind. The civilian soldiers were arranged in two teams, their steps light and swift, and the most rare thing was that they were uniform. Every once in a while, when the civilian soldiers' steps were slightly scattered, Fang Hetong's long sword would flash with Daoist power, and the scattered formation would immediately become neat again.

The civilian soldiers were not only uniform in their steps, but their marching speed was also very fast, equivalent to an ordinary person's light jog. Li Zhi observed for a while and found that the civilian soldiers' physical consumption was slow; at this speed, they could walk for several hours, which was clearly also Fang Hetong's ability.

Li Zhi spurred his horse closer to Little Wei Yuan and said, "Brother Fang is very impressive in leading and using troops!"

Little Wei Yuan said, "His Dao foundation is 'Three Essays', and this is the second essay, 'Establishing Merit', which can enhance the combat power of soldiers on the battlefield."

Li Zhi was a Confucian scholar and well-versed in classics, so he understood as soon as Little Wei Yuan mentioned it: "So it was realized from the 'Three Immortalities' of the sages. This 'Establishing Merit' essay is very powerful; not only is it useful in battle, but it is also very useful in organizing the army. Look, just this marching, walking a few more times can turn a mob into a strict army. Besides, being able to incorporate the words of sages into a Dao foundation, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to call Mr. Fang a great Confucian; how could he have fallen to this point?"

Li Zhi then remembered last night's banquet and was thoughtful: "Mr. Fang's temperament is indeed a bit stubborn, but with his talent, he shouldn't have been discarded and unused, right? Has the Western Jin government become so muddled? That's good news."

Little Wei Yuan said, "Do you want to recruit Mr. Fang? He doesn't speak nicely."

Li Zhi laughed and said, "As long as what he says is right, it doesn't matter if he points at my nose and scolds me!"

PS: Expected to be on the shelves on the 1st. I am still adjusting the content behind it. The climax will come soon, and the rhythm cannot be slowed down at all. It's just that the updates these days can only be like this. Everyone, please bear with it; it won't be long.

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 80 =====