Do you know: I am Yuan Wenshao

Chapter 309: Martial Arts in the Army
"No, in actual combat there will inevitably be casualties. Not to mention the officials' disapproval, even the soldiers are prone to mutiny." Shen Congxing frowned.

The so-called martial arts training is just to demonstrate daily training, practice military formations, and finally use wooden weapons to compete.

In order to ensure the safety of soldiers, wooden weapons are still wrapped in cloth in front.

Actual combat involves fighting with real swords and guns. How many people will die?

There is no such thing as martial arts.

"Marquis Weibei misunderstood. What I said in actual combat is to use wooden weapons, but they don't need to be wrapped in cloth." Yuan Wenshao said.

"No, death and injury are inevitable if you do this." Shen Congxing shook his head.

Although it is just a wooden weapon, there is still a big difference whether it has been wrapped or not.

Those who are wrapped will basically not die, and at most they will be slightly injured. As long as they are not unlucky, the injuries will not be too serious.

But it would be different if it were not wrapped. A wooden gun or wooden sword could kill people just as well.

Thousands of people are fighting, and it is normal for a few people to die during a fight.

The most fearful thing is that the soldiers will be red-eyed because of the dead people, which is called trouble.

Yuan Wenshao wanted to say something more, but Gu Tingye pulled Yuan Wenshao and shook his head slightly at him.

Yuan Wenshao sighed and could only give up.

"Okay, everyone will go back to their own troops. After a stick of incense, they will start to perform martial arts. Our army will take the lead, and then we will take turns to pick up from the front, back, left, and right." Shen Congxing said.

"Yes!" everyone responded.

Although Shen Congxing was on the same level as them, the official ordered that he be the master of this martial arts performance.

Yuan Wenshao and the others naturally wanted to listen to him.

Several people separated and walked towards their respective phalanxes.

Gu Tingye and Yuan Wenshao deliberately lagged a few steps behind. After the others left, they whispered: "You were too reckless just now. If the officials really agree, any consequences will be blamed on you."

"I just feel that the weapons are wrapped with cloth. The soldiers are used to it, and they are naturally 'reckless' when fighting. However, this is just an illusion, and it is easy for officials to misestimate the combat power of the soldiers." Yuan Wenshao said.

During this time, he had been thinking about why Zhao Zongquan suddenly investigated the salt affairs in advance.

After thinking about it, I felt that it was because of the alliance with Xixia.

There has been no war between the northern Liao Kingdom and the Great Zhou Dynasty for decades.

More than 20 years ago, Dazhou and Xixia were at war. The Liao army pressed on the border, but they only forced Dazhou to increase their annual coins and did not really start a fight.

Now that an alliance has been reached with Xixia, the northwest border has also stabilized.

Zhao Zongquan was naturally eager to rectify the internal situation.

However, Yuan Wenshao knew very well that Zhao Zongquan was very ambitious and had always been thinking about regaining the Sixteenth Prefecture of Yanyun.

Once Zhao Zongquan was given the illusion that his troops were strong and his horses were strong, and because of the rectification of salt affairs and the financial crisis, Zhao Zongquan might decide to launch troops against the Liao Kingdom.

In the original play, the reason why the Queen Mother launched a mutiny was not only due to ideological differences, but the real trigger was Zhao Zongquan's invasion of the Liao Kingdom.

In the Queen Mother's view, the late emperor's increase in annual coins, compromises, and preservation of peace on the northern border were a good deed that will last forever.

However, Zhao Zongquan's attack on the Liao Kingdom ruined the late emperor's hard work.

To be honest, even if there was a return of artillery, Yuan Wenshao was not optimistic about launching troops against the Liao Kingdom.

In Yuan Wenshao's view, fighting should be easy first and then difficult. Compared with Xixia and Liao, it is obviously easier to conquer Xixia.

The only way to attack the Liao Kingdom is to recapture the Yanyun Sixteen Prefectures in one fell swoop and drive the Liao Kingdom back to the grasslands.

If they just capture a few cities and the stalemate continues, Xixia will take the opportunity to capture Hehuang even if they don't send troops to attack Da Zhou.

The soldiers usually use cloth to hold wooden weapons during training, and they have long liked it.

When the fight breaks out, they will be fierce and vigorous, regardless of their own safety.

Because the soldiers knew that there was nothing wrong with this thing, and that it was only slightly injured at most.

Yuan Wenshao proposed not to wrap the soldiers with cloth, thinking that if there was a fight like this, the soldiers would be afraid, so that Zhao Zongquan could see the true level of the soldiers and avoid making any trouble.

"I think the eldest brother-in-law is a bit unfounded. He has led soldiers as an official, so he is not someone who is incompetent in military matters." Gu Tingye shook his head and said.

Yuan Wenshao sighed inwardly. Zhao Zongquan could only talk on paper at best.

What the regiment training envoys train is the militia, which is not even as good as the local army.

But he also knew that nothing he said now would be of any use.

"Zhong Huai, I understand. I won't say anything anymore. I'll go back and prepare first." Yuan Wenshao said.

Separating from Gu Tingye, Yuan Wenshao returned to the rear army formation.

When Zheng Wu and Sheng Changwu saw Yuan Wenshao coming back, they quickly stepped forward to salute.

"Captain, does your Majesty have any other orders?" Zheng Wu asked.

"No, just perform martial arts normally. The third one from our rear will come on stage. Chang Wu, you have to be ready. We will see what happens later." Yuan Wenshao said.

"Yes! Don't worry, Commander, the general will never embarrass you." Sheng Changwu said firmly.

He is where he is today because of Yuan Wenshao, so he is very grateful to Yuan Wenshao, and he will not hesitate to execute orders.

"Well, I can rest assured that you will do things." Yuan Wenshao nodded.

Among the generals under his command, the only one he could truly trust was Sheng Changwu.

Even if Anyang Bo's son had already made a marriage arrangement with Ru Lan, the two families were considered relatives, and Yuan Wenshao didn't quite trust him.

After all, Anyang Bo has his own interests and cannot be loyal to him.

Sheng Changwu has been studying hard these years, but he lacks real battlefield experience.

Yuan Wenshao gave Sheng Changbai a few words and then stepped aside with Zheng Wu.

"Dong Dong Dong~"

"Woo~"

The sound of drums and horns sounded, and Sheng Changwu ordered his soldiers to retreat.

The front army and the left and right armies also moved back in order under the command of their respective generals, leaving the middle area of ​​the school field to the Chinese army.

The two thousand soldiers of the Chinese army spread out under the command of the general and began to change into various formations.

"Little General Zheng, what do you think of the training of the Chinese army?" Yuan Wenshao asked as he looked at the soldiers changing formations in the school field.

"It's very rare to be able to train like this in just half a year." Zheng Wu said.

"Marquis Weibei has been commanding troops for many years, and training troops is not a piece of cake for him." Yuan Wenshao said with a smile.

"The generals don't know what Marquis Weibei is capable of. However, several of the generals under Marquis Weibei are all veteran generals in the army and are very capable." Zheng Wu said.

Yuan Wenshao was startled, Zheng Wu had something to say.

However, given Zheng Wu's background, it was normal to look down on his uncle.

Zhongjing Houfu is a general who has been passed down from the founding of the country to this day.

Unlike those lords who have long since declined and have few people serving in the army, Zhongjing Houfu has always been one of the pillars of the army and has a high prestige.

Otherwise, the officials would not have married Queen Shen's sister to Zheng Wu in order to win over the Zhongjing Hou Mansion.

Shen Congxing is the uncle of the state, and he is married to the daughter of an English duke. He seems to be of noble status.

But before that, he was just the commander of the Yuzhou Xiang Army.

If the armies of the Zhou Dynasty were graded, the highest one should be the Forbidden Army. The original western suburbs camp was all included in the Forbidden Army.

Next are the border troops, and then the local armies.

Shen Congxing, a commander of the Xiang Army, had only participated in peace trials and led troops to support the northwest border, but he had never demonstrated his true capabilities. Naturally, he would look down on someone from a well-known family like Zheng Wu, not to mention that the two of them had a hatred for his wife.

"But the Chinese army is just like this, far behind our rear army." Zheng Wuxin said.

Yuan Wenshao smiled and said: "General Zheng is so confident?"

"It's not that the general has confidence, it's the governor's training methods that give him confidence," Zheng Wu said.

To be honest, he didn't think much of Yuan Wenshao at first.

Although the Yuan family is also the founding lord, it can be seen from the title.

Zhongqin Bo, as the name suggests, is loyal and hard-working.

To put it bluntly, Emperor Taizu took pity on his hard work and gave him a title.

Since no one from the Yuan family had served in the army for a long time, Yuan Wenshao was lucky enough to have made some meritorious service and received a title.

Previously, Zheng Wu was somewhat dissatisfied with Yuan Wenshao's military training methods.

It was just because Yuan Wenshao was his superior and it was not like he could give Yuan Wenshao any leverage, so he trained according to Yuan Wenshao's methods.

But after using it, he gradually felt the benefits of this training method.

Standing in military posture and standing in line, he felt that it was of little use at first.

But when he later trained his soldiers to form and change formations, he realized the benefits of such training.

The military posture formation can greatly improve the obedience and execution of soldiers.

The soldiers must move much faster whether forming or changing formations.

Don't underestimate this point. In the cold weapon era, when large corps fought, they were compared to military formations.

If two armies are fighting, it can be compared to a contest between two people.

The military formation is about attacking each other.

Quick formation changes mean quick moves.

Yuan Wenshao smiled and said nothing.

……

In the stands, Zhao Zongquan saw the soldiers changing various formations in an orderly manner, with a satisfied smile on his face.

As Gu Tingye said, Zhao Zongquan had served as a regimental training envoy and had trained troops. He was not the kind of emperor who knew nothing about military affairs.

I can’t say how powerful the Chinese army’s officers are, but the speed at which they can change light formations is not bad compared to some elites.

Half an hour later, the Chinese army finished practicing all military formations and stopped.

"Your Majesty, the Chinese army's military formation drill has been completed." Shen Congxing came to the stands and reported loudly.

"What do you think of the British Duke?" Zhao Zongquan turned his head and looked at the British Duke.

"The formation changes rapidly. After several battlefield trainings, over time, we will definitely become an elite soldier." The British public said.

The British Duke has been in charge of the Western Suburbs Camp for many years and is very clear about the problems of the Western Suburbs Camp.

Although it has been restructured, the original problems still exist.

That is because the soldiers lack battlefield experience.

Elite soldiers cannot be made by just practicing. No matter how well you train, once you go to the battlefield and face death, you will still panic.

Therefore, he was not as optimistic as Zhao Zongquan about the performance of the Chinese army officers and soldiers.

Zhao Zongquan didn't think so much. He looked at Shen Congxing and asked, "Which army will be next?"

"Your Majesty, it's the front army led by Gu Tingye." Shen Congxing said.

"Haha, Zhong Huai is a general, I am very much looking forward to his performance, let's get started." Zhao Zongquan said with a smile.

"Yes!" Shen Congxing bowed and retreated.

After a while, the drums and horns sounded, and the soldiers of the Chinese army marched onto the stage in neat steps.

Gu Tingye was born as a general and was much better than Shen Congxing in terms of single ability.

Shen Congxing was supported by Zhao Zongquan, and his generals were all veterans. Even so, the soldiers trained by Gu Tingye were stronger than Shen Congxing's.

Not only in terms of momentum, but also in the transformation of battle formations, the front army is faster and more natural than the central army.

Although the difference is not big, anyone with a discerning eye can see it at a glance.

At the end of the drill, Zhao Zongquan did not hesitate to praise Gu Tingye.

The front army ended and it was almost noon. Zhao Zongquan announced that the martial arts exercise would be suspended and would continue in the afternoon.

After eating at noon and resting for about a stick of incense, Zhao Zongquan ordered people to beat drums and continue the martial arts performance.

The first scene was the rear army. Two thousand soldiers entered the school field under the command of Sheng Changwu.

After saluting in unison, Sheng Changwu began to order the messengers to play flags.

The soldiers followed the flag instructions and began to practice military formations.

"Good! Marquis Zhongyong has become more sophisticated in his military training." The British Duke looked at the performance of the soldiers on the field, his eyes lit up, and he couldn't help but praise.

"Oh?"

Zhao Zongquan was surprised and said: "I see that the rear army and the front army of the Chinese army are almost the same. I didn't expect that the British prince could praise him so much."

Shen Congxing's first drill of the Chinese army was secretly instructed by Zhao Zongquan.

Logically speaking, the rank of commander-in-chief of the five armies is the same, and the British Duke was not only in charge of the western suburbs camp before, but now he is also the privy envoy, so he should be in charge of the military exercises.

However, Zhao Zongquan did not make such an arrangement. Instead, he asked Shen Congxing to take charge and asked his Chinese army to go up first.

The reason why Zhao Zongquan did this was to praise Shen Congxing and slowly become the number one person in the army.

He secretly inquired about the training results among the five armies, and it seemed that the training effects were not much different.

In this case, the first one up has the advantage.

Shen Congxing doesn't know what aesthetic fatigue is, but he understands the truth.

Under similar circumstances, the first one to play will naturally have the advantage.

After the Chinese army's drill, he specifically asked the British Duke to praise him and increase Shen Congxing's power.

However, the British father-in-law did not praise him. Instead, he was full of praise for Yuan Wenshao, which made him somewhat unhappy.

"Your Majesty, the rear army seems to be not much different from the front army and the center army, but whether it is the front army or the center army, the formation changes are somewhat unnatural. This situation is also normal, after all, the training time is still short. But the rear army is The difference is that the formation changes are smooth and smooth, and there is nothing unnatural about it." The British public praised.

"I have also heard that Zhongyong Hou is good at training troops. The late emperor once rotated the Forbidden Army for him to train. However, when I first suppressed the rebellion, I saw that the combat effectiveness of the Forbidden Army was also very average. It can be seen that there are still some differences between training and war commanders." Zhao Zongquan said.

The British Duke opened his mouth and wanted to refute.

In fact, the combat effectiveness of the Forbidden Army is not bad at all. The reason why Zhao Zongquan was able to win the verdict was because many of the Forbidden Army soldiers sensed something was wrong.

In addition, Zhao Zongquan had the blood book of the late emperor in his hand. Although the generals of the Imperial Army repeatedly stated that Zhao Zongquan was a traitor, ordinary soldiers still lost their will to fight.

If the Forbidden Army could be effectively organized and their morale was still there, how could it be so easy for Zhao Zongquan to achieve justice.

However, the British public hesitated for a moment and finally did not say anything.

Saying this is a bit like speaking for Ni Wang, and he can also see that the officials intend to push Shen Congxing to become the pillar of the army.

"What your Majesty said is that military performance does not represent the soldiers' real combat power." The British Duke said.

Zhao Zongquan nodded slightly and looked towards the school grounds.

(End of this chapter)