That should be enough to last about fifteen days.
"Fifteen days is enough."
Wu Shuangren spoke.
He unfolded the map of Jiannan Circuit hand-drawn by Guo Jiwang on the table and pointed to the terrain of Rong Province:
"In ten days, we can travel from Yi Prefecture City to Rong Province City, passing through two counties along the way where we can replenish our supplies. Finally, we should have about seven to eight days to recapture Rong Province City!"
His finger finally touched the location of Rong Province City.
Yi Prefecture City, at the Shannan Army.
Xu Rong convened a military meeting in the central command tent, gathering all the mid- to high-ranking generals.
He told everyone about his agreement with Wu Shuangren.
"General, are we just leaving like this, without Yi Prefecture City?"
"General, we've come all this way, and Yi Province is so prosperous; are we just going to miss it?"
"Damn it, those Yi Province Militia dared to threaten us today? Let's fight them! I don't believe they'd actually dare to lay a hand on us!"
"..."
The crowd was filled with righteous indignation and was extremely dissatisfied with the fact that they were going directly to Rong Province without Yi Prefecture City!
Xu Rong's gaze swept over everyone present, and finally he said, "Take them all!"
Everyone immediately fell silent.
"Wu Shuangren has the support of all the officials in Yi Province. If we really clash with him, it will just be a long and drawn-out struggle, and we may not be able to convict him."
Xu Rong said slowly, "Fighting like this is really not worth it! Besides, without his cooperation, we won't have enough supplies to get to Rong Province. Are you really willing to go back like this?"
"..."
The people present looked at each other without saying a word.
Without achieving any military merit or plundering any wealth, who would be willing to return like this?
"Alright, go back and tell the brothers below—next we're attacking Rong Province, and I, Xu Rong, will definitely lead everyone to achieve merit and make a fortune!"
Xu Rong said firmly.
Note 1: Data related to long-distance military marches and grain transport are from "Dream Pool Essays".
174. Expansion of the militia.
The sixth day after defeating Lu Yulin.
New recruits were being brought in from all over Yi Province. All of them first reported to the camp outside the West Gate for registration and physical fitness tests.
This time, in addition to some militiamen, local militiamen, or household guards who had stayed behind, many tenant farmers also came from various counties and villages.
In the battle Yi Prefecture City, the remains of Militia Private who died in battle from various regions were all sent back, and the compensation for the families of the deceased was also fully paid.
Moreover, the land and houses that Wu Shuangren promised to the Yi Province Martyr were also delivered in full.
He specifically instructed Luo Heng to arrange for spies from the Flying Feather Hall to investigate in various places, making sure that all compensation was paid in full!
When the families of the deceased received the land deeds and house deeds, they were all incredulous, and their relatives, friends, and neighbors who heard the news were equally incredulous!
Is there really such a good thing in the world?
Therefore, many relatives of the deceased also came to Yi Prefecture City to confirm whether the house deeds and land deeds they had were genuine.
When these people arrived in Yi Prefecture City, they realized that the land deeds and house deeds they held were actually leases, meaning that the land deeds and house deeds were leased to them for forty years at no rent in the name of the Yi Province Militia.
This suggestion was given to Wu Shuangren by Guo Jiwang.
If the land and property were simply gifted permanently, the connection between the two parties would weaken. However, by leasing them to the other party in the name of the Yi Province Militia, these people would be closely bound to the Yi Province Militia in the future!
Many people were disappointed to learn that the land deeds and house deeds were rented and did not truly belong to them.
But then I thought, renting for forty years at zero rent is equivalent to owning a property.
Forty years is enough time for them to pass on their houses and land to two generations!
To date, the total amount of land allocated to the families of martyrs and soldiers who have made military Militia Private is more than 12,000 mu.
Wu Shuangren acquired nearly 130,000 mu of land from Mist Hidden Temple, as well as nearly 30,000 mu of land belonging to He Family Village near Yi Province Wharf after the He Family was destroyed.
Therefore, even if there are several more major battles, Wu Shuangren will have more than enough land to distribute among them.
As for real estate, the properties within Yi Prefecture City, around Yi Prefecture City, around Mist Hidden Mountain, and in He Family Village —all added together, with a little renovation, would be enough for Wu Shuangren to distribute among two or three thousand people!
As more and more people confirmed that the house deeds and land deeds in their hands were genuine, and after seeing the houses and land that belonged to them with their own eyes, they brought the news back home.
The whole of Yi Province was in an uproar!
For many, living a peaceful life is the best option; ultimately, they lack the courage to take up arms and fight for their lives.
But if you work hard, you can earn a fortune for the next two generations, or even more!
Many people are willing to give it a try, especially tenants who don't own any property.
Meanwhile, news of the Yi Province Militia's recruitment spread throughout Yi Prefecture City, and many people boldly ventured out of the city to inquire at the military camps whether they could join.
The people within Yi Prefecture City had closer contact with the Yi Province Militia than people elsewhere, witnessing how they defended the city and defeated the enemy.
More importantly, Wu Shuangren never allowed the Yi Province Militia to enter the city; all the Militia Private who did enter the city maintained strict discipline and were determined not to cause any disturbance to the people.
In addition, all the people of Linwen County were rescued by the Yi Province Militia.
All of these factors have helped to establish a good reputation for the Yi Province Militia.
Therefore, quite a few people in Yi Prefecture City were also tempted.
The people in the city were in better condition than those in other places, but most of them still made a living by farming, and some did not own their own land and were also tenant farmers.
The conditions offered by Wu Shuangren were equally attractive to these people!
The thirteenth day after defeating Lu Yulin.
The latest round of recruitment has ended, with a total of more than 4,300 people joining the Yi Province Militia!
This was only because Wu Shuangren stopped the recruitment in time when he saw that the number of people had almost been recruited; otherwise, many more people could have been recruited.
At this stage, even with Wu Shuangren's financial resources, supporting tens of thousands of Militia Private would be somewhat difficult, so he called for a halt in time.
Among them, more than a thousand people joined from Linwen County alone!
Previously, there were more than a thousand people in the local militia in Linwen County, all of whom had joined the Yi Province Militia; now more than a thousand more have arrived, and most of the able-bodied young men in Linwen County have chosen to become militia Militia Private.
Tens of thousands of people were rescued by the Yi Province Militia, and they ultimately chose to repay the kindness in this way.
In addition, more than a thousand tenant farmers in and around Yi Prefecture City joined the Yi Province Militia.
With over four thousand more people added, the expansion of the Yi Province Militia became a natural progression.
Wu Shuangren completed the expansion and reorganization in just two days with swift and decisive action.
The Yi Province Militia has officially added the Eighth Battalion, Ninth Battalion, and Tenth Battalion.
Wu Shuangren distributed the more than 4,000 new recruits relatively evenly across the ten battalions, and also transferred veteran soldiers from each battalion to supplement the three newly added battalions.
As for the positions of the three battalion commanders and six deputy battalion commanders that everyone is most concerned about.
For the three new battalion commanders, Wu Shuangren directly selected the two with the most merits from his personal guards. For the remaining position, he chose the deputy battalion commander with the most military achievements from among all the deputy battalion commanders.
Then, six men were selected from among the battalion commanders who had made the most military achievements to serve as deputy battalion commanders.
These people were all veterans from Bo County, and some were relatives of the Wu and Liao families, and were Wu Shuangren's true direct descendants.
In addition, there are thirty battalion commanders, sixty company commanders, and three hundred captains, who are selected from each battalion.
When some people are promoted, their original positions need to be filled by replacements.
Therefore, this round represents a major personnel reshuffle for the entire Yi Province Militia!
The Sixth Battalion, led by Yan Bin, and the Fifth Battalion, led by Shi Chen, received the second-highest number of promotions in this round, after the First, Second, and Third Battalion.
Everyone knew this perfectly well.
After the previous round of rescue efforts, the Militia Private in Linwen County can now be considered half of Wu Shuangren's loyal followers.
As for the Fifth Battalion led by Shi Chen, they were the first to step forward and call on everyone to return to support Wu Shuangren.
Wu Shuangren had clearly taken Shi Chen and the Fifth Battalion's actions to heart, and now it was time to repay them.
After reorganization, the Yi Province Militia now has ten battalions with a total strength of nearly 13,000 men!
Next, Wu Shuangren ordered the Yi Province Militia to leave two battalions stationed in the city, while the rest moved to Mist Hidden Mountain.
There's a manor that Mist Hidden Temple had previously built; if it's expanded, it can accommodate more people.
Wu Shuangren decided to use Mist Hidden Mountain and its surrounding area as a base for the Yi Province Militia, where they could carry out large-scale construction and allocate housing in the future.
After reorganization was completed and the stronghold was selected, all the new recruits began training in full swing.
Yi Prefecture City, at the Shannan Army.
Xu Rong has been keeping a close eye on the Yi Province Militia these past few days.
At first, he wanted to urge Wu Shuangren to send troops to Rong Province as soon as possible; but seeing that the other side was recruiting soldiers, he stopped urging him.
He wanted to see just how far Wu Shuangren's Yi Province Militia could go.
In less than ten days, the other party actually recruited more than four thousand people!
While others were merely watching the spectacle, Xu Rong saw something deeper— Wu Shuangren had already won over the hearts of the people of Yi Province.
Otherwise, such a large and unanimous response wouldn't be possible!
Moreover, the fact that Wu Shuangren dared to maintain so many soldiers meant that he had sufficient financial resources.
"The Yi Province Militia are here to defend Yi Province. Is it really necessary to have so many troops to defend just one province?"
Xu Rong felt increasingly alarmed as he thought about it!
He gradually began to understand the deeper meaning behind Wu Shuangren's offer to lead troops with him to Rong Province to annihilate Mount Liang.
"Brother Xu."
Zhang Liao suddenly came in from outside the tent, "Militia Commander Wu sent word that we're setting off for Rong Province in five days!"
The Flag Is Flying, the horses are neighing.
Night fell, Yi Prefecture City.
In a courtyard, dozens of battalion commanders, deputy battalion commanders, and brigade commanders from the Yi Province Militia sat at their desks.
Torches were lit around the courtyard, illuminating it. Some people were writing crookedly on paper with pens, while others were scratching their heads and looking at books.
Chen Tie sat in the corner with a piece of paper in front of him. On the paper, a dozen or so characters, 'Wu,' were written crookedly.
He held the pen as if it were a knife, and his expression was somewhat ferocious as he wrote, his teeth clenched.
Over the past ten days or so, while the Yi Province Militia was recruiting soldiers, Wu Shuangren didn't let everyone be idle.
The officers trained during the day and spent half an hour learning flag signals and the other half an hour learning to read and write.
Wu Shuangren specially hired a schoolteacher from Yi Prefecture City to teach these people.
He required all officers of Senior Militia Officer and above to be literate and have a certain level of literacy.
Furthermore, a rule was established that assessments would be conducted every month, and those who failed three consecutive assessments would be demoted!
Therefore, no one dared to take it lightly, and everyone studied very seriously.
Of all the officers in the Yi Province Militia at the rank of Senior Militia Officer and above, less than 20% had attended private schools from childhood and possessed basic literacy; the rest were practically illiterate.
This was especially true for the company commanders, captains, and ordinary Militia Private below them.