My father Liu Xuande

Chapter 413 Reunion with the Two Qiaos
These ten naval battalions were divided into five brigades, with Zhou Tai, Jiang Qin, Dong Xi, Gan Ning, and Zhu Huan as the main generals and brigade commanders, and the other five colonels as deputy generals.

After conducting preliminary investigations and discussions, the Vanguard Army also chose to continue its expansion.

While the cavalry remained stationary, an additional five battalions totaling 10,000 men were added, four of which were the main infantry battalions and the other was a supplementary battalion.

The cavalry, like the navy, consisted of two battalions forming a brigade. However, the infantry differed from the navy and cavalry, consisting of three battalions forming a brigade, with a brigade commander.

Zhang Liao was the commander of the First Cavalry Battalion, with Cheng Pu as his deputy. Xu Huang was the commander of the Second Cavalry Battalion, with Han Dang as his deputy. They were merged into the First Cavalry Brigade, with Zhang Liao as the brigade commander and Xu Huang as the deputy brigade commander.

The remaining nine battalions of infantry were reorganized into three brigades, commanded by Xu Sheng, Zhou Dao, and Lü Fan respectively, with Yu Zi serving as the commander of the supplementary brigade.

The Third Special Battalion was reorganized into a brigade, and the brigade commander was Liu Mao, who came from Liu'er Battalion and was skilled in machinery.

Ultimately, the position of Commander of the Vanguard Army was filled by Taishi Ci.

The Vanguard Army consisted of two cavalry battalions, nine infantry battalions, one supplementary battalion, and three special forces battalions, totaling fifteen battalions and 30,000 men. Adding the 40,000 naval troops, the total force reached 70,000.

Of the remaining 80,000 troops, Liu Feng planned to appoint Zhao Yun as military commander to form a weakened vanguard army. Once the financial resources, military equipment and supplies were in place, it could be expanded into an elite army.

Zhao Yun's troops consisted of one cavalry battalion, six infantry battalions, and three special forces battalions, totaling ten battalions and twenty thousand men.

Zhao Yun personally commanded the cavalry battalion, while the six infantry battalions were divided into two brigades, with Pan Zhang and Xu Ding serving as brigade commanders respectively. The special forces battalion was temporarily under the direct command of the military governor.

The remaining 60,000 men were organized into three pure infantry corps, each corps consisting of six infantry battalions, one supplementary battalion, and three special forces battalions, totaling 30 battalions and 60,000 men.

The three military commanders were temporarily designated as Zhou Yu, Jia Kui, and Gao Shun, respectively.

In this way, the army of 150,000 men was completed. Liu Feng did not plan to increase the size of the army for the time being. If there was a subsequent financial surplus, Liu Feng would give priority to upgrading Zhao Yun's army to the level of an elite army.

Based on expenses, the current quota for the Cuifeng Army is 1,200 coins per year for each soldier, 4 shi of grain, 2 bolts of silk, and half a shi of salt per year.

The army has 30,000 men. The annual expenditure for soldiers is 36 million coins, 120,000 shi of grain, 60,000 bolts of silk, and 15,000 shi of salt. In addition to the salaries of all officers and non-commissioned officers, the total annual expenditure for the army is 40 million coins, 150,000 shi of grain, 65,000 bolts of silk, and 17,000 shi of salt.

In addition, there are additional expenses for warhorses.

The Vanguard Army alone had 800 first-class warhorses, 1,200 second-class warhorses, 2,800 third-class warhorses, and 600 nags, chariots, and mules.

First-class and second-class warhorses require concentrated feed, but normally they can eat cheap hay and feed, and can be well raised with concentrated feed and eggs.

However, during wartime, the diet consisted mainly of concentrated feed, supplemented with hay. This was because long marches required significant energy expenditure for the warhorses, but they did not have enough time to eat hay. Therefore, concentrated feed was the only option to provide them with sufficient energy.

Therefore, the consumption of first-class warhorses is about ten times that of ordinary soldiers, while that of second-class warhorses is six times that of ordinary soldiers, and that of third-class warhorses is slightly better, roughly four times that of ordinary soldiers.

Fortunately, warhorses do not require military pay, so the extra expenses are almost entirely covered by food.

It would require an additional expenditure of approximately 800,000 shi of grain per year, but this figure is only theoretical and is based on the annual grain consumption of warhorses.

In most cases, warhorses cannot play the entire game, let alone all year round.

Zhao Yun's army's expenses were about half that of the Cui Feng Army. Firstly, the number of soldiers was less than that of the Cui Feng Army, only two-thirds of the latter. Secondly, the treatment was also less than that of the Cui Feng Army, also about two-thirds of the latter.

The expenses for other infantry corps were even less, only about two-fifths of those for the Vanguard Corps, and there were no expenses for food for warhorses.

The navy's expenses were much higher than the army's, and in terms of salary alone, it was second only to the Vanguard Army.

The entire army numbered 150,000, with a total annual expenditure of approximately 170 million coins, 700,000 shi of grain, 300,000 bolts of silk, and 80,000 shi of salt. Of course, this only included salaries and expenses, not the costs of weapons, supplies, food, warships, and the like, which were also a major expense.

Even so, Liu Feng still had the capacity to continue reorganizing, but firstly, there were not many first-class warhorses left, and secondly, the stock of iron armor was running low.

If the material foundation for military equipment is insufficient, then there is no need to force a reorganization; it is better to wait and deal with it later.

During the discussions, the appointment of naval commanders was passed without any major issues. Except for a few commanders who felt that the 40,000-strong naval force was too ambitious, there was no question about the selection of commanders.

On the contrary, regarding the Vanguard Army, the generals had many reservations about Xu Ding, Zhou Dao, and Lü Fan being appointed as brigade commanders.

After all, these positions are quite important, and even Xu Sheng and Pan Zhang would rather lower themselves to take on such roles.

In reality, these three positions were nominally demotions but actually promotions. It might seem that Xu Sheng and Pan Zhang were demoted by half a level, but that was not the case.

The brigade commander could also command three battalions of six thousand men, which was not much different from the troops they had previously led. Anyone with discerning eyes could see the value of the Vanguard Army; the ranks within it were clearly half a rank or even a full rank higher than those in other units.

Therefore, apart from a few people like Jia Kui and Gao Shun who were both loyal to Liu Feng and indifferent to fame and fortune, everyone else was envious and jealous of Xu Ding and the other two.

However, despite considerable opposition, Liu Feng had already made up his mind.

Who could blame him when he had such high hopes for these three people?
Xu Ding is Xu Chu's elder brother. Xu Chu is now Liu Feng's personal bodyguard and general. If Xu Ding is not trustworthy, who else can he trust? Moreover, Xu Chu will surely be grateful for Xu Ding's promotion. It's like getting two benefits for one price, so why not?
Zhou Dao came from a humble background and was a powerful and daring man. He was extremely loyal and grateful to Liu Feng. He had even volunteered to join Liu Feng, so Liu Feng felt obligated to give him a generous reward.

At the same time, Liu Feng also happened to be willing to establish a local figure in Jiangdong, including Xu Gong from the Xu family of Yuhang, Zhu Huan from a prominent family in Wuzhong, He Qi and Yu Fan from Kuaiji, Zhang Ying from Danyang, and so on, all of whom had come into Liu Feng's sights.

Liu Feng ultimately chose Zhou Dao because Zhou Dao was a perfect fit in terms of identity, status, and ability, while others were inferior to Zhou Dao in one or two aspects.

For example, Yu Fan and He Qi, their abilities, reputation, and background are all above Zhou Dao's, but the problem is that their backgrounds are too good and their reputations are too high.

Liu Feng wanted to set an example, so Yu Fan and He Qi, who were already famous, were not suitable.

Xu Gong was even further behind. Although his reputation and status were not as high as Yu Fan and He Qi's, they were not far off, but his abilities were not as outstanding as Zhou Dao's, and he was ultimately eliminated. Liu Feng had considered the whole family, but they had not yet come to serve him, which surprised Liu Feng.

As for Lü Fan, he was a genius with both literary and military talents. He was a trusted minister and beloved general of both Sun Ce and Sun Quan, the two rulers of Wu, and the first Grand Marshal of Eastern Wu. His abilities were beyond doubt. He could also represent the surrendered soldiers of the Sun family. Therefore, Liu Feng gave him a chance.

Finally, Jia Kui, Xu Sheng, Pan Zhang, Gao Shun, and other trusted generals still need to help him control other armies. He can't put all his confidants in one army, otherwise his control over the other armies will decrease.

Ultimately, after discussions and advice from his generals, Liu Feng made minor adjustments to the plan, resulting in the aforementioned outcome. With the agreement finalized, Liu Feng held a grand banquet for his generals.

The generals then returned to their respective units and, as required, selected elite troops to be sent to Wanling.

At the same time, the shogunate will issue an integration plan, requiring each department to adjust its troops and accept new recruits.

In fact, this wave of troop expansion, though called new recruits, consisted mostly of veterans. Even the 70,000 to 80,000 men temporarily added to Sun's army had all been through more than one battle. As long as they survived unscathed, they were qualified veterans.

After receiving their orders, the generals returned to their respective towns.

Before leaving, Pan Zhang went to visit him.

Liu Feng was naturally quite tolerant of his trusted generals and immediately granted them a meeting.

When they arrived at the study, they saw two young girls following behind Pan Zhang. They were familiar faces, none other than the Two Qiaos of Jiangdong.

"Pan Wengui, did you just ignore what I said?"

Liu Feng was immediately enraged and shouted, "Who gave you the audacity to harass the Qiao family again at the Qiao residence?"

Liu Feng was somewhat surprised. Pan Zhang had indeed sent the two Qiaos to his door, but when Liu Feng sent someone to investigate, he found that the two Qiaos were actually Qiao Rui's relatives, and in terms of seniority, they were Qiao Rui's cousins.

At that time, the focus was on pacifying Shouchun, calming Jiangbei, and assimilating Yuan Shu's group. How could the incident of forcibly seizing the families of important officials of Yuan Shu's group have occurred, especially since Qiao Rui was still commanding a large army outside at the time?

Liu Feng immediately reprimanded Pan Zhang, then personally escorted Pan Zhang to return the two Qiao sisters to the Qiao residence, explained and apologized, and then used Pan Zhang as an example to publicly beat him with forty strokes of the military rod.

However, when it comes to beating people with military batons, the severity of the blows depends on the individual.

If you hit hard, you can cripple or kill someone in less than ten blows; if you hit lightly, you can hit someone seventy or eighty times without causing any internal injuries.

However, Pan Zhang was an important general, and being punished with a military rod was quite humiliating.

Fortunately, Liu Feng intervened personally, and Pan Zhang dared not cause any trouble. He obediently accepted a beating from the military rod and, under Liu Feng's watchful eye, offered an apology to the Qiao family.

Pan Zhang acted very honestly and loyally, and did not betray his confidant Ma Zhong, but took the blame on his own.

After this news spread, the surrendered generals and officials of Yuan Shu's group immediately breathed a sigh of relief and were no longer on edge. The generals stationed abroad also surrendered their cities one after another, and no one acted out of spite for a woman.

Therefore, when Liu Feng saw the two Qiaos, his first reaction was that Pan Zhang had gone to the Qiao residence to snatch them again.

"wrong!"

Liu Feng suddenly remembered that Pan Zhang should have been in Jiangdong for the past year. When did he go to Jiangbei?
"Do you dare to abandon your post?"

Pan Zhang, all smiles, quickly shook his head and explained when he saw Liu Feng's face darken: "Young Master, you've wronged me. This is the Qiao family's idea."

Pan Zhang's words made Liu Feng frown, and he asked in confusion, "What exactly happened?"

Seeing that Liu Feng's attitude had softened, Pan Zhang quickly explained, "Your Highness, Lord Qiao fell ill a month ago and his health has been deteriorating. He is particularly worried about his two daughters and has instructed General Qiao to find suitable husbands for them. After much thought, General Qiao remembered what happened last year."

As Pan Zhang spoke, he secretly glanced at Liu Feng's expression. He noticed that Liu Feng's gaze was fixed on the two Qiao sisters, who had lowered their heads, and that Liu Feng's expression had softened. Pan Zhang then secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

"Lord Qiao also greatly admired the young master before. Whenever he talked about you with General Qiao, he always praised you highly."

Pan Zhang continued, "Therefore, General Qiao contacted me, wanting to send the two Qiao girls to the young master's residence. This would put General Qiao at ease, and also allow them to take care of the young master's daily life nearby."

Liu Feng was amused by Pan Zhang's words.

By taking the two Qiao sisters as concubines, could he possibly soothe the heart of the seriously ill Lord Qiao?
Seeing Pan Zhang's beaming face, Liu Feng guessed that it was probably true that Lord Qiao was ill, but Pan Wengui was most likely stirring up trouble inside, otherwise Qiao Rui and Lord Qiao would not have sent the two Qiaos over so eagerly.

How can a daughter be busy marrying off as a concubine when her father is seriously ill?

The Qiao family is a prominent family from Jiujiang; how could they possibly do something so rude?

Liu Feng sneered twice: "Why would General Qiao and Lord Qiao come to you, Pan Wengui? Could it be that they've heard of your reputation for being generous and righteous, and for helping people in need?"

Pan Zhang was secretly delighted. Liu Feng himself didn't realize it, but Pan Zhang could see it clearly. Although Liu Feng was still lecturing him on the surface, his anger was actually subsiding.

Realizing this, Pan Zhang understood that he had definitely made the right bet, and said with a fawning smile, "Young Master, you are wise and powerful, how could I dare to deceive you? It was indeed General Qiao and Lord Qiao who found me. I was just doing this to help you, and I also thought that you really lacked people around you, so I was willing to risk your reprimand to make this happen."

Seeing Pan Zhangtian shamelessly praising himself, Liu Feng almost laughed out of anger.

However, at this moment, Liu Feng really didn't have much anger left in his heart.

Upon closer reflection, times have changed and the situation is now completely different.

At this time, accepting the two Qiao sisters would not only not cause unease among Yuan Shu's remaining officials in Jiangbei, but would also bring them closer together, making them more willing to serve him.

The same event, at different times and places, can yield vastly different results.

After thinking about all this, Liu Feng no longer felt any displeasure. If he had to admit it, it would only be a slight wariness of Pan Zhang's self-will.

Seeing Liu Feng remain silent with an uncertain expression, Pan Zhang felt a little guilty and couldn't help but ask, "Young Master, if you really don't like them, I'll send them back!"

Liu Feng snapped out of his daze and glared at the other man with annoyance. "Are you trying to force the Qiao family to rebel or to force the Qiao sisters to hang themselves?"

(End of this chapter)