Taiheiki

Chapter 77 Adopted Son
Wei Cong nodded with a hint of disappointment. While the military system of the Han Dynasty saw some changes, generally speaking, the south primarily recruited naval officers and material officers, while the north produced knights. This was particularly true of the six border prefectures of Longxi, Tianshui, Anding, Beidi, Shangjun, and Xihe. These counties, bordered by the Qiang, Hu, and Xiongnu, were rich in fine horses, and their people were sturdy and strong, skilled in horseback archery. They had always been a key source of Han knights. Consequently, during the Han Dynasty, a special promotional path was established for men of good families in these six counties (those with assets of over 100,000 coins, excluding those who worked as merchants or sorcerers), allowing them to enter the court as imperial guardsmen. Furthermore, Youzhou and northern Bingzhou also produced a wealth of outstanding knights. Wei Cong's soldiers were primarily refugees from Jingzhou, desperate young men from the surrounding areas of Nanjun, and a few local warriors. They had some basic proficiency in spears, swords and shields, bows and crossbows, and naval warfare, but proficiency in mounted archery and horseback combat was rare.

"Why don't we call all the officers and staff in the army and ask them! Maybe they know who is good at horse fighting?" Zhao Yannian asked.

"Okay!" Although he no longer held much hope, Wei Cong still nodded. After all, if he didn't have anyone who was good at cavalry warfare, there would be no point in training. The fifty horses would be useless, so he might as well just leave them in Wu Castle.

As the troops were about to be dispatched, most of Wei Cong's officers and staff were in the camp. After a while, they gathered together. Wei Cong told them about the horses and finally asked, "Do you know anyone in the army who is good at horse fighting? Please report it quickly!"
The hall was filled with dead silence, with everyone looking at each other, speechless. Wei Cong was just beginning to express his disappointment when he saw Diwu Deng raise his hand. He was overjoyed: "Aden, you have someone skilled in cavalry warfare under your command. Why didn't you tell me earlier?"

"No, no!" Diwu Deng shook his head hurriedly. "My men are all locals, so how could they fight on horseback? But when I was at the Nie family in Chaisang, I heard that Nie Zheng could shoot two stone bows from a horse and was extremely brave. I also heard that Master Nie was trained at home since childhood and was also very skilled with bows, arrows, spears, and lances on horseback. I just don't know if it's true or not!"

"Really?" Wei Cong's eyes lit up.
"I remember now!" Huang Ping slapped his thigh. "The last time I came to your house on business, I happened to run into the young master coming back from hunting. Judging from the way he looked on horseback, he was quite a rider. Oh, and he killed a lot of prey, including foxes and deer. He also said that the fox fur was great and would be perfect for making a waistcoat for your adoptive father. Didn't you know that?"

"This - it seems so?" Wei Cong scratched the back of his head. It seemed that A Jing had mentioned it to him once a few days ago, but since he came back from Chaisang, he was urged to send troops. He was busy all day long and had long forgotten about this adopted son he brought back from Chaisang. How could he still remember anything about fox fur and deerskin?

"Since my lord is in need of a knight, he brought back an adopted son who is proficient in riding from Chaisang. It's really destiny!" Wen Sheng slapped his thigh.

"That's right. That horse must be assigned to the elite soldiers under his command! Let the young master lead them. It will be a good story for father and son to fight together!" Liu Jiu said.

"That's right, my lord. Quickly write a letter and transfer the young master to the army!" Diwu Deng said with a smile.

"Isn't this a bad idea?" Wei Cong said with an embarrassed look, "He and I have no blood relationship, and he's only fifteen. It's a bit too much to ask him to fight in battle at this age!"

"You can't say that!" Huang Ping laughed. "You saw it all back in Chaisang. That Zhou is quite capable, no ordinary woman. If it weren't for you, the young master would have most likely died at her hands. That's why he accepted you as his adoptive father and left home to follow you to Jiangling. From this perspective, you've done him a great favor. Besides, your relationship as father and son is already established. Even if heaven were to fall, you would still be the father and he the son. Filial piety is the greatest of all virtues. It would be against the will of heaven for the young master not to serve you!"

"Yes!" Zhao Yannian laughed. "You said that the young master is only fifteen and can't go into battle, but fifteen is not young. During the Battle of Changping, when the two armies were deadlocked, the King of Qin sent the people of Henei who were all over fifteen. This shows that this has been the truth since ancient times. When I first joined the army, I was only sixteen, only a year older than the young master, and a little smaller than him!"

"Yes!" Wen Sheng smiled. "I know you're worried that the young master won't have enough strength, his muscles and bones aren't strong enough, and he'll be at a disadvantage in a fight. But the young master is fighting on horseback, and what's being compared is horsepower and mounted martial arts. In fact, physical strength isn't that important. If the young master has really been training with Nie Zheng since he was a child, his horsemanship at his age is already remarkable. Ordinary knights are no match for him. Even if a horse fight requires a lot of strength, he will definitely be by your side to protect you. It won't be his turn in close combat, right?"

Wei Cong was shaken by the repeated exhortations from the crowd. Just when he was wavering between his desire to become a cavalry instructor and the guilt of sending a 15-year-old boy to the battlefield, Huang Ping's words had the final say.

"My dear, you should also consider Young Master Nie's future in this matter. He's already fifteen, the age to make great achievements. You're going to the war this time, and there's no telling when you'll be back. If he doesn't go with you this time and stays at home, then when you return triumphantly, he won't have accomplished anything. No matter what you want to give him, you won't have a reason to, and even if you give him anything, he won't be able to accept it. If he goes with you this time, not only will he gain a lot of experience, but he'll also have a deeper bond with the soldiers under your command. This will make things much easier for him in the future, whether he returns to Chaisang to fight for the family business or anything else. As the saying goes, jade cannot be made into a useful object without being polished!"

"You're a scoundrel who's been living off your parents until you're thirty, and you're sending a teenager half your age to fight in the battlefield? How dare you say that!" Wei Cong grumbled inwardly, but he still nodded. Huang Ping had said so much, but in fact, only one sentence was important - return to Chaisang to fight for the family business. He knew that his adopted son was still obsessed with regaining the Nie family's foundation, but the Zhou family had the support of the Lujiang Zhou family behind them, so Nie Sheng would definitely not win by using public means. The only way was force, and Wei Cong's status was still that of an official, so he couldn't do it himself. Nie Sheng had to do it himself, and Wei Cong could only provide some troops. As for the skill of leading troops and killing, no one could teach him, so he had to show it himself on the battlefield. So if Nie Sheng really wanted to regain the family business, the easiest way was to follow Wei Cong into battle.

"Time is running out, so I'll go back and report this to you, Master!" Huang Ping saw Wei Cong nod and quickly stood up to say goodbye. Wei Cong was also a little tired at this point, so he waved his hand and said, "Everyone, go your separate ways! We still have four days left, so get everything sorted out and don't forget anything!"

Kuai Sheng had indeed not lied. The next day at noon, he sent a messenger to deliver 100,000 arrows and 50 fine horses. Wei Cong personally went to the camp gate to greet them, took out money and silk to reward the messenger, and then sent him away. Returning to his room, he had the horses sent to the stables in the rear camp while sighing to Zhao Yannian, "I really owe you a huge favor this time!"

"Yes!" Zhao Yannian sighed, "But since I already owe you a favor, I might as well owe you more!"

"More?" Wei Cong laughed. "That's true, but unfortunately there are so few people with Kuai Gongcao's insight. We can't always catch a sheep and pull it out, right?"

Zhao Yannian was stunned when he heard this, but then he understood what Wei Cong meant and couldn't help laughing: "Fifty fine horses and a hundred thousand arrows, even if it's Kuai Gongcao, he has already spent a lot of money. It's really not appropriate to ask him for more!"

"So let's think more about how to save Bachu next!" Wei Cong sighed. "I remember you said last time that you'd been there. Tell me, how big is Bachu City, and how high are the city walls?" "Not big. A lap around the city walls is only a little over a mile! The walls are less than two meters high, but the city is on a mountain, so it's easy to defend but difficult to attack!"

"A little over a mile in one lap?" Wei Cong was stunned. "Then wouldn't it be just a little bigger than our Wu Castle?"

"Hmm!" Zhao Yannian nodded. "I heard that this city was originally built as a residence by Ma Fubo during his conquest of the Wuling Barbarians. It's located on Mount Baqiu, a strategically located mountain overlooking the waterway below, so naturally it's not very large. In fact, the common people and merchants usually live by the lake at the foot of the mountain, and only retreat to the city on the mountain to defend it when war breaks out!"

"Dige? Isn't it just a military station? No wonder!" Wei Cong nodded. After hearing this, he probably understood. In ancient times, when a large army went on an expedition, military stations must be set up along the way. On the one hand, it can protect the fleet of ships transporting supplies, and on the other hand, some food can be temporarily stored in these military stations. In this way, each transport team does not need to travel thousands of miles, but only needs to go back and forth between two military stations. Baqiu City should be one of the military stations set up by Ma Yuan. After the war subsided, due to convenient transportation and the protection of garrison troops, it gradually became a commercial city. However, no new city was built on the flat land, so Baqiu City is so small. Feng Gun asked Wei Cong to rescue Baqiu in order to prepare for the army's action after the spring.

"Since it's a mountain fortress, the bandits probably won't be able to take it down in a short time!" Wei Cong said with a smile.
"My dear, it's not that simple!" Zhao Yannian said solemnly, "I heard there are three to four thousand residents and merchants in Baqiu. If they all retreat to the mountain city, with so many people crammed into such a small city, I'm afraid there will be an epidemic!"

"Blight? It's winter now, so it should be okay?"

"That's true! But even so, it's still very troublesome! We can't put it off any longer!"

While the two were discussing, a servant announced that the young master was waiting outside, and Wei Cong had him summoned. A moment later, while the servant was still outside, Nie Sheng's excited voice was heard: "I am willing to follow my father to Jingnan to fight the bandits!"

"Don't worry, don't worry!" Wei Cong felt a little embarrassed to be called "Dad" in front of him. He gestured for Nie Sheng to sit down and talk to him: "You should think about this matter carefully. After all, swords on the battlefield are blind, and you are still young. You have a long life ahead of you!"

"I've been hunting with my father since I was nine, but we rode a pony and used a short bow. By the time I was thirteen, I could shoot prey with an adult's horn bow!" The boy's face flushed. "Whether it's riding a horse or using a spear, I'm as good as anyone. Even wearing armor, I can jump on horseback without stirrups! Father, please take me with you. I will definitely kill the bandit leader and make a name for myself!"

"Young Master!" Zhao Yannian coughed. "What your father needs right now is someone who can teach his soldiers how to fight on horseback. We'll take care of the charging, beheading generals, and capturing flags. Even on the battlefield, you only need to stay by your father's side!"

"I can do this too!" Nie Sheng said with a smile, "I remember exactly how my father trained me!" He paused for a moment, then pointed to the top of his head and said, "Don't think I'm young. I measured myself last night, and I'm an inch taller than when I was in Chaisang!"

The boy's childish words made Wei Cong laugh. He stood up and walked over to the boy. Only then did he notice that thick hair had grown on his lips. Suffering can turn a boy into a man overnight! This sentence suddenly flashed through Wei Cong's mind. Perhaps he should accept this "son" who was not related to him by blood.

"Okay! Go back and pack your things. We'll set off together in three days!"

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Ba Qiu (now Yueyang), lakeside, and town ruins.

The winter in southern Jing was cold and foggy. The wind felt sticky on my face, as if it had been stained by snot. Through the wisps of morning mist, I could see the chevaux de frise outside the besiegers' camp, almost within reach. Lu Ping carefully climbed over the fence, his feet squeezing softly as they touched the gray-green mud.

"Heaven help! Don't wake up the thieves' sentries so early!" Lu Ping silently prayed as he cautiously made his way to the water's edge. The air was damp and thick. He carefully picked his way through the mud and puddles, following the remnants of the stone slabs that once connected the town to the outside world. Several of Bachu's wealthiest merchants had pooled their money to build this stone road, allowing cargo unloaded from ships to easily cross the swamp. The once smooth and neat bluestone slabs were so perfectly aligned that it took two hundred men two months of labor to cut, polish, and place them. Some of these stones were buried in the mud; others lay scattered, cracked, broken, and covered in moss, just like the town itself, in tatters.

In the distance stood General City, as the locals of Baqiu called the castle atop Baqiu Mountain. It had stood for over a hundred years. As a child, Lu Ping often played on those walls. As trade increased, more and more people moved to the flatlands near the lakeside docks, freed from the daily arduous trek up and down the mountains to fetch water, or toiled on the barren mountain fields to earn a living. All ships plying the shores of Dongting Lake, the Xiangshui River, the Yuanshui River, and the Yangtze River would dock overnight at the docks at the foot of the mountain, creating a vast market where merchants sold their wares and bought what they needed. Countless ships docked there.

(End of this chapter)