Chapter 1445 - 349: Charge!

Chapter 1445: Chapter 349: Charge!

Guo Dong and Hui An became part of the battle ranks;

First, because of the battle at East Mountain Fort, when Lord Zheng planted his command flag there and pushed the command chariot forward, although the long-duration battle eventually crushed the Chu army, the losses and casualties on their side were also significant;

Of course, that’s not the main reason. The real reason is the influx of high-quality troops personally vetted by Jin Shuke and the blind man from the rear, triggering the expansion of the original Snow Sea army.

It’s akin to rewarding accomplishments: old soldiers become squad leaders, squad leaders become sergeants, sergeants become Centurions, Centurions become captains.

With the old guiding the new, initial combat effectiveness can be quickly formed. In the era of cold weapons, achieving the battle record of breaking fifty thousand with thirty thousand like the first Earl of North Border a century ago is impossible. Thus, old soldiers perishing and new soldiers replenishing is also inevitable.

Purely on paper, combat effectiveness will certainly decrease, but this is a necessary growing pain.

Not only is the Snow Sea army like this, but the North Border army and Jingnan army have had severe replacements of veterans with new soldiers due to multiple fierce battles in recent years.

Hence, under such inevitable conditions, a military’s reputation becomes incredibly important.

Even in later generations, units like the Hero Company, Steel Company, and Tiger Battalion continued to be preserved, because a troop with a glorious history and legacy allows new recruits to quickly feel pride and belonging, which translates to...... courage on the battlefield.

Courage can compensate for a lack of horsemanship and a certain degree of inexperience; it’s like a halo that, without a specific effect, makes you better than before.

The North Border army is a legacy troop, even before Lord Jingnan emerged in prominence, Yan’s cavalry was recognized as unmatched under heaven, and the North Border cavalry was known as the best in Yan.

Thus, for this reason, wild chiefs who trained with the wild king in Beifeng Prefecture took special care to mention their auxiliary troop affiliation in Beifeng Prefecture when reporting their identity upon seeing Yan cavalry.

As for the Snow Sea army, half lies in its undefeated status since formation, and the other half in the personal prestige of Lord Pingye.

In recent years, Lord Pingye has scarcely missed any battles commanded by Prince Jingnan;

Due to Prince Jingnan’s extermination of his entire family, deliberately forgotten in the public eye, much of the glory transferred to Lord Pingye.

The commoners rose up, laborers turned over, achieved merits and established feats, military exploits turned into titles;

Adding a touch of individual heroism with the princess abduction,

made the name ’Lord Pingye’ incredibly alluring in the auxiliary military camp.

When the blind man and Jin Shuke halted the flow from the rear, hearing Lord Pingye’s recruitment, the auxiliary soldiers and laborers rushed over, almost breaking their heads.

Guo Dong and Hui An were originally auxiliary soldiers, now, they became regular soldiers.

However, whether it was fortunate or unfortunate, they joined the unit Jin Shuke commanded, and Jin Shuke’s unit was mobilized to cooperate with Gou Moli’s first battalion, beginning the march west.

Joining the march were also the Gong Wang unit and the Gongsun Zhi unit.

In other words, after the start of the Chu campaign, the eastern front army, which made the most achievements and shone the brightest, had its elites mostly drawn away, the three main generals were entirely absent, so the remaining troops in the eastern front, though still numerous, were not suitable for specific operational tasks anymore. When the Chu campaign enters a new stage, they will act as rear forces, unless encountering real crises, like an extreme situation where the front collapses, the eastern front army almost won’t participate in battles again but will focus on maintaining logistics stability.

The eastern front army’s movements remained hidden under the new round of mobilization of the entire Chu campaign army. Due to the Chu people’s strategic shrinkage, the Yan army nearly expended no effort in clearing remaining military fortresses, necessitating rearrangement of various troops’ stationed positions and configurations.

Under Prince Jingnan’s command, tens of thousands of troops moved in an orderly manner, though rear laborers became busy again during this period.

New camps, new placements, new establishments.

And various siege equipment, unlikely to be used but still crafted to confuse the Chu people.

Knowing this is the battlefield,

Unaware might think Eastern Jin is undertaking large-scale production construction.

On the Chu people’s side, adjustments were being made taking Town South Pass as their reliance, preparing new defense lines.

A new round of military confrontation between the two countries is about to begin.

Lord Zheng on this side didn’t rush to join the main force but used memorandums bearing the Royal Seal to draw five thousand elites from the various road generals, leading this freshly assembled troop, rushing west.

The vast majority of soldiers were puzzled, not knowing what this play was about?

They were the genuine veterans under various road generals, with some generals even sending their own personal guards.

No one dared to be secretive. First, the drawn troop isn’t many, not enough to talk about cutting to the bone for these generals;

Second, no one dared to play tricks or send the elderly, weak, sick, or disabled under Prince Jingnan’s watch.

The elites are elites, and proud troops are proud troops.

But when Prince Jingnan and Lord Pingye appeared before them,