Chapter 115: Recruiting Rangers and Forming the "Shen Ce"

Huangshui City.

"General An, I heard that your family is very good at raising horses."

In early August, An Zhongzhang, who was a young general in Hexi, was summoned to become Li Xuan's escort.

An Zhongzhang is Li Baoyu in history. He was given the surname Li because of his contributions during the An-Shi Rebellion.

He was from Anguoli.

Being good at horse breeding is also a skill passed down from ancestors.

"Yes, my brothers can tell the quality of a horse at a glance, and know what kind of horses to mate with to produce a good horse."

An Zhongzhang replied to Li Xuan.

An Zhongzhang was a Sinicized Sogdian. As early as the Northern Wei Dynasty, his ancestors moved from the Western Regions to the Central Plains.

His grandfather An Xinggui volunteered to be the governor of Liangzhou during the reign of Li Shimin.

An Zhongzhang thought that Li Xuan made him his confidant just because of his grandfather's reputation.

"General An, please summon your brothers to Huangshui. I will appoint them as officials and raise horses in Longyou. If you can train good horses and increase the number of horses, you will have no problem becoming a fifth-rank official in the future!"

Li Xuan wanted someone who knew how to raise horses, especially to let Liu Xi introduce stallions from the Western Regions.

The An family has produced famous horses for generations, and Li Xuan wants to test their abilities.

"Thank you, General Li. I will send a letter to invite you to Huangshui City."

An Zhongzhang was very happy. He also hoped that his brothers would be honored.

The horse policy of the Tang Dynasty was an "important policy for governing the country", and raising horses was not a derogatory term.

"Promoting General An to be the Ya Ya does not mean that his talents are limited to this. When there is another vacancy for a military envoy, you will lead the army." Li Xuan was optimistic about An Zhongzhang's strategy and made a promise to him, also to let him be prepared.

"I will repay Marshal Li for his kindness by sacrificing my life for him."

An Zhongzhang bowed again, tears in his eyes.

He is already in his forties and his life is about to pass by in a flash.

When he was confused in life, Li Xuan appreciated him, which made An Zhongzhang grateful to tears.

After Li Xuan finished talking with An Zhongzhang, he asked a clerk to prepare a residence for him.

The affairs of the Jiedushi's office were still very busy, and they were just waiting for the other people summoned by Li Xuan to come in.

"General, there is another knight from the capital who wants to be accepted as your personal guard."

Xue Cuo came to the government office to report to Li Xuan.

This has happened many times.

Since Li Xuan became the general, there have been many knights requesting to become his personal guards.

Because following Li Xuan and wearing gorgeous Ming Guang armor to the battlefield can better highlight the personality of the ranger.

"The rangers of Huangshui City have almost gathered. Tell them that the battlefield is not just about passion, nor is it about fighting with swords. Rangers who are good at riding and shooting, and can carry two stone of rice, can become my personal guards. If not, give them wine and let them go home. Of course, if they want to join the army, they are welcome at any time."

Li Xuan gave an order to Xue Cuo.

He had few personal guards, only eleven in total including Xue Cuo and Luo Xing.

Other military governors often had hundreds of personal guards.

But when Li Xuan selected his personal guards, the first consideration was that they must be brave enough to die, the second was that they must be brave, and then they must be good at riding and shooting.

Therefore, Li Xuan often gave the rewards he received to his personal guards.

Becoming Li Xuan's personal guard, regardless of life or death, at least your family will have no worries about food and clothing.

There are two types of chivalrous men in Gyeonggi Province.

One type is the knights who "watch the flowers and horses" in Chang'an every spring. Most of these knights are from wealthy families, and some are sons of princes. They visit prostitutes, gamble, fight, and are full of evil. They are no different from drunkards!

The other type is the knights who really practice martial arts and swordsmanship. Most of them are from good families, with decent conditions but not rich. They admire Ju Meng and Guo Jie in ancient times, who are chivalrous and righteous, accompanied by wine and swords. They are almost like the young knights in Wang Wei's "Youth" who "can split two carved bows with one body, and the thousands of enemy cavalry seem nothing. He sits on a golden saddle and adjusts his white feathers, and shoots and kills the five Chanyu one after another."

But Wang Wei also described the sad scene of such a brave knight: "The happy banquet of the emperor and his ministers of the Han Dynasty is over, and they discuss military exploits in Yuntai. The emperor presents himself in the hall and bestows the marquis seal on the general, and the general wears the seal when he leaves the Minguang Palace."

If there really is such a brave ranger, Li Xuan will accept him as his personal guard.

As long as you kill enough enemies, you can be appointed as a general.

After hearing Li Xuan's instructions, Xue Cuo immediately came to the outside of the Jiedushi City and told the rangers who came to Huangshui City what Li Xuan said.

These rangers were so bold that they carried their swords wrapped in leather.

However, in this county, as long as they don't show their weapons, the officers and soldiers will not bother with them.

The rangers traveled around Huangshui City for many days, and every day they saw Li Xuan leading the armored cavalry to the Jiedushi's office. They were very envious of these armored cavalry who could be with the great hero Li Xuan.

Although Li Xuan would give wine to the knights because they came from afar.

But the ranger came to Huangshui City to serve as Li Xuan's personal guard, hoping that one day he and General Li could once again perform the lofty ambitions of "heavy snow covering bows and swords".

After Xue Cuo finished speaking, the rangers began to talk among themselves, some were happy and some were worried.

The people who are happy have unique skills, and they are confident that they can seize the opportunities given to them by Li Xuan.

A worried person is not confident in his own strength or is not good at archery.

Chivalry is a spirit. Most knights are of average build and do not possess extraordinary bravery.

"It is well known that Li Shuai was a chivalrous man in his past. He understands your feelings. But the battlefield is no joke. Li Shuai often leads us to brave the arrows and stones and charge into the battle lines. If we are not brave enough, we will undoubtedly give up our lives in vain. Such sacrifice is meaningless."

"For the knights who didn't choose to join the imperial guards, please go back to your hometown. If you don't have enough money for the journey back, the general will give you some. Or you can join the army in Longyou. The Lintao army is composed of cavalry, and there are still hundreds of vacancies."

After seeing the expressions of the rangers, Xue Cuo raised his voice and said something.

His family has lived in Chang'an for thousands of years, and he had this kind of thinking tendency when he was young, so he understands the knights very well.

"Okay, let me try it anywhere. I will definitely succeed!"

A confident young ranger shouted.

"It's outside the city, at the cavalry training ground. Anyone interested please follow me."

Xue Cuo said this and led his men out of the city.

Many rangers followed, determined to give it a try no matter what.

Other rangers in the city who heard the news also gathered at the horse farm outside the city.

"Being General Li's personal guard is a good job, I want to go too!"

In a tavern, a six-foot-tall, handsome young man saw this situation and became interested.

"Sir, you have a letter of recommendation from the general, why do you need to accept the offer of a good family?"

The young man also brought a servant with him.

"Wouldn't it be a shame for a man to rely on his father's authority?"

The boy laughed.

His name was Li Sheng, and his father was Li Qin, the general of the Left Jinwu Guard.

Li Qin also served in the Longyou Army in his early years.

Li Sheng is exactly eighteen years old this year and lives in Lintan County, Lintao County, Longyou.

He did not want to join the army in the Momen Army of Lintao County, but wanted to come to Huangshui City to serve under Li Xuan.

In Li Sheng's opinion, a real man should be like General Li and achieve unprecedented achievements.

Li Sheng brought his servants and led his horse to one of the many horse farms of the Lintao army.

Many rangers gathered here.

"Clap clap clap..."

If someone passes, the other rangers will applaud and celebrate.

Only those who can carry two stone of rice and keep moving forward for a while are eligible to enter the horseback archery competition.

This stage will eliminate most people. Strength can be trained, but it is closely related to your body shape.

Without enough strength, it would be difficult to keep up with Li Xuan's pace during the charge.

After a ranger left due to lack of strength, Li Sheng stepped forward and said, "Let me try."

Seeing the six-foot-tall Li Sheng, the soldiers did not dare to look down on him. They tied two stones of rice and signaled Li Sheng to get ready.

"Need not!"

Seeing two soldiers carrying rice and putting it on his shoulders, Li Sheng immediately spoke out to stop them.

Few people could carry two stone of rice on their backs without someone to hold it up.

"Hey!"

Li Sheng grabbed the rice bag and with a light shout, he easily picked up two stone of rice and threw it over his shoulder.

It caused exclamations from people around.

Although dozens of rangers have passed the test, none of them could do it as easily as Li Sheng.

Next they saw that Li Sheng not only lifted up the two stone of rice, but he was also able to grab the two stone of rice and lift it above his head without having to follow the normal process.

"by!"

Xue Cuo was also shocked by Li Sheng's strength. Although this boy was young, his strength was at least the same as Nan Jiyun's.

If he is good at riding and shooting, he will be a powerful general.

Even if he is not good at riding and archery, Xue Cuo will make sure he passes.

When riding and shooting, Li Sheng also received cheers of astonishment. He carried a war horse and a strong bow made of stone. He bent the bow to a full moon and never missed his target within fifty steps.

No ranger can compare with Li Sheng in terms of strength or riding and archery.

"Do you know your duties as a personal guard?"

At the last level, Xue Cuo asked Li Sheng.

"Use your life to protect the commander, and if necessary, use your body to block the crossbow arrows. If the commander dies, all the guards will be killed!"

Li Sheng answered without hesitation.

"General Li is good at charging. He often rushes in alone before the two armies meet. If you are afraid of the huge army and don't follow the commander, you will be beheaded. Can you do this? It's not too late to retreat now!"

Xue Cuo said to Li Sheng again.

"I will never retreat!" Li Sheng said firmly.

"Okay, follow me to register for military service and receive armor and weapons."

Xue Cuo nodded.

The other rangers who passed by were also asked the same question by Xue Cuo.

Now that I have passed it, I will definitely not give up halfway.

A total of seventy rangers passed the test.

Other rangers who failed the test were unwilling to leave, so they joined the Lintao Army one after another, hoping to make meritorious service in the army and win the favor of Marshal Li.

After returning to the Jiedushi's office, Xue Cuo recommended Li Sheng to Li Xuan and praised Li Sheng's bravery and archery skills.

"Your father is a general, and you are able to enter the government through family connections, so why do you seek hardship?"

When Li Xuan learned that it was Li Sheng, his eyes lit up.

Because Li Xuan knew that Li Sheng had joined the Longyou Army at the age of 18 in history, he thought that Li Sheng had been in the Longyou Army long ago, so he did not go looking for him.

Li Sheng was not only known as a "enemy of ten thousand men" when he was young, but also a famous general second only to Guo Ziyi and Li Guangbi after the Anshi Rebellion.

As for Guo and Li, Li Xuan found it very difficult to use them.

But Li Sheng, who is only eighteen years old, has a lot of room for training.

"General Li, how can you be asking for trouble when you are serving the country? The personal guards can also accumulate merits of killing enemies and be promoted."

Li Sheng argued, he was very puzzled, how did Li Shuai know that his father was a general? Did his father have a letter for Li Shuai?

"That's right! When you have accumulated enough military merits, I will promote you to general."

Li Xuan nodded. Since he wanted to be a personal guard, then he could be one! After Li Sheng grew up for a few years, he would be promoted to the chief general.

"Thank you, Li Shuai!"

Li Sheng breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that Li Xuan agreed to have him as a personal guard.

Li Xuan invited Li Sheng to have dinner with him, but Li Sheng refused. He said that it was not right for a guard to do that and he should eat with other guards.

Li Xuan didn't force it.

In the next half month, more rangers arrived in Huangshui City one after another. Not only rangers from the capital, but also rangers from Helong responded.

Soon the total number of Li Xuan's personal guards exceeded 110.

Li Xuan did not think that too many people were too many, so he planned to recruit 200 personal guards to form a cavalry team mainly composed of ranger masters to accompany him.

This can be used as a sharp knife.

Thinking of how Geshu Han founded the Shence Army in Lintao a few years later, which became the pillar of the Tang Dynasty.

Therefore, Li Xuan named his personal guard Shen Ce.

The personal guards were equivalent to private soldiers. Li Xuan did not want to give others a chance to talk about him, so he only recruited 200 people.

Li Xuan appointed Xue Cuo as the leader of the Shen Ce team, but Xue Cuo refused: "General, Li Sheng is ten times stronger than me in the Shen Ce team. Only when he is the leader can he win the support of the team."

"Even if Li Sheng is a hundred times stronger than you, he cannot convince the crowd without the military merit of killing the enemy. This is why I think Nan Jiyun is very talented, but not qualified to be a commander. You should train the Shen Ce team well in horse fighting!"

Li Xuan scolded Xue Cuo.

The head of the guard must be someone who is loyal to him.

Li Xuan saved Xue Cuo's life and helped him to avenge his father, so Xue Cuo vowed to follow him until death.

Li Sheng's family is complicated and needs to be observed for a while.

"I know I was wrong. I will definitely train my personal guards to fight on horseback."

Xue Cuo bowed his head and admitted his mistake.

At this time, Liu Dan asked to see Li Xuan, and Li Xuan asked Xue Cuo to leave.

"What's the matter?"

Li Xuan asked before Liu Dan came to greet him.

"There is an iron mine in the northwest of Weirong Army. Most of the miners are forced laborers and slaves. Three days ago, the slaves in the mine rebelled and were all executed by the general guarding the mine."

Liu Shan had just received this military intelligence, and as it was a serious matter, he immediately came to report it to Li Xuan.

"Do they have weapons? How many of our soldiers have been killed, and how many of our slaves have died?"

Li Xuan frowned.

"Reporting to General Li, it is currently unknown whether the rebels have weapons. According to the report from the iron mine defenders, 217 slaves and laborers died in the rebellion, and 15 defenders were injured. They applied to the government office to transfer more laborers to open the mine!" Liu Dan replied to Li Xuan.

"Do they still have the nerve to ask for more labor? Labor and slavery say that financial resources cannot recruit soldiers, and generals' bravery cannot convince the people. How can they rebel?"

Li Xuan was very angry. Two hundred slaves and laborers died at once. He thought that this was all the labor in the iron mine.

He suspected that the defenders deliberately killed the laborers, otherwise there would be no casualties among the soldiers, but more than 200 laborers would have died.

"How far is that iron mine from the Weirong Army?"

Li Xuan asked Liu Dan again.

"About thirty-five miles." Liu Dan replied.

"Send a message to Chen Zhang, the commander of the Weirong Army, to surround the iron mine. I want to see what's going on!"

Li Xuan issued a military order.

"As ordered!"

Liu Dan accepted the order.

The Weirong Army is 350 miles northwest of Shanzhou City. It is the westernmost army in Longyou. To its south are the Baishui Army and the Anren Army, forming the defense line in the Qinghai area.

Li Xuan prepared to set out that day with the newly formed 110 Shen Ce guards, each riding two horses and bringing a few assistants, to the Baishui Army.

As soon as he left the government office, the military supervisor Guo Quan came to see Li Xuan with several minor eunuchs and a dozen imperial guards.

"Where are you going, Governor?"

Guo Quan is extremely feminine, with a completely different temperament from Gao Lishi. He looks like a sissy, and there are some actions that even women cannot do.

But he couldn't offend Li Xuan, so he tried to say nice things to him when he met him.

Even though Li Xuan knew that this dead eunuch owned tens of thousands of acres of land in Xiping County, he still endured it.

"I'm going to Weirong Army to handle some official business. Would the military supervisor like to come with me?"

Li Xuan said to Guo Quan with a smile.

"I wonder what official business the general is going to handle?" Guo Quan asked.

"Hmm... there's a labor rebellion at an iron mine in the northwest of Weirong Military City. I'm going to go see what's going on!"

There was no need for Li Xuan to hide the truth from the military supervisor.

"Isn't it just some slaves who died? It's not a small matter for the governor to deal with personally. Can't we just send some slaves to deal with it?"

Guo Quan said in a gloomy tone.

"Can the death of more than 200 people be called a trivial matter?" Li Xuan said unhappily.

He really wanted to ask in his heart, if it was a trivial matter, why did you, a dead eunuch, jump out to make comments?

"I will personally send someone to investigate, and the governor will not have to worry about this matter."

Guo Quan refused to give in. He was also very unhappy that Li Xuan spoke to him in such a tone.

When Huangfu Weiming was around, how could I dare to ask more questions about him?

Do you really think you are still the prime minister's son?
"The military supervisor is monitoring combat readiness, military discipline, and training. Do you want to enforce these? Then what do you want me, the Jiedushi, to do?"

Although Li Xuan didn't want to offend the military supervisor, the military supervisor couldn't be so rude.

More than 200 people died on the border between Tang and Tubo. If we don't intervene, what if it is related to Tubo?
"How dare you! Do you want this military supervisor to impeach you?"

Guo Quan shouted in a shrill voice, threatening Li Xuan.

Li Xuan was furious, but Liu Shan came over and quickly stopped Li Xuan.

Restraining his anger, Li Xuan returned to the government office with his personal guards without saying a word.

"Humph!"

Guo Quan raised his head and snorted softly, looking extremely proud.

As if he was proud of Li Xuan's surrender.

He waved his hand and asked his confidants to keep an eye on Li Xuan and to notify him when he left Huangshui City.

Then he swaggered back to his mansion.

The main hall of the government office.

"This damn eunuch, doesn't he think that after Yang Sixu's death, people like Niu Xiantong will have a good ending?"

When Li Xuan returned to the government office, he was furious. Today, he was threatened by the eunuch.

Li Xuan could turn a blind eye to Guo Quan's corruption and bribery.

If he has to be blocked from handling military intelligence, how can he accomplish great things in the future?

Liu Dan's forehead was covered with cold sweat. Although he didn't understand what "eunuch" meant, he thought it was an insult. It was the first time he saw Li Shuai so angry.

"General Li, calm down. People like them will never let go of any grudge. Stay away from Chang'an. If he falsely accuses you, you will have no way to defend yourself."

Liu Dan persuaded Li Xuan.

"There must be something wrong with this iron mine. Please check the scale and historical production of this iron mine for me."

After Li Xuan calmed down, he instructed Liu Shan: "Also, check whether the general guarding the iron mine has any relationship with the military supervisor?"

"My subordinate understands!"

Liu Dan nodded and asked again: "Should we continue to let the Weirong Army surround the iron mine?"

"Wai!"

Li Xuan's eyes were sharp and he uttered a word.

He didn't want to offend the military supervisor who had followed Li Longji since childhood, but the military supervisor might not be able to defeat him.

Even though his father is no longer the prime minister!
(End of this chapter)