The Great Ming in the Box-Chapter 1252 - 751: Hardly Worth Mentioning

Gan Gui’s excitement lasted only a moment.

When the man removed his bamboo hat, the face revealed beneath carried a faint air of scholarly refinement.

Gan Gui blinked.

That... was definitely not his father.

Zhao Yun could not help laughing as he introduced them.

"General Gan, this is General Zhang Liao. The very Zhang Liao who made his name at White Wolf Mountain."

Then he explained,

"Several tens of thousands of surrendered troops have gathered around Xincai. General Xingba has stayed behind to command the situation and cannot travel north."

Gan Gui sighed in disappointment, but he knew Zilong would not lie about such matters.

With Cao Cao’s defeat, the massive army that had once assembled in Yu Province had essentially all become surrendered soldiers.

Lord Xuande neither had the resources nor the desire to maintain such a vast force. Yet dismissing them all at once would surely cause chaos.

So he adopted Cao Cao’s former method of tuntian.

Military farming colonies were established across Runan and Yingchuan. After that began the long process of screening the surrendered soldiers and sending them home in batches.

Those with parents waiting at home returned first.

Those without siblings returned next.

Then those without elder brothers.

Then anyone who still had a household to return to.

Even after several months of this filtering, however, there were still many who had lost both parents and had no home at all. Those military colonies still required capable generals to supervise them.

Gan Gui had even heard Ma Liang discuss the next stage of the plan.

By next year, once everyone who wished to return home had done so, the remaining men would be sorted by age.

Those over forty would settle locally as civilians and receive land and houses.

Those under twenty would remain with the army for a time, learning characters and trades. Once they possessed a means to support themselves, they too would be released.

Only the remainder would be reorganized into soldiers.

It was an arrangement that would take tremendous time and effort.

But it was also essential.

Once the plan was completed, the former Cao army would truly disappear. No remnants would remain capable of rising again.

Gan Gui sighed again, though this time with acceptance.

Then he turned and began shouting orders.

"If you’re boarding, board now! Fleet’s moving again!"

The ships soon pushed away from the shore.

Standing at the bow, Zhao Yun let the cold wind and drifting snow strike his face. The riverbanks slid slowly backward on both sides.

It felt similar to riding a horse.

Yet also completely different.

He stood there quietly enjoying the sensation, and it was not long before Ma Liang came to join him.

For Zhao Yun, although he had spent these years rushing across battlefields, he still remembered the strange light screen he had once seen in Gong’an County.

He remembered it clearly.

And among the things he remembered most vividly was the fate Ma Liang would meet in the histories of later generations.

Because of that, Zhao Yun had always held him in particular respect.

After exchanging some greetings about old times, Ma Liang lowered his voice.

"Do you know where General Huang is now?"

When Ma Liang first entered the army and served as Huang Zhong’s chief clerk, he had witnessed the old general rise in fury and cut down Yue Jin in battle.

The memory had never faded.

They had worked well together then. They could certainly be called old acquaintances.

Zhao Yun thought for a moment.

"I exchanged letters with General Huang just last month. He has also received our lord’s summons to Ye."

"But the military colony under his command lies near Yan County, far from the Hong Canal. He will most likely travel north by land with Strategist Xu."

Zhao Yun chuckled.

"General Huang also asked me to pass along a message."

"He says that when we reach Ye, we must gather at the Chaling Tavern and drink until we cannot stand. And that Governor Ma must host the banquet."

Ma Liang burst out laughing.

"That is only proper!"

After chatting a while longer about old memories, Ma Liang cupped his hands and returned to the cabin.

Now only Zhao Yun and Zhang Liao remained at the bow.

Zhang Liao stretched out his hand and caught a few drifting snowflakes.

Then he asked quietly,

"General Zhao, how does this snow compare to the snow of Changshan?"

Zhao Yun narrowed his eyes and looked around.

Then he shook his head.

"When the storms come, Changshan’s snow is ten times harsher."

Zhang Liao slowly closed his hand into a fist.

"Compared to the snows of Yanmen... compared to the snows of Langshan Mountain..." 𝒻𝓇𝑒𝘦𝘸𝑒𝒷𝓃ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝒸ℴ𝘮

He paused.

"This is hardly worth mentioning."

Zhao Yun understood exactly what he meant.

Both men commanded elite cavalry.

Yet in their two recent clashes, Zhang Liao had lost both times.

From Zhao Yun’s perspective, those victories had not been purely his own strength. One had relied on the power of the unfamiliar Mo Dao weapons. The other had been supported by General Yunchang’s heavy cavalry.

But judging from Zhang Liao’s tone, defeat was defeat. He had no intention of arguing excuses.

And his meaning now was equally clear.

Even if he had lost twice, Zhang Wenyuan’s achievements in war were still greater.

The words sounded sharp.

But strangely, there was little hostility in them.

Zhao Yun nodded slowly.

"Where the Bing Province cavalry can ride..."

"The elite riders of You Province can ride as well."

Zhang Liao studied him for a moment.

Then he suddenly sighed.

"General Zhao, though your Yi-Cong riders are few, their reputation now surpasses the riders of Gongsun clan."

That sigh carried many emotions.

Reluctance.

Resolve.

And a stubborn refusal to admit defeat.

Zhao Yun nodded again.

"The Yi-Cong I command..."

"Are not the Yi-Cong of Gongsun clan."

Zhang Liao frowned slightly.

He seemed to understand something.

Yet at the same time felt that something was very wrong.

Zhao Yun watched his expression for a moment before lifting his gaze toward the distant gray sky.

Then he sighed quietly.

It was true that he had once served among the Yi-Cong.

He still clearly remembered the sight of Gongsun Zan riding into battle, white horses charging like thunder.

But he also remembered the Battle of Jieqiao.

He remembered the destruction of those same White Horse riders.

Such elite troops had instead become the foundation of Yuan Shao’s fame.

Zhao Yun had once told his lord that he knew the training methods of the White Horse Yi-Cong.

That statement was not entirely false.

But neither was it truly correct.

After all, Zhao Yun was not surnamed Gongsun.

How could he know their real secrets?

The cavalry he now commanded had been formed from many sources.

Lessons gathered from countless battlefields.

Tactics copied and studied from the strange light screen.

And finally refined with the new weapons devised by the strategists.

In the end, his cavalry only resembled the old Yi-Cong in appearance.

In spirit, they were completely different.

That was why a cavalry force that had spent years fighting in the south and in Shu could defeat Zhang Liao’s hardened riders, men who had battled the Wuhuan across the northern plains.

Zhao Yun was no heaven-sent cavalry genius.

Everything he had achieved came from endless study of the cavalry tactics recorded from the light screen, analyzed and rehearsed again and again.

Of course, none of this could be explained to Zhang Liao.

Still, Zhao Yun had a faint feeling.

The day when he and Zhang Wenyuan could speak openly might not be far away.

The fleet continued north from Chen County, passed through Chenliu, and finally stopped at Junyi County to replenish supplies.

By now the snow had grown heavier.

After weighing the situation, Gan Gui ordered the fleet to turn west and enter the Qu Canal.

This route passed directly by Zhongmu.

With nothing else to do, Zhao Yun and the others gathered at the bow, pointing westward and chatting.

"That direction is Guandu, isn’t it?"

"I wonder where Wuchao lies."

"Wenyuan fought in that battle. Do you still remember the battlefield?"

Zhang Liao leaned forward, trying to examine the distant landscape.

But after a moment he shook his head with regret.

"The snow is too thick. On a clear day I might recognize it."

The others laughed and did not press the matter.

After passing Guandu and reaching Xingyang, the ship gained two more passengers.

One elderly.

One young.

"Master Zijing!"

Zhao Yun greeted them with formal seriousness.

"General Lu."

Zhang Liao’s voice carried a more complicated tone.

Lu Su returned their greetings one by one.

Then he gently guided the young boy beside him forward.

"Dan’er."

"Come greet the generals."