Chapter 625: North Liang Grand Horse

Volume 3: He Xinliang

In the yellow sand desert, five hundred cavalry faced five hundred cavalry.

Both sides were uniformly light-armored elite cavalry, not carrying bows or crossbows. Their only weapons were wooden poles.

One side comprised elite cavalry selected from Yuan Zuozong's Jibei Camp, while the other was He Zhonghu's direct lineage Tiebei Camp. The reason for their drill here wasn't merely the whim of the North Liang grandees in the distance who wished to witness North Liang's combat prowess. Instead, it was for a reason that would seem incredible outside North Liang territory: a contest for horses! North Liang prioritized its equestrian policy. Large and small pastures dotted the land, with Rouge Pasture producing the most horses, over 1,600 annually, of which around 300 could be supplied to cavalry soldiers. This was an astonishing number for the Li Yang court. In comparison, while the Southern Capital Region had seven official pastures across three prefectures, their total output barely matched this. Of course, the inferiority of the Southern Capital's pastures and the decline of its equestrian policy were major contributing factors. Within North Liang, Qianli Pasture produced the best horses. The number of horses allocated to each North Liang cavalry division had remained constant over the years. However, the quality of warhorses drawn from the various pastures was a contentious issue. Even when Grand General Zhong Hongwu held significant power over the cavalry, he couldn't control the specific distribution of quality horses from the pastures. Everything had to follow a rule: each North Liang cavalry unit would engage in paired combat. The winners took the good horses, while the losers were left with scraps. Several cavalry forces, each numbering over ten thousand, would each select eight hundred cavalrymen. These elite soldiers would then engage in combat with similarly sized elite forces from other cavalry units. The larger, flag-bearing camps would field five hundred men, while smaller camps would field two hundred to three hundred. North Liang was said to have 300,000 iron cavalry, referring to its total military strength; naturally, not all of them were cavalry. In reality, the total number of North Liang cavalry had always fluctuated between 100,000 and 150,000. Otherwise, Li Yang would have to send all the warhorses in the world to North Liang to support the Xu family's cavalry. According to historical records, the Dafeng Dynasty, which was always hailed as having the "most abundant horses since the Great Qin," only possessed "eight hundred thousand horses" nationwide during the thirty years from Zhenyuan to Linde. Furthermore, North Liang's most elite cavalry always ensured each soldier had two, or even three, horses—an incredibly extravagant practice even in the relatively horse-rich Two Liaos.

Horses are the foundation of armed forces, a nation's vital asset.

The current cavalry commanders of North Liang are Yuan Zuozong, the veteran Deputy Commander He Zhonghu, and Zhou Kang, nicknamed "Zhou Partridge," who was promoted last year. Of the Xu family's current 140,000 cavalry, Yuan Zuozong does not command "personal guards," aside from three "old character" camps that existed before Xu Xiao became the King of North Liang. Excluding the Great Snow Dragon Riders and the Dragon Elephant Army, He Zhonghu commands 40,000 of the Left Cavalry Army, and Zhou Kang commands 30,000 of the Right Cavalry Army. Jibei Camp, being one of North Liang's old character camps, is directly under Commander-in-Chief Yuan Zuozong.

The naming of Jibei Camp has deep roots. After Xu Xiao was granted the North Liang fief, Jizhou, governed by the Han family, was originally North Liang's largest horse source outside its borders. During the Spring and Autumn Wars, Xu Xiao had forged good relations with the fiercely loyal Han family on multiple occasions. Later, the entire Han family was executed, not only because they had offended a former imperial Grand Tutor, but more because the Li Yang court had long coveted Jizhou's vast pastures to legitimately deploy high-quality warhorses to the northern front. However, the Han family held absolute sway in Jizhou's affairs and never tampered with numbers, yet intentionally or unintentionally supplied good horses to North Liang. Although the Han family later fell out with the Xu family, they had long been regarded as a thorn in the side of the Li Yang Zhao imperial house. It can be said that the Han family was "indispensable" in helping Zhang Julu secure his position as Grand Tutor at that time.

Two cavalry forces charged, dust filling the sky.

A Jibei Camp rider dodged a wooden pole, which was like a blunted spear, by tilting his head. He then pressed his long pole against the chest of an opposing rider, forcefully knocking him off his horse. However, the Tiebei Camp light cavalryman, though hit by a pole, was grabbed by the shoulder by a comrade before he hit the ground, thrown back onto his horse, and continued the charge, tearing through the enemy's formation.

In another instance, a Jibei rider and a Tiebei rider almost simultaneously struck each other's chests with their wooden poles. Propelled by the charge of their warhorses, the resilient poles bent into astonishing arcs. Those with weaker physical strength were instantly knocked from their mounts.

Regardless of how superb a cavalryman's spearmanship was, none displayed flashy techniques like "point-killing" enemies with the pole tip. They consistently relied on the sheer impact force generated by a cavalry charge, with every clash being clean and decisive.

After each side penetrated the other's formation, they effectively swapped positions. However, neither the Jibei Camp nor the Tiebei Camp, now back-to-back, slowed their horses or stopped to rigidly turn and charge again. Instead, after successfully piercing the opposing formation, both cavalry units simultaneously executed a precise, wide arc, each striving to gain more penetrating power from further impacts sooner. During this time, any fallen rider had to immediately lead their horse off the field. After all, this was not a real battle; being unhorsed meant "death."

Chen Yunchui, Deputy Commander of North Liang's infantry, squinted at the unfolding scene on the battlefield and chuckled: "Old He, those 120 Grade A warhorses from Qianli Pasture and over 400 Grade B quality horses from Kou'er Pasture probably won't have anything to do with your Tiebei Camp now."

He Zhonghu, serene and composed, calmly replied, "That was just one charge. If a slight early disadvantage meant defeat, you, Chen Yunchui, would have died seven or eight times over in the Battle of Xileibi."

Chen Yunchui laughed heartily, "How can that be the same? Tiebei Camp is up against our North Liang's top-tier elite Jibei Camp, not those greenhorns from Western Chu back then."

He Zhonghu scoffed, "Old brother, how about we make a bet? If I win, you give me that contingent of Yellow Gu scouts, what do you say?"

Chen Yunchui laughed and cursed, "I only have four contingents of Yellow Gu scouts in total, and each one is my precious darling! No way, absolutely no way to that bet! And what about if you lose?"

He Zhonghu calmly stated, "The soldiers I lead simply don't lose."

Chen Yunchui turned to look at the young King of North Liang, who was seated high on his horse, closely observing the battle, and chuckled, "My Lord, look, isn't our Commander He as thick-skinned as a city wall?"

Xu Fengnian smiled without speaking.

He Zhonghu's command and governance of his troops possessed an ancient character; he was hands-on in everything, much like a mother raising her own child, tending to every need. Despite being a high-ranking and influential cavalry deputy commander, he ate and slept no differently from ordinary soldiers. Moreover, He Zhonghu had no family, only a few lame old horses. This veteran general, a meritorious figure from the Spring and Autumn Wars, had evidently decided to live and die on the frontier. If military achievements were ranked by seniority, Zhong Hongwu would not have been able to secure the position of cavalry commander. However, He Zhonghu never engaged in factionalism, maintained a respectful relationship with old generals like Yu Tieshan who had retired from the border, and disliked cultivating a large following of younger officers as his proteges. He had held the position of deputy commander in the North Liang army longer than anyone else. He Zhonghu did not have a distinct or prominent style of commanding troops. He rarely achieved grand victories in major battles, yet in over thirty years of military life, He Zhonghu had almost never suffered a crushing defeat. Li Maozhen, the weak-stringed commandant of Huanghua Pass, known for his prudence and experience, was once He Zhonghu's subordinate. However, Li Maozhen was famously ambitious for official positions. After serving with He Zhonghu for many years and frequently being manipulated by Zhong Hongwu's confidantes, Li Maozhen, in a fit of pique, left the border army and returned to North Liang territory, requesting a guerrilla general position from Xu Xiao.

Chen Yunchui continued to fan the flames, teasing Yuan Zuozong, "Commander Yuan, can you really tolerate this?"

Yuan Zuozong smiled faintly, "The outcome is still uncertain. It wouldn't be right for me to now loudly challenge Old General He to a cavalry duel. After all, the old general is getting on in years, and his strength might naturally be insufficient."

He Zhonghu, with his leopard head and tiger beard, glared and said, "Yuan Zuozong, if I were twenty years younger, would you believe I could knock you down with one hand!"

The seemingly small-statured infantry commander Yan Wenluan burst into laughter, "Bullshit! Whether on horseback or foot, even with three heads and six arms, He Zhonghu, you still couldn't defeat Commander Yuan!"

Among the North Liang army, He Zhonghu held the most respect for Yan Wenluan, who had joined the army at the same time. After being exposed, He Zhonghu offered no rebuttal.

Chu Lushan, with his four hundred catties of flesh, was not on horseback. He stood beside Xu Fengnian's warhorse and said in an unhurried manner: "We just received intelligence that Grand General Chong Shengtong and the provincial governors of Guse and Longyao appeared in the Southern Dynasty court, ostensibly to bid farewell to Huang Songpu, who resigned as the King of the Southern Court. Furthermore, the replacement is neither Tuoba Pusa nor Murong Baoding, as originally expected, nor Grand General Liu Gui, whom the Northern Mang Empress referred to as half a foster father, but Dong Zhuo, who likes to raise crows. Huang Songpu even openly declared that Northern Mang intends to commit its entire national strength this time, throwing a million troops all at once against our North Liang. This news, which Northern Mang has not deliberately concealed, will surely make Emperor Zhao and Gu Jiantang ecstatic when they hear it."

Cavalry Deputy Commander Zhou Kang laughed, "Dong Zhuo? Isn't he your vanquished opponent, Lord Protector?"

The only standing fat man rubbed his hands and chuckled, "There was a tiny bit of luck involved back then."

Yan Wenluan pondered for a moment, then sneered, "This move by the Royal Tent of Beiting is both a mark of esteem and a precaution."

Chu Lushan nodded and slowly said, "That little fat Dong has always been regarded as half a son by that old hag. Handing over the Southern Dynasty's military power to a young man with shallow roots like him makes her feel more at ease. However, this fellow controls a full hundred thousand elite personal troops who only recognize the Dong surname, not Northern Mang. Even that old hag has to weigh her options carefully. Dong Zhuo is naturally cunning. If he weren't to become the King of the Southern Court, the one to take the fall, then once war broke out, with his cautious nature of not acting until a clear opportunity presents itself, even if forced to participate, he would surely only go through the motions without putting in effort. In the end, after much fighting, both North Liang and Northern Mang would suffer heavy losses, and Dong's family army would ultimately be Northern Mang's largest force. In that scenario, Dong Zhuo would develop ambitions even if he had none before."

Xu Fengnian said, "I hear Dong Zhuo has always considered you his mortal enemy, an irreconcilable foe."

Chu Lushan chuckled, "That little fatty might think that, but Luqiu doesn't see him that way."

Gu Dazu, once a pillar of Southern Tang, smiled knowingly, "If Dong Zhuo hadn't become the King of the Southern Court, I would have almost forgotten our Lord Protector's extraordinary achievement from back then."

Chu Lushan raised his plump arm and waved it gently, feigning shyness, "A true hero doesn't boast of past glories."

Unable to bear it any longer, Xu Fengnian lifted his foot and gently nudged Chu Lushan's shoulder, saying, "Tiebei Camp won, but only twenty-one cavalrymen remained on their horses."

Everyone looked, and indeed it was so.

The twenty-one Tiebei Camp cavalrymen simultaneously raised an arm, openly accepting the earth-shattering cheers.

He Zhonghu burst into joyous laughter, his peripheral vision catching Yuan Zuozong not far away. The latter, with clear eyes, nodded to the old general.

Next, He Zhonghu rode forward and loudly called out to the young men, "Come on, old rules! Claim your wives!"

The superior warhorses from Qianli Pasture and Kou'er Pasture, led by pasture officials and stablehands, slowly galloped out from one side of the now settled battlefield.

The five hundred cavalrymen cheered and shouted continuously, dismounting one after another to greet their new "wives."

Some Tiebei Camp riders, while running forward, performed a dazzling series of somersaults. Some were playfully kicked in the backside by comrades behind them, falling face-first. The five hundred men continued their boisterous, joyous antics.

North Liang's large horses had always been the "wives" of North Liang's fierce soldiers.

Who would ever complain about having too many warhorses, which were even rarer than pretty women?!

Xu Fengnian looked towards the five hundred Jibei Camp riders, each standing silently, leading their horses.

Xu Fengnian squeezed his horse's flanks and rode out alone. He first approached the Tiebei Camp, who were busy selecting their warhorses, signaling them not to salute and to continue claiming their "wives." He waited quietly until they had finished their selection and everyone had remounted. Only then did he look towards the cavalryman who had "killed" the most enemies. Xu Fengnian unfastened the new Liang Blade from his waist and tossed it high into the air.

The young, robust cavalryman caught the Liang Blade, first looked dumbfounded, then his face flushed, and tears welled up in his eyes. He let out a loud shout and raised the blade high.

Finally, Xu Fengnian rode forward alone again, arriving before the Jibei Camp formation. He dismounted, led his horse forward, and handed the reins to the lead cavalryman.