The scorching sun was scorching, and Du Zhongxiao stood on the ground wearing a hat, watching the Xiang army cut wheat. Although he was motionless, he was still sweating profusely.

Thirteen Lang came over with a bowl of ice water and said, "Official, drink a bowl of ice water to relieve the heat." ”

Du Zhongxiao said: "I'm thirsty, I'll go over to rest." He drank water when he rested, and now he stands here like a soldier. ”

Thirteen Lang had no choice but to return to the tree with ice water and lean against the tree to be distracted.

Commander Wei ran quickly in front of Du Zhongxiao, and said loudly: "Report the luck judgment, the second team of the third capital will arrive at the ground first, and there is still time for half a stick of incense." The first team of the second capital and the fourth team of the fifth capital fell last and could not be cut on time. ”

Du Zhongxiao said: "Write it down." Let those who get to the ground rest first, there is mung bean soup, let them drink to relieve the heat! ”

Commander Wei said goodbye, and ran quickly to the other side of the ground.

In almost the blink of an eye, the wheat was ripe. The newcomer to the Fiber Lane Army was arranged by Du Zhongxiao to help with the camp and help harvest wheat. The field workers were busy preparing the vacant land for rice planting, releasing water and preparing the land, and those who had interplanted cotton to replenish the seedlings and loosen the soil.

Du Zhongxiao, the affairs of the iron supervisor, has completely let go, and all his thoughts have been turned to the camp affairs. It has been more than a year since the establishment of the camp and field affairs, and everything has been systematized, but it is just a supplement and improvement. Du Zhongxiao's mind began to turn to the whole army.

With guns, cannons, and trains, you can crush the party and Khitan in the north? The party item is okay, but the Khitan may not. Du Zhongxiao remembers at least two examples in history, one positive and one negative. A counterexample, the Ming Dynasty had guns and cannons, and against the Jurchen tribe, which had a small number, they finally died in the world under internal and external troubles. A positive example, there was an army later, lacking clothing, guns and artillery, which eventually swept the world. Not only is it an internal victory, but it can also be able to defend the enemy from the outside of the country.

Morale aside, there must also be military reasons. Military affairs are also science, and there are internal laws, and if we do not master military science and do not fight wars according to the laws of war, we will get twice the result with half the effort, and if we do not do a good job, we will still lose the war.

The great changes unseen in 3,000 years are certainly strong in the face of foreign enemies, and this era is not small. Historically, from Liao to Jin, and then to Mongolia behind, one was more barbaric than the other, and one was stronger than the other. The Mongols swept almost the entire Eurasian continent, and with a few guns, they were sure that they would be able to defeat them? Du Zhongxiao does not have this confidence, and he does not dare to have this confidence if he bets on the world.

There are definitely problems with the army of this era. In terms of the number of troops, the physical fitness of the people, and the weapons and equipment, the forbidden army had an absolute advantage over the Khitan and the party, but it always lost the battle. The mere lack of cavalry alone cannot be explained.

Du Zhongxiao's feeling that the army of this era is very similar to the warlord army of the late Qing Dynasty and the Republic of China in later generations. When the army is strong, such as the strong army of the Republic of China, those weak brigades are almost the same as those rabble that are indiscriminate.

There must be an intrinsic connection between this, but what kind of connection it is and what causes this phenomenon is something that Du Zhongxiao can't say. Since you can't figure it out, let's start from the basics and live with, work and fight with them directly from the grassroots level.

Wouldn't it be okay to learn little by little? If you don't learn, what else can you do? As for hindsight, according to the half-knowledge of the remembered history, fight here and not there, use this person instead of that person, it is just a child's game, playing the Colosseum flag. History has historical facts, things have their own laws, and if they violate the laws, it is not okay to be clever.

The army came to harvest wheat, and everything was carried out according to militarization, and harvesting wheat was a war. With the battalion as the basic unit, the team divides the scope of the task and sets the task time. Those who do well and quickly will be rewarded according to military law, and those who do poorly will be punished. If the harvest cannot be completed within the task time, the number will be increased according to the overtime. Others rest, they continue to reap.

Du Zhongxiao has been with this army for five days. Five days of high-intensity labor, to Du Zhongxiao's surprise, there was no resentment and demoralization. On the contrary, the morale is high, you chase me, a feeling of arrogance.

Du Zhongxiao summed it up by himself, it should be because the task is simple, the goal is clear, and the rewards and punishments are appropriate. And, of course, logistical support. Again, for various reasons, the Xiang Army is much more well-behaved and manageable than the Forbidden Army.

This is not Du Zhongxiao's feeling alone, from the generals in the front to the officials in the rear, they all have this understanding. In the past few years, Fu Bi served as Jingdong's pacification envoy, because of the floods in Hebei, the victims flowed into Jingdong Road and recruited as a box army. After the selection, the teaching and reading can be used by the forbidden army, and there is no danger of arrogance and difficulty in controlling the forbidden army. The imperial court specially gave the military horn to teach the cavalry and archery, the prestige of the border and the teaching of the strong and brave, to become a formal soldier, without tattooing.

The fact that the Vans can become soldiers is an important change. Du Zhongxiao wanted to work in the camp and field, and also selected an army that was worthy of war to conduct a teaching and parade exercise. Once there is something in the world, maybe you can lead the troops to make meritorious contributions. In the case of Nong Zhigao's rebellion, if it weren't for Tuyi Prefecture and the siege of Guangzhou, the forbidden army would not have been allowed to go south at all, and would only send the Xiang army. Cavalry archery and majesty are cavalry trophies, and strong and mighty are infantry trophies, and the horses are complete. However, Du Zhongxiao has doubts about Fu Bi's Jingdong Road Xiang Army, can he really make up so many cavalry? In his own battalion, there are not so many cavalry.

Before you know it, the sun is empty, and the hot day is difficult. Commander Wei ran over and said with his hands crossed: "Judgment, the time is about to pass, please instruct!" ”

Du Zhongxiao said loudly: "Mingjin! Finish work and eat, rest after lunch, and go to work at the right time! ”

There was a cry of cheer in the wheat field. The teams that had already arrived at the head of the field packed up their tools and went to rest under the trees on the ground. Those who are still in the field seem to have eaten a heart pill, and the speed of harvesting is much faster.

In a short time, all the teams were on the ground, and the teams formed themselves on the ground and raised their flags. The team will report to the head of the capital, and the head of the capital will report to the commander, and finally the commander Wei will go to Du Zhongxiao to report the completion of the task this morning.

Du Zhongxiao looked at Thirteen Lang, who was already standing behind him, holding a handsome flag, and said to him, "Go back to your residence." ”

Thirteen Lang responded with a promise, held up the handsome flag high, followed closely behind Du Zhongxiao, and strode towards the village not far away.

With the team as a column, all of them formed a phalanx and followed behind the handsome banner. The respective teams will be in front with the flag bearer, and the team will be behind, closely following.

Father Zhuang sat at the head of the village, saw many flags stretching from the road from a distance, and said to the children around him: "Hachiro, go back to the village quickly and tell everyone that the wheat harvester has returned, and prepare lunch." They helped to harvest the wheat, not only saving us a lot of effort, but also growing a season of grain. ”

Hachiro responded, jumped up from the ground, and ran back to the Zhuangzi as if flying.

In the wheat field at the head of the village, Hachiro ran over like a wind and shouted: "Granny Yan, the wheat harvester is back!" The village has seen the flag! ”

A woman next to her stretched out her hand, hugged Hachiro in her arms, and said, "You kid, what are you doing running so fast, don't be afraid of falling!" ”

Under the shed on one side, several women were busy, some uncovering pots, some preparing spoons.

It didn't take long for Du Zhongxiao to take this battalion and army to the wheat field at the head of the village. Father Zhuang roamed one leg and stepped forward to salute: "The officials are hard. There's food and some drinks, so don't dislike it. ”

Du Zhongxiao said: "They are all people who are engaged in field work, so why be polite." ”

As he spoke, several of them formed their own teams in the open space. The team was in order, and Commander Wei stood in front, announcing today's achievements. Which one is done well, which one is delayed, each of them is named, and a comment is made. For example, the first team of the second capital is very unlucky, and the wheat on the plot allocated today is particularly good, growing thicker than other places, and has been lagging behind. Although the task was not completed, the punishment should still be punished, but Commander Wei wanted to make it clear that it was not that they did not contribute, nor did they do a bad job.

After the commentary, everyone went to their own stove and got the utensils to eat.

After all, the iron prison was built by Du Zhongxiao, and there are always some benefits. These people's tableware are all enamel products. A large enamel cup, like the big fast food cup of later generations, was used to hold rice and vegetables, and an enamel bowl was used to hold soup.

The life of the villagers is not easy, and it is impossible to eat meat every day. Today it's half a large bowl of yellow rice, a big spoonful of stewed tofu, and a salted duck egg. There are many lakes and swamps here, and there are many ducks in the village, and the meat cannot be eaten, but duck eggs are still okay. The soup is fish soup, what you catch and eat, several kinds of fish are mixed together, a large pot is cooked, and the meat is completely melted into the soup.

Thirteen Lang took his and Du Zhongxiao's tableware and followed others to cook.

This is another principle of Du Zhongxiao, and the officers and men in the army are unanimous. Including the utensils used, the meals eaten, exactly the same. It's just that he, as a transfer judge, has Thirteen Lang, a personal soldier and standard-bearer and herald, and he can be done by someone.

To Du Zhongxiao's surprise, the unanimity of officers and soldiers was the most easily accepted ideology of this era. From the Warring States period to Wu, to the current generals, who are a little famous, eat, live and work with the soldiers, and are deeply rooted in the hearts of the people. Winning the hearts of soldiers is a measure of the quality of generals in this era.

Shisanlang came back from the meal, took another cup, went over there to get two glasses of wine, and said to Du Zhongxiao: "Official, the villagers boiled more eggs today, and I took two more duck eggs." The officials drank a glass of wine to relieve their fatigue. ”

Du Zhongxiao smiled: "You are so smart, too much." How much good can you do with an extra glass of wine and an extra egg! ”

Although he said this, he still gave another egg to Thirteen Lang and drank with him.

Unanimity among officers and men is a principle, but there is no need to be so rigid, and it is also good to make the atmosphere more relaxed if there are occasional changes. Du Zhongxiao is not a stereotypical person, and he especially doesn't like the oppressive atmosphere.