Lord: Start with a book of Water Margin

Chapter 61 Discussion
  After drinking till night, everyone dispersed.

The next day, after Zhao Zhen had finished practicing martial arts, Bai Zhi took the gift and took Xue Shang Fei Zi to the hospital.

Zhao Zhen invited Du Qian to sit down in the front hall and said: "Brother, in this world of mine, not only is there a lot of waste waiting for prosperity, but there is also a shortage of people everywhere. There are still more than 300 prisoners in Shuibo Liangshan, and they have all been left behind for a long time. Yes, although we are able to overwhelm our power, it is not a long-term solution. Brother, you must be careful when you go."

Du Qian said: "Don't worry, Master, I will take care of it."

Zhao Zhen nodded and said: "Zhuang Ding has selected six long stick soldiers. You can take them with you as personal followers to teach some martial arts. They can also be used in passing orders and running errands." After saying that, he handed a pair of iron armor to Du. move.

Du Qian took it with both hands, and Zhao Zhen said again: "Brothers are now working in the army, and protection is indispensable. Now I give brothers a pair of iron armor for self-defense. Although it is an ordinary thing, it is also made of good iron."

Du Qian was overjoyed when he heard this: "Thank you very much, Master."

After a while, six long stick soldiers, each carrying luggage and weapons, came to the front hall to pay their respects. Zhao Zhen introduced them one by one, and everyone met again.

Zhao Zhen picked up the green gun and led a few people to the dock. Ruan Xiaoer had prepared the boat early and was waiting at the dock. After meeting Zhao Zhen and his party, Ruan Xiaoer said: "Master of the village, today we are taking a stern boat, accompanied by two-masted and three-masted boats."

It was also the first time for Zhao Zhen to board a warship. After boarding the ship, Zhao Zhen looked around. This ship was different from civilian ships. It had all the holes for crossbows, windows and spears, and was covered by cowhide. After it started, it moved very fast, and soon it left the other two ships behind. .

Du Qian got on the boat and looked around like Zhao Zhen, marveling at it from time to time.

After looking around, Zhao Zhen said to Ruan Xiaoer who was accompanying him: "Erlang, this warship is in the hands of brothers. Is there any problem?"

Ruan Xiaoer said: "Master, although I have never used this boat, there is no difficulty in driving it. It is a vast lake with no wind and waves, so it is suitable for driving a boat. According to the request of the village owner, we have now recruited another fisherman. The village men are stepping up their training. This boat originally had 32 crossbows, and some hunters who are good at shooting were selected from Liang Village and Kushu Village for training. When the village owner came, these crossbowmen went to the stream early to practice water skills and maneuver the boat. . After one month of practice, I no longer get seasick, and I can swim in the water.”

Zhao Zhen praised: "That's right, such a fighting force has already been achieved. Erlang, how many people have been recruited to the water village now? Will it affect fishing?"

Ruan Xiaoer said: "There are three large ships permanently stationed in Xixi Village. The stern requires 20 sailors, 32 crossbowmen, jump gangs, water ghosts, and 40 soldiers. The brig needs 8 sailors. It can carry 30 soldiers, and three The mast ship requires 12 sailors and 50 soldiers.

Now four sailors have been removed from each of the five and seven offices, and the remaining sailors are mostly young men recruited from good villages. The soldiers have not been recruited yet, and the village owner still needs to decide. Now the two large ships behind are only training sailors, and there are no soldiers on board.

There has been no change in the fishermen, and it has not affected fishing. Now there is no fog on the lake. It is very convenient for the fishing team to go out and return in the morning and evening. The catch is quite a lot. Now there are 38 four-tailed carp in the village, weighing 4 kilograms. There are also 3 herrings, silver carp, to kilograms of fine carp, more than bighead carp, and more than kilograms of miscellaneous fish. "

Zhao Zhen nodded, indicating that he knew, and frowned, thinking about how to quickly form combat power. The ready-made soldiers are the Liangshan grass bandits. These people are used to licking blood at the edge of a knife and have adapted to the life of catching knives and guns, but they are not adapted to farming. It's just that these people are used to being undisciplined. Now that they are being recruited into the army, they will probably be more difficult to control in the future.

Zhao Zhen sent these more than 300 people to forced labor in order to temper their character. Many farmers were involved in order to stabilize the hearts of these captives, treat them equally, and prevent these people from easily becoming rebellious.

While thinking about it, he arrived at the Golden Beach Water Village. Ruan Xiaoer stood on the bow of the boat and waved the flag. The door of the water village opened from the inside. Two sailors waved a speedboat and led the warship into the water village and berthed. .

Zhao Zhen jumped off the boat. Ruan Xiaowu and Ruan Xiaoqi had been waiting here for a long time. When they met, they each exchanged greetings. Ruan Xiaowu led everyone to the barracks in the water village. This place was originally the residence of the mangy turtle. Now Ruan Xiaowu and Ruan Xiaoqi live here and use the front hall as an official room.

Entering the hall, Zhao Zhen took the seat first, and everyone also took their seats in turn, Ruan Xiaowu and Ruan Xiaoqi on the west side, and Ruan Xiaoer and Du Qian on the east side. The waiter Zhuang Ding served tea and after drinking it, Ruan Xiaoer said: "Wu Lang, Qi Lang, what's going on in the water village now?" After hearing this, Zhao Zhen also looked at Ruan Xiaowu.

Ruan Xiaowu smiled bitterly and said: "Master of the village, the water village is barely maintained now. There are quite a few ships, but there is a lack of sailors and soldiers."

Zhao Zhen said: "Brother, it just so happens that you and other naval commanders are here, and I talked with Erlang on the way. I thought about it and came up with an idea. I will share it with you today, and brothers will discuss it together to see if it is feasible.

The first thing is to recruit some people who are willing to serve as soldiers from the fishermen in Xixi Village. Most of Zhangzhuang and Tianzhuang are fishermen. We also recruit some from them, including sailors and soldiers. The second thing is to select those who perform well among the prisoners, exempt them from military service in advance, and join the army. How about that? "

The three brothers of the Ruan family discussed it for a while, and Ruan Xiaoqi said: "Master, I think it's feasible. Skinny monkey, there are many fishermen under the leopard turtle who have been oppressed by the government and the gentry. They have no bad deeds in the past. After coming, Most of them sailed ships to and from the surrounding areas, and plundering relied on these old bandits. Those who have just fallen out of retirement can be recruited as sailors. If they want to become sergeants, they are still a little behind, so they need to work hard to train. As for those who are good at fighting These long-standing water thieves and grass bandits can also be suppressed by my brothers and me."

Zhao Zhen said: "What Qi Lang said is that Shuibo Liangshan is now somewhat famous in the world. Although this place is a trap for people, many people who have committed serious crimes have taken refuge here to take refuge. Now let me wait here. Come on, brother, there are mountains, rivers, and trees and plants, and it is more than enough to build a thousand houses.

Just being a mountain king is not the way out for brothers like me. We are all innocent and good men, so how could we be willing to pollute our bodies? Many heroes fall into disgrace in the world, and none of them fall into disgrace because they have no choice, and no one is born a thief.

Moreover, it all depends on robbery, and there is no future at all. If there is too much robbery, few people will dare to come and go from now on. Secondly, if you walk too much at night, you will always encounter ghosts, who may one day invite an army of government officials to attack you. Therefore, we still need to cultivate the land, grow mulberry and weave cloth, and trade with other countries in the world. Therefore, we still need to restrain everyone and strictly enforce military discipline to prevent these people from returning to their old ways. In this case, all brothers must work hard to control them. "

Everyone nodded after hearing this, and Ruan Xiaowu said: "Yes, although this area is small, less than a county, there are no corrupt officials. It is a good business. We all have a place to live, a big bowl to drink, and a big mouth to drink." Eat meat, wear matching clothes, what else is there to say.”

Although Du Qian said nothing, he could not help but feel excited after listening to everyone's conversation.

(End of this chapter)