Chapter 13: Training the Troops

After a night's rest, early the next morning, Li Gui gathered everyone again for training.

This time, more people arrived quickly, but they remained utterly undisciplined, standing around sparsely like scattered soldiers without cohesion.

Fortunately, they didn’t need to be formidable fighters in battle; they only had to be slightly stronger than the bandits they faced. Winning an easy fight would suffice.

Li Gui selected some strong, robust men to stay behind for training, while the weak and disabled were reassigned as auxiliary troops, responsible for logistics and miscellaneous tasks.

“There are nearly a hundred iron spearheads here. Li Lao Qi, you take some men to find straight tree trunks. Strip off the branches and bark, dry them well, brush them with tung oil, and then attach the iron spearheads.”

“Brother... where in our stronghold do we have tung oil? That stuff’s so expensive!” one replied.

Li Gui realized his mistake—he’d forgotten the scarcity of many items in this era, things ordinary people couldn’t easily obtain.

“...Fine, then skip the oiling step. Just dry the wood thoroughly and fit the iron spearheads.”

After Li Lao Qi and the auxiliaries left, Li Gui took out some paper armor, keeping one set for himself and placing the rest before the group.

“There are ten sets of paper armor here. Anyone interested, step forward.”

Though made of paper, the armor was crafted from many thick layers, compressed and nailed tightly together, making it quite sturdy. Its defensive power rivaled iron armor, and if soaked in rain, it became even harder for swords or blades to pierce.

However, paper armor was not durable; if poorly maintained or exposed to moisture, it would mold and rot within a few years, even if unused.

For these mountain bandits, though, such armor was a lifesaver. Wearing it into battle meant that unless terribly unlucky, one’s life was usually safe.

A noisy scramble ensued as everyone rushed forward, but Li Gui raised his voice:

“I am fair to all, no favorites!”

“We will fight for the armor. The strongest in combat shall claim it!”

At the mention of combat, half of those who stepped forward immediately backed away.

“Those clad in armor shall serve as my personal guards, charging ahead with me. Any who retreat shall be executed!”

After hearing this, half of the remaining men dropped out.

Li Gui looked at the few dozen left standing, knowing these were the true bandits of the stronghold.

Although they had all sworn allegiance before, only these men truly saw themselves as ruthless outlaws, unafraid of killing.

The rest were drifters, scavengers who followed only for profit, fleeing at danger, wanting to feast and live well but unwilling to take risks.

These men were cunning but lacked ambition, courage, and even discernment.

“Very well. Pair off and fight. Winners rest for fifteen minutes, then fight again in pairs. The final ten victors shall be my personal guards, and the champion shall be their captain.”

After some stretching, they began fighting in place.

Li Gui watched a few bouts and found them pitiful—none had trained; they relied solely on brute force.

Within moments, the winners were decided.

The victorious took their paper armor from Li Gui proudly and donned it, while the losers cursed bitterly, jealousy reddening their eyes.

“The outcome is clear. From today on, these ten are my personal guards. Whenever I have a bite of meat, you will at least have some soup to sip.”

“As for the defeated, your courage is commendable. Each of you shall command four men as a squad leader. When we conquer other strongholds, you will become sergeants and captains.”

According to Song dynasty military structure: five men made a squad led by a squad leader; five squads made a company led by a sergeant; two companies made a battalion led by a captain; two battalions made a regiment led by a colonel; five regiments made a brigade led by generals; five brigades made an army; ten armies made a corps; two corps made a grand army.

Having once been a peasant himself, Li Gui was skilled at spinning grand visions, quickly winning over these rough men.

He then called the champion over and asked, “What is your name, and why did you take to the hills?”

The man replied respectfully, “Master of the stronghold, I am Huang Silang, a farmer from Quanzhuang Township. I offended the local official Huang, and the government conscripted me for labor. Unwilling to endure hardship, I fled.”

Li Gui nodded. “Since you won the championship, these nine shall be under your command. The stronghold grants you a position. From this day forth, you are the second chief. Others will follow suit.”

Li Lao Qi was weak in combat and timid, unable to hold sway over others.

Huang Silang was overjoyed, immediately bowing and expressing endless gratitude.

Li Gui waved his hand, letting the personal guards choose their squads. Once assembled, he began his instructions.

“There shall be orders in the stronghold. When you hear the drum, advance; when you hear the gong, retreat. Obedience is mandatory, or no dinner for you!”

“All spear soldiers participating in training shall have meat at every meal. The ten worst performers will eat vegetarian only!”

The emperor doesn’t want starving soldiers. To make horses run, they must be well fed.

Li Gui’s two raids had yielded substantial loot, enough to support the stronghold for months. Once the troops were trained, there would be no shortage of silver.

“Thrust!”

“Recover!”

Li Gui sat in the square, watching over a hundred spear soldiers practicing the repetitive motions of thrust and recover.

The spear shafts were ready, only needing drying—perfect for training.

He intentionally chose many spear soldiers to train here, aiming to have backups in case some died.

Some had complained about this brutal method, but those men were already dead. The rest, unwilling to follow them into the grave, trained obediently.

Though meat at every meal was tempting, these were bandits—lazy and fond of comfort.

Li Gui’s harsh training bred much resentment. Though no one dared openly rebel, several bandits slipped away under cover of night.

He didn’t need such deserters; if they left, fine. But if they escaped to other strongholds, they might warn others, which was unacceptable.

Li Gui arrested the night gatekeepers for dereliction, executed them publicly, and reorganized the night watch, curbing the problem.

Killing to maintain order, even among his own, bolstered his reputation as the ruthless “Heavenly Executioner” in the bandit’s minds.

In Li Gui’s view, none of these men were reliable for conquering the land. They all needed replacing slowly with obedient, well-bred sons of good families.

The Song dynasty had no shortage of peasants who couldn’t survive, so manpower was plentiful.

In recent days, Li Gui trained the troops in marching to drumbeats in the morning, advancing and retreating to gongs, and in the afternoon practiced synchronized spear thrusts and recoveries. Whenever possible, he taught the few tricks he knew to four personal guards.

Li Gui himself was little more than a university student in military training, unfamiliar with real warfare, so he focused on discipline—to prevent collapse in battle.

Though a military layman, he understood this: in battle, the one who endures till the end wins.

The Han defeated the steppe nomads through discipline.

In formation, individual bravery may boost morale but doesn’t decide the fight.

Even the strongest generals are mortal—blades wound, and blood loss kills.

Unless... you are invincible.

Under the threat of the hanging steel blade, these men improved rapidly. Within days, they were beginning to look the part, maintaining formation while running forward. Whether they would be effective in real battle remained uncertain.

Training time was brief, but it was all they had to make do with.