novelraw Chapter 247
Chapter 247
Chapter 247: The First Generation Special Forces Reserves
After settling matters with the Medical Academy faculty, Wei Yu immersed himself in the arduous task of writing his book.
The Third Prince took over affairs of Qian Commandery. Everything was proceeding smoothly without requiring Wei Yu’s direct involvement. While Wei Yu quietly dedicated himself to the cause of medical education, Tan Lin and others who had awaken the spirit to revive the medical community, when they later saw patients outside the city, seemed to be full of energy like they had been injected with adrenaline—no matter how tired they were, not a single complaint was heard.
Indeed, in this world, idealists are the most passionate.
Qian Commandery was being reorganized and reformed in an orderly manner. Meanwhile, in the capital, the Imperial Court had already decided on the personnel to be sent to Donghai Commandery to quell the rebellious traitors.
The main commander was Right Martial Guard Lieutenant General Cheng Yuan. His father had once served as Grand General of the Southern Expedition and had suppressed Japanese pirate's raids, stationed on the Xuzhou coast for over ten years until he retired and returned to the capital three years ago.
Cheng Yuan, though not yet thirty, had served in the military since youth, stationed with his father in Xuzhou. He possessed rich practical and theoretical experience and was naturally talented. Du Xing praised him as a rare military talent.
With such a young and capable main commander as Cheng Yuan, the Eldest Prince, who was this deputy commander, was not considered all that impressive.
Many court officials did not take the Eldest Prince seriously.
After all, the Eldest Prince had never been to the battlefield, and as a commander, winning battles by leading troops was not actually that difficult. The difficult part was how a commander could arrange strategies to minimize soldiers' casualties while still winning! Except for those who supported the Eldest Prince, most court officials really did not look favorably upon him.
In their view, rather than saying the Eldest Highness was going to Donghai Commandery to pacify the rebellion, it seemed more like His Majesty was sending his son there to gain some prestige… His Majesty had nine sons in the court, all capable in their own ways, and since no Crown Prince had been appointed, who knew what His Majesty was truly thinking?
The pacification of Donghai Commandery counted as the greatest military campaign Great Wei had undertaken in recent years.
All departments were rare in their unity and busyness, coordinating military supplies, provisions, and troops… The entire capital was extremely busy during that period.
The common people in the capital were quite idle, spending their days eating and drinking, shopping at various stores, and spending the rest of their time discussing all sorts of novel gossip.
Recently, the talk was about the military examinations and the arrest of the Right Assistant Minister of the Ministry of War; after that, the news shifted to the Imperial Court sending troops to war.
Although the Imperial Court had issued no public announcements, various rumors spread everywhere. No one knew where these rumors came from, and all kinds of stories circulated.
However, as long as nothing about rebellion plots was spread, the Imperial Court generally didn’t care what the commoners said.
While the entire capital buzzed with excitement and discussion about when the Imperial Court’s troops would set out, Emperor Wei, regarding the matter of explosive, specifically summoned Cheng Yuan and the Eldest Prince one quiet afternoon to the city outskirts.
Why?
Of course, it was to let the two witness the power of explosives firsthand!
Such a powerful weapon—would they really have to wait until arriving at Donghai Commandery to find out? If the commanders didn’t understand the true strength of their own troops, how could they hope to succeed?
To prevent others from wandering in, an area of five miles around was guarded by troops assigned by Emperor Wei. In front of the Eldest Prince and Cheng Yuan, a subordinate lit an explosive charge and threw it into a large pit dug about ten meters ahead.
The explosive’s power was immense.
The unbelievable blast, the dirt and dust flying apart, and the obvious shaking under their feet were new experiences neither the Eldest Prince nor Cheng Yuan had ever encountered.
Neither was particularly meek or timid.
The Eldest Prince was ambitious for the throne and not naturally cowardly or cautious. Cheng Yuan, as a military man, was born loving all things related to war.
After witnessing the explosive’s power, both were deeply excited and remained exhilarated for a long time.
They lingered at the outskirts for quite a while, not only seeing three types of explosives in action but also personally experiencing each.
Just that afternoon, they used up more than thirty explosive charges.
They didn’t mind the loss, but Emperor Wei was quite distressed.
After all, he knew exactly how many explosives were available. The Research Institute had been working overtime these days, but only produced a small number. Compared with the fifty-thousand-strong army about to be dispatched, there wasn’t even one charge to spare per person.
The generous Emperor wished that every soldier could have at least one charge like a saber, but at least Cheng Yuan was practical.
His Majesty didn’t reveal the origin of the explosives, and Cheng Yuan tactfully didn’t ask. A proper commander, knowing the number of explosives, would quickly devise a matching strategy.
For example, forming a small explosives squad, like cavalry or siege troops.
Explosives are dangerous weapons and cannot be used recklessly. If every soldier were armed with one and someone mishandled it or harbored ill intent and ignited it inside the army, the damage would be catastrophic.
It was better to designate a loyal special unit solely responsible for deploying explosives against the enemy.
Cheng Yuan had considered that large explosives with great power could be thrown directly by agile soldiers into enemy ranks, while smaller explosives, being lighter, could be tied to arrows and shot with heavy bows at enemies… Because of the varied uses of explosives, the squad members couldn’t be chosen at random! They had to be elite soldiers excelling in every aspect of the army!
If Wei Yu knew about Cheng Yuan’s idea, he would definitely give him praise and strong commendation.
A specialized explosives squad? That was obviously the reserve of the first generation special forces!
The two commanders knew about the explosives, but regarding how to set out for Donghai Commandery, Cheng Yuan chose to combine naval and land routes.
Two-thirds of the army would travel east by ship, with the remaining third marching via official roads to Donghai Commandery.
Cheng Yuan made this arrangement purely because explosives were crucial.
Explosives couldn’t get wet; if the entire army traveled by sea, he feared that if an accident occurred en route, the explosives would be ruined.
If the army had a divine weapon capable of reducing soldier casualties but it couldn’t be used because of him, wouldn’t that be his own sin?
On the day the fifty-thousand-strong army set out, the wind rustled and the military banners fluttered.
Emperor Wei personally oversaw the army’s departure before all the court officials, and the capital’s citizens rushed to see them off.
This was the first large-scale army mobilization Great Wei had seen in over a decade, and although the outcome was uncertain, at this moment, everyone in the capital shared a unified heart for the soldiers.
Heroes kill enemies, winning a thousand battles; securing the nation, safeguarding its vast territory.
“May you all return soon.”
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The army traveling from the capital to Donghai Commandery.
The navy, led by Cheng Yuan, sailed directly into Donghai Commandery, while the land forces, led by the Eldest Prince, marched along official roads passing through multiple counties.
When Wei Yu heard that the Imperial Court’s army had already arrived at Donghai Commandery and had made contact with Cao Ji there, more than ten days had passed.
At that time, the troops under the Eldest Prince had only just arrived at Qian Commandery.