MLMD -Chapter 243 Arriving with the Army

“It’s almost nightfall… and yet more troops are coming? Which army could this be? Could it really be him…?”

A trace of puzzlement appeared on Lu Xiangsheng’s face. He hadn’t heard the warning of the scouts, and yet here was another force arriving from the Zhulu direction. It had to be one of the loyalist reinforcements—but which contingent exactly? A young face flashed through his mind, but he shook his head. It had been less than two hours; there was no way that person could have arrived so quickly.

Soon, the troops stopped not far from the main camp and began to organize outside the city. Within moments, they had formed several perfectly arranged square formations, standing completely still. And this was just the beginning. More troops continued arriving behind them; although they were marching, they maintained perfect order. Each arriving group immediately formed a square formation. Within about fifteen minutes, seven or eight square formations stood outside the camp, each impeccably arranged.

Lu Xiangsheng watched for a while. The formations remained unmoving, the ranks perfectly aligned. Such military discipline and imposing presence could be said to represent one of the strongest forces in the Ming army. Although he still couldn’t clearly see their banners, Lu Xiangsheng was already extremely pleased. Another elite army had arrived, greatly increasing his chances of victory.

As Lu Xiangsheng was rejoicing, a personal guard hurried over and loudly reported: “Reporting to the Governor: Deputy General Yue Yang of the Northern Route of Xuanda has arrived outside the camp as ordered, awaiting your instructions.”

Lu Xiangsheng was first startled, then overjoyed. “Excellent! Yue Yang has managed to march thirty li in just two hours—he commands his troops well! Send for him at once!”

“Yes!”

At this moment, other generals in the camp also received the news and came over, including those from Xuanda and Liaodong, and even many soldiers peered out to watch.

Soon, Yue Yang, clad entirely in gray-black armor and draped in a bright red cloak, strode up to Lu Xiangsheng.

Yue Yang came before him, swept back his crimson cloak, knelt on one knee, clasped his fists, and loudly declared: “Your subordinate Yue Yang, Deputy General of the Northern Route of Xuanda, reports to Governor Lu. I have arrived as ordered; please instruct me!”

A hint of relief crossed Lu Xiangsheng’s eyes. He nodded slowly: “Good… Yue Yang, you have not disappointed me. To march thirty li in two hours shows your troops are well trained. I did not judge you wrongly!”

Yue Yang quickly replied: “All thanks to the Governor’s wise guidance. I dare not take credit for myself!”

“Very well… rise.” Lu Xiangsheng stepped forward to help him up, looking at Yue Yang covered in dust and sighed: “With such strong troops under Zhenghong, I fear no Tatar at all!”

“Hmph…”

At this moment, Wu Sangui also arrived. Hearing Lu Xiangsheng praise Yue Yang, he could not help but feel a little dissatisfied and snorted softly.

Lu Xiangsheng then asked: “Yue Yang, I ordered you to come urgently—was the march smooth? How many troops arrived?”

Yue Yang responded loudly: “Governor, upon receiving the Ministry of War’s order, I departed immediately, traveling day and night. The march was smooth; all 8,565 combat troops and 2,000 supply troops arrived, not a single one left behind!”

“Wow…”

At Yue Yang’s words, astonished exclamations rang out. Generals from both Xuanda and Liaodong were full of admiration.

In ancient times, long-distance marches were fraught with stragglers. When commanders received strict orders to arrive by a certain time, they often forced their troops to march desperately, causing the column to stretch longer and longer. On the first day, they might cover a mile in line; by the second day, two miles; by the third day, four miles. By the time they reached their destination, only a fraction of the original troops—perhaps 500 out of 3,000—might arrive, with the rest trickling in over subsequent days or never at all.

Experienced commanders knew this well and rarely punished subordinates for stragglers, because the troops had at least tried to arrive on time. Even Lu Xiangsheng understood this problem was deeply rooted in the army and did not dare punish the generals; as long as the commanding officers arrived, the rest could follow in the next few days.

But Yue Yang’s ability to maintain such perfect order during a forced march was virtually unprecedented in the Ming army. This impressed Lu Xiangsheng and the surrounding generals greatly.

Unknown to them, in later Chinese military practice, the ability to conduct forced or rapid marches became one of the key measures of an army’s excellence. Yue Yang, having grown up under the Red Flag and influenced by many historical dramas, had adopted this standard. His troops were regularly drilled in forced marches, which allowed them to maintain such tight formations even under extreme marching conditions.

Even Lu Xiangsheng’s generals were astonished, knowing the difficulty of such a feat. Wu Sangui, however, grew increasingly jealous. Though he prided himself on being a capable general, he knew his own troops could never achieve such cohesion during a ten-day forced march. Yet he was also aware that here was not his territory; he could not act arrogantly under the emperor’s nose.

After speaking with Yue Yang for about half an hour, the formations outside the camp still stood perfectly aligned, all soldiers standing firm and unmoving despite scrutiny from within the camp. The strict military discipline left everyone in awe. Soldiers and officers alike knew that an army with such obedience and order would have terrifying combat power.

Even Lu Xiangsheng’s own aide, Chen An, could not help but say to Hu Dawei and Yang Guozhu beside him: “Though I have never seen Deputy General Yue Yang fight the Tatars, seeing this military order convinces me of his past victories beyond doubt.”

Putting aside all discussion of Yue Yang and his Yingzhou army, Lu Xiangsheng said to him:
“You’ve just arrived, and there’s no good place to station you yet. How about setting up your camp beside my personal command unit?”

For Yue Yang, this was no inconvenience—it was an honor. The command unit followed the general wherever he went; having the camp next to Lu Xiangsheng signified absolute trust.

Yue Yang did not hesitate. Without a word, he turned and soon the neatly arranged troops marched into the camp.

As rows of gray-black armored soldiers entered, the entire camp stirred. Many soldiers and officers watched the new army in secret.

Yue Yang’s Yingzhou troops were strikingly different from the regular Ming forces, primarily in their armor. In an age with limited productivity, most soldiers lacked iron armor; having even cotton or leather armor was considered good, and partial iron armor covering vital points marked an elite unit.

But Yue Yang’s army, from officers to ordinary soldiers, was fully covered in iron armor—even their boots were armored. Beyond that, the troops were all robust, with ruddy complexions. Despite days of forced marches, they remained spirited, every action exuding strong combat readiness.

Wu Sangui looked at the endless lines of soldiers, more and more stunned. Beside him, a guerrilla muttered: “A reputation well-earned—truly an elite army!”