April 26th.

When Liang Xue woke up, it was in an elegant room, not as large as her boudoir, but though small, it was fully equipped.

"Hiss..." The large movement pulled at the pain in her neck, causing Liang Xue to take a sharp breath, she raised her hand to touch the back of her neck.

"You're awake." A gentle voice reached Liang Xue's ears.

Liang Xue turned her head and saw a woman sitting in the corner of the bed, hugging her knees, who else could it be but Ning Wan.

Liang Xue furrowed her brows but didn't bicker with Ning Wan. The events before she fainted all rushed into her mind, making her face pale as she trembled and asked, "This... where is it?"

"Still in the government office of Longmen County. If I remember correctly, this room is used for guests to rest. You've been unconscious for a night." At this moment, both women understood their current situation, so Ning Wan told Liang Xue everything she knew.

"Outside..."

"There are many rebel soldiers outside, all armored and armed with crossbows. We can't get out." Ning Wan knew what Liang Xue wanted to ask and said.

Liang Xue's heart sank as she looked at the beautiful woman in the corner whom she usually considered an enemy. At this moment, she unexpectedly felt a sense of shared misfortune and said, "Is there any news of father?"

Ning Wan shook her head.

Liang Xue's face changed slightly. In the ancient times of warfare, it was normal for the victors to take the wives and daughters of the enemy as spoils of war.

As she understood it, a concubine of Liang's ancestors was originally the concubine of the rebel leader when their city was captured.

Such things were too common, even the Grand Ancestor Emperor, praised by the whole country during the founding of the nation, did not abstain from playing with the wives and daughters of the enemy.

This was a good moral baseline. Some who lacked morals not only played themselves but invited their subordinates to join in, and after playing, made them into hostesses.

As a girl of the Liang family, Liang Xue naturally knew more than ordinary people, and she had even heard of some secrets.

Thinking that she would meet the same fate afterward, her body couldn't help but tremble in fear, and her heart was filled with immense terror.

Having grown up without hardship, in the midst of countless glories, she couldn't help but cry in fear.

Ning Wan, seeing this scene, sighed. After all, she was still a child, and said, "Don't worry, the master will rescue us. The master is resourceful and will surely defeat the rebel army and drive them out of Yu State."

Upon hearing this, Liang Xue believed it too.

When a person hasn't ventured out into the world, their idols are their parents, feeling like there's nothing their parents can't do, considering them their reliance.

Thinking of this, the unease in Liang Xue's heart gradually dissipated a little.

But as time went on to May 2nd, a casual remark from the rebel soldier delivering food made their faces turn pale.

On April 30th, the Yu State Army was ambushed by the rebel army at Wei Yang Slope, and the Prefect of Yu State was captured.

This news, to the two women, was undoubtedly a bolt from the blue, as if the hope in their heart was completely extinguished.

"No, no, the master is a Fourth-Grade Martial Artist, with so many people around him, even if they can't defeat the rebel army, they can escape. How could he be captured? The rebel army must be deceiving us, we shouldn't believe it." Ning Wan said, unwilling to accept this news in her heart.

...

On the other side.

Outside Zhuima City.

"Boom, boom, boom..." The war drums kept sounding, and the Xianzhen Guard began to form their ranks almost simultaneously.

On the city wall above the rear city gate of Zhuima City, Cui Shuang watched the enemy army fleeing towards Zhuima City from afar, with excitement in his surprise: "It's true, it really is true, Marshal Chen has actually defeated the enemy army."

"What did I tell you, Brother Mo's plans never go wrong." In front of outsiders, Zhang River always referred to Chen Mo as Brother Mo to show his close relationship with Chen Mo.

"They're coming," Liu Ze said.

Zhang River stepped forward and shouted loudly at the approaching Yu State Army, "You are already defeated, if you don't surrender now, then when?"

The Xianzhen Guard on and below the city wall began to shout loudly, countless voices converging into one force, seemingly piercing everyone's eardrums.

Sun Meng, pursuing from the rear, got so excited upon hearing this shout that his face was flushed red, and he shouted loudly, "Brothers, the people inside Zhuima City are ours, go, encircle them."

With the pincer attack from front and back, the fleeing Yu State army remnants were surrounded on this not-so-wide official road.

"Liang Song, the Prefect of Yu State, and all your superiors have surrendered. Your families are still in Longmen County, our Marshal Chen has said, if you lay down your weapons and surrender, not only will you be pardoned, but you will also be reunited with your families.

Everyone in the city is ours, you have nowhere to escape to, surrender is the only option, if you resist stubbornly and refuse to surrender, you will be executed without mercy."

Hundreds of loud-voiced Divine Martial Guard soldiers shouted at the formation, shaking the hearts of the Yu State army.

And they were already a group of routed soldiers, far from having any military morale, upon hearing these words, they hesitated instantly, and their morale sank even lower.

"Clang..."

A Decurion threw away his weapon and said, "My mother, wife, and children are all in Longmen County, I... I cannot die, I surrender."

This group of routed soldiers was already in panic, and with someone taking the lead, they surrendered en masse.

As for this main force of the Yu State army, it was completely taken by Chen Mo's division.

...

Longmen County.

Chen Mo was organizing the military structure.

Now Yu State was nearly conquered by him, different from Qingzhou, whose population was devastated by the Celestial Master Army, Yu State was different. According to the household registry of Shiling County, the population of Shiling County had over eight thousand people.

The population of Longmen County totals fourteen thousand.

The entire Yu State consists of eighty-six counties, with a minimum population of six hundred thousand.

At least one to three thousand troops could be recruited from these six hundred thousand.

Liang Song does not recruit soldiers because he has always considered himself a vassal of the Great Song. Even though he holds the civil and military authority in Yu State, he does not have the right to recruit soldiers, as private recruitment equates to rebellion.

But Chen Mo doesn't care about this rule.

Thus, the scale of his army will soon reach fifty thousand.

Using titles like Team Leader or Section Leader is no longer appropriate, especially since he is now considered a General of the Imperial Army.

Then let's use the court's system.

The Imperial Army ranks are Decurion, commanding ten people, followed by Centurion, and then Centurion.

Unlike the Qin Dynasty, it doesn't have a Marquis Qu. Above Centurion is directly Captain, who can command a battalion. In wartime, it can reach multiple battalions, commanding five thousand to ten thousand troops.

Above Captain is General.

However, at this level, things get too complicated; various generals appear in endless succession, which Chen Mo doesn't understand.

For example, he heard himself appointed General Xuanwei before, but didn't know its grade or responsibilities until Geng Songfu explained it was merely a titular general without troop authority.

Thus, Chen Mo sets the rank to Captain, and beyond that, he doesn't have the authority to confer titles to subordinates.

Previous Team Leaders become Decurions.

Section Leaders become Centurions.

Squadron Leaders become Centurions.

As for the likes of Li Yunzhang, Sun Meng, Liu Ze, Shao Jinneng, Zhang River, and Cui Shuang, they are promoted to Captains.

Sun Meng becomes Captain of the Personal Guard Battalion.

Chen Mo scribbles on the paper, marking changes.

Oh, and Wen Heng must also be appointed as Captain, to set an example for these Yu State Army defectors.

In addition to ranks, Chen Mo plans to expand the Divine Brave Guard to ten thousand, Divine Martial Guard around twenty thousand, Xianzhen Guard around twenty thousand, and the Personal Guard Battalion to a thousand.

He must also establish a Cavalry Battalion... Never mind, let's name it Brave Cavalry Guard.

By incorporating this Yu State Army, at least one to two thousand warhorses can be acquired.

After some self-planning, it's already evening.

On another front, the dowry has been counted. Besides the celebrity calligraphy and paintings whose value cannot be determined for now, the remaining gold, silver, and brocade add up to over two million coins.

This amount surpasses the combined wealth of Lu Yonggang and Yang Minggui.

Even if adding up Chen Mo's assets in Pingting County, it doesn't reach this quantity.

Upon hearing this news, Chen Mo is somewhat dumbfounded.

He knew Liang Xue's dowry was substantial but didn't expect it to be this much.

As for the betrothal gifts, the Divine Brave Guard did not find them in Longmen County. After investigation, it was discovered that the betrothal gifts from Crown Prince Chong were sent to the Liang Family and temporarily kept by Liang Song due to the long distance.

...

Time arrives on May 6th.

Sun Meng, Zhang River, and others, accompanied by defectors, reached Longmen County.

Because of their large numbers, they can only camp outside the city.

This group of defectors totals seven thousand six hundred.

According to Chen Mo's plans, excluding the wounded and those absorbed in, initially surrendered Celestial Master Army soldiers, the rest are directly integrated into the Divine Brave Guard.

To be honest, Chen Mo isn't worried about the quality of these defectors as troops. In terms of overall strength, they even surpass the Divine Brave Guard; with a simple adjustment, they can go directly to the battlefield.

That afternoon, a carrier pigeon flew from Longmen County straight to Pingting County.

He needs Geng Songfu to send some clerks to help him or provide him with management suggestions. Yu State has 86 counties, excluding Quanyang County, Celestial Water Town, and other counties without population, nearly half of the remaining counties need his management. He can't handle it all alone.

On May 7th, Chen Mo orders Liu Ze, Zhang River, and Hu Qiang to stay at Longmen County with Xianzhen Guard while he, along with Sun Meng, Cui Shuang, and Wen Heng, leads the Divine Brave Guard, the Divine Martial Guard, and some defectors to reclaim other counties within Yu State.

Yes, reclaim.

The forces in Yu State are gathered by Liang Song in Zhuima City, Shiling County, and Longmen County.

Other counties have lost most of their forces, and with the prior message spread that Liang Song has surrendered to him, Chen Mo's reclamation process went extremely smoothly.

In each county, the County Magistrate and a group of clerks welcomed him outside the city, allowing Chen Mo to capture multiple fortresses without a fight.

Of course, there are those who stubbornly resist, and after several warnings fail to persuade them, Chen Mo launches an offensive.

Upon breaching the fortress, all leaders of the Defense Army and County Government Office officials are executed.

Under this act of killings to warn the others, there are no more resistors in other fortresses.

By the end of May, Chen Mo reports the successful reclamation of all Yu State counties to the court.

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