latelenovela Chapter 523 Building a Military Base
Chapter 523 Building a Military Base
Upon hearing this, Liu Ye looked at him suspiciously.
The Military Staff Office was an institution modeled after the general staff of later armies, originally intended to assist Liu Ye in his military decision-making, but it was not implemented in all units. If Su Hongtu made this request from a military perspective, it shows that he had great military talent and promoted the emergence of the operational staff system ahead of time; if he applied for the position of "supervisor" to avoid suspicion due to his commanding position in the field, it shows that this blacksmith-turned-man had a high level of political awareness. However, either way, it was not a bad thing.
Liu Ye thought for a moment and nodded: "That's a good idea, I'll consider it."
"Secondly, I request that the cavalry trained by Mawei be assigned to the Independent Regiment."
Initially, considering that Mongolian horses would lose weight due to the hot weather in Qiongzhou, more than a thousand warhorses purchased from the Guan Ning Army were placed in Dengzhou and entrusted to Ma Wei, the only cavalry specialist, for training. The results are now promising, and all that remains is actual combat training.
"That works too. We'll organize this cavalry unit into a cavalry battalion. They can arrange their own training during peacetime and be under your command during wartime."
The general readily agreed to both requests, and Su Hongtu rubbed his hands together, grinning. He had recommended Ma Wei to join the Qionghai Army, and their personalities were compatible; commanding and deploying them was a natural fit. With the cavalry's support, he was confident of achieving great things in Dengzhou. Thinking of this, he even felt a little anticipation of encountering worthy opponents in Dengzhou.
At Liang Xiaoming's insistence, construction of the new military camp began. Its specifications and standards far exceeded Liu Ye's initial estimates, naturally increasing the budget significantly. However, money was not an issue for the Qiong Navy at this point; the cost of a medium-sized bastion was merely a drop in the ocean. Liu Ye had also come to terms with it: consider it an investment in Dengzhou, transforming it into a military base for the Qiong Navy, much like the United States does around the world—achieving global military control through overseas military bases and a powerful navy, capable of projecting troops and launching a war at any time.
Since the plan was to completely transform Dengzhou into a military base, not only the land-based military camps but also the port of Dengzhou should be renovated and reinforced. The current Dengzhou port is still very rudimentary; although it can accommodate enough ships, the rudimentary piers cannot meet the requirements for large ships to dock and quickly load and unload supplies. Liu Ye then discussed with Liang Xiaoming the possibility of expanding the capacity of the cement plant under construction beyond the original plan, simultaneously meeting the needs of the military camps and the port, and transforming Dengzhou port into a modern port with a fully concrete structure, modeled after Bofu Port.
For the local government of Dengzhou, both building military camps and fortifying the port were good things. Although the government's idea was to avoid trouble, the governor had given his approval, and the implementers were the well-equipped Qionghai Army, so they didn't dare to object and turned a blind eye.
Because the two projects were under construction simultaneously, Liu Ye, who had originally planned to leave after sending Liang Xiaoming to his post, stayed a little longer. As the commander of the Qionghai Army, he had people to do everything, so he didn't need to do everything himself. After arranging the manpower, he leisurely strolled around Dengzhou City with Dong Xiaowan, and then returned to his residence to enjoy Dong Xiaowan's master-level cooking skills. He lived a very comfortable life.
Liang Xiaoming's schedule was much busier than Liu Ye's. He not only had to oversee the construction of the bastion on-site—because the local craftsmen had never seen such a building before—but also had to build a cement plant and instruct the newly recruited workers on how to mix and prepare cement. He was extremely busy.
No matter how busy he was, he would always steal an hour each morning or afternoon to spend with Li Xiangjun. Whether she wanted to go to the beach, enjoy the mountains and forests, or even suddenly decide to ride a horse, he never refused. However, he had only learned to ride after his time travel, and his skills were too poor to teach Li Xiangjun, so he asked Liu Ye to act as her instructor.
On a wide open space outside Dengzhou City, the guards spread out far away, surrounding the area in all four directions to ensure that no one could enter, so that the general and his entourage could ride their horses with peace of mind.
Liu Ye was warming up on a warhorse, trotting in circles in the open space. He was already taller than most men in this timeline, and handsome, with the air of someone accustomed to a high position, making his image on horseback incredibly dashing. Dong Xiaowan, standing beside him, gazed at him adoringly, feeling a great sense of security and her vanity thoroughly satisfied.
Li Xiangjun, standing to the side, couldn't help but chuckle as she watched Liang Xiaoming clumsily clinging to his horse, seemingly afraid of falling off.
Hearing the laughter, Dong Xiaowan remembered that she had come to accompany Li Xiangjun to practice riding skills. She followed Li Xiangjun's gaze and saw this scene. She asked with a smile, "Sister Xiangjun, have you ever regretted following this Master Liang?"
Li Xiangjun shook her head: "I don't regret it. Although he's not my ideal match, he's very good to me. Everyone has a heart, and if he's good to me, I should be good to him too." Although she said that, Dong Xiaowan noticed a trace of loneliness in her eyes and sighed inwardly. It seemed that it would take some time for her younger sister to completely forget that handsome young man.
"What about you, sister? I don't think the Marquis of Pingnan seems to care much about you..."
Dong Xiaowan sighed, "It's not his fault. We met in Suzhou back then. He was just a minor military officer. He admired me and came to find me. But at that time, like you, I was only interested in finding a talented scholar who could pass the imperial examinations, so I was very cold to him. He was too proud, too proud to tolerate the slightest grievance. So, after ridiculing me, he left and never thought of shamelessly trying to please me. When we met again at Meilou, the gap between us had widened considerably. He was now a high-ranking earl, and he would never lower himself to please me again. Now, I'm just happy to be by his side; I dare not ask for anything more..."
"Anyway, that Minister Tian has returned to the capital. Haven't you thought about leaving him and going back to Jinling to find a scholarly family? I remember that Young Master Mao Xiang seemed to have a thing for you..."
Dong Xiaowan shook her head repeatedly: "Since I came to Shandong, I never thought about going back. I feel at ease with him by my side. I don't have to be afraid of people like Tian Guozhang because he can protect us. Besides, he is a tough-talking but soft-hearted person. He is more responsive to gentleness than force. As long as I serve him carefully and don't disobey him, he will naturally treat me well in time."
Li Xiangjun's eyes widened in surprise. She hadn't expected the usually haughty Dong Xiaowan to become so submissive. Just as she was about to say something, Liang Xiaoming called out from afar, "Miss Xiangjun, come and ride a horse!"
Li Xiangjun smiled and replied, "Coming!" She walked over with small steps.