The meal was lively.
The maids cleaned the tables and served mung bean ice.
It was time to discuss serious matters.
Li Shimin, crunching on ice, looked at Fang Er.
Railways and trains were good things, but what if the national treasury had no money?
Fang Er smiled and dipped his finger in ice water, drawing a diagram on the table.
Does Your Majesty know where this is?
Li Shimin looked at the long, earthworm-like, and somewhat broken line.
He ventured a guess.
Wa Country?
Fang Er jabbed his finger at one point on the diagram.
Here, there is a silver mountain!
Li Shimin was shocked!
A silver mountain? How big is it?
Fang Er thought for a moment.
With the Great Tang's current national strength, it could be mined for several hundred years.
Upon hearing Fang Er's words, Li Shimin's heart surged with excitement!
What could a silver mountain do?
Whatever one wanted, of course! Did he even need to ask?
Let's go for it!
Lord Fang!
Li Shimin stared at the slowly fading diagram on the table and called out.
There was no response.
Lord Fang!
He called out again.
Still no response.
He turned his head and found Fang Xuanling lying on the ground, fast asleep.
Hoo~~ Phew~~~~
He was even blowing snot bubbles!
Well then!
Looking at the others, only Zhang Gongjin was still sitting on his chair, nodding furiously.
Chai Shao had already been helped to his room to sleep by Chai Yue and the maids.
Li Shimin could only shake his head helplessly.
He looked at Fang Er.
Lad, what are your thoughts on the Exterminating Barbarian Army and the Victorious Army?
Speak freely, don't hide anything from me.
Fang Er wasn't an expert on military systems, but he had been in and out of military camps many times in his later life.
Your Majesty, in my opinion, these two armies are different from other armies.
Since they are different, they must be distinguished. First, they must be able to recognize this distinction themselves.
Their appearance, organization, and equipment must all be differentiated.
Li Shimin sat up straight and looked into Fang Er's eyes.
Tell me in detail.
Fang Er organized his thoughts and spoke slowly.
First, appearance, which is essential. The firearms corps is different from other armies, as it focuses on ranged attacks.
Therefore, plate armor can be discarded for now and distributed to other armies after being phased out.
All uniforms should be made of sturdy fabric and be uniform.
The unit number, meaning the specific designation of a battalion, can be embroidered on the uniform.
For example, Yangwei First Regiment, Mie Lu Sixth Regiment, and so on.
This can increase the soldiers' cohesion, and uniform attire can give them a stronger sense of belonging.
Listening to Fang Er's words, Li Shimin could already imagine the scene of the neat army and the shock brought by their uniform attire.
Continue, tell me about the organization and equipment.
Fang Er said.
As for the organization, it is best to differentiate it from the current military system.
For example, the structure of army, division, regiment, battalion, company, platoon, squad.
A squad would have fifteen people, with a leader and deputy. It would follow a three-three progression upwards.
This way, each army would have 10,935 men.
This is not much different from the 10,000-man army Your Majesty mentioned earlier.
Li Shimin's eyes lit up.
This military system is clearly more detailed than the current division into battalions, companies, squads, and households.
The detailed division brought the benefit of a clear path for promotion for the soldiers.
With more positions to be promoted to.
As long as they had military achievements, they could climb step by step.
Moreover, another advantage is that it makes marching and command much easier!
He looked at Fang Er with eager anticipation.
Tell me more, how should the equipment be improved?
Fang Er drank the mung bean soup mixed with ice water in one gulp.
The heat from the "Men Da Lu" was suppressed.
For equipment, I suggest dividing it by company.
Each company would have 135 men, allocated as 110 riflemen, 20 artillerymen, and 5 snipers.
This way, with riflemen for close combat and artillerymen and snipers for long-range attacks, there would be no worries from either distance.
Li Shimin slammed the table.
Brilliant!
Such firepower would be enough to deal with an enemy force of about a thousand men.
They could participate in large-scale battles as well as small-scale operations.
Brilliant! Truly brilliant!
Moreover, the generals could also grow quickly.
Speaking of which, Li Shimin looked at Cheng Yaojin and Zhang Gongjin on the ground.
He sighed.
My old brothers are all getting old.
I don't know how many more years they can fight.
Since that is the case, I will let you younger ones have opportunities to grow.
After speaking, Li Shimin got up from his chair and walked towards the recliner in the courtyard.
He lay down on it.
Ah, comfortable!
Alright, I'll lie here and get some sleep. Wake me up when Lord Fang and the others are awake.
Fine.
It seems he wouldn't leave until the matter of the silver mountain was clarified.
Fang Er shook his head and instructed Hua Niang to fan Li Shimin.
Hmm.
He's so stingy.
He wouldn't let his maids fan him.
Hua Niang was the right age for him!
With his hands behind his back, he sauntered back to his room.
As soon as he reached the doorway, he heard several girls inside giggling and talking.
Chai Yue's laughter, like silver bells, rang out from time to time.
Fang Er pushed the door open with curiosity.
What are you talking about that's so funny? Tell me so I can hear.
Chai Yue rolled her eyes at him, looking exceptionally cute.
I won't tell you.
You're so eager to know about us girls?
Fang Er scratched his head sheepishly.
I'm bored, shall we play "Run Fast"?
Xiao Qing's face instantly turned red.
This young madam hasn't even married yet, and they're playing "Run Fast"?
Isn't this developing too quickly?
When Young Master plays "Run Fast," it's always a bet on taking off clothes or spanking.
Will Young Madam be angry?
Besides, Duke Chai is sleeping next door, and His Majesty hasn't left either.
It's broad daylight, isn't this inappropriate?
Chai Yue, seeing Xiao Qing's changing expression, asked curiously.
What's wrong, Sister Qing? Are you feeling unwell?
Xiao Qing glanced at Fang Er and dared not reveal the secret of "Run Fast."
Fang Er suddenly understood something and felt like he had said the wrong thing.
If these girls lost and started taking off their clothes, it would be a disaster!
He quickly said.
Well, if we lose, it'll be ten coins per card, how about that?
These young girls earn a good salary, two guan each month.
Their food, clothing, and expenses are all covered by the family, so they each have their own little treasury.
Hearing Fang Er say this, Xiao Qing patted her chest and breathed a sigh of relief.
Then Qing'er will go get the cards.
Chai Yue seemed a little embarrassed.
My lord, Yue'er didn't bring any money with her.
Fang Er waved his hand.
What's mine is yours. Just have fun.