The Son of Heaven has changed the reign title again.
Changing the reign title isn’t uncommon, but it’s rare to see it done so frequently within a single year, as the current emperor has done.
At the beginning of the year, it was still called the first year of Yongxing.
But before the first month had even fully passed, the reign title was changed to "Yong'an."
Now, the recently captured Emperor Sima Zhong has issued an edict to change the reign title to "Jianwu."
From this point on, it is the first year of Jianwu (304).
Local governors and powerful ministers might often ignore the emperor’s decrees, but that’s usually when their fundamental interests are at stake.
When it comes to something as minor as changing the reign title, no one would dare to disrespect it—it’s a matter of face, after all, and it doesn’t hurt anyone.
The official documents from the Luoyang court have already started using "Jianwu" as the new reign title.
Shao Xun had just received one such document: the Luoyang Armory was allocating a batch of equipment to meet military needs.
This was the largest armory in the country, with everything from large crossbows to small whetstones—well, at least on paper, there were plenty of items.
The document was jointly signed by Military Secretary Cao Fu, Left Deputy Minister Wang Yan, and Luoyang Garrison Commander Mi Huang.
Naturally, they wouldn’t dare to send Shao Xun any rotten or unusable weapons.
The equipment was of good quality, at least serviceable.
With this batch of equipment, Shao Xun planned to double the size of his troops.
The bolder you are, the more you can achieve.
Why should I be afraid?
If the troops exceed the official quota, it’ll be Sima Yue’s problem in the future, not mine.
On the contrary, he’ll probably praise me for acting decisively and turning the tide.
With this mindset, by the end of August, Shao Xun openly set up checkpoints in the Mang Mountain area near Luoyang to gather deserters.
"Stop! I said stop! Are you deaf?" Chen Yougen, leading fifty cavalrymen, quickly rode up to a group of panting deserters and roared.
The fifty men dismounted, each carrying a long sword and holding a crossbow, looking fierce and intimidating.
The deserters weren’t stupid.
They took one look at these intimidating men and the cold, gleaming crossbow bolts and decided not to resist.
Huang Biao led a team to disarm them—if they still had any weapons—and then took them aside for a rough screening.
The main goal was to separate them, have them identify each other by name and hometown, listen to their accents, and ask about their military experience to see if there were any inconsistencies.
Screening for spies was just a side task.
The main goal was to break them up and take them away.
However, Shao Xun was quite picky.
He didn’t want just anyone.
At the very least, they had to look strong and healthy, and it was even better if they knew how to shoot a bow.
Archers could easily be turned into spearmen or swordsmen, but the reverse wasn’t true.
Li Zhong had been suggesting recruiting more archers.
Previously, the rear unit only had about forty archers, and some had been lost in battle.
By July, they had just replenished the number to sixty or seventy.
Now, with this opportunity to gather deserters, it would be a shame not to take advantage of it.
"You say you’re from the central army? What part of you looks like it?" Chen Yougen’s loud voice rang out again not far away.
"I’m from the Tiger Guard under the Left Guard General. I’ve been a soldier for nine years. It’s the truth."
The Tiger Guard was a heavy infantry unit.
But this guy was only wearing a thin undergarment, looking haggard and disheveled.
Anyone would doubt his story.
"Still lying!" Chen Yougen sneered.
"The Tiger Guards of the Left and Right Guards are responsible for protecting the emperor, officials, and princes. The emperor has already been taken to Ye City. How did you escape?"
The old soldier sighed helplessly.
"The bandits were too busy capturing the emperor and high officials. Who cared about us? I grabbed a horse and ran in the chaos."
"Where’s the horse?"
"Its leg broke halfway, so I abandoned it."
Chen Yougen couldn’t immediately judge the truth of his story, especially since a few people had already identified him as a central army soldier.
"How’s the emperor?" Before Chen Yougen could say anything, Shao Xun walked over and asked.
Seeing a "high official," the old soldier perked up.
"The bandits fired tens of thousands of arrows. We tried to shield him, but it was no use. I saw it clearly—the emperor was hit by three arrows and fell from his carriage into the grass."
"Did the mountain collapse?" Shao Xun wasn’t asking this for no reason.
He wanted to confirm if someone was hiding the emperor’s death and using his name to deceive people.
"No," the old soldier swallowed.
"After the bandits captured—welcomed the emperor, I saw from a distance that they called for a doctor to treat his wounds."
Shao Xun nodded slowly and instructed Chen Yougen, "Record his name and assign him to the royal army."
"Yes, sir," Chen Yougen replied.
After Shao Xun left, he continued to review the northern campaign with his student soldiers—using the true and false information they had gathered.
By evening, they had gathered over five hundred qualified soldiers, all of whom were disarmed and taken away.
This was just the first wave of deserters arriving in Luoyang.
More would come.
Out of the tens of thousands of soldiers, the number of dead was probably just a fraction.
Most had either scattered or fled in organized groups.
In the wilderness, who knows how many bandits would spring up?
Manors and estates would likely profit greatly.
The weaker deserters would be enslaved and forced to work the fields, while the stronger ones would be recruited into private armies.
The best might even become retainers, helping to improve the military capabilities of the manors and estates.
Everyone was quietly devouring the dwindling wealth of the Jin dynasty.
Once they had consumed enough, this crumbling house would be kicked down.
After gathering the troops and returning to the city, Shao Xun brought in Commander Mi to reorganize the entire army.
First, he adjusted each squad.
A squad of ten included the squad leader, which meant one team leader only had four men under him (including himself).
That wasn’t very efficient.
During the Tang dynasty’s conscription system, the squad leader wasn’t included in the ten-man count—each team had five men, including the team leader.
This meant each squad needed to recruit one more person, increasing the unit’s size by fifty men.
Additionally, the flag bearer was a part-time role, and there were no musicians—those were only available at the army level.
Shao Xun decided to add an extra supervisor, a clerk, two grooms (who also served as veterinarians), two flag bearers, two battlefield messengers, four musicians, four scouts, eight gate guards, and a few other miscellaneous roles.
The unit’s size would swell to over five hundred and ninety men.
In short, this was aimed at making the unit capable of independent operations.
The original lower army had two units, and with the addition of army-level personnel, the total would exceed twelve hundred men.
After gathering the deserters, they would expand further, forming five units with nearly three thousand men.
This was the ultimate goal of gathering the deserters: three thousand combat troops in the lower army, with auxiliary troops counted separately—given the current officer resources, any more would be hard to control effectively.
In terms of officer appointments, Shao Xun was the Central Guard Commander, also serving as the rear unit leader.
The other four unit leaders were Gao Yi, Li Zhong, Huang Biao, and Yu An.
Chen Yougen’s team was expanded to a hundred men and didn’t belong to any specific army, but he held the title of supervisor in the lower army’s rear unit.
Wu Qian was assigned to lead a unit of retired Luoyang city guards, handling logistical support—this auxiliary force was expected to expand to over two thousand men.
As for the expansion of the upper army, after weighing the pros and cons, Shao Xun didn’t get too involved, only offering some advice.
After all, no matter how many troops He Lun recruited, Shao Xun would still be the one training them.
There would be plenty of opportunities to exert influence.
With this, the Donghai Kingdom’s army was now strong and formidable, becoming a significant force in Luoyang.
"Quanzhong—" After the reorganization, Mi Huang pulled Shao Xun aside, but before he could continue, he realized something was off.
"I haven’t taken a courtesy name yet. What does Quanzhong mean?" Shao Xun asked with a dark expression.
"Well, Yu Liang mentioned visiting Military Secretary Cao…"
"So it’s him!" Shao Xun was annoyed, and his opinion of Yu Liang soured.
"Let’s not talk about that," Mi Huang quickly changed the subject, sensing Shao Xun’s mood.
"With so many deserters gathered, when Zhang Fang arrives, can we go out and defeat him?"
Shao Xun thought for a moment.
"These are frightened birds and newly recruited soldiers. We haven’t established authority or earned their loyalty. I’m afraid we can’t engage in open battle."
"I understand," Mi Huang said.
He was good at listening to professional advice and not acting recklessly.
Besides, he had already benefited from this approach.
Now, when he went out, even if people didn’t like him, they had to address him respectfully as "Commander."
"He Lun heard that you went out to recruit soldiers. This afternoon, he left through the Dongyang Gate and set up checkpoints, recruiting over seventeen hundred men," Mi Huang added.
"So quickly? How did he recruit them?"
"He took everyone who came."
Shao Xun nodded slightly, indicating he understood.
Old He wasn’t picky.
He probably brought entire units back to his upper army, unlike Shao Xun, who carefully selected and dispersed the deserters into different squads.
It seemed He Lun didn’t have much ambition and didn’t plan to turn this army into his private force.
Thinking back to how He Lun and Wang Bing had once sought positions in the imperial guards, Shao Xun couldn’t help but sigh: perhaps Sima Yue wasn’t good at much, but he had a decent eye for people.
He Lun and Wang Bing were truly loyal to him.
I wonder if, historically, Sima Yue entrusted his wife and children to them.
From what Shao Xun knew, He Lun and Wang Bing might not be particularly capable, but they would do their best to carry out any task Sima Yue gave them, even after his death.
Thinking of this, Shao Xun, a man full of rebellious thoughts, actually felt a bit of respect for He Lun and Wang Bing.
These were men with principles and integrity, unlike him—who had multiple backup plans and no real bottom line.
"If we can’t engage in open battle, then we’ll defend the city and wait for the Grand Minister’s orders," Mi Huang said with a sigh of regret.
He still wanted to achieve something, even though he didn’t know where his lord had gone.
"Commander, don’t worry," Shao Xun said with a smile.
"If we can expand the Luoyang garrison to over twenty thousand, Zhang Fang won’t be able to enter the city even if he dies trying."
This was the truth.
This wasn’t open battle—it was a siege, and the difficulty wasn’t on the same level.
If nothing goes wrong, with the few men Zhang Fang has, how could he possibly succeed?
(End of Chapter)