After several rounds, Li Kui and Fan Tong were still evenly matched.
Both of them were panting heavily and drenched in sweat.
Li Kui already had several wounds on his body, and blood was flowing freely.
Fan Tong's situation wasn't much better.
His clothes were torn in several places, and his face was bruised.
Lu Yan felt that continuing like this was not a solution, so he called a halt to the match.
"Alright, alright, stop fighting! Everyone, take a break!"
Li Kui and Fan Tong then stopped fighting.
They stood there, panting, glaring at each other.
Lu Yan walked between the two and asked with a smile:
"Fan Tong, right? You're pretty good at fighting, kid! Tell me, who are you?"
Fan Tong replied in a deep voice, "I am from Beixiang Kingdom, and I used to be a military general."
"Oh? A military officer? What are you doing here?" Lu Yan asked with great interest.
Fan Tong sighed and said:
"It's all because of that damned Liu Wen!"
"That old bastard is arrogant and domineering because he is the prime minister, and he eliminates his opponents!"
"I couldn't stand his attitude, so I talked back to him a bit."
"As a result, he was demoted to a minor garrison commander in Yunyang City!"
Upon hearing this, Lu Yan was immediately delighted.
He patted Fan Tong on the shoulder and said:
"Good lad, you've got guts!"
He waved his hand and said:
"Let the competition continue. Only strong opponents can help you improve. Keep going, Xiao Kui."
"Okay!"
Li Kui excitedly agreed, brandished his broadsword once more, and charged towards Fan Tong.
"Good timing!"
Fan Tong roared and charged forward, brandishing his meteor hammer.
The two clashed again.
This time, the battle between the two was even more intense and exciting.
Three hundred rounds passed in the blink of an eye, and Li Kui was eventually defeated due to exhaustion.
Fan Tong's meteor hammer stopped right in front of Li Kui's nose, and he burst into laughter:
"Brother Li is indeed brave and valiant; I admire him!"
Li Kui wiped the sweat from his face and grinned:
"Brother Fan's hammer technique is even more exquisite; I am completely outmatched!"
The two men admired each other and decided to become sworn brothers in the center of the training ground.
This drew cheers from the surrounding soldiers.
Lu Yan watched with great interest.
Fan Tong was not only highly skilled in martial arts, but also had a very forthright personality.
They are exactly the kind of talent we need.
He walked up to the two of them and said with a smile:
"Brother Fan Tong, I see you are quite skilled. Would you be willing to stay in Shannan Prefecture and lend me a hand?"
Fan Tong originally had no good feelings towards these officials.
But Lu Yan's approachability and sincerity touched him.
Furthermore, Li Kui chimed in from the side:
"Big brother, my master is a formidable figure. Following him is definitely the right thing to do!"
Fan Tong finally nodded in agreement and joined Lu Yan's ranks.
That evening, Lu Yan hosted a banquet for Fan Tong, Li Kui, and others.
After several rounds of drinks, Fan Tong wiped his mouth with a hearty gesture, clasped his hands in a fist salute, and said:
"My lord, there is something I don't understand and would like to ask you about."
Lu Yan put down his wine glass and smiled:
"Brother Fan Tong, please don't stand on ceremony, speak freely."
Fan Tong hesitated for a moment, then spoke:
"The firearms battalion under your command is incredibly powerful, as I have witnessed today. However, while these muskets have a fast rate of fire, reloading them is quite cumbersome. If the enemy takes advantage of this opportunity to charge, how should we respond?"
Fan Tong was indeed a fierce general, with a meticulous mind, and he saw the drawbacks of the musket at a glance.
Lu Yan slowly explained:
"Brother Fan Tong's concerns are very valid. Reloading muskets is indeed time-consuming, so our musketeers all fire in three volleys."
After the first platoon finishes firing, they quickly retreat to reload, and the second platoon fires from above, alternating in this manner to ensure continuous firepower. In addition, our army is equipped with pikemen, swordsmen, and other close-combat units as a backup.
Fan Tong nodded repeatedly upon hearing this, and then asked:
"My lord, I have observed that your cavalry are well-equipped and well-trained. But I wonder how you train them?"
Lu Yan smiled and said:
"The key to training troops lies in 'precision' and 'practicality'."
"Elite" means streamlined and efficient troops. Our cavalry are all handpicked from among the best, physically strong, loyal and brave.
"Real" refers to actual combat drills. Our cavalry conducts actual combat drills every day.
Simulating various battlefield environments hones soldiers' combat skills and adaptability.
As Lu Yan spoke, he picked up a piece of charcoal and drew a simple formation diagram on the table.
Pointing to several points on the map, he said:
"The key to cavalry warfare lies in flexibility, mobility, and versatility."
Our cavalry must not only be proficient in various formation changes, but also be adept at utilizing terrain to achieve surprise victories.
Fan Tong listened with rapt attention, as if a door to a completely new military world had been opened for him.
He was merely a highly skilled military commander, but his understanding of military strategy and tactics was not profound.
After listening to Lu Yan's explanation today, I realized how narrow-minded I had been before.
The next morning, as dawn broke, the fire in Yunyang City was still burning.
Lu Yan tallied the casualties, concluding that the siege was a resounding success.
The death toll was less than 20, with more than 100 people slightly injured, a record low casualty ratio.
On the other side, Fan Tong gathered his personal guards and, in the center of the drill ground, facing hundreds of soldiers with burning eyes, he said loudly, "Brothers, I have decided to follow Lord Lu and join the Shannan Prefecture!"
A buzz of discussion immediately arose in the crowd; some were puzzled, some were doubtful, and some expressed their support.
A burly soldier stepped forward and asked in a deep voice, "General, what should we do with that old scoundrel Liu Wen? If we just leave like this, wouldn't we be letting him off easy?"
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