Chapter 126 Fund-Raising

In any case, ten days and a financing scale of three million taels was enough to cover the expenses of two armies of three thousand men each for quite some time. Perhaps Dai Yun's five thousand warhorses had made too much of an impression. Although everyone was trying to leave a good impression on Suo Zheng, who seemed to be in charge of the matter now, so they could get a decent position when the army was established, no one dared to demand any position based on their contribution.

Ye Tao, who was staying indoors, wasn't doing anything complicated or difficult. Instead, he was doing something he enjoyed and excelled at: designing. In just a few days, the flags, emblems, and other designs for the Huoqi Army (Fire Unicorn Army) and Mengxue Army (Fierce Blood Army) were drawn one after another. After that, he quietly waited for the decision on this matter.

Tan Xiaopei didn't keep everyone waiting. The two armies' review office, jointly established by the Ministry of War, the Capital Garrison Headquarters, the Crown Prince's Palace, the Zhaohua Princess's Palace, and the Yi Zhan Lou, coordinated the management of these two small armies. They were responsible for the recruitment of personnel, the formation and training of the troops, and for selecting truly talented individuals from the young people who aspired to make the military their life's work, allowing them to give full play to their strengths. This was probably the smallest and least serious institution since the founding of Dongping.

When the establishment of the two armies became legitimate, Dai Yun and Qiu Haohui began to get into the swing of things, selecting suitable cadet officers and non-commissioned officers for their respective armies. Perhaps they were unwilling to serve under a young woman, or perhaps because the Huoqi Army was more serious, formal, and closer to the military system of the Dongping regular army in every way. In order to ensure the smooth formation of these two armies, which were hard to tell whether they were a joke or serious, not only did the Ministry of War and the Capital Garrison Headquarters allow those soldiers and officers who were scheduled to retire that year to retire early according to the original plan and transfer to the Huoqi Army and Mengxue Army according to their different abilities and inclinations, but they even found some people from those who had retired in the past who were willing to return to the army and live their lives. After all, there were still quite a few people who didn't live very ideally after retirement, or who weren't very adaptable to other livelihoods after being tempered by the army. And the news of these people was always maintained through comrades or former superiors and subordinates.

The influx of a large number of skilled soldiers, non-commissioned officers, and officers into the Huoqi Army and Mengxue Army made the construction of these two armies very smooth. The soldiers didn't have the strong rejection emotions that everyone had expected when the sons of various families entered the army and served as cadet officers under the guidance of veteran soldiers and officers. Of course, some people who pretended to know what they didn't know or who were inherently arrogant might not be very likable, and it would take some time to get all the soldiers to be convinced, but those who could stand out in the military chess competition had all put in some hard work in the military field. The commoner children who hadn't donated money were closer in origin to those soldiers and wouldn't have much of a gap. Even before their abilities were confirmed, the stipends received by these commoner children were the same as those of ordinary soldiers. As for those aristocratic children, their families would naturally take care of some interpersonal relationships for them, and some aristocratic children might even be able to ask their old subordinates and old friends to help take care of them if their relatives and friends had military experience.

Amidst a harmonious scene, Dai Yun became a little restless. As the supervising officer of the Mengxue Army and as a woman, she faced more difficulties from the beginning of the army's construction than Qiu Haohui, who was less capable than her. Although Qiu Haohui wasn't proficient in military affairs, he had a wealth of talent under his command. Whether it was the officers in charge of supervision or the cadet officers being supervised, the lineup was more complete than that of the Mengxue Army. Qiu Haohui's peaceful, rational, and yet good at dealing with people's character made him like a fish in water in the Huoqi Army, which was full of aristocratic children.

The Mengxue Army wasn't short of people, and it wasn't to say that people who were unable to join the Huoqi Army because the cadet positions were full could easily enter the Mengxue Army. In fact, Dai Yun spent more effort in choosing suitable candidates. Unlike Qiu Haohui, she didn't have to look at the faces of those aristocratic children, didn't have to worry about the pressure of anyone's donation, no one's identity was more distinguished than hers, and no one's generosity could surpass her. She worked hard to have those retired officers who were very proficient in daily military affairs and had a stable and honest character be responsible for supervising those cadet officers and non-commissioned officers, while those cadet positions were selected from those who had a bold, flamboyant, passionate, humorous, and cunning personality... She had always believed that what kind of person could bring out what kind of soldiers, and she had almost unlimited opportunities to try to build the Mengxue Army into a unique army with a distinct personality. And Chi Lei, who had been in charge of commanding the scout troops and using cavalry to conduct mobile warfare in the chess battles, had also become one of her generals. However, Dai Yun felt a little uneasy in her heart, and she felt that some things needed to be explained clearly...

Who should she talk to? Should she go to the Crown Prince, who was nominally in charge of the two armies' review office but was actually excitedly mingling with everyone and actively participating in various discussions, learning military affairs in one meeting after another? Dai Yun felt that she didn't have that kind of relationship with Tan Weiming, and in this way, the matter would seem too formal. In any case, Tan Weiming was the person who would become the Lord of Dongping in the future. Should she go to Tan Weixin? Not to mention whether Princess Zhaohua, who claimed to be chronically ill and refused to see anyone except those she wanted to see, would meet her, going to Tan Weixin was not as good as talking to the Crown Prince directly. There was really no difference in status.

Looking at all the people Dai Yun knew in Danyang who she could talk to, it turned out that there was only Ye Tao as a channel. Although she didn't know the relationship between Ye Tao and the Dongping royal family, since Ye Tao was someone Tan Weixin trusted and favored so much, he should be able to convey her opinion to the Dongping royal family, right?

Compared to wanting to see Tan Weixin, it was much easier to find Ye Tao. After several meetings, Ye Tao, who quite appreciated Dai Yun's straightforward and frank nature, had already regarded Dai Yun as a friend, and not just as a customer of the Yi Zhan Lou and a colleague of the two armies' review office. After Dai Yun's servant sent a message to the Ye family saying that she wanted to make an appointment, Lu Dan asked for Ye Tao's opinion and relayed the response that she could go to the Ye Clan Workshop to find him at any time.

For ordinary families, the sign that the master regarded someone as a close friend, as someone who could share some secrets, was to be invited into the study. But for Ye Tao, the study, which displayed too many large books of data that he didn't want to flip through, didn't count for much. The real key was his workshop. Now located in the Ye Clan Workshop, Ye Tao's private workshop occupied an entire large factory building, which was further divided into different functional areas. Outside the workshop, there were several soldiers in the uniform of the Forbidden Army guarding it. This wasn't surprising. Ye Tao's workshop was full of drawings of various military equipment, from the giant crossbows used for city defense that had been improved by the Ye Clan Workshop to the new model of trebuchet that Ye Tao had recently designed, which had shone brilliantly in test firings, with both its range and accuracy far superior to the trebuchets currently equipped by the Dongping army. There were even detailed design drawings and models of the top-secret Iron Citadel neatly placed in a massive drawing cabinet. It was really low-key to have just these few soldiers guarding it.

Seeing Dai Yun arrive, Ye Tao glanced at the color of the fire in the small ceramic stove and then at the simple metal thermometer he had made by hand, and invited Dai Yun to sit down at the large workbench, asking Sophie, who was copying drawings at the drafting table next to him, to bring tea to Dai Yun.

Ye Tao's workshop was always a bit messy, no matter how many times Sophie tried to clean it up. In the middle of the workbench, the model of the new district of Danyang City, which was undergoing demolition and resettlement, was half-finished, with many semi-finished products and many tools that Dai Yun couldn't figure out the use of placed beside it.

"I would like to ask Young Master Ye to build a garden. As for the location, perhaps it will be in the new district, which will be焕然一新 (completely renewed) in the next year or two," Dai Yun started the topic in a way that she had considered for a long time.

"Oh?" Ye Tao frowned and said, "Miss Dai, are you planning to live in Danyang for a long time? Even if the affairs of the Mengxue Army are complicated, it's only a temporary position, right? Are you planning to continue as this supervising officer all the time? I am naturally very happy to have someone with such talent and bearing as Miss Dai to supervise such a team. This is the best for both the Mengxue Army and the promotion of the Yi Zhan Lou, but I have never dared to harbor such extravagant hopes. Even if Miss Dai likes this matter, will your family allow you to stay in Danyang for a long time?"

Dai Yun said seriously, "This is exactly what I want to tell you. If it's just for me to stay temporarily or for the Dai family to have a long-term foothold in Danyang, then I wouldn't dare to bother you, Young Master. However, what I want Young Master to do is the Dai family's residence. My Dai family of Yunzhou may... have to relocate here completely in a few years. And I am here to be the vanguard for my Dai family."

Dai Yun's expression made Ye Tao's heart skip a beat. This matter was too big, so big that he shouldn't be the one to hear it. However, Ye Tao didn't panic. He just froze for a moment and then asked sincerely, "Miss Dai, what is the reason for this? The Dai family is in charge of Yunzhou, buffering the three countries of Dongping, Xiling, and Beiliao, and has worked hard to defend the barbarian tribes in the northern border for the sake of my Central Plains people. Although Yunzhou and Dongping have always been on good terms, it may not be a good thing for my Central Plains people if it merges into Dongping. Besides the Dai family, who else can be the barrier for the entire Central Plains?"

Dai Yun said with a sigh, "...Everyone knows that the Dai family's children are not cowards. The number of Dai family's children who died on the battlefield is far more than those who died peacefully, but how many people can't stand the power of my Dai family in Yunzhou? How many people don't know the hard work of the Dai family for so many years and only want to take the fertile land of Yunzhou into their pockets? Moreover... the Central Plains has been recuperating for so many years, and the population and economy have become more and more prosperous, but Yunzhou is different. Every year, the barbarian tribes come to 打草谷 (raid), and every year there is killing. It's okay if Xiling and Beiliao don't help, but it's hateful that they have to be wary of them taking advantage of the situation from time to time. For so many years, some of the people of Yunzhou have fled to the Central Plains, some have died on the battlefield, and some have been imprisoned on the land by those other families in Yunzhou who are jealous and unable to contribute to Yunzhou. The Iron Cloud Army, which can be called the number one cavalry army in the world, is now fighting less and less..."

Looking at Ye Tao, Dai Yun said self-deprecatingly, "My little brother, who is only twelve years old, has gone to the battlefield, but I don't even have the opportunity to die on the battlefield. Since last year, my father has forced me to go to Yunhai Villa, not allowing me to return to Yunzhou, let alone wander around the world like before. At the beginning of this year, he ordered me to come to Danyang to find a place for my Dai family to live in. When all the able-bodied people of my Dai family are dead, those old, young, widowed, and orphaned can have a place to live."

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