The leading Tuncun immediately ordered the surrounding soldiers to stand at attention and bow in welcome.
Liu Jin, riding a black horse, slowly approached, surrounded by the crowd.
The surrounding soldiers immediately bowed and loudly declared!
"We respectfully greet the Military Marquis!"
Liu Jin looked at the soldiers before him, standing tall and solemn, and was quite surprised.
He hadn't expected such heroes in the army who understood how to manage military formations; it seemed the leader was not simple.
He asked calmly!
"Where is the person in charge earlier?"
As soon as he spoke, a young man from the crowd, with a resolute face, a strong build, and dressed in Tuncun robes, stepped forward.
He immediately stood out, a respectful expression on his face, and bowed!
"Reporting to the Military Marquis, my name is Han Dang, courtesy name Yi Gong, and I am the current Tuncun, the one who was in charge earlier."
Liu Jin, riding on his black horse, was slightly stunned upon hearing this, then quickly showed a look of surprise as he scrutinized the young man before him.
Han Dang was very familiar to him; he was a great general under the Jiangdong Tiger, Sun Jian, who followed him in campaigns across the north and south, earning great merits.
After Sun Jian's death, he assisted his son, Sun Ce, in conquering the Jiangdong region and establishing the Eastern Wu regime.
From memory, Han Dang was indeed from You Province, but he started as a small soldier, slowly making a name for himself by accumulating some military achievements through hard work.
When the Yellow Turban Rebellion began, he joined the campaign against the Yellow Turbans, performed exceptionally, then met Sun Jian, and was subsequently taken under his wing as a retainer.
Liu Jin's eyes were filled with excitement; since his name was Han Dang, courtesy name Yi Gong, it seemed he was Han Dang, one of the Four Tiger Generals of Eastern Wu.
He hadn't expected to find him in the Yi County military camp, and as his own Tuncun; it was truly a great fortune.
He had already formed the intention to recruit him; such a fierce general could not be allowed to become a subordinate of Sun Jian, he naturally had to belong to Liu Wenyi.
With a smile on his face, he praised him!
"Yi Gong, you have performed very well. The soldiers are firm and solemn, neat and orderly, clearly from frequent training. It seems you are also a knowledgeable military man, and this Military Marquis is very satisfied."
Han Dang, hearing this, showed a hint of excitement on his resolute face. He hadn't expected the new Military Marquis to praise him immediately upon arrival.
He had thought this person would be difficult to get along with, as he had heard rumors that the newly appointed Military Marquis had a somewhat volatile temper.
When he was a Tuncun, he dared to execute a squad leader and suffered no punishment.
Now as a Military Marquis, he would probably dare to execute Tuncuns like them.
Moreover, this Liu Jin was a Military Marquis appointed purely on military merit. Some time ago, he led over a hundred men to kill five hundred bandits, becoming famous in one battle and gaining some renown in the prefecture.
Therefore, everyone in the Yi County army was quite afraid, behaving honestly and not daring to cause trouble or seek death.
Han Dang clasped his hands and politely said!
"Thank you for your praise, Military Marquis."
Liu Jin nodded, and his voice continued!
"Yi Gong, how many men are currently in the army?"
Han Dang replied without hesitation!
"Reporting to the Military Marquis, this division of troops in Yi County currently has only two hundred and forty-five men."
Liu Jin frowned upon hearing this but didn't say much.
According to the Han military system, a division of troops typically consisted of about two hundred to four hundred men.
Adding some messengers, cooks, auxiliary soldiers, and scouts, it could reach a maximum of about five hundred men.
So, with over two hundred men in this division, it was considered normal.
Liu Jin immediately brandished his horse whip and led everyone into the military camp.
As for recruiting Han Dang, he was not in a hurry. His own official rank was only Military Marquis, one level higher than Han Dang. It wouldn't be so easy to recruit him as a retainer.
Moreover, Han Dang was a figure who would leave his mark in history, naturally possessing unique qualities, and wouldn't be easily swayed.
Even if he were to pledge allegiance, he would only choose someone with a higher official rank, not someone like himself, a Military Marquis.
In this era, once one chose to pledge allegiance, they would essentially acknowledge their lord and become a retainer, serving them for life.
Unless their lord died, they would not change their allegiance, otherwise, they would be ridiculed and never be able to hold their head high again.
Therefore, many ambitious individuals would not easily pledge allegiance to others; they had to observe carefully whether it was worth their lives.
Presumably, Han Dang was the same. If he appeared mediocre and showed no exceptional talent or strength, this person would probably never pledge allegiance to him.
So, he had to take it step by step. First, he needed to let Han Dang know his capabilities. After slowly being convinced, even if he didn't actively recruit him, Han Dang would proactively pledge allegiance.
Inside the main military tent, Liu Jin sat in the principal seat, with Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, Zhao Ergou, and Wu Xing sitting beside him, and even Han Dang was seated nearby.
Looking at the few people in the army, Liu Jin said calmly!
"This Military Marquis intends to expand this division of troops to its full complement of four hundred men, and additionally add one hundred auxiliary soldiers, for a total of five hundred men in the entire army."
Everyone nodded upon hearing this. The imperial court's organization was indeed like this, and expanding to full strength was entirely reasonable, not a private expansion of the army.
Han Dang, sitting nearby, actually breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this.
If this division only had over two hundred men, it would mean only two Tuncuns were needed, and his position as Tuncun might very well be removed.
After all, he was not Liu Jin's confidant, so how could Liu Jin allow him to command a hundred men in the army?
Now that the army had five hundred men, he should still be able to keep his position as Tuncun.
Liu Jin glanced at everyone, and his voice slowly emerged!
"Before I came, the Prefect had already stated that the official positions for this division of troops would be arranged solely by me."
Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, Zhao Ergou, and others showed excited expressions upon hearing this.
They had already heard from their elder brother before coming that their positions as Tuncuns were secured.
Liu Jin's voice continued!
"The division of troops in the military camp is divided into four platoons. The Tuncun of the First Platoon will be Guan Yu, the Tuncun of the Second Platoon will be Zhang Fei, the Tuncun of the Third Platoon will be Zhao Ergou, and the Tuncun of the Fourth Platoon will be Han Dang."
"As for the Tuncun of the auxiliary soldier platoon, Wu Xing will take that role."
Wu Xing, sitting among the crowd, was shocked to hear that he would be the Tuncun of the auxiliary soldier platoon.
His eyes were filled with astonishment; he hadn't expected his official rank to soar like a rocket.
He had previously thought that being able to serve as a squad leader was already a stroke of immense luck, and now he could even be promoted another rank.
Although serving as an auxiliary Tuncun didn't have a formal imperial court designation, it was still a Tuncun, commanding a hundred men.
The few people in the hall immediately stood up and bowed respectfully!
"As ordered!"
Liu Jin nodded, and his serious voice slowly came forth!
"Once the troops are fully assembled, train them well. Those who dare to slack off will be expelled from the military camp. Officers who slack off will be dealt with according to military law."
The cold voice echoed throughout the entire main military tent.
Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, Zhao Ergou, Han Dang, and others had resolute eyes, absolutely daring not to slack off.
After dealing with this matter, Liu Jin then instructed Wu Xing to go to Liye Township in the name of the imperial court to recruit young men willing to join the army, incorporating them into the military to fill the quotas.
After all, these were some high-quality recruits, and they were relatively loyal to him. With such a large shortage of troops here, he naturally couldn't miss this opportunity.
