Chapter 542- Structure of Legion Corps
Translator: ryangohsf
Editor: Nora
Hence, the moment Ceng Tianyang and the others took up their roles in the military, they would feel really uncomfortable.
Needless to say, Ouyang Shuo had sole control over the duties of the generals in the military that were major general and above. Even Baiqi and Han Xin, these legion generals, could only suggest ideas.
For generals below major general rank, they would follow orders from the Military Affairs Department. Even major generals like Ceng Tianyang could only make suggestions and could not interfere in the roles and assignments of people in the military.
The Combat Logistics Department would settle the logistics of the army, including weapons and equipment. Even if one went to another location, the local Combat Logistics Department would still control the logistics.
Hence, a major general could not interfere with the logistics and could not abuse their power.
Apart from that, compared to the lax system in the Taiping Country Army, the system in Shanhai City army was stricter, and they had a full system similar to a modern day army.
There were numerous military law officers around, and they would make the major generals feel that the military law was more significant than their rank.
There were many reasons that ensured that when Ceng Tianyang and the others entered the Shanhai City Army, they would not be able to cause any waves. On the contrary, they would be forced and taught to become proper Shanhai City soldiers.
At that time, it would naturally be the moment for Ceng Tianyang to back off.
One had to say that Ouyang Shuo's move was exceedingly vicious.
Ouyang Shuo was using a huge bait to reduce the destructive ability of the Taiping Country Army to Shanhai City. Hence, he ensured the smooth transitioning of power.
Apart from that, Ouyang Shuo had arranged the one hundred thousand troops into three groups for organization. It was not something randomly thought up, and it had something to do with the new structure he was planning for the army.
Since they had gained 350 thousand Taiping Country troops, no matter how he tried to reduce it, after deducting the shortfall for the two Garrison Divisions, he could still form three new legions. This new count was double the current number of troops in the territory.
How to set up the camps and positions of these three new legions, and how to ensure the prestige and positions of Baiqi, Han Xin, and Sun Bin would pose a huge problem that Ouyang Shuo was trying to solve.
That night, Ouyang Shuo drafted a letter that contained the thoughts he had gathered up over these few days to have a considerable reorganization of the army.
This reorganization would set up a solid base for the future army of his dynasty.
Ouyang Shuo decreed that the Dragon, Tiger and Leopard Legions would be upgraded to Legion Corps, or corps for short. Each corps would have two to five legions under them.
When needed, one could adjust the number of legions in the corps based on the situation that they were facing.
The marshal of the corps must be a god general, and they must at least have the title of great general.
Compared to a legion, the establishment of a corps was a seismic change to the military. That was because when compared to a legion, the number of troops in a corps was huge.
Hence, during wartime, the Military Affairs Department could flexibly order the corps based on the different strategic needs. For example, if the further main attack direction was the west, they could first expand the Dragon Corps in charge of the west region when expanding.
Apart from that, the legion corps and war zones could perfectly coexist with one another.
With the Lingnan War Zone as an example, after the Tiger Legion became the Tiger Corps, the Lingnan War Zone command center would become the main base of the Tiger Corps.
Similarly, the future Tiger Corps marshal would be the commander of the Lingnan War Zone. During wartime, there could even be more legions or corps moved to the war zone.
With that, the entire army would be highly flexible. It would reduce the commanding red tape but result in a strong ability to adapt, scout, take the initiative, employ firepower, and use combat strength.
The future expansion of the army also did not need him to make any substantial scale changes to the structure of the military.
As for the current dangers that the territory faced, with just one legion, that is seventy thousand troops, Ouyang Shuo was worried. Only a legion corps would be able to safely defend his land.
If a corps had five legions, a total of 350 thousand troops, even if it faced an entire province, it would show no fear.
Hence, a legion corps was the most significant foundation for a safe army.
Based on their current numbers, the three corps would each have two legions under them. It was the same as saying that each corps would have an additional legion, digesting the three new legions.
With the Dragon Legion as an example, after becoming a corps, it would be called the first legion of the Dragon Corps, while the additional second legion would raise the total troop number to 140 thousand.
Commander-in-Chief Baiqi would naturally become the marshal of the Dragon Corps. At the same time, he would temporarily take up the role of general of the 1st legion of the Dragon Corps.
As for the general of the 2nd legion, Ouyang Shuo chose Shi Wanshui.
As the first historical general in the territory, Shi Wanshui was extremely loyal to Ouyang Shuo, and he had made many contributions to the territory. He was also an emperor rank general, so be it terms of ability or experience, he had enough to become a legion general.
Such an upgrade was a huge reward to this old general.
As for the major general position that was emptied out by his promotion, it would go to the deputy major general Jiang Kai.
One could see that the local talents that the territory had developed were one by one climbing up the ranks to major generals.
Similarly, Han Xin would become the marshal of the Leopard Corps, as well as remain as the general of the 1st legion. As for the legion general of the 2nd legion, Zhang Han would take charge.
After the Battle of Julu had ended, Zhang Han had pledged his allegiance to Ouyang Shuo. At that point, he could have already become a legion general, but as they had limited spots in the military, Ouyang Shuo had made him a major general.
This upgrade to Zhang Han could be considered as putting him back on the stage where he belonged.
Lastly, Sun Bin would become the marshal of the Tiger Corps, as well as temporarily the 1st legion general. At the same time, he would continue to be the commander of the Lingnan War Zone.
As for the legion general of the 2nd legion, Di Qing would take up the role.
Be it Shi Wanshui and Zhang Han, they were both promoted within their legions; this was in line with the traditions and culture within the military.
For example, the brutality of the Dragon Legion, the ferociousness of the Tiger Legion, and the adaptability of the Leopard Legion; all of these qualities were formed under the teachings and leadership of their generals.
Only Di Qing was the first legion general appointed from another legion.
Ouyang Shuo had his reasons for such an arrangement. Firstly, out of the five major generals of the Tiger Legion, only Fan Lihua, Cao Gui, and Bai Lishi were historical generals, but none of them were not up for the role.
Hence, Ouyang Shuo could only move Di Qing from the Leopard Legion to the Tiger Legion. To Di Qing, this was an opportunity for him to display his abilities.
During the Battle of Zhaoqing, his commanding ability had left a deep impression on Ouyang Shuo. Compared to Zhang Han and Shi Wanshui, Di Qing was not any bit weaker.
It was also a coincidence. His way of using troops was similar to Sun Bin; they were more calm and safe. Zhang Han was similar to Han Xin, as they liked long distance sneak attacks.
At this point, Shi Wanshui, Zhang Han, and Di Qing, these three famous generals, had stood out from the rest of the major generals. They had officially become the 2nd squad below that of Baiqi, Han Xin, and Sun Bin.
The three of them all had a commonality, which was that they were all emperor rank generals. It was apparent that the future choices of legion generals would naturally come from the emperor rank historical generals.
Er'Lai and Fan Lihua were the two next best choices.
Of course, this was not certain. For example, the young general Luo Shixin was a rarity among historical generals, as he was still improving.
Under Baiqi's personal guidance, he had a bright future ahead of him.
Furthermore, out of the generals, the elite Cavalry Division led by Luo Shixin had won battle after battle, gaining the name of 'firefighting vanguard' in the army.
Hence, Ouyang Shuo did not exclude the possibility of granting Luo Shixin a wider stage at a suitable time.
After Zhang Han and Di Qing received their promotions, their old positions as major generals were taken over by Liao Kai and Heiqi. Apart from that, the three new legions all needed fifteen new major generals.
Hu Yihuang, Qin Gang, and even Shi Zhenji were suitable choices.
Apart from that, there would be the few generals from the Taiping Army that were captured like Li Xiucheng, Chen Yucheng, Xiao Chaogui, and Feng Yun.
The only uncertain matter was their loyalty.
Apart from the seven Taiping Country generals, Ouyang Shuo had no clue about the other choices for major generals. He could only pass this headache to Du Ruhui, who would try his best to choose from the exceptional colonels.
At this point, the planned military structure had finally been completed.
As the territory continued to expand, Ouyang Shuo would lose the ability to gather the generals all together for a meeting. With Sun Bin as an example, let's not talk about rushing to Shanhai City, just rushing to Tianjing City would take half a month. To and fro would take a full month, which was a total inconvenience.
As such, the various legion corps needed a god general to take charge and lead them.
Ouyang Shuo wrote his plan into a letter and through the relay, he passed it to the Military Affairs Department. At the same time, he also sent copies to Baiqi, Han Xin, and Sun Bin; these three marshals, to inform them to make preparations to aid the Military Affairs Department.
In this plan, the only thing that Ouyang Shuo did not mention was the Guards Division, including his plans for the three mountain barbarian independent divisions.
In truth, when he defeated Chiyou earlier, Ouyang Shuo was already planning to upgrade the Guards Division to a Guards Legion.
However, this plan had little to do with the reorganization of the three hundred thousand Taiping Country Army troops, which was why he did not initiate the plan yet.
When he returned to Shanhai City, he would finally start the related changes and reorganization.
After all, the three legions all became legion corps, so the Guards Division system also needed expansion to protect the absolute might of Ouyang Shuo in the military.
Chapter Notes: