"Thank you all," Zhang Han said to the team of soldiers: "But judging from the grain reserves and the things in front of you, you have also made all the preparations for regular garrison. I feel very comforted, but I would like to remind you that safety is only on the premise of fully ensuring safety. You are the temporary northern end of our front line. There may be considerable dangers. In times of peace, you must be careful and ensure your own safety."

"Yes, please don't worry, sir."

This time, all the baggage soldiers raised their heads and answered loudly.

When Zhang Hanbu went down the stairs and walked out of the Dunbao, Li Gui said to Zhang Han: "The last supply and maintenance personnel will come by before the New Year, and it should be almost here. I have read the arrangement table of the Military Command. There will be a logistics team and a maintenance team here, with less than 30 people stationed there. With firearms and defensive positions, even if two thousand Mongolians come, they may not be able to attack. There should be no big problems in terms of safety. After the snow turns in spring next year, several logistics teams will come over and continue the Dunbao.

Toward the south city, it is estimated that by the end of next year, it may be built with a density of thirty miles per person. In this case, in another two or three years, if financial and material resources allow, a rammed earth and sand road will be built along these fire road piers. If it is repaired, the cart will enter and exit freely, and the fire road piers can be added to ten miles per person. In such places, the people in the Military Command and the Staff Department think that the density of thirty miles per person is enough. Maybe it is unnecessary to push it to eight miles or seven miles per person.

Zhang Han nodded slightly and said, "Just ten miles per person is enough. In the future, the power in Tunan City has been strengthened. Use cavalry to build a defense line. Just keep a fire road pier here for fifteen miles. In good weather, a fire road pier of more than ten miles per person can already play the role of alarm, that's all."

Those present were not qualified to discuss such military and political affairs with Zhang Han. Besides, no one had any ideas. Only Zhang Xianzhong grinned. He had no good impression of the Mongolians and was extremely despised by the Mongolians. He did not take the Mongolians seriously at all. He agreed with Zhang Han's decision. The Ming army was useless and built so many fire roads and military platforms on the border. Even so, he could not defend the harassment of the Mongolians. With the battle of the Shang regiment army, thousands of hunting cavalry could kill in and out of any Mongolian tribe, killing them, and who would dare to hit them head-on?

However, the fire road piers have both sentry detectors and defense functions, and can also serve as repair and supply points. For a road that runs through 4,000 miles, necessary supply maintenance and maintenance are indispensable. From this functionality, the fire road piers from ten to fifteen miles are very good and very suitable for use.

Everyone in the Dunbao came out to see him off. They could only receive a bag from the military and political department every half month, which contained newspapers from the Propaganda Bureau and books ordered by themselves. Of course, there were also very important family letters. The soldiers could read the letters themselves and write them. Even if the words were clumsy and had no literary talent, they could at least express what they wanted to express.

Of course, Zhang Han’s literacy class teaches simplified Chinese characters, and teaches simple vernacular Chinese. It is quite suitable for these soldiers and can help them master the writing skills quickly. Traditional Chinese characters are too traditional, and classical Chinese writing is not something that ordinary people can do. Even soldiers can’t do it at all. The ancients also had vernacular and simplified Chinese characters, but they were not as widely used as in later generations.

For the fortress soldiers, the scene of walking in the snow was very nostalgic and reluctant. Zhang Han and his team could tell them to talk about the whole month. In addition, Zhang Han's image and status touched them enough. They looked at Zhang Han and his party who were struggling to move forward in the snow, and felt that they were almost crying.

The whole team continued to move forward like a long dragon in the snow. There was no place where the snow had become shallower. More than a dozen snowfalls were falling in succession. There were knee-deep snow everywhere, and there was only deeper and larger snow. There was no place that would become shallower and thinner.

In the deep winter, there are almost no strange colors on the grassland except white. If you walk for a day, you will still be white when you walk for two days, you will still be white when you walk for tenth day.

Zhang Han was walking with soldiers and officers. The civilian officials felt a little distressed. Seeing Zhang Han like this, they could only grit their teeth and follow them honestly.

There is no way to not leave. In such an environment, even the emperor can only follow him. If he wants to ride a horse, riding a horse may not be more comfortable than walking. Besides, everyone rides for a while. If the snow is lighter, he will ride it. If the snow is deep, he will get off the horse. He has to help the horse clean the belly at all times. Even if he is the emperor, there is no way to ride it in this environment. You can't be asked to carry it on your back.

Such an environment is quite a test of people. Even if Zhang Han has been practicing, his physical fitness is far beyond ordinary people, and he feels quite difficult during the arduous march.

Walking in a monotonous environment every day will exhaust your physical fitness in the afternoon, and you must set up a tent before the evening. Otherwise, if a blizzard comes at night, if the tent is not set up properly, you may be frozen to death.

Before dark, Zhang Han and everyone started to build a tent. There were no baggage soldiers in the team, and everyone needed to do it themselves.

After setting up a tent, you have to try to make a fire, which is quite difficult. There is a shortage of fire-induced objects on the grassland. The most difficult thing about Hutchison and Engineers is to scratch their heads outside is the lack of fire-induced objects.

Sometimes the whole vehicle of coke is accompanied by, and there are some easy-to-mine coal mines to supplement it. Inner Mongolia is a place with a wide distribution of coal mines and many Outer Mongolia. Coal mines and copper mines were originally the most minerals in the inner and outer Mongolia.

Most of the time, we still look for woodland, cut down trees and pick up dead trees, especially when burning kilns and making bricks, fuel is the most troublesome thing.

In winter, when the sky is full of heavy snow, there is no dead wood, and there is not much woodland. Even if there is, the wood in the woodland is frozen and hard, making it difficult to cut down.

Zhang Han and the others just brought coke, which is a good thing. Pour dozens of them out can provide a heat source for a long time.

Of course it's not for heating, that's too luxurious.

There are a lot of dry food hunched on the back of more than a hundred horses, and everyone will carry dry food with them. There will be a chance of replenishing supplies every few dozen miles, but the amount of coke is still insufficient.

If there is no fire to marching in such an environment, it means there is no water source or hot food. In a few days, someone will get sick and lose the ability to continue marching. This is very fatal. A few young men have had low fevers. The military doctors who followed the army quickly deal with it. They know that it is a natural body reaction caused by a long and difficult marching, but they must be treated early. If delayed for a long time, it will cause serious consequences. If someone dies because of the marching, it is difficult to accept.

After the fire was made, they sweep the snow and boil it into boiling water. Each of them first filled their own water bags, then drank the horses with warm water, fed beans and salt to the horses. The horses consumed a lot of physical energy. The originally fat horses showed signs of being thin, and the knights did not carry hay bundles, which took up too much space and did not have much nutrition. If the horses only ate hay, they would have to eat for more than ten hours a day, and it would be difficult to eat a fat body, so each of them brought a considerable base of beans and supplemented with eggs and salt to supplement the horses with nutrition.

This is also one of the weight-bearing contents of the accompanying riding team. In addition to people's food, coke, tents, there must also be food for horses, and the quantity is quite large.

The advantage is that there is a supply point dozens of miles away. Dunbao has been built all the way. Every time Zhang Han passes by, he will talk to the personnel of the fortress and patrol the Dunbao.

It may be delayed for fifteen to twenty minutes, not too long, but this approach is quite worth it.

Every time Zhang Han left, the baggage soldiers would stand outside the defense circle for a long time, and even when Zhang Han turned around repeatedly, they could see small black dots until many inside and outside, and only a piece of white left in their sight was gone.

Zhang Han even suspected that even at that time, the baggage soldiers might not have entered, and it is very likely that they were still standing outside watching the traces of his group.

Every time he thinks this way, Zhang Han feels a little sad. He left these guys in such a place, with no companions within dozens of miles, and less than a hundred humans living in such a pier within hundreds or thousands of miles.

But then I thought about it, if I had changed myself, if I could become a member of the baggage army, guarding this land for China, there were warm rooms and painting novels, and I didn’t seem to feel too hard.

In short, I am willing and feel that there is supreme glory. This is really a very glorious thing. Zhang Han is proud of the dedication of the baggage soldiers and also takes pride in himself.

When walking in the snow with deep feet and shallow feet, my feet are sore and soft, my body is cold, and after walking for a long time, my back sweats, and then quickly becomes cold again. This taste is definitely not good.

In weather below minus twenty degrees Celsius, hands must not be exposed. The war horses also surround warm wool fabrics to protect their abdomen and other key areas. People wrap their fur cloaks around them to block the cold wind, and at the same time cover their faces as much as possible, only exposing their eyes.

Sometimes Zhang Han suspected that his eyes were blown to hurt, and he was very worried. Fortunately, he didn't care when he saw the Mongolians. He knew that his eyes might not be frozen, so he let go of his heart.

It's also funny. I have been on the grassland for several years. I spent the first winter in the military fort. I had enough charcoal to keep warm. I didn't have to go out in the coldest extreme weather. Zhang Han invented the playing cards that year and played poker with Sun Jingting and others every day to relieve boredom.

Sometimes Zhang Han wanted to get mahjong out, but later he considered that this was a gambling tool, gambling was strictly prohibited in the army, and the impact was not good, so he had to give up.

In later generations, Zhang Han was a gang-related businessman who was both in need of tobacco, alcohol, gambling and women. He was really a wine pool, meat forest, and a world of flowers.

Unexpectedly, after traveling through time, his wealth increased by dozens, hundreds or thousands of times, but he lived as dignified and self-supported as the Puritans. His private life was completely in line with the standards of the moral model of the Ming people. Even when those literati were visiting prostitutes and drinking wine, Zhang Han was still marching in pain in the snow!

(End of this chapter)
Chapter completed!