Chapter 150: Three Months
Chapter 150: Three Months
September 25, 2017
Three months have passed since Lu HaiKong's return, and during this time, the land has been mostly covered in ice and snow. Lu HaiKong has essentially not ventured beyond the fortified camp, focusing solely on its development and utilizing the resources acquired from Dark Wind Fort and the Hu Yin tribe.
These past three months have been incredibly busy for Lu HaiKong, with hardly a day of rest exceeding six hours.
In this short period, the population of the camp has already reached an impressive fifteen thousand.
Most of these people were ransomed by Li Xiong from the Xianbei tribe. While the population of the camp is not significantly larger than it was three months ago, when Lu HaiKong expelled thousands of rioting citizens, the sense of cohesion among the people has vastly improved.
If asked about his most satisfying achievement during these three months, Lu HaiKong would confidently answer that he successfully instilled in the camp's citizens a strong sense of belonging and pride, transforming the entire camp into a united entity.
The reason for the previous unrest in the camp three months ago was not solely due to the meddling of Zhang Tie and his companions but was primarily rooted in the citizens themselves.
Due to Lu HaiKong's initial neglect of this aspect, the citizens, despite joining the camp for survival, harbored deep-seated anxiety because Lu HaiKong and his bandits were, after all, outlaws.
Once their basic needs were met, some citizens began to entertain doubts and fears. They questioned the camp's future and worried about being implicated if the camp were to be besieged.
At that time, a sentiment circulated among the citizens, suggesting that joining the camp was merely a temporary solution, and they should return to their hometowns when spring arrived. It was under such circumstances that Zhang Tie was able to incite a large-scale uprising.
However, things are different now. After three months, Lu HaiKong has successfully united the citizens, directing their undivided loyalty towards him. Should anyone dare to speak ill of the camp or Lu HaiKong, the citizens themselves would take action before Lu HaiKong even needed to intervene.
Even Wang Jun is impressed by Lu HaiKong's achievement in such a short time, but in reality, Lu HaiKong has merely applied his experience from the real world.
Lu HaiKong first identified citizens with decent rhetorical skills and then gathered tragic stories from the citizens' lives, adapting them into compelling narratives.
These stories shared a common theme: the outside world is dark, and the aristocratic families are evil; only here can they find their sanctuary and paradise.
Rooted in real-life experiences, these stories resonated with the citizens, and with Lu HaiKong's prior experience as a writer, he crafted engaging tales that quickly spread throughout the camp.
Each evening, after the citizens finished their work, skilled storytellers would entertain them with these narratives, followed by reinforcing the citizens' psychological commitment to the camp and encouraging them to express gratitude and praise for Lu HaiKong and his bandits.
This seemingly simple approach proved highly effective, as evidenced by the response when Lu HaiKong sought to recruit five hundred citizens for military training at the beginning of the third month. Nearly all the men in the camp, numbering over ten thousand, eagerly participated in the selection process.
The grandeur of the selection scene and the high spirits of the citizens left Wang Jun speechless, once again expressing his admiration for Lu HaiKong's wisdom and might.
While Lu HaiKong had thoroughly won over the people, he did not neglect the development of the bandit camp's military strength.
Three months later, the bandit camp now had 1,200 bandits. Lu HaiKong organized these bandits into two cavalry units. One unit, consisting of 800 bandits with a Strength of 20 each (elite), formed the Third Battalion, which was the main military force under Lu HaiKong's direct command.
The remaining 400 bandits were under the command of Wang Ti, who had three subordinates, including Wang TianWang Xing WangDao, to assist him in guarding the Dark Wind Fort.
Notably, over the past three months, Wang Chao, Ma Han, and the ten men of the 'Heaven's Will, Rob from the Rich and Poor' had all reached a Strength of over 60, with Ma Pen being the strongest among them.
Ma Pen's strength was due to his outstanding performance during the uprising and the fact that his martial arts style was more compatible with Hu Yin's. Thus, Lu HaiKong directly gave him the Dark Snake Strength and Dark Snake Saber Technique.
With Lu HaiKong's support, Ma Pen spent two months in intense training and combat, raising his Strength to 69. Under Lu HaiKong's supervision, he then used Hu Yin's Soulstone, which boosted his Strength to 70, making him the second-strongest warrior under Lu HaiKong, just behind Dian Wei.
Shortly after Ma Pen's Strength broke 70, Lu HaiKong gave him a book with a chilling aura and secretly entrusted him with some tasks. Ma Pen then left the bandit camp, heading into the unknown.
In addition to the bandits, Lu HaiKong had two other battalions under his command. One was the First Battalion, consisting of 500 elite mountain bandit archers. The other was the Second Battalion, which initially planned to have 500 members but, due to the enthusiastic response from the people, was expanded to 800, selected from over ten thousand Indigenous NPCs. This, along with the Third Battalion of bandits and Wang Ti's Dark Wind Fort, brought the total number of troops under Lu HaiKong's command to 2,500. This was a formidable force, stronger than the military strength of an average county, such as Shanwu County, which was now far from a match for Lu HaiKong.
Despite the frequent stops due to weather, the construction of the fort wall around the basin had made significant progress over the three months, thanks to the efforts of over ten thousand people. Although further reinforcement was needed, the wall was already functional in a fight.
With such a powerful force, Lu HaiKong now had the confidence to defend himself even if the bandit camp were exposed.
In addition to these achievements, over the past three months, Lu HaiKong had also devoted a great deal of effort to another major project: the General Training Program. He handled this project personally, only delegating logistical matters to his subordinates. The details of the program, the number of participants, and the current progress were known only to Lu HaiKong and a few others.
Actually, there was one more person who knew: Wang Jun. For a time, the General Training Program nearly bankrupted the bandit camp, as Lu HaiKong poured in a large amount of money and resources. Wang Jun lost several pounds due to the stress, but fortunately, the financial crisis was eventually resolved due to some unforeseen circumstances.
(End of Chapter)
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