Selecting Camps

Of course he'd choose to assist the Han Court.

Chu Tian still had some affection for the Great Han, so he had to at least help the Great Han sustain its life.

Although Chu Tian had wanted to satisfy his craving by being a soldier of the civilians' insurgent army for some time, the players were only given one chance to make the decision, so he had to make his choice with caution.

The era of the Great Han Dynasty had yet to end. In the conquest of the Yellow Turban Army, the Great Han Army had gathered the "Three Talents of the Late Han", Huangfu Song, Zhu Jun and Lu Zhi, as well as other heroes that had yet to rise, such as Cao Cao, Liu Bei, and Sun Jian.

Most importantly, the Great Han Court was the legitimate sovereignty. If one could exchange the merits earned from the war this time for an official post, he would have the proper title to conquer cities and seize territories in the future, winning over the local prestigious families of the Eastern Han. Dukes and generals like Cao Cao, Liu Bei, and Sun Jian had all stood by the side of the Han Court, earning their reputation through the Yellow Turban Riot.

After choosing the Han Camp, Chu Tian was faced with a second decision to make.

"Players, please choose your battlefields. This historical warfare is divided into three main battlefields."

"The first battlefield, the Battlefield of Julu Prefecture. The general to the North of the Han Army, Lu Zhi, attacks the stronghold of the chief of the Yellow Turban Army, Zhao Jiao, which is Guangzong City. Lu Zhi's pupil, Liu Bei, leads Guan Yu and Zhang Fei to take part in the battle.

"The second battlefield, the Battlefield of Yingchuan Prefecture. The general to the Left of the Han Army, Huangfu Song, safeguards Changshe City, while the commander of the Yellow Turban Army, Bo Cai, besieges the city with a great deal of troops. The cavalry commander, Cao Cao, receives order and comes to his aid.

"The third battlefield, the Battlefield of Nanyang Prefecture. The general to the Right of the Han Army, Zhu Jun, invades Wan City, which is firmly guarded by the commander of the Yellow Turban Army, Zhao Hong. The assistant general, Sima Sun Jian, joins the battle."

Chu Tian felt a moment of hesitation.

The timeline and history in Feudal Lords contained a considerable number of discrepancies. Furthermore, due to the intervention of players, or feudal lords, the situation became even more complicated.

According to history, these three battlefields were not engaged simultaneously. In Feudal Lords, however, the Great Han Court had maneuvered the five troops of the Northern Army, cavalries of the three rivers, and the three famous generals to attack the Yellow Turban Army at once.

Feudal lords and free players could choose to join any of the battlefields, as well as any camp. There were six combinations altogether. The outcomes of the warfare would impact the future of the Eastern Han Court, dukes and generals from different walks of life, and the Yellow Turban Army.

As far as the players who chose to assist the Han were concerned, the toughest battlefield would be the Battlefield of Julu Prefecture. Julu Prefecture was the fundamental of the three brothers, Zhang Jiao, Zhang Bao and Zhang Liang, with the most elite Yellow Turban soldiers serving under them.

The Han Court sent three chief commanders. Huangfu Song was the most competent among them, but he was placed in the second battlefield.

Lu Zhi, however, was very capable as well. Along with the three Liu, Guan and Zhang brothers, who had just made their debut while assuming active roles in the Julu Battlefield, they should be able to resist the pressure imposed by Zhang Jiao and his brothers.

As for the players who selected the Yellow Turban Camp, every battlefield was a tough one, because they would be set up against the final elites of the Eastern Han Dynasty, the three talents of the final Han: Liu Bei, Cao Cao, and Sun Jian.

Wealth was often found within danger, so the players who joined the Yellow Turban Camp were probably aiming for the rewards from that camp. If the majority of people chose to assist the Han Court, the competition within that camp would be extremely intense.

There were two rankings: the ranking of the Han Court and the ranking of the Yellow Turban Camp. Chances of being ranked among the top would naturally be higher for the side with less competitors in it.

Apart from that, rewards for feudal lords and free players would be computed separately.

The merits of feudal lords were derived from the feudal lords themselves and all of their subordinates, while the merits of free players came solely from themselves.

"I choose the Battlefield of Julu Prefecture."

After some hesitation, Chu Tian still selected the most perilous battlefield, now going to face the chief of the Yellow Turban Army, Zhao Jiao, directly. He would also gain insight into just how terrifying the Liu, Guan, and Zhang brothers were in Feudal Lords.

The initial status of the local commanders of the Eastern Han was high. Liu Bei, Guan Yu, and Zhang Fei might have almost achieved peak attributes already.

Although Chu Tian also wanted to see the unscrupulous careerist of the troubled times, Boss Cao, as well as the ferocious tiger of Jiang Dong, Sun Jian, he was only allowed to select one battlefield, and he wanted to meet Cao Cao and Sun Jian if he had a chance in the future.

After making his decision, Chu Tian let out a long sigh of relief.

As a feudal lord, every decision he made carried substantial weight. During the War of the Red Cliff, Sun Quan could either choose to resist or surrender. When Zhuge Liang went North to attack the central plain, he could lead his army out the diagonal valley, or take the risk of traversing the Ziwu Valley. Once the choice was made, you had to be sure to do your very best.

He wondered which camp the other feudal lords had chosen, and which battlefield they had joined.

Chu Tian thought about the possibility of tens of thousands of feudal lords joining the battle, and every feudal lord bringing their own soldiers and horses to the fight. He was afraid that it would turn into a great disaster.

Regardless of whether it was the Han Army or the Yellow Turban Army, their numbers were far greater than they were in actual history. Since the area of Feudal Lords had been enlarged 10x, population had increased proportionally, due to large numbers of villages being built by feudal lords. As a result, more and more troops could be raised.

"Master, are you alright?"

Hua Mulan was holding a porcelain mug, which was suspended in midair. She couldn't help but be baffled when she saw Chu Tian space out for quite a while.

She couldn't hear the notifications from the system.

"I'm alright. From today onwards, regardless of whether it's the infantry, archers, or cavalry, they have to be trained more rigorously. There is going to be a great war very soon."

Chu Tian took a glance at Hua Mulan, and Zhou Yafu and Liu Sandao, who were all present. These commanders were quite reliable.

He had also decided on which troops that would be sent to war- a hundred light cavalrymen, 200 Xu archers, and 500 elite light infantrymen, all of which added up to an army of 800.

"For every instance of parade and warfare, the army has to be equipped with its own ensigns and pennants. Master, please give the order to have the flags made. It's necessary to maintain the order of the troops," Zhou Yafu explained, pointing out the inadequacy of Xia Town's army in a straightforward manner.

Ensigns? Pennants?

Chu Tian had not previously paid attention to flags, mainly because his military forces were too insignificant in the past. Rural battles involving a few dozen to a hundred people did not require very efficient commands. As long as the chief commander was strong enough, he could win the battle by charging head-on with those soldiers.

Chu Tian had been doing this all along. He could ask Hua Mulan to wipe out the smaller villages nearby with just a single troop.

Nonetheless, he was a feudal lord with five thousand households under him now, and about a thousand professional soldiers too. The present was very different from the past and Xia Town's army must execute orders given to them without failure from now on.

Ensigns and pennants could boost the spirits of the troops and be used to command troops from afar. Losing ensigns and pennants on the battlefield could also lead to detrimental impacts on morale, however. When soldiers witnessed the collapse of their flags, they might think that the commander had been killed.

"I will have the textile workshops manufacture flags."

The totem on the ensigns and pennants were very simple as well. The flags of Xia Town had the word "Xia" written on them in Xiao Zhuan font. On the other hand, the commanders' flags were marked with the surnames of the commanders- Hua Mulan's flag said "Hua" in Xiao Zhuan font, Zhou Yafu's flag was "Zhou", and Liu Sandao's flag had "Liu". Different flags were also painted in different colors.

Chu Tian didn't have the courage yet to use the totem of dragons on Xia Town's war flags. Otherwise, when they arrived at the Battlefield of Julu, they would be regarded as rebels by the Great Han Court, as dragon totems were symbols unique to emperors and princes.

For this expedition, apart from Hua Mulan, Zhou Yafu, and Liu Sandao, Chu Tian had also brought along the three silver-level heroes: Gongsun Wu, Zhang Ding, and Chen Feng. These three heroes were captured when Xia Town conquered Lingyan Town and the other nearby villages. They had been appointed the deputy commanders of the infantry, the archers, and the cavalry, respectively. 

The role of a deputy commander was to share the burden of the chief commander. Besides that, they could serve as vanguards and also take over command when the chief commander was in trouble.