Chapter 513: Fighting for Horses
In May and June, after spring ploughing, the armies held a large-scale military exercise, which was organized by Li Yuanhui himself and was somewhat similar to the later large-scale sports games and military competitions.

The participating teams included the Left and Right Wei Guards, the Left and Right Wu Guards, the troops directly under the Tian Ce Palace, the Guards of the Prince of Qi's Palace, and the newly established Imperial Guards.

Martial arts competitions are also called martial arts competitions. Fu Weixue, a fierce general, was selected by Li Yuanhui during the martial arts competitions. As the saying goes, a fierce general must be selected from the ranks.

In addition to the individual competitions in martial arts, horse riding and archery every year, the biggest attraction is the Cuju and Jiju competitions.

Cuju is football. Ordinary people can also play a few kicks of the game. It was originally an activity used for military training during the Warring States Period. After Emperor Xuanzong's reform and promotion, it has become a popular activity all over the world. Many people and soldiers in Luoyang and Chang'an like it, but there has never been a complete league. However, there are quite a few stadiums of all sizes, and there are also many football clubs.

Jiju is polo. As the name suggests, it is to hit the ball with a stick while riding on a horse. It was called Jiju in ancient times. There is a poem in "Famous Capitals" written by Cao Zhi during the Three Kingdoms period: "The riders hit the ball with a stick, and they are very skillful and quick." It is talking about polo.

The polo stick is several feet long, with a crescent-shaped tip, a bit like an ice hockey stick. The stick is often carved with exquisite patterns and is called a "painted stick" or "moon stick". A good polo stick is often very expensive and is a luxury item of that era.

Therefore, polo is not something that ordinary people can afford to play, nor can it be organized by ordinary people. After all, for the same number of people, the field required is much larger than that for Cuju, and the same number of good horses is required. Therefore, only the rich and powerful can afford to support a polo team, and the general military competitions basically represent the highest level of competitions. Because there are usually a large number of equestrian masters among the cavalry.

In the last few days, the two Cuju teams, Youwuwei and Hujunfu, fought their way through the competition and made it to the finals, with Youwuwei winning the championship.

As for polo, the two cavalry forces, the Shenwu Army and the Xuanjia Army, were competing for the first place.

Both games attracted great interest from people in Luoyang, and Li Yuanhui even ordered people to build a stadium in Dongcheng that could accommodate thousands of spectators.

If you want to watch the game, you can buy a ticket. The ticket price is not low, so the nobles in Luoyang City are eager to buy tickets. Li Yuanhui directly sold tens of thousands of coins. This is not a small amount of money.

The Wude Tongbao currently in use in the Tang Dynasty was a recast currency after the establishment of the Tang Dynasty. It has a very high copper content and was a hard currency even in the Eastern Wei and Northern Han dynasties. Its purchasing power is very impressive.

This made Li Yuanhui start thinking, should we set up a league for fun? It would be like creating another industry.

The nobles like to watch this, and the common people will definitely like it even more. When the time comes, we will build a stadium, the entire Tang Dynasty East Capital Football League, and the Tang Dynasty East Capital Polo League.
On the high platform, Li Yuanhui sat under the awning, watching the cavalrymen of the Shenwu Army and the Xuanjia Army display their extraordinary riding and batting skills, but in his heart he was thinking about making money.

Both teams on the field wore narrow-sleeved robes of various colors, black boots, and headdresses. The difference was that the Shenwu Army wore red robes, while the Xuanjia Army wore black robes. Both sides held crescent-shaped batons in their hands and rode on galloping horses. The game was very lively and lively.

The Shenwu Army was a cavalry unit formed by the Xianbei children and their followers in Luoyang, and was famous for its horse archery. The Xuanjia Army was a cavalry unit composed of the elite Yongliang cavalry. If it came to a battle on the battlefield, the Xuanjia Army could rush the Shenwu Army and make it lose its way.

But polo, in addition to riding, also involves many skills and tactics. The Xianbei military merit children have been diligent in riding and shooting since childhood. There were few entertainment activities in this era, so there were many polo masters. Both tactics and techniques are very beautiful.

The members of the Xuanjia Army were all from the Yongliang Army. Although they were skilled in riding, their polo skills were not as good as those of the noble children. However, they were more brave and had a tough and fierce style. Another popular polo team, the Xiaoguo Army, which was composed almost entirely of Guanzhong children, was defeated by the Xuanjia Army.

The two teams completely represent two different styles. The Shenwu Army's play is more pleasing to the eye and its tactics are richer, which is a bit similar to the Latin style in football. The Xuanjia Army is like the Chariot of Will or the Premier League, which is open and close and makes people excited.

"it is good!"

Li Chengqian, who was sitting next to him, cheered, bringing Li Yuanhui back to reality. It turned out that the Xuanjia Army had scored a goal, and Li Yuanhui couldn't help but clap his hands to show his support.

The score on the field was very tense. Li Yuanhui didn't think about anything else and focused on watching the game.

At this time, Zhu Deyu, who was sitting not far away, said, "Your Majesty, when will the Jianghuai veterans of our Zuo Wuwei and You Wuwei be able to play such a good game?"

Chang Yanheng on the side also said: "It's difficult. The riding skills of our old Jianghuai army are really not as good as those of the Xianbei people and the Yongliang Iron Cavalry." Li Yuanhui was about to say, "You're a beginner, then you have to practice more," but the words did not come out of his mouth, and then he smiled.

These two people are singing the same tune, but their real intention is not to drink.

"What are you two planning to do that you're still hiding from me? Just speak frankly."

Chang Yanheng chuckled a few times and said, "Your Majesty, I heard that Chang'an has sent several thousand good horses. Counting those that came in April and May, there are almost 20,000. We have few cavalrymen in the left and right guards, as you know. Can you give us some more horses?"

Zhu Deyu also said: "Your Majesty, these horses have always been managed by the Herdsmen, why not also strengthen our left and right guards?"

At this point, Chen Zhen and Murong Sanzang also stood up, "Your Majesty, our Zuowei Guard."

"The Right Guard is short of horses. The Right Guard has less than a thousand war horses."

The generals of the Left and Right Wuwei and the Left and Right Weiwei began to fight, and the commanders of the Tiance armies were naturally unwilling to be left behind, and they all wanted the horses sent by Chang'an.

Li Yuanhui could only smile and said, "Everyone, sit down. Let's not talk about horse politics today. I have watched such exciting polo for many years. As for the war horses, we will go to Qianyang Palace to discuss it the day after tomorrow. Don't worry, you will be indispensable."

When everyone heard this, they all sat down happily.

The war horses that came from Chang'an were naturally the spoils of the Battle of Gaoping and the legacy of Emperor Taizong.

After the Battle of Gaoping, tens of thousands of Turks were captured, hundreds of thousands of horses, and hundreds of thousands of cattle and sheep. This battle directly saved the Tang Dynasty from having to worry about the shortage of war horses.

But it doesn't mean that hundreds of thousands of horses can form hundreds of thousands of cavalry. Even for the entire Tang Dynasty, among the hundreds of thousands of troops, the number of organized cavalry will never exceed 60,000.

Among the various armies under Luoyang, the number of organized cavalry is just over 20,000. The total number of Guanzhong, Liang, and Longbian cavalry is less than 40,000. This includes many Hu tribe cavalry, such as the 4,000 Qiang and Di cavalry under the emperor's command, who have fought with him for a long time and are called "Black Water Volunteers". Recently, the "White Wolf Volunteers" with a total of 3,000 people selected from Turkic captives who are good at riding and shooting. Even if these people are included, the cavalry that Guanzhong Chang'an can control does not exceed 40,000.

The Central Plains dynasty was different from the nomadic tribes on the grasslands. Every man was a bowsmith, and it was a vast grassland, so people lived by the water and grass.

Although Guanzhong, Longyou and Liangzhou can raise horses, raising horses is different from raising cavalry. Not just any horse can be used as a war horse.

At its peak, the Beiwei Army had more than 3,000 men, but after the great war a few years ago, the Beiwei Army now has only more than 2,600 men, and has never been able to reach the full 3,000 men.

It was not because of a lack of elite soldiers and generals, but a lack of horses. The requirements for heavy cavalry horses were higher.

The reason for reorganizing the Black Armor Army this time is that we not only have the manpower, but also sufficient war horses.

As for the Left and Right Wuwei and the Left and Right Weiwei, those who had organized cavalry before needed to add some war horses, and the scouts of each army needed to add some. Those who didn't have cavalry before still wanted to form an organized cavalry? No way.

Good steel should be used on the handle and blade of the knife.

(End of this chapter)