1 The military system of Xiang Army takes battalion as the unit, and the military system of green camp, the Eight Banners, is replaced by the system of recruiting soldiers by generals themselves. Soldiers should recruit by themselves, choose by themselves, and the soldiers will change accordingly. Armed with the traditional Confucian ethics of three cardinal guides and five permanents, and sustained by the local concept of villagers, a most intrepid Huxiang army at that time gradually developed and grew up, nicknamed Xiang Army.

Zeng Guofan believes that "to build the army, the first thing is to choose the talents of generals, and to choose the talents of generals, you must seek people who are far-sighted, and you must be strict and patient, so it is the best choice." In other words, to build a spiritual team, the first thing is to select ordinary talents, find people with far-reaching wisdom and strategy, strictly give orders, and be hard-working. These three conditions are met, which is the best candidate.

As for the ability to manage soldiers, he believes that it is nothing more than three aspects: "public, bright and diligent." If things are unfair and rewards and punishments are unknown, soldiers will not be completely convinced; If you are not diligent in your duties, the big and small things in the military camp will accumulate and be difficult to handle. At the same time, if you are not afraid of death, you will take the lead in killing the enemy and the soldiers will be used by you.

"The way to run the army is to be able to fight." Zeng Guofan thought that being able to fight was the most important thing. If you attack the city for half a year, you are accidentally breached by the enemy, unable to resist or suffer a little setback, your reputation will be ruined. The second important thing is to love the people, and the third important thing is the harmony between officials and gentry.

Zeng Guofan's straightforward "ability to fight" is similar to the "execution" that managers now talk about. For Zeng Guofan, the strategy that can best show his "execution" is 1862 Tianjing War. At that time, Zeng Guofan mobilized more than 70,000 people from Xiang and Huai armies and surrounded Tianjing. During this period, Zeng Guofan carried out strategies such as clearing the field, digging tunnels, encirclement and conquering Tianjing, which lasted for more than a year.