There are many logistics personnel in the army. A combat unit with100000 people generally has more than 300000 logistics personnel, and they also consume a lot of food. In ancient times, the traffic to the western and northern frontiers depended entirely on manpower, that is, civilian workers.

Generally speaking, the loss of migrant workers transporting food will be greater than one to one, that is to say, migrant workers take away 1000 kilograms on the road and finally reach their destination, leaving 500 kilograms. There are also three days' dry food for each soldier, dry bread brought by the Han army, and air-dried meat brought by the Mongols and Huns. And everywhere you go, there is a place to collect food.

Extended data

We all know the war between Zhao and Qin. Zhao sent 400,000 troops and New China sent 600,000 troops. From Zhao's point of view, you can be self-sufficient in the rear. If it is 400,000 troops, it is more or less possible.

Qin sent 600,000 troops to fight in Zhao. It is difficult to count the needed grain and grass, so a large part of it is used to transport grain and grass back and forth for the battlefield, and it is often only about half a step to go to war.

Therefore, in ancient China, hundreds of thousands of troops were needed to fight. Generally speaking, all the strength of a country is used for fighting, and nearly half of the strength is used for transporting military supplies and providing food for troops. The people who actually go to the battlefield are often only about half of all soldiers. Of course, fighting needs food and grass. For countries with more developed agriculture, ancient battles are more and more dominant.