After breaking through the Tiaohutan bandit camp, the main force of the Huaiyuan Township camp was to capture prisoners and salvage the drowned corpses.
This job is much harder than Xu Huai leading his troops into the bandits' stronghold.
Thousands of captured soldiers can run better than thousands of pigs. After catching them, they have to be taken back to Huaiyuan and imprisoned. All aspects of the work cannot be neglected. Deng Gui, Xu Wujiang and others personally take charge of it.
Xu Huai stayed at Tiaohutan in the afternoon to prepare for the battle in case the main force of the bandits counterattack.
Only now did he meet Xu Wujiang and the others again, and he didn't know what Deng Gui's plans were for the next battle.
At this time, Zheng Tu's mother-in-law cut some melons and called them to Zhou Pan'er. Zhou Wei and her two daughters brought them over and distributed them to everyone to quench their thirst.
Xu Huai sat on the steps, picked up a piece of melon and started to chew on it.
Wang Xuan squatted next to Xu Huai with her skirt in hand, and she didn't look like a young lady. Lady Zhai, the wet nurse, winked at her, but she ignored her.
Xu Wujiang said: "The main force of the rebel army did not counterattack. The defeated troops and the rebel troops who fled westward from the outside of the military stronghold all gathered in the direction of Huangqiao Village. The terrain there is dangerous and the opening is very narrow. We have not figured out the details there. It is very difficult to find out the details there.
It’s hard to fight hard again…”
"What a bastard!" Tang Pan walked in at this time and punched the courtyard wall with a punch, causing the mud to fly down.
After capturing the Tiaohutan bandit camp, the best expected result is to attract the main force of the bandit army from Shibaliwu and Huaidu Old Village as soon as possible.
The open terrain on the west bank of the Baijian River seems to be more convenient for the main force of the rebel army to deploy, but it is also the battlefield where it is easiest to carry out penetration operations. Xu Huai is confident that with a thousand capable soldiers, he will outnumber himself several times, but he will still be a mob.
The soldiers killed her so hard that she didn't even recognize her mother.
For this reason, Xu Huai and the others restrained themselves from rushing into the west bank of the Baijian River in the afternoon, and instead focused their energy on capturing prisoners.
If the main force of the rebel army cannot be attracted to the west bank, it is more likely that the rebel army will panic and retreat to the old stronghold of Huaidu.
In that case, the Huaiyuan Township Camp can block the rebel army in a corner of the western section of Beiling; the rebel army is in a panic, and the Tang family can firmly defend the camp after seeing strong reinforcements from outside at Shibaliwu.
Will, the subsequent suppression of banditry is a matter of course.
It can be said that this is the outcome that everyone least wants to accept: the rebel army has experienced the collapse of Tiighutan, but they have not panicked yet. They are still sober enough to gather troops and horses at Huangqiao Village, the smallest opening in the western section of Zouma Road, to ensure that Huangqiao
The village has sufficient depth from the west to Yushanyi, Huaidu Old Village and Mopanling.
This means that the rebel army will most likely not give up the storming of Shibaliwu.
The relatives of Tang Pan, Tang Qing, Tang Xia and others are all in Shibaliwu. They were born into poor thieves and did not have much property to rob. However, several of them have become famous in the Huaiyuan Township camp, so it is difficult to protect the thieves' presence.
After the capture of Shibaliwu, their families were not captured for revenge.
"We have arranged for people to enter Shibaliwu in advance to report the news. Even if Shibaliwu fails to defend, Tang Wenzhong will find a way to try his best to protect your family; and the defeat of Tiaohutan, even if the main force of the thief army cannot be attracted, it will have a great impact on them.
The shock will not be small, and it will not pose any threat to Shibaliwu!" Xu Wujiang comforted Tang Pan and said.
Xu Wujiang then told Xu Huai about the follow-up war arrangements they had discussed in general in the afternoon:
"...The governors on the east bank of the Baijian River and some famous elders were almost all arriving one after another at this time. Although the township meeting has not yet been officially held, the people who went to the market basically talked openly or privately.
He expressed his willingness to spend money to send troops. Wang Laoxiangong thought that if he wanted to recover the villages on the west bank, he could use the patrol infantry to lead one or two teams of rural soldiers to guard each village. On our side, the troops and horses still need to be concentrated.
Not only cannot they be separated, but they must continue to select strong and strong soldiers from the village soldiers sent from various families to strengthen them, and finally go to find the main force of the bandit army for a decisive battle - Deng Langjun also felt that what Mr. Wang Lao Xianggong said was reasonable. He expected it.
The rebel army's determination to attack Shibaliwu will not be too strong. The Tang family should defend Shibaliwu, and we can slowly plan for it on the west bank..."
The chiefs of each household were chiefs of various clans and rich people and gentry.
The victory at Tiaohutan can be said to have completely reversed the situation east of the Baijian River. The clans on the left and right were also first-rate in adapting to the wind. Deng Gui raised his arms and shouted, and of course there were many responders.
To the east of Baijian River, there are more than 70,000 Dingkou and more than 30,000 strong men. Based on the standard of three Dings being drawn for one autumn training, the maximum number of rural soldiers can be more than 10,000.
In the past two months since the banditry broke out, the area east of the Baijian River has suffered much less damage than the west bank.
The thieves from Pan Chenghu's group in Xiema Mountain, Guo Junpan from Laoyatan, and Zhou Tian from Shuanglong Village are all copycat forces east of the Baijian River, but due to various reasons, they were unable to cause any trouble this time.
Even though they recruited thousands of young and strong Luocao from the east bank of the Baijian River as bandits, since the uprising, they have mainly been attracted to the outskirts of Huaiyuan, and have not been able to cause a particularly serious blow to the villages and Wubao scattered among the mountains.
West of the Baijian River, the situation is much more serious.
After the victory at Tiaohutan, the morale of the people on the east coast was greatly boosted. At this time, the big surname clans actively came out to fight for credit. It only took a day or two to open up connections with Xinyang and other places in the east. Money, food, and men were all in short supply.
There will be no more shortage.
In the past, when rural soldiers were recruited, generals and lower-level soldiers were basically recommended by major clans.
Even if the Inspection Department recommends a better candidate, he will always seek the opinions of the wealthy gentry with a big surname; it has always been a phenomenon that the military soldiers of the Inspection Department are controlled by the big surname clans.
The situation is different now.
In the past, the great surnamed Zong fled back to various Wubao. He was at fault first and had serious internal divisions. Now, with the power of victory, Deng Gui gained the Huaiyuan Township Camp to inspect the military soldiers and more than 2,000 people trapped in the market.
They all fully support it, and it can be said that they have the power of life and death.
He is now asking each family to hand over their clan soldiers and strongholds in proportion to their head count, and not to interfere in the arrangement of rural camps. Who is afraid that anyone will dare to say anything?
After hearing Xu Wujiang talk about the next step they discussed in the afternoon, Xu Huai said: "I know that Mr. Wang is behind the scenes, and everything big and small will be arranged properly, so there is no need for me to worry too much..."
After the first great victory, people were restless, and the rural camp had only been expanded for a few days. Xu Sihu, Xu Xin'an, Yin Peng, Tang Pan, Su Laochang, Zhong He and other leaders of the army came over at this time to hear what Lu Xiong said.
After chatting about the gains and losses of the battle, they all went back to their barracks and mingled with their soldiers.
The setting sun was shining, and soon Xu Huai, Xu Wujiang, Wang Zhen, Lu Xiong, Xu Wukun and others were left in the courtyard; Zheng Tu rushed to the kitchen to prepare evening meals for everyone.
Seeing Xu Huai standing in the yard, looking down at the sketch of Tiighutan Camp drawn on the dirt for a long time, Wang Zhen walked over with his hands behind his back and asked:
"What are you thinking about? What do you think is wrong with the next battle arrangement?"
"The bandit army gathered at Huangqiao Village. It seems that they still have to attack Shibaliwu. Shibaliwu may not be able to hold it, but it does not affect the overall situation. Chen Zixiao, Zhong Changqing, Gao Xiangzhong and the others have gained the upper hand.
The time is too short to create a climate..." Xu Huai said.
Xu Huai was more inclined to think that Shibaliwu was more dangerous than good, but he didn't say it in front of Tangpan and the others just now, and it would be meaningless to say it.
Pan Chenghu had been defeated in Yuhuangling before, and all his direct descendants were lost. Guo Junfan and Zhou Tian were small forces in Tongbai Mountain. They threatened the new bandits, which seemed to number two thousand, but they were really no threat.
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However, the three rebel armies of Chen Zixiao, Zhong Changqing, and Gao Xiangzhong were much stronger. At least Xu Huai didn't want to attack the narrow and cramped Huangqiao Village before making further preparations.
Of course, even if Shibaliwu fell, Xu Huai didn't think how long the bandit army would be able to gain power. People's hearts on the east coast had returned. It was only a matter of time before more troops, money and food were needed to suppress the bandit rebellion. However, he
I was worried about other things, so I told Wang Chen truthfully:
"There is nothing wrong with Wang Xiang's arrangement with Deng Gui, but I was thinking about other things just now."
"What are you thinking about?" Xu Wujiang came over and asked curiously. It was hard to imagine anything else that could make Xu Huaicha happy now.
"Have you ever thought about setting up a county in Tongbai Mountain?"
"Should Tongbai Mountain be established as a county? The court officials are debating it. How can we have the right to think about it? I'm afraid that the words of Mr. Wang are of no use now!" Xu Wukun said while sitting on the steps beside him.
"Normally speaking, we are not qualified to discuss the establishment of counties and cities," Xu Huai said, "but what if Huaiyuan has already built a city first because of the need to control bandits?"
"..." Hearing Xu Zheng say this, Xu Wujiang and Xu Wukun were stunned.
Throughout the dynasties, counties were established in Tongbai Mountain, and there were also periods when the counties were abolished and merged into Biyang, and there were also periods when the counties were abolished and merged into the jurisdiction of Xinyang. Whether they were established or not and how they were established cannot be generalized.
In the last years of the previous dynasty, Tang, Deng, Sui Yingguang and other places were affected by wars, and the population dropped sharply. There were still a lot of people taking refuge in Tongbai Mountain at that time. However, after the founding of Dai Viet, the court intended to move the people in Tongbai Mountain out, so it deliberately did not establish a county.
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The lowest number of Dingkou in Tongbai Mountain was less than 30,000. However, after eight or nine generations of reproduction, there were now 134,000 Dingkou, which was far more than the number of Dingkou in an ordinary county at that time. It occupies a large area. In recent years, Tongbai Mountain has
The matter of setting up a county has also been mentioned many times.
Xu Wujiang and Xu Wukun knew all this, but they failed many times. A very important issue is where the expenses for city construction will come from after the county is established.
And if the city has been built first to suppress the bandits, it will actually remove a huge obstacle to the establishment of a county in Tongbai Mountain. It can even be said that it will be unreasonable not to establish a county at that time.
"Are you still worried that if the coalition fails, it will lead to a catastrophic disaster?" Wang Zhen frowned and asked Xu Huai.
"What kind of coalition forces, what kind of catastrophe?" Xu Wujiang and Xu Wukun were confused. They didn't know that Xu Huai proposed building a city in Huaiyuan at this time to promote the establishment of a county in Tongbai Mountain. Why did Wang Zhen involve the coalition forces and monstrous things?
