"Soldiers, after ten years of farming and fighting, can they still go into battle to kill the enemy?"
Feng Guosheng held a sword in his hand, stood under the banner, and questioned the soldiers present.
Opposite him were tens of thousands of the main force of the Ming army.
These people are generally no longer young, and the youngest is almost thirty years old. Moreover, due to the bitter cold and wind and sand attacks in the northwest, their skin is rough and their appearance is aging. Many of them look to be around fifty years old.
But at this moment, the big guy's back was straight, his eyes were like a torch, a ball of flame, burning brightly.
This is Hami Guard.
When the Westward Marching Corps set out from Liangzhou, dug through the Hexi Corridor, marched into the Western Regions, and took back the homeland of the Han and Tang Dynasties, what a sight it was!
It was only after arriving in the Western Region that everyone was suddenly shocked to realize that such unparalleled achievements had brought them to the point of despair, and it was very difficult for them to survive!
The Western Regions of the Han Dynasty had thirty-six kingdoms and an astonishing number of horses, cattle and sheep. It can be seen that the climate in the Western Regions was good at that time and there was abundant rainfall. Although it was still difficult, they could still survive.
Hundreds of years later, the situation was completely different. Precipitation decreased, many ancient cities were abandoned, and the sky was filled with yellow sand, swallowing up the once prosperous towns.
A large number of oases have disappeared and water sources have been reduced.
There are also fewer cattle, horses and livestock, and there is even less arable land.
Feng Guosheng, who walked around, was almost in despair. How could he defend such a place?
What's the value if you get it?
At that moment, Feng Guosheng thought about giving up and simply returning to Liangzhou.
As soon as this thought came up, he immediately thought of his brother and the conversation he had when he decided to go west... No matter what, he could not give up his homeland.
What our ancestors could do, we can do the same!
Feng Guosheng sat on the sand dune and let the strong wind destroy him all night. His brother's appearance flashed before his eyes, and his elder brother's teachings were in his ears.
Man is determined to conquer nature, no matter what, we must survive!
Starting from the next day, all the soldiers began to survey the terrain, search for water sources, and find land suitable for farming.
This place in the Western Region is very strange. It has enough light and a large temperature difference between day and night, which is convenient for fruits to accumulate sugar. It is also suitable for the growth of wheat and cotton. As long as the irrigation problem can be solved and water sources are available.
You will reap what you sow!
An absolute heaven-sent treasure.
But the question is where to get water?
Without water, everything is empty talk.
Feng Guosheng inspected the local situation, asked locals, and consulted old documents... After more than three months of busy work, he finally figured out that there was water here, but it was in a high mountain.
The snow on the top of the mountain will melt in spring and summer and turn into a trickle, flowing down.
However, due to the dry climate, strong winds and sand, evaporation is rapid.
Before it reaches the foot of the mountain, it has evaporated.
Therefore, if you want to get water, you must build a culvert, also known as a karez in the local area. A vertical well must be dug at the water source on the hillside to collect melted ice and snow water.
Then we need to build an underground horizontal canal to transport the water collected from each vertical well to the foot of the mountain.
To put it into words and implement it, it is definitely more difficult than climbing to the sky.
Due to the lack of machinery, it was impossible to explore the geological structures, so we relied entirely on luck.
It's okay to dig a vertical shaft downwards, but when digging a horizontal canal, the upper soil and rocks collapse, and it's easy to bury people alive underneath.
Moreover, how to determine the direction of excavation and how to transport large rocks are all difficult problems one after another, each of which is fatal.
The more he knew and the clearer he knew, the more helpless Feng Guosheng became.
You think you have received a supreme honor, but behind the glory are unimaginable sacrifices.
What else can be done?
Fight!
Feng Guosheng selected more than thirty places, and assigned a thousand households to take charge of each place.
Every few thousand households must be led by a general. Starting from him, everyone must work without any exceptions.
From this day on, the generals and soldiers of the Westward Army worked early in the morning and late at night, digging wells in the mountains, building barracks, and opening up farmland... They held swords and guns in one hand and hoes in the other.
You need to be able to fight and make friends.
The entire westward marching army is definitely a group of people with the highest overall quality among the Ming army.
When they pick up their swords, they can kill enemies; when they put down their swords and pick up hoes, they can plow fields; they carry iron drills to dig wells in mountains to divert water; and when they pick up pens, they can register merchants' goods.
Make friends with the local leaders, have a good drink, teach children, learn to read and write... It is no exaggeration to say that everyone is an all-rounder, a hexagonal warrior, without any weaknesses, and they dare not have any weaknesses!
In this land where survival is difficult, how can we withstand the ravages of the wind and sand in the Western Regions if we don't refine ourselves into steel?
To this day, Feng Guosheng only wants to say one thing, Zhang Xiangming is wise!
When Zhang Ximeng arranged for his troops to march westward, everyone was specially selected.
Feng Guoyong has an overall view, Feng Guosheng can cooperate with his elder brother, Fu Youde can fight, and Guo Xinghui can lead the army... Most of the soldiers below must be literate, read and understand, and have very high quality.
At that time, many people didn’t understand that we were going to fight, so why should we be so selective?
The Northern Expedition army led by Xu Da and Chang Yuchun were not in such trouble!
A partial force is actually more strict than the main force. What do you, Zhang Ximeng, think?
Without Zhang Ximeng's strong prestige and Lao Zhu's absolute trust, this would not have been possible.
But when they entered the Western Region, everything suddenly became clear.
Zhang Ximeng's arrangement is simply amazing.
In terms of combat effectiveness alone, this partial division may not be much better than Xu Da and others... But in the Western Regions, fighting does not play a major role at all, at most 30%, or even less!
The real key is development and construction, using one hand to build a home in a wild land... At this time, reading and literacy are particularly important.
How to repair a karez, what methods to use, what tools are needed... these things are obviously not something that an ignorant person can do.
We must give full play to every soldier's intelligence, willingness to work, and ability to work...
From this day on, supplies from all over the Central Plains were sent to the Western Regions. Feng Guosheng led his soldiers to establish iron smelting workshops, build farm tools and weapons, build windmills to pound rice, introduce textile machines, process wool, camel hair... He gathered various tribes in the Western Regions and made friends with them.
Those who are willing to obey the Ming Dynasty's efforts to win them over, but those who are unwilling to obey, can only send troops to attack.
Establish rules and protect trade routes, especially those merchants who are still willing to walk the Silk Road. We must protect them, reason with them, and promote the Ming Dynasty's strategy.
It’s funny to say that Peiping was the first to use textile looms, and the second one was the Western Regions.
Although their scale is far smaller than that of Peking, the consciousness of these people is definitely advanced.
In this way, counting from the founding of the Ming Dynasty and the beginning of the Western Expedition, Feng Guosheng built more than 100 karez in the Western Regions in more than ten years.
The water diversion and irrigation area exceeds 8 million acres.
They produce three million dan of grain every year, which they not only eat themselves, but also sell.
They raise a hundred thousand horses and countless cattle and sheep.
They even grow large areas of grapes and fruits, and they have a winery that produces extremely high-quality wine... They also have a jade factory that produces extremely high-quality Hetian jade and agate.
After many merchants arrived in the Western Regions, they would be stunned and couldn't believe their eyes!
Here and there is the Western Region, clearly Jiangnan beyond the Great Wall!
Eating a piece of cantaloupe and drinking a glass of wine is so refreshing that you forget everything about yourself and everything, and you almost soar from the same spot!
So beautiful, so incredible!
Even when Feng Guosheng recalled it, it was like a dream.
They truly prove how powerful people can be!
Mortal body, comparable to gods!
Yes, we are the gods who make the sun and moon change the sky!
"Soldiers and brothers, we are not young anymore. It takes ten years to gain strength and ten years to learn lessons. It's time to settle accounts!" Feng Guosheng waved his fist and said excitedly: "In this battle, we will completely wipe out Wang Baobao and destroy Bei Yuan.
There will be no pressure from the north. The vast grasslands are all our pastures. By that time, we will also build a textile factory in Hami, a textile factory larger than that in Peiping. I will also prepare to build a school, a top school. Others have it.
, we want it too!”
"After this battle, many of us will be disarmed and return to the fields, and we will live and multiply here. Many of you have married wives and given birth to children. In a word, for the Ming Dynasty, for yourself!"
"The whole army goes out!"
Feng Guosheng set out in Hami with only 35,000 troops and 70,000 horses, an average of two horses per man.
These weathered warriors jumped on their horses one after another, and headed north resolutely accompanied by mottled flags and desolate horns.
"Mr. Wu, after this battle, I'm afraid there will be no Yuan Dynasty, right?" A young soldier surrounded Wu Datou and said with a smile.
At this time, half of the hair on Wu Datou's head was gray. He twirled his beard and said meaningfully: "It should have been gone a long time ago!"
On this route, the Ming army decisively moved northward. Their purpose was to attack Wang Baobao's retreat, cut off the Mongolian kings' way to increase their numbers and Wang Baobao's way, and also cut off Wang Baobao's way to escape to the west.
This is a sharp knife, and all it needs is a steady and ruthless approach.
Feng Guosheng, Fu Youde, Guo Xing, Deng Yu, all the famous generals appeared.
Since the Ming army in the Western Regions was dominated by cavalry, they moved like flying and were extremely fast... When assembled, the efficiency far exceeded Wang Baobao's estimate. He had received the news, but he always felt that it would not come so quickly.
No matter how many ways you come, I will only go one way.
Defeat the three brats first, and then I can call it a day.
To put it more bluntly, you will die without regrets.
Wang Baobao was sitting on horseback, inspecting all his subordinates, and was in a good mood.
"This battle...must be won!"
Wang Baobao ordered the entire army to dispatch, but at this moment, a sudden strong wind hit, filling the sky with sand and dust, and instantly enveloped all the soldiers and horses.
Wang Baobao also had to close his eyes to avoid the wind and sand.
When the wind passed, Wang Baobao was about to get on the road again. The scene in front of him made his face turn black. His own big bamboo pole was broken in the middle, like a broken bone, which was shocking...