After returning to Jinyang City from Xishan Bieye, Gao Huan personally sent Toutujia, who was still angry, back to his official residence. Before he turned around and returned home, he saw soldiers gathered on the street not far from the official residence.
Seeing the signs, he glanced at Duan Shao, who was guarding Zhan Cong.
When Duan Shao saw this, he nodded and led a group of personal guards to go straight to the street corner. Soon, more than 30 soldiers equipped with armor and swords were driven out from there, all heading towards the place where Gao Huan was driving.
Lead him back.
"Why do you disciples gather here? Don't you know that there are state guests and distinguished guests living in this residence?"
An accompanying official stepped forward at the signal from Gao Huan's eyes, looked at the armored soldiers and shouted.
The armored soldiers were driven here by Duan Shao's troops. They originally looked frightened, but after hearing the official's shouts and questions, the leaders among them suddenly showed angry expressions. One of them pointed at the official.
He roared angrily: "The slave under the fence actually called the creeping thief as a guest! A certain group of Jinyang warriors are waiting for the king to kill the crazy thief in the mansion. If the slave dares to interfere, he will be killed too!"
When the official heard the roar, he shrank his head in fright. There were countless arrogant soldiers and generals around Jinyang City. Those with swords in their hands would be very powerful. Even the officials of the Prime Minister's Mansion like them were not deep-seated.
With the favor of the king, you have to give in three points when facing these fierce soldiers.
"Be bold! Your Majesty's chariot is driving here, how dare you be so bold!"
Duan Shao shouted angrily, shocking everyone in the room, and immediately ordered the two leaders to be captured and led to Gao Huan's car.
When the two people saw Gao Huan in the car, their expressions suddenly became panicked and restrained. They hurriedly paused their heads on the ground and said in a trembling voice: "I have no intention of offending Wang Jia.
Crazy thieves often bully soldiers in the market and make arrogant and humiliating remarks... Many of the words they say are unacceptable to the ears, and the ministers are embarrassed and angry, so they want to gather righteous men and kill the thieves in the hall. If there is any violation of the law, I respectfully wait for the king to punish..."
In the car, Gao Huan heard what the two commanders said. It was hard to distinguish between emotion and anger in their calm faces. He had also heard a lot about the ostentatious deeds of Rouran envoys in the market, so he was not surprised when he heard the complaints from the sergeants.
Only after pondering for a moment did he speak: "The thieves in the country are not here. It is really stupid for you to use your lofty and righteous thoughts to break the law instead of making meritorious deeds! Disarm and retreat, and stop causing trouble and causing trouble!"
After hearing this, the two captains still wanted to speak out and fight, but Duan Shao ordered the guards to pull them down, and drove away the armored soldiers gathered here, and then drove away from Gao Huan's chariot.
Go to the Prime Minister's Mansion.
"People say they are brave when they know their shame. If the military spirit is like this, does Xiaoxian think it can be used?"
On the way back, Gao Huan recalled the previous exchanges between the two captains and asked Duan Shao who was riding beside the carriage.
After hearing this question, Duan Shao pondered for a moment, and then said: "There are no disciples who are outside the Tao, and there are no people who are outside the law. Your Majesty, legislating according to the Tao, and killing thieves for the country, is not a matter of waiting for the turtle! The king humiliates the minister and dies.
, the name is Tongxin, since the disciples are not afraid of fighting to the death here, they must not be afraid of winning in the formation!"
Hearing Duan Shao's answer, Gao Huan showed a somewhat gratified smile on his face. Although he also understood that this was meant to comfort him, it was heartening to hear it.
Although the Battle of Mangshan, triggered by Gao Zhong's secret escape in the first year of Wuding, ended with a great victory for the Eastern Dynasty, and although the Western Dynasty abandoned its armor and suffered a huge defeat, the backbone of the Western Dynasty from the leader of the bandits, Yuwen Heita, onwards
They were still able to successfully withdraw to Guanzhong, and in recent years they have made frequent operations in Guanzhong, building up a large amount of weapons and equipment, and their momentum is faintly stronger than before, and they are quite likely to make a comeback.
Every time Gao Huan thinks about this event, his heart is often filled with lingering resentment. If he could have taken advantage of the great victory and pursued it hard, the situation today would have been very different.
Having grown from an inconspicuous little person in the Six Towns Mutiny to a powerful official in the current government, Gao Huan is determined and determined, and he knows that being upset afterwards will not help at all, and will only further corrupt his mood.
But every time he heard various personnel news from Kansai in recent years, he couldn't help but imagine what if he could have persisted a little longer...
Although the Battle of Mangshan was a final victory, Gao Huan couldn't be happy. Not only because the victory was not completed, but also because the offensive and defensive trends of the two sides changed in this battle. Even though Gao Zhongmi was the traitor,
Only with cooperation can the Western Dynasty enjoy the initiative, but this still requires deep vigilance.
If the strength and tenacity of the Western thieves made Gao Huan wary, then the undercurrent in his own country could be said to be like a ray of light on his back.
Gao Zhongmi was one of the Yuan Cong who initiated the uprising in Hebei. He actually chose to defect to the Western Dynasty. No matter what the reason was, it was not a good sign.
One of the reasons why Gao Huan did not insist on continuing the pursuit after the Battle of Mangshan was that he was worried that Gao Zhongmi's rebellion might have a chain of negative consequences on Ye and even Hebei.
Although Gao Zhongmi alone did not have such great influence, his son Gao Cheng did a lot of things that really harmed the interests of the wealthy families in Hebei around Wuding. Therefore, Hebei at that time also urgently needed enough force to deter him.
of.
If the potential threat from the powerful clans in Hebei was a hidden danger that Gao Huan had already anticipated and had already prepared a response plan, then the performance of the Six Prefectures Xianbei on whom he relied deeply during the war made him a little uneasy.
Among them, the most deeply hated one is naturally Peng Lezhen, who seems to be foolish and reckless, but is actually cunning and cunning.
These veterans of the town army are also well versed in the principle of "the running rabbit dies, the running dog cooks". Compared with Gao Zhongmi who surrendered to the enemy in a desperate situation, they are obviously more willing to be an authoritarian Hou Jing, and they can't say whether they are capable or not.
, but I don’t want to directly eliminate this possibility.
This attitude also extended to the issue of whether to continue the pursuit after the Battle of Mangshan. Among the generals, only Pan Le and Liu Feng supported the continuation of the pursuit. The other generals who did not agree were due to the fatigue of the soldiers and horses.
From the military point of view, not to pursue the poor enemy, or for other reasons, it is up to people to decide for themselves.
At that time, Gao Huan was also worried that the army had been standing outside for a long time and suspected that there would be changes in the rear, so he temporarily stopped and retreated his troops.
Although the Battle of Mangshan was won, the problems exposed still need to be solved urgently.
Therefore, after withdrawing his troops in the first year of Wuding, Gao Huan asked the outside world to build the Great Wall along the northern mountains of Sizhou to relieve the pressure from Rouran, and sent envoys to build it in Nanliang to ensure the stability of the border. At the same time, he also began to face up to what Du Bi had said before internally.
The issue of combating corruption was raised by his son Gao Cheng, who took drastic measures to revamp internal affairs.
Although most of the internal affairs policies were implemented by the Yedu court, Gao Huan still feared that Gao Cheng's prestige and means were insufficient for the more important matters such as the expansion of household registration and the establishment of military units in Hebei provinces, so his cronies in Jinyang Bafu were responsible for the implementation.
.
Hebei has been in war for many years, and a large number of people have been hidden in powerful houses. Expanding these hidden houses can directly increase the population, money, grain and taxes controlled by the hegemony.
Although most of the citizens of the six towns who brought years of war to Hebei were handed over to Gao Huan through the hands of the Erzhu family, there are still scattered in the three states of Ying, Hebei and Ding which are the resettlement places for the citizens of the six towns.
There are many survivors from the Six Towns.
Therefore, Gao Huan sent envoys to three states to inspect and reorganize the survivors of the six towns. If they could be relocated, they would be relocated to Liuqiao Prefecture around Jinyang. Those who had already taken root and were difficult to relocate would be reorganized into military households on the spot.
The governors of six states were established in the town, and military households from these six towns were recruited to participate in the guards of Yedu and Jinyang.
Through this series of means, the financial, material and military resources of the Eastern Dynasty have been greatly increased, which also made Gao Huan's heart, which had never cooled down, become hot again.
In particular, while the Eastern Dynasty was developing rapidly in all aspects, the growth momentum in the West was not far behind. Even in terms of military affairs, the growth rate was even more rapid than that in the Eastern Dynasty.
Although the Eastern Dynasty had a higher foundation and had a high-quality source of soldiers from Xianbei in six states, its scope of recruiting sergeants was still limited.
In particular, the Han people, who had an absolute advantage in terms of population, although they also joined the army, mainly joined the army as members of the powerful family armies of Hebei. The Eastern Dynasty and Gaohuanba Mansion themselves still did not have systematic recruitment policies and methods.
Although the combat effectiveness of Han soldiers was often criticized, and the middle school often laughed at Yuwen Black Otter's large-scale recruitment of Han soldiers as a foolish strategy to seek medical treatment in a desperate situation, Gao Huan himself would naturally not make such an optimistic plan.
Even if each of the Xianbei soldiers can defeat many, the small number of people is a natural disadvantage. Moreover, this so-called racial superiority theory itself is extremely unreliable.
For an ambitious and heroic leader like Gao Huan, the greatest torture is to see the enemy marching forward on the right path, while he himself is stuck in a trap and difficult to transform. Although the gap is still obvious in the short term, in the long run it is
pessimistic.
The only thing that may be gratifying is that his son has finally succeeded and has now become Gao Huan's indispensable right-hand man. However, Gao Huan is still worried about leaving Yuwen Black Otter, a fierce and stubborn bandit, to his son. It is best to deal with it by himself.
Not only can you make full use of your own merits, but you can also avoid causing harm to your children and grandchildren.
Gao Huan was thinking in his heart, and the car quickly drove into the Prime Minister's Mansion. All the staff were already waiting in the front courtyard of the Mansion. The first one was Zhao Yanshen, the meritorious officer of the Prime Minister's Mansion, who walked to the front of the car and raised his hand to support Gao Huan.
Get off the car.
Before Gao Huan could stand still, his eyes caught sight of a middle-aged Hu general standing in front of the group. A warm smile suddenly appeared on his face, and he strode up to the Hu general and raised his hand to pat him.
Shoulder laughed loudly and said: "I have nothing to worry about when the Grand Master returns to the mansion! You and others who waited for me did not report early, leaving the Grand Master to wait here. You really deserve to be punished!"
"I have been in the government not long ago. These subordinates are eating and drinking frequently. Your Majesty does not need to blame them."
The middle-aged man named She Di Qian was Gao Huan's sister-in-law. He was now serving as the Grand Master and the governor of Dingzhou. Hearing that Gao Huan was blaming his assistant, he spoke. As he was talking, he was about to pray, but Gao Huan forced him to pull him away.
stop.
Zhao Yanshen stood aside and said with a smile: "Everyone in the mansion said that depending on the distance, the grand master will not return to the mansion until tomorrow. But he didn't want to come in this morning. This shows that the grand master is diligent in the king's affairs and his speed is impressive.
Ah! I wanted to rush to Xishan to report, but I was stopped by the Grand Master..."
"Your Majesty is not wandering around in the countryside, how can he decide whether to stay or go just because his ministers are here? What's more, when a couple who has been in love for a long time is being made things difficult by evil, no one can bear to disturb them when they see each other after a long separation!"
She Diqian spoke again. As a close relative of Gao Huan, he obviously also knew that there were deep affairs in his family. He did not hide his concern for the former princess Lou in his words. Although they had no direct family ties, they had always been friends.
I have followed him all the way since I was young, and I love my party, so I made this righteous statement.
After Gao Huan heard this, he couldn't help but look a little embarrassed, but he also knew that She Diqian was upright and loyal to him, so he must be deeply depressed and couldn't bear it anymore, so he expressed his voice to imply that he must cherish his old friend.
"The purpose of summoning the Grand Master to return to the government is for national affairs. If the national affairs are in order, the family affairs will be at peace!"
Gao Huan didn't know what to say based on this, so he laughed and dismissed the topic. Then he looked at the man who was over 10 years old and dressed in black standing behind Shediqian, and his expression turned serious.
, before he could open his mouth, he made fists.
When the man in black saw this, he hurriedly knelt on the ground, not daring to accept this. Gao Huan bent down and pulled him up, saying with a bit of shame in his tone: "I hate that Wu Ding did not follow the plan of conferring the title of Lang in the first year of his life."
, Now that Mo Xian is urging things to happen, I have too many titles and cannot be completely filial and righteous."
The man in black, whose name is Feng Zihui, is the son of the late Taibao Feng Longzhi. He is currently mourning for his father. When he heard Gao Huan's words, he became even more excited and sentimental. He lowered his head and choked with sobs: "When my father was still alive, he often said
Yuan Cong is proud of his achievements, but he hates that the time is right and cannot follow him to fulfill his merits. I bowed to Fukou for the first time, and I knew that the king must be the only one who could save the country during the Kuang Dynasty. I am grateful to continue my ambition, and I am fortunate to follow his advice!"
After Gao Huan heard this, he patted Feng Zihui's shoulder heavily, and then everyone walked into the main hall of the Prime Minister's Mansion and began to announce his plan to launch another offensive against the Western Bandits.
There are many members in the Zhitang, but they are mainly the civil servants and staff of the Prime Minister's Mansion. After the Battle of Mangshan, Gao Huan made some in-depth adjustments to the Bafu. The generals gradually withdrew from the decision-making level of the Bafu and replaced them with
They are ministers with outstanding talents but few powerful friends. The military affairs of the domineering government are under the control of the cavalry, and the foreign soldiers and other subordinates of the prime minister's office are divided into Cao Cao.
Nowadays, the most important people in charge of the Bafu are the Jinyang soldiers composed of the Xianbei soldiers from the six states around Jinyang. Cao Cao, the cavalry commander, is in charge of the guards of the Bafu, while Cao, the foreign soldier, is in charge of the Xianbei Jiji in the six states. Therefore, the Bafu is completely
Without going through the imperial court, hundreds of thousands of troops could be gathered in Jinyang.
In addition, the Gyeonggi Metropolitan Governor established by Yedu is in charge of the Yedu Forbidden Army and the Guards. This includes former Luoyang Liufang Forbidden Army sergeants, Yingji and Hebei three-state A-level soldiers, and soldiers from various counties who have joined the Guards.
troops.
Gao Huan is about to go to war this time, intending to complete his success in one battle and wipe out the Western thieves in one fell swoop. Therefore, it is natural that as many capable soldiers in the country should be mobilized as possible.