After returning to Jicheng, Gao Fei began to devote himself to domestic development, focusing on agriculture, building water conservancy, encouraging commerce, and promoting coal, iron and other industries. He also established weapons departments in Jicheng and Luoyang to specialize in the research of weapons and equipment for offense and defense.
Militarily, the northwest frontier has always been in a state of tension. Cao Cao was well aware of the power of the Huaxia Kingdom, so he sent people carrying gold, silver, jewels, rice, grain, and cloth to the Xianling Qiang stationed at the foot of the Helan Mountains, and took the initiative to form an alliance. And
On the other hand, they sent people to the Xianbei garrison, met with the Xianbei Great Chanyu, and used the same method to form an alliance with him, and deceived the Xianbei and Xianling Qiang to continuously harass the northwest border of the Huaxia Kingdom.
Pang De, who was stationed in Shuofang, led his troops to repel the invading Qiang and Xianbei people many times, but he never made any substantial progress. The nomadic people's style of play did put them in an active position, and the Chinese
In order to stabilize the Central Plains, most of the country's troops were stationed in the Central Plains area. The two hundred thousand newly recruited recruits had not yet been trained. The lack of military resources made it impossible for the Huaxia Kingdom to carry out a devastating blow to these harassing nomads.
AD 191, the second year of the Chinese Kingdom of Shenzhou, the third day of the seventh lunar month.
It was raining that day. It was a drizzle, not a heavy downpour, which fell like a waterfall and caused short-breathing pedestrians to run and hide under the door of the big house. It was a kind of extreme rain that made it impossible to distinguish the details.
The drizzle, which constantly floats tiny droplets that cannot be seen towards people, soon covers the clothes with a layer of cold and penetrating moss-like moisture.
It was raining heavily. In the palace of Jicheng and the Privy Council Office, battle reports were flying in like snowflakes. Jia Xu, Xun You, Guo Jia, Lu Zhi, and Gai Xun were browsing the battle reports and finally sorted them out.
The documents are unified and gathered together.
"The border troubles in the northwest have been unable to be eliminated for a long time. Nowadays, there is a shortage of domestic troops. Shuofang is frequently attacked by foreign invaders, but it cannot mobilize large troops to attack them. It is really a headache. My lords, the emperor will be here soon. If you ask, I will wait for you.
How should I answer?" Jia Xu sat on a back chair and said slowly.
Xun You, Guo Jia, Lu Zhi, and Gai Xun were also helpless. The constant harassment by the Qiang and Xianbei people made the northwest frontier the most concerned military issue in the entire country. Although Pang De repelled the invading enemies many times,
The entire country is in a passive situation, and battle reports are often received every now and then, which makes people upset.
When everyone was at a loss what to do, Jiang Gan came from outside, carrying a pot of brewed tea, and poured water for each of the lieutenants one by one.
"The Emperor has arrived!" the guard outside the door suddenly shouted loudly.
As soon as he finished speaking, Gao Fei strode into the hall. Everyone present hurriedly stood up, stood in a row, and saluted Gao Fei.
After the ceremony, Gao Fei walked to the middle seat and sat down. He glanced at everyone present and said, "Jiang Qian, please go to the Senate and invite the five prime ministers to come here to discuss state affairs."
"No!" Jiang Gan has been wandering around the Privy Council and the Senate since he won the first prize. In fact, he is working as an errand boy for ten cabinet ministers. However, Jiang Gan is very happy and does it every day.
I'm crazy, I'll just flatter him when I get the chance, but I'm having a great time, and I'm living a carefree life.
After Gao Fei saw Jiang Gan go out, he said to everyone: "My five lieutenants, do you have any solutions to the battle reports that Pang De has been receiving from Shuofang for the past few months?"
After the five people looked at each other, none of them spoke.
Gao Fei said: "Although Shuofang is small, it has affected the nerves of the entire country. Now that the country is recuperating, it is not appropriate to start war again. Moreover, after our country has gone through several wars, only 23 out of 10 elite soldiers are left. Stabilizing the Central Plains is also
We need them just now and cannot mobilize our troops. No matter what method we use, as long as we can temporarily calm down the troubles on the northwest frontier, it is a good method!"
After the five people listened to Gao Fei's words, Gai Xun first said: "I would like to report to the emperor that I have a plan to temporarily protect the northwest from being invaded."
"speak!"
Gai Xun said: "Ma Chao, the general of Longxiang, was once a mighty general in the eyes of the Qiang people. Even the Xianling Qiang were afraid of him. The Xianbei people fled far away to Mobei. If they attacked once, they would have to travel a long distance, so it would take several months."
There were only two invasions during this period, but out of fear of the emperor, Pang
As soon as the general sent out troops, the Xianbei people retreated without fighting. Compared to the Xianbei people, the Xianling Qiang were stationed at the foot of Helan Mountain, so close to Shuofang that they could attack if they advanced and defend if they retreated. This is really a big hidden danger. I think that when
Send Ma Chao to Shuofang, so that his loyalty among the Qiang people can deter the first Ling Qiang people."
"No! Ma Chao's anger has not subsided, so he cannot delegate important tasks for the time being. Mr. Gai, please find another way." Gao Fei said immediately.
After Gai Xun heard this, he stopped talking and vaguely understood Gao Fei's worries.
Guo Jia thought for a while and said immediately: "Your Majesty, I have a plan, but it will require a lot of financial resources. I don't know whether to talk about it or not."
"If spending money can eliminate disasters, there is nothing unacceptable! But there is no harm in talking."
"I think that in order to deal with the Xianling Qiang, we can temporarily adopt a soft policy and bribe the Qiang people with heavy sums of money. At the same time, I will ask the humble concubines to return to the Xiongnu, and temporarily recruit a large army from the Xiongnu. They will pay homage first and then attack with troops, and use a two-pronged approach to encircle and suppress the Helan Mountains." Guo Jiadao.
Xun You added: "Your Majesty, Dongyi has a large population. It can also temporarily recruit soldiers locally and build forts in the Hetao area. Camp step by step and gradually advance to the northwest. Once attacked, the forts will be like horns to each other.
, mutual rescue can effectively resist foreign invasion and defend the border."
After hearing this, Gao Fei nodded immediately and said: "This method is very wonderful, let's do it like this."
"Cough cough cough..." Suddenly, Lu Zhi coughed violently.
Gao Fei hurriedly walked down, came to Lu Zhi's side, and asked with concern: "Sir Taiwei, your health is important. If you feel unwell, please ask Zhang Zhongjing or Hua Tuo to take a look."
Lu Zhi looked gloomy and said, "Thank you for your concern, Your Majesty. I will be fine."
"I will see you, Your Majesty!" Tian Feng, Xun Chen, Bing Yuan, and Guan Ning came from outside and paid their respects in unison.
"Excuse me...where is Mr. Cai?" Gao Fei asked without seeing Cai Yong's shadow.
Tian Feng replied: "Prime Minister Cai is ill and unable to attend. Please forgive me, Your Majesty."
Gao Fei didn't take it seriously. Birth, aging, illness and death are natural phenomena. He immediately said: "Well, Jiang Gan, you go to the Imperial Hospital immediately and ask Zhang Zhongjing to see Prime Minister Cai."
As soon as Jiang Gan stepped in, he was sent again. He immediately said "Promise" and left the hall.
"My lords, please take a seat."
Everyone sat down separately, and Gao Fei said loudly: "I want to use troops against the Xianling Qiang to completely solve the northwest border troubles. However, our soldiers are stationed in the Central Plains, which is not suitable for deployment. I want to recruit foreign warriors and hire them to fight for me. Then
This military expenditure must be slightly more. Four prime ministers, do you have any spare money in the treasury?"
Xun Chen immediately said: "Your Majesty, construction is going on everywhere now, especially in the Central Plains, which costs a lot of money. The national treasury income depends entirely on gold mining and commercial income. However, in the past two years, gold mining has become more and more difficult.
The meager income from commerce keeps the entire country running.
Although Hebei has begun to tax, the tax rate is too low, and the tax can only be carried out at the end of the year. The national treasury is already empty, and it is unable to collect huge military expenditures. I believe that the northwest border troubles are just the enemy's harassment policy. As long as we strictly guard against them
, you can ignore it."
"Your Majesty, in order to build a new capital in Luoyang, a huge amount of manpower, material and financial resources have been wasted. Now the Central Plains needs to be restored, and Hebei has just started to improve, so it is not appropriate to go to war. I think that we only need to send a general to guard the border and defend the border.
It is enough to be invaded, and it is not necessary to send troops to attack." Guoyuan also expressed his inner opinion.
"How can the country prosper and develop if there are constant border troubles? I think we should send troops to wipe out the Xianling Qiang in the Helan Mountains, and then take the opportunity to capture the Hetao area, station troops on the spot, and build forts to let foreigners know how powerful our country is," Jia Xu said loudly.
road.
When Xun Chen heard Jia Xu's active support for sending troops, he became anxious and shouted loudly: "Using military force will definitely be counterproductive. It is better to suspend the army for a few years and wait for the country to prosper before raising troops to pacify..."
"Anyone who offends China will be punished no matter how far away it is! If you don't have money, you can temporarily squeeze out some money, or you can levy taxes in advance. In extraordinary times, you should use extraordinary means. If you don't send troops to Helan Mountain to exterminate the Xianling Qiang, we, China, will have permanent border troubles.
Don't stop!" Jia Xu became anxious and shouted louder and louder.
"Sending troops is not easy, so don't go to war. The best thing to do is to recuperate!"
"Troubles on the border are constant and life is precarious. Once foreigners invade the country, any recuperation and recuperation will be nonsense! Then the people will not be able to survive, and the people will be lost under the iron hoof of foreigners! If we don't send troops, how can we show the prestige of our country!"
Jia Xu and Xun Chen had a heated argument, and they had different opinions. One advocated sending troops, while the other advocated recuperation. They were chattering endlessly, and their faces turned red. Both of them had resolute temperaments. When they got serious, they almost got into a fight. Everyone.
The adults couldn't help but could only wait and see what happened, focusing all their attention on Gao Fei.
"Enough! Have you had enough quarreling? How unbecoming is it for a dignified first-class official and an important minister of the country to make such a big fuss over a little disagreement!" Gao Fei slammed the table and shouted loudly.
After a loud roar, Jia Xu and Xun Chen stopped talking, but their eyes showed dissatisfaction with each other.
"Whether we send troops or not, this matter will stop here. You all are busy with your own business. I have my own discretion. Tomorrow at noon, I will personally issue the imperial decree. Whether to send troops or not will all depend on tomorrow's imperial decree!"
After saying that, Gao Fei stood up and walked away.
Everyone watched Gao Fei leave and said in unison: "Best farewell to the Emperor!"
After Gao Fei left, Xun Chen glared at Jia Xu angrily, snorted coldly, and turned away. Jia Xu also burst into anger after seeing him. He sat there with his chest heaving up and down, feeling extremely angry.