Although Chushan was able to withstand the pressure exerted by enemies in Heluo and Jingxi at this time, it also faced too many difficulties that needed to be overcome.
To put it simply, there is a shortage of people, land, money and food.
The first is money and food.
After the fall of Ruyang, Chushan mobilized every drop of its military potential in order to take charge of Ruzhou's defense line. The number of troops reached a maximum of 100,000 (about 30,000 troops, 50,000 Caizhou soldiers, and 20,000 Ruzhou soldiers).
The military resources invested were so high that Shi Zhen collapsed.
An inventory after the war showed that the highest consumption of military supplies and food was in the month of the month. The amount of military pay, war equipment, armor, and casualty pensions amounted to more than 600,000 guan. Military rations and various types of meat were equivalent to 90,000 shi per meter, and countless cattle and horse feed.
As the situation calmed down, Chushan's standing troops in the three defense directions were reduced to 60,000 people (30,000 combat troops, 30,000 defenders), but the annual military consumption is expected to be as high as 4 million dollars.
, military rations of five hundred thousand dan and countless fodder for cattle and horses.
The imperial court's payment can only cover half.
Chushan can now raise military resources from all corners to make up for the shortfall. It can also organize the army and civilians to build weirs and bridges, reclaim sloping fields and valleys, build forts, and expand the establishment of the inspection department (township department). It mainly relies on the
The investigation and liquidation of the Funiu Mountain and Jishan clans.
In the early stage, the barren mountains and shoals occupied by the big surname clans as well as the fields and houses of the fleeing gentry and civilian households were confiscated and distributed to the generals as pensions and merit rewards, which to a large extent offset the current expenditure of Chushan Mountain.
Otherwise, the money and grain stored in Chushan will not be enough to support the arrival of the flood season.
However, the potential for exploitation by the large clans in Funiu Mountain, Jishan and Ruzhou Basin is also limited.
After related work such as land measurement and barren land clearing is completed, the potential for exploitation in this area will be exhausted.
On the other hand, there is a lack of land.
Chushan governs the two prefectures of Cai and Ru, but the most important area along the Ru River has become a buffer zone between the enemy and ourselves, making it difficult to use it for farming.
In addition, the area under the jurisdiction of Chushan has many mountains and few fields. Funiu Mountain and Jishan are undergoing large-scale renovation and development. Even if an additional 300,000 to 400,000 acres of mountainous and sloping land can be obtained, it will not be able to accommodate many households and increase grain production.
Without land, there was no way to recruit refugees on a large scale, thus limiting the expansion of the number of households under Chushan's jurisdiction.
Chushan also took charge of the defense of Ruzhou, but Ruyang and Song counties fell into enemy hands, and the current number of households under its jurisdiction barely reached 120,000.
Chushan needed to maintain 60,000 standing troops at this time, which was equivalent to recruiting one soldier for two households; if it needed to be fully mobilized again after autumn, the recruitment ratio might be as high as one soldier for one household.
This can be said to be a waste of time.
No matter how elite and capable the Chushan Army was, from the end of autumn last year to the beginning of the flood season this year, before the situation slowed down, the number of casualties, sacrifices, and maiming of the Chushan Army and its baggage troops caused by enemy cavalry attacks was still as high as six
More than a thousand people.
If no new supplements are obtained, Chushan's young population will continue to decrease as the war continues, thus fundamentally defeating the enemy.
To solve Chushan's dilemma of lack of food, people and land, the most direct and trouble-free way, which can even be said to be a matter of course, is to reach out to the court to ask for it.
As long as the imperial court pays enough money and food every year, Chushan can recruit additional soldiers, and there will be no problem of lack of land.
This time Xu Huai went to Jianye to meet the Holy Spirit. When he was in Wuyang, Shi Zhen repeatedly told Xu Huai that he must shamelessly ask for money and food from the court.
They can't just understand the difficulties of the court, but the court bullies them as honest people.
The question is, even if the imperial court can understand Chushan's difficulties, how much extra food can it spend to fill Chushan's shortage?
Xu Huai's order for urgent mobilization of cavalry was sent to Wuyang. Shi Zhen, Xu Wujiang, Guo Junpan and others first arranged for Fan Zongqi to lead 800 selected front army armored cavalry to set off, and then thought that Chushan had selected local interests north of Jingjiang.
The entanglement was not deep and the wasteland of Shuizhe was far away from Qiao County, so he urgently took a few followers to catch up with the reinforcing armored cavalry.
In order to ensure that the generals could directly enter the battle when they arrived at Hanchuan, Fan Zongqi led 800 selected forward armored cavalry to set off at a speed of two hundred miles per day, which was quite easy.
However, even though Shi Zhen rode a carriage all the way, when he arrived at Shuangliu Village, he felt that his internal organs were about to be pushed out and his body bones were about to fall apart. He told Xu Huai his suggestion with a pale face:
"Han Gui also knows about Qiao Zhi. That's the best thing. My body really can't stand the torment, so Han Gui will go to Jianye with Jieshuai to lobby for this matter. On the Qianchapu side, on the one hand, Xu Lingji
Part of the navy and some shipwrights came to Hanchuan by land to wait for orders. On the one hand, they sent someone to see Wang Fanlang. It would be better for Wang Fanlang to come forward and persuade Kong Changyu, the Jingbei transshipment envoy, to agree to request the Chushan navy to go to Qiancha.
Puji and the lower reaches of the Han River participated in the battle against the Dongting Lake bandits and suppressed the refugee rebellion..."
After learning that Wang Xuan had conducted a detailed and in-depth investigation into Qianchapu, Shi Zhen even patted his thigh and shouted:
"That's very good. Commander Jie will go directly to Jianye. The matter of guarding Shuangliu Village and retaking the ferry can be left to Zhou Jing, Fan Zongqi and others. If some naval officers can be transferred here, the warships can be launched in the early stage.
Lifengtang raised money to renovate merchant ships in Xiangyang and other places, or directly purchased some warships from the Ezhou navy. When the commander of the army returned from Jianye, he could directly block the entrance of Qianchapu into the Han River, and work with the soldiers and horses of Jingbei to suppress Qianchao.
The rebellion in Chapu, the rebellion, prepares for the establishment of Qiao County..."
To expel the more than 4,000 bandits gathered at the ferry, Xu Huai did not need to stay in person to supervise the battle. Fan Zongqi as the main general, with the assistance of Zhou Jing, Xu Sheng and others was enough to do the job.
Shi Zhen hoped that Xu Huai would leave as soon as possible and go to Jianye to negotiate the resettlement of the overseas Chinese. He would also need to send troops to quell the rebellion within the Qianchapu area, and then he could recruit the refugees to encircle and cultivate the fields in autumn and winter. Time was very tight.
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The sooner the resettlement is carried out, the easier it will be to alleviate the pressure Chushan is experiencing at this time.
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At Shi Zhen's urging, Xu Huai decided not to delay any longer and set off for Jianye early the next morning.
At this time, even the territory of Huangzhou was not peaceful. In addition to Wu Chihai, Xu Dang, Su Miao, and Niu Er, who led 200 armored cavalry, 500 war horses, and pack horses, this trip was only led by Han, who was familiar with the imperial regulations.
Gui accompanied Xu Huai.
Shi Zhen has to rush back to Wuyang to preside over complicated political affairs; Zhou Jing, Xu Sheng, Jiang Xie and others will stay in Shuangliuzhuang to make preliminary preparations for the resettlement of overseas Chinese, and assist Fan Zongqi in using troops to fight against the bandits who gathered at the ferry.
When Xu Huai returned to Shuangliu Village, he had expelled more than 4,000 bandits from Xiaohe Ridge.
Unable to take a boat, Liu Qiong'er had no way to follow Xu Huai and others on a rapid march, so she stayed at Shuangliu Village to accompany Wang Xuan.
The waterway is not very smooth. Xu Huai went all the way east from Hanchuan, crossed the Tianmen River and the Jianshui River, passed through the southern part of Anzhou to Huangpi County in the east of Huangzhou; then he went eastward along the road at the southern foot of Huaiyang Mountain, passing through Qi
In spring, we go to Suxian, Qianshan, cross the river in Songyang County, and enter Chizhou; from here, we run eastward along the south bank of the river, and on the eighth day of July we arrive at Jianye, which is known as the Southeastern Scenic Spot.
Jianye was originally named Moling and Jianye. During the Taikang period of the Western Jin Dynasty, Emperor Wu of the Jin Dynasty changed the name of Jianye to Jianye because of Ye City, Hehuai, where the royal Sima family was born. It means not forgetting the hometown. For hundreds of years, this place has become a beautiful place in the southeast.
So it was always named Jianye.
Xu Huai crossed the river in Songyang County and entered Chizhou. To the south of the Yangtze River, there were first the rolling mountains of the Huangshan Mountains. After passing Xuancheng County, they turned into undulating hills. The terrain became flatter as you went east.
The river flows from southwest to northeast.
The rivers of that era were not bound by strong embankments like those of later generations. After the flood season, the river flooded the depressed silt areas on both sides of the river, and the widest water surface was seventy or eighty miles away.
The river water is yellow and muddy. I reined in my horse and looked over at Pinggang. Under the clear sky, the water and sky in the distance were vast, and I couldn't see the shore. It gave me an indescribable sense of majesty. In contrast, in the distance, passing through Jian Ye City,
The Qinhuai River, which flows northwest from Jianye City and flows into the river, is as thin as a ribbon.
"Sir, you have come to Jianye," Zheng Tu led several people to the Pinggang where Xu Huai stopped. He got off his horse and reported, "Qian Zerui Langjun led the Privy Council and the Ministry of Etiquette to greet the people according to the order.
Come to Xinzheng Gate to welcome the Commander-in-Chief into the city!"
As the commander-in-chief of a town, Xu Huai could no longer take his retinue in and out of the new capital to build Ye at will.
After they crossed the river and entered Chizhou, they slowed down and sent an advance outpost to Jianye to contact Zheng Tu, who reported the trip through Dujin Memorial Hall. They even delayed their trip in Hanchuan for the rebels before, and then set off again.
The mobilization of supporting cavalry from the authority, as well as the size of the accompanying guards and accompanying personnel, etc., have been reported in detail.
This is also the rule that a minister should follow.
Xu Huai, as the general manager of the military and horse capital of the Chushan camp, was under the double control of the Privy Council and the Imperial Envoy Department in the center.
Qian Zerui, as the Privy Councilor, accepted the decree. He served in Lanzhou and fought in Taiyuan, and forged deep friendships with Xu Huai and the people in Chushan. It was only appropriate that he led the Privy Council and the greeters from the Ministry of Rites came out of the city to welcome him.
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Xu Huai, surrounded by the guards, galloped down the hillock and headed towards Xinzheng Gate in the west city of Jianye.
In addition to Qian Zerui, who led an unknown group of people from the Privy Council and the Ministry of Rites to greet the officials, two brothers, Zhu Tong and Zhu Zhi, also went out of the city to greet them and said with a smile:
"I thought you were blocked by the rebels in Hanchuan, and it would take some time to come to Jianye - I heard from my father that your Majesty has been thinking about it these days, and has thought about sending envoys to Hanchuan several times to ask when you can leave.
, but I am afraid that the road will be uneven, so it would be inappropriate to urge you to set off. Are everything okay with Wang Xuan and Mr. Lu?"
"When the bandits landed, luckily I passed by Hanchuan, but Shuangliuzhuang was not in the way." Xu Huai dismounted, saluted Qian Zerui and others, looked up and saw the newly engraved "Xin Zheng" on the forehead above the city gate, and sighed with emotion.
Thousands.
"After His Majesty arrived in Jianye, he decreed that all the city gates of the new capital should be named after the gates of Bianliang City. He asked the generals, soldiers and people at home and abroad to not forget the ambition of recovering the Central Plains and returning the capital to Bianliang," Qian Zerui saw Xu Huaida
Looking at the forehead above the city gate, he was fascinated and said, "Oh, it's hard to drive the soldiers out of Huainan. The Jinghu bandits are invading again. I don't know when we can gather the troops to regain the Central Plains..."
"It won't be long!" Xu Huai said with his hands behind his back.
"With your words, I will wait patiently and look forward to it,"
Qian Zerui said,
"When you were attacked by bandits in Hanchuan, you were too modest to write too clearly in the memorial. However, His Majesty only found out after receiving the memorial from Hanchuan County that you had killed 3,000 people with forty or fifty cavalry.
The bandit army was defeated. If Greater Vietnam had more elite troops like Chushan, it would be just around the corner to regain the Central Plains. Have you had a hard journey along the way? However, I'm afraid you won't be able to take a good rest after entering the city. If it weren't for Prime Minister Zhou
, Mr. Hu stopped you, Your Majesty would like to ask me to take you directly to the palace!"