The bandits wanted to escape, and Gu Yue and others made a move to catch up. Tang Yin stopped them with his sword and said in a deep voice: "Don't chase them!" Tang Yin was alert and understood the principle of not chasing the bandits when they were poor. It was already dark now, and his own side was still in trouble.
If you are not familiar with the environment, if you chase into the woods and are ambushed by bandits, you will lose more than you gain.
It didn't take long, and the group of people coming up the official road ran up to the crowd. The general at the head looked like he was in his early thirties, wearing black iron armor and a red tassel on his head. He got off his tall horse and looked quite majestic.
The soldiers who followed behind were all wearing their armor crookedly, and many of them had incomplete armor. They only wore the single clothes of the wind soldiers, and they looked miserable and embarrassed.
The general urged his horse to take a few steps forward, looked around Tang Yin and others, and then said politely: "I am Zhang Zhou, commander of the 1st Corps of Pingyuan County. May I ask, are you Mr. Tang's bodyguard?"
Hearing this, Tang Yin took two steps forward, raised his head and said, "I am Tang Yin!"
"Ah!" The general trembled when he heard this. He hurriedly turned over and dismounted, quickly came to Tang Yin, stepped in to salute, and said seriously: "My subordinate Zhang Zhou came late, which frightened Mr. Tang. I hope Mr. Tang will not
Sorry."
Tang Yin looked this general up and down. His name was familiar to him. Before coming to Pingyuan County, he had already understood the situation here. There were three corps in Pingyuan County, and the commander of the first corps was Zhang Zhou.
Zhang Zhou has an average appearance and a medium build. He is slightly shorter when standing next to Tang Yin. He does have the majesty that a general should have, but he seems to be quite honest.
"General Zhang, don't you know there is a banditry here?" There were quite a few bandits in that wave, especially the two leaders, both of whom were masters of spiritual martial arts. With such a large group of bandits, Zhang Zhou should have been dismissed if he didn't know about it.
.
"Oh..." Zhang Zhou looked troubled, slowly lowered his head and said, "I have heard about it."
"Then why not destroy them?" Tang Yin asked coldly.
"It's not that there were no encirclements and suppressions, but the bandits were cunning. They encircled and suppressed them several times, but in the end they escaped. This is because of the incompetence of my subordinates!" Zhang Zhou lowered his head and replied in a low voice.
We still don't know what his abilities are, but at any rate, he has the courage to admit his mistakes, which makes Tang Yin slightly satisfied.
He looked behind Zhang Zhou. There were about 2,000 soldiers behind him. They could not be called old, weak, sick, or disabled, but their vigor was beyond praise. Not only were their armors patchy, they were also listless, looking as if they had been cold.
The frost-beaten eggplant, because many people were wearing single clothes and no leather armor outside, their faces were pale from the cold, and they stood there shivering.
This is the first corps of Pingyuan County. If it is like this, the situation of the other two corps can be imagined. He frowned secretly and said: "It is late autumn now, and winter will soon enter."
"Yes...yes!" Zhang Zhou didn't understand what Tang Yin meant by this.
Tang Yin raised his eyebrows and asked, "Are you planning to let the brothers below wear single clothes for the winter?"
"Oh..." Zhang Zhouyi was speechless and speechless, not knowing what to say.
Seeing that Tang Yin wanted to question him, Qiu Zhen quietly tugged at his lapel.
After all, Zhang Zhou was a commander of the army, and although Tang Yin was his superior, he was new here, so the relationship was too tense.
He smiled at Zhang Zhou and asked in a soft tone: "Pingyuan County is in a cold area, and the weather is already cold in late autumn. Why hasn't General Zhang distributed cotton-padded clothes to the soldiers?"
Zhang Zhou is not who Qiu Zhen is, but seeing him standing next to Tang Yin, he must have a high status. In addition, he looks gentle and speaks softly and slowly, which makes people feel good about him.
He replied: "It's not that I don't want to distribute them, but that the military warehouse is empty and the county has not yet supplied cotton-padded clothes."
Tang Yin frowned deeper and asked, "Didn't the former county chief declare to the county?"
"I've reported it, but the county still hasn't sent the supplies."
"How long will it take for it to be delivered?"
"This..." Zhang Zhou looked bitter, lowered his head, and stopped talking. He also wanted to know when the county would deliver the supplies, but it was estimated that it would not be possible in a short time.
Seeing that he was always hesitant and hesitant to speak, Tang Yin suddenly felt impatient. He walked past Zhang Zhou and walked among the soldiers. He looked at them from a distance. These soldiers were destitute enough, but up close they looked at them.
, he could only describe it as cruel. Some soldiers did not have armor, and even those who wore armor were in tatters. Many people's armors were damaged, with small holes on both sides of the breach.
The hemp rope tied up the breach. The armor should have been useless long ago, but they were still wearing it and went to the battlefield to fight the barbarians. How could their lives be guaranteed? How could such soldiers win?
The armor was incomplete, and some of it was old. Where had the new armor gone? Although Tang Yin had just met Zhang Zhou, he didn't think he had the courage to withhold military funds. He turned around fiercely and glared.
Zhang Zhou asked: "The soldiers either have no armor or wear broken armor. Didn't they report this to the county?"
"This..." Zhang Zhou was still speechless.
Tang Yin deliberately sneered and said, "Or are you saying, General Zhang, that you took the new armor for yourself and exchanged it for money to line your own pockets?"
After hearing this, Zhang Zhou's head buzzed, his feet were dangling, and he almost sat on the ground.
Embezzling military funds is no joke, it is a serious crime that can lead to beheading.
He looked at Tang Yin in horror and said repeatedly: "What an injustice, Master Tang. During my tenure, I never embezzled even a single cent of the army..."
"Where have all those things gone?" Tang Yin asked sharply before he could finish speaking.
"Alas!" Zhang Zhou sighed helplessly. He could no longer hide the matter even if he wanted to. He whispered: "The county has not issued a helmet or armor to Pingyuan County for three years, resulting in an acute shortage of armor. Brothers are on the battlefield.
If a recruit dies in battle, the armor he wears will be left to the recruits. If the recruit dies again, the armor will be left to the next batch of recruits. Therefore, the armors worn by the brothers now are all left by the soldiers who died in the past.
It looks...a bit shabby..."
"How unreasonable?!" After hearing this, Tang Yin's eyes flashed with fire. Gu Yue, Letian and others also frowned, unable to believe that such a thing could happen.
"Is this true?"
"My subordinates will never dare to tell lies!"
"Don't the county have new armor?"
"I don't know." Zhang Zhou looked confused.
He was unwilling to raise this issue, because it was useless to raise it. The county could not control the county, and the county refused to distribute supplies. No one could do anything. It was a problem that successive county magistrates could not solve. He did not think that Tang Yin, who had just arrived, could handle it.
Tang Yin looked directly at Zhang Zhou and didn't say a word for a long time.
Under his sharp gaze, Zhang Zhou felt uncomfortable all over, his head hung lower, and he did not dare to breathe.
After an unknown amount of time, which seemed like a century to him, he finally heard Tang Yin speak.
"General Zhang, take your people and come with me!"
"Where are you going, Mr. Tang?"
"Shunzhou!" Tang Yin walked quickly to his horse, held down the saddle, and got on the horse.
"Go... to Shunzhou? Lord Tang is going to Shunzhou to..."
"We need military resources!" Tang Yin replied expressionlessly.
Armor is the last layer of protection for soldiers on the battlefield. Without armor, how many casualties will there be in a battle? No matter what the reasons are for Yu He, the governor, if he cannot give him a satisfactory explanation, he will not give up.
Tang Yin wanted to return the same way to find the county's first supplies. This was beyond Zhang Zhou's expectation. He had been in the army in Pingyuan County for so long and had never seen such a tough county guard. Tang Yin had not even been to the county seat, so that's not counting.
Officially inaugurated!
"This... Mr. Tang, isn't this right?" Zhang Zhou hurriedly urged his horse to follow him and advised him cautiously.
"Improper?" Tang Yin raised his eyebrows, with a smile on his face, but a frightening cold light flashed in his eyes. He smiled and said softly: "If Yu He dares to mention the word 'inappropriate' in front of me, I will
Cut off his head!"
Huh? After hearing this, Zhang Zhou swayed on his horse and almost fell down.
He didn't know if Tang Yin was joking, but even if he was joking, he was probably a bit too brave.
Of course Tang Yin was not joking. Maybe other county governors were afraid of the county chief, but he was not afraid, not just because he had the title of General Zhenbei. Withholding military funds and causing disadvantages in the war was also a felony. Even if he really killed Yu He,
It is also reasonable and can be found, so that it is not unclear.
On the way, he asked Zhang Zhou what was missing in the army.
Zhang Zhou's answer made Tang Yin's eyes turn green with anger. There was actually a shortage of weapons, armor, winter and summer military uniforms, war horses and other military supplies in the army. What was even more disgusting was that there was a shortage of military pay.
Pingyuan County originally had three corps, but the military pay issued by the county was only enough for one and a half corps. Now, the actual strength of the three corps is only about 20,000, which is one-third less.
Tang Yin became more and more angry as he listened, and finally asked: "General Zhang, tell me what I don't need."
"Well... only food and grass are not in short supply." Zhang Zhou replied in a low voice.
Good, there is no shortage of food. Finally, Yu He has some conscience and does not intend to starve all the soldiers in Pingyuan County. Tang Yin murmured in his heart.
Unexpectedly, Zhang Zhou added: "The food and grass provided by the county is actually only enough for one and a half regiments, but the large local households in Pingyuan County have donated food and grass, so there is no shortage in the army."
Teng! Tang Yin's anger was rising again, and his hand holding the reins of the war horse was tight. Yu He really deserves to be killed!
He now wanted to hear how he would explain to himself when he saw Yu He.
Tang Yin stopped talking, but the smile on his face gradually deepened.
Zhang Zhou didn't know what he was laughing at, but Qiu Zhen and others knew his habits. They looked at each other and couldn't help but secretly shiver. It was obvious that Tang Yin was really angry again. This time when he went to Shunzhou, he didn't know.
What big trouble is going to happen!
Qiu Zhen reminded in a low voice: "Brother Tang, the county chief is an important position with a very high official rank. You must not act impulsively!"
Tang Yin smiled evilly, shrugged and replied: "Of course I know, you don't have to worry!"
The more he said this, the more worried Qiu Zhen became.