A gust of cold wind blew, Wu Chen shrank his head and wrapped his woolen coat tightly.
He was the son of Wu Rui, Marquis of Qianyue. He served as a personal guard of Heifu during the Southern Expedition. During the Northern Expedition, he participated in a series of battles from Yunmengze to Jiangling City. He was later transferred to the Hanzhong battlefield and served as a false captain under Han Xin.
Although Wu Chen's proposal of "taking Ziwu to sneak attack Weinan" was not accepted by Han Xin, he still used 5,000 men as a partial force to attack Ziwu Pass, disrupting the defense of Lieutenant Qin's army in Guanzhong, and secretly crossed Chencang with the main force for Han Xin, sweeping across
Yongdi made a contribution.
Later, Wu Chen joined the Dongmen Leopard Division and surrounded the old Qin General Sima Yang, who was stubbornly resisting, in Du County. After Sima Yang surrendered, Wu Chen received a heavy reward from the Marquis of Wu Zhong: he was promoted to Da Shang Zao and promoted to full rank.
The captain, with 10,000 Northern Expedition soldiers, went north to support Beidi County.
It was July or August, and it was already autumn. As a southerner who had never seen ice and snow since he was a child, Wu Chen already felt a little cold when he arrived in Beidi County. After they crossed the Chaonese Pass and entered the customs, they felt even more cold.
cold.
"Autumn in Saibei is as cold as the severe winter in the south."
He recorded this in his marching diary.
For Wu Chen, everything in Saibei was novel, from the accents to the clothes of the locals, from the ravine-ridden loess plateau to the felt tents dotted among them, from the Rong people with braided hair to the long-haired sheep they raised.
.
"It's not as delicious as the southern black goat." This is Wu Chen's evaluation of the Huamachitan sheep. The reason is that it lacks the smell of mutton, which the Yue people call "fresh", which is their favorite.
"Without umami, how can we still call it a sheep?" The country can be unified, but in terms of bigotry in taste, southerners and northerners can never be unified.
The scenery along the way is boring. Contrary to the dense rainforest in the south, there are barren loess plateaus everywhere outside the pass. Large tracts of bare ground. When the autumn wind blows, the grass is also sparse. You can't see it even after walking for more than ten miles.
A lilu.
But when the army followed Wushui and arrived at the river, Wu Chen was in a trance and thought he had returned to Guanzhong...
A wide canal was led from the river and ran parallel to the north. The edge of the canal was full of golden wheat fields, connected by bridges and adjacent villages. It was like a prosperous farming area. Local immigrants and soldiers were harvesting grain in the fields.
, an army also came forward.
But it was General Zhang Han who sent him to take over. The leader was a captain from a good family in the north named Fu Zhi. When he and Wu Chen dismounted from their horses to see the ceremony, Wu Chen suddenly discovered that he was of average height among the southerners.
…
His height can only reach Fu Zhi’s chest!
"Captain Wu."
Fu Zhi bent down and bowed, but his eyes could still look straight at the bun on top of Wu Chen's head, feeling a little funny in his heart.
"I have admired you for a long time!"
…
When the two armies were lined up side by side, the good men from the Northern Territory all looked down at the soldiers of the Northern Expedition next to them. They all spoke with Jingchu accents and were on average a head shorter than themselves. The height contrast was sharp.
"It seems that Marquis Wu Zhong is the tallest person among the southerners."
"But what is the use of Marquis Wu Zhong sending a group of southern soldiers to the north of Saibei?"
"Can they mount a horse? Can they ride and shoot?"
The sons of good families were whispering, and some did not understand how these little southern dwarfs raised their heads and defeated the tall and powerful Qin army in Guanzhong.
"Cut off its head, and it will naturally grow as high as possible."
When a reckless Sima from a good family asked this question at the welcoming banquet in Fuping County, Wu Chen, not to be outdone, pushed back as if joking.
But he soon pretended to be drunk again and apologized to Fu Zhi: Wu Chen knew very well that the Liangjiazizi in the North were different from the general old Qin army. They were also direct descendants of the old army established by Wu Zhonghou. They went north to expel the Huns and try their best to
Don't cause friction.
"Marquis Wu Zhong believes that the northern part of the Great Wall needs not only knights, but also Jingchu warriors and swordsmen with extraordinary talents. Most of my soldiers are veterans. Since I joined the army with the lord, I have fought in several counties for more than ten battles, and I have killed tigers with all my strength.
The formed spear formation is indestructible. In the past, when Marquis Wu Zhong and General Li Xin defeated the Xiongnu here, didn't they also rely on the combination of foot and cavalry?"
"That makes sense."
Fu Zhi did not feel dissatisfied, and on the way to Lingwu, he introduced this "Henan land" to Wu Chen.
"This place was originally a pasture land for the Xiongnu. When Lieutenant and Li Erhou drove the Huns from the north, the Hu people fled north and did not dare to go south to herd horses. Helan Mountain and both sides of the river were empty. There was no felt tent anymore. For a time, it was deserted and there were swarms of wild wolves.
.”
"But Marquis Wu Zhong took us to farm here, and opened up a large area of land on the east bank of the river. He also moved the Yuan army to the east foot of Helan Mountain, herding horses and sheep, and also guarding against the return of the Xiongnu."
"After Marquis Wu Zhong left, Zhang Jun continued his plan, and Li Ling, the captain of Shanghe Farmers, built 10,000 houses for the 10,000 households who moved from Guanzhong, and opened up 500,000 acres of land. Later, he dug up Qin
The canal diverted river water for irrigation. This wasteland outside the Great Wall was soaked by the river water and fertilized by cattle and sheep dung, and turned into fertile farmland with crisscrossing lines. Over the past few years, several counties in Fuping and Lingwu had abundant harvests and herds of cattle and sheep.
Call it 'Central Plains'!"
Local grain production not only satisfies local immigrant garrison troops, but excess grain can even be transported downstream to replenish the Great Wall Corps.
After passing the narrow Qingtong Gorge, a river appeared in front of us, where many flat-bottomed ships docked to load newly harvested grain.
Fu Zhi introduced to Wu Chen: "In the 32nd year, Helan was able to be self-sufficient in grain, but Shuofang still had to transport grain from Guanzhong."
After all, there are 20,000 immigrants in Shuofang County, but they have to support half of the Great Wall Corps and a large number of prisoners and civilians. Even if a straight road is built, it is still too far away. One hundred thousand civilians are miserable in carrying millet. People and horses chew all the way, and the food arrives in a hurry.
Save two.
Shuofang has become the same as the quagmire of the southern rainforest, and has become the heaviest annual expenditure burden in the history of millet management.
So the imperial court, whose finances were gradually drying up, began to think about Helan, who had plenty of food.
"At that time, Zhang Jun and Captain Shanghe Nong calculated an account. From Helan to Shuofang, it would take 800 miles to travel by land. There are many sections in the desert that are inaccessible, making long-distance driving extremely difficult."
"Based on the 5,000 oxcarts that Beidi County can collect, the accumulated grain of 500,000 dendrobium will be transported to Shuofang. Each cart will load 20 shi, and 100,000 dendrobium will be transported at a time. It will take more than 100 days to make one round trip. In this way, it can only be used at most in a year.
It would take three years to transport all the 500,000 hu of military rations to Shuofang in two trips! This does not include the loss of food along the way, so it is really not cost-effective."
Moreover, this kind of long-distance transportation requires a large number of laborers and many cattle and horses. In three years, the Helan region's own agriculture is expected to collapse.
Zhang Han and Li Ling believed that this method was time-consuming, wasted farming time, and affected farming, so they decided to adopt the advice left by the former Heifu:
"Use the big river as a road to develop water transportation."
Li Ling conducted a detailed investigation of the upper reaches of the river and measured the water depths in various places in different seasons, and believed that it was feasible.
So people cut down the trees in Liupan Mountain and transported the wood to the bank of the river through the Qingshui River to build ships on the spot. In one year, 200 wooden ships were built, each of which could carry 1,000 shi of grain. It took only half a year to complete 500,000 shi.
carrying mission.
"The forty-four cities in Shuofang were mostly built near the river for the convenience of getting water. Wooden boats from Helan came one after another, leaving food behind and making a circle to Shangjun. They returned next year. We are not bragging. There are tens of thousands of garrison troops in Shuofang.
I can eat enough thanks to Helan's grain and water transportation!"
Originally, the various strongholds of the Qin Dynasty in the north of the Great Wall were not easily accessible by land. Helan, Shuofang, and Shangjun were each independent. However, they were connected by a surging river that turned into a large bay. The water provided food and manpower, and they became a whole.
"All the ideas that Marquis Wu Zhong had back then have been realized!"
Fu Zhi and the others are very proud of this. Beidi Liangjiazi has watched this land grow, grow, and become rich, but now, they must fight to protect her!
"Although the Huns harmed Shuofang and Yunzhong, fortunately, Helan, which was 'blocking the Central Plains', was saved."
This was Zhang Han's greatest support for stationing troops here to resist the Huns. When Shuofang was invaded by the Huns, Helan also continued to send large ships downstream, collecting refugees from the North and fleeing to the counties of Henan to resettle.
Provide them with food.
Military control has been implemented in the Helan area. Except for the self-reserved rations, all the grain of the villagers was confiscated by the army. Although the villagers complained, compared with the Huns who invaded and invaded, there was no grain left and their homes were destroyed. This is a good thing.
.
"Wu Zhonghou had such a plan that day. He was really far-sighted..." Wu Chen, a southerner, and Fu Zhi, a northerner, finally reached an agreement on this point.
And when they finally arrived in Lingwu County, met Zhang Han, and presented him with the title of "Grand Concubine" conferred by Hei Fu, Zhang Han didn't say anything on his face, but smiled and asked Wu Chen how many people there were.
Can the heroes of the Northern Expedition be granted the title of marquis?
Wu Chen told the truth: "The regent has made marquises based on his merits. Han Xin is the Marquis of Yishan, Dongmen Bao is the Marquis of the Tiger, Zhao Tuo is the Marquis of Centenary, and my father is the Marquis of Qianyue. They are all the Marquis of Guannei, and they are all entitled to the salary of the same township."
"
"These names are so strange." Zhang Han complained, but he was a little unhappy in his heart.
He thought to himself: "Except for Zhao Tuo, the rest are reckless men, cowards, and Yue people, and they all get the title of marquis, but I am just a concubine, and I condescend to them..."
But titles are determined based on merit, mainly beheadings, victories, and territorial gains. Who told Zhang Han to start his army too late and miss almost all the battles of the Northern Expedition?
Fortunately, Heifu Yao made Zhang Han the "Taive Servant" of one of the Nine Qings, which was equivalent to a promise that Zhang Han would be able to participate in running the country's affairs in the future, which relieved Lao Zhang's unwillingness.
It seems that if he wants a higher status, he can only get it from the Huns.
"The Huns are moving."
He didn't talk nonsense and told Fu Zhi and the newly arrived Wu Chen the latest military situation.
"Have the Huns gone south to invade again?"
Fu Zhi was gearing up, and Wu Chen was also nervous. Coming all the way north made him understand that the southern soldiers he brought with him might have to face a completely different war from before. If he started fighting when the wind and snow were falling, he would be afraid of the cold.
Can the southern soldiers adapt?
"No, when Mao Dun heard that the Six Kingdoms were retreating to the east of Hedong, he ordered the wise kings on his left and right to return to Touman City with tens of thousands of captive people..."
Zhang Hand stationed troops in Helan and sent ships to assist in the defense of Henan. To the east, in the direction of Shangjun, Han Xin also led 20,000 people to the north quickly to block the Xiongnu's way south.
Maodun was not stupid. Since the Six Kingdoms had retreated, there was no need for him to fight with the Qin army and just rob and run away. This was what the Huns liked best!
"I hope the Huns will go south to complain and fight us decisively."
But it is obvious that Maodun's purpose is to plunder the population, not to collect all the people in their hometown.
Zhang Han couldn't help but regret: "In this way, it seems that we have driven the Huns out of Henan, but in fact, they can still occupy Beijia and the south of Yinshan Mountain, and can go south again at any time to attack our frontier fortress. In this way,
The tens of thousands of troops could only be dragged by the Xiongnu to the north, Shuofang and Shangjun, unable to move!"
…
At the same time, Han Xin, who did not yet know the specific movements of the Xiongnu, was in Yulin in the north of Shangjun. While he was delighted with the Hou Yin he had obtained, he was also pondering the meaning of this "Yishan Hou".
After a setback, Han Xin was far from swollen enough to dare to say anything to Hei Fu, "The king can only command a hundred thousand ministers, the more the better." In addition, there was little ink in his stomach. After asking several military scribes in succession, Han Xin finally
I "understood" Marquis Wu Zhong's good intentions.
"What's beneficial is better."
"The good is the best."
Han Xin pondered: "Is this encouraging me not to be satisfied with the achievements in front of me, but to continue to forge ahead, obtain better and greater achievements, and become the Marquis of Che?"
But now, there is an opportunity in front of Han Xin to strengthen the army.
A foreigner with a thick beard and braided hair stood in front of Han Xin, claiming to be Lou Fanjun's envoy, and was making a request to him that, to the ears of Central Plains people, was unbelievable and overestimating one's capabilities.
"As long as the general can give us one thousand kilograms of gold cakes, he will be our employer. The three thousand knights on the floor can serve the general with their bows and horses within the next year!"
