Since March, the weather has been getting warmer.
On the Yellow River, one ship after another went down the river.
Since the Later Wei Dynasty built a large number of ships in Bogulu City (Lingzhou) to transport military supplies to Woye Town, the Yellow River has become an important thoroughfare in the Hetao area.
There is no need to pull fiber when going down the river, the navigation is smooth, the cargo capacity is large, and the speed is much faster than riding a horse. It can be seen from the fact that the counties in Lingzhou are lined up on the west bank of the Yellow River that they have become accustomed to the convenience of water transportation.
"Shuofang raw roast, raisins, cheese, preserved meat..." Because the Caosi (transshipment envoy) Yamen judge who led the team was worried, each ship received an order to check the material reserves again to avoid being discovered when unloading in Fengzhou.
Something is lacking.
"Where does Shuofang Shengshao come from?" the sailor accompanying the clerk suddenly asked.
"Lingzhou." The clerk replied without turning his head.
"Fake, all fake!" I don't know why, but the sailor suddenly became excited. He just heard him say: "Only the wine produced in Shuofang County, Xiazhou is the authentic Shuofang Shengshao."
The literary official was happy and said: "Five of the ten barrels of Shuofang raw roast sold on the grassland are produced in Lingzhou, three barrels are produced in Feng Sheng, and at most one or two barrels are produced in Xiazhou."
"Why do you have the nerve to call it Shuofang Shengshao when it's made in Lingzhou?" the sailor asked.
"Nowadays, the ones produced in Hedong and Hebei are also called Shuofang Shengshao." The literary official said.
"This - it's fake, it's all fake!" Sailor said angrily.
The clerk was too lazy to talk nonsense with him. After completing the inspection, he left the cabin, stood on the deck, looked at the scenery, and then froze...
On the east bank of the Yellow River, on the vast grassland, countless horses are galloping happily.
The number of horses was so great that it almost filled the whole world.
Black, white, brown, yellow, red... group after group, rushing north like a tide.
Among the horses, there are occasionally a few riders, riding their horses to drive the horses around them. They look very small, and their figures are looming in the sea of horses. If you don't look carefully, you can almost ignore them.
"It would be unlucky to be killed," the civil servant said with emotion.
He knew where the horses came from.
Dongshicheng Ranch mobilized more than 30,000 horses from Yuanzhou, Tiandu Mountain and other places.
The West Envoy City Ranch mobilized more than 40,000 horses from Qin, Hui, Wei and other places.
Yinchuan Ranch mobilized more than 30,000 horses from the Hetao Grassland, Yinzhou Mountains, and Wuding River Valley.
Fengzhou Yongqingzha Ranch has also mobilized more than 20,000 horses from the north and south of the Yellow River - and they have now arrived in Fengzhou.
The Guanbei and Longyou roads mobilized more than 100,000 horses without much effort to support the saint's march north to join the alliance.
The grassland tycoons might shed tears when they see this ability to mobilize resources: There are not many people who can mobilize more than 100,000 horses.
On the west side of Hexi, there are three major ranches, Beiji City, Heishui City, and Jiedan. In the interior, horses from Shayuanjian, Heyang, Guangchengze, Longpijian, Xiangyang and other ranches have not yet been mobilized. This is really...
While I was daydreaming, a large group of camels and horses appeared on the west bank of the river.
They set out from the Helan Mountains, expropriated many "fattening lands" along the way, and slowly headed north. The so-called "fattening lands" were the product of trade. That is, when someone on the grassland went south to sell livestock, they lost weight due to the long journey and suffered serious weight loss.
The fattening area before the market has a large amount of feed all year round.
Standing on the boat and looking at the camels, the horses' backs were loaded with luggage, and many people were pulling carriages, which were also loaded with all kinds of things.
"Who is that?" The sailor was also alarmed and asked.
The overwhelming herd of horses, one after another, never-ending, as if all the horses in the world have gathered here at this moment. Who is not shocked to see it?
"Craftsmen." The civil servant answered briefly, and then sighed: "How can the saint go north to the grassland without craftsmen accompanying him? Stonemasons, carpenters, blacksmiths, potters, painters, masons, cobblers, tailors, weavers, etc., as long as you
We have recruited all the craftsmen we can think of from Guanbei, Guannei, and Longyou, and even many construction officials have gone there."
The sailor was speechless.
"When we arrive in Fengzhou, there will be a large number of farm laborers and tribesmen recruited to transfer supplies to the grassland." The civil servant continued: "The saint just said a word, and millions of people in dozens of states were in commotion. However, it can
It is also necessary to use so much manpower and material resources. The so-called 'Emperor' is so poor that he may not even be able to raise 50,000 donkeys."
"It's really not easy to find 50,000 donkeys in Guanbei, but you can go to Caizhou to find them." The sailor said, "I heard that Huaixi, Tangdeng, Chenxu and other places are rich in donkeys and mules. It's not easy to find 50,000 donkeys."
Easy?"
The civil servant looked at him with disgust, how could he be so sincere?
"He is a warrior and a craftsman, so the saint wants to move his capital to the grassland?" The sailor couldn't understand and murmured.
The literary official chuckled and said, "Why is this so!"
In fact, he had talked with his colleagues. They had a deeper understanding of the grasslands than officials in the Central Plains.
This time, the saint is likely to go further than Tang Taizong and Tang Gaozong did: building cities, sending officials, garrisoning troops, and collecting taxes.
The three things of displacing officials, garrisoning troops, and collecting taxes may seem ordinary, but they are not easy on the grasslands. If the three are in place, it is substantive rule, not just restraint.
Has anyone done this on the grasslands in all dynasties? It seems not yet.
The former Tang Dynasty, which had the most complete control over the grasslands in ancient times, also implemented the Jisu rule. The northernmost line of the country's border stopped at the fortress at the southern foot of the Yinshan Mountain.
The same was true for the Chinese dynasty, but there were a group of tribes called "inner vassals" north of the Yin Mountains. They were deeply tied to the Central Plains and even married to the royal family. Their control was much stronger than that of the former Tang Dynasty, but they were still hereditary feudal lords.
The official's rule mode.
If we succeed in building a city on the Qibei Grassland this time and forming a certain scale of reclamation, and then garrisoning troops, dispatching officials, adjudicating various grassland affairs, and collecting cattle, sheep, and skins as taxes from them, it will be truly a pioneering work.
It is true that if someone rebels in the grassland, it is indeed possible to capture the city, but at least it is a powerful attempt. Even if it is captured, with the management of the country in the Yinshan and Qinan grasslands, it can still organize people and horses to recapture it.
In this way, the positive significance is that the national border has been pushed further. The Qibei grassland has become a place where the two sides have repeatedly fought and fought. The Qinnan and Yinshan areas are as stable as Mount Tai, and the Central Plains will not feel the threat of war.
I am afraid that someone will not settle accounts. I think it is not worth spending a lot of money in a bitter and cold place like Qibei, so I suggest giving it up. As everyone knows, once Qibei is lost, the Qinan grassland will not be stable. At that time, people will make a surprise attack and invade.
The wealthy Hetao area was plundered on a large scale. How much damage would be caused?
Some people just can only calculate the immediate accounts, but not the long-term accounts.
The same is true in the South.
If people keep rebelling in Annan, do you want to give up? If you give up, Wu Guan will become the front line, and people will invade Yongzhou and massacre hundreds of thousands of people. How many years of military expenses will this loss be enough for you to pay in Annan?
"I bought a new five-foot sword and hung it on the center beam. I had three sexual pleasures in one day, and the drama was fifteen women." A melodious song came from the west of Hexi.
At first, only one person sang, but gradually, everyone in the camel team started singing.
The clerk kept time and subconsciously sang along.
Looking at the overwhelming crowd of horses, looking at the camel caravan meandering under the setting sun, looking at the boats one after another, listening to these heroic songs in his ears without any melodious sound, he suddenly felt
, the Grassland Alliance's control of Qibei does not seem to be so far-fetched.
******
At the end of March, Shao Shude arrived in Fengzhou again.
I still remember that last year, he told Xiu Niang that it might be the last time he would meet her in this life, but God knows how to joke. Only a year later, Shao Shude went to her house for dinner again.
There were many troops accompanying him.
The Tielin Army's four cavalrymen commanded two thousand cavalry, led by Zheng Yong, the Marquis of Duyu.
The Tianxiong Army was commanded by four cavalrymen, led by Wang Jianji, the envoy of the capital Youyi.
The Wuwei Army was commanded by four cavalrymen, led by Yuan Xingqin, the military envoy of the left wing.
The Tiande army was commanded by four cavalrymen, led by deputy envoy He Gui.
The cavalry army totaled ten thousand people and was led by military envoy Oritsugu Yu.
The Flying Bear Army has 2,600 cavalry and is led by military envoy Wang Chong.
Feilong, Jindao, and Heigui each have three commanders, with a total of 18,000 people, commanded by Yang Liang, Du Yanqiu, and Li Sizhao respectively.
The Fengguo army dispatched two thousand cavalry, commanded by Zhu Jin.
Pinglu and Hengye armies each dispatched thousands of cavalry, commanded by Gao Xingzhou and Gao Youqing.
There are also more than 7,200 people from Yin'anzhi. During the western tour of Qinzhou, some talented people from Longyou's wealthy family were recruited - more than 3,000 palace guards.
There are about 60,000 soldiers and horses in total, and they are basically the essence of the country. Everyone can ride a horse, and most of them are proficient in mounted combat. All of them, like Yin Ma Zhi, have cold-forged monkey armor, so they can ride on foot.
Quite a huge scale!
Bringing these people north to join the alliance would be a good deal. After the alliance ends, the grass will enter a period of vigorous growth. By then, it will be a matter of course for them to take advantage of the trend and march westward.
Of course, this is just the troops of the Western Expedition.
On the southern front, Shao Shude appointed Zang Dubao, the military envoy of Tianxiong Army, as the formation envoy, and dispatched 20,000 infantry and 10,000 cavalry from the five armies of Tianxiong, Wuwei, Tielin, Yicong and Tiande.
Twelve thousand mounted infantry were drawn from the Golden Sword, Feilong, and Heiji armies.
The Fengguo army consisted of 5,000 infantrymen, 2,000 Wangjuzi barbarians, and 10,000 elite troops drawn from the Pinglu, Hengye, Luoyan, Guangjie, and Jinqian armies.
A total of 59,000 cavalry were carried by Zang Du, and were divided into three groups: Fu Cunshen, Wang Tan, Yang Can, Xie Yanzhang, Liu Han, Ma Sixun, Ye Li Kecheng, Xia Luqi, Li Cunxu, Gao Siji, Li Siyuan and others.
Manage all ministries and obey their orders.
It’s not that I don’t want to bring more troops and horses, but the supplies that the Hexi Corridor can provide are limited. Furthermore, with the strength of the Gaochang Uighurs, 50,000 or 60,000 troops and horses are enough, not to mention the larger scale of the northern grassland dispatch, which can effectively attract
The enemy's main force creates opportunities for the southern front.
Soldiers are more valuable than finesse, that's pretty much it.
Shao Shude climbed into the attic of Xiu's mother's house and looked at the army camped on both sides of the Yellow River.
In the evening breeze, drums were beating continuously.
Each army entered the camp in order, neat and orderly.
Needless to say, the battlefield veterans themselves give people an unusual feeling.
"In the past, Dai Shulun had a poem that said, 'The banners of the Han family are all over the Yinshan Mountains, and they will not send back the horses and horses.' I got it." Shao Shude stroked the railing with both hands and said with a smile: "What's the point of burying one's head in the capital in the eucalyptus tablets?"
?Come to this world once and follow my heart. Frost and snow cut human flesh, and iron cavalry circle the dragon city. This is the romance of a man."
