After Touman Chanyu went to inquire about it, he was excited to find that the fact was just as they had guessed. The weapons used by Yunzhong County soldiers to deal with cavalry, such as new crossbows, bed crossbows and rope arrows, were not available in other parts of the Central Plains.
For a time, Mao Dun felt confused: If Yunzhong County had the method to make these things, why didn’t the Central Plains region imitate them?
What Mao Dun didn't know was that these things looked simple but were actually not that easy to make.
The difficulty lies in the method of making iron...all of them, even the arrows, are based on the new iron.
There is no new iron, so foot-operated crossbows, bed crossbows or rope arrows are made of bronze. Although they have an appearance but no inside, they look the same but break and get damaged after just a few uses.
Shen Bing had even made an excuse... If others heard the news and asked, Shen Bing would answer that it was made by smelting iron with water and improving the quality of the iron.
The fact is that smelting iron with water can indeed improve iron quality, but not to this extent.
But if Shen Bing hadn't told him, and the blacksmith was under strict confidentiality measures, who would know what was going on?
Touman Shanyu and Maodun don't need to know this, they just need to know that the Central Plains does not have such terrifying equipment.
Of course they would not miss this opportunity, and they were overjoyed and immediately sent troops south to plunder.
However, they did not dare to move south in large numbers because they were worried that Yunzhong County's surprise attack would cut off their retreat. Instead, they stationed 30,000 troops to the north of Yunzhong County.
This was exactly what Shen Bing wanted to see. What he did was send a force of 3,000 infantry and cavalry to protect Yunzhong County's own supply lines, especially Hequ Village, where Nishi was taken.
In fact, protecting Hequ Village means protecting the supply line, because most of the reinforcements traveling north along the Yellow River from the Central Plains to Yunzhong County must pass through Hequ Village.
The Xiongnu seemed to have a "tacit understanding" with the northern soldiers. As long as they saw the "Shen" flag from a distance, they would take a detour...
Just kidding, last time a team of 3,000 people defeated tens of thousands of Xiongnu's elite cavalry. How could they offend those wandering and looting Xiongnu teams?!
The main ones that were plundered were Yanmen County, and further south were Taiyuan and Handan counties. With the strength of the Xiongnu at this time and their new defeat at the hands of Shen Bing, they did not dare to go deep even with their brave hearts and leopards' courage.
The governor of Yanmen County is named Wu Xiao, and he is a public official.
This Wu Xiao was a surrendered general of the Yan State... He brought troops to surrender and was given a title. At the same time, because he had been stationed on the border for a long time in the Yan State and had experience fighting the Huns, he was sent to Yanmen County as a county guard.
Wu Xiao had no complaints about the Huns coming to Yanmen County to plunder. On the contrary, he breathed a sigh of relief.
This is what he reported to Ying Zheng:
"Yunzhong County only has more than 10,000 troops, while the Huns have an army of nearly 70,000."
"I originally thought that the Xiongnu would invade in large numbers and was prepared to resist the enemy. However, I did not want the Xiongnu to be afraid of the Yunzhong County troops and did not dare to let go and plunder..."
"Previously, I said that Shen Bing was suspected of cowardice in letting the important road go undefended."
"Now it seems that Shen Bing acted within his capabilities."
"Although Yanmen County suffered from looting, it was far less than expected!"
…
Ying Zheng couldn't help but laugh "haha" after reading the report. He threw the information to Zhao Gao with a proud look on his face:
"Didn't you say that Shen Bing was timid?"
"Look at what the governor of Yanmen County has to say!"
Zhao Gao felt bitter in his heart when he saw the information, but he still agreed on his face:
"Your Majesty is wise, everything is as expected by Your Majesty!"
"My subordinates misunderstood Shen Bing!"
Ying Zheng thought for a while and said:
"Transporting food like this is not a long-term solution."
"Zhongyuan has been transporting grain to Yunzhong County for a long time, and the losses on the ore transport road have been excessive."
"If we want to eliminate the Xiongnu troubles... we should make long-term plans."
Thinking about Ying Zheng, he asked Zhao Gao:
"Where in the Great Qin territory can people move to Yunzhong County?"
Zhao Gao couldn't help being surprised:
"Relocation?"
Ying Zheng nodded:
"Relocation."
"Zhao Wangjia took away the people of the Northland. Without the people, the Northland would not be able to develop."
"Besides, the Northland is located in a remote place outside the Great Wall. With only a garrison of over 10,000 troops, we are exhausted."
"In that case, why not move the people to the north to engage in production?"
"In this way, the Northland can at least be self-sufficient in food. It would be even more ideal if we could find copper mines to smelt weapons by ourselves!"
Zhao Gao cupped his hands and replied:
"What the king said is true, but..."
At this point, he deliberately stopped and acted as if he was hesitant to speak.
Ying Zhengqi said:
"But what?"
Zhao Gao whispered back:
"Your Majesty, forgive me."
"It was only when Li Mu was self-governing in the North that he was feared by King Zhao..."
Ying Zheng interrupted Zhao Gao with a "hum" and said:
"You are right to compare Shen Bing to Li Mu, but how can I be the mediocre King Zhao?"
Zhao Gao quickly replied:
"I'm talking too much, but I didn't mean it..."
Zhao Gao's intention to suppress Shen Bing was right, but he was too impatient.
Northland actually has a need for autonomy.
The reason is that the grain-producing areas of the Central Plains are very far away from the Northland and the transportation is not smooth... Because of the frequent exchanges between the Central Plains countries and the needs of their own development, they must build straight roads.
However, starting from Yanmen County, it is a remote area, and due to years of war, there are only a few paths in disrepair, making transportation very difficult.
As a result, there will be a problem that one or even two bags of grain need to be consumed during the transportation of one bag of grain. In addition, iron ore and the like also need grain and grass support.
At this time, Yunzhong County's military strength was only about 10,000, and including laborers, craftsmen, etc., it was only 30,000. With the national strength of the Qin Dynasty at this time, it could barely support it.
However, as the number of troops increases, the amount of food and grass required increases exponentially, and there will always be a time when the Qin Dynasty cannot hold on, especially when the great cause of unification has not yet been completed.
The solution is very simple, which is to move the people to the north to farm and govern themselves... In this way, the north can at least be self-sufficient without wasting a lot of materials on the transportation road.
As for what Zhao Gao said about "beware".
It is indeed necessary to be vigilant, but Shen Bing's power is still insignificant at this time. Ying Zheng needs to strengthen Shen Bing's power to resist the Xiongnu. This is the interest of Qin at this time.
If you really want to be careful, you have to consider it only when Shen Bing is as powerful as Li Mu. It is too early to say this now.
After thinking for a while, Zhao Gao said again:
"But the king."
"The Northland is a bitter and cold place. I'm afraid the people won't want to move north."
"If the people are forcibly moved..."
Before Zhao Gao could finish speaking, Ying Zheng asked:
"How prepared is Meng Wu?"
Zhao Gao replied:
"Your Majesty, just wait until the grain harvest is harvested!"
The time of harvest is the day of attack, which is a common practice among countries in wars.
On the one hand, this is because when the grain is harvested, there will be enough food to send troops, and on the other hand, the supplies captured after victory will be more abundant.
Then Ying Zheng nodded:
"If Meng Wu destroys the Dai Kingdom, the North will not have to worry about being without people."
Zhao Gao opened his mouth for a long time and was speechless.
It turns out that the king only asked about Meng Wu's preparations because of the Northern Territory.