In the large tent of the military camp, Guo Song listened to Wang Yue's report and asked again: "Except for the inn, are there no problems with other Sogdian merchants?"
"Reporting to the Governor, Beizhi and his subordinates have conducted thorough investigations for two consecutive nights and found no traces of homing pigeons in other homes. Moreover, Beizhi separately interrogated two Shatuo spies and the innkeeper. They both admitted that except for them, there were no other Shatuo spies.
It's a spy."
Guo Song nodded and said: "The next step is to send a letter to the Shatuo army. I have prepared a draft. You will send it to the Shatuo people this morning using pigeon letters. Remember, you must use Sogdian characters. I guess this is
An agreement within Shatuo’s army.”
Wang Yue was a little embarrassed, so he took the draft and said: "I would like to report to the Governor, I have no one under my command who is good at Sogdian writing."
Guo Song thought for a while and said: "I will immediately inform the county magistrate and ask him to transfer two civil servants who are good at Sogdian and Turkic languages to your staff. The tax collector named Jiang is very good. Of course, he must be well-known. I have already
We have decided to set up an internal affairs battalion, specifically responsible for dealing with enemy spies hiding in the city. The difference from the scout battalion is that the city wall is the boundary. The scout battalion is responsible for outside the city wall, while the internal affairs battalion is responsible for inside the city wall. Report directly to me, and you will be in charge.
The first commander is equivalent to a general."
Wang Yue was overjoyed, knelt down on one knee and clasped his fists, saying: "I am willing to do my best to make you a dog and a horse."
Guo Song waved his hands and said with a smile: "Get up! I have something to explain."
Wang Yue stood up, and Guo Song continued: "There will be many things in the internal affairs camp in the future. Twenty people are only temporary. You have to pay attention to the soldiers with strong martial arts skills and strive to expand the internal affairs camp to 300 people within the year. There will be no set up for the time being.
School captain and captain, directly below you are the brigade commanders. There are thirty people in a brigade. All brigade commanders need to be loyal to me. In name, you are my personal barracks. I will take you with me when I am mobilized in the future.
"
"I understand the humble position!"
Guo Song continued: "You send out the pigeon message first this morning. I will restrain Mengzi from hurting the pigeon again. In the afternoon, Mr. Zhang will come to help you set up the internal affairs camp. There are many details to consider, including the venue.
, expenses, equipment, establishment, etc.”
"In this humble position, I will send the pigeon message first, and then ask for more information from the two Shatuo spies."
Guo Song nodded. Wang Yue had thought carefully and had already thought of pursuing the opponent's intelligence from Shatuo's spies. This was very good.
After Wang Yue left, Guo Song smiled and said to Zhang Qianyi, who was sorting out documents: "I will ask sir to help set up the internal affairs camp this afternoon."
Zhang Qianyi nodded. He knew that establishing a new organization required many complicated things to be considered, which could not be explained clearly in a few sentences.
"We will discuss this afternoon with General Wang and try to come up with a draft for the Governor to review tomorrow, but..."
Zhang Qianyi hesitated for a moment, and Guo Song smiled and said, "Sir, tell me what you have to say!"
"I know that the Internal Affairs Battalion is not a trivial matter. Its function is actually equivalent to the Hidden Sword Pavilion. Generally, the most trusted confidants are appointed as commanders. Wang Yue and Liang Wu, Yao Jin and Li Bing are different."
Zhang Qianyi's implication is that this Wang Yue did not follow Guo Song to Anxi, and he was appointed as the commander of the internal affairs battalion without going through various tests. Isn't it a bit hasty?
Guo Song pondered for a while and said: "I considered it from two aspects. First, the internal affairs camp has just started, and loyalty can be cultivated slowly. This Wang Yue has good abilities, careful thinking, and is very suitable for this position. Secondly, he was born in Kongtong like me.
Mountains give me a sense of intimacy, and I also hope to be a meritocracy and try to avoid nepotism, but in fact, sometimes I can't avoid it."
"The humble position is just a reminder. As the governor said, loyalty can be slowly observed over time, and loyalty should be gradually observed. Now we should really focus on ability."
Guo Song smiled slightly, "I believe he will not let me down!"
.......
In the afternoon, the martial arts field was bustling with activity. Twenty thousand people from Ganzhou gathered together to watch the Ganzhou Army’s cavalry and shooting general competition. Basically all brigade commanders and captains signed up to participate, a total of more than 120 people.
Competing for the vacancies of three generals.
This competition was organized by the Dudu Mansion, and the judges were the current seven lieutenant generals. Li Hui had already left, and his position was currently vacant, but Guo Song had other considerations.
The vacancies of these three generals were caused by the resignation of Hu, Zhang Liang and another general. The confidants brought by Guo Song have been appointed. Although the scout battalion and the internal affairs camp are both generals, they
Without occupying the quota for army command, Guo Song decided to appoint him through a public competition.
The reason why he starts with the brigade commander instead of the soldier is mainly because of the attitude of the Ministry of War. Guo Song can make an exception and promote him to two or three levels in a row, but not excessively. He can directly promote the soldier to a general. In that way, the Ministry of War
At the same time, Guo Song should also give due consideration to his qualifications. Generally, those who can serve as brigade commanders have served in the army for more than five years and have a certain official rank. If they are promoted to generals, they will not be criticized for lack of qualifications.
The war horses galloped and yellow dust billowed. Immediately, the general drew his bow and nocked an arrow, shooting an arrow at the wooden target a hundred steps away.
In the era of cold weapons, cavalry and archery have always been the highest level of a general's martial arts. This is also the case when Mu Zhenren brought Guo Song to Ganzhou to practice cavalry and archery for three years.
The mountain Taoist priests practice chivalrous martial arts. They can fight alone, but they cannot go on the battlefield.
Ganzhou is located in the Hexi Corridor and has plenty of war horses. The generals here are basically good at riding and shooting. The difference is just a matter of level.
A general shot an arrow from a hundred steps away, hitting the wooden figure right in the face. The 20,000 soldiers suddenly burst into cheers. Then they fired two arrows from left to right while running, finishing three arrows within the prescribed 150 steps.
Both were shot in the neck and chest, resulting in a high score of twenty-seven points plus an additional three points.
The full score is thirty-eight points, including ten points for three consecutive hits, plus additional points for a three-point shot and a flawless five points.
Although the brigade commander failed to hit three arrows in a row, he was already very good. He hit three critical points in a row and got a high score of thirty points. So far, he is already the highest-scoring general.
"What's this man's name?" Guo Song asked in a low voice.
Wang Qi, the military officer of Bing Cao, said quickly: "This man is the brigade commander of the third battalion. His name is Pei Xin and he is from Hedong."
"Li Bing's subordinates?"
"Exactly!"
Guo Song nodded and continued to watch the battle...
While the riding and archery competition was being held in the military camp, Wang Yue and Zhang Qianyi were also discussing the details of setting up the internal affairs camp in the governor's office in the city.
There were two people sitting next to him, one named Jiang Shaoyou and the other Li Nian. They were both tax collectors in the county. Jiang Shaoyou was proficient in Sogdian and Tubo, while Li Nian was proficient in Turkic. Both of them were excited. How could they
I never expected that I would actually be selected into the Internal Affairs Battalion and serve as a military officer. Although their military service is not yet classified as a civilian official and has no rank, they can usually be recognized by the court and obtain an official position from the ninth rank after a few years.
The two just listened and remained silent.
Zhang Qianyi said slowly: "What the governor means is that the internal affairs camp is not open to the public and only exists as a personal barracks, but its function is to detect enemy spies in the city. Not only the Shatuo people, but also the Tubo and Uighur people will send people in the future.
Come here, not only Zhangye City, but also other county towns, the internal affairs battalion will exist for a long time, and the number will be increased to 300 before the end of the year, and the number of civil servants will be increased to five."
Wang Yue thought for a while and asked: "How about the soldiers' equipment, treatment and station arrangements?"
"The soldiers' equipment must be the best. They are stationed in a small military camp next to the governor's house. The military office is located here, and the sign is the Military-Civil Liaison Department. As for the soldiers' salary and treatment, the governor means that it will be based on the personal soldiers' salary.
treatment.
That is to say, the normal military salary of the imperial court every month, and then at the end of the year, the governor will personally give everyone a reward, which will definitely satisfy everyone. If there is a disability or death, the pension will be based on the standards of the brigade commander, and the governor will personally give another reward
It is said that not only soldiers, but also civilian officials." Zhang Qianyi glanced at the two military officers.
........
At dusk, in a tavern in the east of the city, Jiang Shaoyou and Li Nian sat opposite each other. The two had a good relationship and often came here to drink together. Jiang Shaoyou poured a glass of wine and said, "What did Commander Zhang mean by those words today?
Brother, do you understand?"
Li Nian picked up the wine glass and said with a smile: "Brother Jiang is talking about salary and benefits, right?"
"Exactly! I'm a little confused, why does the governor still pay out of his own pocket at the end of the year?"
Although Li Nian is two years younger than Jiang Shaoyou, his mind is much more flexible than Jiang Shaoyou. He smiled slightly and said: "Didn't you listen to what Zhang Shijun said? Treat him as a personal soldier. What does it mean to be regarded as a personal soldier? Wang Lien
How do the soldiers get their salaries? Isn't it just a portion of the imperial salary and a portion of the money given by Wang Lianen himself? The same should be true for Governor Guo, and I heard that Governor Guo is very rich, so what he gives us will definitely surprise us.
"
"But Wang Lien's personal soldiers are going to be taken away, are we going to be taken away too?" Jiang Shaoyou was still puzzled.
Li Nian shook his head secretly, Jiang Shaoyou's head was really lumpy, why didn't he get his head straight?
"Brother Jiang, the personal barracks and the internal affairs battalion have always been the right-hand man of the party. Especially the internal affairs battalion, it is not just as simple as investigating the enemy's spies. In a word, he will definitely follow the governor in the future. If Brother Jiang wants a stable life
Life, if you don’t want to take risks, then resign as soon as possible, it’s still not too late.”
Jiang Shaoyou finally understood. He lowered his head and couldn't say a word for a long time.