On the fifth day after entering Liucheng, Lieutenant General Li Cheng stabilized the situation in the city a little, and began to think about the welfare of the victor. There was no way, he was really short of money, and his family also owed a lot of debt, which can be said to be a staggering debt.
During several battles in Bailang Mountain, he paid a large sum of money for the settlement of the families of soldiers who died in the war, pensions for injured soldiers, and rewards for meritorious soldiers. This did not include the land promised to the soldiers. At that time, everyone was in Bailang Mountain.
Everyone knows that Li Chengzhong has no money, and now that he has escaped from Bailang Mountain, it is unreasonable to delay it any longer.
The huge amount of this expenditure gave Li Chengzhong a headache. He quietly calculated that after several battles, the total bounty and pensions to be distributed reached 23,000 guan! The reason for such a high number is
Because his men had accumulated too many military exploits in several battles, especially in the decisive battle between the northern foot of Bailang Mountain and the main force of the Khitan Division, almost all the teams and men had achieved meritorious service, and at the same time, the soldiers who died and were injured were not injured.
few.
There are also many soldiers who have performed meritorious services many times, and the total reward they can receive is astonishing. Except for special cases such as beheading enemy generals, Li Chengzhong's troops do not calculate military merit based on beheading. The reward is based on the number of meritorious service performed by combat units.
calculate.
In the case of Luo Yuan'an, commander of the fifth group of the left team of the former battalion Jiadu, he was under the command of Zhong Silang when Yuguan City fell. During the battle, Zhong Silang's group achieved collective merit, for which Luo Yuan'an received a reward of 10,000 yuan. He was injured in the battle and received a pension.
Five thousand gold.
During the defensive battle of the White Wolf Mountain military stronghold, Luo Yuanan and Zhong Silang successfully delayed the Khitan people from entering the mountain and made another meritorious service, and were rewarded with another 10,000 yuan.
During the first raid on the Khitan Pinbu camp, Luo Yuanan continued to perform meritorious service and was rewarded with a reward of 10,000 yuan.
In the second raid on the Khitan camp and the battle at the northern foot of Bailang Mountain, he made great achievements and was rewarded with a reward of 10,000 yuan. He personally killed the Khitan infantry general Bu Deng and was rewarded with a reward of 5,000 yuan.
When he stormed Liucheng, Li Chengzhong promised a reward of five thousand to each of the hundreds of people accompanying him, including Luo Yuan'an.
In total, Li Chengzhong owed Luo Yuanan 55,000 yuan, or 55 guan. This amount does not include monthly salary. If monthly salary is added, it will reach 65 guan. In other words, Luo Yuanan took this money
From now on, he can live a worry-free life for at least five years. If the rewarded acres are also cashed in, he can even retire honorably and enjoy a happy life from now on.
Well, part of it, especially the monthly salary, will be paid by Pingzhou, and part of the bounty can also be obtained from Zhou Zhiyu, but even so, Li Chengzhong cannot repay such a huge debt.
The matter of repaying the debt is another matter for another time. The military recruitment is imminent, and the cost of the military recruitment is a huge expense. This matter cannot be delayed.
Therefore, Li Chengzhong can't wait to enjoy the benefits of the victor. As the victor of Liucheng, Li Chengzhong cannot burn, kill, and loot like other places, because Liucheng is his planned territory, and he cannot kill the goose to obtain the eggs, nor can he go there.
Do. And those Khitan ministers and elders, who he relies heavily on for help in the current situation, are unlikely to raid their homes. The only thing he currently places hope on is the money in Liucheng's treasury.
Looking forward to the stars and the moon, when Feng Dao finished counting the accounts, Li Chengzhong quickly asked how much money was in the treasury. The greedy light in his eyes was like a hungry wolf, which made Feng Dao tremble.
"What? You said there is no money in the treasury?" Li Chengzhong stared at Feng Dao fiercely, his tone extremely unkind.
"Once again, it's not that there is no money in the treasury, but that there is no treasury in Liucheng at all!" Feng Dao spread his hands and said helplessly.
"Then what have you been counting these days?" Li Chengzhong asked.
"The number of people, the number of acres, the number of craftsmen's households, the business contracts of shops, the condition of houses in various streets and lanes in the city...there are all kinds of them, but there is no treasury. These books are very messy, and it is difficult to count them...
…”
"Then who made these catalogs?" Li Chengzhong asked again.
Behind Feng Dao, a scribe with a green scarf on his head flashed out and lay on the ground: "General, spare your life, it was all done by villains before, and they were also forced. The villains are not Khitans, they are Xi people.
I studied in Liucheng for several years. It was the Khitans who forced the villain to work for them, and there was nothing the villain could do..."
After entering Liucheng, Li Chengzhong often encountered Hu people who would always kneel on the ground and worship. He was not used to it. Now he was even more impatient. He grabbed the scribe and asked: "Where is the Khitan treasury? Why are there no accounts?"
"
The scribe trembled and said: "General, the Khitan people don't have a treasury, and they don't need it. All the wealth is divided among the Khitan nobles... villains be damned, it's all divided among the Khitan leaders."
"Then how do they get military pay when they go to war?" Li Chengzhong was puzzled.
"There is no mention of military pay. The Khitan soldiers all belong to the elders of each family. When the elders call, the Khitan people gather together. The weapons and horses are all their own. After the battle, the things they grab are directly divided..."
Li Chengzhong was completely speechless. He was indeed a backward and barbaric man who didn't even think about himself. So what should he do?
Collect taxes?——Water from afar cannot quench the thirst of the nearer.
Confiscating the house? - At present, we have to rely on the power of the Khitan elders to control Liucheng, so it is not possible either.
However, it is conceivable that the senior officials who have occupied Liucheng for several years must be so wealthy. Li Chengzhong is really unwilling to let them vomit some blood. But this requires some methods, both to knock out a
The windfall came, but he could not break through the bottom line of the elders. He planned to take his time, boil the frog in warm water, and let the elders spit out the wealth one by one.
After thinking for a moment, he already had an idea, so he ordered people to go to the back hall to find his cheap son Wuli. He planned to ask Wuli to come forward and set up a fund-raising committee, while he hid behind and tasted the elders' money.
Let Wu Li bear the anger. It is only natural for a son to share his father's worries, no matter where he goes.
Wu Li was studying in the back hall "under orders".
At this time, the Khitan had not developed into a country, and of course there was no so-called Khitan script in later generations. Whether the Khitan people, the Xi people, or even the Mohe people who had created the Bohai script, in fact, they were all loyal fans of the Central Plains culture and tribal people.
The upper class nobles are proud of being able to speak Chinese and write Chinese characters.
Wuli is no exception. He himself is the young man of the tribe, and his mother is a nobleman of the Shulu family, so he has received education in this field since he was a child.
Arriving at the front hall, Wu Li bent down deeply and bowed: "I wonder if you have anything to tell me when you call me here?" In the past few days, under Li Chengzhong's guidance, Wu Li no longer crouched beside Li Chengzhong.
Instead of kissing his ankles, Wuli began to behave according to Han etiquette, as if he regarded himself as a real Han. In Wuli's own words, since he is the son of a Han, he must correct his position.
All barbarian customs and bad rules should be changed.
Looking at Wu Li who was becoming more and more modest and gentlemanly, Li Chengzhong couldn't help but laugh. He reached out and touched Wu Li's head, just like he stroked his pet dog before time travel. Wu Li quickly shortened his body so that Li Chengzhong could touch him.
It's more convenient to get up.
After listening to Li Chengzhong explain his intention, Wu Li hurriedly said: "Your Excellency's idea is very good. I will organize this fund-raising committee immediately, which will definitely make you feel at ease... However, I have another idea that can relieve your worries immediately...
…”
Li Chengzhong immediately became interested: "Say it quickly!"
Wu Li said: "Your Excellency, you know that Tuli and Er are sworn enemies. Although he is dead now, he has been stubbornly resisting the power of the Han people before. Is it possible that everything will be over after death? How can it be so cheap? Now his
Most of the die-hard loyalists were killed by our Han army on the banks of the White Wolf River, and there was no problem at all in treating their family members."
Li Chengzhong slapped his forehead. Really, he had been so busy these past few days that he didn't even think of this. But... he asked again: "If you operate on him, will the elders feel... what... the rabbit is dead and the fox is sad.
feeling?"
Wuli flattered and said with a smile: "My lord, there is no need to worry. The whole grassland knows that I have come forward to do this. The whole grassland knows that, according to the rules of the Khitan people, since he failed in the fight for the position, everything about him is
It's my son's, it's only natural for me to collect my own things, and no one can say anything about it. Everything that belongs to my son, of course, belongs to you as well..."
Tuli's tribe lived in a house in the east of the city, which occupied an entire street.
In the afternoon of that day, Wu Li led the "Wolf Army" Baiqi from the front battalion led by Xie Li and rushed into the house. Since most of the men from the Tuli tribe died in the battle by the White Wolf River, the rest here were
They were women, children, old and young, and they had no power to resist in the face of the vicious "wolf army".
Ever since Dalangjun Tuli died in battle and the news came that Liucheng was captured by the Pingzhou Army, Tuli's tribe had already known their fate. They waited in panic for a few days. When Wuli led the "Wolf Army" to charge
When they came in, many people even breathed a sigh of relief. No matter how they dealt with it, it was better to have a result than to wait in fear.
When the "Wolf Army" rushed into more than a dozen warehouses in the back house, they were shocked by what they saw. Large wooden boxes were piled up in the warehouse, and when they were opened, they were all filled with copper coins; on the rows of wooden shelves
, all kinds of gold and silver utensils, jade and jewelry of various colors are neatly placed; there is also a warehouse where armors and weapons are stored, most of which are bright and bright. In addition, according to the account books found, there are several pastures outside Liucheng.
Many of them were snatched from Wuli, and even more were seized from Yanjun, especially those armors and weapons. Because Tuli led the army south earlier, these things were only available after he led his troops.
They were escorted from Yan County to Liucheng, so they were kept in the warehouse without being used. Li Chengzhong took advantage of them all.
When the final statistics were reported to Li Chengzhong and Feng Dao, they looked at each other and were speechless for a long time:
There are two hundred and eighty-three thousand seven hundred and forty-three coins; half of them are Tang coins, including "Jianzhong Tongbao", "Dali Yuanbao", and many earlier "Kaiyuan Tongbao"; the other half is
Bohai coins are engraved with Chinese and Bohai characters on the front and back respectively, with the words "Xianhe Tongbao" written on them;
Eight hundred and ninety-two pieces of gold, silver, jade, jewelry, etc.;
There are three hundred and nine gold ingots, totaling three thousand and ninety taels;
One hundred pairs of fine leather armor, three pairs of bright light armor, seven pairs of fine scale armor, and thirteen pairs of chain mail;
One hundred and fifty-seven high-quality horizontal knives, seventeen lacquered spears, twenty Mo knives, ten heavy axes, and sixteen hand crossbows;
A thousand cattle, eighteen thousand sheep, and more than seven hundred war horses;
…
Li Chengzhong swallowed, and after a while he called Wu Li to him again, touched his head affectionately, and said warmly: "Yes, you did a good job... By the way, I remember the battle at the northern foot of Bailang Mountain.
Among them, two tribal elders who followed Tuli were also killed on the spot. According to the rules of the Khitan people, are they considered die-hard members of Tuli?"