The two hundred troops borrowed by the Zhizhi envoy were finally returned, leaving more than sixty.
Not all of those who disappeared were killed in battle, but a large number became deserters.
The desertion rate of soldiers in the Song Dynasty has always been very high. Initially, military law stipulated that if more than 20% of soldiers deserted, officers at all levels would be guilty and punished: 20% of deserters would be demoted to one officer, 25% of evaders would be demoted to two officers... 45% of evaders would be demoted to six officers, and
Stay on probation. If sent down to active duty, the general will be dismissed.
Because the phenomenon of desertion was so serious, the law was changed to ten points in the fifth year of Yuanfeng, that is, if more than 10% of soldiers deserted, officers would be punished.
But by the end of the Northern Song Dynasty, no officer was convicted of desertion.
In the fourth year of Chongning reign of Emperor Huizong of the Song Dynasty, the Minister of Secretariat talked about the issue of desertion and said something like this: "Nowadays, military attaches are no longer punished, and military attachés are even less considerate of the soldiers. Along the Xihe Road alone, the number of deserters is close to 40,000. The frontline military commanders responded to this question
Don't listen or ask."
When a soldier runs away, it is not because he is cowardly, because he can run away even if he does not fight.
They don't have enough to eat, they don't receive military pay, and they suffer abuse. It would be strange if there were no deserters.
Ju Ming asked all these Xiang troops to return to the army and recruited farmers to supplement them.
The army of 500 infantry and 50 cavalry was now fully established. They drilled every three days, had enough food and pay, and their morale improved rapidly.
Really, there is no need to deliberately boost morale, just give them enough food and pay and they will be willing to obey.
He also recruited three hundred Han people and two hundred familiar barbarians to serve as rural soldiers.
The army trained by Ju Ming thus reached 1,050 people.
During the training of soldiers, a large number of return cannons were built. They were all made of sun-dried wood to create the simplest version. The production cost was not high, which highlighted a numerical advantage.
Yuwen often wrote to the court to inform the court that the barbarians were moving this year, requesting for military training and defense, and also requested funds from Chengdu Prefecture.
School grounds.
Several batches of Xiang soldiers and rural soldiers recruited successively were all practicing at this moment. Zhu Ming smiled and asked: "What does Yang Pan think?"
"The army is majestic." Yang Shandao smiled and nodded.
The level of Lizhou was too low and there was no deputy envoy for regiment training. The military magistrate was responsible for related affairs.
As a military judge, Yang Shandao knew nothing about military training. Moreover, he was demoted and had already been completely relieved. He did not mind at all that Ju Ming took away his power.
If the military training failed, he could impeach Ju Ming for overstepping his authority.
If he trains troops and wins the battle, he can take the opportunity to share the credit.
Ju Ming has not been home for half a month. The first batch of Xiang soldiers trained every three days. The newly recruited rural soldiers had to train for fifteen days. Ju Ming slept in the military camp every day to train with them.
"There are two people outside the camp, claiming to be the county's servants."
"Let them in."
Zhu Ming practiced for a while, and the military judge Yang Shandao left. Soon Deng Chun and Guan Sheng were brought.
Ju Ming asked: "Why are you here?"
Deng Chun cupped his hands and said, "My husband was worried that Dalang was short of manpower, so he asked brothers Guan and I to come over. Brother Shi (Shi Yuangong) sent additional manpower to help."
Ju Ming said: "You've come just in time, let's go practice together."
The regular Xiang army has officers, 51 officers among the 500 people. Ju Ming has assigned local officers to assume various positions.
Zhang Bor and Li Bao were outsiders and were now appointed as temporary officers of the rural soldiers. Deng Chun and Guan Sheng were also thrown into the ranks of the rural soldiers.
In the official history, there are some records about victory when Liu Yu sent gold.
"History of the Song Dynasty": "(Liu Yu) killed his general Guan Sheng and led the people to pay gold."
"History of the Jin Dynasty": "Yu then defeated the pass and surrendered."
Whether this Guan Sheng is Guan Sheng, the hero of Liangshan, can only be guessed through clues.
Zhang Shuye forced Song Jiang to surrender, and his leaders were dispersed and arranged. Later, Zhang Shuye was transferred to Jinan, where Liu Yu surrendered.
One possibility is that after Song Jiang accepted the recruitment, Zhang Shuye felt that Guan Sheng was good, so he took him as a general, and took him to Jinan as a military attaché, and he also became known as the "Jinan Heroic General" ("History of the Jin Dynasty")
:The winner is a brave general from Jinan who repeatedly left the city to refuse to fight.)
Zhang Shuye left Jinan Guan Sheng and became Liu Yu's subordinate. Because he refused to pay the money and repeatedly went out to fight in the city, Liu Yu had no choice but to kill Guan Sheng.
Ju Ming asked: "What kind of weapons can Brother Guan be good at?"
Guan Sheng replied: "Lance."
"I will recruit ten more rural soldiers. You will be the squad leader. If you train well, you will be promoted." Zhu Ming then said to Deng Chun. "You stay with me and serve as the deputy general of the Chinese army. I will train the Chinese army in peacetime."
On Ju Ming's side, military training was in full swing.
Yu Wenchang was responsible for implementing the overall plan. He deliberately spread false news, saying that the Xuhen Ministry had plundered the Han people and now planned to train troops for conquest.
Although the Xuhen tribe has tens of thousands of members, the living conditions are even worse. The villages are scattered among the mountains, and it takes a month to gather tribal soldiers.
tribe".)
When Han officials conquer barbarians, the Xuhen Department is an excellent choice.
As expected, the Sichuan barbarians of the Qiong tribe had no doubts. Ju Meng planned to lead his troops to attack the northeastern territory of the Lianglin tribe while the Han people were conquering the Xuhen tribe after the autumn harvest.
The Xuhen Department was frightened when they received the news, and the great ghost master Amian hurriedly sent his son over to argue that they had not robbed the Han people.
Yu Wenchang pretended that he would send someone to investigate and detain the prince of the Xuhen Department.
In the blink of an eye, the summer grain collection had been completed, and Ju Ming ordered that the summer grain and miscellaneous taxes be reduced or exempted for the soldiers' families. For a time, morale became even higher.
It’s just that the finances of Lizhou and Hanyuan County are a bit unsustainable...
…
Under the scorching sun, a group of people came from the north.
Lin Xu wiped the sweat from his forehead and rode forward slowly, complaining in his heart about the terrible weather, the terrible place and the terrible errands.
He was a former governor of Kaifeng, and he was actually sent to Lizhou to inquire about the situation.
I still suffered from not studying enough.
Lin Xin initially clung to Cai Jing and was promoted like a rocket, but there was always a dark cloud hanging over his head.
He was appreciated by Cai Jing and served as the messenger on duty, responsible for singing the names of tributes. There was a graduate of Taixue named "Zhen An". For Lin Xin, these two characters were so unfamiliar that he actually pronounced them wrong in public.
Cai Jing's political opponents immediately seized the opportunity to impeach him.
From then on, Lin Xun only had to be transferred back to the capital to serve as an official. After less than a year, he was brought up again, and then he was demoted to a local magistrate. After the limelight was over, he returned to the capital, and then was demoted to be a magistrate, and was even thrown away for a time.
Raise the Taoist temple.
Now he has switched to Tong Guan and serves as "Quan Privy Councilor".
This is a temporary position that often also serves as a daily minister, and at the same time takes orders from the emperor and the Privy Council.
When he arrived at the delivery shop outside the city, Lin Xin stopped and asked his followers to shout outside the city gate.
"The minister of residence and the authority of the Privy Council have agreed to the decree of Duke Lin, and he has been ordered by the emperor to inquire about the construction of a city and mutual trade in Lizhou. The local governor, why don't you go out of the city to greet him!"
Not long after, Yu Wenchang led a group of officials out of the city to greet him. Even Ju Ming came from the military camp after hearing the news.
All the officials lined up to see him, and their attitude was extremely respectful.
Only then did Lin Xin feel satisfied, nodded and smiled: "Let's go to the city."
Lizhou's finances are not enough, so they have to spend money to entertain this guy.
After drinking and eating, Lin Xu dispersed the crowd and wanted to talk to Yu Wenchang alone.
Zhu Ming was about to leave when he heard Lin Xin say: "Zhizhi County is also staying."
Ju Ming turned around and cupped his hands, walked back and sat down.
Lin Xuan actually made a joke about himself: "I don't study well, and everyone knows this. I even pronounce the names of Gongshi incorrectly."
Yu Wenchang couldn't figure out what this person was like: "Just because you're literate doesn't necessarily mean you're capable."
Lin Xin laughed loudly: "I like to hear this."
Yu Wenchang said: "Recent investigations revealed that the person who requested the construction of a city and mutual trade was not the Sichuan barbarians of Qiongbu, but the Gao family of Dali."
"Oh?" Lin Xin immediately became energetic.
Yu Wenchang said: "Let the magistrate Zhu tell the story."
Ju Ming then showed off his knowledge of history and geography: "Dali has four counties, eight prefectures and thirty-six divisions..."
Lin Xuan listened carefully and said: "Unexpectedly, the Dali Kingdom was also controlled by powerful ministers and secretly controlled the barbarians in Lizhou."
Ju Ming said: "During the Tang Dynasty, the territory south of the Dadu River was originally controlled by the Nanzhao Kingdom. Those barbarians first obeyed the orders of the Dali Kingdom, and then ostensibly submitted to the Song Dynasty and obtained canonization."
"We must send troops to scare the barbarians!" Lin Xin immediately slapped his thigh.
Lin Xuan originally belonged to the "war faction" and once went on a mission to the Liao Kingdom, deliberately irritating the Liao Emperor.
The Liao emperor was furious and cut off water and food for the Song envoy.
When Lin Xin returned to the Song Dynasty, he was immediately impeached, saying that he was "causing trouble with his neighbors" on the orders of Cai Jing. (In fact, Lin Xin's diplomatic speech at the time was upright and flawless, and he was indeed safeguarding the interests of the Song Dynasty.
.)
This time when he was ordered to come to Lizhou, Lin Xin also wanted to cause trouble.
He had only one purpose, to fight for military glory, because that’s what Song Huizong thought!
Yu Wenchang said: "I have already started training troops."
Lin Xin said: "Those barbarians must be conquered and completely surrendered to the imperial court. It is best to seize the land and build cities, set up several counties, and arrange for officials to govern the barbarian lands."
This was not in line with Yu Wenchang's plan, and he immediately rejected it: "The barbarians have a population of hundreds of thousands. If we cut off the territory and build cities and establish counties, I am afraid that all the tribes will rebel, and tens of thousands of officers and soldiers will have to conquer. My plan with Zhu Zhixian is to divide the barbarians."
If the barbarians attack the barbarians, it only takes a few thousand people to win. After the success is achieved, the ghost master can be re-consecrated and support the barbarians to establish another branch on the south bank of the Dadu River. This will ensure the stability of Lizhou for decades."
Lin Xin thought about it carefully, nodded and said: "Okay, when will we send out the troops? I will be the coach."
Yu Wenchang and Zhu Ming looked at each other, feeling that something was wrong.
Seeing the two of them looking like this, Lin Xin laughed and said, "Don't panic, you two. As the coach, I don't interfere in military affairs. Instead, I will help you get money and food."
To put it bluntly, they want to gain military glory, and they also want to steal the coaching credit.
Ju Ming doesn't care about this, he can fish if he likes, as long as he can win the battle.
Yu Wenchang thought about it again and again and said: "When we send out troops, please ask angels to sit in Lizhou City."
Lin Xin smiled and said: "Prefect Yuwen still doesn't trust me, he is afraid that I will give random orders in the army. Don't worry, you go out to fight, I will sit in the rear and transport money and food, and I will ensure that I get a lot of military supplies from Chengdu Fulu!"
Zhu Ming looked at Yu Wenchang, thinking that this guy wouldn't embezzle food and wages, causing the frontline soldiers to have no food, right?
Yu Wenchang also frowned.
"Hey, you still don't believe me!"
Lin Xin said sincerely: "How much can we get if all the military resources in Lizhou are embezzled? My family is a wealthy businessman in Fujian, and they are appreciated by the officials. We lack nothing but real contributions. I hope you will win the war."
Well, why would you attack indiscriminately from behind?"
Lin Xuan added: "It was Prime Minister Cai who was offended by Zhu Zhixian. Although I was a member of Prime Minister Cai in the early years, now I have followed Privy Council Tong. Prefect Yuwen's father also had a grudge against Prime Minister Cai, and he did not have much quarrel with Privy Council Tong.
If the three of us send troops together, we will be a perfect match! I want military honors, and Privy Tong also wants military honors. The officials are looking forward to expanding their territory, so we must work together to accomplish this."
Without waiting for Zhu Ming and Yu Wenchang to speak, Lin Xuan continued to read: "You two, go and ask around. All the ministers regard me as a traitor, but I have been to so many places as a magistrate, but have I ever heard of any corruption that harmed the people?"
?Even if I am the governor of Kaifeng, I am known for my integrity!"
Is the traitor honest?
Ju Ming really didn’t know about this.
Lin Xuan said: "When Zhu Zhixian was the prefect, he was very tough. Do you know how I became an official? As the governor of Kaifeng, the court discussed the reform of money laws. Before the decree was promulgated, there were collusions between officials and businessmen for profit. What do I care about them?
Regardless of whether they are officials or businessmen, they will be dealt with seriously, and more than ten wealthy businessmen have been arrested and imprisoned. When I was the governor of Yangzhou, I cracked down on powerful people and rectified the administration of officials. Who among the people of Yangzhou did not respect and love me?"
If what is said is true, it is very nonsense. This traitor is honest and capable, and he can be called a capable minister and official.
It’s just that the cultural level is so poor that even the roll call of Chuanlu can be pronounced incorrectly...
Lin Xun sighed: "I am also ambitious. Although I don't study much, I know some principles. If I were good at learning, why would I send money to study at the Imperial College? I would have taken the imperial examination and become a clear stream."
Yu Wenchang and Zhu Ming were dumbfounded that this traitor was too honest.