Chapter 734 0729 [The silver mine is right under your nose]
Emperor Toba, to be precise, should be called Emperor Toba.
Because on the day his five-year-old son was established as the crown prince, this old man abdicated and became the supreme emperor.
The Crown Prince was directly promoted to Emperor Sutoku only half a day after being enthroned.
Everything was arranged by Emperor Shirakawa, who made his grandson the emperor and his great-grandson the emperor. There were layers of constraints and tight control!
Before the funeral of Emperor Shirakawa was completed, Emperor Toba began to set up a courtyard.
That is, in addition to the imperial court, the Supreme Emperor established another administrative agency directly under him to manage the country by bypassing the normal court.
If you want to do this, you must have reliable force as the backing.
This force is the warrior of the north.
Their official positions are not big, they only serve as guards on the north side of the courtyard. But if force is needed, the Supreme Emperor will send them to lead the troops.
Today, there are two most prosperous northern samurai, one is Taira Takaramori and the other is Minamoto no Yoshitsune.
Minamoto no Yoshitsune was originally highly regarded by Emperor Shirakawa, but when he became Fujiwara's loyal son-in-law, he was immediately ignored by Emperor Shirakawa, and was even reduced to working as a security guard for the Fujiwara family.
Emperor Toba established a new court and needed to rely on the Fujiwara family, so he recalled Minamoto no Yoshi to the court.
At the same time, Emperor Toba also kept a hand in the Fujiwara family and chose to continue to reuse Taira Taira no Mori who was promoted by his grandfather.
At this moment, Ping Zhongsheng and Yuan Weiyi were sitting on their knees in the courtyard and were summoned by the Supreme Emperor.
Emperor Toba said: "Eleven large Chinese ships have arrived from Ishimi Province, and three thousand soldiers have landed from the ships. They have captured the city of Iwami State. I heard from the wealthy people of Ishimi State that the Chinese soldiers are very elite.
Their iron armor can protect most of their bodies. If the court wants to conquer them, they must send tens of thousands of troops."
"His Majesty the Emperor!"
Yuan Weiyi stood up, stepped forward, and took the initiative to ask for help: "I am willing to raise ten thousand soldiers to clear out the bandits for Your Majesty."
Emperor Toba was hesitant because Minamoto was too cruel. Historically, someone suggested sending Minamoto to lead troops to quell the rebellion. Emperor Toba directly asked: "Send Minamoto for justice. Do you want him to pass by the country?"
Will the cities be destroyed one after another (plundered along the way)?”
Although Emperor Toba hated his grandfather, at this moment he looked at Taira Taira no Mori, the samurai whom his grandfather admired most.
Ping Zhongsheng said: "I read China's "Sun Tzu's Art of War" and know that 'know yourself and the enemy, and you can fight a hundred battles without danger'. Now we still don't know why China sent troops across the sea. We don't know how much force the Chinese army has. I think that we should first
Send envoys to find out more about it. At the same time, please ask the emperor to issue an edict to summon legions and athletes from all over the country, and let the state ministers and guards prepare military rations."
This answer made Emperor Toba very satisfied: "Then I will appoint you as the commander-in-chief of the army to control the soldiers and horses of all countries."
"Thank you, Your Majesty!" Ping Zhongsheng paid homage.
When Yuan Weiyi saw this, he was jealous and angry.
He was not favored by Emperor Shirakawa before, and even lost his status as a samurai from the north and worked as a security guard for the Fujiwara family to manage the estate.
Now that Emperor Shirakawa is dead, his father-in-law is also the father-in-law of Emperor Toba. I am brother-in-law to Emperor Toba, so why am I still not reused?
Emperor Toba looked at Minamoto no Yoshitsune and warned: "As you assist Tadamori in commanding the troops, remember not to plunder any more during the march!"
This man not only robbed the common people, he even ransacked the state halls and wealthy families in the counties.
"Yes!" Yuan Weiyi quickly knelt down and felt a little happier, but still felt unsatisfied.
Ping Zhongsheng added: "Your Majesty, I would like to go to Shijian Kingdom in person, and as an envoy, I can find out the reality of the enemy."
Emperor Toba praised: "Excellent, you are worthy of entrusting me with important tasks."
The two of them retreated and went home.
Taira Takaramori married the sister (Ikezenni) of the Gion Empress (the concubine of the Emperor Shirakawa). It can be said that he and the Emperor Shirakawa were brothers-in-law.
There is even a rumor that Emperor Shirakawa secretly gave the pregnant Gion maiden to Taira Taira no Mori as his concubine. The one she was carrying in her belly was the future famous Taira Kiyomori.
Taira Takaramori was extremely prestigious among the northern samurai. If Emperor Toba wanted to inherit this armed force, he must rely on him.
In comparison, Yuan Weiyi is nothing.
Minamoto went straight to the home of his father-in-law, Fujiwara Tadashi, and said: "The emperor asked Taira Taira to command the army, and I can only serve as his assistant. This is because the emperor does not trust you."
As the head of the Shekoseki family and the biological father of the Empress Dowager, Fujiwara Tadashi reprimanded: "If you didn't act so cruelly, the Emperor would definitely make you the commander of the army. Choosing Taira Taira to command the army was the Emperor's compromise with the samurai from the north.
, do you think the emperor is willing to do so?"
Yuan was too embarrassed to say anything because of his righteousness, and was holding back his anger.
He just couldn't figure it out. What's the point of grabbing some food during the march? It's a normal thing.
Moreover, this father-in-law couldn't even manage household chores, so what qualifications did he have to teach him a lesson? He doted on his second son but hated his eldest son, who was still the regent Guan Bai. This matter had become a joke throughout Japan.
…
Several teams marched from Shijianguocheng towards the surrounding mountainous areas.
The team heading south has the largest number of people.
After advancing two or three miles, it is divided into three parts.
Xia Yuqing took thirty soldiers from Salmon Island, a Zhejiang translator, two prospecting craftsmen, several local warriors, and dozens of local people, and walked straight south through the mountains on the trail.
Exploring the silver mine was just incidental. Their main task was to understand the nearby terrain as soon as possible and prepare for the next war.
Xia Yuqing personally climbed up to see the distance, communicated with the local warriors through an interpreter, and drew a simple topographic map of the nearby area.
The rest of the crew cut down vegetation everywhere to expose low plants and rock patterns for prospecting craftsmen to look for clues.
We walked very slowly all the way, only covering about seven or eight miles.
The translator said to Xia Yuqing: "This warrior said that the forest here is dense, and they call it Dasen Mountain. There are not many people in the mountain, and wild animals often appear. I hope the general will be more careful."
Xia Yuqing asked: "Is there a tiger?"
The warrior shook his head: "There are no tigers, but there are evil bears and monsters."
"Monster?" Xia Yuqing laughed when he heard this.
The warriors became excited and told various stories about monsters.
Anyone who has played video games knows that there were a lot of monsters in Japan during the Heian Era.
Rumor has it that the famous nine-tailed fox Tamamae is the concubine of Emperor Toba. And Emperor Sutoku, who is not yet an adult now, is the Daitengu!
If Ju Ming comes to Japan, he will definitely visit Abe Seimei’s grave.
This Onmyoji has only been dead for a hundred years, but his disciples and descendants are prosperous, and many monster stories are spread by them.
Several local warriors who were resting in the mountains at night were very scared, as if monsters might rush out at any time.
The food was pancakes baked before departure. Although they were not polished and contained wheat bran, the warriors seemed to be eating delicacies from the mountains and seas.
With nothing to do, Xia Yuqing began to communicate with the warriors through a translator.
After some conversation, he learned that there are three major samurai classes in Japan, from high to low: pillar samurai, powerful samurai and village official samurai.
For these young warriors in front of them, the Warriors of Pillar and Liang are legends. They have never seen them in half their lives.
For example, Ping Zhongmheng and Yuan Weiyi, the two of them are the pillar warriors!
The Dongliang warriors do not need to be very skilled in fighting, but they control the entire family power internally and many other warrior groups externally. They often respond to calls and can summon a large number of warriors to join the battle, and the recruited warriors even bring their own peasants and soldiers.
As for powerful warriors, Ishijian Kingdom has none for the time being.
It was a frustrated lower-level noble who paid bribes to buy officials to serve as state ministers, and actually went to take office as an official. He also integrated the resources of the place where he was appointed, took root in the local area to cultivate power, and finally organized his own warrior group.
This kind of warrior group has become more and more numerous in recent decades.
The reason is very simple. Emperor Shirakawa deliberately promoted middle- and lower-class nobles and sent them to local areas to develop forces close to the royal family. The regent family, the Fujiwara clan, also suffered a great deal from its business of collecting bribes and selling officials.
As for the Zhuanguan samurai group, it was composed of samurai from landlord families and samurai from prefectures and public lands.
This type of warrior is very similar to the low-level knights in Europe.
Even the gameplay is similar. The lower-class European knights often send their sons to the homes of superior nobles to work as free followers or attendants for the superior nobles. There are even many romantic stories, such as the mistress having sex with the young attendant at home.
In Japan, sons are sent as foster relatives or foster children. The host family calls the clan boys their sons and the non-clan boys as lang gang, in order to strengthen the loyalty of the samurai they belong to.
A samurai named Satoshi Masuda said: "I used to be a member of the Masuda family. I grew up with my little master. But the little master had a bad temper and often beat and scolded us."
Xia Yuqing asked: "Are your ancestors also warriors?"
Masuda Satoshi replied: "My father and grandfather are both samurai of the Masuda family. But my great-grandfather was a junior high school athlete. Athletes must be registered with the national office and drafted as soldiers when there is a war. Athletes are soldiers and farmers.
Soldiers are different. They have to prepare their own weapons and armor, and they may even be transferred to the northeast to fight the barbarians. After returning to their hometown and being disbanded, their status is still that of jian'er, and their families can receive preferential treatment. Jian'er can farm and do business, but must accept wartime conscription.
."
This thing was learned from the Tang Dynasty, and athletes were the main source of soldiers in the late Tang Dynasty.
The low-level warriors of Ishigami Kingdom are actually all athletes from a legal perspective.
After chatting for a while, Masuda Satoshi asked weakly: "As a warrior of the Ming Dynasty, will I be able to eat pancakes more often in the future?"
Xia Yuqing laughed.
Get up early the next day and continue to explore the terrain and mineral veins along the way.
After only walking three or four miles, the old prospecting craftsman stared at the rock wall in a daze.
Xia Yuqing asked: "What's wrong?"
An old craftsman from Fujian said: "It's possible... it's not possible, there must be money here!"
Xia Yuqing said in disbelief: "How far have we gone after leaving Ishimi National City and entering the mountains? How could we find a silver mine? The Japanese are not fools. They have discovered it long ago when they are so close to the national city."
The shrubs and vines on the rock wall have been cut down by soldiers.
The old craftsman first stood far away to observe, then came closer and carefully inspected the texture of the rock: "There is a silver mine here, and it is a large mine. General, please see, those black textures on the rock wall are veins. The silver is buried very shallow here.
Anyone with some experience can recognize it at a glance. It is a big mine, the only big mine I have seen in my life!"
Xia Yuqing stared at it carefully for a long time, but couldn't understand anything.
Xia Yuqing scratched his head. The important task assigned by the prince was completed in such a muddle?
