On the first day of December in the first year of Guangqi, the main force of the Yi Congjun led the last batch of more than a thousand craftsmen, carpenters, painters, musicians, etc. to the west. They had already divided out two thousand combat soldiers and two thousand auxiliary soldiers. At this time
There are still close to 9,000 people who will go with the army.
Five days later, the army set out with a large amount of goods, grain and grass. To this end, a large number of concubines from the four counties of Chang'an, Wannian, Zhaoying, and Hu were sent to accompany the army to help transport the supplies.
On December 11, Shao Shude personally led the Tielin Army, and the Iron Cavalry Army marched westward. They also brought a large amount of grain and grass, and the masters from Jingyang, Xianyang, and Lantian counties accompanied the army.
Although the people of Guanzhong have been able to maintain their peace, money, food, and labor are unavoidable. Marshal Shao has even distributed the rewards for the Winter Solstice, New Year's Day, and Spring Society in advance, and the people of Guanzhong have to foot the bill.
There are three roads from Chang'an to Shuofang Army, two of which pass through Binning Town and one which passes through Jingyuan Town. The Qinggangchuan Avenue taken by Dingnan Army passes through the three prefectures of Pining, Ning and Qing.
Because it was not during the war, the army moved faster. After crossing the river from Chang'an north, it drove northwest along the Jing River, passing through Jingyang, Yunyang, Chaozan, Ganquan Palace, and arrived at Xinping County, Lisuo, Pizhou in twelve days
Down.
Zhu Mei has already taken her troops to Fengxiang to take up her post. There are only 2,000 Yamen troops and 2,000 state soldiers in the city of Pizhou. Logically speaking, there is no need to open the city. But why bother? Zhe Zongben was already appointed by the imperial court as the governor of Pining. I guess
He was about to take office, so why bother to hate the father-in-law and his son-in-law? So he opened the city directly and respectfully welcomed the king of Lingwu County into the city.
Shao Shude waited in the city for three days, and Zhao Jian arrived with his own soldiers.
"I have met the Prince of Lingwu County." Zhao Jian saluted as soon as he came up, looking quite respectful.
"General Zhao, why do you need to be so polite? You are a relative by marriage, so you should be a close relative. Please sit down quickly." Shao Shude greeted.
Shao Shude was polite, but Zhao Jian did not dare to call him nephew-in-law with a shy face. Isn't it clear why he can be a dragon sword and a governor?
“I would like to thank Prince Lingwu for recommending the dragon sword.” Zhao Jian bowed solemnly and said.
Shao Shude observed Zhao Jian.
He looks to be in his forties, tall, powerful, and has a strong weathered complexion on his face, which is probably caused by his years of guarding the border village of the military city and his poor life.
If such a warrior who is used to fighting hard went to a wealthy place like central Sichuan, would he indulge in pleasure and quickly fall into depravity? Xingning Town is not very wealthy, and although the lives of the sergeants there are pretty good,
, but what if you go to Shuzhong?
That's all, it's enough to be able to stabilize his position before the first-generation sergeant fell. The two thousand border troops under his command are still capable of fighting. If he recruits some more bitter party members and makes up four to five thousand, then the court's justice will be
, should be able to subdue the local snakes in the four states of Longjian.
“How many troops does General Zhao plan to bring to take office?” Shao Shude asked.
“The Shence Army will send a thousand people to escort them, all of them are soldiers from Shu. I plan to bring another two thousand people from the outer town army to Longzhou.”
"Not enough." Shao Shude shook his head and said: "There are eight counties in Jianzhou, two counties in Longzhou, five counties in Lizhou, and nine counties in Langzhou. The territory is vast and there are many dangerous passes. These three thousand people alone are not enough."
"However, Longjian's household registration is not as prosperous as in the south. If he brings more soldiers, he may not be able to support them," Zhao Jian replied.
Do you want me to teach you this? Shao Shude glanced at him and said: "Go to Dongshan Dangxiang Department to recruit one or two thousand people, challenge those who are not afraid of death, gather five thousand soldiers, and then go to the post."
Shao Shude's words were unquestionable. Zhao Jian was stunned for a moment, and then said: "That's all, just recruit two thousand people. At worst, when we attack Chen Jingxuan in the future, we will go to other towns to eat."
That's right. Who among the northwest warriors doesn't know how to defeat the enemy with food? With a headquarters of five thousand, plus the local state soldiers, I can't say how much territory we have conquered. If we cooperate with others, help each other, and protect ourselves, it will be no problem.
.Before the common enemy Chen Jingxuan fell, the towns were generally able to maintain peace.
"If there is a shortage of ordnance, a certain army has captured a lot of Fengxiang Army's equipment, too many to say. There is still no shortage of leather armor, spears, swords, shields, and rifles for two thousand people." Shao Shude added.
"How dare you let the Lingwu County King spend money? When someone arrives in the town, he will send someone to offer money, silk and tea." Zhao Jian said with some emotion: "This time I can hold the Jielong Sword, and I have received a great favor from the Lingwu County King.
How dare you try anything else?"
This depends on your understanding, and it is also a test.
After having lunch with Zhao Jian, he hurriedly left and went to Hengshan to recruit troops.
Shao Shude celebrated the New Year in Pizhou City. The soldiers received their rewards in advance and were very happy. They spent a lot in the city, which in turn stimulated a wave of economy.
Zhe Zongben arrived in Pizhou on the day of the Shangyuan Festival, bringing with him three thousand soldiers from the Zhe family.
The town of Binning originally had 16,000 soldiers. During the Guanzhong campaign against Huang Chao, some were used up. Later, due to insufficient rewards, there were several military rebellions. After being suppressed, we lost some more. Now we only have 12,000 soldiers.
Zhu Mei went to Fengxiang to take up her post and took away another four thousand. Zhao Jian was about to take away two thousand, leaving only 6,000 soldiers for Zhe Zongben. The three thousand children of the Zhe family he brought with him could be regarded as a
To meet the urgent need, otherwise the huge three states of Binning will be extremely empty.
“The Prince of Lingwu County.”
“Uncle, today we are just talking about family friendship.” Shao Shude came forward and said.
Ori Zongben is actually not very old, just over forty this year. However, in ancient times, there was a lack of medical treatment and medicine, and lifespan was not long. When people passed forty, many people called themselves old men. But looking at Ori Zongben's physical condition
, it is quite possible to live to be sixty years old.
“I never thought that at this age, I could be awarded the title of Marshal of the Great Town.” Zhe Zongben looked at the festive streets of Pizhou and said with a smile, “This is all due to my love for my son-in-law.”
"My uncle also has merit." Shao Shude said: "I have a good wife at home, and everything is taken care of in an orderly manner. Young man is very brave and has made many military exploits. My uncle even went into battle himself to help me defeat Ping Xia's party. That's why.
Thank you very much, I will be grateful."
Shao Shude means what he says sincerely. When is the most difficult time for a person? It is most difficult when starting a business.
When Guanzhong was besieging Huang Chao, Oritsugu brought more than 400 children of the Orishi family to surrender, giving him his first cavalry unit. Now these people have gradually taken up the positions of mid-level officers, and Oritsugu even served as a cavalry officer.
make.
The northern expedition to the Hetao Grassland would not have been so easy without the help of the Zhejia. Planning the march route, finding water sources, and finding tribal nomadic lands all required help from the Zhejia. Not to mention that they directly sent troops. On the night of the raid on Dijinze,
At least half of the cavalry were brought in by others.
His wife is also very virtuous, so that she has no worries and can fight abroad.
Shao Shude sometimes wonders whether his wariness towards the Zhe family is justified? They have really helped him a lot, and their current attitude is very firm and they have always been on his side.
But when you become a politician, complex interest relationships are involved, and some things go bad. Brothers can turn against each other for inheritance, and politicians and warlords can also fight against each other because of interests. I hope I can grasp the balance and compromise.
Every family knows how to advance and retreat, and everyone shares wealth and wealth together.
"We are all one family, how can we distinguish each other?" Zhe Zongben said with a smile: "The reason why we work hard today is to enjoy wealth and honor in the future. On the way from Linzhou, I went to Xiazhou to have a look. My grandson Sha is
Keren. If my beloved son-in-law has any assignments in the future, just tell him, Shao, I will break up the two families, they are one."
When Zhe Zongben said this, he did not forget to mention his grandson. The implication is self-evident without explaining it.
More and more people are going to Xiazhou to seek refuge, and the Zhe family has a sense of crisis.
The two of them entered the government office while they were talking. The sons of the Zhe family naturally replaced the original guard sergeants, and some servants of the Zhe family who had followed from Linzhou also began to clean up the room and make tea and meals.
This means that half of the foundation has been moved here.
But it's normal to think about it. The Zhe family has been working hard since the Zhenguan period, and it was not until the previous generation that they became generals, and only Zhe Zongben's generation was considered a general. Now that he has been awarded the high position of Jiedushi, he is naturally overjoyed.
It would be considered stable if the whole family didn't move here.
"The wise son-in-law wants to attack Huizhou?" After the two chatted for a while, they talked about the two counties of Huizhou that had been occupied by Tubo for many years.
"Of course. Huizhou has convenient transportation and water transport, and there are also Hu merchants coming here from time to time, which is very profitable." Shao Shude replied.
Huizhou governs two counties, namely Huining County and Wulan County. It governed Huining and fell to Tubo during the Mid-Tang Dynasty. Originally, there were only about 20,000 Han people in the local area. Now after so many years, I don’t know how many are left. Or
Even if there is, has it been assimilated by Tubo?
Huining County is located in the Douchenggong area of Pingchuan District, Baiyin City, Gansu Province today, on the east bank of the Yellow River. Go northwest for 180 miles on the Yi Road and 140 miles on the straight road to Huining Pass, which is a ferry on the south bank of the Yellow River. Its original name is Wulanjin
, in the early years of the Guo Dynasty, a shipping fleet was established. There was Wulan Pass across the river, and the two pass cities faced each other across the river. Wulan County is more than a hundred miles southeast of the state city.
This ferry mainly served the hundreds of thousands of soldiers and horses under the control of Hexi and Longyou. Unfortunately, after the Anshi Rebellion, the strong troops were transferred eastward. The Tubo invaded and Guandu was abandoned. The Tubo people once
A pontoon bridge was built on the Yellow River near Ningguan to facilitate the attack on Lingzhou, but it has disappeared now.
A hundred years have passed by in a hurry, and time has changed. Now, someone from Shao wants to regain Huizhou and build it into a base for advancing westward and southward.
“Does your wise son-in-law know what the situation in Huizhou is like now?” Zhe Zongben asked.
"I learned something about it in Lingzhou before. At that time, Lingzhou had just been conquered. The enemy situation was unknown and there was insufficient food and grass, so I didn't dare to move lightly. Now I asked a general in the Xinning army who is familiar with Huizhou affairs to learn more about it. I probably know a lot about it." Shao Shude.
replied.
"Huizhou is not difficult to conquer. But does the wise son-in-law know what the situation is like in Tibet now? If Huizhou is captured, will enemy reinforcements come?"
Shao Shude muttered: "Tubo is probably in trouble, but we can try to fight it."
Of course he knew that Tibet was in danger, but to what extent? Could it be that the local nomadic tribes were beaten by the repressive army, which would lead to a larger army coming to retaliate? No one dared to answer this question.
But the location of Huizhou is really important, and it can’t be done without attacking it.
Now, we can only give it a try. If it doesn’t work, we can withdraw and look for opportunities later.
To be honest, this is a somewhat risky military decision that does not conform to Marshal Shao’s military principles. The reason is that the country’s understanding of Tibet is too little, and it will have to find ways to change it in the future.