Liu Han bowed his waist and lowered his hands, waiting respectfully in the hall.
Li Chengzhi was wearing a power fence, and Liu Han couldn't see his face clearly, but he had an intuition that this person should be very young.
And it was this young man who asked Liu Bao to explain everything to Liu Han in his letter: This man is the one who obeys his orders and obeys his orders. He will give money to others if he wants them, and he will give people to others if he wants them... Even if this young man asks him to kill someone, or
If he wants Liu Han's life, Liu Han must obey him without any hesitation.
No matter how stupid Liu Han is, he can still guess that this person's origins are extraordinary...
"Three days ago, I received an urgent order from the envoy. I spent the whole night using all my contacts to send troops to the government, and went to various garrisons (subordinate units in border towns) to inquire. I finally found out yesterday: Five days ago, the envoy of Yuan Town
(Yuan Yi) inspected the festival, and Governor Yuan (General Yuan Huan of Woye Town) came out of the city to greet him...
In the evening, Governor Yu Xing was hosting a banquet, and while they were having a good time drinking, a dispute arose over some unknown reason, and force was used during the banquet... I heard that weapons were also used... After that, there was no news about the envoy of Yuan Town...
…”
There was a dispute and weapons were used?
Li Chengzhi shrank inwardly after hearing this.
Yuan Yi was either killed or imprisoned...
Now we can no longer care about tracing the cause of the dispute, and we can even put aside the life and death of Yuan Yi. What is important is to know what the people in Woye Town want to do, and whether they are ready to raise troops...
After thinking for a moment, Li Chengzhi asked again: "Where is the Zhenjun? Is there anything unusual?"
"We haven't found it yet, but the three cities and garrison have been as usual these days!"
Liu Han thought for a moment, and then replied respectfully, "But a few months ago, a friend who is close to me came to drink wine during a trip, and he accidentally mentioned:
Despite his lack of integrity and lack of achievements, Lieutenant General Lu (Deputy General Lu Yan of Woye Town) rewarded him with three pieces of silk... He also said that all the generals who were friendly with Lieutenant General Lu were rewarded in varying degrees..."
A reward for no reason, and it was a month ago?
Is it possible that Yuan Huan and Lu Yan have already accepted the heavy gift from Yuan Huai and agreed to start a rebellion together?
Li Chengzhi gritted his teeth fiercely and asked again: "Before, did you ever see someone bringing a large amount of property into the city? Did they send any heavy gifts to Yuanhuan and Lu Yan's house?"
"In neighboring Guanzhong, Pingcheng (the old capital of the Northern Wei Dynasty), and Xia, Heng, Shuo, Si and other prefectures, there are many merchants selling rice, silk cloth, and ceramics in the town. Furthermore, as the New Year is approaching, there are many people giving gifts to the governor and deputy general.
, so I didn’t pay attention to it..."
It means there are so many gifts that you can’t tell where they come from?
The incident happened so suddenly that there was no time to inquire. And with just one business name, it’s pretty good to be able to get so much information...
Li Chengzhi took a long breath: "Thank you... If you have any doubts again, I will ask Director Liu to consult..."
"Your Majesty, you're being polite, but you can give me your orders!"
Liu Han bowed politely and withdrew.
Yang Jun's face was as dark as the bottom of a pot.
It was only then that he realized: Li Chengben had no intention of surveying water transportation, let alone colluded with Gao Meng to seize Yu Jing's retreat.
From beginning to end, his destination was Woye Town?
If it were not impossible, Yang Jun would doubt whether Li Chengzhi could figure it out...
"Why did you suddenly expect that there would be a recurrence in Woye Town?"
It’s not that I know, but history has already given the answer. It’s not just one fertile field, but six towns...
Since Yuan Hong moved the capital to Luoyang, the six towns have become a headache for the emperor and the court.
First, the six towns have been hit by disasters for many years, either from drought or waterlogging, resulting in no harvest at all times, and they have to rely on the court for relief from time to time.
However, Yuan Hong and Yuan Ke used troops against the Southern Dynasty every year, and the imperial court was not well off. He could only order relief from the nearby states of Guanzhong, Pingcheng, Xia, Shuo, Heng, Si and so on.
However, the money and food from each state did not come from strong winds. Even if the imperial court adjusted the tax revenue to ten years later, the required food would have to be collected within a few months. What's more, the people had to be recruited and transported to the border towns as quickly as possible. Therefore, the prefectures and counties often resorted to countermeasures, either by dragging their feet, or by pushing the problem back to the court.
Just like this summer when there was a drought in Wuchuan Town, the emperor ordered Guanzhong to provide relief. Although the grain was collected and transported to Wuchuan, it was paid for by the imperial court and hired by civilians.
Moreover, this money was earned by Li Chengzhi by robbing the rich and giving to the poor, and by selling Xia Bing, who had been cheated by hundreds of officials, to a monk. That's why the grain shipped to Wuchuan was shipped so quickly.
Most of the time, by the time the relief food from the imperial court arrives, the border towns are already full of hungry people. It is not uncommon for the living to eat the dead...
One more thing: the six towns are made of iron and the generals are flowing water!
After Yuanhong reformed the official system, he established a rule that prefecture governors and governors should take one exam every three years and one exam every year. The longest term should not exceed six years. However, the border town generals, deputy town generals, Xingtai, etc. could only serve for three years and were not allowed to serve.
Re-elected in the same place.
Therefore, the senior officers in the six towns rotate very quickly. But it is like being poisoned. No matter how clean and honest an official is, he will be corrupt as long as he arrives in the six towns.
Those with connections and skills can still make money through commerce and smuggling. For example, when Li Chengzhi was quelling the chaos in Jingzhou, Yan Ti, the general of Gaoping Town, had already brought the business of selling iron and horses to the Southern Dynasties.
Those with no other options can only covet the army's money and food. For the soldiers and the people, it is just adding insult to injury.
Li Chengzhi felt that it was a miracle that the six towns could persist until the end of Hu Chonghua's reign before rebelling... Therefore, the six towns were like a dynamite barrel, and if there were any sparks, it would explode...
"It's not that I had a sudden idea, but at the beginning of the late emperor's funeral, I suggested that the six towns should be appeased and rewarded with money and food... But the princes refused, and they just sent the King of Qinghe to give orders... Unfortunately, it backfired!"
Li Chengzhi sighed softly, "As for why I am so worried, it's just because of the Yu family..."
He refers to Yu Zhong, his father, ancestors, sons and nephews, clan members, etc.
Since their great-grandfather Yu Li and Emperor Daowu, the Yu family's descendants have led the army for generations, and they are all important ministers in the court and loyal ministers of the emperor.
As for Zhong’s father, he reached his peak in Lieshi.
In the late Yuanhong period, when Yu Lie became the leading general and the governor-general was imprisoned, it took twenty-four years until he died of illness. How many cronies and followers did he single-handedly promote?
And with the merit of following the dragon, if Yu Lieren hadn't led the army and Yu Zhong had been on guard when he was the general of the armed guards, Yuan Ke would have been killed by several uncles.
It can be said that the degree of favor and trust between father and son at that time was no less than that of Li Chengzhi when Yuan Ke was about to die.
Then came Yu Zhong, who was re-elected as the leading general for nearly ten years, and his authority was no less than that of his father.
What's more, there are Yu Dun, Yu Guo, Yu Jin, Yu Xu, Yu Wenren, Yu Tianen, Yu Jing, Yu Xin, etc., who have all served as town generals, governors, uncles, brothers, and party affiliates. p>
Rough calculation shows that the Wei Dynasty had seventeen military towns, large and small, and forty-six states. At least half of the town generals, deputy generals, and Xingtai, and one-third of the governors and county guards had direct relations with the Yu family.
Or indirect relationship.
Either direct in-laws or Ren Daolie, Yu Zhong's subordinates. As for lieutenants, there are countless officials below the county governor level...
It can be said that the imperial court did not take it seriously, so it decided to raise troops in winter and send three envoys to suppress the situation to intimidate the local area and give orders to each town.
But the only bad thing is that I am too confident. I only know how to demonstrate but do not want to be gentle.
Some people just don’t like this?
Li Chengzhi pondered: "Where did Yuan Huan come from?"
"The former King of Longxi, the son of Taiwei Yuanhe, the late Duke Feng Yi, and the younger brother of General Yuanhuai. He married the daughter of the late Sizhou governor, Yu Zhong, who followed his father Yu Xu..."
Minamotoga's son and Yuanhuai's younger brother, isn't he the uncle of General Xunwei (belonging to Zuowei Mansion) Yuangui?
At this time, Yuan Guizheng led Zuo Xunwei and followed Li Shao to Liangzhou...
Li Chengzhi's head felt numb: "Li Liang, please remember to remind me later that I need to write a letter to Uncle Zang and report urgently... no matter how late it is!"
"Yes!"
"Where's Deputy Town General Lu Yan?"
"Originally the Marquis of Ruyang, when King Yuanyu of Jingzhao was appointed as the governor of Dingzhou, Lu Yan was the Sima of the royal palace. Later, he was implicated in rebellion by Yuan Yu and was dismissed. Last autumn, he moved to the general of Wuchuan Town. He was demoted due to corruption and was demoted to the deputy general of Woye...
…”
Haha...
Li Chengzhi didn’t even know what to say.
It is indeed as Bafu said: The Yu family has a first-class family, generations of nobles, and many children. How many people hold high positions, and how many people are married to them? If you overcorrect, countless people will be implicated, in the court, in the state
I am afraid that less than half of the officials in the county can be spared. And most of them are from the eighth surname of Xianbei, the fifth surname of Gaomen, including Bafu...
Also known as: Yuan Xi, Yuan Xiang, Yuan Xie, Yuan Yu, etc. implicated many people, who were dismissed from office due to convictions, or who were blamed by the late emperor and committed crimes. How to identify them?
Things have priorities, and powers have priorities. Li Chengzhi also suggested that the border towns in the North and the states bordering the South and the Southern Dynasty should focus on promoting and approving them.
Among them, Yu Jing is the general of Bogulu Town who has rebelled. Yu Xin was the general of Huaishuo Town and the military commander of Wuchuan, Huaishuo and Woye Town. He only resigned last year. Many close subordinates, such as Yuanhuan, Lu Yanzhi and others
Still holding important positions in the three towns... It is for this reason that Li Chengzhi suggested focusing on appeasing the six towns.
But Bafu only accepted half of it: Xuan was of course fine, but Fu could forget it.
In fact, I just can’t bear to give up money...
It's useless to talk much now, we can only think of ways to remedy it.
At least we must first find out whether Yuan Huan and Lu Yan are determined to rebel, and how far are they ready to go?
After pondering for a moment, Li Chengzhi shouted in a low voice: "Yuan Jian!"
"The general is here!"
"I will compile two letters later. You can take my letter and send it to Xiazhou overnight. One of them is sent to Wu Weilang General Yuan Zhi, and he and Yuan Xi are ordered to send troops immediately to the fertile fields... But remember, it needs to be compiled into
Zero, sneak around, never alert the enemy...
Another letter was sent to Gao Jishi (Gao Meng), ordering him to organize his army that day and advance to Shuofang (today's Wuhai, between Woye Town and Bogulu Town, belonging to Xiazhou) and guard the key points to prevent me from being attacked from both sides...
”
"Yuan Yan!"
"The end is here!"
"I will write another letter. You can send it to Jingzhou in a hurry of 800 miles and hand it over to Uncle Gu Zang... If the army has not arrived yet, immediately march south of the river and intercept them halfway..."
"Obey!"
Seeing Li Chengzhi's name like a bead on the edge, Yang Jun's face was full of panic.
"Do you want to use Yuan Zhi and Yuan Xi's two thousand cavalry to pacify the fertile wilderness?"
Li Chengzhi couldn't help but laugh: "How is that possible?"
Although there are only 5,000 permanent soldiers stationed in Woye Town, there are nearly 30,000 registered military households.
Each of these 30,000 households had at least one strong man who could be recruited. Otherwise, the household registration would be cancelled, the land would be taken back, the wives and daughters would be assigned to other military households, and the young and old men would be reduced to a lower level of slavery. Moreover, whenever there is a break in farming, the townspeople have to be trained, so they all have armor and guns at home. After years of training, they can be strong men who can be pulled out into an army.
Therefore, if the entire town of Woye rebels, the number of soldiers will be at least 30,000. No matter how elite the Tiger Cavalry and Huben are, they would not dare to claim that one is against ten...
"Don't be idle. Later, take my banner and calligraphy with you and go to Huaishuo Town."
Li Chengzhi spread out the paper and sneered: "The general of Huaishuo Town is Luo Jian, and the commander-in-chief of all military affairs in the three towns of Huaishuo, Woye, and Wuchuan... He is the uncle of King Qinghe and the biological uncle of His Majesty (the Young Emperor).
, I don’t believe that even he rebelled?”
Yang Jun was startled.
How could I forget this incident?
Today's son Yuan Dan is the daughter of Luo Jian's sister.
He is not only the uncle of the emperor and the uncle of Wang Yuanyi of Qinghe, but also the cousin of Yuan Yi (Yuan Yi's mother is Luo Jian's aunt, just like Yuan Ke and Gao Meng).
Furthermore, Supervisor Luo oversees the military affairs of the three towns in the West (Woye, Huaishuo, and Wuchuan). If Woye really wants to rebel, how can he get away with it?