Kingdom of Heaven and Han

Chapter 156 Troubled Times Open

For several days in a row, official documents continued to arrive at Xiangyang Mansion.The sources are varied and mixed.Since there was no authoritative information, Wang Xiaolie only knew that Miao Fu and Liu Zhengyan occupied the court and issued various edicts.Lu Yihao and Zhang Jun were not ordered, and they stayed in Pingjiang to discuss with Zhang Jun and Han Shizhong.

Wang Xiaolie stayed away from the southeast, and didn't bother to pay attention to the chaos in Yangzhou.Whenever there are official documents, they are discussed with Ji Ling, Wang Ruohai and Lu Qing.The three of them had no choice but to stay in Xiangyang Mansion temporarily, waiting for the chaos to subside.

In late March, the four of them chatted with Chen Yuyi about the latest situation in the government office.Wang Xiaolie said: "Most of the soldiers and horses on the Southwest Road of Beijing are stationed in Xinye. It was originally scheduled that I would be in Xinye on the [-]th and Xiangyang on the [-]th every month. Miao and Liu rebelled, and I have been in Xiangyang for nearly [-] days this month."

Ji Ling said: "It's an extraordinary time, of course! Soldiers and horses are stationed in Xinye, as long as there is enough money and food, why bother with them!"

Wang Xiaolie listened and shook his head: "Sheren, I am a newly recruited soldier, and I need to train day and night. If I don't take good care of it, it will waste time. Now there are Jin soldiers watching outside, and there are thieves making trouble inside, so there are no soldiers. How to do it? How about this, Xinye is not far from Xiangyang, I will go there first, and it is better for you to stay in Xiangyang. If there is something urgent, I will return from Xinye."

Ji Ling still refused.Wang Ruohai on the side said: "Soldiers and horses are the foundation of the system, so we can't leave it alone. Let's wait around and wait for nothing to do in Xiangyang, so let's go with you and see how the soldiers and horses are trained."

Wang Xiaolie wanted to refuse.What Wang Ruohai said is right, soldiers and horses are the foundation of one's life.Without the army, let alone being promoted to an official position, no one would take care of him at all.It stands to reason that if you don't go to the battlefield, the army can't be seen by others.

After thinking for a while, Wang Xiaolie agreed.He said: "It's good for you to follow me to see it. However, Xinye is a remote place, unlike Xiangyang, where everything is available. When you get there, the food and drink are worse."

Hearing this, Ji Ling hurriedly waved his hands and said, "I'm an envoy of the imperial court, how dare I leave Shen Yu lightly? Just go to the prison and the master, I will stay in Xiangyang. As soon as I have news, I will report to you immediately."

Wang Ruohai and Lu Qing agreed, and did not force Ji Ling.The two knew that Ji Ling was a person who did not want to suffer.

After crossing the Han River, Wang Ruohai saw boats coming and going on the Baihe River, a tributary, and said, "Zhizhi, why don't you go there by boat?"

Wang Xiao said: "It's too slow to take a boat. It's against the current to go to Xinye, and it's very inconvenient to be dragged by trackers all the way. It's better to ride a horse. Even if you go slower, you will arrive the next day. When the army was stationed in Xinye, But there is a lot of open land there, so it is convenient to go to the state capitals."

One of the important reasons why Xiangyang is so important is that the Baihe River, an important tributary connecting the entire Nanyang Basin, flows into the Hanshui River here.In this era, water transport has irreplaceable importance, and Xiangyang is stuck at the gate of going south through Nanyang.

Xinye is located by the Chaohe River, a tributary of the Baihe River, and can be transported by water to Tangzhou, Dengzhou, and Xiangyang Prefecture.It is convenient to transport military rations, and no matter what happens, the army can arrive quickly.To a certain extent, Wang Xiaolie chose Xinye because he chose the center of a geographical location.

It's almost April, and the grass grows and the eagle flies, which is the best time of the year.In the paddy fields beside the road, farmers have already begun to prepare for transplanting rice seedlings.On the high ground with inconvenient water, the wheat seedlings have already fluffed.Hemp, beans, millet and other crops are all green.From time to time, you can see a mulberry field, women are picking mulberry leaves happily, and there are clear and crisp singing voices from time to time.

Looking at the scene of the field, Wang Ruohai praised: "Look at the scenery, this place is just like Jiangnan!"

Wang Xiaolie nodded: "In terms of climate, this place is almost the same as Jiangnan. It was already a prosperous place in the Qin and Han Dynasties, but the wars of the past dynasties caused the Pitang water canal to fall into disrepair, and the population is sparse. It is not as good as before. If the canal is reopened, there will be great things to do."

Wang Ruohai nodded repeatedly: "I walked in a hurry a few days ago, but I didn't notice how rich this place is."

While talking, while looking at the busy people on the side of the road, the three of them talked a lot.

The next morning, when the sun was rising, we arrived in Xinye.

Wang Xiaolie said: "The newly built Xinye City is still in the north, and there is a Xinye City in front of it. Let's go there to rest and eat something, and we should arrive at Xinye City before dark. Now everything is emerging, and Xinye City is still lively."

In the system of the Song Dynasty, there should be townships and lis under the counties, and there should be management established in the early Song Dynasty.Later, when the Baojia system was established, there was another Baojia.However, town and city are most commonly used.A city is comparable to a town, and most of the time there are no officials, just a market formed by the people.

Xinye County was abolished early, and the most important place around at this time was Xinye City.

There is no city wall in Xinye City, just dozens of families built along the street, doing various businesses.A few people entered the market, and saw people's heads surging inside.

Wang Ruohai said: "It's rare to see such a large population in a market."

Wang Xiaolie said: "There were not so many people before. Recently, there has been a lot of construction and road construction around, and many new recruits have been recruited, and the place has become prosperous. These days, the business of the merchants here is very good."

While speaking, he pointed to a restaurant and said, "This is the best restaurant in the city. Let's go have a drink and rest for a while."

After entering the restaurant, a servant had already stepped forward to greet them, and led them to the second floor.

The restaurants in the Song Dynasty, as long as they were of a small scale, were all decorated according to the specifications of Fanlou in Kaifeng Prefecture, which can be regarded as Fancheng.In later generations of film and television dramas, most of them are in this style.As soon as you enter the door is the lobby, and the second floor is the private room, mostly like this.

Several people entered the pavilion, opened the window, and looked at the scenery outside the window.The willow trees on the side of the road are covered with emerald green, the catkins have been scattered, and the air is fresh.There is a blacksmith shop at the head of the town, and a carriage shop next to it, and people come and go.Among the crowds on the street, a few people were selling cherries with baskets on their shoulders, and a few fishermen were carrying a few big fish to ask someone to buy them.There are also nearby farmers who brought home-grown vegetables and placed them on the side of the road.

Under Wang Xiaolie's rule, the guilds were abolished, there were no toothmen, and the small business was actually tax-free, and the business was more prosperous than other places.Xinye City is not in the city, and there is no government-run business, so it is very lively.

After looking at it for a while, Wang Ruohai sighed: "It's been a long time since I saw such a peaceful day. I came back from Henan Mansion a few days ago and passed by Ruzhou for two days. It's the same. Compared with other places , very prosperous. However, I see that you don’t have guilds here, many businesses don’t charge taxes, and you have to raise an army, where do you get so much money?”

Wang Xiaolie shook his head lightly: "Where is the money? To tell you the truth, I've been holding on for the past few months, and I'm about to run out of savings. I can't afford to support the army like other armies. We can only recruit soldiers from the people, exempt them from hard labor, and give them a few pennies to buy some sundries. If there is no land, the government will organize them to open up wasteland, so that they don't have to be customers—"

"That's farming? At this time, farming is a good thing. But how many people are willing to serve as soldiers if they don't get paid?" Wang Ruohai is very familiar with the military and political system and history, and he knows what it means when he hears Wang Xiaolie's words.

Wang Xiaolie said: "Actually, it's not farming. As a soldier in our army, we don't have tattoos, only registers. And it is agreed that if they are just ordinary soldiers, they will only serve in the army for five years. If they are recruited again after five years, they will be Effectiveness. After being discharged from the military and returning to their hometown, the forced labor of these people will also be cancelled, which is a lifetime benefit. If there are any errands in the status, these people will be used first."

Wang Ruohai thought for a while, then shook his head: "Although these benefits are tempting, who would believe them?"

Wang Xiaolie couldn't help but sighed after hearing this: "The supervisor's words are good, how can the people believe it? In fact, although the local government has implemented it, many people still don't believe it. There is no way but to follow the example of the soldiers. All qualified recruits are recruited into the army. If someone escapes military service, the local government will severely punish them. In troubled times, many things can’t be helped.”

Lu Qing said: "there are many rules in the army, and it is good to fight with one's own strength. Forced recruitment into the army, and no salary, how can soldiers feel at ease?"

Wang Xiaolie said: "So I'm new to the team here, and I must advance to the new barracks. After three months of training, they will be divided into various armies according to their academic performance. At the same time, the local government must act according to the system. Those who join the army must Give preferential treatment. If you evade military service, you will be severely punished!"

Wang Ruohai said: "How effective is it?"

Wang Xiaolie said: "At the beginning, the effect was not good. It has gradually stabilized in the past few months, and it has improved a lot. In my opinion, when the grain is harvested in May and June, and the people really benefit, can they really win the trust of the people. No It will be difficult to win the trust of the people.”

Wang Ruohai nodded, but did not speak.He knew in his heart that Wang Xiaolie recruited a large number of recruits and expanded his army. Although he had the desire to resist the Jin soldiers, he still couldn't get rid of his excessive ambition.Compared with other generals, Wang Xiaolie is in the gray area between the officers and the bandits.

It's nothing.Especially in the recent mutiny of Miao and Liu, Zhao Gou was abolished, and it seems normal for the people who lead the troops to do so.At the turn of the Song Dynasty, the Miao Liu mutiny was not particularly serious, and it was quickly put down.But this mutiny had a big impact.It had a profound impact on both Zhao Gou and court officials.After the mutiny, the whole world became a mess, with bandits everywhere.Zhao Gou had to go against his will and swing between the main and the main battle.With the help of Han Shizhong, Yue Fei, Zhang Jun and others, it took several years to put down the rebellions in various places.

In Wang Xiaolie's previous life, he always thought that during the Jianyan period and the early Shaoxing period, the main opponent of the Song army was the Jin army.Actually not.Facing the Jin army, except for a few battles, the Song army just fled.Their main opponents are the rebels everywhere.It was not until the rebel army was put down and several large armies were formed that they really had the confidence to fight against the Jin army.

Several large armies can fight against the Jin army, and Zhao Goucai made peace with the Jin army.

When the Song Army was not yet strong enough to fight the Jin Army, even if the Jin Army was willing to make peace, it was nothing more than treating Zhao Gou as another Liu Yu, his own puppet.At this time, the imperial court's control over the army under its rule was actually not strong.

Miao Liu's mutiny was sounded.On the one hand, the confidence of the Jin army increased greatly, vowing to capture Zhao Gou and search the mountains and seas.On the other side, a large number of generals lost their awe of the imperial court and occupied territory one after another. The troubled times really kicked off.

(End of this chapter)