Late Tang Dynasty Floating Life

Chapter 1487 Du Zhuang

At the end of August and the beginning of September, there is a scene of yellow clouds and decaying grass everywhere in Hexi.

In the Gobi Grassland, a few gazelles lowered their heads and gnawed on the dry weeds, while observing the surroundings vigilantly.At the slightest movement, they jumped up and disappeared into the billowing smoke and dust.

Zhuang Ao, the son-in-law of Princess Xinmi, spat out the sand in his mouth, looked up at the Tucheng standing on the grassland, and complained non-stop: "It's the season, and I don't know which brother-in-law is repairing the city and building a house. Oh shit!"

The entourage seemed to be deaf and heard nothing.

Whether the life of the Yanyuquanzhuang family is good or not depends entirely on whether the court rewards them with food.With one order, direct trade blockade, even wine can't be bought, how is life going?

The honey just harvested this year is about to be sold to a businessman I know well. If the mutual market is banned, what should I do?Yes, I used to eat it by myself, but now I find that honey can be exchanged for more useful things, such as tea, wine, porcelain, etc. Once it is broken, the standard of living will drop off a cliff.

Kansai scholars are now particularly fond of brushes made of yellow sheep tails.Every autumn hunting, we can catch a lot of gazelles, and we are about to exchange them for money. Once they are broken, they will be thrown into the hands.

The noble ladies of the Central Plains are very fond of all kinds of clothes made of sand fox fur. This is something that can sell for a lot of money, so don't mess around.

Also, the headman asked everyone to grow a lot of sea beets to extract sugar, and they are all waiting to make a lot of money, really don't mess around.

The most terrifying move is that the court will release some of the Zhuang's children who are officials in Luoyang, and that will be a great joy.

The connection between the grassland and the interior is inextricably linked, and both sides have adapted to the days of exchanging needs with each other. Once the coupling is disconnected, the economy of the border states of Great Xia will naturally slump, but the life of the grassland tribes will plummet even more.

I can't take this hook off!It's better to carry on the work honestly, it is a bit bitter, but at least Supreme Khan will not make you unable to live.

The city arrived soon, and Zhuang Ao closed his mouth wisely, and turned his head to look at the followers. The meaning in his eyes was very clear: I am just complaining, so don't shut your mouth and say anything.

"Du Chengzhi."

"Inspector Zhuang."

Outside Mi'e City, Du Hong, the Privy Councilor of the Beiya, and Zhuang Ao, the inspection envoy of Jiyuquan, greeted each other.

"It will be repaired for another month at most." Zhuang Ao looked at the damaged city outline and said, "A month later, heavy snow will fall, the sky will be freezing, the army will have nowhere to rely on, and the horses will have nothing to eat, so they can return."

"One month is enough." Du Hong has been in Mi'e City for more than half a month, and he knows the progress of various constructions, and said: "In ten days, Lingzhou will send a batch of grain and wheat, which is [-] hu , escorted by a thousand sergeants, enough to eat until next year."

"Dare to ask Du Chengzhi, will these thousand soldiers be permanently stationed in Mi'e City?" Zhuang Ao asked.

"It's not Mi'e City anymore. Zhongshu has issued a decree to set up Mi'e Prefecture and lead Mi'e County. The Fangdang clan and its vassal tribes have 8000 people as the people. The Tatar tribes who went south to surrender, after screening , and a batch will be sent over," Du Hong said.

"The governor of Mi'e Prefecture is a hereditary native official?" Zhuang Ao asked.

There is no reason for him not to care about this matter.As the leader of the prairie tribe, he must find out the situation of his neighbors, otherwise he will not know how he died.

Moreover, he knew that even in Zhengzhou, there were hereditary native officials, which was especially obvious in the south, such as Zhengzhou in Qianzhong Road.What's more, with the pearls and jades from the Seven Sacred States in front, it's only normal to think about this aspect.

"It's a good thing to inspect the village." Du Hong said with a smile: "The sage wants to be canonized as the king of Mi'e County, and the world will assassinate Mi'e Prefecture."

"A good thing? Could it be..." Zhuang Aoruo asked after realizing something.

"Exactly." Du Hong nodded, lowered his voice and said, "It's the eleventh prince Shao Zhigu, the half-brother of Princess Xinmi."

Zhuang Ao's face relaxed, and he said with a smile: "It's really a good thing."

Princess Xinmi is the daughter of Zhang Quanyi and the Chu family. The eleventh prince is also born of the Chu family. She was born in December of the first year of Tang Tianyou (900). She is 13 years old this year.

The two are relatives, so many things are easy to handle.

"The sage also thinks it's very good." Du Hong said: "The king of Mi'e County will not be the vassal for the time being, and the side of Mi'e Prefecture will be managed by the Lifan Court and Beiya. If there is any disturbance, the Hexi and Guanbei Second Dao will immediately When troops are dispatched, Zhuang inspectors also need to help take care of the spot."

"My brother-in-law's affairs are my affairs, and I have no shirkable responsibility." Zhuang Ao said, patting his chest.

After finishing speaking, he probed again: "I don't know if Duke Mi'e is married? I have two younger sisters in my family..."

Du Hong coughed, and said in a low voice: "Why doesn't the inspector Zhuang know about it? Your wife is the sister of the prince of Mi'e County, and she is already very close. If you want to get married, even if the sage allows it, the court will have trouble with it. You will be impeached by the censor, why bother?"

"That's right." Zhuang Ao laughed and said, "This is very good."

"Actually, the marriage of King Mi'e has already been agreed upon. She is the granddaughter of Pei Di, the former Henan Road transshipment envoy. She was born in the Wenxi Pei family. She is well-educated and well-educated, and her family background is extraordinary. The inspector Zhuang should not join in the fun." Du Hong said again. .

"So that's how it is." Zhuang Ao understood in his heart that, like the princes of the Seven Sacred States, they all married the inland princes and nobles to facilitate the search for talents for governance.

After the two finished speaking, they went into the city together.

The traces of Fang Dang's existence have been almost completely erased, and more than [-] people were killed in one go, all of whom were the backbone of Fang Dang and its vassal tribes.There are almost no chieftains among the remaining tribes, waiting for the new king to be promoted.

The city is dilapidated, full of low adobe houses, and even thatched houses woven with reeds.

Zhuang Ao looked at Anxi, a gust of wind could blow it away for you, he was really poor.

The narrow and cramped streets are filled with the smell of sheep manure, which cannot be avoided no matter what.

The trembling Dangxiang people are full of goat smell, which cannot be washed off no matter how much they are washed.

Although it has been a while, Du Hong still can't adapt.Fortunately, on the west side of the old city, the new city is already being built with rammed earth. From now on, Mi'e County's palace and the state government will be located in the west city, and the county government will be located in the east city. I hope that the eleventh prince can stay. Up, if you can stay, you can stay, if you can't stay, you have to stay, you have no choice.

"A warehouse city will be built in the west city." Du Hong said after avoiding a puddle of cow dung, "The sage marches west, and every point must be filled with food and grass for emergencies."

"The holy driver will go to Mi'e Prefecture, can't he?" Zhuang Ao couldn't believe it.

"Of course Shengjia will not go this way, but there is no guarantee that there will be troops passing through here." Du Hong said: "If the army is going north from Lingzhou and takes a shortcut, Mi'e Prefecture is the only way to go. It is to go west to Heishui City , will also be replenished here.”

"Heishuicheng? So far away?" Zhuang Ao said in surprise: "Crossing the sandy moraine in the west of the river, the source of water is hard to find, it's too difficult."

Heishui City is a ranch in Daxia, raising tens of thousands of military horses, plus thousands of camels.The city site is located more than [-] miles south of Hanjuyan Hainan (now in the north of Ejina Banner). More than [-] Daozhou soldiers from Hexi are stationed all year round, plus [-] Tutuan peasants and tribal soldiers from various counties of Fanzhi to guard against the grasslands.

This is a ranch located in the border area, and it is also an army town.They have been harassed by the Qibei grassland tribes going south all the year round, and thousands of military horses have been looted in the past 20 years. It has been hit hard in recent years, and this kind of behavior has decreased a lot.

Du Hong nodded, and said: "Heishui City has also built Cangcheng, and Ganzhou and Su prefectures have contributed to it. At least [-] hu of military rations and a large amount of military resources must be hoarded. Heishui City and Mi'e City, one west and one east, will It is the two iron gates for the imperial court to control the Hexi Dangxiang ministries, and of course they have to be connected. But you are right, crossing the Hexi sand moraine is more troublesome, it is better to take the northern line grassland, at least the water source is easier to find, but Be prepared for any danger. The sage's westward tour is only one of the purposes of attacking the Uighurs, and the adjustment of the northwest governance system is the most important thing."

"Understood." Zhuang Ao seemed to grasp a clue.

For many years, the sage has been fighting in the Kanto, and he has very low requirements for the west, just maintain the status quo, don't make trouble for him, and restrain his energy for the Eastern Expedition, so he is more indulgent.

Now that the heroes in the east have been wiped out, it is time to free up your hands and take advantage of the opportunity of the westward expedition to readjust the Hexi and even the wider grassland area.

The intention of the sage, as he often said, "wrap the grass and beat the rabbit".

Hexi Dangxiangfang Dangshi has two heads and two ends, and it is not a day or two that he is unruly.Why did they take this opportunity to raid their hometown directly? This was a real raid. Zhuang Ao got the order before the action, and then rushed over with [-] cavalry, catching Fang Dangshi by surprise.

The action of exterminating Fang Dang's family marked the court's military center of gravity moved westward again.At least the sage was free and began to set his sights on this place that he had neglected and appeased for more than 20 years.

The wind starts at the end of Qingping, and everything is traceable.

Miya Prefecture may be just the beginning.Behind this, there must be a bigger thunder storm.The power structure in Hexi is about to be reshaped.

Thinking of this, Zhuang Ao shuddered subconsciously even though he had already married the royal family and became a so-called relative of the royal family.He didn't dare to mention the matter of marrying his younger sister to the eleventh prince anymore. The Zhuang family had already got enough, so there was no need to think about what he had or what he didn't have.It would not be a good thing if the sage felt that the Zhuang family was too greedy.

Zhuang Ao has a little political wisdom.He knew that there must be a reason why Du Hongken said these words to him, perhaps it was inspired by the saint.

"Repair the city well, and don't let the Fangdang family members escape. Doing these two things well is a great achievement." Du Hong glanced at Zhuang Ao, and said: "This is a nostalgia. The sage also knows that the clan has been loyal and brave for the country for many years, otherwise the king would not have become a son-in-law."

Zhuang Ao nodded again and again, and said, "I have been taught."

Du Hong smiled, and said, "Have you heard about Xu Jingzong and Feng An?"

"I heard." Zhuang Ao hesitated.

He seems to understand, but not quite sure.

"Don't confine your eyes to the grasslands, and make more contact with the Central Plains. Otherwise, if something happens, who will protect you? Who will speak for you in the court?" Du Hong said.

Zhuang Ao understood now, and said: "I will prepare an extra batch of gold and silver treasures, cattle, sheep, horses and camels as the dowry of the two younger sisters."

Du Hong laughed loudly and left in a hurry.

(End of this chapter)