Late Tang Dynasty Floating Life

Chapter 1533

Since March, the weather has been getting warmer.

On the surface of the Yellow River, one ship after another went down the river.

Since the later Wei Dynasty built ships in Baogulu City (Lingzhou) to transport military supplies to Woye Town, the Yellow River has become the thoroughfare of the Hetao area.

There is no need to pull fibers when going down the river, the sailing is smooth, the cargo capacity is large, and the speed is much faster than riding a horse.From the fact that the counties in Lingzhou lined up on the west bank of the Yellow River, it can be seen that they have become accustomed to the convenience of water transportation.

"Shuofang raw roast, raisins, cheese, dried meat..." Because the Caosi (transshipment envoy) Yamen judge who led the team was worried, each ship received an order to check the material reserves again, so as not to be discovered when unloading in Fengzhou Something short.

"Where is Shuofang raw burn produced?" The sailor accompanying the official asked suddenly.

"Lingzhou." The clerk replied without turning his head.

"It's fake, it's all fake!" For some reason, the sailor suddenly became excited, and he said: "Only the wine produced in Xiazhou Shuofang County is the authentic Shuofang raw wine."

The civil servant was overjoyed, and said: "Shuofang raw burnt sold on the grassland, five barrels out of ten barrels are produced in Lingzhou, three barrels are produced in Feng and Sheng, and one or two barrels are at most from Xiazhou."

"It's produced in Lingzhou, why do you have the nerve to call it Shuofang Shengshao?" the sailor asked.

"Now produced in Hedong and Hebei, it is also called Shuofang Shengshao." Wen Li said.

"It's - fake, it's all fake!" the sailor said angrily.

The clerk was too lazy to talk nonsense with him. After the inspection, he went out of the cabin, stood on the deck, looked at the scenery, and then froze...

On the east bank of the Yellow River, on the vast grassland, countless horses are galloping happily.

The number of horses is so large that it almost fills the entire world.

Black ones, white ones, brown ones, yellow ones, red ones... one after another, rushing northward like a tide.

Among the horse herd, I occasionally saw a few riders riding their horses to drive away the horses around them.They looked so small, looming in the sea of ​​horses, that if you didn't look carefully, you would almost miss it.

"If you fall off the horse unfortunately, there is absolutely no reason." The official said with emotion.

He knew where the horses came from.

Dongshicheng Ranch mobilized more than [-] horses from Yuanzhou, Tiandu Mountain and other places.

Xishicheng Ranch mobilized more than [-] horses from Qin, Hui, Wei and other places.

The Yinchuan Ranch mobilized more than 3 horses from the Hetao Grassland, the Yinzhou Mountains, and the Wuding River Valley.

Fengzhou Yongqingzha Ranch has also mobilized more than 2 horses from the north and south of the Yellow River - and has now arrived in Fengzhou.

Guanbei and Longyou, without much effort, mobilized more than [-] horses to support the saint's northward meeting.

This resource mobilization ability, the grassland heroes are afraid to cry: there are not many people who can produce more than [-] horses.

There are three major pastures in Hexi, Beishicheng, Heishuicheng, and Zendan. The horses in the inland pastures such as Shayuanjian, Heyang, Guangchengze, Longpijian, and Xiangyang have not yet been mobilized. This is really...

Just as I was dreaming, a large herd of camels and horses appeared on the west bank of the river.

They set off from Helan Mountain, requisitioned many "fattenlands" along the way, and slowly headed north-the so-called "fattenlands" are the products of trade. The fattening place in front of the market has a large amount of feed all year round.

Standing on the boat and looking around, the backs of the camels and horses are full of luggage, and many people are pulling the carriages, which are also full of various things.

"Who is that?" The sailor was also startled and asked.

The overwhelming herd of horses, wave after wave, is endless, as if all the horses in the world are gathered here at this moment, who is not shocked?

"Craftsman." The clerk answered briefly, and then sighed: "How can a sage go north to the grassland without a craftsman? Stonemasons, carpenters, blacksmiths, potters, painters, masons, cobblers, tailors, weavers, etc. All the craftsmen I can think of have been recruited from Guanbei, Guannei, and Longyou, and even a lot of camp builders have gone."

The sailor gaped.

"When we arrive in Fengzhou, a large number of farmers and tribesmen will be recruited to transfer supplies to the grassland." The civil official continued: "Just a word from the sage caused commotion in dozens of states and millions of people. However, if you can It is also capable of using so much manpower and material resources, and the so-called 'Son of Heaven' is so poor that they may not even be able to gather [-] donkeys."

"It's really not easy to find [-] donkeys in Guanbei, but you can go to Caizhou to find them." The sailor said, "I heard that Huaixi, Tangdeng, Chenxu and other places are rich in donkeys and mules. Finding [-] donkeys is not easy. Relaxed?"

The clerk gave him a disgusted look, why is his heart so solid?
"It's a warrior and a craftsman. Does the saint want to move his capital to the grassland?" The sailor couldn't understand, and murmured.

The clerk chuckled and said, "Why is this!"

In fact, he talked with his colleagues.Compared with officials in the Central Plains, they have a deeper understanding of the grassland.

This time, the saint is likely to go further than Tang Taizong and Tang Gaozong: building cities, sending officials, garrisoning troops, and collecting taxes.

The three things of floating officials, garrisoning troops, and collecting taxes may seem common, but it is not easy on the grassland.When all three are in place, it is substantive rule, not restraint.

In all dynasties, has anyone done this on the grassland?It seems not yet.

Even the former Tang Dynasty, which had the most thorough control over the grasslands since ancient times, also practiced Jimi rule.The northernmost line of the border stopped at the fortress at the southern foot of Yinshan Mountain.

The same is true of Guochao, but there are a group of tribes called "Inner Fan" to the north of Yinshan Mountain.They are deeply tied to the Central Plains, and even married to the royal family. Their control is much stronger than that of the former Tang Dynasty, but they are still governed by hereditary native officials.

If you succeed in building a city on the Qibei grassland this time, and form a certain scale of reclamation, and then garrison and dispatch officials to rule on various affairs in the grassland, and collect cattle, sheep, and skins from them as taxes, it will be a pioneering work.

It is true that if someone in the grassland rebels, it is indeed possible to capture this city, but at least it is a powerful attempt.Even if it is captured, Yi Guochao's operations in Yinshan and Qinan Grasslands can still organize troops to recapture them.

In this way, the positive significance is that the national border has been pushed farther.Qibei Grassland has become a place where the two sides repeatedly compete and seesaw. The Qinan and Yinshan areas are as stable as Mount Tai, and the Central Plains will not feel the threat of war.

I am afraid that someone will not settle accounts.I think it is not worth spending a lot of money in a bitter cold place like Qibei, so I suggest giving it up.As everyone knows, once Qibei is lost, the Qinan grassland will not be stable. At that time, people will make a surprise attack and invade the rich Hetao area to plunder. How much will the loss be?

Some people just do immediate calculations, not long-term ones.

The same goes for the South.

If Annan continues to be rebelled by people, should he give up?If you give up, the five tubes will become the front line, and people will invade Yongzhou and massacre 10,000+ people. This loss is enough for how many years of military expenses you have paid in Annan?
"Newly bought a five-foot knife, hanging on the central beam. Three-handed dance a day, playing with fifteen girls." A melodious singing came from Hexi.

At first, only one person sang, and gradually, everyone in the camel team sang.

The civil servants followed the beat and subconsciously sang along.

Looking at the overwhelming herd of horses, watching the caravan winding by in the setting sun, watching one ship after another, listening to these heroic and dry songs with no melody in his ears, he suddenly felt However, the grassland alliance and control of Qibei do not seem to be so far away.

******
At the end of March, Shao Shude arrived in Fengzhou again.

Thinking back to last year, he told Xiuniang that it might be the last time we saw each other in this life, but God can only joke, and after only one year, Shao Shude went to her house to have dinner again.

There are many troops coming with them.

The four cavalry of the Iron Forest Army commanded [-] cavalry, led by Zheng Yong, Marquis of Duyu.

The four cavalry of the Tianxiong Army were commanded by Wang Jianji, the Duyou Yishi.

The four cavalry of the Wuwei Army were commanded by Yuan Xingqin, the soldier and horse envoy in the left wing.

The four cavalry of the German Army were commanded by the deputy envoy He Gui.

The iron cavalry army consists of [-] people, led by Zhe Siyu, an envoy.

The Flying Bear Army consisted of [-] cavalry, led by the envoy Wang Chong.

The three armies of Feilong, Jindao, and Heizhu each have three commanders, with a total of 8000 people, led by Yang Liang, Du Yanqiu, and Li Sizhao respectively.

Feng Guojun dispatched two thousand cavalry, led by Zhu Jin.

The two armies of Pinglu and Hengye each dispatched a thousand cavalry, led by Gao Xingzhou and Gao Youqing.

In addition, there are more than [-] people from Yin'anzhi-when they toured Qinzhou to the west, they recruited some athletes from the wealthy clan in Longyou-more than [-] palace guards.

A total of about [-] soldiers and horses are basically the essence of the country.Everyone knows how to ride a horse, and most of them are proficient in riding and fighting. The silver saddle straight is all cold-forged warts, and they can walk and ride easily.

Quite a huge scale!
Bringing these people to the north to meet the alliance is the card.And after the alliance ended, pasture grass just entered a period of vigorous growth, and it would be a matter of course to take advantage of the trend and march westward.

Of course, this is just the troops and horses of the Western Expedition.

On the southern front, Shao Shude appointed Zang Dubao, the envoy of the Tianxiong Army, as the platoon envoy, and dispatched [-] infantry and [-] cavalry from the five armies of Tianxiong, Wuwei, Tielin, Yicong, and Tiande.

Twelve thousand cavalry infantry were drawn from the three armies of Jindao, Feilong and Heizhu.

Five thousand infantry soldiers from the Fengguo army, two thousand barbarian soldiers from Wangjuzi, and ten thousand elite troops drawn from the five armies of Pinglu, Hengye, Luoyan, Guangjie, and Golden Spear.

A total of [-] paces were taken by Zang Du, and Fu Cunshen, Wang Tan, Yang Can, Xie Yanzhang, Liu Han, Ma Sixun, Ye Li Kecheng, Xia Luqi, Li Cunxu, Gao Siji, Li Siyuan, etc. Unify the ministries and obey their orders.

It's not that I don't want to bring more soldiers and horses, but the supplies that the Hexi Corridor can provide are limited.Furthermore, with the strength of the Gaochang Uighurs, [-] to [-] soldiers and horses are enough, not to mention the larger scale of the grassland dispatch on the northern front, which can effectively attract the main force of the enemy and create opportunities for the southern front.

Soldiers are more expensive than elites, that's about it.

Shao Shude boarded the attic of Xiu's mother's house and looked at the army camped on both sides of the Yellow River.

In the evening wind, drums sounded again and again.

The armies entered the camp one by one, neat and orderly.

Needless to say, veterans on the battlefield give people an unusual feeling.

"Dai Shulun wrote a poem in the past that said, 'The flags of the Han family are all over the Yin Mountains, and don't send Hu Er and horses back', I got it." Shao Shude stroked the railing with both hands, and said with a smile: "What's the point of burying your head in the case in Beijing? Come to this world once, do what I want, Frost and Snow cut human flesh, and iron cavalry circles Dragon City, this is the romance of a man."

Kill his head and roll!

(End of this chapter)