Late Tang Dynasty Floating Life

Chapter 73 Good horses on the road in Kunfang
"Li Yanling!" Shao Shude shouted outside Yanchuan County.

"The end is here!"

"New Year's Eve, give rewards to the sergeants, people will give two pieces of money and three pieces of silk, and then kill the sheep and buy wine." After speaking, Shao Shude looked up and down at Li Yanling, and said, "Deputy Li, I see that you are getting more and more You are rich. I heard that after you brought your family from Fengzhou, you took a concubine in Suizhou. This book is nothing, but when is it now? With so much fat in your belly, how can you fight?"

"Military envoy, the last general is full of bravery and loyalty." Li Yanling said with a smile: "I will not miss it, the military envoy can rest assured."

The current camp of the Tielin Army was on a meadow next to the city wall, and the cold wind was blowing hard.

Yanchuan County did not dare to let them into the city, for fear of being looted.After hearing this, Tielin's army was furious and wanted to attack the city, but was comforted by Shao Shude.Now the reward is given out, just in time for everyone to go to the fire and be happy.

Sure enough, with the money and silk issued, the sergeants were beaming.

Li Yanling also advocated for Shao Shude: "From Hedong to Suizhou, and then to today's Yanzhou, the military envoy has never received a reward, and I have given it to the brothers. If the military envoy is like this, the sergeants dare not think about it. Excited?"

"I didn't say it, military envoy Renyi, I didn't follow the wrong person."

"The envoy should stay behind—ah!"

Before the man could finish speaking, he was kicked by Li Yanling.Zhuge Shuang is in the camp, can you tell the difference?

"Follow the military envoy to Chang'an and rob his mother!"

"The military envoy gives all the goods to the brothers, and we must not lose our conscience. After defeating the enemy in every battle, the thief will give his wife and daughter to the military envoy!"

Damn, how did the whole army know about it!Shao Shude's face was dark and embarrassed.No matter, the military heart is available, the military heart is available, let's continue to study the map.

Going southwest from Yanchuan County, along the river valleys and mountain valley roads, you can reach Fenglin County after walking for more than 140 miles.There is a station nearby called Weizi Station, which is an important station under the jurisdiction of the imperial court, but it should not be able to supply the army.More than [-] li to the southwest of Fenglin County is Lisuofushi County in Yanzhou (today's Yan'an East). There should be a lot of money and grain stored there. According to the rules of the court, supplies can be obtained.But whether people give it or not, and how much they give it, all depends on their mood.

When Xuzhou soldiers went out to beg Huang Chao, and when they were camped in Xuchang, they arranged for you to live in the hut and give you something to eat. This kind of thing may not be impossible in Kunfang Town.At least from the point of view of the reception in Yanchuan County, it is very poor, you are not allowed to enter the city, and the food provided is not very sufficient, which makes people a little annoyed.

The 170-mile road is not easy to walk.The Loess Plateau in northern Shaanxi is full of ravines, and the few guides recruited in Suide County may not be able to cover it.Tomorrow, it's best to hire a few more in Yanchuan County, so as not to let the army get lost in the mountains.

After studying the map for more than an hour, and then taking the time to study the military book, and seeing that the time was almost up, Shao Shude fell asleep in the quilt.There is a big cold wind blowing outside and a small cold wind blowing inside the tent. Yanchuan County is really hateful!
On the second day, after leading the team to inspect the camp, he went to Zhuge Shuang's tent to ask for instructions.

"Shude is coming." Zhuge Shuang was warming the wine in the tent, and when he saw Shao Shude coming, he immediately greeted him.

"Master, do you want to enter the city today?" Shao Shude sat down and asked.

"I won't go, Li Xiaochang is in Kunzhou, so I went to see the county magistrate." Zhuge Shuang sneered and said, "This man Li Xiaochang is not a loyal minister, even though our Xia Sui army has moved, he is still delaying and watching. "

"The commander is loyal and courageous, and he is not comparable to Li Xiaochang's generation." Shao Shude poured a glass of wine for Zhuge Shuang, and then poured another glass for himself, smiling.

Zhuge Shuang sighed and did not answer.

"Does Shude think Huang Chao can succeed?" Zhuge Shuang asked suddenly after drinking a cup.

"It's almost impossible." Shao Shude knew the end of Huang Chao's future, so he tried to explain it from the perspective of his own understanding: "A year ago, Huang Chao was still confined to Lingnan, and three out of ten soldiers died of illness. It was about to be destroyed. Then went north, except for a few fights with Gao Pian, there were basically no major battles. After entering Henan, the towns even swept the snow in front of their doors. Have you ever fought to the death with Huang Chao? Today Huang Chao enters the pass Among them, there are 600,000 people, but in fact there are more than 200,000, at most 200,000. However, there are nearly [-] soldiers and horses in the eight towns northwest of Beijing. How many states and counties can Huang Chao occupy? There is no solid foundation in the Kanto, and there is endless fighting in the Guanzhong. How can the Chao people survive? ? I'm afraid they were attacked by various towns, and ended up in annihilation. Marshal, this generation of rogues, it's hard to make a big deal!"

"Shude actually thinks this way?" Zhuge Shuang was a little surprised. After thinking for a while, he said, "If Huang Chao declared himself an emperor and established a kingdom, so that all the towns in the world would be the same as before, so what?"

"The Tang family is still alive, and people's hearts are gone." Shao Shude replied succinctly.

Zhuge Shuang nodded subconsciously.The human mind can indeed affect many things.The court looks like this, but if the army is rebellious, they can still raise troops to fight it, which shows that there are still people's hearts.Aside from a few arrogant and rebellious vassals, most vassal towns in the world can be replaced by the imperial court's decree. The difference is whether you can really control the situation, but there is no problem in general.

"It doesn't matter who he is the emperor, I just want wealth and honor." Zhuge Shuang glanced at Shao Shude and smiled.

Shao Shude did not say a word, but poured wine for Zhuge Shuang.

On the fourth day of the first lunar month, the army continued to set off.On the ninth day, I arrived in Fenglin County, and on the eleventh day, I arrived in Yanzhou.Fortunately, Kunfang Town gave face, the enlarged army entered the city, and also provided food and grass supplies, but they prepared their troops and horses to guard against the Tielin army like a thief.

Yanzhou is a large county, governing ten counties, which is much larger than Suizhou.Shao Shude estimated that there are about 90,000 people in the whole prefecture, but reflecting the household registration, there may be only 70,000 people.Traditional operation, normal.

The main part of Yanzhou consists of two cities, east and west, which stand on the river, one is the county seat of Fushi, and the other is the state city.Du Fu once wrote a poem when he was passing by: "The bells of the pagoda are heard in three rivers, and the chimes of the skin are heard in the five cities." The five cities here refer to the fact that in addition to the two large cities in Yanzhou, there are also three acropolis with the nature of military fortresses. There are soldiers and horses stationed, easy to defend and difficult to attack.

Shao Shude took Chen Cheng to carefully inspect the mountains and rivers surrounding the five cities in Yanzhou, and kept simulating in his mind how to attack.Suizhou is not far from Yanzhou, but it is only two or three hundred miles away. It is still a big county.But it should lose a lot of soldiers and horses, and the storm is too bad, so it's better to think of other ways.

On the twelfth day of the first lunar month, the army passed Yezhu Ridge.This place is extremely precipitous. In the early days of the Kingdom Dynasty, the capital of the Liang division, Kou Yanzhou, once stationed troops here.However, Fufang Town did not set up a military camp here, maybe it was not during the war.Going more than 40 miles southward from Yezhu Ridge is Ganquan County, Kunzhou, which is located on the west bank of the Luoshui River, and forty miles further south is Luojiao County, the governor of Kunzhou.

As the main road outside Chang'an North Passage, Kunzhou is known as an important military town. During the Zhenguan period, the Grand Governor's Office of Kunzhou was set up.Many supplies of Xia Sui, Zhenwu Army, and Tiande Army were transported through Kunzhou, and local commodities were also transported to Chang'an through Kunzhou.Therefore, it is said that this is a Tongyi Avenue from Chang'an to the Shuosai area. Bai Juyi's "Cheng Yanzhou" once wrote: "The post road in Kunzhou is good for horses, and the medicine shop in Chang'an is cheap." This is proof .

"'Whoever calls Acacia this river, there are many chariots and horses in Saiyuan. We should only collect tears from ancient times and sprinkle them on Kongzhou to make blue waves.' The military envoy, Linghu Sikong (Linghu Chu), said in the song "Acacia River". After all the tragic battles that have been fought in Kunzhou throughout the ages, Luoshui intersects here, and when it crosses the Great Road, the weight of Kunzhou can be a barrier to the northeast of Chang'an." Approaching the Kunfang Institute, Chen Cheng also became very poetic and said with a smile.

"Didn't Judge Chen hear, 'Poor Wuding River Bone, like a person in a spring boudoir's dream.'" Shao Shude also smiled and said, "Xia Sui's battle was twice as fierce as that of Kunzhou. Kunfang has never been famous since the military and imperial dynasty. Can I stop my Xia Sui's [-] elites?"

"Haha, the military envoy is heroic, and someone can't match it." Chen Cheng laughed: "But if the military envoy can really win the four states of Kunfang, he should be the hero of the world."

"It is very inappropriate to go south to capture Kunfang." Shao Shude turned his head to look and saw that Zhuge Shuang was still at the central army far behind, he said with confidence: "It is my wish to take Lingzhou in the west. I will not take Kunfang. , so as not to be targeted by the public.”

"What does the military envoy think of Li Xiaochang?"

"I don't know." Shao Shude shook his head and said: "With [-] soldiers and horses in hand, the imperial court has an edict, but they are unable to enter, and sit back and watch the fall of Chang'an. This generation should have ambitions, and we can see it today. Judge Chen may wish to pay more attention."

"Yes." Chen Cheng replied.It was originally part of his job to help the lord analyze potential opponents. Kunfang was a neighboring town of Xia Sui, and its chief must be carefully observed.

When Shen, Tie Lin's army arrived outside the city of Kunzhou.When the commander Li Xiaochang heard the news, he personally led more than a thousand soldiers and horses out of the city to welcome him.Shao Shude glanced at the head of the city of Kunzhou from a distance, um, the sergeants have all gone to the city, and the meaning of precaution is very strong.Alas, where is the trust between people?

"When I heard that Xia Sui dispatched elite troops, Li Mou didn't believe it. When I saw it today, it was a well-deserved reputation." After seeing Zhuge Shuang riding his horse, Li Xiaochang, the military commander of Kunzhou, laughed arrogantly and said.

"Kunfang is a barrier to the northeast of Chang'an, and Li Shuai supervises it, which shows the trust of the court." Zhuge Shuang also smiled and said: "There are more than [-] elite soldiers in Kunfang, why didn't Li Shuai not fight? You and I are allied to fight thieves , it’s good to have someone to take care of.”

Li Xiaochang subconsciously glanced at the Tielin army who were standing in awe in the cold wind, without a trace of clamor, and said with a forced smile, "The party in Hengshan is in chaos, Kou Yanzhou north, a certain person is planning to prepare troops and horses to go north, I'm afraid he won't be able to join forces with him. Commander Zhuge is on the same road. After finishing this matter, he will send his troops south to attack the nesters."

This remark did not surprise anyone present, because everyone saw it along the way, and there was no sign of mobilization in Yanzhou and Kunzhou.Li Xiaochang simply decided to wait and see, and Zhuge Shuang just mentioned it.Since people refuse, there is nothing to say, and I will go south by myself.

"The army is out, and there is not enough food and grass. I wonder if Li Shuai can help?" Zhuge Shuang asked again.

Li Xiaochang just wanted to send Xia Suijun who was passing through the border away quickly, so he said: "The Kunfang government is not rich, but this is a major event. This is an order to release [-] Dendrobium of grain and beans and [-] bundles of firewood and send it to the commander's army. ,how?"

Grain, beans and firewood are the materials that the army consumes the most every day.Kunfang is much richer than Xia Sui. Although there are many things, it is not difficult for them to raise money.

"Li Shuai's high righteousness, you must keep this in mind." Zhuge Shuang saluted with his fists folded.

(End of this chapter)