Elegy of Tang Dynasty

Chapter 247: Handsome, please forgive me!
How does Fang Chongyong solve the problem of Longyou Army's arrears of military pay?
The answer is: He can't solve it!
No one can do anything except Brother Ji.

In other words, Fang Chongyong not only couldn't settle the matter with his head down, but also asked for instructions early and reported later so that Brother Ji could know the situation in Longyou as soon as possible.

If Fang Chongyong is only appointed as a post, and can solve Longyou's military salary arrears problem, what will happen if he leads the border army to rebel in the future?
What emperor can endure a person with so much energy?

Unless they are the type of Emperor Xian of the Han Dynasty!But Brother Ji, who has a strong desire for power, will definitely not be able to bear it.

Sitting in the signing room of Longyou Jiedu Mansion, Fang Chongyong calmed down and thought about his mission and the problems he faced. He found that what he had to deal with was only two words.

Maintain stability!

It literally means maintaining the stability of the Longyou region, including the stability of military affairs and border defense.

The position where Fang Chongyong is sitting now was where Du Hope was sitting a few days ago.Now looking at the money and food account books on the desk, as well as the pile of seals and fish charms in the wooden box, Fang Chongyong only felt his scalp numb.

Maintaining stability is easy to say, but difficult to do. There are a lot of things that are complicated, and he is thinking about where to start.

"Judge Cen, the commander has a big thing to entrust you to handle this time."

Fang Chongyong whispered to Cen Shen, who was sitting opposite him, looking down at the account books, and waved to him to come over.

"What are your orders from Fang Jieshuai?"

Cen Shen came over and asked in a low voice.

He had already raised his heart to his throat, because Fang Chongyong's current situation was not good, and he had taken a big blame.Although Fang Chongyong's holy family members meant that it was not difficult to get out of trouble, he would inevitably be looked down upon by the emperor afterwards, and his future career would be in jeopardy.

As a close confidant, Cen Shen certainly did not want Fang Chongyong to suffer bad luck.

"Take my handwritten letter and go to Lanzhou to find Wang Sili, the governor of Lanzhou. I had an old relationship with him when I was the governor of Shazhou. Now I am the acting governor of Longyou, and nominally Lanzhou is under my jurisdiction. He will give me this face."

Fang Chongyong took out a recently written letter from his sleeve and handed it to Cen Shen.

If the current time was the middle and late Tang Dynasty, Fang Chongyong would definitely not be able to handle the problem this way.But during the Tianbao period, under the afterglow of the prosperous Tang Dynasty, the transfer of officials and generals from various places was smooth, and there were no such clear factions.

In other words, even if Shi Siming is transferred to work under Fang Chongyong now, the court can easily do it, and Pinglu Jiedushi An Lushan cannot refuse unless he directly rebels now.

Of course, whether it can be done depends on what Brother Ji thinks.

Wang Sili's transfer from the military envoy of the Doulu Army to the governor of Lanzhou was completely normal and purely coincidental.

At this moment, it showed the importance of Fang Chongyong's own control over his connections.He served as governor in Shazhou, Hexi for four years, and made friends with many figures in the military and political circles.You can't see anything on weekdays, but at critical moments you will find that you have old acquaintances everywhere!
Cen Shen was impressed in his heart, took the letter, crossed his hands and saluted, "I'll leave in a moment, does Fang Jieshuai have any other instructions?"

Cen Shen knew very well that as a close confidant, if he just ran an errand to deliver a message, there was no need for him to go there personally.

"After Wang Sili reads the letter, you will take over the Lanzhou treasury as the judge of the Silver Spear Xiaojie Army and be responsible for handing over to Xue Shangtong's people. Let Wang Sili buy the [-] sheepskins.

As for the rest, I'll give you a tip.You can open it after you arrive in Lanzhou, but don’t open it in advance, you know? "

Fang Chongyong said with a serious face, and like a magic trick, he took out a small cloth bag with a crooked seal from his sleeve, which seemed to contain a piece of paper.

Cen Shen had a strange look on his face, he reluctantly took the bag and put it into his cuffs, nodded slightly and said nothing.

"What do you think of the account books of each army?"

Fang Chongyong asked with a long sigh.

The two of them were exchanging notes just now, looking at the account books submitted by the military envoys of the Longyou armies, which recorded in detail the personnel lists of the Longyou armies, military salary, food, income and expenditure, etc.

"On the surface, there are no problems. The number of personnel and money and food expenditures are all appropriate. However, it is difficult to say whether there are actual problems. We need to go to the military camp to check."

Cen Shen didn't see any problem, but... the Longyou Army has been in arrears with pay for many years, so it is inevitable that it will be empty pay. There is nothing to say about this. It is just an objective law. The question is how much empty pay is eaten.

If the imperial court fails to provide military pay in a timely manner, then the armies in border towns must actually eliminate a group of old and weak soldiers, while the rosters remain unchanged.

In this case, the impact of the court's arrears of military pay can be weakened to a certain extent.

This is human nature. There are policies at the top and countermeasures at the bottom.

"Go and talk to He Changqi and ask him to come here to listen to my call. Then you can set off for Lanzhou without further delay."

Fang Chongyong sighed, feeling deeply that the official position of Jieduzhi was really not easy to hold. It was just a good job on the surface, but in fact, he encountered great constraints and restrictions when performing government affairs.

Now it seems that Jiedushi is in charge of the various military envoys and the governors of the prefectures and counties under his jurisdiction, but to a certain extent, the means of control are indirect influences, and it is not possible to do whatever he wants.

For example, the position of military envoy evolved into the military envoy after the An-Shi Rebellion, directly in charge of the army.By the late Tang and Five Dynasties, the military envoys were basically the "Jiedushi spare tire".Many internal turmoils in the feudal town were caused by the military envoys, who were closer to the Qiu Ba people.

Jiedushi, who was a civil servant, was often ignored by military envoys.

From the fact that Ge Shuhan asked Guan Chongsi to go to Chang'an to ask for military pay, it can be seen that the military envoys are by no means soft persimmons who can be manipulated by others.

After a while, He Changqi came to the detention room and asked as soon as they met: "Commander Jie, are we going to arrest people in the military camps now?"

Hearing this, Fang Chongyong's head was filled with dark thoughts. This guy is very reliable in his work, but he speaks like a real tiger!Dare to say anything!

"Call the brothers who came with us this time, the Silver Spear Filial Festival brothers, and go to the Lintao Army Camp now!"

Fang Chungyong stood up and said calmly, without any heroic spirit at all.

He Changqi flattered the horse and had to leave. After a while, the group of them had already left the Yamen of Jiedu Mansion and headed straight for the Lintao Army camp outside Shanzhou City!

……

In the Longyou area, it is a very stupid thing for an army with more than 1 soldiers and [-] to [-] troops and horses to be stationed in a large camp!The slightest disturbance can easily blow up the camp.

Not to mention anything else, if the army is piled up together, it will be difficult to deal with the excrement of more than 1 people and more than 7000 horses!
Therefore, whether it is the Heyuan Army or the Lintao Army, they are stationed dispersedly in units of "battalions" around the garrison, and the military envoys are on duty in the semi-permanent forts that have been continuously renovated and added for many years.

Although the Longyou Army was generally in arrears with military pay, the Lintao Army, as the absolute main force, was fully manned and paid on time.In other words, the Lintao Army is very peaceful now. It doesn't care about the pay disputes of other armies at all, and it will not stand up to "share the same hatred and hatred" to find Jiedushi to force him to the throne!

So after seeing Fang Chongyong solidly taking the blame, Lintao Army Commander Gai Jiayun felt that the matter of replenishing military pay had nothing to do with him.

Now he is the acting military envoy of the Lintao Army. He is planning to wait for the next Jiedu envoy to take office, and then he will be promoted to a regular position without causing any trouble at all.

There is no need to look at Fang Chongyong's eyes.

Of course, Gai Jiayun also knew that Fang Chongyong had been offended a lot by those little actions before.

But so what?
Gai Jiayun felt that Fang Chongyong was now like a clay Buddha crossing the river and could not save himself. Could it be that he still had the energy to find trouble with himself?

However, this time Gai Jiayun miscalculated!

When Fang Chongyong led several warriors from the Silver Spear Xiaojie Army to the Lintao Army Camp without any hindrance, Gai Jiayun, who was so ambitious, actually drank a large bowl of wine and ate meat in the military tent!

"Commander Gai, the Commander-in-Chief would like to ask you, what is your crime if you drink alcohol in the army without any reason?"

In the handsome tent, Fang Chongyong looked at Gai Jiayun and asked with a straight face.

Gai Jiayun, who was gnawing a leg of lamb in his hand, was speechless and didn't know how to answer this question.If a general of the army drinks alcohol in the army for no reason, whether he is guilty or not guilty depends on whether something serious will happen or whether it will delay something important.

If something big doesn't happen, then it doesn't matter at all, and no one will care about it. The Shangguan can at most give a few verbal warnings and get it over with.

But if something serious happens, it’s better for the person involved to run away quickly, because the easiest way is to be beheaded!It is very likely to cause harm to the whole family!

Gai Jiayun felt that the current situation was that Fang Chongyong was using chicken feathers as arrows.

Of course, a hard top is out of the question.

Gai Jiayun placed the leg of lamb on the table, wiped his grease-covered hands on his military uniform, and then said with a smile: "I was just about to drink it, but I haven't had time to drink it yet."

He is just telling lies, but in this era that does not pay attention to the chain of evidence, it is difficult for Fang Chongyong to make any waves with this incident!
Yes, I drank in the army, but what can you do to me?

Gai Jiayun is confident.

In fact, when Du Xiang was serving as the military governor, the generals of Longyou Army often drank in the army, and Du Xiang never said anything about enforcing military laws!
The Longyou border guards were depressed, and there had been no war in the past few years. It was normal for the generals in the army to be lax in their thinking.Although Du Xiang was the military governor, he couldn't press the cow's head to drink water!You can only turn a blind eye.

Just try not to get into trouble, and there is really nothing else you can do about it.

Isn't there a Tang poem that says: A luminous cup of grape wine will prompt you to drink with a pipa immediately. What is the name of drinking in the army?
Gai Jiayun looked so triumphant that he didn't seem to take it seriously at all.

"Where is the secretary in charge!"

Fang Chongyong shouted!
Deafening!Gai Jiayun was so frightened that he sobered up more than half of his wine!

A middle-aged man wearing a green official robe without any armor walked into the camp and greeted Zhongyong with his hands crossed and said, "Secretary Zhang is here. What are your orders, Commander-in-Chief?"

The main reason why the secretary arrived so quickly was because Fang Chongyong had called him along when he left the city.Jiedushi came to inspect the military camp. As the secretary-general of the staff under his command, he must obey orders and accept assignments, and be on call at all times.

Even if Fang Chongyong is an agent, what he says is a military order!
"Secretary Zhang, what's the crime if you drink alcohol in the army without any reason? Tell General Gai."

Fang Chongyong pointed at Gai Jiayun and said to the secretary beside him.

The secretary in charge looked at Gai Jiayun, whose eyes were rounded with a look of disbelief, and then at Fang Chongyong, who had a straight face, and secretly complained in his heart.

Conflicts like this are the main reason why Longyou Jiedushi often also serves as the military envoy of Lintao Army.

If one person holds two official positions, there will be no such trouble.And in Longyou, if the generals of other armies make trouble, it is the envoys of the Lintao Army who take the Lintao Army soldiers in the Jiedushi Yamen to go to the military camp to arrest them in person!

As a result, it now appears that the Longyou Jiedu envoy and the Lintao army envoy are not the same person, so the unspoken rules are invalid!
The conflict between penalties and law enforcement is not easy to solve!

"Drinking without reason in the army...if it delays important events, I will be executed immediately."

The secretary Zhang said softly.

He didn't say what would happen if he drank without incident, because there were too many who did.If we really want to find trouble with typical examples, not one of the generals and deputy generals of the Longyou Army can escape.

Gai Jiayun stopped talking. Secretary Jieduzhang was here, and it would be easy for him to speak nonsense.The best policy is to respond with silence.

Gai Jiayun didn't believe that Fang Chongyong, as a temporary military envoy, dared to kill an envoy of Longyou's main frontier army just because of drinking in the army without serious consequences!

This is not called establishing authority, this is called death.

"He Laohu, show this imperial edict to General Gai so that he can gain insights."

Fang Chongyong took out a roll of yellow silk from his sleeve, as well as the gold fish charm of the Silver Spear of Filial Piety Army, and handed it to He Changqi beside him.

Under Gai Jiayun's surprised gaze, He Changqi thrust the imperial edict into his arms, placed the fish charm on the table, and then stared at Gai Jiayun with wide eyes, a look of arrogance on his face.

Gai Jiayun opened the silk and read ten lines at a glance. He was so shocked that he couldn't say a word for a long time.

The imperial edict stated that Fang Chongyong, as the military envoy of the Silver Spear Filial Piety Festival of the Forbidden Army, could choose elites at will among the Longyou army.Regardless of official rank, nationality, or age, in short, Fang Chongyong has the final say and can be transferred if he likes it.

To put it simply, Fang Chongyong did not need to argue with Gai Jiayun about whether to punish him for drinking.As long as he uses this imperial edict and the fish talisman, he can transfer Gai Jiayun to serve in the Silver Spear Filial Piety Army and become a direct subordinate of his yamen!
Are you very good at archery?

Are you good at playing?

Are you the enemy of all people?
Are you determined in command and have a strategy in mind?

Very good, then from today on, you will be the emperor's confidant imperial army and a key member of the Silver Spear Filial Piety Army!

What?You said you don't know anything?
Then how can you become the envoy of Lintao Army?
After a fierce conflict in his mind, Gai Jiayun discovered that Fang Chongyong seemed to be able to take care of him at will and use his authority easily and without hindrance.

Of course, having the power is one thing, but whether it can be used is another.For example, Gai Jiayun could quibble, saying that the Lintao Army was facing Tibet directly, military affairs were important, and the Lintao Army envoys had no time to spare, so please find another suitable person.

But this kind of rejection is undoubtedly a slap in the face of Emperor Chang'an, and the consequences will definitely not be wonderful!If this situation can be avoided, Gai Jiayun will definitely not show off!

Thinking of this, Gai Jiayun suddenly became sluggish and no longer as tough and fearless as before.

If Fang Chongyong really forced him to join the Silver Spear Filial Piety Army, then this would be a big joke!
"Please be kind to Fang Jieshuai. If you have something to say, please speak up."

Gai Jiayun begged with a sad face, cold sweat on his forehead, and a low tone, like a little daughter-in-law who has been tortured to death by her mother-in-law for many years.

Fang Chongyong was also a little surprised to see Gai Jiayun give in so quickly.

He thought that this person was going to challenge him and could last longer. How could he give in so quickly?

Fang Chongyong winked at He Changqi, who instantly snatched the imperial edict and the fish charm from Gai Jiayun's hand, then strode up to Fang Chongyong, handed the things back with both hands, and looked at Gai Jiayun with a proud expression.

However, Fang Chongyong was not as arrogant as He Changqi. He walked up to Gai Jiayun, took out the "recommendation letter" written by Du Hope from his sleeve, handed it to Gai Jiayun, and said with a smile:

"Before Du Jieshuai fell into coma, he was also worried that he would encounter an accident. In order not to delay Longyou's important events, he left a letter.

In his letter, he recommended you as the next governor of Longyou.

You are not his confidant, but he respects you so much. Du Jieshuai is such a good person, selfless and admirable!

I came today not for such trivial matters as General Chagai drinking.

But to inform the general that a certain society will write to the court and ask the sage to issue an edict to appoint you as the new, official military envoy of Longyou.

General Gai, please don't refuse. "

Hearing this, Gai Jiayun was so frightened that he lost his soul!He quickly grabbed Fang Chongyong's sleeve and said in tears regardless of his identity:

"Fang Jieshuai, if you want me to do anything, just give me an order!
If you ask someone to go east, someone will not go west.Whoever you want to deal with will be dealt with immediately!
I really can’t be the governor of Longyou! "

Gai Jiayun, who was nine feet long, powerful and unparalleled in riding and shooting, was crying like a child in front of Fang Chongyong.

"They are all doing things for the imperial court. Why is General Gai crying? He has something to say, he has something to say!"

Fang Chongyong helped Gai Jiayun up with a smile, patted the dust on him and said.

　Tickets come!
　　
　
(End of this chapter)