Elegy of Tang Dynasty

Chapter 522: Strengthening the Youzhou vassal state

He wanted no food or fodder, no weapons, no baggage, but only gold, silver, valuables, copper coins, and silk.

This reply, this list, was something Su Youde had never thought of.

To give or not to give, this is a very serious question.

How to give is a problem, and how much to give is also a problem.

Head-scratching.

In the study of Jizhou government office, Su Youde looked at Li Qincou, seeming to want to say something but stopping himself.

He handed the list in his hand to the other party, and the expression on his face seemed to say: You are the commander, do you think I should give it and how much I should give?

Li Qin took a quick glance at the list and found that all of it was floating assets. Even sheepskin and cowhide, military supplies that could be used directly as money, were not mentioned. He couldn't help but feel surprised.

What can the army do with all this floating wealth?
He was also puzzled.

"Sir, are there any gold, silver, copper coins, silk, or other things in the government storehouse?"

Li Qincou looked strange. At least in his impression, it seemed that there was no such thing. When Huangfu Weiming started his army, he made extensive use of the silk in the treasuries of various states and counties and bought grain from wealthy families in Hebei for military supplies.

How can they get the money now?
"We still have plenty of food, but no money. I looked at Fang Qing and the Silver Spear Filial Piety Army, and they don't seem to be short of food either."

Su Youde said bitterly, stroking his mustache, as if he was thinking of some evil idea.

"Envoy Su, what should I do if I don't have money?"

Li Qincou was dumbfounded.

Since we can send the "Plague God" away, let's not be pretentious. The sooner the Plague God leaves, the better.

As for the money requested on the list, the amount is actually not that scary and is within the psychological bottom line of Su Youde and others.

Spend money to buy peace. Everything has to wait until Huangfu Weiming sends troops to garrison in Jizhou.

It’s difficult to operate now without money.

“There is indeed nothing in the treasury, but the wealthy families in Jizhou should still have some floating wealth.

Now the situation is urgent and I can’t care about it.”

Su Youde sneered.

"The country is in crisis", how could he care about so many things?

A dead Taoist friend is not a poor Taoist!
However, Li Qincou didn't have so many tricks, and he didn't quite understand how to make money.

The money in the hands of the wealthy was also earned by the government from collecting grain. Now the government wants to take some of it back, how could they be willing?
If we treat those people like beggars and give them some melons and dates, it will not solve the problem!

"This is a simple matter. General Li will take his men to the homes of those wealthy families and discuss the matter with them. He will say that there is a rumor that the enemy army has dug a tunnel that leads to Xindu City. They can't get in many people, and they can't break into the government office, but they are likely to enter the city to rob.

We have limited troops, and Xindu is too big to take care of everything. So let each family donate some money so that the government can recruit more solidarity soldiers to patrol, so that we can all get through this difficult time together."

Su Youde said with a cold light flashing in his eyes.

Anyway, the word "official" has two mouths, so he is the one talking about everything, good or bad, and all the nonsense.

Whether there are bandits or not;

No matter there is a tunnel or not.

Su Youde has the final say. If he says yes, then yes.

For wealthy families in the city who are willing to pay, everything can be easily negotiated. We can just send a few united soldiers to guard their doorsteps, and naturally their safety can be guaranteed.

If you refuse to pay, then we won’t send any troops.

Maybe the "bandits" would come out of the tunnel, rob his house, and kill people and burn him.

If you get into trouble, don't go to the government office to cry and complain.

As for whether those "bandits" were the Silver Spear Filial Piety Army, or deserters who ran into the city from somewhere, it didn't matter.

Whatever Mr. Su says, that’s what it is.

After giving Li Qincou instructions in person, this man who had fought on the battlefield could not help but break out in a cold sweat.

Speaking of insidious, it is these civil servants who are really insidious, and they use a combination of punches!

"I understand. I will do it right away. What if I encounter someone who is stubborn and unyielding?"

Li Qin nodded, clasped his fists and bowed to Su Youde, then asked hesitantly.

Su Youde waved to him and lowered his voice to tell him a few tricks of Old Coin.

Li Qincou suddenly understood and a cruel smile appeared on his face.

However, Master Su was in charge of the government office, so he certainly couldn't show up. So the "dirty work" could only be solved by Li Qincou.

Fortunately, Li Qincou is not someone who cares about details.

He took people to visit all the wealthy families in Xindu City, and repeated Su Youde's words in each household.

Then, in order to make things easier, Li Qincou used his ultimate move and put into practice the method that Su Youde had taught him in person!
The big guys who are willing to pay will send soldiers to guard the gate. It’s good for you, it’s good for me, and it’s good for everyone.

Those who refused to pay had a halberd placed in front of their door, euphemistically calling it a "famous family, thieves and bandits avoid it".

If you don't want to befriend me, I won't send soldiers to help you guard the door. So I'll stick a halberd at the door of your house as a token of respect, to scare away robbers.

Don't say that this is against the rules. I, Li, am just a soldier and don't know etiquette.

Li Qincou knew clearly in his heart that he was just being a rogue.

There was a custom of "standing halberds in front of the door" in the Han Dynasty. In the Sui Dynasty, only officials of the third rank were allowed to stand halberds.

In the Tang Dynasty, the requirements for holding a halberd became more relaxed, but the rules became more detailed. Officials of different ranks, and even officials from different departments, had detailed regulations on the number and types of halberds that could be placed in front of their doors.

After all, the Tang Dynasty was a strictly hierarchical aristocratic society.

But no matter what, no one other than an official or a member of the Confucius Temple or the altar is allowed to place a spear in front of the door!

If a family can set up a spear in front of their door and is visited by bandits, they will most likely die a horrible death.

But Li Qincou's current move was obviously not for this purpose. His intention was so malicious that I believe every wealthy family that was attacked could understand it.

As expected, those diehards who refused to pay the money immediately softened their backbones when they heard that they were going to be "held at the doorstep", and they paid the money one after another.

So within one day, Su Youde collected all the money and sent someone to deliver it to the Silver Spear Filial Piety Army camp as soon as night fell.

After receiving the "gift money", Fang Chongyong did not hesitate and immediately led his troops back to the canal boat without stopping.

Along the way, he was always worried that the defenders in Xindu City would chase his troops.

These gold, silver and treasures do not take up space and are easy to carry. They are also a cavalry team, so they are not afraid of being chased.

But Fang Chongyong was very worried about unexpected complications.

His plan was not to engage in a long-term battle with the defenders of Jizhou. After taking over several counties and destroying the local political ecology, the best strategy was to stop while the going was good.

At dusk the next day, the army finally returned to the canal. Duan Xueshi, who was guarding the boat, saw the main force of the Silver Spear Xiaojie Army returning, and his heart finally settled down.

Even though Fang Chongyong led his troops to Jizhou in just a few days, Duan Xueshi felt like every day was a year while he was guarding the boat, fearing that someone would chase him on a grain boat.

At this time, we have to mention Zhou Zhi.

If Zhou Zhi had strictly followed An Shouzhong's plan and kept the grain ships and baggage intact, then at this moment, they and the accompanying grain ships would have just reached the location of the Silver Spear Filial Piety Army.

At that time, An Shouzhong's cavalry had already been in position, and it was hard to say how the battle would turn out.

It was Zhou Zhi's wrong move that led to every subsequent move being passive.

This is because mediocre people do not understand the rhythm of war. If the rhythm is disrupted, they will be led by the nose.

"General Jie, you are finally back. I have prepared everything. Let the horses rest on the boat, and we can head north to Anling County, Dezhou.

It is not difficult to take the small town of Anling.

After we take Anling, we will continue north to Baiqiao in Dongguang County, where a lot of baggage is piled up. Especially after we took Beizhou, most of the grain ships that were transported from Youzhou to Cangzhou and returned halfway stopped there. "

Duan Xueshi talked a lot and almost completed the investigation of the enemy situation in the north. In short, the enemy's blocking troops have not arrived yet, and the timing is just right!
"Well, good job."

Fang Chongyong nodded slightly, very satisfied with Lao Duan's logistical work.

The hay and concentrate for the horses had to be prepared separately, and it took time to prepare the concentrate, so we had to do the work in advance. The reconnaissance to the north could not be stopped either, and someone had to worry about these things.

"Pass the order, head south to Beizhou. Except for the people rowing the boats, everyone else is forced to rest. There will be a big battle after we arrive in Beizhou."

Fang Zhongyong gave an order to Che Guangqian beside him.

"Marshal Jie, are we going to Beizhou now?"

Che Guangqian asked with a confused look on her face, thinking she had heard it wrong.

"Yes, it is Beizhou."

Fang Zhongyong nodded calmly.

Seeing that the generals wanted to talk more, Fang Zhongyong waved his hand and said, "There is no time to lose. Now is not the time to explain. Let's go first. I will explain to you on the way."

Che Guangqian had no choice but to pass on the order, and soon the fleet headed for Qinghe County, Beizhou. Only the leading boat lit a fishing fire, while the others turned off their lights and followed silently behind.

The generals came to the cabin of the leading ship, and Fang Chongyong spread a "Hebei Bandit Army Defense Map" he had drawn on the wooden board.

"Do you know why the border of the Tang Dynasty is often hundreds of miles in size, but the Tang Dynasty border troops can know about any disturbance.

Hebei is densely populated, but the rebel army is like a blind man?"

Fang Zhongyong looked around at everyone and asked in a deep voice.

In fact, everyone present had thought about this question, but no one thought about it in depth. After all, the pace of the previous battle was very fast, and there was no time to review many things.

Seeing that no one was there to support him, Fang Zhongyong had no choice but to continue, "It is one thing that the rebel army is unpopular in Hebei, but on the other hand, they lack beacons, horse stalls, and parades."

The generals suddenly realized that they were all intelligent people, but their minds were not as open as Fang Zhongyong's. With just a little hint, they understood the whole story.

Many times, a small detail can affect the overall strategy and even determine success or failure.

A beacon tower is an infantry early warning outpost.

A stable is a place where cavalrymen change horses.

You Yi is a scout who does daily patrols, not a scout who follows the field army.

There are many such places in the border towns of the Tang Dynasty.

Don't think that there are only a few people stationed in a beacon tower. In fact, it is common for a beacon tower to have no one at all.

Because the patrol area was too large, even if there was only one person in a beacon tower, the defenders would not be able to cope with it.

Therefore, this kind of place is a "check-in" location for the patrol team, and they just check inside to see if there are any abnormal situations nearby.

The stable was even smaller, accommodating only two horses at most, and was where patrolling cavalrymen changed horses.

Likewise, there were such outposts all over the border, and not every one of them had horses, let alone people.

The reason why the Tang Dynasty's border troops were able to defend such a long border line was because they had the support of countless such small strongholds.

But after the Hebei rebels rose up, these things were not brought to the south of Hebei!
There is no way to repair it. Marshal Huangfu is planning to capture Chang'an. Hebei will no longer be the border in the future. Why build these broken things?

Fang Chongyong was keenly aware of this point, so he dared to lead his troops to attack everywhere in Hebei.

Because the prefectures and counties in Hebei without field armies were basically blind with extremely poor eyesight! Especially after they lost the support of the local people, they were unable to go out for reconnaissance.

This is where Fang Chongyong’s confidence comes from.

"Great! The locals in Beizhou hate Zhou Zhi and his gang so much that they will definitely not tip them off. Plus, we will attack by boat in the dark of night. The enemy will never expect us to come back and strike back!"

He Changqi laughed.

This time he was not wrong, because it was indeed true.

"A cavalry unit of the enemy army has arrived in Qinghe County. This commander expects that they will become the main force to pursue us. This army is very threatening."

As Fang Zhongyong spoke, he made a chopping gesture with his hands and continued:

"Qinghe County is limited in size, and it is impossible to bring thousands of horses into the city for breeding, so the stables must be outside the city. This raid is to burn the stables and let the horses run freely.

After the enemy troops flee the city in panic, we will defeat them in one fell swoop! We will definitely injure them severely!
I have already sent scouts to find out the approximate location. It should be said that the people of Beizhou are really looking forward to our return. It is effortless to find out the deployment of the enemy army. "

Fang Chongyong sneered.

The news brought back by the scouts was shocking, but what was even more shocking was that the local people of Beizhou actually acted as guides, leading the scouts of the Silver Spear Xiaojie Army to investigate the enemy situation, and then calmly left.

Thanks to the cover of the locals, the scouts could also draw maps on the spot, without any rush or hassle.

He who loses the support of the people will lose the world. This scene also made Fang Chongyong secretly alert.

An Shouzhong was good at deploying defenses, but he couldn't handle the large number of guides.

The locals had investigated clearly where the camp he had set up to support the city was, where the stables were, and where the baggage and granaries were.

Fang Chongyong's original intention was to go directly north, but after learning about the situation in Qinghe County, he felt that it was time to intimidate the soldiers in the Hebei vassal state.

If the army is unpredictable, then its power is unfathomable!

"He Lao Hu, you are responsible for leading 500 people to burn the stables. I believe you are already very skilled at this job."

Fang Zhongyong smiled.

He Changqi wanted to say something. In fact, he didn't want to do this kind of sneaky work. He preferred to fight head-on.

But he doesn't like it, but his subordinates like it very much!

When fighting a war, you must obey military orders, not act according to your own preferences!
He Changqi hung his head and accepted the military order reluctantly.

Fang Zhongyong secretly laughed, turned his head and looked at Wang Nandi and said, "General Wang led 1,500 soldiers and horses to ambush on the riverside near the stable, but when he saw someone from the enemy camp coming to reinforce the stable, he led the cavalry to charge directly."

Wang Nandai laughed heartily as he took the military order. He glanced at He Changqi with a smug look on his face.

Fang Chongyong said to Che Guangqian, "You take 500 soldiers and horses, each holding two torches, and beat drums at the wooden bridge on the south bank of the canal to confuse the enemy. When the enemy on the north bank sees the lights and drums on the south bank, they will not know our strength and will not dare to pursue us easily. Remember, I will not move unless the enemy moves. If the enemy crosses the river, set fire to the bridge."

"Order!"

Che Guangqian took the order and patted He Changqi on the shoulder. She wanted to laugh but was afraid of offending others, so she tried hard to hold it back.

"Old Duan, prepare the food and fodder. After we finish the battle, we will quickly head north."

Fang Chongyong ordered Duan Xiushi.

"Okay, you guys go get ready now. The commander is waiting for good news in the cabin.

This battle is a battle of will and plan. Whoever loses will be punished by military law!"

Fang Zhongyong put away the smile on his face, looked around at everyone and spoke in a deep voice.

"We will definitely return victorious!"

All the generals shouted in unison.

After everyone left, Fang Chongyong lay down on the bed in the cabin, his head buzzing.

The high-intensity brain operation and planning of various battles these days have overwhelmed him. Fang Zhongyong decided to take a good rest now and let his subordinates improvise in this battle.

(End of this chapter)