Ji Han Da Sima

Chapter 410 Daxing Jianghuai

September of the 22nd year of Jian'an. Time flies and flies by.

Not long after Liu Bei returned home with his army, more than a month passed. Under Huo Jundu's rule, malaria had dissipated in Jiangbei.

More than 6,800 sergeants were suffering from malaria, and more than 6,600 soldiers were killed in each battalion, plus the generals who were killed in the Northern Expedition, as well as Na Lu Su and Xi Zhen. The losses caused by the malaria epidemic were comparable to a major defeat.

It was not that there were no recoveries. Thanks to the efforts of Huang Huapeng and other doctors, only a hundred or so people were lucky enough to survive. Even if they are cured, malaria will break out from time to time. It has been with them for a long time, making it inconvenient for them to march and fight.

With Huo Jun's approval, these nearly two hundred people retired from the army directly, restored their citizenship, moved to Jiangbei, and became officials in Chufu Township Pavilion, receiving tax exemptions for five years.

Recruiting veterans to work at the grassroots level has been Huo Jun's long-term ruling measure since the liberation of Jianghuai.

The Jianghuai River is in decline, with few people living in it. Due to the years of war, there is a lack of local systems. Therefore, whether it is the people of Jiangzuo who moved north or the people of Xuhuai who moved south, in order to better control them, it is logical to resettle them locally and let the injured soldiers go to the grassroots.

Although the results of the current Northern Expedition were not fruitful, they actually moved 3,000 households southward and captured Zhu Guang and Sun Guan's generals, totaling nearly 10,000 people. Especially in Huaiyin, there are more than ten thousand men and women in the city. According to some statistics, more than 30,000 people were looted during the Northern Expedition.

More than 30,000 people are neither too many nor too few, just the population of a small county.

At Huo Jun's request, Liu Bei approved the proposal to establish Linhuai County, and the five counties of Huaiyin, Zhongli, Xutai, Gaoshan and Dongcheng were designated as Linhuai County to govern Huaiyin. General Gao Xiang of Zhaowu was appointed as the prefect of Linhuai.

Today, there are four counties in the Jianghuai area: Lujiang, Jiujiang, Guangling, and Linhuai.

Xu Sheng moved to conquer the captive generals and led the governor of Qiao County from afar, temporarily governing Zhongli. Chang Xi, who had previously served as the governor of Xiapi, was the governor of Yuzhou and was still stationing troops and farming in Jiangdu in the north of the Yangtze River.

Huo Jun's official position remained unchanged. In order to better control Changxi, he also took charge of the military affairs of Xuzhou and Yuzhou on the basis of being the governor of Jianghuai.

Pang Tong handed over the document and said: "The number of captured Cao soldiers today is six to seven thousand. According to the previous order of the governor, Tong has ordered people to place them in the four counties of Gaoshan, Dongcheng, Liyang and Tangyi. However, the families of the captured sergeants are all in the North, and most of them are single, so this is not a long-term solution."

Huo Jun browsed the contents of the document and said: "Shi Yuan's concerns are justified. There are few people in Jianghuai and if you want to retain the Northerners, you can rest assured if you divide the land and settle down. Due to homesickness, many Northern soldiers may flee."

Pang Tong pondered for a while and then said: "The general thinks that it is feasible to sit together in a row. Two men are divided into one household, and five or ten households are divided into five or ten households. If there are any escapees, the remaining ones should be joined together. And send people to the south to recruit girls of the right age to marry them in the north. People, with kindness and power, can gradually gain their hearts!"

"No!"

Huo Jun shook his head and said, "How can we treat northerners with kindness?"

"Doesn't the Governor want to keep the northerners in the Jianghuai River to enrich the declining Jianghuai River? If we don't marry him now, let him have a family, for fear that he will be separated more often." Pang Tong said doubtfully.

According to ancient war rules, captured soldiers were often reduced to slaves and assigned to their subordinates by their own monarchs. The soldiers fought outside, while the slaves farmed inside to ensure that the farming season was correct.

However, since Huo Jun took control of Jianghuai, he was unwilling to adopt this system. Instead, he hoped to integrate the captured sergeants into households on the spot to enrich the sparse population in Jianghuai. Therefore, after seeking Liu Bei's advice, Huo Jun left six to seven thousand Wei soldiers in Jianghuai.

Huo Jun put the document on the desk and said, "Why not treat him like Cao Cao did in his settlement?"

"Cao Cao raised his troops in the Central Plains. At that time, food was scarce. He gathered the people into villages and divided them into villages. Although the villagers hated his government and there may be some who fled, this method may have merit. Now we will turn the soldiers from the north into villages. Work together in camp and divide it into five and five, so that the Jianghuai River can be abundant!"

With that said, Huo Jun got up from the couch and said: "The Jianghuai River is different from the states and counties. What they are most anxious about is agriculture and war. If the agriculture is prosperous, the Jianghuai River will be rich, and if the Jianghuai River is rich, the army will be strong. If the army is strong, the enemy can be defeated, so farmers This is the foundation of Jianghuai, and it precedes the war."

"Now I want to develop agriculture in the Jianghuai River, open up farmland, and store grain and grass. When the Jianghuai River is prosperous and strong, I will not be afraid of the Northern and Central Plains."

The management of the Jianghuai River is different from that of ordinary inland states and counties. The ordinary inland states and counties have little urgent need for food and grass, and there are no foreign threats, so they can be managed slowly.

The Jianghuai River is different. Today, the Southern Han Dynasty and the Northern Wei Dynasty are facing each other across the Huai River. To the north of the Huai River are the four prefectures of Qing, Xu, Yan, and Henan. To the south of Huainan are the Jianghuai and Yangzhou. Comparing the north and the south, from the perspective of household registration and military strength, there is a huge gap in strength.

Therefore, to manage the Jianghuai River, we need to use strong medicine and get rid of miscellaneous affairs. In the affairs of Jianghuai, there were only soldiers and farmers. If Pang Tong used the inland state and county model to govern, the results would be too slow.

"What does the governor mean?" Pang Tong asked.

Huo Jun thought for a while and said: "I want to send people to patrol the Yangtze and Huaihe Rivers, select land and water areas, and have wide fields to store grain, as capital for the Northern Expedition. All the captured northern soldiers will be used for farming, and I will also recruit old and weak soldiers to form farming soldiers. Official."

"When Shi Yuan arrived in Jianghuai, he didn't know the geography. Now I'll leave the responsibility of inspecting Jianghuai to others. When the military strategy for farmland is out, then I will manage Jianghuai in Yuan Dynasty. Is that right?"

"promise!"

Pang Tong hesitated for a while and said: "Even if you order the northern soldiers to farm and farm, but don't accept their will, how can you make them work as hard as they can? Marry a wife and have children, and you must have family assets. This is the foundation of a person."

"In view of the unification, it is better to make an agreement with the Northern Soldiers, saying that those who work hard every year can keep an extra 10% of their food for marriage. Anyone who has a son will be given acres of land as a family property. The daughters of the current marriage can be poor, orphans and widows from the counties south of the Yangtze River. Get married."

"When the water is plentiful, the harvest will be harvested, and the expenses will be calculated over several years. The troops and horses in the Jianghuai River will not be long before they can be self-sufficient. Raise troops to defeat the bandits, advance and occupy the bandits, and there will be no restrictions on food and grass."

Huo Jun nodded slightly and said with a smile: "The responsibility for the great revitalization of Jianghuai should be based on the talent."

"Tong should do his best!" Pang Tong replied.

"good!"

Looking at Pang Tong's retreating figure, Huo Jun smiled, then thought of Lu Su, and sighed.

Pang Tong and Lu Su had different styles. Lu Su had led troops alone for a long time, had experience in governing alone in Jiaozhou, and was a Jianghuai person. It is not difficult to serve as the deputy governor of Jianghuai and assist Huo Jun. Even from the beginning, Huo Jun gave Lu Su the task of managing Huaidong.

On the other hand, Pang Tong mostly held official positions in Neijun before, and later served as Shangshuling. He rarely led troops in battles, but mostly participated in military strategy planning. Now that I have been hastily appointed as the deputy governor of Jianghuai, there are too many things that I need to be familiar with.

Huo Jun planned to let Pang Tong start with the government affairs he was most familiar with, and then gradually familiarized him with military activities through the formation of field troops.

Huo Jun looked at Jiang Ji and asked, "Can Zitong's heart be at peace?"

Jiang Ji, who was sitting below, stroked his beard and said with a smile: "Among the four counties of Jianghuai, Jiujiang is the most important. Why can't Ji go out to control Jiujiang?"

According to the Jianghuai administrative region, apart from Guangling, among the four counties, Linhuai, Jiujiang, and Lujiang each have important military strongholds that need to be defended.

For example, Linhuai County needs to guard Zhongli and Huaiyin, so Xu Sheng and Gao Xiang need to guard them separately; Jiujiang County is stationed in Hefei and needs to face the threat of Shouchun; Lujiang County is stationed in Lu'an and needs to guard against enemies from Runan.

From this point of view, Jiujiang is the most important area in Huaixi and Linhuai is the most important in Huaidong. However, looking at the distribution of Cao Wei's forces, Jiujiang County is under the greatest pressure. Once Jiujiang is lost, the Southern Han Dynasty's many years of hard work in managing Jianghuai will be in vain.

Therefore, among the four Jianghuai counties, Jiujiang is the most important!

Previously, Lu Su recommended Jiang Ji to succeed him, mostly because of Jiang Ji's outstanding performance in Jiujiang County. Of course, there is another point. The hometowns of Jiang Ji and Lu Su are only a hundred miles apart. During the time they worked together in Hefei, the relationship between the two became increasingly close.

Huo Jun chuckled a few times and said, "Are these words from Zitong's true heart?"

"Plan for big things!"

Jiang Ji understood and said: "It is not easy for the king to have the foundation he has today. We have been following the governor for a long time, and most of Jianghuai are the old troops of Beifu. The king appointed him as deputy governor, not with the intention of seizing power, but with the intention of conveying the emperor's heart. meaning."

Among the major metropolitan areas of the Southern Han Dynasty, only Jianghuai had a deputy governor, which was indeed special for the Jianghuai metropolitan area. Therefore, in the salary table of the Southern Han Dynasty, the deputy governor was as important as the governor of Hanzhong, second only to the three major governors of Nanzhong, Nanjun, and Jiangzhou.

First, the Jianghuai area is vast and there are many military fortresses, so it is necessary to set up a deputy governor to help Huo Jun; secondly, when Huo Jun is away, he can sit in the Jianghuai area and take charge of military affairs; thirdly, he can show Liu Bei's attitude to the civil and military forces of the Beifu and coordinate the generals.

Huo Jun sighed and said, "It would be great if Zitong could understand the seriousness of the matter!" After chatting with Jiang Ji for a while, the attendant came into the hall to announce.

"Captain, Commander Huo, please see me!"

"allow!"

After a while, Huo Fan, wearing armor and holding a sword, walked into the hall and saluted: "Fan pays homage to the governor and has met Jiang Jiujiang."

Huo Jun looked at Huo Fan, who was getting stronger and stronger, and asked, "How long has Shi Zai been appointed as the captain of the Tuntian School?"

Hearing this, Huo Fan puffed up his chest and said: "Back to the governor, since the 17th year of Jian'an, Fan has been serving as the captain of the field camp for five years. He has fertilized acres of land, dredged fertilizers, applied water, and supplied hundreds of military supplies. Ten Thousand Stones.”

After a pause, Huo Fan was afraid that Huo Jun would forget what he said in the past, so he reminded him: "In the 22nd year of Jian'an, I followed the governor across the Surabaya River three times and defeated Sun Guan. This is a military exploit."

"Ha ha!"

Huo Jun saw through Huo Fan's thoughts and said with a smile: "As a father, I never lie to my son, and I have never forgotten Fuli's words."

With that said, Huo Jun handed the official document on the case to Huo Fan and said: "This is the promotion order. I will be relieved of the post of Tuntian Colonel and promoted to Yangwei Zhonglang General, and concurrently join the army."

"Thank you Captain!"

Upon seeing this, Huo Fan was overjoyed and stepped forward to pick him up. However, Huo Junqi put away the promotion order and did not give it to Huo Fan.

Huo Fan stared at the promotion document with longing eyes and said anxiously: "Sir, why is this?"

Huo Jun put the order on the case and said with a wicked smile: "In order to take up this position, there is still one important task that needs to be completed."

Huo Fan looked pitifully at the promotion documents, taking up military posts, and leading troops in battles. He had been waiting for five years.

"Please give me your orders!" Huo Fan put away his longing eyes and said with his hands.

Huo Jun walked to the map of the Jianghuai River and pointed out: "The Jianghuai River is in decline, and most of the food needed for guarding and conquering is drawn from the left side of the Yangtze River. However, now it reaches the Huai River in the north and Dajiang in the south. The Jianghuai River is thousands of miles wide, and long-distance transportation from the left side of the Yangtze River It is not a long-term solution to bring food to the border.”

"I have discussed with the king for a long time, and I believe that the long-term strategy is to vigorously develop the Jianghuai River, cultivate acres of land, and store grain and grass. Now I want you to patrol the Jianghuai River and select a land with abundant water and soil, open up vast fields, raise livestock and accumulate grain, thinking that it will be destroyed. Thieves’ money.”

Huo Fan was surprised and a little frustrated, and said, "Your Majesty, do you want Fan to start farming in Jianghuai?"

"how?"

Huo Jun's face straightened slightly and he said, "Is it possible that you don't want to?"

"Don't dare!"

Huo Fan hurriedly replied: "The great development of the Yangtze and Huaihe River is a national policy, but the results of agricultural work are not short-term. This is an important task that can be accomplished in three or four years in the short term and seven or eight years in the long term."

As he spoke, Huo Fan hesitated and said, "I wonder if it can be shorter?"

"Shizai has this intention!"

Huo Jun pretended to be thoughtful and said: "In March of the third month of the inspection of Jianghuai River, I submitted a treatise on agriculture. If the discussion is effective, I will be promoted to an official position; if the discussion is useless, I will still be the captain of the field school."

In order to whet Huo Fan's appetite, Huo Jun revealed the news and said: "Your Majesty has the idea of ​​​​conquering Jiaoling. It will be completed in March and I will submit a review. I will plead with the king to allow you to lead the partial army to attack Jiaoling."

"Sir, are you serious?"

Huo Fan was pleasantly surprised and said hurriedly: "Thank you very much for the governor's appreciation. Fan will submit the essay to the governor that morning."

After saying that, Huo Fan wanted to take advantage of Huo Jun's unpreparedness and step forward to get the appointment documents.

"Ok?"

Huo Jun tapped the back of Huo Fan's hand with a bamboo slip and said deliberately: "What does Shi Zai want?"

"hey-hey!"

Huo Fan put his hand on the scarf and said with a naive smile: "My lord, we are patrolling the Jianghuai River. If you don't join the army, it won't be enough to build your momentum."

"Only after the consultation is effective can you take the post." Huo Jun said calmly.

"promise!"

Huo Fan was in a slightly lower mood and retreated angrily.

Looking at Huo Fan's back, Jiang Ji asked: "Shi Zai has been eager to lead the army for a long time. Since he has made great achievements, why not give him a document?"

"Boy is impatient!"

Huo Jun said with a smile on his face: "Because of me, military generals often treat them as sons and nephews. Therefore, although they have talents, they have a restless mind. Only by sharpening your mind and guarding against arrogance and impetuosity can you be of great use."

Jiang Ji had a strange look on his face, and thought to himself: "In the past, when I went down to the east of the Yangtze River, I broke through the Xiahou River with my back, and broke through the entrance of Jingjing thousands of miles away, how heroic was the governor at that time? How arrogant?"

"It's very interesting for today's priests to guard against arrogance and impetuosity!"

"Zitong?"

"Ok?"

Seeing Jiang Ji wandering in his mind, Huo Jun asked, "What are you thinking about?"

Jiang Ji stroked his beard and said with a smile: "I remember the young demeanor of the governor, defeating powerful enemies with his back, sending letters to the Xiahou; lying drunk on the lap of a beautiful woman, breaking through the entrance of Beijing thousands of miles; fighting fiercely with Zhou Yu in the rivers and lakes, burning the enemy with fire. Today is much different from the past. It’s so different that it’s unbelievable.”

"Ha ha!"

Huo Jun raised his head and laughed, and said: "In the past, when I was young and frivolous, I was in the prime of my life, and I scolded Fang Qiu. Now the governor has a high and powerful position, so he cultivates his moral character and manages affairs steadily."

Then, Huo Jun felt a little melancholy and said: "Huo Fan is my adopted son and the king's son-in-law. As we get older, if we don't keep a calm temper, we will be criticized by the world. Fortunately, Shizai is very witty and knows a lot. my heart."

Huo Jun is already in his forties now. No matter how high-spirited he is, he will still be old. For example, when Gan Ning was young, he was very angry and killed violently and indiscriminately. However, in his fifties, he was suffering from rheumatism, and he became a little more amiable.

Jiang Ji sighed with emotion: "In the future, you may be able to see the elegance of the younger generation!"

(End of this chapter)