Brocade clothing as the country

Chapter 982 Mr. Wang asked Mr. Wang

There is still a day and a half away from Liaoyang City, and the volunteer cavalry scattered along the way have all kept up with the army.

Not to mention other places, along the way from Haizhouwei to Liaoyang, banditry has been wiped out. Under the temptation of cash, those defeated soldiers and bandits are no longer scourges, but profitable prey.

After the Eastern Expedition Army gave more than [-] taels of silver, they stopped paying. In fact, the military towns along the way were also willing to pay this sum of money. It is much cheaper to appease a place with one head than to send troops to conquer.

It was indeed cold in Liao Town in the first month, but the Huwei soldiers who came here went to the colder northern border many times, and the frontier soldiers from Datong and Ji Town also adapted. The old foundation of the town knows how to deal with the cold.

But Wang Tong was unequivocal. He was willing to spend money on cold and frost protection. He purchased military supplies in Ji Town.

Needless to say, the Huwei army came from Datong and Xuanfu. They were originally servants and pacesetters. It is common for them to be treated like this. The tens of thousands of infantry in Ji Town have had a hard time for a long time. It really boosts their morale to be able to eat like this. .

Even so, daily marching is still not so comfortable, but Wang Tong always leads the army on horseback, walking between the camps on horseback.

Wang Xijue and Chen Ju stayed in the cart every day, and the soldiers didn't feel much about them, but seeing that Wang Tong was wearing the same armor as them every day, and walking in the cold wind, it reminded him of the daily food and drink. With treatment, this feeling is different, with such a general, everything is willing.

Wang Tong still had grease on his face, a kind of ointment mixed with animal oil and medicine, which was quite effective, and this was considered a privilege of the coach.

"Marshal, the supervisor is here, please go over and talk!"

While patrolling the Huwei army, a military academy rode over and said respectfully. Wang Tong nodded and headed towards the Chinese army. Wang Xijue's carriage was over there.

From the departure of the capital to the present, Wang Xijue and Wang Tong have not spoken a few words. Wang Xijue has been walking around and looking around, and Wang Tong is busy with military affairs. Of course, the same is true for Chen Ju, the supervisor of the army, but Wang Tong always has a feeling. Wang Xijue has no malice towards him, and he will definitely talk to him.

*************
"Master Wang, as the chief general, naturally wants to lead the army on horseback, but the old man can't stand it anymore, so please come in and talk, Lord Wang!"

Wang Tong rode to the side of Wang Xijue's carriage, saw Wang Xijue opened the carriage door and smiled, Wang Tong immediately cupped his hands, dismounted and entered the carriage.

There are cotton pads and furs in the carriage, and there is a heater. In order to cater for Wang Xijue's preferences, there is incense in the corner, which smells quiet and is very expensive. These are not the supplies of the Huwei Army.

The two sides sat down, and after Wang Xijue's entourage finished making tea, they retreated out again. Marching in winter is also hard work every day, and Wang Tong also felt relaxed to be able to rest for a while in such a place.

"When the old man was in the capital, he only wanted to take a sedan chair rather than a car, because the big car was very bumpy. When he first saw the big car, he still complained in his heart, but he didn't expect that although there were ups and downs, there was no bumps. Really Amazing, how do you do it?"

"The oil-soaked bamboo bows and iron bars are used as the lining below, and the compartment boards are two layers, and there is filling between the layers."

Wang Tong did not elaborate, this is generally a shock-absorbing setting. The steel furnace at the Sanjiang Workshop and the hydraulic machinery can also produce steel bars with better toughness, but the cost is relatively high, so there is no need to discuss this technical detail. Wang Xijue said it, and Wang Xijue also wanted to divert the conversation, not to ask about the cart.

After the two parties had a sip of tea, Wang Xijue said straight to the point:

"My lord, these days I've been looking at the account books of military supplies. The food and grass supplies we carry with us, according to the current consumption, if we don't stop in Liaoyang, but if we go to Shenyang, the food and grass supplies will be exhausted. I have never participated in military affairs. But I feel that if this is the case, it is better to use the money from buying livestock every day to buy food, so that we can spend more time."

"If you don't eat well, how can soldiers have the strength to fight."

The content of Wang Tong's words was a bit harsh, but his tone was gentle, with a smile on his face, Wang Xijue didn't take it seriously. He should have such a reaction to accusations of other people's military affairs. He also said with a smile:

"Master Wang cares about his subordinates. This is indeed admirable. However, although I have never participated in military affairs, I have seen many of them. There are so many soldiers and horses in the world. If they all run the army like you, Lord Wang, I am afraid that Ming Even the national treasury can't provide military expenditures, and now it's so wasteful, if the grain and grass are cut off in Shenyang, it's not a matter of strength."

Wang Tong shook his head with a smile, put down his teacup and said:

"The supervisor is also considering the overall situation. Wang does not mean any disrespect to the supervisor by saying this. May I ask the supervisor, have those troops who are not full and not well fed ever fought such a big victory as Wang."

Wang Xijue was taken aback for a moment, then shook his head and said:

"My lord Wang's meritorious service is unrivaled, and everyone in the world knows it, but the Jizhen soldiers trained by Qi Shaobao are no different from soldiers from other places, but they are also victorious in every battle. What do you say?"

"It is often impossible to do things in the future. However, Wang told the supervisor here that if Ji Town is still in its current state, the soldiers and horses that Qi Shao kept will be abolished within five years, but Wang's training Bing, if you maintain this rule, you will always be so brave."

When Wang Tong said this, his face was full of confidence, and Wang Xijue was also taken aback. After all, he was a civil servant, and he was just a casual observer of this kind of military affairs. Let's go on.

Perhaps seeing that the scene was a little stiff, Wang Tong added with a smile:

"In fact, the supervisor doesn't know that Liaoyang and Shenyang have enough grain and grass to feed our army for ten years, and there is no need to grab grain from the people."

"How did Liao Town store up so much food!?"

When Wang Xijue heard this, his thinking was suddenly misled. How to supply money and food for Jiubian has always been a difficult problem for the court. Liao Town also complained all day long, but he didn't expect to be able to save so much food and grass.

"Supervisor, along the way, do you see that Liao Town, whether it's soldiers or people, has a stronger complexion than other places?"

Wang Tong asked, Wang Xijue didn't usually pay attention to this matter, but when Wang Tong said that, Wang Xijue recalled it carefully, it seemed to be true, nodded there, Wang Tong said again:
"The land in Liao Town is fertile. Although the population is large, each person cultivates more land than the inland provinces. Moreover, there is a lot of trade with the Tartars here, and there are more livestock in the cultivated land. All these reasons add up, and each family can compare with the inland provinces. Lu's family with the same number of people has a lot more harvest. Liao Town is a border town. Not only does it not have to pay taxes and food to the court, but it has to get money and food from the court. , There is no going out, it has been going on for a long time, and this amount has naturally been accumulated, in fact, if Liao Town hadn’t been extravagant, it would have been more than that!”

"It can be used for ten years, tsk tsk, it's amazing, no wonder Mr. Wang said you set up Liao Town as a province. After so many years, they have long been self-sufficient, but they are sucking blood from the court."

Wang Xijue said a few words to himself there, the carriage bumped a bit, but it made him react, he pondered for a while, looked at Wang Tong and asked:
"Master Wang, although the savings in Liao Town may not be kept secret, it is not easy to know. How did Lord Wang know?"

Wang Tong noticed that Wang Xijue's eyes were quite vigilant, and Wang Tong said with a smile:

"Naturally, I got it from Jin Yiwei's daily report. Does the supervisor think that Wang is going to inquire about it?"

Wang Xijue smiled a little embarrassedly, but after the embarrassment passed, he felt a little emotional, and said with a sigh:
"If you make a fuss about the details, Mr. Wang is indeed a capable minister."

"The supervisor is overwhelmed. Jinyiwei is stationed in various places, and it has the function of spying on news and collecting information from various places. What Wang did was to let them follow the rules. These news are all submitted to the palace, and His Majesty also wants to read them. "

Wang Xijue was worried that he would spy on the world, but he didn't expect that he was just urging Jin Yiwei to do what he should do. Wang Tong thought so in his heart, but he wanted to say "Your Majesty also wants to watch", explaining that this is what the palace needs, and It's not that I want to toss about any articles.

Sure enough, when he said that, Wang Xijue fell into deep thought again, but after a while he sighed again, and said with emotion:
"Follow the rules. The rules of our ancestors are good, but there are a few who follow them. Doing according to the rules is not as easy as it is said."

This feeling is not necessarily for doing things "according to the rules". Jin Yiwei collects information so well that the palace knows it all, but the yamen in the court are ignorant. This situation is very unfavorable to the six departments of the cabinet. More and more blurred.

Wang Tong also thought of this point, but there is no need to point out this point. The carriage moved forward slowly, and there were bumps, but under the shock absorption of bamboo boards, steel rods and cotton pads, the people in the car did not feel it. Uncomfortable, Wang Xijue was silent for a while, and said again:

"Your Majesty Wang has also read the military reports in recent days. Now the enemy is divided into several routes. There is a route under Shenyang City, a route in Tielingwei, and another route in southern Liaoning. If you calculate carefully, there is another route outside the side wall. There are many Tatars , and constantly increasing troops, in this situation in Liao Town, it is lucky to be able to defend ourselves. I am afraid it will not be of much help to us. The enemy has several routes, and our army is insufficient. But it's a dilemma, the old man doesn't know about military matters, what advice does Lord Wang have?"

Wang Tong took a sip from his teacup, thought for a while, and said in a deep voice:
"It doesn't matter how many ways he comes, I will only go all the way!"

(End of this chapter)