Chapter 149
When Marshal Zhu complained that the county magistrate and county magistrate of Huining County were too incompetent, the county magistrate, county lieutenant and others headed by Jiang Xin were also very depressed.
Huining County is a large county with tens of thousands of households, four townships and six thousand soldiers.
But General Xing Changfeng was marching with an army of 20,000 to 30,000 men. How could they possibly fight him? Their entire county only had 5,000 to 6,000 soldiers to defend it. Were they just going to give them food? The disparity in strength was too great. There was no chance of winning, and they had no reinforcements!
In this situation, they could either surrender or fight to the bitter end, crippling the five or six thousand soldiers and horses before allowing the enemy to march straight in. The difference was that in the former case, the leaders might still be able to survive, while in the latter, even if they could save their families, it would be considered a mercy from Xing Changfeng.
After Xing Changfeng and others led their troops to the city, Jiang Xin discussed with his colleagues and decided to simply put up a bit of resistance and then surrender.
After all, they weren't Diluo people or some other foreign race. After all, Xing Changfeng was also from the Central Plains, wasn't he? Besides, the imperial court itself was failing to suppress the rebellion, so who could blame them for surrendering? Thinking this way, they surrendered with peace of mind.
As for Marshal Zhu calling them useless, they admitted they were useless. Shi Mei said that Xing Changfeng and his men's siege took six hours, counting from the time of departure, which included the time spent on the journey.
But Jiang Xin and the others thought they were useless. Others like Huanhua and the governors of Songhua Prefecture were no better! There wasn't a single capable fighter; everyone was just a bunch of weaklings fighting each other. They were now blaming them for losing Huining simply because Xing Changfeng hadn't targeted them in his first fight.
At this time, Yao Chunnuan, along with Xu Chong and several members of the shogunate, followed the army into Huining to take over. After they entered, they issued a series of measures to reassure the people. The first was to prohibit the army from harassing or bullying the people, and those who violated the rules would be severely punished!
Jiang Xin and the others were assisting in the handover, but they discovered that the person presiding over the takeover was actually a woman. They assumed she was Yao Gongcao of the New Yichun City Lord's Mansion. For a moment, they couldn't help but take a second look. Yao Chunnuan's fame had spread throughout the country with Xing Changfeng's uprising. After all, she, a woman, had risen to become one of the top decision-makers in Xing Changfeng's group, and wielded real power.
She gave the impression of being bright, gentle, and very organized. Although she wore a dark black dress that suppressed the color, her beauty was still visible. What was rare was her aura. This aura dispelled the man's thoughts that were aroused by her beauty.
Thanks to the cooperation of Jiang Xin and others, the handover work went very smoothly.
What Xing Zhangfeng, Yao Chunnuan and others were going to discuss next was how to deal with Jiang Xin and other Huining officials.
Jiang Xin surrendered, and his surrender was clean, without causing significant casualties to the Xing family army. Killing him was definitely not an option. This was the cleverness of Jiang Xin and the others.
Huining was the first place they captured after they launched the uprising and occupied their base camp in Xinyichun. They would continue to fight for territory, and countless defenders would use Huining as a reference. If they killed the surrendered generals, it would only increase the resistance of future defenders and make sieges more difficult.
For this reason, they can't kill him. A thousand gold coins buy a bone horse. This is the benchmark. And now they are in the fighting stage, they need to unite all the forces that can be united.
Finally, several of their senior officials unanimously decided that the officials in Huining should be treated in the same way as those in Xinyichun. The good officials would first be relocated to Xinyichun to study for a period of time and then be appointed to official positions depending on their situation. The bad ones would be dismissed and the black sheep in the team would be eliminated and given the consequences they deserved.
Jiang Xin and the others were speechless at this treatment. At the same time, they were also quite thankful that nothing had happened to them. From what Xing Changfeng and the others had said, it seemed that if they performed well in the future, they could still become officials. This result was beyond their expectations. Recruiting surrendered generals has been a practice since ancient times, but to be honest, Jiang Xin and the others thought that Xing Changfeng was a military man, and that people with military backgrounds often acted on impulse without considering the long term. Now it seems that this is not the case. Later, when he actually boarded the ship, he discovered that Xing Changfeng's team was very methodical and not the makeshift team he had assumed.
Yao Chunnuan intended to hand over Huining County to Xu Chong for governance, and that was the reason he was brought here. He had been in Yichun for over two months, and during that time, he had been diligent and effective in handling internal affairs. It could be said that Xu Chong was a highly skilled official they had trained. Their primary purpose in transferring him to Huining was to restore livelihoods and boost the local economy.
Xu Chong's transfer was a suggestion she made to the city lord after careful consideration. Because she was in charge of Xinyichun, those with similar abilities would be somewhat suppressed by her presence, and anyone suppressed for too long would become depressed. Therefore, after confirming their loyalty, they would transfer them to other positions. This would benefit everyone and avoid wasting talent.
For Xu Chong, being transferred to Huining was quite satisfactory. He was deeply grateful for the trust and promotion shown by the City Lord and Yao Gongcao.
Because he had been suppressed in Jinxi Prefecture and his achievements had been taken away, he was feeling resentful and depressed.
After arriving in Yichun, he got a suitable position, was valued by his superiors, and his colleagues were also very nice. His depressed and resentful mentality calmed down a lot. Moreover, whether it was the Yichun military settlement he had just arrived in or the City Lord's Mansion he later arrived at, there were many things worth learning for him.
Deep down, he longed to be the master of his own house, to govern the land to his liking, but he had also known that the time had not come yet. Now was the time. Ambassador to a new frontier, this was his first step!
"General, now that we're done in Huining, it's time for us to turn around and deal with the Di Luo tribe." In the army, everyone was still used to calling Xing Changfeng the General.
When Meng Yi and the others heard this, their eyes lit up. There was no general who didn't like fighting. They had originally thought that this attack on Huining would be a big fight, but they didn't expect it to end so quickly, without even having to warm up.
A young general hesitated and said, "But, isn't the Yichun camp guarding the Northern Di tribe now?" They rebelled and do not belong to Daliang. They can be said to belong to two different camps with the Yichun camp. Who will win?
Yao Chunnuan said seriously, "When fighting against the Beidi tribe, there are not two camps, but only one camp, and that is we are all the Central Plains Chinese people."
The taciturn general also nodded solemnly, agreeing with Yao Chunnuan's words.
"I have no objection to attacking the Northern Di. I will follow your arrangements, General!"
"That's fine with me!"
“Ditto!”
Yao Chunnuan smiled and said, "Okay, you tell the soldiers to prepare well. We will go ahead and discuss with Marshal Zhu. After the discussion is completed, we can exchange defense with the Yichun camp. This time, let the soldiers capture more prisoners without hurting themselves."
When they heard that they were going to capture prisoners, all the generals present laughed. Lord Gongcao still wanted prisoners so much.
Yao Chunnuan looked helpless. There was no other way. There were too many heavy and hard labors such as clearing land, digging rivers, and mining that needed prisoners to do.
******
The prince was in a heavy mood. As soon as the Di Luo tribe moved south, the southern barbarians took advantage of the situation and invaded the south of Daliang - Qiannan.
For a time, the land of China was engulfed in flames of war, and it was almost impossible for the common people to find a paradise completely untouched by the flames of war. Because even in places where there was no fighting, the local young and strong would be forcibly conscripted into the army by the imperial court.
But the prince couldn't care less. He could only say, "If the skin is gone, where will the hair stay?" Once the internal troubles are eliminated and the external enemies are repelled, and he has a few years of rest and recuperation, everything will be fine.
Fortunately, Wang Lang in Qiannan was still capable and stabilized Qiannan.
What the prince didn't know was that Wang Lang relied on his "foresight" to keep the southern barbarians out of Qiannan. However, it was very difficult for him to maintain this situation, and he was unable to withdraw troops from Qiannan to quell the rebellion.
The prince originally planned to lead the army in person, but the ministers opposed it. He was in poor health, and the old emperor was now bedridden, his health was getting worse day by day. Now that Daliang was in turmoil, he was needed to coordinate the troops.
The general who is going to Ruyin, Xuzhou to quell the rebellion is General Fan Ye, who is as famous as the old war god Huo. This is an old general who has been retired for many years for some reason. It was the prince who personally invited him out of retirement.
After gathering troops, food and supplies, the old general led the army to set off. On the way, he encountered several small forces that raised the banner of rebellion, but he crushed them all the way and took them out directly. It was really true that any Tom, Dick or Harry dared to raise the banner of rebellion!
Upon receiving the news that Huining had been lost overnight, the Crown Prince, like Marshal Zhu, cursed Jiang Xin and the others for their incompetence and Gan Huacheng for dereliction of duty. He was even more furious than Marshal Zhu. He had clearly sent official letters instructing the officials in Huanhua, Huining, and Songhua Prefecture to be vigilant against Xinyichun. Yet, Huining was lost anyway, and so quickly!
And Ganhua City, you are also a rebellion-suppressing army after all. Although the troops given to you are a bit small and we don't expect you to kill Xing Changfeng and others, you should lead your troops to arrive quickly. Even if you surround them but don't attack, you can make the other side afraid. You should be able to do it, right?
********
On the other side, Marshal Zhu slept for two hours to catch up on his sleep. When he woke up, he still felt upset when he thought about Xing Changfeng leading his troops to attack Huining.
The main reason was the court's inaction. I won't go into other details, as it had little to do with him anyway. However, the Northern Di invasion had already begun when the Crown Prince appeared in Yichun. He had spoken to the Crown Prince at the time, explaining that some of the army's weapons were severely worn, and that this was causing the soldiers to suffer losses during battles with the Northern Di. He asked if he could replace the worn and blunted weapons. Marshal Zhu felt that the court didn't need to worry about food and fodder, but could they at least provide them with some weapons?
At that time, the prince only said that the court was also in a difficult situation, but he would do his best. However, it had been a while since the prince fled Yichun, and the court had not yet replaced their weapons, and the order to limit salt and iron production had been issued! Marshal Zhu didn't know what to say. Now the Northern Di had indeed moved south. When the enemy gathered, he sent people to rush to deliver the news to the capital. He didn't know if the court would respond this time. He didn't expect reinforcements, but he felt that it would be good for the court to give some food and grass to appease them. You know, they were fighting for Daliang.
Marshal Zhu sighed and said, "Shi Mei, I don't think we can go on like this. We're fighting the Di Luo tribe up front, while Xing Changfeng and the others are working hard to expand their territory behind us. This can't work. They attacked Huining this time, will they attack Suihua or Songhuafu tomorrow? I think we should think of a way to keep Xing Changfeng and the others busy. Of course, it would be best if they could help share the Di Luo tribe's firepower."
Shi Mei hesitated to speak.
"What? If you have something to say, just say it." Seeing the counselors' expressions, Marshal Zhu felt a headache. Don't these people know that they have good brains and sometimes others really can't think as well as they do?
"General, I understand what you mean. However, unless Xing Changfeng takes the initiative to help us fight the Northern Di, it would be difficult for us to divert the trouble and drag them into the fight."
"How do you say that?"
"General, please look at the map. The Northern Di people are trying to bring this disaster to Xinyichun. No matter which route they take, they will have to pass through one of our newly acquired towns: Wuiling, Tangwanghe, or Xinqing."
Marshal Zhu looked at the map and was speechless.
After a long moment, he murmured, "How treacherous! Our Yichun camp has truly become the first line of defense for New Yichun. We have three towns behind us, and we can't retreat. If we do, the Northern Di will attack those three towns first."
Shi Mei was also full of regret, "It's my fault, I didn't think of this at all." At that time, he was just happy when he got the three towns without any effort.
"At that time, when those people from the City Lord's Mansion decided to divide the three towns of Wuiling, Tangwanghe and Xinqing in Jiayin County, which are adjacent to our Yichun camp, to us, I thought they were kind-hearted..." Marshal Zhu looked as if he had suddenly realized something.
Yao Chunnuan: ...
She said it was all out of kindness, but did they believe her? She had indeed allocated the three towns adjacent to Jiayin County to him out of goodwill, to make management easier for them. These three towns were vast and sparsely populated, so even if they were called towns, they were close to county size, but the population was so sparse that they weren't upgraded. She was also reluctant to let him go, okay?
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