Inside the Xiping County Government Office.
When County Magistrate Zhang heard the military report from his subordinates, he became extremely anxious.
During the autumn harvest, Xiping County had water from underground canals to irrigate farmland. Although the grain harvest was a little poor, the people still had some grain left at home after paying taxes.
This is unique in the North.
Zhang Jinnian was so happy that his mouth was curled up to the sky every day.
He thought that with this political achievement, plus the "secret channel" reported, he would not only be promoted, but at least receive commendation from the court.
But the Northern Rong people attacked before winter even arrived.
It was clearly mentioned in the peace talks between Lord Shen and Beirong three years ago that the border between the two countries would have at least five years of peace.
In recent years, every winter, small groups of cavalry from the Northern Rong would rob food and daily necessities in small border towns.
But at least they still have some scruples.
And now, Beirong is openly leading his cavalry south.
The second prince Zha Zha and the army he led have captured the two northwest passes and are stationed outside Jincheng.
As long as Jincheng is broken, the cavalry of Beirong will march straight into the heart of Dali Kingdom as if it were no man's land.
Although Xiping County is only a small county government office in Jincheng, it is the county government office closest to Jincheng.
Therefore, when Zhang Jinnian learned that it was an invasion by the Northern Rong, he immediately submitted a military report to the court.
However, for more than a month, even though he was looking forward to it every day, he was so anxious that his eyes turned red and his mouth was full of blisters.
There was no news from the court at all.
What’s even more terrible is that the garrison in the northwest originally belonged to King Rui.
When Prince Rui wanted to assist the former young emperor, he took away most of the northwest garrison troops.
In recent years, there is still time for peace talks with the Northern Rong.
King Rui believed that they should focus on cleaning up the south first.
After all, the barren land in the north could not generate any tax revenue for him, and he had to rely on aid from the imperial court.
No matter how you look at it, it's not worth it to let the Northwest Army stay in the Northwest and eat sand.
Therefore, most of the troops stationed in the northwest were withdrawn to clean up the pirates in the south and the rebellion in southern Xinjiang.
Last year, a silver mine was discovered in southern Xinjiang.
Prince Rui originally planned to continue recruiting people, but gave up this decision after being persuaded by the young emperor.
Today, the total number of Jincheng defenders, including the old, weak, sick and disabled, is less than 20,000.
Even if they recruited soldiers locally, they would be no match for the Northern Rong people who were skilled in archery and horsemanship.
Zhang Jinnian looked at Xiping County, which had finally recovered under his rule, and made a decision he would never regret.
He told the people who could escape to head south as quickly as possible.
As for himself, he was going to Jincheng and vowed to live and die with the North.
However, he still held on to the last glimmer of hope for the court.
But hope is ultimately slim.
Prince Rui ascended the throne as Emperor Xuanyi and took possession of the silver mines in southern Xinjiang. No one in the court made any comment on the war in the north.
After all, the huge amount of silver has not yet been deposited into the warehouse. Is it going to end up in the bottomless pit of the northwest?
Emperor Xuanyi himself was well aware of the poverty of the northwest.
He didn't care about the war in the north. If it was lost, it was lost. As long as they could hold the Hexi Corridor, the northern Rong people would not be able to defeat them.
No matter how big the territory is, the Beirong people cannot take it all.
Therefore, the newly enthroned Emperor Xuanyi only belatedly sent someone to send a message to recruit soldiers locally. How could he resist the aggressive army of the Northern Rong?
At the end of October, Jincheng fell.
Zhang Jinnian, who had just achieved some political achievements in Xiping County, also died under the scimitars of the Rong people.
Afterwards, Zhazhahe began to recruit a large number of laborers to build the second capital of Beirong.
All the remaining civilians from the nearby counties and prefectures, both men and women, were recruited to repair the city walls.
The Beirong people, who have spent their entire lives on the grassland, no longer want to live a life of starving to death every day.
The weather has been abnormal in the past two years, with continuous drought, and countless cattle and sheep have died from heatstroke. The hot weather has caused large areas of grassland to degenerate, and a large number of cattle and sheep, which were already few in number, have died.
The people of the grassland do not engage in production, and the only supplies they can rely on are cattle and sheep.
It's not even winter yet, and there are no cattle or sheep left. How can the people survive?
Therefore, in the royal court, the King of Beirong decided to move south under the strong suggestion of the second prince Zhazhahe.
After all, the Dali Kingdom has mountains, water and fields.
They don't know how to farm, so they can let the people of Dali Kingdom do it.
Their cattle and sheep can also be grazed in Dali State.
They don't have houses, so they can live directly with the common people.
They can also take a bath, lie in the arms of the beauties of Dali Kingdom, drink some wine, watch singing and dancing, and eat some hot fresh vegetables.
When I think of such a good day.
The officials of Beirong could no longer sit still.
He immediately seconded the Second Prince's proposal.
Therefore, the Northern Rong were able to gather 100,000 elite cavalry and march south, and the northwest, where there were no garrisons, became a hot spot among the Northern Rong.
…
On a plateau on the dirt road heading south.
Zhao Lizheng brought the villagers of Qianniu Village, Sishu Village, and the neighboring Wuyang Village together.
Along the way, they heard that the Rong people were heading south, had captured Jincheng, and had begun to imprison people and play with women. Everyone was terrified.
They only rested for two or three hours every day and were always on the road.
After walking for five or six days, they were afraid that the Rong people's cavalry would catch up with them.
Finally got out of the Iron Cavalry riding circle.
But along the way, because of the constant influx of common people, there was a mixed crowd, and some bandits and thieves took the opportunity to start small businesses.
After all, the drought in the north has not yet caused the people to lose all their crops, but it is almost there.
Therefore, not long after they started walking, the people had already started to eat whatever was available.
When faced with the issue of survival, morality and conscience are no longer what people care about most.
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