Since we are going to do it, we must make it bigger and stronger.
After everything was agreed upon, an official document was delivered to Gao Bin's desk.
As the governor of Xichuan, Gao Bin found the Ministry of Personnel's request absurd. Far away in the heart of China, the Ministry demanded that a lowly county in Xichuan, one responsible for a large portion of the pig iron supply, form its own militia to suppress the bandits in Xiangyun Province, which had now been completely unified.
Because of his responsibilities and sensitivity as a local official, Gao Bin immediately thought the Ministry of Personnel had gone mad. It wasn't that Gao Bin couldn't understand the Ministry of Personnel's subtext, but all this was too absurd. Could it be that the people in charge of the central government had gone mad? Gao Bin thought so.
If the militia of this county fails to conquer Xiangyun Province and is overthrown, who will smelt iron for you? If they can conquer it, they will have the strength to conquer an entire province. Who the hell will still smelt iron for you?
Even if the central government concentrated all the capable soldiers on the central front, and was really unable to take care of the bandit situation in Xiangyun, then just don't worry about it. The Qitian Village has been there for many years, and it's doing fine. There is no plan to break out of Xiangyun, and no one has heard that these bandits want to set up their own camp. Why not just leave them there and take action after everything has settled down?
Gao Bin vaguely recalled a letter from a friend in the capital, who had said that everyone from the Prime Minister to the heads of the six ministries seemed unnatural, as if they had lost their minds. Gao Bin had initially just laughed at this, wondering how it could be possible. It must be that his friend was dissatisfied with the empire due to career problems, and that was why he complained. But now it seemed there was something else going on.
But...but if the left and right prime ministers and the heads of the six ministries were all mad, what about the one above? If the one above still had any sense, how could he allow them to act so recklessly? But how could such great talents of the empire go mad so suddenly, and collectively? It couldn't be that madness was now contagious, could it?
Gao Bin looked at the official document from Qinghe County and didn't even know how to answer.
Qinghe's official document was very simple. First, it fully agreed to increase the contribution of pig iron, and then said that there was a shortage of manpower. It hoped that Qinghe would be approved to attract refugees from all sides to increase the manpower of the iron mine.
Gao Bin had long known that Qinghe was absorbing refugees from various countries, but reports indicated that they only accepted a few thousand people annually, primarily for farming and mining. Gao Bin had initially been wary and dissatisfied with a local official's unauthorized intake of refugees, but seeing that Qinghe's pig iron supply was steadily increasing, a friend of his who had managed mining operations in the capital estimated that the population Qinghe had attracted wasn't even enough to support its current production. He presumably was using one person as two. So, for the sake of the pig iron and the crystal statue of the immortal Shouxian sent by Qinghe, he turned a blind eye.
Therefore, it is not excessive for Qinghe to openly attract refugees. If they are to open mines, they must provide them with population.
The second is to ask him for support.
The official document stated that although the Qinghe militia had gone through many wars to suppress bandits and looked competent, their numbers were small and they had no experience in large-scale combat. If they really wanted to go to war with the Xiangyun Mountain bandits, they would need the Xichuan Prefecture to send reinforcements and promise to accept the command of the reinforcements and provide them with food and fodder.
Hey~~~~Bandit...
Gao Bin found it a little funny.
The central government called Qitian Village bandits, so everyone followed suit, as if they were just an ordinary group of bandits.
Although Qitian Village used to be a banditry, and although it was defeated once by Qinghe County, it has now suppressed the numerous bandits in Xiangyun and integrated the human and material resources of Xiangyun. It is said that it is not only training troops, but also reclaiming wasteland and cultivating farmland. Well, if you say it is a separatist force, Gao Bin will believe it. If you say it is a bandit... can this be compared with the bandits who occupy a deserted hill with hundreds of people?
As for sending reinforcements, Gao Bin shook his head. He only had Xiao Cheng, a general who was often defeated. He was afraid that there was no need to send him out and embarrass himself. Besides, Xiao Cheng was the only mobile force he had. Once he was sent out and got stuck in the dense forest of Xiangyun Province, Xichuan would really be left with only a skin.
Besides, Captain Xiao spends twenty days a month in Yubo Tower suppressing rebels, so he probably doesn't have the energy to go to war...
However, Gao Bin knew that he couldn't just ignore the matter. He had already suggested that Qinghe reject the Ministry of Personnel's request and sent a letter to the Ministry of Personnel protesting their reckless orders, so he had already done all the necessary superficial work.
As for why he didn't directly report the case to the Ministry of Personnel or write a letter to the left and right prime ministers to file a complaint directly, but instead "found the Ministry of Personnel to file a complaint", that was due to Mr. Gao's many years of experience in the ups and downs of officialdom.
But Qinghe must be preserved, at least the products of Qinghe must be preserved, so he must provide support to Qinghe, and give more, and it can be done at no cost...
After receiving Gao Bin's reply, Lin Hai could only sigh: "I don't know if it's a blessing for the empire to have such bureaucrats."
Gao Bin's message was even simpler. He demanded that Qinghe County meet the central government's demand for steel. Under this premise, he agreed to recruit refugees or even conscript militia. However, he also advised against attacking Qitian Village before they were fully prepared. He didn't elaborate on what that meant.
However, Gao Bin readily approved Qinghe's militia recruitment plan. After all, according to Lin Hai's official document, Qinghe's regular militia numbered less than a thousand men. The rest consisted of groups like village self-defense forces, mine security teams, blacksmith workshop security teams, and road traffic inspection teams. While this seemed like a large number, a closer look revealed that these were little more than villagers and miners patrolling with hammers and hoes to apprehend thieves, and were of little use. So, in his official document to the Ministry of War, Gao Bin simply mentioned, "I have ordered Qinghe County to organize some training for villagers and miners to prevent local banditry."
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