Chapter 620: The Strong Luo Chong (Please vote and subscribe)
As time passed, Maodun watched the Han army's camp become more and more solid, but these elite warriors had no intention of going out, which made him very panicked, just like waiting for the judge's verdict on him, eager to know the purpose of the Han army.
In such a panic, Maodun finally saw a fleet of Han tribes in early February. There were not many ships this time, only four, but each was a three-masted ship. One of the ships was loaded with personnel, and the other ships were loaded with tools and supplies.
What made Maodun most curious was that among the people sent by the fleet this time, there was a young man who seemed to have a very high status. The young man was dressed in black and red robes, wearing a purple gold crown on his head, and a long sword with a sheath hanging on his waist. When he got off the boat, a large number of soldiers came out of the barracks to greet him in a line, and there was a faint protective trend. Even the barracks leaders with red cloaks gave him a single-kneed military salute.
Such a high-standard welcoming ceremony made Maodun unable to help but daydream. Who could this person be? Such a young person, who still has such a high status in a super tribe like the Han tribe, could it be the legendary leader of the Han tribe? ! Maodun was immediately stunned by his own idea.
However, Luo Chong, who had just arrived at the grassland, was not as idle as Maodun. After experiencing the scenery of the grassland, Luo Chong quickly lost his novelty here. He had seen the grassland in his previous life, and it was not much different from here, so he should get busy with business first.
At night, Luo Chong and several major leaders here held a meeting in the big tent to arrange the tasks for everyone next.
The military leaders of Qianniuwei and Hubenwei sat on one side, Youfu and Youzhi sat on the other side, and Luo Chong sat at the top and began to look at the sketch on the table to assign tasks.
"Yingrui, Xue Dongliang, how is the construction of your camp going? Have you found anything here recently?" Luo Chong began to ask the two military Sima, wanting to understand the local situation first.
"My lord, the military camp has been repaired and all the barracks are built with rammed earth. There will be no problem even if we spend the winter here. It will be fine even if it rains, as long as the water in the lake doesn't flood us.
There are no problems with defense for the time being. We have built many watchtowers and the camp uses trenches, rammed earth and wooden fences. There is no problem defending against cavalry, but we are more afraid of fire attacks. However, I have dug a reservoir inside the wall, so even if the enemy attacks with fire, we can quickly put out the fire. Please rest assured, lord."
Although Xue Dongliang, the Sima of the Huben Guard, had only arrived not long ago, he was the first to report the situation. He was originally a contractor in the Han tribe, so he was very familiar with engineering construction.
"Well, very good, let's do it this way for now. Anyway, this military camp is temporary. When the new city is built in the future, the military camp will be placed in the city." Luo Chong nodded, approving of their work, and then looked at Ying Rui and asked him, "Do you have anything else to add?"
Ying Rui pondered for a moment, then said, "Well, there are some things to report to the leader. We, the Qianniu Guard, came earlier, so we know more.
When I first got here, I heard You Zhi say that this place is between the two major tribal forces of Suritu and Maodun. I paid close attention to this matter. Not long ago, when we first came, Suritu came in person. He directly sent us 200 cows and wanted us to sell him some salt as soon as possible. He didn't say anything else and was quite friendly to us. When the Huben Guard came here before, I notified him to come and trade the salt, and exchanged some cattle and horses with him.
Maodun on the other side has been quiet. This month we discovered a nomadic tribe. They have been stationed here, but they are just grazing and have not taken the initiative to contact us.
However, I recently discovered that this tribe seems to be monitoring us. Every day, they drive cattle and sheep to wander not far away for a long time. Those herdsmen just watch from a distance and still do not take the initiative to contact us.
I feel that this matter is quite abnormal. Logically, if an unknown neighbor suddenly appears next door, everyone is not far away, so they should come to say hello. Besides, the dress of our Han tribe can be seen at a glance that it is different from theirs. Don’t those nomadic tribes like our things very much? Why don’t they come to trade? So I think it is very abnormal.
According to my guess, this tribe may be controlled by Maodun. He is using these herdsmen to monitor us every day and wants to know our every move. Now I can’t see what his plan is, but I have already said hello to the soldiers below, and they must be vigilant at all times. "When Ying Rui saw Luo Chong asking him, he also hurriedly introduced the recent situation.
Luo Chong nodded again after hearing this. At the same time, he recalled that when the fleet landed during the day, he did see a few herdsmen in the south staring at this place. He thought that these people were the herdsmen who were monitoring the Han tribe as Ying Rui said.
However, he didn't care if the situation here was known by Maodun. It would be best if he could attract Maodun's attention. If this guy knew what was good for him, he would hand over the cattle and horses as soon as possible. If not, then everyone should start the war as soon as possible. Don't hesitate.
Then, Luo Chong looked at You Fu again and asked, "How is the fleet arranged now? When will you go back?" When
You Fu heard the leader's question, he quickly answered, "Leader, after the tools are unloaded this time, I will send some boats to carry cattle and horses back.
As for myself, I have to go back first to tell them the locations of the new copper mine, salt mine, and sandbar. After the handover, I will continue to lead the fleet south along the Liuyang River to explore farther places and try to come back before the next New Year.
In addition, I will leave a few ships here, with Xincheng as the base, mainly responsible for exploring the situation of the entire grassland lake and the unfamiliar land on the east bank of the lake. It can also be used to evacuate supplies and personnel from Xincheng at critical moments."
"Well, you did a good job, but you have to hurry up on these things. Tell people the addresses of those new minerals as soon as possible. If you continue to go south, you must set off early. Don't forget to calculate the return time when exploring, otherwise you won't be able to make it back before the New Year." Luo Chong nodded after listening, and then gave You Fu some instructions.
You Fu bowed and replied, "Don't worry, leader, I will calculate the return time and ensure that the fleet is back before the New Year."
"Well, I trust you to do your job. Just tell me what you need when the time comes. I will do my best to guarantee you.
Okay, You Zhi, it's your turn. According to the information you have, tell us about Su Ritu and Mao Dun, as well as the mission and the Xin tribe." After everyone finished reporting, Luo Chong asked You Zhi, who was in charge of the intelligence department, again.
"Yes, Chief, according to the news I got recently, Su Ri Tu has not made any unusual moves. After the battle between him and Mao Dun last year, Su Ri Tu has now armed about 400 heavy cavalrymen, but they are also using crude leather armor. Since he has more contact with our caravans, the style looks similar to the cowhide armor we used to wear.
This 400-man armored army is also equipped with stirrups, but they are woven from rattan, grass, and horn wood. They are varied and very simple. Only a few people have such things as Gaoqiao saddles, which are very scarce. The weapons they use are mostly bows and arrows, as well as spears or stone axes.
However, he has organized this cavalry only for self-protection, mainly to defend against Mao Dun. Now he bought white from us. After the salt, he was very honest. I judged that he was waiting and watching, wanting to see what our attitude towards Maodun was, whether it was war or negotiation.
The reason for the judgment was mainly that Su Ritu had already known about our carriage transaction with the Xin tribe, but the payment for the goods had been in arrears until now. Last year, the former Jinwuwei commander Jin Yi was afraid of being blamed by the leader because he could not get the payment back, so he used the goods of the caravan to trade more than 2,000 cattle and horses with Su Ritu's camp. This matter should have been learned by Su Ritu from Jin Yi at that time. "
When everyone in the big tent heard You Zhi mention Jin Yi, everyone's face became unnatural. The generals of the two guards were a little annoyed. They all knew that the leader sent them here to recover the payment for the goods.
And You Fu looked at his nephew You Zhi with some worry. The last commander of the Jinwuwei had just died, and the leader gave this position to his nephew. He couldn't figure out whether this was a good thing or a bad thing.
Luo Chong's face was a little dark. This Jin Yi was more trouble than success. It's fine that he didn't get the payment back, but he also went around making a fuss, which really made the Han tribe lose face.
You Zhi saw that Luo Chong didn't respond, so he continued to report, "Regarding Maodun, I recently got a message. They just migrated back to the Spring and Summer Pasture last month, which is the southern area along the lake. However, Maodun left his base with a few people not long after he arrived. Now his whereabouts are unknown. No one knows where he is now.
But according to my analysis, if he really came back here, he must have heard the news that our Han army had arrived next to him. He disappeared at this time. I think there are two possibilities. Either he is afraid that we will cause trouble for him, so he hid directly, or he is near us." You Zhi continued to analyze.
"Near us?" Before Luo Chong had time to ask anything, Ying Rui beside him suddenly asked with a frown.
"That's right. Didn't Eagle Sima also say that the small tribe next to us has been spying on us recently? As far as I know, this tribe is also under Maodun's command. It's such a small tribe, and the total population is not as large as our army. Does he have the courage to come and spy on us every day? Isn't he afraid that we will beat him up?
And Maodun disappeared at this time. If he didn't hide, he must be in the tribe next to us. He came to personally scout the situation of our army so that he can plan his future actions. But I haven't thought about what he will do." You Zhi looked at everyone looking at him with puzzled eyes, so he explained.
Luo Chong nodded after listening, affirming You Zhi's analysis, thinking that what he said made sense, but Luo Chong did not comment on it, but asked about the situation of the delegation and the Xin tribe.
"The envoy is in stable contact with me now. We even exchanged letters a few days ago. There is no danger on the envoy's side now. The leader of the Xin tribe did not make things difficult for them. It's just that the negotiation on the land supply has been dragging on and there has been no progress. When the Beast Fang ambassador asked about the carriage payment, they used Maodun as a shield. For the time being, the envoy has no good solution." You Zhi heard the leader's question and reported again.
However, Luo Chong sneered when he heard this, and then ordered without thinking.
"Send a letter to Beast Fang and tell him what I said. Let him show the momentum of the Han tribe. Our 4,000 troops have already entered the grassland. Let him tell this news to the leader. You can exaggerate a little.
Well, just say that we have 10,000 elite soldiers and can destroy the caravans and warehouses arranged by the Xin tribe on the grassland at any time, and even land on Zhudao Island. Let the Xin tribe pay the payment at the end of this month, otherwise they will bear the consequences.
In addition, tell Beast Fang that there is no point in just saying this. Don't the Xin tribe like our carriages? Let Beast Fang think about it. The solution is to burn a few of them in public, and then build momentum among the people of the Xin tribe, saying that their leader refused to pay for the goods, and our Han soldiers may land on Zhudao at any time to teach him a lesson. Don't be afraid, and boldly put pressure on the Xin tribe. Even if the delegation is captured, we will forcefully land on Zhudao to rescue them. "
When everyone in the tent heard this, their faces suddenly became serious, and they all looked solemn. Everyone knew that the leader was angry, and their army really could go to war at any time. The leader would not joke about such things.
"Yes, I will send this letter later." You Zhi also stood up immediately, bowed to Luo Chong with a serious face, and responded loudly.
Luo Chong waved his hand for him to sit down, and then continued to make arrangements.
"You still have a lot to do. Not only do you need to contact the envoys, but you also need to send someone to contact Maodun. Isn't he hiding from us? Then you might as well pretend you don't know and send someone to his tribe to tell
him. Just say that our Han tribe has sent troops to the grassland, and ask him to pay the money immediately after receiving the news. Don't talk about the Xin tribe anymore. Since they swallowed the sea salt of the Xin tribe, they must pay the money. Otherwise, my Han army will send troops immediately and will flatten his pasture and kill all his young men and cattle and sheep. If you don't believe it, let him try.
Also, send some smart and capable people from the caravan to recruit some small tribes for me, such as the one you always mentioned before. The Qianyang tribe is good. In short, pick some small tribes with a small number of people, low status, and hard life.
Tell them that our Han tribe will live in the grassland in the future. Now is a good time to join the Han tribe. Come to our Han tribe and we will guarantee that they will live a good life.
They were unwilling to join us before because they considered the difference between nomadic and farming, and they were afraid that they could not adapt to our living habits. But now it is different. We are also in the grassland. After they come, they can still graze here, and it is the best pasture. Even if it is not, I can also grab the best pasture for them. Just tell them the same words. "
(End of this chapter)
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