Da Wei Chun

Chapter 694 Bad news

On the tenth day of October, Xihai ushered in the first heavy snow this winter.

After five days and five nights, when it cleared up, the mountains and plains were covered with endless miles, and as far as the eyes could see, there was nothing.

It was just dawn, and all the Cao officials entered the Yamen one after another.Not long after, holding pushers, shovels and other utensils, he went out to clear the snow in the street.

With a shovel down, the snow did not even bottom out.The pavement to be excavated and rolled with three-component clay was actually a foot and a half deep.

This is true in the city, but what about outside the city, at the foot of the mountain, or in the wilderness?

Li Chengzhi sighed softly, and the mist disappeared in a flash like white practice.

"Did the houses collapse and the people suffer casualties?"

Cui Guang made a bow: "Don't worry, my lord, whether it is Zhenyi or the two foothills of Heli Mountain, all the houses are not made of bricks, but red clay. It is comparable to a city wall. No matter how heavy the snow is, it will not collapse. Yu!"

"What about the factories, are the sheds and buildings damaged, and the workers have frostbite?"

"By the second day, the subordinate officials ordered the factories to stop working, reinforced the factory buildings and sheds, and then sent the workers home."

Li Shiliang replied, "The factory building is not a problem, that is, copper factories, paper factories, clothing factories, etc. need to use ponds to store water for soaking materials. Because the water will not be opened in the future, all the ponds will freeze. The following officials estimate that after This winter is freezing up, and the beginning of spring will definitely damage a lot!"

"It's just a few pools, so it doesn't matter, as long as people are fine!"

Li Chengzhi breathed a sigh of relief, "Where's the Mubu near Juyan Lake?"

Li Shixian subconsciously paused, and slightly bowed his waist: "Last night when the snow stopped, the Ministry of Animal Husbandry sent an urgent report. On the third day of heavy snowfall, snow covered tents and herdsmen. I immediately contacted Mr. Li negotiated with the ministers and asked the herdsmen to move to the nearest military camp...

When the snow cleared at midnight yesterday, another urgent report came: nearly half of the people affected by the disaster have been resettled properly.Later, I summoned the officials of the Mincao to collect grain and grass, but when the weather clears and the road clears, they will be transported to Juyan Lake. "

Li Shixian finally got what he wanted, and moved to be the head of the people Cao last month.He didn't know until after he took office why Li Chengzhi would rather have him as a deputy, or even an idler, than as Cao's chief.

It's really not that easy to be an official, let alone a civil servant with the most affairs, the most complicated, and the heaviest?
For the past month, he has been working hard, forgetting to eat and sleep. He just got some clues, but he doesn't want another snow disaster?
The grain people are okay, all the grain has been put into the warehouse, and they live in houses.But the herdsmen are miserable, encountering this kind of natural disaster, which is rare in ten years, is hard to imagine.

There was nearly two feet of snow, and the smaller lambs could be killed on the spot, and there were countless frostbite deaths.

And that's only second.

If the temperature does not get warmer, and if the snow cannot be melted away as soon as possible, how can the livestock satisfy their hunger?

In just a few days, most of the cattle and sheep will starve to death.

Fortunately, it is now a time of war, and almost all the people in Xihai are soldiers. In addition, the emergency mechanism is very perfect, so the disaster response and efficiency of the military and civilians are extremely high, at least the casualties of the herdsmen can be minimized.

On the second night of the heavy snow, Li Chengzhi ordered the Ministry of War to prepare for disaster relief. When the sky was about to dawn, Li Shixian's request for the garrison at Juyan Lake to assist the people in disaster relief was sent to Li Chengzhi's desk.He also asked the warehouse department to adjust disaster grain and pasture grass to relieve the urgent needs of the animal husbandry department.

It can be seen that what Li Chengzhi can think of, Li Sixian has also thought of it.

Looking at Li Shixian's gray temples, Li Chengzhi sighed secretly: "It is undoubtedly a drop in the bucket to rely on the Ministry of Civil Affairs for disaster relief. It may take half a month for the relief food, grass and car tents to be transported to Juyan Lake. Store food for emergencies, and the animal husbandry department may not have one out of ten... Li Liang?"

Li Liang hurriedly bowed: "The minister is here!"

"Order Li Zhang to mobilize new troops for immediate disaster relief: leave two guards in the camp (one guard five thousand, two guards [-]) in case of emergency. The other four guards send two guards to clear the way and clear the way. The rest The two guards are responsible for transporting the food, and must transport the disaster food to Juyan Lake within three days.

In addition, Kuai Ma informed Li Yongshou (who led two guards stationed in Juyan Hubei), that no matter the rations of the soldiers or the fodder for the army and horses, they would only keep what they needed for three days, and all the rest would be transferred to Ren Guang (Deputy Chief of Mincao, Supervisor) Mubu) and ordered him to help the victims..."

"promise!"

Li Chengzhi paused for a while, and then said: "In addition, send an order to Bogulu, order Li Feng, order him to decide when the trial is made, withdraw troops as soon as possible, and withdraw to Bogulu! Then order Huangfu, just guard the city. Don't start a war with Cui Yanbo..."

All the civil servants and military generals standing on both sides of Li Chengzhi were all shocked.

Since the beginning of September, Li Chengzhi ordered Li Feng to cross the river. Although it has only been more than a month now, Li Feng is as powerful as a broken bamboo and defeated Xing Luan in Liziyuan (now Yinchuan).

If Xing Luan hadn't seen the opportunity early and used the oil sand dug from Jinming County to build a fire wall under the side wall, Li Feng might have been able to hit Woye Town directly.

Since the north road was blocked, Li Feng made a decisive decision and turned south.

Although there are only [-] troops under his command, he still divides his troops into two groups.First of all, [-] Chen soldiers were given to Lizi Garden, and they formed artillery arrays along the side wall three miles away.It was like a knife that divided the Northland and Guanzhong into two, making Xing Luan, Yuan Yao, Xi Kangsheng and others afraid of sending their troops south.

Then the deputy commander Zhang Xinyi led the remaining four guards to advance towards Gaoping Town.Counties and counties along the way collapsed upon hearing the wind.Either escape into Guanzhong, or follow to Jinming.If it weren't for Li Chengzhi's strict orders, this time it was just a bluff, not to mention Gaoping Town, even Jingzhou might have changed hands.

The battle is so smooth and the situation is so good, but Li Chengzhi wants to retreat at this time?
Just because of the heavy snow?
If we are afraid that Li Feng will leave his troops in the wild, and the soldiers will not be able to withstand the wind and cold, and there will be people who will freeze to death or suffer from frostbite, wouldn't it be enough to capture Gaoping Town?

What's more, the winter clothes have already been transported to the various armies, such thick leather robes and felt boots are so cold that they don't feel cold even in the ice cellar, let alone just a heavy snowfall?
I was secretly wondering, and then I heard Li Chengzhi say: "Forget it, let Huangfu and Li Feng, after retreating, if the imperial court has no intention of counterattack, let them discuss and withdraw the six guards to Xihai..."

"Why?"

Cui Guang finally couldn't bear it anymore.

He really couldn't figure it out: it's fine to stop fighting, why should we withdraw our troops?
Just because Gao Ying pretended to be pitiful and miserable, with tears in her eyes, that private letter begging you to withdraw?

Li Chengzhi, how dare you say that you and the queen mother are innocent and have no personal relationship?

Not only Cui Guang, such as Li Shiliang, Li Shixian, Wei Zijian, Li Liang, and Zhang Jingzhi all looked at him in shock.

Now Xihai has 13 troops abroad, [-] in Dunhuang, led by Li Song, guarding the western frontier.

Fifty thousand is in Bugulu, led by Li Feng, and now they are about to enter Guanzhong.

There are also [-] on both sides of the river, and Huangfu made him the commander, stationed in Wuwei, Shandan Racecourse, Shanshan, Fanghan and Qin and Liang Prefectures.

In this way, there are 11 soldiers on the Eastern Front.It sounds like a lot, but it only costs at least [-] to [-] to guard Cui Yanbo in the east of Longshan Mountain and Xingluan and Yuanyao in the north of Bogulu.If the six guards are withdrawn, that is, after [-], Huangfu Rang and Li Feng will no longer have the power to advance eastward...

"Why?"

Li Chengzhi sighed, and looked at the sky again, "It's just Hexi, where the snow is so heavy, let alone Tuyuhun in the south of Qilian Mountains, and Rouran in the depths of Mobei?"

"Whether these two places are snowy or not, why give me the West Sea... um, isn't it?"

Cui Guang woke up like a dream, "Shouldn't the greater the snow, the more beneficial it is to the West Sea? In such a catastrophe, countless livestock must have died of freezing and starvation. It is not uncommon for smaller tribes to exterminate their clans. As a result, the national power of the two countries will inevitably suffer greatly..."

Seeing Li Chengzhi frowned and his expression was extremely weird, Cui Guang gradually couldn't continue speaking: "Is there something wrong?"

"It's not wrong. In the long run, it must be beneficial to us, but for now..."

Li Cheng grinned, "The Hu people live by pointing at their livestock. If there are too many people who freeze to death, wouldn't there be no way out? In other words, they are about to starve to death, and they dare not do anything..."

Zhang Jingzhi's face suddenly changed: "Raise troops to attack?"

Li Chengzhi nodded: "Nine out of ten!"

Li Chengzhi is not surprised that these people can't think of this for the time being.

It is only because there are relatively few records in the history books of the Southern and Northern Dynasties, and these few leaders are all very young, and they have never served in Beizhen, so I don't know about this festival.

If it is replaced by Xi Kangsheng, Yuan Yao, Cui Yanbo and others, one can definitely think of it: the Hu Department will definitely violate the frontier in case of a catastrophe.

Just like the Han Dynasty, but every disaster year, it is a truth that there must be constant rebellion.If the Hu people do not rob them, they will starve to death, or even exterminate them.

It is impossible for the snow to fall in only one place, and if one is affected, seven or eight out of ten will be affected, and there is nothing to snatch even if they want to.

After counting and counting, only the Han Dynasty is left...

Even though he had just suffered a big loss, it was unlikely that either Tuyuhun or Rouran would come to snatch Xihai, but it was just in case.

People are hungry and crazy and can do anything. Now the West Sea is empty, and Hexi is the place of the Four Wars, and there is no natural danger to defend.If an army of Hu soldiers came to burn, kill and loot, it would be difficult to guard against such a long border with only Li Yongshou's two guards cavalry and Li Zhang's six guards new army.

So it's better to plan ahead...

For example, Cui Guang is still somewhat skeptical.It wasn't that he suspected that Li Chengzhi wasn't telling the truth, but that Rouran and Tuyuhun had the guts to do so.

However, it is always the best policy to plan for a rainy day and prevent micro-duration.In addition, this time Li Chengzhi had already set a strategy: just to shine his fangs and put pressure on the court, not to actually invade Guanzhong.Therefore, there is not much difference between withdrawing troops earlier and withdrawing troops later.

However, Cui Guang knew his shortcomings, and he seldom talked about military affairs, and this time it was normal.He pondered for a while: "Then what about the imperial court?"

"Since the queen mother said that [-] civilian households and [-] stone grains have arrived in Guanzhong, and she only asks me to retreat and transport them to Longxi on the spot, then I have the right to believe her once!"

Li Chengzhi turned his face and smiled, "When I sent the order to Huangfu, I also submitted a letter to the queen mother, saying that I would send someone to receive it immediately, so I temporarily suspended the army. If the people and food that should be followed up are still delayed as before , then don’t blame me for rushing into Luoyang..."

These words are a bit crazy, but to the imperial court and the queen mother, they are like a blow to the head, a sharp edge.

Regardless of Li Feng's only half of the army, he blocked Yuan Yao and Xi Kangsheng's 20 troops to the north of the side wall.The other half of the division went straight to Gaoping, which made Guanzhong even more dangerous, and the court dared not doubt it.

In this way, they must not dare to play tricks, at least they will send the peasants and food that they promised in the early stage, and how fast they will be delivered.

"So best!"

Cui Guang sighed softly, "Then the officials will proceed to divide the fields and households in Longxi!"

"Naturally, a regulation must be drawn up as soon as possible!"

Li Chengzhi smiled slightly, "There is Lao Shangshu!"

……

The snow in Guanzhong was not heavy, but it fell very early.It's not yet October, and the sky is cloudy and sunny every two or three days. There will be a snowflake, swirling and falling.

Every time there is a game, and it is sunny again, the sky will be a little colder.So intermittent, the beginning of winter is less than two months, but it is like three nines, and it is bitingly cold.

The kang and iron furnace invented by Li Chengzhi have already been introduced to Guanzhong.But most of them are used by small families, and big families like the Yang family still use the earth dragon.

It's not that the Yang family is rich and powerful, but that the patriarch Yang Bosheng has a serious illness, and the most unbearable thing is coal smoke. If he inhales a little, he can cough for half a day.Therefore, in the main house, no smoke is allowed, let alone burning coal.

But the earth dragon spent a lot of firewood, so except for the heirs of the eldest house and the servants who served them, all the other houses were moved out of the main house and given to other courtyards for winter protection.

However, today, several brothers came together and gathered in the middle hall.

Yang Chun is nearly sixty, and her hair is already half white.It happened to be born in Dongyue, seeing that the birthday is approaching, if it is common sense, he must make a lot of arrangements.

But elder brother Yang Bo has been ill for a long time, and now he is even more angry, fearing that he won't make it through the end of the year, so this birthday can only be missed.

He sat at the top, read the secret report in his hand carefully again, with a few traces of worry on his face: "This is almost like bad news for the elder brother, how can we tell the truth?"

The fifth younger brother Yang Jin got up suddenly, dissatisfied: "If you don't tell the truth, you will be deceiving your elder brother, and how can you make him blind?"

Yang Chun's eyes bulged, and he shouted angrily: "Presumptuous... How dare you be so rude before the elder brother dies!"

Just as Yang Jin was about to argue, the other brothers got up quickly and separated the two.

After sitting down again, all of them were frowning.

In fact, the five brothers all knew that the eldest brother was already dying, no matter whether he said it or not, or whether the secret report was bad news, there would be only a few days to live.The dispute between the second brother Yang Chun and the fifth brother Yang Jin is not at all about whether to be rude or not to be presumptuous.

It's about helping the imperial court or secretly attaching to the West Sea.

All the brothers originally preferred the former. After all, the Yang family prospered because of the Yuan and Wei dynasties, and received the favor of the emperor again. Although they were repeatedly persecuted, the Yang family was no longer as good as before, but it was only Yuan Ke's dynasty.And now that the world has changed, both Gao Ying and the young emperor treat the Yang family very kindly.It is also a gift to the Yang brothers to recover. If it hadn't been for Yang Bo's long-term illness, the position of patriarch is still pending, such as Yang Chun and Yang Jin should have entered Beijing long ago to take over the positions of radicals and ministers.

However, Yang Chun and Yang Shu said that Li Chengzhi has the qualifications of a hero, even if he can't succeed, he still has the ability to make troubles in Guanzhong.Therefore, if he doesn't want to be that traitor, Yang should at least not help each other, so as not to offend the plague god.

But I don't know what Yang Bo was thinking, or maybe he was confused and chose the third way?

(End of this chapter)