Shu Chen

Chapter 172
Spring February.

Baozhong County, Hanzhong County, at the northern foot of Dingjun Mountain.

The Baoshui meandering from the Qinling Mountains pours into the Mianshui here, forming a small lake.

Four or five houses are built by mountains and rivers, surrounded by sparse metasequoia.

The light snow in early spring put a silver coat on the mountain behind, and dyed the roof of the house and the metasequoia with a thin layer of white.The pure silver and white, the gray fence, the reddish-brown house, and the dark green vitality are all reflected in the lake; and the cooking smoke curls from the roof to the sky and the earth, just like an ink painting.

It is a distant and profound beauty.

On the shore of the lake covered with thin ice, one person holds a fishing rod in each hand to fish the cold river and snow alone, embellishing this tranquility.

He must have been sitting quietly for a long time, and the tiny snowflakes fluttering in the wind have lingered on his shoulders for a long time, and even dyed his halberd-like beard and hair white.

It just doesn't last long.

"Kick!"

"Kick! Kick!"

The sound of the trotting hooves of a war horse broke the silence here.

It also made the person fishing alone couldn't help turning his head to the side of the sound, and the other hand habitually fell on the sword hilt at his waist.

There were about ten or so riders who drove their horses.

About twenty steps away from the fishing place, he reined in the reins and dismounted.

And the division of labor is very clear, looking for stones to build a hearth, fetching water to kill prey, lighting a fire to warm wine, etc.

Only the leader came slowly.

Stepping closer, he looked at the empty fish basket with his head, and couldn't help sighing, "Brother An Yue has a lot of leisure time, but the fish caught by this fishing is really unsatisfactory~~~"

Well, the fisherman is Zhou Tai.

It has been more than three years since he was defeated and captured in the fifth year of Jianxing, to the time when he set up his clothes and kept his filial piety.

According to the previous agreement, after his filial piety is over, the Dahan will bring his family members from Nanyang County, Jingzhou to Shu; he will be loyal to the Dahan's conquest.

However, last year's war disrupted this agreement.

General Zhengxi and Governor of Yong'an, Chen Dao, dispatched secret agents to take advantage of Sima Yi's large-scale march into the three eastern counties to bring all Zhoutai's family members to Hanzhong.It has been less than half a year since the end of Zhou Tai's filial piety, but because the big man is now busy restoring the people's livelihood after the war, and Zhuge Qiao and Zheng Pu have been working in Longyou, no one has recommended him to the prime minister.

Therefore, in addition to experiencing the warmth of his family's company every day, he spends time fishing here all day long.

Now Zheng Pu came here without warning, and said joking words, which made him faintly understand.

If nothing else happened, Zheng Pu had already obtained Prime Minister Zhuge Liang's permission to accept him as a subordinate.

"The joy of fishing lies in self-cultivation and ear cultivation."

Throwing the fishing rod aside casually, Zhou Tai smiled and said jokingly, "It's not my desire to seek fish. But Zijin is less than thirty years old, and he is already a general of Pingbei. It can be seen that he is a generation of Jijiyingying!" "

"Men of my generation are born in a world of great controversy. They should make contributions and win fame before and after their lives."

After waving his hands, Zheng Pu raised his sleeves and sat on the floor with Zhou Tai, "Brother An Yue is so indifferent to his ambitions! He was clearly referring to Sang and Huai, blaming me for being late."

"Hehe~~~"

With a chuckle, Zhoutai did not refute, but nodded solemnly, and asked, "As Zijin said, a man should look for a prince on the battlefield. I have passed my thirties, and I don't have much time to waste. Don't be modest. I don't know if Zijin came here this time, but did he bring his life with me?"

"Well, there are."

Gently nodding his head, Zheng Pu restrained his expression, "After I returned to Hanzhong this time, I went to look for the prime minister. The prime minister asked the imperial court to confer the post of General Shaoyi on An Yue's brother, and also lead Liangzhou prefecture, temporarily under my command." After saying that, before Zhou Tai could say anything, he handed over his hands and confessed, "Ashamed! Today, the Han Dynasty is fighting frequently, and all the generals have meritorious service, so I can't get a title for my brother. Please forgive me."

General Shaoyi?

His eyebrows were raised slightly, and Zhou Tai happily stroked his beard and smiled.

He was originally engaged in the state when he rebelled against the Wei Dynasty, and he was still a little farther than the miscellaneous general who supervised a troop.

As for titles, forget it.

He surrendered after being captured, and he did not surrender on his own initiative, so he was not worthy of the treatment of being a marquis.

Furthermore, even if one is bestowed with a title, it is nothing more than a vain title, which does not make much sense.

"With Zijin's undefeated record in recent years, it's a blessing for me to obey orders!"

Zhou Tai, who was beaming with joy, nodded again and again, and asked the topic of most concern, "I don't know if Zijin asked me to participate in the military affairs, or to be a general who supervised the soldiers?"

Indeed, this is the key.

Those who participate in detailed military affairs are like Liao Zuo, and those who lead the army alone are like confidants.

Mencius said: "The king regards his ministers as brothers and feet, and the ministers regard the emperor as his heart; the emperor regards his ministers as dogs and horses, and the ministers regard him as a countryman."

After all, Zhoutai is a descendant, and has no sense of belonging to the big man, and acts according to the principles of scholars.

How Zheng Pu uses him and whether he dares to trust him is related to his loyalty to the big man.

"Brother An Yue's talent, it's condescending to obey my command, how can I not have to lead an army for Bie?"

After waving his hands, Zheng Pu also smiled, "However, the number of troops under the supervision of brother has not yet been determined. I have two choices, which can be decided by brother himself."

Ok?
When the great Han confers troops, there is also the theory of letting the generals determine their own number?

Hearing this, Zhou Tai was surprised.

But looking at Zheng Pu's serious face, he didn't seem to be joking anymore, and then he said softly, "Forgive me for being stupid, I don't quite understand what Zijin said, and I would like to hear the details."

"Oh, I was negligent."

After pleading guilty, Zheng Pu smiled sheepishly, "I forgot to inform Brother An Yue about the details of my troops and horses now."

After saying that, he beckoned and asked the subordinates not far away to bring warm kumiss, handed Zhou Tai a bag, and explained in a soft and slow voice while drinking.

Zheng Pu, who had less than 500 people in his headquarters, returned to Hanzhong County, and the prime minister allowed him to expand his army to [-] cavalry.

Among them, the armor cavalry that his brother-in-law Zhang Bao has not yet established is not counted.

There are more than [-] soldiers who need to be replenished. The prime minister originally wanted him to recruit new soldiers and slowly perform martial arts training.

The source of soldiers was selected from the five thousand recruits recruited by the Brazilian prefect Lu Yi this year.

But Zheng Pu felt that having so many recruits who had never seen blood at once might affect the combat effectiveness of the troops in the headquarters.

Even if you train for one or two years, you can't compare to the veterans.

And just use it wisely.

The prime minister assigned him [-] heavy-step armors, and when he went to battle again in the future, he would also be responsible for attacking the fortifications or guarding the front of the army.Recruiting too many new soldiers will reduce the morale and combat effectiveness of the army.

Therefore, after the prime minister transferred Zhoutai to his command, he asked the prime minister's permission again.

He made his mind on the more than a thousand Wei troops who had surrendered with Zhoutai earlier.

Earlier, Sima Yi sent Zhoutai to rescue Xicheng, and the two thousand soldiers he awarded were called elite troops!
It has been three years since he was sent by the big man to the Mianyang Iron Mine and Ordnance Department as a coolie. Both his temper and his loyalty to Ni Wei have been worn out.

If the old Shangguan Zhoutai were allowed to recruit them, maybe they would be willing to fight for the big man.

After all, soldiers who can be called elite are a little arrogant, and I believe they would rather die on the battlefield than bury their bones in iron mines in this life.

As for whether Zhoutai can suppress and prevent them from defecting.
Zheng Pu intends to return more than [-] original trilogy of Zhoutai, and also completely break up the current Xuanwu army, forming a mixed situation of "Wei surrendered soldiers, new soldiers and old soldiers".

Let there be old soldiers in every event and every army, and quickly increase the combat power in the way of old soldiers leading recruits.

This is one of Zheng Pu's choices for Zhoutai.

If he is willing to persuade those Wei surrendered soldiers to serve, then Zheng Pu will recruit new soldiers to make up the full [-] soldiers, and hand over [-] soldiers to his supervisor.

If he was worried that those Wei descendants would make mistakes in the future, which would have a negative impact on his official career, Zheng Pu would not be reluctant.

In order to ensure combat power, just recruit [-] more soldiers and finish the job.

Naturally, the headquarters awarded to Zhoutai will also shrink to a thousand people.

Because the Xuanwu Army led by Zhang Yi will expand to 500 soldiers, Zheng Pu's personal guards will also expand to [-] people, and the other [-] heavy armored infantry will be separated into separate battalions due to special tactics.

"Brother An Yue, I'm telling you the truth."

After a dry mouth, Zheng Pu just explained, and said softly, "It's not that I deliberately made things difficult for my brother, and I didn't want to recruit too many new recruits. It really is time for me. Now General Hussars is already attacking Shenlang Qiang, Solve my worries about marching into Liangzhou for the big man. If there is no accident, the prime minister will use troops against Liangzhou early next year! Even after the autumn harvest of grain and fodder this year, he will start deploying troops from various ministries.”

After Zhou Tai heard this, a gleam of understanding flashed in his eyes.

It is not a matter of overnight for recruits to have combat power.

The time left for Zheng Pu is less than a year, it is really not suitable to recruit too many new recruits, soldiers are more expensive than elite.

Also, I am very grateful for the trust in Zheng Pu.

Dare to return the old troops to the surrendered generals, and use them to fight against the motherland, such a mind and courage of "employing people without doubt" are not something ordinary people can possess.After all, once he led his old army to defect, Zheng Pu would not only lose the army, but even risk his own life.

"Zijin believes so much more than me, how dare I have doubts?"

Therefore, he stood up and saluted with great pride, and said with great emotion, "I used to have some prestige in the anti-Wei army. If I recruit those old troops to serve for the big man, I am confident that I can easily capture them. As for the loyalty of the soldiers, if Zijin can Guarantee that the rewards and punishments are clear, and there will be no worries about defection."

"Great!"

Having said that, Zheng Pu clapped his palms and laughed.

Overjoyed, he repeatedly raised his wine bag to invite Zhoutai to have a drink together.

In the Taoshui River Valley outside the territory of the Han Dynasty, Jiang Wei, who was also an official in the Wei Dynasty and then surrendered to the Han Dynasty, was deeply frowning.

He has long been determined to devote all his allegiance to the big man.

It also ushered in the test of general strategy.

Because the prime minister asserted that he is a "Liangzhou sergeant, and his planning strategy is inferior to Zheng Zijin's", and Li Yan saw his ability during the several months of working together, so he wanted to support him.

Li Yan dispatched [-] cavalry from his headquarters and transferred them to Jiang Wei, who originally had [-] soldiers and horses.

Let him lead the army in the pursuit of Shenlang Qiang as a former governor, and give him a chance to prove his ability.

Being able to dispatch [-] cavalry in wartime is an honor that only veterans in the army can enjoy, and it is definitely not the treatment that other mere captains of Yihu Qiang can enjoy.

Not to mention, he is still a general.

If he can be invincible, it will lay the foundation for him to be promoted to a heavy general in the future; but if he is not good in battle, then his future may be bleak in the future, and he may become a military assistant.

Opportunities and risks coexist.

So while he was grateful to Dade, he was also extremely cautious.

Especially when encountering a difficult problem: the Shenlang Qiang who fled to Xiqing Mountain unexpectedly divided up their troops!

The Huawai Zhongcunzhong Qiang, which originated from the Cizhi River, was attacked by Ma Dai and Shaodang Zhongqiang. Some leaders of the Shenlang tribe thought that even if they returned to Xiqing Mountain, they might be attacked by Ma Dai from the north.So he proposed to turn south and go to the Dahe River Basin in the Animaqing Mountains (now the Songpan Plateau) to avoid the pursuit of the Han army.

Because the Zhongqiang tribe living there is the Huawai Baima Qiang.

A few years ago, after the big Han moved the small Baima Qiang tribe along the Baishui River into Hanzhong, the Huawai Baima Qiang began to hate the big Han, thinking that the big Han had robbed their tribe.

If the Shenlang Qiang migrated there now, they would surely gain the same hatred from the Huawai Baima Qiang to fight against the great Han.

However, such a suggestion did not get the approval of other handsome men.

More heroes feel that the great river valley in the Animaqing Mountains in the past was swallowed up by Huawai Baimaqiang when the situation was poor!

The war between the various Qiang tribes is more brutal than the outside world.

If you lose to the big Han, you may be able to surrender and retain your position as the leader; but if you lose to other Qiang tribes, the loser will die!Even the seed number will disappear!

They would rather go to Xiqing Mountain to make a last-ditch effort than accept the possibility of being enslaved by Huawai Baima Qiang.

Neither side can convince the other.

This is also the reason why they were repeatedly bullied by the burning Qiang: when the tribe made decisions, there was no Qiang king to make a final decision, and no matter how powerful the tribe was, it would be a mess.

The final result is a shot and two pieces.

It also made some small tribes feel ashamed: when all the will was united, they were all defeated and fled in a hurry; now that the internal strife has parted ways, can they still resist the Han army?

The answer is depressing.

So they made a new choice and turned to surrender to the Han army.

After Jiang Wei incorporated them, he also fell into deep thought when he learned the reason for the internal strife among the Qiang and Shenlang species.

With the forces of Ma Dai and Shaodangzhong Qiang, and Wu Yi, Liao Hua and other troops under the supervision of Li Yan in the rear, it is more than enough to defeat the Shenlang Zhongqiang who fled to Xiqing Mountain.

Does he still need to march into Xiqing Mountain?
Or be bolder and imitate Huo Qubing's tactic of attacking Huanglong in the past, select [-] elite soldiers, and kill them in the Dahe River Basin of the Animaqing Mountains?
After all, the Shenlang Qiang and Huawai Baima Qiang who fled there would not be prepared for the Han army to kill them.

Because the Animaqing Mountains are quite far from the territory of the Han Dynasty, and the terrain along the way is very complicated, the long distance is an arid area without rivers and streams.

In particular, there has been almost no war between Huawai Baima Qiang and the Han Dynasty.

If the Han army broke the boat and abandoned all their supplies and waited to kill them, the possibility of a battle would be very high.

The premise is that the snow layer along the way has not melted, which can provide water for the Han army.

(End of this chapter)