At the beginning, I gave up my military power with a cup of wine, and I ascended the throne

Chapter 12: The First Battle in Xiliang, a Stunning Battle
It takes a while.

The Governor's Mansion, which was originally deserted, gradually became lively and crowded with people.

Xiao Han walked around the mansion inside and outside, and after visiting all the courtyards, he returned to the main hall.

There was a huge map of Xiliang on the table. All his trusted generals were present except Chen Gong and Gao Li who were heading to Qimen Pass.

"There is still one month until the autumn harvest."

Xiao Han sat down on the main seat, picked up the teacup, and said slowly: "With Qimen Pass, the Northern Wei does not have to worry for the time being, but the miscellaneous Hu tribes in the west will definitely come to plunder."

"Everyone is welcome to express their opinions freely."

“Dingxi, Tianshui and Yumen counties were the first to be hit.”

Pan Yuanshao pointed at the map, frowning, "The counties to the west are close to the Qilian Mountains, mostly hilly and mountainous, and the grain production is not high."

"And the counties with the highest grain production in Xiliang are all on both sides of the Yellow River. It's all wilderness. This is the worst thing."

"There are only three small towns to the west of these counties. There is no strategic location to defend them. They are simply unable to defend against the cavalry of the Tiele, Shatuo and other tribes. If they attack us during the autumn harvest, they will surely attack us."

"I wonder how many people will starve to death in Xiliang this winter."

Shi Qing, Lu Ju, Zhuge Shou and other brave generals were experienced in the battlefield. They just glanced at the map casually and quickly made an accurate judgment of the current situation.

"The most important thing right now is to ensure that the autumn harvest is successfully completed in several counties on both sides of the Yellow River."

Xiao Han's eyes fell on Shi Qing: "You say."

"Defense alone is too passive."

Shi Qing pondered for a moment, "The entire Xiliang is blocked by the Qilian Mountains in the north, so the Northern Wei can't do anything for the time being. However, it stretches for hundreds of miles from east to west, and it's flat and there's no place to defend. The cavalry of the miscellaneous Hu are all light cavalry, and they come and go like the wind. Let alone we only have 500 people, even if we have 5,000 people, we can't defend such a large area at all."

"Then fight."

Lu Ju narrowed his eyes and said, "Since we can't defend it, we have no choice but to take the initiative to attack. Temporarily wipe out the Tiele and Shatuo tribes to scare the monkeys. After the autumn harvest is completed, we will immediately recruit soldiers and train them."

"I remember the general said that Lord Xie promised to provide armor and weapons for 5,000 cavalry and 10,000 infantry, didn't he?"

"Give me one winter, and I can at least train a few thousand decent cavalry, if not a Yuyang Prefecture army."

"When the spring of next year comes, we will move the battle line forward and push into the territory of those barbarians. Relying on the three cities in the west, we will fight to support the war and turn those barbarians' tribes upside down."

"I'll see if they still have the heart to take advantage of me by then."

"That's a good idea."

Chief Secretary Pan Yuanshao's eyes lit up.

"Five hundred people are not enough."

Shi Qing's face was solemn: "Don't underestimate these mixed barbarians in Xiliang. In terms of horse riding and archery alone, the cavalry of these tribes can overwhelm the Northern Wei cavalry."

"I just don't know how many soldiers there are in Xiliang County and how strong they are."

Liao Huan rubbed his hands, eager to give it a try: "As long as it's not too bad, we can teach those bastards a lesson right away."

"Ten thousand nominally."

Xiao Han shook his head slightly: "In fact, five thousand is enough."

Before setting off, he had already sent his spies to Xiliang to collect intelligence.

"Ma Dai is not good at fighting, but he is quite courageous."

Lu Ju sneered: "General, do you want to start with this guy?"

"Not for now. If we kill the Xiliang Commander right away, it will definitely cause instability among the people."

Xiao Han shook his head and pointed at the Yellow River on the map: "I originally planned to build a fortress on the bank of the Yellow River, west of Dingxi County, to defend against the barbarians."

“But then I changed my mind.”

He glanced at the crowd and said, "Just like what you said, we can't defend it. We must first kill the chicken to scare the monkey and shake the mountain to scare the tiger."

"Hey, General, pick out two chickens."

Liao Huan grinned.

"I've already chosen it."

Xiao Han's finger landed on the map, a location three hundred miles west of Dingxi: "This is the Ruoqiang tribe, with a population of about 30,000 and about 4,000 to 5,000 tribal cavalry. It is the largest and closest tribe to Xiliang."

Just use him to shock the tiger.

"Which one of you is coming?"

"I."

Liao Huan stood up excitedly: "Whoever competes with me, I will be angry with him."

"No matter who you're angry with, I should take the first blow."

Lu Ju was not to be outdone. "You have all won more battles than me, so you should let me take the lead this time."

The tiger general Zhuge Shou said hurriedly.

"Let's play while we're at it."

Liao Huan is the right person to take on this task.

"I only need two thousand men."

Zhuge Shou looked at Xiao Han.

"I only need a thousand men."

Lu Ju pushed the two of them away.

"It's so boring to argue all the time."

Xiao Han made the final decision: "This is our first battle in Xiliang, we must fight well, so the three of you go together."

"Lu Ju will be the commander-in-chief, and you two will be the deputy commanders."

"Cough cough."

"General, isn't it too early to discuss who will lead the troops into battle?"

The Chief Clerk Pan Yuanshao interrupted: "We haven't gotten the military power in Xiliang yet."

"military power?"

Xiao Han knocked on the table and chuckled, "I will let Ma Dai hand over the military power on his own initiative."

"Pan Yuanshao, have someone inform Ma Dai and Zhang Lian that I will host a banquet for them at the governor's mansion tonight."

"it is good."

Pan Yuanshao nodded, and he roughly understood what his general wanted to do.

"By the way, from now on you will be the chancellor of the Xiliang Governor's Mansion."

Xiao Han added.

"Thank you, sir."

Pan Yuanshao clasped his fists slightly and a smile appeared on his face.

"Don't worry, all of you."

Xiao Han looked at the brave generals under his command and said, "I will not lose anything that is yours."

"Thank you, General."

Lu Ju and his companions clasped their fists together, their eyes looking enthusiastic.

……

into the night.

There was singing and dancing in the Xiliang Governor's Mansion.

The prefect Ma Dai and the chief clerk Zhang Lian were a little restless because the governor Xiao Han had not shown up.

Outside the courtyard.

Seven or eight graceful girls in long gauze dresses were dancing gracefully. It was such a beautiful scene, but the two men had no intention of appreciating it at all.

It felt like there were steel needles on the stool under my butt.

"General Ma, Chief Clerk Zhang, the Lord has some important matters to deal with. Let me talk to you two."

As Pan Yuanshao spoke, he poured drinks for the two of them.

"It's out of the way."

Ma Dai was flattered and shook his head quickly.

Pan Yuanshao sat down next to Zhang Lian and sighed, "I don't know why these people in the county government have so many things to do. It seems like they can't finish talking."

Zhang Lian's heart moved, and he asked, "Is your Excellency meeting with officials from various government offices?"

"Ah."

Pan Yuanshao nodded: "One wants food, another wants soldiers, and some want money. They all ask for exorbitant amounts of money. Take the Dingxi County Magistrate for example. He asked you to send soldiers to help with the autumn harvest."

"Warfare is nothing more than a few things, soldiers, money and food. You have just arrived and took office today. You have no soldiers or food. Money is even more useless. I went to the treasury during the day and saw only a few scattered copper coins."

Pan Yuanshao sighed: "It seems that Xiliang is indeed suffering."

(End of this chapter)