My younger brother Lü Fengxian

Chapter 317 Pingbei General
"However, the quicker you act, the more you get. As for how much you can get, it depends on your own ability."

Blindly suppressing them will only lead to resistance. Throwing them a bone after beating them is the only way to control them.

"The woman from Jiang Qubu belongs to me! I will kill anyone who dares to snatch her from me!"

"Bullshit, Lord Lu clearly said that anyone who sees it gets a share, how can you eat it all by yourself?"

"That's right. No matter how powerful your family is, you can't compete with so many tribes like us. I advise you to share with everyone honestly, otherwise don't blame us for being rude!"

"Sharing it with you honestly? I think you are asking for a beating! Watch me...!"

As soon as Lu Yi said this, the tribal chiefs in the king's tent did not even bother to thank Lu Yi, but rushed out of the king's tent with vigilant looks on their faces, some even fighting each other. It was obvious that they had been completely tamed by Lu Yi.

"Ha ha ha ha……"

"Today I have witnessed the bravery of the Huns."

Seeing this, Lu Yi couldn't help but burst into laughter.

Inside the king's tent, Lu Yi's civil and military officials also laughed loudly upon seeing this.

"Sixiao, what my brother-in-law said is very true..."

Hexutuo and his son did not dare to doubt Lu Yi's words. They could only agree with Lu Yi with an awkward smile.

At this point, Lu Yi, through a series of operations, used tens of thousands of heads to seize a country for his second son. As long as Lu Rong came of age, he could inherit the position of the Great Khan of the Xiongnu and become the master of the grassland.

And the south of the desert is only a part of the desert, and Lu Yi could not allow the Xianbei, Wuhuan and Western Qiang to cause trouble for his son.

As for the eldest son Lu Tong, Lu Yi will only give him better than Lu Rong!
……

After resolving the conflict in the south of the desert and securing justice for his second son, Lu Rong, Lu Yi led his army back to Bingzhou.

However, unlike in the past, Lu Yi did not return with too many cattle, horses, livestock and spoils this time.

In the past, the area south of the desert belonged to the Xiongnu, so Lu Yi naturally had to absorb the essence of the Xiongnu people, strengthen himself and weaken the Xiongnu.

Now that Mo Nan has become his son's fiefdom and the Lu family's back garden, its status in Lu Yi's heart is different.

How could there be a company that is madly poaching its own employees?
Not only did Lu Yi change his previous policy of large-scale looting and fighting to support the war, but he also vigorously supported the Xiongnu south of the desert.

Now, the south of the desert has been pacified and the internal conflicts among the Xiongnu have ceased.

With just a few years, the Xiongnu, who occupied the vast area south of the desert, would be able to recover and prosper again.

At that time, Lu Yi could obtain a steady supply of war horses, oxen and livestock from the south of the desert.

And if it is wartime, he can also summon the heroes of Mo Nan to serve him and be at his disposal at any time.

All the Xiongnu people were soldiers, and after leaving enough personnel in the rear to defend against the Xianbei, Wuhuan, and Western Qiang, they could still provide Lu Yi with 100,000 light cavalry.

The combat effectiveness of these Hu people, who were skilled in archery and horse riding, in the flat terrain of Hebei and Central Plains had been fully demonstrated during the Xianbei invasion several years ago.

This is undoubtedly a powerful foreign aid.

However, the Hu people are fickle and brutal, and should not be used lightly.

If it weren't for the military emergency, Lu Yi would not allow the Hu people's horses to set foot on Han territory again.

Moreover, even if they were to be used, the Hu people had to be completely under their own noses and under their complete control.

Moreover, once they have been used up, they must be immediately repatriated to the south of the desert. They must not be allowed to stay in Han territory for a long time, lest they take root and occupy the Han people's living space, thus repeating the historical tragedy of the Five Barbarians' Invasion of China.

After Lu Yi returned to Bingzhou, he immediately handed over to the court the heads of Jiang Qu and tens of thousands of Huns, as well as the battle report that he, Tian Feng, Chen Gong and others had carefully considered.

The court was delighted to see that Lu Yi had made another contribution upon his first appointment as Governor of Bingzhou and had pacified the southern part of the desert.

Not only did he approve all of Lu Yi's requests for lavish rewards for his subordinates, but he also generously approved He Xutuo's request to succeed him as the Great Khan of the Xiongnu.

However, he was a little stingy with the reward for Lu Yi personally.

Not only did his title fail to be upgraded to a county marquis, but even his official position remained unchanged, and he remained the governor of Bingzhou.

The only other thing was that Lu Yi was given the military officer position of General Pingbei and was allowed to set up his own government and appoint officials on his own.

Of course, he also had to bear the official's salary himself.

Taxes from all parties were withheld by provincial governors and powerful county magistrates.

On top of that, he had to support Liu Hong, a man who was extravagant and spendthrift.

The imperial court is now so poor that it can’t come up with much money.

However, this was exactly what Lu Yi was thinking.

Lu Yi immediately established a government office in Pingcheng in the name of General Pingbei and arranged all his civil and military subordinates into the General Pingbei's government office.

At this point, Lu Yi's control over Bingzhou became increasingly strong, and he had actually completed the separatist rule.

Even though the imperial court was afraid of Lu Yi, they did not dare to rashly replace Lu Yi as the governor of Bingzhou.

After settling all matters related to the reunion and setting up the government.

Lu Yi usually went to the tent to discuss matters in the General Pingbei's mansion.

"I've been away on the expedition for several months. I wonder what matters in Bingzhou need to be discussed recently?"

The general sat on the throne, and Lu Yi asked the civil and military officials in the tent.

"My lord, the population of Bingzhou now exceeds 3 million, but my army is only 20,000. Although my Bingzhou cavalry can defeat ten enemies with one, if they are dispersed throughout the vast area of ​​Bingzhou, I am afraid it will be difficult to defend such a large area. I think we should carry out the next round of military expansion!"

Tian Feng, the left military advisor and also the historian of Bingzhou Biejia under Lu Yi, was the first to step forward and give Lu Yi advice.

"Well, what the military advisor said is the words of an experienced man. Even if the military advisor didn't mention it, I would have to make preparations early. Now my Bingzhou is different from the past. The territory is ten times larger than that of Yanmen County. Twenty thousand cavalry is indeed a bit stretched."

After Lu Yi pondered for a moment, he immediately followed suit and gave the order.

"Order Biejia to take charge of recruiting soldiers and select 30,000 elite soldiers from the entire state according to the standards of the current Bingzhou Iron Cavalry to expand the military power of our Bingzhou."

Selecting 30,000 elite soldiers from three million people, one in a hundred, is naturally the best choice and can fully meet the standards and requirements of Bingzhou Iron Cavalry.

With three million men supporting fifty thousand cavalry, the ratio is still sixty people per soldier, so the pressure is not too great.

However, the Bingzhou Iron Cavalry was not like the 800,000-strong army that Yuan Shao had gathered by randomly conscripting men, and the pressure of supporting them was not much less.

Therefore, Lu Yi's expansion of the army to 50,000 people this time is already the current limit of Bingzhou.

If we want to expand again, we need to build an army of 80,000 or 100,000 people.

This can only be achieved after Bingzhou has naturally reproduced for decades and its population has doubled, or it can be achieved by occupying other territories to gain more territory and population.

Apart from anything else, as long as Lu Yi can annex the nearby Jizhou, he can expand his army again.

However, now is not the time for the princes to fight each other, so Lu Yi can only make plans slowly.

"I obey my orders!"

Tian Feng immediately stepped forward to receive the order.

"Appoint Gao Shun as the chief instructor and Guan Yu as the deputy instructor to organize and train 30,000 new soldiers. They must form a fighting force within a year." "I obey your orders!"

Gao Shun and Guan Yu also immediately stepped forward to receive orders.

Although Gao Shun's personal fighting power is no longer among the top generals under Lu Yi, he is firmly ranked first in terms of elite training, and even Guan Yu has to admit defeat.

After all, in history, Gao Shun led the Xianzhen Camp to defeat Liu, Guan and Zhang many times.

However, Guan Yu was later known as a godly general who flooded seven armies and awed all of China. In addition, he loved his soldiers like his own sons and was clear about rewards and punishments. He was also one of the best generals of the time. In terms of training soldiers, he was second only to Gao Shun under Lu Yi, so he was more than qualified to be a deputy instructor.

With Gao Shun and Guan Yu training the soldiers, I believe that in a year, Lu Yi will be able to add another 30,000 elite soldiers.

The reason why Lu Yi set a one-year deadline was because two major events would happen one year later.

The amount of troops he has now is enough to deal with one thing, but if he has to deal with two things at the same time, it will be a bit stretched.

After the arrangements for the military expansion were completed, Chen Gong and others reported to Lu Yi on various matters related to military farming and armaments.

Lu Yi also set the tone, that one year later preparations must be made to the standard of being able to support 50,000 cavalrymen in a year's campaign.

Whether it is armor, horses, weapons or money, food and supplies, they must all be implemented in accordance with this standard.

Lu Yi's orders were effectively carried out.

A year flies by.

The fourth year of Zhongping, autumn.

Zhang Ju, Zhang Chun and others from Yuyang formed an alliance with Qiuliju of Wuhuan and jointly rebelled against the Han Dynasty.

Zhang Ju called himself the Son of Heaven, and Zhang Chun called himself the General of Heaven and the King of Anding.

The rebellion of Zhang Ju and Zhang Chun swept across Youzhou, Jizhou and Qingzhou. Many local officials responded by welcoming them, and the whole country was shaken for a while.

Soon, the Yellow Turbans of Qingzhou took advantage of the chaos to wreak havoc in Qingzhou again.

There were millions of Yellow Turbans in Qingzhou, including 300,000 young and strong men. They ran rampant between Qing and Xu, burning government offices and killing officials. Their power was no less than that of Zhang Jue and the Black Mountain Army in the past, and no one could stop them.

At this time, the war against Western Qiang had reached its most critical moment, and the imperial court was completely unable to suppress the rebellion.

More importantly, Emperor Liu Hong's health was deteriorating. He did not like to preside over government affairs, and his control over the court gradually decreased, causing the central government's authority to decline again and again.

The power of the government gradually fell into the hands of General He Jin, and Liu Hong could only give the eunuchs greater power to restrain He Jin.

Therefore, naturally, they have even less energy to deal with external affairs.

Liu Hong has now begun to prepare for his successor.

Compared with the change of imperial power, a local rebellion is nothing.

Moreover, since the Yellow Turban Rebellion began, natural disasters have become more severe and rebellions have become more frequent year by year.

To be honest, Liu Hong had become somewhat numb to the rebellion and started to give in.

Therefore, although local memorials about Zhang Ju, Zhang Chun and the Yellow Turban Rebellion in Qingzhou were transmitted to Luoyang like snowflakes.

However, Liu Hong simply dispatched the Cavalry Commander Gongsun Zan to attack Zhang Ju and Zhang Chun at random.

As for the Yellow Turbans in Qingzhou, he ordered the officials of Qingzhou and Xuzhou to fight against them on their own.

When the local officials received the imperial edict, they were all shocked.

Has this tyrant become so foolish?

If we can deal with the Qingzhou Army, why do we have to report to the court?

Isn’t it great to have a million captives of the Qingzhou Army?

So these officials submitted their memorials again.

Just when the imperial court was extremely troubled by the current situation.

A somewhat familiar name reappeared in Liu Hong's vision.

It turned out that it was Lu Yi who reported to Liu Hong, stating that as Marquis of Jinxiang, Governor of Bingzhou, and General Pingbei of the Han Dynasty, he had the obligation and ability to help the court quell the rebellion.

However, Bingzhou is poor and cannot afford to support a large army. The emperor hopes that the imperial court can pay for the Bingzhou army to quell the rebellion.

Who is Liu Hong?

He was a man who loved money like his life and openly sold official positions and titles.

It’s fine that he doesn’t want Lu Yi to pay tribute to him, but now Lu Yi wants him to allocate money and grain to him from his own pocket, that is, from the court?
It's a bit too whimsical.

Therefore, Liu Hong rejected Lu Yi's request very straightforwardly.

However, although Liu Hong was not prepared to provide Lu Yi with money and food, he still wanted him to lead the army to quell the rebellion, but he had to find a way to get the money and food himself.

Lu Yi had no choice but to report to the court again.

Since the imperial treasury is empty and unable to support the Bingzhou army with money and food, it is hoped that the imperial court will allow Lu Yi to intercept the seized money, food, livestock, supplies and other spoils as supplies for the Bingzhou army during the rebellion and allow Lu Yi to use them at his own discretion.

At present, the word "population" would be added in an inconspicuous corner of Lu Yi's memorials.

After thinking about it, the businessman Liu Hong felt that Lu Yi's request did not require him to spend money, food, weapons or equipment, but could help him conquer the two big bandits. Therefore, he thought it was a good deal and agreed immediately.

Anyway, these bandits can be conquered by force, and the money and food in their hands will not go into their pockets. Instead, they might as well use them to paint a rosy picture for Lu Yi and make him work for them.

"Brother, the court has indeed agreed to our request!"

As soon as the imperial edict with the court's approval arrived in Pingcheng, Lu Bu could not help but excitedly speak to Lu Yi while holding the imperial edict.

The strategy of dividing the troops to quell the rebellion of Zhang Ju and Zhang Chun had already become the consensus of the Bingzhou army when the two rebels just started the rebellion.

Because he is a time traveler, there are some things like the prophet's golden finger that Lu Yi cannot reveal to his subordinates, so they must be kept secret.

However, this did not affect Lu Yi's early arrangements and preparations for his own plan.

Therefore, when Zhang Ju, Zhang Chun and the Yellow Turban Army of Qingzhou broke out, Lu Yi already had 50,000 Bingzhou cavalry under his command, and had all the money, food, weapons, armor, and supplies needed to sustain him for a year. Naturally, he had the basis for dividing his forces to defeat the bandits.

Under Lu Yi's guidance, wise men like Tian Feng and Chen Gong were easily led by the nose by Lu Yi and made strategies to suit his wishes.

However, although the army was fully equipped, it had no legitimate reason to go to war. If Lu Yi wanted to leave Bingzhou to quell the rebellion elsewhere, it would be better to have an imperial edict as proof.

Otherwise, rashly stepping onto the territory of other forces may cause some unnecessary conflicts and troubles.

Although Lu Yi was not afraid of this, the toad's bite could not kill people, but it was disgusting.

However, Lu Yi's long-term collection of information about Liu Hong's personal character and habits made it easy for him to create a seemingly random, but in fact open conspiracy to trick Liu Hong into it.

As expected by Lu Yi and others, Liu Hong fell into the trap that Lu Yi had carefully set for him, allowing Lu Yi to obtain the last link to justify sending troops - the imperial edict.

……

(End of this chapter)