Guiyi Fei Tang

Chapter 79 Dunhuang Controversy
"To the left!"

"Beep--"

In early October, snow was already falling on the Qilian Mountains, and the cold wind was blowing inside and outside Shandan City, making people's cheeks hurt.

After Liu Jilong's reorganization and re-recruitment, there were still four regiments of the Shandan Army.

Among them, the third regiment led by Jiu Juyan was stationed in Qilian City, and the remaining first, second, fourth and third regiments and six brigades were training in Shandan City.

There are six brigades with a total of 600 people in the three regiments. Each brigade needs to garrison in Longshou Mountain for one month, adopting a rotation system.

Therefore, there are currently a fixed number of 500 people training in the military camp in Shandan City.

For some unknown reason, Li Wei's son Li Yizhong has not yet led his troops to Shandan, but Liu Jilong is not worried.

He is very busy now, focusing on many matters such as training, digging, and armor making every day.

After the turmoil in September, he became more aware of the importance of strength. Therefore, while training the army, he also expanded the scale of the craftsmen's workshops in the city, and forged armor in the form of one master and three apprentices.

At this rate, these apprentices will be able to make armor on their own in a few months, and Shandan's armor production will be increased to 60 sets per month.

However, such off-site development is destined to be unable to take into account agricultural production outside Shandan City.

It is already late autumn, so the reduction of dozens of men will not significantly reduce efficiency.

By the time of spring planting, this efficiency difference will be obvious.

To solve this problem, either we need to provide women with enough draft horses and oxen, or we need to increase the population.

Because of this, Liu Jilong could only turn his attention to Shang Bibi.

If Shang Bibi could handle the affairs of Shanzhou well, then during the spring ploughing time, some Tibetans from the Shanzhou army could be allowed to help with the farming. Anyway, Liu Jilian did not need to bring more than a thousand Tibetans to the expedition. He only needed three hundred armored soldiers among them.

When the spring plowing is over, he can lead his troops across Yanzhi Mountain and capture enough livestock for training.

Once Zhang Huaishen agrees to borrow grain, the five or six thousand people in Shancheng will inevitably migrate to Shandan.

"Has there been any news from Zhangye?"

On the school platform, Liu Jilong asked Zhang Chang and others behind him. Chen Jingchong bowed and said, "Not yet, but it will probably be soon."

"Guo Yi, this Shang maid won't regret borrowing the food when the time comes, right?"

Zhang Chang did not trust Shang Bibi, but Liu Jilian trusted Shang Bibi very much, not because of their friendship, but because of reality.

"No..." Liu Jilong explained:
"There are more than 22,000 soldiers and civilians in Shanzhou, of which 40% are Han people."

"Shang Bi Bi was reluctant to give up the craftsmen because they were able to make armor and weapons, but the other Han people were different."

"Now, there are only tens of thousands of acres of arable land in Shanzhou that can be cultivated. The more than 10,000 foreign people in Shanzhou are enough to cope with it. The extra Han people have become a burden that consumes food rations."

"If you give these people to us, not only can we borrow enough food, but we can also reduce a group of burdens that consume food. Why not do it?"

Liu Jilong persuaded Zhang Chang, who nodded and said, "It would be great if we can really save these suffering people."

As he said this, a figure on horseback came from the direction of the military camp entrance.

Liu Jilong looked at the figure, and saw Cui Shu riding his horse to the side of the school platform, dismounting, walking quickly up to the platform, and bowing in front of him.

"Guo Yi, the pensions and rewards have been arranged."

Cui Shu reported what he had been busy with recently. Liu Jilong breathed a sigh of relief when he heard it. "How many families of martyrs are willing to move in?"

During these days, he never forgot about pensions and rewards. The standard of pension was five strings of cash per household.

Five strings of cash was not a lot of money in Hexi. Even though the autumn harvest had just passed, this amount of money was only enough for a family of five to eat for half a year at most.

Therefore, compensation was one aspect, and on the other hand, Liu Jilian was preparing to win over the families of the martyrs who had lost their pillars.

"How much money is left?"

Liu Jilong asked Cui Shu, and Zhang Chang and others also came over.

"Not much, only 324 strings of cash left."

Cui Shu wiped his sweat while speaking, but Liu Jilong waved his hand and said, "Give all the money as a reward to the brothers."

"Thank you Guoyi!" Upon hearing that there would be a reward, Zhang Chang and the others all grinned and bowed, but Cui Shu alone had a bitter expression.

"Guo Yi, all the money has been spent. The only reward we can give is food."

Cui Shu reminded Liu Jilong, but Liu Jilong didn't care: "It's okay, there's nothing to spend money on in Shandan anyway."

What he said was not false. After all, Shandan was a military town and basically relied on subsidies from Zhangye and other states. When mobilizing the people to work, they were given food instead of money.

The only thing that needs to be paid is to reward the soldiers in the army, but this can also be replaced by food.

"After the spring, no matter how many families of martyrs and military relatives come to Shandan, they must be counted."

"Yes……"

Liu Jilong gave the instructions and then took Cui Shu on a brief inspection of the military camp.

In the military camp, the soldiers on the training ground were undergoing attention and discipline training.

The importance of discipline is self-evident. For example, when the Uighurs invaded, if the Uighurs had strong enough discipline, they would not have fled in panic after being charged by Liu Jilian's 800 elite cavalry.

Of course, there is a prerequisite for training discipline, which is to let the soldiers clearly distinguish between left and right.

Liu Jilong used the old method to distinguish the left and right arms by tying linen cloth or not.

Of course, this is only a temporary solution and not a fundamental solution. The real way to solve the problem fundamentally is to solve the illiteracy problem in the military.

Hexi had been lost for nearly a hundred years, and ordinary people could not speak the official language of the Tang Dynasty, let alone write Chinese characters.

There were many problems facing Liu Jilong, and the problem of writing and language was undoubtedly the biggest one.

There are only about thirty people in Shandan City who can speak Mandarin, and they are all straightforward, and each of them has their own affairs to attend to.

It would probably take years for them to teach the 800 Shandan soldiers and horses Mandarin and Chinese characters.

But no matter how difficult it is, we must persist in this matter. After all, the next step after regaining Liangzhou is to regain Hehuang and Longyou.

In the past, the Tang Dynasty's defense against the Guiyi Army was second only to the three towns in Heshuo and the towns in Lianghuai, and even surpassed them in some aspects.

Because of this, the Tang Dynasty only maintained nominal rule over the Helong region. In reality, the Helong and Hehuang regions were still mainly governed by the Tibetans and the Umu people.

This situation resulted in the Guiyi Army not only failing to receive support from the Tang Dynasty, but also having to guard against the forces supported by the Tang Dynasty.

The Han people in Helong, Hehuang and Hexi gradually disappeared, either being assimilated by ethnic minorities or dying in the local chaos.

Even though Zhang Huaishen tried to turn the tide several times, he could not change this problem.

Longyou and Hexi, which had been part of the Han territory since the Han Dynasty, eventually became a paradise for Tubo, Uighur, and Umu, which is why Western Xia was able to rule Helong so easily later.

To solve this problem, we need to obtain sufficient population from the Tang Dynasty.

There are many bandits and robbers in Shannan West Road and Jiannan Road. These people are a scourge to the Tang Dynasty, but not to the Helong area.

As long as they are men, Liu Jilian has the means and time to increase the degree of sinicization in the areas under his jurisdiction, and then affect the entire Helong region.

Of course, before Hexi expanded eastward and came into contact with the Tang Dynasty, there was one thing that Liu Jilian needed to pay attention to, and that was the several groups of envoys sent by Zhang Yichao.

Thinking of this, Liu Jilong looked to the west, as if he had traveled through thousands of mountains and rivers and saw Zhang Yichao in the Shazhou government office...

At the same time as he was looking towards the west, a carriage escorted by over a hundred elite cavalrymen drove slowly along the rammed earth official road into a city in the western frontier.

Looking down at this place, a river flows down along the western foothills of the Qilian Mountains, passing through dense forests and large tracts of farmland, winding from the east side of the city, and finally merging into a large lake in the north of the city.

The lake is nearly twenty miles long from east to west and more than ten miles from north to south. The edge of the lake is covered with reeds and there are birds flying everywhere.

On the north side of the lake, you can vaguely see numerous lakes and swamps, some of which are larger than tens of thousands of acres in area, while others are smaller than tens of acres.

If someone in the future were to stand on the hill and see this scene, he would certainly not believe that this is the Dunhuang surrounded by plateaus, Gobi deserts and deserts.

Dunhuang at this time is not all green due to the onset of winter, but the lakes, woods and grasslands outside the city will not deceive the eyes.

When spring comes, this place will once again become the picturesque Hexi granary with herds of cattle and sheep.

"It is indeed a map of the Hehuang area!"

Inside the Dunhuang government office, when a fifty-year-old official with a long beard spoke excitedly, everyone in the government office looked at each other in excitement.

"Jiedushi, if we get these five states' maps, our army will have nine states' maps!"

Standing in the first seat on the right, Li En, the deputy governor of Shazhou, couldn't help but stand up and bow.

The person he bowed to was naturally Zhang Yichao, the leader of Hexi, who was sitting in the main seat. Although the four states of Hexi had been recovered, Zhang Yichao still regarded himself as the governor of Shazhou, but the people below him had begun to call him the governor of Hexi.

Although Zhang Yichao was happy about this, he did not feel elated.

Liangzhou had not been recovered and the Tang Dynasty had not yet been connected, so the title of Hexi Jiedushi was always unjustified.

What he wanted was the banner and imperial seal of the Hexi Jiedushi bestowed by Chang'an.

Only by obtaining the Hexi Jiedushi banner and seal granted by Chang'an could he become the Hexi Jiedushi in full legitimacy.

Thinking of this, Zhang Yichao looked at the fifty-year-old bearded man who was looking at the book excitedly.

"Brother, is there any news about Gao Jinda and Wu Zhen?"

The only person Zhang Yichao could call "elder brother" was Zhang Huaishen's father, Zhang Yitan, now the chief steward of Hexi.

"No……"

Hearing Zhang Yichao asking about Gao Jinda's news, Zhang Yitan shook his head.

Gao Jinda was the envoy they sent to the Tang Dynasty after they recovered the two states of Gua and Sha, while Wuzhen was the envoy they sent after they recovered the two states of Gan and Su.

Since the recovery of Shazhou, they have sent more than ten envoy teams, but they never received any news after they stepped into the grassland.

Now that Hexi is at odds with the Ganzhou Uighurs, sending envoys again will inevitably encounter resistance from the Ganzhou Uighurs.

Thinking of this, Zhang Yitan looked at the books and maps in front of him. He felt heartbroken but also made up his mind. He turned around and bowed to Zhang Yichao.

"Jiedushi, I am willing to lead the troops to escort the Kyushu maps to Fengzhou (Bayannur) and submit a petition to the emperor!"

Zhang Yitan's self-recommendation left everyone speechless. After all, he could be said to be the second-in-command in Hexi now, and once he went to the Tang Dynasty, it would take at most a year or at most half a year.

After being away from the core power circle in Hexi for a year or so, when he comes back, the position of second-in-command may not be his.

"No rush for now..."

As expected, Zhang Yichao rejected his elder brother's request. In order to reassure him, Zhang Yichao looked at everyone and explained.

"It is winter now, and it is easy to encounter white disasters when going to Fengzhou."

"Besides, I have just prepared enough food and grass and am about to conquer Yizhou. It would be better to wait until Yizhou is conquered before heading to Chang'an. The weight of the Ten States Map is always heavier than the Nine States Map."

His words made everyone look at each other in bewilderment. Li En stood up and bowed, saying:
"Jiedushi, we have already entered a long winter. Do we really need to march to Yizhou?"

"Yes!" Zhang Yichao did not hesitate at all and explained again:

"After the civil strife in Tubo, all the forces in the Western Regions are watching us."

"We successfully conquered the east and recovered a lot of territory, but the western regions are still under the control of Tubo."

"If we ignore this, if a capable person emerges from the Tibetans in the Western Regions in the future, our army's western border will be in danger of war."

"If I lead my army to the west successfully, the tribes in the Western Regions will surely rise up. By then, the bandits will be eliminated, the trade routes will be unblocked, and our army's strength will only increase, not weaken."

Zhang Yichao has his own ideas and vision, a vision that no one else has.

The powerful people in Hexi all wanted to be local tyrants behind closed doors, but only Zhang Yichao knew that this choice would lead to his own death.

After the Tubo invasion of Hexi, the Hankou population, which once boasted a population of hundreds of thousands, was reduced to less than 200,000, and more than 100,000 suffered in Liangzhou, Lanzhou, Huizhou and other places.

If they move eastward and open up a road, sooner or later they will be assimilated by the Longjia, Uighur and Tibetan people in Hexi.

Only by returning to the Tang Dynasty can the Hexi area be defended.

There are very few people who can understand his ideas, and Zhang Yitan and Zhang Huaishen are among the few.

"I wonder when the Jiedushi will prepare to march west to Yizhou?"

An official in the crowd couldn't help but ask, and Zhang Yichao looked at Suo Zhongyi when he heard it.

"I intend to dispatch troops on October 15th, and I will personally lead 2,000 soldiers from Gua and Sha to recapture Yizhou."

"In this battle, Suo Zhongyi and Suo Xun will be the vanguard, leading 300 elite cavalry to spy on the situation in Yizhou. I will lead 1,000 armored soldiers to follow, and Huairong, you will lead 700 light soldiers and 6,000 civilians to transport food and grass."

The situation inside Hexi was not good. Most of the armored soldiers were left in Ganzhou, and the subsequent armor was also sent to Ganzhou, so that Guazhou and Shazhou could only mobilize 1,300 armored soldiers for the western expedition.

"The last general takes command!"

Suo Zhongyi and others bowed and saluted, but Li En bowed and said, "Jiedushi, how are Ganzhou's preparations?"

"Ganzhou..."

"Ganzhou Governor Zhang Huaishen wants to increase the number of regiments to thirty, which is 6,000 people."

"From his documents, he not only wants 6,000 soldiers, he also wants enough armor..."

"Six thousand armored soldiers?"

"Tsk tsk..."

In response to Li En's words, everyone did not hesitate to discuss it directly in the main hall.

It should be noted that although there are 100,000 people in Hexi, there are no more than 10,000 soldiers, of which less than 4,000 are armored soldiers. Most of them are in Ganzhou, followed by Guazhou and Shazhou, and the rest are in Suzhou.

Zhang Huaishen already has more than 3,000 armored soldiers, and is already too strong. Now he is trying to mobilize a team of 6,000 armored soldiers.

If Zhang Yichao really agrees, the armor made by the craftsmen's workshops in the four states and eight cities will be mainly supplied to Ganzhou for a long time.

"Ganzhou has more soldiers, so we can recapture Liangzhou as soon as possible."

Zhang Yichao spoke slowly, but everyone looked unhappy. Suo Zhongyi even stood up and bowed, saying:

"Jiedushi, in the past few months, armor from various states and cities has been transported to Ganzhou, as well as food."

"I heard that Liu Jilong of Shandan increased the rations of the soldiers in the city to three liters per day, and slaughtered lambs every few days to reward the soldiers."

"In addition, he also privately used a lot of money and grain from the warehouse to provide pensions and rewards to the soldiers."

"Sir Jiedushi, it's not that we don't want to support Ganzhou, but what will the soldiers in other states and counties think of Ganzhou's actions?"

As soon as Suo Zhongyi opened his mouth, everyone realized how bold Liu Jilian was and started talking about it.

Zhang Huairong in the team saw that the situation was not good, so he had to stand up and bow: "Jiedushi, although Liu Jilong's method of training soldiers consumes food, the soldiers he trained are indeed elite."

"In the battle of Qilian City, Liu Jilong led only 300-odd armored soldiers, but he defeated 5,000 armored cavalry led by Shang Yanxin and captured the great banner."

"In the subsequent Battle of Zhangye, Liu Jilong led 800 elite cavalrymen under the command of Governor Zhang to defeat 10,000 Uighur cavalrymen and forced the Uighurs to retreat to Juyan Lake."

"These are all real achievements. There is nothing wrong with using some money and food to exchange for such elite troops!"

Zhang Huairong's words could fool the people in Shazhou, but they could not fool Suo Xun, Li Mingzhen and others who came to Dunhuang with him.

However, Suo Xun felt guilty towards Liu Jilong and did not refute him. Li Mingzhen had not yet taken office and could not appear in such an occasion. Therefore, no one refuted what Zhang Huairong said.

Since Zhang Huairong and his team had just arrived, everyone's attention was on the maps of the Five States and Zhang Huaishen's documents, but no one had paid attention to how Ganzhou repelled the two forces of Shang Yanxin and Cheng Le.

After hearing what Zhang Huairong said, all the officials in the main hall were really impressed by Liu Jilian's achievements. They thought that Liu Jilian was able to achieve such results only because he trained his troops well.

"Huai Rong is right..."

Zhang Yichao naturally knew the whole story, but he did not intend to expose it. Instead, he continued along with Zhang Huairong's words:

"Liu Jilong is a good general, and the soldiers he trained are also the elite troops of Hexi."

"When we recover Liangzhou in the future, the Shandan Army will be the first to bear the brunt of the attack, so it's okay to spend more money and food."

As he said this, everyone looked at each other, unable to say anything in rebuttal for the time being.

Zhang Yichao did not want to give them a chance to refute, so he surrendered himself and said, "Thirty regiments is indeed too many, but the invasion of the barbarians this time also shows that Ganzhou's strength is not enough to protect Ganzhou, so it is indeed necessary to increase the number of troops."

"How about this, we will increase the number of troops in Ganzhou to 25 regiments. Let Huai Shen draft a detailed charter and send it to Dunhuang."

"In addition, Ganzhou suffered heavy casualties this time. Ganzhou's deputy governor Li Wei requested to transfer his son Li Yizhong's troops to Shandan for garrison. I have approved it and appointed him as the right Guoyi Duwei of Shandan."

Compared with the targeting of Zhang Huaishen and Liu Jilian, the officials in the hall seemed much more tolerant towards Li Wei and his son of the Li family.

After Zhang Yichao told this story, no one refuted it for a long time, which made Zhang Yichao sigh repeatedly in his heart.

"That's how it is, everyone please leave..."

He stood up and walked towards the inner hall. Zhang Yitan and Zhang Huairong hurriedly followed him, and everyone left in disappointment.

(End of this chapter)