The Han culture is spreading strongly in Southeast Asia

Chapter 113 The Style of the Veteran Movie King

"Hit, hit Chamchubun?"

Ruan Zhongming shuddered and couldn't help but wipe the cold sweat from his head.

Damn, Chanthaburi is a big Siamese province with nearly 300,000 people. Except that it is not as wealthy as Ha Tien, its scale is almost the same as Ha Tien.

Moreover, the city of Chanthaburi is nestled in the mountains and beside the water, and the city walls are strong, which makes it much more difficult to attack than Ha Tien City. How could they possibly take it down with only 2,000 soldiers from the Left Camp and 2,000 to 3,000 Ha Tien combat soldiers?

"Yes, I have thought it through. The reason why Siam can fight against my country is because of the Cardamom Mountains on the border between the two countries.
Chanthaburi is also the key to supplying the fortresses and checkpoints on Cardamom Mountain. As long as we take Chanthaburi, our future Great Southern campaign to conquer the heartland of Siam will be much easier!"

Ou Tianci's eyes lit up, and he opened and closed his hands widely while speaking, as if he was very excited. He did not look like a vassal king, but a Lian Po-like veteran who worked tirelessly for the Kingdom of Guangnan.

Yes, to attack Chanthaburi, we have to cross the Cardamom Mountains. If we send out 10,000 to 20,000 soldiers, we will need at least 60,000 to 80,000 people to transport food.

Ruan Zhongming came here under the pretext of attacking Siam, and he couldn't say he wouldn't fight. So he immediately seized this opportunity, pretending to think for a while, and said with some embarrassment:
"Sir, in my humble opinion, we should take a long-term view. The Cardamom Mountains are difficult to cross. If we send out a large army, we will need nearly 100,000 laborers to transport food and supplies. This waste of manpower and money seems uneconomical."

Ruan Zhongming didn't know that this flaw was deliberately exposed by Ou Tianci.

I, Lord Ou, may not have good strategic vision, but I am very cunning when it comes to playing politics.

He laughed heartily and said, "Don't worry, Captain. I have already made the plan. We will not cross the Cardamom Mountains, but go directly to Chanthaburi by water.

Please ask the commander of the camp to write a letter to the garrison commander and the commander-in-chief now, asking them to send another 3,000 people as soon as possible.

The navy of Ha Tien first transported the battalion commander and two thousand heavenly soldiers to Chanthaburi, and then returned to transport the additional three thousand warriors.

With 5,000 imperial soldiers here and Ha Tien sending another 10,000 or 20,000 to support them, there's no reason why we can't take Chanthaburi, even in its panic."

"Damn it, so this is what you were planning!" Ruan Zhongming was scared to death. He tried his best to suppress the uneasiness in his heart and did not look at Mo Tianci.

The biggest advantage of Hexian over Jiading is his navy.

The Five Camps of Jiading only had some small inland sampans, while Hexian had dozens of large sea vessels.

Once they get to the sea, these two thousand people will become fish on the chopping board.

At that time, they could just report that the ship was sunk by a storm, or send the people to Chanthaburi and then stop providing support, leaving them to fight with the Siamese in Chanthaburi.

What a vicious heart!

Not to mention the loss of 5,000 people, even if these 2,000 people were gone, the strength of Hexian and Jiading would begin to approach parity.

Even if the imperial court knew about it by then, it probably wouldn't be able to do much about Ou Tianci.

"Sending five thousand soldiers at once seems a bit too much. The garrison commander and the general commander will definitely not allow it. My lord, we still need to make a long-term plan."

"What does Captain Ruan mean?" Ou Tianci looked at Ruan Zhongming in deliberate surprise, and then with a bit of anger.

"How can we delay such a good opportunity bestowed by Heaven? Haven't you heard that if you don't take what Heaven offers, you will suffer the consequences?

The battalion commander came with over 10,000 soldiers in a mighty force, but once he arrived in Hexian, he couldn't sit still. Why is that? Is he trying to trick me?"

Ruan Zhongming was now convinced that Ou Tianci was here to cause trouble, and he even said what he said about commanding more than 10,000 soldiers.

Damn it, if I really had ten thousand elite soldiers and listened to you making such a fuss, I would have taken your Hexian long ago!
However, even though he complained in his heart, Ruan Zhongming still had to appease Ou Tianci. After all, he was sent to Jiading to guard the royal family member Yan and the commander of the five battalions, Song Wenkui, not to really obey Zhang Fuluan's orders.

Hue is more than 2,000 miles away from here. Even if Zhang Fuluan rushes to travel 800 miles, it will take him more than ten days. Who would risk his life for such a treacherous minister who is so far away?

Not to mention that Zongshi Yan, a member of the Ruan clan, had a very bad relationship with Zhang Fuluan.

Ruan Zhongming came here on orders, but he was just using Zhang Fuluan's order to force Ou Tianci to get benefits.

Seeing that Ou Tianci was furious, Ruan Zhongming quickly whispered, "Sir, please send your attendants away. I have something to tell you."

Seeing that his goal had been achieved, Ou Tianci stopped pressing and immediately dismissed his attendants.

Seeing this, Ruan Zhongming pretended to be mysterious and said in a low voice:
"You should know that ever since the Fifth Young Master committed a serious crime two years ago, Zuo Fu has been constantly issuing orders urging Master Yong and Lord Song to come to Hexian to capture the criminal.

This imperial edict has been issued five or six times, but Master Yong has always refused to act. Even if an angel urged him to do so, he would not move. This is all because of his respect for the Duke's character."

Ou Tianci nodded and said, "Marquis Ruan does not obey the orders of treacherous ministers and does not harm loyal officials. I naturally know this.

Therefore, since the year before last, all taxes on goods shipped from Ha Tien to Gia Dinh have been halved, and all taxes on goods shipped from Gia Dinh to Ha Tien have been waived. This is to thank the Nguyen Marquis."

"Yes! Master Yan is a member of the royal family, so he naturally has to consider the interests of the Ruan family. We all know that Master is loyal to the court.

However, Zuo Fu's power is becoming more and more stable, and the pressure on Master Yong and Lord Song is increasing. I had no choice but to send this official here.

"Your Excellency really shouldn't have submitted that memorial requesting five battalions of troops to enter Ha Tien to defend against Siam! Isn't that just giving Zuo Fu an excuse?"

At this point, Ou Tianci quickly sighed and a look of regret appeared on his face.

"Who would have thought that things would happen so coincidentally? Siam is in turmoil and could get out of control at any time. We really need to be on guard. Since Ha Tien has few soldiers, we have to ask Nguyen Hou for reinforcements."

Then, with a hint of dissatisfaction, Ou Tianci said, "Even if I request troops, it seems that Marquis Ruan and General Song don't need to send 10,000 people south, right? If that traitor Zhang Fuluan sees this, he will definitely force us to go and spy on Siam. In that case, we might as well take action first and shut him up."

Ruan Zhongming understood that what Ou Tianci meant was that if you dare to do it for real, I will drag you to fight Siam for real.

If something goes wrong at sea or they are trapped under the city of Chanthaburi, it would be no wonder. After all, Ha Tien has large sea ships and they are safe.

"Master Yong and Lord Song were forced to mobilize at least 10,000 people, and it was the angel who personally came with Prince Ding's imperial edict to supervise them."

"That means, once the angel leaves, the 10,000 people in charge of the camp can leave, right?" Ou Tianci asked immediately.

"Sir, you are a reasonable man. Now that the soldiers from the Left Camp have arrived, how can we retreat immediately? That would be too pretentious. We can only proceed slowly.

Besides, it is said that it is easy to see the King of Hell, but difficult to see the little ghosts.

In order to withdraw their troops, Master Yong and Lord Song will definitely need to arrange everything. The timing of the withdrawal is beyond our control. Besides, since the Duke has submitted a memorial, it is impossible for him to leave no troops behind."

Ou Tianci deliberately looked at Ruan Zhongming with some anger, then took a deep breath, and his expression immediately became indifferent.

In Ruan Zhongming's eyes, this was a concrete sign that Ou Tianci was prepared to swallow his anger, and he was immediately very excited.

Hexian has plenty of money, so just grab a handful and you can enjoy it endlessly.

"I can only accept a maximum of 500 soldiers into Hexian. All families of the soldiers in the Left Camp must return, and the building materials I provided previously will also be given. Each soldier will also be given one tael of silver for the departure."

Ruan Zhongming was extremely excited. He calculated that Hexian would have to pay 12,000 to 13,000 silver coins for this item alone, but the subordinates would have to give some, and there would not be much left for the generals at all levels to share.

He immediately plucked up his courage and shook his head, "Five hundred is too few, we need to station at least eight hundred soldiers.

Firstly, we can deal with Zuo Fu, and secondly, if there is an emergency in Siam, the soldiers can also help you relieve your worries."

Ou Tianci slowly turned his back, his back hunched imperceptibly, creating a feeling of helplessness and vicissitudes of life. Then he said firmly:
"Of these eight hundred soldiers, three hundred must be sent to Qinbo Prefecture, which is close to the border. Only five hundred can remain in Hexian."

Ruan Zhongming was overjoyed. "Life in Can Bo is hard, and we have to face the Siamese. We can't afford to be poor in food, clothing, and military pay.

"I dare to say that I have come here on orders from Master Yong and Lord Song. The soldiers of the Left Camp are here for the safety of Hexian. Please treat them well. Each soldier's monthly salary should be slightly higher than that of the Hexian garrison. If we can get 10 strings of silver as an allowance, that would be the best."

My goodness, since the Hexian soldiers are all relatives and have complicated tasks, their salaries are very high.

The five battalions of soldiers in Jiading were exactly like the government soldiers of the Tang Dynasty. They were given large tracts of land and did not have to pay taxes, so they had almost no military pay. Even the guards had to provide their own weapons and food.

Now, the two clan members, Zongshi Yan and Song Wenkui, are asking for ten strings of silver for one soldier. It is easy to imagine into whose pocket these eight thousand strings of silver will fall.

This amount of money is not small for He Xian. Although he can afford it, Ou Tianci will not give it.

Because once the funds are given, there will be so much money that after Zongshi Yan and Song Wenkui divide the profits, they might be willing to share some with the soldiers of the Left Camp below.

In this way, we will not arouse the dissatisfaction of the soldiers in the left camp, nor will we destroy their military discipline and let them mess around in Ha Tien.

So, Ou Tianci turned around and looked at Ruan Zhongming with anger in his eyes, "Captain Ruan, I never lie before you. You should know that this is impossible. Tell me the number again!"

It's still quite scary when someone like Ou Tianci, who has been a vassal king for decades, gets angry.

Ruan Zhongming naturally didn't dare to push him too far. Besides, his original intention was to ask for a high price and pay back the low price.

He pretended to think for a moment and said, "Eight strings of cash per soldier per month. If possible, I will send my trusted confidant back to Jiading to speak on your behalf."

"Five strings of cash? This is the limit of what I can do!" Ou Tianci refused without hesitation.

At this price, 4,000 taels per month for 800 soldiers, that's 48,000 taels per year. If it is divided among 70 to 80 middle and senior officers of the Jiading Five Battalions, each person can get a lot.

But it is definitely impossible to divide it equally. The royal family members Yan and Song Wenkui should take the largest share, and the commanders of each camp should take the smaller share. The share that was originally intended to be distributed to the soldiers below was naturally gone.

But it is also acceptable. The soldiers in the camp are all government soldiers. They are exempted from providing their own food and serving in the army. Isn’t that enough for them to be happy?
Ruan Zhongming completely underestimated the temptation of the glamorous world of Ha Tien and nodded immediately.

"Please allow me to send someone to report back. I believe that Master Yong and Lord Song will understand your difficulties."

. . . .

After leaving Ruan Zhongming's barracks, Ou Tianci bowed to an old man beside him who was pretending to be a counselor.

"Mr. Zheng, you see, life is so difficult for us Chinese in Southeast Asia. We are pushed around everywhere."

Zheng Mosai nodded, "Yes, Ha Tien has its own difficulties, and so does Siam.

King Agada has become increasingly hostile to us in recent years. If it weren't for the Burmese invasion, I don't know how this would have ended."

Zheng Mosai smiled again as he spoke. "Fortunately, Guoying and Zibu are both heroes of the younger generation of Chinese people. If we can get them to take over, no matter what kings or princes they become in the future, they won't be able to force us anymore."

"Hahaha!" Ou Tianci laughed heartily. "If I can marry Brother Guoying's beloved daughter, it will bring honor to the Ou family!"

　I have written 11,000 words for the old book these two days, and my mind is confused. There is still one chapter left. I will see if I can write it out tonight. If not, I will find time to make up for it this week.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)