Northern Prefecture Rivers and Mountains

Chapter 301 Ye

Emperor Tuoba Gui is indeed in a bit of a mess right now.

But it wasn't entirely because of Liu Daogui; the herdsmen also played a role.

The country was at a critical stage of transition from a nomadic to an agricultural state. Like Liu Daogui, the State of Wei was also implementing a policy of allocating land based on population, and carrying out large-scale military-agricultural settlements in the areas of Daning and Pingcheng.

Forty mu for able-bodied men and twenty mu for middle-aged men.

Almost all Xianbei tribes were granted land and brought under military control, and nearly 120,000 herders were forcibly converted into farmers.

Within the territory of Wei, eight commanders were appointed to oversee the administration, encourage agriculture, and assess income.

Tuoba Gui also ordered the abolition of the Xianbei custom of tying their hair into braids, replacing it with wearing their hair in a bun and a hat. He also appointed Cui Hong as Minister of Personnel, tasking him with drafting official systems and ranks, compiling court etiquette, coordinating music, and formulating laws and regulations.

However, such drastic reforms have aroused dissatisfaction among some grassland herders.

Unwilling to change their customs and traditions, they fled back to the northern deserts to graze their livestock, which ironically strengthened the Rouran people.

Fortunately, Tuoba Gui was the founding emperor. Such a major change would have led to widespread rebellion and alienation of other rulers, but the Wei Kingdom remained relatively stable and its national strength continued to grow.

Small rebellions in various places were quickly quelled.

"Liu Daogui's mere tens of thousands of troops dared to cross the river? And even captured Liyang. Tell me, what should we do? Do I really have to personally lead the expedition?"

The state of Wei followed the earth element and favored yellow as the color of clothing, but Tuoba Gui preferred to wear black robes and crowns.

In reality, the 40,000 infantry and cavalry gathered in Pingcheng were merely for show. The reform of Wei was at a critical juncture, and it was impossible for Tuoba Gui to march south at this time.

The core of Wei's rule remained in the Dai Commandery and the southern part of the Gobi Desert.

"Liu Daogui's mere 40,000 troops are not a cause for concern. The urgent task is to reform the situation. The southern troops are like a ticking time bomb; their base is in the Huai and Si rivers. Even if they capture Liyang, they will find it difficult to establish a foothold in the north."

Cui Hong was highly regarded by Tuoba Gui and enjoyed unparalleled fame for a time.

Wang Jian cupped his hands and said, "It would be best if that brat Liu Daogui were willing to go north. We should lure him deep into our territory, then encircle and annihilate him in Hebei. Once he is dead, the others are no threat, and the Central Plains will be within our grasp!"

The State of Wei had no navy, so when they fought in the summer and autumn, they really couldn't do anything about Liu Daogui.

"How do we lure the enemy deep into our territory?" Tuoba Gui glanced at Wang Jian.

Heeding his advice, 50,000 surrendered Yan soldiers were massacred at Canhebei, resulting in Hebei not being completely won over, with some still rebelling, and the Yan state not being completely eradicated.

Tuoba Gui remained resentful.

In fact, most of the time, Tuoba Gui was quite lenient. During the Battle of Chaibi, when Yao Ping led his troops to commit suicide, Tuoba Gui even ordered those who were good at swimming to rescue them, and many people were pulled out of the water.

After ascending the throne, he issued several orders to provide relief to orphans and widows and to appease the people.

His willingness to distribute land to ordinary people surpasses that of many northern monarchs.

"Why not simply give Ye City to him? Once he has Ye City, he will surely defend it with a large army. After His Majesty changes his ways, we can gather a million troops to surround it from all sides and annihilate it in one fell swoop!"

Wang Jian was smug.

The civil and military officials in the palace were all stunned by his idea.

Although Ye City was not the core area of ​​Wei, it was still an important town in the world and had been the capital of Jie Zhao and Former Yan. How could it be abandoned so easily?
Tuoba Gui's face flushed red and then paled. "Come forward!"

Wang Jian got up and walked to the front of the hall.

"Pah!" Tuoba Gui spat a mouthful of phlegm in his face. "Since I raised my army, I have never been defeated. If you hand over Ye City, how can I face the people of the world?"

Wang Jian was stunned into silence.

He meant well. Liu Daogui was able to fight on equal footing with Changsun Fei, Yu Lidi and others, so he was not weak. If he occupied Ye City, he would definitely deploy a large number of troops.

Once the State of Wei has accumulated enough strength, it can be pacified in one fell swoop.

They simply didn't take into account the will of the people.

If Ye City falls, the Jin people in the north will become restless.

Tuoba Gui took a deep breath to calm himself down. "Liu Daogui is no ordinary man. He comes from the Liu family of Pengcheng in the Northern Prefecture. In just a few years, he has repeatedly defeated powerful enemies and swept through Yan and Yu provinces. We must not allow him to grow stronger. Issue an order to gather troops from all the tribes and assemble an army of 100,000. We will launch an attack in the autumn!"

As a founding emperor, Tuoba Gui was all too aware of the power of these unsung heroes.

If it is not nipped in the bud, it will spread like wildfire.

Previously, the three armies of Changsun Fei, Yu Lidi, and Gongsun Biao marched south, intending to take advantage of the confrontation between them and Huan Xuan to severely damage Yan and Yu, thus paving the way for the subsequent southern expedition.

Unexpectedly, Liu Daogui reacted so quickly and used his military tactics so cunningly, launching a surprise attack on Liyang and changing the situation in one fell swoop.

This kind of person poses a huge threat.

There are still a large number of Jin people in Hebei, and many of the Xianbei tribes were transformed from Jin people.

Otherwise, where would so many Xianbei people come from?
The Central Plains could assimilate the Hu people, and the Hu people could also assimilate the Jin people.

Tuoba Gui's ambitions had long been set on the south...

Yecheng.

The most magnificent city in Hebei is none other than Ye City.

The Cao Wei regime built the Bronze Sparrow Terrace, the Golden Tiger Terrace, and the Ice Well Terrace here, and after decades of development, it quickly became the center of Hebei.

Later, Shi Le and Shi Hu conscripted hundreds of thousands of people from Jin to carry out large-scale construction and expansion of Ye City.

Its scale far exceeds that of Luoyang and Jiankang.

Back then, Murong De abandoned Ye City because it was too large and difficult to defend, and crossed the river to Huatai in the south.

"Ye City is so magnificent, why didn't Tuoba Gui establish his capital there, but instead chose that desolate place, Pingcheng?" Liu Zun found it hard to understand.

“The Tuoba family has been managing Dai County for over a hundred years. Pingcheng is their foundation, not Yecheng. Didn’t you see that the Jie Zhao and Former Yan established their capital there and perished in the blink of an eye?” Liu Daogui thought that Tuoba Gui’s choice of Dai County as the capital was very wise.

Any power that strays from its roots is in danger.

Especially during this era, Hebei was home to many different ethnic groups.

Dai Commandery sits atop Hebei, bordering Mobei to the north and Jinyang and Shangdang to the south. Its high vantage point overlooks the lands of Yan and Zhao, making it ideal for leveraging the strengths of Wei's cavalry.

"Commander, the armies have arrived!" Shen Qingzhi remained as taciturn as ever, as if someone else had captured Fangtou.

The soldiers caught up from behind.

The army of 30,000 was as vast as a mountain and as boundless as the sea.

If you include the able-bodied men responsible for transporting the grain, there are more than 40,000 people.

Liu Zun said aggressively, "What are you waiting for? I will be the vanguard in this battle. If we fail to capture Ye City, you will come to me with your head!"

Liu Daogui glanced at Ye City. The southern city walls stretched like a long dragon, with palaces, pavilions, and towers looming behind them, like silent giants, exuding immense pressure.

The city walls were equipped with a full range of defensive weapons, and the defending troops filled the walls.

To the southeast, there is another inner city, guarding the Zhang River.

Shi Hu's Jie Zhao relocated the Jie people here, built two city walls, and diverted the Zhang River as a moat. He once boasted that his descendants would rule for ten thousand years. No sooner had he died than his clan was exterminated, and the Jie people were massacred. Those who survived went into hiding and changed their names...

"What's the panic? Send the order to dig deep trenches and build high walls, set up camp!" Liu Daogui had come in a hurry and had not brought any siege equipment.

However, given the fortification of Ye City, even siege equipment would be useless. Back then, Murong Chui besieged Ye City with an army of 200,000 for more than a year before Fu Pi took the initiative to withdraw, and only then was Ye City captured.

The soldiers immediately dug soil and felled trees to lay down deer antlers, while Liu Daogui led more than a hundred scouts to survey the terrain and probe the morale of the defending troops.

After patrolling for two hours, Liu Daogui had to abandon his idea of ​​a direct attack.

This city is incredibly strong and vast.

His 30,000 men couldn't even surround the south.

If human lives are used to fill the gaps, there is indeed some hope of breaching the city, but the casualties will inevitably be too great to accept.

It wasn't easy to raise 15,000 elite troops, and if they were all wasted here, they wouldn't be able to withstand the two-pronged attack from Tuoba Gui and Changsun Fei.

Even if we manage to capture the city, defending it will be a major challenge.

Liu Daogui could not abandon his roots in the Huai and Si River regions and waste his energy there.

"This city is extremely difficult to capture. The commander-in-chief has already brought his troops to the city gates, which is enough to boost the morale of the northerners," Shen Qingzhi finally said after holding back for a long time.

Liu Daogui thought for a moment, "We've already come all this way, it would be too spineless to just slink away like this."

Shen Qingzhi was taken aback. "What does the Commander intend to do?"

"We have spent so much food and manpower to get here. We cannot afford to lose money. Order the soldiers to rest for a day and then immediately plunder all the counties of Ji Province. Turn Hebei upside down and let the Hu people know that we have arrived."

Upon hearing this, the surrounding scouts all became excited.

Burning, killing, and looting are among their strengths. They had some reservations in the Central Plains, but once they came to Hebei, they could do whatever they wanted.

Moreover, with the autumn harvest just around the corner, there is some grain in the fields.

Going down the Qingshui River from Fangtou, most of Ji Province was under the army's command, and they could even invade You Province.

Forefathers planted trees for future generations to enjoy the shade.

Emperor Wu of Wei built this canal, which made things more convenient for later generations.

"A brilliant plan, Commander!"

Hearing that they would not launch a full-scale attack on Ye City, Shen Qingzhi breathed a sigh of relief.

After a day of rest, the army was immediately divided into four divisions, each with about eight thousand men.

One of the troops, led by Liu Zun, went north to plunder the counties of Julu, Zhongshan, and Changshan. This area had the largest number of Hu people, and Liu Daogui gave him all the elite troops of the central army.

A force led by Shen Qingzhi plundered Qinghe, Xindu and other counties to the east. There are many powerful families in Hebei. Shen Qingzhi is brave and resourceful and can control the situation well. He can also support Murong De in Pingyuan County. If he can break into Hebei, he will be a great help to Liu Daogui.

One force, led by Wang Zhongde, marched westward to plunder Hanoi, opened up the Mengjin ferry crossing, and made contact with Xin Gongjing and Xiahou Zongzhi as reinforcements in case of unforeseen circumstances.

The remaining troops stayed behind with Liu Daogui to guard the main camp.

Meng Ganzhi's entire scout battalion was mobilized to gather information from all directions.

Each route only had eight thousand men, which didn't seem like much, leading many Wei soldiers to believe they had an opportunity to take advantage.

However, these Wei troops were not elite and were unaware of Liu Daogui's strength.

People in this era were very isolated from information and had no idea that the Northern Army had already invaded Hebei and was blocking Yecheng.

In just a few days, Hebei was in an uproar.

Many Wei soldiers, seeing that the Jin army was outnumbered and relying on its large cavalry, took the initiative to go out of the city to fight, and were killed in battle.

Liu Zun of the Northern Route Army was the most successful. This fellow was a master of killing and arson. He successively defeated the Dingling, Dugu and Yu clans, capturing and killing more than 5,000 people, and taking away 2,000 children and more than 10,000 livestock.

Wang Zhongde also reaped considerable gains on the western route. As soon as his army arrived in Hanoi County, several groups of people rose up in response to the Jin army.

Shen Qingzhi, the only one on the western route, reaped the least. He did not commit any offenses along the way, only harvesting some crops in the fields to replenish his supplies. Afterward, he went around persuading the powerful clans in the north to surrender.

These people are all opportunists. Wei is powerful, while Liu Daogui is weak, so naturally they won't turn against him.

But they didn't go too far; they secretly sent Shen Qingzhi some grain, fodder, and money...

(End of this chapter)