Great Han Empire

Chapter 451
In August of the fifth year of Zhongping (AD 188).

===

Regardless of the strong opposition of many ministers, the emperor agreed to the proposal of Li Hong, the general of Zhenbei, and ordered Shang Shutai to draw up a detailed strategy for the Northern Xinjiang War.

Although the opposing ministers continued to write letters to remonstrate, the memorials were like a stone thrown into the sea, and were submerged by the boiling frenzy of the main battle in a blink of an eye.Many ministers who opposed were worried about the safety of the big man, beat their chests and feet with grief, and some even wrote a letter to resign and left.The emperor is not allowed.The Northern Xinjiang War is of great importance. At present, only the ministers in the DPRK and China know about it. The local bureaucrats have not received the news yet.The emperor worried that the news would leak out, causing panic all over the world.In addition, there are not many ministers who oppose going to war this time, and these people belong to different factions and cannot form an opposing force, but these people have something in common. First, they have good backgrounds. The second is that these people are loyal to the Han Kingdom.The emperor wants to use them, of course he is unwilling to let them leave the court.

In order to appease them, the emperor specially talked with several high-ranking ministers.The Son of Heaven spoke very bluntly, saying that he devoted all of his national power to launching the Northern Xinjiang War for no other reason than to regain the lost land and to be worthy of the ancestors. Let me and my descendants be ashamed forever, and the Han Kingdom and the people of the Han Kingdom cannot be ravaged by barbarians.The emperor also said that I want to build a meritorious service that will be admired by all generations, and I want to become a generation of Mingjun in the Han Dynasty.The ministers who opposed the war did not dare to speak.How can the emperor object to this?You can't say that you just want to shame His Majesty and His descendants forever, right?Don't let His Majesty become a wise king?

The voice of opposition is gone, and the monarch and ministers are united, and this matter is much easier to handle.

Beginning at the end of July, the emperor, Shang Shutai, the Sangong Mansion, the Grand General's Mansion, and the officials of the Jiuqing had a long discussion on many issues concerning the Northern Xinjiang War. Finally, Shang Shutai drew up a preliminary plan for the Northern Xinjiang War.

The ultimate goal of the Northern Xinjiang War was to completely exterminate the ants in Youzhou, put down the rebellion of Karasuma and the Huns in the territory, and defeat the Xianbei people to recover Youzhou and Bingzhou's occupied border counties.Around this goal, the Northern Xinjiang War will be divided into three stages. One is to put down the rebellion of the Ant Thieves and Karasuma people in Youzhou, retake Yuyang and Lulongsai, and drive the Xianbei people to the north of Yanshan Mountain.The second is to send troops to the Great Wall fortress to quell the civil strife of the Huns, restore the stability of Henan (the Hetao area was called Henan in the Qin and Han Dynasties), and cut off the support of the Xianbei people.The third stage is the most important part of the Northern Xinjiang War. The troops went out of Yanmen Pass, went north to attack Xianbei in the north, recovered the four counties of Shuofang, Wuyuan, Yunzhong and Dingxiang, and drove the Xianbei people to the north of Yinshan Mountain.

Huangfusong explained at the court meeting that the current situation in the Youzhou battlefield is very good.Zhonglang General Yan Rou has led his troops to quell the rebellion in Daijun and Shanggu Karasuma, and the riding captain Gongsun Zan has also led his troops to capture Feiru. Except for Zhang Ju and Zhang Chun who led the remnants to flee to Liaodong, almost all the ant thieves were wiped out. kill.The rest of the Youzhou battlefield is to quell the Karasuma rebellion in western Liaoning and eastern Liaoning and recover Yuyang and Lulongsai to drive out the Xianbei people.Huangfusong said optimistically that by the end of this year, General Zhenbei will definitely end the war in Youzhou.

He went on to talk about the pacification of the Huns' civil strife.Huang Fusong said that it was a wise decision for His Majesty to insist on recognizing Yu Fuluo as the Grand Order of the Huns.If we had listened to the advice of some ministers and bowed our heads to the Xiongnu rebels in order to quell the rebellion as soon as possible, we would not be able to go out to fight today, that is to say, the four northern counties The possibility of recovery has almost been lost.Everyone knows the reason. The Huns Xubuguduhou, Baimatong and Tuobafeng are all allies. When the Xianbei attacked the four northern counties last year, they got their secret help. This year they are even more blatant and spare no effort. They used the rebellion to help the Xianbei invade our Great Han Kingdom.In order to completely occupy the large area of ​​land north of the Great Wall of the Great Han Dynasty, the Xiongnu rebels and Xianbei people must join forces to deal with us. Once they join forces, it will be difficult for us to go out to fight.But things have changed now.After the Battle of Yanmen Pass, Tuoba Feng suffered heavy losses, even if he wanted to help the Huns, he was unable to do so.

Huangfusong believes that next spring, the army will be able to go out to attack the Xiongnu rebels.If the counter-insurgency goes well, the war can end in three to four months.If the counter-insurgency does not go well and the Huns rebels flee to the south of the Yellow River, then things will be very complicated. The counter-insurgency war may directly evolve into a battle to regain the border counties, and the army will directly confront the Xianbei people.

Huangfusong then talked about going out to fight.He said, although our purpose is only to recover the lost border counties, the Xianbei people don't think so. They must think that our army's purpose is to attack the Xianbei country and occupy their vast land after they have suffered successive defeats. Therefore, once our army starts to attack the Huns, the Xianbei people will probably be nervous.Some people may think that the Xianbei tribes are full of conflicts, and their leaders will see death when we attack Tuobafeng.I advise everyone to give up this idea. The truth of cold lips and teeth is not only understood by us Han people, but also by Hu people.Without Tuoba Feng stationed in the northern Xianbei to hinder the Han army, Danhan Mountain and the western central Xianbei will be attacked by us, so they will definitely help Tuoba Feng and block us to the south of Yinshan Mountain.Thinking about our disastrous defeat in the Sunset Plains, in order to fight back against us, the Xianbei people will definitely work together at a critical juncture and unanimously external.

We should not underestimate the outbound operations.Although the Xianbei people occupied the four northern counties with only tens of thousands of cavalry last year, it would be very difficult for us to regain the four counties, even with an army of 10,000+, because our purpose is not only for land, but also for life There are 10,000+ big Han people on that land, and there are more than 30 complete cities in four counties.If we occupy the land, but cannot save the people of the great man, and cannot keep the city of the great man, then our purpose of going out of the fortress is almost lost.The four northern counties have been desolate since then, and have become the battlefield between us and the Xianbei people.We have exhausted all our national power to fight this battle, is it just to retake a desert?
According to Huangfusong's estimation, if the war to put down the Huns rebels can be ended next summer, then before the heavy snow next year, as long as the army can travel thousands of miles to the Yinshan Mountains, and rely on the bad weather, the war in northern Xinjiang can be quickly ended.

Lu Zhi then gave a detailed description of the number of troops participating in the Northern Xinjiang War, the number of civilians, and the food, military, military, and other supplies that would be consumed. Prediction, and put forward a series of preventive and solution measures, and strive to minimize the harm caused by the Northern Xinjiang War to the Great Han, so as to ensure the stability and development of the Great Han.

Lu Zhi talked for a long time, and finally said that the war in northern Xinjiang must end before next winter, otherwise, we will not be able to support it.

Immediately, the Son of Heaven decreed that Sikong Dinggong would lead the conquest of the General of the Peking University and be stationed in Anyi, Hedong, as the governor-general of the war in northern Xinjiang.Zhenbei General Li Hong and Zhenbei General's Mansion are under his control.Order Xu Rongling to lead the Zhenbei General's Mansion to immediately begin preparations for the Northern Xinjiang War.Order Zhenbei General Li Hong to launch the Youzhou War immediately.

===

At the beginning of this month, all 5000 soldiers of the Xiyuan Army were recruited.The Xiyuan Army consists of [-] people, each with a school lieutenant, and the deputy of the army Sima.There are five songs in each part, and five tunes in each song.

The emperor was overjoyed, and immediately issued an imperial decree to confer the eighth school captain of Xiyuan.The emperor appointed Xiao Huangmen Jian Shuo as the captain of the upper army, Sima Yuan Shao of the general's mansion as the lieutenant of the middle army, Bao Hong, the captain of the Beijun Tunqi school, as the captain of the lower army, Yilang Cao Cao as the captain of the Dianjun, and Yilang Zhao Rong as the assistant army Zuo Xiaowei, Yilang Feng Fang is the right Xiaowei of the auxiliary army, the admonishing doctor Xia Mou is the Zuo Xiaowei, and the admonishing doctor Chunyu Qiong is the right Xiaowei.The eight school captains were under the command of Jian Shuo, the captain of the upper military school.The emperor also ordered that if there was a war in Gyeonggi, Jian Shuo would command the Xiyuan Army, the Southern Army, and the Northern Army. That is to say, General He Jin should also obey Jian Shuo's command.

When the imperial decree was issued, there was a lot of scolding in the hall.Some ministers saw that the traitors and eunuchs controlled the Xiyuan Army, they hated them very much and scolded them harshly; Followed behind and scolded indiscriminately; under the leadership of Sikong Dinggong, the ministers of the generals and the ranks of the generals repeatedly exposed these lieutenants of the middle-ranking ranks for corruption and perverted the law, and demanded that the emperor bring them to justice. Take it according to law.

The emperor was very happy to see the strong opposition.He told Jian Shuo that the ministers scolded so much that they were afraid of our West Garden Army, all right.You must seize the time to supervise the training of the lieutenants of the various ministries, and strive to let the soldiers of the West Garden Army take on the big responsibility as soon as possible, and solve our problems for me.Relying on others is worse than relying on yourself. As long as you have strength, you can do whatever you want.After the war in Northern Xinjiang, Li Aiqing's army probably won't be much left. The matter of Luoyang will depend on us in the end.

Jian Shuo nodded repeatedly, saying that your majesty understands what your majesty means, but now that your majesty is planning to dismiss Lord Situ, there will be no one from us among the three princes. If your majesty has something to do in the future and the three princes join hands, then your majesty will be very troublesome up.

The emperor smiled and said, in the future?What will happen in the future?For more than a year, don't we all have to revolve around the Northern Xinjiang War?Ai Qing needs to know that without the support of the scholars, it would be very difficult for the young Marquis Dong to inherit the imperial line. For the sake of the future of the Marquis Dong, so what if I give them the three princes?Isn't it necessary for them to contribute to governing the country?

Jian Shuo hesitated for a long time, then asked in a low voice, "Your Majesty really believes them...?"

"That's why I tell you to hurry up and train your troops." The emperor said calmly, "Huangfu Aiqing has made it very clear that the Northern Xinjiang War is divided into three steps. Since it is divided into three steps, Li Aiqing's army will have to rest and reorganize." Sometimes, the war in Northern Xinjiang will be critical, and I will speak at the right time. Is my Wan Jintang's money really the private property of the Han Kingdom? This is my property. Since I spent the money on them, Of course they will pay the price."

Jian Shuo hesitated for a moment, then asked again: "Your Majesty really believes in the Xiyuan Army?"

"Aiqing..." the emperor blinked his eyes, patted Jian Shuo's shoulder affectionately, and said in a low voice, "Is there anything wrong with making them feel that I have been cheated? I feel very good. Every time I see their I was very happy all the time, haha... Every time I think of them being exposed by me for deception and have to be used by me, thinking of their stunned and terrified looks, I want to laugh out loud, haha..."

Jian Shuo said with a smile on his face, "If General Zhenbei..."

"Don't worry, Li Aiqing is upright, loyal, and dedicated to the country. As long as you support him to finish the battle in the northern borders and recover the border counties, he will listen to me in everything." The emperor sighed, "So, it's better to be like Li Aiqing." All right, loyal minister, don't bother me at all."

Jian Shuo looked at the emperor worriedly, but hesitated to speak.

"Aiqing, the eyes of the people in the world are now fixed on my Ten Thousand Gold Hall, but no one knows that the fate of the world is also tied to my Ten Thousand Gold Hall before you know it." The emperor looked up and laughed, "haha ... Wanjintang, it really is Wanjintang."

Jian Shuo suddenly woke up and was overjoyed.

"The day Li Aiqing returns to Bingzhou is the time when the little Marquis Dong will inherit the imperial line." The emperor leaned into Jian Shuo's ear and said in a low voice, "The key now is to make them happy and the Northern Army to leave the capital, so... ..."

Jian Shuo suddenly thought of something, he was horrified, his face suddenly turned ugly.

"Your Majesty, Lord Situ will be killed by the ministers."

===

Xu Rong and Zhang Yan received the emperor's imperial decree, knowing that the emperor had agreed to launch a war in northern Xinjiang to completely solve the northern Xinjiang issue, and immediately cheered with excitement.

Zhang Yan immediately wrote to Yang Feng and Zhang Baiqi urgently, telling them that the army will go out to fight in the fortress next spring to regain lost ground, order Yang Feng to train the main force of the Yellow Turban Army, and urge Zhang Baiqi to do a good job in the army, and strive to start the big army after the harvest of grain in October. To train troops and provide sufficient reserve troops for the outing of the fortress.

Xu Rong urgently wrote a letter to protect the Xiongnu Zhonglang Qu Yi.Qu Yi suddenly received this shocking news, he couldn't believe it.He hurriedly found Hengji, Kuangfengsha, and Yang Ming, the three commanding officers, and handed them Xu Rong's letter, "Look, look, is this true or not, is Zilie joking?"

After reading the letter, the three of Hengji were surprised and delighted.

"My lord, there is going to be a big war." Yang Ming shouted happily, "It's a pity that the generals are fighting in Youzhou now, and it has nothing to do with us. We won't fight until next year."

Heng Ji looked at Qu Yi who was walking back and forth excitedly in the big tent, and said with a smile: "His Majesty finally couldn't bear it anymore, he is going to use the money of Wanjintang to fight. After the First World War in Northern Xinjiang, Border County At least ten years of peace can be guaranteed. The Karasuma people of our Bailu tribe can live a stable life, thanks to His Majesty the Emperor."

Kuang Fengsha clapped the table and said loudly: "The Xianbei people have been driven away, and we can finally live a few days of comfortable life first. My lord, since His Majesty the Emperor has decided to fight, will our food and wages be settled?"

Qu Yi laughed and said, "Of course. Immediately write back to Mr. Xu and ask him to deliver the food and pay immediately."

"My lord, with the food and wages, shall we fight against Meiji immediately?" Yang Ming asked impatiently.

"No." Qu Yi waved his hand and said, "We will stay at the Great Wall Fortress and not go anywhere. Let Lei Zi and Yuan Yuan continue to haunt Meiji City to contain the forces of the Xiongnu rebels."

After Zhang Yan returned to Jinyang, he immediately told the elder Zhao Qi and the governor Ding Yuan the news.The boss was very excited to see that the four counties in northern Xinjiang were taken back, and they died in peace.Now the relief and settlement of the 60 victims are guaranteed by the benefits of salt and iron in Bingzhou and Hedong. Everyone has no worries and is in high spirits.

The three of them immediately convened Pingnan Zhonglang General's Mansion, Hutian Zhonglang General's Mansion, Governor's Mansion, Taiyuan, Shangdang and Xihe prefect's mansions to discuss how to resettle the victims going north into Xihe County.The place where Bingzhou can resettle the victims to reclaim wasteland and farmland, and is close to the fortress of the Great Wall, is on both sides of the Yellow River in Xihe County.After entering Xihe County, the victims lived along the east bank of the Yellow River.There are currently tens of thousands of Huns living and grazing on the west bank of the Yellow River.Part of the history of Mintun followed the victims to the north and arranged for them to garrison fields.After the start of the Northern Xinjiang War, some of the victims will be recruited as civilian husbands who go out with the army, and the rest will stay on the banks of the Yellow River to farm.After the four counties of northern Xinjiang were recovered and the people from northern Xinjiang who had fled into the customs from the four counties returned to their original places, some of the victims here could move back to Taiyuan and Shangdang to farm in order to reduce the pressure on farming in Xihe County.In order to appease the victims and stabilize the hearts of the people, Zhang Yan and Zhao Qi once again invited Master Xiangkai.Grandmaster Xiangkai fully agreed, and immediately set off for Huguan with a group of disciples.The victims from Jizhou are about to arrive at Huguan.

The relocation of the victims to Xihe County is also conducive to getting relief materials in a timely manner.Relief supplies transported from Guanzhong and Guandong can be sent to Xihe along the road from Chang'an City to the Great Wall Fortress, or can be sent from Hedong to Jinyang and then transferred to Hexi by the road from the Great Wall Fortress, or directly sent by water transport on the Yellow River. To Xihe County.

Xu Rong took a fancy to the convenience of transportation in Xihe County, and set up the camp for the Northern Xinjiang War in Lishi City, the county seat of Xihe County.Sima Li Wei from Zhenbei General's Mansion, along with his wife Xiao Lan and more than a dozen people in the mansion, rushed to Lishi City to prepare for the construction of the camp.

===

Rich businessmen from Guanzhong and Kanto first got the news that the emperor was about to launch a war in northern Xinjiang through various channels. The infinite business opportunities contained in this protracted war immediately attracted their attention. He rushed to the Zhenbei General's Mansion.

These people all knew that this battle was to be fought by Zhenbei General Li Hong, not Lord Sikong who had no soldiers. Many people even thought that the appointment of such a useless commander by the emperor was purely superfluous.Although Master Sikong Dinggong led the war in northern Xinjiang, the general governor of the Peking University, and seemed to have the greatest power, but the purpose of the emperor's sending him to the east of the mansion was to coordinate logistics and coordinate the relationship between the Zhenbei General's Mansion and the imperial court. There was no Zhenbei General Real power like the government.To put it bluntly, General Zhenbei Li Hong's qualifications are too young, and he is not qualified to command the Northern Xinjiang War. In order to ensure the victory of the Northern Xinjiang War, the emperor had no choice but to send such an important minister to support Li Hong.Li Hong was responsible for the war, and Lord Sikong was responsible for other troublesome matters.So none of these people went to General Zhengbei, but went directly to General Zhenbei's mansion.

Xu Rong was very polite to these wealthy businessmen, and took the time to meet Zuo Yan, Tang Yun, and Tang Fang with them.

Xu Rong said, I know the purpose of all of you working so hard to come to Longshan Daying, but I am very sorry that there is no war in northern Xinjiang at present, and there will be no war in the next few years. Now, apart from Bingzhou Tuntian, we still need some food supplies. Nothing else is needed.Xu Rong rambled a lot, and finally said, I think you should go to Luoyang to try your luck.

Merchants naturally understand Xu Rong's words. The Northern Xinjiang War is currently classified as a secret, so who dares to talk about it at will?A Luoyang businessman said with a smile, the 60 disaster victims in Jizhou will rush to Bingzhou soon, do you still want relief supplies?After the 60 disaster victims arrived in Bingzhou, the adults will arrange for them to garrison the fields, and the lords still want the supplies for the garrison?After the Battle of Yanmen Pass, all the ordnance in northern Xinjiang was exhausted, and the ordnance workshop under the jurisdiction of the General Zhenbei's Mansion had to rush to produce a large amount of ordnance. Do you still want the materials for making ordnance?

Tang Fang said with a smile, we have already ordered the disaster relief supplies and farming supplies, and everyone seems to be a little late.

When the merchants heard this, they were very disappointed and complained one after another.Some people say that your Zhenbei General's Mansion only does business with Xu's Qu family in Chang'an and the guards in Hedong, and doesn't give us any chance, which is unfair.Some said, this money is from the Han Dynasty, why do you only earn it for them and not for us?Others exposed Xu Ling in Chang'an, saying that he bought low and sold high, hoarded goods, deliberately drove up prices, and made a lot of money from the Zhenbei General's Mansion.What's more, it is said that the Hedong Guards relied on the opportunity of doing business with the Zhenbei General's Mansion alone to control the grain price of the entire Hedong County, causing the people to suffer a lot.

A businessman from Chenliu was very angry and directly scolded the Zhenbei General's Mansion, saying that although the Zhenbei General's Mansion benefited one side by farming in Bingzhou, it suffered a lot of people in other places.Last year, because the Zhenbei General’s Mansion purchased a large amount of grain, the price of grain in various places soared. Seeing the profit, the rich rushed to buy land one after another. Many people were forced to sell their land and became refugees, begging everywhere.This year, the seven prefectures were hit by disasters, and the price of food rose even more outrageously. That's why there are still a large number of rich people hoarding food and not selling it.Why?Because you will not be able to see results in four or five years in Bingzhou farming. In these four or five years, you can only maintain the farming and solve the food problem of more than 100 million people in Bingzhou through continuous purchase of grain.Today's food price increase has a lot to do with your Zhenbei General's Mansion. The reason is that you always do business with those companies, and the food prices in the Guanzhong and Kanto areas are firmly controlled by them.Once the price of food rises, other kinds of materials will also rise accordingly. If this continues, tens of thousands of people will be poor, and only those few big families will become rich.

Before he finished speaking, a skinny businessman stared at Xu Rong suspiciously, and sarcastically said: "I think not only those families are rich, but also your Zhenbei General's Mansion, right? If it rises again, are you guys behind it..."

Xu Rong was expressionless.Zuo Yan's face was as ugly as it could be.Tang Yun frowned, not knowing what he was thinking.Only Tang Fang still had a smile on his face and said calmly: "Everyone, don't be angry, and don't speak too harshly. How much grain can I buy in a year in Zhenbei General's Mansion, how can I control the price of grain? You seem to have said it before."

The Zhenbei General's Mansion had already noticed this situation as early as this spring, and many officials in the mansion even reminded Li Hong, but Li Hong considered that several big families would not hesitate to help Bingzhou when it was the most difficult time. He had made a promise himself, so he pretended not to hear it, and took the army to Youzhou.After Xu Rong acted as the agent of General Zhenbei, he also knew about this, but his idea was basically the same as that of Li Hong, and it was not easy to break his promise, so he stockpiled food and various supplies in advance to prevent accidents, but he did not Come to think of it, this matter is far more serious than he imagined.

Tang Fang chatted with the merchants there for a long time, and Xu Rong gradually understood.He was very annoyed.Xu Rong thought, when the General was negotiating with Xu Ling Quzhong and the Hedong Wei Clan, there was fairness. Now that these people have made money and made black hearts, they are not fair at all, but are deceiving the Zhenbei General's Mansion. .If you are not kind, don't blame me for being unrighteous. Now I am in charge of the Zhenbei General's Mansion, and I am the one who turns his face and denies others. Even if you want to complain, you can't blame the General.

Xu Rong thought for a while and said, "If you sell me grain at a low price, I can give you a fair and reasonable price for all other supplies, including disaster relief and even wartime supplies."

One word startled a thousand layers of waves.The merchants in the big tent were stunned for a moment, then cheered and shouted non-stop.

"My lord, if you can share a part of the salt and iron in Bingzhou and Hedong for me to manage, I can give you the food this year for free."

"My lord, if you allow me to run an ordnance workshop under the command of the General Zhenbei's Mansion, I won't need any money for your food this year."

"My lord, if you allow me to open up wasteland in Bingzhou, and all the reclaimed land will belong to me, I can hand over [-]% of the grain to the Bingzhou government every year."

"grown ups……"

Xu Rong waved his hand to calm everyone down, pointed at the wealthy businessman who was clamoring for land reclamation, and said, "Can you say it again?"

Seeing that Xu Rong noticed his words, the man was overjoyed, and hurriedly explained loudly: "My lord, you only need to allocate a piece of land that can be reclaimed for me. As for the money for reclaiming the land, the money for cultivating the land, the materials for farming, and land reclamation The people who farm the fields are all mine, so don’t bother to spend a penny, and when the grain grows in the land, I will pay [-]% and keep [-]% for myself, but this land must be given to me.”

Xu Rong said appreciatively: "This is a good idea. We can increase the land, increase food and increase the population without spending a penny. Not bad..." Xu Rong turned to Tang Fang and said, "Muyun, you have a good talk with him. .Xihe Tuntian, what we lack is money, this method may help us solve big problems. What these people have is money.”

Tang Fang smiled and nodded again and again, and asked the man, "Aren't you worried that barbarians will enter Bingzhou?"

"With General Li in northern Xinjiang, how can there be Hu people entering the customs?" The man smiled confidently, "In a few years, I am afraid that there will be no Hu people in Beijiang."

===

Xu Rong ordered the merchants to stay and discuss with Tang Yun and Tang Fang the quantity and price of the purchased materials in detail.Xu Rong agreed to the businessmen's request for the operation of Yantie. He asked the merchants to bring their warrants to the Yantie Duwei Mansion in Hedong to discuss with Xie Ming in detail.As for the merchants' request to operate the ordnance workshop, Xu Rong politely refused on the grounds of violating military regulations. After all, the strength of these merchants cannot be compared with Xu Ling Quzhong and the Hedong Guards.

Zuo Yan accompanied him back to the big tent, and said worriedly: "Zi Lie, we will definitely offend Xu Ling Qu Zhong and Hedong Wei Clan for this matter, do you think we should tell the general?"

"It's good to talk about it." Xu Rong pondered for a while, and said slowly, "They have earned money for salt and iron, and money for armaments. This is not enough, and they still have to earn money for our food. If they earn it, forget it , Now you are still cheating money, cheating the head of our Zhenbei General's Mansion, you are too courageous. I have already warned Xu Ling about the batch of ordnance last time, but I didn't expect him to intensify this time, even hoarding food privately Raising prices. You see, the soaring food prices in Guanzhong and Kandong this time were manipulated by the three of them jointly?"

"It's possible." Zuo Yan said bitterly, "With Xu Ling alone, he doesn't have such great strength. Besides, I doubt they have someone to back them up. Otherwise, how could the grain price rise so ridiculously? One stone of grain can be sold for a thousand dollars Above. These people are too bad. For money, they will do anything. They don’t care about the life and death of the common people, and they don’t care about the rise and fall of our great Han country? This time, they made a lot of money, and now the imperial court wants to buy food for disaster relief and for the war in northern Xinjiang Hoarding military rations, they don't know how much black-hearted money they will make."

Xu Rong shook his head helplessly, and sighed: "If there is no backer in the court, how would they have the guts? After all, it is His Majesty who is eating the meat and blood of the Han Kingdom. Forget it, let's not talk about it." Anyway, they didn’t make any money from us this time. But you have to write a letter to them, warning them not to tamper with the food. In the future, when we go beyond the Great Wall, if all the military food turns into sand, we will die. "

Zuo Yan was filled with grief and indignation, opened his mouth to curse a few words, and then said: "Zi Lie, do you think that Sheyingtong and Li Su were urgently ordered to retreat to the Longshan camp? Now that His Majesty has promised to provide funds for disaster relief, we seem to have There is no need to suppress and kill the Yellow Turbans anymore. If the Yellow Turbans are forced down the mountain, it will be the people of Hanoi who will suffer.”

Xu Rong was startled, and hurriedly dispatched a fast horse.He patted his forehead embarrassingly and said, "I'm too busy, so I forgot about it. Fortunately, you reminded me."

Zuo Yan smiled and said, "Do you remember where we are going tomorrow morning?"

Xu Rong was stunned for a moment and asked, "Where are we going tomorrow?"

"Go to Jinyang." Zuo Yan patted him and said heartbrokenly, "My lord is so busy that he is dizzy. Tomorrow, the Jinyang University Hall will open for lectures. Mr. Cai, Mr. Wang, and Mr. Xu invite you to visit. In addition, you haven't been home for a long time, and it's time to go back."

===

(End of this chapter)