Chapter 202 New official takes office
Chapter 202 New official takes office
The biting cold wind has stopped, but the snow is still falling outside. The heavy snow is falling all over the sky, and the gray sky and earth are still vast.
In the county governor's office in Zhangye City, under the witness of the county magistrate Pei Xuanji, Xiao Xia officially took office as the military commander of Zhangye Military Office.
Generally speaking, a military commander would also serve as the governor of Zhangye County. However, the court appointed Xiao Xia as the military commander of Zhangye only to fight against Tuyuhun from the western front. There was no plan to let Xiao Xia serve as the governor of Zhangye County for a long time. Therefore, in Xiao Xia's appointment letter, it was not explicitly stated that he would serve as the governor of Zhangye County.
However, Xiao Xia also announced the court's military preparedness order. Once the war preparation state is entered, Zhangye County will be under military control, and the powers of the military commander will be no different from those of the governor.
All the generals bowed together, "Greetings to the military commander!"
Xiao Xia waved his hand and said, "Generals, please stand up!"
Xiao Xia added: "I have just announced that from the day I take office, Zhangye will enter a state of military preparedness. The court has decided to use troops against Tuyuhun, and the time will be next year. So from now on, we must seize the time to train the troops. Only by training more in peacetime and having sufficient physical strength can we survive on the battlefield. Everyone understands this principle, so I won't say more."
At this time, Sima Anxinggui said: "Military Commander, since Master Xie has committed suicide by taking poison, the general needs to appoint a new deputy military commander!"
The deputy military commander is of course very important. The military commander is responsible for issuing military orders, and the specific execution is the job of the deputy military commander.
Of course Xiao Xia had considered this. There were actually two candidates for the deputy military commander, one was Guan Jin and the other was Yin Shishi. Guan Jin was from the An family, but Sima An Xinggui and Chief Clerk Cao Zhen were already from the An family. If the deputy military commander used someone from the An family, then the Zhangye army would be the An family's private army.
Xiao Xia has made it clear to An Luo that he will use Yin Shishi as his deputy general. Not to mention that Yin Shishi's military qualifications are much deeper than Guan Jin's, and Yin Shishi has higher martial arts skills, greater abilities, and is quite strategic. More importantly, Yin Shishi is a famous general in the late Sui Dynasty and the main general who finally defended Chang'an.
Xiao Xia said slowly: "Let's follow the rules! General Yin has extensive experience and outstanding ability. I formally appoint him as the deputy commander. I will report to General Xue."
Yin Shishi was overjoyed. He immediately stepped out of the group, knelt on one knee, clasped his fists and said, "Thank you for the trust of the military commander. I will work diligently and do my best to assist the military commander!"
Xiao Xia then asked Yin Shishi to take the generals back, and Xiao Xia and An Xinggui returned to the camp together.
In the vast snow, Xiao Xia and An Xinggui rode slowly on horseback. An Xinggui introduced: "The Zhangye Army currently has 5,000 soldiers and 1,000 militiamen, of which 3,000 are stationed in the Zhangye camp, and 2,000 are stationed in Juyan Shouzhuo, Shandan Shouzhuo, Dadou Shouzhuo and Fulu Shouzhuo.
At present, the total population of Zhangye County is about 60,000, of which more than 10,000 are Han people, and the rest are Qiang people and Sogdians. However, for decades, everyone has lived in harmony and ethnic harmony, and everyone has worked together to fight against the invasion of horse bandits and Tuyuhun. "
Xiao Xia nodded and said, "I have already promised to return the 1,000 militia soldiers to the local authorities. Move them out of the barracks tomorrow!"
An Xinggui smiled bitterly and said, "I don't think there's anything wrong with the militia and the regular army training together. My father and his men wanted to bring back the militia mainly because the army was too slow to send troops. Every time the bandits left, the army would arrive late and not be able to play any role. With no other choice, everyone decided to form a local army."
"Why are the troops always late?" Xiao Xia asked puzzled.
“Two reasons!”
An Xinggui explained: "One is that the military camp is located in the north of the county, while the pastures, farmlands, and orchards are mainly in the south, and the army is still a little far from the county. The horse bandits disguised themselves as civilians to enter the city and suddenly launched an attack near the city gate. It was very sudden and caught people off guard. The second reason is that the military process is relatively slow. After receiving the alarm, the military commander will first send scouts to check and confirm that there are horse bandits before he is willing to send troops, which delays time.
Of course, we can't say that the military commander is incompetent. The key is that sending troops once or twice is fine, but if you send troops repeatedly, there will be trouble with the general manager. According to regulations, it is not allowed to send troops without authorization. To suppress bandits, you must get the approval of the general manager. This is actually a system problem."
Xiao Xia frowned, "If I find bandits somewhere in Qilian Mountain, do I need to apply to the general manager to send troops?" An Xinggui smiled and said, "It is necessary in normal times, but it is not necessary when entering a state of combat readiness. The military commander can send troops at any time. In fact, there are ways to do it in normal times, such as using the excuse of training to suppress bandits."
Xiao Xia nodded, "I want to move the military camp into the city. Is there any space in the city?"
"Of course, there are military camps in the city, and the army enters the city every winter. We were talking about this a few days ago."
Xiao Xia said happily: "When the snow stops, the army will enter the city!"
In the inner hall of the An Mansion, General Guan Jin sat dejectedly in front of the head of the family, An Luo, like a defeated rooster.
Guan Jin was the adopted son of An Luo when he was the prefect of Wei County. At that time, both his parents had died and he was only ten years old. An Luo felt sorry for him, so he adopted him as his son and raised him in his mansion. Eight years ago, the twenty-year-old Guan Jin joined the army and was promoted step by step to today's General of Cavalry.
General of Cavalry is a military position, and the one level lower than it is General of Chariots and Cavalry. Its corresponding official position is General of the Household. After Emperor Yang of Sui ascended the throne, it was renamed General of the Eagle and Yang, and the General of Chariots and Cavalry was renamed General of the Eagle and Strike. The official rank was generally granted as General of the Guerrilla.
Guan Jin thought he could be promoted to deputy military commander, but unexpectedly, the new military commander Xiao Xia appointed Yin Shishi as deputy general, which made Guan Jin very disappointed.
An Luo snorted coldly and said, "What are you dissatisfied with? Yin Shishi has more experience than you, better martial arts, stronger abilities, and a better family background. Isn't it normal for Xiao Xia to follow the rules?"
Guan Jin said angrily: "But Master Xie Tong's death is not normal. We all know that Master Xie Tong was poisoned. It could not be anyone else except Xiao Xia. We helped him cover up and supported him to take the position, but he did not think of giving back. Instead, he promoted Master Yin Shi who questioned him. It makes people very dissatisfied!"
An Luo shook his head and said, "What evidence do you have to prove that he killed Master Xie Tong? Master Xie Tong wanted to kill the new military commander, but the plot was exposed. It is entirely possible that he committed suicide out of fear of punishment. Don't think that you dare to rebel against the new military commander just because everyone questions you.
Envoy Xiao has a letter of appointment from the imperial court, and Xue Zongguan has also signed and approved it. It was Xue Ju who brought him to the position, and Yin Shishi will definitely support him. I advise you to face the reality, work hard for the new military commander, and leave a good impression on him, so that you will have a bright future in the future!"
Guan Jin sighed and said, "He doesn't even serve as the governor of Zhangye. What future can I have by following him?"
"Then you are wrong. He is not concurrently serving as the governor of Zhangye, which means that the court does not intend to let him serve in Zhangye for a long time. He is only here to participate in the battle against Tuyuhun, and he will probably return to the court after it is over. This shows that he is not an ordinary person!"
"Isn't he a member of the Xiao family in Jiangnan?"
An Luo sneered and said, "He has the Emperor's Gold Medal. Although he didn't use it, I saw it with my own eyes. Think about it, even Xue Shixiong doesn't have the Emperor's Gold Medal. How can a member of the Xiao family have the Emperor's Gold Medal?"
Guan Jin was stunned. There was actually a golden medal of the emperor. Who could this Mr. Xiao be?
"You know what I mean, don't you? A young man who is made a county duke at the age of sixteen or seventeen, commanding an army of five thousand soldiers and holding the emperor's gold medal, is definitely not an ordinary person. His future is definitely limitless, so you should work hard for him and leave a good impression on him. After he returns to the court, Yin Shishi will be the military commander, and you will be the deputy commander. In the future, when he becomes a local lord, you will have a future."
Guan Jin nodded, "Thank you for your guidance, foster father. I know what to do now!"
(End of this chapter)