Chapter 816 Border Defense

Chapter 816 Border Defense

Chapter 816 Border Defense
By the time the news of the war on the grassland reached Pingyang, it was already the tenth day of August. At that time, Shao Xun was in a village outside Pingyang City, harvesting for a family of Yellow Head Army soldiers who had died in the battle.

After hearing the news, he immediately sent his personal soldiers to each government office to invite the main officials.

At 5 p.m. in the evening, officials who had long been accustomed to King Liang's working style rushed in one after another.

Central Guard General Chen Yougen arrived the earliest, and Left Army General Wang Yan arrived the latest.

After arriving at the fields, Shao Xun greeted everyone and led them to a small river.

The soldiers wielded sickles and cut down large patches of reeds along the river bank to prevent their view from being blocked.

Xue Yong, the commander of the imperial army, led more than a hundred cavalrymen to wade across the shallow water and stand guard on the other side.

Tong Qianjin personally led people to spread blankets on the ground, and then put down the futons one by one.

The accompanying palace servants prepared tea and snacks.

At that time, the sun was setting and the evening breeze was blowing. People who had been working and working all day were hungry and it was a good time to sit down and take a rest.

After Yu Chen sat down, he looked around and laughed: "I have served the king for many years. Sometimes I discussed matters in the city, sometimes in the mountains and forests, sometimes in the villages, and now I am discussing matters in the fields. It is quite interesting."

"Birds are singing in the trees, and lotus are floating in the water. I am walking along the flowers all the way here, and I feel relaxed and happy. How wonderful." Wang Yan also smiled.

"The bamboo forest is deep and quiet, and the millet and taro are newly ripe. I would like to lie down drunk here, with the morning dew as my companion." said Taibao Pan Tao.

While the scholars and high officials who did not work on the farm were talking, Shao Xun had just put down his sickle and brushed off the wheat awns on his body. He felt really uncomfortable, so he went to the bamboo forest to change into a robe, then came over and sat down, saying, "The grassland is very interesting. Prime Minister, you can also follow me to Shengle for a tour."

"I wonder what the scenery in Shengle is like?" Yu Chen asked.

Wang Yan's eyes fell on Yu Chen, and he seemed to be thinking about something.

In fact, he and Yu Chen fought openly and secretly, but they had the same attitude on some things, such as trying their best to prevent King Liang from launching a war - as long as the Henan gentry kept their purse strings tight, King Liang would run out of food before long and would naturally be unable to continue fighting.

But, has Yu Chen changed his mind? Does he want to please King Liang so that his grandson can become the crown prince?
No, Yu Chen’s vision shouldn’t be that low. Let’s wait and see.

"Henan is the old territory of the Qin and Han dynasties, where the Han and the Hu people live together. People were born and raised here, grazing by the water and farming by the water." Shao Xun said: "There are deep mountains and valleys, rushing rapids, lush vegetation, burrows of animals, and livestock breeding there."

"There is a vast desert with yellow grass stretching to the sky and sand and water flowing side by side. In the cool autumn weather, I gallop on horseback, chase gazelles and hunt, and kill the proud ones before returning."

"At the foot of Yinshan Mountain and Beiyi Mountain, there is a flat and fertile land, where the ancestors of Qin and Han Dynasty cultivated. Outside the city camps and old fortresses, the water is sweet and the soil is fertile, with elms and willows forming shades. On the top of the high mountains, there are layers of peaks, lush and green, which are not only good for firewood, but also fun for shooting eagles and hunting tigers. White feathers, black feathers, various tendons, white glue, and deer leather, which are needed by the army, are produced in abundance there."

"There are also salt ponds and horse farms that can be used by the country..."

Shao Xun said a lot, but Wang Laodeng still had no expression on his face, Yu Chen looked conflicted, and Pei Miao, Pan Tao and others looked down.

"If we can't get this place, the border defense is only in Jinyang." Shao Xun looked at everyone's faces and said unhappily.

As soon as these words came out, Pei Miao and others slowly raised their heads.

For them, this is the most practical thing.

If Luoyang is chosen as the capital in the future, how should the border defense system be built?

Before the end of the Later Han Dynasty, Bingzhou was already in a mess. The Xiongnu royal court was set up in Xihe County, Pingyang became an important border town, and Taiyuan was also looted.

The capital of the Daliang Dynasty must be in Henan. This is determined by the nature of its origin and has nothing to do with other things.

If Luoyang and Bianliang are used as the main capital and secondary capital, then Bingzhou will be extremely important.

This place has the beautiful scenery of mountains and rivers inside and outside, and also has the advantage of being high up. It is bordered by a large river and overlooks Luoyang. If the enemy army sets out from Jinyang, it will not take long for them to reach Luoyang, and there will be no peace ever again.

This is of vital interest to them and they have to consider it seriously.

"I wonder where the north is that the king is interested in?" Wang Yan asked with a bow.

"Yinshan." Shao Xun said concisely.

In a broad sense, the Yin Mountains extend from the western part of Inner Mongolia to the Zhangjiakou area in the east and connect to the Yanshan Mountains.

In a narrow sense, Yinshan Mountain only refers to the continuous mountainous area to the north of Houtao (around Bayannur), also known as Gaoque and Langshan, and to the east there are Daqingshan and others.

The Yin Mountains that Shao Xun referred to were obviously the Yin Mountains in a broad sense, stretching over 2,000 miles from west to east.

"Perhaps we need to build some military towns and fortresses north and south of Yinshan Mountain." Shao Xun added: "Shengle will become the headquarters of the border troops. In this way, Zhongxia will be safe."

Wang Yan was speechless.

A place that was lost during the Later Han Dynasty still needs to be rebuilt? There are almost no Han people in the area. In this dynasty, except for Taiyuan, Bingzhou is almost surrounded by Hu people. Even in the rich Taiyuan County, mixed Hu people can be seen everywhere. The Dagancheng built by Liu Yuan is not far from Jinyang.

Let's not talk about Youzhou. There are a lot of Hu people in Zhongshan, Changshan and other places in Jizhou. They came here long before Shi Le conquered Hebei. Many of them have high noses and deep eyes, such as Zhai Shu and others.

This is much more difficult than restoring the border defense during the Later Han Dynasty, and it is also more difficult than during the Cao Wei period. If the King of Liang really allowed himself to recover the lost territory and rebuild the border defense, Wang Yan was worried that the Henan scholars would become slaves.

"Your Majesty, I think this is not the work of one generation. Maybe we can rest and recuperate for a few decades, leaving it to future generations to take up arms and fight bravely, following the example of Emperor Wu of Han." Yu Chen said.

Shao Xun just wanted to laugh after hearing this.

Can the social environment today be the same as that during the Western Han Dynasty?

It is very unreliable to use one dynasty to match another!

Even if Emperor Wu of Han came decades later, he would not be able to replicate his great achievements because the times, social environment, and royal power had changed.

What a bullshit! He didn't even know how many generations the Liang Dynasty he founded would last, and you tell me this?

I enjoyed the march and the battles, and I had fun playing with women. Now I want to do something. Why are so many people complaining?

Of course, he also knew that Yu Chen was not really against him.

As the leader of the Ruying scholars and the "relatives-in-law" who profoundly influenced the western half of Henan, he also had to consider the emotions of his own base and it was impossible for him to let the king do whatever he wanted in everything.

Even from the perspective of public opinion, you should limit the power of the monarch, otherwise many people will talk about it.

"Last year and this year, although we can't say that the weather was good, it wasn't bad either. After two years of peace, doesn't the country have any reserves?" Shao Xun stood up and asked unhappily, "Where did all the food go?"

Xun Chuo, the Minister of Finance, looked at Yu Chen and said, "Your Majesty, this year, the Gaoliang Longxiang Palace was newly established in Pingyang, and the Jinci and Langyu Longxiang Palaces were newly established in Taiyuan. This is a huge expense."

Gaoliang is located at the junction of Pingyang, Xiangling and Yang counties, and belongs to Pingyang County. The 1,200 soldiers were selected from the 20,000 able-bodied men who participated in the expedition to Henei that year, and their followers came from the farmhands of the wealthy families in Pingyang who were cleared out.

The Jin Temple is near Jinyang. The source of the government soldiers is the same as Gaoliang, and the troops are from the Bianliang service households.

Langyu is located in Yangqu County. The soldiers of the government are the elite from the Xiejie Army and the Zhongyi Army, and the troops are also from the Bianliang corvée households. After repeated transfers, the number of Bianliang corvée households has been reduced by half to less than 50,000.

Xun Chuo mentioned these three things just to remind Shao Xun that it was quite expensive to employ people.

The government soldiers established last year are still receiving subsidies this year, and the expenses for the newly established government soldiers are not a small amount. Even next year, money will still be spent on these government soldiers and their followers.

These soldiers you set up will certainly come in handy in the future, but don't expect them to help you for at least two years. Not only can they not help you, but they also require you to continue to invest.

"Your Majesty," said Yin Xian, the Minister of Agriculture, "This year, Liu Quan's troops were transferred north to Xinxing, which also cost a lot of money and grain. The court reconsidered the construction of Bianliang City--"

"I don't agree if Bianliang is not repaired." Shao Xun immediately said, "Live in Pingyang and save money! Why repair Bianliang?"

"Your Majesty, there is a severe epidemic in the country. We have already issued an order to exempt taxes and levies this year. It may not be appropriate to collect grain and donations again." said Yu Hua, the Supervisor of the Imperial Household.

The plague would certainly destroy agricultural production, because people died, so exempting taxes and grain was a routine operation, which meant less income. Of course, this would not be able to establish a normal fiscal and taxation system, but for the wealthy families who occupied a large amount of land and population, the production capacity had declined, and it was indeed time to reduce the burden. Although they had a certain amount of savings after two years of good times.

The regime established by Shao Xun had some characteristics of the early Southern and Northern Dynasties (not the middle and late Southern and Northern Dynasties): he was responsible for military and diplomacy, the powerful families were responsible for production, and the two sides engaged in political games, but as the founding leader, his prestige and power were greater.

"Your Majesty, I think no matter how difficult it is, we must not let go of this opportunity." Shangshu Ling Pei Miao glanced at his peers and said, "If we let the mother and son of the Qi family defeat Wang Feng, and then subdue or even kill Helan Aitou, it will be difficult to fight."

"Jingsheng is indeed a wise man." Shao Xun praised him immediately after hearing this: "Do you really think I am a warmongerer? If I miss this opportunity, I don't know how much trouble I will have to deal with it in the future. If the nobles in Henan are unwilling to pay grain, I will collect taxes from the twenty counties of Liang State."

At this point, he looked at Pei Miao and said, "Jingsheng, if I write a petition to the emperor to ask for the appointment of a queen and a crown prince, is that okay?"

Pei Miao's heart tightened and he lowered his head, not daring to speak.

Yu Chen lowered his eyelids and remained silent.

"Forget it, just pretend I didn't say anything." Shao Xun looked at everyone again and said, "It's not like we have to start the war right now. We have to prepare first. Besides, even if we don't have food, we can at least have silk, right? Can you raise 200,000 pieces of silk for me?"

"Yes." Prime Minister Yu Chen raised his head and said.

"Then prepare as soon as possible and send them to Hebei. Order the three generals of Changshan, Yijing and Puyangshan to select elite soldiers and prepare to support Daijun and Guangning." Shao Xun said, "Yougen, you go to Changshan in person to supervise."

"Yes, sir." Chen Yougen immediately stood up and responded.

This means paying the Hu people to fight, which seems to be a return to the old path of the Later Han court.

"That's it." Shao Xun waved his hand and said, "After the millet and beans are harvested in September, a batch will be sent to Jinyang. The Silver Spear, Black Jade, and Fubing troops should be rotated. The Yellow Head Army camps that have finished the autumn harvest will gather in Pingyang, and then summon the six barbarians from the four counties of Hedong, Pingyang, Xihe, and Shangdang to the mountains for hunting and training. The limit is 20 days, in preparation for the expedition."

(End of this chapter)