Chapter 924: The Heart of a Weedy Man

There were nine counties in Fengyi County, with its seat at Linjin County. During the Qing Dynasty, it was renamed Dali, but the Xiongnu changed it back to Linjin.

This city is adjacent to Luo River in the south, and the former royal city of Dali State is not far to the northeast of the county. It has been an important transportation route since ancient times.

The Di and Qiang tribes of Fengyi started an uprising and sent out 30,000 men. With lightning speed, they occupied the city with the help of both inside and outside forces, and seized all the food, fodder and military equipment stored by the Xiongnu.

If you ask why the Di Qiang had such a strong influence in Fengyi, then you have to blame the Later Han Dynasty. Cao Wei and the Guo Dynasty can also share some of the blame, but the Later Han Dynasty was the main responsible.

During the reign of Emperor Wu of the Ming Dynasty, a population census was conducted. The eight counties of Fengyi County (Liu Han had nine counties) had a total of 7,700 households, or about 30,000 people. This population census did not distinguish between the Han and the Hu people, and all registered residents were counted.

Of course, the data is definitely false. A large number of people were not counted, and it was impossible to count them because the imperial court did not have the ability to do so.

But even if it doubled, it would only be 70,000 to 80,000 people. However, there were more than 100,000 Di and Qiang people in Fengyi, and the population structure was clear - in this area of Guanzhong and the three auxiliary areas, the Jin people might have become a "minority."

After the Di Qiang captured Linjin, Liu Can, who was stationed in Huayin, moved his army to Zheng County and sent troops across the Wei River to the north, trying to capture Linjin. Unexpectedly, the Di Qiang were quite combative, camped on the north bank of the Luo River, and continuously sent cavalry south to fight with the Xiongnu.

Liu Can is also in a difficult situation now.

The more than 17,000 imperial guards brought over that year were reduced to only more than 20,000 after years of expansion. Together with the 6,000 personal troops in Chang'an, there were only these 26,000 to 27,000 people who were relatively capable of fighting.

Among them, nearly 10,000 were cavalry, who had been sent north to intercept the Xianbei cavalry heading south and prevent them from rushing straight down from Shangjun.

The remaining 10,000 or 20,000 people would not be enough even if they were divided here and there. It was hard to say whether they could defeat the Di and Qiang tribes stationed across the river.

Fortunately, the Di and Qiang were not in a hurry to move south.

They simply continued to incite rebellion in Fengyi County and dragged in more young and able-bodied men, including powerful Jin people who had close relations with them or had intermarried with them. The rebel forces continued to increase, and the counties of Fengyi were lost one after another.

This was the serious situation Liu Can faced on the sixth day of July.

On this day, more and more Jin troops crossed the river and headed westward. Hou Feihu even brought the Heiliang Zuoying and set up his general flag on the land of Hexi County - the location of the west city of Puzhou Pass, which was established by Liu Han by dividing the land of Linjin County.

The defending general was quite tough and did not run away.

Not only did they not run away, they also suppressed a mutiny at night, killing more than a thousand people. Now there are still four or five thousand defenders in the city. Although their morale is low, they are confused and uneasy, and they only have enough food and fodder to last for one month, they are still being held together and have not collapsed.

Hou Feihu's men captured several defeated soldiers outside the city, and after finding out the situation inside the city, they decided to persuade them to surrender.

"The King of Liang has three aspirations. The first is to 'tolerate each other for the sake of the country', the second is to 'make peace between the barbarians and the Chinese', and the third is to 'advance with the times'." The selected soldiers with loud voices shouted in unison outside the city: "Now that Puyang has been lost, the army is advancing westward and cannot be stopped. You all have parents, wives and children. Have you ever heard of someone who wants to fight the whole world with a small corner of the country? You should surrender quickly. If you delay, people will suffer and it will be too late to regret."

After shouting in unison three times, they shot several letters of persuasion to surrender.

No one tried to stop the whole process, and no one hurt these people, but they did not open the city to surrender either.

It was obvious that the defenders were still hesitating and waiting to see whether the emperor could clean up the situation and destroy or drive back the Jin army that had already crossed the river.

If you can do that, then continue to serve the Han Dynasty.

If you can't do this, then you should consider changing jobs.

Hou Feihu was very clear about their thoughts and did not rush to attack the city. Instead, he did two things.

The first thing was to find someone to contact the Diqiang chieftains and take unified action.

The second thing was to send people north to the hilly area in the eastern section of Hengshan at the junction of Fengyi and Shangjun, to meet up with their own troops crossing the river from the north of Shangjun and heading south, and then contact the Xianbei cavalry to try to eliminate the 10,000 cavalry sent by Liu Can.

To put it bluntly, we must destroy the enemy's effective forces.

No matter how rotten a broken ship is, it still has three thousand nails.

The Sixteen Imperial Guards and the Four Guards of the Eastern Palace, which were formed during the Liu Cong era, were both relatively elite troops of the Xiongnu. Only half of these 30,000 to 40,000 people eventually retreated to Guanzhong, and most of them were lost on the battlefields of Henei and Hedong.

It would be better to let the last remnants of Liu Han die in Shangjun and Fengyi than to let them run back to Chang'an.

******
On the day of the Chinese Valentine's Day, a large number of cavalry arrived outside the Fu family manor located in the north of Niyang County, Beidi County.

Fu Zan had just accompanied his mother back to Niyang from Chang'an when they encountered bandits on the way.

When they were only a few miles away from home, they were targeted by a group of cavalry, and the maids accompanying them were all in a panic.

Fu Zuan took a deep breath, asked someone to bring a horse, mounted the horse, and held the spear across the front of the carriage.

More than a hundred servants also drew their bows, quickly strung them, and stared at the thieves with bad intentions.

Fu Zan saw clearly that the people coming were the Suotou, which could be seen from the braids on the back of their heads.

They came from the northeast, so if nothing unexpected happened, they should have come out of the mountains in the northwest of Fengyi County. The best way to go there is directly to Sheyan River. Many merchants travel between Chang'an and Sheyan, and they must pass through Niyang.

Thinking of this, Fu Zuan took a deep breath. It turned out that the Xianbei bandits had also headed south. He just didn't know whether these people came here to take advantage of the situation or to lure the Xiongnu?
The latter is unlikely.

This time when he accompanied his mother back to Chang'an to visit relatives, he found out a lot of information, including the news that Tuoba Xianbei suddenly turned against them, marched south in large numbers, and invaded Shangjun.

This news is true, because thousands of defeated cavalry have already escaped.

But the other piece of news was half true and half false, because some people said that it was Shao Xun, the King of Liang of the Jin Dynasty, who drove the Xianbei south and invaded Guanzhong.

For a moment, Fu Zan didn't know whether he should believe it or not.

But for now, the Xianbei's migration to the south has become a fact, so he doesn't need to think too much about it. He should first protect the Fu family's property in the north before talking about other things.

While thinking, Fu Zan held his spear across his face and looked at the Xianbei people who were gradually approaching him with a swagger, without any panic at all.

More than a hundred servants also stood on horseback, armed with bows and swords, eager to fight.

The Xianbei cavalry that surrounded them numbered no more than a hundred and fifty, not much more than them.

They looked left and right and found that there were only two or three vehicles in the convoy, two of which had people sitting in them, and the other one was carrying some jars and cans, which did not look like valuable items.

Then he looked up at the servants of the Fu family, who were holding their bows and swords tightly in their hands, as if they were ready to fight to the death if they disagreed with them.

After carefully weighing the pros and cons, the leader whistled and led the group away.

It’s not that we can’t beat them, but it’s not cost-effective.

A lot of people will die in a fight, which is acceptable if the gains are huge, but it is obviously not worth it since nothing can be snatched.

Fu Zan breathed a sigh of relief.

Mother Wei also lifted the curtain of the carriage and looked at her son with some worry. "Don't worry, mother, the thieves have retreated." Fu Zan said.

Wei wiped her eyes and said, "It was mother who made you suffer. If I had listened to your advice and gone to Bianliang or Jianye, I would have had less worries."

Fu Zan sighed, "Why do you say that, mother? If we leave, our family business will be gone."

Fu Zan's father, Fu Xian, was once the Chief Censor and was posthumously awarded the title of Inspector of the Imperial Capital.

Fu Xian had three sons. The eldest son Fu and the second son Xi both moved south to Jianye with their families.

Fu Fu once served in Sima Yue's court, and later transferred to Sima Rui's court as a secretary. After going to the south of the Yangtze River, he died a few months later. Apparently he could not adapt to the local environment. When the northerners moved south and the northern army marched south, their biggest enemy was the environment.

Fu Xi is still alive and serves as the magistrate of Shangyu.

Fu Zan was originally going to Hebei, because his father was planning to be the governor of Jizhou, and he was going to send Fu Zan there to buy property. However, his grandmother, Mrs. Du, was unwilling to accompany him to Jizhou, so the plan was abandoned, and he did not want such a high position as the governor.

Of course, how could such a noble family not have an official position? However, a month later, he was given a new position: Zuo Changshi of Situ (He Zeng).

After the Yongjia Rebellion, Guanzhong was no longer peaceful. Hu people from all over the country poured in, and the situation was very bad.

The two brothers crossed the river to the south one after another, and Fu Zan planned to go to Hebei. However, when he sent people to check, Hebei was also in chaos. In addition, his mother Wei did not want to leave her hometown, so he did not leave.

To be honest, after Liu Han conquered Guanzhong, he enjoyed several years of peace.

At that time, there were severe floods in Guandong, but there was good weather and a good harvest in Guanzhong.

Even in the Shangjun area, with abundant rainfall, the grass grew like crazy and the livestock flourished.

At that time, everyone said that it was a good thing that they did not leave, and that Liu Han really had a certain destiny, and that it seemed that the country would last longer.

But who would have thought that just a few years later, armies from all directions would come charging in...

Fu Zan was confused and took his mother back to his own manor.

Almost at the same time as him, another group of Xianbei cavalry emerged from the wilderness in the north. There were no less than five hundred of them and they were very aggressive.

The alarm bell rang in the manor.

The soldiers and farmhands who had already withdrawn back to the garden all looked solemn.

The armory door has been opened, and the soldiers will be called out one by one to receive their weapons.

Those who had already received them lined up in the open space in the courtyard, and several murderous military officers were lecturing them.

Fu Zan suddenly felt a little regretful.

Four hundred of my family members went to Tongguan and were conscripted by the Huns to guard the city. But now I don't know how many of them are left and where they are.

Just as he was feeling regretful, the sound of a gong was heard from the courtyard wall.

Hundreds of people who were resting under the wall jumped up and lined up to climb the wall.

Dozens of other people were stationed at various corner towers, holding bows and looking down from above, controlling the entire situation.

"What's going on?" Fu Zan had just settled his mother down when he immediately turned around and ran over to ask.

"My lord, there are Xianbei cavalrymen shouting outside, but we can't hear them clearly from far away." someone answered.

Fu Zan went straight to the top of the city wall and looked carefully. He saw that there were more and more Xianbei cavalry gathered outside the manor, and it seemed that there were more than 1,500 of them. There was also smoke and dust rising in the distance, and more people were still rushing here.

The other side shouted again.

Fu Zan listened carefully, but the wind was too strong and he could only vaguely hear words like "Prince Shao", "Duke Dai", "by order", and "Chang'an". The accent was quite strange and he had to listen three times before he could understand it clearly.

Fu Zan looked at his officers and soldiers, and they were also looking at him.

"What do you think?" Fu Zan asked.

After hesitating for a moment, one of them said, "These soldiers should be from the Tuoba Dai Kingdom. Judging from their tone, they seem to be following the orders of Liang Wang Shao Xun to go south and attack the Xiongnu. But I don't know why they are shouting so loudly outside the village."

"What else can we do? Just ask for food and supplies." Fu Zan figured it out quickly.

Should we provide food and fodder? Of course we should.

If you push them into a corner, they will cut all the grain in the farmland outside the village that could have been harvested a month ago - they can even be cut now to feed the horses.

But Fu Zan was no longer concerned with food.

Someone in their family served as an official for King Liang, and had helped King Liang recruit a group of mixed Hu cavalry. However, after the Huns seized Guanzhong, their contacts became less frequent and gradually ceased to exist.

It shouldn't be a problem to reconnect with brothers Fu Chang and Fu Xuan and talk about family ties.

But you won't get much benefit from this.

It's like going to visit a friend. Is it appropriate to leave empty-handed?
"Open the gate!" Fu Zan made a prompt decision and said, "Leave the city and form a battle array."

"Lord!"

"Ming Gong!"

The officers and soldiers were horrified and tried to persuade them to stop.

"You don't know the inside story, so it's normal for you to be worried." Fu Zan raised his hand to stop everyone from talking, and said, "I know what to do, no more words."

What should be done? Of course, Niyang and even Fuping should be taken as a gift.

Beidi was one of the thirty-six counties of Qin, but now it only had two counties, which was far inferior to before.

Maybe their words didn't work in other places, but in Niyang and Fuping, the Fu family still had the final say. Otherwise, they wouldn't have been safe and sound under the rule of the Xiongnu, and would have been slaughtered like fat pigs long ago.

Beidi County, he has taken it for sure.

(End of this chapter)

previouscatalognext