Chapter 1317 Teaching and Visiting
Chapter 1317 Teaching and Visiting
When passing Puyang, Shao Xun stayed for a day and listened to the report from local officials.
As a long and narrow county running east-west on the south bank of the Yellow River, Puyang County governed five counties, namely Puyang, Dongyan, Baima, Juancheng and Linqiu, with about 40,000 households and more than 187,000 people, including more than 14,000 households of soldiers and followers from the three Longxiang Prefectures (affiliated to the Zuoyulin Guard) of Zaoting, Weicheng and Yangjiao.
As far as normal people are concerned, the population of this county is similar to that of Jiyin in the south, but it is still slightly better in terms of finance and taxation, because more than 10,000 households of military forces also pay taxes and labor service, although the tax is only collected according to the standard of 30 acres - generally speaking, one household cultivates 50 acres, and the labor service and household tax are also calculated at 60%.
Compared with its neighbor Jiyin, Puyang is a typical county that has been artificially "ripened".
Because of the devastating destruction during the war, there were not many local people in Puyang. During the Sima Yue period, a small number of beggars were gathered, as well as refugees who escaped from Hebei, and some soldiers and civilians who were withdrawn from Hebei were resettled. In addition, the huge population brought by the three Longxiang Prefectures, Puyang eventually surpassed the rest.
However, the people here are quite diverse, mainly Han people, with a small number of Wuhuan and Jie people. In terms of language, Hebei dialect, Xuchang dialect and local dialect are mixed. After a long period of integration, the accents are gradually developing in a consistent direction.
Last year, due to the increasing population, Yanzhou governor Xu Shi requested to add two more counties, Weicheng and Zaocheng. However, his request was rejected by Prime Minister Wang Yan on the grounds that most of the population in these two places were under the jurisdiction of the military government and had little to do with the counties, so his request was not approved.
Just like what I saw in Jiyin, Puyang also has a large number of forests and swamps that have not yet been developed, especially the area near the south bank of the Yellow River. There are unusually many lakes and wetlands, and in the summer, flocks of gulls dance around, which is very beautiful. This county is roughly equivalent to Huazhou and Puzhou in the Tang Dynasty, with a total of twelve counties and a population of about 820,000.
The development level of Puyang and Jiyin counties is indeed not high, but you can't say it is low. Because if you really develop them, you have to fill in the swamps and wetlands, reclaim farmland from the lakes, cut down large tracts of forests and bamboo forests, and transform the areas that have been gradually turned into wasteland for 150 years since the Yellow Turban Rebellion in the late Han Dynasty. This was done slowly over the hundreds of years of the Southern and Northern Dynasties and the Sui and Tang Dynasties, and gradually recovered until the level of development exceeded that of the Later Han Dynasty.
Development continued during the Ming and Qing dynasties, so that by the early days of the founding of the People's Republic of China, the forest coverage rate in the north had reached its historical lowest point, and everywhere was a bare, gray scene.
The contradiction between man and land exists forever.
On the third day of March, Shao Xun stayed in Gudu Longxiang Mansion (Zuo Yulin Guard) in Dongqiu County for one day.
Ten thousand cavalrymen of the Luoyan Army rushed from their base in Heyin to meet them.
This imperial guard, which integrated the Zhuosheng Army and other units, was mainly composed of light cavalry. The commander-in-chief was Yin Xi, a former cavalry official in the General's Office, who had been in the position for many years.
Shao Xun trained them outside the Gudu Military Headquarters for a day. At the end, he asked them to charge at the fifth battalion of the Yellow Head Army.
In the wilderness, behind a white line drawn with lime, tens of thousands of infantrymen formed three small square formations in the shape of a V.
The Luoyan Army sent more than a thousand cavalrymen to charge head-on, armed with long spears and large halberds.
Although they all knew that this was a fake charge and would not be a real one, when the Luoyan Army rushed to the front of the formation and then rode away to both sides, the imposing aura of oppression still made the infantry of the Huangtou Army subconsciously take a step or two back.
As for the hundreds of cavalrymen attacking from both sides, they made them panic and noisy.
But there are also highlights.
The more than one hundred elite soldiers deployed on the periphery of the army on both sides did not run away. Instead, they dared to move forward with long spears, large shields, strong bows and crossbows, pretending to attack - but I don't know if these people would dare to do so when a real fight broke out.
Maybe some people dared. The fifth battalion of the Yellow Head Army was mainly composed of the strong and strong Hu and Han refugees who poured into Yanmen Pass. They often saw horses in their daily lives, and most of them even knew how to ride horses. They knew that the strength of cavalry was not in head-on confrontation.
If they dare to fight you face to face, they really can't beat you, so they dare to take action.
"Nian Liu, how do you feel?" Shao Xun asked, pointing to the wilderness where thousands of horses were galloping, while standing on a makeshift platform.
"The military book says that cavalry is a force that can be combined and separated, and it is true." Shao Xu said, "To fight head-on with the infantry is really a waste of talent and not worth it."
Duke Shao Ji of Song and Duke Yuan Zhen of Liangcheng murmured for a while, and then Shao Ji stepped forward to ask, "Grandpa, if we dispatch the Tuqi Commander of Youzhou now, can the Yellow-Headed Army stop us?"
Shao Xun pondered for a while and said, "The second battalion should be able to stop them at all costs, the third battalion is in between, and the fifth battalion cannot stop them. If it were the imperial guards and elite soldiers, if the Youzhou Tuqi commander dared to charge, the corpses of the men and horses would pile up, and the horses would slow down. They might even be cut off their horses by these infantrymen. Light cavalry and Tuqi have their own uses, and neither is necessarily strong. Remember this."
"If the battlefield was moved to a flat grassland with no shelter and no river within dozens of miles, the armored cavalry would be shot to death by the light cavalry. But if it was in Henan, where rivers are everywhere and forests, bamboo gardens, and villages are scattered everywhere, the light cavalry could be caught by the armored cavalry while circling, and it would be a massacre."
"If it is Jiangnan, which is densely networked with waterways, do not send out cavalry, no matter how heavy or light, easily. Be sure to choose the battlefield carefully. In the past, when attacking Jiangxia, a group of cavalry was cut off from their retreat. There were rivers in front and behind, swamps on the left and right, and only a flat land in the middle. They were surrounded and killed. As long as the infantry dared to fight, the destruction of this cavalry was inevitable."
"How can a general not know astronomy and geography?"
Shao Ji looked thoughtful, but Yuan Zhen said loudly, "Grandpa, if I lure the enemy cavalry into a desperate situation with my weak soldiers, wouldn't I be able to win a great victory?"
"My son is smart." Shao Xun touched Yuan Zhen's head and said with a smile: "But you should also consider the temperament of the thief. Some people will be fooled, and some will not. If you meet someone who is extremely cautious, no matter how you tempt him, he will not be fooled, because he is unwilling to take risks. But-"
Shao Xun changed the subject and continued, "When fighting, you also have to consider the situation in the enemy's court. If the court is full of arrogant and incompetent people who are pushing for war, or if there is insufficient food and it is not conducive to long-term defense, then no matter how cautious the generals on the front line are, they may be deceived because they have no choice."
Yuan Zhen blinked. This height was something he had never experienced before.
Shao Xu was old and experienced a lot, so he felt it more deeply. He smiled and said, "This kind of thing is not uncommon in history books. In the Battle of Changping, Zhao Kuo had no choice but to abandon the camp and fight the Qin army to the death. Zhao State replaced Lian Po with Zhao Kuo because it had been protracted and had insufficient supplies. The stalemate could not continue and a quick battle was necessary."
"Yes." Shao Xun stroked the back of the third son again and taught him carefully: "In military struggles, the fighting methods are different. The core is to make yourself invincible first, and then wait for the enemy to be defeated. To put it more clearly, it is to play to your strengths and avoid your weaknesses. Make the most of your strengths and try to prevent the enemy's strengths from being brought into play. Then, seize the mistakes made by the enemy and win in the end."
"When you are short of food and have few soldiers and generals, you need to take risks, otherwise it will be difficult to win. But if the army is strong and has enough food, then it is another way to fight. Try not to take risks, and use a grand formation to force the enemy forward. Don't rush to advance, so as not to reveal your flaws, but make a bigger show to shake the enemy's morale. When you meet the enemy, you must fight resolutely, lead with the elite, and win a few victories with overwhelming force, create a bigger show, and make the enemy's morale low and their hearts unstable. Then you can offer them official positions and promises, recruit them to surrender, and make them disharmony and suspicion of each other. This will surely defeat them."
Shao Xu was amazed after hearing this.
My father's way of employing troops seems to be more than just a military strategy, it is very sophisticated.
"Is this how you plan to deal with Murong Xianbei, Grandpa?" Shao Xu asked.
"Watch carefully and learn well." Shao Xun said with a smile: "Different capitals have different fighting styles. When my father first started his army, he also took risks, but now there is no need to do so. We should focus on stability."
Seeing that his three sons were all thinking, Shao Xun did not interrupt them, but got down from the high platform and, under the protection of the imperial guards, inspected the territory of Gudu Longxiang Mansion. March is the season of lush grass and flying orioles.
Along the stream, cattle and sheep are strolling, and the willows are green.
On the other side of the river, green wheat seedlings are growing taller and taller, full of vitality.
Shao Xun randomly entered a house and saw two old men combing wool in the yard with a comb. He sat down and signaled to them that there was no need to be polite.
"But the sheep are going to shed their wool?" Shao Xun asked.
Of the two elders, the old woman was a little nervous and kept her head down, but the old man was quite normal and replied, "Your Majesty, March is the time when the wool sheds. I will comb it with a comb and then cut it. This way, we can get some wool."
"Do you sell the wool yourself?" Shao Xun asked.
"Yes." The old man said, "The Huang family at the west end of the village has a loom. I heard that they hired someone from Yecheng to make it. His family is rich, and his eldest son is a military officer in the military office."
Shao Xun nodded. The wool spinning machinery had only been developed for a short time, and the new machines had not yet become popular. The old large machines were still popular among the people, and the cost of purchasing them was indeed not low.
There is still a long way to go before wool textile machines can enter thousands of households.
"Do you have any woolen clothes?" Shao Xun asked.
"I have two pieces, I gave them to my son." The old man said, "I exchanged wool for cloth from the Huang family, and saved up for a long time to make two pieces in one go. I gave them all to my eldest son."
"Your son is..." Shao Xun asked.
The old man glanced at him quietly and said, "He should be in Youzhou by now."
Shao Xun suddenly realized that his son was one of the 3,600 men from the Zuo Yulin Guard who went to the expedition.
"I think the old man with the cane felt that the weather in Yanshan was cold, so he left a sweater for his son." Shao Xun said.
"Yes." The old man said, "I was a soldier before, and I know how hard it is to endure when it is freezing cold. A sweater is much warmer than a sweater. If my son wears this sweater, he can endure the cold spring when he is marching in the mountains."
"Not bad." Shao Xun was very happy to hear that and said, "We have the sweater, but where are the blouses?"
"I have never seen it before. I am asking my daughter-in-law to learn from someone who knows how to make it." The old man said, "But woolen hand-made clothes are not good. My daughter-in-law asked someone to make a leather hand-made clothes."
"My son is a meticulous person." Shao Xun said with a smile.
"Hand clothes" are gloves.
It has existed for a long time, but was mostly made of brocade and popular among nobles. It was more for decoration than for keeping warm.
Ordinary people also have them, mostly made of leather, but they are rarely seen and are not popular.
It is more common in nomadic tribes on the northern grasslands. It is also made of leather, some are fingerless and some are not.
Shao Xun's army started to equip itself with leather gloves only in the last two years, and the coverage was very narrow, and they also did not have time to be popularized.
Without long-term living and fighting in bitterly cold areas, sweaters, leather gloves and the like would hardly become popular naturally - the ears of the Goguryeo people's Jinxian crown were larger, and it was obvious that they could be lined with fur to keep the ears warm. This was the difference caused by different living environments.
"How many sheep do you have at home?" Shao Xun asked again.
"I sold some in the winter, and there are more than 20 left," said the old man.
"How did you raise it?" Shao Xun asked curiously.
Raising livestock is not something you can do casually. In fact, sheep are quite eatable, but how can you raise them if there is not enough grass?
"There is a field outside the military mansion. It is wet and full of puddles. Reeds and grass grow lushly." The old man said, "My family drives sheep there to graze every day."
"Is that the public land of Dongqiu County? Although it is deserted, it does not belong to the military government." Shao Xun asked.
The old man nodded and said, "The village chief came once, but no one paid attention to him, so he never came again. The land is barren and overgrown with grass, and no one cares about it. Driving some cattle and sheep there to graze can help supplement the family income..."
Shao Xun did not comment.
There are also advantages to having a lot of wasteland and a low level of development. In theory, grass is also a resource. After being eaten by livestock, it can be converted into meat, milk, leather, hair, etc. Moreover, this kind of work can be done by children without occupying the main labor force.
It seems that the income of the people in the military government is not limited to the 200 acres of farmland. In fact, they also drive livestock to the wasteland to graze, or go to the forest to hunt and gather.
If these wastelands were developed one day, the income of these soldiers would probably drop significantly.
After chatting casually for a while, Shao Xun asked someone to bring twenty rolls of silk and said with a smile, "Take this silk and ask the craftsman to make a wool loom."
After saying that, he turned and left the quiet farmyard.
On the morning of March 8th, Shao Xun headed east and stopped in Qinghe.
At this time, the envoys of Murong Xianbei arrived almost at the same time and requested to see the emperor.
(End of this chapter)