Chapter 35
In the blink of an eye, it was the night of May 10th. He had been in Yingkou County for fourteen days when he arrived at the county. As soon as he left the inner courtyard of the county government, the night wind blew and it was a bit chilly. Zhang Xuanning walked to the steps. Zhang Yi was waiting outside. When he saw him come out, he stepped forward and said, "Sir, do you want to get on the horse?"
"No, let's go slowly!" A little drunk, Zhang Xuanning looked up at the moon. Sure enough, after waiting for a while, the county lieutenant Zhou Liang came out.
"Brother Zhou, is the county magistrate anxious?"
"That's right. My dear brother, you have been in the county for half a month. You usually just train the soldiers and ignore the chaos outside the city. Although the county magistrate still offers you wine and food every day, he is already anxious. If this chaos is not settled, his position will be difficult to keep!" County Lieutenant Zhou Liang said with some emotion.
Over the past half month, both sides have been trying to get closer and have become much more intimate.
"That's true, but if you don't get close to the soldiers and don't know their situation, how can you use them casually? But, Brother Zhou, do you know the situation?" Zhang Xuanning has been the captain for nearly a month. During this time, he has basically become familiar with the situation in the army - fortunately, he only has 50 people under his command and is the highest leader in the team, so he got familiar with it quickly.
The reason why it takes so much time is, firstly, to familiarize oneself with the military formation, and secondly, to check the people inside and outside.
Through silent observation and indirect questioning, the actions and personalities of several important people around him gradually became clear in Zhang Xuanning's mind.
Tao Ji was experienced in military affairs, but he had two shortcomings. The first was that he did not have a high family background, and it was difficult for him to be promoted without a high family background. The second was that he was not good at martial arts.
In the era of cold weapons, emphasizing wisdom and strategy was the job of those in power. Let alone a team of fifty people, even a general of a thousand people must have martial arts skills that are sharp enough to be used in battle. Without this martial art, it would be difficult for him to serve as a backbone of the army, and naturally it would be difficult for him to be promoted.
As for the county lieutenant Zhou Liang, his family background and martial arts were not very good, but one thing was clear: he was good at training soldiers and organizing military logistics, which was a very important talent! Moreover, from their interactions, one could also sense that he was frustrated.
Zhang Xuanning naturally tried to interact with him, and this person also wanted to get to know him, hoping to use this opportunity to achieve a breakthrough in his life and career, so the relationship between the two made rapid progress.
Of course, there is no "friendship" of this kind that is closer than having common interests. The union of Zhang Xuanning and Zhou Liang is almost a natural and inevitable thing.
"Haha, I caught up with you, brother, just to tell you about this. This afternoon, I received a report that the bribed secret agent has given me all the information. Well, this is the secret code." County Lieutenant Zhou Liang touched his arms.
"Then what are we waiting for? Let's go back to my camp and measure it carefully." Zhang Xuanning was shocked. As he spoke, the two of them laughed, jumped on their horses, and ran straight to the military camp. They got far away from the camp gate. With the torches at the camp gate, they could see the people coming clearly. They opened the door immediately, and several rows of horses drew an arc at the camp gate and rushed in. They didn't dismount until they reached the field halfway up the camp.
A temporary wooden wall was built around the military camp. The method was to cut two rows of tree trunks, one long and one short, burn the bottom of the tree trunks and bury half of them in the ground. The long tree trunks were arranged in a tight row outside, and the short tree trunks were arranged in a row inside. Then wooden boards were placed between the two rows of tree trunks, divided into two layers, so that the part of the long tree trunks would become a protective wall. The upper layer of the wooden board could be used for soldiers to patrol and guard, and the lower layer could be used to store defensive weapons and for soldiers to rest. The same was true when setting up camp. Everyone's tents were facing each other, and drainage ditches were dug around the tents and between the camps. Soldiers were strictly prohibited from running around between the camps, and they were also prohibited from running around the tents within the camp. The strict hierarchy was everywhere in the army, and the cohesion was maintained imperceptibly. He had learned for some time, and he had to sigh that there was knowledge everywhere!
But at this moment, regardless of these things he had already seen familiarly, Zhang Xuanning walked into the room and couldn't wait to light the candle himself. Seeing this, the county lieutenant Zhou Liang smiled in his heart, knowing that he was also a little anxious, and took out the documents.
In the candlelight, Zhang Xuanning glanced over and soon smiled.
"Wang An has no food?"
"Exactly. He seems to have sensed the situation. He knows that you are coming with elite cavalry and they dare not confront you head-on. They have been hiding in the mountains and forests. Perhaps he wants to lure you into the mountains and forests and choose a place to fight you. Now you are as still as a mountain. Even if he is willing to endure it, the lack of food will make his subordinates unbearable. They are a motley crowd to begin with, so how can they command a unified order? There will definitely be internal strife!"
"When are they going to go to war?" Zhang Xuanning smiled. "There are thousands of refugees. How many days can they survive with the food they brought? Wang An is a very resourceful man to have been able to endure until now."
"That's right. He is only a little over ten years old. He started a rebellion in the wilds and fought with our county soldiers many times. We won and lost. I personally think that he still has some talent. What a pity!" After a pause, County Lieutenant Zhou Liang said, "The food is gone. It will only take one or two days."
Several people rose up from the grassroots and fought against the government for three years. They actually climbed to the leader of a thousand people and recruited soldiers to participate. This man should not be underestimated!
It sounds easy, but if you really put yourself in the present situation and think about it, a group of terrorists were able to fight in the key areas of the court for three years, rising from nothing amid military and police suppression, you will know that this man is indeed a young hero.
At that moment, he sighed: "What a pity."
But it was a pity that his official position was too low to protect such a leader. Just think about it, can a person at the level of a criminal police captain protect a terrorist? So this person must be killed and taken as a trophy.
Otherwise, this person could be recruited. Such talents who can struggle from life and death are extremely valuable. With a little training and cultivation, they may become a general.
"Is the dark room reliable?" Although he knew it, he still couldn't help but ask at this moment.
"Reliable, these people are all plotting rebellion, but their families didn't have time to evacuate, and were captured by me. They should have been executed, but I thought it would be useful, so I secretly cut them off and announced to the public that they had been beheaded. However, I contacted them, hoping to pardon their crimes, and let them be secret agents. One person might be lying, but three or four people said it in unison, so it must be true." County Lieutenant Zhou Liang sneered and said, "Moreover, one of them is a branch of the Zheng family, a large family in the county. Although the Zheng family is deeply rooted and cannot be uprooted by us, it is embarrassing to have their children kidnapped to follow the bandits, so we contacted them."
"Oh, who is this person?"
"Zheng Dan, who has studied, was spotted by Wang An, who forced him to be a military advisor! Wang An is really ambitious. He wants to recruit not only soldiers but also scholars. He might even hope that the government will take this opportunity to deal with the Zheng family. The Zheng family is deeply rooted and has clan soldiers. Once they split, the county will be in chaos!"
"Yeah, then, what should we do with Zheng Dan in the future?"
"Although I was forced to do this, I am still a follower of the bandits. If I bear some responsibility, it will be difficult for the clan to live with myself."
"Then follow me. I can have more people in my team. As long as there are no more than ten people, no one will say anything. Zheng Dan, why don't you join me in the army? If it works out well, you still have a future. If it doesn't, you can go back . Well, fighting in the army will inevitably cause losses. Afterwards, I will also select some backbones of the local soldiers to fill the team."
"That's easy. I'll agree to it right away. But I'm afraid you might not like it."
Seeing that he agreed, Zhang Xuanning laughed and said, "Within ten steps, there must be fragrant grass. Although the local soldiers are weak, if we select a dozen people from hundreds of people, they can definitely be warriors."
"In that case, whoever my dear brother likes, I will give it to you immediately! I still have this power." County Lieutenant Zhou Liang said, and after some more discussion, when he saw that the situation was generally settled, he said goodbye to Zhang Xuanning.
Zhang Xuanning watched the figure of County Lieutenant Zhou Liang walking away, and did not move his eyes until County Lieutenant Zhou Liang disappeared outside the door. After waiting for a long time, he turned to Tao Ji who was following behind him and said, "What do you think this person is up to? Is he reliable?"
"County Lieutenant Zhou Liang is also a member of the Zhou family's side branch. His only intention is to gain some military merits in order to get promoted. If it comes to treason, I'm sure he would never do that."
"I don't doubt that he is a traitor, but this is a secret."
"I don't think there's anything wrong with what Lord Zhou said. Besides, even if there are any mistakes, we can still defeat them with our own strength and kill them with ease."
Zhang Xuanning thought about it, nodded and said, "Well, I was overthinking it."
In his heart, he greatly approved of Taizu's theory of class origin. Although it might be a case of wrongful killing, it could indeed yield some gold.
The government uses the aristocratic families, and the rebel army uses the rioters, both of which are relatively reliable.
Both the Zheng and Zhou families were local clans with thousands of children. They basically had land, food, connections, clan soldiers, and even official positions and power. Who would join forces with the peasants to rebel? Aren't they afraid of implicating the entire family? Moreover, even if they did start a rebellion, their strength should be the leader, and it is absolutely impossible for them to rely on the common people.
However, this is not a general rule. When an insurgent army is able to occupy a place, these landlords and wealthy families have a painful choice - to surrender or even join the insurgent army, or to die and be exterminated?
Therefore, the rebel army may also recruit them as officials. Although they are unreliable, they must be used even if they are not trusted. When knowledge is monopolized by landlords and powerful families, if they want to be completely reliable, I am afraid that there will be no one available immediately. The key is to prevent them from infiltrating even a single soldier into the army.
" Sir ... Sir!" Looking at Zhang Xuanning pacing continuously and falling into deep thought, Tao Ji waited for a while and had no choice but to call him softly.
With the cry, Zhang Xuanning woke up from his deep thoughts and realized that he was affected by the evil spirit again. He was so distracted that he didn't know what he was thinking about. He immediately said, "Have the horses in the army eaten the fine food?"
"The horsepower is more than enough."
"Close the barracks, and I will take over the militia. They must follow military regulations. There is no need to strengthen training these days. You can only train half as much as usual to relieve fatigue. You are not allowed to go out to prevent news leaks." Zhang Xuanning ordered, "County Lieutenant Zhou Liang will be in charge of the county's grain and grass. We must also send someone to supervise. You don't need to worry too much about it. Just ensure the supply. Although there will be small battles in the county, grain and grass are not important, but we can't be careless."
Tao Ji immediately wrote it down, and when he finished, he presented it to the emperor again, saying, "Don't worry, sir. The whole army has been informed of the order, and no one will dare to act without authorization."
After thinking for a while, he said, "Call Guo Posuo to me."
Guo Posuo is a warrior in this rural group. Although his family's skills are very poor, he has been practicing since he was young and has the potential for promotion.
Not long after, Guo Posuo arrived in front of Zhang Xuanning and stood quietly in front of him, waiting for his order. Feeling the fierceness in his aura, he said coldly: "Guo Posuo, I will appoint you as the temporary captain of the Sixth Militia Team. Are you willing?"
Zhang Xuanning's voice was faint, but it sounded like thunder in Guo Posuo's ears. He was born in a humble family, but he had learned some martial arts skills, but he had never been able to use them. This time, he was given a chance.
As the temporary captain of a fifty-man corps, although the militia would be disbanded afterward, as long as they won this battle, they might get some rewards and be promoted to a regular officer and soldier, even a sergeant would be a good career path. He immediately knelt down and said loudly, "I will not let you down!"
"No need to say more. If you win this battle, I will reward you with an official rank for your military merits. You can join the army with me. I will let you be my personal soldier first, and then I will give you the rank of sergeant when there is a chance. Although it is a low rank, it is also a starting point."
"I understand, I understand, I will be loyal to you!"
Zhang Xuanning's personal soldiers at this time were only allowed to have five people, Zhang one, Zhang two, Zhang three, and two more could be added.
"Well, go down!"
After he went out, after a while, Zhang Xuanning felt the evil spirit slowly boiling up, and then gradually subsided. It was May, the rainy season, so the moon was bright just now, but now there were lead-gray clouds, which were moving heavily and slowly to the south. He looked up at the mysterious and ever-changing sky, silent.
A gust of cold wind blew, and he subconsciously touched his broken saber. His first real battle was about to begin. Win or lose, it would be of great significance anyway. Although he didn't believe that he would capsize in such a small battle, this was the special nature of war - who knew what would happen in the future!
Once again, he realized the insignificance of human beings and the power of fate. Fortunately, this world still has the almost supernatural power of martial arts. If it were in an ordinary world, it would be even more difficult to resist fate!
After standing in front of the door for a while, a gust of wind blew and a few drizzles began to fall. It was May rain and still a bit cool. When I took step back, I saw the rain began to fall continuously. However, at this time, everyone in the barracks had gone to bed, and only the patrol team had to patrol in the rain.
Seeing them running past him, he didn't care. At this moment, Tao Ji, who had already conveyed the order, also came over. He also entered the room and stood in the corridor, with a lot on his mind.
He joined the army in the first year of Daye, when he was only nineteen years old. He had been in the army for eleven years. Although he relied on some family martial arts, his fearlessness and luck, he was promoted.
After eleven years of life in the military camp, as the deputy captain, he originally thought that he would take over after the captain was killed in action, but unexpectedly a new captain was sent instead. It would be a lie to say that he had no complaints at all, because who could blame him for having neither connections nor real martial arts skills!
There are too many people like me in the army. If I want to stand out, I must rely on one and make him my confidant. It is difficult to get close to someone who is too far away, needless to say. So I have to rely on this captain. At least he has enough connections and martial arts, and there is a great possibility that he will be promoted. Maybe I can rise with him.
Thinking of this, he stepped forward and said respectfully: "Sir, everything is ready."
"Well, the cavalry is brave now, and the militia has been roughly trained. Although they may not be very effective, they are capable of fighting. This time it depends on whether Zhou Liang can lure them out. Once they are lured out, the matter will be settled. However, I think we must go to war for food, but it will only take a few days." Muttering, Zhang Xuanning suddenly asked: "If we win, how should we deal with the families of the rebels?"
"All males will be beheaded, and those under eight years old will be exempted. All women will be made official slaves or military prostitutes. Your Excellency can select a few. As for the others, we can also get some of the money from selling their bodies, which is mostly paid by the local government. It can be considered as our remuneration." Tao Ji didn't know what he meant, so he just said it calmly.
This kind of cruel treatment was commonplace in that era. In fact, it was not necessarily a massacre, because after the Five Barbarians, the imperial court still attached importance to the population. However, being slaves for generations and women being prostitutes was not necessarily much better than death.
Zhang Xuanning didn't want to comment, nor was he able to change anything. He immediately heard the voice of the night watchman in the army, saying, "It's late at night, go back and rest. Tomorrow, or the day after tomorrow, we will fight!"
