On January 24, 692 in the continental calendar, Wu Feng left the imperial capital and set off back to Qingyang. Before that, Wu Feng had a long talk with Gu Ji. In view of the fact that the current situation in the Imperial Capital is still unstable and a reliable person is needed to stay in the Imperial Capital to understand the changes in the situation of the entire Empire, Wu Feng decided to temporarily let Gu Ji stay in the Imperial Capital to collect information. intelligence, and at the same time shoulder the important task of recruiting various talents for Wu Fengwu.
The expected purpose before coming here has been basically achieved. Wu Feng is quite satisfied with this trip to the imperial capital. The funding problem has been successfully solved and even exceeded the expected goal. The Imperial Finance Administration has allocated a total of 3.4 million funds for the revival of Qingyang. Gold coins will be allocated in three installments within two years. There are also some intentional plans to attract investment, but businessmen still have doubts about the social security situation in Qingyang, and they all express their hope to invest and start businesses in Qingyang after the security situation is completely improved. The immigration issue has also been solved satisfactorily, which will greatly promote immigrants from various places to move into Qingyang. Ling Tianfang also set off for Qingyang with Wu Feng at the same time.
Two days before Wu Feng left the Imperial Capital, Guan Yingying and Hua Yumei had already left the Imperial Capital and returned to their respective hometowns. In addition to going back to spend the Spring Festival and reunite with their families, they both also accepted the propaganda handed over by Wu Feng. The task of reviving Qingyang plan. Guan Yingying is also planning to go back to do her father's work and let the proud disciples of the ** sect join the army and join Wu Feng's army.
Although he had only left Qingyang for just over a month, Wu Feng felt like he was returning home. The mountains and rivers of Qingyang seemed to have taken root in his mind, as well as the many brothers. The voices and smiles of his subordinates appeared in front of his eyes from time to time. I don’t know what Qingyang’s situation was like during the period of time I left. How is the progress of various tasks? They must also be speculating about their situation in the imperial capital. Why has no news been sent back for so long
The weather in January is still very cold, but this is no obstacle to Wu Feng and the others, but it is obviously impossible for a girl like Di Leina to ride back to Qingyang with Wu Feng and his party in such bad weather. With an attitude of pity and pity, Wu Feng simply rented a large carriage. He and Di Leina simply got into the wind-shielded carriage, and put a hot brazier inside. Suddenly, the carriage became as warm as spring. small world. Wu Feng was also lying comfortably in the carriage, leaning against the brocade cushion, stroking the soft and fluffy hair of Di Leina who was nestling next to him, while thinking about the various problems he was about to face when he returned to Qingyang.
The primary problem is still the lack of people. People are the foundation of everything. Not only is there a lack of talents, but there is also a lack of a large amount of labor. Without sufficient manpower, the economy cannot develop, troops cannot be replenished, consumption cannot start, and everything will be a castle in the air. If you want to attract people to come, you must have good social order, preferential tax policies, sufficient employment opportunities, and a relaxed living environment. All of these must be backed by sufficient development funds in Qingyang, a place that is full of waste and waiting for development. . Fortunately, my trip to the imperial capital finally achieved satisfactory results, and the funding problem can basically be solved. After returning, it will depend on how to operate.
The second is the issue of defense. I am in the middle of several forces. No matter which party it is, its strength is far beyond my own at present. If I want to survive in this environment, I can only accelerate the development and strengthen my own strength. At the same time, we need to take advantage of the contradictions between the surrounding forces to gain time for development. However, this is easier said than done. In practice, you have to carefully calculate how to achieve the best balanced effect at the lowest cost.
Thinking of this, Wu Feng couldn't help but rub his swollen temples. "Mr. Ling, can you come up and sit for a while?" Wu Feng let go of the beauty in his arms and greeted Ling Tianfang, who was riding behind the carriage.
Wu Feng initially invited Ling Tianfang to ride with him in a car, but Ling Tianfang declined Wu Feng's kindness because he had been used to traveling on horses for many years and was not used to riding in a car. He rode on horseback with Wu Feng's ten guards. "Oh, sir, do you have anything to ask Ling?" Ling Tianfang urged his horse to follow.
"Yes, the journey is long. Li also wants to chat with Mr. Ling about some interesting topics." Wu Feng also answered half-truthfully.
"That's fine, Ling just reluctantly enjoys this noble man's patent." Ling Tianfang hesitated for a moment, then agreed to Wu Feng and jumped on the carriage.
The interior space of the carriage is as spacious as it can accommodate five or six people without being crowded. Since land transportation is very developed on the mainland, especially in inland areas, land transportation is the mainstay. Many vehicle dealers operating in the transportation industry design and manufacture a variety of horse carriages to meet the needs of customers. There are large carriages mainly serving ordinary passengers, which are pulled by four horses and can carry up to 16 people. Of course, their comfort will be greatly reduced; there are medium-sized carriages that are specially designed to serve ordinary businessmen and are pulled by four horses. Eight to ten people can ride on it. The roof of the carriage is specially made to carry a certain amount of goods. There are also small carriages prepared for some special guests. They are said to be small, but they are actually about the same size as medium-sized carriages. They use two horses. Or drawn by four horses, the interior of the carriage is very elegantly designed and decorated, with spacious space and a comfortable ride. It can usually accommodate up to four people, and guests can even rest and sleep on it. This type of carriage is mainly used by wealthy people or guests with a certain status, and of course the cost is not cheap. Wu Feng took into consideration the fact that Di Leina was traveling with him and the distance was long, so he rented a carriage like this.
"When did Mr. Ling arrive in the empire?" Wu Feng warmly greeted Ling Tianfang and asked casually after sitting down.
"Ling came to the empire three years ago. He has traveled to the Central Continent, the Western Continent and some other countries in the Eastern Continent before." Ling Tianfang also knew that Wu Feng just started with these words, and he would definitely ask questions later. and some important topics.
"Since Mr. Ling has traveled to so many places, he must have met many people. I wonder what the situation is like in these countries in the Central Continent? What outstanding talents are there?" Wu Feng held a geographical topographic map of the Central Continent in his hand. asked slowly.
Ling Tianfang was a little surprised when Wu Feng suddenly asked about the situation in the Central Continent. He originally thought that the topic Wu Feng wanted to talk about must be a topic involving the countries of the Eastern Continent and the Tanghe Empire. Unexpectedly, Wu Feng pointed the topic at to the mid-continent. He pondered for a moment, adjusted his thoughts, and then said: "The central continent is my hometown. It is sandwiched between the east and west continents. The terrain is mainly shallow hills, with some deserts, basins, mountains, plains, etc. mixed in. The ethnic composition It is complex and has different religious beliefs. In the north is the home of the nomadic people Pangai, the Kingdom of India, the Principality of Meli and the countries in the Western Regions. In the middle there are the Kingdom of Pasha, the Principality of Comini, and the Kingdom of Pasha, which were split from the Kingdom of the Greater Andes. The Grand Duchy of Luzon and the autonomous territory of Liberty City, as well as several countries such as the Principality of Dega, the Principality of Movia, the Kingdom of Badameru, and the Principality of Bicrit, and in the south are numerous small countries and city-states, my hometown Kitan The country is there."
After a pause, Ling Tianfang continued to introduce: "I don't need to introduce the nomadic people in the north. Your Excellency has also dealt with them. Your Excellency may know their strength and leaders better than I do. Indian The kingdom is nominally a unified kingdom, but is actually formed by the union of more than a dozen tribal states. The chief of the largest tribal state, the Solian Tribal State, is the king of the Indian Kingdom. Although this country has a small area, It is small and has a large population, but internal separatist ideas are rampant, and the central government lacks a strong political power and army. Therefore, it is not an exaggeration to say that it is strong externally and powerful internally. In recent years, it has been defeated by the Luobi people in the north almost every year. To resist, they were forced to pay a large amount of grain and livestock in exchange for peace. Although the nations of the Western Regions are different, they are all similar, but they are also relatively united. Compared with their powerful neighbors in the north, the Luobei people, there is a huge disparity in strength. Among them, the Gaochang Kingdom It borders the territory of your Excellency. I heard that the leader of the Loulan Kingdom, the leader of the Loulan Tribe, Haibal, is very scheming and quite a figure. The Principality of Meli is sandwiched between the Kingdom of India, the Western Regions and the Principality of Komini. , the area is not very large, but the geographical location is quite important, and the country is also rich in spices.”
Taking the water bag from Direna, Ling Tianfang was not polite and took a big sip, "The three larger countries in the middle are the Kingdom of Pasha, the Principality of Comini, the Grand Duchy of Luzon, and the Autonomous Dominion of Free City. It was formed by the disintegration of the Andean Empire, the most powerful empire in the Central Continent more than a hundred years ago. At that time, the 22nd emperor of the Andean Empire, Aleutian II, suddenly died without leaving a will. Three sons fought for the throne, and finally Split into three countries, this is the prototype of the current Kingdom of Pasha, the Principality of Komini and the Grand Duchy of Luzon. The daughter of Aleutian II also established the self-dominated Dominion of Liberty City at the current location of Liberty City. These several The Kingdom of Pasha is the most powerful among the countries. The current king also wants to reunify the three kingdoms and the Free City. He has been working hard for the past twenty years and secretly accumulating strength. This has also aroused the vigilance of the Principality of Comini and the Grand Duchy of Luzon. The current relationship between the three countries is not harmonious. Since the Free City Autonomous Territory has no regular army and only has the Self-Defense Force, it is sandwiched between the three countries. Its security is maintained by the balance of power among the three countries. However, due to the adoption of the Free City for more than a hundred years, It develops industry and commerce with low tariffs, is located on a transportation thoroughfare, and has never been affected by war, so industry and commerce are quite prosperous. It is the most famous large city in the Central Continent, with a population of more than four million. The territory has beautiful natural scenery and hundreds of The ancient buildings from 1900 are also well preserved, attracting many people who come for sightseeing, and it is also a famous tourist attraction in the central mainland."
"Oh?" Wu Feng was obviously interested in his neighbor, "How is the current relationship between the three countries?"
"It's not good, but it hasn't reached the point of becoming hostile. Especially the relationship between the Grand Duchy of Luzon and the Pasha Kingdom has always been tense. Nearly half of the Luzon Grand Duchy's troops are deployed in the border area with the Pasha Kingdom. "
Wu Feng nodded thoughtfully, with a secret smile on his lips.
Ling Tianfang seemed to know what Wu Feng was thinking, "The Grand Duchy of Luzon is now controlled by Prime Minister Brundtland. Grand Duke Ben Otto IV is thirteen years old and is not yet a minor. Brundtland's eldest son Yuli is the current The general garrisoned Gyasi, an important town in the south, with a garrison of 150,000, mainly to guard against threats from the Pasha Kingdom in the south. The important town in the west, Great Pine Forest City, was garrisoned by Brundtland's nephew Kloof, with a garrison of 50,000. The important town in the north was Wei Tuocheng was garrisoned by another general, Mandici, with a garrison of 50,000 troops.”
Seeing that Wu Feng was silent, Ling Tianfang continued to introduce: "The current king of Pasha Kingdom, Paul I, is quite ambitious and wants to restore the glorious image of the original Andean Empire. He has been committed to developing military power for more than ten years and now has fifty troops. There are more than 100,000 people, far more than the surrounding neighboring countries. What is more worth mentioning is that the country’s general Kutuzov is known as the first military commander in the Central Continent. He is calm-minded and resourceful. He has 30,000 young guards under his command. The army has a very strong combat capability and is known as the 'Iron Army'. This has also aroused doubts in neighboring countries, fearing that the Pasha Kingdom may use troops against neighboring countries in the near future."
"What kind of person is this Kutuzov?" Wu Feng finally asked about this person.
"He was born in an ordinary knight family in the Kingdom of Pasha. He was interested in military affairs since he was a child. When he was in his teens, he went to the University of Heidelberg in the Western Continent to study military affairs. After returning to China, he started as an ordinary soldier in the Guards and was promoted to general within ten years. Eleven years ago, during the invasion of the coalition forces from the southern countries, he adopted the strategy of attacking in the east and attacking in the west. He used a small force to attract the main force of the coalition forces. He personally led the main force in a long-distance attack on the important logistics supply town of the coalition forces, forcing the coalition forces to retreat. On the way back, the coalition forces retreated. He set up an ambush, defeated the main force of the coalition forces in one fell swoop, and took advantage of the situation to invade the southern countries. Later, the countries were forced to cede territory and sue for peace, and compensated a large amount of money. After this battle, they became famous. Later, they used troops to win many victories in the southeast and occupied the A large area of land. It was not until seven years ago that the Pasha Kingdom entered a stage of recuperation and recuperation, and its target turned north, that the war he started calmed down." After a pause, Ling Tianfang added: "In short , is a rare military wizard."
Wu Feng was also deep in thought and did not react to Ling Tianfang's evaluation. After a while, Wu Feng raised his head and said, "Time waits for no one. In Mr. Yi Ling's opinion, where should our next target be?"
After hesitating for a moment, Ling Tianfang finally said, "In my opinion, your current strength is not enough to take down any target around you. Your first priority is to cultivate your vitality and strengthen your strength. But if you can conquer Jinzhou in the south, It might be easier if the government gets it."
"Oh? How do you say this?" Wu Feng was also curious as to why Ling Tianfang was interested in Jinzhou.
"Compared with its surroundings, Jinzhou Prefecture has a very good geographical location. It is only connected to Bonan and Qingyang. It is a good rear base. Moreover, there are a large number of Gaoyue people living in the nearby mountains and forests, who are hostile to the local government. , if you improve the relationship with them after taking it, you can get a lot of unexpected help. Especially in terms of soldiers, the Gaoyue people are naturally excellent infantry." Ling Tianfang lowered his voice and said, "What's more, the surrounding parties are not Now we can afford it, and Guide and Bonan have to take into account the empire’s reaction, so it’s quite difficult.”