"When I left the party, I haven't seen the envoy for a long time." Xue Ren said respectfully as he sat in the guest seat with a businessman-like smile.
Seeing Xue Ren, Liang Feng was still a little surprised. The little girl in the Xue family who was full of routines was really annoying, Liang Feng kept him cold for a while, and even arranged the business to the housekeeper. Unexpectedly, this person actually fell into Pei Dun's sect. But considering the identity of the Xue family, it is not surprising to be a lobbyist for the Pei family.
"I don't know why Xue Lang is here, why is he so precious?" Liang Feng would not be polite to such a businessman and asked directly.
"It's for the sake of the envoy." Xue Ren straightened his face, "I'm afraid the envoy also knows about the current situation in Hedong. Alas, I'm ashamed to say, although there are quite a few powerful families in the Hedong area, but privately However, the soldiers are not as long as the Bingzhou family. Just like the Wei family in Anyi, there are nearly 10,000 households in the food town, but the soldiers are less than 3,000, so they may not be able to defend their own city. I support it, and I don’t know how long it will last…”
Liang Feng did not answer. Today, there is no place in the world without chaos, and Bingzhou is too busy to take care of itself, how can it take care of others
Xue Ren didn't care about Liang Feng's attitude, and continued: "Your Majesty may feel that Hedong is insignificant. However, your house's business is closely related to Hedong. You may wish to think about how many liters of salt were transported from Hedong to Gaodu just last year. If Yanchi was captured by the Xiongnu, where would there be a trade in salt goods? This loss would cost tens of millions of dollars and silk! Not to mention that if Liu Yuanhai captured Yanchi, the Xiongnu would immediately be able to occupy the salt and recruit troops, wouldn't it be more difficult to deal with? "
Liang Feng's face remained unmoved. He also knew this. Knowing the importance of Yanchi, the Xiongnu could not give up attacking Hedong anyway. If you want to save it, it is not impossible. The imperial court will send another army to attack from both sides. But will Sima Yue let go of Sima Ying, who has already proclaimed emperor, for the mere Yanchi
Therefore, Pei Dun's move to send troops, even if Sima Yue came, would only recognize it at once. If the Hedong Siege is solved with Bingzhou soldiers, wouldn't it be profitable? If it is defeated, Shangdang is still relatively safe, and there is still room for buffering. As long as it doesn't threaten Luoyang, it's easy to say anything.
Seeing that Liang Feng kept his eyes closed, Xue Ren coughed dryly: "Your Majesty, Bingzhou is not completely spared now. General Linghu has already ordered to recruit troops. The only way to be stable is to fight. Dudu Pei has said that if this is defeated, Yanchi will also have a seat as an envoy."
Liang Feng rolled his eyes and stared at the person in front of him: "The Governor wants to recruit troops? Where are the soldiers?"
Seeing the dazed eyes from those sharp eyes, Xue Ren whispered, "It's natural to be recruited from a benefactor or a refugee. Just like what the envoy did in Shangdang..."
Has he recruited good people in Shangdang? Those are all soldiers who are defending the soil, not to mention how much manpower and material resources they have spent in order to train them. Now, with a word from Pei Dun, is he going to pull these people who were finally gathered into the battlefield? !
However, the anger in his chest was not revealed at all. Liang Feng lowered his eyes again, and after a while, he said, "It's not impossible for the Shangdang to send troops to help. However, Dudu Pei should act more cautiously. The resettlement of refugees is my new policy, how can it be changed in the morning?"
This is tempting, do you want to negotiate with Pei Dun? Xue Ren's face couldn't help but look happy: "The Governor Pei is also very anxious, and it is inevitable that he will make mistakes. As long as he can successfully capture Lishi and advance to Pingyang, everything can be discussed."
"I will consider this matter carefully." Liang Feng nodded slightly.
Xue Ren was really relieved this time. Look at it, no matter how nice you say it, isn't it moved when you learn that you can set foot in the Salt Pond? This Liang Clan is not like Pei Clan. If you want to jump to the top clan, without money and power, it is simply impossible. It is better to have a good relationship with the Pei family than to actually work hard for the court! Don't talk about Yanchi, isn't the words of Sima Yue's wife and brother more useful than the ten beautiful words of others
After completing the mission entrusted by the governor, Xue Ren withdrew contentedly after a few more words.
Leaning on the table, Liang Feng was silent for a long time, and ordered Duan Qin to be called to discuss it carefully.
※
Under the corridor, Linghu Sheng paced back and forth a little restlessly. After leaving the Governor's Mansion, he did not dare to neglect, and immediately sent a messenger to the Governor's Mansion to ask Liang Governor for an idea. The commander's military order is absolutely terrible, unless he is dying, he dares to send the temporarily pulled men to the front. Moreover, the army has all moved to Lishi, what should Jinyang do? Who will guard the city? Is there no one who can stop this new governor
After waiting from noon until the sun set, the messenger finally returned to the mansion: "General, this is a letter from the prefect!"
Linghu Sheng grabbed the letter and read it. Just the first two sentences made him grit his teeth in hatred.
It turned out that Governor Pei was in a hurry to send troops for Hedong! Why didn't he think of it before? That's right, if it weren't for the tightness of the war in Hedong, why would you be in such a hurry to send troops to Lishi! But after knowing this, Linghusheng felt even more desperate in his heart. If it was just for the sake of merit, it would be fine, but for the sake of his own family, who would run away? This battle must be fought!
Then, looking at it, that ashes-like heart slowly raised a little hope. Liang Shijun really still stood on the side of Jinyang and Bingzhou. Alas, if such a sensible person can control the state soldiers, how can their life be so difficult
Looking at the words at the end of the letter, Linghu Sheng really felt that he was getting old. If he was younger, why would he be so hesitant? With a deep sigh, he ordered: "Starting tomorrow, recruit troops outside the city!"
Early the next morning, the refugee camp outside the city was in chaos. Today, in Kaesong, the people who came were not the usual officials, but rows of soldiers holding swords and spears. How is this going? ! Did you stop accepting these refugees
"The Governor's Office has an order to recruit men over the age of 18 and under the age of 50 to join the army to assist the army in attacking Lishi!"
Hearing the order of the herald, the refugees below shouted! Why is there going to be a war? Didn't Jinyang just settle down? They fled to Jinyang City precisely to avoid military disasters. Didn't they hit the tip of the spear instead? What is the Governor's Mansion? What about their sons? What about Inspector Liang? !
Seeing that the entire refugee camp was about to explode, the messenger was sweating profusely: "Be quiet, be quiet! This is just for military service, not military households! And each family only chooses one, and the rest can wait. Enter the city!"
These words were roared loudly, and those soldiers threatened with swords and guns, and the noise was gradually suppressed, but the despair in the eyes of the refugees did not lessen much. Did you abandon your family and go to Decheng? Or drag your family and family again and go to other places to beg for food? People can't have hope, but if there is a little hope, the color of despair will become more and more intense, making people intolerable.
While the refugees and the recruiting officers were fighting each other, another large cart was snatched out of the city. Several small officials who were dressed in soapy clothes and registered in front of the city gate every day stood on the cart and said loudly: You have an order, if anyone applies, his family will be exempted from paying 20%!"
His voice was no higher than that of the previous messengers, but the power of the words "Shijun" and "Free Fu" were much greater than before. It turns out that the envoy did not give up on them, it turns out that enlisting in the army is a service force, and it can also be exempted...
A humming sound resounded in the crowd.
A man finally couldn't hold back, squeezed out of the crowd, and came to the soap-clothed officials: "Dare to ask the official, is it really just a force? Will you let me wait for the battle..."
The little official squeezed out a few smiles: "That's right. This is what my envoy asked Pei Dudu to come here. The servants are mostly responsible for the back road, escorting grain, grass and weapons for the army."
With this, the crowd loosened up by two more. Every time an army is launched, a large number of civilians will indeed be recruited, but these people often do not go into battle, just do some coolies with the army. Danger is danger, but it's better than wandering again, without a place to live. Moreover, the officials have said that this is a reward for the emperor to intercede for them. If there is no envoy to take care of you and change to other places, is there still such preferential treatment
Finally someone walked out of the line, ignoring the cries of their wives and children, and walked towards the officers and soldiers. 20% of the tax is enough to feed another child!
Seeing the men slowly gathering together, the herald and the clerk both breathed a sigh of relief. As long as someone applies, that's fine. Thanks to Liang Shijun's thorough consideration, otherwise there will be chaos outside Jinyang City!
"This Liang Zixi does have some talent for helping people." In the Governor's Mansion, Pei Dun's complexion was much better.
After the unhappy parting that day, he sent Xue Ren to the Liang Mansion and decided to share some of the benefits of the saltworks. It seems that the guy who can sell white porcelain at a sky-high price still has some greed in his heart. It didn't take long for the man to become soft. However, he also came up with a condition that recruiting good people to join the army can only be used for service, not as a regular soldier. If he is willing to give in, the governor's office will be responsible for the people.
In fact, Pei Dun doesn't know how, the newcomer is going into battle, and it is dangerously tight. Using these people to rush into the formation, it is really better to escort food and grass behind to reduce the pressure on the army. As a result, the military strength will still increase slightly, and the public grievances will also be much smaller. Anyway, the food and grass to avoid the deficit must be supplemented by the governor's house, and it will not cost him much.
In this way, together with the people that Linghu Sheng had recruited from the military households, the total force should be able to make up 20,000. It is also a fighting force.
"When will Shangdang's troops arrive?" Pei Dun asked again.
"Liang Shijun said that it will take some more time to prepare the troops and horses. Moreover, the army will start from Jinyang in unison, which is time-consuming and laborious, and it is easy to be guarded by the enemy. It is better to use the Shangdang troops and horses as a flank and enter from the direction of Guyuan. Xihe Kingdom, join our army before the battle." On the side, Liu Changshi hurriedly said.
"It's also a way. Well, in a few days, the arms and forage allocated by the imperial court should also be delivered, and this battle should be able to persevere." Pei Dun was not idle, and asked the imperial court for help early. He couldn't ask for soldiers, but food and weapons should not be a problem. Even if his brother-in-law knew what he was thinking, he would not be embarrassed. After all, Hedong County is the hinterland of Sizhou, and it is Luoyang after crossing the Yellow River. Could it be that Sima Yue can still watch Hedong fall
This battle is not only about the fate of his Pei family.
"The order goes on, all armies prepare their troops and horses, and all of them go on an expedition! Let Liang Zixi and his soldiers guard this Jinyang City."
A few days later, 3,000 civilians were reorganized and organized into civilian camps. However, no one noticed that out of the 2,000 soldiers Liang Feng brought, there were more than 300 soldiers missing.