Chapter 356 C-character scroll grasps seven inches

Feng Tang was greatly shocked.

 After two years of not seeing each other, my son has changed more and more, and some ideas and opinions have been vaguely formed, and he has begun to consider issues from the perspective of the overall situation of the imperial court.

 Although there are still many things to be discussed here, I have to admit that from a general perspective, this is correct.

Beiyuan has been in an unstable state since it withdrew from the Central Plains. However, the Wara under its control first dealt a heavy blow to the Qianming Dynasty. Later, the Tatars under the control of Anda Khan also posed a great threat to the Great Zhou Dynasty. , but various factors contributed to the final achievement of the tribute, which maintained a state of relative peace between Tatar and the Great Zhou for more than 20 years.

But this state of peace is only relative. After Anda's death, the already fragile balance was broken, whether it was Chahar on the left, Tumut on the right, or the Mongolian tribes in the West Sea. , all intermittently harassed the borders of the Great Zhou Dynasty, and also brought great trouble to the Great Zhou Dynasty. It was in such a state that the Nine Borders were slowly formed.

Since Jiubian had to maintain a huge military force in order to prevent invasion from the north, the Jiubian military salary became the biggest noose for Da Zhou's household department, making Da Zhou breathless at any time.

As Feng Ziying said, the peace on the northern border of the Great Zhou actually depends on the attitude of the Tatars, which is very dangerous.

 To regain the initiative, the only way is to become stronger.

 But if this is temporarily difficult to achieve, we can only adopt some strategic measures, such as dividing and disintegrating, suppressing the strong and supporting the weak, and using the resource advantages of Da Zhou to act as a balancing hand.

But there are still many problems to be solved when it comes to specific operations, especially in the Ningxia counter-insurgency war.

"Xiu Ling, what do you think of Feng Zitang?" Chai Ke stood on the wall of Yulin Acropolis with his hands on his back, and the guards were ten steps away.

The howling northwest wind carries the unique sand and dust of the Loess Plateau in varying sizes. You only need to stand on the city wall and burn an incense stick to pick up a layer of fine yellow dust.

“He is a seasoned general who has worked in Datong Town for more than ten years. If he were to replace him, Yulin Town would be in danger.” Yang He said calmly.

Yang He was not familiar with military affairs and had been working as a censor before, but he had seen a lot. As a friend who was familiar with military affairs said before he came here, to see how good a general is, you only need to look at the logistics and supply situation.

Therefore, as the right-hand censor of the capital procuratorate, he went directly to the registration and preparation of the grain, fodder and military supplies of the various guards and tribes in Yulin Town.

 This is the responsibility of him and the two censors from the Metropolitan Procuratorate he brought with him.

After watching it for two days, although it cannot be said that the troops are well-prepared, the logistics are still relatively well prepared. Cross the Yuxi River to the west via Baoning Fort to Boluo Fort, or go south from Xiangshui Fort to Boluo Fort, along the From the south bank of Wuding River to the west to the east bank of Lu River, it passes through Huaiyuan, Wuwei and Qingping Longzhou.

He led two censor soldiers in two groups, one to check the preparation of supplies including grain, weapons and arrows, and the other to check the equipment of the inns along the route.

"Oh? Xiu Ling thinks so highly of Feng Zitang?" Chai Ke also had a good impression of Feng Zitang, but he didn't expect that Yang He would actually comment like this. "A man of old age seeks for the country." This sentence was placed on a military general, and it came from the new appointee of the Metropolitan Procuratorate. According to the censor of Youqiandu, Chai Ke didn't believe that he praised Qiao Yingjia and Feng Ziying so much just because they had a teacher-student relationship.

"Brother Zishu, I haven't had much contact with military affairs before, and I can even say that I don't know much about military affairs. But I once heard a saying that the most important thing to look at a general's ability is not whether he can charge into battle and win the three armies bravely, but whether he can If you can’t strategize without leaving any stone unturned, the simplest way is to look at his preparations in terms of logistical support. If this is done well, the general will basically be invincible.”

"Oh?" Chai Ke tasted it carefully, but finally nodded. I have to say that this sentence makes a lot of sense, especially around the Great Zhou Dynasty, it makes even more sense.

"Feng has only been here for two years since Tang Dynasty. I don't think it's difficult to say that he can convince the soldiers in Datong if he can obey orders and prohibitions. But here, his prestige is not low. I observed it carefully and it can be said that the soldiers obey orders. I don’t know how it was done.”

Yang He continued: "I took the opportunity of these two days to check the food and fodder preparations myself. Although the defects were insufficient, they were all within the acceptable range, even better than my estimate. The three sides and four towns cannot count on peace and prosperity. Liaodong Prefecture is better than Liaodong, so it’s not bad. In addition, at the inns along the line, according to regulations, there are two masters per fort, ten donkeys, and sufficient fodder. I checked the four inns, only one station has eight donkeys, and the others are full. Hehe, can I Yang is somewhat impressed by his ability to do this.”

"But Xiu Ling, I think Feng Zitang seems to be lacking in courage. It's not that he is afraid of war, but I think he is a bit conservative. You say he is a well-equipped soldier, but on the front lines of Tianshui Fort and Xiamaguan Fort, He had the advantage but refused to let go and fight. If he had dared to be bolder at that time and let He Shixian attack with all his strength, Anbian Suo, Qinggang Gorge and even Pinglu Suo might not have been captured by the rebels in one fell swoop."

At this point, Chai Ke felt embarrassed. He Shixian's troops actually had an absolute advantage in Raoyang Water Fort, Sanshan Fort, and Tianshui Fort. They won both battles, but they refused to go beyond the limit and stopped at Sanshan Pass. .

Yang He laughed dumbly. Chai Ke thought of these veterans too simply.

 Feng Zitang had several ups and downs in the Tang Dynasty. How could he easily cross the line?

He Shixian is also a veteran. Don’t you know where Qinggang Gorge and Anbian are? That is the territory of Guyuan Town!

Without Feng Zitang's military order, He Shixian dared to fight across the border, but Feng Zitang dared to march according to law.

There is also no military order from the Ministry of War or Chai Ke, the governor of the three sides. If Feng Zitang dared to issue this order, Yang He would dare to impeach him immediately and make him stand down immediately.

Sudden changes are within the scope of your own authority. Within the territory of Yulin Town, you, the commander-in-chief, can give orders as you please. If you exceed the limit, there is no authorization from the Ministry of War or the Governor. Except for the trusted civil servants who dare to play this trick, and the military generals to play this trick, then It's just asking for trouble.

How could Feng Zitang risk the lives of his family for the gain and loss of Guyuan Town?

"Brother Zishu, your demands are a bit too high. These veteran military generals have been immersed in the land of Jiubian for so many years. They know the ways here very well. Without the decree of the imperial court, I can achieve this step." I think it has exceeded our expectations, and I can conclude that even after the Datong soldiers arrive, they may not be able to reach the level of Yulin Town." Yang He said with a smile.

"What Xiu Ling said makes sense. Maybe my expectations for Feng Zitang are too high." Chai Ke also laughed and his mood improved a lot. It should be that the preparations for war in Yulin Town made him feel more relaxed, and he was also in a good mood. Defeating the rebels is a little more certain.

“The Datong soldiers will arrive the day after tomorrow, and the imperial court has already sent several decrees.” Yang He looked to the west, “I’m afraid the imperial court will not allow any further delay.”

"But the situation in Gansu Town is still unclear, and if the Tatars remain outside the border wall, the number of soldiers that Yulin Town can draw out will be too few." This is the biggest worry in Chai Ke's heart, "Feng Zitang has always I don’t agree with Youshi Gongbu’s effort.”

As the governor of the three sides, Chai Ke certainly has full authority to command the troops and horses of the three sides and four towns, but as the chief military officer, he must respect Feng Tang's opinion. If he cannot convince Feng Tang, it will always be difficult to reassure people when this battle is fought.

Yang He was silent for a long time, and then slowly said: "Brother Zishu, can King Shunyi be authorized?"

Chai Ke also hesitated for a moment and then said: "Your Majesty also told me before leaving that if you have to, you can do something expedient on the throne of King Shunyi, but you must consider the overall situation in the future, and you cannot leave any trouble for the sake of convenience."

"In this case, we might as well recruit Feng Tang. I believe he must have considered this aspect." Yang He said decisively: "He has been in close contact with various ministries outside the Great Wall since his time. It's just that there is a bottom line, otherwise..."

Chai Ke was startled, his eyes seemed to be in disbelief, "Xiu Ling, you mean..."

"Brother Zishu, you have been in the Metropolitan Procuratorate for a short period of time, so you don't know much about the situation on the Nine Borders. Which one of the general soldiers and deputy general soldiers on the Nine Borders has no contact with the Tatars outside the border wall? Making a living is the most ordinary, and many people even work together to make a living, but some people have a bottom line, while others are unscrupulous."

Yang He spoke more and more casually.

"The Feng family has been operating in Datong Town for decades. From Feng Qin, Feng Han to Feng Tang, among the Tatar tribes outside the Great Wall, and domestic and foreign merchants, who dares not to recognize the Feng family? Even the Ma family is inferior to the Feng family. , it’s just that after Feng Qin and Feng Han passed away, only Feng Tang was left, and the number of people was small, so the Ma family slowly caught up."

“You are saying that Feng Zitang was dismissed four years ago because of...” Chai Ke became more and more shocked.

"Didn't I say it? Feng Zitang has a bottom line, but it doesn't mean that he has no friendship with the Tatar tribes. Huh, I'm afraid it doesn't matter whether it's Li Ke, Sanniang Zi, Su Nang Taiji, etc. Whether it’s the fortune-telling rabbit or the strength rabbit, they all have had a close relationship with Feng Zitang.” Yang He said calmly: “Feng Zitang was impeached and dismissed four years ago. I didn’t know it at the time, but I knew more about it later. He went to the Fan family and Jin family in Shanxi, but they spent a lot of effort to find some clues about him. Someone in our Procuratorate also ordered him to be dismissed from his post, so..."

“If that’s the case, then how could Feng Tang be willing to take the risk of getting involved in this muddy water?” Chai Ke frowned.

Yang He was happy, "Brother Zishu, please don't say that you brought Feng Keng here just to admire him. This would be too hypocritical."

Chai Ke also laughed and shook his head, but said nothing.

"Brother Zishu, you might as well make it clear to Feng Zitang. He may not care about himself, but Feng Keng is his only son, and he cares about his future more than anyone else." Yang He smiled coldly.

 (End of this chapter)