The Red Mansions

Chapter 260
The years do not live, the seasons flow.

Into the winter, everything withered, at the end of October in Sansuke, Gyeonggi Province, a light snow fluttered down, and the cold wind picked up for a while.

However, the Guoyong battalion army led by Jia Heng swept across the east of Sanfu. Because of the investigation of the Jinyi Mansion, within ten months, the soldiers were extremely fast, and the well-equipped officers and troops had almost no suspense. They were wiped out in Weinan County. Four gangs of thieves entrenched in Shigu Mountain.

The eight or nine thousand troops took a break and entered Huayin County.

Huayin County Yamen, Yazhong, and Guoyong camp generals gathered together. In the braziers under the beams and pillars on both sides, charcoal fires ignited raging flames, and the hall was as warm as spring.

The generals gathered around a map showing Huayin's surrounding counties, towns, and mountain peaks, and their voices rang out in the hall of the county government.

The county magistrate of Huayin, the county lieutenant and other subordinate officials all looked at them with a smile, and ordered the county government servant to serve tea for the military master of the Beijing camp.

After successive battles and victories in the Shigushan suppression of the bandits, the morale of the Guoyong battalion has gradually improved, and the conversation is louder than before...well, it was also very loud before.

However, there is no doubt that there is a little more confidence now.

Dudu Tongzhi Che Zheng and Dudu Qianshi Lu He sat on the chairs beside them, sipping tea and talking, quietly watching several generals and guerrilla generals gathered around the map, discussing how to attack and suppress the bandits in Shaohua Mountain.

At this moment, there was only a deep shout from outside the hall, "General Yunhui is here."

The noisy sound in the county government office, as if the pause button was pressed, the generals huffed away from the square table and lined up to meet them. Che and Lu also got up from their seats and walked to the front.

A pair of eyes turned to the curtain in the back hall, which was held up by a brocade guard, and saw a young man in a third-rank military officer's robe and a wingless official hat, surrounded by several brocade guards in flying fish suits, entering After the bill.

"The last general (lower official) has seen Master Jia." The generals of the Guoyong camp, together with the officials of Huayin County, big and small, clasped their hands and said, the sound shook the roof tiles.

With cold eyes under Jia Heng's sword-brows, he walked past a group of generals and Huayin magistrate, and nodded to Deng Xing, the magistrate of Huayin.

The county magistrate of Huayin was born as a civil servant, and he saluted, most of which was the Shangfang sword he held.

Jia Heng sat on the chair behind the case, and said in a deep voice: "Start the discussion."

All the generals responded in unison, and behind them were two guards in brocade clothes hanging up maps.

Prestige is usually obtained by winning battles. Regardless of the gold content of the victory, prestige is born from one victory to another.

Therefore, regardless of the fact that the thieves and bandits in Shigu Mountain were incomplete and unorganized, even a second-line security force could wipe them out. .

General Shan Ming first clasped his fists and said, "Yunhui, after the four bandits on Shigu Mountain were wiped out, Sanfu was shaken, and the bandits entrenched in Shaohua Mountain must be on guard. It is rare to see signs of these bandits operating in counties and towns."

The guerrilla general Qu Guang, with an ugly face and a scar on the left side of his cheek still oozing blood, seemed to be a new addition, when he heard this, he clasped his fists and said, "The general thought they must be hiding in the depths of Shaohua Mountain and planned to fight with our army." long-term struggle."

Counselor Du Feng said in a deep voice: "I'm afraid that the bandits in Shigu Mountain will be destroyed. They have already alerted them, and they dare not fight against our army according to the stronghold. The Shaohua Mountain range is continuous. Once they hide in the deep mountains and old forests, it will be impossible to destroy them." Difficult."

Che Zheng, the commander-in-chief, also nodded, and said solemnly: "My lord, once the bandits hide in the mountains, our army's attack and arrest will also be affected."

The biggest reason for the destruction of the previous groups of bandits in Shigu Mountain was that some bottles and cans could not be smashed.

After all, after working so hard for such a long time, how can the property of the cottage and the old and young be willing to part with it?

In addition, they thought that the official army was the same as the previous ones who came to attack and suppress, and they still guarded the Shizhai, so they broke the cottage for the well-equipped official army.

Of course, this is also a helpless move.

"It's okay, now that it's winter and the weather is very cold, they can't last long if they escape into the deep mountains, and their bandit's lair can also be found." Jia Heng said in a deep voice, and continued: "According to the information of the Jinyi Mansion There are nine gangs of Shaohua bandits, large and small, with five to six thousand people. They are bound to not be able to live in the mountains for a long time. The only worry now is to prevent them from abandoning their villages and fleeing from Tongguan to Henan and other places. However, I know that the magistrate of Tongguan As well as the garrison, in the near future, we will strictly guard the pass and prevent the enemy from fleeing eastward, so as to prevent the bandits from entering Henan and engulfing the disaster victims in Henan to create chaos."

Due to successive years of natural disasters, the livelihood of the people in Henan and Shandong is difficult. If the exploitation of corrupt officials in prefectures and counties is added, it will easily lead to civil unrest.

Che Zheng frowned, and asked, "My lord, what should we do if the enemy invades us?"

Jia Heng said in a deep voice: "That's easy. I'm about to order the three auxiliary counties in the capital to set up checkpoints on the thoroughfare and main roads, to patrol and inspect the places, and the soldiers will set up nets on all sides to help suppress them. Later, I will The officials will write in advance the counties west of Huayin to take precautions in advance."

Seeing that there were no more objections from the generals, Jia Heng pondered for a moment, and said: "This time we still need to pay attention to suppression and appeasement, and forgive those who bend down to become thieves due to the hardship of life."

Afterwards, Jia Heng dispatched their own marching missions, mainly to suppress and encircle several groups of bandits in Shaohua Mountain.

When all the generals left with the military order, Jia Heng stared at the mountains and rivers on the map, but also lost his mind for a while.

Those who are good fighters have no great achievements. This time is different from the last time the bandits were suppressed on Cuihua Mountain.

At that time, with hundreds of mobs, he could only go deep into the enemy's territory and take a risky fight.

Now, he only uses righteous soldiers, and with an upright and upright division, he dispatches troops and dispatches generals, so that the more wins the less, there is no need to resort to risky tactics.

"But it's a temporary solution, not the root cause. After the suppression of bandits this time, it is inevitable that they will not make a comeback next year. Many bandits in Shigu Mountain were refugees from Nanyang, Henan and other places who entered Shaanxi from Shangzhou to eat in Sanfu. However, The land of Sanfu doesn't say that the wilderness is covered with thorns and hazels, but what I have seen along the way is that the people are naked and hungry... These are things that the rich and powerful who are drunk and dreaming in the city of Shenjing can't see." Jia Heng's eyes were deep. , with a heavy heart.

Even if you know that Chen Han has established the country for a hundred years and it has reached the middle of the dynasty, coupled with the changes in the celestial phenomena, the people's livelihood is in decline, but only by visiting on the spot can you deeply understand how miserable the people are living?

Looking at the dusty, stooped people, facing the loess and back to the sky, pushing wooden wheelbarrows, commuting between dusty villages and counties...

"There has never been any peace and hunger in this land... In the current situation, we can only streamline the army and streamline the administration, eliminate taxes, and give the people a rest. The rectification of the salt service is indeed a breakthrough. At that time, the border salaries can be eliminated, and the people will be given first. Take a breath, but simply rectifying the salt affairs is not enough, another breakthrough is to refresh the bureaucracy...Officials do not have a living." Jia Heng seems to understand the political pursuit of the governor of Jingzhao in Shenjing City.

Thinking about where Xu Deqing traveled, he had already seen the current Chen Han.

At this moment, Deng Xing, the magistrate of Huayin County, looked at the young dignitary standing in front of the map with a puzzled expression, his brows furrowed, and his eyes were fixed on Shang Fang's sword, which he couldn't move away for a long time.

And Jia Heng also seemed to be aware of it, turned his head to look at Deng Xing, the magistrate of Huayin County, and asked: "How does Mr. Deng arrange the refugees who entered Shaanxi from Henan, Shandong and other places?"

This county magistrate of Huayin was also a Jinshi. He had served as an official in Huayin for two years, and his official reputation was acceptable.

Hearing this, Deng Xing sighed, and said, "Yun Hui, after the refugees entered Shaanxi, they all wanted to go to Shenjing City to seek a living, but Shenjing City was also overwhelmed. The land and grain fields are for him to cultivate, but Yunhui also knows that there are spare fields in Sansuke's land? Besides, those refugees all abandoned their grain fields at home and went to live elsewhere."

Jia Heng was silent for a moment, then said slowly: "The land of Sanfu is naturally rich, and the country's vassals and nobles mostly buy farmland in townships, counties, and townships. There is no surplus land for the victims to cultivate."

Of course, the small and medium-sized gentry in Jiangsu, Zhejiang, and Huguang did not make too much land annexation.

Therefore, it is not very good to do farming on the spot.

The problem is not that there is no land to grow, but that these victims have no choice but to abandon their grain fields in Shandong and Henan because of poor harvests and heavy taxes and corvees.

In the villages, the policy of protecting the family is basically adopted. One or two households flee, and the remaining households have to bear the remaining taxes and corvees, which will naturally cause a chain reaction.

Jia Heng sighed, and said: "If the livelihood problems of these people are not resolved, there will still be a steady stream of bandits in Sansuke."

"What Yun Hui said is very true." Hearing this, Deng Xing agreed with the young man in front of him.

Let me ask, how could any military general consider the issue of people's livelihood? It's no wonder that this person was trusted by the Holy Spirit before he reached the age of weak crown, and bestowed him with a sword.

Jia Heng pondered for a moment, and said: "Next year, the imperial court will cut most of the grain tax and corvee in Henan and Shandong, and the plight of the refugees will be greatly alleviated. The army is supported and driven by the state's wealth."

Instead of serving as civilian thieves, instead of filling some of them into the soldiers of the Beijing camp, the other part can actually realize large-scale military and civilian settlements in Shandong, Henan and other provinces, gather 10 manpower, build water conservancy, and produce self-help.

But the latter has a lot to do with it. Who will be in charge of the military and civilian villages?
This requires capable ministers and officials to preside over it.

"The governors of Henan and Shandong are now members of the Qi Party. Next year, the taxes of these two places will be exempted. It depends on whether the governors of these places can integrate manpower and material resources to control one side." Jia Heng frowned slightly, thought.

In the small-scale peasant economy, the ability of each family to resist risks is very weak, and it is very easy to go bankrupt, because the government only appears when collecting taxes, and cannot use administrative means to integrate resources and resist risks and natural disasters.

Therefore, it is very important to refresh the administration of officials and improve administrative efficiency.

The so-called, things can be achieved by people, and things can't be defeated by people.

The government is corrupt, even if the people are confiscated to dig rivers, or they think they can do it for work, it is a toss!
This is the same as the fact that the Yellow River was flooded in the Yuan Dynasty, but some ministers advocated not to repair the embankment, because corrupt officials, with their hands, can turn good things into bad things for you.

Mo Dao Shiren has one eye, provoking the Yellow River to rebel against the world.

"As for the cycle of the dynasty, millions of people died, and they committed suicide, which made it easier for foreigners." Jia Heng thought deeply, and sighed again.

"My lord, Qu Qianhu and Song Canjun are back." Just as Jia Heng was thinking, a guard in brocade clothes entered the county government office and cupped his hands.

Jia Heng heard the words and ordered: "Let them go to the inner hall to talk."

As he spoke, he nodded to Deng Xing, then turned back to the inner hall.

Not long after, Qu Lang and Song Yuan, a thousand households in brocade clothes, strode over from the outside.

The two entered the inner hall, saluted and stopped. Jia Heng put down the teacup in his hand and asked, "Have all the refugees been included in the military register?"

Guoyong Battalion, as one of the 9000th regiment battalions, had a strength of more than [-] soldiers, and more than [-] vacancies were found. These soldiers must be filled.

As for the source of troops from the Sanfu of Gyeonggi, it is not as good as recruiting soldiers from the refugees, but also as Jia Heng said more than once before, to support and drive them with the state's wealth.

Song Yuandao: "According to my lord's orders, with the cooperation of the prefect of Shangzhou, [-] young and strong were selected from the refugees who entered Shaanxi from Henan and Shandong provinces, but many of them dragged their families with them. There is a sense of powerlessness.”

The first army of the Guoyong Battalion, because it was originally in the hands of the first-class Bo Niu Jizong, ranked among the top three battalion leaders in terms of number of troops in the twelve regiment battalions.

There are more than 2000 soldiers in the quota, and now there are only [-] soldiers on the list. Including the soldiers killed in the suppression of bandits some time ago, there are only [-] left, a difference of nearly [-].

No one would think that there are too many soldiers under his command. If he does not replenish them, the number of soldiers will be reduced by the Ministry of War.

Jia Heng pondered for a moment, then said: "Then organize the 6000 people from the Fuhe Guoyong Battalion into one camp, with 500 people per battalion, and temporarily organize [-] new recruit battalions. , continue to recruit refugees into the army until it is fully replenished, otherwise these refugees will only be robbers and harass the local area."

"Yes." Song Yuan and Qu Lang replied.

He did this to reserve soldiers for the new army. As for why he recruited refugees instead of recruiting soldiers from the original Sanfu counties?

One is to worry about bringing down the atmosphere of the Beijing camp.

The second is an inhumane mind. Compared with the local source of soldiers in Shenjing City, when recruiting soldiers from the province to enter Beijing, they can only rely on him.

This is the reason why he is not interested in rectifying the Beijing camp. Even if he is appointed as the governor of the Beijing camp, without the support of the direct lineage cultivated by himself, he has to work for a long time, and in the end he will make wedding dresses for others.

Because the emperor can give him power, he can naturally take it back.

But it is different to build a new army from the beginning to the end. As the founders of the new army, many of them are selected by themselves, and the soldiers are also from Hakka province. Everyone followed.

The new army with nearly ten thousand lines of new drills and new guns will surely be a decisive military force in Shenjing City.

"A lot of things, don't look at everything right now, but when you change your mind, if you don't have any strength at all, you can only be a man for a knife, and I am a fish... let others slaughter you."

Jia Heng thought about it.

In the Twelfth Regiment of the Beijing Camp, after the suppression of bandits, he was able to take charge of the Guoyong Camp completely as he wished, which was the limit.

Regardless of merit, seniority, or age, he is not qualified to be the governor of the Beijing camp.

(End of this chapter)