Fenghou

Jiwang Slope is like a pot cover laid flat by the Qinling Mountains, which is about six or seven feet higher than the valley, equivalent to the height of a six-story building, and the overall direction is higher in the south and lower in the north. high.

Walking to the foot of the Qinling Mountains, the capital leaders pointed to a crack less than one person wide and said, "Commander, the creek flows out of the crack."

Chen Qing looked at the crack. It was dark inside and bottomless. The rock wall was covered with layers of vines, and a stream flowed out of it.

"How deep is it?"

Wang Zhong smiled wryly and said: "We have investigated, but we can't reach the bottom with a three-foot-long bamboo pole, and people can't get in. We asked the local herdsmen, and they said that this stream has existed for hundreds of years."

"There are herdsmen here?"

"There are some, but not many, who make a living by herding sheep. They have been transferred to Hanzhong last month."

Chen Qing's heart moved, and he quickly asked: "How is the winter here?"

"It will snow in winter, but the road will not be blocked by heavy snow. Cavalry can walk on snow."

"Then in winter, does the water source freeze?"

Wang Zhong shook his head, "It's just a layer of ice on the surface, but there is still water flowing underneath. The same is true for the Fang River in front. The water at the bottom of the river does not freeze, and you can dig ice holes for fishing."

The Fang River is a small river that runs through the West Valley. It is formed by the streams of the Qinling Mountains, flows to the west, and finally flows into the Wei River. Their small stream is one of the three sources of the Fang River.

But what Chen Qing was worried about was that the creek would freeze in winter, which would make it difficult for them to drink water. Since the bottom of the creek did not freeze, he was relieved.

Chen Qing looked at the surrounding environment again, the surrounding area was empty, and the military camp was still two hundred steps away.

Chen Qing shook his head and said: "The construction of this military camp is unreasonable. If the Jurchens climb up the mountain, we will directly cut off our water source."

Yang Yuanqing also said: "There is indeed this problem. I suggest building two stone walls, or extending the barracks."

Wang Zhong also blushed and said: "We discovered this problem at the beginning of our stationing, and responded upwards, but there has been no response."

"Who did you respond to?"

"Those who responded to Qiao Junjun were humble and illiterate, so they could only respond verbally, not in writing."

"Don't worry about the arrangements above, let's do it ourselves and extend the barracks. Lao Yang, I will leave this matter to you. We will start working on it tomorrow. Let's see how we do it?"

"Remember the humble job!"

Chen Qing waved his hand, "Let's go down the slope to check around again."

The generals got on their horses and rode down the hillside.

The reason why Jiwangpo is called a strategic location is also related to its own terrain. Its overall terrain is higher in the north than in the south, and the rocks on the east and west sides are relatively steep. Zhang Gao, which made it difficult for the army to attack from the east and west.

Of course, it is another thing to climb up with a ladder, but the main passage of Jiwangpo is on the north side, and there is a gap about twenty feet wide. Along this gap, war horses and heavy siege weapons can push come up.

The construction of the barracks is also mainly expanded from east to west, and it is built close to the east-west cliffs. Even if the enemy troops climb up with ladders, there is no place to stand.

However, enemy soldiers can also climb up and gather in the open space in the north to attack the camp wall from the north, so the main defense points of the barracks are in the north and south.

Finding a space, Chen Qing asked Yang Yuanqing in a low voice, "Who is this Qiao Junjun?"

Yang Yuanqing explained: "This Qiao Junjun is called Qiao Wenshou, and he is in charge of the approval of each army's garrison. He is actually not a big problem. The main reason is that the leader of the capital is soft-spoken and there is no written report, so the problems he reported are not taken seriously."

"It's not a matter of people talking lightly! The facts are here, there are loopholes in the camp, can he turn a blind eye?"

Zheng Ping said dissatisfiedly from behind: "Old Yang, when are you still afraid of offending others, you have to tell the truth to the commander!"

Yang Yuanqing blushed, and said hastily: "It's wrong to be humble. I'm used to self-protection. I forgot that the commander is different from them."

Chen Qing understood his difficulties. Yang Yuanqing was more tactful and did not have the background of Zheng Ping, but his immediate boss was Fu Xuan. It was not easy for him this year.

"Just tell the truth!"

Yang Yuanqing nodded and said: "Actually speaking, it is still related to the official structure of Dasanguan. The envoy Xuanfu did not allow one general to dominate, so he emptied Wu Dutong's power.

Only in wartime, Xuanfu envoy will appoint Wu Jie as the chief general, and Wu Jie is only the chief general in name at ordinary times, and all the commanders don't have to buy his account.

Not only that, all kinds of money, food and materials are in the hands of civil officials, and civil officials are directly under Zhang Jun. At present, the Sima of the Western Army is called Qu Hongyuan. In his hands, and he obeyed the order of Xuanfu envoy.

Now the leader understands!Why can't the pension be paid out, the money, food and materials are all in the hands of Qu Sima, Wu Dutong and Wang Dutong are powerless! "

"What if we enter a wartime state?" Chen Qing asked again.

"After entering the wartime state, Wu Dutong will be appointed as the wartime general, and Qu Sima will hand over part of the wartime supplies to him. Wu Dutong will have certain powers. It has not yet entered the wartime state. Wu Dutong The president promised to allocate the materials today, but we all felt that it was impossible. Wu Dutong had to write an application, and then approved it layer by layer. Finally, the envoy signed and agreed. At least three days later, or even five to ten days, the commander It’s best to go to the Xuanfu envoy and implore him to approve it quickly.”

Only then did Chen Qing understand the twists and turns, he nodded, "Tomorrow I'll go find a pacifier!"

……

Wu Jie rushed into Sima's big tent angrily, and threw the material allocation application form on Qu Hongyuan's desk, "Why did I have to return the application form I wrote?"

Qu Hongyuan was about forty years old. He was born as a Jinshi. He was a typical white-faced scholar. He was Zhang Jun's confidant. , Changed the sentence to Sima, the Xuanfu envoy of Sichuan and Shaanxi, and Zhang Jun appointed him as Marquis of Duyu, with the power of money, food and materials.

Qu Hongyuan is narrow-minded, but on the surface he is very self-cultivated, he is not angry, he still smiled and said: "Wu Dutong has applied for 3000 people for the Qinzhou Army, but according to the investigation, they only have 800 people at present. , did not match the number of applicants, so I returned it and asked Wu Dutong to revise it."

Wu Jie's stomach was about to explode. He gritted his teeth and said, "When did the allocation of supplies match the actual army? Isn't it normal to give [-] to [-]% more supplies?"

Qu Hongyuan squinted his eyes and said: "That's what I said, but the power to give more materials is in the hands of the Xuanfu envoy, and how much the Xuanfu envoy will give is his business, but Wu Dutong should apply truthfully. It's embarrassing for the officials!"

Wu Jie also knew that he couldn't offend this narrow-minded Sima, so he forced himself to calm down and said, "The Qinzhou Army only has 800 people now, but there were originally 180 people in the barracks, and adding them together makes it 3000 people. There is nothing wrong with applying."

"Then Wu Dutong needs to write it clearly! Including the 200 people in the original barracks, I don't care about the difference of 20 people. Please write a note next to Wu Dutong."

Wu Jie endured his anger and wrote a note next to it, "That's all right!"

"That's fine, I'll take care of it as soon as possible."

"Then I don't know when the money, food and supplies will be allocated?"

Qu Hongyuan smiled and said: "Wu Dutong knows that everything needs to go through formalities, and it will take three to five days at the earliest."

"what?"

Wu Jie's eyes widened, "They only brought dry food for two days, you want them to wait for three or five days?"

"Then I have no choice. Who told them not to apply earlier?"

"If you apply early and you don't have an army, then you won't be able to pass. Do you want to call back?"

"That's none of my business. I just follow the rules. If Wu Dutong thinks the rules are unreasonable, he can go to the Xuanfu envoy!"

Wu Jie shook his head, and said slowly: "When the Jurchens kill you, you can discuss the rules with them!"

He turned and left angrily.

Watching Wu Jie go away, Qu Hongyuan snorted coldly, "Hold me, see if I don't kill you!"

Chapter 116 The Iron Cage

Wu Jie found Zhang Jun, who had just finished his lunch and was about to take a nap.

After listening to Wu Jie's report with squinted eyes, Zhang Jun said with a gentle smile, "Qu Sima is a man of principles, and it is precisely because of this that the Commander-in-Chief chose him to be Sima. You must be considerate of each other!"

"How about the supply of food and grass for the Qinzhou Army? They can't last for a few days."

There was a slight hint of displeasure in Zhang Jun's eyes, and he murmured for a moment, "How about this! Take some of your army's grain, grass, and supplies for them to eat temporarily, and return them to you after his money, grain, and supplies are approved. This time, the situation is special. The commander-in-chief agrees to accommodate."

Wu Jie knew that Zhang Jun would not give special approval, so he pondered for a while and said: "Commander, Wanyan Wushu is already patrolling Monk Yuan, and the Jin soldiers may have entered the combat state, but our armies are still relatively lax, I beg the Marshal to agree The Song army has entered a wartime state."

Entering the combat state means that Zhang Jun will hand over power to Wu Jie, and he still needs to think about it.

"When Fu Xuan and Wang Yan hand over the military power tomorrow, the commander-in-chief will call everyone to discuss it. If everyone thinks it is necessary to enter a wartime state, the commander-in-chief will issue an order."

"I understand, I don't want to disturb the commander-in-chief's rest."

At this time, a soldier reported at the door: "Marshal, Chen Qing, the envoy of the Qinzhou government, is asking to see you!"

Zhang Jun glanced at Wu Jie, then smiled and said, "Let him in!"

Wu Jie retreated with his fists clasped, and when he reached the door of the tent, he happened to meet Chen Qing. He gave Chen Qing a wink, and then walked away quickly.

Chen Qing walked into the big tent, knelt down on one knee and saluted, "See you for the humble post!"

Zhang Jun smiled and said: "How about it, the establishment of the Qinzhou Army is going well!"

"It's relatively smooth so far. Wang Dutong has allocated part of the army to the humble ranks. Thank you for the approval of the commander-in-chief."

Zhang Jun waved his hand, "It's nothing. You are from the Eight Character Army. Of course, your army should be transferred from the Eight Character Army. If you transfer someone else's army, they may not agree. It's just a little wronged. Fu Dutong, I will explain it to him."

Chen Qing took out a booklet and presented it to Zhang Jun with both hands, "This is the plan for the establishment of the Qinzhou Army by a humble official, please take a look at it."

Zhang Jun looked at it seriously, thought for a moment and said: "You have to change it later. The idea is correct, but the order needs to be changed. Instead of dealing with the Jin soldiers first, first clear the fortress separatist regime in Qinzhou, and then Then consider dealing with Jin Bing, only in this way, the emperor will officially approve your Qinzhou army plan, there are differences between inside and outside, this is very important."

"Humble job understands!"

Zhang Jun returned the plan to him and said with a smile, "Are there any difficulties now?"

Chen Qing bowed and said, "Reporting to the Commander, the lowly job is short of money, food and materials, and the army can only last for two days. Could you allocate the money and food earlier?"

Zhang Jun nodded, "According to the rules, it needs to be reviewed step by step, but your situation is special, so I will give you special approval."

He wrote a note to Chen Qing, "Take this note to Qu Sima, he will send the money, food and supplies there today, and if you need any special supplies, you can bring them to him."

"Thank you, Commander-in-Chief!"

Chen Qing took out another letter, "This is a letter of safety from the humble official to Lu Xiang. I implore the commander-in-chief to deliver the official documents as soon as possible."

"I see, let's go! This handsome is going to take a nap."

Chen Qing put the letter on the table, bowed his fists and left. Zhang Jun thought for a while, and then said to a soldier: "Go and tell Qu Sima, the Qinzhou Army was specially approved by me this time, so don't make an exception!"

It's not that Zhang Jun is unwilling to give special approval, but he wants to take the favor, not Wu Jie.

Zhang Jun received a letter from Lu Yihao, asking him to support Chen Qing a little without losing his principles. The letter faintly revealed that Chen Qing might become his grandson-in-law, and this information was very important.

Lu Yihao is the prime minister of the imperial court, and he is a middle-of-the-road faction. He has won the trust of the officials and his position is very stable. Recently, he has thwarted Qin Hui's attempt to take advantage of Chen Qing's affairs, and his prestige in the court has further increased. If Zhang Jun wants to return to the court, he must get the support of Lu Yihao , Lu Yihao's entrustment, of course he will do his best.

……

Chen Qing first came to Wu Jie's big tent. Wu Jie read the note Zhang Jun wrote to him, and said with a wry smile, "I begged for this note, but I still couldn't get it. People are getting more and more uncomfortable with the officialdom.”

"This situation has been going on for hundreds of years, so why should Dutong worry about it?"

Wu Jie was very distressed and said: "Before it was not my turn, so I didn't feel it. Now it's my turn, and I have a deep understanding. This system of civilian officials restraining generals is like an iron cage, locking you in it. , not being able to stretch your arms and legs makes you extremely miserable, but you have to endure it.”

Chen Qing said coldly: "Since Dutong doesn't like this iron cage, he might as well break free and smash it!"

Wu Jie was taken aback, he just complained, but he didn't expect Chen Qing's thoughts to be so radical.

He didn't dare to continue, so he quickly changed the subject: "I came to you about the ownership of the five hundred god arm troops. I discussed with several commanders, and everyone agreed to compete in riding and archery. Of course you can't." Participate, if you participate, everyone will be out of the game, you can send a command envoy or general to participate in the competition, the time is on the ninth morning of October, and the place is at the Dasanguan school grounds, you'd better come one day in advance."

Chen Qing immediately thought of Yang Zaixing and sent him to fight for this army.

"Remember the humble job!"

"Is there anything else going on at the barracks?" Wu Jie asked again with a smile.

"The humble staff found that the construction of the barracks was unreasonable and did not consider the protection of water sources. Once a war broke out, it was easy to be cut off by the golden soldiers."

Wu Jie understood what Chen Qing was talking about, and he asked solemnly, "Then what are you going to do?"

"Xiaozhi wants to expand the barracks to the foot of the Qinling Mountains, and build two more walls to protect the water source."

Wu Jie nodded and said, "I have an engineering army of 2000 people. You have to think about the plan clearly. I will send them to Jiwangpo the day after tomorrow to help you build the barracks. You don't need to prepare all kinds of materials. They will carry them by themselves!"

……

Coming out of Wu Jie, Chen Qing went to visit Wang Yan again, but learned that he was ordered to go to Hanzhong and would not be back until tomorrow. Perhaps Zhang Jun was afraid that something bad would happen in the last day, so he simply transferred Wang Yan away.

When Chen Qing finally came to Sima Daying, Qu Hongyuan had already been instructed, and when he saw the note, he immediately changed his face, smiled to accompany him, and repeatedly promised to deliver the money, food and supplies before dark. As for Chen Qing, he was special. He asked for two military doctors and a dozen mule carts, and he agreed.

Less than an hour after Chen Qing returned to the Jiwangpo camp, the first batch of supplies, 500 shi of grain and [-] dans of fodder, were delivered. This was based on the standard of [-] people for two months. rations, and five hundred war horses for two months.

The barracks immediately became lively, and the soldiers rushed to carry the food. If there were no accidents, there would still be a large amount of meat and vegetables to be delivered today.

In the big tent of the Chinese army, Chen Qing held the first military affairs meeting, and all the generals who were going to be generals and above participated in the meeting.

"Today is considered a day off for the brothers. The formal training will start tomorrow, and we will gather at [-] o'clock in the morning for roll call. Everyone knows my rules. You are allowed to be late for a while on the first day, and you will be late again on the second day. If you are late for three consecutive days from the beginning of the day, or five times in a month, you will be beheaded for public display!"

Chen Qing glanced at the crowd, no one had any objection, even Yang Zaixing did not speak, he continued: "Then there is training, running, squatting, saber and spear skills, bow and crossbow, and night battles, I know this The army is relatively elite, but it is far from enough. My requirement is that every soldier can fight a Jurchen cavalry alone, and can fight against the puppet army by one against three, or even one against five. This requires hard work and sweat. There are no shortcuts!"

Seeing that everyone had no objections, Chen Qing went on to the third point, "I need to make several personnel appointments. The commander of the first battalion is Yang Yuanqing, the commander of the third battalion is Zheng Ping, and the commander of the third battalion is concurrently my post. As the deputy commander, set up a scout battalion, with Zhao Xiaoyi as the commander, Hu Yanlei as the deputy commander, and set up a logistics battalion, with Hu Yanyun as the commander."

Huyanyun and Huyanlei are Huyanjia and Huyanding. One of their real names is Xie Yun and the other is Liang Lei. Chen Qing changed their names. Under Chen Qing's repeated persuasion, they also agreed to join the army for one year. , on the side of the Huyan family, Chen Qing wrote a letter to explain.

The two people, Hu Yanyun, are honest and patient. He is suitable to be in charge of logistics. Hu Yanlei is thoughtful and careful.

As for Yang Zaixing, with his martial arts and talent, he can be the commander, but he lacks qualifications. Chen Qing thought of a compromise method, and let Yang Zaixing be the deputy commander. In fact, Yang Zaixing holds the real power.

In the army, since seniority is important, talent is also important. Seniority alone is not enough, and talent alone is not enough. Only the combination of the two can convince the masses.

Of course, seniority does not refer to how many years he has been in the army, but military merit. Otherwise, Chen Qing would be promoted to commander after only one year in the army, wouldn't it be because of his outstanding military exploits?