Chinese New Year

Chapter 480: Deepening (Additional chapter for Alliance Leader Jian V)

The horses' hooves rose up, stirring up the snow high.

Arrows flew through the air, capturing one prey after another.

A strong wind blew up from the earth, and soon died down.

Snowflakes and ice crystals fluttered down, and a fox leaped across the snow-white field like lightning and ran towards the forest on the other side.

"I'll do it!" Shao Xun was overjoyed. He spurred his horse forward, drew out his horn bow, aimed for a while, and was about to shoot the fox to the ground, but he heard a sound of breaking air, and an arrow flew away, nailing the fox to the ground before he could.

"Whoa--" Shao Xun reined in his horse, and his personal soldiers also stopped and circled in the snow, trying to find out who was so ignorant as to steal Mr. Chen's prey.

"Clang, clang..." A horseman galloped out quickly, and when he reached the fox, he reached out and picked up the still warm corpse in his arms, without slowing down at all.

After a while, he turned around and stopped not far away.

Everyone around was looking at him.

This person was a little at a loss, and even a little annoyed. He stared back at these people with wide eyes, looking very wild.

The atmosphere in the field became somewhat stagnant.

Shao Xun also looked at this person steadily.

The man finally felt something was wrong. He muttered a few words and his fierce aura gradually subsided.

Shao Xun suddenly laughed, jumped off his horse, and said, "What a great archery skill!"

The man also dismounted and subconsciously handed the prey in his arms back.

Shao Xun pushed him back directly, looked him up and down, turned around and smiled at the people around him: "He has a burly figure and looks like a strong infantryman. I didn't expect him to be so brave on horseback."

The bodyguards didn't react for a moment, and only a few of them echoed him.

Liu Ling looked the man up and down and felt a little displeased because he looked like he was quite good at fighting.

Yuan Xi took just one look and then looked away. He then took two steps forward calmly, sandwiched between this man and Shao Xun.

Cai Chengze looked at Shao Xun closely, waiting for his order.

The prey hunters became even more nervous.

Shao Xun picked up the man's horn bow, looked at it, and asked Cai Cheng to take a bow tip from the scabbard. After stringing and calibrating it himself, he handed it to the man and said, "A brave warrior should be equipped with a good bow. This bow is a reward for you."

After saying that, he turned around and looked at the others, saying, "It is only natural for a warrior to be rewarded. You all need to hone your skills well, and you will all be rewarded in the future."

"Yes." Everyone bowed to the ground and responded in unison.

The man holding the gifted bow was stunned for a moment, then prostrated himself at Shao Xun's feet.

Shao Xun laughed happily and said, "I really wish all the heroes in the world would come to serve me. Let's go roast some meat and drink some wine."

Everyone stood up, cheered and surrounded Shao Xun as he moved forward.

The grill was quickly set up, and venison, rabbit, and pheasant were sizzling in the blazing fire.

The big pot was also buried, with hot water bubbling and a fragrant aroma.

Shao Xun and Wu Qian sat together, looking at the mountains, fields and villages in the distance, feeling extremely leisurely.

"You've worked really hard over the past year. After you come back this time, don't travel far anymore. Stay at home and enjoy your retirement. I also want to see more of you old brothers." Shao Xun handed the wine bag to Wu Qian.

Wu Qian picked it up, took a sip, and sighed, "This old bone really can't be tossed around any more."

At the end, she said with a little sadness: "When I met you, I was already fifty years old. It was too late."

"Why do you say it's too late?" Shao Xun said, "Your sons and nephews are all talented and will have even greater wealth in the future."

Wu Qian was somewhat touched.

Mr. Chen really had nothing to say about his old brothers. Except for Liu Tong, Zhong Huan'er and others who had died in the battle, the others basically all got official positions. At the very least, they became servants in a government office, and could receive a lot of rewards throughout the year. They also had 50 acres of land as salary income in their names, and their families cultivated dozens of acres of land. They could be considered rich in this life.

This is why everyone supports Mr. Chen.

"Last time I heard you say that Zhang Gui had some misunderstandings about me and didn't understand me in detail. Please explain it to me in detail today." Shao Xun said again.

"In fact, Zhang Gui also knows the situation in Luoyang." Wu Qian hesitated for a moment and said, "He felt that you were too domineering and disrespectful to the emperor, so he was unhappy. He returned all the gifts we sent this time. Fortunately, he did not stop us from recruiting soldiers and buying horses, but it was only this time. It probably won't work next time."

"Because of Zhang Gui's change in attitude, buying horses was not very smooth. We only bought 300 stallions and 1,000 mares in Liangzhou, and the price was much higher than before. Recruiting soldiers was not a problem. We got 2,000 people and returned."

"On the way back to Qinzhou, Wei Fu visited Nanyang Wang Bao and delivered the letter from the Queen Mother. Nanyang Wang burst into tears and sent General Chen An to take us to the Qiang and Di tribes to buy horses. We followed your instructions and selected more than a hundred strong horses and a thousand mares, and also recruited a thousand strong and brave men. At that time, we were short of money. After hearing about it, Nanyang Wang was grateful for our kindness in delivering the letter, so he sent people to deliver some money and silk to the tribe."

After talking about the process of buying horses and recruiting soldiers, Wu Qian stopped.

Shao Xun nodded.

Buying horses from Qinzhou was a last resort. If there was a chance, I would still go to Liangzhou to buy horses. First of all, the quality of the horses was different, and secondly, the quantity and price were also very different.

However, Zhang Gui had some opinions about himself, so this path was probably cut off.

This is a good thing, buying a horse really costs a lot of money.

The money and silk that Wu Qian brought with him on his journey to the west were only part of the money he brought with him. The bulk of the money was the gold and silver wares of all kinds. Without the gold and silver wares captured on the battlefield and obtained from Lu Xun and Yang Xianrong, it would not have been easy to buy more than 3,000 horses.

"What's the situation in Guanzhong?" Shao Xun asked again. "I don't quite understand." Wu Qian hesitated, "It just feels chaotic. None of the troops are loyal to the court. They are all fighting for themselves. If the price offered by the Xiongnu is right, they may surrender."

"Haha." Shao Xun laughed and said, "What you said is much better than many generous and righteous courtiers in the court. They have never been to Guanzhong, but they imagine the heroes in Guanzhong to be loyal officials of the court. How ridiculous!"

"That's what Wei Fu said." Wu Qian said, "He brought a lot of Guanzhong scholars he knew to Nanyang this time, so you should be careful. Madam Liu can still command in the name of Nanyang Concubine in the short term, but it may not be the case in the long run."

Shao Xun: “…”

Old Wu, your words are so rude. What do you mean by “Mrs. Liu”?
However, it is really nice to have a home wherever you go, be taken care of, and have a good rest.

"What did Wei Fu do in Nanyang?" Shao Xun asked in a low voice.

"He and the powerful people from Guanzhong that he brought with him recruited refugees day and night and summoned many commanders of Guanxi fortresses. Especially those who had just arrived were intercepted and taken to Nanyang State." Wu Qian said, "Wei Fu and Liang Chen said in front of me that they would select strong refugees and send them to Xuchang. But it is hard to say what they did behind my back."

Shao Xun took another sip of wine and thought silently.

Liang Chen and Wei Fu were both family generals of Sima Mo, the former King of Nanyang. Their personal dependence relationship was very obvious, and it was unlikely that they would defect to others.

They originally had 200 guards for the palace, and Shao Xun had rewarded them, asking them to protect the dowager and the princess well after they went to Nanyang. At that time, Wei Fu and Liang Chen had no one to use, so they could only use these 200 people as the backbone to expand the army.

Later, Wei Fu followed Wu Qian to Liangzhou and stayed there for more than a year. As the lieutenant of Nanyang, Liang Chen not only had the final say in military affairs, but also intervened in civil affairs due to his seniority.

Someone among the two hundred guards secretly informed the concubine, and the concubine sent someone to report to him.

Shao Xun has been paying attention to the situation in Nanyang State. For now, Liang Chen is still respectful, but his power is indeed growing. If this continues, it is inevitable that ambition will arise.

Many scholars from Guanzhong came this time, many of whom were former members of the Nanyang Palace. You can tell by their surnames: Wei, Du, Yang, Zhao, Huangfu, etc.

Shao Xun met him yesterday and gave him generous rewards.

During the first month of the year, he would take them to a banquet to deepen their relationship and let them know - uh, know that the Nanyang Palace is now dependent on him, Shao.

In early February, he will take this group of people to Nanyang to strengthen the officials of the Nanyang Palace and win over the refugees from Guanxi.

This is also a helpless measure.

In short, Liang Fen cannot be allowed to become the only refugee for the Guanxi refugees. We must find ways to create divisions within the Guanxi group, which is very necessary for the political solution to the Nanyang issue.

The Huns' offensive in Guanzhong was very fierce. After hearing that Liu Can had won over many chiefs after taking office, they might attack the area around Chang'an after the new year.

Under such a chaotic situation, the influx of refugees from Guanxi into Nanyang never stopped, not only Han people, but also a large number of Hu people.

In fact, this may not be the peak of outward migration from Guanxi. In history, it was only after the complete demise of the small court of Emperor Min of Jin in Chang'an that there was a staged peak.

In this time and space, if the Huns completely occupied Guanzhong, the defeated forces, even if they were not truly loyal to the Jin court, would have no choice but to rush into Nanyang and Jingzhou through Wugu Pass.

This is the background.

The population of Guanxi in Jingxiang and Nanyang areas will only increase, and eventually form a huge force.

It would be great if I could select 10,000 or 20,000 troops from them to go to Hebei to fight Shi Le for me!

Well, this is a long-term plan. It is not impossible, but it requires a lot of preparatory work.

Shao Xun raised his head and took another big sip of wine, then threw the wine bag to Wu Qian, stood up and said, "Let's go and see our newly recruited Liangzhou warriors. Haha, they are so wild that they even dare to steal my prey."

Wu Qian also stood up with a smile and said, "On the way back, some people were jealous of the horses we brought and wanted to rob us, but they beat us all away."

Just a few words describe the hardships on the return journey.

When Wu Qian and Wei Fu set out, they brought a full thousand men with them, but when they finally returned, they were three hundred men less.

Some died of illness on the way, and some died in battle.

This road to buy horses is not easy to walk on.

If the Huns occupied Guanzhong, this road would be completely closed and we would have to rely on ourselves from then on.

The sky gradually darkened.

The broth and grilled food gave off an enticing aroma, and the sound of musical instruments could be heard in the venue.

Some newly recruited Qin and Liang warriors, after getting drunk, stood up and danced in the snow, causing everyone to laugh.

Shao Xun drank quite a bit of wine again, and at the urging of the crowd, he also came to the arena and learned and danced.

In fact, although the soft dance performed by women is beautiful, the vigorous dance performed by men also has a unique beauty and is very popular in the north where the Hu and Han people live together.

As Shao Xun danced, he gradually felt better and the crowd's cheers became louder and louder.

Sometimes, feelings deepen little by little.

You have to make them feel like they are one of their own.

A total of three thousand cavalry, plus the remaining three thousand people of the Yicong Army, totaled six thousand cavalry.

This is a fairly large scale. We should have some proper training after the New Year to familiarize them with the organization, rules and tactics of the Yicong Army, which will help them to play a huge role in the future.

(Did this leader change his name? If so, I will change the title)

(End of this chapter)