Chinese New Year

Chapter 564 North-South Arrangement (Part )

As soon as the sky was getting light, Tao Bao got up.

My wife Zhang was busy in the kitchen.

The servant brought five liters of fine spring wine brewed the year before. After opening the lid, the smell of wine was strong.

Zhang took a look and continued with her work.

One ounce of dried ginger and seventy peppercorns are crushed into powder.

Place five pomegranates and squeeze out the juice.

After everything is done, mix the powder and juice together, stir evenly, then pour it into the wine jar and shake gently.

A moment later, she happily came to the kitchen holding the wine jar.

Tao Bao was already sitting at the table, chewing Hu Bing with big mouthfuls. When he saw the wine coming, he immediately poured a bowl and drank it.

"Comfortable!" He praised with satisfaction, put down the wine bowl and continued to eat the cake.

Although my wife is not very good-looking, she is a good cook.

Pepper wine like this was not something that his two beloved concubines could make.

This wine is neither Hu nor Han, but a fusion of Hu and Han cuisines. It has its own unique characteristics and is popular in the counties of Youzhou. It is rare in the Central Plains, grasslands, and Western Regions.

This wine has gradually become popular in Jizhou in recent years, but it is not yet known to everyone.

"Husband." Zhang came over and asked cautiously, "What about Da Hu..."

Tao Bao slammed the table hard.

Zhang was frightened and dared not say anything more.

Tao Bao sighed secretly. He had felt a little fond of this woman just now, but now he felt annoyed again.

He doesn't know the seriousness of the matter and dares to bring anything home. If he continues like this, his family will be exterminated soon.

"I have no way out, do you understand?" Tao Bao looked at his wife and said coldly.

Zhang's face turned pale and she didn't know what to say.

"I have no way out. Do you understand? Ever since the day we attacked Santai, I have no way out."

"We can let bygones be bygones..." Zhang stammered.

Tao Bao glanced at his wife coldly and said word by word: "I can't believe it!"

Even if Shi Le really didn't care about him raising an army to attack Santai and offering Liu Ye Na to Chen Gong for his enjoyment, he didn't dare to believe it, let alone gamble.

"I have sent someone to deliver the person and the letter to Lord Cai. Lord Chen will know soon, and Shi Le will also know." Tao Bao snorted coldly and said.

Zhang lowered her head silently.

The messenger was from Shangdang, a member of the Wuhuan Zhang clan and a distant relative of her mother's family. Following Shi Le's orders, he secretly contacted her husband.

Zhang was also helpless.

During the Battle of Yecheng, Wuhuan Zhang fled early, greatly offending Shi Le. The Pingyang court also suppressed them in every possible way, and life was very difficult for them. Shi Le gave them a chance to atone for their sins, and naturally seized it.

But my husband doesn't want to betray Mr. Chen.

She could actually understand the reason, but the plight of her mother's family was a fact before her, and it was really difficult to be caught in the middle.

Tao Bao took another sip of wine and remained silent.

This stupid woman, now that she has married into the Tao family, is still busy working for the interests of her own family.

If it was a small matter, he wouldn't care. But you dared to get involved in something that determines the fate of the entire family. Are you trying to save your life?
After thinking it over, he decided to say a few more words. So he put down his wine bowl and said, "Do you know what Mr. Chen has been doing recently?"

Zhang shook her head.

"They went to settle the tribal chieftains." Tao Bao said, "They came from Guanzhong, and they are very mixed. I think most of them are Xiongnu. They are mainly Xiongnu tribes such as Lushui Hu and Tiele, and there are also Di Qiang and Xianbei people, a total of 20,000 people."

"Have you appointed a town commander?" Zhang became interested: "Husband, can you become a town commander in the future?"

Tao Bao glanced at his wife and said mockingly, "When Lord Chen was in Zhaojun, he did not set up town commanders for the Guanzhong tribes, but a village system. They look the same as the government soldiers, they do not pay taxes and labor service, and they all have to go to war. But the government soldiers are military personnel, they have been soldiers for generations, and they are civilians, and one day they will become civilians if they are not careful. Town commanders? Don't joke. The town commanders that Lord Chen set up in Hebei and the prefects that he gave out at will are all stopgap measures, and they will all be dismissed in the future."

Zhang was stunned when she heard this.

Unlike Han women, Hu women are responsible for managing the household and all aspects of the household. They will assist their husbands in handling both internal and external affairs and often give advice - this can be seen from the fact that Shi Le's wife Liu was deeply involved in military and political affairs, as well as the many powerful empresses and queen mothers in the Northern Dynasties in history.

Therefore, Zhang was no stranger to military affairs. She always felt that her husband should seek the position of a garrison commander, as this could be passed down to future generations.

Positions like prefect and general are good, but they can be taken away with just one sentence. Being a town commander is different. If the higher-ups want to get rid of you, you have to consider the backlash, so it's not that easy.

But now she heard that there was no hope at all, and she was a little disappointed.

"Is there no objection?" she couldn't help asking.

"Among the new tribes in Guanzhong, Juqu Chong with 5,000 people is the strongest. Lord Chen brought 1,000 personal soldiers, 6,000 silver spear warriors, and 7,000 Yicong cavalry. He can conquer all of Juqu Chong's tribes. How can we oppose him?" Tao Bao said, "Once he bowed his head, the other chieftains would not dare to oppose him. Moreover, these 20,000 people have fled all the way from Guanzhong. They don't have much courage and dare not make any moves for the time being. Lord Chen is very good at choosing people and timing. He knows everything in his mind. He is amazing."

Zhang could not hide her disappointment.

If the Wuhuan tribe from my mother’s family comes to surrender to us in the future, will we treat them in the same way?

No, judging from what my husband meant, Mr. Chen was just acting according to the circumstances.

If someone comes to surrender due to poverty, he may be directly registered as a common citizen.

If you surrender voluntarily, you may be able to become a hereditary town commander.

Shao Xun is such a snob!
"My husband has said so. It seems that Mr. Chen is really a man of great talent and strategy." Zhang said after calming down. Tao Bao didn't bother to pay attention to her. After drinking a bowl of wine, he stood up directly.

Before leaving, he turned around and said, "Do you think I wholeheartedly joined Mr. Chen just because he is talented and ambitious?"

Zhang was startled.

"Mr. Chen's move in Zhaojun was indeed brilliant. I think he has a great chance of taking over the north and unifying the country in the future." Tao Bao said, "But there is another more important reason. Others may not agree with this reason, but I value it very much."

"What?" Zhang asked subconsciously.

"Mr. Chen is young." Tao Bao smiled and left.

Zhang was surprised, and then she seemed to understand.

******
On the top of the Bronze Sparrow Tower, dozens of generals and officers surrounded one person, looking into the distance.

On the bank of the Zhang River west of the Tongque Tower, drums roared, and tens of thousands of troops marched out of the camp one after another and headed south.

"Shi Le trained his soldiers quite well." Shao Xun said with emotion, pointing at the infantrymen who were leaving in neat rows.

He didn't know how many men Shi Le had recruited from Hebei and Henan. After the great test of time, only these tens of thousands of infantrymen were left.

Today, 20,000 people were dispatched at once to go to Xuzhou to fight.

Victory is reason enough to be happy, defeat is no reason to be sad; this is probably Shao Xun's attitude, which can be seen from the generals he selected.

Xi Jian’s level is not good enough, not as good as Li Zhong and Wang Que’er.

Tao Bao, Zhi Xiong, Liu Hedu and others have ulterior motives and may not work hard.

It doesn't matter. As long as they arrive and don't waste time, the situation in Xuzhou won't be too bad.

Thinking of this, he glanced at Wang Cheng who was standing beside him.

Yes, since he ran away from Jingzhou, Wang Cheng, who had just taken office in Xuzhou, ran away again. He is really a hopeless case.

Zu Ti's army had been expanded many times, but it was no more than 10,000 people, but he easily entered Xia Pi.

Fortunately, the governor Xun Zu has not fled and remains in Pengcheng, but his position is very suspicious and strictly speaking, he is neutral.

He did not recognize Zu Ti, the governor of Xuzhou appointed by Sima Rui, but did not take any action to stop Zu Ti from attacking Xia Pi, the governor's seat.

Shao Xun is now the commander-in-chief of Si, Yu, Xu and Ji states. It is legitimate for him to send troops into Xuzhou, but whether Xun Zu will recognize it is also a question.

After a lot of wrangling, the Xun group has not given in yet and the situation in Xuzhou remains confusing.

If we really want to divide the blame, Wang Cheng, this loser, can't escape the blame. He can't even work in one place! Wang Yan was worried about him, but he didn't live up to his expectations. There was nothing he could do.

Shao Xun was too lazy to talk to him. He looked directly at Xi Jian and said, "Daohui, 30,000 troops are in your hands. You can't take it lightly."

"Don't worry, my lord. I will act cautiously." Xi Jian said in a loud voice.

The 30,000-strong army had all the officers at all levels, but the "headquarters" was empty.

In the past few months, Shao Xun assigned some people to him, and Xi Jian himself recruited some scholars from Dongping, Gaoping and Jiyin to improve the command structure.

This is not a simple matter.

Not everyone can build a team of staff, but Xi Jian used the influence of the Xi family in Jinxiang to recruit a group of scholars he was familiar with. At the same time, he also transferred a group of old subordinates from the Battle of Gaoping and the Battle of Shexian to strengthen the command team.

He gradually gained wings.

In fact, every general must have his own followers, otherwise it will be difficult to control them as he pleases, and trouble will arise on the battlefield.

Li Chong, Wang Que'er and Jin Zheng are all surrounded by a group of such people.

However, they accumulated private teams much slower than Xi Jian, because they came from humble backgrounds, had low reputations and low appeal, and most of their wealth was accumulated through hard work during their long military careers.

The advantage is that during the ten-year military career, the capabilities of his own team have been long tested. The upper limit may not be very high, but the lower limit is sufficient to be guaranteed.

When the chief official leaves office, his personal team will generally follow suit. In ancient times, such people were called "family generals" or "family servants."

Household generals and retainers followed their master and were promoted quickly. But once the master fell, they would also be implicated, and hundreds of families would be implicated during the liquidation, which was no joke.

If Sima Yue had failed to ascend to the throne and was instead purged, Shao Xun would have had to flee in a hurry, otherwise he would have surely died.

"If you go to Xuzhou and cannot enter Pengcheng, don't force it. Go to Donghai State to find Mi Zihui first." Shao Xun ordered: "In addition, enforce military discipline."

At this point, Shao Xun's expression turned serious, and he said, "I am from Donghai. It would be unacceptable if my hometown was robbed."

"Yes, sir." Xi Jian replied in a deep voice.

"You should also keep this in mind." Shao Xun looked at Tao Bao, Zhi Xiong, Cheng Xia, Liu Hedu and others and said, "Put aside your ways. If I hear that you are plundering the East China Sea, I will kill you without mercy."

When Tao Bao and the others heard this, they knew that Mr. Chen was serious. Their anus tightened immediately and they said in unison, "Yes, sir."

Cheng Xia was eager to make progress, and he added, "Don't worry, my lord. As the military supervisor, I will definitely conduct strict inspections."

He recruited two thousand men from Guangping, five hundred of whom were his own troops, and the other one thousand five hundred were from his hometown, as the direct subordinate troops of the military inspector - without soldiers, the military inspector was nothing and could not catch a single hair.

Shao Xun was naturally delighted by Cheng Xia's expression of loyalty, and praised him, "If you work hard, you will be rich and noble in the future."

After some encouragement, the generals dispersed and each led their troops to the battle.

Shao Xun began to prepare to return to Henan to ask for money.

But before that, he still needed to make some arrangements for Shi Le.

(End of this chapter)