The World of Yellow Sky

"However, Dawan occupies the passage west of the Western Regions. If Dawan is not made to surrender, the trade route will be blocked, and our army's interests will be damaged. Moreover, Dawan's famous horses are famous all over the world. If Duke Ming wants to form a heavy cavalry, then he must introduce If Dawan is a good horse, Dawan's subjects can order it to pay tribute, but if Dawan is still independent, then Minggong will have to spend a lot of money to buy it."

Dawan horses are well-known in the Western Regions. Their horses are tall, powerful, and good at charging. They are much stronger than the grassland horses in northern China, but their endurance is slightly inferior. However, this is not too important. Dawan horses are comprehensive. The best horses for building heavy cavalry.

After China's native war horses traded with the Western Regions in Hanting, the imported war horses from the Western Regions were also improved, but due to the passage of time, wars and other reasons, the bloodlines have degenerated again, and the quality of the war horses has declined a little.

The reason why Xu An wanted to reopen the Protectorate of the Western Regions was also due to the idea of ​​forming a heavy cavalry. In the battle of Kuicheng, Xu An armed his cavalry with the armored cavalry equipment he had captured. At the cost of horsepower, the cavalry of the Han army led by Sun Jian was defeated by surprise, and the victory of the Battle of Kuicheng was established.

In the Battle of Zhangshui, the heavy cavalry of the Han army led by Jiang Yiqu put great pressure on the Yellow Turban Army, and even the Yellow Turban Army might suffer even more heavy losses if they were worse.

On the battlefield, a heavy cavalry can play a huge role.

When there were no saddles, Huaxia's armored riding equipment was not as tightly protected as the iron floating map and other heavy cavalry of later generations, but only wore iron armor on vital parts.

One is that it is difficult to control without two-footed stirrups, and the other is that due to the limitations of the war horse itself, it cannot bear too much weight.

The first problem has been solved, and the cavalry of the Yellow Turban Army has now fully replaced their stirrups.

The second problem that can be easily solved by introducing Le Dawan horses is that although heavy cavalry is expensive, it is not difficult to raise a heavy cavalry of more than [-] people with the current national strength of Taiping Road.

If you have Sado’s gold mountain and Iwami’s silver mountain, you can even raise a battalion of heavy cavalry, but that’s not necessary. Heavy cavalry is a strategic unit, and it can be used at key points at critical times. Too much is a waste of money.

"Therefore, the resettlement of the Protectorate of the Western Regions may lead to a battle between our army and Dawan."

"Dawan may unite with the countries to the west, publicize the threat of our army, and make them form an alliance with them to resist our army."

"There is no need to worry about cavalry battles. Our army can recruit the armies of the Western Regions as coerces, and send the state cavalry army from Liangzhou as the main force to assist the Wuxiang camp. In the continuous reinforcement of the city, our army is mostly cavalry attacking, and I am afraid that there will be a lot of casualties."

Jia Xu's analysis of the Western Regions is quite detailed, stating all the interests one by one.

"Most parts of the Western Regions are flat and the roads are open. Duke Ming can send a cavalry army to escort some torsion catapults to the Western Regions. The speed of the four-wheeled carriages in the open and flat land is not much slower than that of ordinary cavalry."

There are two kinds of catapults in the Yellow Turban Army. One is the "counterweight catapult" that has long been famous all over the world. The Yellow Turban Army has been destroying cities and walls all the way by relying on the huge destructive power of the counterweight catapult. The second is the torsion catapult. In the Battle of Zhangshui, Xu An used it as a secret weapon, causing chaos in the Han army's formation, and thus made a contribution in one fell swoop and established the victory.

The torsion catapult is much smaller than the counterweight catapult, and its power is also much smaller, but it is definitely enough for the city of Dawan.

After all, when attacking Zhiyuan Pass, the first and second passes had a certain place to use tall counterweight catapults, and then the Yellow Turban Army could also use torsion catapults when attacking the third and fourth passes. The catapult also smashed down the wall of the Yuanguan Pass, which is why the Yellow Turban Army was able to advance so fast in the first place.

It's just that the terrain at the back of Yuanguan is getting more and more rugged, and it's even difficult for people to walk, let alone a catapult.

The torsion catapult can break down the pass wall, there is no reason why it can't break down the rammed earth city wall of Dawan Kingdom.

Xu An has always emphasized mobility in the army. The marching speed of the Yellow Turban Army, whether cavalry or infantry, is well-deserved, and even the marching speed of the logistics troops is also the first in the world.

In the workshop, the operation similar to the assembly line promoted by Xu An, the torsion catapult was originally assembled, and only a few people knew the specific structure, which was also a means to prevent leaks.

Therefore, under the production of the craftsmen of the Yellow Turban Army, the torsion catapult can be disassembled and assembled at any time, and can be loaded into a four-wheeled carriage for rapid transfer.

Xu An understood Jia Xu's meaning, he leaned back a little, looked at the Western Regions where the information on the territory map on the desk was rather sparse, and he was not in a hurry to speak, he was weighing the pros and cons.

In Xuanzheng Hall, there was a long silence, Xu An slowly stood up, he already had a decision in his heart.

"Preparing an edict, order Guo Tai to lead the Wuxiang camp, first enter the Western Regions, reopen the Western Regions Protectorate, and eliminate the instability in the Western Regions."

"Order Guan Hai to lead a thousand soldiers from Xiaoqi Battalion and escort twenty catapults to join the team heading to the Western Regions. They are subject to Guo Tai's restraint and are temporarily under Guo Tai's command."

Guan Hai underestimated the enemy before, and was successfully raided by the cavalry of the Han army. Although he did not lose many people, he led the Xiliang camp to defeat the Han army, but his crime was hard to forgive. It was only after the founding of the country that he was promoted to General Wuwei.

However, after experiencing the failure last time, after Guan Hai left the Luoyang area, he took the initiative to apply to enter the martial arts hall. He has been practicing these days, and his original temperament has even changed a lot, and he has lost a little bit. Impatient and aggressive, a little more stable and cautious.

People are not sages, no one has faults, defeat is not terrible, and no one can guarantee that he will always be a victorious general, but what is terrible is that after defeat, he will be devastated and have nothing to save.

Xu An has noticed Guan Hai's changes, so this time, Xu An is going to give Guan Hai another chance, a chance to flex his muscles.

"The Ministry of Rites sent officials to discuss with the envoys who are still in Chang'an about reopening the Protectorate of the Western Regions, and draw up a list of foreign envoys, who will then go to the Western Regions with Guo Tai."

"Being courteous before soldiers, if Dawan and other countries don't know how to praise..."

Xu An pressed the back of the throne with one hand, and slung the other hand on the belt around his waist. He turned slightly sideways and looked at the people in the hall with his gaze like a sword and his voice low.

"Let the entire Western Regions know about my Bingfeng of the Ming Dynasty, and spread the news of my virtue of Huang Tian!"

"The obedient will be rewarded, and the disobedient will be punished."

"Whoever dares to disobey will be killed immediately!"

Chapter 739 It's too late

Weiyang Palace, which is now Yingtian Mansion.

This place has been rectified by Yan Zhong and has changed quite a lot, and the momentum still exists, and it is still incomparably magnificent and majestic.

But the halls and pavilions with carved beams and painted buildings are a little less gorgeous and a little more simple.

A little less majestic, a little more friendly.

A little less cold, a little more popular.

In Yingtian Mansion, the names of many halls and pavilions have been changed.

Yongning Pavilion is located in the north of Xuanzheng Hall, which is the northern area of ​​Yingtian Mansion, and it already belongs to the category of the Harem.

But now, Weiyang Palace, a palace that used to be the Han Dynasty for hundreds of years, has changed, and has severed its relationship with the past.

The north of the Xuanzheng Hall is no longer the residence of the queens of the Han Dynasty, and many places have been converted into government offices for business.

However, Yan Zhong rebuilt several palaces and pavilions in a quiet place in Yingtian Mansion, next to the artificial lake, and used it as a place to live, and allocated it to Xu An to live in.

Xu An did not refuse, Chang'an City was not safe, the Embroidered Cloth Messenger and the Eagle Wolf Guard had carried out assassinations many times in the past few years, but they were all blocked by the Eagle Wolf Guard and Tengxiang Guard one by one.

Living outside will only increase the threat. Living in Yingtian Mansion, with a large number of guards to protect, can deal with all kinds of emergencies at any time.

The founding ceremony has been over for three days, and the Ming court's three mansions and six ministries have started to operate normally, and the chief officials from all over the country have also set foot on the road home.

The caravan to the Western Regions had already been prepared before, and hundreds of carriages were loaded with a large amount of porcelain, iron, paper, and handicrafts

After the transfer order was issued, the Wuxiang Camp officially completed the handover on March [-]th. The tiger charm of the Wuxiang Camp was handed over to Guo Tai by Zhang Liao, and Yan Liang and Wen Chou also joined the Wuxiang Camp as Guo Tai. Adjutant.

Yongning Pavilion is a pavilion around the original Jiaofang Palace. The pavilion is not big, so it has been changed to the place where Xu An handles government affairs.

Another hall not far from Yongning Pavilion is called Yonghe Pavilion. The names of the two pavilions mean "Ninghe". Yonghe Pavilion is the office of cabinet members.

The two pavilions are not far from each other, which is convenient for office work.

The government offices of Zhongshu Mansion and Zhongjun Mansion are also not far from here. As for the government office of the Taoist government, it is not in Yingtian Mansion but in Taiping Temple outside the city. not very far.

Basically, the three government departments and six ministries of the Ming court and government offices at all levels are centered on Yongning Pavilion and spread out in all directions.

In Yongning Pavilion, Xu An sat on a chair in the house. Most of the time, Xu An didn't like kneeling. Although kneeling is a tradition, it is really uncomfortable to kneel for a long time, and even the shape of his legs will be affected by it. And change.

Xu An is not the only one in Yongning Pavilion. The building here is not the main hall office, but a side pavilion. It is a place for dining and also a place for Xu An to visit books and documents. This place has been remodeled according to Xu An's wishes. After a while, there was an extra round table, and now Xu An was sitting at this round table.

Sitting with Xu An were Guo Tai, Yan Liang, and Wen Chou.

There are a lot of dishes on the round table, this time it is quite rich, but there are not too extravagant dishes, they are all relatively ordinary dishes.

The dishes in front of Xu An are basically eaten, and there is not much left, and the dishes in front of Guo Tai are also the same, but the dishes in front of Yan Liang and Wen Chou did not eat too much, and they seemed a little cautious.

Xu An also noticed their restraint, even Guo Tai is a little cautious now, Xu An understands that the relationship between Guo Tai and the others has been alienated a lot because of the founding of the country and becoming the king.

A companion is like a tiger. He is not only the master of the Taiping Dao, but also the king of the Ming Dynasty.

Xu An was very aware of such a change, Xu An had already been mentally prepared for it early in the morning.

In fact, Xu An had already discussed with Guo Tai about reopening the Protectorate of the Western Regions before. After Guo Tai agreed, Xu An decided on the military post of General Zhengxi.

"Jia Xu will go with the army for a certain distance this time and leave the team when he arrives in Ji County. He will temporarily take the post of governor of Liangzhou to prepare military rations for you in Liangzhou, arrange logistics, and ensure your logistics supplies in the Western Regions. Dunhuang County We have already prepared a lot of armaments and hoarded food and grass, which you can requisition after you arrive in the Western Regions."

Although Yan Zhong was the governor of Liangzhou, Xu An did not let Yan Zhong rush back to Liangzhou.

Yan Zhong's health is getting worse every day, and his hair is almost completely white. Although Xu An appointed Yan Zhong as the chief assistant of the cabinet, Xu You is basically in charge of the cabinet now, and Yan Zhong has always been in Taiye. The pool rests.

The Tai Hospital was set up by Xu An in Guanbei of Taiping Temple, not far from Taiye Pool.

The newly built Taipingdao Medical Science Academy is on the left side of the Tai Hospital. The Tai Hospital is regarded as a government office, and the doctors in it are all well-known doctors who have passed the examination.

The Taipingdao Medical Academy is a place to train doctors. Students who graduate from the Meng Academy can choose to study in the county school or the medical academy.

Because of Xu An's order, and the continuous efforts to improve the status of doctors, the status of the medical school is much higher.

Hua Tuo served as the dean of both the Taipingdao Academy of Medical Sciences and Taiyuan Hospital.

Doctors in Taiping Dao implement a system similar to that of artisans. They are not classified according to the nine-rank classification system, but their salary and grade are determined according to the level of their skills.

Non-governmental doctors do not issue salaries, and salaries are only issued to military doctors and doctors in imperial hospitals, but they can all obtain grades.

Thinking of Yan Zhong, Xu An also looked sad.

When asked about Yan Zhong's body, Hua Tuo was also a little helpless.

Yan Zhong's health is deteriorating. Old injuries from his youth and overwork in recent years have been tormenting Yan Zhong's spirit and body.

Xu An came back to his senses, there were matters waiting for him to deal with, he couldn't keep thinking about other things.

"All localities are also recruiting people who want to expand their borders. The first batch of applicants has already reached about [-] people. When the Western Regions are settled, I will send troops to escort the first batch of immigrants to the Western Regions to enrich the area."

Unlike the previous Han courts who set up the Western Regions Protectorate or Changshifu just to control the trade routes and not interfere too much in the Western Regions, this time Xu An is going to make some changes.

In the name of Taiping Road, Xu An contributed funds to subsidize cattle, rice seeds, agricultural tools and land, and at the same time reduced or exempted the initial tax, and the people who moved their families could get a lot of land.

For immigrants who voluntarily go to the Western Regions, Xu An stipulates that no tax will be collected within five years, and the tax will be halved after another five years.

There are not many taxes collected by Taiping Road, only land tax and labor support money. When going to the Western Regions, there are tax exemptions, tax reductions, and various subsidies. Although the sky is high and the earth is thousands of miles apart, it is still Attracted a considerable number of people to sign up to participate.

The countries in the Western Regions of the Han Dynasty did not need to pay taxes to the Han Dynasty. The soldiers and officials stationed in the Western Regions of the Han Court received their supplies and offerings entirely from the farmland and the imperial court, and did not need to pay taxes from other countries.

However, such a model actually costs a lot, and the loss between Dunhuang County and Duhufu is quite large, especially since Dunhuang County is not yet a grain-producing area.

What Xu An wanted was to completely strengthen the control over the Western Regions, so that the countries in the Western Regions would not only surrender on the surface, but also identify with the Ming Kingdom from the bottom of their hearts.

"The Ministry of Rites has already learned about the situation of the countries in the Western Regions. The cabinet believes that the military strength of the countries in the Western Regions is weak. Our army can completely control the Western Regions and reopen the Protectorate of the Western Regions."

In the past, Xu An planned to abolish most of the old system in the Han Dynasty. When it stabilized after reopening the Western Region Protectorate, Xu An planned to demand tribute and tax from the Western Region countries, and also required them to send troops to assist in the war.

In the Han Dynasty, the communication and transportation conditions were low, and the population was not large. It is really unrealistic to maintain a too wide territory.

But in addition to direct control, there is another system worth learning, and that is the tribute system that has been gradually established since the Qin and Han Dynasties.

However, the tribute system has become a superficial work in the later stage, which is only used to whitewash the prosperity.

What Xu An intends is to establish a real tributary system, so that the tributary system is not just a system of whitewashing the prosperous age, but a powerful means to control the surrounding countries, using these surrounding tributary countries as the country's barrier, As a forward who continues to expand the territory.

Now the kings of the Western Regions are not weak, and they have a high degree of control over the country.

In the beginning, being bold and resolute will only arouse their resistance, but it will be difficult to gain a foothold. Although the Yellow Turban Army is not afraid of force, but the old events of the Huns period have triggered resistance, but it will cause economic losses to Taipingdao, which is not appropriate. , a small loss outweighs the big.

What Xu An wants to implement is the policy of boiling frogs in warm water.

The kings of Kucha, Shanshan and other countries are old and have strong control over the kingdom, but their successors do not have much prestige.

What Xu An wanted was to wait until a few years, or ten years later, the new king would replace the old one, and the Tweeting Order would also be implemented in the Western Regions.

However, the prerequisite for implementing the Tweet Order is to have a strong military force and legal recognition.

With a strong military force and legal recognition, Xu An has already prepared everything.

When the Western Regions are stabilized, Xu An will entrust the kings of the Western Regions. The big country is a marquis, and its king is awarded a marquis. China is an earl country, and its king is awarded an earl.

This has legal recognition. When the control of the Taiping Dao is strengthened, and new kings from various countries in the Western Regions successively succeed to the throne, it is time to implement Tweet.

With a strong military guarantee, the kings of the Western Regions have no choice but to oppose it.

"This time I went to the Western Regions, accompanied by hundreds of talismans. They all graduated from Taoist halls and had studied talismans at the National Academy and the County Academy. There were also more than [-] craftsmen from various industries."

"When the Protectorate of the Western Regions is reopened and the situation in the Western Regions stabilizes, let those craftsmen build my Taoist temples of the Way of Peace in the cities of various countries in the Western Regions, and then Fu Zhu will spread the morals of the Way of Peace, and then let the artisans under the control of our army In the area directly under the Central Government, if a college is to be built, the princes of the countries in the Western Regions must go to the college to study and study."

"The name is tentatively set as 'Daming Western Regions Protectorate College'"

"After bringing Dawan into the scope of the Protectorate of the Western Regions, we can begin to implement this system."

Xu An turned his head and looked at Guo Tai solemnly.

"The Western Regions are extremely important to our country and cannot be lost."

"For a long time, I have seen and remembered all the achievements you have made and what you have done for the Taiping Dao. Long live the peace."

"Going to the Western Regions is thousands of miles away from Chang'an. Everyone in the world thinks it's hard to leave their homeland, but sometimes they have to."

Xu An patted Guo Tai on the shoulder and sighed softly.

"Predecessors plant trees and future generations enjoy the shade. Each generation has its own mission. Our mission is to build a brand new country from scratch."

The Western Regions are too far away from the Central Plains, and the central part of the Western Regions is thousands of miles away from the Chang'an Road.

In this era, the distance between thousands of miles is almost the same as the distance between heaven and earth. It takes more than half a month to deliver an urgent military order of eight hundred miles. under.

"promise."