Chapter 909 Horse Leather Shroud
Cui Zhixian was actually very dissatisfied with this Colonel Liu in his heart. In fact, this Captain Liu was only promoted from the front line, and Changan, who went out with him, was only a chief of fire at that time. Now in less than two years, he has been promoted to captain.
Although he has done some meritorious service in the past two years, attacking Beisha, recruiting people, and conquering the Nanman, he has been promoted a bit fast. If it weren't for the new construction of Tonghai Mansion, this person would not have been promoted to the rank of captain and led a group of troops.
After all, they are lacking in experience, otherwise Wumeman would not be able to attack the city this time.
"Someone thinks that since Wu Moman confessed that he was instigated by Heman, then Hemanding is on the way here. Although the Jianshui garrison is near, it may be far away to rescue the nearby fire. We must be prepared and bear the fire first. Zhu Heman's first attack. Lieutenant Liu, what countermeasures do you have for this?"
Liu Xiaowei is tall and burly, with a beard on his face. He was born in the Guanzhong Prefecture Army, so there is no problem in terms of bravery.
"Mingfu, in today's battle, our army defeated Wumaman, and the morale of the army was high. Although there were some casualties, the casualties were not many, especially our 200 elite Tang army, with almost no casualties."
"Yes." Cui Zhixian nodded, motioning for him to continue.
"Someone thinks that there are a few things to do right now, that is, not to be afraid of the barbarians. First, let the defenders of the watchtowers outside the city return to defense, and each watchtower is full of soldiers and horses."
There are ten Tang troops in one tower, and one hundred earth regiments. Relying on the towers, it is very important to guard the high ground of the traffic arteries outside the city. It is not only the eyes and ears, but also the nail fortress. Wait, very important.
"Secondly, when the walls are cleared and the wilderness is cleared, and the man crosses the river, although it is only two hundred miles away from me, the two hundred miles are not easy to travel. If there is a large-scale invasion, food, grass and supplies will still be a big problem, so we should strengthen the walls and clear the wilderness. Give them the opportunity to fight and supply supplies on the spot. Order all military and civilian settlements outside Shiping City to move to nearby fortresses or directly withdraw to Shiping County. If the defenses of the barbarian villages are insufficient, They also temporarily moved to the nearby Dazhai for joint defense, and took all the food and livestock to the castle and Dazhai, and did not leave food for the enemy to eat."
"Thirdly, issue an emergency war mobilization order immediately, recruiting the regiments in formation to train troops to assist in defense in the county, and the rest of the strong men must also be immediately mobilized and organized, unified under the command of the county, and joint defense and barbarians."
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Magistrate Cui listened carefully, and soon realized that what Xiaowei Liu said was actually some contingency plans drawn up by Duke Wei when he was still in the Dudu Mansion.
One by one, all have been set long ago, even after the start of the plan, who will do what, one, two, three, four, five, etc., have a relatively clear plan.
Lieutenant Liu remembers it quite clearly, but at this moment, the emergency plan, from mobilization for war, to fortifying the wall and clearing the field, to calling for help from the police, to defending and counterattacking, etc., has a clear arrangement. Very convenient.
Anyway, they are all mature plans, and even they have practiced several times in advance according to Weigong's request. It is more convenient to organize and mobilize.
"Is there any more?" Cui Zhixian asked.
Lieutenant Liu was also stubborn, "There is no other ear, barbarians are coming, and we soldiers can only fight to the death, shroud in horse leather, and serve the country!"
"Okay, just based on this sentence, Shiping will be handed over to Colonel Liu to take command, so there is no worry. From now on, the defense command of the entire Shiping County will be handed over to Captain Liu, and Cui will also follow the command."
"It's better for the Ming government to sit in command, and I'll just be a pawn."
"Lieutenant Liu, don't refuse. It's wartime. Of course, you will be in command. As a county magistrate, I just need to do a good job in logistics support. I recruit civilians, treat the disabled, supply food and grass, cook and boil water, and appease the people. , leave these to Cui.”
Cui Zhixian said very sincerely that in the Tang Dynasty there were not so many nobles and warriors, and many civil servants could still ride and shoot well, and military generals could also recite poems and Fu. The boundaries between civil and military are not so strict. There are also many.
It is common for officials to switch between civil and military positions, so people usually don't say anything to look down on such things.
When the war came, Cui Zhixian knew better to unite with each other.
"Mingfu, Liu has a bold request!"
"Lieutenant Liu, please speak!"
"Can you ask the Ming government to open the treasury and give rewards to the soldiers and brave men who participated in the battle last night, and also to boost morale?"
Cui Zhixian laughed loudly, "What kind of request is this? Of course I want it. It should be rewarded. It should be rewarded heavily. Those who made meritorious service last night should be rewarded. Even those who have meritorious service should also be rewarded for their hard work."
Rewarding the money and silk in the treasury at this time can really inspire morale. If you are still reluctant at this time, if the city is captured by barbarians, it will not be cheap barbarians.
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Guangzhou.
It has been more than a year since we last said goodbye.
Before Qin Lang entered Guangzhou, he killed countless people. The White-Browed Eagle King who was once known as the underground king of Guangzhou was chopped to pieces by Qin Lang. His Eagle Nest Assassin Organization, which was rampant in the south of Lingnan, was also uprooted. also outlawed.
The arrogance of those barbarian merchants who colluded with Eagle's Nest and united under the guise of the Church of Light was completely suppressed.
Going back to Guangzhou, I found that after the short-lived Hu people receded, there were Hu merchants everywhere again. But this time, the attitude of the Hu people is obviously different. Before, Hu merchants regarded Guangzhou as their base camp, and they were even very arrogant. Some big Hu merchants didn't even take Guangzhou Mansion seriously.
But now, the barbarians are still coming, but every barbarian is no longer superior to others. Before they enter Hong Kong, they must go through strict inspection and registration. Those who live permanently must apply for a residence permit, and those who live temporarily must apply for a temporary residence permit.
Not to mention buying and selling, you have to pay taxes strictly according to the law, and if you dare to evade any tax, you will be severely punished.
Hu merchants who went ashore were prohibited from owning weapons, not to mention spears and hard crossbows, even ordinary sabers, sabers, swords and bows were strictly prohibited.
Even daggers are prohibited.
Hu merchants are allowed to eat meat with a knife at home, but if you take it out, it is not allowed.
Even the guards of merchants have to be registered, and they are also not allowed to carry weapons, only a short stick for body protection.
After more than a year of rectification, the sky in Guangzhou is clear and the clouds are clear, and the smoky atmosphere of the past is no longer there.
"These Hu merchants are really spineless, don't they say they can't come?" Zhang Chao looked at the Hu boats and Hu merchants full of docks, and said contemptuously.
"Who will have trouble with money? Even if my Tang Dynasty strictly regulates trade, ocean trade has been the most profitable business since ancient times. If you don't come, he will come. Do you know how many countries these Hu merchants in Guangzhou come from? In the past, the most powerful Hu merchants were Persian Hu merchants, Tianzhu Hu merchants, and Dashi Hu merchants. In addition, there were many other Hu merchants, including Linyi people, Funan people, Chenla people, Lion Kingdom, etc., and far away. There are also Franks, Goths, Egypt, etc. In short, the Huren merchants who trade east and west on the sea, not to mention the nations, there are always more than a hundred countries, so ah, even if the strongest Hu merchants don’t come, then immediately There will be other Hu merchants coming to **** the vacancy they left."
The reason why Tianzhu merchants were very powerful at one time was that they used to control the trade from the East to the Mediterranean for a long time, such as spices, sugar and even silk from the Central Plains.
Later, the rise of Arab merchants was due to the fact that the hundred-year war between the Eastern Roman Empire and the Persian Sasanian Empire blocked the trade routes. Therefore, the merchants on the Arabian Peninsula opened up an oasis trade route in the desert. Direct access to the Mediterranean, so Arab merchants are very prosperous.
The long-term war between Persian Sassan and Eastern Rome was actually due to the fact that Persia had long held back the trade to the Mediterranean. They monopolized many important commodities such as silk and spices, and imposed heavy taxes on Western merchants such as Rome. The Romans were dissatisfied with raising the price, so the Hundred Years War continued.
For countries in the Middle Ages, foreign trade was actually hugely profitable. Whoever can monopolize trade routes and control these trading goods will be able to have sufficient finances and taxes, and whoever will naturally be superior.
In the pre-Qin period of the Central Plains, the Xia, Shang and Zhou dynasties in the Central Plains had been trading with Baiyue in the south. At that time, the south not only had good things such as ivory, rhinoceros, coral, pearls, crystals, gold and silver, but also many spices produced in the south. Lots of good stuff.
After Qin unified the world, he sent a large army to conquer Lingnan three times. In addition to expanding the territory, he also wanted to seize the trade benefits of the south and trade further south.
After the Han, Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties, the Silk Road was originally in the north, and the sea trade was in the south. Both trades played a pivotal role in the country's government.
Not to mention, apart from the imperial court, in fact, domestic and foreign trade has always been in the hands of those aristocratic families, and has always been engaged in monopoly operations.
The essence of trade is actually buying and selling things, exchanging what is needed. Because of this characteristic, the profits are extremely high. After all, what others have and what they have is a seller’s market.
There are too many things in the Tang Dynasty that Hu merchants did not have but wanted, silk, porcelain, tea, these three traditional merchants, plus sugar, glass, paper, wine, etc., which have emerged in recent years, not to mention a large number of advanced technology. Merchant.
In general, after experiencing a short period of chaos in the Sui Dynasty, the Central Plains was unified again and became more prosperous. The huge population base also made the business and industry in the Central Plains more prosperous. Whether it is the scale of exports or the demand for imports, it is an amazing market. .
A big Tang market can cover the whole of the West. Given this, which Hu businessman would be willing to give up such a big market?
Fanfang in Guangzhou is still there, and it is more lively than before. It even expanded a circle last year and planned several new squares to accommodate more Hu merchants.
The iron town built in Foshan has led to the further prosperity of Guangzhou Port. Now the ironware in Foshan Town, Guangzhou has become a hot export commodity in Guangzhou Port. Fine ironware.
"Now Foshan Town has no less than 20,000 to 30,000 workers engaged in the iron smelting industry, and the annual output value reaches several million yuan. Our iron smelting shop in Foshan Town is also subdivided into pot shops, iron stove shops, fried iron shops, and iron wire shops. There are as many as 18 industries, such as iron locks, agricultural tools, nails, etc., and the pot industry is the top of all industries, and it is also the pillar industry of our Foshan Town today..."
Among the Guangzhou officials who came to greet them, one official introduced Foshan Iron Industry with some pride. Because of the rise of Foshan Iron Industry in recent years, Guangzhou Prefecture specially established Foshan County to strengthen support for the entire Foshan Iron Industry .
This was planned by Qin Lang at the beginning, linked up with all the tyrants in the South of the Five Ridges, and then introduced the family of the Central Plains, and built the Foshan Iron and Steel Industry. The various iron mines in the south of the Lingnan Mountains, taking advantage of the Pearl River system and maritime shipping, and with the support of Wu'an Hongji, a huge carbonaceous field, Foshan's iron smelting industry has made rapid progress.
In less than two years, the number of industrial workers has reached nearly 30,000, and there are 18 industries in the iron industry.
Among them, iron pot has become the most famous leading industry, with huge production and sales volume, advanced technology and mature technology, not to mention huge output.
The prosperity of iron smelting in Foshan also greatly increased the demand for raw materials, which promoted the mining of east and west iron mines in south of the Five Ridges. The iron industry that frys pig iron into mature iron has been established.
The rise of Foshan iron smelting, with pot as the main product, and relying on Guangzhou Port for a large number of exports, has promoted the prosperity of Guangzhou Port. At the same time, the rise of such a huge iron smelting town has also promoted the improvement of Lingnan iron ore mining and processing industries. , On the other hand, it also drove the sales of Qinjiahongji coal, and at the same time, it also contributed to the prosperity of the Pearl River waterway and the South China Sea shipping.
Conversely, the Lingnan sugar industry dominated by the Qin family also began to order a large number of extra-large Foshan iron pots with better quality and cheaper prices to cook sugar, which also improved the level and output of the Qin family's sugar industry.
And many silk weaving industries also immediately heard the news, and they also came to Foshan to order an extra-large iron pot like Qin's family to cook cocoons back home.
From scratch, Foshan has grown from a fishing village to an iron town with tens of thousands of industrial workers. The tens of thousands of industrial workers have also greatly increased the consumption of Guangzhou Port, which is not far away, and made it more lively. up.
"We in Foshan now have more and more types of iron products, but iron pots are still the most important product. We now have hundreds of varieties and models of iron pots in production and sales. Lian, every day there are countless businessmen queuing up in various iron factories in Foshan, waiting for the goods, and they are waving the bank notes of several major banks to grab the goods..."
"This year, it's not yet the end of the year, but as of now, the iron pot factory in Foshan alone has sold more than 600,000 yuan..."
As a daily necessities, pots are in great demand, especially now that iron pots are on the rise, and the replacement of ceramic pots for iron pots is booming.
(end of this chapter)