Chapter 1202: Deploying Troops
Deng Zhi arranged for Li Xi to go to Pingcheng, and then immediately asked Zhuge Qiao, the chief historian, to be invited.
Since the death of the prime minister, Feng became the protector of the Central Government and was one of the leading figures in the Han Dynasty.
Zhuge Qiao's life was finally better than before.
For example, there is no need to stay in Nanzhong, which is full of plague and mosquitoes even in winter.
Instead, he was transferred to the governor's office of Bingzhou as chief historian.
Although Bingzhou is a bitter and cold place, it depends on who it is compared to.
Especially Jinyang, it can be said to be one of the few big cities in the north.
How else could we have aristocratic families like the Wang family and the Guo family?
It’s a bit cold in winter, but isn’t there a kang and a coal stove?
Especially coal, which can be made vigorously without worrying about it.
I heard my brother say that north of Yanmen Fortress, the ground is full of coal, and even a big man could dig it out for hundreds of years.
Anyway, coal for civilian use is not like the coal used in the workshops built by Adi, and there are not many requirements.
Burn as much as you want, burn as much as you want, burn as much as you want.
So staying in Jinyang is more comfortable than staying in Nanzhong?
Zhuge Qiao rushed over as soon as he heard about the summons from the governor:
“Your Majesty, do you want to see me if you have something to do?”
Since Deng Zhi was Zhuge Qiao's boss and also an elder, he naturally would not be too polite to Zhuge Qiao, so he immediately explained the matter.
He said that he was going to Yanmen fortress and asked Zhuge Qiao to stay in Jinyang, telling him to be careful and cautious.
Zhuge Qiao was also shocked when he heard this:
"For such a big event, why don't you send a letter to the Central Protector? At least let the Central Protector make some preparations in advance."
Before the matter is clear, it is indeed not appropriate to alarm all parties.
Especially the imperial court.
Otherwise, wouldn’t it be an empty talk to replace the emperor’s herdsmen?
As a governor, if something is just groundless, he will rush to report it to the court.
To put it mildly, it is not stable enough, but to put it seriously, it is inappropriate.
But if you tell Adi privately, there should be no problem, right?
Hearing Zhuge Qiao’s words, Deng Zhi said vaguely:
"If this matter is left to me to repair the book and protect it, the commotion will be too great."
At this point, he glanced at Zhuge Qiao and stopped talking, saying nothing.
Deng Zhi is now serving as the governor of Bingzhou as a right-guard general.
Looking at the entire Han Dynasty, there are few people who can compare with him.
How can you write to the Central Protector to complain about something that is only a conjecture and has not yet happened?
It is not too much to lose one’s identity and face.
It is a pity that Zhuge Qiao is an honest man.
He was stunned for a moment, not realizing the meaning of Deng Zhi's words.
The two stared at each other blankly for a long time.
Zhuge Qiao then said somewhat calmly:
“Your Majesty, do you want me to write this letter?”
Deng Zhi coughed and could only remind:
“Bosong, you and Zhongdu are as close as brothers. Isn’t it normal for you to write letters home and communicate with each other on weekdays?”
“The letter also talks about annexing the state, right? After all, Zhongduhu is the Marquis of Pingcheng County, so isn’t Pingcheng just north of Jinyang?”
The words were so straightforward that Zhuge Qiao finally understood.
What Deng Shijun meant was that he should write a private letter to his brother and mention this matter by the way.
Zhuge Qiao said quickly: "Qiao understands."
Deng Zhi breathed a sigh of relief.
He is as wise as the prime minister, but his son is so simple and simple. It is rare, rare!
"In this way, during these days when I am away, various matters in the governor's house will cause trouble to Bosong."
“I don’t dare, I have your trust, Qiao will definitely act cautiously.”
Deng Zhi nodded and summoned the chief officials of the governor's office to explain everything clearly to them.
Then we arranged for the chariots and horses to drive out of the city and head north.
Jinyang City is more than four hundred miles away from Yanmen Fortress, but the distance from Pingcheng to Yanmen Fortress is less than three hundred miles.
So even though Li Xi left the city one day early, he still rode lightly and quickly.
But the second day after Deng Zhi arrived at Yanmen Fortress, Wang Ping arrived immediately behind him.
Deng Zhi personally came to the fortress to meet with Wang Ping:
“General Wang, long time no see!”
Wang Ping quickly saluted:
“How can I be so virtuous and capable as to allow the envoy to come and greet me in person?”
Time is running out and the military situation is urgent. How can Deng Zhi be in the mood to be polite to Wang Ping?
He stepped forward and helped Wang Ping up personally:
"General Wang, the safety of Bingzhou now depends on the general. Not only do you want me to come to greet you, but you also want me to host a banquet with wine, that is also appropriate!"
When Wang Ping heard this, he was shocked:
"What do you mean by this? Why is Bingzhou's safety in danger?"
"The Hu people in Yanmen County admire the big man, like a child running to his parents. The Hu people outside the Great Wall keep coming to seek refuge, so what's the danger?"
"Even the Youzhou thieves are tired of General Liu (Liu Hun)'s harassment and have no time to look west."
In Wang Ping's view, Bingzhou can be said to be prosperous now, with herds of cattle and horses, and the people are stable.
Where is the talk of safety coming from?
Deng Zhi pulled Wang Ping and walked towards the castle, saying urgently:
“General Wang, the danger to Bingzhou is not external, but internal!”
“Let’s go, let’s go, I’ll tell you in detail when we get behind the gate.”
Bingzhou belongs to the border state, and because Deng Zhi is the right guard general, the governor's office can mobilize the troops in the state.
Originally, before the Hedong Dudufu was established, Shangdang, which was under the jurisdiction of Bingzhou Governor's Office, was connected to the heart of Wei State, so it deployed a lot of troops.
Who would have expected that Wei Yan would take over Shangdang as soon as he became the governor.
The troops directly controlled by the governor of Bingzhou were reduced by more than half.
This is also one of the reasons why Deng Zhi disliked Wei Yan.
Although Deng Zhi can be said to be "strong and simple, he forgets his family when he is in office, he is clear about rewards and punishments, and he is kind to his soldiers."
But he also has shortcomings.
That means he is strong-willed by nature, does not show off his ambition, rarely interacts with scholars, and is somewhat greedy for power.
Wei Yan took away most of the elite soldiers who originally belonged to the governor's office in Bingzhou, so naturally he was not happy.
And some of the Hu cavalry originally led by Liu Hun came from the Hu people of Bingzhou, and were also under the jurisdiction of the Bingzhou Governor's Office.
It is a pity that this group of Hu cavalry is now harassing Youzhou outside the Great Wall, cutting off the horse trading channel between Youzhou and the Hu people.
So now all Deng Zhi can hope for is the Xianbei Xiaowei Mansion under the command of Wang Ping.
Only the Hu Xianbei Xiaowei Mansion is nominally under the Bingzhou Governor's Mansion, but it is also directly under the direct leadership of the Zhongdu Hu Mansion and has a certain degree of autonomy.
If there is a disagreement between the Xianbei Colonel and the Bingzhou Governor, then the Bingzhou Governor will most likely not be able to mobilize the Xianbei Colonel's troops.
Even if they can be mobilized, they must first have the Central Protectorate issue an order to mobilize troops.
But everything is about following the authority in a hurry.
If the relationship between the Xianbei captain and the governor of Bingzhou is harmonious, then when an incident occurs suddenly, the two governments can coordinate the deployment of troops and report the incident to Chang'an at the same time.
Obviously, at this time, the cooperation between the Hu Xianbei Xiaowei Mansion and the Bingzhou Governor's Mansion was relatively close because of the relationship between Feng, the Central Capital Protector.
After Wang Ping learned that Deng Zhi was worried about the south, he stood up suddenly, clasped his fists and said with emotion:
“When the Zhongdu Hu came to patrol the border, he once said to the last general: The reason why the Xianbei Xiaowei Mansion has to guard Xianbei and other Hu’er is ultimately to protect the people, protect the border, and protect the family and the country.”
"There are not only barbarians in the north of Bingzhou, but also bandits in the east and south. Therefore, in order to protect the Xianbei Xiaowei Mansion, in addition to keeping an eye on the barbarians, we must also try our best to cooperate with the envoy to guard against bandits."
"Now it seems that Zhongduhu has really seen far-reaching things. If there is really chaos in the Shangdang, I would not dare to sit back and watch it."
When Deng Zhi heard Wang Ping’s words, he stood up excitedly and was overjoyed:
Wang Ping added:
"It's just your envoy. If the soldiers protecting the Xianbei captain's mansion want to enter the fortress, they must have a reason. But I don't know in what name the envoy will call me to lead the army into the fortress?"
Deng Zhi had already thought about this question, and he blurted out the answer:
“The war in Gaodu is tense, the Shangdang troops have been depleted, and Jinyang also has very few troops.”
"These two places are both important places in Bingzhou. How can we be defenseless? Therefore, we ask the general to temporarily lead the army into the fortress just in case."
As soon as Wang Ping heard this, he felt that something was not right.
After thinking for a while, his eyes suddenly became strange.
If you really want to send him to Chang'an according to this statement, on the surface it is to guard Taiyuan, but in fact you are secretly suing Wei Yan!
Educated people are indeed blameless even for their bad deeds.
Warriors have to use swords to kill people.
They only need to use a pen to kill people.
It’s okay if nothing happens to the party.
Once something goes wrong, Wei Yan will not be able to escape the charge of recklessly advancing without regard to the overall situation.
A guy who doesn’t care about the overall situation still wants to lead the army independently in the future?
Going to Nanxiang for retirement is the last dignity!
Fortunately, fortunately, I had the foresight to send my son to Zhongduhu - when it comes to learning, among all the big men, who else can compare to Zhongduhu?
Wang Ping's heart was spinning, but he immediately responded:
“Okay, then do as the envoy says.”
Deng Zhi saw that Wang Ping was so happy and couldn't help but said happily:
“I’m so lucky to be an official in the same court as General Wang, a man who has a general understanding of things and takes national affairs seriously!”
“You have given me a reward!”
Deng Zhi waved his hand:
"This is actually what I say sincerely. After all, General Wang took risks when he agreed to lead the army into the fortress."
As an important minister, how could Deng Zhi not know that Wei Yan was looming behind him in the palace?
So in this matter, Wei Yan is not letting himself be manipulated, but has the ability to fight back.
When that time comes, if the imperial court really feels that the governor's office and the principal's office are cooperating too closely, they may not be beaten.
Of course, the consequences will not be too serious.
After all, as a right-guard general, although Deng Zhi did not want to give up military power now, when he was really forced to do so, it would not be a bad idea to return to the court and become a third official.
And Wang Ping…
Who doesn’t know that he is a protector of Zhongdu?
As long as Zhongdu can't protect him, even if he is temporarily implicated, the impact will not be too great.
But then again, even if it is a small risk, it is still a risk.
Therefore, what Deng Zhi said was truly from the bottom of his heart.
After saying this, Deng Zhi did not wait for Wang Ping to be humble again and continued to ask:
“I wonder how many soldiers General Wang can transfer from Pingcheng to the fortress?”
Wang Ping thought for a while and said:
"The Pingcheng garrison only has more than five thousand soldiers. I can mobilize up to three thousand into the fortress. If there are more, I am afraid that the Pingcheng garrison will not be able to deter the barbarians outside the fortress."
Although the barbarians in Yanmen County now seem to be harmless.
But you must be on guard against others.
In addition, barbarians from the northern grasslands come here from time to time.
Most of these new Hu people came to trade, and some came to seek refuge.
But regardless of whether it was trading or seeking refuge, the Hu people who came south from the grassland were mostly wild and not as obedient as the Huns in Bingzhou.
If there are not enough troops to deter them, those barbarians will most likely become greedy when they see Pingcheng, a city that has re-emerged and has a huge volume of material transactions.
When greed comes together, it will be difficult to restrain, and plunder will happen sooner or later.
Moreover, these three thousand people cannot stay in Taiyuan for too long. They must rush back when the weather turns cold at the latest.
the reason is simple.
Because autumn is when the grass is yellow and the horses are fertile, and at the same time, in order to hoard supplies for the winter, most of the Hu people come from the grassland to Pingcheng to trade.
At that time, there will definitely not be enough manpower left in Pingcheng.
Although he had expected it, when he heard Wang Ping's words, Deng Zhi couldn't help but frown again.
The original joyful mood dissipated slightly.
"If there are only three thousand, it will be enough if it is only used to prevent internal strife in the Shangdang."
Deng Zhi pondered for a moment and then continued, "But in the current situation, we cannot take any chances. We should prepare for the worst."
If the traitors attack both internal and external forces, and the army of Wei thieves takes the opportunity to enter Shangdang, then Taiyuan County will only use 3,000 troops to prevent the army of thieves from continuing to enter Taiyuan, which may be a bit reluctant.
So he said with some consideration:
“There are still three thousand defenders in Yanmen Fortress, one in the south and one in the north of Pingcheng, echoing each other to prevent the barbarians in Yanmen County.”
"In General Wang's opinion, if two thousand people are transferred to General Wang at this time, will Hu'er from Yanmen County have the courage to take this opportunity to cause trouble?"
"No!" Wang Ping said with certainty, "As long as we return to the army before autumn, it won't happen."
In the past few years, newly built workshops and pastures in Yanmen County have been frantically absorbing young and strong labor force from nearby areas.
Not only the Hu people, but also the Han people.
There are white and black disasters in the grassland every year?
It doesn't matter, come and work in the workshops and pastures of Pingcheng. Not only can you support yourself, but you can also support your family.
Are you afraid of another war in Youbianjizhou, which is located at the junction of Han and Wei?
Don’t be afraid, come and work in the workshops and pastures of Pingcheng. Not only will you be able to support yourself, but you will also be able to support your family.
Don’t want to be exploited by Hao You and Tuntian Hakka again?
Come, come and work in the workshops and pastures of Pingcheng. Not only can you support yourself, but you can also support your family.
So how could these wage earners ruin their jobs?
Let yourself and your family fall into a situation where you have no clothes to wear, no food to eat, no fixed place to live, and no guarantee of survival?
On the contrary, in order to preserve their current life, they are more willing to maintain the stability of the frontier.
The only thing to worry about is as mentioned before. In autumn, too many barbarians from the north flock in all at once, which may cause public security problems.
Given the wild nature of the Hu people, if the security issue is not resolved in time, it will soon turn into turmoil.
Of course, Wang Ping, who has read too little, cannot figure out these principles on his own.
But who calls the Chief of the School's Office, Shi, the eldest brother of the Martial Arts Hall?
Zhang Yuan is a member of the staff group. He has a habit of making more assumptions and plans.
In view of the situation in Pingcheng, as the chief historian of the Xianbei Academy, Zhang Yuan would naturally have considered various possible scenarios.
Getting a positive answer from Wang Ping, Deng Zhi breathed a sigh of relief.
Five thousand soldiers, as long as they are prepared in advance and block the key points between Taiyuan and Shangdang, they will be enough to ensure the safety of Taiyuan.
If things really change in Shangdang, whether or not to enter Shangdang to quell the chaos will ultimately depend on the development of the situation before making a decision.
After all, there is a Jingxing to the east of Taiyuan, which leads directly to Changshan County in Jizhou.
What if the thieves plan to invade from multiple directions, and what if they want to swallow up Bingzhou in one fell swoop?
Although the possibility is unlikely, it is necessary to guard against it.
“So where do you think it would be more appropriate for these five thousand people to be stationed?”
“Let’s go to Qi County. It’s not appropriate for these five thousand people to be dispersed. It’s better to all be stationed in Qi County.”
Deng Zhi has long considered this issue, or in other words, he has been thinking about this issue these days:
“The main road between Taiyuan and Shangdang is Qixian County.”
“Even if someone wants to take a dangerous detour, as long as more sentries are set up, they can be discovered early and they can get there in time from Qi County.”
Upon hearing this, Wang Ping no longer hesitated, stood up and clasped his fists, saying:
"The military situation is like a fire. Since Ambassador Deng has made arrangements, I will immediately return to Pingcheng, order all the troops and horses, and arrive at Qixian County as early as possible, so that I can take precautions."
When Deng Zhi heard this, he couldn't help but stepped forward and held Wang Ping's hand. The look on his face was a little sighing and a little guilty:
“I’m really uneasy to call General Wang here in such a hurry, and then ask General Wang to go back in a hurry. After this incident is over, I will personally hold a banquet for General Wang at the Governor’s Mansion!”
“We are both serving the country so that you don’t have to do this.”
“I am doing this just because of General Wang’s desire to serve the country.”
After Deng Zhi and Wang Ping finished their discussion, they did not stop at Yanmen Sai anymore. They went back to the south and the north to prepare.
(End of this chapter)