C91 (1/2)
Zhang Shuhe paused for a moment before continuing, ”The border army's stall is too big. All of the 200,000 people are fed on horses, and all of it is due to the imperial government's supply. It's very strenuous to support them!” I believe you should know some things about the situation in Dragon State. The land is barren, and the population is small, so the current residents are basically the military family members or the old people who have retired from the border army. The court has limited care for the retired border army, which has led to many helpless old soldiers. To tell you the truth, I wanted to do something about my life and change my current predicament. However, my identity is still sensitive. Every time he saw the living conditions of those civilians, he would always feel ashamed, but he would also feel powerless! ”So …”
Zhang Zhou understood what he was thinking and said seriously, ”General, if there's anything you need me to do, just say it!”
”Firstly, I want to reclaim the land. Longzhou is not short of arable land, it's short of population! ”Now that the daily rations are allocated by the imperial court, there are not many that are truly in stock. Once the war begins, I'm afraid the supplies will be unable to keep up!”
”Why not?”
”Sigh, this is also a method the imperial court uses to restrict the border troops! If you think about it carefully, you will understand! There's no use in playing it! ”
Zhang Zhou nodded and did not say anything else. He continued to listen to Zhang Shuhe, ”Second, I want to start a trade. There are a lot of minerals and trees in Dragon State, but there is only a lack of development! Even in the area of medicinal herbs, there is a unique geographical advantage to Dragon Prefecture. Many precious medicinal herbs are only available in Dragon Prefecture … ”
Zhang Shu introduced the resources of Dragon State in detail. Finally, he said, ”I want to have a broad range of commercial cooperation with the Nine Prefectures!”
The resources that Zhang Shuhe mentioned could be used in the business of the Nine Regions. He had never traded with the Dragon Province not only because of its poor business base, but also because of its sensitivity. The border army was like a local snakehead in Dragon State. It was a common occurrence to extort and extort business from merchants, and the most common excuse was to spy on the military! This ”big hat” was enough to make ordinary merchants go bankrupt. Over time, who would be willing to come here to do business? This is also the main reason for the business malaise. After all, in order to make money, one had to avoid risks in order to do business. A large investment in the business could not be repaid, and could even lead to unnecessary trouble. This was not something that Zhang Zhou would do.
Zhang Shuhe could see that Zhang Zhou was in a tough spot. He understood that a businessman's interests were heavy, and it was only right and proper for them to do so. Moreover, he had no reason to let the other party pay such a huge sum of money just to give him some face. Not to mention that the other party was still the Marquis, even an ordinary merchant would not agree to this! He could not help but feel that he was being a bit rash. No one knew the predicament of Fringe Army better than him. Therefore, when he understood Zhang Zhou's background, he could not help but reveal his thoughts and give it a try.
Zhang Zhou pondered for a moment, then raised his head and said, ”General, if the Nine Regions do business in the Dragon Province, can the border army guarantee my rights and interests?”
”You can rest assured about this. If anyone dares to make things difficult for me, I will punish them harshly. I will not let you suffer in this aspect!”
”How many people can the Dragon State provide?”
A person who can afford to hire a laborer, of course.
”If you count the entire Dragon State, it would be around 20,000!”
”General, this is not a small amount of silver, I cannot agree to it rashly. However, since the general can provide security, I am willing to support his decision!” ”If the general trusts me, give me some time, and I will give him a satisfactory answer!”
Zhang Shuhe naturally knew that this was not a simple matter. Zhang Zhou did not refuse and could be considered as giving him face!
”Then I'll thank the Marquis first. You don't need to worry about it, there are some things I can still make decisions in the Dragon State!” As long as we can make the days of the border troops more comfortable, you can speak up if Master Hou needs anything! ”
”...”
The two of them talked about Bei Yan again. It seemed that Zhang Shu and his partner rarely had a chance to talk to each other. Perhaps they also wanted to get closer to Zhang Zhou, so they didn't try to hide it from him.
”Tang Dynasty and Bei Yan are fated to be mortal enemies. In the years after Lin Xi He's war, they have sealed each other up even more! After I came here, I had made arrangements for many infiltrations, and I hoped that I could obtain some information! It was a pity that they had all failed and had lost quite a few people! If the Great Tang Dynasty used bricks and stone to create an immovable fortress, then Bei Yan used countless sentries to roam about, weaving an impenetrable defensive line! ”
Zhang Shuhe let out a long breath, then said with a pleased tone, ”However, there's been some changes. Although the border troops are unable to obtain any information, your Nine Prefectures' caravan can occasionally give me some fragmented information! This information is crucial to me! There are all kinds of signs that Beyan is hoarding goods in large numbers. ”
Of course, Zhang Zhou knew about this. Mei Changqing's actions were also at his instigation. The success or failure of Dragon State was directly related to the safety of Hezhou! He did not mind sharing some intelligence with the border guards so that they could make early judgments and prevent this from happening!
Although it was just some fragmented information, it was still extremely informative: For example, although Beyan had the herdsmen of the Eastern King Courtyard prepare a large amount of ripe skin and provide a large amount of war horses' grass, they did not requisition any strong men or war horses! One had to know that once a large number of strong conscription appeared, it would not be long until the start of the war!
”General, do you think there will be a fight with Bei Yan? If so, when will it be possible? ”
”They will definitely fight! ”According to my past experience, I estimate that it should be in the next two to three years!”
Zhang Zhou frowned. It was obvious that time was of the essence for him. Zhang Shuhe thought that he was worried that the investment from Dragon State would be greatly affected, and comforted: ”Master Hou, don't worry. After the battle at Lin Xi River, it has been almost twenty years since the Tang Dynasty. ”If Bei Yan wanted to step into the Tang Dynasty, it would be wishful thinking!”
”...”
Zhang Zhou was assigned the task of patrolling the Sixth Battalion. To put it simply, he was assigned to inspect the logistics and supplies of the Sixth Battalion on a daily basis! Although it was a bit tormenting, it was safe, risk-free and not boring. Along the way, he could experience the scenery of Longzhou.
On their first trip, they were led by Yang Kui, who was familiar with the route. Two years ago, Zhang Zhou took Yang Kui to set up a defensive sentry at the Chivalry. Now, Yang Kui is leading Zhang Zhou to patrol the camp. Everyone was in a different situation. They couldn't really compete with each other!
Other than Zhang Shuhe's main camp, the border troops were divided into five stages! From east to west, they were, in order, the great man, the great sword, the fierce horse, the repudiated north, and the tiger. Great Chivalry was the most remote place; the sword the most difficult; the strong horse the most advantageous to the cavalry; the north repudiation the most prominent in geographical location; and the tiger the most majestic!
The Six Battalions of Five Pass were connected together, creating an impregnable wall in the northern border of the Tang Dynasty! However, after the completion of the five stages, only the Resisting North Pass had experienced the assaults.
Twenty years ago, Tang Yan and her country had engaged in an unprecedented battle. Both sides had a total of five hundred thousand soldiers, and in the north Yan's Lin Xi river, they had engaged in close combat for two months. At that time, the North Resisting Mountain Pass was also one of the battlefields. In the end, even though Tang Dynasty had won, it was powerless to continue to attack from the north. It could only retreat to the city gates and continue to maintain a standoff. Some people described the war that had cost the State treasury ten years!