NCCnovel Chapter 111
Chapter 111
Chapter 111
By mid-September, the Qingqiu Guard Division's round of bandit suppression operations for the purpose of military training had basically come to an end, and all bandits in Qingqiu Prefecture had been eliminated.
If the regular army gets serious, there will be no room for bandits to survive.
According to the battle report from the front line, when the third brigade joined forces with the city defense battalion to wipe out the bandits in Qingqiu Mountain, when they got to the back, some cottages simply surrendered without a fight, and directly admitted their cowardice.
There is no disadvantage in the direction of the soldiers.
The frequent good news is more like a warm-up for the upcoming war.
Of course, benefits are also indispensable.
Similar to Qingfeng Village, the bandits in Qingqiu Mountain were relatively well-off, and they seized countless spiritual stones, spiritual grasses, ores, gold, silver and jewelry, etc., with a cumulative value of more than [-] spiritual stones.
With a wave of Qian Yuan's hand, all the money was used as military expenses.
Except for the loot, all that is left is the captive bandits who surrendered. The operation is similar to that when Qingfengzhai was wiped out.
Ordinary people either turned into farmers, or were absorbed by the Star Chamber of Commerce.
All the warriors were integrated into the Qingqiu Guard Division. After being compressed, they were organized into two independent battalions.
In this way, the total strength of the Qingqiu Security Division reached 9500 at once, at least in terms of numbers, it was basically on par with the demon army's [-]-strong team.
This is also the reason why Qianyuan did not love the Fox Demon Army at all. If Hu Qiu really dared to come alone, Qianyuan would let him come and go without returning, and add another one to the credit book.
Let Qingqiu Mansion end the history of being harassed and invaded by the demon army is a goal set by Qianyuan.
At least in his fiefdom.
After reorganizing bandits, hidden dangers are not without. One is the lack of training of bandits. In order not to disrupt the rhythm of the existing departments, Qian Yuan did not dare to mix them with the existing troops.
Even if you want to mix it up, you have to wait until after the battle is over.
In addition, there will be an increase of 40 soldiers, and the military expenditure will inevitably increase by a large amount. The [-] low-grade spirit stones advanced from the Kunwu Chamber of Commerce have already spent less than half.
If this continues, even if Baolixuan pays dividends every year, it will be difficult to support such a large army. If nothing else is mentioned, the monthly military salary alone will exceed [-] spirit stones.
Not counting the elixir of spiritual grass that has been provided all year round.
Guo Jia calculated for Qian Yuan that with the current scale of the Qingqiu Guard Division, it would need to consume about 100 million spirit stones per year, which does not include wartime consumption.
Once a war starts, the death benefits, personnel, equipment replenishment, etc., will be a huge expense.
Raising such an army is awe-inspiring, but the consumption is not something ordinary people can afford. Qian Yuan is already looking for a new way to make money.
At present, the financial structure of Qingqiu Prefecture is deformed.
Whether it is Lingshi or silver, it is completely supported by the Starry Sky Chamber of Commerce. The fiscal and taxation support of the prefectural and county government offices is very limited, and it has not played a good role as a financial cornerstone.
It means that Qianyuan is relying on the Starry Sky Chamber of Commerce and using his personal power to forcefully drag the fief forward. This situation is ultimately unsustainable and unhealthy.
Consolidating the foundation of the fiefdom and increasing fiscal and taxation is the right way.
The yamen want to increase the taxation, nothing more than tamping agriculture, activating commerce, and developing the tertiary industry, etc., but all of these have a major premise, that is, there must be a stable development environment.
How can a place that is threatened by the demon army every year, war may break out at any time, and be burned to scorched earth by the enemy, how can it really develop?
After a while, let's go back to the war itself.
"So, this battle must not only be won, but also beautiful, simply!" Qian Yuan said.
…………
After the bandits were suppressed, Qingqiu Mansion's war machine was officially launched.
On September [-], just after returning from Qingqiu Mountain, the third brigade led by Tang Sifang had no time to rest, and was immediately ordered to set up camp in the outskirts of Yingshui County.
Yingshui County is sandwiched between Nanguan County and Yize County. Within a day, if you go north, you can reinforce Zhennanguan, and if you go south, you can go directly to Yizeguan, and you can advance and retreat freely.
The current situation in Qingqiu Kingdom is that the Manniu Pass opposite Yize Pass has not been repaired and is still in ruins, and the Hulao Pass opposite Zhennan Pass is stationed by two thousand-man teams of the Fox Demon Army.
The remaining eight thousand-man troops of the Fox Demon Army were stationed near Hulao Pass.
Depending on the situation, the demon army is preparing to attack Zhennan Pass this time, but until the last moment, no one can be sure whether this is a conspiracy of the demon army.
Therefore, before the war, Zhou Qing still led the first brigade to guard Zhennan Pass, Yue Yun led the second brigade to guard Yize Pass, and Tang Sifang led the third brigade to station in Yingshui County.
The City Defense Battalion is still stationed on the outskirts of Qingqiu Mansion. As the general reserve force of the whole army, including the two independent battalions that have just been reorganized, they are also receiving emergency training on the outskirts of Qingqiu Mansion.
Xu Rong is the temporary instructor of the two independent battalions.
…………
September [-]th, Qingqiu Mansion, South Gate.
Early in the morning, Uncle Zhong, Aning and others saw Qian Yuan and his party off at the gate of the city.
As time went by, the war was about to break out, and the smell of gunpowder in front of Zhennanguan became more and more intense. The scouts from both sides appeared again and started a small-scale fight to warm up for the upcoming war.
In view of this, Qian Yuan decided to rush to the front to supervise the battle.
In addition to the personal guard battalion led by Xu Chu, Chief Shi Liu Daoning, Guo Jia and five or six members of the book office of the division headquarters were accompanying him. They would accompany Qian Yuan to set up a wartime headquarters in Yingshui County.
Qian Yuan never thought that the flames of war would be brought to Qingqiu Mansion.
Before leaving, Qianyuan once again told him: "Uncle Zhong, I will leave the rear to you!"
"Your Highness, don't worry!"
Uncle Zhong will not intervene in the front line of the war at all this time, and has been sitting in Qingqiu Mansion. He has three responsibilities. First, during Qianyuan's absence, he will stabilize the morale of the army, the people, and the officials for Qianyuan.
Second, it is responsible for raising food, grass and materials for the frontline troops and providing logistical support.The third is to be responsible for forming a temporary monk team, and when necessary, send it to the front line to fight.
The burden on Uncle Zhong is not light at all.
Ah Ning next to him has been preoccupied since the morning, and his eyes can't hide his worry. When Qian Yuan saw him, he didn't say anything, just smiled at Ah Ning and got on his horse.
I don't know when, Qian Yuan became more and more impatient to ride a carriage.
"set off!"
With a wave of Xu Chu's hand, Qian Yuan was surrounded by the personal guards and embarked on the journey.
The official road from Qingqiu Mansion to Yingshui County has been refurbished into a concrete road. The rice fields along the way are yellow and clear. The breeze blows, setting off golden waves of wheat, and the fragrance of rice blows to the face.
The strange thing is that there are so many fields that no one can be seen.
As one of the worst-hit counties, the people of Yingshui County had long been terrified. Hearing that the demon army was about to attack again, they were so frightened that they didn't even have time to harvest the rice, so they ran for their lives with dry food on their backs.
No matter how hard the yamen tried to persuade him, he couldn't stop it, so he had no choice but to let it go.
If the people really want to feel at ease, trust the feudal prince's mansion, and trust the army, the only way is to show real achievements, repel the demon army, and use facts to trump eloquence.
Anything else is useless.
Before noon, Qian Yuan and his party arrived in Yingshui County. Li Wei, the magistrate of Yingshui County, was waiting at the gate of the city with a group of officials and gentry, waiting eagerly.
"Your Majesty Li Wei, see Your Highness!"
"Get up!"
Seeing Li Wei, Qian Yuan was in a good mood.
This legendary figure of the Qing Dynasty was considered a rich second generation in real history and was not the beggar described in the TV series. But it is true that Li Wei did not like reading.
At the age of 30, Li Wei spent a lot of money to buy the official office of Yuanwailang. Because he served Emperor Yongzheng, when Yongzheng ascended the throne, his official career was prosperous all the way, and finally became the governor of Zhili.
Li Wei's ability is beyond doubt.
Among the three counties affected by the disaster in the spring, Yingshui County under Li Wei's rule was the first to recover, and even Nanguan County under the governance of Cao Wen, a native, was far behind.
When he arrived in Yingshui County this time, Qian Yuan naturally wanted to investigate carefully.
After meeting each other, Li Wei came up and said with a smile: "Your Highness, the wartime headquarters' house has been tidied up. Should we go directly or have a meal first?"
Compared with other serious officials, Li Wei is really an outlier.
Qianyuan smiled and said: "During the war, keep everything simple. Just go over and skip the banquet." After saying this, he turned around and told Xu Chu and Guo Jia, "Tell the soldiers not to disturb the people in the city."
"promise!"
As soon as he settled down, Qianyuan issued an edict, asking the three brigade commanders Zhou Qing, Yue Yun and Tang Sifang to rush to the headquarters to prepare for a pre-war military meeting and make unified arrangements.
The wheels of war are turning completely.
(End of this chapter)