Chapter 314 The development of desert towns
In the military camp of Wanlong Town, Zhu Wu said: "If things change, you cannot hesitate. If you want to break it, you must stop it. The army must go back to Dongping Prefecture immediately to avoid being harmed by treacherous officials of the court."
Li Kui touched his forehead and said, "I said to Junshi Zhu, why are you stupid? We have won a big victory and are still afraid of a bird in the court."
Zhu Wu said: "It is precisely because of the victory of the war that the Xixia people are afraid of fighting. Now that Xixia and the Song Dynasty are discussing peace, the imperial court is unwilling to go to a full war with Xixia, so they will definitely agree to peace. The condition for the Xixia peace is to take Brother Wu Song's life. Do you think we will go back or not."
Li Kui slapped his thighs: "Then I won't go back. I'm bleeding and sweating, fighting for the court, winning, and I'm actually guilty. I'm talking about life and death, and I'm happy with grudges. Didn't Xixia want our lives? It's better to kill their capital and capture the bird emperor of Xixia."
Cheng Zhi said: "Battleman Commander Li's idea is manly, but it's not a few days ago. Now the Western Army has returned to defense. We can only be intercepted halfway when we attack Xixia."
"This is not possible, that is not possible. Wouldn't you be depressed to death?" Li Kui said.
Wu Song said: "Now the Liao border army is gathering, and 25,000 miners can't get through, so I immediately took them back to Dongping Prefecture. Military advisor Zhu, Battalion Commander Yuan, Battalion Commander Chao, Wu Zhuang, and Liu Tang all went back, and the artillery firearms should be hidden and replaced. After returning, I firmly controlled the army. Cheng Zhi and Li Kui were waiting here to see what the Xixia mission said. If the conditions for peace negotiations were really as expected, the conditions for peace negotiations would cost me, and then the Xixia mission would be destroyed."
If outsiders hear this, they will be frightened to death, but these people are very nervous. Not to mention the mission of Xixia, no one will listen even if they go to open the seal.
The action should be fast. Early the next morning, Zhu Wu led a large group of troops back to Dongping Prefecture and walked eighty miles that day.
Li Kui camp originally had 1,000 people, but later it expanded more than 1,500 people. Now the standard is 2,500 people, plus Wu Song's 500 cavalry, there are a total of 3,000 people, and the scale is still quite large. However, there are too many new recruits and their combat effectiveness has been severely degraded.
Bao Xu, Xiang Chong, Li Gun, and the three of them trained recruits day and night. Yan'an Prefecture had nothing to do. The envoys of the Western Xia did not know that the coming of the Year of the Monkey and Horse Month, and the huge army was not convenient to move, so it would be better to go out. After traveling west, Wu Song led the team to Liushili Fort. Liushili Fort had undergone earth-shaking changes. The dilapidated village was now planning a city. The city was square, with one gate in the east, south and north, with a circumference of eight miles. Of course, a small city of this size was the size of a county town. The desert border was sparsely populated, and even such a large small city was not satisfied with people. The city had markets, barracks and residential areas. Of course, it was just a plan now. There were not enough people to build large-scale projects. There were only one thousand people on the huge construction site. It seemed that they were Jie Zhen's infantry, more than one thousand infantry, and hundreds of civilians.
Cheng Zhi said: "What an empty place, where is Pang Wanchun?"
Wu Song said: "Pang Wanchun continues to go westward, in a fertile valley where the water is more abundant than here, suitable for large-scale planting and grazing, not as desolate as Liushili Fort."
"Not desolate, not desolate. The Sixty-Liuli Fort is under major renovation. In a few years, there will be woods everywhere." Liu Changfeng rode over to greet Wu Song. When he heard Wu Song say that the Sixty-Liuli Fort was desolate, he quickly explained.
Wu Song said: "Have the horse arrived? Why didn't you see Shi Jin?"
Liu Changfeng said: "Brother Shi Jin went back five days ago. Ten thousand horses have been grazing in the valley. There are not many dead grass. I can only look forward to spring coming soon."
Li Kui shouted: "Liu Changfeng, hurry up and arrange a camp for us. It's too dry here, and the wind is full of sand. It's so uncomfortable."
Liu Changfeng said: "The camp is ready and can be stationed at any time."
The campground is a wooden fence with a wall, and there are more than a dozen hand-pressing wells, making it much easier to get water and wash.
The soldiers worked hard all the way, cooking, and preparing for camping Cheng Zhi assisted Li Kui in the camp. Wu Song, Luo Ping, Jiao Ting, Yu Baosi, Jie Zhen, and Liu Changfeng went to see the horses together. In the valley south of Liushilibao Village, the horses were eating grass leisurely, and the water in the river gradually increased. The river water in the northwest will soar in spring because of the melting snow.
Liu Changfeng said: "Why didn't my brother bring me with me this time? I can go and show off my power."
"The Sixty-Li Castle is our hidden strength and cannot be exposed easily. It is very close to the southern part of Xixia, and it is very dangerous. Being stronger as soon as possible is the best strategy." Wu Song said.
Liu Changfeng said: "The large-scale combat depends on strong people and strong horses. Now that there are horses, it is easy for people to recruit. If you raise the recruiting flag, you will have people who eat food. Don't brag. By next spring, you will be able to develop to 20,000 troops, and two small cities. Xixia must have a good idea to make a decision."
"In addition to river valleys and a few mountain buns, there are too few forests. With a large population, it will become a bottleneck for development. What good ways can Changfeng solve it?" Wu Song asked.
Liu Changfeng said proudly: "There are talented people in the fort, an old carpenter who knows how to plant trees best. However, the development of trees is slow. If you don't have to see results in three or five years, you won't have to see big trees. Xie Zhen and I discussed with him to first develop places on both sides of the river bank that are not suitable for planting, and plant them in high density so that they don't have to grow. First, after the leaves of willows fall, they can be used as excellent grass for autumn. Sheep like to eat them very much. Then, the willow trees can be cut down for three or two years. The cut down small trees can be used as fuel to cook. You should know that tens of thousands of people are very fuel-consuming. Mountain buns, and you can plant black pine, cypress, elm, etc. when you turn back on the hillside."
It seems that Liu Changfeng is not just a martial artist, he knows at least some logistics.
Wu Song has to arrange agricultural technicians here to develop fertile fields along the river, plant grain, and feed more people. Shelterbelts are also planted next door to control wind and sand.
It turned out that the team had been expanding during this period. Xie Zhen led the infantry to guard the Sixty-Liu Li Fortress, Liu Changfeng and Pang Wanchun led thousands of light cavalry to the west and fight south. The small horse thieves along the way either died in battle or surrendered, and conquered more than 200 miles of land and a population of 50,000 or 60,000. Of course, these two people knew nothing about administrative management, and were just temporarily managing them.
The two battalions of cavalry successively developed to two thousand cavalry, scimitars, bows and arrows, and cowhide armor, and a very strong Western Region flavor. Xie Zhen's infantry also developed to one thousand people. Although the population in the northwest is not as large as that in the Central Plains, the population east of Lanzhou is too large, so recruiting people is not a problem. The problem is that there is insufficient food and other materials. Only when agriculture in the controlled area develops can it expand in large quantities.
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Chapter completed!