Chapter 251 Good Omen
On the third day after Shao Xun arrived in Luoyang, the auxiliary troops were almost ready.
The imperial court recruited 1,000 men from Hanoi, Chenliu, and Xingyang counties each, and allocated an additional 300 craftsmen. Together with the 300 craftsmen and 5,000 auxiliary soldiers brought by Shao Xun, they formed the logistics security system.
At this point, there are 9,000 combat troops, 9,800 auxiliary troops, plus more than 160 Shaw soldiers, with a total strength of nearly 19,000.
On the ninth day of the eighth lunar month, the Xiaoqi army was accompanied by the Hu Ben governors, the hit Hu Ben governors each with 500 cavalry, and the Youzhou Tuqi governor with 150 cavalry. The whole army exceeded 20,000.
On the tenth day of August, Sima Yue took care of General for a while and came forward to hold a meeting.
There was nothing else, except that he appointed Shangshu Zuopushe Liu Tun as the governor of Luoyang, which was beyond everyone's expectations.
On August 11, the first thing Liu Tun did after taking office was to inspect the western suburbs camp.
"Grand Governor." Shao Xun led a group of generals and came out of the camp gate to greet him.
"There are so many strong men under the command of Lu Yang." Liu Tun looked at the sergeants who were practicing around the chariot and praised.
In the past few years, this army had mostly fought against the likes of Ji Sang, Wang Mi, and Shi Le. It had won successive victories and had developed a bit of arrogance.
This time I am facing Liu Han, but his fighting power is much stronger. I wonder if he can still win.
"As long as you train well and don't mess around, anyone can raise an elite soldier." Shao Xun said.
Liu Tun laughed loudly.
The public will of Luyang County has something to say, but he doesn't mind.
Seeing Liu Dun like this, Shao Xun knew that he had guessed correctly.
When the late emperor was here, Liu Tun was a royalist.
After the late emperor's rise to power, Liu Tun's role was a little unclear, and he seemed not to be so loyal to the emperor anymore.
But how is this possible?
Even if a lifelong belief changes, it cannot turn 180 degrees in a short period of time. At most, he is no longer loyal to the imperial court, but he may not switch to Sima Yue. At present, he should be considered a neutral faction, slightly leaning towards the emperor.
"Before coming here, I was a little worried. After meeting the heroes of Lu Yang, I felt a lot more relieved." Liu Tun put away his smile and said, "In this way, the journey to Yiyang will be worry-free."
"Yi Yang?" Shao Xun was a little surprised.
He was mentally prepared to go to Hanoi, but you told me to go to Yiyang? But this is fine, with Yiyang Sanwu here, we have a place to stay.
The commanders of Zhuwu Fort in Yiyang also know each other, have some friendship, and can help each other.
Yiyang Ling Pan Si is an old friend, and he has helped Shao Xun a lot in the past few years - Pan Si is a younger brother of the Pan Tao clan.
“It’s Yiyang.” Liu Tun nodded and said.
While the two were talking, a few drizzles of rain finally fell from the sky that had been gloomy for many days.
Shao Xun and Liu Tun quickly raised their heads, and the cool rain fell on their faces, making people feel a burst of joy from the soul.
“It’s raining!” someone exclaimed.
Li Chong's face was filled with joy, he stretched out his palm and touched the raindrops lightly.
Chen Yougen grinned widely, his face broke with laughter.
The sergeants who were practicing subconsciously slowed down the movements of their hands. The officers suppressed the joy in their hearts, whipped out their riding whips with a straight face, and scolded them to continue practicing without stopping.
"It's raining!" The young men in Sizhou were not so disciplined. They all cheered happily and loudly.
Some people burst into tears. Really, it's not easy.
Except for the beginning of the six-month drought, there was almost no rain in the middle.
The dry land destroyed crops, vegetation, and their lives.
North and south of the river, there are people everywhere who are waiting for food.
I don’t know how many people died silently in this severe drought - the Xiongnu drowned 30,000 people in the river in Liyang, but the severe drought killed more than one or two "30,000".
"This is a good omen!" Liu Tun was also very happy and said: "The Huns are about to invade, and the drought will end soon. Isn't this a good omen? Our army will win!"
Shao Xun shouted Tang Jian came and ordered: "Pass this on, the rain will fall from the sky. This is a good omen, our army will win!"
"No." Tang Jian immediately took care of it.
A moment later, loud cheers came from inside and outside the camp.
Liu Tun stroked his beard and nodded secretly.
The Duke of Luyang County knows how to boost morale, no wonder he wins every battle. If you leave the journey to Yiyang to him, there should be no serious problems.
"When will Duke Lu march in?" Liu Tun asked.
"How about the whole army gathers together today and has a good meal, and then march westward tomorrow?" Shao Xun asked.
“Yes.” Liu Tun said happily.
No delay, just leave.
People say that the public of Luyang County is arrogant and domineering, he is also a lustful ghost, and he is also greedy for money. It seems a bit untrue.
He is really there for me if something happens! This alone is enough.
In extraordinary times, extraordinary people should be used. To put it bluntly, if Zhang Fang was still there and willing to fight for the imperial court, Liu Tun would dare to use him, even if he was criticized by the outside world.
After inspecting the western suburbs camp, Liu Tun went to the camps of Mi Huang and Chen Yan.
The two of them combined more than 8,000 soldiers. In fact, they were not elite soldiers, they were just the troops of Sili Xiaowei and Duzhi Xiaowei. Their combat effectiveness was similar to that of the Forbidden Army.
Shao Xun goes to Yiyang, and these two will lead a group of young men to guard Xin'an Road.
Because you don't know which way the Huns will come - after crossing the river from Dayang, if you take a shortcut, take the Xin'an Road, if you take the long way, take the Yiyang Road, you have to be careful.
******
The rain stopped after a long time.
That night, it rained lightly again, but it stopped quickly.
In the next few days, the sky will be clear again and the Golden Crow will hang high. On August 15th, Shao Xun led his troops to Yunzhongwu, and the autumn rain returned.
The last group of old, weak, women and children are retreating.
Shao Xun stood in the dry Luoshui River and watched everyone go away.
"Master Shao, do you want to plant wheat this year?" Wang Hui, the owner of Yunzhongwu, stepped forward and asked.
Wang Hui is a second-term student from Luoyang. He is nineteen years old and has managed Yunzhongwu for two and a half years.
This time of retreat made him feel a little uncomfortable.
After harvesting the winter wheat in late May, they have not been idle and have been maintaining the fields according to the agricultural book compiled by Shao Xun.
In years of severe drought, we still find ways to find moist silt, mix it with human and animal excrement, stir it, and store it as fertilizer.
If you plant wheat in September, the harvest next year will be very good.
This is not a few years ago. The fields in Sanwu in Yiyang are now relatively mature and well maintained. It is also close to Luoshui River and its tributaries. It is the best irrigated land and its value is inestimable.
“That’s it.” Shao Xun shook his hand and rejected it.
It had only rained two or three times, and it was not heavy. There were no conditions for farming for the time being.
Furthermore, there is a high possibility that this place will become a battlefield. Don’t put in seeds and end up with nothing.
There were waves of horses neighing in the river.
The men under Cavalry Inspector Duan Liang are herding horses.
In the year of severe drought, the vegetation withered and the Luoshui River became a grassland. Because the soil here is relatively moist, and many deep river beds have formed ponds, the surrounding water and grass are lush, tender and juicy, and horses love it very much.
This prince made great contributions in the Battle of Yema Gang, and was not able to be granted the title of County Marquis. In the end, he was given the rarely granted title of Ting Marquis and some wealth.
This time Duan Liang asked for the cavalry to accompany him, and he took the initiative to come to the west route.
Fighting with Shao Xun can lead to meritorious services and receiving titles, but following Wang Kan, Cao Wu, Wang Kuang and others, you may not even be able to save your life. The choice is obvious.
That afternoon, the army continued westward to Jinmen Pier.
Shao Xun visited brothers Du Dan and Du Yin, the masters of Yiquanwu on the way.
At this time, a messenger came from the direction of the county city, telling Liu Cong to lead his army south, conquer Shaanxi County, and go straight to Hongnong. The prefect Yuan Yan surrendered from the city.
"This..." Du Dan was very surprised when he heard this.
"The prince has three thousand soldiers, why did he surrender the thieves?" Du Yin was also a little puzzled.
Shao Xun was silent for a while, secretly sighing that Liu Han had really gained momentum and become famous.
In the past, these prefects could only run away, and very few of them surrendered to thieves.
Let’s not talk about Hebei. It was Sima Ying’s territory. He was not naturally good at dealing with the court, and there were many escapees and thieves. But in Bingzhou, which faced the Xiongnu front line, there were not so many bad incidents.
But this year there has been an incident of Shangdang Prefect Pang Chun surrendering a traitor. Now Hongnong Prefect Yuan Yan has also surrendered. The situation is not quite right.
If Da Jin loses again, more and more people will surrender.
In the end no one loses, and it is time to perish.
"Duke Du, thieves are rampant, it's time for Yiyang to work together." Shao Xun said.
Du Dan sighed and hesitated.
Yiquanwu is very strong and has many people. In the past few years, he had made deals with Shao Xun and obtained a lot of military equipment, so he still had the ability to protect himself.
The Huns have many cavalry troops and their target is Luoyang, so they may not necessarily do anything to Yiquanwu.
Just treat them as Zhang Fang and give them some money and food when they ask for it. Although the drought this year is very difficult, the winter wheat harvest is good, and now we are confident.
Du Yinze was still sighing at the side: "This thief Yuan Yan previously said that Hongnong and Shaanxian County were repeatedly plundered by Hu Qi and could not bear the disturbance. He wanted to move the government to Yiyang. Fortunately, I didn’t listen to him, otherwise Yiyang would be gone. He is such a thief, he has no king and no father. I wish I could eat his skin and eat his flesh!”
“What’s the use of saying this now?” Dan glanced at his brother and said.
Du Yin sighed and said no more.
Seeing the two brothers chattering there, Shao Xun felt a little impatient and said: "To defend Yiyang, we have to work together. Yiquanwu soldiers have enough food and supplies, maybe -"
"Captain." Du Dan bowed his head and said: "This year's drought is very difficult. However, fighting against thieves is a national war, and my two brothers cannot lag behind others. I am willing to donate 100,000 grains. Two hundred dendrobiums, pigs and sheep are provided for military needs."
Du Yin hesitated to speak, and finally said nothing.
Shao Xun chuckled.
These Wubao handsome men are all cunning and have small calculations. It was extremely difficult to get them to send troops and food. After hearing that the prefect Yuan Yan surrendered, he was as timid as a mouse and only wanted to give them some food and meat.
But now is not the time to settle accounts with them.
It is not cost-effective to waste precious troops on the local fort, and it may also force them to surrender to the Huns.
"Fifteen thousand hu of grain, and another thousand hu of dendrobium." Shao Xun's expression suddenly changed, and he said: "Otherwise -"
Du Dan looked at Shao Xun and was silent for a long time. .
Three or four years ago, they were talking happily and had a good friendship. But right now, he falls out whenever he wants to, and threatens whenever he wants to. Is this person a dog?
Du Yin held his breath and was extremely nervous.
"Okay." Du Dan finally let go.
"In the rest of the docks, Lao Du Jun has a gift, and everyone has to donate food and provide food." Shao Xun said again.
"It will be as you wish." Du Dan said helplessly.
After achieving his goal, Shao Xun was too lazy to talk nonsense, got on his horse, and headed for Jinmen Pier.
On August 17, when the army arrived at Jinmenwu, he immediately sent people north to seize Huixi Ban and cut down trees and set up fences to prevent bandits.
(End of this chapter)