Guiyi Fei Tang

Chapter 323: East and West
"We hope that you can send troops to help us fight against the Uighurs and prevent them from returning to the grasslands to cause chaos..."

In the main hall, He Yi Nanzhi stated the intention of the Khitan Khanate, but Liu Jilian frowned slightly.

"If you want to send troops to the Western Regions, you should go to Zhang Shijun in Hexi for cooperation, not me."

Liu Jilong told the truth, but He Yinanzhi smiled and said:
"General, why do you have to be so secretive? Aren't you the one who has the final say on the situation in Helong and Duokang?"

He Yi Nanzhi seemed to have misunderstood something, but Liu Jilong did not explain after hearing it. Instead, he asked tentatively:

"The remaining Uighurs who fled to the Western Regions still number 300,000 to 400,000. If we want to send troops to suppress them or even drive them out, if Helong wants to send troops, we must send at least 30,000."

"I wonder how many troops your Are can send, and who will provide the food and fodder for the troops on the way?"

Today, Longyou is very dependent on the Silk Road, and the Silk Road can bring nearly one million strings of wealth to Longyou every year, but this is not enough.

Although the Arab Empire was divided into more than a dozen countries, there was trade between these countries.

Although it is impossible to restore the east-west trade volume of nearly 10 million during the Kaiyuan period, as long as the remnants of the Uighurs and the Karluks can be dealt with, their own caravans can reduce a lot of unnecessary expenses and connect directly with Central Asia.

Even if trade volumes could only double today, the effort would be worthwhile.

However, he would not lead his troops to conquer the Western Regions by himself. After all, things had different priorities, and going east was undoubtedly the biggest thing in Longyou.

He had to go east and west at the same time, but he and Longyou didn't need to do it personally.

He Yi Nanzhi believed that he was the leader of the three parties of Hexi, Longyou and Duokang, and this was not a random guess.

At present, Hexi's population and food need to rely on Longyou, and the same is true for Duokang. Therefore, all external forces including the court think that Hexi and Duokang are subordinate to Longyou.

Although he had never asked for it, Zhang Huaishen would definitely help if he had asked.

After all, if he fell, Zhang Huaishen would have to face the Tang court again.

I'm afraid they still haven't forgotten what the consequences were when Hexi confronted the Tang court last time.

Most of those who remain in Hexi today have become disenchanted with the Tang court and only want to develop and expand.

It can be said that with his help, Zhang Huaishen's position in Hexi was much more stable than at this period in history.

Anyway, Zhang Huaishen has always wanted to recover the lost territories of Anxi and Beiting, so why not let him recover Anxi and Beiting.

As for whether he would become powerful, Liu Jilong was more confident than anyone else.

As they continue to move westward, the plate in Zhang Huaishen's hands will become bigger and bigger, and the amount of food and population they will need will also increase.

It was impossible for the Tang court to migrate population to him. If he wanted to obtain population, he could only do so through himself, and the same went for food.

In troubled times, food is hard currency!

While Liu Jilong was sorting out his thoughts, He Yinanzhi also sorted out his thoughts and tentatively discussed with Liu Jilong:

"How about we provide cattle and sheep, and Jie Shuai provide grain?"

"As for the troops, we can mobilize at least 50,000 troops."

It seems that Aje of the Khitans was well prepared, otherwise Heyi Nanzhi would not have accurately reported the number of 50,000 troops.

But if this A're's action was so big, why didn't it happen in history?
Thinking of this, Liu Jilong suddenly had an idea and slowly asked, "I wonder if Ah Re has consulted the court?"

"This..." He Yinanzhi looked embarrassed, which made Liu Jilong's guess more certain.

Seeing that Liu Jilong insisted on asking, He Yi Nanzhi could only say: "We haven't sent anyone to the court to ask, but A Re knows that the court will not agree to our sending troops to the Western Regions."

"That's why Aje sent me to persuade you to cooperate."

"As long as we have your support, we can send troops to drive out the Uighurs in the Western Regions. Even if the imperial court blocks trade after learning about it, we can still trade with you..."

Hei Nanzhi's statement is very convincing. After all, based on Liu Jilian's understanding of the Tang court, if the Khitan Khanate asked the Tang court whether it could send troops to the Western Regions, the Tang court would definitely refuse.

Turks, Xueyantuo, Uighurs...

The Khanates in the northern desert appeared one after another, and now that the Khitans had nominally unified the grasslands, it was naturally impossible for the Tang court to allow them to interfere in the Western Regions again.

If the Khitans had evil intentions, it would be very likely that they would become like the Xiongnu in the Qin and Han dynasties, or the Turks in the Sui and Tang dynasties.

If the Khitans sent troops without any consequences, the Tang court would have no power to do anything about it.

But if the Khitans sent someone to ask, the Tang court would definitely say no, and might even block border trade to curb the Khitans.

However, if they had the support of Helong, the Khitans would not have to worry about this problem.

There is no need to say much about the strength of Helong. Among the vassal states, only the Lulong Army in Youzhou can compare with it.

Combined with what He Yi Nanzhi had seen and heard in Longyou, he was convinced that cooperation with Liu Jilong would solve the worries of the Khitans.

After all, Longyou not only had grain, but also salt, pottery, cloth and other things that the Khitans were in short supply.

More importantly, he was willing to open up trade with the other parties, as both sides had a common enemy.

Under this situation where everyone has their own considerations, it is not difficult to foresee that the cooperation between the two sides will be successful.

"Cooperation to deal with the remaining Uighurs is not a big problem."

Liu Jilong opened his mouth slowly, and then continued:

"But I need to ask clearly, after dealing with the remaining Uighurs, to whom will the land in the Western Regions belong?"

He didn't want to fall out with Liu Jilong because of a lack of prior discussion, and He Yi Nan Zhi also thought of Liu Jilong's concerns, so he bowed and said:

"The cities and pastures in the Western Regions are all under the jurisdiction of the commander-in-chief. We only need to deal with the Uighurs!"

The purpose of the Khitans has always been clear, which is to wipe out the Uighurs.

After all, they destroyed the Uighur Khanate. If they had not wiped out all the Uighurs, they would have been taken advantage of by the Uighurs when they were in decline.

"If so, then the matter can be settled."

"I will send a handwritten letter to Xizhou to tell Envoy Zhang the whole story."

"But before that, there is one thing I need to make clear."

Liu Jilong made the decision, but at the same time reminded: "When to send troops is up to me."

"This..." He Yinanzhi showed hesitation. After all, he knew very well how much the Khitans wanted to get rid of the remnants of the Uighurs.

"Don't worry, it won't take too long. The slowest time will be two years."

Liu Jilong saw He Yinanzhi's hesitation and made a promise immediately. He Yinanzhi was relieved after hearing this, and then he stood up and bowed, saying:
"In that case, I have no objection!"

"Okay!" Liu Jilong nodded, then looked at Gao Jinda and gestured:
"Take the envoys to Yin Hotel to rest, and then bring the documents over. We will discuss the specific details of the transaction during the dinner."

"Yes……"

Gao Jinda had many doubts in his mind, but at this time he still chose to execute first and then ask.

"General, I will temporarily withdraw..."

"Have a good rest, sir. See you at the dinner."

He Yinanzhi stood up and bowed, Liu Jilong stood up and nodded, then watched him walk out of the main hall.

Gao Jinda sent someone to escort them to Yin Hotel. After they left, he turned around and asked in confusion:

"General Jie, why should our army attack the Western Regions?"

"It's not us, it's Envoy Zhang."

Liu Jilong corrected his question and then explained:

"The remnants of the Uighurs are a nuisance after all. Hundreds of thousands of them are entrenched in the Western Regions, posing a considerable threat to our trade routes."

"If we can take this opportunity to drive them out or annihilate them, it will undoubtedly be good news for us."

"It's just that Envoy Zhang's foundation in Xizhou is too weak, so I asked for two years."

"Two years later, as long as the population of Xizhou is sufficient, we can sell grain to support Envoy Zhang in his quest to defeat the Uighurs."

"After the Uighurs are pacified, the various forces in the Western Regions will be more submissive, and trade brought by the Silk Road will also increase. Why not?"

In just a few words, Gao Jinda was convinced by Liu Jilong.

At the same time, Liu Jilong also said: "Our army has been out of combat for a long time. Nearly 60% of the soldiers in the army have never experienced a war, so I am going to choose a whetstone."

"The Tuhun tribes have occupied Tuyuhun for many years and have invaded Shazhou many times. This time we can use them to train our troops."

"But there is no need to go too deep. We can use elite cavalry and horse infantry to enter the Tuyuhun area to encircle and suppress the Tuyuhun tribes."

Longyou had been peaceful for many years, and indeed many soldiers had never fought in a war.

Although Liu Jilian enjoyed peace, he also knew that only iron and blood could train an army that could fight a hundred battles.

"General, I wonder how many troops will be dispatched for this campaign, and who will be the commander?"

Gao Jinda still agreed with Liu Jilong's words, so he raised the key question immediately.

"General Jie! I challenge you to fight!"

Zhang Chang's voice rang out in the hall. He had not interrupted in many matters before, but he had to interrupt here.

He is now thirty-two years old, but he has rarely led a general to fight foreign enemies, so he does not want to miss this opportunity.

In response, Liu Jilong raised his hand to comfort him and said, "Chen Jingchong will be the commander-in-chief in this battle, and you will be the deputy commander-in-chief, there is no doubt about it." "I..." Zhang Chang was discouraged when he heard this.

He wanted to argue, but when he thought that he could at least be a deputy commander, he didn't feel so bad anymore.

"As for the deployment of troops, each town will send out one army to first capture Fushi City, and then capture the area around Fushi City for more than a hundred miles."

The Tuyuhun area is very important, but there are hundreds of thousands of Tuyuhun people living in the region, which makes it difficult to manage and also difficult to guarantee income.

Compared with sending troops to build a city and maintain long-term control, Liu Jilian was more inclined to control the area around Qinghai Lake and use restraining measures against the Tuhun tribes in the west and south.

Anyway, as the world's temperature drops, the power on the plateau will only become weaker and weaker. As long as we control tea and food, and use both culture and force to achieve both hard and soft goals, we will not be afraid of not being able to control Tuyuhun.

"If Chen Jingchong is transferred away, who should guard Weizhou?" Gao Jinda asked Liu Jilong.

Faced with this question, Liu Jilong looked around the hall but did not see Chen Ying.

Even so, he still said: "Send Chen Ying to serve as Weizhou's deputy governor and temporarily take charge of the governor's government affairs."

"Guo Jingshi, the former deputy governor of Weizhou, was appointed as the chief officer of the Tuhun attacking army to take care of the baggage affairs."

"Appoint Chen Jingchong as the envoy to attack Tuhun, and Zhang Chang as the deputy envoy to attack Tuhun."

"In addition, all the governors of all towns except Songzhou, Liangzhou, and Linzhou have been transferred!"

For nearly eight years, there have been no major changes in the fourteen states of Longyou. Now that Liu Jilian has spoken, the military and political situation in the fourteen states of Longyou will undoubtedly undergo tremendous changes.

Before Gao Jinda and others had time to savor the situation, Liu Jilong calmly and plainly explained the details of the transfer.

"Appoint Chen Jingchong as the deputy grand protector, Zhang Chang as the left deputy protector, and Li Ji as the right deputy protector."

"Gao Jinda was appointed as the chief officer of the Protectorate and concurrently the assistant military officer of the Household Department, Ma Cheng was appointed as the military officer of the Protectorate, Cui Shu was appointed as the assistant military officer and concurrently the assistant military officer of the Warehouse Department, Cao Mao was appointed as the recorder (supervisor) and concurrently the assistant military officer of the Gongcao, etc."

"Han Zheng can be appointed as the assistant military officer of the Law Department, and Shang Duoluo can be appointed as the assistant military officer of the Military Department."

"Li Ji and others will report to the Didao Protectorate today. I will make arrangements for the vacancies of provincial governors in places such as Minzhou."

In just a few words, the three people who could establish their own power in Longyou were recalled to Linzhou by Liu Jilong.

There was a power vacuum at the local level, but Liu Jilian had his own arrangements and no one could interfere.

Even the most dull-witted person would know that Longyou was preparing for something big, or that something big was about to happen.

While Gao Jinda and the others were thinking this, Liu Jilong continued to instruct: "Go down and convey the general's order to all states, and have people prepare a good dinner."

"Yes……"

Gao Jinda and others agreed after some hesitation, then cautiously left the main hall.

Faced with such a drastic reshuffle by their own commander, they looked at each other with flickering eyes, and all realized that something was amiss.

However, they did not dare to communicate directly. Instead, they bowed to each other and went about their business separately.

In just half a month, Liu Jilong's transfer order was delivered to the governors of various states.

Some people were promoted to nominal positions but lost real power, while others went from nominal to real and are ready to show their talents.

Among them, Yang Xin from the Chang'an Jinzouyuan was also told to be transferred back to Longyou to report on his work, and then transferred to Diezhou to serve as a governor.

The former Diezhou governor Cuoben was transferred to Guzhou as governor, and the rest, such as Dou Jingchong, Dou Bin, Liu Yingyan, Wang Sifeng and others, were also transferred to other states as governors.

Above Dizhou, only Li Shangyin, Huke Siguang and Geng Ming remained in their original positions.

After the news spread, many people were very nervous, but even so, they still had to go to the base with their families.

Even people like Li Ji and Chen Jingchong could only go to Linzhou with their families to report on their work.

At the same time, Liu Jilong also did a good business with He Yi Nan Zhi.

Heinanzhi used 800 taels of gold, 800 military horses, 5,000 riding horses, 7,000 Turkic cattle, and 30,000 sheep to buy scriptures, grain, cloth, pepper, and coarse salt.

The two sides agreed to trade in Lanzhou on the tenth day of August, and then He Yi Nanzhi left Linzhou very happily.

After sending He Yi Nanzhi away, Liu Jilong happily flipped through the account books and said with satisfaction:

"After all, the Khitans nominally unified the grasslands. Although their foundation is shallow, their strength is sufficient."

Facing Liu Jilong's words, Gao Jinda also nodded and said: "After leaving behind the military horses, riding horses, and gold, the remaining cattle and sheep can be sold in Xichuan or the capital, and they will be worth at least 25 strings of cash."

"Although He Yi Nan Zhi bought a lot of things, for Long You, the cost was only 80,000 to 90,000 strings of cash, and the net profit was more than 100,000."

More than 100,000 strings of cash was almost enough to pay the military salary of nearly 10,000 people in Longyou. Gao Jinda was naturally happy.

After listening to his words, Liu Jilong calmed down a little. He suppressed his joy and asked Gao Jinda, "How is the horse trade with Xichuankou going?"

"Not bad." Gao Jinda answered without hesitation, and then continued:
"Since the first month of the year, Xichuan has sold more than 53,000 refugees as slaves and horses to Songzhou."

"Although some people died of diseases due to unfamiliarity with the local climate and water, the rest all rested for more than a month before heading north."

"How many people died?" Liu Jilong frowned slightly, and Gao Jinda lowered his voice slightly:
"The situation in Songzhou is dire, so no fewer than 7,000 people have died from the disease..."

Compared with the migration routes of Cheng and Wu states, the migration routes of Song, Die and Min states are undoubtedly more dangerous.

The conditions and climate in the former are not much different from those in Xichuan, and the roads are relatively flat.

The latter is at too high an altitude and has a harsh environment, so more people died from the disease.

"If we had taken the military officer road, there wouldn't have been so many casualties..."

Gao Jinda said this tentatively. After all, when the immigrants from Jiannan Road took the Wuguan Road, not many people died of illness due to acclimatization.

After the official road to Songzhou was changed at the invitation of Cui Xuan, the number of people dying from illness due to acclimatization continued to increase.

You have to know that they only count those who died of illness after being accepted, and it is impossible to count those who died of illness before being accepted.

It can be said that in order to relocate this population of more than 40,000, at least 10,000 to 20,000 people died.

"Don't rush the migration, it's better to proceed step by step."

Liu Jilong sighed and then arranged: "Send Wang Tao to Chengdu to talk to Yang Fuguang and Cui Xuan to see if they can get back to Chengwuguan Road."

"Yes!" Gao Jinda bowed in response, and Liu Jilong continued to ask:
"Have the official courtyards in Linzhoufang in the city been expanded and renovated?"

Officials such as Chen Jingchong, Li Ji, and Ma Cheng were transferred to the Protectorate to serve, so Liu Jilian naturally had to prepare residences for them in advance.

With their status, even if they cannot enjoy a mansion as big as Feng Ao's, its cannot be too small.

Five acres with four entrances and exits, this was the regulation given by Liu Jilong, and Gao Jinda could only dispatch craftsmen to build mansions for those who had not yet arrived.

Fortunately, there are not many people who have this honor, otherwise we would be too busy.

"General, Protector Chen is outside asking for a meeting!"

Suddenly, someone's voice was heard outside the hall. The two looked and saw the captain standing in the yard reporting.

"Call him in!"

"The last general takes orders..."

At Liu Jilong's signal, the captain left the yard and soon brought Chen Jingchong into the courtyard.

"General Chen Jingchong pays respect to the commander..."

"No gifts, please give me a seat!"

Chen Jingchong asked for instructions in the courtyard, and after receiving a signal from Liu Jilong, he slowly walked into the main hall and sat in the first seat on the left.

Liu Jilong looked at Chen Jingchong, who had obviously aged a lot, and couldn't help but sigh:
"It's only been a year or two, but I can see a few strands of white hair on your head..."

"General, I am already forty-three years old after all."

Chen Jingchong smiled bitterly and shook his head, then bowed and said, "General, I have received the military order. I wonder when I can dispatch troops to Tuyuhun to encircle and suppress the rebellious bandits?"

Perhaps it is because he read too many books in Weizhou, Chen Jingchong now seems to be more like a Confucian scholar in his speech.

Liu Jilong only felt that the figure of Chen Jingchong in his memory was gradually becoming blurred, and was replaced by the current Chen Jingchong.

When memory and reality overlap, Chen Jingchong seems to have aged more thoroughly, regardless of reality or memory.

"There is no need to rush this matter. We can dispatch troops in August, recapture Fuxi City and relocate the people to Fuxi City before winter."

"This time we will have more than 17,000 soldiers and horses, including 5,000 elite cavalry and 12,000 cavalry infantry. The journey will be 400 miles."

"Remember to provide enough civilians. If any soldier gets altitude sickness, he must be sent back to Shanzhou immediately."

In the Tang Dynasty, altitude sickness was called cold miasma, but under the influence of Liu Jilian, people in Longyou uniformly called it altitude sickness.

Chen Jingchong naturally knew this, so he made a promise:
"Don't worry, Commander Jie. I will definitely take it step by step and will never underestimate the enemy and rush forward."

"Okay!" Liu Jilong nodded in response, but he was still worried in his heart and explained a lot to Chen Jingchong in detail.

The two chatted at the dinner table and did not go their separate ways until midnight.

It's not Liu Jilian's fault that he didn't trust Chen Jingchong. It's just that none of the generals under his command had ever led an army of more than 10,000 people, and even he himself had only done so a few times.

Although Longyou's financial resources were strong, they were not strong enough to ignore the nearly 20,000 casualties.

Looking at Chen Jingchong's departing back, Liu Jilong could only tell Zhang Chang to assist Chen Jingchong well...

(End of this chapter)