Tiger Guards

Chapter 188: Driving the tiger away from the mountain
South of Jinyang is Gengyang City.

This place is located on the west bank of the Fen River, where the north-south highway runs through.

East of Gengyang City, at the Fen River ferry.

After crossing the river here, you will reach the highway on the east bank of Fen River, which is also the main highway of Taiyuan County.

This main road goes straight south to Hedong, and branches into two roads in the north through Yuci. The road through Xinmen in the north is Yanmen County; the road east of Yuci is Jingxing Road leading to Jizhou.

As for the Chidao on the west bank of the Fen River, it also connects Taiyuan in the north, passes through Zishi in the south, and then turns to Xihe County in the west, leading directly to the ferry at the southern end of the Qin-Jin Grand Canyon of the Yellow River. This is also the southernmost end of the upper Yellow River canal transportation.

Theoretically speaking, when this ferry crossing was prosperous, it could transport water to cover Hetao and Shuofang, and reach Jincheng in Liangzhou upstream.

Gengyang Ferry had been taken over by a team of Tiger Infantry. This team of just a hundred men, without any solid camp to rely on, was able to block the more than a thousand infantry and cavalry of Yanmen County Magistrate Shentu Bei.

It’s not that Shentu Bei couldn’t defeat the opponent, but that the opponent had the imperial edict in his hand.

Strictly speaking, Shentu Bei had been exiled to Yanmen for less than two years.

When Li Jue and Guo Si were in power, they basically didn't care much about places like Yanmen, which were remote and had no war potential.

However, the places that deserve their attention are also the places where various parties are fighting fiercely, and it is difficult for them to interfere.

The various warlords also had powerful counties that were difficult to fight for, such as Taiyuan, which was not something that Li Jue and Guo Si could get involved in or control.

Due to the hatred for Wang Yun and the blood feud caused by the Liangzhou army's massacre of military officers, officials and scholars in Guanzhong and Bingzhou, the court was basically unable to appoint a governor for Taiyuan County.

If you send someone with a good reputation, the people of Taiyuan will drive him away; if he has a bad reputation or is an unknown person, he will die inexplicably.

Taiyuan is like this, and Yanmen is not much better.

Therefore, Shentu Bei of Shangdang County, who was also from Bingzhou, stood out and was appointed to Yanmen to prevent Yanmen from being taken away by Yuan Shao, and also to prevent the Taiyuan people from controlling Yanmen for generations.

No matter who is in charge of the government, they will instinctively curb the expansion of local forces.

Now, it is obvious that the people of Taiyuan have not yet been fully armed and engaged in actual separatist activities, but they have already attracted severe punishment from the court.

On the morning of the third day that the Yanmen soldiers stayed outside Gengyang City, a group of imperial envoys came north across the river.

The imperial envoy was also a hero of the eastward migration, and he went straight to the village where Shentu Bei was stationed and resting.

The Taiyuan soldiers did not waste their energy on building a camp, but directly seized the nearby villages, built several watchtowers, and used deer horns to block the road, which they regarded as a military camp.

The imperial envoy arrived in front of the village and frowned as he looked at the corpses nailed to the tree trunks on both sides of the village entrance.

He did not expect that the military discipline of the Yanmen soldiers was so poor, and he was a little worried that the Yanmen soldiers would be annihilated by Zhao Ji after moving south.

Shentu Bei strode forward to greet him, bowing deeply. "Your Highness, I, Shentu Bei, respectfully welcome the angel. How is Your Highness?"

"The Emperor is well."

The imperial envoy replied calmly, holding up the imperial edict in his right hand: "I am ordered to announce this imperial edict. Where is the governor of Yanmen County, Shentu Bei?"

"The minister is here."

Shentu Bei bowed again, but there was no incense table or summoning his subordinates.

The envoy immediately held up the imperial edict and read: "Your Majesty, the soldiers of Taiyuan County have mutinied and attacked and captured Pingtao. The soldiers of Yanmen are to march south immediately to assist in the defense of Daling. Upon receiving the imperial edict, the troops must be dispatched without delay."

"I will listen to your instructions."

Shentu Bei bowed again, stepped forward to take the imperial edict, and then led the envoy aside and asked in a low voice, "I heard that Zhao Yuanming is in power in the court?"

"Not entirely. The court's eastward migration caused immense damage. If we look back at the responsibility, the Three Dukes now have no power. It's up to Your Majesty and the other ministers to discuss and decide matters."

The imperial envoy observed the situation and whispered, "The Right Wise Prince Qubei has presented evidence that Wang Rou has incited and coerced the Xiongnu to block the road and disobey the imperial court, demonstrating her utter rebellion. Furthermore, during the Emperor's summons, she forged an imperial edict to assassinate Minister Zhao, hoping to seize the troops and hold the Emperor hostage. The assassination attempt failed, and she was killed by Minister Zhao."

Allowing Shentu Bei time to digest this information, the imperial envoy continued, "Yesterday, the Chanyu crossed the river and rushed to Zhongdu to pay his respects to the emperor. He pleaded guilty and confessed his crimes. Last night, the soldiers of Taiyuan County abandoned their camp and marched north to seize Pingtao County."

Shentu Bei nodded repeatedly and immediately asked, "I've heard that Minister Zhao is a brave and skilled warrior. Why didn't you pursue him?"

"The court suspects that the county soldiers rebelled and attacked Pingtao in an attempt to lure Minister Zhao across the river to quell the rebellion. Pingtao is just one city, so there's nothing to worry about."

The imperial envoy spoke calmly, and then said, "I still have to rush to Jinyang to deliver the imperial edict. So, I'll say goodbye now."

"Stay."

Shentu Bei tried to persuade them to stay and immediately arranged for someone to bring ten horses to be given to the imperial envoy's team as spare horses.

After sending off the imperial envoy, Shentu Bei immediately sent someone to fetch the map of Taiyuan.

Pingtao is also one of the nine counties of Zhongdu. To the north is Daliang County; to the south of Pingtao is Zishi, and further south is Pingzhou.

In terms of prosperity, Daling and Zishi are the most prosperous among the four counties on the west bank; while Qi County to the north of the east bank, Zhongdu County in the middle, and Jiexiu County to the south are the most prosperous, while Jingling and Wu County sandwiched between the three counties are weaker.

The rebellion of the county soldiers and the capture of Pingtao could be considered accidental. If the county city of Daling had also been captured by the rebellious soldiers, it would have triggered many bad things. If the Zhao minister was unwilling to send troops across the river, the best way would be to rely on or borrow the forces of the Chanyu Huchuquan to quell the rebellion.

Once the Huns get the excuse to send troops, they will definitely not show mercy and will rob all the way to the north of Jinyang City.

After hearing this, the Xiongnu in Xihe County might also prepare their own horses and call their friends to come to Taiyuan to share the worries of the Han emperor.

Shentu Bei didn't care whether the Xiongnu were Xiongnu or not, nor did he care whether the Xiongnu became stronger.

When the Huns plundered all the way north...his more than a thousand infantry and cavalry would also be attacked and looted by the Huns.

Having received the imperial edict, they had no choice but to send troops quickly to assist in the defense of Daling, so as to avoid the court being in a panic and giving the Huns a chance to intervene.

In this way, more than a thousand Yanmen soldiers immediately set out and headed straight for the Daling County in the south.

At this moment, Zhao Ji was testing the 5,000 newly recruited soldiers.

They are generally weak, and there are few strong people.

It’s not that the Tiger Infantry and Henei soldiers stationed in various villages are unwilling to try their best to recruit soldiers, but that the registered population is limited.

The rest of the population are hidden households. Even if they are willing to apply, they are weak populations who are not favored or wooed by the powerful.

Strong and physically strong hermits are more likely to be recruited by powerful people. These people are also the upper class among the hermits and lack enthusiasm for applying for recruitment.

These five thousand were a real mob, unlike the new generation of young people in Hedong who had received training as county soldiers during the slack season.

Since he was willing to apply, Zhao Ji had no choice but to accept it.

The military uniforms shipped on the ship were immediately distributed. Each man held a spear and wore a cloth helmet, and from a distance they looked like the real thing.

But when I got closer, I found that most people's bodies could not support the military uniforms, and the uniforms were a bit too loose.

The three hundred tiger guards following Zhao Ji were like tigers entering a flock of sheep, selecting the soldiers they wanted.

To have five thousand new recruits, one hundred and fifty Tiger Guards are needed to serve as commanders of a hundred men and team officers.

After repeated selection, the selection of more than 5,000 new recruits was completed before dark.

More recruits will be sent here later. All Zhao Ji can do here is to ensure their food and conduct closed-camp training, only training in formations and marching.

They also didn't dare to do any physical training. The people of Hedong couldn't stand it, and these Taiyuan recruits couldn't hold it either.

We cannot rely on these Taiyuan soldiers to fight, and even the Tiger Infantry cannot be counted on.

As the cause has developed to this point, the more troops there are, the fewer soldiers who can fight well.

Zhao Ji had no choice but to kill time and train slowly.

Fortunately, the emperor and the court stood on his side, and most people did not dare to attack him.

Just as Zhao Ji was assigning new soldiers, a cavalryman entered the camp and rushed to Zhao Ji's chariot: "Minister, Wang Chen has been arrested!"

He dismounted, panting, and handed over Wang Cheng's military order.

Zhao Ji reached out to take it and glanced at Han Shu beside him. Han Shu immediately went to get water for the Huben who delivered the message.

Opening the military book, it turned out that Wang Cheng sent people to the shore of Daze to disguise as fishermen. Wang Chen attempted to take a boat to Daling County, but was arrested so easily.

After reading the military book, Zhao Ji asked the Huben who were drinking water, "How many people were captured? How many casualties were there?"

The Huben put down the empty bowl and held it up to receive water, saying, "No one was killed. General Wang Tun set an ambush in the reeds and lured Wang Chen into the reeds after he boarded the boat, making him an easy capture. Three men did escort Wang Chen aboard, but one was killed in the struggle, and another was shot dead while trying to jump overboard."

After saying this, the Huben picked up the bowl and drank water, waiting for Zhao Ji's questions at any time.

As long as no one on your side dies, it doesn’t count as a death.

"Has the news leaked?"

"No, General Wang Tun was worried that the people of Taiyuan would rob and kill them if they were escorted by land, so he ordered them to be escorted by boat so that they could reach the camp by nightfall."

"Oh, I see."

Zhao Ji raised his eyebrows and looked at the morning star that had already appeared. He said, "You will also take the boat back later."

He had to go back. As a Tiger Guard, he still had a team of Tiger Infantrymen in Qi County that needed to be controlled.

Zhao Ji was worried that this guy would be captured while traveling at night.

The sudden rebellion of the county soldiers showed that some people had realized the situation and were trying to transfer them to the west bank and were beginning to plan a counterattack.

As long as Wang Chen enters the camp and obtains some confessions, the powerful people in the five counties of Zhongdu can be destroyed in one fell swoop tomorrow morning!

(End of this chapter)