Northern Prefecture Rivers and Mountains

Chapter 73

It was not until the evening that Liu Zun returned carrying a string of heads.

Still failed to catch up with the bandit chief Zhang Fonu.

This guy has been in Mount Niqiu for more than ten years and is familiar with the terrain. If he hides in the ravine, Liu Zun will definitely not be able to find him.

Bai Longzi's bandit camp is thirty or forty miles northeast of here. Zhang Fonu should have gone to join him.

"Kill one, kill two, just cut the weeds completely!" Liu Zun was still in high spirits, the bloodshot in his eyes had not faded yet.

Liu Daogui glanced at the soldiers in the village. They were all making a lot of money, their bodies were covered with brocade, and their waists were full of money. They were grinning from ear to ear and no longer had the fearless spirit they had at the beginning.

But what Liu Zun said was also right. If we want to cut the grass, we must remove the roots. If we don’t get rid of Zhang Fonu and Bai Longzi, there will be endless troubles in the future.

"Order, all troops, rest immediately. We will kill Bai Longzi tomorrow!"

After the military order was given, the soldiers obeyed and went straight to a house to rest.

Liu Guangzhi, Liu Heipi and Zhou Zheng each led their troops to rest in turns.

Liu Daogui's subordinates sent out various sentries, both open and covert, and also scouts to find out Bai Longzi's movements.

It was a quiet night. The soldiers had been charging for several days and were exhausted after the battle, so they fell asleep immediately.

At daybreak, the scout returned, breathlessly saying, "General, Bai Longzi's troops fled north overnight!"

"What a bunch of useless things!" Liu Daogui couldn't help but curse.

It was all because the fighting was so fierce yesterday that the thieves were scared out of their wits.

In addition to the reputation of the Northern Palace Army, as long as Bai Longzi is not stupid, he will definitely not dare to confront him head-on.

It’s okay for bandits to bully unarmed civilians, but if they really encounter a tough and bloody battle, they can only turn around and run away.

"It's better to escape. Our army doesn't have much combat power." Liu Guangzhi said.

In the open space of the temple, soldiers began to gather in twos and threes, but their faces were listless and they did not take off their money and silk.

In this state, running thirty or forty miles to fight bandits, no matter how you look at it, it seems that there is little hope for success...

The wolf was too full and had no desire to hunt anymore.

The only thing to blame is that Zhang Fo Nu was too rich and fed the soldiers in one go. After people get rich, they only think about returning home in glory.

Everything should go with the flow and not against it. Liu Daogui could only follow the will of the army.

"Since they've escaped, we don't have the energy to chase them. Ah Zun, take some people and burn down the bandit stronghold. From now on, this Buddhist temple will be our stronghold and we'll change its name to Qingguang Stronghold."

This place is equivalent to the barrier of Lushui Pond, guarding Qingguang Village. It will be difficult for any troops in the surrounding mountains to bypass it if they want to go south.

"Qingguang Village will be handed over to you from now on. I will give you half of my troops and four hundred refugees." Liu Daogui looked at Liu Guangzhi.

Fathers and sons fight together in battle, and brothers fight together in war.

Among the people around him, he is the only one who can stand on his own. Liu Heibin and Liu Zun are both good at charging into battle, but they are not capable of managing a camp.

Zhou Zheng is the leader of the front line and it is impossible for him to stay on the mountain.

"Yes, sir." Liu Guangzhi looked indifferent, as if it was just a trivial matter.

With a stronghold in Mount Niqiu, Lushuibei can rest assured and focus on farming.

After resting for two days, the soldiers clamored to go back.

Liu Daogui decided to go all out. He dug out the thieves' heads, piled them on a cart, took slaves, women, and children, and pushed the carts down the mountain in a mighty procession.

The bronze statue was too heavy to be transported and was temporarily left on the mountain.

Back in the city, men, women, young and old came in droves to watch.

Liu Daogui ordered his men to pile the heads of the thieves at the north gate of the city, forming a small Jingguan.

"The bravery of this soldier is not inferior to that of Liu Laozhi!" Cao Tengyun limped out to greet him with the support of Cao Ji, and he flattered him loudly as soon as they met.

The expressions of the Cao family members around them changed obviously.

In the past, they were in awe of the Pengcheng Liu family and the imperial court, but now they were in awe of Liu Daogui. The key point was that after this battle, the casualties among the soldiers were less than 30, which not only drove away the bandits, but also calmed them down.

"They are just a bunch of bandits, a mob, and they failed to kill the two thieves Zhang Fonuo and Bai Longzi." Liu Daogui said calmly.

Liu Laozhi's 5,000 men took the initiative to cross the river and attacked the 50,000-strong Di Qin army head-on. They also killed their generals, which inspired the people and laid the psychological advantage for the Battle of Feishui.

No matter how arrogant Liu Daogui was, he would never dare to compare himself with Liu Laozhi.

On the contrary, it was Cao Tengyun who always spoke in a sarcastic tone.

The Cao family members sent out to assist this time are all worse than each other. It is possible that he is the one behind this.

In fact, people like him who come from a migrant family are wary of everyone.

"The two thieves' foundation has been destroyed. There is nothing to be afraid of. There is nothing to be afraid of." Cao Tengyun smiled.

"From now on, our two families will be neighbors, sharing the same blood. The military farms will need the Cao family's elite troops to take care of them." Liu Daogui smiled wryly.

This statement is both a mockery and a threat.

Cao Tengyun remained calm and said, "From now on, my Cao family will obey the orders of the military commander!"

Liu Daogui had heard this so many times that his ears were callused. He exchanged a few pleasantries and left. He couldn't be too kind to such a person and had to maintain his dignity at all times. That's why he didn't dare to be clever.

In short, after this battle, Liu Daogui's reputation was established and he was no longer afraid of the Cao family's mischief.

To be honest, his methods and little tricks are not worthy of being mentioned in public, and they pose no threat to Liu Daogui.

The entire Cao family is in the city, they can't escape...

The soldiers could rest, but Liu Daogui could not. He and Gao Xun struck while the iron was hot and recruited refugees from nearby.

If they had any doubts before, after this battle, they no longer had any doubts about Liu Daogui's strength and determination.

As soon as the banner of military farming was raised, refugees came in droves, full of enthusiasm, in stark contrast to their previous cold attitude.

There are too many people and we are too busy to handle the registration.

There were few people who could read and write in those days. Including Liu Daogui, there were only nine people who could read and write.

But even if some of them could read and write, these refugees could not even report their own names.

Communication is also a major obstacle, as it is all dialects and slang from all over the north.

"It's too slow. Spring plowing is already late. If it is delayed any further, everything will be delayed." Looking at the bustling crowd, Liu Daogui was both happy and annoyed.

Gao Xun was also busy and sweating. "There's nothing we can do about it. If we don't register it clearly, we'll have more trouble in the future."

Liu Daogui looked around and his eyes fell on the more than ten flags. An idea suddenly came to his mind. "Divide the people by flag, with 30 to 50 households per flag. First separate the people and then slowly register them!"

This method was not invented by Liu Daogui. The refugees who went south were identified by flags rather than people. A large flag was called a flagpole, and each flagpole had a flag owner, who could be a soldier or a civilian.

"Good idea!" Gao Xun's eyes lit up and he quickly ordered his men to follow this method.

"Yellow flag coming here!"

"White flag here!"

"Brown flags are coming here..."

The refugees immediately understood what was going on as flags of various colors were waving. They stood under the flags with their families. In less than two hours, the chaotic crowd was separated.

Including the refugees in the city, there were eleven banners in total, with about two hundred people in each banner, for a total of two thousand four hundred and thirty-one people. They were clearly divided in one afternoon.

"Next, we will divide the fields and houses according to the banners. If there are more refugees coming to us, we will fill the banners in turn."

This method is extremely efficient and does not require literate people to manage it, as long as they can count.

The settlements were both military and civilian, integrating farming and warfare.

Liu Daogui appointed his subordinates as the chiefs of the cliques, under whom were the chiefs of the garrisons. The chiefs of the cliques were in charge of training and warfare, while the chiefs of the garrisons were in charge of garrison farming and civil affairs, with a clear division of labor.

The more streamlined the bureaucracy, the better. Each building only obeys the orders of Liu Daogui, eliminating the middle levels.

(End of this chapter)