While Mang Wei found Chen Si, Zheng Anping and his party also set out on the road in the morning light. The mountain road was very rugged, and the three people sitting in the car got out of the car soon. It was more comfortable and less labor-intensive to walk on the road.
The swordsman, Gongcheng, said: "There is no way to pass this way, it is not enough." Just as he was talking, a group of animals that looked like horses but not horses came up in front of them, with people sitting on their backs. Or carrying things, light and dexterous. The official looked at it and immediately stopped talking. The two sides met each other, each gave way to half of the road, and passed in turn.
Gongcheng asked: "Such a little horse is quite nimble!"
A soldier behind him said: "This is not a horse, but a donkey. Coming from the north, Taiyuan and Shangdang often use it to replace the leg strength. When you enter the east of the river, it will be close."
Zheng Anping asked: "Why doesn't Hedong store it?"
The soldier said: "They are all born in mountainous areas. Although there are many mountains to the east of the river, they are not dangerous. Therefore, there are many oxen and horses, but donkeys have less strength and many have no energy."
Zheng Anping was shocked when he heard this and said: "He came from Taiyuan if he was a member of the party?"
The soldier said: "I don't know yet."
Zheng Anping immediately called Gai Nie and asked him to follow the group of people to see where they were going, but not to disturb them. Gai Nie didn't say much, nodded and left.
Gongcheng said: "That kid is quite dull, I'm afraid he is not his choice."
Zheng Anping said: "The common man has no status, and the official chariot will laugh at him. He only came from Sima's family, so he used it."
The public servant was startled and asked: "Are you going to be the Minister of Ma Qing?"
Zheng Anping said: "He is also young. He didn't meet Sima Qing, so he went to Sima Dafu's door." Gongcheng said nothing at once.
Although this mountain road is long and winding, it has no forks and is very smooth to walk. If you don't take a car, it is quite comfortable. There are not many obvious ups and downs, which is still different from ordinary mountains. There are not many farmers on both sides. Occasionally, one or two almost dilapidated thatched huts can be seen. There are no fields nearby. They probably make a living by picking mountain products.
After dispatching Gai Nie, they shot twice more, and after walking for a while in the dark, they finally saw the walled city at the foot of the mountain.
Since the city gate had been closed for a long time, Zheng Anping sent someone to show his talisman and identify himself, and was taken to the city by the Yuan Order. Later, Yuan Wei and Yuan Cheng also arrived.
When Hanoi was taken over by Qin, the walled city was the only city on the road from Hanoi to Hedong. Every day, large quantities of salt are transported from here to Zhiguan, where they are exchanged for grain. When there was no war, some of the grain would be transported back to Anyi, and most of it would be stored in Zhiguan. Later, when Zhiguan was not enough, more than ten large granaries were built in Yuancheng to store the grain shipped from Zhiguan. After the Changping War started, these grains immediately became the raw materials for fried millet. The concubines of the counties in Hedong were sent to the camps from Zhiguan to Yuancheng to make fried millet. Yuancheng was an important base. This also made Yuancheng prosperous.
About two to three thousand people gathered in Yuancheng to fry millet. There was no room in the city to accommodate them, so the camps were set up in temporary buildings outside the city. Since all the elite and strong men were transferred, the county could only send a hundred county soldiers to guard them. Fortunately, most of these ministers were women, engaged in the work of millet frying; it was the work of old and weak men to transport the millet out of the city and then transport the fried millet back. In this work environment where men and women work together, the number of newborns has also increased significantly.
The government originally wanted Yuancheng to use manpower to build the mountain roads along the way, but Yuanling reported: "There are only ten thousand households in Yuancheng, and today there are a thousand people to be transported, and the county's soldiers are only 200. It is the autumn harvest, and the rest are working in the fields. There is nothing that can be done. Gongcheng also knows that if he wants to live in Yuancheng for a long time, he must not get into a stalemate with the local residents, and it is not easy to force him. He can only say: "Now there is an army of five thousand approaching, and they must also camp in Yuancheng." There are more than a month in the city, you can do it! "
When Yuan Wei heard this, he was stunned and said: "How can such a large army live in the small area of Yuan City!"
Gongcheng said: "There are more than ten thousand households in the city, but it can accommodate five thousand troops. How can it be justified?"
Yuanwei said: "That's not true. It's enough to have thousands of people in the square area of Yuan City. What's the use of a large army if there are thieves from far away?"
Gongcheng said: "Your Majesty is here to visit, please prepare for it!"
Hearing this, the Yuancheng magistrate, Wei and Cheng did not dare to speak any more, and kept muttering. Zheng Anping said: "Only three of you knew about this matter, but it was leaked to the nine clans!"
The three of them broke out in a cold sweat and fell to the ground, saying, "I hope all of you will be responsible for your orders. But I dare not do it myself, for fear of missing a big deal!"
Gongcheng said: "It's already late at night. We'll discuss it tomorrow. We'll go with you and hope to accommodate him."
The three of them discussed it and decided that Gongcheng would live in Yuanling's house, Zheng Anping would live in Yuanwei's house, and one hundred soldiers would live separately in Yuancheng and the post house. Gongcheng said: "No need, the soldiers will follow us, but they can stay in the court."
Yuan Ling and the other three people didn't know what to say and didn't dare to refute. They could only open the door of the mansion and welcome the soldiers in. Wherever they dare to live in the courtyard, the private rooms, wing rooms, and wing rooms are all set aside, and fifty people can live there. Yuan Cheng was responsible for feeding the horses. However, after all this trouble, by the time they settled down, they were already crowing for the first time.
Pi Wan chatted with the foreigner for a long time and had dinner in the mansion. After everyone dispersed, Pi Wan took the foreigner to the military camp again. King Qin also finished his meal and took a stroll in the court. All the visitors were scattered around and did not come close. The two went up the steps, knocked on the door and entered. Turn around the Xiao Qiang and stand at the foot of the wall, waiting quietly.
King Qin felt the movement here and looked over. When he saw Yiren and Pi Wan coming back, he called them into the hall. Pi Wan first reported what happened in Hedong today. The inventory status of various weapons depots has been reported. Over the past few years, there are only thousands of weapons of various types and hundreds of thousands of arrowheads. Because the bamboo and feathers were not prepared, there were not many arrows.
The price of food in the surrounding cities has risen to 60 yuan per stone, and the merchants living in the city find it unbearable. Nowadays, if you can take care of two meals a day, you can basically hire strong workers; children can only exchange pounds for food; everyone who has land outside the city has given up his business and returned to farming. Now, the famous cities such as Wen and Zhi are showing signs of instability.
The King of Qin said: "The Lord Shang built his country by farming and fighting, and he truly has great ideas. If the merchants have enough surplus, how can they do it? If they have less food, how should they do it? If they have no soldiers, how should they do it? Now I will take a river east of the river. In the county, if Zhao has an army of 400,000, and the food and weapons are not lost, it is all the result of years of savings, and the success of building cities and roads. We have been guarding each other for several years, and we are so safe!"
Pi Wan said: "In the past, Prime Minister Zhang won the Yuan and Zhi without fighting, leading to Nanyang in Henei. Lord Wu'an took them and captured them all. Now Hedong and Hanei are both integrated. Henei is uneasy, and Hedong cannot be protected alone." "
The King of Qin said: "It's the autumn harvest, and I think the harvest from Hedong has been returned to the warehouse."
Pi Wan said: "I'm still here. It's been cloudy lately, not sunny, and the grain hasn't been dry yet."
King Qin said: "Although it is a war, it is important not to miss the farming season." Pi Wan said so.
At this time, the sound of galloping horse hooves was heard in the distance. Several people were silent. The King of Qin said: "I will definitely report to the Changping Army."
Pi Wan said: "With this small army, who dares to attack Anyi?"
Not long after, Wang Ji, who stayed in Anyi, came in with three slips. King Qin opened it and looked at Wang Lu's first. Wang Lu said: "I am guilty of death, and I am honored by the king. I dare not try my best! Today, I led five thousand troops to break through the wall with all my strength. The soldiers fought hard and killed many Zhao people. If we fight again, we will break it."
Then he opened Bai Qi's letter: "The minister said that Zhao will fight with the whole country, and Qin will fight with one county. Although there is a difference between strength and weakness, Zhao can't advance even if it is due to the geographical advantage and harmony. Although the Qin army has disadvantages, And Zhao's army was twice as strong. Zhao invaded Qin with exhausted troops and killed many of them. Today's spears, halberds, arrows and shields are all insufficient. If we can help them, it will not be difficult to defeat Zhao. "
Finally, I opened Sima Jin's slip: "I sincerely accept my teachings. I think that Zhi is the old capital. The city is strong and the people are close to the dangerous pass. It is a famous capital in the world. The king will live in it!"
The King of Qin said: "Qin and Zhao are in Changping. They have no way to hide and are at a stalemate. What should we do?"
Pi Wan said: "Zhao will attack me with exhausted troops, which means killing the people of Zhao. But if we attack Zhao with our army, we will kill the people of Qin. Now we are fighting in a narrow alley. If we keep the rules, there will be no hindrance, but if we advance, it will be useless. And Zhao If people have no food, they will be defeated overnight. I should defend with integrity and attack with surprise, and they will be defeated."
The King of Qin said: "But what I am afraid of is that if the Zhao people gather their elites and attack them, I will scatter them in all directions. They will use the masses to attack the few, and the strong to attack the weak. I am afraid that I will take advantage of them."
Pi Wan said: "Although, even if I leave, how can he come out?"
King Qin said: "Why don't Zhao people come out?"
Pi Wan said: "When people are surrounded, they are all in danger and trying to save themselves, so they fight with all their strength. As soon as they break out of the siege, people run on their own, and they have no intention of fighting. But if they approach with a small number of troops, they will disperse and not Formation. You can tell it’s fish meat.”
The King of Qin said: "I am very surprised that the 400,000 Zhao army has been trapped in Changping for a month. How come there is not a single soldier in Handan with an arrow to rescue us?"
Wang Jidao: "The people in Handan say that Handan is renovating the city and harvesting grain as soon as possible in order to prepare for the attack. Perhaps the war will resume once the grain is ready."
King Qin said: "It must be true. From winter to autumn, the cold and heat are one year old, and the Changping 400,000 yuan does not decrease slightly. How much food is consumed?"
Wang Ji said: "If a person eclipses one dou, 400,000 people would get 40,000 shi. Three hundred and sixty days would be enough... 14 million shi is amazing!"
King Qin asked again: "How much food does it cost?"
Wang Jidao said: "One man can take care of five people, manage a hundred acres of land, and earn one hundred and fifty dan per year. This is what one hundred thousand people can earn in one year."
The King of Qin said: "The tithe is given to millions of people, and the people of Handan are all gone. The money from the government, the use of palaces, and the cost of sacrifices are all here. If you get tens of millions of stones and put them into Changping, half of them will be left in Changping." When it comes to food, in Handan, the strength is weak."
Pi Wan said: "So if the autumn grain is not harvested, Zhao soldiers will not be able to go out!"
The King of Qin said: "The troops from Handan who were one year old have all entered Changping, and there is no place to use them. Although Qin has a hundred thousand, it has become a siege. What a sigh! Even though it has been a hundred years, it has not been encountered."
Pi Wan said: "When this is a rare opportunity, we must plan carefully and make the best use of it."
King Qin asked: "What's the plan?"
Pi Wan said: "In my opinion, we should besiege but not attack. We will open the net to one side and drive them to collapse. I will attack them from behind with a large army and go straight to Handan! Although we cannot definitely defeat Handan, we will definitely gain it."
The King of Qin said: "There are millions of people in Handan. If I bring 100,000 people into Handan, it may be difficult for me to do anything. I'm afraid I might be taken advantage of."
