Guo Ning has tried his best to look more mature. He has a short beard on his chin. His daily meals and sleeping in the open have also made his face dark and his skin look rough.
But Feng Shuang treats everyone equally. Compared with ordinary aging, he still looks too young. Especially during this patrol, many senior generals will ask how Mrs. Lu is doing and when Marshal Lin'er will be born.
According to the customs of the Central Plains and the North, the age at which men and women get married is older than that of the Song Dynasty in the Southern Dynasty, but it is only about eighteen or twenty years old. Therefore, after many people ask, they will immediately react: Our Guo The marshal is so young.
Fortunately, with his status here, no one would dare to treat him as a young man, whether he is used to it or not.
Guo Ning looked around the surroundings and found a familiar officer in the crowd.
"Ge Qingshu, come out!" Ge Qingshu came out of the queue with a smile and gave a military salute to Guo Ning.
"When I came from Guichuan, I heard my old enemy say that you and Hu Luzi decided on the settlement arrangement in Jinshan City together? Can you two Shandong people understand our solar terms in northern Xinjiang? What if I make a mistake? It's my business, Zhao Xuan can spare you, but I won't!"
"Don't worry, Marshal! I'm better at farming than fighting! I can do it!"
"Take me to see and talk about it. I am very familiar with this place in Jinshan. If you don't talk well, I will drag you out and beat you!" Ge Qingshu was not polite and urged his horse to lead the way.
Because there is not enough manpower, there are very few new acres of land around Jinshan. But back then, the Jin Kingdom used Jinshan Mountain as its last stronghold to protect Juyongguan, and they had made great efforts to operate it.
Two years later, you can still see the traces of the acres of land and the shallow furrows between the weeds.
"Marshal, don't worry, these lands are good, and the soil is moist and soft. We have tried to open more than 500 acres. Marshal, look, it's right there. The ground has been very warm these days, so it's time to plow. Put the Yang He Qi into the ground." Guo Ning was born into a military family for generations, he ate imperial grains and was not very good at farming.
But he knew that autumn plowing should be done early and spring plowing should be late. Hearing what Ge Qingshu said with confidence, he asked: "What about the other land? This land is close to Baiyan Spring. The other land has not been touched in two years. Isn't it hardened?"
"That's not the case. The city has been built in this place for hundreds of years. The land has been plowed and cultivated again and again. Nothing can be done in two or three years. There are not many clumps in the soil. Even if it does, a few war horses can be dispatched to trample it. It can be crushed easily." Ge Qingshu rode his horse over and stepped on it a few times, and then said: "We plan to seize 150,000 acres of land near Jinshan Mountain after autumn, and plant beans and millet first. Then we will seize the opportunity before the sky. Before the cold ground freezes, we have used up our manpower to reconnect the original aqueduct and build a waterwheel. Then, the roads from Jinshan to Juyongguan, to Guichuan, and to Longmen also have to be paved again."
"Speaking of roads, it seems that the one to Juyongguan is the most important? The north is a place for military use. Cavalry comes and goes. Whether there is a road or not does not matter." Guo Ning said casually.
When Ge Qingshu wanted to speak, Zhao Xuan had already rushed over and said, "That's not the case. Marshal, the road to Longmen is also extremely important."
"Why is this?" Guo Ning was familiar with all the states behind the Monan Mountains. He asked in one sentence, and immediately patted his forehead: "Iron mine! There is indeed a mine in that place. It seems to have been inherited from the Liao Dynasty to the present. It's been a long time!" Zhao Xuan looked happy and nodded repeatedly.
"Marshal is smart. If we make good use of the several iron mines over Longmen, the supply of weapons, armor and stomach for the soldiers in the military states behind the mountains will be much more abundant. In addition, of course, the people recovered from the grassland will It still needs to be monitored, but small objects such as hoes, guillotines, sickles, hooks and sickles, and large objects such as plows must be in full supply. Therefore, the gantry is very important, and the road must be widened and consolidated as soon as possible."
"Yan Ning also reported the matter you mentioned. However, are there still people in the mine now? They have all fled long ago, right? I remember that the Zhongdu Ordnance Department and the mine supervisor both said that it is difficult to dispatch blacksmiths and mining masters. What are you..."
"Ahem, Yan Ning and I have some old friends in Shandong. It won't be difficult to mobilize some craftsmen and masters through the Yidu Privy Council to support us."
"That's very good... However, you still have to send a letter to the Ordnance Department and Mine Supervisor in Zhongdu. Let them send people to take care of the things they should do. Of course you can use the output of ore and iron tools, but they should take care of it. Institutions, and even the attribution of taxes later, Jin Qing has already issued the decree, just follow it." The territory is large, and the powers of the generals stationed in various places are also large, especially according to the navy's military household and shadow household system. .
The generals stationed on the front lines also have the instinct to seize power for various reasons. In the case of Zhao Xuan, he was a chief official temporarily transferred from Shandong. If he wanted to establish himself locally, he naturally had to show some results to others, so he wanted to use mining, metallurgy and ironware production as a starting point.
Guo Ning is a veteran himself, so he sees this clearly. Fortunately, the soldiers were not trying to deceive others, but they were just trying to create a fait accompli, using Guo Ning's words as a cover.
Guo Ning was not used to it. He just wrote a few sentences and made it clear. At this moment, all the subordinates bowed.
"Follow your orders." Zhao Xuan stood up and said: "The situation is still a bit tense right now. Marshal, if you look at it in a year and a half, we will not only be able to manage Fengshengzhou and Hongzhou well, but also push our military strength to Xuande, push it to Changzhou!"
"Okay, then I'll be waiting to thank you!" Guo Ning laughed. Changzhou is Guo Ning's hometown, and Zhao Xuan was very happy that he could say this.
In any case, it is a good thing that officers have such thoughts and actions. Because of the turmoil on the grassland, the number of people who will flee southward will continue to increase for a while.
This is a huge test for the navy's already fragile material supply system. Before Guo Ning went on patrol, he moved Chu Cai to Zhongdu and once again fell into trouble.
However, as the Dinghai navy gradually operates in the states behind the mountains, the pressure on food and supplies and military pressure on Zhongdu will gradually decrease.
The soldiers on the Jinshan side are very confident and confident in building things from scratch on the grassland, which is no less than the line from Guichuan, Yongxing to Hongzhou in the west. This is a good thing.
In a year and a half, or a little longer, the economic output and military capabilities of the states behind the Monan Mountains will definitely improve significantly.
At that time, this treasure land could not only be used as a shield for defense, but could be used as an offense instead of defense, and turned into a base for one's own side to threaten the plateau.
If this can be done, all the generals present will naturally have great achievements. Thinking of this, Guo Ning felt a little excited. He pointed at Zhang Shao who arrived last: "It seems that if you want to go to Jinlianchuan in Huanzhou to take office early, you have to urge Zhao Xuan more." Zhang Shao clenched his fist and signaled: "I Stare at him every day!" Everyone laughed at the moment.
The more senior officers present had only followed Guo Ning for two or three years. Like all warriors, they once thought that the life of a warrior was just fighting, massacre and destruction.
But as the power of Ding Haijun expanded, these warriors who started out as soldiers grew up. They began to learn to draw on white paper and rebuild their homes on the ruins.
And they will gradually realize that the happiness that construction brings to people greatly outweighs destruction. Guo Ning will come here for his own purpose, but the tour ends when he reaches Jinshan Mountain, and there is no need to go further to Longmen.
Zhao Xuan led him into the city to rest for a while. On this trip, Guo Ning went west after leaving Zhongdu and checked the operations of Jing'an people in Zhuozhou and Yizhou. Then he passed through Qingbaikou, Shuigu, Huangu, Chaotian Village, and arrived at Yanche Village in Fanshan.
Then he headed east, on the one hand to inspect the operations of various military towns north of Juyongguan, and on the other hand, he also stared at the scene of several Mongolian tribes fleeing south.
The appearance of these tribes running around was naturally embarrassing, but Guo Ning knew very well that even if the various tribes were fighting on the grassland, with the powerful power of Genghis Khan, if they really wanted to prevent the escape of several thousand families, they could definitely do it.
The fact that these people were able to reach the area controlled by Ding Haijun all at once proved that Genghis Khan had no intention of intervening and no sign of mobilizing troops south of Yehu Ridge.
When Zhao Xuan and Shi Tianni went to the grassland last time, they left a few reliable cronies to continue lurking.
Just ten days ago, someone came from the grassland with news that Genghis Khan had gathered at least 60,000 to 70,000 herdsmen and 30 troops with more than 1,000 households, and headed west.
