It was an accident that Monk Gama came to Haibei.
When he set out, the Xifan tribe in Yushu did not know anything about the Han army's entry into Qinghai.
Monk Gama followed his son's habit of becoming a monk since childhood. As early as the Wanli period, he went to Uzang and was appointed as the national preceptor of Nangqian Kingdom. Since then, he has been living in Genbeng Temple and does not know much about the affairs of the Central Plains.
If nothing unexpected happened, he should have been the abbot of his family temple for the rest of his life, but his father and brother died in the struggle with King Baili Tu, so he had to withdraw from the temple.
If it were any other enemy, even if he did not avenge his father and brother, Ga Ma would still be able to hide in Weizang and maintain peace for the rest of his life.
But King Baili was not only a powerful enemy. Since King Baili Dunyue Duoji, who believed in Bon religion, came to the throne in the 47th year of Wanli, he gradually gained power and attacked all around.
From a little-known little local king, he became the king of Kham, which stretches from the Yellow River in Aba in the north, to Dajian Road in Sichuan in the east, to Qamdo in Tibet in the west, and borders Yunnan in the south.
Kham and Tibet have different beliefs. During the Tubo period, with the support of Zanpu, Tibetans fully converted to Buddhism. Bon believers who did not want to convert were exiled to marginal areas such as Ngari and Duokang.
After that, Buddhism completed its localization step by step, gradually prospered and even divided into multiple schools in Tibet, fighting each other. Bonism is still rooted in this land with tenacious vitality.
For hundreds of years, Buddhism has theoretically eliminated demons, and the Bon gods have continued to be believed by the native people of Xifan in the name of "subduing" them. The two have become more and more similar.
The biggest difference between them is that as a primitive shamanism adapted to tribal society, Bon religion does not have temples. The witches or shamans are attached to the tribal chiefs. Apart from offering sacrifices, they will not occupy more land or wealth.
The monks who adapted to the slave society of the Tibetan Empire were just the opposite.
A secular ruler who aspires to be powerful, even if he is full of intentions of cooperating with religions, will inevitably conflict with the powerful monastic group.
Ga Ma is one of the powerful monks.
In addition to the military training camp in Haibei, Gama soldiers from Nangqian set up a small camp, woven wind-horse flags and hung colorful prayer flags.
The accompanying monk was carving scriptures on the stone, and Ga Ma sat in the tent and shook the prayer wheel, but his mind could not calm down.
Han Commander Liu Chengzong's army was stronger than he imagined.
Ga Ma had a very good impression of Dai Daozi.
On the mountain road in Qinghai and Hunan, his herdsman lost two yaks carrying goods.
When Dai Daozi's Tang soldiers discovered the yak, they neither embezzled the property nor slaughtered the yak. Instead, they returned the yak after meeting Gama on the road.
This kind of thing is normal for most Xifan people or some Mongolians. According to the custom here, people not only dare not embezzle the monks’ belongings, but will instead give away their belongings when the monks pass by. In exchange for blessings.
This is true even in King Baili's territory.
But for Tangqi from Central Plains, there is no such habit.
They gave the cow back, but they felt it should be returned.
When the battle between Lazun and Guru ended, the Tangqi soldiers made a lot of money from this expedition. At the cost of an extra buck, each person drove six livestock back to Haibei.
These livestock effectively safeguard their moral bottom line.
To Ga Ma, Dai Daozi is a good man.
The purpose of his trip was to cross the Qilian Mountains and go to Oirat to find possible help from the Mongols.
To achieve this purpose, he brought with him two carefully chosen gifts, goods and teachings.
Because they would pass through Han territory on the way, war horses and treasures were dedicated to the Han emperor. The final solution to his problem was to give the teachings to the Mongols.
The cornerstone for people to seek help from gods is the harsh natural environment and problems that are difficult to solve on their own.
On the one hand, the Han Dynasty lacked this kind of foundation stone. On the other hand, as the center of the integration of various ancient civilizations, the people were well-informed and had their own set of secular concepts that were constantly reforming.
This secular concept is as deep-rooted as the Bon religion believed by the people in Kham.
Their teachings are widely accepted as the righteous path in Kham, Tibet, but will become heretics when they arrive in Han, and will not be helpful in guiding life.
But for the Mongolians in Oirat, there are both harsh natural environments and problems that are difficult to solve on their own.
The person Ga Ma really wanted to find was the leader of the Oirat alliance, who was famous for mediating wars, and the national advisor of the Kho Shuat tribe, Khan.
As for Liu Chengzong's army, Ga Ma actually did not want its help.
After staying briefly in Haibei for a few days, Ga Ma probably got a little understanding of the Lion Army. They are not a local government. They are self-governing from Dongkel to Haibei. They are a group of exiled soldiers who wield extreme force.
There is no doubt that this is a strong reinforcement in terms of military strength.
But even the imperial court failed to extend its power to Yushu and Qamdo. As a Han, Liu Chengzong would have to return to Han sooner or later. Even if he could help him send troops once, he would not be able to protect Nangqian for a long time.
Of course, that is something that needs to be considered in the long run and is not important at the moment.
Today, the important thing is...Gama is too short of money to hire such a well-equipped army.
There were several bangs and bangs outside the felt tent.
These original cavalry teams began to practice their ordnance again.
Ga Ma has seen muskets.
Muskets are a scarce weapon in the snow-capped mountains, but they are not unique. They mainly come from the Ngari region, which borders the Mughals who occupy India.
Therefore, muskets are very scarce in the snow-capped mountains, but they are not unique. Ga Ma even heard that in the west of the snow-capped mountains, there are even musketeers riding on the backs of war elephants firing muskets.
But Gaima had never seen so many muskets.
Hundreds of muskets of different standards fired volleys, and the earth-shattering and heart-shaking sound reminded him all the time...that's right, it was an army he couldn't afford to hire.
Suddenly, Dai Daozi walked into the tent and said happily: "Gama, the commander wants to see you!"
The chain of the prayer wheel slowly stopped, Ga Ma took a deep breath, nodded and walked out of the felt tent.
The cold wind in Haibei is still blowing in March.
Liu Chengzong rode his horse past the small military formation where the firearms were set off.
After this winter, the soldiers' clothes and armor have changed.
Their helmet tops, armor, robe edges and arrow sleeves are all lined with fur. The armor is all plush and looks very warm.
In the past two days, he had been busy determining the combat capabilities of the training camp.
As winter turned to spring, after several months of reorganization and running-in, this army, with 7,000 Yansui, Ningxia, and Guyuan border troops as its backbone and more than 10,000 banner troops, peasant troops, and hungry civilians as supplements, basically restored its combat capabilities.
Seeing Ga Ma and his entourage approaching from afar, Liu Chengzong stood on his horse and accepted their salute indifferently, then got off his horse and invited them to enter the tent.
"Dai Daozi told you about the dispute between the Nangqian tribe and the Baili tribe. How many troops do you have?"
Ga Ma didn't know how many troops he had. They were currently in exile. More than a thousand monks and laymen were hiding in Jiegu, Yushu. There was a local Zhawu tribe leader who temporarily protected them.
Nangqian did not have a standing army and relied on the tribal leaders to recruit during wartime. Genbeng Temple originally had more than 400 armed monks, but now they were frightened by the successive defeats.
Ga Ma thought for a while and said: "In the past, Nangqian could gather three thousand troops. As long as we return to Nangqian, those leaders will still join us."
Liu Chengzong changed his question: "How many people are there in the entire Nangqian place?"
"More than four thousand households." Ga Ma thought for a while and said uncertainly: "More than 20,000 people."
Liu Chengzong held his chin in disbelief and continued to ask: "Where is Bai Li? How many troops and people does he have?"
Strangely enough, Ga Ma didn't know much about the population of Nangqian, but he knew the population under King Baili's rule very well. He answered without thinking: "More than 16,400 households, more than 90,000 people."
Directly accurate to two digits.
Liu Chengzong looked at him sideways: "Great monk, you don't know anything about your own family, but you are so sure about Baili?"
Ga Ma smiled bitterly and explained: "Where King Baili rules, every family must send a son to serve as a soldier for him. No one can escape. He has 16,400 soldiers, so naturally There are sixteen thousand four hundred households.”
The rate of drawing dice is very high.
"What does he use to raise his troops?"
"Raising troops?"
Ga Ma looked at Master Chen with great confusion. After Master Chen explained the word two or three times, Ga Ma suddenly realized: "It turns out that the commander-in-chief asked what the soldiers should eat. Their parents raise them and eat whatever they prepare."
Just after Chen Shifo finished recounting, Ga Ma added: "The same is true for weapons. Every household must prepare weapons for their sons who are soldiers. Whatever is prepared can be used. After the father dies, the son will use it."
"The war between Baili and Nangqian was because Dunyue Duoji believed that Nangqian should be his territory and each household should send him a soldier. My father and brother were unwilling to send troops to him, so they kept fighting."
To be honest, Liu Chengzong felt stupid after hearing this answer.
What they were talking about didn't seem to be on the same level.
Liu Chengzong always thought that he was the person with the lowest cost of raising soldiers, but he did not expect that King Baili in Kham District had a lower cost of raising soldiers than him.
The cost of raising troops is negative.
Because the families who serve in the military have to pay for food and silver, they can even get money back.
Yang Yao, Cao Yao and others in the military tent were also dumbfounded. Old thief Cao was stunned for a moment before slamming the table and shouting: "Commander, isn't this the mother's guardhouse of Emperor Taizu!"
Cao Yao's angle was very interesting and made Liu Shizi laugh.
This auspicious month belongs to the rebirth of Emperor Taizu of the Ming Dynasty, and he has transformed the entire army into a full-scale defense. We can raise sixteen thousand soldiers without spending a single tsampa on our own.
Liu Chengzong thought, they were all conscripts. Wouldn't it be difficult to deal with such an opponent?
Ga Ma looked at everyone laughing, a little confused.
What's so funny about this? It's scary, isn't it? Every time a conflict occurs, before a fight breaks out, the little local officials under Nang Qian are frightened to the point where they dare not fight.
Liu Chengzong did not intend to continue asking Ga Ma military issues.
The army in their eyes was completely different. It was useless to talk about these things. It was better to wait for the army to pass by and let Tang Qi investigate the real situation.
Baili's recruitment system that recruits all people as soldiers does not necessarily mean that individual soldiers have weak combat capabilities.
Even around the Baili Kingdom, the ability to force the entire population to recruit soldiers is in itself a symbol of the strong organizational ability of the kingdom.
But this only applies to border operations in small countries with few people. There is no logistics and there is no need for a war.
So this kind of military strength is just paper data.
With this kind of physique, how can the soldiers in the south get to the north?
Therefore, they may be strong or weak at the individual soldier level, but at the larger tactical and strategic level, they are not weak at all.
Liu Shishi and Cao Yao looked at each other and saw the smile in each other's eyes.
They were looking for an opponent to practice their troops with, and Ga Ma sent them an opponent like this. Someone even gave them a pillow when they fell asleep.
Liu Chengzong turned to look at Ga Ma and said seriously: "I can help you recapture Nangqian and make you Nangqian chieftain, but what can I get?"
Ga Ma looked at Liu Chengzong and replied cautiously: "Commander, I know that Nang Qian cannot afford the money to invite the army to go out. If the commander helps me drive away Dunyue Duoji, I am willing to surrender to the commander and pay tribute every year. Promote the commander's benevolence and wisdom to the surroundings, so that more earth kings will join him."
Liu Chengzong felt that Ga Ma was pretty good.
How could he know that Ga Ma was feeling miserable.
Surrendering to Han Shuai is not a big deal. Even if they don't pay tribute to Liu Chengzong, they will have to pay tribute to others. It doesn't matter.
The biggest problem was that he was afraid that Liu Chengzong did not have the will to rule the south and bring Yushu and Qamdo into his hands.
If they were surrounded by tribes that allied themselves to Liu Chengzong, their environment would naturally be stable.
But if this Han army has been squatting in Haibei, more than a thousand miles away, he will be beaten today and send people to ask for help. Liu Chengzong receives the news and his first seven days are over.
But this group of people was in Liu Chengzong's tent, and he could not refuse Liu Chengzong's help.
Otherwise, it doesn't matter whether Liu Shizi is willing to help him fight for a fee. After making an enemy for nothing, he must be very willing to chase him to the ends of the earth and beat him.
Now that Liu Shishi is willing to help, he can only do so. For his own safety... Ga Ma has decided that from now on, all the princes around Nangqian must be loyal to Liu Shishi.
Liu Chengzong "What can you contribute every year?"
"Cows, sheep, horses? It depends on what the commander needs." Ga Ma thought for a moment and said, "As long as Nangqian is recaptured, I can pay tribute to 1,200 horses, 1,200 oxen, or 3,000 oxen every year." Head sheep?"
Unexpectedly, Liu Chengzong waved his hand: "You don't need so many, you can keep these livestock...Master Buddha, show him the list."
Liu Chengzong asked Chen Shifo to prepare a list, written in Chinese, Mongolian, and Tibetan, with various raw materials he needed written on it.
Mainly livestock furs, horns, wood and minerals.
After the list was handed over to Ga Ma, Liu Chengzong added: "The price is written on it. You can make up the money and pay tribute worth five hundred knives a year. Other than that..."
Liu Chengzong emphasized: "If during the war, my soldiers and the girls under your command are in love, they are allowed to go to Haibei to get married."
"And when the war is over, you need to select 600 smart children under the age of fourteen and 200 iron, wood, gold, silver, and stone workers for my soldiers to take to Haibei."
"If you can do it, I will send three thousand troops to help you get Nangqian back."
In an instant, Ga Ma's expression was extremely frightened.
This lion, this lion looks so handsome to Fengshen, but he actually eats children!
