"With this food, can we defeat Zhang He?"
Jiang Tuo asked curiously.
Jiang Wei nodded and said calmly: "Zhang He only has 30,000 to 40,000 elite soldiers. He thought that if he occupied and cut off our army's food route, our army would have to retreat. But now that he has food and grass, it will be useless for him to occupy the street pavilions." Meaningless.”
"What happens after defeating Zhang He? What will the Shu army do next?"
Jiang Wei was stunned, then immediately told Zhuge Liang's plan, saying: "That is to take the opportunity to capture the five counties of Yongliang. In this way, the Shu army will have a strategic support point. In the future, they can directly send troops from Yongliang to threaten Cao Wei's Chang'an. "
This was the purpose of Zhuge Liang's first northern expedition.
Zhuge Liang knew in his heart that Cao Wei had so many people and a vast territory that it would be impossible to defeat Cao Wei in one battle.
Therefore, his first Northern Expedition was to solve the advancing base of the Northern Expedition, so that he would not have to send troops from Shu in the future.
"Why not take advantage of the situation and defeat Cao Zhen? Wouldn't this bring us closer to Chang'an?"
Hearing this, Jiang Wei couldn't help laughing.
It seems that although the county magistrate in front of me has political talents, he knows nothing about military affairs.
It’s not his fault. How can there be any perfect person in this world? You can’t know everything, right?
"Cao Zhen leads the elites of the Wei State and occupies the Yi County area. It is easy to defend but difficult to attack. It has the strong support of the Wei State behind it. It would be great if our soldiers can defeat Zhang He. How can we have any remaining strength to defeat Cao Zhen?"
"Besides, the area around Yi County is a plain, and the Wei State has many cavalry, but the useless flying troops that our Shu State is proud of are just infantry. When faced with the cavalry attack, the infantry are like children and adults. Han fights.”
"There are also weapons and armor. There is a lack of iron in Shu. Some soldiers do not wear armor and use crude weapons. Such Shu army's combat effectiveness will be reduced by another 30%..."
Jiang Wei explained, analyzing the huge differences between the Shu army and the Wei army from various angles. In short, if the Shu army could occupy the five counties of Yongliang, it had successfully achieved its strategic goal, and there was no need to fight Cao Zhen to the death.
Besides, it’s impossible to fight.
Hearing these words, Jiang Tuo's eyes became brighter.
Sure enough, he is worthy of being a famous general, and his analysis is clear and logical.
Jiang Tuo stroked his chin and asked, "What if we provide iron tools to the Shu army?"
"What?" Jiang Wei looked at Jiang Tuo in surprise and asked, "Iron weapons? Are there any iron weapons in Qingshui County?"
"Well, two years ago, some people went up the mountain to cut firewood and accidentally discovered a hill containing iron ore. After two years of development, a lot of iron has been mined."
"Let your soldiers load the food here, and you come with me to take a look."
"good!"
Jiang Wei turned his head, gave a few orders to the soldiers who were following him, and then followed Jiang Tuo.
Riding the carriage all the way to the outside of the city, we walked for about half an hour before stopping at the foot of a mountain.
A guard hurriedly stepped forward to greet him: "I didn't expect that your Excellency would come suddenly. Please wait for a moment. I will inform everyone to greet you now."
Jiang Tuo smiled and waved his hand, shook his head and said: "No need, I just came to see what you should do."
"Yes, sir!"
Jiang Wei raised his head and saw the towering mountain peaks. He couldn't help but ask: "It's so remote here, so it must be very difficult to mine, right? How much is your monthly output?"
"Not much, mainly because the mining tools are inconvenient and there are few people mining." Jiang Tuo smiled.
Jiang Wei nodded, that's right. There are only so many people in Qingshui County. It's impossible to cultivate so many fields and still have time to dig iron ore, right?
This is a human being, not a donkey pulling a mill.
He followed Jiang Tuo up the mountain.
After a while, Jiang Wei looked at the bare mountains in front of him, and even dug a huge deep pit. Thousands of people were digging in an orderly manner, and the amount of iron ore transported out in backpacks was a massive amount.
Not far away, more than a dozen iron-making furnaces were set up, blowing smoke into the sky.
Jiang Wei was unusually silent.
The scale of this iron smelting is truly unprecedented!
What do you call this a small mine? !
After a long time, Jiang Wei came back to his senses and asked: "Master Jiang, the steel you make is probably not as high as yours for the entire Shu Han people."
"No way?" Jiang Tuo was stunned. This scale is not large. According to the scale of iron smelting in later generations, a daily production of 100,000 kilograms is considered a medium scale. And this small mine of mine can only produce a thousand kilograms of iron per day.
"That's true. I really didn't expect that you could develop to such an extent in this small Qingshui County."
Jiang Tuo was amused and asked: "Do you think, with food and iron weapons, can we defeat Cao Zhen and occupy Chang'an?"
"No!" Jiang Wei poured cold water on Jiang Tuo.
"Why?"
Seeing this, Jiang Wei couldn't help but spread the word to Jiang Tuo and asked, "Do you know why the prime minister wanted to occupy the five counties of Yongliang?"
"Isn't it to gain strategic support?"
"This is just one of the reasons. I guess the Prime Minister has two other reasons."
"What is it?"
Jiang Wei said with a smile: "First, after occupying Yongliang, if we use the Jialing River water to transport military supplies, we can reach Shanggui in the north and Qishan in the west. If we proceed from the Wei River, we can reach Luoyang directly."
"Secondly, the west of Qi Mountain is rich in horses, and the Shu army is most lacking in horses. However, the Cao Wei area is mostly plains, which is very suitable for cavalry combat. If a decisive battle is to be fought, war horses are indispensable."
"Thirdly, after acquiring Yongliang, you can make friends with the Qiang Rong. The people in this area are brave and warlike by nature, and are good at riding and shooting. They can help our Shu Han restore the country!"
After finishing speaking, Jiang Wei said again: "Do you understand?"
Jiang Tuo nodded, shook his head and said, "Actually, I think there is another reason."
"what reason?"
Jiang Tuo analyzed: "After occupying Yongliang, we can do business with the Western Regions and trade goods."
Hearing Jiang Tuo's analysis, Jiang Wei suddenly frowned and said, "Ever since Dong Zhuo rebelled against the capital, disputes have continued among princes across the Han Dynasty, and our Han Dynasty has also stopped trading with the Western Regions..."
"Besides, the Western Regions are far away, and it would be useless to do business with them. So, I guess the Prime Minister doesn't have this intention."
Jiang Tuo did not refute, nodded and said: "That's right, it seems I guessed wrong."
Jiang Tuo's point of view can be seen from the unofficial history of later generations. However, this unofficial history is quite wild. It also records that Wu Guotai had an affair with Zhang Zhao and that Sima Yi had a crush on Cao Cao's wife, Mrs. Ding.
The two talked for a long time, and Jiang Wei shared a lot of military common sense and strategies.
Jiang Tuo didn't understand military matters, so he could only nod his head as if he were listening to a book from heaven.
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, okay, okay!
However, when the two were commenting on celebrities from the Three Kingdoms, Jiang Tuo showed his expertise. He could always point out the advantages and disadvantages of contemporary celebrities, which made Jiang Wei marvel.
I didn't expect that Jiang Tuo, living in this small Qingshui County, would know so much about famous people in the world.
The sky was getting dark, and the soldiers also loaded up ten carts with food. This time, because there were not enough trucks, they did not take away all the food.
"Why don't you rest one night and start your journey tomorrow morning?" Jiang Tuo said reluctantly.
Jiang Wei shook his head: "No, the Prime Minister must be very anxious at this time, and the military rations are very important. There is no time to delay. I will set off now and return to the Shu camp under the cover of night."
"Well, be careful on the road!"
Jiang Wei bid farewell to Jiang Tuo and embarked on the road back.
Jiang Tuo looked at Jiang Wei's back and couldn't help but shake his head.
"What's the matter, sir?" Lu Qing asked.
Jiang Tuo thought: "I wonder if the prime minister can defeat Zhang He with these provisions."
"Didn't you just say that defeating Zhang He is not a problem, and it is even possible to capture Chang'an."
Hearing this, Jiang Tuo couldn't help but laugh. What he said just now was just a boast.
The biggest reason for the demise of the Shu Han in history was that after the three pillars of the world were established, Cao Wei dominated the country with seven points of national power.
Zhuge Liang, who can be said to be an all-rounder, spent his whole life but failed to reverse the pros and cons.
Cao Wei could make countless mistakes, but Shu Han could only fail once.
As for Jiang Wei, he returned to Shu camp overnight and met with Zhuge Liang.
"Prime Minister, fortunately you have fulfilled your destiny. The general is back with food and fodder!"
Jiang Wei stepped into the camp, knelt down on one knee, and bowed his hand to Zhuge Liang.
Zhuge Liang, who was reviewing the memorial in front of the case, raised his head, put down the memorial in his hand, and asked with a smile on his face: "Boyo, how much food and grass did you bring this time?"
"Prime Minister, we brought back ten carts in total, about fifty thousand kilograms!"
"The general has made an agreement with Magistrate Jiang of Qingshui County that if there is a shortage of food in the future, you can get it at any time!"
"Okay, okay!"
Zhuge Liang was so happy that he couldn't help but stand up, waved the feather fan in his hand, and said with a smile: "I didn't expect that I could get so much food and grass with just a small request."
"Prime Minister, what are your requirements?"
"Haha, he said that his name should be added to the list of apprenticeships. What does that mean? Not to mention adding his name, the names of his parents, clan, relatives and friends are all added."
"It seems that this County Magistrate Jiang is really an interesting person."
Jiang Wei couldn't help complaining: "As soon as I gave my name, Magistrate Jiang held my hand and insisted on inviting me to drink. Looking at his excitement, he even wanted to beg me. .”
"I thought Magistrate Jiang would make things difficult for us, but he provided food and grass without any complaints. He even heard that our army was short of weapons, and was willing to provide iron tools for our army to make weapons."
"This is great!"
Zhuge Liang was very happy, thinking that after Jieting's defeat, they would have no choice but to return without success. But with the food and grass, he was confident of defeating Zhang He.
Zhang He... is just a defeated general, what should he fear?
Among the civil servants and generals on Cao Wei's side, only Sima Yi could stop him a little, but he could only stop him a little.
If two armies faced each other, with each leading an army of 100,000 and forming their own formations, Zhuge Liang was extremely confident that he could kill Sima Yi and other Cao Wei generals and flee in panic.
"What do you think of Qingshui County's Jiang Tuo?"
Jiang Wei thought deeply: "This man is good at managing internal affairs. The people are very convinced of him. Moreover, the people in the city live and work in peace and contentment, and the cultivated land outside the city is endless. This should be all his credit."
"He is very intelligent. I have never seen the glass used on people's windows, the so-called printing technology, and even the plows used for plowing in the fields. I heard others say that he invented these."
"He is brave and resourceful. I heard that he was born as a thief. At only fourteen or fifteen years old, he was able to unite the thieves in the mountains and then occupy Qingshui County and win over so many people."
Jiang Wei said a lot in succession, mostly praising Jiang Tuo.
Zhuge Liang listened carefully, and then said with a smile: "There are wise men in the wild. I have been pursuing wise men since I came out of the mountains. I got a promise a few days ago, and I have fulfilled my wish. But today, I met a great wise man again!"
"Jiang Tuo is a man of extraordinary agility and good at governance. If he is properly appointed, he will be a talented general!"
Zhuge Liang was in a very happy mood and couldn't help but praise him.
Hearing this, Jiang Wei frowned and reminded: "Prime Minister, this person also has shortcomings. He is not familiar with military affairs. When I discussed the art of war with him, he couldn't come up with any strategies and could only nod in agreement."
"Oh? What art of war are you talking about?"
Jiang Wei then told everything about the conversation with Jiang Tuo.
Zhuge Liang sounded very surprised, stood up, and fell into deep thought.
"Prime Minister, is there something wrong?"
Zhuge Liang shook his feather fan lightly and said seriously: "I really didn't expect that he saw through my plan."
"What?!"
Zhuge Liang explained: "The world only knows that the five counties of Yongliang were captured for war horses and population, and to quickly send troops to Chang'an. But the deepest reason is to get in touch with the Western Regions!"
"Why?" Jiang Wei was very puzzled.
"There will be no prosperity without farmers, and there will be no prosperity without business." Zhuge Liang sighed: "We in Shuhan have a small population and a remote location. If we have a stalemate with Cao Wei, I am afraid that we will be defeated in less than twenty years."
"But if we can get in touch with the Western Regions and recreate the prosperity of the Han Dynasty, then the brocade and tea from Shu can be transported to the Western Regions, and the iron, gold, silver, and jade from the Western Regions can be shipped over."
Zhuge Liang pointedly pointed out: "Relying on business contacts is enough to fight a protracted war with Cao Wei. I didn't expect that Jiang Tuo, who lives in a ravine, can actually see through it."
Jiang Wei stood there in surprise.
Zhuge Liang smiled, shook his head and said: "It seems that my evaluation of him is still too low. He is a handsome man, not a general!"
