"Failed."
When Ama led his clan cavalry to break out of the siege on the high plateau to the east, Jia'er, the chief of the Huangyang tribe, and several other chiefs stood high on their horses and watched, waiting to see the cavalry of the Ama tribe in Song Dynasty. Under the pursuit of the military cavalry, Jia'er hurriedly fled eastward. Jia'er sighed lightly, looked back at the other clan leaders and said: "This plan will not work, so we have to find another way."
The clan leaders nodded one after another and evacuated towards the Qie tribe before the Song army came after them.
The Qi tribe, or commonly known as the Sheep tribe in Chinese, is located on a small valley surrounded by high plateaus on the northeast side of Huaidejun, with a total area of about 30,000 acres. Compared with the Ama tribe, which occupies about 30,000 square meters to the north of Zhenrongjun. The grassland with a radius of 20 miles and a total area of about 200,000 acres is not worth mentioning at all, and it is located in a remote area. It is about 30 miles away from the road from Weizhou in Western Xia to Rongjun in Songguo Town, and then to the town. The Gaoping stronghold of the Rong army is hundreds of miles away, and it is surrounded by high plateaus, so no one competes with it. It has always been in peace with all parties, until now Song Guojing proposed the original road Organize households and people.
That night, when Zhao Yang ordered the sheep to be slaughtered and cooked to reward the entire army, the Ama clan leader led his people to flee to the Qie tribe's station and discussed countermeasures with the clan leaders.
Moreover, the old chief of the tribe, Mul, asked his tribe to slaughter dozens of sheep to entertain the Ama tribe.
During the banquet, the Ama clan chief looked around and saw that only nine clan chiefs were present. He couldn't help but mocked: "Compared to the two days ago when we swore an alliance at our clan's station, there are half less. Even Ermalo from Bema is not here... …Is he ready to surrender to the Song people?"
The Bema in his mouth refers to the Baima tribe, whose leader is Ermaluo. This tribe is located to the north of the Ama tribe. Together with the Ama tribe, it occupies the largest plateau plain in Huaide Army. Before the Song people, Before the proposal to create households to equalize the people, the two tribes had a lot of friction and even fought over issues such as pasture and water sources. In the end, the Suppressing Army sent people to mediate, so the relationship between Ama and Ermalo has always been at odds. .
Hearing his sarcasm, Jia'er, the leader of the Huangyang tribe, said calmly: "The Bema tribe is just to the north of your tribe. Now that your tribe's station is occupied by the Song army, it is only twenty miles away from his station. Of course, he is uneasy and uses As the Han people say, it's like facing a formidable enemy... I know you were defeated today and feel depressed, but what's the point of saying such words that are not conducive to peace?"
"..." Amma was silent.
Seeing this, Jia'er changed the subject and said: "Let's talk about the situation of the fight with the Song army first. Why did the plan of 'capturing the king' fail? When I was waiting and watching on the plateau, I clearly saw that you successfully defeated the Song army. Thousands of cavalry were diverted away."
So Ama calmly began to describe the process of his battle with the Song army: "...it turned out that the Song army had fallen into the trap, and nearly 5,000 cavalry on its right wing were led away by Baji and Morbu, but those who stayed behind the Song army's main formation This army is too powerful. You don’t know, but even the ordinary soldiers in this army are wearing extremely thick armor, with only a slit showing for their eyes. The swords in the hands of our warriors cannot cause damage to them at all... …”
These words made the expressions of several clan leaders who were not strong enough to be present suddenly change, and their expressions became increasingly uneasy.
A tribe leader named Bie Le snorted coldly: "Amma, you were defeated and frightened by the Song army, right? If I had known this, our two tribes should have changed places."
Ama was furious when he heard this and sneered: "Biele, don't be complacent. Do you think your tribe is in Huanzhou and the Song people won't touch you for the time being? After the Jingyuan road is cleared, Huanqing might be the next one." road!"
"Then I won't be frightened by the Song people." Biele sneered.
"Don't argue." Jia'er said to stop the fight, and at the same time glanced at Bie Le calmly.
The reason is that his Huangyang tribe and Biele's tribe are both in the northeast of Huaide Road and the northwest of Huanzhou on Huanqing Road in the Song Dynasty, and the Huangyang tribe's location is closer to the Song Dynasty.
After persuading the two to stop arguing, Jia'er asked Ama: "Do you know the number of the Song army?"
"The Fifth Tianwu Army." Ama said in a deep voice.
"Tianwu Army..." Jia'er was indeed very unfamiliar. After all, the "Fourth Army" were basically stationed in Bianjing, including the Dragon Guard Army of Ma Si and the Divine Guard Army of Bu Si, especially the Pengri Army and the Tianwu Army. As the two "blood sons" of the Dianqian Secretary, they almost never appear on the border. Even Bianjing's defense will not call them on easily, and they are mostly used to protect officials when traveling.
For example, Kuanyi Tianwu is a bodyguard and honor guard specifically responsible for protecting officials when traveling.
"Have you ever met the coach of the Song Army?" Jia'er asked abruptly.
Amma nodded and said, "I saw it. It was the little baby named Zhao Yang that day."
"really?"
Several clan leaders opened their eyes in disbelief. Even Jia'er felt incredulous and asked in surprise: "Is this true?"
"It's true." Amma snorted coldly.
Jia'er nodded and said with relief: "That day when I saw Song Ting sending a little boy as deputy envoy, I felt that this young man's identity was not simple. Now... yes, the Lord of Song's surname is Zhao, and this young man is also surnamed Zhao. He is probably the nephew of the Song Lord. If he can be captured, the Song Kingdom will definitely be put into a trap... It's a pity."
"Yes." Several clan leaders agreed.
Seeing this, Chief Ama said displeased: "What's the use of talking about this now? If you have the ability, you can send people to capture them... Everyone is hiding behind them and not daring to come forward. What's the pity?"
"We have also sent hundreds of clan members to help." A clan leader said angrily.
"Yes." Ama sneered: "Yes, we are sent. When the situation is bad, the fastest ones to escape are you tribesmen, but the soldiers of my tribe fought bravely with the Song army..."
"This is slander!" Another clan leader said angrily.
Seeing the clan leaders starting to quarrel again, Jia'er frowned and had no choice but to persuade Yuan Chang again: "We must be at peace with each other now, otherwise we might as well surrender the Song people as soon as possible to avoid harming the clan members."
After some persuasion, the clan leaders finally calmed down again.
"What should we do now?" asked Mur, the old patriarch of the Qie tribe.
While everyone was looking at each other, Jia'er thought: "Let's see the reaction of the Song army first. The Song army is currently stationed at the tribal headquarters of the Ama chief, only twenty miles away from the Bema tribe. The next one should attack Bema. When the tribe takes action, I don’t know whether to persuade them to surrender or to use force... I personally guess that the Song Army should persuade them to surrender. In short, they should contact the leader of the Ermalo clan first."
"Well."
All the clan leaders nodded, but the Ama clan leader looked uncertain.
At the same time, in the Ama tribe's residence, Zhao Yang, Feng Wenjun, Guo Kui, Fan Chunren, Wen Tong, Zhong Shen and others were also discussing the next strategy.
Feng Wenjun was the first to describe the situation of the Bema tribe: "...the Bema tribe and the Ama tribe jointly occupy the widest grassland in the Huide Army. Compared with the Ama tribe, their strength is not weak. Excluding the old, weak, women and children, there are also There are about 3,000 tribesmen, and if we use force, our army will definitely win, but I don’t know what Deputy Zhao’s plan is?”
"Let me hear your opinions first." Zhao Yang said, holding a tea bowl.
At that time, Fan Chunren and Wen Tong served as staff advisors to Zhao Yang. The official military post was named Guan Gou Ji Yi Wenzi, referred to as Ji Yi or Shuai Ji, and they were in charge of writing confidential documents. For this purpose, Zhang Kang each sent four civil servants from the Weizhou government office. After all, Fan and Wen wanted to assist Zhao Yang in controlling the entire army.
So after looking at each other, Fan Chunren took the lead and said: "Although we are bound to win, if we use force blindly, our army will inevitably suffer casualties. Moreover, if too many killings are made, it will arouse the hatred of the Shaanxi Qiang people, which is against our original intention, so I still suggest The main thing is to persuade him to surrender."
"I second the proposal." Wen Tong also said.
Seeing this, Zhao Yang looked at Zhongqian and Guo Kui.
"Please." Guo Kui raised his hand and made a gesture.
The two of them are now Zhao Yang's subordinates, and there is no distinction between them. In terms of official position, Guo Kui is higher, but Guo Kui has a good impression of Zhong E, the son of the famous general Zhong Shiheng, and also wants to see Zhong Diagnosis. Whether he inherited his father's bravery.
Zhong Di also saw that Guo Kui meant to test him, and after some thought he said: "The concerns of Commander Fan and Wen are certainly justified. However, most Qiang people are unruly. If you want to make them surrender, you must make friends with them carefully." , just like my father who surrendered the leader of the Tibetan tribe on Huanqing Road in the past, he must practice what he says and build trust in the Qiang; at the same time, he must also demonstrate force appropriately to make the Qiang fear him... Today our army expelled the Ama tribe and occupied the Qiang. Although there were some minor twists and turns during the period, it was enough to deter the Qiang. At present, I think Marshal Zhao can appease the Bema tribe appropriately. He first sent an envoy to invite its leader Ermaluo to come to the banquet and made a request during the banquet. , please contact the Qiang again, and the two sides will negotiate again. If Ermaluo refuses to comply, it will not be too late to launch a crusade if our military advisor is well-known."
"Kui agrees." Guo Kui agreed with appreciation, and then added: "If he doesn't comply, Commander Zhao can grant him another 'three-day deadline.' This move is coercive without losing mercy, and he can repeat his old tricks."
"good."
Zhao Yang nodded with satisfaction and said to Feng Wenjun: "Send someone to the Beima tribe tomorrow and invite Ermalo to come to the banquet."
As soon as Feng Wenjun was about to accept the order, Fan Chunren dissuaded him: "If you want to give both kindness and power, you can't send people as envoys at will. I am willing to go to the Beima tribe as an envoy."
Zhao Yang frowned subconsciously, not because he had any opinions, but because he knew that this trip was dangerous - even if it was only slightly dangerous, he did not dare to take risks with Fan Chunren and other close confidants. This is human nature.
But it is undeniable that Fan Chunren and Wen Tong are indeed the best candidates.
Seeing the hesitation in Zhao Yang's heart, Zhong Jian cupped his fists and said, "You can ask Zhong E to go with Fan Shuaiji. If anything happens, with Wu Lang's courage, he will be able to protect Fan Shuaiji."
Although Zhao Yang hesitated, he finally agreed at Fan Chunren's request, nodded and said: "If Narmalo hurts you at all, I will crush his tribe."
Fan Chunren smiled and said nothing, feeling relieved in his heart, while Guo Kui, Zhong Shen and even Feng Wenjun even agreed: "... No need for Commander Zhao to give orders, we will crush the Beima tribe first!"
Early the next morning, Fan Chunren took Zhonge to the Beima tribe, and Guo Kui personally led four battalions of Fanluo cavalry to escort him.
By the way, the two battalions led by Kelsang and Yiler suffered the most casualties under his command. However, these two battalions led the entire battalion to calm down the Rong army and replaced them with two relatively complete battalions, so his command was still There are nearly a thousand cavalry available.
The journey of twenty miles, and it is a flat grassland, means that for the cavalry, it only takes two hours of galloping. However, since Fan Chunren has not yet learned to ride a horse, he went to the Bema tribe by carriage this time, so it took twice as long. time, nearly half an hour.
Around midnight in the morning, Guo Kui led nearly a thousand Tibetan cavalry to enter the pasture controlled by the Bema tribe first. Some members of the Bema tribe who were on guard in the area quickly rode back to their base and reported to the chief Ermalo: "Chief, the Song people are coming. , the Song people are here!"
Chief Ermalo was startled and asked quickly: "The Song army is coming? How many people are here?"
The tribesman shook his head and said: "I only saw the Song cavalry, I don't know how many there are."
Ermalo was so angry that he slapped the tribesman on the head: "Go and pry again!"
After scolding the tribesman, he quickly sent more than a hundred people to investigate. The result of the investigation made him relieved: the Song people only sent a thousand cavalry and no infantry to follow.
A mere thousand cavalrymen were definitely not here to attack his Beima tribe, so he waited outside the station early to see what the Song people's purpose was.
Not long after, Fan Chunren's carriage arrived outside the Beima tribe's garrison, while a thousand cavalry led by Guo Kui stood a mile away and watched, but did not approach.
Seeing this, Ermaluo knew clearly: The Song Dynasty people were sending envoys here.
At this time, Fan Chunren had already got off the carriage and headed towards the Bema tribe stationed with only Zhonge and the documents translated by one of his subordinates.
Seeing this, Ermalo had no worries and stepped forward to greet him with only a few tribesmen.
When they met, Fan Chunren was the first to salute and reveal his identity. His clerk then translated his self-introduction to Ermalo: "This is Zhao Shuai, deputy envoy of Shaanxi Economic Strategy to recruit and appease. Fan Chunren , Fan Shuaiji."
Although Ermaluo didn't know much about the official position in the Song Dynasty, he also knew that this young man named Fan Chunren had a high status. He quickly invited the three people to the camp and his clan's tent, and then ordered people to slaughter the sheep for preparation. Entertain the Song envoy.
Fan Chunren waved his hand and said: "There is no need to hold a banquet. Fan came here today on the orders of Commander Zhao to invite the leader of the Ermaluo clan to our army for a banquet. Commander Zhao has important matters to discuss with the chief of the Ermalo clan."
Ermalo was hesitant after hearing this. After all, he could roughly guess the intention of Marshal Zhao, which was nothing more than coercion and inducement to force him to agree to establish households and integrate the people.
While he was hesitating, a tribesman beside him whispered in Qiang language: "This man seems to be of high status. Why not capture him and force the Song army to give up household registration."
The clerk next to Fan Chunren was startled and frequently signaled to the chief officer with his eyes.
Fan Chunren had already made predictions. When he saw the hint in the eyes of the document, he roughly guessed what he was saying, and said calmly: "We, the Song Dynasty, are a country of etiquette. We pay attention to etiquette first and then soldiers in everything. Therefore, Marshal Zhao sent Fan as an envoy to invite the leader of the Ermaluo clan. When we go to a banquet and discuss important matters during the banquet, even if the negotiation does not go smoothly, we must all escort the clan leader back to the clan and not do anything bad. ... If the clan leader listens to the slander and detains us, the most he can do is accept it. Three lives, but the price...I'm afraid it will have to be borne by everyone in your tribe, so I advise the clan leader not to commit suicide."
Zhong E, who was already secretly on guard, said nothing when he heard this, but his eyes were fixed on Ermalo, as if as long as Ermalo nodded, he would immediately draw his sword and kill this man under his sword.
Chief Ermalo was already shocked by what Fan Chunren said, but when he saw Zhong E who was not angry and proud, he asked in shock: "Who is this warrior?"
The clerk introduced on his behalf: "He is a subordinate of Marshal Zhao, the commander of the first battalion of Tianwu's Fifth Army, Zhonge."
Ermalo was startled and said quickly: "It turns out he is a commander. Please sit down quickly."
"No need." Zhong E, who was standing behind Fan Chunren, said indifferently: "Today I am only here as Fan Shuaiji's escort. I don't need the patriarch to bother to entertain me. I hope the Ermalo patriarch will give me permission whether he agrees to attend the banquet or not."
Ermalo looked at Zhonge, then at Fan Chunren, and hesitated: "Is it really just a matter of discussing important matters?"
Fan Chunren comforted him and said: "Clan leader, don't worry, our commander Zhao and his subordinates will never do anything that violates their trust."
Ermaluo hesitated for a long time, and finally agreed to follow Fan Chunren to the Song Army.
Half an hour later, everyone arrived at the Songzhan Ama tribe's headquarters, or the new name given by Wen Tong - Pingma.
After Fan Chunren and Zhong E took the lead in entering the station to report their orders to Zhao Yang, Zhao Yang personally left the station and greeted the Ermaluo clan chief and his group of more than a dozen people, which surprised the latter.
After exchanging pleasantries, Zhao Yang invited the leader of the Ermalo tribe to the main tent in the camp. It was originally the chief tent of the Ama tribe to discuss matters with the clansmen, but now it became the command tent of the Song army.
Looking at the furnishings with Qiang customs in the tent, and looking at Zhao Yang sitting in the main seat, Ermalo naturally couldn't help feeling a little emotional, and even suspected that his Bema tribe was the next Ama tribe.
"In the middle of the battle, our army doesn't have anything rare to entertain the clan leader. Fortunately, we got some new sheep, which can be used to entertain the clan leader."
Is that the sheep of the Ama tribe?
Chief Ermalo muttered secretly in his heart, but he could not help but show a look of appreciation on his face as he thanked: "Thank you very much, Marshal Zhao. I am ashamed of myself. ... Today, Marshal Zhao sent Fan Shuaiji to invite me to the banquet. You said we have something important to discuss with you, but I don’t know what we are discussing?”
Zhao Yang chuckled and said: "The clan leader asked clearly, what else can he do besides establishing households and bringing together the people?"
"Is there no room for negotiation?" Ermalo said bitterly: "I am willing to donate a thousand sheep to the Song Dynasty every year... no, two thousand sheep."
Zhao Yang looked at Ermalo with some surprise, and then said seriously: "No matter the clan leader, or the other clan leaders, they always think that I, the Great Song Dynasty, want to take advantage of you. I can only say that your vision is It's really a bit low. Do we, the Song Dynasty, really care about you waiting for a total of 200,000 to 300,000 Qiang people? No! What our country wants is the stability and long-term peace of Shaanxi!... I don't hide it from the patriarch, for the long-term peace of Shaanxi. , the matter of household registration and equalization of the people must be carried out, and I, the Song Dynasty, must completely control this land! But at the same time, I can also promise that once the household registration is completed, all tribesmen will be regarded as subjects of the Song Dynasty and enjoy the same rights and obligations as the Han people."
Ermalo remained silent.
Seeing this, Zhao Yang also guessed the general reason. After weighing it up, he asked: "Chief Ermalo, have you ever thought about becoming an official?"
"Well?"
Chief Ermalo raised his head suddenly.
