The need to recruit united troops by himself was just one of the bad things that Fang Chongyong encountered after he just became the governor. It was not the worst part of it.
The "Autumn Defense Order" was originally called "Autumn Defense Border" by Pei Yaoqing. Although it was not specified which one it was for, basically except for Tibet, there was no one in the surrounding forces worthy of a special order from the Tang Dynasty to target it. .
It's just that the formulation of the law is simple, but it is difficult to implement it. The autumn prevention order is not the "autumn prevention system" in Fang Chongyong's previous life in the history of the middle and late Tang Dynasty. The source of anti-autumn troops is more fixed, the law is clearer, the content is less and it is more practical.
The Autumn Defense Order is not just a military regulation, it also covers economic issues, such as tax collection and pensions for wounded soldiers.
At this moment, Fang Chongyong was sitting at the desk in the lobby of the Ganzhou government office. Looking at the government order sent from Liangzhou, he was so speechless that he wanted to curse!
The first decree is: the local field troops who have been assigned are not allowed to rotate to ensure sufficient strength against the Tibetan army! The Ganzhou Prefecture must be responsible for appeasing those military households who cannot return home on time, and cannot pretend that nothing happened.
This one is pretty standard.
After all, if the soldiers in the field cannot return home on time, it will affect the harvest in the field and the harvest of their families. The consequences of this kind of thing are obvious.
This blame belongs to the government, so the government must take the responsibility and must provide certain preferential treatment and subsidies in terms of taxation.
But when it comes to preferential subsidies and the like, they must be directly linked to the government's treasury, because neither money nor food can be conjured out of thin air. The more military households there are in the fields, the fewer government officials there will be.
How to reconcile this contradiction will test the wisdom of local officials.
If this one is understandable, then the next one is a bit too much.
The second decree is: Ganzhou is rich and located in the rear area. Therefore, money, rice and grain, as well as idle land and agricultural tools must be specially prepared to solve the problem of recovering wounded soldiers and arrange their livelihood. Those who want to move to Ganzhou must be properly resettled, and those who do not want to move must be given subsidies of money, silk, rice and food and sent back to their place of origin.
Most of these origins are from the five states in the Hexi Corridor. However, it is not ruled out that there are people like Liu Zhan who traveled thousands of miles from Gyeonggi and even Guandong to serve. It would be troublesome for such injured people to return to their place of origin. Not only would they have to be given a lot of money, but they would also have to be escorted to the prefecture and county where they were born, and they would be handed over to the people there.
This is also one of the reasons why the Hexi states hate Fu Bingban: it’s too troublesome! Even if you don't care about the war, if you are disabled, you still have to be cared for all the way home!
These measures are what should be done and are also one of the guarantees for the morale and courage of the Tang army. Only when the worries of the officers and soldiers are solved can they be expected to fight the enemy bravely. This is beyond reproach.
However, the decree did not explain why the injured were assigned to Ganzhou for resettlement, and where the money and food were allocated from.
Thinking about it, I can only transfer it from the Ganzhou treasury first, and then settle the accounts later. Fang Chongyong felt that because Ganzhou had superior geographical conditions and a small population, the imperial court also had the principle of resettling people nearby and immigrating by the way.
Although Liangzhou's economy is second to none in the Hexi Corridor and it is also the most populous and richest town, it is also responsible for supplying and transporting soldiers from the Anxi Protectorate and Beiting Protectorate further west.
In the Beiting Protectorate alone, the army needed more than 200,000 pieces of cloth a year.
With such a heavy burden, Chang'an's central finance was always unable to provide timely supplies and was always in arrears, so Liangzhou was unable to afford more money, food, and silk for military supplies. In addition, there are so many people there and there is no extra land to accommodate all kinds of people.
From this point of view, it is actually easy to understand the difficulties of border towns, which is one of the reasons why Liangzhou is also resisting this autumn prevention order.
This problem seems simple, but in fact it is difficult to solve.
The third government order asked the Ganzhou government to cooperate with Zhang Ye to guard the capture and replenish the six thousand united troops.
As for where the soldiers came from, the decree did not say.
But it "hinted" that it could borrow troops from Liangzhou. As for how many troops could be "borrowed", it would depend on the ability of the Ganzhou governor.
Fang Chongyong thought about it and found out that whether it was Hexi Jiedu envoy Xiao Jiong or Chishui army envoy Wang Zhongsi, it would be difficult to allocate some troops.
The meaning of the unity soldiers is very simple. To put it bluntly, they are semi-military soldiers. When recruitment is needed, they are incorporated into the "wartime establishment."
But the origin of the united soldiers is very complicated.
In the regular military establishment of the Tang Dynasty army, there was a distinction between "ordinary state" and "battle state".
The normal state is: "Team" and "Fire", corresponding to "Captain" and "Fire Leader". There is also a "battalion" organized above it, and the corresponding person in charge of the troops is the "camp leader".
The United Army does not have such an organization. They are engaged in farming on weekdays, and only when temporary training is organized, the "state regiment training envoys" gather together for training!
But this is not the case in the battle situation!
When facing battle, the army is divided into: general, left and right wing soldiers and horse envoys, army envoys and horse envoys, Du Yuhou and other positions, as well as the corresponding army sequence.
This kind of sequence is completely different from the usual organization. Even two armies with different numbers may be integrated together. Which unit is paired with which unit has nothing to do with the daily marching organization, it only depends on how the commander arranges it!
The united troops will be assigned to these battle sequences as needed, no different from the regular border troops.
So the imperial court's autumn defense order requires these united soldiers to gather together for battle? Is it to strengthen Ganzhou's local defense?
No, no, that’s not what the decree means at all.
It just put Guo Ziyi in charge of training these 6,000 people. The local governor should be responsible for deploying and recruiting these six thousand people, and handed them over to Guo Ziyi for training.
As for fighting, who will command these united soldiers? This question is very profound and is not stated in the government decree. However, it is obvious that those who train united soldiers do not have the authority to command united soldiers!
Ganzhou itself does not theoretically have the right to use these troops, but recruiting and maintaining united troops also requires expenses. The Ganzhou government office still has to pay for this money, and the money is quite a lot!
Fang Chongyong understood these well-trained united soldiers as a high-quality "soldier pool", which was specially set up to "replenish troops" for the army under the command of the Hexi Jiedushi envoy on the front line.
Fang Chongyong only saw the three words of the thousands-word decree: food, money, and manpower. The rest were all nonsense used to modify it.
This situation is quite serious. Not only do we have to collect an unknown amount of money, food and personnel, but it is staggering to think about it, and we actually don’t have the right to dispatch and use the united troops!
Full horse riding is the job of making wedding clothes for people!
As for the idea put forward by Guo Ziyi, Fang Chongyong thought it would be quite interesting to see if the opponent could use the five hundred men in their hands well to see if they could fight a so-called "miracle battle" with a loss ratio of one to one hundred.
At least it's more reliable than thinking about these 6,000 united troops.
“The requirements of the Hexi Jiedu Prefecture were too stringent, and local officials in Ganzhou knew that they could not be fulfilled, so they all pretended to be deaf and dumb.
I just don’t know how to deal with it? "
Yan Zhuang asked cautiously.
Fang Chongyong has now become his boss and his backer, so Yan Zhuang no longer thinks about it and decides to fully support the other party's work.
However, difficulties exist objectively, and no one can conjure these materials out of thin air. The number of personnel is also limited, and they are all strong laborers responsible for producing goods and food. If used as a united soldier, it will inevitably affect the local economy of Ganzhou.
What's more, united soldiers are not that easy to recruit!
"Of course I have to find a way, but what's your best idea?"
Fang Chongyong asked in a deep voice, saying nonsense.
"My subordinates believe that the nine surnames of Zhaowu are powerful in the local area. Outside the city of Ganzhou, they are surrounded by their cities. If you want to borrow troops, these Sogdians must do it.
But the problem is not whether there are people, but whether the government has the money to do these things.
As long as you have money and silk in hand, are you still worried about being without anyone? "
Yan Zhuang chuckled.
It has been an old tradition for the Sogdians with the nine surnames of Zhaowu to participate in the Tang army. Even the Chishui army was one of the capital contributions they made to the Tang Dynasty. In order to protect the interests of the Silk Road, the Sogdians with the nine surnames of Zhaowu are very willing to send people to join the army, not to mention that this united army is not about to go to the battlefield.
But based on the Sogdian business tradition, if there is not enough profit to satisfy their appetite, then the other party is likely to send hundreds of strong men living near the city to participate in the training of the united soldiers in order to give the government government face.
There will be no more!
The "cityside" system was a system in which the Tang Dynasty resettled naturalized aliens in border towns next to state capitals and county towns, allowing them to graze or live in their own way without forcing them to change their original living habits. , providing preferential tax policies.
The city-side system greatly promoted the integration of Hu and Han and the strength of the Tang Dynasty in border towns. By the Kaiyuan period, most of the foreign races near the city had been registered as households, but the taxation and service methods were different from those of the Han people.
Many of the generals in the Western Regions during Fang Chongyong's previous life during the Tianbao period came from tribes near the city, such as Ge Shuhan, Gao Xianzhi, Bai Xiaode, etc.
When Ganzhou Prefecture was short of soldiers, it was just a routine operation to look for soldiers from the Zhaowu Nine Surnames settlement living next to the city.
However, Fang Chongyong understood that there was a quota for the number of soldiers imported from the city to the border army every year, and they had to be rotated regularly. Nowadays, these soldier quotas have long been used up. In other words, it is no longer easy to use the past "free prostitution" method to recruit people from the settlements near the city.
The Tang Dynasty's border town policy was not to enslave naturalized foreigners like Tubo, so no matter what, you had to follow the rules. Breaking the local rules will inevitably lead to alienation from the aliens around the city.
Yanzhuang's method was to ask the Ganzhou government to pay and recruit additional people from around the city to serve as united troops. As long as there is money, the quality of soldiers is guaranteed.
"Ganzhou doesn't actually have much money, right?"
Fang Chongyong asked helplessly. Although he didn't have time to look at the account books, he knew that the finances of Ganzhou Prefecture were very difficult now.
Yan Zhuang nodded slightly and said, "That's true. Although my subordinates have never seen the account books, judging from the expenses of the Ganzhou government office in the past two years, it is very likely that there are rats in the government treasury!"
In the past two years, since the Tang Dynasty began to use troops against the Tubo people, and now the Tibetan army is pressing down on the border, Hexi states are working hard to provide logistics. It would be weird if Ganzhou could be rich!
Soldiers need to pay extra "movement fees" to fight, and it is different for military camps. After the war, rewards and pensions are also needed to ensure morale.
The number of local farms in Hexi is astonishing, and food self-sufficiency is not a big problem. Even for training united soldiers, the food required will definitely be enough. The only trouble is that the local population is small, and if they are all recruited to fight, there will not be enough people to farm. It’s hard to say how we will live next year. A significant production cut is a foregone conclusion.
What's more, the local cloth production in Hexi is horrifyingly low, completely inconsistent with the grain production, and it is almost completely dependent on the supply from Chang'an. How to ask for money from the central government is also a question that the governor of Ganzhou needs to consider.
Fang Chongyong rubbed his temples painfully. Before the problem of possible surprise attacks by the Tubo people was resolved, there was already a lot of trouble happening again.
"How do the government offices make money? Do you have any ideas?"
Fang Chongyong asked with a sigh.
"You can try to increase taxes and collect business taxes on Hu merchants traveling to and from Ganzhou."
Yan Zhuang said with some uncertainty.
The local government of the Tang Dynasty had many methods for military affairs, but they were not good at how to make money. Many times, they were waiting for supplies from the central government.
Local financial rights have been returned to the central government. Ganzhou is better because it is located in a border town, so there is no need to transport local products to Chang'an during the war.
How to get money, it is obvious that the only way is to increase taxes and corvee. If you don't serve, you have to pay, and then use the money to hire Sogdians near the city to fight.
All in all, these are all poisonous ways to quench thirst. No matter how clever or fancy they are, they are essentially tax increases!
"There are thousands of registered households in Ganzhou, but only tens of thousands of Dingkou. I roughly checked, and the rest are all Zahu (including the nine surnames of Zhaowu), and the total number is only more than 100,000.
If taxes are to be increased, it will be a big expenditure to be borne by everyone. When the time comes, I am afraid that Ganzhou will be in chaos. "
Fang Chongyong said in a deep voice.
Ganzhou's population is not large, at least not yet. If you want to complete the tasks of the imperial court, you have to squeeze local talents desperately.
The people in the border towns are fierce, aren't they afraid that the government will force the people to rebel? It would be great fun if these people defected to the Tubo people!
“We have to find another way.
I heard that Gaochang cotton was famous for its ability to keep out the cold. What do you think of planting Gaochang cotton on a large scale in the dry land of Ganzhou and then selling it back to Chang'an to make profits? "
Fang Chongyong looked at Yan Zhuang and asked.
Promote cotton! Vigorously develop cotton cultivation! The climate in the Hexi Corridor is very suitable for growing cotton!
Xizhou, where Gaochang is located, happens to be a node on the Silk Road. It’s the right time for Ganzhou to take over the cotton planting there!
Fang Zhongyong is full of confidence, this move can break the game!
"Well, I don't know, but the dry land to the east outside Zhangye City is all cotton-growing fields!
Moreover, this cotton is not even enough for military needs. Where can I send the excess to Chang'an? The cotton-padded jackets used by the defenders of Anxi Protectorate and Beiting Protectorate in winter were all supplied by Ganzhou. "
Yan Zhuang looked at Fang Chongyong with confusion, not understanding what the other party meant by what he just said.
Many people have seen the benefits of cotton-padded jackets. Therefore, the cotton produced in Ganzhou is not circulated in the market at all, let alone marketable. It is all used by the military! Even the organizations that request cotton-padded jackets from Ganzhou Prefecture every year, mainly from the prefectures and counties in the Western Regions, always have to wait in line.
In this situation, how can we sell it to Chang'an?
Yan Zhuang's words made Fang Chongyong look embarrassed. He coughed lightly and sighed: "I didn't expect cotton-padded jackets to be so popular and have become popular in the military."
"Hui Shijun, that's exactly what happened."
"Then what should we do..."
Fang Chongyong was in trouble.
Brother Ji is too arrogant and unworthy of a human being. He has suppressed border troops like this through military force. How can he still use this autumn defense order?
"Shijun, actually, border towns have always been miserable. It's like this in Youzhou, and it's like this in Hexi, and the local household registration is also used to it. The local officials in Ganzhou are also more diligent and caring for the people. In order to guard against the Tubo people, they maintain the Silk Road , everyone is in the same boat, and they don’t look for trouble on weekdays.
As long as the envoy lowers his profile and goes door to door as a governor, he will probably get some results. This is enough to explain to the court.
It is impossible to complete the autumn defense order, so you don't have to think too much, just try your best. Neither Hexi Jiedushi nor a saint would criticize the envoy harshly. "
Yan Zhuang suggested in a lowered voice.
"Let me think about it."
Fang Chongyong waved his hand. He hesitated in his heart. He was going to convene a meeting of local officials tomorrow. Should he first listen to what those people had to say?
(End of chapter)
