Early the next morning, Ge Ding sent people to repair the road out of the valley, and he led people to build a pontoon bridge on the Kuai River. Qu Fengxing took his soldiers to understand the surrounding people's sentiments and sent people to Lushan County to inform the local area.
The sun was rising high, and the frost on the grass and trees began to melt. I saw several horses galloping towards Lushan County and stopped by the Sui River. A man in military uniform shouted loudly on horseback: "The people building the pontoon bridge over there are the Northern Expeditionary Army?"
Ge Ding looked at it and said, "You guessed it right, exactly!"
The man hurriedly dismounted, crossed his hands and said, "I wonder what kind of army you are? Who is the general's name?"
Ge Ding said: "We are an engineering unit that builds bridges and paves roads, walking in front of the entire army. I am in charge of the engineering group, Ge Ding."
The man nodded: "That's it. I, Cai Zun, have been ordered by Cao Dutong to pick you up. Because I live in Lushan City, I missed you yesterday. I got the news today and rushed here."
After hearing this, Ge Ding did not hesitate and rushed to ferry Cai Zun and his party over.
Both sides saluted. Cai Zun asked: "Sanya Town is a remote place. How was your control last night?"
Ge Ding said: "Thanks to a nearby Kang Yuanwai who brought sheep to work for the army, the whole army had a meal of meat. Who would have thought that there was no meat seller in a town. Without Kang Yuanwai, we would not have been able to eat meat last night. We were in San I haven't seen a few people on Yalu Road for three days, and I'm really depressed. They say that the main road between Wanluo and Wanluo on this road was never expected to be so desolate."
Cai Zundao: "During the Tang Dynasty, Sanya Road was still very lively. This dynasty established Kaifeng Prefecture as the capital, and people going north from Xiangyang switched to Fangcheng and Ye County. This road became more and more desolate. It is not a peaceful time now. No more business trips.”
Ge Ding nodded.
Cai Zun looked at Ge Ding's army and said: "Captain Cao ordered me to meet the army here. I originally thought that you would go to Lushan County to rest, so I didn't deploy any manpower here. The commander still ordered the soldiers to do their work, you follow me. Go to the county seat.”
Ge Ding shook his head after hearing this: "General, it's already evening when we come out of Sanya Road. How can we spend a few more hours to get to the county seat? There is a reason for Sanya Town to be built here. You can support the army, It should be here, how can we get to the county seat?”
Cai Zundao: "We tried it. It was about noon when we came out of the mountains, and then we walked another twenty miles to the county town, which happened to be dark. The envoy requested that camps be built along the road, and the passing army came Just sleep. You don’t need to dismantle the camp when you leave, just leave it to the next army. Sanya Town is too remote and it’s not easy to supply supplies, so we built it in the county town."
Ge Ding said: "If you leave the customs at noon, it will be already dark when you arrive at the county town. Three or five people still don't think that it is such a light thing for an army to camp? Not to mention that the sixty-mile Lushan Pass, two days on the road, Most of the troops cannot leave the customs at noon. Needless to say, the military camps must be located here. Supplying supplies is originally your local matter, just recruit people and transport them."
Cai Zun's official position is much lower than that of Ge Ding, so he dare not say more. But I muttered in my heart, how big is the population of Lushan County, and how many civilians can be recruited? If we transport supplies here and do other things, how many people will be needed?
Ge Ding invited Cai Zun to sit in the camp and asked about Lu Shan's situation.
Cai Zundao: "In the past few years, there has been a shortage of officials. In Lushan County, there are only two people, the magistrate and the county captain. Because the army is coming, they are patrolling the place, recruiting civilians, and purchasing supplies. I am in charge of this place. . There are so many things going on, don’t be offended by Wanwang Zhizhi.”
Ge Ding said: "I'm a pioneer, building bridges and paving roads. It's not up to me to say whether you do well or not. But I remind you that Sanya Town is the first stop after the army comes out of the mountain. You can't be careless. You'd better get here as soon as possible. After building the tent, you also need to set up warehouses.”
Cai Zun was crying in his heart.
According to the requirements, Lushan County must set up four stations for the army to rest. It's just that Lushan is a small county in a mountainous area. After the war, it has a small population and insufficient supplies, so it is really difficult. The magistrate discussed with Cai Zun and wanted to change the route to two stations, just to lengthen the distance in between. This forces the army to speed up in Lushan County and get there as quickly as possible, which will save the place a lot of trouble.
That's the thing, no matter how good the planning is, there will always be various problems when doing it. Some problems are so big that it is impossible to follow the plan. Some things are small and the solutions are not complicated. No matter whether it is a big problem or a small problem, if you don't find a way to solve it, things will get stuck there. Whether you want to find a solution or how to solve it depends on the capabilities of a group.
Wang Xiaolie's envoy was considered wealthy. Being able to issue its own currency, a large amount of investment in recent years has begun to see profits. Even without increasing taxes on the private sector, it is much better off than other places. During this Northern Expedition, Shi Si paid money to the localities and asked them to guarantee the march.
But here in Lushan County, what if money is given? There are only so many people in the place, and there are only so many supplies. The distribution of money will only push up local prices, and supplies will not be transformed. Food can be transferred from other states and counties, but what about others? The army needs to eat meat, fish, and oil to ensure nutrition. How can a few officials conjure it up out of thin air?
Ge Ding only led one battalion of troops. As long as he stayed in Sanya Town for a few days, all the sheep in the surrounding villages would be eaten. At that time, no amount of money could buy meat, so what could the local officials do?
Seeing Cai Zun's expression of embarrassment, Ge Ding said: "If there are any local difficulties, you'd better report them in time. Don't let the army come. You have nothing here. If you delay the march, Commander-in-Chief will never spare you!"
Cai Zundao: "Commander, the local officials and I are not fools. We have already reported it. The local supplies are insufficient, so the superiors just gave us more money to buy them. You also saw it, where can we buy it? Sanya Town There is no meat seller, and there is only one meat stall in Lushan County, which only sells two sheep a day! How can we supply tens of thousands of troops? There is really no way."
Ge Ding said: "If you can't buy it locally, go to other places to buy it! Baofeng also has to go through the army. If you don't go there to buy it, you can go to nearby Ye County to buy it! If not, you can go to Xiangcheng! There is always a way!"
Cai Zun looked at Ge Ding and said nothing, just shook his head.
Ge Ding suddenly woke up. This is a mountainous area. Not to mention the inconvenience of walking, how many sheep are there in Ye County? Supplying tens of thousands of troops is just talking in sleep. If all the sheep in Ruzhou are slaughtered, how long can they supply the army?
Tens of thousands of troops passing through a place in this era are like locusts passing through, and supplies will soon be exhausted. The food and fodder for the army can be prepared in advance. Do you have to bring everything with you? When conditions were not good in the past, Wang Xiaohao's march was simple, as long as he brought enough food. Now that conditions are better, there are many more rules in the army. There are clear standards in the military for how many days we need to eat meat, how many days we need to eat eggs, how much grain and vegetables each person needs. Such standards cannot be achieved even if local governments try their best.
Ge Ding was silent for a while and said: "If you have any difficulties, report them to us and make it clear. If the higher authorities don't solve it, it's none of your business. But if you hold it in here and don't talk about it, if something happens, you won't be able to escape the responsibility." ! Whether the campsites on the road are separated by thirty miles, fifty miles, or even ten miles apart are not decided casually and cannot be changed!"
