On the night of Mid-Autumn Festival, Wang Xiaolie sat in the yard and looked at the full moon in the sky. There are no clouds in the sky, the moonlight is bright and shining on the earth, making it a little cold.
Come and try it quickly. 】
Song people had the habit of playing with the moon. At this time, it was very lively outside. Every decent restaurant was full, and the Luoshui River was crowded with people. In the past, in peacetime, wealthy people occupied pavilions and pavilions, while ordinary people occupied large and small restaurants and had fun all night long.
The Mid-Autumn Festival is also the time when new wine is released, and everyone rushes to buy it. Most restaurants have sold out their wine by noon, so people are disappointed. In the evening, people drink new wine and eat pomegranates, pears, and dates that are in season, and have fun with their families.
Wang Xiaolie was alone, looking at the moon in the sky.
After his sister got married, the family suddenly became deserted, and Wang Xiaolie had no interest in doing anything. There were several months of cakes, pomegranates, pears, and a plate of dates on the table. Wang Xiaolie didn't want to eat it, he just put it there.
There is a pot of new wine, and mutton is stewed with carrots in a clay pot next to it. Carrots are rare in this era, and many people don’t know how to eat them. Wang Xiaolie accidentally saw it when he was in Xiangyang, so he cultivated it on a large scale.
On the Mid-Autumn Festival night, Wang Xiaolie only wanted to eat a pot of carrot stewed with mutton and drink a pot of wine.
There were noisy people outside, but Wang Xiaolie's place was deserted. This is why the capital is covered with crowns and the people here are haggard.
Early the next morning, as soon as Wang Xiaolie came to the government office, Wang Ruohai came over. Said: "Xuanfu, Zheyanzhi sent Han Yu, the magistrate of Ezhou, to report that the artillery was robbed in Tuanfeng Town. I heard what he meant was to ask for the artillery and the craftsmen again."
Wang Xiao asked curiously: "Can a state know the state and be sent out?"
Wang Ruohai said: "In this day and age, it is not unusual for the magistrate to be sent out even if he can't manage the affairs of the city. This Han Yu was originally from Xiaoxianxian County. When Zhang Taiwei suppressed Kong Yanzhou, he performed well in transporting grain and was appointed as the magistrate. It can’t be taken seriously.”
"I see, no wonder." Wang Xiaolie nodded. In areas prone to frequent wars, state and county magistrates cannot be trusted. If you do well and have good luck, you can continue to work as an official. If you don't do it well, it will just be a transition.
Just like Chen Gui, the prefect of De'an Prefecture next to Wang Xiaolie, who was a Jinshi in the Ming Dynasty. In the second year of Jingkang, he was the magistrate of Anlu County and led troops to serve the king. As a result, Zhu attacked the city and the prefect fled, so he temporarily captured the prefect of De'an and defeated many defeated troops and bandits. In the first year of Jianyan, it was promoted to Zhilong Tuge and Zhide'an mansion. Chen Gui is really capable, and the surrounding areas are occupied by several major forces. He firmly defended De'an, and can be said to be the best at defending the city in this era. In addition to the stereotypes, most officials like Han Yu only served as magistrates for a few months and were replaced when the situation stabilized.
At this time, many officials who were able to fight were not from official Jinshi backgrounds. For example, Chen Gui is from the Ming Law Department, and Wang Ruohai is a student from Taipei University, but his background is that he was the top scholar in the martial arts examination in the second year of Jingkang. It's just that he was originally a Tai student, and the court regarded him as a full Jinshi.
The martial arts competitions in the Song Dynasty were based on military strategy, and the martial arts skills of bow and horse were not important. This was different from the impression of later generations that the martial arts competitions in the Qing Dynasty were about using a broadsword. Therefore, many Wu Jinshi, after passing the imperial examination, did not join the army, but served as officials like other Jinshi. Xu Sui, who won the first prize in martial arts in the second year of Jianyan's reign, was regarded as a Jinshi by Wang Xiaolie.
After thinking about it, Wang Xiaolie asked: "Since Zhe Yan can't come, why did he send Han Yun here?"
Wang Ruohai couldn't help but shook his head: "It was said that the river from Ezhou to Jiangzhou was not peaceful, and he wanted to take command in Ezhou. It was just an excuse. When we wanted to get artillery from Xuanfu, we left Luoyang City in glory. Not many days later. , if I ask for it again, he’s not that thick-skinned.”
"This Zheyanzi really fails to accomplish anything and fails more than anything else!" Wang Xiaolie walked back and forth. "Just go and take care of this matter. We can't just give you whatever you want like last time. After what happened last time, the craftsmen who made the cannon are probably not willing to go. If you give more reward, at least you can send a few Go ahead. As for the drawings, they still have to be given to them. For the artillery, just pick up the big cannon, the medium cannon, and the small cannon. Give one to each, and no more."
Wang Ruohai asked: "Xuanfu didn't see Han Yu?"
Wang Xiaolie said: "Why did you meet him? He came to ask for a cannon, so just give him a cannon. There is no need to talk to him about other things."
Wang Ruohai said yes. After a while he said: "Xuanfu, the Jin army has cannons and patterns. How long do you think it will take them to cast the cannons?"
Wang Xiaolie said: "Then it depends on how much money the Jin Army spends. They don't care about money, they just want to get the cannon quickly, and they can't make it in two or three months. Once the first cannon is made, as long as they are willing to invest money later, It’s much easier. However, they don’t have craftsmen, and gunpowder is not that easy.”
Wang Ruohai said: "I am also considering this matter. Under the rule of the Jin Army, only Hedong Road produced fire and saltpeter. It is difficult for them to have sufficient gunpowder. Without gunpowder, even if they make artillery, what is the use?"
Wang Xiaolie said: "Commander, don't think about this matter too hard. The gunpowder manufacturer in the capital has been producing gunpowder for hundreds of years, but the formula is wrong. The Jin army always has a way to plunder gunpowder. This matter is completely Chairman Yan Chang, we have never had an informant with him, so we don’t know the specific situation. You should choose a reliable person as soon as possible and go to Wan Yanchang’s station to collect all the information.”
The drawings that the Jin army grabbed included gunpowder formulas. Of course there was nothing wrong with Wang Xiaohao's offering to pay tribute to the imperial court. As long as the Jin army follows the prescription, they will not lack gunpowder for combat. The number may not be sufficient, but it will not affect the use of artillery.
After receiving the news that the artillery had been robbed by the Jin army, Wang Xiaolie did not take any chances and was ready to fight the Jin army with artillery. Of course, this will definitely cost Jin Jun’s energy and time, so just make full use of this time.
Wang Ruohai nodded: "Xuan Fu is right. The artillery has been snatched by the Jin Army, and we can't take any chances. It will take more than a year to universally equip the army with artillery. In preparation for autumn this year, the Jin Army There should be no large-scale attack.”
Wang Xiaolie said: "Yes, we must make full use of this year. Our main offensive direction is Hedong. We must use this year to form an absolute encirclement of Taiyuan Prefecture. In fact, if the expansion time is not too short, this year The timing of the attack was better. It's a shame."
Wang Ruohai said: "Jiang Min has already stationed in Shizhou. Should we let him go north or even directly occupy Xianzhou? With Xianzhou, we can really cut off the Jin army's retreat."
Wang Xiaolie shook his head: "No need. Without Xianzhou, the Jin Army may have lost the courage to fight us in Taiyuan. Just let Jiang Min prepare in advance and be able to quickly go north during the war. I think, Jiang Min will have his own ideas, let’s not force him.”
Wang Ruohai said: "Xuan Fu said this, then I understand."
In view of Jiang Min's experience, everyone knows that he is different from other generals. Including Wang Ruohai, they also looked at him differently.
Wang Xiaolie said: "The best result is that the Jin army has artillery, and Nianhan mobilizes a large army to fight us in Taiyuan. If Nianhan is eliminated in one battle, half of the Jin army will be eliminated, and subsequent battles will be easier to fight. Even if we can't defeat Nianhan, we will still annihilate most of his troops."
Wang Ruohai said: "Nianhan has been operating in Datong Mansion for many years and has the support of the Khitans. His strength cannot be underestimated. In this battle, the attitude of the Khitans is very important. If the Khitans fully help the Jin people, we will be equivalent to fighting with the Jin people at the same time. Jin and Liao went to war together.”
Wang Xiaolie smiled and shook his head: "Advisor, the Khitans are human beings, and they are not without temper. As long as we have the upper hand, even if there are some Khitans who want to sacrifice their lives to the Jin people, there will definitely be others who don't want to. This kind of thing cannot be done in advance. Think about it, take it one step at a time. All in all, we must prepare for a battle with more than 100,000 troops in the Taiyuan area. Including the Khitan people, Xi people and other small tribes, the total strength of the Jin army in this battle will exceed 20 It's not impossible. We have to invest at least one army, plus one of Jiang Min's divisions, or even one or two more divisions are possible."
