"General, does he know the name of Master Fang Zhenru?" Sun Ding asked.
Gao Heng nodded and said, "Yes, Governor of Guangxi." Naturally, Fang Zhenru had never met Gao Heng, but that didn't stop him from hearing the name. Zuo Bin mentioned it when he was at Zhennanguan.
Sun Ding said: "It was Master Fang who sent me here this time. Your Excellency went to Zhennanguan to work for the army a few days ago. He heard about General Gao in the army. My Ming generals can still make a name for themselves in Annan. Your Excellency sincerely admires General Gao’s courage and courage, so he sent me to contact General Gao.”
"Master Sun, you might as well speak more clearly. That day, I took the initiative to volunteer and led a small number of brothers and coerced expatriates to take down Tuoxian County. This laid the foundation for it to develop into what it is today, and I am not the only one." The credit is the result of everyone's concerted efforts. During this process, the Ming Dynasty did not give any support. Of course, I personally have no idea about this. I originally recommended myself, and the action was not within the Ming army's plan. If it fails, I will bear the responsibility alone. If it succeeds, it will naturally have nothing to do with the Ming army. At this time, Mr. Fang came to me, and he must have some ideas. I think Mr. Sun should not go to the Three Treasures Hall for nothing." Gao Heng Said in one breath.
"Hahaha." Sun Ding smiled awkwardly, using laughter to cover up his unnaturalness. The main reason was that the task given by Fang Zhenru was indeed a bit difficult to talk about. If he followed Fang Zhenru's original thinking, of course he would It is only right that all the people in Gao Heng accept to go to Guangxi.
However, there were so many civil servants and military generals who opposed it, and Fang Zhenru had just arrived, so it was not easy to fight against all the opinions. The most important thing is that Gao Heng's development is unexpected. Not only the local officials in Guangxi are surprised, but even Fang Zhenru himself is very shocked. In just a few months, such a development has happened. scale.
Once scale is established, it is almost impossible to reduce it. Fang Zhenru has not had a face-to-face meeting with Gao Heng, and does not know Gao Heng's true inner thoughts. In Fang Zhenru's view, maybe Gao Heng is an ambitious man with an adventurous spirit. He took the initiative to ask Ying to seize the city. Now that he has his own territory and has become a force, what can he give him even if he lets him return to Guangxi? Position?
If the offer is too high, the civil servants and generals of the Ming Dynasty will not agree. If the offer is too low, Gao Heng himself will not be willing. I am just the governor of Guangxi. I can appoint junior officers by myself, but I do not have the power to appoint senior officers.
In this case, the policy towards Gao Heng will change. He has captured Lang Son House, which has become a barrier to the southwest of Zhennang Pass. If Annan has any ideas about Zhennang Pass in the future, he must pass through his territory. . So can the Chief Envoy of Guangxi change his mind and try to support Gao Heng so that Gao Heng can block the Annan people from the front, Zhennanguan can sit back and relax, and Fang Zhenru and the entire Guangxi can focus on Domestic.
But the embarrassment lies here. If Fang Zhenru has money and food in his hands, of course he can do this. The worst he can do is to provide high-level financial and food support. Anyway, once the war breaks out in Annan, the local government and military expenditures in Guangxi will also be astronomical. If you can give some money to Gao Heng and let him settle the Annan people, why not do it?
However, Guangxi was not a wealthy province to begin with, and now a large number of refugees have poured in. The imperial court's financial support has all stalled due to the wars in the Central Plains and Liaodong. It would be good if they don’t ask locals in Guangxi to collect military pay. Guangxi can’t expect to take out a penny from the national treasury.
As a result, Fang Zhenru had almost no trump cards. Since he had no bargaining chips, how could he convince Gao Heng to help him solve Annan's matter? This was why Sun Ding didn't know how to speak.
"Haha, Mr. Sun, if my guess is correct, Mr. Fang sent you here to discuss cooperation matters." Cheng Zilong interrupted abruptly.
Sun Ding immediately glanced at Cheng Zilong. When he just came in, Gao Heng had already briefly introduced the two of them. The person who spoke was their military advisor Cheng Zilong. As expected, this man had some skills and solved the siege with just one sentence. Yes, if this trip is defined as cooperation, wouldn't it be more acceptable to everyone?
In the past, Gao Heng was just a local chieftain, and Fang Zhenru was a high-ranking official in the Chief Envoy. It would not be an exaggeration to say that he was a feudal official. If there was anything to discuss with a local chieftain, he could just give orders directly.
But today is different from the past. On the one hand, the strength of the Ming Dynasty has been extremely weakened, and the chieftains from all over the southwest are ready to take action. It is not that they have the courage to rebel, but that these people are thinking about their own little Jiujiu. It is still unclear where they will go. According to According to secret reports collected from various places, some chieftains have already contacted Zhang Xianzhong, Li Zicheng and others. If one day the bandits really invade the southwest, these chieftains may join forces with them.
On the other hand, Gao Heng's geographical location is special. His territory is not within the Ming Dynasty, but outside the country. Fang Zhenru has no jurisdiction over him. Therefore, although the status gap between the two is huge, it can only be said to be cooperation. Not a command.
As Fang Zhenru's staff, Sun Dingneng was naturally smart. He immediately picked up Jackie's words and said, "Yes, General Gao, Mr. Fang sent me here to discuss cooperation matters."
"Cooperate? Mr. Sun is joking. The entire province of Guangxi is under the jurisdiction of Mr. Fang. We only have tens of thousands of trapped residents here. We are a small place. What qualifications do we have to cooperate with Mr. Fang? Mr. Fang cannot be the one who wants to use our power. Come and stop the Annan Army from invading." Gao Heng said the words in a half-joking tone, but Sun Ding was a little uneasy. Is this guy really a general? This kind of judgment is definitely not something that an ordinary martial artist can possess.
It seemed that to be able to become a lord, he really had extraordinary abilities, and he could see through his true intention at a glance.
Sun Ding quickly waved his hand and said: "The general's words are serious, how can it be said that he is taking advantage? I have served under Lord Yu Fang for many years. I still know your character. He has a compassionate heart. Although the general's subordinates are all expatriates who have emigrated from the Ming Dynasty. , but no matter what, they are still descendants of China, and what you are thinking about is how to bring the people back."
"Okay, it's good to take them back. As long as these people can be given land, a life of peace and contentment, and a future, who doesn't want to go back? I, Gao Heng, will never stop them. I just don't know what Mr. Fang thinks about this." One piece, what do you mean?" Gao Heng lowered his tone and said.
Sun Ding felt sweat on his forehead. That's what he said. Unexpectedly, Gao Heng directly retreated in order to advance and sealed his last words. If he could take them back, why would he make this trip? He would just open the Zhennang Pass and let them in.
When Gao Heng saw Sun Ding's expression, he knew that Guangxi would definitely not accept tens of thousands of refugees at once. Its finances were already overwhelmed. If nothing else, you just need to take people back not just to stutter, but to give them land. To allow them to continue living, you have to support them for a while before they can be self-reliant. Where do the funds for tens of thousands of people come from?
"This, this." Sun Ding didn't know how to reply.
Gao Heng said: "Master Sun, I just said that I like a more straightforward approach. Since you have come all the way here, don't beat around the bush. Let me tell you and ask Master Sun to confirm whether it is yes or no."
Gao Heng took a sip of tea and said: "Master Fang may really have intentions, but Guangxi is really powerless. We can understand this. Since the Xinghua Army has obtained the land in Lang Son Prefecture, we can get this land through our own efforts." There is absolutely no reason to give up easily. I believe Mr. Fang has also seen this and wants us to help Guangxi help defend the Annan people. This is no problem, but what support can Guangxi give?"
Sun Ding opened his mouth to speak, but Gao Heng stopped him and said: "The Xinghua Army has just been established and it has just been taken over Lang Son Prefecture. If nothing else, we need hundreds of thousands of grains, millions of silver, and more." We need some firecrackers and artillery, and the Ming army also needs thousands of pieces of armor. It would be best to give us another thousand war horses, so that we can better deal with the Annan people. Can Master Fang give these things?"
Sun Ding said: "We can't give so much."
"Then how much can you give me?"
"This is a list I drafted, and Mr. Fang also approved it. I brought it here to talk to the general, but I didn't expect that our conversation would be so fast. In this case, I would like to ask the general to take a look at it." Sun Ding After speaking, he took out an envelope from his arms and handed it to Gao Heng.
Gao Heng only glanced at it, then burst into laughter, and then handed the letter to Cheng Zilong and Jing Zhao, both of whom shook their heads.
Gao Heng said: "Master Sun, don't you think it's too childish?"
It turned out that Sun Ding's list only stated one hundred thousand taels of silver, fifty thousand shi of grain, and some remaining cloth and weapons. In short, for the scale of Gaoheng, it was no different from sending a beggar. If it were distributed, it would be equivalent to a What can a person do with two taels of silver and one stone of grain? It is not more than one-tenth of the compensation paid by the Annamites.
Sun Ding also knew that the list he drafted was a bit shabby, but this number was not something he slapped on the head and made nonsense of. It was a figure calculated after taking stock of Guangxi's financial situation, that is, this part of the figure This is the maximum amount that Fang Zhenru can squeeze out at present. He has to use the other gold, silver, money and food in other places, and it is impossible to give all of it to Gao Heng.
Sun Ding cupped his hands and said: "General, don't be dissatisfied. Lord Fang has already tried his best to win this. But please rest assured, General Gao, we will try our best to raise supplies in the future to give the general more support."
Gao Heng waved his hand and said: "Master Sun, don't talk about drawing pie anymore. This general and the others here are not three-year-old children."
Sun Ding pursed his lips. It seemed that today's negotiation would probably not have any results. Indeed, he had discussed it with Fang Zhenru before setting off. It was a bit fanciful to ask people to sacrifice their lives for just such a thing. But Fang Zhenru still wanted to give it a try. You must know that judging from the overall situation in Annan, the Mo Dynasty in the north has actually been conferred the title of Commander-in-Chief of Annan. It stands to reason that when the Zheng family invades the north, the Mo Dynasty should send troops to help defend it. right.
But the mud can't hold up the wall. Mo Chao's living space has been completely squeezed to a small area of the ground in the north. It's hard for them to send troops. The Annan Commander-in-Chief is basically useless, so Gao Heng , Fang Zhenru thought about whether he could win over him, but he really couldn't get his hands on the supplies.
"However, I have a request. If Mr. Fang can satisfy it, I would be willing to consider it." Gao Heng changed the subject.
Just like a dying person grasping at straws, Sun Ding saw a glimmer of hope and quickly asked: "What do you mean, general?"
Gao Heng said: "You have also seen that although we took over the land in Lang Son, the original population of this area was more than 100,000. We are now underpopulated. Many fields are not cultivated, which is a waste. Besides, the land It takes someone to defend it. How can we build a barrier against the Annamites without anyone? As long as Mr. Fang can think of a way to increase our population, we can be self-sufficient. Besides, doesn’t this general also want to expand his power? ?”
Gao Heng deliberately winked at Sun Ding. Now he wants to hide his ideals and prevent Sun Ding from seeing it. If he wants to give a reasonable explanation for attracting people, he can only stigmatize himself and let Sun Ding Thinking that he is a careerist who wants to rule more people.
Sun Ding suddenly realized that Gao Heng was a warlord. What did the warlord need most? To grab money, food, people, and territory. It turned out that he was short of people now, but where could he get people for him? Wait, no, there is a way that not only meets his requirements, but also meets the local requirements in Guangxi.
Sun Ding slapped the table and said, "General Gao, this is not a difficult task."
He stood up and walked around: "Some of you don't know. Recently, the north of Guangxi, Huguang, the Central Plains and other places have become a pot of porridge. Many refugees have come south from the north and entered Guangxi. There are many people. These people Originally, the local people in Guangxi could try their best to resettle them, but unfortunately the number of people is getting bigger and bigger, and there is really nothing we can do. If the general is interested, we can give these refugees to the general, but we don’t know if they are willing to come to Annan."
This is what Gao Heng wants. Many of the people under the Xinghua Army left the country because they could not survive. Judging from the current situation of the Ming Dynasty, refugees are everywhere and the people are in dire straits. Otherwise, Li Zicheng, Zhang Xianzhong and his like would not have mobilized millions of troops at every turn.
It is a waste for these people to give them. If they can come to them, the chess game will be settled.
"Okay! I can rest assured with Master Sun's words. You don't have to worry about whether they are willing to come or not. I have my own way." Gao Heng said firmly.
