Hezhong didn't know where Li Qing's confidence came from, but he didn't question it.
The past year of getting along with him has allowed him to see the terrifying abilities of this Marquis again and again. Over time, he has developed the instinct to believe.
"Master Hou, how long will it take?"
"If nothing else happens, it will take about half a year." Li Qing said, and then added: "We must also seize the time and find a leader who can take the lead, so that our hard work will not be in vain."
"Half a year...leader..." He Zhong chewed these two words, suddenly worried about gains and losses.
When he came to his senses, Li Qing had already ridden away...
Because we had the cattle and sheep with us, it took a long time this time, and it took nearly a month to return to the camp.
As soon as he came back, He Zhong looked for Li Qing, his face was serious, but he hesitated to speak.
"Just say what you want to say, don't be nagging." Li Qing frowned, "You are nothing like your father."
He Zhong: "..."
"Master Marquis, the general..." He took a deep breath, as if he had made some kind of decision, "The general wants to stay and be the leader."
Li Qing was stunned, then sneered: "Stop making trouble, I promised your father to take you back..."
Midway through his words, Li Qing suddenly paused, "No, are you a rebellious kid?"
"No way," He Zhong waved his hands repeatedly, really afraid that Li Qing would attack him. He knew how powerful this old man was, so he hurriedly explained: "The general is worried that... the team we have worked so hard to build will fall short once we leave. .”
After a pause, "Master Marquis, think about it, you are Marquis Yongqing and I am the commander-in-chief. If we both leave at the same time, will they still believe that Ming Dynasty will support them?"
"The Ming Dynasty can support Wala, why can't it support them?"
He Zhong said: "Master Hou is right, but if we leave suddenly, they will inevitably feel strange. It will be different if we stay here. It can not only calm people's hearts, but also not let our hard work..."
"Okay!" Li Qing interrupted him and said coldly: "Do you know what you are talking about? Do you know what impact this will have on your family?
You know that your father was responsible for this in the first place..."
"I know, I know it all." He Zhong sighed lightly, looked at Li Qing and smiled bitterly, "Master Marquis, actually this is what my father meant."
"What?" Li Qing was startled, then sneered, "Good boy, do you think this kind of nonsense can win people's trust?"
"real!"
He Zhong said: "My father changed his tune before leaving. Maybe... he also has regrets."
"What regrets can he have?" Li Qing chuckled, "Does he regret joining the Ming Dynasty?"
"It's not regret," He Zhong shook his head, "If that were the case, he wouldn't still be running around for the Ming Dynasty at his age."
Hearing this, Li Qing's face looked much better and he said in a low voice: "Tell me about it."
He Zhong sighed: "He wanted me to fulfill his grandfather's wish."
"Arutai?"
"……yes."
Li Qing frowned: "What has been accomplished? Restore the former glory, and point the sword at the Central Plains?"
He Zhong smiled bitterly, "You know, Lord Marquis, this is impossible. In fact... my great-grandfather's wish was just to protect the queen."
Li Qing paused and fell silent.
After a long time, he said quietly: "She has been dead for a long time."
"To be precise, it is the inheritance of the Guardian Queen." He Zhong explained: "Of course, I will also stick to our strategic goals. This army will never be annexed by any tribe."
"Haha, that's not a bad tone!"
He Zhong seemed to feel that he was a little arrogant, and added: "At least in my lifetime, I will not be annexed."
After a pause, "Master Hou, you know that it is much safer to leave it to me than to find a new leader."
Li Qing smiled bitterly and nodded, but said: "Actually, she doesn't care about this at all, and there is absolutely no need to stick to it."
"Don't care about this?"
"Well," Li Qing sighed quietly, turned around, and seemed to be muttering to himself, but also feeling sentimental: "She is just a arrogant little woman."
He Zhong was confused. After he recovered, Li Qing had already left the commander's camp...
It was still hot at noon in early August, but the wind was gentle on my face.
Li Qing sat on the mound, grabbed a clod of soil and gently twisted it. The fine dust fell from his fingertips and drifted in the wind.
He stared blankly, but his eyes were lost and unfocused.
In the end, he felt a little more guilty towards this arrogant little woman, and also felt a little regretful, regretful... that he didn't finish telling the story that night.
However, he has no chance, not even a chance to make up for himself.
He could not find her resting place.
The sky on the grassland was very blue, and the tiles were blue. Li Qingping lay down, resting his arms on his head and staring blankly, breathing in the fragrance of the grass...
He had a dream about a sky-blue sea turtle. Its eyes were filled with unspeakable wildness. It stared at him, hovering proudly...
wake up,
Li Qing sat up slowly, the autumn wind blew on him, and his robe ruffled. He was a little cold and tightened his robe.
Finally, it turned into a long sigh...
The results of this battle were remarkable. People slaughtered cattle and sheep and cooked them, cheering constantly. The air was filled with the aroma of meat, and their faces were filled with joy.
Li Qing hugged his knees and looked at this scene, smiling unconsciously...
~
Li Qing thought carefully and agreed to He Zhong's request.
Objectively speaking, He Zhong staying would bring greater benefits to the Ming Dynasty, but... Li Qing also did not want to let He Yong down.
He asked He Zhong to change his name to a prairie name, completely separating him from Daming He Yong.
In this way, Daming and Yong's family will be prevented from being affected.
Nothing remains static. As time goes by, sooner or later this army will integrate into this place and be completely assimilated.
Li Qing doesn't want innocent people to be implicated...
September.
After recuperating, Li Qing once again gathered more than 10,000 troops and headed for the former Tatar base camp.
Only then did He Zhong understand why Yongqing Hou said that he was not far from achieving the strategic goal.
The other party actually...migrated!
However, there are still a considerable number of people who will not have time to migrate in the future, or in other words, they do not have the strength to migrate at all.
Because most of the wealth has been taken away by powerful people, and they can only stay and fend for themselves.
The large tribe with a population of nearly 150,000 is now less than 50,000, and all of them are sallow and thin, and living a difficult life.
There was no need to fight at all. As soon as Li Qing's troops arrived, the other side surrendered voluntarily, as if they were at their mercy. They really had no ability to resist and could only accept the judgment of fate.
Li Qing would not use suppression methods against those who were unable to resist, but he also understood that there was only one way to survive for the people of this tribe -
Marriage!
He assigned women to his warriors, which not only satisfied the blood-licking warriors, but also turned the two families into one family through marriage.
The grassland people regard robbery as a matter of course. As the losing party, they are not very reluctant to such a fate. It is lucky that they have not been purged...
The whole process went smoothly without any trouble.
In order to take care of the psychology of the warriors, Li Qing gave the children who were not his biological children a certain living allowance. At the same time, he also gave the old people a way to survive by cultivating farmland near the water.
Although it is hard and tiring, they can survive and show their value.
Only valuable people will not be excluded!
Li Qing developed the area in the same way he originally built the Loop. Of course, the area is rich in water and grass and has the conditions for development.
After all... this was the original base camp of the Tatars.
Another advantage of Li Qing's doing this is that it will allow these people to settle here in the future and change their nomadic living habits.
Once they have a fixed residence, it will be convenient for them to unify if the Ming Dynasty is free in the future.
Of course, this cannot be accomplished overnight. It requires sufficient time to accumulate, settle, and spread...
However, if this seed is planted, it will bear fruit sooner or later.
Li Qing can afford to wait...
At the same time of construction, Li Qing also moved his previous tribe here. In comparison, this place is suitable for long-term survival and has the conditions for development and growth.
When you are busy, the days always go by very quickly. Before you know it, autumn turns to winter, farewell to the old and welcomes the new, and it is like a new year.
Li Qing is still not idle. While organizing construction, he is also planning the development route for Hezhong...
In a flash,
It is March, the eleventh year of Chenghua.
It is the season when water and grass are abundant, the grassland scenery is particularly beautiful, and it is also the season for sowing.
Li Qing looked at the people farming with a faint smile on his face. Although there was very little cultivated land at the moment, he believed that as time went by, there would be more and more cultivated land.
At the same time, he also believed that this way of survival would be learned by other tribes and imitated.
In this way, in the future, the grassland people will live in fixed settlements like the Han people, and even towns will appear.
On that day, the great integration inside and outside the customs will no longer be a pipe dream, but will become truly feasible.
Li Qing followed for another two months and found no obvious shortcomings, and then he was ready to leave.
Grand Master's Mansion.
Li Qing, Grand Master and Zhong sat opposite each other, drinking kumiss.
He Zhong said: "Don't worry, Lord Marquis. Although the general has changed his identity, he will not be ungrateful and will definitely live up to his mission."
"Well," Li Qing nodded, "the battle must continue. The original intention of coming here is to disrupt the situation. Of course, even from this tribe's standpoint, we must often wage war to ensure sufficient combat power in order to protect this family."
"General, I understand!" He Zhong nodded: "Does the Marquis have any other instructions?"
"Find a descendant of Genghis Khan as a puppet as soon as possible to stabilize your position," Li Qing said. "After I go back, I will report to the meeting that the emperor will recognize you and give the puppet a little prince or something to facilitate your rule."
"I will try my best, but..." He Zhong couldn't help but smile bitterly: "It's really... difficult to find the descendants of the Golden Family!"
Li Qing thought for a while and said: "I tried my best to search, but I really can't find it... you know."
"...Okay." He Zhong nodded, "Is there anything else?"
"I will say hello to Zhu Yong over there in the Hetao and ask him to get closer to here." Li Qing asked, "Remember, don't reveal your true identity when dealing with Daming in the future."
"I understand!" He Zhong nodded solemnly.
Li Qing breathed a sigh of relief and said with a smile: "It's been two years since I left. I have to go back."
