Just as Pu Yuan was going back and forth about taking water from the Shu River to cast the magic sword, Yang Qing had left Mianyang, and even left Hanzhong, heading towards Wudu.
Wudu County borders Hanzhong to the east, Zitong to the south, Tianshui to the north, and Yinping to the west. It is 1,878 miles away from Luoyang. There are six subordinate counties, and the county government is located in Xiabian. The land of this county is dangerous and rich in products, including horses, cattle, sheep, lacquer, and honey.
It’s just that there are not many registered households in the county. In the ninth year of Emperor Shun Yonghe’s reign, there were more than 20,000 households or more than 80,000 people. Currently, there are only more than 10,000 Han households and tens of thousands of foreigners who have completed household registration.
Of course, the small household registration does not mean that the actual population in Wudu County is small. In addition to the official household registration, there are many Qiang and Di people. These people add up to more than 10,000 people.
Luo is generally the population unit of ethnic minorities, while the population unit of Han nationality is household. Han people generally have four or five people in a household. However, in Wudu County, there are more than just a few people saying that the Qiang and Di tribes can settle down. Some say that ten people can settle down, thirty people can settle down, and even fifty people can settle down. As soon as a person falls.
There are different opinions, but the number of people of these foreign tribes is usually more than the number of people in a government household.
Therefore, the current population of Wudu County is no less than 100,000. Of course, most of them are ethnic minorities such as Qiang and Di who are not completely controlled by the government. Han people are still relatively small.
In fact, Wudu had a larger population before. However, during the years when Cao Cao and Liu Bei fought for Hanzhong, Cao Cao was afraid that Liu Bei would seize Wudu and invade Guanzhong, so he ordered Zhang Ji to move away from Wudu. More than 50,000 Di people fell to Tianshui and Fufeng. placement.
Of course, the plan is a plan, and the reality is reality. The people love their hometown very much and cannot move easily. The Di people are tough by nature, and they will not obey orders and leave their homeland honestly.
So in the 24th year of Jian'an, Cao Cao ordered Du to attack the Di and Han people who moved to Wudu again. This time, the effect was good, and more than 10,000 households moved to Jingzhao, Fufeng, and Tianshui.
Therefore, after Cao Cao's two large-scale relocations, the population of Wudu today is more than half less than before, but it is not a sparsely populated place, because sending troops from here can bypass Hanzhong and insert into hinterland such as Zitong County in central Shu. Cao Wei still set up officials and pastoral guards here and brought them under his rule.
Although Wudu is now under the rule of Cao Wei, the Shu Han is not uninvolved in this place. The Ju County to which it belongs is currently in the hands of the Han Dynasty, becoming a nail in Ji Han's wedge into Wudu.
Ju County is located to the east of Ju River, and is also named after Ju River. This location is at the junction of Wudu and Hanzhong counties, and is close to Mianyang. Therefore, although Ji Han did not send troops to attack Wudu, he still took advantage of the geographical advantage. Occupied Ju County.
The person currently guarding this place is Ma Dai, the younger brother of the former Hussar General Ma Chao. The reason why Ma Dai is appointed as the governor is to take advantage of the Ma family's influence among the Qianghu people in Liangzhou. Xihe Zhurong was Zhuge Liang's early leader Longzhong has already formulated a strategy for the time, and of course he must implement it with all his strength.
In fact, the general who guarded Ju County in the past was Ma Chao himself. In the 23rd year of Jian'an, after Liu Bei prepared to go north to compete with Cao Cao for Hanzhong, he first sent his generals Ma Chao and Zhang Fei to Wudu to launch the Battle of Xiabian, hoping to collect the troops first. Du Yin and Ping two places, broke off Hanzhong's left arm.
However, the battle did not go smoothly. Zhang Fei and Ma Chao were repulsed by Cao Hong and Cao Xiu. The Battle of Xiabian failed to achieve its intended purpose. But the reason why Liu Bei sent Ma Chao north to Wudu was because he had a close relationship with the Qiang and Hu people in Liangzhou, and he hoped to use his influence to recruit the Qiang and Hu people into the hands of the Han Dynasty.
Later, after the Battle of Hanzhong, Liu Bei still asked Ma Chao to guard the bridgehead of Ju County, blocking the defense of the entire Hanzhong Basin. After Liu Bei became emperor, Ma Chao still served as the northern governor of Ju County as a hussar general, which showed that Ji Han always kept an eye on Guanlong.
Yang Qing's trip was to Ju County to meet with Ma Dai to discuss the recruitment of Qiang and Hu. Although he, the Hanzhong prefect, could not control the affairs of Ju County, he still joined the army as prime minister. When he came to the north, he was entrusted by Zhuge Liang to unite the Qiang and Hu. , so his trip is considered a duty.
Outside Juxian City, seeing a crowd of people in front of them, Yang Qing dismounted early to greet them. A middle-aged man in his forties stood in front of the crowd and asked, "Is this Mr. Yang Fu coming?"
"It's Yang, but in front of General Pingbei?" Yang Qing replied with a smile.
Ma Dai nodded and said, "It's Ma. You're so polite." He looked Yang Qing up and down and said with a smile, "Haha, Mr. Yang is indeed a great talent that the Prime Minister values. He is really a young hero.
! "
"The Qing Dynasty has met General Zhonghua. The general also has a noble temperament. He is really a Han Dynasty general!"
Yang Qing's words were not entirely polite. Ma Dai was tall and majestic, and could be said to be dignified and majestic. It seemed that the Ma family's appearance was very good.
Ma Dai smiled when he heard this: "Haha, Mr. Yang is overly praised." He turned to the people behind him and said, "Come on, haven't you seen Mr. Yang yet?"
"I've met Mr. Yang Fu."
Yang Qingxu raised his hand and returned a half-ceremony: "That's all, you are exempt from the courtesy."
The two parties introduced each other again. After describing the etiquette, Ma Dai and Yang Qing drove into Ju County together.
As I walked along the street, I saw that the street was crowded and bustling with people, and there were many people coming and going. Most of them were dressed as foreigners, obviously Qiang and Hu people who came here to do business.
Walking through a street, there seemed to be a market on the west side. Yang Qing looked around and saw that there were more Qiang and Hu merchants inside. The goods on both sides were also diverse and dazzling, including cloth, coarse salt, lacquerware, leather, cattle and horses, etc. The images are so dazzling that people cannot see them.
After just a few glances, Yang Qing knew that the market was bustling, and secretly thought that Ju County was indeed a place where Han people and Qiang Hu trade with each other. There were people from all tribes, and it was indeed convenient for him to implement the strategy of recruiting Qiang and Hu.
On that day, Pingbei General Ma Dai led the officials in Ju County to hold a banquet for Yang Qing and others. Everyone gathered together for a night, and the guests and hosts enjoyed themselves. The next day, Yang Qing and Ma Dai met in the meeting hall to discuss the plan to recruit Qiang and Hu.
"General Zhonghua, Qing looked at the scenes in the city yesterday. The Han and Hu tribes have close exchanges and trade with each other. It is true that Ju County is a popular place for mutual trade!" Yang Qing took a sip of tea and said lightly.
Ma Dai hummed and said: "So that the Lord of the Prefecture knows that our Ju County is located at the junction of Hanzhong and Wudu. It is located at a strategic location. The Qiang and Di people want to obtain the things of ordinary life, and the Han people want to obtain leather horses. Niu, you must come to our Ju County for mutual trading, so my city is quite prosperous."
Yang Qingdao: "Han and Hu trade with each other with great fanfare, but the puppet Wei government doesn't care?"
Ma Dai laughed and said, "What can they do? As long as the Qiang and Di people don't cause any big turmoil, they will be satisfied. The pseudo-Wei officials know that this business trade cannot be banned. As long as they don't rebel and cause chaos, They just turned a blind eye."
"So, most of the Qiang and Hu people in Wudu are attracted to the Han Dynasty?"
Ma Dai shook his head slightly and said: "You can't say that. These foreigners are doing business with you, but if you force them to take sides, they will be both stubborn and unwilling to express their feelings clearly."
After a pause, he sighed and said, "Well, the prestige of my Ma family is also declining. Otherwise, how dare they not welcome the king's master to Qinchuan under a certain order?"
Yang Qingdao: "General Zhonghua, there is no need to be discouraged. The reputation of you and your brother has spread throughout Longxi, and Qiang and Hu from all over the world are yearning for them. This reputation is already a great achievement. As long as we cultivate more kindness, all the Qiang and Hu will definitely abandon the dark side and turn to the bright side." , to support the Han Dynasty and make immortal contributions."
"Thank you so much for your advice, Mr. Fu. Now that you are here, you will be able to make up for the shortcomings and comfort the people far away. Dai Ding will do his best to assist." Ma Dai said with clasped fists.
Yang Qing returned the courtesy and said: "Then please ask General Zhonghua to send out invitations to invite Qiang and Hu heroes from all over the world to meet in Ju County. I have a good plan to teach them to return to the Han Dynasty."
"Good. With your words, I feel relieved. Today I will distribute documents widely and ask the commanders from all departments to gather in Ju County to listen to your instructions." Ma Dai looked interested after hearing this.
