20demayo Page 2723
Page 2723
"There were also herders who fled home with their troops, and the soldiers heard they could be allocated pastures,"
"Then join forces to kill the shepherd and send him to Liangzhou to claim the reward."
Ren Dejing: "..."
In order to prevent a rebellion from breaking out, Wu Jie even carried out a campaign of "confiscating land from local tyrants and distributing it to the rich" in the Hexi Corridor.
Actually, there are also personal emotional reasons.
Wu Jie was a general in the Western Army during the Northern Song Dynasty. Many of the soldiers and laborers under his command had their families abducted.
A large portion of them were thrown into the Hexi Corridor by the Western Xia to farm and graze livestock.
Therefore, many of the herdsmen, farmers, and herders here are Han Chinese or their descendants who were abducted.
Why should the Ming Dynasty have to accept the surrender of the Western Xia nobles and allow the Han people or their descendants to continue to be enslaved?
I feel relieved after killing him!
The Ren brothers stayed on the grassland for a day, repeatedly inquiring about the situation in Liangzhou City, and left behind several dozen copper coins as payment before departing.
They traveled south along the Shiyang River, and the closer they got to Liangzhou City, the more farmland they encountered.
Farmers could be seen everywhere, happily replanting crops, showing no signs of having just finished a war.
Chapter 3818 Occupation
These peasants were also conscripted to fight in the war, and some were even enslaved.
They originally thought they were on the verge of death.
Unexpectedly, not only did they return home alive, but they were even allocated farmland and seeds.
For the time being, no one has had any disputes over land grabbing; there are vacant farmlands everywhere, and everyone is busy replanting.
If someone takes over this place, just plant there; eventually, you'll find a place that belongs to you.
Ren Dejing was passing by a field when he overheard a farmer bragging to his wife.
“My dad often says that our family used to be Han Chinese…”
"Just watch, the Han emperor has sent troops back to fight. Marrying me will definitely make you happy. You can just wait and enjoy your life from now on."
"If there is food next year, we can have another baby, and they will never starve to death again."
The farmer was hoeing the ground and laughing.
His wife was dark-skinned and thin, probably of serf origin, and she looked at her husband with a beaming smile.
They have no children.
They all died young, starved to death.
Ren Dejing struck up a conversation with the farmer to inquire about the situation, and arrived outside Liangzhou City at dusk.
There are many fearless merchants here!
The Hexi Corridor is quite special. When news of Yue Fei and Han Shizhong's great victory came last year, merchants braved the snow in the dead of winter to gather in Lanzhou.
When news of Wu Jie's capture of Jisang City reached them, these merchants could no longer contain themselves.
They actually followed the grain transport convoy, hoping to find a business opportunity to make a fortune from the front-line army.
What business opportunity?
The next day, it was early in the morning.
Ren Dejing was awakened by a commotion; horses were being auctioned off outside Liangzhou City!
These were all warhorses captured from the Western Xia soldiers. Wu Jie took the opportunity to replace the inferior horses.
Because there were so many, the rest had to be looked after and fed.
Let's just sell it to a merchant.
The commander-in-chief, deputy commander, military judge, and logistics officer jointly signed the document.
This deal can be done, but it must be reported truthfully afterwards.
"I'll pay out one set!"
"Two strings of cash, two strings of cash!"
"Two and a half strings of cash."
"Three strings of cash!"
Even if you buy a bad horse with three strings of cash, you can sell it for five or six strings of cash in Lanzhou, and at least eight strings of cash in Luoyang.
Buy a few dozen horses and transport them back, and you can earn a hundred or two hundred strings of cash.
These are all reckless small businessmen who came here risking their lives before the war was even over!
Besides horses, there were other things.
For example, many of the dead livestock died from illness, exhaustion, or injury.
The meat has already been eaten by the soldiers, or made into jerky.
Piles of furs were left unprocessed in Liangzhou, and now they've all benefited small merchants.
When the merchants arrived, they also brought grain, which they sold to the army for a low price, barely enough to earn a little extra for their hard work.
Alternatively, they could simply barter for goods from the army using grain.
Ren Dejing stared blankly at the bustling auction scene, feeling both amusement and fear.
During this great battle, the soldiers and civilians of Western Xia were terrified, and their hearts were filled with anxiety.
On the Ming side, merchants flocked to the area upon hearing the news, completely disregarding the war.
Even such minute details reveal that the Western Xia was destined to lose!
Ren Dejing had already found out that Wu Jie's army was attacking Shandan, making it very difficult to escape to the Western Regions.
He simply claimed to be a merchant from Fengxiang Prefecture, settled down in Liangzhou City, and even went to bid for military supplies in an attempt to escape back to Shaanxi.
They bought dozens of horses, but encountered a problem when it came time to pay.
Chapter 3819 Tea Trading
Ren Dejing entered a room, where the logistics officer in charge of registration asked, "Where are the attachments to the business license?"
Ren Dejing was stunned, having no idea what that thing was.
He inquired about a lot of information from other merchants.
But showing an attachment to the business license is common sense, and no businessman ever asked him to do that.
Ren Dejing hurriedly said, "I was in such a hurry to leave that I forgot it at my hometown."
The logistics officer sneered, "You don't even bring your license and related documents, yet you come here to do business with the military."
"The imperial court is investigating very strictly. Every business transaction within the army must clearly state the parties involved so that there will be a trace to follow if problems arise in the future."
"Please do me this favor." Ren Dejing subconsciously reached for his silver.
The logistics officer's face immediately changed: "Are you trying to get me killed? All those horses you photographed are registered and numbered."
"They sold dozens of horses out of thin air without specifying which merchant they sold them to. If they find out, I'll lose my job!"
Ren Dejing's thinking is still stuck more than ten years ago, when doing business was too simple in the Song Dynasty.
No business is complicated; it can become simple as long as you pay money.
Ren Dejing bought horses to return to Shaanxi because he could not continue forward and staying in Liangzhou would easily expose him.
Since business is impossible, we have to find another way.
Ren Dejing bowed and apologized, then retreated with a forced smile.
Just as he retreated to the doorway, he suddenly heard the logistics officer shout, "Wait!"
Ren Dejing was startled: "Is there anything else you need, sir?"
The logistics officer asked, "You said you left the business license attachments at home?"
Ren Dejing nodded: "I left in a hurry and forgot to bring it."
"You didn't bring any goods when you came?" the logistics officer asked again.
Ren Dejing said, "We transported some tea, which has already been sold in Lanzhou."
"I heard there's money to be made in Liangzhou, so I came here to try my luck."
The logistics officer's smile vanished completely: "You claimed to be from Fengxiang Prefecture, transporting tea to Lanzhou to sell. There are two customs checkpoints along the way."
"How did you pay taxes and get through customs without your business license attached?"
"Show me your tax payment receipt!"
Ren Dejing was completely stunned. There were so many rules to follow when doing business in the Ming Dynasty?
The Liangshan emperor has made the tax laws far too complicated!
The logistics officer shouted, "Quick, someone, seize this scoundrel!"
……
Han Shizhong was still blocked outside Keyi Gate.
There has been progress; Han Shizhong has already figured out the valleys and fortified villages there.
He has breached two fortified villages and destroyed seven watchtowers.
At this rate, they should be able to break through Keyimen in another month or two—that would be quite impressive.
Genghis Khan led tens of thousands of troops, but they were blocked at Keyimen for two months.
Ultimately, the Western Xia ran out of food supplies, and the defending general took the initiative to lead his troops into battle, allowing Genghis Khan to seize the opportunity.
The commander guarding Keyi Gate was named Wang Shu, who served as the Privy Councilor in Western Xia and took over from Richard at the beginning of the year to defend this place.
Wang Shu came from the Wang clan of Shazhou (Dunhuang).
Around the time of Emperor Xuan of Han, the Wang family ancestors had already migrated to Dunhuang.
Through generations of reproduction and growth, they became a prominent family in Dunhuang by the Northern Wei Dynasty.
When Tuoba Tao became emperor of the Northern Wei Dynasty, the garrison commander of Dunhuang was named Wang Shiliang, whose ancestors were from the Wang clan of Taiyuan, according to historical records.
Chapter 3820 Surrender or Not
They repeatedly repelled foreign invasions during the Tang Dynasty, but were eventually forced to submit to the Tibetan Empire.
Many members of the Wang clan revolted under Tibetan rule.
There was another man named Wang Xi who resolutely refused to lead troops to attack Tang Dynasty territory.
As a result, Wang Xi was bound hand and foot with shackles and escorted along with the Tibetan army on their expedition, which seemed to prove that the Wang family had completely surrendered to Tibet.
Finally, the Guiyi Army emerged, and the Wang family became an important force within it.
The admirable deeds of their ancestors earned the Wang family a place in Western Xia.
They had intermarried with the Western Xia royal family for generations, some even becoming imperial concubines, and produced many high-ranking officials.
These good days are coming to an end.
Wang Shu has been extremely anxious for the past two weeks, as Han Shizhong has breached two of his fortresses in the north.
In the south, Yue Fei led his troops in a chaotic rout, and he, caught in the middle, dared not retreat or flee.
They didn't even dare to divide their forces to retake the undefended city of Dingzhou!
Just as everyone feared, Yue Fei led his troops back to fight his way back.
The fortified village at the Yellow River ferry behind Keyimen saw Yue Fei charging towards them, and the defending soldiers fled at the mere sight of him.
When Yue Fei led his troops to the city, there were only a few thousand cavalrymen. It was impossible for them to conquer the fortified city, but Wang Shu and his soldiers all looked ashen-faced.
Because Yue Fei threw over a severed head—it was Richard's head.