Taiheiki

Chapter 129 Conditions
Gongcao's face turned pale, but he finally gritted his teeth and said, "I obey your command!"

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To Gongcao's relief, the next morning, before he could leave the city walls to meet the uninvited guests, an envoy from the other side arrived at the gates, announcing that he wanted to discuss matters with the city's leaders. Overjoyed, Gongcao quickly summoned the county magistrate while lowering a basket and carrying the envoy, Huang Ping, to the top of the city walls. As Huang Ping stepped out of the basket, Gongcao bowed deeply and said, "I am Wang Ke, Gongcao of Gan County. I don't know your name!"

"My name is Huang Ping. I'm a soldier under the command of Wei Cong, the anti-rebellion captain. I've come to the city on the captain's orders!" Huang Ping bowed and said, "Take me to see your county magistrate so I can pass on the captain's orders!"

"The county magistrate was struck by a poisoned arrow yesterday and is bedridden." Gong Cao said with a smile, "The county magistrate is now in charge of the city. I have sent someone to fetch him. Please wait a moment!"

"The county magistrate was shot by a poisonous arrow? Is this possible?" Huang Ping was shocked. He knew that Wei Cong had sent an insider to Gan County, and the county magistrate must have been stabbed by that insider, but he did not expect it to be so fast and so effective.

"Didn't you send someone to do this? Yet you're pretending to be!" Gong Cao cursed inwardly, but dared not show it on his face, only smiling. A moment later, the county magistrate arrived and hurriedly greeted Huang Ping. After hearing Huang Ping's identity, the county magistrate breathed a sigh of relief: "If you are also a court soldier, then why did you come to Gan County?"

"There's no other way. The bandits are too powerful, and our captain has too few soldiers to defeat them. Feng Cheqi ordered our captain to first gather the people from the counties in southern Yuzhang that haven't been attacked by the bandits, then lift the siege of Nanchang and suppress the bandits in Yuzhang, Danyang, Wujun, and other places!"

"In that case, Captain Wei only needs to send an envoy. Why bother with so many soldiers?" The county magistrate said with a wry smile.

"My captain sent troops, but every county reported that bandits were harassing their local area and they had no extra troops to send. My captain had no choice but to come and collect the troops himself. County Magistrate, are there any bandits in your county? Do you want to leave troops to guard it?"

"You are the biggest bandits!" The county magistrate cursed inwardly, but forced a smile on his face: "Your Excellency, you are joking. With the captain's might, there are no bandits in our county!"

"That's good!" Huang Ping smiled when he saw the county magistrate give in. "If only other counties could be as reasonable as yours, many unnecessary deaths and injuries could be avoided."

"That's right, that's right!" The county magistrate secretly glanced at the shore not far away, and saw that four or five boats had already put up the gangway, and hundreds of soldiers in iron armor had disembarked and lined up on the shore. The armor plates and iron weapons on their bodies flashed coldly in the sun. More laborers were getting off the boats and began to dig trenches. Obviously, they were preparing to build a camp on the riverside to prepare for the army behind them to land.

"I'd like to ask a question!" the Chief Clerk asked cautiously, "After your captain gathers his troops in this county, will you immediately head north to relieve the siege of Nanchang, or will you continue as you are?"

"That's beyond my knowledge!" Huang Ping said with a smile, "But the moth bandits are extremely powerful right now. There are no fewer than 100,000 of them in Yuzhang alone. It's impossible for my captain to defeat them with just the few troops he has!"

"One hundred thousand people? How could there be so many?" The county magistrate was dumbfounded.

"How should I know?" Huang Ping said with a wry smile, "This is just Yuzhang. There are also bandits in Danyang, Wujun, Lujiang, Jiujiang, and Guangling. Of course, the bandits are most powerful in Jiangxia. The bandit leader, the Great Sage Liu Xin, is based in Jiangxia County. He has over 100,000 followers. The General of Chariots and Cavalry is currently leading his troops in a fierce battle with them. However, I heard recently that the Wuling Barbarians in southern Jing have become active again. The situation is really not favorable!"

The county magistrate and others were frightened by Huang Ping's half-true and half-false words. If what Huang Ping said was true, there were moth bandits almost everywhere in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River, then the scale of this rebellion war would be much larger than they imagined.

"So you understand!" Huang Ping sighed. "These are extraordinary times, and extraordinary measures are necessary. If my captain doesn't use extraordinary means to recruit soldiers from each county, once the bandits capture Nanchang and over a hundred thousand of them press southward, the mere two or three thousand men in each county will be like a mantis trying to stop a chariot. Everyone will be doomed."

"Not bad!"

"General Huang is absolutely right!"

"Captain Wei's good intentions are truly admirable to us!"

After hearing Huang Ping's words, the crowd on the city wall was already about 60% convinced. After all, the armor outside the city was not fake, and it was definitely not something the moth bandits could possess. His description of the current situation did not contradict what they had learned from other sources, but it was more detailed and broader in scope. More importantly, they learned from the refugees who had fled Luling that although these uninvited guests had arrived suddenly, they did not massacre the city or plunder the residents' property on a large scale. They only confiscated some food, horses, and other military supplies. This was completely different from the practices of common bandits and moth bandits.

"General Huang!" the county magistrate said with a smile, "We all understand Captain Wei's good intentions, but there are so many people in the city. If the soldiers enter the city, I'm afraid there will be a conflict, which is not a good thing. So--"

"The county magistrate means that he doesn't want our soldiers to enter the city and disturb the people, right?" Huang Ping said with a smile.

"Yes, yes, that's what I really mean!" said the county magistrate happily.

"My captain has already considered this. He has stationed the main force on the other side of the river, with only two hundred men stationed here!" Huang Ping pointed toward the troops camped by the river. "Can you all rest assured now?"

"Don't worry, don't worry!" Everyone was overjoyed to hear this. They originally only dared to ask Wei Cong to station his troops outside the city, but they didn't expect that the other party would simply station his troops on the opposite bank and only place four or five hundred people here. This undoubtedly made them more confident in Wei Cong.

"In that case, your Excellency can report back to the Captain. Everyone in Gan County should obey the Captain's orders!" said the County Magistrate with a smile.

Wei Cong was very satisfied with the reply from the county magistrate. He sent Huang Ping as an envoy, with 30 guards, into the city and put forward the following requirements: provide 3,000 able-bodied men to join the army, 5,000 dan of grain, 6,000 pieces of cloth, 500 pieces of silk, and weapons in the arsenal. Finally, Wei Cong also needed horses and livestock in the county, but he could pay for them (that is, buy them at a low price).

"In my opinion, Captain Wei's conditions are quite fair!" The Gong Cao was the first to speak out. "Not to mention the able-bodied men and weapons, it's autumn now, and the taxes that were originally due are in the treasury, which is a perfect way to offset them. He can even buy the horses and beasts of burden with money. He is truly a generous man!"

"What Gongcao said is quite true!" The Chief Clerk nodded. "Once the two sides engage in battle, the damage won't be limited to this!"

"Yes! There is no time to lose, the County Master should make the decision immediately!"

"Okay, let's follow Captain Wei's conditions. As for how to recruit able-bodied men!" The county magistrate paused for a moment and glanced at the people present. This matter certainly could not be done without the support of these local tyrants.

"There are already two thousand recruits in the city. We just need another thousand!" replied the chief clerk.

"Then add up all the remaining sons-in-law and the criminals in prison, how much is still missing?" asked Gongcao.

"We are still short of three or four hundred people!" "Then let's gather all the orphans in the county who have lost their parents sooner or later! At most, we can give each of them a few hundred coins as resettlement allowance! How many more people will be short of this?" asked the county magistrate.

"Almost there!" Gongcao said with a smile.

"Then let's do it! The sooner the better!" The county magistrate let out a long sigh. "Regardless of whether that Captain Wei is real or fake, the sooner we get rid of him, the less trouble we'll have! I can't sleep well with him staying here!"

"County Magistrate, have you ever considered something?" the chief clerk suddenly asked.

"what's up?"

"If Magistrate Liu wakes up and investigates what you did while he was unconscious and wants to punish you, what will you do?"

"Punish me?" The county magistrate laughed. "I did this for the safety of the entire county. What crime have I committed?"

"He's the county magistrate. Whether he's guilty or not depends on his words. You took his nephew's seal, so how could he not speak ill of you? As the saying goes, distant relatives cannot alienate each other! Besides, Liu Fen is from Youzhou. He commands many knights and desperate men, and he himself is usually willful and capricious. Even if he doesn't ask you for your crime, he can just send one of his men to attack you with a knife or an arrow in your back. Who can defend himself?"

"Then, what should I do?" The county magistrate was frightened. He knew of course that what the chief clerk said was right. Liu Fen was not alone when he took office, but came with more than a hundred wanderers and guests. He usually behaved in the style of Xinling Mengchang. He had offended Liu An today. If Liu Fen did not die, he would most likely take revenge on him, and he would not be able to resist then.

"That's easy!" the Chief Clerk said with a smile, "Just send the county magistrate's nephew and his retainers to Captain Wei. The rest is Captain Wei's business!"

"Send him to Captain Wei?" The county magistrate was surprised. "Then, what if County Magistrate Liu wakes up?"

"Even if he wakes up, he will be alone. So what's the harm?" the chief clerk said with a smile.

"This..." The county magistrate was stunned when he heard this: "This, what if the higher-ups come to question us?"

"That's a matter for the future. Besides, you weren't the one who shot the magistrate's poisonous arrow. What can I blame you for?"

The county magistrate was no fool, he immediately understood what these local tyrants meant - as long as the county magistrate woke up, he would definitely not let go of what he was doing now. In this case, he should take advantage of the opportunity while the power was still in his hands to strike and weaken the power of the county magistrate as much as possible. This was not only his best choice, but also the advice of these local powerful people.

"Wang Gongcao, Liu Zhubo, Wen Tingyuan, this matter is now handed over to you three. You must handle it properly and must not make any mistakes!" said the county magistrate in a deep voice.

"Yes!" the three answered in unison.

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Outside the city is the Wei army camp and the general's tent.

Wei Cong carefully lifted the candle, avoiding spills on the map, and examined the course of the Ganjiang and Beijiang rivers. Following the map's outline, he should first go upstream, turning into the Taojiang River at Ganzhou Maodian (all modern place names are used here). Then, he should follow the Taoshui River upstream into Nanye County (present-day Youshan Town, Xinfeng County, Jiangxi Province). He would then turn overland at Dayuling, the source of the Taoshui River. The mountains here were not high, and it was possible to cross the Five Ridges on foot in a day, entering the present-day Guangdong Province. He would then head east to the Nanpu River, which would flow directly from Guidong into the Zhenjiang River before merging with the Beijiang River at Shaoguan. This would allow him to directly capture Panyu (now Guangzhou City). If he excluded Nanye County, the last county in Yuzhang Commandery, this route still left him with two more passes: Hengpu Pass, which controls the confluence of the Nanpu River and the Zhenjiang River, and Shaoguan, where it emptied into the Beijiang River.

Leaving aside the second pass, it is estimated that there should have been no defenses there during the Eastern Han Dynasty. The most important thing for Wei Cong at the moment is Hengpu Pass. After all, if he is blocked in front of the pass, it means that more than 10,000 of him and his baggage and armor will be blocked on the narrow mountain road, unable to advance or retreat, and will collapse without a fight if he is not careful.

Therefore, the only viable strategy was to send an advance team across Dayu Mountain before the main force reached the Yuzhang Commandery side of Dayu Mountain, control this pass, and gather as many boats as possible for the main force coming over the mountain. To prevent Jiaozhou from becoming alerted to the situation in Ganxian and increasing security at Hengpu Pass, it was best for this advance team to depart as quickly as possible.

"Colonel Captain!"

"Is that Arden?" Wei Cong carefully put the candle aside and said with a smile, "Come in and talk!"

"Yes!" Diwu Deng responded and came into the tent. He glanced at the map on the table and said with a smile, "It's so late, and you haven't rested yet?"

"I still have some things to do. I've been busy until now!" Wei Cong pointed to the mat next to him and asked, "How's it going in the county? Are there any new things going on?"

"Looks good now!" Diwu Deng laughed. "As of today, we've sent out all the food, cloth, and silk. The able-bodied men have been slow to arrive, so only about 300 have been sent out! I've already broken them up and assigned them to various units within the army. They'll start as auxiliary soldiers first, and after a month or so of training, they'll be able to form something."

"Yeah!" Wei Cong nodded nonchalantly. "Next we'll go to Taoshui, head to Nanye County, and then cross Dayuling Mountain to enter Lingnan. The mountain road isn't very long, and we can get over it in about a day, but I'm afraid we'll get stuck in the mountains. That would be troublesome!"

"Stuck on the mountain?" Diwudeng was stunned.

"Here, right here!" Wei Cong pointed twice at the map. "There's a pass there, Hengpu Pass. At the end of the Qin Dynasty, when the world was in chaos, Zhao Tuo, the Qin general stationed in Lingnan, sent troops to garrison Hengpu Pass, Yangshan Pass, and Huangxi Pass, cutting off the passage from the Central Plains to Lingnan. He then established a kingdom, usurped the throne, and his descendants enjoyed the throne for over a hundred years! Hengpu Pass is the only way from Yuzhang to Lingnan!"

Diwu Deng's eyes were fixed on where Wei Cong pointed, his gaze like lightning. He suddenly said, "Leave it to me!"

"What?" Wei Cong didn't hear clearly and asked, "What did you say?"

"Please leave this place to me! I will definitely capture it and present it to you, Captain!"

(End of this chapter)