Frost for a Thousand Years

Chapter 95: 80,000 units of grain and 20,000 laborers were obtained.

"I swear by the Red River..."

Sitting in the main seat, upon hearing this, the head of the Qu family fell into thought: "Without this fortress, who will take us seriously?"

As he pondered this, he frowned again and asked, "Was Wang Shen really killed?"

“Absolutely true, the head is right there, there’s no way it could be fake,” the steward said confidently.

"Could it be a substitute?" the patriarch asked again.

The steward remained quite certain and said, "On the way back, I deliberately took a detour to the outside of Wanggong City. The city walls were covered with Wei-character flags."

“They just exchanged letters with me, and he’s gone in just a few days? Are Wei Wusheng’s soldiers really that good?” The Qu family head suddenly lost confidence. “I thought that since it was a siege, it wouldn’t be that easy… His Wang family has three thousand men.”

"But they are all laborers. There are only four or five hundred men who can actually fight. And they don't have many suits of armor." When he mentioned this, the steward was probably still traumatized by the past, and he became somewhat timid as he spoke. "I saw the Imperial Guards. Every one of them was wearing shiny armor. The tips of their spears were so bright that they could reflect a person's image. They were definitely not something that rural laborers could resist."

"If Wei Wusheng is this powerful, then Ji Yuan must be even more ruthless?"

People naturally admire strength and are inclined to surrender, so they will inevitably surrender to the stronger one.

However, that's not entirely true...

The head of the Qu family hesitated again, saying, "We are, for the time being, people of Dayu. If we submit to Ji Yuan, even if we are not openly looked down upon, we will not be taken seriously either."

The so-called "traitors" are all defined by others.

The sect leader himself would never consider himself a sect leader.

In fact, they are indeed citizens of the Great Yu Dynasty and cannot be treated the same as bandits.

"Then let's vote for Wei Wusheng."

After some consideration, he finally decided, "We all have to leave the city, and we all have to be mindful of others' opinions. At least Wei Wusheng is a prince, and he made a vow by pointing to Chishui."

“I don’t think it’s going too far…” the steward added, “Right now he just doesn’t want you, Lord Qu, to side with Ji Yuan. He doesn’t have much of a murderous intent. After killing the prince to establish his authority, he quickly appointed that young master of the Xu family to an official position.”

"Alright, let's pack up the food, weapons, and farm tools and get ready to go."

That's how it's decided.

A few days later, Wei Wusheng's army also arrived.

There were only a few dozen people, but they were led by a military commander.

The 1243 people in Qu Family Castle, along with more than 4,000 shi of grain, as well as shovels, plows, rakes, machetes, bows and arrows, and a large number of cattle, horses, pigs, chickens and other livestock, all moved out of the city.

After gathering outside the city, Qu Gong, sitting on his horse, looked back at Wulei, which had been built nearly a hundred years ago and represented the hard work of five generations. With some reluctance, he asked the military commander, "What will happen to this city after we leave?"

"Lord Qu, we will burn it all down in one go," said the military commander.

"Not a single one left?" Qu Gong asked, his voice trembling.

"Only if it's burned to the ground will Ji Yuan be unable to stay there," the military commander said with a smile.

"Hey……"

Qu Gong sighed deeply, feeling especially heartbroken.

"Are you going to watch it being burned? Shouldn't you leave for a moment?" the military commander suggested.

"I'll leave once it really starts burning."

Looking at the extremely depressed man, the military commander, who had some of the sentiments of a military poet, kindly comforted him, "The city is still there. After the victory, Lord Qu can come back and build an even taller building on the ruins."

.........

After using the most notorious bandit king as a sacrifice and burning all those so-called 'letters,' the remaining bandits could no longer disobey orders and were all taken outside the city at a unified time.

Then, they gathered all the people together in a desolate area of ​​a township in the very center of Qi County.

As the Sixth Prince instructed, everyone was arranged to move to a safe place.

Six hundred soldiers were in charge of a total of more than 22,400 people.

When will we be able to go to Nanliang?

"Where will we stay after we get there?"

"If all the food is requisitioned, what will we eat..."

Everyone is thinking about these three most important survival questions.

At this time, Song Shi'an and Wei Wusheng, after making arrangements for Shuofeng, also arrived in person, bringing with them more than a thousand cavalry.

Looking at the vast, seemingly endless sea of ​​people in the distance, the magnificent scene struck both of them as somewhat exaggerated.

In ancient times, people often heard of armies numbering in the hundreds of thousands, and thought that a few thousand people were nothing.

In reality, if there are thousands of people, the connection is boundless; if there are tens of thousands, the connection is limitless.

"That's already 20,000. What kind of momentum must Ji Yuan have with 100,000 men?" Wei Wusheng joked.

“Moreover, that’s 100,000 soldiers. With our 20,000 men, we can only spare 4,000 to 5,000 combat-ready soldiers, and those are all new recruits,” Song Shi’an said.

In ancient times, the most valuable soldiers were the 'veteran' soldiers in their prime.

Secondly, the elderly veterans.

New recruits, in terms of combat effectiveness, are only stronger than the old farmers who have been forcibly conscripted.

One awkward thing about the new Three Kingdoms is that it likes to use the terms "old, weak, and disabled soldiers" and "young and strong elite soldiers" to describe the strength of the army.

In reality, aside from those who were starving and would eat anything, few warlords would forcibly conscript old farmers who had never fought in a war to expand their armies.

A person who continues to serve in the military until old age is the most valuable asset in the army.

"Isn't it a shame to burn all those fortified cities like this?" Wei Wusheng also felt sorry for those cities that were right there and would have been difficult to conquer if heavily guarded.

"There's no other way, Your Highness. If we divide our forces to defend, at least half of Shuofeng's soldiers will have to be transferred. And if Ji Yuan only besieges Shuofeng, we will fall very quickly."

As I said before, we cannot regard these rabble as a fighting force that can be matched one-to-one with Ji Yuan's soldiers.

Only by defending the city can their value be maximized.

Only by defending the city can this disparity in combat strength be minimized.

This was also the plan that Song Shi'an had already decided when he chose to come to Shuofeng.

Unlike other places, the Beiliang Valley has terrain that can serve as a buffer, allowing for ambushes and guerrilla warfare.

“Then these four thousand men will be incorporated into our army, and the rest will all be moved back,” Wei Wusheng said.

“Yes.” Song Shi’an agreed. “In this way, the entire Northern Liang will have completed the scorched earth policy. If Ji Yuan comes again, he can only use half of Shuo County on the other side of the river to supply himself. And half a county, even a large county, is not enough to feed an army of 100,000. The rest must be supplied from the rear of Qi. As long as they are under pressure to supply themselves, we can delay them.”

Even though it had just experienced the locust plague in Yizhou last year, and was under pressure from redundant soldiers and officials, in terms of national strength, Dayu was still stronger than Qi.

It's a pity that Tongmen Pass was lost, leaving their supply lines unobstructed. Otherwise, the Great Yu would have had another advantage—the ability to wait in ambush.

"Your Highness, Lord Song."

At this moment, a seventh-rank military officer rode over on horseback, preparing to dismount and report.

“No need, just say it now,” Wei Wusheng said.

Song Shi'an smiled slightly in response to his greeting.

Damn it, you're a seventh-rank official, and so am I. You call him Master Song of the Marketplace.

Are you trying to flatter me to death, bro?

"The grain supplies of the twelve powerful clans have been tallied, totaling 85,000 shi," the military advisor reported.

Upon hearing this, the two of them were both stunned.

They looked at each other.

Wei Wusheng exclaimed in surprise, "So many?"

"So many, so many!" Song Shi'an was also somewhat surprised.

One shi (石) of Dayu rice weighs sixty jin (斤), which, after hulling, is about forty jin (斤) of refined rice.

In total, 3.4 million catties of refined rice.

Based on the daily needs of a normal soldier, about two kilograms would be enough to feed 10,000 people for nearly six months.

"If Ji Yuan had obtained them, he could have replenished his forces for over half a month on the spot." Wei Wusheng was a little scared. These were just twelve bandit clans, yet they could support an army of 100,000 for over half a month during wartime!
“Sun Situ’s family has even more,” Song Shi’an said.

“At that time, An, you should write a letter and ask Minister Sun to send some over.” Wei Wusheng responded to his joke with a joke.

Both of them were amused.

Xin Yue, standing to the side, genuinely felt that these two could inexplicably start telling jokes.

Soon, Song Shi'an changed his frivolous ways and said, "Your Highness, then bring everyone into the city to fight the bandits."

"..."

Wei Wusheng paused at this seemingly brilliant idea and asked in return, "Shuofeng is already very crowded. Can 20,000 people fit in?"

“You can sleep anywhere – on the road, on rooftops, in the camp,” Song Shi’an said. “You can even sleep with your face resting on a rope. Of course, it’s not that cruel.”

They're trying to set the tone for British culture again.

“Our military tents are limited. It’s alright in the summer, but winter is coming soon. How are we going to deal with such a large population?” Wei Wusheng asked. “This is the north. They’ll freeze to death.”

"There's even less reason to worry during winter."

"Why?"

"By then, enough people had already died."

"..."

Song Shi'an's hellish jokes from the ditch didn't make anyone laugh.

"Can the grain really be delivered?" Wei Wusheng asked.

“Enough.” Song Shi’an said quite seriously, “This amount of grain is just enough for these people to work hard every day until winter comes.”

In fact, the powerful families would have had more food.

This year is a bumper year, and when the autumn harvest comes, we will have plenty of grain.

It's a pity we can't wait any longer; we have to burn it all as soon as possible. Otherwise, if Ji Yuan reaps a bountiful harvest here, the pressure will be immense.

Wei Wusheng was thinking very hard. Then, he murmured, "Since we're supposed to let them into Shuofeng City, why are we gathering in Qixian Township, which is further south of Shuofeng? You didn't think of this beforehand... No, no, you didn't even tell me you'd thought of this a long time ago!"

Xiao Wei then realized it.

The plan was to gather everyone in the rural wilderness of Qixian County, rather than in the north wind.

The reason is very simple.

If they gather at Shuofeng, the powerful clans will tremble with fear: Is this a ploy to drag us over to defend the city?
But no, it was further south, even thirty miles away from the north wind.

The normal thought process would be: this means they're moving back to the south. Otherwise, why would they be heading back?
This way, those people can follow Yu's army without any worries, and there won't be a popular uprising or people fleeing halfway when there are more soldiers and the control is not strong enough.

Now, Wei Wusheng and Song Shi'an have arrived with even more soldiers, mostly cavalry. Now, they can't leave even if they want to!

"Your Highness, I apologize, but I also have my reasons." Song Shi'an explained calmly, "My original thought was that if there wasn't much food, we would take most of the food and the able-bodied men with us, and send the rest of the women, children, and the elderly to General Luo Ting."

“And if there are enough of them, we’ll drag them all into the city to defend it with us to the death,” Wei Wusheng said.

"Yes."

"But..."

The idea itself wasn't wrong, but what really bothered Wei Wusheng was something else: "But I just swore an oath by pointing to the Chishui River that I would take them to a safe place, and now I'm going to break my oath... This isn't your excuse for not having something to say, it's my problem!"

“Your Highness’s difficulties are my difficulties. So, this is what I mean.” Song Shi’an looked at him, seemingly also somewhat 'embarrassed' as he spoke.

Wei Wusheng: "?"

Xinyue was really starting to lose her composure.

Your difficulties are my difficulties... How dare you say that?

She forced herself to purse her lips before maintaining her original expression.

Holding his forehead, Wei Wusheng showed a somewhat struggling expression, then tried to numb himself by saying, "I know, I'm fine, it's all for the sake of defending the city."

That's what they say, but the Sixth Prince really is very concerned about his reputation.

Seeing this, Song Shi'an said, "Your Highness, you won't really break your oath. I can say it."

"you……"

Wei Wusheng looked at him and reminded him with some concern, "Could you at least try to look a little more presentable?"

The episode that best understands Zhang Gong!
"no problem."

It's respectable.

After obtaining Xiao Wei's permission, Song Shi'an no longer had any concerns.

The two of them rode their horses to the front of the 20,000 men.

Upon seeing the Wei-character flag and the spirited 'general,' the common people vaguely guessed that this was the Sixth Prince.

"His Highness the Sixth Prince has arrived!"

This was accompanied by the announcement.

The eleven clan heads of the bandit groups quickly gathered around and knelt down before Wei Wusheng.

"Gentlemen, as I promised you before," Wei Wusheng said from his horse, "if we lose this battle, I will, in the name of the Sixth Prince, grant you your farmland in Nanliang. If we win this battle, you will retain every inch of your original land. Including those Wulei, we will build houses for you so you can move back in."

"Thank you, Your Highness!"

Everyone expressed their gratitude.

"Then let's go."

Wei Wusheng flicked the horse's rump with his whip, pointed north, and prepared to set off.

Everyone suddenly paused, looked around, and one of them quickly reminded them, "Your Highness, aren't we going the wrong way?"

“What’s wrong?” Wei Wusheng asked.

"We should head south, but isn't that the direction of the north wind..."

"It's just going to the north wind."

Wei Wusheng forced himself to remain calm and said.

"what?"

"How could it be the north wind?"

"Your Highness, didn't you personally swear by the Chishui River..." one of them said, almost crying, "Are you going to send us to a safe place?"

"Isn't the city safe enough?"

Just then, Song Shi'an suddenly spoke.

"..."

Everyone slowly turned to look at him.

Ah (roaring inwardly)!
"My lord! How can this place be safe? Ji Yuan is about to attack!"

"With the Imperial Guards, the Sixth Prince, and towering city walls, is there any place safer than the north wind?" Song Shi'an retorted. "Even if we send you south, you've lost Wulei now, and your weapons have been requisitioned. If you encounter rebels, refugees, mountain bandits, or brigands, that's when you'll be in real danger!"

"You've gone to so much trouble, sir, I'm extremely grateful." The man was so anxious he almost stamped his foot. "But in my opinion, these mere bandits and refugees pose no threat..."

"I don't want you to think, I want me to think."

Song Shi'an solemnly said, "Since Your Highness has made a vow, you must be responsible for the people of Shuojun. Enough said, let's enter the city quickly!"

Everyone was completely speechless.

Looking around, they found that the army had already surrounded everyone, and not even a fly could get out. They could only resign themselves to their fate in despair.

At this moment, the head of the Qu family asked somewhat helplessly, "After we hold this position, will Master Song still be in Shuojun?"

"How could that be? Nobody here believes me anymore," Song Shi'an said seriously. "We definitely have to go somewhere else."

The head of the Qu family nodded slowly and said, "Well thought out, very thoughtful."

(End of this chapter)