Water Margin: The opening scene involves assassinating Emperor Huizong of Song and forcibly taking L

"Your Majesty, more than 30,000 Western Xia soldiers and civilians, carrying a large number of warhorses, livestock and valuables, have arrived in Gaochang and say they want to join us," Yelü Songshan urgently reported.

Yelü Dashi asked in surprise, "When did this happen?"

“Twenty days ago,” Yelü Songshan said.

"So fast? The Ming army has actually opened up the Hexi Corridor," Yelü Dashi asked. "What about the other prefectures of Western Xia?"

Yelü Songshan shook his head: "I don't know."

Yelü Dashi said, "Send someone to inquire about it."

More than 30,000 soldiers and civilians fled from Liangzhou, Ganzhou, Suzhou, Shazhou, and Guazhou to Western Liao.

Farmers were settled in the Fergana Valley, and nomads were settled in the Qatwan Steppe.

That large area belonged to the jurisdiction of Hezhong Prefecture, which was also directly under the central government of the Western Liao Dynasty. Yelü Dashi could arrange it however he wanted.

The original farmers and herders were directly relocated, since the Western Karakhanid Khanate had been waging war for years and many arable lands and pastures were in dire need of manpower.

At the same time, three hundred boys and children from among these soldiers and civilians were selected to study at the Imperial Academy in Western Liao.

They can be assigned as officials in the future.

Yelü Dashi wanted to consolidate power step by step, but he had too few usable bureaucrats.

Another month passed, and Yelü Songshan reported: "The Western Xia has been destroyed."

"As expected," Yelü Dashi exclaimed.

Yelü Songshan said, "The Ming army swept through the Western Xia without resistance."

Yelü Dashi said, "When you go to the Ming Dynasty with gifts, you must be neither humble nor arrogant."

"Tell the Liangshan Emperor of the Ming Dynasty that I have defeated the most powerful monarch in the Western Regions."

Chapter 3835 Reform

"They brought the entire former Black Khanate under their rule and also subjugated several vassal states."

"The territory of our Great Liao is not much smaller than that of the Ming Dynasty, and the two countries will continue to be brotherly nations."

Yelü Dashi was very polite in his attitude, but he was anything but polite in his actions.

He increased the number of centrally administered territories in the territory of the Gaochang Uyghurs.

And increase the number of standing troops in the Hami region.

It was obvious that they were prepared to guard against an invasion by the Ming Dynasty at any time.

……

Luoyang.

Zhao Yuan was also reading various reports, and Governor Zhao Ding summarized the suggestions of the generals, hoping to deploy more troops in Ningxia.

The reason is simple: the troop quota for Ningxia set by the imperial court was determined before the war began.

No one expected the war to go so smoothly, with tens of thousands of prisoners or surrenders, resulting in too many Western Xia soldiers surviving.

The future division of farmland and grassland will certainly lead to a larger-scale rebellion than anticipated.

Increasing the number of troops stationed there is necessary to quickly extinguish the outbreak.

After reading Zhao Ding's report, Zhao Yuan learned that the cabinet's proposed increase of ten thousand votes. He then wrote:

"The field army will be increased by 10,000, and the garrison army by 20,000."

“In the area north of the Yangtze River, all criminals were relocated to the Hexi Corridor to replenish the Western Xia population that had escaped there.”

"After stabilizing the situation, we will reinforce the two cities of Shazhou and Guazhou."

During the Five Dynasties and early Song Dynasty, the Yumen Pass was moved to the vicinity of what is now Yumen City.

The ancient Yumen Pass has been desertified, and now Shazhou and Guazhou are at the forefront.

Yelü Dashi needs to digest the newly occupied territories, and the Ming Dynasty also needs to digest the Western Xia. It is estimated that the two countries can still live in peace for many years to come.

From now on, Xingqing Prefecture will be renamed Yinchuan Prefecture.

Dingzhou, Huaizhou, Jingzhou, Shunzhou, and Lingzhou were all downgraded to counties and placed under the jurisdiction of Yinchuan Prefecture.

Twenty thousand troops were stationed throughout the Yinchuan Prefecture area.

The Hexi Corridor, along with Heishui City (Ejina Banner), will be renamed Gansu Prefecture, with its capital in Ganzhou (Zhangye). Gansu Prefecture will station 25,000 troops in its various counties and prefectures.

Keyimen and the surrounding area were renamed Dingyi Prefecture, with a garrison of 5,000 troops.

The area outside the city was restored to its Western Han name, and the Shuofang Prefecture was established. Han people were relocated from Shanxi to cultivate fertile land. An army of 15,000 was stationed there.

The three cities in Hexi and a small area north of Shanxi were restored to their Western Han names and Xihe Prefecture was established.

Han Chinese were relocated from Shanxi to cultivate the land, and 5,000 troops were stationed there.

In other areas, 10,000 troops will be stationed.

A small area in the southeast of Western Xia, namely Yongdeng, Gaolan and Baiyin in later times, was placed under the jurisdiction of Lanzhou Prefecture in Shaanxi Province.

A small area in the northeastern part of Western Xia, along with the Shaanxi prefectures and counties there,

They were all placed under the jurisdiction of Shanxi Province, which is roughly the same as the Shanxi Province of later generations.

A small portion of the eastern part of the Western Xia territory was also incorporated into Shaanxi Province.

This means that the eastern defense line between the Western Xia and the Northern Song Dynasty, including those areas with natural barriers, was completely divided and allocated to the provinces of Shaanxi and Shanxi.

This decision was made not only to guard against rebellions by remnants of the Western Xia, but also, like the decision to transfer Hanzhong to Shaanxi, it was a long-term consideration.

In this way, the 80,000 troops stationed in the former territory of Western Xia would be more than enough.

The hundreds of thousands of soldiers and civilians who participated in the campaign against the Western Xia are gradually returning home, but many others remain in the area.

For example, the Shanxi laborers who transported grain for Yue Fei and Han Shizhong basically no longer needed to go home; they all stayed in Shuofang Prefecture and Xihe Prefecture to farm.

These were all fertile fields carved out by the Yellow River. The army led the laborers to inspect them in person, and the laborers were very pleased with the results.

Chapter 3836 Immigration

The land there is far more fertile than the farmland in many parts of Shanxi.

If a family member was present, the government would send the family members along with seeds, farming tools, and oxen.

For those without family or unmarried, the government would arrange marriages for them with women.

The Western Xia dynasty mobilized all its men for war, and although they surrendered quickly...

But many men were also killed, and countless widows or orphans were left waiting to get married.

The same was true in other places, where large numbers of troops and laborers remained.

Of the former territory of Western Xia, 100,000 laborers from Shanxi and Shaanxi remained.

These laborers were all given armor and weapons and were ready to be conscripted for battle at any time.

If the remnants of the Western Xia were to rebel, they would simply be inciting farmers and herders to revolt.

One hundred thousand armed laborers would be enough to give them a hard time.

There were also large quantities of military rations and livestock that were not consumed before being transported to the front lines, and these were also intercepted on the spot.

Some were distributed to the soldiers and civilians who moved there, and some were stored in warehouses for unforeseen needs.

In the Hexi Corridor, a large number of captured warhorses and livestock were sent to the Shandan Horse Ranch for breeding.

The Tian Si horse farms in Kaifeng and Luoyang are selecting fine horses to be sent to the Shandan horse farm for breeding.

……

Hong Mai, the author of the Southern Song Dynasty fantasy novel "Yijian Zhi," has just turned seventeen this year.

His clan, the Hong clan of Poyang, was dismantled and relocated by Wei Liangchen a few years ago.

Hong Mai sold his family's farmland to the government at extremely low prices and distributed it to lower-class farmers, which made him extremely dissatisfied with the Ming Dynasty.

Despite the dissatisfaction, we still need to look to the future.

He graduated with excellent grades from Nanchang Prefectural School and was eligible to be directly admitted to Luoyang Imperial Academy.

Of course, one could also choose to stay in Jiangxi and slowly take the imperial examinations.

When Hong Mai was only a few years old, his father was sent by Zhao Huan to form an alliance with the Jin dynasty.

As a result, he was detained by the Jin dynasty in Hebei and forced to serve as an official in the puppet Song dynasty.

When the news reached the south, everyone said that his father had become a lackey of the Jurchens.

When the Ming Dynasty recovered Hebei, Hong Mai's father also returned south.

And he was proven innocent and was even given the position of county magistrate.

But the rumors continued, making the Hong Mai brothers unable to hold their heads high.

Hong Mai was only ten years old at the time. His clothes got stained with oil while eating, and he wrote a poem in response:

"A speck of oil stains my white clothes, leaving them mottled and suspicious. Even if I wash them in a thousand rivers, how can they compare to when they were unstained?"

He's definitely a talented person.

"Sanlang, we can board the official ship now!" the pageboy shouted.

There are two official ships in Dantu (Zhenjiang) port, which are about to transport official goods northward.

Students admitted to the Imperial Academy like Hong Mai could ride on official boats for free along the way, and also had two free places to accompany them.

Showing the document issued by the Jiangxi Provincial Education Commissioner, the porters at the dock glanced at it and enthusiastically led Hong Mai and his servant onto the ship.

Another young man with a long sword at his waist came running at full speed, accompanied by his page.

The boy produced a document and said, "Lu You, a scholar from Yuezhou, is going to study at the Imperial Academy in Luoyang."

"Please, young master," the soldiers of the transport army greeted him with smiles.

Lu You and Hong Mai were arranged to share a cabin. They bowed to each other, introduced themselves, and their respective attendants helped make the beds and fold the blankets.

Since they were all young, they quickly became acquainted after a few pleasantries.

Hong Mai laughed and said, "When did you begin your studies? You were able to enter the Imperial Academy at the age of fifteen."

Lu You said, "They started recognizing characters at three years old, and formally began their formal education at five."

Chapter 3837 Touring the Imperial Capital

"The Phoenix Academy in Hangzhou is renowned throughout Jiangnan, and Wu Guan's elder is the academy's headmaster. Why not stay at the Phoenix Academy to continue your studies?"

Hong Mai was quite envious.

"I'm going to experience the sights and sounds of the two capitals," Lu You said with a smile.

As the official boat set sail, the two agreed to go to the deck and admire the scenery along the canal banks.

At first, we were talking about academic matters, but gradually the conversation turned to the war against the Western Xia.

Lu You presented his poem as if it were a treasure: "This year there are matters to be dealt with on the frontier, and the general has been ordered to lead the entire army."

A horse eight feet tall, adorned with fine gold, and a banner five feet long, brightly embroidered.

The Flying Fox of Shanggu relayed the order, and the Jishi (stone) walls of Xiaoguan were erected to form the city's defenses.

The shogunate should not lack Ban Gu; sooner or later, poems of praise should be inscribed on Yanran Mountain.

Upon hearing this, Hong Mai burst into laughter: "Wu Guan is comparing himself to Ban Gu, and even wants to go on an expedition with the army and inscribe his name on Yanran Mountain!"

Lu You not only compared himself to Ban Gu in his poems, but also complained that the campaign against the Western Xia was launched too early.

He didn't bring himself along as a military staff officer; otherwise, he would have taken back the northern desert sooner or later.

"I also practice martial arts." Lu You patted the long sword at his waist.

Hong Mai thought Lu You was just bragging and regarded the long sword as an ornament.

The two ate and lived together on the boat. Being both talented men, they got along very well and their friendship grew stronger and stronger.

The two official boats stopped in Kaifeng.