The journey of the only child of a peasant family to take the imperial examination

The army fought for two months, and although the results were gratifying, there were also many casualties. The 200,000-strong army was reduced by one third in an instant.

After Zhou Ziming took over the Huaihe River line, he made a prompt decision and ordered the army to stop and rest.

The plan is to consolidate the results first, and then slowly make plans to advance further!

As long as the Huaihe River line can be stabilized, the subsequent transportation of military supplies will greatly save manpower and material costs and improve combat efficiency.

This is a decision that cannot be made without considering many factors.

On the one hand, the food and grass were simply not enough.

The food and fodder consumption of an army of 200,000 is an extremely large number. Assuming that each soldier only eats two kilograms of food a day, 400,000 kilograms of food will be consumed a day, which is 12 million kilograms of food a month.

A warhorse needs to eat 10 kilograms of grass and 5 kilograms of beans every day. There are not many war horses in Daxia, and the cavalry ratio is 1 to 7, with only less than 30,000 people, far below the normal level.

But the amount of fodder consumed by these 30,000 war horses every month is also in the tens of millions of pounds.

It is already very difficult to raise these food and supplies, and it takes even more time to transport them.

Zhou Ziming also knew that the imperial granary was empty and no matter what he did, he wouldn't be able to squeeze anything out.

During the Northern Expedition by Zhuge Kongming, a military strategist of the previous dynasty, due to the difficult roads to Shu, "retreating when food runs out" became the norm, which shows how difficult it was to supply food and fodder.

If it were a peaceful time, it would be possible to survive by plundering without having fixed food supplies.

But the north was in ruins at that time and obviously could not meet this condition.

Without food and supplies, how can we fight?

On the other hand, if the expansion is too rapid and the front line is too long, far exceeding the limits of the court's current administrative capabilities, it will lead to a weakening of control over the lost territories that have been recovered.

It took a lot of effort to recapture the city, with countless casualties.

This is not the result Zhou Ziming wants to see.

After weighing the two options, a temporary truce is the best solution.

At the same time, he wrote a letter to the court, suggesting the use of the military farming system and the integration of soldiers and civilians to gradually achieve self-sufficiency, reduce dependence on food transportation from the rear, and solve the dilemma of "supplying food thousands of miles away while soldiers look hungry."

In addition, the country vigorously promoted Annam rice and sweet potatoes to increase food production and allow the people to thrive.

This approach currently benefits the country and the people in every way and has no harm.

It was under such circumstances that Lin Junhui and others came to the North.

In addition to Lin Junhui, there were two to three hundred other people traveling with him. They all came from various prominent families and were relatively respected in the clan, but they were not the most respected ones.

They all came to take over the recaptured cities and carry out post-war reconstruction.

The lowest grade is grade seven.

They are all military titles.

Just like the original intention of arranging Zhang Pingan and others to come to the north.

However, these people's backgrounds are obviously much better than Zhang Ping'an's group.

They also brought Annan rice seeds and sweet potatoes, and distributed them to various counties along the way from Yangzhou.

Zhang Ping'an then realized that the imperial court had officially ordered the promotion of the cultivation of these two things nationwide.

This change surprised Zhang Pingan.

I was secretly wondering which butterfly was flapping its wings and exerting force in secret.

Lin Junhui also brought a letter from home to Zhang Ping'an.

Zhang Ping'an thanked him, put it in his arms, and planned to look at it later.

"You didn't expect to see me on the front lines, did you? It's been a long time since I last set foot on my homeland in the north!" Lin Junhui sighed with a smile.

"I really didn't expect it!" Zhang Pingan said honestly.

He was really happy in his heart: "The war has stopped, and the court has sent so many people to the north. It seems that the post stations and other industries will be slowly rebuilt. Then communication will be convenient!"

"Yes, all walks of life are in need of development. Now the court is very confident in fully recovering the north. That's why they sent people like us here. It can be regarded as taking a position in advance!" Lin Junhui said with a smile.

After saying that, he looked around and said, "We are now in your territory. I must have a good cup of hot tea. Where do you live? Take me to see it."

"Come, follow me. Don't worry, there's plenty of tea and water. Hahahaha," Zhang Ping'an laughed out loud.

After the two arrived at the county government office, Zhang Ping'an took Lin Junhui around.

Then we found a quiet place to talk.

"Junhui, I wonder where you were sent?" Zhang Pingan asked curiously.

"You'd never guess," Lin Junhui said with a smile, "I was assigned to Fu County. After arriving in Huai'an, I had to take a boat eastward along the Huai River. I could have taken a boat from Yangzhou, but I took a detour and changed my route just to come see you."

"Fu County? If I remember correctly, the person in charge of Fu County was someone who came with me before. He used to go directly from Yangzhou Camp along the canal eastward to Binhai and then north, taking the water route." Zhang Pingan recalled.

"That's right, but that man is dead. He was killed by pirates," Lin Junhui replied.

"To be honest, I have other tasks to accomplish when I go to Fu County this time. Although Fu County is a small place, its strategic location is very important. It is close to the port and the north-south and east-west canals. Previously, the wealthy Wu family in Jiaozhou used the waterways to help the rebel army buy food and medicinal materials from the south and transport them to the north. Now that the situation at the court is favorable, we naturally cannot allow such things to continue to happen. We must clean up Fu County and firmly control it in our hands!"

"What you said makes sense, but it's a pity for that colleague, he's still very young," Zhang Ping'an sighed, holding his knees.

"Aren't those soldiers who died on the battlefield young? But they couldn't even be buried in their horse's hide. Someone has to make sacrifices and be the cornerstone," Lin Junhui shook his head and said gently.

Casualties are inevitable, and Zhang Pingan knows that, but it always feels sudden.

"Oh right," Zhang Pingan asked the question that concerned him most: "Why is the court so easy to talk to this time? Suddenly, they all agreed to Mr. Zhou's petition?"

Lin Junhui looked outside, then stood up and went out to watch for a while. After making sure no one was eavesdropping, he sat back and whispered, "You may not know yet, but the Zhenjiang and Yangzhou camps almost mutinied a month ago. The imperial envoys sent to escort the grain and fodder never returned. They said they were killed by wild beasts. Who could believe that?

The commanders of both camps are Zhou Ziming's trusted subordinates, and he's taken away 200,000 of the court's most elite troops. How could the court disagree? If he sets up his own flag, the Southern Dynasty will be powerless to resist. You and I both know this. We can only follow his lead for now and slowly find a solution. This is also the reason why we're here."