Chapter 675: Tiger Army's Grand Canal Strategy

（0675）

Dezhou, located in the old road of the Yellow River, on the shore of the canal, in ancient times, the surging Yellow River water here crisscrossed its boundary, carrying thousands of pounds. The Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal, which was dug in the fourth year of Sui Daye, runs through the north and south, deducing countless joys and sorrows. The name of Texas comes from the Yellow River. In ancient times, the Yellow River was called Deshui, and Dezhou was next to Deshui, so it was named Dezhou.

In history, there are quite a few historical celebrities produced in Texas, such as Lian Po, Dongfang Shuo, Guan Lu, Meng Jiao, etc., all of whom are Texans. In the history of the Ming Dynasty, Dezhou was also an important town. Strategically speaking, Dezhou is the northern gateway of Shandong and an important channel to communicate with Beizhili, Shandong and Henan. From the point of view of material transportation, Texas is also an important hub for controlling the Grand Canal.

If there were no Tatars, shipping in Texas would have been quite developed. It can be said that Texas is a town that has prospered because of its luck. Through Cao Yun, Texas imported a large number of materials from outside to enrich the material life of the people. At the same time, all kinds of goods produced by Texas are also transported to all parts of the country through Cao Yun.

For example, cotton, wheat, soybeans, peanuts, etc., produced in Texas, are all very sought-after materials, especially in times of war. The big businesses in Texas basically started by relying on Caoyun. The Grand Canal can be said to have brought countless wealth to Texas. So much so that some people say that just by looking at the water of the Grand Canal, they can predict the future of Texas.

Legend has it that at the busiest time of Cao Yun, the Cao boats passing through Texas can be described as one after another, and there is basically no free water in the middle. Due to the large number of boats passing by, there was a serious blockage. The boatmen could not eat on the shore, so there were special canopy boats, shuttling in the middle of the boats, to deliver meals to the boatmen. Such a scene fully confirms the prosperity of Texas.

It's a pity that with the arrival of the Tartars, the surroundings of Texas are all desolate, and there is no longer the slightest scene of prosperity in the past. When Zhang Zhun arrived, outside Dezhou City, except for the refugees who fled to Dezhou City in a hurry, there was no longer any figure to be seen. In the canal near Texas City, there is only the gentle ripple of the river, and there are no people or boats in sight.

"Lord Governor!"

"Lord Governor!"

Hao Linyong and Zhang Youcai both went out of the city to greet Zhang Zhun.

Liu Hang, who came to Texas to serve as the captain of the firefighting team, was also among them.

"Well, hello everyone!"

Zhang Zhun's mood was a little depressed, and his speech was a little obscure.

Of course, he didn't have any opinion about the two, but he touched the scene. All the way south, all he saw was a bad scene. Due to the threat of the Tartars, a large number of barren fields appeared around Dezhou City, and Zhang Zhun felt bad in his heart when he thought of the possible large-scale famine.

The surrounding areas of Texas are vast agricultural areas, with fertile land and convenient irrigation, even during the Xiaoice period, the grain production will not be reduced too much. It was an important rice, wheat, cotton, peanut, and soybean growing area in the Ming Dynasty, and the output of various crops was very large. There is a considerable amount of grain in Shandong, which is produced around Texas. According to Zhang Zhun's understanding, in the later generations of Dezhou City, there were more than 12 million acres of arable land. North of the Yellow River, Dezhou is definitely the largest agricultural producing area.

March is the spring ploughing season. At this time, whether it is rice or peanuts, whether it is cotton or soybeans, you can consider sowing. More than 10 million acres of cultivated land, even if the yield per mu is only one stone, that is 10 million stones. Based on the annual consumption of four stone of grain per person, it can also meet the food needs of 2.5 million people. What's more, the yield per mu may not be only one stone. As long as the peasants worked hard and intensively, and as long as the rulers vigorously built water conservancy facilities, it was not impossible for the average yield per mu to increase to about two stones.

On the other hand, if these fields do not produce any crops, at least 10 million stone of grain income will be lost. 10 million stones, what is the concept? According to the calculation of 188.8 catties per stone, it is 1.8 billion catties! 1.8 billion catties of grain, what a big number! 10 million acres of cultivated land is almost equivalent to the total cultivated land of Laizhou and Dengzhou. Dezhou and its vicinity are the real granaries of Shandong!

The Tiger Ben army was exhausted in Laizhou Prefecture, and the original fields, plus the newly cultivated fields, were less than 8 million mu. The arable land in Dengzhou Prefecture is even less, and it will not exceed 5 million mu at most. Qingzhou Prefecture has more mountainous land, and it is estimated that the cultivated land area will not exceed 6 million mu.

The mountainous areas of these three prefectures can only grow foreign crops such as corn, sweet potatoes, and potatoes. However, it is certain that for a long time to come, these foreign crops will not be able to replace the status of rice and wheat. The traditional concept of the people is not so easy to change.

There are 12 million acres of cultivated land in a small Texas and its surrounding areas, you say, can Zhang Zhun not attach great importance to it? This is also an important reason why Liu Hang was immediately transferred to Texas by Zhang Zhun. Such a large natural granary must be carefully managed.

"My lord, as long as the Tartars don't come to disturb me, as long as it takes half a month, I can organize the people everywhere to resume production and strive for a good harvest in October."

Liu Hang said confidently.

"I know."

Zhang Zhun believed Liu Hang's words.

Now, the original bureaucratic system in Texas has been exiled by Zhang Zhun. The current Dezhou is all new officials brought by Liu Hang, and they are all the backbone of the internal affairs of the Tiger Army. Before, the Tartars were raging, and many court officials who were originally stationed in Texas, including local officials, Cao Yun officials, and officials of the health guards, fled to Jinan City one after another to avoid the Tartar soldiers.

Zhang Zhun just seized this opportunity and ordered Hao Linyong to lead the Tiger Ben Army to seize Dezhou City, and then forbid these original officials to come back, and at the same time let the Tiger Ben Army Metropolitan Governor's Mansion take over all the internal affairs of Dezhou City. Almost overnight, Texas completely changed. Compared with the intertwined city of Jinan, the work of the Tiger Ben Army in Texas is easier to carry out.

After the people brought by Liu Hang were stationed in Dezhou City, they announced the law of the Tiger Army, and several unconvinced places were strong, and the situation was quickly opened. Now Texas, whether it is military affairs or government affairs, is the world of the Tiger Army. The big families in Texas either hid in Jinan City and did not dare to come back, or they weighed it again and again, and finally accepted the policy of the Tiger Army.

In fact, anyone with a discerning eye can see that this one-acre and three-point land in Shandong will definitely be the world of the Tiger Ben Army in the future. The officers and soldiers of the court were so weak that they were defeated by the Tartars, and they didn't even have the courage to engage the Tartars. How can such an army, such a court, still have a future? Before the fall of the previous dynasty, it was much the same as it is now.

On the contrary, the Tiger Ben Army continued to inflict heavy losses on the Tartars, creating one miracle after another. In Dongjiabao in Beizhili, so many Dajin troops, or led by Huang Taiji himself, had no way to take the Tiger Army, and let the Tiger Army kill and wound a lot. If the Tiger Army has no future, who will? At this time, it is absolutely very stupid to touch the moldy head of the Tiger Army.

In private, even Zhu Dadian lost considerable confidence in the imperial court. In view of the current chaotic situation in Shandong, the governor of Shandong, appointed by the imperial court, adopted a laissez-faire attitude and tossed the tiger army at will. He simply had no ability to resist any decision of the Tiger Army. Anyway, the current imperial court is besieged by the Tartars in the capital division, and even if there are any edicts, they cannot be effectively issued.

The current imperial court can be said to be a leaky boat that happened to rain overnight, there are Tartars in the northeast, the Central Plains Shaanxi Rebellion Army, and the Tiger Ben Army in Shandong, if the imperial court wants to tide over this difficulty, I am afraid it will be very difficult. Many large families, and even officials at all levels, had to start thinking about who they should choose once the imperial court collapsed. Zhang Zhun? Huang Taiji? Gao Yingxiang? Li Zicheng? Zhang Xianzhong?

"Liu Hang, Enxian, Wucheng, Linyi, Pingyuan, Deping, Shanghe and other places, are these places near Dezhou, can you resume cultivation first?"

Zhang Zhun asked expectantly.

Around Texas, there are a total of ten or twenty counties, all of which are under the protection of Texas. It can be said that the strategic position of Texas is really important. However, Zhang Zhun did not want the war in Texas to make the surrounding counties abandon spring ploughing. As long as possible, it is still necessary to grab seeds as much as possible, and grab a little bit is a little bit.

"My lord, the people need faith."

Liu Hang said bluntly.

"I understand!"

"The army will fight well and hit the Tartars again!"

Zhang Zhun nodded and said affirmatively.

Of course, he understood what Liu Hang meant. Liu Hang meant that the Tiger Ben army should continue to win battles, so that the Tartars would not dare to come to Texas to attack and harass, so that the people would have the courage to resume farming. Otherwise, the Tartar cavalry will continue to attack and harass, and even if they cannot capture Texas, they will destroy the surrounding counties and kill the common people who farm. The crops in the fields are even more fragile.

"Let's go into town!"

Zhang Zhun said slowly.

Faced with the situation in front of him, Zhang Zhun didn't have a good way. Defeating the Tartars is not an overnight thing, and I believe that Huang Taiji will not be easily softened. In other words, it is very difficult to keep the Tartars from coming and disturbing the surrounding areas of Texas. However, we must not leave too much behind in the work of spring ploughing, otherwise, there may be a famine next year.

Famine, that's a terrible word. Later generations generally have a hard time understanding the taste of hunger. Because, very few people have the opportunity to taste this taste for a long time. Temporary hunger and long-term hunger are completely different things. Long-term hunger is worse than taking drugs. It is entirely possible for people who have been hungry for a long time to lose their minds and do all kinds of heinous things, such as cannibalism.

In the city of Texas, there are many people who have fled. Most of these people are more stubborn, more stupid and loyal to the court. At the beginning, they didn't believe in the propaganda of the Tiger Army, thinking that the Tiger Army had ulterior motives and wanted to rebel, deliberately provoking feelings between them and the imperial court. They all naively thought that the court could not let them go. If the Tartars arrived, the officials and soldiers of the imperial court would definitely come to their rescue.

As a result, they regretted to find that the butcher's knives of the Tartars were raised, but the court abandoned them, and the officers and soldiers did not appear at all. Under the butcher's knives of the Tartars, they fell one by one. The remnants of the crowd came to their senses and hurriedly took refuge in the area controlled by the Tiger Army.

However, no matter what, since they have entered the control area of the Tiger Army, it is the responsibility of the Tiger Army to solve their food problem. With so many refugees, of course there is a lot of food needed. In times of war, food is always one of the most important issues. In fact, while Zhang Zhun absorbed a large number of refugees from all over the world to Shandong, he also brought heavy food pressure to himself.

The most magnificent building in Texas is the Caoyun Yamen. Zhang Zhun's headquarters is set up here. After sitting down, Zhang Zhun stretched his waist very comfortably, stretching his muscles and bones. It took several days to run on the south side of the Hutuo River, and it was really a bit hard. The continuous riding bumps are unbearable for even the most powerful people. Everyone else thought that Zhang Zhun was going to rest for a while, so they said goodbye and left. Brigadier General Zhang Liu Hang stopped him.

"How long can the food in the city last?"

Zhang Zhun asked slowly.

"Half a month."

Liu Hang replied cautiously.

He explained that at the beginning, the officers and troops stationed in Dezhou were ready to abandon Dezhou and stick to the city of Jinan. As a result, there was not much food in the city. The refugees from outside did not carry much food. Most of the grain is concentrated in Jinan City. The Tiger Ben Army has food in Laizhou Prefecture, which can solve part of the problem.

However, the distance from Laizhou to Dezhou is long and not close to the waterway, so it is difficult to transport grain and consume a lot. Therefore, it is not cost-effective to transport a large amount of grain from Laizhou Prefecture. As for transporting grain from Jinan City, it is also more difficult. Because, there are many more people gathered in Jinan City than in Dezhou City, and the food pressure there is also very great.

"Is there another way?"

Zhang Zhun said intentionally or unintentionally.

Liu Hang understood what Zhang Zhun meant, looked around, and then said in a low voice: "My lord, there is a ...... saying."

Zhang Zhun said without thinking: "Say! ”

Liu Hang said in a low voice: "There are thirty cao boats in Linqing, and on each cao boat, there is at least eight hundred stones of grain on it. ”

Zhang Zhun's expression moved slightly, and he said cautiously: "Exactly?" ”

Liu Hang said in a low voice: "Exactly! However, there is Cao Ding guarding! ”

Zhang Zhun said with a little puzzlement: "Why didn't the boat retreat?" Staying in Linqing? ”

Liu Hang said in a low voice: "It is said that it was prepared to be unloaded in Linqing and then transported to Hong Chengchou, but due to the unsafe roads on the road, it may be attacked by the Tartars for a long time, so it was delayed there." ”

Zhang Zhun nodded slowly and said slowly: "Okay!" I know! ”

Liu Hang took his leave.

Zhang Zhun paced slowly in place, staring at the courtyard outside with his eyes shining.

Grain delivered to Hong Chengchou...... Thirty ships...... Each ship was loaded with at least 800 stone of grain...... In total, it was 24,000 stone of grain. Converted, it is more than 4.5 million catties. If you save a little money, you can at least help the people in Texas City spend a month. A month can make the Tiger Benjun do a lot of things.

The most important thing is that these grains are loaded on the boats. From Linqing to Texas, the canal is still unblocked. As long as the Tiger Army controls these boats, they can directly drive the boats to Texas and then unload them. Transporting grain by boat is much faster and cheaper than transporting it by land.

The waterway from Linqing to Dezhou is about more than 240 miles. If the boat sails at a normal speed, it can be reached in two days and nights. Compared to land transportation, it is much faster. Almost without thinking, Zhang Zhun took this batch of grain for himself. As for Hong Chengchou's side, figure it out for yourself!

"Good thing!"

Suddenly, Zhang Zhun thought of something, and Huo Ran stood up.

"Someone!"

Zhang Zhun shouted loudly.

"What do you command?"

Lu Yidian hurriedly came in.

"Help me hang up the map of the Grand Canal!"

Zhang Zhun said with great interest.

Lu Yidian agreed, and found the relevant map from the map backpack next to him.

Zhang Zhun stood in front of the map and looked at it carefully. When he was calculating the distance of the waterway between Linqing and Dezhou just now, he suddenly thought of a very crucial content, that is, the strategic development of the Tiger Ben Army. The Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal is really very ingenious. The strategy of the Tiger Ben Army can completely incorporate the Grand Canal into it and let it play its maximum role.

Zhang Zhun is in Texas right now, and he seems to be isolated, unable to go to the village and not to have a store. Actually, it's all a visual error. In fact, through the Grand Canal, he can directly connect to the northernmost Tianjin, Wei, Jingshi, to the south, Yangzhou, the Yangtze River, Nanjing and other places, and if it is a little farther, it can also connect to the southernmost Suzhou and Hangzhou.

Well, the Jingshi could not be connected for the time being, because the Tartars cut off the canal in the Cangzhou area. But to the south, it is unimpeded. The Tartars have the ability to stop the advance of the Tiger Army, but the others are not qualified. If the Tiger Ben army moves south along Dezhou, it can not only easily occupy Linqing, Liaocheng, Dongping, Jining and other places, but can even occupy Huai'an Mansion and Yangzhou Mansion in the south, and even directly enter the waters of the Yangtze River.

Isn't the Yangzhou Chamber of Commerce going to be held in March? At that time, Zhang Zhun still thought that he would have to go back to the beach, take a boat south, and enter from the mouth of the Yangtze River in order to reach Yangzhou. Now it seems that there is no need for such trouble. Being in Texas, he can take a boat along the Grand Canal and go directly to Yangzhou.

What the?

Heading south along the Grand Canal, you may be intercepted by the enemy?

Haha, for this, Zhang Zhun is not worried at all. What are the gunboats of the Tiger Army Navy used for? Isn't it just for the elimination of roadblockers? In front of the gunboats of the Tiger Army Navy, how many people were able to stand in the way? Whoever dares to stand in the way, the cannon will bombard the damn!

From a military and strategic point of view, if the gunboats of the Tiger Ben Army entered the canal, they would definitely be able to use the canal to attack the towns on both sides of the canal. The rest of the Tiger Army, under the cover of gunboats, launched a more fierce attack. In other words, if the gunboats of the Tiger Ben Army were strong enough, they could attack all the way south from Texas to Hangzhou.

Without a doubt, this is definitely a very scary strategic route to advance. Because, this strategic offensive route includes all the most prosperous areas of the Ming Empire. The main grain producing areas and main financial sources of the Ming Empire were on both sides of the Grand Canal. As long as you control both sides of the Grand Canal, you will control the lifeblood of the Ming Empire.

That's right, this Grand Canal is the lifeblood of the Ming Empire.

The Tiger Ben Army controls this lifeline, which is equivalent to mastering the lifeline of the world.

Going deeper, after mastering both sides of the Grand Canal, the Tiger Army can also use the Grand Canal as a support to continue along the Yangtze River and the Yellow River. On both sides of the Yangtze River and the Yellow River, the most important inland towns and populations are concentrated. These two horizontal and one vertical, as long as they are in the hands of the Tiger Army, the world is basically in the hands of the Tiger Army.

What ships are suitable for fighting in the canal? Of course, it's the Cangshan boat. For a long time, Zhang Zhun still felt a little sorry, thinking that those Cangshan ships would gradually lose their role with the gradual strengthening of the Huben Navy. Due to design reasons, the Cangshan ship could not fight in the open sea. Now it seems that these Cangshan ships can play a role again in another place.

At present, the Tiger Ben Army and Navy, with a total of more than 30 Cangshan boats, if they are all concentrated in the canal, it will be enough to raze all the towns on both sides of the canal. Of course, he will not do this in a frenzy, he will only use the deterrent power of the Cangshan boat, so that the defenders on both sides of the canal have to retreat.

It is not difficult to let the Cangshan boats concentrate in the canal, and it is possible to go upriver along the Yellow River from Bohai Bay. Now the water level of the Yellow River is very shallow, of course not. However, as long as the Yellow River rises in the summer, the Cangshan boat can swim against the current and enter the waters of the canal, and from then on, they will fight in the waters of the canal. If the Yellow River is unusable, it enters through the mouth of the Yangtze River. Under the escort of the Great White Fleet, it is definitely a breeze to send the Cangshan ship in.

Isn't Tartar in Cangzhou? Didn't you think that the Tiger Ben Army couldn't help them? , let the Cangshan ship bombard them! As long as the Tartar's red-coated cannon does not move, the Tartar will only be beaten. The red-coated cannon of the Tartar was difficult to move, and it was far less flexible than the Cangshan ship.

"!"

Zhang Zhun slapped hard.

"Adult ......"

Lu Yidian asked a little puzzled.

He didn't understand why Zhang Zhun became so excited all of a sudden.

"Oh, it's okay, you're busy!"

Zhang Zhun came to his senses, waved his hand and said.

Lu Yidian turned around and went.

The question of the Grand Canal strategy has not yet come to be implemented. Now, let's solve the food problem in Texas City first. Zhang Zhun's last gaze fell on Linqing. His fingers also slowly slid from Texas to Linqing.

"Smack!"

Zhang Zhun gently reached out and pressed the location of Linqing on the map.

"Brother Wei!"

Zhang Zhun shouted.

"Here!"

Brother Wei hurriedly came in and listened to the instructions.

Zhang Zhun said awe-inspiringly: "Immediately send someone to order the dragoon battalion, and come to Texas to see me immediately!" ”

Brother Wei agreed to go.

[Today's third update is delivered! ] Another 6,000-word chapter! Today's 20,000-word task is complete! Beg***! Beg***! 】