Dunshe asked two questions.

First, how should the surrendered troops of Lu Ju, Lu Li, and Xu and Su Prefectures arrive in Yidu?

Hong Jixun said: "Xu and Su are 100 miles apart, and they are both important towns in Huaisi. The descent of Lu Ju was forced by the momentum; From the minister's point of view, I am afraid that the surrender of Lu Li and Zhang Guan is also forced by the situation.

"Thinking about that Lu Li, this is the courtyard of Mengyuan Xingyuan, the position is not high, and the power is not heavy.

Zhang Guan is Zhang Rou, his ancestors Zhang Hongfan, Zhang Qi are all important ministers of the Yuan, it can be said that generations have been favored by the Yuan, although due to the later Tianshun Rebellion, his father and uncle died, but when the red scarf rose under the sky, he still chose to be loyal to the Tartars, in order to revive the family business. ......, even if such people fall, they must not be taken precautions, and they must not be reused suddenly. Therefore, the minister thought that after they arrived in Yidu, they might as well give them a title first and hang it up for the time being. As for the rest, we'll talk about that later. ”

Among the generals of Xu and Suzhou, Lu Ju, Lu Li, Zhang Guan, Xiao Yuan, etc., if you want to talk about the prominence of the family background, you have to talk about Zhang Guan first.

His great-grandfather Zhang Rou was one of the few Han princes at the time of the founding of the Mengyuan Dynasty; The great-grandfather Zhang Hongfan is the Zhang Hongfan in the so-called "Song Zhang Hongfan destroyed the Song Dynasty here"; Grandfather Zhang Qi, 16 years old in charge of the army of 10,000 households, 17 years old to the general Zhaoyong, 10,000 households in charge of the army, loyal to Meng Yuan, suppressed the Han uprisings many times, and was later named Cai Guogong. It can be described as three generations of loyalty.

However, it's just a pity that their family is Han after all, not Mongols.

Later, after the collapse of Emperor Taiding, the ministers of the Mengyuan Dadu and Shangdu factions fought to support the prince supported by their own system to ascend the throne. At that time, Zhang Jue was dead, and his son Zhang Jingwu was a Wuchang Wanhu on Baoding Road, and in order to protect his hometown, he killed hundreds of defeated soldiers who plundered during the retreat.

Soon after, the powerful ministers of the Shangdu Department were defeated. Most of the military horses of the capital department passed through Baoding, "the Esen special army went to Baoding, killed...... and five brothers of Zhang Jingwu, and take their family money". Zhang Jue had a total of six sons and eleven grandchildren, all over the house, except for Zhang Guan's father, who was not in Baoding at that time, there was no one left.

It's pitiful to say. Poor Zhang Rou, Zhang Hongfan, Zhang Qi, three generations of Meng Yuan worked hard, willing to be an eagle dog, Zhang Hongfan even fell into the eternal infamy of "Song Zhang Hongfan destroyed the Song Dynasty", but the final fate of their family was like this!

However, despite this, as Hong Jixun said: "After the Red Army rose up that day, Zhang Guan still chose to be loyal to Meng Yuan in order to revive the family business." With such a history and experience, it is no wonder that Hong Jixun advised Deng She, "Don't reuse these people first, hang them up and take a look".

However, Dunshe has a different view on this issue.

He paced the room with his hands behind his back, and said, "What the gentleman said is true. Liang Lu, Zhang Guan, Xiao Yuan, Liu Feng, etc., the newly surrendered army, of course, cannot be reused suddenly, but now that our army has just entered Huaisi, we must not make a gesture to show the heroes and wise men in Huaisi. If you only give one honorary title, I am afraid that it will inevitably hurt the hearts of Huaisi scholars and even heroes in the world! ”

"In the opinion of the Lord?"

"I think it's time to treat it differently."

"What do you mean by that?"

"Whoever deserves to be given an honor, he will be given an honor. If you can use it, you can use it. ”

"However, in the eyes of the lord, who should give the title and who can use it?"

"Who should be given the title, I haven't figured it out yet. But available to me, I know! I know more about those who should be of great use! ”

"Dare to ask who it is?"

"Liang Shiyin, Xiao Yuan, and Liu Feng are available people. Lu Ju is the person who should be of great use! ”

Hong Jixun pondered for a moment, understood what Deng She meant, opened the folding fan and shook it a few times, and said with a smile: "Not bad, not bad." What the lord said was very true. Lu Ju surrendered to me in Xuzhou, and persuaded the lord to surrender to Suzhou, to a certain extent, he even surpassed Yang and Hu generals, and it should indeed be of great use. Otherwise, it's a bit unreasonable. And Xiao Yuan and Liu Feng are just two generals, as long as they are used properly, they really don't care about any changes they will make. As for Liang Shiyin, the subordinate of the minister, he is known for having both talent and learning in Huaisi, and it is indeed necessary to use it to attract Huaisi celebrities. ”

"So, sir, agree with me?"

Hong Jixun also noticed that the names mentioned by Deng She were all generals of the Xuzhou department, but Lu Li and Zhang Guan from Suzhou did not say anything, knowing that Deng She was still hesitant to use Zhang Guan. At that moment, he bowed his head and said, "The lord is reasonable, why don't the ministers agree?" ”

"With Mr. Vested's approval, the matter can be carried out."

"Chen Dou Gu, I want to ask the lord again, I don't know how to use Liang Shiyin, Xiao Yuan, and Liu Feng? And how do you plan to reuse Luju? ”

"I'll tell you the truth, sir. If it weren't for the hard-won gains in Xuzhou, I was afraid that I would have lost, so I would have directly used Lu Ju, Xiao Yuan and others to suppress Xuzhou! In order to show Huai Sijian my generosity and benevolence, I am not suspicious of employing people. It's a pity that now is not the time to do that! So when Lu Ju comes to Yidu, I plan to give him a higher position as compensation. ”

"How tall?"

"In the first battle of Dizhou, Ji Zongzhou was martyred. Two days ago, someone gave me an excerpt, saying that the position of the right man in Yidu Province should not be hung for a long time, and it is best to choose someone to promote it quickly. I originally intended to promote Luo Guoqi to take over this position, but since Lu Ju is coming, I will simply hand over this position to him! What does the gentleman think? ”

"Provincial right?"

To achieve this position, as far as Yidu is concerned, it is second only to Deng She, Xiao Mao Pingzhang, and Zhao Guo. Deng She is also the prime minister of Yidu, and the provincial Pingzhang is still nominally Xiaomao Pingzhang now, Zhao Guo is the left Cheng, and the next is the right Cheng. Hong Jixun thought for a while and said, "This position is very good! First, it can show that the lord attaches great importance to him, and second, Zhao Zuocheng is there, and he is not worried that he will disturb the court. ”

"Then the matter is settled."

"Liang Shiyin, Xiao Yuan, Liu Feng, what does the lord plan to arrange?"

"These people are all related to the stability of Xuzhou in the future. If they are not arranged, it will definitely cause unease among the people of Xuzhou. "After all, there are not only Lu Ju and Liang Shiyin in the Xuzhou officialdom, they are just leaders, and there are many adjutants below. There are a large number of adjutants, and it is impossible to transfer all of them to Yidu. Therefore, it is necessary to arrange these people well to reassure the rest of the people.

Deng She walked to the door with his hands in his hands, looked at the blue sky from afar, saw the white clouds, and suddenly opened his mind.

He said: "I have long heard that the Xuzhou Army is known as the 'Huaibei Strongman', and those who know it praise it as 'although Yan Zhao Jingqi can't reach it'. It would be a pity if such an elite unit was disbanded. I plan to wait for the surrendered army to come to Yidu, reorganize it a little, and not disrupt them, and still make it an army of its own, so I will use Xiao Yuan as my main general. ”

"What about Liu Feng?"

Deng She came back to his senses, pointed to the good news on the case, and said, "Didn't Yang Wanhu and Hu Zhong ask me to select talents as soon as possible and pick up Xu and Su?" When our army first entered Xu and Suzhou, it was indispensable to be assisted by people who were familiar with the situation. Liu Feng, after I see him, I will still send him to Xuzhou. ”

"Liang Shiyin?"

"I only know that he is outstanding, and his specific ability is not clear. When he comes, I will personally inquire and ask him which yamen he wants to go to. If he asks, I will satisfy him. ”

After listening to Deng She's arrangements for these generals of the Xuzhou Department, Hong Jixun stretched out his thumb and praised: "The lord is clever!" ”

Deng She pretended to be confused, pretended to be puzzled, and said, "Strange! Why does the gentleman highlight this? ”

"This arrangement of the lord will either give him a high position, or still order him to command the old department; Either garrison them in the old city, or choose their positions at will. On the bright side, it can be described as a generous treat! But in fact? ......, haha, haha! ”

In fact, he cleverly scattered all the generals of the Xuzhou system.

In front of Hong Jixun, Deng She has never been able to hide any thoughts, and he has long been accustomed to this, and he doesn't blame Hong Jixun for saying it thoroughly in person, but he just laughed and asked rhetorically: "So that means, Mr. thinks my arrangement is okay?" ”

"It's not just possible, it's wonderful!"

——, Lu Ju and the others have not yet come to Yidu, and their future fate has already been arranged. As the saying goes: the king is defeated and the defeated army is not brave enough. Since he has become someone else's subordinate, he naturally has to snort.

The two of them talked for a long time, because it was too speculative, and it was only at this time that Deng She realized that he had not given Hong Jixun tea, so he hurriedly came to the table, poured him a bowl of tea with his own hands, and said with a smile: "I told Mr. about entering Hong Kong, but I forgot to invite Mr. to drink tea." After talking about it for a long time, I must have been thirsty for a long time. ......Please. ”

Hong Jixun was not polite, picked up the tea bowl, drank it all, pointed to the dishes on Deng She's case, and said, "Is the lord busy until this hour before he starts eating?" ”

"The battle of Jining has been going on for more than a month. The situation of our Yidu is not unclear, although the summer grain has just been harvested, but the supply in all aspects is really tight. Military affairs, political affairs, everything needs to be done. It's good to be able to eat at this point! ”

"These days, I am indeed a little busy and tired. Two days ago, the minister went to the left and right divisions to do errands and met Lord Luo. Although Lord Luo's complexion is fine, it has really decreased a lot. At that time, the minister also advised him that although government affairs need to be dealt with in a timely manner, the body must not be ignored! ......, my lord, as the lord of Haidong, you need to pay more attention to your body! Don't work hard to become ill, regret it too late. ”

Mr. Burao reminded. Although I am busy every day, I will spare half an hour in the evening, or gallop on horseback, or shoot arrows and dance with swords. Sir also knows that I was born in the army, and this old profession will definitely not be left behind. In this way, I also exercised my body at the same time. ”

"The lord is both civil and military, and he is really a hero."

After a few words of gossip, the two turned to the main topic again.

Hong Jixun said: "As the lord said, Xuzhou is not easy to come by, and it is related to the future development of my Haidong, so the minister has a word to say to the lord." ”

"Please."

"Don't be negligent in Anxu's strategy!"

"I was about to listen to Mr. Gao's opinion."

"An Xu's strategy, in the minister's opinion, is nothing more than two."

"Which two?"

"One is in the people, and the other is in the army."

"Please sir elaborate."

"The so-called 'in people' is divided into two parts. First, to appease the degraded officials; Second, new officials will be stationed. To appease this, the lord has done a very good job. The next thing that needs to be done, as the good news said, is indeed to select the handsome as soon as possible and enter Xu and Su in the shortest possible time. ”

"Hmm."

"I don't know if the lord has already made up his mind about this?"

"To appease Xuzhou is to govern Xuzhou, and whether it is appeased or governed, in the final analysis, people still need to do it. ......, I took advantage of the opportunity to make some preliminary considerations about this candidate while waiting for Mr. Shi Cai to come. ”

Deng She was also thirsty when he said it, picked up the tea bowl, took a sip, looked at Hong Jixun, but stopped talking, and refused to directly say who the "An Xu" candidate was in his mind, but asked with a smile: "In my opinion, who should be the most suitable to send?" ”

Since Hong Jixun asked Deng She this question, of course he already had a candidate, seeing that Deng She was unwilling to say it directly, he also refused to say it directly, shook the folding fan, smiled leisurely, and said: "There is a person in the minister's heart, who is the most suitable to be sent to Xuzhou." I just don't know if it's the same as the person the lord thinks? ......, otherwise, you and I won't say it yet, and write a word on each case, how about it? ”

"Good!"

Deng She and Hong Jixun each stretched out their fingers, dipped them in tea, and wrote a word on the desk.

After writing, Deng She first went to see what Hong Jixun wrote, and when he wrote the word "wood", he couldn't help laughing, took his hand, and said: "What Mr. saw is with me!" Hong Jixun withdrew his hand and went to see what Deng She wrote, but saw that Deng She wrote the word "Yang".

The "wood" is the side of the "Yang". Two people are indeed talking about the same person, but who are they? It's none other than Yang Xingjian.

Yang Xingjian is upright and dignified, resourceful, and more importantly, he has enough courage.

In the Battle of Yidu years ago, he was shot off half of his ear by a cold arrow because he personally went to the city tower to supervise the battle, but he refused to move half a step until he repelled the enemy's attack; With Yang Wanhu guarding Jinan, although facing Wang Baobao and other tens of thousands of strong troops, but there is no fear, with the body of a civil minister, to support the city to defend the battle, and take a small sedan chair to pacify the city, not to make chaos, before and after the contribution is not shallow.

Looking at the Haidong ministers who are currently in Yidu, there is indeed no more suitable person to go to Xu and Su Erzhou than him.

"Yang Ziqiang is in his prime, energetic, has served in the local, and is proficient in government affairs; He has also experienced Jinan and other battles, and he has seen big scenes. Moreover, although he is upright, he is not blindly strong, and he knows the art of advancing and retreating. Because of his outstanding performance in Jinan and other battles, he also won the respect of the generals in the army. With him going to sit in Xu and Suzhou, the minister dares to guarantee that the lord will be able to sit back and relax. ”

"When the court meeting tomorrow comes, I will put this proposal forward and listen to the opinions of the ministers. If no one objects, he will make a decree tomorrow and transfer him to the prefect of Xuzhou and the governor of Suzhou. He departed for his post on the same day. ”

"After appeasing the demoted officials in Xuzhou, there is Yang Xingjian to take over the place. The internal affairs of Xu and Su are perfect. ”

"The gentleman proposed two. Please continue with the second point. ”

"Article 2, 'Army'. Xu and Sudang are the main roads of a hundred battles, with Henan Chahan Army in the west, Wu Guogong of Jinling in the south, Zhang Shicheng in Zhejiang in the southeast, and Anfeng Imperial Court in the southwest. This is really an important place connecting my Shandong and Jiangnan! It is foreseeable that in the near future, maybe Zhang Shicheng, or Chahan Army, or even Wu Guogong, or even Anfeng Imperial Court may want to get involved here, and there will definitely be no shortage of battles! Therefore, the minister thought that he had to send elite soldiers and strong generals to suppress the army! ”

"Which army does Sir think is the best to send to suppress the army?"

Hong Jixun was silent.

"Yang Wanhu of the Anliao Army, Li Monk of the Dingdong Army, these two armies are one of the five Ya of our Haidong, since the formation of the army, the destruction of Goryeo, the battle of Liaodong, the defeat of Chahan, the capture of Jining, invincible, outstanding achievements. How about using one of them to go to the town? ”

Hong Jixun was silent.

"Bi Qianniu of the Dingqi Army, Lu Qian12 of the Anqi Army, and Deng Chengzhi of the Pinglu Army are the Shandong Sanya that I formed after I came to Yidu, transferred the Qing and Yan elites, and organized the surrendered troops of Wang Shicheng, Tian Feng and Chahan. Although due to the shallowness of the army, they are inferior to the Haidong Wuya in terms of military exploits, but the young and strong men have been brave and invincible since ancient times; At the same time, Shandong and Huaisi are close to each other, with similar accents and similar customs, so there is no need to worry about the phenomenon of adapting to the water and soil. How about using one of them to go to the town? ”

Hong Jixun didn't say a word.

"The elite who are now in Yidu are these troops. Could it be that the gentleman does not approve of it? But what does Mr. Ze mean? ......, isn't it? Do you want to still use Xuzhou to surrender the army to Xu and Su? ”

Hong Jixun finally spoke and said: "Although Xuzhou is not far from my Shandong, it is separated by the Yellow River in the end, and it is a little beyond the reach of the whip. At the beginning of Xuzhou's surrender, the army's heart is undecided, and they must not still use them to suppress Xu and Su! ”

"Mr. Haidong Wuya doesn't want to use it, Mr. Shandong Sanya doesn't want to use it, and Mr. Xuzhou Junjun doesn't want to use it. ......, what do you mean, sir? ”

"Although the Haidong Wuya and the Shandong Sanya are fine, they have been fighting continuously since last year, especially after the current battle of Jining, many battalion leaders have been seriously reduced and urgently need to be replenished. If one of them is sent to fight Xu and Su, I am afraid that there will be a shortage. ”

"So?"

"In the opinion of the ministers, it is better to take this opportunity to form a new army!"

"Forming a new army?"

"The so-called formation of a new army is not to re-recruit the people and train them from scratch."

"That's?"

"Why don't you draw a group of elites from the five Ya in Haidong and the three Ya in Shandong to think that they are the backbone; Then a group of local garrisons will be transferred, thinking that they are wings. Subsequently, it is accompanied by a wise and brave general, and assisted by resourceful people. In this way, a new army was formed. The soldiers are the elite of the elite, and the generals and colonels are also the best in each army, and their combat effectiveness must be extremely strong. Thus sent to Huaisi to guard Xu and Su. One is enough to keep the place safe; Second, we can also take this opportunity to show the prestige of our army to the Jiangnan people. ”

Hong Jixun continued: "The benefits of forming a new army are not only the above two points, but also more. ”

"Please."

"Now that Xuzhou is both victorious, Shanzhou will soon be able to win. I have more roads and two states in Haidong, and the time has come when the troops need to be expanded. However, there are only so many people in Shandong, and blind expansion will inevitably lead to reckless use of military force, which will bring too much pressure to the localities.

"At the same time, the newly formed troops, without long-term training, will not have too good combat effectiveness, and it is useless to expand them, wasting grain and straw in vain.

"Therefore, why not simply draw the elite from each government and form an army, which will not bring additional pressure to the localities, and because the non-commissioned officers who form the new army are the elite of each government, they do not need to do too much training, just a little run-in, and they can become an army. It's for the benefit of killing two birds with one stone. Why not? ”

"However, as Mr. said, there are already many battalion leaders in the various yastries who have suffered serious attrition, and if the elite is drawn from them, won't it further reduce their combat effectiveness?"

"This is easy to solve."

"How to fix it?"

"On the one hand, a new army will be formed, and on the other hand, the old army will be dismantled. ......, after Wang Shicheng, Tian Feng and others surrendered, in order to stabilize the place, the lord did not do too much to dismantle their old departments, but most of them were converted into local garrisons. However, the local prefectures and counties actually do not need so many garrison troops.

"The Privy Council once made a statistic that in addition to the necessary garrison troops, there are currently more than 10,000 people in the extra part. These more than 10,000 people, except for daily consumption, are of no great use. Therefore, the minister suggested that it would be better to select Ding Zhuang from among them at the same time as forming a new army, and supplement them into the various offices. If you can't use it, just cut it all! First, it saves military supplies, and secondly, it can also replenish local labor. ”

Deng She has not dismissed Wang Shicheng and Tian Feng's old departments on a large scale because he is afraid that it will cause local turmoil. After all, more than 10,000 people is not a small number.

But now, he has a firm foothold in Yidu first; Secondly, the power of the great victory of Danzhou and Xuzhou is indeed the time to completely rectify the old departments of Shicheng and Tianfeng.

The elite of each government was transferred to form a new army. At the same time, the local garrison units were abolished and the various garrisons were replenished.

Deng She smacked carefully, and the more he thought about it, the more he felt that this method was really good.