After solving the problem of becoming the king, Wu Shiji immediately sent troops. He was also afraid that the prince would not know that he was coming, so he ordered the soldiers in the front team to shout while walking: "Recruit the rebels, don't care!" "It's a big deal, and the effect is good. The two countries of Xidi and Tyrant, which border Baocang County, saw that the Baocang army was coming, and they were very glad that they believed Wei Shuping's words and chose to cooperate with him, otherwise, they would only be themselves who were being requisitioned now. The Baocang army walked like this for eight days, reached Houwan County, and began to attack Gao County, the westernmost county of Houwan.

Shen Liangyun didn't know why, since the evening of the third day of the eighth month, after Wei Yangyang was snatched back by Wei Bingyue, Wei Shuping's attitude changed greatly, not only daring to snipe with the rebels with artillery, but occasionally daring to send cavalry out to attack and harass. The food and salary transported from Houwan County to Haixi are delivered once every half a month. Now it has been twelve days since the last time grain and grass were delivered, and although Shen Liangyun was in a hurry, he knew in his heart that Wei Shuping was more anxious than him.

However, he underestimated the endurance of the Hercynian people. Since the founding of Dayang, Haixi City has not known how many times it has been surrounded by regiments, and four of the six general soldiers before the Wei family were killed on the spot, but the city has not been breached once. The reason why Haixi Mansion can become the most important barrier in the north, in addition to the divine power of the Wei Army, another very important reason is, of course, its topography. Its entire city is located in the middle of the Taiping Mountains, and if you want to enter Houwan County from Shikoku, you have to attack it. Otherwise, you have to follow the desert to climb the Taiping Mountain, and walk hundreds of miles more. If you want to go to Shikoku from the direction of Gowan-gun, of course, this is also the case.

The rebels are to the south of it, while Lehai is to the northeast of it. Originally, if they joined hands with the four countries and sent heavy troops to garrison Lehai, the Haixi people would not be able to get water, and when the water cellars in the city were drunk, it would be their time of death. But he was not busy attacking the cheek wave snow butterfly, and he didn't have time to flank the attack, so he missed a great opportunity. Of course, the rebels could also march along the gorge east of Taiping Mountain to the north to attack Wanfumen. But who hasn't heard of Wei Bingyue's burning in the north? Walking along the canyon, if you encounter an ambush, you will simply be sent to death.

Since the beginning of the year, after Wei Shuping discovered that Shen Liangyun had moved on food, he also began to deliberately store grain, grass and water. After all, the fiefdom of the Wei family, although it cannot be farmed, can herd sheep and horses. The mutton was marinated in advance, made into jerky, and placed in the cellar of the Wei family's old house, which now came in handy.

Wei Shuping knew that now was not the time to send troops, and the main force of the Wei family army had to recuperate, and when the Baocang army came, they would attack Bibo City in front and back. But waiting is the hardest thing to endure, tens of thousands of elites are trapped in the city, and it is really annoying to watch the rebels show off their might under the city. What's even more annoying is that Shen Liangyun marked the price for everyone in the Wei family, whoever cut off Wei Shuping's head, after the matter was completed, he gave the earl, rewarded with a fief of thousands of hectares and 10,000 taels of gold; The reward of the old sixth guard Bingjian and the old eighth guard Bingyue is to reward the official position of the chief soldier, 10,000 mu of fiefdom, and 6,000 taels of gold; Prices vary from each other. When Shen Liangyun sent soldiers downstairs to shout these bounties, he bombarded them with cannons, and the Wei Jiajun, who were not afraid, actually had a fierce dispute because of this bounty.

Wei Shuping touched his neck and shouted at Shen Liangyun: "The last general didn't expect that his head was so valuable. The prince shouted so much that the general's heart was itching, and I wanted to cut off my head and give it to the prince, so that I could change the lord to do it. Wei Bingyue was very angry, and also shouted: "Hey, Lord Wang, our Wei family army is about military merits, no matter how old or young, my military merits are greater than my sixth brother, why am I the same as him, also six thousand taels?" Wei Bingjian scolded him unconvinced: "Hey, who said I am inferior to you?" You don't take advantage of the opportunity here. The others were also unconvinced, and asked why their bounty was less. It is completely inconsistent with his own military exploits. The city tower looked like a vegetable market for a while, and the children of the Wei family were scrambling to shout about their military exploits, for fear of being compared to others. Even the eldest son of the Wei family, Wei Bianqi, who is only fourteen years old, is also shouting: "Lord Wang, Lord Wang, the ninth generation of our Wei family, don't forget." I also participated in the battle of Tang's camp, so why is it worth a hundred taels, right? The fifteenth son Wei Bingkai didn't talk much on weekdays, but at this time, he also jumped out, took the jade pendant on his body, and desperately shook the beads on the jade pendant: "And me, I also participated in the battle of Sanliying, he has one hundred taels, I have five hundred taels!" Unexpectedly, Wei Shuping, who has always been serious, heard his youngest son say this, and also joined in the fun: "If it is according to this, the prince, give the last general a bounty of 10,000 taels, but it is too little." No, no, you have to add money! ”

Shen Liangyun originally wanted to incite the Wei family army to fight, but he didn't expect the effect to backfire, and he was turned into a military merit meeting by the Wei family. Each person held his own jade beads, and there he reported what battles he had participated in and how many thieves he had killed. As if the bounty was sorry for their efforts.

That night, Wei Shuping called everyone to discuss again. He first instructed Wei Bingqiang: "If it doesn't work like this, morale will be affected, you take out the jerky in the cellar tomorrow morning and distribute it to the first-class soldiers on the city tower to boost morale." Shen Mingyuan asked him: "General Guard, I have seen the situation today, can we do the same, and shout tomorrow, how much is the bounty for Shen Liangyun?" ”

The garrison replied to him: "Your Highness, Eli can encourage the soldiers for a short time." But the price he gave, we can't afford to give, he said that the head of the last general is worth an earl, so we can't say that his head is worth a marquis, right? And the most important thing to build morale is to treat soldiers with sincerity. If this promise is not fulfilled, then in the future, who will dare to fight for their lives? ”

Listening to his words, Shen Mingyuan was very touched. Yes, Shen Liangyun is a ruin, and he promises that he will not succeed in his rebellion anyway. But Wei Shuping's words represent the imperial court, no matter what is promised, it must be fulfilled, otherwise, where is the prestige of the imperial court? The reason why everyone in the Wei family army is brave, in addition to Wei Shuping's well-trained, the most important thing is that he is not as corrupt as other generals. After the war, according to the number of ears cut by the soldiers, the reward was as much as it should be, and it was never in arrears. Therefore, when encountering the enemy, the Wei family army will rush up without his life, and who will not compete for the first place in the good thing of promotion and wealth? This kind of fighting a war is not just a matter of familiarizing yourself with the art of war. This garrison has been in charge of Haixi Mansion for more than ten years, and of course has a unique set of experience.

Shen Mingyuan asked him again: "General Wei, I heard that it costs fifty taels of silver to cut off one ear of the enemy army on weekdays, what if we raise it to one hundred taels?" Moreover, what Shen Liangyun promised was that after the matter was completed, but we could pay it immediately, as long as one ear, we would give one hundred taels of silver, can the Wei family take out this silver first? I will testify to you, and after the rebellion is quelled, the household department will make it up to you. Wei Shuping thought for a moment and replied to him: "Your Highness, if so many silver tickets are taken out on the spot, our Wei family should not have so many." But it should be okay to gather the gold and silver jewelry at home and send them to the soldiers, so that they can redeem the silver tickets with the tokens after the rebellion is quelled. But in this way, the amount is very huge, and the possible increase is millions of taels of silver. I am afraid that this is also a great pressure on the tax of the imperial court. ”

Shen Mingyuan also felt that he was not thoughtful: "Yes, what General Wei said is reasonable. It was my negligence. Fifty taels per ear is not much. But the rebels have tens of thousands, and this adds up to a lot of money, which is a big expense. At this time, Wei Bingjian opened his mouth and said: "Your Highness, father, in fact, what ordinary soldiers want most is not silver, but land. Wei Shuping looked at the sixth son: "The land is more difficult, where can we find so many fiefs to reward people?" Wei Bingjian said: "Don't we want to "divide the three families"? After the deed is completed, the land of the water demon will be rewarded to the soldiers, isn't it? We don't need to take out an acre of land. Wei Bingyue clapped his hands in agreement: "Yes, Lord Yi has been planning for so many years, and he must have prepared enough grain, grass and silver." And when it was done, he was to give his money to the soldiers. In fact, there is no need for the court to pay for it. Shen Mingyuan agreed with the words of the two of them: "Well, since there is no need for the imperial court to give land and silver, then I can call the shots in this matter." General Guard, even if you go and calculate the amount of money needed for the bounty, if there is a shortfall, if there is a difference of one or two hundred thousand vehicles, I think it doesn't matter if we respond for the time being. ”

The next day, the garrison first announced that the reward for each ear during the counterinsurgency would be increased from fifty taels to one hundred taels. Every five ears can be exchanged for 100 acres of sandy land, because the amount of sandy land is limited, so it is on a first-come, first-served basis. He also announced how much reward it would be for capturing the leader of the rebels, how much it would be for capturing the prince alive, and how much it would be for the lieutenant general to capture him. Although the sandy land in the north is not as good as the cultivated land in the Central Plains, it can be grazed, and the tax is much lower than that of cultivated land, and a hundred acres is not a small amount, so after he finished announcing it, the soldiers had smiles on their faces.

Wei Shuping also advised: "Although there is a lot of silver, it is still an old rule, and you can't do anything to the people; 2. If the rebels surrendered, they were not allowed to kill. The Wei family army was strictly disciplined, and the previous bounties were never in arrears, so everyone replied loudly: "Yes!" Wei Shuping also instructed Wei Binggong to distribute the dried meat to the soldiers, and he comforted the soldiers: "I know that everyone can't go out of the city to fight these days, and they will be insulted by the rebels standing in front of the city, and they are very breathless." But we have to be patient and hold off the rebels for a day, so that the court can suffer less losses. Now that we are recuperating, the court may have invested in silver and land, and when we need your help, we must strike a blow and annihilate the rebels! ”

On this day, when the rebels came to call for battle again, the look in Wei Jiajun's eyes immediately changed, and everyone under the city tower looked like white silver and a large area of sand. They also scolded the rebels, spread the bounty, and killed the garrison Ping, the 10,000 taels of gold was false, but the killing of a rebel for 100 taels of silver was real. The garrison also asked someone to bring the silver ingots from home and put them on the city tower, and asked people to shout downstairs: "The rebels hurry up and surrender with ears, each ear can be exchanged for five silver ingots!" ”

Ordinary people buy and sell commodities on weekdays, but they only trade with copper coins, and many people have never had the opportunity to use silver ingots in their lives. Although the rebels lived in Houwan County, which was better than Haixi Province, the reward given by the imperial court to the Weijia army was the highest among all the border troops. Moreover, now it has been raised from fifty taels to one hundred taels, looking at the silver ingots in front of him, who is not greedy? If you cut off one ear, you'll be able to get your hands on a silver ingot.

The two sides faced each other for another ten days, and the news came that the Baocang army had begun to attack Houwan County. Shen Liangyun was shocked at this time, no wonder Xidi and Storm were motionless, presumably they were shocked by Wu Shiji. No wonder the garrison can't hold out, it's to trap himself here and be fooled! He immediately thought that Wu Shiji could send troops immediately, obviously because the imperial court had long suspected him, and there was no time to delay, he had to deal with Haixi Mansion immediately and immediately move south! He ordered the army, concentrate all the red-coated artillery, raise the level gate to the west of the sea, and open fire!

Who knew that this Wu Shiji not only had two fights, but also created momentum. Because of the urgency of the military situation, only 20,000 people were gathered in his vanguard army, but the 20,000 people shouted as if 200,000 had come as if they were coming, and the soldiers shouted everywhere "Recruit the rebels", so this de jure prevailed. The people around Houwan County looked at King Yi's army, and they were all like chaotic ministers and thieves, and everyone was in danger, for fear that they would have something to do with the rebels.

The walls of Haixi Mansion are really hard, and they can't collapse even if they are bombarded. During the day, the Weijia army ignored the shouting and scolding from the downstairs of the city, and at night, they came out to attack and harass. The Wei family army is different from the rebels, most of them grew up in the desert, and the ancestral craft of the family is to cut people, and they are skilled in technology and familiar with the road, which is very advantageous. Moreover, the bounty is never in arrears, as long as you take it back, you can cash it on the same day. Therefore, every night battle, the soldiers of the Weijia Army are like crazy, everyone rushes forward, and thousands of horses gallop like a tornado, and after a burst of slashing, they immediately retreat, never in love with war. Often, the front team of the rebels and the Weijia army have just faced each other, and the rear team has already run away before they have even started their formation. The rebels have been preparing for ten years, and although their weapons are superior to those of the Weijia army, they have rarely fought in the desert, and with firearms and thunder in their hands, they cannot exert effective power against experienced opponents.

Only then did Shen Liangyun know why this Haixi Mansion could be as stable as Mount Tai for so many years, and this war was not as simple as he imagined. He originally thought that it should not be a problem to take down Hercynian by flanking back and forth. But I didn't expect that instead of waiting for foreign aid, I waited for the army to protect the warehouse. When he received that the Baocang army had broken through Chao County and Pai County and was coming towards Bibo City, he made a decision to withdraw his troops and return to Bibo City.

In order to paralyze the garrison, he continued to send soldiers to Haixi Mansion every day to shout and curse, and then, the rear team changed to the front team and began to slowly withdraw. On the morning of August 24, Wei Bingyue stood on the city tower and said to his father: "In the past few days, the scolding has become more ruthless, and they must have taken action." The garrison commanded him: "Let your cavalry be ready to pursue at any time." That afternoon, Wei Shuping deliberately said to the rebels under the city: "Please come out, I have a few words to say to him." The rebels under the city ignored him and continued to shout. Hmph, Lord Yi, I'm afraid I've already run away.

Wei Shuping drew his saber and ordered the drummer: "Beat the drum, prepare to attack!" Under the order of the general army, the army of ten thousand will attack! Twenty red-coated cannons on the city tower fired a volley, blowing up the rebel front team first. Then Wei Bingyue's 5,000 blue battalion cavalry rushed out of the three gates at the same time, rushed forward and slashed and slashed, regardless of it, and continued to pursue. Wei Bingjian's infantry of the Qing Battalion followed behind, fighting with the remaining men of the rebel front team. Other battalions followed, picking up the remnants, smashing the rebel artillery and cutting off the ears of the dead.

Shen Mingyuan followed the Mo camp, because the Mo camp was an artillery camp, and it was difficult to move with the cannon, so he walked last. He saw with his own eyes that the various battalions of the Wei family cooperated tacitly, without dragging the mud and water, and it was simply crushing the rebels. More than 20 days of forbearance, the desire for revenge, and the temptation of silver ingots greatly stimulated the fighting spirit of the soldiers of the Wei Family Army. He saw that when Wei Bingyue rushed out just now, it was like a tiger descending from the mountain, and there was quite a kind of momentum of a Buddha blocking and killing the Buddha and killing the gods. Shen Mingyuan knows that the defeat of the rebels is decided!