Chapter 467 Humorous Uighurs

In June of the 11th year of Qingli in the Song Dynasty, the official documents arrived at the border at a speed of 800 miles.

At the same time, the Song Dynasty's war machine started again.

This time, the Song Dynasty no longer used the method of transporting grain and grass directly from Bianliang to the border, but adopted a step-by-step approach.

Bianliang will hire people to transport grain and grass to Guanzhong, while the Yongxing Military Road Transport Department will hire local people to transport the grain stored in Yongxing Army and Qinfeng Road to the border.

The Song Dynasty was a country that paid great attention to storing grain in good years and releasing grain in bad years. The grain harvested every year was filled into the warehouse as new grain, while the old grain continued to be stored.

If the warehouse is full, three to five years old grain will be put on the market and sold at low prices to be used as feed for chickens, ducks, pigs and cattle, thus completing the cycle.

For this reason, Chang Ping's envoy became a senior official on the same level as the pacification envoy, transfer envoy, execution officer, and supervisory censor.

In fact, this point has been used in all dynasties, even from the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period. It's just that the Song Dynasty had its first food revolution due to Champa rice, and productivity increased explosively, so it did quite well.

This makes the Song Dynasty the dynasty with the most uprisings in history. However, in terms of scale and number of concentrated outbreaks, it was not as big as the second-ranked Qing Dynasty.

The reason is that even if there is a local disaster, it can be solved quickly by placing food in the warehouse.

However, Qinfeng Road and Yongxing Military Road on Shaanxi Road do not have much food storage, because there are few people here and they have to supply the border troops from time to time, so there is not much food storage.

Historically, during the war between Song and Xia, grain prices in the border areas and Bianliang skyrocketed because the grain reserves in the border areas were exhausted and a large amount of grain needed to be transported from Bianliang to the northwest border.

Today's situation is not that bad. The War to Exterminate Xia was very fast, and productivity increased again, so food prices were low. During the War to Exterminate Xia, the imperial court transported a large amount of grain and grass to the northwest for storage.

This time we want to attack Gaochang, which is too far away. It is obviously not a good idea to transport grain directly from Bianliang.

For this reason, Zhao Jun thought of a clever plan.

That is, the imperial court recruits refugees and escorts grain and grass to Guanzhong for the country. If the refugees are willing to stay in Guanzhong, they will be given fields and production materials and help them cultivate farmland.

In this way, the public security problems caused by Bianliang's growing population over the years and the lack of jobs for some migrant workers can be solved.

At the same time, it can also alleviate to a certain extent the embarrassing situation in Guanzhong that currently exists with vast land and sparsely populated areas.

certainly.

This policy certainly cannot completely solve the dilemma of the small number of people in Guanzhong.

Because the problem in Guanzhong is the over-exploitation of natural resources, which has led to forest reduction, soil erosion, uncultivable land, and frequent natural disasters.

What needs to change is not the lack of people, but the restoration of the ecology.

But if we want to restore the ecology, we also need human help, such as planting more trees and repairing rivers. Otherwise, relying on natural changes may take years and months.

So necessary migration still has to happen.

Soon in August, a large amount of grain was shipped to Guanzhong and sent to the warehouses of counties in Shaanxi Province for storage.

As for the grain stored in warehouses in each county, the local county government mobilized people to help transport it to the border.

August 9th is the Mid-Autumn Festival.

In the vast northwest Gobi desert, a huge team is moving forward slowly. The people behind them are either riding camels or horses, forming a long winding snake.

Di Qing is riding on horseback. There is a tube in the belly of his horse, which contains many maps. The belly of the horse next to several followers contains a large number of kettles. Water is more important than money in the Gobi.

"My lord, the front is Yumen Pass. There is currently only a small team of Shazhou Command Guards stationed there. After leaving Yumen Pass, it is the Western Region."

Cao Xianhui set up a pergola with one hand and took advantage of the scorching sun at noon to look at the surrounding Gobi. Finally, he pointed to the northwest and said, "There should be a river over there. It is the river flowing out of the Gobi in the distant Tianshan Mountains."

"Well, send the order, go to the river in front to rest, make a fire and boil water, and ask every soldier and auxiliary to fill the kettle. Even if it is full, he will drink it for me and fill another kettle."

Di Qing ordered.

This is already the edge of the Western Region, not the Yumen City of later generations, but the ancient Yumen Pass ruins northwest of Dunhuang City.

It can be said that Yumen Pass and the nearest Uighur city in Yizhou in Xizhou, which later became Hami City in Xinjiang, are more than 300 kilometers away in a straight line.

This means that what they are going to cross is an uninhabited desert Gobi that is three to four hundred kilometers long. If they cannot find the water source accurately, it will be a disaster for the army.

After the order was given, the huge army at the rear continued to move forward, and not long after, they saw a small river in the distance on the Gobi Desert.

This river is more like a creek than a river.

As a tributary of the Shule River in later generations, it supplied Yumenguan with basic domestic water. It was already autumn and the water flow was already very small.

The army came to the river one after another to draw water. After only half a day, people drank and horses were fed, and the lower reaches were almost dry.

By evening, the army was finally almost rested and stationed outside Yumen Pass.

This time Di Qing brought a total of 120,000 people.

Among them, there are about 20,000 fighting soldiers, and the remaining 100,000 people are recruited civilians and Xiang troops.

For this reason, the imperial court suffered a lot of bleeding.

Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty sent out an army of 200,000 to destroy the Xiongnu, and 500,000 civilians and auxiliary soldiers accompanied the army to transport grain and grass. The total number reached 700,000, and then he went out to destroy the Xiongnu.

When Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty destroyed the Turks, he dispatched an army of 100,000, and the number of civilians who accompanied the army reached 300,000. Historical records record that "every ten years of transportation consumes eight times," which shows the great logistical pressure.

And the most important thing is that Liu Che and Li Shimin are not paid. This is called corvee service. The court only cares about you for two meals at most.

In the Song Dynasty, in addition to managing meals, there were also subsidies and wages, which were of an employment nature.

Therefore, this trip was not only a waste of food, but also a large amount of money from the national treasury. It can be said that just fighting this battle, the court had to spend millions, which was quite a bit outweighed by the gain.

But there is no way.

If Zhao Jun is not in a hurry to destroy Gaochang, he can wait for more than ten years. When the train reaches Dunhuang, it will be easy to destroy Gaochang without consuming so much national power.

But in that case, it will affect other layouts.

You can't have your cake and eat it too. Considering the long-term interests, early promotion of cotton in the Western Regions can bring huge economic benefits and improve the people's ability to withstand the cold. This can only be the case.

The next day, the soldiers came out of Yumen Pass, pushed the baggage vehicles, and trudged into the vast Gobi desert, bypassing the remaining mountains of the Tianshan Mountains, and headed into the distance under the leadership of many guides.

About ten days later, the Song army moved forward slowly at a speed of fifty miles per day, passing through desolate deserts and vast stretches of Gobi Desert, and was about to arrive in Yizhou.

However, their whereabouts were not kept secret. With so many troops traveling, it was impossible to easily conceal the enemy.

The most important thing is that they are taking a road that people in the Western Regions have often taken since ancient times. Along this road, there are many Western Regions businessmen and nomadic herdsmen coming and going. Their whereabouts can be easily discovered from a long distance away.

Therefore, almost before the Song army arrived in Yizhou, Gaochang King Aqifuluo had already received news of the Song army's trip, and even the reconnaissance soldiers had figured out the number of the Song army.

This is really easy to figure out.

The Gobi stalls stretch as far as the eye can see, and the military uniforms of the Song Army are particularly recognizable. The bright red color is for fear that people will not know that they are groups of Song troops.

Except for about 20,000 soldiers wearing military uniforms, the rest are civilian auxiliary soldiers wearing ordinary clothes like ordinary people.

Therefore, experienced scouts can tell at a glance that the real strength of the Song Army is actually only 20,000.

"Twenty thousand?"

In Gaochang, in the palace, Aqifuluo learned that the Song army only sent 20,000 horses, and laughed and said: "The Song people are so arrogant, they actually want to send only 20,000 people to attack us."

Hearing that not many Song troops came, several ministers also breathed a sigh of relief. Minister Hu Duuge said: "Your Majesty, this may be the vanguard of the Song army. They are showing goodwill to us. Maybe we can send people to fight with them." peace talks.”

"Goodwill? What kind of kindness is released?"

Akifuluo was very puzzled.

Another minister, Tu Ruhe, explained: "I heard that the Song army has millions of soldiers and horses. If it really wants to attack Gaochang, it is impossible to have such a small number of people. Even if there are many people, they should act together. Now there are only 20,000. It shows that there is still a possibility of peace talks between the Song Dynasty and us.”

"Peace talks?"

Akifuluo sneered: "What's the point of peace talks? This is an opportunity to show the strength of our Gaochang. As long as we defeat their vanguard, we can then unite with the Liao army and defeat the Song Dynasty in one fell swoop while their military morale is unstable." , we can enter Yumen Pass and take over the territory that once belonged to Li Yuanhao."

Hu Duoge, Turuhe, Sijie and other ministers were all stunned.

When Li Yuanhao was here in the past, you had no idea what kind of beating you Aqifuluo would get?

Now that Li Yuanhao has been destroyed by the Song Dynasty, what can you do to fight the Song Dynasty?

Are you still trying to seize other people's territory?

How did you get this brain?

"His Majesty."

Hu Duuge was about to persuade him again.

Si Jie interrupted: "Your Majesty, that's what it is."

"good!"

Akifuluo stood up from the throne and said: "Give me the order to assemble the army. We will wait for work in Yizhou and attack the Song army head-on! I will lead the army personally!"

After saying that, he showed off his cloak and hurriedly went to the harem to find Princess Jingyang to claim credit.

Several ministers looked at each other in confusion, and then left the palace. Hu Duge complained to Si Jie: "Why don't you advise His Majesty?"

"There is a saying in the Song Dynasty that it is difficult to persuade a damned ghost with good words."

Si Jie whispered: "You have also seen now that the king did not listen to the advice at all, and was deceived by the queen. He only wanted to go with the Liao Kingdom. In this case, why should we disobey? When the time comes, we will be deceived. The king executed."

"Then we just watch the country fall into crisis?"

Tu Ruhe said.

"There is no way."

Si Jie spread his hands and said: "If you persuade him, if we die, Your Majesty will still go to war with the Song Dynasty. But if you don't persuade him, we will live. The only difference is whether we can survive. I advise you not to think about this." , it’s better to think about what to do now, pack up and prepare to escape as soon as possible.”

"Forehead"

Everyone looked at each other and thought it made sense.

They are Uighurs, and their national consciousness is not very strong. In many cases, life is more important than anything else.

Everyone then went back and waited for the outcome of the war.

After Akifuluo talked to Princess Jingyang, the princess was very happy, praised the king emphatically, and encouraged the king to conquer it himself.

Being so excited by the queen's few words, Aqifuluo almost forgot his last name, and immediately ordered the troops to be summoned.

Compared to Li Yuanhao's army of more than 100,000, the Western Region Uighurs were not strong, with a total population of only a few hundred thousand, and they were quite scattered. They were Uighurs with no national and state consciousness.

In addition to the Gaochang Uighurs led by Aqi Fuluo, the Western Region Uighurs were also divided into the Kucha Uighurs, the Yellow-headed Uighurs, the Hexi Uighurs, etc., with a total of more than 20 tribes.

However, the Gaochang Uighurs had the highest status and the strongest strength, and were also the Uighur royal court, so they were respected as the nominal leader by all Uighurs.

If these tribes were added together, the total population of the entire Western Region Uighurs would exceed one million, and the total military strength would reach 200,000 to 300,000, which was still very strong.

However, because of their dispersion, many Uighur tribes only listened to orders but not announcements. For example, the Gaochang Uighurs were only pro-Liao, while the Kucha Uighurs, the Yellow-headed Uighurs, the Hexi Uighurs, etc. were all pro-Liao and Song, and they all paid tribute to the two countries.

If the factions within a country do not even have the same political orientation, then naturally, it cannot be said that the country has a unified political power.

Therefore, the number of troops that Aqi Fuluo can directly mobilize is about 80,000.

This is because Li Yuanhao constantly harassed the Yellow-headed Uighurs and the Hexi Uighurs in the past few years, which led to a large number of local tribes joining him.

Otherwise, during the Jingyou period, it would have been good for Aqi Fuluo to mobilize 50,000 people.

At this moment, facing only 20,000 Song troops, Aqi Fuluo obviously did not take it seriously. He did not even issue a summons from the Uighur royal court to ask all Uighurs to come to the king, but led his own troops to attack.

Soon, a few days later, the land was vast, and after more than ten days of long journey, the Song army crossed a large desert and saw an oasis in the distance.

Although it was August, the land in the distance was green, with a hint of yellow and brown occasionally seen. While herds of cattle and sheep were passing by, herders built buildings with leather, stones and the like. In the distance, a mud city could be seen.

Cao Xianhui was on a small hill on the left side of the marching road, riding a warhorse and looking into the distance, and then said to Di Qing beside him: "Sir, that is the Yizhou of the Uighurs."

"Well, there are finally people."

Di Qing nodded, then took out a telescope to watch.

He saw herders driving cattle and sheep to graze, saw caravans occasionally entering and leaving the city, and saw several soldiers lazily leaning against the city gate.

"Interesting."

Di Qing saw this scene and smiled, "The Uighurs seem to be completely unprepared. We also saw some merchants along the way. Some of them passed by us normally, while others hurried back. I don't believe that the Uighurs don't know about our arrival."

"What did you find, sir?"

Cao Xianhui was surprised.

"Look for yourself."

Di Qing handed the telescope over.

Cao Xianhui took a look and said very confusedly, "This is strange. Could it be a trap?"

"Whatever trap it is, I only believe in the gun in my hand!"

Di Qing patted the spear on the horse's belly and said, "It's not the same as before. If we are unprepared during the march, we may be attacked. Now is the era when we can raise our guns and fight back at the first time no matter when and where the enemy appears."

This is Di Qing's confidence.

While the two were talking, another lookout guard suddenly said, "Sir, there is something strange in the northwest."

"Oh?"

Di Qing looked in the direction of the sound and saw dust and smoke billowing in the northwest.

His eyes narrowed slightly.

Based on their experience, it was obviously a large group of Uighur troops attacking.

These Uighurs are quite interesting.

Knowing that the enemy's strength was far different from ours, they actually chose to take the initiative to attack. Did they think that they could win a great victory by waiting for the enemy to tire themselves out?

It was really surprising.

Or, did these Uighurs not know how big the gap between them and the Song Dynasty was?

That would be even more interesting.

Thinking of this, Di Qing did not delve into it and said calmly: "Since the Uighurs want to play, then play with them! Let's go!"

After that, he waved his hand and issued a military order. The army rushed towards the direction of the Uighur army.