At The Beginning of The Game, The Five Tiger Generals Were Intercepted

"Meng Qi, your Ma family used to control all counties and counties west of Wuwei, do you know anything about the Western Regions today?"

Ma Chao shook his head in embarrassment, he could only give Liu Zhang a sorry look.

"My lord, Zhangye County, Jiuquan County, and Dunhuang County are vast and sparsely populated. The three counties together have less than 100,000 people. Xihai County is even more miserable. There is only one county in the whole county, with less than 5,000 people!"

"After my father recruited elites, he didn't leave troops in these places at all. Our Ma family's power is mainly in Wuwei."

So it is!

Liu Zhang finally understood why Ma Teng could always pull up an army of tens of thousands. It turned out that he had captured all the young and strong from other counties and counties!

Now here comes the problem. When Ma Teng occupied these counties, there were less than 100,000 people.

Now that so much has been squandered by Ma Teng, how many people are left in these counties?

"My lord, do you want to re-establish the Western Region Chief History Mansion?"

Cheng Gongying seemed to have seen what Liu Zhang meant, and asked questions quickly.

"good!"

Liu Zhang also did not deny that the Changshi Palace of the Western Regions is of great significance, and it also takes into account an important truth.

"I want to restart the Silk Road. Only by developing the economy can we have a steady stream of military resources!"

Fighting a war is not a struggle between two parties alone, it is more about a competition of national strength!

In layman's terms, war is about money!

Perhaps this era does not have such a thorough understanding, but as a time traveler, Liu Zhang is naturally familiar with the essence of war.

In today's era of cold weapons, there is an insurmountable problem in war, food logistics.

But doesn't it require money to buy food and grass?

As long as the Silk Road is restarted, the connection between Chang'an and the countries in the Western Regions and even further afield will definitely be greatly deepened.

With the prosperity of the Silk Road, the source of Dawan horses is naturally not a problem.

"My lord wants to restart the Silk Road, but there is a problem that I have to face."

Cheng Gongying's words successfully aroused Liu Zhang's interest.

"What problem?"

"First of all, the entire Qiang nationality must be completely eliminated, and secondly, the population must be relocated to the four counties in Hexi."

From ancient times to the present, it is absolutely impossible to develop a place without a population.

Liangzhou, Youzhou, Bingzhou, Yangzhou, and southern Yizhou, why are these places always so backward?

A big problem is the sparse population.

The reason for the sparse population is also very simple, and they are often harassed by aliens.

The officers and soldiers were unable to protect the lives of the common people, and the common people could only choose to leave their homes in order to survive.

As time went on, more and more people left, and the border population became smaller and smaller.

As the population decreases, a series of problems will follow!

There are no more people, so what can be used to resist the invasion of alien races?

At least in Liangzhou, the largest foreign ethnic group is the Qiang people, followed by the Di people.

However, the Di people are mainly farming, and the current threat is much smaller than that of the Qiang people.

In the history of the Han Dynasty, the Qiang people rebelled and surrendered many times, and the whole race was capricious.

In the 400 years of the Han Dynasty, after more than 20 emperors, they could not completely put down the chaos of the Qiang people.

There are Qiang people making trouble in Liangzhou, and the Silk Road is destined to be full of ups and downs.

However, in Liu Zhang's plan, the Qiang people are a problem that he must completely solve.

Especially with the "help" of Han Sui, more than 400,000 Qiang people were wiped out in World War I, almost eliminating all the main forces of the Qiang people.

The only problem is the migration of Han people. Without people, it is still difficult to develop.

"In this battle of Yuzhong, the main force of the Qiang people was wiped out, even if it was to slaughter the entire Qiang people!"

Ma Chao was taken aback by Liu Zhang, and quickly stopped him.

"My lord can't!"

Ma Chao's mother was still in Xianling Qiang, how could he watch Liu Zhang slaughter the entire Qiang people!

Liu Zhang smiled and gave Ma Chao a reassuring look.

"Meng Qi doesn't have to worry, I'm just making an analogy."

"It's only a matter of time before the Qiang people completely surrender, but it's more troublesome to migrate the Han people."

It is really very difficult to relocate people, and almost no one is willing to take the initiative to migrate, let alone the frontier where wars are constantly in progress!

After Liu Zhang unified the entire Yizhou, the population under his command was more than 3 million. Even if he occupied Yongliang and Guanzhong, the population would hardly exceed 5 million.

How does such a population base migrate?

"My lord, on the one hand, you can start the affairs of the Qiang people, and on the other hand, you can increase troops to Dunhuang County, and then occupy Yumen Pass, and give a reminder to the countries in the Western Regions, letting them know the name of General Hanwei."

"After taking control of Yumen Pass, you can try to start the Silk Road, and then through the influence of Yumen Pass, gradually regain control of the Changshi Mansion of the Western Regions."

Food needs to be eaten bite by bite, and the road needs to be walked step by step. Cheng Gongying knows the truth that haste makes waste.

Today's Liu Zhang can't waste too much energy on the issue of the Western Regions, so he can only take it slow and down-to-earth.

Liu Zhang glanced at Cheng Gongying approvingly. Cheng Gongying's strategy was very suitable for Liu Zhang's current situation.

"Mr. Cheng, I would like to appoint you as the prefect of Dunhuang, and at the same time be responsible for the affairs of the countries in the Western Regions. I don't know what you want?"

Liu Zhang feels somewhat indebted in his heart, especially on the way back to Yuzhong.

It can be said that after Cheng Gongying joined him, he would be "exiled" by Liu Zhang before his butt was hot!

The position of prefect seems to be entrusted with a heavy responsibility, but it also depends on where the prefect is!

For example, before the Yellow Turban Rebellion, the prefect of Nanyang had more than 2 million people under his command, while the prefect of Xihai had less than 5,000 people under his command!

Dunhuang County is located in the westernmost part of Liangzhou. Not only is it remote, but it is also sparsely populated, almost no different from exile.

If it was arranged like this because of a great talent, it is inevitable to be a little disappointed.

Liu Zhang also has no choice, what is needed in this position now is an all-around talent.

It would be too wasteful to send Liu Ye, Lu Su and other advisers, or Zhang Liao, Xu Huang and other generals.

After all, there are still countless battles to come, and the reconstruction of the Changshi Mansion in the Western Regions will not be completed in a short while.

Cheng Gongying is just the best candidate.

He is both civil and military. Although he has not reached the top level, he has made achievements in all aspects.

It's just that the prefect of Dunhuang is not a good job, and he will stay away from Liu Zhang's political center.

In the long run, development will inevitably be restricted.

After all, Cheng Gongying had just surrendered, and Liu Zhang could not forcibly assign him because of emotion and reason, and he had to follow Cheng Gongying's own opinions in everything.

Cheng Gongying didn't answer immediately, he could hear the helplessness and apology in Liu Zhang's tone, and he was thinking in his heart.

Once you nod and agree, it will not be a task that can be completed in a few years.

The construction of the Western Region Changshi Mansion is likely to take ten years or even decades.

"Mr. Cheng, congratulations! You were entrusted with an important task by the lord just now!"

Cheng Gongying looked at Ma Chao in astonishment, and was immediately framed by Ma Chao's words, as if he could not agree!

Everyone can see that the Dunhuang prefect is not a good choice, except Ma Chao!

(end of this chapter)