Qin Official

Because the fire was set artificially, several attacks were launched at the same time. With the strong wind blowing from the river, the fire spread, forcing Yingbu and thousands of Chu soldiers who rashly entered the city to search for food to evacuate.

Although Zhucheng is not as good as Jiangling, it is the capital of a county. It can be walked for a long time. The Chu army suddenly burst into smoke and fire, looking for a way out, and rushed out in a hurry. The soldiers trampled on each other, and many people were killed and injured.

People came out, but the whole city was hard to save. The flames wandered among the inner and outer areas and burned for a whole day and night. The fire reflected the river for several miles red. Standing on the other side of the river in E County (Echeng City, Hubei Province), I saw Be clear.

But as the governor of Hengshan County, Wei Jing had no sense of watching the fire from across the bank. Watching the flames rising into the sky and the thick smoke drifting across the river, his heart felt like the residents of Zhu City who had crossed the river and watched their homes burn. There is endless pain.

"I am ashamed of the high hopes I have for the people of Hengshan, and I am ashamed of my trust in Brother Zhong!"

In the thirty-seventh year of the First Emperor of Qin, he and Anpu general Yuzhang defeated Tieshan and Tonglushan, entered Echeng to kill the puppet King Xiangqiang of Chu. After the Battle of Jiangling, the general situation in the south was determined, and they joined forces with Dongmen Bao to capture Zhu County. Since then, in the past two years, Wei Jing has never left this place.

His abilities were the same as those of most of Heifu's old men, which were only mediocre. When he first became the county guard, he was trembling with fear, fearing that he would mess up. However, Heifu taught him a way.

"Do you think you are better than Xiao He, the governor of Nan County?"

Wei Jing answered honestly: "My brother is far inferior to Sheriff Xiao."

Heifu then taught him: "Just look at Xiao He next door, and do whatever he does."

"This is called Xiao Gui Jingsui!"

So Wei Jing followed the steps of Jiangling City with a determined look. He would do whatever Xiao He did. Xiao He was a smart man and understood what Hei Fu meant, so he made two copies of the decree and sent it to Hengshan. He also specifically indicated how to make profits and losses, so as to adapt to the people's sentiments in Hengshan.

The two places are separated by a strip of water, and their languages ​​and customs are similar. The government decrees that can be implemented in Nan County are not much different in Hengshan County. After two years, Wei Jing has really made a difference. Hengshan and Nan County together have become a black man to win the battle between the north and the south. At the key point of the war, Nanjun provided people and food, while Hengshan produced iron and copper, continuously supplying the front line.

Later, Xiao He went north to govern Su Neishi, but Wei Jing figured out that something was wrong and still continued to use his old policy. He made good friends with the local clan leaders and allowed the Anlu people to live in Wuchang tuntian, which served as the transportation center between Nanjun and Jiangdong. In the Battle of Huainan, he saved the Danyang soldiers...

But this calm was broken when the Chu army advanced westward. Wei Jing was really frightened. While mobilizing county troops to defend Baiju, he asked Jiangdong and Nanjun for support.

Just when he was planning to go to Baiju in person to fight to the death with the Chu people, Li Xian, who was in charge of the five counties of Jingzhou, issued a shocking order:

"Evacuate Zhu City, move the people to E City and Wuchang, and clear the fields with strong walls!"

The three counties in Jiangdong also sent ships to arrive, claiming that it was beyond their reach and difficult to rescue, but they would cut off the Chu army's retreat and hoped that Nanjun and Hengshan would cooperate...

"Weiyang, that little boy! Are you refusing to save me if you die?"

Wei Jing was furious, but had no choice but to bite the bullet and carry out the scorched earth strategy.

Although Zhucheng is the capital, its population is only equivalent to that of a large county. Relying on the massive ships in the Jianghan area, the city's population was gradually transferred to Echeng and Wuchang across the river for resettlement. As for the counties and townships in the suburbs, It’s hard to move away...

Conflicts were inevitable during the migration. The Zhu family in Zhu City responded positively, but the Huang family, a wealthy family in the suburbs, refused to move. The head of the family, an old man in his eighties, even used a dove stick to fight against the Wei Jing faction. In front of those who went there, he counted the salt he had eaten:

"I am seventy-two years old."

"I have been living in this town since I was born. I am a native of Fu. I have grown up, married a wife, and had children. Now I have many children and grandchildren."

"You are by no means the first person to stand here and threaten me to move away."

"Seventy years ago, when Bai Qi destroyed Yiling and the King of Chu fled, I was twelve years old. Zhu County was not yet called Zhu County. The local Duke of Chu State asked us to follow them to the land south of the Yangtze River. My parents If you don’t obey, you take me and hide in the well. When the Qin army came here, they didn’t do anything to us. The days are still going on, but there are too many laws and regulations, and the rent is a little higher.”

"After that, Zhu County changed hands several times between Qin and Chu, and changed its name several times. Neighbors moved here and there, but my family never went anywhere. Our property grew bigger and bigger, and we became richer and richer. Outsiders came. Everyone has to respect me. I have several sons who died in the wars between Qin and Chu, but I also have grandchildren. When the grandchildren grow up, they are clamoring to participate in the Southern Expedition. Some died in the forests of Lingnan, and some died in the forest of Lingnan. Fight back with that Marquis Wu Zhong."

He struck hard with his dove stick:

"I've seen so much, and now you want me to leave and abandon my ancestral graves?"

"But Xiang Ji is ferocious and will massacre the city!" Wei Jing's officials threatened the old man.

But the father-in-law had his own idea: "Back then, the county magistrate of Chu State said that the people of Qin were greedy and old-fashioned, and would kill everyone's heads and take them as prisoners."

"Those Qin officials also said that the Chu people are all bandits and there is no order at all. When they return, they will rebel and rob my family property."

"Even your Southern Expeditionary Army is said to be a defecting garrison, killing everyone on sight..."

"Everything you say is just to trick us into leaving. If I had believed him every time, I'm afraid there would be no Huang family in this world."

He muttered, having difficulty understanding the world:

"Qin? Chu? What's the difference? Who among the people of Zhu County can tell whether they are Qin or Chu now? The same goes for you and other people from Nanjun. Can you still tell the difference?"

Finally, it turned into three solid words.

"I do not go!"

After Wei Jing heard about this, he suddenly remembered that his wife's grandfather, Yan Gong in the plaque, was the one who died of anger when Hu Hai and Zhao Gao forced him to move away.

He didn't harden his heart so that he wouldn't have to embarrass the old man. He only told him a fact.

"When all the people in the city leave, Zhu County will be burned down."

The final result was that the father-in-law accepted the fact after being silent for a while, but still did not leave. He just shook his head:

"It was you who burned and massacred Zhu County, not the so-called Chu soldiers..."

"yes……"

At this moment, recalling the old man's words in his mind, Wei Jing couldn't help but blame himself: "The one who abandoned Zhu County and left tens of thousands of people homeless is obviously me who is incompetent."

He only hoped that the old man who stayed in Jiangbei could successfully survive the many turmoils in his life...

But a few days later, when Wei Jing arrived in Wuchang and joined Li Xian, the governor of Nanjun, and planned to intercept the Chu army at the Han River, Li Xian had a different view on the matter.

"You, you, are so confused. You can just say it was burned by Chu thieves. Why should you take it for yourself?"

"What's more, whether it's from this battle or from a long-term perspective, burning Zhu County is actually a good thing!"

…

"Good thing?"

Wei Jing was a little hard to accept, and turned to his former boss with a dark face:

"Ten thousand families abandoned their fields, homes and ancestral graves and were forcibly moved to other places. They were half hungry every day. Is this a good thing?"

"Thousands of houses in Zhu County were reduced to ashes after a hundred years of operation. Those workshops and markets were finally saved from the war. They were restored by the soldiers and civilians throughout the city for a year. Now they are destroyed and burned down by our own people. Lijun, is this a good thing?"

He just couldn't figure it out, how could Li Xian be so cold-blooded?

Li Xian was older, nearly fifty years old. As the first person in the entire group to respect Hei Fu as the leader, he had an extraordinary status. He was the think tank of the Anlu faction and Hei Fu's anchor in the south.

Seeing that Wei Jing was still so emotional, Li Xian immediately frowned and scolded:

"Surprise, if you want to be in the court one day, you can't just focus on one city or one pool, but you should see the overall situation!"

He stood up and explained why he had made this difficult decision.

"When I was in Yuzhang, I sent spies into Huainan. Therefore, I know that among the so-called remnants of the Six Kingdoms, Chu is the only strong one. Among them, Xiang Ji is the most brave. The generals under his command have also been battle-hardened for a long time. They roamed the two central plains of Huaihe and it is difficult to fight against each other."

"The main force of the regent is in Guanzhong, but there are no generals in the south. Therefore, in the battle of Huainan last year, although there were gains, it was ultimately a failure. Without generals who are good at fighting, and without the reinforcements of the troops who have fought hundreds of battles, the barbarians will be able to conquer the country just by relying on the old, weak, women and children of the south. Soldiers are determined not to be able to compete with Chu alone, so they cannot attack or even defend, but should avoid its sharp edges..."

"In your opinion, gathering troops from Jiangdong and Jingzhou to fight with Xiang Ji in the wilderness is playing into his own hands. This person is like a gambler. He is gambling on the fate of the country, betting that he can win in one battle and completely reverse the situation. And I But there is no need to gamble with him, you just need to grind slowly, strengthen the walls and clear the country. Since two years ago, Anlu has been empty. Now it only needs to evacuate the three counties of Zhu, Xiling and Xiakou, cross the river and resettle, and the young and strong Then tens of thousands of militiamen can help me stop the Chu army from Jianghan."

"The Chu army will not be able to plunder in Zhu County for long. If they retreat along the original route and return to Huainan through the southern foot of Dabie, they will be pursued by our army one after another, and the troops from Danyang and Wuyue will harass them."

"If we continue to move forward and want to attack the populous western counties of Nanjun, we must first pass through these hundreds of miles of uninhabited and scorched land. It is the severe winter and the cold wind is blowing, and we will suffer heavy casualties. Then we must forcefully cross the Han River and enter the Yunnan River. Dream wilderness.”

"As for the elite soldiers in the two counties, they can follow the old plan given to Ji Ying by the regent. When the enemy advances, we retreat, when the enemy is stationed, we harass, when the enemy is tired, we attack, when the enemy retreats, we pursue. We must trap Xiang Thief in Yunmeng! As long as he delays When Zhao Tuo arrives at Nanjun and surrounds it, Xiang Ji will be dead and the Chu Kingdom will be destroyed!"

If you can't beat him, just keep going! This is a trick that Li Xian and the others have learned from someone over the years.

In Li Xian's opinion, when Xiang Ji could not accept the loss of Huainan and decided to send troops to Hengshan to find trouble, he fell into the trap.

For the Chu people, the situation is like a quagmire. The more they struggle, the deeper they sink. But if they don't struggle, they will eventually die.

From Xihe to Jiangdong, the noose had been put around the necks of the Six Nations as early as the moment Heifu defeated Wuguan! All that's left is to slowly tighten it!

"This is from the perspective of this battle. For the final victory, Hengshan must make sacrifices!"

Li Xian was the kind of person who would order his subordinates to die without blinking an eye. In his heart, he was always concerned about gains and losses.

Wei Jing nodded his head. Although he still felt a little guilty in his heart, he was not ignorant of the overall situation, but he still murmured: "As a long-time official, I lost the territory I governed and sent my people into exile. This is the crime of Jing." After the war, I may resign as county governor..."

"As expected, I am only suitable to be a rich man." After two years of business, Wei Jing was still a little depressed.

"How can you be so childish! You are so confused. Hengshan after the war is the place where we can make great achievements!"

Li Xian scolded Wei Jing again: "The regent has already said that Hengshan is a small place with a river separating the north and the south. The reason why the county can be established is because of Tieshan and Tonglu Mountain, not Zhu County. Now it seems that that The local harbor is small and the responsibilities cannot be large, so it is not suitable for a county government..."

"The most suitable place is Wuchang!"

Being entrusted by Heifu with the entire five counties of Jingzhou, Li Xian had his own unique ideas about the future development and strategic priorities of this place. He talked eloquently:

"In my opinion, there are three excellent places in Jingzhou: Wuchang, Xiangyang, and Jiangling!"

"In terms of the world, the emphasis is on Xiangyang; in terms of Jingzhou, the emphasis is on Jiangling; in terms of the southeast, the emphasis is on Wuchang!"

"There is no need to say more about Xiangyang and Jiangling, but why should we focus on Wuchang? The people in Wuchang strangled Jiang and Han, and brought Wu and Chu with them. In the Spring and Autumn Period, Wu and Chu attacked each other, and something happened in Xiakou. The land is connected to Jing and Xian, and the Jiang and Han rivers merge, making it a key area for military assault. The victory in the southeast must be upstream. If you go straight down the river, Yuzhang and Jiangdong are all within the territory, so it is said that the focus is on Wuchang."

"The regent had a unique vision. He took a liking to this place as early as when Wuchang was still a wasteland. The Southern Expeditionary Army set up a large camp based on it, and transported heavy troops and troops. Boats and vehicles from all over the place gathered together, and it became a city in one year."

"During the Northern Expedition, the old, weak, women and children from Anlu were used to farm and build towns here, which gradually grew in size and became a city in one year."

"Now we are taking advantage of the Chu army's massacre to allow the people of Hengshan to move south. After this battle, Zhu County can be abolished, and the counties east of the Han River can be merged into it. It will be called Jiangxia County, with its seat in Wuchang. By the year, it will become a capital city in the south of the Yangtze River, and the household registration, merchants, and prosperity here will be ten times that of Zhu County!"

Li Xian's tone was slightly gentler: "At that time, we will report to the regent and use Jiangxia County as a fiefdom for the Duke of Xia for generations, reducing the corvee and taxes."

His plan for Jingzhou's future needs Wei Jing's help to endorse it, so it has a higher success rate of being adopted. And he can also take this opportunity to enter the court in one fell swoop, becoming a prince and a noble!

It worked. This vision of the future made Wei Jing a little obsessed. He murmured:

"Brother Zhong said when he raised the army, he wanted to completely end this troubled world..."

Wei Jing thought again of the Huang family's father-in-law who was resolute and unyielding on the outskirts of Zhucheng.

It is only human nature to settle down and relocate.

"I just hope that my children and grandchildren can stay in one place from birth to old age and burial, and never have to experience war and displacement again!"

"do not worry."

Li Xian patted him on the shoulder and encouraged Wei Jing to work with him to overcome this difficulty: "This is the original expectation of the people of Nanjun."

"It is also the wish of everyone in the world!"

He nodded in surprise, and then there was some surprise in his eyes, and a bit of joy flashed in his eyes. He stood up, pointed outside and said:

"Snow...it's snowing."

Li Xian turned around and saw the snow falling from the gloomy sky, falling on the heads of the Hengshan refugees queuing up to live in the former fortress houses of the Northern Expeditionary Army in Wuchang City.

They also fell hundreds of miles away, on the other side of the river. After the fire was extinguished, the scorched earth of Zhu County seemed to have been sprinkled with a layer of salt and frost on the ugly scars...

The corners of Li Xian's mouth began to rise, and then he laughed ecstatically:

"God helps! God helps!"

"We won this battle!"