Tibet

Gao Lishi said calmly: "The tiger talisman and the command arrow cannot be given to you for the time being, but you should know that within your jurisdiction, the army can be mobilized by you, but beyond the military jurisdiction, the tiger talisman is needed. In other words, only Only when the other half of the tiger talisman is sent from the imperial court can your army cross the border."

"What about going to the Four Towns of Anxi?"

Gao Lishi shook his head, "No way!"

Li Ye was confused, "Isn't the humble post the Hezhong Governor's Mansion under Anxi Jiedu Mansion?"

Gao Lishi sneered and said: "Who told you that you are under the jurisdiction of Anxi Jiedu Prefecture?"

Li Ye thought for a moment and realized that no one had told him. Because he was previously the Broken Leaf Soldier and Horse Envoy under Anxi Jiedu Mansion, he took it for granted that he was still under the jurisdiction of Anxi Jiedu Mansion.

"I don't understand my humble position, please tell me!"

Gao Lishi said slowly: "After the Hezhong Dudufu was established, its jurisdiction was extremely broad, extending from the Wuhu River to the west, to the easternmost end of the Yili River Valley in the east, to the Yibo Sea in the north, and to Tocharo in the south. This range was originally It is under the jurisdiction of the Beiting Protectorate, but considering that the jurisdiction of the Beiting Protectorate is too wide, it used to be a virtual one, but now it is a real one, so the Hezhong Governor's Mansion was specially pulled out and administered by the emperor. Do you understand? It used to be There are now eleven out of the ten major Jiedu mansions, but it is the Dudu Mansion, ranking lowest, after the Five Lingnan Jinglue Mansion."

Li Ye was surprised and delighted. This was actually his grandfather's original idea to establish the Hezhong Jinglue Mansion. However, the court did not agree and changed it to the Dudu Mansion. But in essence, it was still the Jinglue Mansion. It was no longer affiliated with Anxi or Beiting, but It is under the direct jurisdiction of the emperor, which shows that the emperor attaches great importance to the Hezhong area.

"I understand the humble position!"

Gao Lishi took out the golden cylinder again and said, "This is the banner given to you. The banner is written as a text, and the banner is a martial arts. Internally, the banner is dedicated to rewards, and the banner is dedicated to killing. Externally, if your neighbors are disrespectful, you must punish them with discipline. When the neighbors are uneasy, hold a banner to appease them. Your gold medal is only for temporary use. This is the real power of control."

Gao Lishi opened the cylinder, and inside was a green silk bag. When he opened it again, there were two purple silk bags inside. When he opened the bag, he took out two items, one was a gold and bronze chi tiger head. Below is a black and red copper pole with a wooden plate on top with a white tiger painted on it.

"This is the banner. Holding it has the power to promote generals, reward the three armies, and can also send envoys to appease small neighboring countries."

Gao Lishi took out another item, which was also a red and black copper pole, but it was decorated with copper leaves. There were three layers of golden disks on the top, and a red and green yak tail was nailed around the disk.

"This is the rule. If there is any disobedience, we will kill it. If the state is disrespectful, we will attack it!"

Gao Lishi put away the things one by one and said solemnly: "According to the emperor's oral instructions, Gao Lishi conferred the festival on behalf of the emperor, and Li Ye, the governor of the river, received the ceremony.

Li Ye quickly knelt down on one knee and saluted, "I accept the banner for my humble duty!"

Gao Lishi handed the long rosewood box painted with gold to Li Ye, and sighed helplessly: "It was supposed to be the emperor who consecrated the festival, but the emperor! He entrusted me to consecrate the festival."

Li Ye understood what Gao Lishi didn't say, that the emperor was addicted to pleasure.

Gao Lishi added: "Early tomorrow morning, you will go to the Ministry of War with the tiger talisman and command arrows, and the Ministry of War will officially build an army for you."

Li Ye was stunned, "Army?"

Gao Lishi smiled hoarsely and said: "Of course it is the 12,000 troops of the Hezhong Dudu Mansion. Do you want to recruit them yourself in the Hezhong area? That's okay, but can you recruit them?"

Li Ye scratched his head and said: "Give me the army in the capital? It's a bit inconsistent with my understanding."

"You think too much?"

Gao Lishi shook his head and said with a smile: "I want you to go to the Ministry of War to complete the procedures for establishing an army. There is no Hezhong Army yet! Then I will take you to get familiar with the army. Without the tiger talisman and the command arrow, no one will obey your command."

Only then did Li Ye understand that this was the reason why he was only given festivals but not tiger talismans and command arrows.

"When will the army be handed over to humble positions?"

Gao Lishi waved his hand and said: "Don't be anxious. The imperial court has a complete system. It is impossible for you to command 12,000 troops and be stationed outside Chang'an City now. Isn't it a mess? If he meets an ambitious person, he can raise his The soldiers have rebelled, so don’t think too much now. The army will be handed over to you tomorrow, but some of the power will be restricted. The tiger talisman and command arrows are currently in the hands of civilian officials. He will follow the army to break the leaves, and then formally transfer the power of troop deployment and crusade. Handed over to you."

"Civil official refers to the governor of the governor's office?"

"That's right. The four major officials, the governor, deputy governor, chief historian, and Sima, are appointed by the imperial court. Officials below Sima are recommended by the governor and reported to the imperial court for approval. This refers to civilian officials, military generals and captains and above, and deputy governors and below. The governor recommends and reports to the imperial court for approval, while those below the rank of captain are appointed by the governor themselves and reported to the imperial court for record.”

Li Ye knew that Li Ye had the same authority as the Anxi Jiedu Envoy. Now he couldn't hold back his inner expectations and said quickly: "Then I will go to the Ministry of War today, okay?"

"It's okay to go today, but I'm afraid Dugu Shangshu is not here and he needs to stamp and sign. But you go ahead! Take care of other things first."

After a pause, Gao Lishi said again: "There is one more thing. The Ministry of War will not tell you. The emperor once tacitly approved the establishment of Hu soldiers in Anxi, Beiting and Fanyang Jiedu prefectures. They were not included in the establishment, but the number of Hu soldiers could not exceed half of the establishment. , I asked the emperor specifically, and the emperor said, the Governor's Mansion in Hezhong is the same as Anxi, do you understand what I mean?"

Li Ye nodded silently. He understood what Gao Lishi meant. He could take Ning Yuan's army under his command.

The official who received Li Ye was Xiao Hua, the left minister of the Ministry of War. He was the son of the prime minister Xiao Song. He was not yet forty years old and was in the prime of life. He was also promoted by Li Linfu. Although Yang Guozhong was now very powerful and vigorously purged the officials promoted by Li Linfu, he After all, the foundation is not deep, so we can only purge some middle- and low-level officials who have no backing. Senior officials like Xiao Hua who come from well-known families cannot be purged even if Yang Guozhong wants to.

Xiao Hua greeted Li Ye with a smile, "General Li is too impatient and won't leave until mid-January next year. There is still one month left!"

"If you want to get to know the soldiers, you should know what you are doing!"

Xiao Hua nodded, "It's understandable, but I can't give you the tiger talisman and command arrow. Gao Weng has told you this!"

"He said it!"

"Okay, today I will go through the establishment formalities for you and create the Hezhong Army. I will take you to the military camp tomorrow morning and formally announce your appointment."

Although Li Ye wanted to go to the military camp today, he had no choice but to follow other people's arrangements. He nodded and asked, "Is the military camp a special military camp?"

"In the Xuanwu Camp in the Dongda Camp, the Ministry of War selected 12,000 people through selection and voluntary means, mainly voluntarily. These 12,000 people were almost all Guanzhong soldiers. They were stationed in Hezhong for four years. , come back in four years, and then select another army to garrison in the river, implementing a rotation system."

"Then can we allow them to take their families and stay in the river for a long time?"

Xiao Hua smiled slightly and said: "Of course the court hopes so, but it has to be done step by step. Now you let them take their families to the river. They are unfamiliar with the place and their eyes are dark. I guarantee that no one will go to the river. You have to let them first Go to the river to get familiar with it, and then if they think it is profitable to stay in the river, they will take the initiative to apply.”

"I understand, I have to do it step by step!"

"Okay! You fill out a bunch of paperwork first, and I'll ask a member of staff to help you. If you don't know anything, just ask him."

"Thank you!"

Once the system is strict, it will become very cumbersome and lengthy. He has to fill out more than 20 forms, statements, guarantees, and military regulations. He spent a whole morning in the Ministry of War, Li Ye's My head is too big.

After finding a tavern for a casual lunch, Li Ye went to the main residence of Pingkangfang to visit his grandfather Li Linfu.

Li Ye placed the banners on the small table in front of his grandfather, and helped his grandfather up together with his maid.

Li Linfu gently stroked the jingjie, and a rare smile appeared on his withered face, "Okay! You actually stick to the jingjie."

"When my grandfather tried his best to establish the Hezhong Economic Strategy Office, was it just to maintain integrity?"

Li Linfu nodded slightly, "I would rather be the head of a chicken than the queen of a cow!"

"My grandson understands, does grandfather have anything else to tell his grandson?"

Li Linfu took one look and the maid immediately withdrew.

Li Linfu trembled and whispered: "We must seize the military and financial power in our hands. The deputy governor and the chief history are the monitors sent by the imperial court. We must seize their handles. If they cannot be controlled, get rid of them in time!"

"My grandson remembers it!"

"Don't be pedantic. Only by waging war and plundering the army can soldiers sacrifice their lives. Only by being ruthless and thick-skinned can great things be achieved."

"Grandson, remember this!"

"You take three people with you. I have been my staff for more than ten years. One is Chen Huan, who is diligent and down-to-earth and good at managing government affairs. One is Yang Shaohua, who is smart and capable and good at managing money. There is also Qiu Xuan, nicknamed Du Xiu Shi. He can be a counselor. , you have to make good use of them."

"My grandson must treat them well and make good use of them!"