Xianxia version of Water Margin

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Cai You left the capital with a group of troops and set off for Liangshan in Wangshuibo. As soon as they reached Chenqiaoyi, something very unpleasant happened to him.

At dusk, two flag-bearing soldiers suddenly ran away. The two big flags with the words "Shao Bao, Jiedushi" and "Recruiting Envoy, Cai You" were also abducted by them.

The officers and soldiers talked among themselves privately, saying that this was an ominous sign.

Seeing this, Cai You also murmured in his heart.

Lehe said to Cai You: "The officials have given my husband a guarantee, so why should my husband be afraid?"

When Cai You thought about it, he no longer took it to heart.

Cai You and his party left Tokyo's Bianliang City on October 15th and did not arrive at Xingqing Mansion until November 11th.

He walked this short journey of several hundred miles for twenty-six days.

Along the way, Cai You knelt down to worship at temples and burned incense when he saw gods. He used a whole carriage's worth of incense. Whether he was facing Buddha, Guanyin Bodhisattva, or Taoist gods, he held incense with both hands, closed his eyes, prayed, and murmured words. It was nothing more than begging them to bless his trip smoothly, and in one fell swoop, An Jiangyan made him Return with great honor.

When he walked to Dongming Mansion, Cai You encountered two pieces of news that made him feel bad:

The first news is that Hou Meng, who advocated the recruitment of Shuibo Liangshan, died suddenly.

This made Cai You murmur again: "Shouldn't we go to recruit An Shuibo Liangshan?"

The second news is that Chen Xizhen regained Puzhou during this period, and the strategic space of the Zhao and Song Dynasty was reduced. Moreover, the Liangshan Army set up camp in front of Xingqing Fucheng and sent generals to fight all day long.

As a result, Cai You suddenly "fell ill" and was bedridden.

Dongming officials quickly found a large group of beauties for Cai You and took good care of him day and night. With Zhao Ji's oral urging, he gradually recovered.

When Cai You arrived at Xingqing Mansion, he knew that the battle was not over and Gao Qiu rushed to meet Cai You.

After the two met, Gao Qiu entertained Cai You with wine and food. Not only did Gao Qiu call all his beauties to accompany Cai You.

After three rounds of wine and five dishes, Gao Qiu asked Cai You cautiously: "Young Master is here. Does the official have anything to teach Shao Bao to give to Gao Qiu?"

Cai You waved his hand and told everyone who was waiting for them to go down, leaving only Lehe alone. Then he lowered his voice and said, "Guan Jiayi asked the Taiwei, are you sure of winning?"

Gao Qiu really wanted to say: "Yes!"

But the problem is that Gao Qiu has already frightened Liangshan's army, so he really can't say this. He can only say vaguely: "If there are another 100,000 or 200,000 reinforcements, we will be sure."

yes.

Gao Qiu and Cai You were both treacherous officials and both were unlearned and unskilled.

But you can't help it. Gao Qiu and Cai You are both in the absolute power circle of the Zhao and Song Dynasties.

How could they not know if the Zhao and Song dynasties still had soldiers? Especially "Minister of National Defense" Gao Qiu.

simply put:

The soldiers and horses of the Zhao and Song Dynasties were composed of the Northwest Forbidden Army (Western Army), the Hebei Forbidden Army, the Gyeonggi Forbidden Army, and the Jiangnan Forbidden Army.

The Northwest Forbidden Army is divided into six northwest routes, namely Xihe Road, Qinfeng Road, Jingyuan Road, Huanqing Road, and Yanyan Road, plus the Yongxing Military Road in the interior of Guanzhong.

Due to the need to fight against Xixia, where all the people are soldiers, the Sixth Northwest Army can be said to be all soldiers. In some places, even women and children can participate in the war, at least as auxiliary troops.

This was one of the reasons why Tong Guan dared to draw a large number of Western troops to fight.

——As long as Xixia dares to invade the Sixth Northwest Route, the people of the Sixth Northwest Route will help the Western Army to defend the northwest.

Some people may want to say that the people of the Sixth Northwest Route are so powerful. It is better to screen out 500,000 Qi Refiners from there. No, screen out one million Qi Refiners and transfer them to various battlefields. The troubles of the Zhao and Song Dynasties will be solved. ?

How can it be so easy!

First of all, the people of Northwest Sixth Road have a strong sense of ruralism. Let them stay at home and fight any way they want. They are not afraid of death, because in their view, it is protecting their homeland. But if they go out to fight, it will be difficult.

Secondly, do you know how much spiritual money it will cost to form an army of one million, no, even half a million Qi Refiners?

According to the calculations of Cai Xiang, who was the Third Secretary-General at the time, in the early years of Emperor Yingzong of the Song Dynasty, there were more than 1.18 million soldiers and soldiers in the Zhao and Song dynasties, and the cost of raising troops was 48 million yuan per year. On average, every year A person lives about forty years a year.

Based on this calculation, forming an army of 500,000 people will generate an extra 20 million yuan of spiritual money a year.

The key is that it still takes time.

Now if they are mobilized in a hurry, the northwest can draw out at most 150,000 to 200,000 troops that can go into battle.

But in that case, the Zhao and Song Dynasty's defensive strength in the northwest would be almost zero.

Some people may want to say that it is enough to leave the defense completely to the people. Why not all the people in the Sixth Northwest Route are soldiers?

It is true that all the people are soldiers, but the people are just the people no matter how you say it. They can only serve as auxiliaries, and they need a real army to lead them, so that they can resist the invasion of Xixia, otherwise they will be in disarray.

And don't forget, the Western Army still has to withstand the expansion of the two big bandits, Tian Hu and Wang Qing.

It can be said that at this stage, there is no army in the Song Army that is under greater pressure than the Western Army.

Therefore, the Northwest Sixth Route could not mobilize a single soldier in a short period of time.

Then apart from the Western Army, the huge Zhao and Song Dynasty had no other armies?

have.

Of course there is.

How could the Zhao and Song Dynasty, with a population of hundreds of millions, only have this small army?

In addition to the Western Army, the Zhao and Song Dynasty also had two major military regions, the Hebei Forbidden Army and the Gyeonggi Forbidden Army.

Ordinarily, the Hebei Forbidden Army, which was the main force to defend against the Liao invasion, numbered in the hundreds of thousands.

But as soon as it came, the Hebei Forbidden Army had just transferred 100,000 troops to the Northwest Sixth Route to exchange defense with the Western Army.

Secondly, when Tong Guan went south to suppress Fangla, he transferred a group of Hebei forbidden troops from Hebei.

Thirdly, the Hebei Forbidden Army is now the most severely underpaid place in the Zhao and Song Dynasties. In fact, it is far less than it appears on paper.

Fourthly, and most importantly, in the past few years, the Liangshan Army has successively eliminated and annexed a large number of Hebei Forbidden Army.

In the past five years, Hebei has been blocked by the Liangshan Army, and even some of the Hebei Forbidden Army who were still loyal to the Zhao and Song Dynasties could not leave Hebei.

In short, the Hebei Forbidden Army cannot be counted on.

Let’s talk about the Gyeonggi Forbidden Army.

Under the hard work of Lieutenant Gao Qiu, the soldiers of the Gyeonggi Forbidden Army have mastered good skills.

Military skills?

of course not.

Instead, they have construction skills such as building palaces and rockeries.

Gao Qiu turned what was supposed to be the most elite Gyeonggi Forbidden Army of the Zhao and Song dynasties into hundreds of thousands of craftsmen, specifically used to help Zhao Ji build large-scale construction projects.

As a result, the current soldiers of the Gyeonggi Forbidden Army are definitely not good at fighting, but they are absolutely professional in expanding the palace and building Genyue Long live Mountain.

Of course, Gao Qiu was not so stupid that he did not retain any of the Gyeonggi Forbidden Army who could fight. After all, on paper, the Gyeonggi Forbidden Army numbered 800,000.

But when Tong Guan went to suppress Fangla, he took away a group of Gyeonggi Imperial Guards.

Over the years, the Liangshan Army has successively eliminated and annexed many Gyeonggi Forbidden Forces.

This time Gao Qiu came to suppress Shuibo Liangshan. It can be said that he brought all the last capable soldiers of the Gyeonggi Forbidden Army with him.

How can the Gyeonggi Forbidden Army have any soldiers left to fight?

By the way, there is also the Jiangnan Forbidden Army.

The Jiangnan Forbidden Army's combat power was already the worst, and now it is even more so. They have either been wiped out by Jiang Hongfei and Fang La, or they have been wiped out by Wang Qing. Even if there is a little bit left, Tong Guan has long been incorporated into the team to suppress Fang La. Got it.

By the way, the pressure on Tong Guan is no less than that on Gao Qiu now. How about asking Tong Guan to give Gao Qiu some troops? Gao Qiu didn't even dare to have such a sweet dream.

Although Cai You didn't understand these situations very well, he did know something about it, so he looked at Gao Qiu and said leisurely: "Does the Song Dynasty have one or two hundred thousand reinforcements for the Taiwei? Doesn't the Taiwei know better than me?"

Of course Gao Qiu knew these circumstances, but how could he not mean what he said?

Gao Qiu said hesitantly: "The imperial court...can't recruit another one or two hundred thousand new troops?"

Cai You said: "Why didn't you recruit? Not long ago, we recruited 200,000 new troops. 50,000 were supplied to you, 50,000 were supplied to Tong Taifu, and the remaining 100,000 were used to make up for the defense gaps in the Gyeonggi area that you took away. .”

Gao Qiu naturally knew about this.

Gao Qiu actually said this because he wanted Cai You to persuade Zhao Ji to recruit another 200,000 troops.

Gao Qiu said: "Then...according to Shaobao, can the imperial court recruit another 100,000 or 200,000 new troops?"

Cai You sighed: "Alas! When I came, all the main streets in the capital were posted with recruitment lists for brave men. Anyone who passed the martial arts examination, had talent in military strategy, had military exploits, had fought in battles, or had passed through borders Those who have served as envoys, or have served as archers and horsemen, as well as those who are brave and brave in fighting from various ethnic groups are all within the scope of recruitment. The imperial court has been recruiting new troops recently. But the recruitment is not as fast as yours. And recruiting new troops requires money and food. Today, the southeast is occupied by Fang La, the southwest is occupied by Wang Qing, the northwest is occupied by Tian Hu, and here is occupied by Jiang Yan. Where does the money and food for recruiting troops come from?"

Hearing what Cai You said, Gao Qiu couldn't help but sigh!

Gao Qiu knew that it was not that the court did not want to help him, but that the situation was too difficult for the Zhao and Song dynasties.

Cai You stayed in Xingqing Mansion for a day, and Gao Qiu sent Qiu Yue and Zhou Ang to lead 10,000 troops to escort Cai You to the Liangshan Army's barracks opposite and hand him over to the Liangshan Army.

What made Cai You a little relieved was that when the soldiers of the Liangshan Army heard Lehe say that Cai You's sister was Jiang Hongfei's concubine, they were very polite to Cai You and the others.

Soon, under the escort of Liangshan Army, Cai You and his party arrived at Liangshanbo and boarded a luxury ship.

Since there didn't seem to be any danger, Cai You couldn't help but look at the eight-hundred-mile water pool where his ears almost felt calloused.

You can see that there are water pools vertically and horizontally, and water nets are densely covered. There are thousands of branches in Zhouhui Harbor, and it is eight hundred miles in all directions. It is connected to the island in the east, Xianyang in the west, Dayejin Township in the south, and Yanjun County in Qingqi Province in the north. Its shape is like a giant dragon winding, stretching for eight hundred miles, with vast mist and myriad phenomena. The lake is bottomless and the undercurrents are surging, making it daunting.

Looking at the Liangshan mooring, all the towering warships were coming and going. Two of them were even more than 40 feet long, 18 feet wide, and several stories high.

This brought a huge shock to Cai You's soul!

After arriving at Jinshatan Beach, Jiang Hongfei did not come to greet Cai You in person, but asked Cai Dezhang and Chai Jin, who Cai You did not expect, to come to greet Cai You.

Along the way, Chai Jin politely and gracefully introduced Liangshan to Cai You...

Cai You saw the rugged rocks on Liangshan Mountain and the rugged mountain roads, making it extremely difficult to climb. The undulating mountains and lush forests form a natural defense fortification. Its three passes are majestic, with spears, swords and halberds like a forest, and the soldiers and horses are strong. The entire Liangshan Mountain is like an invincible fortress!

Cai You thought to himself: "It is located near mountains and rivers, the situation is dangerous, the transportation is convenient, and you can attack when you advance and defend when you retreat. No wonder Jiang Yan embarked on such a big undertaking!"

Along the way, Cai You saw the troops. They were all wearing heavy armor, holding sharp weapons, their eyes were like torches, they were motionless like a bell, and they moved like the wind. They were two in a row and three in a line.

What impressed Cai You most was a heavily equipped cavalry. They were rolling in like a torrent of steel, unstoppable. The sound of their march was like thunder, shocking the hearts of the people. Their figures were as towering as mountains and intimidating.

Cai You swallowed hard and thought about the Gyeonggi Forbidden Army he had seen.

Even though he didn't understand the military, Cai You couldn't help but think: "Are these bandits? Can the Song Dynasty defeat them?"

When they arrived at Wanzicheng, Jiang Hongfei still did not see Cai You. Instead, he asked Mrs. Cai to take her son and Cai Dezhang's family to have a family dinner with Cai You first.

This time, not even Chai Jin accompanied him, only the three Cai brothers and sisters and their families.

After having such a family dinner in Shuibo Liangshan, Cai You was filled with emotions!

What made Cai You even more emotional was that both Mrs. Cai and Cai Dezhang had changed.

In Cai You's impression, Mrs. Cai was spoiled by the ten of them, father and son, and became arrogant and willful, even a little vicious.

Cai You once heard that Liang Zhongshu had a concubine who was born on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month. On her birthday, she was given a pair of fish bottles, so her nickname was "Sister Ping" and her nickname was "Li Ping'er". His sister was very jealous. Therefore, Li Ping'er was never able to get close to Liang Taishu and could only live with his adoptive mother in the study outside. In this way, his sister also claimed that if Li Ping'er dared to seduce Liang Taishu, she would beat Li Ping'er to death and bury her in the back garden. Inside.

But now Cai You saw Mrs. Cai again and found that she spoke well, behaved steadily, was neither arrogant nor impetuous, neither jealous nor jealous, and looked like a completely good wife and loving mother.

Cai You really couldn't figure out how Jiang Hongfei trained his sister to be so well-behaved and sensible?

After hesitating again and again, thinking of the relationship between their brothers and sisters in the past, Cai You still found an opportunity to lower his voice and asked Mrs. Cai: "Can I find a way to bring you back, brother?"

No, Mrs. Cai refused without even thinking about it: "My little sister is living a good life now. The officials and sisters treat me well, so I won't go back."

Cai Dezhang is also more stable than before, darker and stronger. Overall, he lacks the temperament of a scholar and is more capable.

Cai Dezhang was very enthusiastic about Cai You's arrival. He took the initiative to tell Cai You a lot about what he was doing now, such as encouraging farmers and leading the people of Laizhou to engage in refined salt and fishery...

Cai Dezhang spoke enthusiastically, even dancing.

Although Cai You didn't understand why Cai Dezhang was so proud of what he had done, he found that his youngest brother was much more motivated than before.

Cai You also inquired from Mrs. Cai and Cai Dezhang about Jiang Hongfei's attitude towards recruitment.

But both Mrs. Cai and Cai Dezhang shook their heads, indicating that they didn't know.

However, Cai You's family dinner with Mrs. Cai and Cai Dezhang was not in vain.

From the mouths of Mrs. Cai and Cai Dezhang, Cai You learned that the area under the rule of Shuibo Liangshan had clear and clear politics, and the people had no worries about food and clothing, lived and worked in peace and contentment, and people were happy with their governance. Moreover, the officialdom of Shuibo Liangshan was completely free of the party disputes and conflicts of the Zhao and Song Dynasties. Corruption, intrigue, and some only healthy competition.

In Cai Dezhang's words: "Here, all my original problems are gone. Everyone is looking at you. If you can do it, you can do it. If you can't, there will be someone who can replace you. You won't be able to do it." Because of who you are, your virtue is not worthy of your place."

After initially getting to know Shuibo Liangshan, Cai You felt that Jiang Hongfei was amazing, and at the same time began to realize that Shuibo Liangshan was not ordinary powerful. This power was not only reflected in its military, but also in politics.

Cai You was even afraid of Shuibo Liangshan from the bottom of his heart, and even more afraid of Jiang Hongfei who created Shuibo Liangshan.

What's more, Cai You began to vaguely feel that the Zhao Song Dynasty could no longer fight with Shuibo Liangshan and should recruit Jiang Hongfei at all costs. Otherwise, the Zhao Song Dynasty might be destroyed...

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