Chapter 551 - Defense
Chapter 551 of "After Transmigration: Building a Kingdom in Turbulent Times" opens revealing: Zhao Hanzhang asked, "What about the Xianbei and the Xiongnu?"Chen Wu hesitated for a moment,... Keep going!
Zhao Hanzhang asked, "What about the Xianbei and the Xiongnu?"Chen Wu hesitated for a moment, then gritted his teeth and said, "We can fight them too, but besides provisions, the Zhao Family Army needs to give me thirty horses."
The entire Qihu Army had only a few horses, but they did have dozens of oxen, used specifically for transporting the wounded and the frail. If they couldnât find anyone to hire them, theyâd have to slaughter the oxen.
The Xianbei and the Xiongnu were both fierce, renowned for their cavalry. It was impossible to defeat them in a cavalry battle, and Chen Wu didnât think he could train cavalry that would surpass theirs.
He had his own strategy, and the reason he asked Zhao Hanzhang for thirty horses was to relay messages.
Cavalry were fast, and he needed more and quicker scouts.
Zhao Hanzhang did not question his strategy and readily agreed.
Chen Wuâs heart sank, they were really going to fight the Xianbei and the Xiongnu.
Chen Wu tugged at the corner of his mouth and planned to ask for more provisions, "So, does General Zhao intend to fight the Xianbei or the Xiongnu?"
If it was the Xiongnu, he might take a little less; if it was the Xianbei, the price would have to be higher. But what had the Xianbei done recently?
Why go to fight the Xianbei?
Zhao Hanzhang said, "I want to hire you to defend my territory."
Chen Shiâs eyes widened, involuntarily leaning forward, "Then how do we calculate the provisions?"
Perhaps afraid Zhao Hanzhang would regret it, Chen Shi said, "Defense consumes much less daily provisions than an offensive, I can reduce it by another twenty percent."
Zhao Hanzhang said, "I want you to defend Guy City."
Guy City isnât very far from here; heading towards Luoyang, it takes a day to reach. But Guy City is small and canât block the Xiongnu and Xianbei, and Luoyang already has natural defenses, so Guy City serves more like a lookout post.
It can detect enemies early and give early warnings.
If it were just for warning, deploying two teams here, two hundred soldiers would be enough, so why spend a significant amount hiring them?
Chen Shi hinted, "General Zhao, I have five thousand men here, and their daily provision needs are not small."
Zhao Hanzhang said, "Every month, Iâll provide you with a batch of provisions. This year, for every soldier, Iâll give a pound of grain per day."
Chen Shi rolled his eyes and asked, "General Zhao, will you still hire us next year? How about next yearâs price?"
"Iâll allocate a piece of land in Guy City for you to farm."
Chen Shi anticipated this and couldnât help but swallow and ask, "Then the seeds, farm tools, and if Guy City faces invasion..."
Zhao Hanzhang said, "Iâll provide the seeds, weâll figure out the tools together, and if Guy City is attacked, Luoyang naturally wonât stand by idly."
Chen Shi was excited but still cautiously pondered.
Didnât the Qihu Army have a place to settle down and farm?
They did, now throughout Great Jin there were abandoned fields, even houses and cities. They could take over any place and start farming.
But planting doesnât necessarily mean harvest, and living in peace is even less possible.
Firstly, they didnât have enough seeds for farming;
Secondly, they lacked the provisions to support them from planting to harvest;
Thirdly, they couldnât fend off the chaotic armies that came to seize their harvest.
This chaos included but was not limited to the Xiongnu, Xianbei, neighboring garrisoned troops, various castle masters, and the wandering refugee army.
Hadnât Chen Wu farmed before?
He had, but after a yearâs hard work, the food harvested wasnât even enough for the soldiersâ provisions. More people starved to death than those who died on the battlefield, so they chose to wander, beg, and fight for people to earn money to buy provisions.
Though there were fatalities, fewer died this way than from starvation in one place.
It wasnât that no power wanted to subdue them, and they were willing to be subdued, yet things never aligned with their wishes.
Prince East Sea once wanted to recruit them, but he had many troops. Although the Qihu Army could fight, they had only five to six thousand men, which didnât impress Prince East Sea much.
Moreover, he could make other armies capture good people to sell to subsidize his military expensesâhow could he possibly provide enough provisions for the Qihu Army?
So the Qihu Army stayed with Prince East Sea for less than a month before leaving.
If even Prince East Sea couldnât support them, other forces certainly couldnât.
Chen Wu hinted to Zhao Hanzhang, "General Zhao, even just for five thousand soldiers, you need to give me five thousand pounds of grain a day, which is a lot. Are you sure you want to hire me for a year?"
Zhao Hanzhang nodded and said, "Iâm sure!"
Chen Wu: "Are the conditions just to defend the territory?"
"Correct, just to defend the territory," Zhao Hanzhang said, "If thereâs an order for you to expand outward, Iâll pay extra."
The conditions were so favorable that Chen Wu hesitated to agree immediately. He said, "I need to discuss with my subordinates."
Zhao Hanzhang understood and stood up, saying, "Give me an answer before sunset. I have to leave for Luoyang tomorrow morning."
Chen Wu agreed.
As soon as she left, he immediately called in Feng Long and others, and solemnly said, "Do you think thereâs any conspiracy here?"
Feng Long shared this suspicion, "That Zhao Hanzhang isnât easy to deal with. The messages we received before were sent by their Yu State Army, and we donât know if theyâre true. If theyâre false, who knows what Luoyangâs situation is. If theyâre true, then her methods are too clever and ruthless. Are we going to be sold out and still count money for her?"
Li didnât think so much and asked, "Besides our lives, what else do we have to calculate?"
Feng Long: "What if what theyâre counting on is our lives?"
Chen Wu squatted on the ground, pondered for a long while, and shook his head, "No, I believe I have some ability to read people. She doesnât seem like a bad person."
Feng Long believed in him and immediately said, "Then letâs do it."
"Right, letâs do it. Being indecisive is not befitting a real man," Li lowered his voice, "Besides, if we donât earn provisions soon, people will starve to death in the army."
Upon hearing this, Chen Wu also made up his mind, "Alright, letâs go with her!"
Feng Long said with some hope, "What if this time, we finally settle down?"
Even Chen Wu and Li began to dream about the future.
But they didnât dare to dream too deeply, afraid that the greater the hope, the greater the disappointment.
Zhao Hanzhang had just returned to the camp when she received Chen Wuâs reply. She curled her lips in satisfaction.
Zeng Yue and Yuan Li were both puzzled, "Madam, with so many provisions, we could recruit refugees ourselves and train them. Why hire them?"
There was no shortage of soldiers, refugees were everywhere. As long as there was food and money, a simple call to arms would attract many people.
Soldiers trained personally are different; arenât they more loyal than hired soldiers?
Zhao Hanzhang said, "Recruiting soldiers ourselves requires not just food, but also weapons, armor, and generals to train troops, which consumes an unknown amount of resources."
"And now, we just need to provide enough provisions to get a brave army. Why not?"
They all thought the Qihu Army was hired, outsiders, and wouldnât be loyal, forgetting that she too had a mercenary relationship with soldiers personally trained.
If scattered, they would naturally turn to others to survive. Could she really expect them to die for her?
The Qihu Army was very reliable. Paid correctly, they would complete tasks even if beaten, no less than loyal soldiers.
If used well, these people could be a great weapon.