Chapter 101: There Is Unity, But No Troops

He needs to recruit the united troops himself, but after Fang Chongyong just became a prefect, one of the aggravating problems he encountered is this, and it isn't even the worst part yet.

The "Autumn Defense Decree", originally called the "Autumn Border Defense" by Pei Yaoqing, did not specify which border it defended, but essentially, aside from Tufan, no neighboring power warranted a special imperial edict from the Tang.

Drafting the decree was simple, yet its implementation proved repeatedly difficult. The Autumn Defense Decree is also not the "Autumn Defense System" of the mid‑late Tang in Fang Chongyong's previous life; the source of autumn troops was more fixed, the law clearer, and the content shorter and more practical.

Moreover, the Autumn Defense Decree is not merely a military regulation; it also addresses economic matters such as tax collection and wounded‑soldier relief.

At this moment, Fang Chongyong sits at a desk in the main hall of the Ganzhou Prefectural Office, reading the orders sent from Liangzhou, so speechless he feels like cursing his mother!

The first edict states: locally recruited settlement troops already deployed may not be rotated, to ensure sufficient forces against the Tufan army! Ganzhou must soothe those military households that cannot return home on schedule and cannot pretend nothing has happened.

This clause is fairly routine.

After all, if settlement troops cannot return home on time, it harms both the fields' harvest and their families' yield; the consequences are obvious.

The responsibility lies with the government, so the administration must bear it; in tax matters, it must grant certain exemptions and subsidies.

But once subsidies are mentioned, they are inevitably tied to the government treasury, because neither money nor grain appears out of thin air. The more settlement military households there are, the less the administration has.

How to reconcile this contradiction tests the wisdom of local officials.

If this clause is understandable, the next one is rather excessive.

The second edict reads: Ganzhou is prosperous and lies in the deep rear, so it must specifically prepare money and grain, as well as idle land and farm tools, to address wounded‑soldier rehabilitation and provide for their livelihoods. Those who wish to relocate to Ganzhou should be properly settled; those who refuse relocation should receive monetary and grain subsidies and be sent back to their place of origin.

The places of origin are mostly the five prefectures of the Hexi Corridor, though it does not exclude people like Liu Zhan who traveled thousands of li from the capital region or even Guandong to serve. Returning such wounded soldiers to their hometowns is troublesome: it requires substantial funds and also dispatches escorts to the home prefecture for handover.

This is one reason the Hexi prefectures resent the conscripted troops: the horse‑riding burden is a hassle! Not only are they inattentive in battle, but when wounded they still need someone to escort them home.

These measures are expected and also one guarantee of Tang army morale and bravery. Once the troops' rear‑ward concerns are solved, they can be expected to fight valiantly. This is indisputable.

The only unanswered question is why wounded soldiers are to be assigned to Ganzhou for settlement, and where the money and grain will be sourced; the edict offers no explanation.

He assumes the funds must first be drawn from the Ganzhou treasury, with accounting later. Fang Chongyong thinks that because Ganzhou's geography is favorable and its population sparse, the court also follows a principle of nearby settlement, effectively encouraging migration.

Although Liangzhou's economy leads the Hexi Corridor and it is the most populous and affluent stronghold, it must also supply and transport provisions to the troops of the farther‑west Anxi Protectorate and Beiting Protectorate.

The Beiting Protectorate alone requires over two hundred thousand bolts of cloth per year for its army.

With such a heavy burden, the central treasury in Chang'an is perpetually unable to supply funds promptly and constantly falls behind, so Liangzhou cannot shoulder additional military expenses. Moreover, its dense population leaves no spare land for settling various personnel.

From this perspective, the plight of frontier towns is easy to understand, which is another reason Liangzhou resists the Autumn Defense Decree.

The problem appears simple but is actually hard to resolve.

The third edict is the one that orders the Ganzhou office to cooperate with the Zhangye prefect to fill the six thousand united troops.

As for where the soldiers come from, the edict says nothing.

Yet it "implies" that troops can be borrowed from Liangzhou, and how many can be "borrowed" depends on the ability of the Ganzhou prefect.

Fang Chongyong speculated that whether it's Hexi Military Governor Xiao Jiong or Red Water Army Commander Wang Zhongsi, both would likely find it hard to spare any troops.

The meaning of united troops is simple: essentially semi‑militarized personnel who, when recruited, are placed into wartime formations, and when not needed they serve as settlement laborers ("tundings") handling farming and chores.

Yet the source of united troops is quite complex.

In Tang regular army organization, there is a distinction between "normal status" and "battle‑ready status."

Normal status comprises "dui" (company) and "huo" (fire), each led by a "dui‑zhang" (company commander) and "huo‑zhang" (fire commander). Above them is the "ying" (battalion), commanded by a "ying‑zhu" (battalion chief).

United troops lack such a structure; they farm daily and only when temporarily organized for training are they gathered by the regional militia commander ("zhou tuan lian shi").

But in battle‑ready status it is entirely different!

When battle‑ready, the army is divided into positions such as Grand General, Left and Right Flank Cavalry‑Infantry Commissioners, Cavalry‑Infantry Commissioner, and Duyu Hou, each with corresponding unit sequences.

This sequence differs completely from the everyday structure; even two armies with different designations may be merged. Which unit pairs with which depends solely on the front‑line commander's arrangement, not on routine marching order.

United troops, however, are assigned as needed into these combat sequences, indistinguishable from regular frontier forces.

So does the court's Autumn Defense Decree intend to gather these united troops for battle‑ready status? Is it to strengthen Ganzhou's local defense?

No, no, no—the edict means something entirely different.

It merely assigns Guo Ziyi to train the six thousand men, while the local prefect should handle their allocation and recruitment before handing them to Guo Ziyi for training.

As for combat, who commands these united troops is a profound question; the edict is silent, but clearly the trainer lacks authority to command them.

The Ganzhou locality theoretically lacks the right to employ these forces, yet recruiting and maintaining united troops costs money. The Ganzhou office must foot the bill, and the amount is far from trivial.

Fang Chongyong regards the trained united troops as a high‑quality "personnel pool" intended to replenish the armies under the Hexi Military Governor on the front line.

Amid the thousands of words in the edict, Fang Chongyong only saw three terms: grain, money, and manpower; everything else was filler.

The situation is severe: not only must the unspecified numbers be assembled, but the staggering amount of money, grain, and personnel is required, and yet they lack any authority to deploy the united troops.

All the horse‑riding is a job for making wedding dresses!

Regarding Guo Ziyi's proposal, Fang Chongyong thinks that if the five hundred men he has are used well, perhaps they could achieve a "miracle battle" with a casualty ratio of one to one hundred, which sounds rather interesting.

At least it's far more reliable than hoping for those six thousand united troops.

"The Hexi Military Governorate's demands are overly harsh; Ganzhou officials all know they cannot fulfill them, so everyone pretends deafness and muteness.

Only wonder how the magistrate will handle it?"

Yan Zhuang asked cautiously.

Fang Chongyong is now Yan Zhuang's superior and his backing, so Yan Zhuang no longer does as he wishes and decides to fully support his work.

Yet the difficulty is objective; no one can conjure these supplies out of thin air. Manpower is limited; they are the strong laborers who produce goods and grain. Using them as united troops would inevitably affect Ganzhou's local economy.

Moreover, united troops are not easy to recruit!

"Of course we must find a way, but what good plan do you have?"

Fang Chongyong asked in a deep voice, uttering a meaningless remark.

"My subordinate believes that the Zhaowu Nine Surnames wield strong local influence. Outside Ganzhou city are their settlements. If we need to borrow troops, it must be these Sogdian people."

"But the issue isn't whether people exist, it's whether the office has money to handle it."

"As long as we have money in hand, are we still afraid of lacking people?"

Yan Zhuang chuckled.

The Zhaowu Nine Surnames' Sogdian people have long been a tradition in the Tang army; even the Red Water Army originally contributed capital by allying with the Tang. To protect Silk Road interests, the Sogdians of the Zhaowu Nine Surnames are eager to send men to the army, let alone these united troops, which aren't even about to go to the battlefield right away.

It is only because of the Sogdian tradition of trade; if there is not enough profit to satisfy their appetite, the other side may, to save face for the prefectural office, send a few hundred robust youths living in the city‑side to take part in united‑soldier training.

That's all there is!

The "city‑side" system is Tang's method of settling assimilated foreigners in border towns by placing them beside the prefectural or county seat, allowing them to graze or live in their own way, without forcibly changing their habits, and granting them tax incentives.

The city‑side system greatly promoted Hu‑Han integration and Tang's strength in border towns; by the Kaiyuan era, most of the city‑side foreigners had been registered as households, though their taxes and service obligations differed from those of the Han.

In Fang Chongyong's previous life during the Tianbao years, many Western Regions generals came from city‑side tribes, such as Ge Shuhan, Gao Xianzhi, Bai Xiaode, and so on.

When Ganzu Prefecture lacked troops, it would request soldiers from the city‑side Zhaowu Nine Surnames settlement—a routine procedure.

However, Fang Chongyong understood that each year the city‑side supplies a capped number of soldiers to the border army, with periodic rotations. Now those quotas have long been exhausted, meaning the old "free‑riding" method of demanding people from the city‑side settlements no longer works.

The Tang border‑town policy does not enslave assimilated foreigners as the Tibetan does, so procedures must be followed. Violating local rules inevitably causes the city‑side peoples to become disloyal.

Yan Zhuang's solution is to have the Ganzu prefectural office spend money to recruit extra city‑side personnel as united soldiers. As long as there is money, the quality of troops is assured.

"Ganzu's funds aren't much left, are they?"

Fang Chongyong asked with a helpless expression. Though he hadn't yet seen the ledger, he guessed Ganzu's finances were in trouble.

Yan Zhuang nodded slightly: "Indeed. Though I haven't seen the ledger, the expenses of the Ganzu prefectural office over the past two years suggest the treasury might as well be full of mice!"

In the past two years, the Tang has been continuously waging war against the Tibetans; now the Tibetan army presses the border, and every Hexi prefecture is straining to supply logistics. It would be absurd if Ganzu somehow had money!

Soldiers need extra "campaign fees" for war, which differ from ordinary garrison costs. After battle, rewards and relief are also required to maintain morale.

The Hexi region's local settlement farms are astonishingly numerous, so food self‑sufficiency is not a major issue. Even training united soldiers would have enough grain. The problem is the sparse local population; if everyone is recruited for war, there won't be enough farmers. How to get by next year is uncertain, and a sharp drop in production is inevitable.

Moreover, Hexi's local cloth output is frightfully low, mismatched with its grain production, making it almost wholly dependent on supplies from Chang'an. How to petition the central government for funds is also a concern for Ganzu's governor.

Fang Chongyong grimaced and massaged his temples; the possible Tibetan surprise attack hadn't been solved, and now this whole mess piled up.

"Then how will the prefectural office raise money? Do you have any solution?"

Fang Chongyong sighed and asked.

"The governor could try raising taxes, imposing a commercial tax on Hu merchants traveling to Ganzu."

Yan Zhuang said uncertainly.

Local Tang officials have many ways to handle military affairs, but they are not adept at raising funds; often they are left howling while waiting for central supplies.

Local fiscal authority has been reclaimed by the center; Ganzu's advantage is its border‑town location, so during war it doesn't have to ship local specialties to Chang'an.

The only way to raise money is clearly to increase taxes and corvée; those who don't serve must pay, and the money can be used to hire Sogdian city‑side men for war.

In short, these are all stop‑gap measures; no matter how clever or flashy the schemes, fundamentally they are all tax hikes!

"Ganzu has only a few thousand registered households, with just tens of thousands of adult males. I roughly checked; the rest are miscellaneous Hu (including the Zhaowu Nine Surnames troops), totaling only a little over a hundred thousand people."

"If taxes are raised, the burden per person would be sizable; then Ganzu might descend into chaos."

Fang Chongyong said in a deep voice.

The Ganzu population isn't large—at least not yet. To fulfill the court's orders, they must squeeze the local talent to the limit.

The border‑town populace is fierce; aren't they afraid of officials forcing rebellion? If they defect to the Tibetans, the trouble would be huge!

"We must find another way."

"I've heard Gaochang cotton was once famous and can resist cold. If we plant Gaochang cotton extensively on Ganzu's arid land and then sell it back to Chang'an for profit, what do you think?"

Fang Chongyong stared intensely at Yan Zhuang and asked.

Promote cotton! Vigorously develop cotton cultivation! The climate of the Hexi Corridor is ideal for growing cotton!

The Western Prefecture where Gaochang lies is a node on the Silk Road. Ganzu taking on cotton cultivation there is perfectly timed!

Fang Chongyong bristled with confidence; this move could break the deadlock!

"Uh, Governor, you might not know, the arid lands east of Zhangye are all cotton fields!"

Moreover, even these cottons aren't enough for military supplies; where would there be surplus to send to Chang'an? The troops of the Anxi Protectorate and Beiting Protectorate use cotton coats in winter, all supplied by Ganzu.

Yan Zhuang looked at Fang Chongyong with puzzlement, not understanding what his previous remark meant.

Many have seen the advantages of cotton coats. Thus Ganzu's cotton doesn't even have a market; it's all used by the army! Every year, the agencies requesting cotton coats from Ganzu are mainly western prefectures and counties, and they line up endlessly waiting.

Given this situation, how could we sell it to Chang'an?

Yan Zhuang's words left Fang Chongyong looking embarrassed; he cleared his throat, sighed, and remarked, "I didn't expect cotton coats to be so popular; they've already become widespread in the army."

"Indeed, Governor, that's exactly the case."

"Then what should we do…?"

Fang Chongyong was at a loss.

Brother Ji is so reckless, squandering troops and waging war, squeezing the border town like this; how can we even carry out the Autumn Defense Order now!

"Governor, actually, border towns have always suffered. Youzhou is like this, Hexi is the same; the local registered households are accustomed. Here in Ganzu, local officials are relatively diligent and people‑oriented; to guard against the Tibetans and maintain the Silk Road, everyone rows the same boat, and they don't usually create trouble out of nothing."

If the governor lowers his stance and, as governor, goes door‑to‑door to plead, he can likely achieve some results. That would be enough to report to the court.

Completing the Autumn Defense Order is impossible; the governor needn't overthink, just do his best. Whether it's the Hexi Military Governor or a saint, none will harshly blame the governor.

Yan Zhuang lowered his voice and suggested.

"You let me think."

Fang Chongyong waved his hand, hesitated in his mind, and noted that tomorrow he must summon local officials for a meeting; should he first hear what those people have to say?

(End of Chapter)