Chapter 779

"In this battle, General Yang together with the other three divisions of Bīngmǎ is already sufficient; why trouble the lord to personally lead the army forward!" Xu Zengyi suddenly said, "Although the Shiva People send troops to assist the Qiang People, the Qiang People are now at the brink of extinction, unable to muster several hundred thousand archers; the Shiva People also cannot dispatch several hundred thousand Bīngmǎ to assist."

Based on this humble officer's understanding of the Shiva People, they would absolutely never undertake anything with no profit to be gained; even if they assisted Zhong Qiang, the troops they could mobilize would at most be thirty or fifty thousand.

Chen Li laughed and said, "I had earlier advised the lord in this way, but to no avail; now it's up to Mr. Xu."

Xu Zengyi chuckled, "I know the lord is worried, but General Yang is a seasoned veteran; the combined strength of the four divisions of Bīngmǎ already totals seventy thousand, sufficient for this battle. If the forces prove insufficient, we can simply dispatch Bīngmǎ reinforcements."

Dispatching too many Bīngmǎ for this battle, in my humble opinion, is entirely unnecessary; though the Qiang People and Shiva People appear fierce, we can now roughly gauge their true strength—mere bluster.

Deploying excessive Bīngmǎ consumes the very foundation of Nan Jun. Now, Nan Jun has a hundred affairs awaiting revival, a time to recuperate its vitality; we should economize where possible and not expend excessive manpower in the name of absolute caution.

Yang Tiejiang set down his teacup, rose abruptly, and said, "My lord, this Deputy General can issue a Military Order; if we suffer defeat, military law will be enforced."

Chen Wuji waved his hand, "Everyone, please sit down. Since you all share the same opinion, I will not go. In that case, this battle will be overseen by Old Yang, with Qian Fugui, Chen Baojia, and Chen Wu Yin as assistants, while Chen Bushi will handle grain and fodder in Guangtongzhou."

Yes!

The crowd responded in unison, accepting the orders, and all let out a sigh of relief.

Xu Zengyi's words exactly hit Chen Wuji's heart.

He merely wanted, out of an abundance of caution, to crush the opposition outright and guarantee the greatest chance of victory.

But manpower is indeed a very crucial and core issue.

He can no longer shear any wool, unable to fill the treasury through war anymore.

The forthcoming battles will require the support of Nan Jun's populace.

In these matters, Chen Wuji still listens to advice.

Since they all deem it unnecessary, he will rest in Hezhou for a while, taking this opportunity to engage in agriculture and commerce, trying to siphon grain and wealth from Zhongyuan to Nan Jun.

Regarding the upcoming battle arrangements, a few words settled everything, and even the deployment date was set on the spot.

At that moment, Huo Sanniang's personally prepared river crabs, along with several small dishes to accompany drinks, were brought out.

A few people, beneath the shade of trees, enjoyed the floral and herbal scents while eating and chatting.

As lord, he lacked proper decorum; as commanders, they lacked the bearing of officers, behaving freely and unrestrained.

After only half a jar of wine had been consumed, Chen Wuji and Yang Tiejiang found themselves somewhat unable to bear the talk.

"Old Yang, compose yourselves, let's talk about propriety!" Chen Wuji said helplessly.

Yang Tiejiang nodded repeatedly, sitting cross-legged in a proper and honest manner.

At this small banquet of only four people, the lord's role belonged solely to Chen Wuji; although the commander's role was not held by Yang Tiejiang alone, he was the only one lacking the bearing of a general.

"I wonder how the lord intends to place those officials exiled from the Court?" Xu Zengyi suddenly brought up the matter.

"Come, let's have a drink!" Chen Wuji raised his cup, took a sip, then asked, "Since you've raised this issue, do you have any thoughts? Feel free to speak frankly; I'd like to hear them."

"Today I have a rough understanding of these people; His Majesty the Emperor indeed spoke truly—these officials are all capable ministers and diligent administrators of local governance, with remarkable achievements."

"Thus I wonder whether His Majesty the Emperor exiled them to Nan Jun precisely to keep them from being harmed by those treacherous ministers, in order to preserve talent."

Chen Wuji raised his eyebrows slightly, "Is that possible?"

"This humble officer cannot confirm it for now; in fact, I still lean more toward my earlier judgment."

"Does the Emperor have some other design?"

"Yes!"

Xu Zengyi first affirmed with a sentence, then shifted his tone: "If the Emperor's aim is to overthrow the lord's foundation and replace him using these people, then they must come into contact with the army."

"If they cannot contact the army's commanders, then serving as a minor aide or holding some modest authority in the prefecture is hardly a distinguished post—there's no real difference."

Yang Tiejiang scratched his brow, looking bewildered at Xu Zengyi, "Speak plainly—what exactly are you getting at? Do you want the lord to reemploy them?"

"Yes!"

Xu Zengyi gave a brief affirmative, then abruptly shifted: "However, my meaning is not that I want the lord to reemploy them in Nan Jun?"

"Where then would they be employed?" Yang Tiejiang was again bewildered; his fierce face showed a hint of confusion, not much bewilderment, but rather looked even more ferocious.

That is, Chen Wuji and the others are already quite familiar with him.

If it were a stranger meeting him for the first time, one could certainly not discern from Yang Tiejiang's face what his expression meant; surely, looking from any angle, he appears fierce or even fiercer.

Chen Wuji suddenly had an inspiration: "Mr. Xu, do you mean to send them to Qiang Land?"

"Exactly!"

Yang Tiejiang let out a soft hiss, "You Coffin-seller, your words would be better spent finding them a post in Nan Jun to reemploy them; sending them to Qiang Land would give them greater power, wouldn't it?"

"By then, they will mingle daily with the garrison commanders, sharing drinks day after day; once they grow familiar, they could raise a banner and defect to the Court. The land the lord painstakingly conquered would then become another's bridal dowry."

Chen Li nodded slightly, indicating agreement.

"You blacksmith, don't be so quick with your mouth; first hear me out." Xu Zengyi said.

"The lord's method in Qiang Land is the colony system—namely, relocating Nan Jun's populace to Qiang Land to farm, or having the garrison undertake military farming; military colonies do not require their assistance."

"But if relocating Nan Jun's populace requires these officials skilled in local governance, supplemented by a few soldiers to oversee supervision, what benefit would there be even if they persuaded dozens of soldiers to defect to the Court? Even adding the populace of the colony lands, it would amount to only a few hundred or thousand."

"With our main forces stationed around, what great waves could these people stir? The slight risk is utterly negligible compared to the talent they could display in colony affairs."

Yang Tiejiang let out an sigh, "If you put it that way, it does indeed seem reasonable."

"However, to be absolutely safe, the garrison stationed in Qiang Land at that time must be trustworthy; failing that, I will go—I'll spend a few years in Qiang Land keeping an eye on that bunch of old fogeys. Let's see what scheming the Emperor's son hides by sending half his Court to Nan Jun."

Chen Wuji raised his hand to halt the heated discussion, "Mr. Xu's view is clear and thorough; let's do it this way. We must not abandon eating because of choking, lest we waste these people's talents and delay our progress."